Note: Though I doubt the sequence of events in this story could ever happen in the human culture, I'm sure they could for another race, one with different customs and beliefs. So please don't look at that story and judge it by human terms, because it would not be realistic otherwise. Keep your mind open! =)
Oh yeah, there's some lemon in here, but nothing nasty.
Background music: "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" by Celine Dion
Lost In A Stolen Kiss
Two hours ago...just two hours ago...the only love I ever knew passed away in my arms. It feels so wrong, like a nightmare. I just can't ever imagine this man dying...
His body is being cleaned and embalmed at the moment. When the process is complete, it will be returned and placed back in the bed, which is where it will stay until the funeral.
I can almost see him being worked on now: His body lying on a metal table while a micro-needle blanket is placed over it to remove every drop of blood from his tissues and organs. The microscopic needles all connect to a long tube attached to a machine that will store the blood. Then an antibacterial preservation agent, along with the disinfected blood, will be injected through the same needles, and his body will be protected from decomposition.
By his wishes, his heart will be removed, cremated and given to me at the funeral. It's his way of reminding me that, even though he's gone, he still loves me.
Now I stand here, going through his things...and I run across the white cloak I was wearing the day we first met. The blood I'd wiped from my hand after smacking him in the face is still there on the lower corner. Heh, never could bring myself to wash it off.
The silly jitters quickly give way to pain...
He's gone...
...my Frieza...
There were times where I treated him so badly, hurt him so much. He never raised a hand to me, but I would hit him, sometimes many times...just like my father used to hit me. Though it never hurt him outwardly, it probably hurt his spirit. I was always sorry afterwards and never could bring myself to admit it until now...
...now that it's too late to tell him...
I can keep lying to myself and say he'll be back again. I could...I'm used to sleeping alone...but then again, I was there when he died. I heard him stop breathing. I felt his heart stop. I saw the life leave his eyes and I felt his mind fade...
...into oblivion...
At least he'll have peace now. Nothing to fear.
~*...Furozen...*~
Frieza's voice calls my name and I jerk my head towards the door. For a moment or two, I see him coming towards me with open arms, his eyes shining and a radiant smile spread across his face.
And I wait.
For what?
For arms that will never wrap around me again? For lips that will never kiss mine again? For a body that will never lie close to mine for as long as I live?
My hands bunch the cloak up as tears well in my eyes. I had lied to him...said he'd still exist...
...but I felt him fade...
I felt his mind fade like a candle under a glass dome...a mind is still a mind no matter what the form it is in, and it can still be felt, read and spoken to...
...but his mind still faded...
...it faded into NOTHING!!!
"RAAAAAAAAAAAUUGHHHH!!!!!"
The cloak is sent fluttering to the floor in two pieces, both wet with tears. Frieza was right to be afraid...
...I miss him more now than I ever have...
How long have I been screaming? This new question silences my cries and I come to my senses on the floor with the torn cloak bunched up in my fists all over again.
If I pretend hard enough...I can still feel his body next to mine...his breath on my neck...and I can still remember the day we met...
I settle myself into the overstuffed chair by the window, close my eyes against the tears and let myself see it again...if only to escape this harsh reality for just a moment...
This is not a good day, in my opinion. First my parents throw me out of the house because I don't like their rules, and now I'm stuck standing here in this place with this simple white cloak to cover my decency. I'm filthy, tired, hungry and cold.
People keep pushing me around, shoving past me to get into the ship sitting at the port. They're sure in a hurry too. Whose ship is that anyway? Whoever it belongs to must be proud of it...it sure is a piece of work...it's so big...I might be able to sneak in without being noticed...
Feeling so small, I follow the round outline of the ship with my eyes to scope out any open panels I can slip into.
Pale fingers curl around the white cloak over my shoulders, my own fingers, numb from the icy weather. Kuso... I need to get more accustomed to dramatic temperature changes.
Now several people have slowed to a stop just outside the glass pyramid where travelers pick up their things. A few people nearby proceed to bow, but I don't. I just stand and watch to see what the big deal is.
"Bow. Lord Frieza is arriving." Mutters someone behind me. Who does he think he is, telling me what to do? Besides...if I bow, I won't get a good look at this Frieza fellow...he is sort of a celebrity around here.
First to emerge into view is a fat pink creep with stubby hornlike nubs all over his head, ridged bluish-purple lips and blue armor. Probably the only thing keeping his endless rolls of lard from exploding outwards is that armor...the image of that thing sending lumps of fat in all directions makes me smile and bite my lip to avoid laughing openly.
Next comes a blue-green figure with a green braid sweeping across his back. Hey...this guy is pretty good-looking for an off-worlder. He has perfectly arched eyebrows, long eyelashes and coy golden eyes that tease anyone who looks at them. White jewelry with purple baubles as accents adorn his ears and forehead. A cape dances behind him like a waterfall of white. Yeah, he's definitely cute...but then again, I've heard what people say about pretty men like that. This guy is probably a fruit-cake.
The fat lard bucket and the pretty boy step to the side and stand on either side of the door. Their posture is perfect and straight, as if welcoming a general.
"Bow!" The man behind me pleads again. He probably doesn't realize I'm female...he would change his choice of words if he did.
"No. If you can't see, then move elsewhere!" I say and ignore him again. He moves away and lowers back into the bow...a short blue-skinned Icejin with dark green armor plating and a single black unicorn-like horn growing from his forehead. His lips are bi-colored, the top one dark red while the bottom one is dark purple. Interesting fashion statement...much more colorful than my plain gray.
Eventually, my eyes spot the gold sonar gem between his closed eyes. Sheesh, I just yelled at a blind guy...that was really stupid of me. I'd be in trouble if there were authorities around.
"Sorry," I mumble before facing forward again without waiting for a reply.
All eyes turn to the door of the space port and the crowd splits down the middle. I smile smugly at their submissiveness and look to the door. It's really easy to see since everyone else is bent over or kneeling.
I wonder how strong this guy really is...he's probably huge too. A nice, big hunk whose chest is so broad I couldn't encircle it completely with my small arms.
A new shadow is cast on the floor...tall and slim from the position of the first sun. My eyes are so intent upon it that I miss the 'grand entrance'.
Eyes raising, I watch the pink freak and the braided man walk towards the ship. There is a third person walking with them now...an Icejin this time...probably another servant. He's shorter than both of them, looking like a kid rather than an adult. White skin, amethyst armor plates...that is all I see before he disappears behind the pink alien.
As this odd trio walks along, the people behind them stand and go about their duties.
Wait...if they're dispersing, that means...
THAT is Frieza?! Frieza Kold? Son of Korudo Kold...ahem...King Kold? THAT tiny little thing?
Hah...haha...this has to be a joke.
A joke...
A very funny joke...
I hear myself giggling and cover my mouth with my hand as I watch the two off-worlders enter the ship, leaving this so-called Frieza alone in the bustling crowd. Everyone finally stands and I lose sight of him because he's so short.
People finally start to walk away, giving me an even clearer view. I can see Frieza signing paperwork while people stand nearby, looking nervous. He is facing my way, though his head and eyelids are lowered. Girlish features...small white hands...perfect nails...this guy is well cared-for.
A single word passes between his dark lips. His voice isn't deep or intimidating at all. It is very polite and soft...quite odd that one of such high status would be so polite and soft-spoken.
Still, when the polite word is spoken, the men standing near him bow and scatter like birds escaping a predator.
Why is everyone so nervous?
This Frieza person doesn't scare me...
Nope, not I...
Those lowered white eyelids suddenly lift and intense ruby spheres focus on me. Purple shines, his head lifting slowly. I do not bow for him as the others did, staring back instead. Something...something in this man's eyes has me mesmerized. I can't look away, can't move, all thoughts cease in seconds. His gaze has me paralyzed.
In his eyes, I can see his power...even then it is only a glimpse at what he can do. Power untapped, or well-hidden...
Before my thoughts straighten out, he is coming closer, walking straight towards me with quick steps, tail swishing behind. I can't make my body move to turn and run...can't step back...
...losing...control...
...can't fight...his gaze...
...captured...
Frieza stops in front of me...he is taller than I by about three inches...and we stare at each other face to face. His chest rises and falls slowly, nostrils flaring with exhalation...deep wine-colored lips glitter...warm air touches my chin.
I can't catch my breath...he has even stolen that...
Kuso...
He doesn't speak a word, doesn't blink, doesn't move. Ruby pools melt me...I'm under a spell...
...I hear him...his voice speaks to my mind without words. His thoughts...
...his coiling, swirling emotions...
...my image...
...silence...
...he pushes through my walls...stronger...powerful...
He knows what I am...he is...like me...
...His eyes...they are so...so...captivating...
I'm falling...
...falling...
...falling so fast...
A hand rises below my chin to tip my head up. Warmth moves closer to my face and soft moist warmth covers my lips. Our thoughts start to entwine, a tornado of mixed memories...
...I stand paralyzed, crippled by a gaze and lost in a stolen kiss...
Lost...
...eyelids closing...
...accepting...
....WHAT AM I DOING!?
Eyes flying open, I rip my lips from his and shatter the entwined stream of thoughts. How dare he! How dare he make me lose...lose myself...my heart...
...be still, my heart...stop pounding...
Instinctively, my arm pulls back, fingers splayed and palm flat like a blunt weapon...
"BAKAYARO!!!! HOW DARE YOU!!!"
SMACK!!!!
His surprised expression is lost in a blossom of blood as my palm contacts the center of his face and pushes him to the ground with the sound of skin hitting skin heavy in the air around us. I feel hot warmth coat my palm and look down to see violet blood staining the skin.
My mother taught me that move, she once said it will knock anyone down. Thank you very much for that lesson mom...it works. I take a moment to wipe my hand on my cloak, smiling at the power I have with this simple defensive move.
People in the crowd are quickly growing angry with me. Glares are burning into me from all directions. Variously-colored lips are curling. Fists are tightening. Tails are flipping indignantly.
Some say I have no respect for authority. In essence, that's true. I do not like to be told what to do unless I ask for instructions. I will follow the law and all that, but I'll do it in my own way. If someone doesn't like the way I do things, then they'll just have to deal with it.
Before I know what has happened, I'm taking to the air to get away. I glimpse Frieza on the ground, flat on his back and unmoving. My handprint is present in the form of a bruise with his bloody nose in the center.
...what if I killed him?
The thought is a quiet and brief one.
He is surrounded by people now and I see him shake his head. I feel relieved without knowing why...I know I'm going to be in serious trouble...there is no way I could win a fight...
One of the men that went into the ship, the guy with the long braid, comes out and helps Frieza up. Since he's being helped now, I pay him no more mind and zip around to the back of the ship...
...a-ha...
An open cargo hatch has been forgotten. I slip in with a snap of my cloak and look quickly for something to hide in or behind. That black crate in the corner seems worthy of my presence. Nothing in it anyhow...
My lips grin as I climb into the crate and curl up on my side with my arms and legs pressed close to my small body. I use my tail to pull the lid back over, then wait in darkness.
CLINK!
I must have fallen asleep...the noise wouldn't have startled me as much as it just did. But the hatch is shut...several others are following, and nobody has looked into the crate I'm hiding in. Cargo is being shifted. Voices murmur as the crate I'm in is pushed against the wall.
Boink.
Ow, my head...I'm definitely not used to stowing away.
...murmuring voices start to move away...
...waiting...
...silence...
Perfect.
...screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
The engines create a deafening screech as they come alive and blast the ship towards the atmosphere. My ears feel as if they're about to explode! At least the noise doesn't last, going silent as the ship supposedly leaves the atmosphere.
I rest my palms against the top of the crate and push upwards to shove it away. Darkness greets me, so much that I can't see past my nose. That doesn't matter...
...Freedom...
Unwarranted, my mind wanders back to that kiss. Remembering it makes my heart throb harder behind my breasts. My God...his lips were so soft...so warm and sweet...
...wait.
He is near...
...and he knows I'm here...
I can't hide now, but I won't give myself up either. So I climb all the way out of the crate and stand with my tail brushing across its lid. The thumping sound seems so loud in the silent metal cargo bay.
The heater must be on too...warm air is occasionally touching my face...
My eyes struggle in attempt to adjust to the dark, though there's nothing to see. They are forced to adjust again when a light is suddenly flicked on...
...Frieza is right there...the warm air I'm feeling is his breath! If I had stepped forward, I would have crashed right into him!
How did he find his way to me in the dark without hitting anything?
Here we are, face to face. Another stand off.
Dried blood still marks where his nose had been bleeding from earlier. The bruise is deepening in color, an exotic hand-shaped tattoo adorning his pale features. No expression shows on his face, save for a look of confusion. The way he looks at me isn't a lustful one...I had thought so before, and that is why I had struck him the way I did.
~...You are like me...~ His mind seems to whisper. It doesn't speak words, just feelings and thoughts.
~...No...no there is no way...~ I think back before turning away.
Finally, he speaks with that polite, soft voice, as if he isn't aware of what he was just doing. "Why are you stowing away in my ship?"
I can't look him in the eye. If I do, he'll capture me again...his gaze will steal my heart... I stare at the floor and his feet, trying to come up with a reply while the wild bird in my chest flits about. Or is that wild throbbing my heart?
...be still, my heart...
Kuso... I can't think of a good excuse...I'm screwed!
"I'm running away from home." I finally blurt without looking up. A sudden sense of self-consciousness comes over me, and I pull my white cloak tighter around my small, naked breasts.
Frieza just nods his armored head once, heaves a sigh that makes his carapaced shoulders rise and fall, and extends his hand towards me. Not once does he mention, think about or apologize for what he did outside...
...I think I actually liked it...
"Come on." He says flatly, "It won't bite you, it's just a hand."
My eyes slowly focus on the small white hand before me. It is a delicate thing with long tapered fingers and manicured nails. The kind of hand that should be plucking a Parha...an instrument that resembles a snail shell with the sides sliced off, and the strings stretch all through the spirals; they come in various sizes, from cheap hand-held ones make of plastic to six-foot tall ones made of crystal...
...the crystal ones make the most beautiful music too. The strings are made of a transparent metal that lights when someone plucks them. Experienced players can create beautiful rainbows along with the sound. My mother played the Parha well...
...I can too, but I wish I was as talented as her...
I kick my thoughts aside and reach over to take the hand being offered. It feels warm and soft like a rose about to bloom, its heat shocking my frozen fingertips. The contact lets me sense his throbbing heartbeat, and I know he can sense mine as it pounds wildly.
...why am I so nervous?
Frieza turns and leads me out of the cargo bay without a word, and I follow like a faithful puppy with my tail grazing the walls as we move along. When we're up on one of the higher decks, he finally whispers, "You could get into legal trouble by boarding a ship without permission. Though I don't like it, there is nothing I can do about it other than to eject you into space and let you fly through light-years of nothing-ness." He seems to shudder upon mentioning this, as if bad memories were plaguing him.
I stop walking at that and plant my feet firmly in the floor, "I won't allow that!" I point a finger at his face, "You'd get in serious trouble if your dad found out you spaced a female!"
"Girl, you would be in more trouble for stowing away than I would for spacing you. And what makes you think I would do such a thing?" He stops walking and turns to face me with a dazzling smile that shows perfect teeth. "I was merely taking you to a room where you could clean up."
Eyes burning a little, I let my hands ball into fists at my sides, "I don't need your help! If you don't want me here, I'll get off when your ship reaches the next destination."
The smile loses its glow and suddenly melts as if I just hurt his feelings. "I see." His ruby eyes lower, "Then I won't stop you, but I do suggest you allow me to find you some private quarters. You see...this trip is going to take two months."
Chikuso! Two months!?
"Fine...I'll take a room. Size doesn't matter as long as there's a bed and a bathroom."
Frieza simply nods, turns on his heels and continues walking down the corridor. Under his pale skin, well-defined muscles and cord-like veins ripple with his movements, especially in his legs and back, and his tail sways lazily as he walks. His hips almost have a girlish sway to them...it's actually kind of cute.
...Sheesh!
"So where are you heading anyway?" I finally ask after several moments of silent walking.
"Planet Arlia. My Papa wants me to pick up a few resources for him."
"Mm."
He turns his head to glance over his shoulder, and I quickly turn my eyes away, even though he probably knows I'm staring at him. What is with me and these stupid jitters anyway? I've never been nervous around a male in my life, until now!
...but then again...I've never met a male who is 'different' like I am...
"Ah, here we are." Frieza punches a button on the access panel by a door and a rush of air greets me as the way into the quarters opens. A shocked servant jumps and stares open-mouthed at us. Frieza just sweat-drops, "Eh...sorry."
I try my utmost to avoid laughing openly.
"That was the only empty room. Since someone has claimed it, I'm afraid we'll have to share."
My silent laughter shuts up real quick and I shoot a sharp look his way. "Us...you and me in the same room?"
Purple glistens when he nods and tips his pointed chin towards me, "You don't mind, do you?"
I will not be afraid of this guy! I don't care if he is the son of a KING...I won't fear him...he is just a mortal man...
...a very strong one...
...and pretty...
Argh!
"No." I get up the nerve to look him in the eye again.
As soon as I do, I fall into the same trance I was in before and feel thoughts not of my head swirling around. I can feel my own thoughts being sucked away and returned.
In just a few seconds, I see Frieza's entire childhood; his father is a perfectionist who is never satisfied, and he trains him to the limits. Even abandoned him in space once to see if he could find his way home on his own. I could feel how afraid and lonely he had been.
He never knew his mother, has no memories of her at all...
...now my thoughts are being suckled out of my brain. A larger version of myself with white armor plates, my mother, playing her Parha. She was once a beautiful woman until father finally drove her into insanity.
My father, a very tall man with white skin and black armor, hitting me, screaming at me and calling me a freak. He blames me for my mother's insanity and actually turned her against me...
Frieza averts his eyes and turns his head, eyelids lowered. He appears on the verge of tears for several moments before his composure returns. No words pass into his throat when he starts towards a large door at the end of the curving corridor with me close behind.
We are about ten feet from the door when the pretty man with the long green braid walks up to Frieza and bows. "Sir, reporting for - hey!" Golden eyes turn to focus on me, "That's the girl who struck you! Shall I arrest her?"
"No, Zarbon." Frieza replies smoothly, "She is a...guest."
"But, sir? She may be an assassin, or a spy!" The man called Zarbon is behind me in a flash, twisting my arm behind my back. Ligaments stretch, pain shoots up into my shoulder, and it's only a matter of seconds before I am wrestled to the floor.
I make a move to throw him off when he gives my arm another sharp jolt, giving me the sensation of having my arm twisted off. Involuntary cries of pain rise, my own, and Frieza flinches. "AAAAHHH! OW!"
"I'll escort her to the brig now, sir."
"You will escort her into my quarters, Zarbon!" His voice takes on a cold edge that tarnishes the smooth politeness from earlier. "And you will take your hands off her..."
Zarbon finally decides to obey his master and hauls me to my feet. I jerk my arm out of his grasp and rub the smarting joint that had been twisted out of synch, muttering, "Bakayaro..."
The pretty man says nothing, shooting me a glare before bowing to Frieza and walking off. I ignore him and follow Frieza through the door.
Lips pressed together, I take a look around at the large area. The entire wall opposite to the door is a concave window. Stars are rolling lazily by like sparkles on an agitated sea.
I've never been in space before, so I stand entranced for a moment, watching the masses of eternity as it spreads out before me. I can remember my father telling me that death is like space without stars...just an endless black void...
"The door near the window leads to the bathroom, where you can shower up or do whatever you need to do." Frieza whispers smoothly. A flick of his tail gently dismisses me to do as I please while he settles in a black hovering pod near the window...
...I watch him move for a moment...
...falling...
My head comes together again and I frown. What IS wrong with me!?
When I step towards the bathroom he speaks up again, shyly, "I do believe I am at a disadvantage. You know my name, but I don't know yours..."
"Oh!" Sweat-drop... "I'm Furozen."
He steeples his delicate fingers together before him and turns the hoverpod to face me. That dazzling smile has returned to his lips, making his eyes seem so much brighter. His smile alone could warm me much better than a thousand hot showers...
"You have a lovely name."
"Th-thank you." Comes my reply. On my heels I turn, heading towards the bathroom for a clean-up. Bleah! My under-arms probably smell like something decayed under the skin.
One word has the computer adjusting the water temperature, steam billowing around me. I untie my cloak and let it flower at my feet, paying it no more mind. Three-toed feet, my own, step into the metal-walled shower. Water blasts me painfully from the rotating faucet in the ceiling. It feels good at the same time, like an itch being scratched.
Scrubbing...lots of it...
...suds everywhere...
...sweet smelling soap, the best I have ever used...
Warm. Comfortable. Relaxing.
Sigh...
After polishing my carapace with several repetitions of using soap, water and scrubbing, I reach over and regretfully turn off the steaming faucet.
Steam-fogged metal walls, tell me whose reflection is that? Who is that girl with the silver-gray armor plate, gray eyes and gray lips? Whose white skin is that? To whom does that lithe little body and white tail belong to?
Hehehe...it's me...
...actually clean for once...
Smile etched on my face, I step out of the shower, notice my reflection in the clear mirror on the opposite wall and stop, having not seen myself in quite awhile...
...to be honest, I'm no beauty queen, not with the ugly purplish-red scar over my right eye. Now that my face is clean, it really stands out. My figure...well...I don't have the hourglass shape my mother had. My breasts are too small and my hips are too wide, in my opinion...but I guess nobody is perfect...
...except maybe Frieza...
A smirk forms at the thought as I ignore my discarded cloak, stepping on it while I grab myself a towel and...
...I can smell him in the material...
My fists bunch the towel up as I rub my face in it. I want to get his scent all over me...I want him...
What the hell am I thinking!?
The towel is dropped from my hands after my skin has effectively been dried off. I wonder if Frieza knows what I'm thinking at this moment. He would probably be laughing his head off...
Hissing noises, the door opens and I step through to find Frieza has seated himself in a far corner of the room. A peculiar object rests before him, something resembling a stylized, golden triangle with a multitude of strings stretched in the open space. It looks like...
...yes...a musical instrument of some kind, one unlike any I've seen, yet very similar to the Parha.
Before my eyes, he lifts his tapered hands to the instrument and begins to pluck its strings. The sound...it is very much like a Parha, though the notes don't last as long and the strings don't light up.
He is in his own little world, lowering his head as he plays. The instrument is taller than him, though not as big as a Parha, and he has the thick slanted side up against his shoulders while his hands and arms move about to pluck the strings. So graceful...those slender white fingers...black nails scintillating with the lights overhead.
What sort of instrument is it that he plays? Certainly not one of this planet...but maybe another...
...that isn't important now. He plays that thing so well...
Entranced, I just watch his delicate little fingers as they move endlessly across the taut strings. He looks so content while playing it, eyes closed and lips pulled into a small smile, as he creates the most beautiful music I'll ever hear.
I become aware of moving closer. Closer to the music he makes. Closer to him. My tail sways to the rhythm of the song, which is like the sea just before a storm.
Churning endlessly.
Never stopping.
Always changing.
Never the same afterwards.
The last note echoes to silence, but the sounds I heard remain forever echoing in my ears.
Frieza stays poised until the last string plucked stops vibrating. Then his pale eyelids lift...
...ruby spheres focus onto me...
~*Rose...*~
....what?
"Silver..." He says with a smile, white hands still touching the strings. "I've never seen a female with silver plating before..."
My hand rises to touch the carapaced armor on my scalp. "It's gray." I quickly defend. "And very common. More than you think."
Small bubbles of laughter escape his throat, "Silver."
"Gray." I retort.
"Silver."
"Gray."
"Silver."
"Gray."
"Gray."
"Silver....GAH!!!" I've been had! No fair!
We both laugh for a few moments before I trail a finger across the stringed instrument and speak again, "What is this thing?"
He looks at it briefly, runs a hand over the strings and replies with simple smoothness, "It is called a 'Harp'. As for the planet...I don't remember which one it was created on..."
"You play it well..." Cheeks growing hot, I add, "Could you show me how?"
"I'd love to." He smiles at me again, dazzling me with his eyes. Lazy grace emerges as he uncurls from the stool and gestures for me to sit. When I do, he positions the thick backboard part of the instrument against my shoulder, scooting me closer. Then his warm hands grasp my wrists and place my hands over the strings. Rather than vertical, as it is supposed to be when playing a Parha, he positions them horizontally so four of my fingers are able to reach the strings.
"It's awkward..." I complain.
"You'll get used to it," Warm hands guide mine over the strings until a trill of resonating notes swirl around us both. I begin to play awkwardly, though my talent isn't anywhere near his.
My cheeks grow hot, "It sounds a lot like the Parha. Even still, my fingers are too clumsy for any stringed instrument."
Purple glistened on his rising and falling shoulders, a shrug. Ruby spheres focus onto my right eye intently, brow creasing, "How did you get that scar?"
I close my eyes and self-consciously turn my head. "My father...did it to me. He had multiple personalities; a child, a normal man and an insane something..." My voice hardens and I continue with more anger, "I read his mind when he was in one of his insane moods and saw plots to kill my mother. He tried to kill me by clubbing me in the face with a diamond ore table ornament when he realized I knew. I was lucky to close my eyes when I did, because the blow tore my eyelid open instead of my eyeball..."
Cool skin runs along the edge of the scar, "Does it still hurt?"
"Of course not. It's probably ten years old or so."
"I'm not talking about the scar you can see." Black lips press together to be moistened by a long purple tongue. "The outward ones always dull themselves to pain over time, but the ones you don't see...those are the ones that never really heal..."
I straighten and smile a little, feeling like a silly little girl who got caught trying to sneak off with something. My eyes raise to meet his, "It's strange...I don't know you that much...but I feel like I know you so well..."
Frieza's expression softens, if such a thing is possible in an already gentle expression, "I think I understand what you mean." He says.
Ruby spheres begin to swallow me up as they had every other time I looked upon them. Lost...falling into a glistening sea of red...
My mother once told me that people encounter their true love for the first time in the most unexpected moments. She also said that there will be a time where I will look into that man's eyes, and the universe will stop. It will just stop and disappear while my entire reality becomes crystal clear, right down to the very atoms making up everything around me.
That moment has arrived for me at last. I can't explain how I know, or why...but I love him...
My heart speaks his name, and I can hear his speaking mine back. His thoughts caress mine, seeking to mingle, to become whole. The same feeling aches within my mind and heart, both burning with this fiery new emotion.
I suddenly find myself wanting him to kiss me again as he had before. I want to taste his lips and the sweetness between them. I want to wrap myself around him like a ribbon and lose myself in his depths. I want to share everything with him...my life...my love...my body...everything...
Ten seconds pass before I feel him come closer. He's seeing into my mind and knows what I crave. Drawing near, lips parting, hot breath grazing my face, he steals my breath away just like before. Soft moist warmth grazes across my doors of breath and they part to let him in.
Warmth caresses me as his lips press against mine. I lose myself immediately in the fire of my own emotions and drown in the sea of sensation as our mouths make love to each other.
...I'm falling so fast...
...falling into him, for him...
...Frieza...
Hot hands sear my spine when they trail down its length. My back arches into the touch and I respond with the same gesture on his chest, making it heave against my palms. Kisses grow more fervent, more heated with desire, more hungry for passion.
Eyes alight, Frieza slowly ends the kiss and stares at me, emotion etched into his girlish features. My eyes return his look, body aching for something more, something to complete it. The aching was for him.
I'm so lost in his beautiful face that I don't realize we've moved until I feel the bed beneath me. His body is on top of mine, its heat passing to me as moist warmth from between his lips meets my skin. I feel his talented hands tantalizing my flesh as if he has done this every day and knows my body by heart.
Heart racing...
...body so hot...
...breathe...
...breathe...
My arms coil about his neck like a wreath. Hands press against my hips and I shudder in brief pain as pressure forever removes my virginity. My pain is his, and his is mine. We cry out together from the shock of our joining.
I beg him with my eyes and my mind, pleading that he does not stop. With a quivering lip, he nods, our dance beginning among the sheets. They tangle and wreathe about us as we move within one another. Our bodies are soon a mass of moving arms, legs and tails, and not a moment passes by without our lips locked together in a searing kiss. His fingers slowly interlock with mine until our palms are pressed together, tapered digits flexing intermittently around my own.
A strangled cry of pleasure, involuntary in its origin, escapes my throat when he rotates his hips as he repeatedly impales my femaleness, creating a friction that leaves me trembling in his arms. His voice murmurs wordlessly into my ear, movement and emotion bringing our feelings ever higher towards completion.
Reality leaves us as our minds begin to twine in the most intimate way, a way that makes this act so much more intense than it is for mundane people.
I can see our bodies still moving on the bed as one, followed by two rivers, one red and one blue, merging to become a purple waterfall that drops off the edge of a bottomless cliff in space.
...delicate hands grip mine tighter...
A sun shines on some distant planet with a blue sky and white clouds. Its glow slowly disappears as the moon covers it completely, the filmy corona expanding to merge light with dark.
...my tail curls tighter about his waist, pushing him further into me...
Two liquid metal dragon-flies merge together and continue flying as one. Morphing slowly, they become Frieza and I, merged from the neck down. More liquid flows, lips melting together until only one creature is gliding through the void of eternity.
...eyes like rubies glitter, mine filling with passionate tears and blurring my view as I look into them...
Storm clouds race by, wind whipping the area and bending silver grass to the point of breaking. Lightning shatters darkness, thunder blasts through silence and wind destroys stillness. The sky swirls, a tornado forming to merge the ground with the sky.
...sensation starts to rise, tensing my body as it progresses. The other body tenses with mine as well, and I hold on tighter...
We are two ribbons wrapping around one another, again and again. Colors begin to mix until we are both the same shade of grayish-purple, yet still we continue our endless intertwining.
...I speak his name to him, begging him to finish it, my body quivering on the edge of bliss. He lowers his face to kiss me, his lips ever-gentle and soft against mine, and we both lose ourselves at the same moment. I see the curve of his face as he arches his back, face contorting slowly...
Minds twining again as strangled cries of pleasure erupt from our throats, we share a common vision...
...flowers in bloom...
...volcanic eruptions, lava mixing with water to form yin and yang...
...massive waves crashing onto an alien shore...
...blinding supernova explosion!!!
SENSATION!!!
We ARE the SENSATION!!!!
"FUROZEN!!!"
"FRIEZA!!!!"
Vision completely white, I can hear myself screaming his name like a mad woman as the universe comes together and explodes in my body. I feel so whole, so complete! I can hear Frieza's cries mix with mine, calling to me, and our voices form a harmony together.
When it is over, I open my eyes to find him staring at me through heavily-lidded eyes. Smile stretching my lips, I pull him tighter against myself. I can hear him breathing softly, endless rushing of air flowing through his small nostrils.
Soft hands stroke my back, loving eyes peering into mine. He doesn't speak, doesn't need to. I can see everything now...everything that is, was, and will be him...
...my God...I've just gone against everything I've been taught about choosing a mate! I'm supposed to court him, get to know him and spend as much time as possible with him. I have completely violated everything...
...and I don't care...
Rules don't matter, life doesn't matter...nothing does. Nothing but the way he makes me feel.
"What are you thinking?" Frieza asks softly, interrupting my thoughts with the soft music of his voice.
I feel myself smile, "I think you could easily find out."
His eyes focus intently for a moment and I feel his mind brushing mine like a gentle hand caressing soft silk. Wine lips curl upwards and slanted red eyes wrinkle at the corners, "I won't let your father harm you, Rose." A hand brushes my face, "I promise."
Those words make me feel so much more at ease. I feel the stupor of sleep coming over me now, probably an effect of the afterglow, and a few aftershocks make me quiver when I shift to lay my head on his shoulder. He gives a playful thrust that makes me gasp, grinning at me when I give him a look of mock anger before settling down to sleep.
His smiling face follows me into my dreams, staying forever frozen in my mind and heart...
Rustling sounds wake me from my sound sleep. My eyes, sticky from the juices of slumber, drag themselves open. The air stings for the first few seconds before my vision focuses, and the stuporous fog slowly leaves my mind.
Frieza has been returned and placed on the bed, delicate hands folded one atop the other on his navel. A black veil-like death shroud has been placed over him to keep evil consciousness' from possessing his body.
Next to the bed is a tray with cosmetic supplies. Good, the servants actually followed my orders for once.
Exhaling, I drop the cloak in my fists and pad towards the bed, where I pull the shroud down until my husband is uncovered from the chest up. A long scar runs between his pectorals where his heart was removed. The skin was glued back together with a special polymer bonding substance. It isn't supposed to leave scars, but then again, its use is normally for living flesh that can heal. His lips are so pale, and cracks adorn them because they have dried out completely. His eyelids and fingertips have deepened in their unhealthy grayish-purple hue...all signs of death.
"Does that hurt, my love?" I ask him tearfully as I kiss the scar on his chest, "Don't worry...I'll soothe it for you...I'll make it all feel better..." Oh, Frieza…his soft skin is so cold! But don't worry, it won't last long.
Yes, I'll hurry so I can cover him up again before he freezes…
Creaks sound when I seat myself lightly on the edge of the bed and start to open the cosmetic containers on the tray nearby.
Deep red, like his eyes...I thrust my thumb into the color until a thin coat covers it. Not letting a drop go to waste, I bring the thumb to Frieza's lips and gently coat them until not a speck of their cracked paleness is visible. Cleaning my thumb with a rag, I dip my thumb into the black, coating it completely. Gentle fingertip returning to lifeless doors of breath, I coat their new softness with the black. It mixes well with the red...his lips look as they did in life.
I wipe my thumb off once more and smear a thin coat of white in my palm. No sound, save for my quiet sobs, interrupt the silence as I gently spread the cosmetic substance onto Frieza's eyelids and the backs of his hands. I rub it in gently to even out his complexion and spend another moment admiring the beauty of his face before placing the shroud back into place.
Now he looks like he's only asleep. A porcelain doll draped in a black veil to keep dust and insects off...so precious and breakable...
...my Frieza...my love...I wish I could tell you how precious you look now...
A shadow falls across the floor, soft footsteps approach behind me and a careful hand comes to rest on my shoulder. A whisper of thought is passed through my consciousness, a whisper I know all too well.
I don't have to look...I can picture the figure behind me as clear as day...
...a face and eyes just like Frieza's...armor-plates colored in a mix of gray and purple...lips dyed black from their original pinkish-red...
...the only reason I didn't end my own life when Frieza died crystallizes with the single word spoken from this person's mouth.
"Mom?"
I turn slowly to look, and immediately lose all my resolve. "Heru..."
Heru...
...my son...
...Frieza's son...
...our son...
Now full-grown, he looks just like his father. My tears blur his image as I cry into his shoulder. He hugs me softly and looks over my shoulder at Frieza, and I feel hot tears drip onto my neck.
"Dad..." Heru whispers as if expecting a response. He keeps his arm around me while reaching down to lay his hand across the top of his father's shroud-covered head. His resolve fails as well, a childlike word leaving his lips. I can still remember how he used to say it as a child, that shrill happy cry. Now it is laced with pain and grief, escaping in a quivering moan, "Daddy..."
His pain broadcasts itself through my head, and I can feel him trying to probe the mind that is no longer there.
...I wonder if not telling Heru that Frieza really died on Earth is a good idea. How would he react if I told him the body lying there is just a clone that failed to form properly?
I'll keep silent...I don't think he could live with losing his beloved father twice...
...I know I can't stand losing the love of my life twice...
"There are so many things I never told you...so many that I should have..." He cries softly. "I should have told you I loved you more often..."
"Heru..." My tail twines gently with his as I place my hand on his back between his shoulderblades. "He knew, Heru...he knew the whole time, and he loved you just as much in return. If he had been able to speak at the end, he would have told me to tell you he loved you..."
Some of his pain lifts a little, the dark cloud of his grief leaving my mind. His smile...Frieza's smile...weakly forces itself onto his lips. Careful arms wreathe around me, a comforting shelter from this storm of emotion.
It seems like only yesterday, I was holding Heru for the very first time.
...But that is a story for another day...