I will allow myself an evil chuckle. Bwahaha. Yeah I know it was pretty shitty of me to leave off like that, but don't you just love suspense!? And yes, I did have the question in mind all along. And sorry about the font. No clue as to what happened. And some mild ooc for Vegeta. So what's new?
Part 2
Gohan sighed again, finally deciding to plunge in. He lowered his voice. "On the day we defeated Cell. You said something that disturbed me. At the time I just thought you had given up on us having any chance to defeat him, but after all the dust settled, I kinda got the feeling there was more to it than that."
Vegeta froze. His mind flashed back to that day. That moment. Those words that had utterly changed his life. Never before had he spoken those words. To anyone. And never again since. Not even to his woman. Not even to his son.
"What did you really mean when you said you were sorry?" Gohan watched his face falter for a split second before his usual angry frown deepened. He braced himself for anything the Saiyan prince might throw his way.
"Why are you asking me such a stupid question?" he growled. Standing abruptly he glared at the boy, his ki flaring briefly. But he just turned and walked toward the gravity chamber. He sat down on the ramp and propped back against the door. 'was the boy brave enough to follow?' he watched him out of the corner of his eye.
Gohan sat, a little baffled, looking at his one time enemy. He suddenly became angry. He'd waited to long to ask him that and he wasn't about to be fluffed off. He walked to where Vegeta sat on the ramp, making them eye level.
"I didn't think it was a stupid question. It's something that's been bugging me for years now, and I really want an answer."
"Oh, really. And you think I owe you one? Can't you figure it out on your own? You have to pester me for something so obvious?" he sneered.
"Well, its not so damned obvious to me! Nothing about you is ever what it seems, except your temper! I mean, one minute you're just as stunned as the rest of us that my dad gets killed. Then Cell pops back and kills Trunks. Then you just go nuts and start blasting away, then get the shit kicked out of you! And if I hadn't stepped in, Cell would have turned you into a pile of ashes!" he ranted.
Vegeta's face darkened several shades at the boy vocally reminding him of that day. He had humiliated himself and his whole race. And to top it off, had felt it necessary to apologize to a third rate baka's half-breed son for his actions.
Gohan saw the look and stopped. All his anger leaving as realization finally dawned. Why hadn't he seen it? He remembered the look on the warriors face when he had uttered those words on the battlefield. The shock. The disappointment. The humiliation. The…defeat. His defeat.
"My stupid emotional tirade almost lost us that battle." He couldn't keep the awkward sadness out, that tinged his angry words. "Never have I let emotions block out the battle skills I've honed over my life time. All I accomplished was humiliating my ancestry. And getting you injured, hindering your ability to deal with the enemy."
"You watched your son die before your very eyes. You did exactly what any caring father would have done. It was noble." He saw Vegeta in a different light suddenly. Even after all the years he had known him, all the cruel things he had seen the man do. All that had somehow been overshadowed when he had lost it over Trunks. He had revealed a heart beneath that cold exterior and couldn't deny it anymore. Although he did a good job at keeping everyone pissed off enough to stay clear of him.
Vegeta huffed. "Don't get all sentimental on me boy. No one takes something from me without a fight."
"Yeah. It took all of us. But we got our revenge." An eerie glint flashed in his dark eyes. Cell had taken something from everyone that day. Luckily most of it had been able to be wished back. Everything but Goku. And a prince's pride.
"If your done with the idiotic questions, leave." He stated.
Gohan smiled. "Thanks Vegeta."
"For what?"
"For helping me see in you what my father saw along time ago."
"Hmmph!"
'Yeah, somehow Dad knew what was really in your heart. Even when you didn't yourself.' He thought, then added, "Oh, and Vegeta. I consider it an honor to fight by your side. And so did Dad."
He smiled inwardly as the Saiyan arched a brow at him, then nodded. His way of saying 'thanks'. The sounds of laughter broke him out of his melancholy mood, and he walked back to the party.
I
hope this made some sense. Its really late and I left my notebook with the
rough draft of this in my locker. If you don't like it, I'm sure you'll let me
know, and I might make some revisions, or just rewrite it completely. Just
hated to keep you hanging for too long!