by Gie: phowah@cs.com
Disclaimer: Vejiita-chan and his
familiars aren't mine. Their
attitudes within, and the plot line,
are. Toriyama-san is credited for
them. *sigh* Oh well. Ya
win some, ya lose some.
Here's a LONG Chapter 2. The tone
changes drastically from the last chapter, but
I promise, minna, things will get better.
The song, 'Pie Jesu' is very old, and I really
don't know who wrote it. It's also
in Latin. If you want to hear what it sounds
like, and I reccomend it highly, here's
a link to a version sung by Sarah Brightman
(Mrs. Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, of 'Phantom'
fame) and some boy soprano.
http://www.elycia-webdesign.com/music/requiem.ram
It's a beautiful song. I also sang
it in a choir; that's the first time I heard it.
The song sends chills down my spine when
I hear it. *shiver* Anyway, here's
Chapter two. Let me know what you
think of it--I'd like to hear from y'all!
Gie-chan
When Love Comes Knockin' At Your Door
Chapter Two: Shades of Gray
***********
The week passed by uneventfully; well,
as much as normalcy
dictated around Capsule Corporation.
Saiya-jiin sparred, ate, and
argued. And not necessarily in that
order. But that comfortable
routine was jarred and changed the morning
of Bura's birthday.
The breakfast table was full of food,
like normal. The
resident Saiya-jiin, Vejiita, Trunks and
Bura were eating heartily,
while the visitor of the morning, Goten,
had not arrived downstairs
yet. Bulma was in the kitchen finishing
up the meal.
Bura kept looking from the kitchen
door to the entryway, as if
she was expecting something. She looked
up once more in
expectation when Bulma came out of the kitchen
with a plate. She
watched as her mother sat in her normal
spot across from her, but
her mood dropped when she saw what was on
the plate--her mother's
breakfast. She sighed and glancing
once more at the entryway, and
continued to eat in silence.
Bulma heard the sigh, and raised an
eyebrow in question.
"What's wrong, Bura? Did you not sleep
well last night?"
She shrugged her shoulders noncommittally.
"I slept fine, I
guess." She glanced down at her mother's
plate again. "It's just
that, well..." She went silent and
continued eating.
Bulma threw a glance at the two males
at the table. Trunks
was the only one to return it, and he just
rolled his eyes. "What,
Bura?"
"Well, I was just wondering, umm,"
She looked up at her
mother, her blue eyes wide with question.
"Where's my birthday
pancake?"
A smile peeked at the corner of Bulma's
lips. "Oh Bura, last
year you said you were 'too old' for the
pancake, remember? So I
didn't make it this year." She watched
Bura's face fall in
disappointment. "I'm sorry, B-chan.
I didn't know you wanted one."
"That's fine, Mom. I guess I
did say that last year." She
sighed and looked back down at her food,
but not without giving the
entryway another glance.
"Do you want me to go make you one,
honey?" Bulma saw a
movement out of the corner of her eye, and
smiled wider.
"No, you don't have to. I just
thought..." She turned around
when she heard the kitchen door open.
Her eyes went wide as she
saw Goten carrying a plateful of flames.
"Goten?"
He smiled at her, and started singing.
"Happy birthday to
you!" Bulma and Trunks joined in;
Vejiita just glanced up and back
down to his food. "Happy birthday
to you! Happy birthday, dear
Bura! Happy birthday to you!"
He set down the plate in front of her,
and she saw what was on it: a thick,
plate-sized pancake decorated
with butter, multiple flavors of syrup,
M&M candies, jimmies, and
fruits. All around the rim were flaming
candles, twenty-five in all.
Bura squealed, clapping her hands in
excitement. "My birthday
pancake! Yay!"
Goten nudged her. "Well, blow
out the candles before you
have to eat wax, too."
She nodded and sucking in a deep breath,
she closed her eyes
and blew, extinguishing all the candles.
They all clapped, except one,
and Bura threw her arms around her boyfriend.
"Thank you, Goten!"
He returned the embrace willingly.
"You're welcome, B-chan.
Happy birthday."
"And you thought you weren't getting
your pancake today?
How can I mess with tradition?" Bulma
teased. "I said I didn't make
it. Never said anyone else
did."
Bura paused in cutting a piece of the
pancake. "You mean,
G-chan made this?" Bulma nodded in
agreement. She stared at the
food on her fork, and looked back at her
boyfriend, who sat in a seat
next to her, spooning out his own portion
of the food on the table.
"Is it safe to eat?"
Goten frowned. "Of course it
is! I am a wonderful cook. My
mom taught me herself."
"Good. Then you'll be the one
cooking, Goten." Trunks jibed
him. "Bura can't boil water if her
life depended on it."
She sent an evil glare to her brother,
but smirked. "You're
not going to get my goat today, Trunks.
It's too nice of a day!"
He rolled his eyes. "Whatever,
little girl." He stood up from
the table and as he was leaving, he blew
a raspberry on her cheek.
"Happy birthday, B-chan."
He stopped in the entryway, though,
as Dr. Briefs entered the
room. "Good morning, Grampa."
The elder Briefs glanced up at him,
and Trunks saw that the
older man looked twice his age; his face
was pale, and his eyes
seemed sunken in the back of his head.
He still had his nightclothes
on, as well. "Is something wrong,
Grampa?"
He shook his head, and turned to the
table. "Vejiita, could you
come with me for a minute, please?"
The Saiya-jiin looked up at him, a
scowl plastered on his face,
and was about to say something, but he saw
the expression on Dr. Briefs'
face, and nodded. He stood from the
table and followed the older
man out of the room.
Trunks blinked a few times. "What
was that about?" He
turned to his mother, who had a confused
look of her own. "Do you
know, Mom?"
"No, I don't." She shook her
head. Not much shook up her
father; he usually was unfazed by the events
going around him. But
something had rattled him good. She
stood up from the table. "But
I'm going to find out." She walked
out the door and disappeared.
Trunks returned to the table, sitting
down in his father's
place. "I wonder what that's about.
Grampa didn't look that good."
Bura nodded somberly from her pancake.
"Yeah, he seemed
really depressed or something."
"Well, he is getting old, B-chan,"
Goten reminded her. "Maybe
his age is just catching up with him."
Both Trunks and Bura frowned but said
nothing in reply.
Trunks sighed and played with a fork on
the table. "So what are you
two going to do today?"
Bura shrugged and looked to Goten.
"Well, there's the party
tonight, and I have to pick out what Goten
and I are wearing, so that
might take awhile."
"What? I can pick out my own
clothes, thank you very much."
Goten huffed into his food, throwing Bura
a scowl.
"G-chan, you can pick out clothes,
but you tend not to pick out
ones that match." Bura smirked at
him. "This is my birthday party.
You have to be the hottest one there, besides
myself that is."
A loud wail jerked them all to their
feet. "Mom!" Trunks
yelled, and bolted out the door, Goten and
Bura on his heels.
The three found them in Dr. Briefs'
wing of Capsule Corp,
Bulma in the arms of Vejiita, both were
leaning against the wall next
to the elder Briefs' bedroom, with her face
buried in his chest. His
arms were around her, and he was staring
off into space. "Dad! What's
wrong with Mom? We heard her all the
way in the kitchen." Trunks stared
at his father, waiting for an answer.
"Papa? What happened?"
Bura edged closer to Vejiita. She
frowned when Bulma started another round
of wailing.
Vejiita glanced down at the woman crying
in his arms, then up
at his children. "Your grandmother
is..." he hesitated, then set his
face in a neutral scowl. "She is no
longer with us."
Bura took a step back, and encountered
the heavy hands of
Goten. "What? Gramma is...no..."
A sob choked up her throat and
she turned around, unknowingly mimicking
her mother's position, only
in Goten's embrace.
Trunks stared at his father.
"Gramma's dead?" Vejiita
nodded slightly. "How?"
"She never woke up this morning."
Vejiita stared down at his
mate. "Your grandfather found her
that way. He wanted me to
confirm it." He picked up his mate,
brushing by the trio. "I am
taking your mother to bed, Trunks."
He glanced at Goten, who was
comforting Bura. "I will not train
today, Goten. And tell her that her
party is postponed." Goten just nodded,
not looking up from Bura's
hair, where he was murmuring comforts.
Vejiita grunted and walked
away.
Goten slid his arms under Bura, picking
her up. He nodded to
Trunks and the three left for Bura's room.
Trunks opened the door, and Goten gently
set Bura down on
her bed. She opened her eyes, red
from crying. She looked at
Trunks. "Gramma..."
He crawled onto the bed, wrapping his
arms around his sister.
"I know." She burst out again in tears,
burying her face in his
shoulder. Trunks closed his eyes and
let his own tears escape into
Bura's hair. "I know."
Goten stared at the pair, and cleared
his throat. Trunks
looked up at him from his position on the
bed. "I'm going to go..."
Bura looked up from Trunks' shoulder. "Please stay, Goten."
The purple-haired male nodded in agreement. "Please?"
He hesitated, but then nodded.
He sat on the other side of
Bura, and pulled both Trunks and Bura into
his arms. The trio looked
rather awkward and ridiculous huddled on
the bed that way, but it
was comforting to all involved.
**********
Capsule Corp was almost tomb-like in
its silence and inactivity.
Normally, there was always something going
on, or someone
conducting an experiment that needed a million
workers running
around. It seemed that the building
itself was mourning the loss of
the bubbly female. Even in her advanced
age, she was seen around
the building, offering sweets and drinks
to the visitors or puttering
about in the flower gardens, usually among
the roses.
So that afternoon, when Pan
stopped by to visit Bura on her
birthday, she was greeted with the deafening
quiet. She tiptoed
down the hallways, somehow sensing the somber
mood and reacted
accordingly. She knocked on Bura's
door, and when no one answered
it, she opened it to see if anyone was within.
"Bura? Are you here?
B-chan?"
The doorway opened to a main sitting
room, which was littered
with assorted articles of clothing strewn
about in Bura's normally
messy style. She picked her way across
the floor and stood in the
doorway of the bedroom, her eyes wide at
the sight before her.
Pan stared at the mass of entangled
limbs on the large bed.
Goten and Trunks seemed intertwined with
Bura, becoming one
jumbled creature with three sets of arms
and legs and three heads.
All three were sleeping soundly. "Bura?
Goten? Trunks? What's
going on?" She sighed when only soft
snores answered her. She
closed the door quietly behind her and decided
to clean up after her
best friend while she waited for an explanation.
Or at least for
someone to wake up. As she was picking
up the sitting room, she
smirked to herself. "I don't clean
up my own room. Why am I
cleaning hers?"
After an hour or so, Pan's sensitive
Saiya-jiin hearing picked
up a stirring coming from the other room.
She opened the door and
saw Bura trying to untangle herself from
the Trunks and Goten's
arms. She saw Pan and gave her a helpless
look. "I can't breathe!"
she whispered. "Can you help me out?"
Pan smirked and nodded, moving to help
her. "I guess. What's
going on? Why are you three sleeping
in the afternoon? I thought
you'd be getting ready for your party tonight."
She unraveled a set
of tails coiled around Bura's legs.
Bura stared into space for a few seconds,
and shook her head.
"The party's not happening tonight."
She stood up and went into the
bathroom, closing the door behind her.
Pan blinked. "Why not?"
She turned back to the bed when Trunks
spoke quietly.
"Gramma died this morning, Pan. Or
at least she didn't wake up this
morning." He rubbed at his eyes and
scowled at the arm wrapped
around his chest. "Wake up, Goten.
And get off of me. I love you
like a brother, but not this much."
He pushed at the sleeping
Saiya-jiin, trying to untangle himself.
The black-haired male grunted, shifted
slightly, and moved over,
letting Trunks sit up. "Where's Bura?"
Pan sat on a chair, and stared at her
unmoving relative. "She's
in the bathroom, Uncle. So, what's
with the orgy?"
"Orgy?" Goten blinked open his black eyes. "What orgy?"
"The three of you looked like a big
mass of limbs and heads.
Why were you all sleeping together?"
Trunks ran a hand through his tangled
hair. "I guess we all
fell asleep. We were comforting B-chan,
and well..." He shrugged his
shoulders.
Bura emerged from the bathroom, looking
a little bit more
awake. Her eyes were puffy and red
from crying herself to sleep.
"Hey, Pan-chan."
Pan stood and wrapped her arms around
Bura. "I'm sorry,
B-chan. I loved your Gramma, too."
"I know, Pan-chan." Bura smiled
as a few more tears leaked
out of her eyes. "Some birthday, ne?"
She sat back down on the bed
next to Trunks, pulling Goten's head onto
her lap.
Trunks patted the spot next to him,
and Pan curled up to him,
her head resting on his chest and her arms
around his waist. Trunks
wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders.
The four of them
sat there for several minutes, quiet.
A hard knock brought them out of their
silence. Bura looked
up from Trunks' shoulder, where her head
was resting. "Come in,
Papa."
Vejiita entered, a scowl on his face.
"Why are you all in
here?"
She shrugged her shoulders a little.
"No reason." She smiled
a little bit. "How's Mama?"
"She's sleeping at the moment."
He stared at Goten, who still
had his head in Bura's lap. He let
out a snort and shook his head.
"You know your party is postponed."
"I figured that." Bura stared
down at the head of hair in her
lap, and let her fingers trail through his
black locks absently. "Do
you know when..." she swallowed hard and
continued. "When the
funeral will be?"
He nodded. "In two days there
will be a remembrance
ceremony. The burial will be the next
day." He cocked his head to
the side. "Your grandfather made a
request of you, Bura."
She looked up. "What is it, Papa?"
"He wants you to sing a song at the remembrance ceremony."
"Me? Sing a song?" She
frowned at the request. "Why? Do
you know what song?" She swallowed
again and wiped a tear from the
corner of her eye. "I don't know if
I'll be able to sing."
"He said something about a song that
you sang once before.
You will have to ask him about it."
His features softened slightly.
"He also sends his regrets about the events
on your birthday, Bura."
"I know." She nodded, her voice
hoarse with emotion. "I'll
talk to Grampa. Thank you, Papa."
A long, staggering sigh escaped
through her lips and her head fell to Trunks'
shoulder once again.
He stood up straighter and reached
for the door. "When your
mother wakes up, she will more than likely
want to talk to you two. I
will be out in the gravity chamber."
Pan sat up from Trunks' embrace. "Can I join you, Vejiita?"
He nodded at the youngest Saiya-jiin.
"If you want, brat. But
I am not in a playing mood tonight."
She nodded and slipped by him to change
into more comfortable
workout clothing. Vejiita moved to
follow her, but paused in the
doorway. His features softened into
a small smile and a spark of
affection lit in his black gaze as it fixed
upon Bura. "We will
honor your birthing next weekend, Oujoko."
Bura's face lit up and a slow smile
spread across her features
at the pet name. "You haven't called
me that in a long time, Papa."
Vejiita just smirked and walked out, closing
the door behind him.
"Dad was in an affectionate mood tonight,
ne?" Trunks mused,
shaking his head. He poked Goten in
the ear. "I thought he'd rip
Goten's tail off for lying in your lap."
The said appendage waved under Bura'
nose, tickling her. "So
did I."
She grabbed the offending tail and
pulled slightly, earning a
'yip' in response. She let it go and
it immediately disappeared from
sight. "You don't have to be afraid
of Papa, G-chan. He actually likes
you." Goten flipped over so she could
see the incredulous look on his
face. "Okay, maybe 'like' is a strong
word. How about we say
he...'tolerates' the Spawn of Kakarotto
lusting after his precious
Oujoko." Bura tweaked his nose in
a teasing manner, a smile lighting
her face.
"Che. As if I get a chance to
lust after you." He smirked and
used his tail to pull Bura down for a long
kiss.
"Ack! I'm still here, ya horndogs!"
Trunks pulled out the
pillow from behind him and whapped the pair
of Saiya-jiin, showing
his disgust.
Bura pulled away from Goten and stuck
her tongue out.
"You're just jealous, Trunks. Go find
a girlfriend to play tonsil
hockey with." She ducked as the pillow
hit her again.
He just snorted and crawled off the
bed. "I'm going to go see
if Mom is up yet. Coming?"
She smiled and nodded. "I'll
be there in a minute." Trunks
rolled his eyes and left.
Bura sighed, rubbing a hand over her
eyes. "Gods, what a
great birthday, ne, Goten?" She stared
at a spot on the wall. "And I
was looking forward to this party tonight,
too." Her eyes went wide.
"I gotta call and cancel everything!
I doubt Mama was up to
anything." She reached for the phone,
but was stopped by Goten,
who pulled her close to him. "What, Goten?"
"Do I need a reason?" He pressed
his lips to hers, burying his
hands in her hair. She groaned, sagging
onto his frame. He just held
her tighter.
When the kiss stopped, Bura stared
into his black eyes, her
fingers trailing over his forehead.
"I love you, G-chan. Never forget
that. I would die if you were lost
to me."
Goten swallowed and pulled her close
for another
breath-taking kiss. His tail wound
around hers tightly. His lips
traveled across her cheek, until they brushed
across her earlobe.
"You are my everything, B-chan." He
breathed into her ear, his
tongue flicking across the lobe. Bura
shivered at both the sensation
and his words of love. "I feel incomplete
without you. Your soul fills
the hole in my heart. I love you more
than life itself."
He pulled away when he heard a sniffle.
"What's wrong,
B-chan?"
She shook her head, her lavender hair
brushing against his
chest. "Nothing, that's what's wrong.
Nothing at all." She closed
her eyes, and bit his chin lightly.
Goten responded by nipping at her
nose. They lay there, in each other's
arms for a minute or so, silent.
No words were needed at the moment to express
their deep-seeded
feelings.
Goten let go of kiss, and pressed his
lips to her forehead.
"You need to go talk to your mom."
She sighed and buried her face in the
crook of his neck. "But
she's not as warm as you are. Who
needs an electric blanket?"
Goten chuckled and rolled over, pushing
Bura into the
mattress. "But blankets are so much
fun to cuddle under."
"You're pretty fun to cuddle under
as well." Bura purred,
running a finger over his neck. She
reached up and pulled him down
on top of her, nipping on the crook of his
neck lightly with her teeth.
He growled back, his eyes closing slightly.
But he shook his head, and
got up off the bed, his eyes wide.
"We can't do that until we're mated,
Bura. You know what
your father would do if I Marked you, or
you Marked me before the
Ceremony." He ran a shaky hand through
his wild mane, his tail
whipping behind him.
She sighed. She knew. Her
tail thumped on the bed in
frustration. "Fine. I gotta go talk
to Mama now, anyway. Trunks is
probably chomping at the bit, waiting for
me."
Goten nodded. "I'll be in the
gravity room, training with your
father." He held out a hand and she
took it, accepting his help off
the bed. He ran a hand through her
hair, straightening out the mess
of tangles. "Soon, B-chan."
He leaned down and kissed her, his
passion for her evident in the simple gesture.
She kissed back with an equal fervor,
grinding her hips into
his own. "Stay here tonight?"
Her tail brushed against his, its
seduction loud and clear to the other.
He swallowed and nodded. "If
you want." He sighed and
jerked his head behind him. "I'm going
to use your bathroom to
change, okay?"
"That's fine. I'm going to go talk to Mama. Love you."
He smiled, nodding his head.
"Love you, too. Hey, B-chan?
Did you still want to go out to dinner tonight?"
His smile turned into
a smirk. "We can still celebrate your
birthday a little."
She smiled back. "That would
be nice. You definitely have a
romantic streak, G-chan." She blew
him a kiss and left the room.
Goten stared after her, a silly grin
on his face. "I have to
defeat Vejiita soon. The sooner, the
better." He turned to the
bathroom to change for Vejiita's training
session.
************
The next two days went by in a blur.
There was still a feeling
of heavy morose lingering throughout the
quiet corridors. Each of
the residents seemed to find different tasks
to keep their minds of
the other day's event. Goten and Bura
were barely seen apart; Goten
taking up residence in a guestroom.
Bura had talked to her
grandfather, about a song selection, and
was rather surprised by his
choice. She told him that she would
need some help, explaining who
and what she'd require, and he agreed readily.
Trunks had taken on the task of preparing
the rose garden for
the remembrance ceremony. If it was
in worse shape, it would be an
arduous project, but his grandmother was
very particular about her
roses, and she treated them with almost
as much care and love as her
own grandchildren. They would be holding
the ceremony out there, in
her favorite spot. The ceremony itself
would not be a fancy and
detailed affair; just a few words from a
local pastor and whoever
else wanted to talk. Bura would sing
her song, and they would release
a single dove, one of her favorite birds.
A simple ceremony for a
simple woman. She would have wanted
it that way.
Vejiita did nothing out of the ordinary,
at least for him. He
trained, he sparred, and he ate. Although,
those tasks were put on
immediate hold if he would sense Bulma needing
him or his presence.
Needless to say, Vejiita didn't have many
long training sessions.
While the others seemed to be handling
their grief rather
well, Bulma was not. The news of her
mother's death hit her
hard--she was closer to her mother than
her father. Even though
she shared her genius with her father, he
was as aloof with her as
his experiments. Bulma shared many
a night when she was growing up
talking with her mother about various things--her
dreams, her
inspirations, her crushes, and her disappointments.
The frequency of
their heart-to-heart chats dropped when
she went on her adventures
with Goku, but they returned with a vengeance
during the three-year
training period for the androids.
Bulma valued her mother's opinion
greatly, and she was a wonderful sounding
board for her indecisions
and frustrations with Yamucha, and then
Vejiita. Her advice was
priceless--even when it didn't make much
sense at the time. She
already missed the comforting presence of
the elder female greatly.
But the two days passed by, and it
was time for the
remembrance ceremony. Slowly, people
began to arrive in the
gardens and seat themselves in the folding
chairs available, but not
before offering their condolences to the
bereaved. In the front a
small table was set up, with a framed picture
of the deceased,
beatific smile lighting up the picture.
A cluster of her favorite
flower, the silky roses, were wrapped with
a white ribbon. The body
itself was not there for viewing, due to
her own wishes.
Vejiita and Bulma sat in the front
row; Bulma clutching a
handful of tissue in one hand and the other
being held by Vejiita's
tail. She wore a modest black dress,
a lacy shawl wrapped around her
shoulders. Vejiita wore a black suit, shifting
in his chair every once in
awhile, not saying a word to the people
offering their condolences.
He gave a nod here and there if a comment
was directed to him, but
otherwise he stared directly ahead, his
mouth in a grim line.
Trunks and Bura sat next to their father,
also silent and
sober. Both wore customary black, and gave
answering nods and
murmurs when someone talked to them.
On the other side of Bulma sat Dr.
Briefs, who seemed to have
aged at least ten years in the past two
days. He nodded somberly to
the guests, but his eyes remained in his
lap, where his trembling fingers
played with a white handkerchief.
An older man came up walked up to Trunks,
and talked to him
with hushed tones. The purple haired
male nodded back to the older
male, and watched as he moved up to the
front of the assembled
group of mourners. "Today, we're here
to celebrate the continuing
of everlasting life of Mini Briefs, beloved
wife, mother, grandmother,
and friend."
The rest of the sermon given by the
pastor was heard, but not
absorbed by Bulma, who had begun to cry
once more in earnest.
Vejiita, showing a rare sight of public
affection, pulled Bulma down to
his shoulder, whispering comforting words
to his mate. Soon, she was
able to compose herself, and she sat up,
but not without having
Vejiita's muscled hand curled around hers,
resting in her lap.
"Now, as it was Mini's request, she wanted
this to be a rememberance
ceremony, not just a time to grieve over
her departure," the Pastor
said. "Would anyone like to say anything?"
The group was quiet for awhile, no
one wanting to start, or
knew what to say. Trunks finally broke
the silence when he stood,
clear his throat. "Well, to start
off, I guess I just wanted to say
that I am going to miss Gramma tremendously."
He grinned a little.
"No one could whip up a chocolate cake and
a glass of lemonade
spontaneously like she could." A few
chuckles arose from the crowd,
from those who knew her culinary talents.
"I remember the time
when I had come home from school one day
and I had done rather
poorly on an important test. Gramma
was the one who saw me first,
and just by looking at me, she knew what
I needed." She smiled at
Bura, who had a small smirk on her face.
"She sat me down at the
table and pulled out an entire cherry pie,
telling me if I didn't finish
it within five minutes, she was never going
to bake again. Well, I
wasn't going to deprive the world of her
culinary talents, so I
finished it in four minutes." Another
chuckle floated through the
crowd. "I felt a lot better after
that. Forgot about the test, that's
for sure." He sat back down.
Bura shook her head. "You forget
a lot when you have a full
stomach."
Yamucha was the next to stand up.
"Mrs. Briefs was very
special to me for many reasons, but one
in particular. When I was
growing up, I didn't have any sort of a
'mother' figure in my life.
And when I was going out with Bulma, she
filled that role for me. I
was always grateful for her for that."
Bulma glanced at Yamucha,
and the two shared a smile before he sat
down.
The memories flowed after that, many
of them from happy
and joyful times. A few remembered
some of her sillier moments,
but they all were said with fondness and
love for a woman that
touched many of their lives.
After awhile, Dr. Briefs stood, and
gave the assembled
friends and family a small, genuine smile.
"Thank you all. It's a
wonderful feeling knowing that Mini will
live on in all of you. She
cared for her family and friends deeply,
and was especially overjoyed
when her 'handsome boyfriends' made a visit."
He made eye contact
with Goku and Vejiita.
"One of her greatest joys was this
garden." He raised his
hands, indicating the area around them.
"She loved to sit among the
roses, digging in the dirt to help them
grow. It is my wish for you all,
before you leave, to have one of her blossoms.
She would like to have
part of herself, besides her memories, for
you to take home."
He turned to Bura and smiled.
"And now, if you would, child, sing a song in
her honor. She so loved your voice."
He sat back down, giving Bulma's
offered hand a squeeze.
Bura stood up, and moved to the front
of the room. "This song
is rather special to both me and Gramma.
I sang this as a part of a
duet in a choir several years ago, and Gramma
offered her voice to
me as my partner when I practiced at home."
She swallowed hard,
and wiped away the tears from the corners
of her eyes. "It was
invaluable time between the two of us, and
whenever I hear it I
always I will remember the time I spent
with her." She sniffled,
composing herself. "Since the person
I dueted with the first time is
not here, nor is the one I preformed with
in the concert, I've asked
another special person in my life to help
me out." She smiled into the
gathered people, and Goten stood up, coming
to join her in front.
She held out a hand, and Goten grasped
it tightly. She nodded
to Pan, who stood by a CD player.
She pressed 'play' and a soft flute
started to play, its notes sounding rather
loud against the silence of
the group.
Bura started out singing, her high soprano voice ringing clear:
'Pie Jesu, pie jesu.
pie jesu, pie jesu.
Qui tollis peccata mundi
dona eis requiem
dona eis requiem.'
The flute's notes trilled again, acccompanied
with an orchestra, and
Goten took a deep breath, preparing to echo
his friend, lover, and future mate:
'Pie Jesu, pie jesu.
pie jesu, pie jesu.'
Bura joined in, harmonizing with Goten.
Their voices
resonated against each other, the sound
pleasing on the ears, despite
the high range:
'Qui tollis peccata mundi
dona eis requiem
dona eis requiem.'
Many members of the crowd were startled
by the pure quality
of Goten's voice. Only a few select
people knew of the hidden talent
that the half Saiya-jiin kept secret.
Goten, himself, did not think he
had a very good voice, modest soul that
he was. But Bura knew, and
was very proud of him. Goten did enjoy
singing, and knew that singing
and reading music came to him easily, but
his high tenor voice didn't
do him much good on the battle field or
in training.
The song continued after a short piano
interlude, Bura closing
her eyes as they both sang again.
A choir could be heard on the
recording, echoing their words:
'Agnus dei, agnus dei
agnus dei, agnus dei.'
The choir cut out, and the two harmonized
once again, their pure
tones echoed despite the open area in which
they sang:
'Qui tollis peccata mundi
dona eis requiem
dona eis requiem.'
(choir) 'Dona eis requiem'
(G & B) sempiternam
sempiternam
(B) requiem
(G) sempiternam
The piano faded out, and Goten and
Bura sat back down, their
hands intertwined with the other.
Dr. Briefs stood back up, wiping
his eyes with the linen handkerchief in
his hand. "Thank you very
much, Bura, Goten. That was beautiful."
He cleared his throat. "I
just want to thank you all for coming, to
pay your respects to Mini.
She loved you all, and would have been thrilled
to see so many of her
friends and loved ones to be in one place.
Knowing her," he smiled
and shook his head slightly, "she'd be running
around with a tray of
something good to eat and drink. And
in her spirit, there will be a
reception in the main dining hall.
Please, continue your celebrating of
her life there. Once again, thank
you all for coming." He nodded to
the group and turned to Bulma, giving her
a kiss on the cheek. She
returned it along with a long hug.
Bulma reached below her,
and opened the cage that held the lone dove.
She lightly fingered the soft, feathery
head of the pure white avian, and
pressed her lips to the downy feathers.
With a small toss, she released
the bird of peace, and all watched in silence
was it carried away to the
heavens the spirit of Mini Briefs.
Murmurs filled the yard as the mourners
broke up, forming
small groups to talk or venturing inside
for food. Trunks, Pan, Goten
and Bura immediately closed in on each other.
Pan smiled at her
uncle, giving him a hug. "I didn't
know you could sing that well, Uncle!
Both of you sounded very good together."
Goten blushed, rubbing the back of
his neck in embarrassment.
"Um...yeah." He didn't know how to
take compliments about his
non-fighting skills.
Bura did, though. She smiled
and wrapped her arms around
Goten's waist. "Thank you, Pan-chan.
We have been practicing
non-stop since I found out what song Grampa
wanted me to sing. But
I knew we could pull it off. Goten
has an amazing range. He can go
higher than I can."
Trunks rolled his eyes. "So,
who kicked ya in the balls for you
to hit those high notes?"
Goten sputtered but Bura put a finger
on his lips. "No one had
to, Trunks," she smirked. "G-chan's
a natural."
Goten said nothing, just blushed a
dark red. He didn't want to
stress his individuality in that area, so
he thought the subject matter
needed to be changed. "My stomach
heard the magic word and it
needs satisfaction." It growled to
emphasize its point. He shrugged
his shoulders, smirking. "Told ya.
Food, anyone?" He didn't even
bother to hear their answer before leading
Bura inside to get his
share.
Trunks sighed and held out an elbow
for Pan. "Might as well,
before the garbage disposal gets it all."
Pan snickered back and
accepted the offered arm.
******
On the other side of the garden, Bulma
was sitting in a chair,
quietly talking with ChiChi. Goku
and Vejiita were inside the minute they
heard the word 'food'.
Videl and Gohan joined them.
"It was a lovely ceremony,
Bulma," Videl said, giving the older
woman a hug. "Your mother would
have loved it."
Gohan gave her a comforting hug as
well. "The best thing I
remember about her was her attitude toward
everything. Nothing
seemed to faze her, especially a group of
people flying around.
She always greeted everyone with a smile
on her face." He gave
Bulma a kind smile.
She smiled back. "Nothing really
ever fazed both Mom and
Dad. They took everything in stride."
Her smile faded. "It won't be
the same around here without her."
ChiChi patted her friend's arm.
"I felt the same way when
Papa died. But the hurt and the pain
fades with time. I still miss him
greatly, but Goku-saa, Goten and Gohan helped
me get through it.
Vejiita, Trunks and Bura will do the same."
A sly smile spread across Videl's face
when Bura's name was
mentioned. "So, Bulma, what's the
status on Goten and Bura?"
The topic change cheered the genius
up a little. "Well, they're
really close. They've been spending
every minute possible together,
but the past couple days they've been practicing
for that song." She
leaned in conspiratorially; the others copying
her move. She glanced
around to see if certain parties were around.
They weren't. "But I
think Goten's going to challenge Vejiita
soon."
ChiChi blinked a few times in confusion.
"Why would he do
that?"
"Because that's how it's done.
At least for Vejiita." Bulma
rolled her eyes. "It's some sort of
Saiya-jiin tradition. Sort of like
asking the father for permission."
"Actually, Bulma, it's almost exactly
like that." Gohan
explained. "But there's a little more
bloodshed involved."
"Bloodshed?" ChiChi's eyes went wide. "Bloodshed?"
Bulma nodded. "Goten has to defeat
Vejiita in order for him
and B-chan to get married. He has
to 'prove his abilities' to him."
Bulma sighed, and rested her chin in one
hand. "But I don't know if
Goten will be able to win. Vejiita
can go Super 4, since I modified the
Brute Ray to bring back all of your tails."
She pointed to the brown
tail that was wrapped around Videl's calf.
Gohan smirked, crossing his arms in
a superior manner. "And
who says Goten can't?"
The three females stared at the lone
male, eyes and mouths
wide in shock. "You mean he can?"
Bulma blurted out. "Does Vejiita
know?"
Gohan shook his head, his smirk still
plastered on his face.
"That's not for me to say, Bulma.
But I will say that Goten just
might give Vejiita a run for his money.
When he wants something,
there is not much that stands in his way."
"And how do you know this, Gohan?" Videl frowned.
"Well," he scratched his cheek,
his smirk fading to a light
frown. "I don't know if I should say
this, so don't tell anyone else,
okay?" He pointedly looked at Bulma.
All three females nodded their
heads in agreement. "Vejiita doesn't
know this, and I don't think
Trunks does, either, but Goten has been
training with Dad and I at
night, trying to prepare for his Mating
Challenge."
"What?"
"He has?"
"You have?" All three females were in shock at this news.
"Is that where you've been going after
supper?" Videl
queried, a knowing frown on her face.
"You said you're studying at
the library for another thesis."
"Well, I've thought about going for
another doctorate, but I
haven't decided." Gohan confessed.
"But Goten didn't want anyone
else knowing about the training sessions,
in case the news got back to
Vejiita."
"But why the secrecy?" Bulma
shook her head. "There's no
need for it, at least I don't think there
is. Vejiita's been training
him really hard in the mornings."
"He wanted to have a surprise waiting
in the wings, you could
say. He's been holding back in his
training with Vejiita, as well, not
letting him know about his increased strength."
"So how strong is he, Gohan?"
All three females leaned
forward to hear the answer.
Gohan leaned forward as well.
"Well, he's...going to have to
tell you, himself, because I'm not going
to say." He leaned back, a smug look
on his handsome features.
"GOHAN!!!"
************
Sorry, I should have warned you all about
character death. Gomen nasai! But
the song is beautiful, ne? Here are
the translated lyrics:
Pie Jesu
Merciful Jesus
Qui tollis peccata mundi
Who takest away the sins of the world
Dona eis requiem
Grant them rest
Angus Dei
Oh Lamb of God
Dona eis requiem sempiternam
Grant them eternal rest
Next time, we honor Vejiita's precious oujoko's birthing. *grin* And maybe a certain young pointy-haired male challenged an older flame-haired male for Mating Rights? Hmmm...
Ja matte ne, minna! Gie-chan
