AN: I'm thinking one chapter after this, and then I'm done. Gotta play my cards close to my chest here…
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If one was listening closely enough, they might be able to hear the soft splash of sweat drops into a puddle. However, neither Kameko nor Trunks happened to be paying much attention to the subtle sounds, as Kameko's hyperventilation masked the muted noises. Sucking down the oxygen available, she sat on the ground, hands positioned behind her to hold her up, completely exhausted. "I hardly consider this fair!"
Laughing, Trunks replaced the scouter into the container on the wall and walked up behind Kameko. Remarkably, a thin sheen of sweat had also beaded onto his skin, matting his hair down. "Consider what fair?"
"Two hours we trained. Here I am dying, and you're just warmed up!" Her breathing had slowed as she rested, allowing a pout to control her lower lip.
Trunks sat down next to his partner in training, and shrugged, a playful look in his eyes. "I don't know, I just might need a pillow."
Kameko rolled her black eyes back, hard. "Well, cry me a river."
"Yeah, a pillow." Trunks spun himself parallel to the turtle hermit's daughter, and laid his head down on her lap. "This works. Not like there's any muscle there to make it lumpy."
Kameko reached out a hand, and swatted at the Prince's arm. "We've been training together for half a year now. Are you planning on admitting that your training is so bad that I don't have any muscles?"
Trunks tried to frown, but the edges of his lips refused to cooperate. As a result, a half-frown, half-smile appeared, and both Kameko and Trunks chuckled.
A comfortable silence fell over both, the only sounds being their respiration, and the ever-present dripping of perspiration. Staring at the stark white ceiling, Kameko thought back over the past half-year that had comprised their training. Very, very slowly Trunks had opened up to new ideas, accepting another's opinions. And, just as slowly, Trunks had revealed small, minute gaps in his stony demeanor. Not that he had necessarily changed, Kameko amended, but that he had allowed Kameko to see another side to him that was not dominated by resolution and determination.
And, she mused; she had changed her attitude. The resentment had faded into a comfortable sort of relationship, where she didn't have to be guarded against more than his punches and kicks. While there was still the logical knowledge that he was the Prince, and she his subject, they acted as peers, teasing each other about crushes, mistakes, and generally shooting the breeze.
"When do you think my father will realize his son's learned how to evade an attack better than he can?"
Kameko grinned down at Trunks. "When you can actually do it."
Reaching up, Trunks pinched her nose in retaliation.
Seeing his self-righteous smirk, Kameko gasped and held her nose. "Trunks! What do you think you're doing?" The second she realized what she had said, she clasped a hand over her mouth. Eyes wide with horror, her heart rate sped drastically. Calling a member of the Royal Family by name alone was punishable by death. And while the two had become what Kameko considered friends, she had no idea if Trunks would kill her on the spot.
Trunks drew his eyebrows together at Kameko's display, confused. When he realized what she was worried over, he laughed out loud. "It's alright. Call me Trunks in private, I don't care."
Removing her hand from her mouth, Kameko let out the breath she was involuntarily holding. "Oh, OK…Trunks." She let the name roll off her tongue, liking the sound of it.
"So, tell me Kameko, what is the general population of the False Saiyans…"
Softly, Kameko broke into his sentence. "Human."
Trunks turned his head to the side in an outward attempt to gain understanding. "Human?" Trunks pronounced the word slowly, as if he had never heard it before. "I don't understand."
Picking a small scuffmark on the floor to focus on, Kameko explained in an understated manner, as if she were embarrassed. "Human. It's what we call ourselves. False Saiyan makes us sound inferior."
Scowl lines appeared on the Prince's forehead. "But, you are inferior. Your race's fighting skills and power is no match for us."
Kameko shook her head. "Sure, we can't beat you in a straight fight. But it's so much more than that."
"Explain."
Sliding one hand under Trunks' head, Kameko cradled his head off her legs, and freed herself. She then stood, and clicked open the box holding the scouter. "This scouter. We created it through resourcefulness. The gravity chambers you use. New agriculture techniques." She placed the scouter back, and shut the box. "Just because we're not fighters doesn't make us inferior."
"Hmmm. I see."
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"Alright, Vegeta. Why are you spying on our son and that girl?" Bulma had entered the room, hands on hips when she spotted her husband once again viewing the training hall on a monitor.
Dismissively, Vegeta responded in his usual brisk manner. "Quiet, woman!"
"Oh, no you don't. Not this time." Bulma sat down on their shared bed behind Vegeta, and draped her arms around him. "I know you're not trying to set them up as a couple, because you want Trunks to marry a physically stronger girl." Bulma dropped her forehead into Vegeta's unyielding trapezoid muscle. "Or, is that why you had them train? To make her strong enough to marry him?"
"Hardly. The brat will be marrying into royalty."
Absentmindedly, Bulma began tracing small spirals in Vegeta's collarbone. "So, what's the deal? You never answer me."
Resigning himself, Vegeta sighed. "My goal was to have them become friends."
Sitting up and pushing herself away, Bulma critically looked in Vegeta's eyes for any hint of mirth. Finding none, she crinkled her forehead. "I don't get it. You spend all his life trying to isolate him from forming a friendship, and now you pick some random girl off the street to become his friend?"
Vegeta motioned to the screen. "It worked, didn't it?"
"Yes…but why did you push them together?"
"You'll see tomorrow, after their training session. That's when my plan comes into play."
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"Why did you wait all this time to tell me that you preferred to be called 'human'?"
"Because it's only something we call each other. We never let on, for fear of retaliation."
Trunks was taken aback. "And yet, you just told the Prince?"
All honesty shone through in Kameko's eyes. "I trust you."
Trunks smiled, and squeezed Kameko's shoulder in friendly affection. "I won't break it." A period of silence, and then Trunks hopped up. "Well, I'd better get off to another courting session with the vapid what's-her-name."
Kameko giggled. "Have fun, and try not to let her suck any brain cells out of you. I'd hate to see you lose your lone synapse."
Trunks rolled his eyes. "See you tomorrow, same time?"
"You bet."
AN2:
K. Nightwing: Oh, like ff.net needed another "Trunks meets mysterious, spunky girl. They fight, then fall in love." Retch. :P
Think I left enough of a hint up there? Almost neon signed it this time. ;) And yes, that makes sense. And remember that…that Trunks has been gaining some of Vegeta's personality…that's what we've been working for. I'm glad it worked.