Chapter Seventy-Nine: What Happened When Tayla Returned

Tayla, Shalila, Dirkan, and Ridikar were now flying over the wilderness back to their camp. Shalila and Dirkan were deeply disturbed when Ridikar informed everyone that more of Frieza's forces were coming. Tayla was quiet and pale now after hearing that news, but she was distracted for a few minutes when Dirkan let it slip that Shalila had punched Dedron in his eye.

"Nama punched Dedron?" Tayla asked, amazed, as she flew back with Ridikar, Shalila, and Dirkan. "I've never known Nama to hit anyone of us! Were you really that mad at him, Nama?"

"I lost my temper, Tayla, something that I should not have done," Shalila told her granddaughter quickly. "It was not well done for me, I'm afraid. I allowed Dedron's cruel words to set me off and lose my temper instead of controlling myself."

"Dedron deserved it," Tayla said firmly. "He should have been punched earlier. If I were you, Nama, I would have done more than that, something like kick him in his balls."

"Tayla!" Shalila scolded. Dirkan chuckled loudly until Shalila shot him her most withering glare. The Namek Superior Granden tried to wipe the grin off of his face, but he wasn't able to do so. Shalila continued in a rebuking tone, "And just where or whom did you learn that last phrase from, young lady?"

Tayla flushed guiltily. "I heard Lektron say it, when he said that he wished that he had kicked Amitar in his-you know…" Then she saw Ridikar looking at her, and she flushed harder. "Sorry, Ridikar, but Lektron was still mad at your father for the way he treated Caline."

"It's okay," Ridikar told her, "I understand, although I wished my father and your cousin hadn't fought like they did."

"I would have liked to kick him in the balls myself," Dirkan agreed.

"Dirkan!" Shalila scolded, and Tayla quickly concealed her laughter. Shalila whispered to him, "Ridikar is present; Amitar was his father. And I don't want Tayla using that phrase." She said to Tayla out loud, "Tayla, I don't want you saying that phrase anymore, do you understand me?"

"Yes, Nama," Tayla said humbly.

"Tayla's right, Superior Gran, about Dedron receiving what he deserved," Ridikar defended
her. "You should have heard some of the things that he said about her; I should have shut him up myself, but I didn't. Dedron deserved what you and Tayla gave him earlier. I am sorry again for what I did to her; I know that doesn't take back what I did, but I will do what I can to make up for how I acted."

"Ridikar, don't worry about it anymore," Tayla told him. "We need to worry about rescuing the others. When are we going to go after Zarbon and his bunch, Nama?"

"Soon, child, I promise, Dirkan and I have been working on a plan on the way to find you, but it's not in it's final stages yet," Shalila told her.

"Do you think that they will harm my family, or Caline?" Ridikar wanted to know. "I'll kill those bastards if they do anything to my family, especially my sister! I know that I haven't been good to Caline lately, like I should have been, but I want to make amends with her, to make things right. I hope that it's not too late."

"We hope not either for both of your sakes," Shalila told him. "We will all continue to pray."

"Where's Uncle Gohan?" Tayla wanted to know. "He's the Chief of Intergalacticpol; why can't he just have his officers come to the planet?"

"We can't get a hold of him, child," Shalila told him. "And I can't sense his ki, which worries me."

"He could be concealing it," Dirkan told her hopefully, as he and the others neared the rest of the Chloe and Sahara fighters down below.

Riccan soared into the air before anyone could prevent him. "Tayla!" he cried out happily, as he raced up to her and hugged her tightly. "You're alive! Did that mean ol' Ridikar hurt you? I wanted to go beat him and Dedron up, but Mamma wouldn't let me! But if you want me to, Tayla, I'll throw a few punches at Ridikar; Mamma won't have to find out."

"No, Riccan," Tayla told him firmly. "I don't want you to hurt him."

"Why not?" he demanded.

"Because he released me, and he's sorry," Tayla told her aggressive nephew. "I've forgiven him."

"He better not have hurt you," Riccan told her sternly. "Have you forgiven Dedron?"

"Not at this time, no," Tayla admitted.

"Good!" Riccan said gleefully. "Then I can still give him what he deserves later!"

"No, you cannot, young man," Gracina, who had come up from behind him, said sternly. She swept Tayla up into her arms and embraced her. "Tayla, are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Tayla was now wedged in between Gracina and Riccan.

"No, Gracina," Tayla told her, hugging her back. Gracina glared darkly at Ridikar over her slender shoulder.

"Young man, if you ever bother her again, you will regret it," Gracina told him severely. Ridikar hung his head down, still deeply ashamed.

"It's okay, Gracina, really," Tayla told her softly. "He's trying to make up for what he's done now, and I've forgiven him."

"So there's my little cousin's abductor!" Lektron roared, as he joined Gracina and Tayla in the air. He shot Ridikar a deadly look. "Young man, if you did anything to my little cousin, if you so much as touched a strand of her hair, I'll send you on a one-way trip to hell!" Ridikar shrank back slightly at Lektron's anger.

"Enough, Lektron," Dirkan told him sternly. "The boy released her of his own accord, and he has not harmed her. Leave him be."

"Pappa wanted to go beat up Dedron too, but Mamma wouldn't let him do so either," Riccan informed everyone. "And he and Uncle Cletos almost got into a fight themselves, but Mamma broke them up." He was clearly disappointed about those things; Riccan loved seeing a good fight, as well as being in one.

"Over what?" Shalila asked.

Gracina sighed, "Once Lektron found out that Dedron was responsible for setting up Tayla's abduction, he confronted Dedron and threatened his life-"

"The boy deserved it; who in the hell does he think he is? Look at the way he talked to Nama! And to Tayla!" Lektron interrupted his wife. "I was going to give Dedron the pounding he deserved, but Cletos just had to get in between us and tell me not to hit the brat! I told Gracie's brother that if he had given Dedron a proper beating or spanking years ago when Dedron fouled up the first time, Dedron wouldn't be the demon he was now, and Cletos went off just because I called his bratty son that-"

"Lektron," Gracina told him sternly, "you did not call Dedron a demon, you called him a bastard, and that was what set Cletos off. And then you had to go and tell him that you were about to give Dedron the pounding that Cletos should have done to him years ago! Cletos told you earlier that he would handle Dedron."

"Right," Lektron sneered. "Cletos barely paid attention to that boy, letting him run wild. I told Cletos years ago that if he didn't do something to restrain Dedron, the boy would cause worse trouble like now. Dedron's rotten to the core, as Nama would say, and that's all there is to it. Cletos is my friend and cousin, but if he had paid more attention to his family, maybe my sister would have stayed with him instead of leaving him for Jaypros-"

"How dare you blame my brother for your sister abandoning him?" Gracina shouted angrily.
"Farla was always a flirt who could barely keep her caftan pulled down around other men! I told Cletos a long time ago to postpone his wedding to her until Farla could figure out whom in Kami Orchida's name she really wanted as her husband, but no, he listened to her when she said she was completely over Jaypros. Farla should have worked on her marriage instead of working on how to sneak behind my brother's back with Jaypros. She played both of my brothers, and she came between them!"

"Your brother, Jaypros, was a flirt himself, always chasing the maids and other female servants, and that's why my sister left him! Oh, Jaypros finally realized what he had lost when Farla announced her engagement to Cletos, and then he had to go and get my sister confused as to whom she wanted as her lifelong mate! And once she married Cletos, Cletos essentially started taking her for granted, never having any time for her except to impregnate her with Dedron, and then Petalia. If Cletos had paid more attention to his wife, maybe Farla would returned to him after frisking about with Jaypros, that little male flirt who broke up my sister's marriage-"

"Jaypros is only half to blame; Farla is far from innocent," Gracina retorted. "Neither one of my brothers are perfect, but Farla committed adultery! She betrayed my brother and their children! If Farla had been able to use her mind properly, other than trying to attract men that she shouldn't have been bothering with, she would have done the right thing and went back to Cletos!"

"If Jaypros had been able to keep his pants pulled up, Farla would have done just that, but no, he just had to go seduce my sister and break up her marriage, the little homewrecker-"

"Homewrecker? Farla is a homewrecker as well! She broke up her family and ran away!"

"Your brother is more to blame than she is! He seduced a married woman!"

"And your sister cheated on my brother! My brothers both had questionable taste when it came to women, especially her! She caused nothing but havoc between them!"

"If your brothers had left her alone long enough to make up her own mind, maybe she would have seen that she was better off without either one of them!"

"Now see here-"

"ENOUGH!" Shalila shouted. "Lektron, Gracina, don't let this damage your marriage as well! Jaypros and Farla are both equally to blame for that tawdry affair; neither one of them is guiltier than the other. Cletos may not have been the ideal father or husband, but he's trying to make amends now."

"But look at what Farla's actions did to my brother, Nama!" Gracina protested. "Farla hurt Cletos so much, and no matter how much Cletos took her for granted, she had no right to do what she did!"

"Cletos pushed my sister away, and right into Jaypros' arms," Lektron countered. "Not that Jaypros was any better for her. She didn't need either one of them."

"And they didn't need her to cause so much grief between them," Gracina cried aloud.

"Gracina, Lektron, please," Shalila told them forcefully. "Now is not the time to fight about this. I understand your separate loyalties to your separate siblings, but you cannot allow them to cause problems between you two. Your first priorities should be to each other."

"Farla was an awful flirt," Riccan spoke up. "I heard Petalia say so countless times, and Dedron called her a dirty slutzini, and that part certainly is true-" Gracina's face reddened with embarrassment and rage at her son's last sentence.

"Riccan!" she snapped. "That is an awful word, and I don't ever want you to say it again!"

"But Mamma," Riccan protested. "Dedron got to say it-"

Lektron took his wife's side. "You heard your mother, Riccan! I don't ever want to hear that foul name from your mouth again. It is a nasty thing to call a woman, and not even I have ever used that word! I don't want you copying or learning anything from Dedron and repeating it, is that clear?"

"Yes, Pappa," Riccan told him ashamedly, with his head hung down.

They all then slowly landed onto the soft grass that went up to their knees, and Veal and Petalia hurried over to Tayla, hugging her and asking if she was okay. Bendros followed close behind them, and he looked Tayla over to see if Ridikar had harmed her.

"Are you okay, little Tayla? Did Ridikar do anything to you?" Bendros demanded to know. The normally even-tempered Sastorian warrior and future Granden of Sahara had been as enraged as Lektron and the others when he found out about Dedron helping Ridikar to kidnap Tayla. He avoided looking at Ridikar, afraid that he would attack the Calmagian prince and kill him.

Tayla left Veal and Petalia and approached Bendros. "He didn't hurt me, Bendros," she assured him calmly. "He released me of his own accord, and he even apologized."

"He better have," Bendros replied tightly, still not looking at Ridikar. Ridikar cautiously watched Bendros' tail, which was quickly growing back thanks to Bendros' Astorian genes. The short, budding tail swished slowly in the wind, like a snake ready to strike.

Gorna came up from behind Bendros, followed by Cletos and Raakon, and Raakon quickly looked over Tayla to see if Ridikar had harmed her. "Are you sure that Ridikar didn't do anything to you, sis?" Raakon asked her, touching her cheek.

"I am okay, Raakon, really," Tayla told him. "He's sorry now, he really is."

"He better be," Gorna said stiffly. "Who does that little Calmagian cretin think he is, abducting my sister?" She sent Ridikar a look that could slice him in half quicker than a sword, and Ridikar flinched. "Young man, you better be thankful to your deity that Tayla wasn't harmed, because if she had, I would have given you the beating that your father should have! Who do you think you are, kidnapping my youngest sibling, thinking that you are good enough for a Princess of Chloe? You're not even worthy to look her in the eye, even if you are to rule this planet one day, assuming that there is a planet left to rule! Why I ought to-"

"Gorna, please," Raakon begged her. "Now's not the time. We are all upset over Tayla's abduction, but Tayla is back now, safe and sound. And it seems that Ridikar has been punished enough, with losing his father and many of his people."

"I agree," Tayla affirmed.

"Still," Cletos spoke up angrily, "he abducted our sister, and if he had done so back on Astoria, he would have been sent straight to prison. He still ought to be penalized, in my opinion. Kidnapping Tayla, causing all this worry-"

"Your son is as equally guilty," Gorna reminded him sternly. "What do you intend to do about it, Cletos? He is the one who set up Tayla's abduction, after all, and he must still properly punished."

"I-I don't know yet, to tell you the truth," Cletos stammered, wanting to protect Tayla, but at the same time not wanting to create additional problems between him and his wayward son.
"What do you think would be a proper punishment for him?"

"How about not letting him fight?" Lektron declared.

"Lektron, we need all of the fighters we have," Cletos told him tightly, still not completely over the fight that he had with his close friend and cousin.

"You could let me beat him up-" Riccan suggested brightly, but his mother's glare
silenced him.

"He has to be disciplined," Gorna asserted. "This is one of the many times that he has gone too far, and it is not like we can ground him to his room at this time."

Alora had joined the others by then, and she had heard the last parts of the conversation. "I agree with Gorna on this one; Dedron ought to be punished. Perhaps, he should be stripped of his title as a Prince of Chloe."

"That's a bit harsh, isn't it?" Cletos asked.

"I don't think so," Lektron stated.

Bajal joined his wife. "Something does need to be done about him though, but what? Everything's been tried on him, from grounding him to his room to forcing him to eat his meals alone to restricting his fighting and training privileges."

Riccan whispered to Tayla, "It'd be a lot easier, if they just let me beat him up. Grown-ups sometimes have to make things so hard." Tayla had to agree with him about the latter sentence.

"Let me try to talk to him again," Cletos pleaded.

"Cletos, this time Dedron has gone too far," Gorna interjected. "What if the next time, he tries to have her killed or worst? We all saw how he has been towards her lately, how he's put her down and mocked her; if I had been Tayla, I would have done worst to him the other day than punch him in his face. He had no business mistreating her the way that he did. The boy is a discipline problem and a thorn in our sides, as Nama would say."

Cletos snapped, "This is interesting, coming from someone who herself didn't treat Tayla any better not too long ago. It's interesting, Gorna, two weeks you were always complaining about our little sister taking up too much of Nama's time and not being the model Princess of Chloe, and now suddenly you're one of her champions? I'm not saying that what Dedron did to Tayla was right, but let's face facts, sister, you and Rojal used to be that bad towards her yourselves, and you both helped to encourage him. He listens to Rojal; why can't your son talk him out of some of the things he does?"

"Raising Dedron is not my son's responsibility!" Gorna snarled, reeling from Cletos's nasty reminders of how she and Rojal used to treat Tayla. "If you had been a proper father to your son, he wouldn't be the way that he is now. Rojal doesn't get away with two-thirds of the things that Dedron does! If Dedron was my son, I would give him the cuffing that he's long overdue for, in fact maybe I should do so anyway, since you don't seem to want to discipline him properly!"

"Lay one hand on my son, and you'll be sorry!" Cletos growled. "Your Rojal is not exactly perfect either!"

"Rojal has made his mistakes; he is growing up and maturing, and he has more than proven himself as a future heir to Astoria's throne! And don't you dare threaten me, Cletos!" Gorna hissed. "Why don't you put a spine in your back in place of that shoestring that's been holding you up and raise your children properly?"

"Why don't you mind your own business?"

"The conduct of everyone in the Clan of Chloe is my business! I am to rule over this Clan someday, and I must ensure that myself and my fellow family members behave themselves worthy of being Clan of Chloe!"

"That's your problem, Gorna; you think that you can control everyone just because you are to rule over us and all of Astoria one day! You act as if you already rule, but I have news for you, Nama is not dead yet, and you are no different until then than the rest of us! I said that I will deal with Dedron, and I will! I don't need you or anyone else telling me how to raise my children! All my life, since we were children, you have tried to control everything that I do, including try to run my family and raise my children! Don't you worry about me and my children; it's none of your concern anyway!"

"Oh, really? Well, let me tell you something, Cletos, your son is not going to make any more trouble in this family! His having Tayla kidnapped was the last straw, as Nama would say! You either discipline him properly, Cletos, or I will! He is not going to continue to shame the Clan of Chloe name!"

"Shame the Clan of Chloe name! You have plenty of room to talk, acting as if you are Kami Orchida or the East Kai! You have always been such a hard, stiff person!"

"I'd rather be a hard, stiff person than someone with a bootstrap for a backbone! Perhaps if you had a spine in your back instead of that string, you might have been able to make your wife stay with you instead of running off with Jaypros! Perhaps you could have paid better attention to your children, instead of ignoring Petalia and allowing Dedron to run wild like a Saiyan! Jaypros at least had a spine made of bone instead of cotton; perhaps Farla decided for a change to be with a man who has the nerve to be one!"

Cletos's face hardened, and advancing angrily towards Gorna, he raised his large hand towards his sister, as if to strike her. Gorna braced herself for a blow, as Cletos swung his hand out to strike her.

"Cletos, don't!" Shalila commanded, rushing towards the two quarreling siblings to prevent Cletos from what he was about to do.

Raakon raced towards them, in order to stop Cletos from doing something that he knew that Cletos would regret later, but before he could reach them, someone grabbed Cletos' wrist and held it firmly in place.

"Don't, Cletos, please," Tayla begged tearfully, holding Cletos's strong wrist tightly in mid-air. The adolescent princess was now standing between him and Gorna. Both older siblings looked at their youngest sister in amazement, stopping Cletos' blow against Gorna.

"T-Tayla," Cletos stammered, but then his voice hardened. "Let go of me, this does not concern you."

"You're not going to hit her," Tayla told him, her voice now just as hard. "And you two will stop fighting. Our family and friends are in danger right now, and all you two can do is squabble. What if they're dead now? What if we don't make it in time? We don't have time for these little fights; can't you all decide what to do about Dedron later? We need to save our strength to fight Frieza's Top Elite soldiers, not fight amongst ourselves."

Gorna sighed, seeing the wisdom of her youngest sibling's words. "She's right, Cletos; the matter of handling Dedron can wait until this war is over. We need to fight Frieza and his bunch, not each other."

"Tayla, will you let go of me now, please?" Cletos asked Tayla.

"Are you still going to hit Gorna?"

"No, and I shouldn't have tried to do so in the first place. I'm not going to strike her." And hearing this from Cletos, Tayla released his wrist, and Cletos let his hand drop. He looked shamefacedly at Gorna and said sorrowfully, "Gorna, I am sorry that I tried to hit you just now; I lost my temper. It hurt when you accused me of not being man enough to hold onto Farla."

"I shouldn't have said those last words to you, Cletos; I did go too far just now, and I know that I don't say these words too often, but I am sorry myself," Gorna said resignedly.
"It was not your fault that Farla left you for Jaypros; they and they alone are the only ones to blame. I know that it hurt you deeply when Farla left; you have made your mistakes, but you did try your best."

"I did neglect my children," Cletos admitted, ashamed. "Petalia and Dedron were justified in being angry and hurt, and I am thankful that Petalia has given me a second chance. I wish there was a way to reach Dedron, but it seems that the boy hates me, and I don't want to make things worse between us. I just wish I knew what to do about him."

"We'll figure it out once this is over," Gorna told him firmly. "But Tayla is right as in rescuing our family and friends as being more important than squabbling about Dedron."

"I am thankful that she intervened when she did," Cletos told Gorna, but he was looking at Tayla, who was still standing between him and Gorna. "Gorna, I am again sorry that I tried to hit you outside of training and sparring; it was wrong of me."

"I provoked you," Gorna acknowledged. "It is hard for me not to know when to intervene and when not to. I just don't want this family torn apart."

"Neither do I," Cletos told her.

"Are you two okay now?" Tayla asked anxiously, uncertain as to step out from in between her two siblings or not.

Gorna laid a plump hand on Tayla's slender shoulder. "We are all right now, Tayla, thank you." She patted the girl's shoulder with the same hand. She was not normally affectionate with anyone in her family, not even her husband, Etros, who had been out fighting with their Uncle Gohan on the other side of Magan, but just now she leaned over and quietly kissed Tayla on her temple in a silent thank-you. Tayla nodded, and then she left Gorna and Cletos by themselves. Shalila and Raakon breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that the fight between Gorna and Cletos ended as quickly as it did.

Raakon laughed nervously, "She might be taking my place someday as a family peacemaker."

Shalila said with a soft smile, "Who knows? She could join my diplomats someday."

Bajal added, laughing loudly, "As long as she can keep her temper under wraps!"

Alora narrowed her eyes at him. "Look who's talking! Your temper can be just as bad as hers, if not worse!"

Bajal continued to laugh. He said with a wide grin, "Ha! You have the worst temper in both Clan of Chloe and Clan of Sahara! When you get mad, both Clans want to run for the hills!" Alora responded to that by lightly punching him in his ribs, but that didn't stop Bajal from laughing.









Ridikar quickly joined Tayla, after she had left Cletos and Gorna. He chuckled softly, as he said, "That was something; you handled that quarrel better than most of my grandfather's diplomats handle disputes. On this planet, had you been male, you would have been snatched up as one of Grandfather's advisers or diplomats. At this rate, you probably could bring peace between Frieza's forces and our planets."

Tayla sighed, "I wish it was that easy. Do your siblings fight like mine do sometimes?"
Ridikar smiled. "All siblings fight; I never did introduce you to my siblings, did I? Naykiar and Julien fight with each other all the time, and my sisters, Rosyn and Meyline squabble over the silliest things. And I fight quite a bit with my brothers, even if I am to rule over them someday. Caline's the only really peaceful member of our family; she doesn't squabble or fight with anyone. By the way, I've heard that there used to be twenty children in your family instead of ten, is that right?"

Tayla grew quiet then. "Yes, there was twenty of us, but ten of my brothers and sisters died when I was a baby when the Saiyans attacked our family ship. At one time, I had thirteen brothers and six sisters, now I have three sisters and five brothers, well six, if you still count Jaypros, assuming Jaypros is still alive. You probably know by now that he ran off with Cletos' wife, my cousin, Farla."

"Sorry to hear about that," Ridikar said sympathetically. "Your remaining siblings ought to be thankful that they have you; you are something else, do you know that? I wish that I hadn't caused so much trouble between us; I had a good thing when I had you, and I lost it. I'll never find another girl like you, Tayla, ever, nor will I care so much about someone else the way that I still do you. It's going to take me a long time to get over you. I wish there was a way for me to convince you to give me a second chance, but I won't push the issue or force you. Girls like you come only once in a millennium." He looked at the petite young girl, whose tangled coal-black hair flowed gently in the wind, and whose red and gold Chloe fighting gi was torn and tattered. She was missing most of the right pants leg of the bottom half of her gi, and her gray boots were soiled and nearly coming off at the soles (Ridikar smiled when he remembered Shalila telling Tayla that she was disposing of those beloved boots the minute that the war was over, and that there would be no argument about it).

Tayla could have showered or bathed when she and Ridikar had been in Benedon, and Ridikar had bought her a couple of nice dresses when he had dragged her into a clothing shop, covered in that brown cloak. But she had still been angry at him at the time and frightened of her situation, and she had refused to clean herself or change her clothes for him. (She was not at that time about to make herself more attractive to him; she had vainly hoped that Ridikar would be repulsed enough not to go through with his plans to force her to marry him.)

There were bruises and gashes covering her slim body, and her delicate face was dirty and smudged, but that same grimy face glowed radiantly with a determination to do what was right and a strong devotion to her family and friends. She looked both strong and vulnerable at the same time, and Ridikar had never known a girl who could maintain that air. The Calmagian royal heir thought that this disheveled Princess of Chloe had never looked more beautiful than she did at this moment. He had to clasp his waist with his hands to prevent himself from reaching out and drawing her into his arms.

Tayla watched Ridikar slowly out of the corner of her cocoa-colored eye. Ridikar had changed earlier in a dark blue fighting gi with a hunter-green sash, and he had showered. She now wished that she had taken the time to clean herself and dress in new clothes when she had the chance to do so earlier. She remembered when they had first met, and she thought of how she had been mesmerized by his smoothness and good looks. He still did look handsome, with his dark brown hair swirled with highlights of gold and his brown eyes that were almost black, darker than hers that was combined with golden brown, muscled skin. Before she could prevent it, she blushed slightly; Ridikar didn't seem to be so bad, after all. He seemed to be changing, to be growing up.

Like she was.

Tayla shook her head; what in Kami Orchida's name was she thinking? Ridikar had tried to force himself on her some time ago, and she was here now, being friendly with him, admiring his looks. He seemed to look at her expectantly, as if waiting for her to say something.
She wasn't sure what to say to Ridikar's words, but before she could decide how to reply, Dedron showed up. Dedron's sulky scowl deepened when he noticed that Tayla and Ridikar had returned, but he wiped it off quickly and said brightly, "So, are you two happily married now? Is this Princess of Chloe now the future queen of Calmag?"

Tayla's Astorian blue blood began to boil; there were so many angry words that she wanted to say to Dedron, but now they would not come. Instead of ripping Dedron apart verbally, she turned on her proud heel away from him, handing him a greater insult involving no words.

"I take that as a yes?" Dedron asked calmly, ignoring his young aunt's obvious snub.

"We didn't get married, Dedron," Ridikar finally answered tightly. "I was wrong to take her away in the first place."

"Ha, so you finally decided that you couldn't marry a lapdog! Well, not that I really blame you, Ridikar, ol' friend, for I wouldn't want such a doggy girl as my future queen either! I'm disappointed though, for now it looks like I'm stuck with Great-Nama's favorite pet once more! I was really counting on you to take this mongrel off of my hands; now my family will have another dog to feed…"

Tayla clenched her tiny fists in fury, and her face reddened with anger. She scrunched up her eyes and avoided looking at her cruel nephew, for fear that she would murder him on the spot.

I will not lose my temper, I will not lose my temper; I will not let his words get to me, she thought silently to herself.

"…As if we didn't have enough dogs around the Palace of Chloe, but oh, well! I can always chain her in the backyard, although she'll probably keep everyone up all night with her howling and drown the gardens with her drooling-"

Dedron said no more, for at that moment, Ridikar's quick fist collided with his nose, sending Dedron reeling backwards. Ridikar landed another punch into Dedron's jaw before the Astorian prince could recover. Dedron and Ridikar were evenly matched, but Ridikar had taken Dedron by surprise, and Dedron was too much in shock to fight back. Tayla swiftly turned around and watched the fight, fairly one-sided, take place between Ridikar and Dedron. Dedron finally recovered enough to land his fist into Ridikar's jaw, and he and Ridikar began to fight fiercely, but Ridikar still had the upper hand because he was faster. He kicked Dedron in the stomach after Dedron punched Ridikar in his ear. Before Dedron could retaliate, Ridikar seized Dedron by his collar and touched him ever so lightly on his shoulder. He then easily threw Dedron to the ground, and Dedron was stiff and still, as a statue. Dedron was frozen in a fetal position, with his arms sticking straight out towards the sky. Sparkling turquoise blood dribbled from his fat nose into his wide mouth.

"You-you bastard, you paralyzed me! How dare you? That's not fair!" Dedron screamed, his mouth being the only thing able to move.

"Like you wouldn't have electrocuted me, if you had been given the chance," Ridikar countered, as Tayla watched on, amazed with her brown eyes wide open.

"Take this paralysis off now!" Dedron ordered furiously.

Ridikar grinned, as he stepped up to Dedron and rested his black boot under Dedron's chubby, dimpled chin. "Sure I will," he said casually. He then leaned down and whispered into his opponent's ear, "When you apologize to Tayla."

"I'm not apologizing to a lapdog!" Dedron roared loud enough for Tayla to hear.

Ridikar smiled and sighed, "Well, then, I'll have to leave you in that position until the paralysis wears off, or until you apologize to Tayla, whichever happens first. Your call, Dedron."

"Curse you! I'm not reducing myself to say 'I'm sorry' to Great-Nama's puppy dog! I'll lie here all day before I apologize to her! She's nothing but a mongrel!"

Ridikar laughed and shook his head. "I see that you made your choice, Dedron. Well, don't worry, for the paralysis is only temporary. See you later, Prince Dedron of Chloe."

Dedron looked desperately at Tayla, but Tayla only smiled and winked at him. "See you later, Dedron; why don't you take a nap? Maybe when you wake up, you won't be so grumpy! I think that position suits you anyway." She laughed softly and turned away from her nemesis.

"TAYLA, YOU MAKE RIDIKAR RELEASE ME, YOU UNDERSTAND ME, GIRL? YOU'LL BE SORRY WHEN THIS PARALYSIS WEARS OFF! I'LL MAKE YOU PAY, IF YOU DON'T HELP ME!" Dedron ranted, but Tayla and Ridikar just laughed and left him in his agony. They both walked away, side by side, as Dedron cursed both of them.

"Thanks, Ridikar," she whispered shyly.

Ridikar smiled, unable to hide a stain of blush on his chiseled cheeks. "My pleasure, Princess."

"May I ask you something, even if it's a bit off the subject?"

"Sure."

"When we left the hotel in Benedon, you flew with us. I thought that Calmagians didn't fly; how were you able to?"

Ridikar chuckled. "It wasn't that hard to do, Tayla. I practiced while you had been sleeping in the hotel room, and I was able to levitate myself by controlling my ki. I was doing it to impress you," he admitted, embarrassed.

"I appreciate you taking up for me just now, thank you. That impressed me-and stunned me too."

"He shouldn't be allowed to call you a dog; you have more goodness and decency in your pinky finger than he does in his entire body. I know that you were trying to control your temper, but next time he talks about you like that, you punch him out! He's the dog!"

"If I had attacked him, I would have probably killed him, and he isn't worth the guilt."

"You've got that right. Dedron is the one who should be chained, not you. If he ever insults you again, I'll kill him myself!"

Tayla smiled shyly at him. "You know, Ridikar, I think that I like this new you a whole lot better than the one before. I hope he's here to stay."

Ridikar laughed nervously. "I hope that he will be, Tayla, and I hope that maybe-well, never mind."

"No, what?"

"Never mind, Tayla, seriously. I better get you back to your family before they think that I am trying to take you away again. I think that Dirkan and your brothers are still plotting my demise!"

Tayla giggled. "Don't worry; I won't let them hurt you, just as long as you behave yourself."

Ridikar held out a large hand towards her, as he towered over her by a foot and a half.
"Friends?" he asked softly.

"Friends," Tayla told him, as she took his hand into her slender paw and shook it. They looked at each other for a long time, with Ridikar's right hand in Tayla's right hand. Then, in slow motion, they switched hands, and before they realized it, they were walking away, side by side, lightly holding hands still.

They reached the others in no time, and Dirkan's emerald jaw dropped when he saw Ridikar casually hold Tayla's hand-and Tayla allowing it. "What in Kami's name is going on here?" he demanded of his wife, who was equally stunned to see her darling granddaughter hold hands with the boy who had tried to hurt her in the past.

"They seem to be making up," Shalila observed quietly, carefully keeping calm.

"I want to speak to the boy alone; I will give him a piece of my mind-" Dirkan began edgily, as he tried to leave his mate to confront Ridikar. To his surprise, Shalila held out a restraining arm in front of his massive green chest. Dirkan looked at his wife with his mouth agape.

"No, you won't, Dirkan, you will leave both of them be."

But Ridikar tried to do-well, doesn't Tayla remember that he-"

"I'm sure that Tayla does, but there is a thing called forgiveness, and she is practicing it. She will be thirteen in five months from now, and she must be allowed to make some of her own decisions now. She's smart enough and old enough to be allowed to do so, and we must leave some of her life up to her, even if we don't always agree with her choices. It's part of allowing her to grow up. It's time for us to treat her as a young lady; she won't be a child for much longer."

A resigned Dirkan sighed, "I wish I could keep her as a little girl forever. Things were so much easier not too long ago when she just did what we wanted her to do without question. This new part of Tayla is going to take some getting used to."

"I am adjusting myself," Shalila said softly. "I've had to adjust every time my children began to assert their independence and maturity, and it's been the same with Arlon and Lukan when they finally became young men instead of remaining little boys. All in all, Dirkan, I've almost raised nine children instead of seven; I had Gracina for a while as my ward, but she was almost grown-up when her parents died. I've always thought of Tayla as my baby, and now this baby's becoming a woman." Her voice shook, as she continued, "Like you, Dirkan, I wish I could keep her as a little girl always, but I can't. We now have a budding young woman instead of a child; ah, we will miss the little girl, but we will love the woman that Tayla is becoming as well."

Dirkan said wryly, "Well, until we adjust to Tayla The Young Woman, what do we do about her choice in young men? I still want to go over there and wrench the boy away from her."

Shalila shook her head and sighed wearily, "If you continue to have that urge, count to one, no two hundred, Dirkan, and remember that Tayla is still only twelve. Ridikar won't be her last."

They then changed the subject of Tayla to their plans for stopping Frieza's forces from causing any more harm, for a few hours, they would be finally be leaving to save their loved ones.