Author's Note: Hee hee! Two in one Chapters! Okay, the numbering might be off a little, but that's because I wrote the part after this before the other. Just let it be; I'm typing, and I'm getting some leeway here. So please, sit back, and (if you're allowed!) get something to eat and drink! The next two parts are definite doozies! (Don't believe me? Check out the length of "fountain of youth"!) Latez! Luv ya lotz!

-Winter ~*~ P.S.: Some of the ideas and inspiration for this I got from one of my favorite books, Susan Fletcher's Shadow Spinner. Go out and read it for yourself; it's marvelous! ~*~

Chapter 6: Into the Harem

Sonya strode down the hallway, only looking back once to see Bulma's retreating form. I'm sorry, Bulma, she thought to herself, but this is the only way for me. I wish I could make you understand. Without anymore thought to the matter, Sonya continued walking down the corridor.

This had all been arranged yesterday. During a soccer match, Sonya had had to go into the palace, because she'd messed up her ankle, or something to that affect. As she hobbled into the building, she bumped into someone. Little did she know that it was one of the king's other advisors, Turles (a.n.: XP It's just a name! It's not the one from the movie!).

"'Scuse me!" Sonya said. Her ankle gave way as she tried to stand again, and she toppled to the ground. Turles had chuckled airily as he bent down to help the girl.

"No problem. hey, aren't you one of those Chikyuu that goes out to play soccer?" Sonya had nodded politely as he helped her down to the infirmatory. A broad grin grew on his face. "That's right; you're captain of the other team. Sonya, am I right?" Giggling, she replied positively; he sure was inquisitive.

"But problem is," she started as the door slid open, "I'm not as smart as the other kids. My grades in class don't fare too well." Turles had nodded, as if he'd seen it before.

"Y'know, you don't have to be a student." The girl's eyes lit up at this, and she looked at him silently, her gaze beckoning for him to continue. "Just like Gabrielle. She didn't do too well as a student, but she had other skills. Surely you do as well?"

Ah, that was right. Before Gabby had left, she'd mentioned an acclimation service officer whose name was Turles. This must have been him. He'd gotten her out of the dull, ritualized practice of going to school everyday, locked inside the palace, and gotten her somewhere that she would actually be some good. Maybe he could do the same for her.

"Sonya?"

Whoops. She'd slipped off into a daydream again. Clearing her throat, Sonya answered. "Yeah. I'm a pretty good dancer."

"You're quite pretty also." Vermilion blood washed into her face at this comment, and Turles laughed. "I've got an idea, Sonya. But you see, there's some. how could I put this, practices, that aren't very moral involved in it."

Fear flushing in, she sat up, erect. "There's no killing involved in it, is there?" she gasped, uneased. Turles shook his head back and forth briskly.

"No, no. I guess what you Chikyuu would call the position is our equivalent of an 'escort'."

~*~

And that'd been the story of how she'd gotten there. Sonya now stood some two to three feet away from the doorway: a shining satin sheet, translucent and glamorous, that led to the harem. There, Turles had told her, she'd be taken care of like a true princess of the planet Vegeta. People would come to take care of her, hand and foot. There was no catch involved, as far as she knew. Taking a deep breath, she entered the harem.

Her eyes widened as all of her senses soon became aware of everything. She caught snatches of conversation and giggling from girls dressed in silk garments, rushing around in complete unawareness as to her presence. She felt kind of awkward, smelling of grass and turf in her khaki shorts and bright orange tee, while they were all dressed in rare, elegant silks, smelling of various resonant fragrances. Clearing her thoughts, she watched as one of the girls slowly approached her.

"Who're you?" she asked from behind a satin dawn-tinted silk. Sonya tried to smile, but it was meek.

"Sonya." The girl eyed her up and down before nodding rather slowly. "Turles-"

"Yes, I know," she interrupted. "At some point in time, Turles sends someone here. It's always the same. He informed me that you would be arriving, but not this late in the evening." Sonya glanced at a huge clock on the wall, which informed her that it was indeed rather late. She'd never noticed that their matches lasted this long before. The girl motioned with her head to another direction, with another sheet. "This way. Follow me."

With some reluctance, Sonya trailed after her. Thus the process began of bathing, fitting, and teaching the girl the things she should have to know- in about an hour, when she was to meet her "client". The girl, whose name she found to be Corona, was pretty helpful about everything. She showed Sonya her new "sleeping quarters" that she'd be in when there were no guests at the palace, where she should put her garments, and various things in between. She had all the answers to Sonya's miscellany questions, and wasted no time in getting introductions in order. Corona was a Saiyan, whereas some of the others were of different origins.

Helena, a Liger type species, was very eager to meet this Chikyuu girl. "So, how was Earth when you were there?" she asked. "I've been there only once, but I liked it a lot." Sonya, for the first time since entering, smiled in agreement.

"Yeah. it was great. I miss it a little every once and a while, and I kinda wish I could have told my parents goodbye." A fine misty layer of tears brimmed her eyes, but she blinked them back in, not wanting to have her eyes redden before she met whomever this client of hers was. "But I like it here a lot."

"Sonya." Helena's lion-like, tiger-stripped tail flicked as the two turned around, looking towards the source of Corona's voice. In her hand, she held a glimmering flaxen charm bracelet, which Sonya promptly seized into her possession. "It's from your client. He's seen you several times already, and he wants you to have this."

The girl double blinked. "How has he seen me?" she asked Corona's retreating form. Laughing, she didn't turn, but instead replied:

"You think that we haven't noticed you all out on that field? You Chikyuu and your crazy sport have attracted the attention of the whole planet. And most of our guests are brought towards the window to watch you on the field. In short, you've become a national obsession, and you being the captain of a team has fueled your popularity. A Chikyuu, beating the Prince of Vegeta-sei? Someone was bound to notice you."

~*~

"Your Highness." King Vegeta glanced down from his throne to see Celera standing next to him, black hair pulled back into a tight bun, with a single cherry blossom-like flower pinned into either side. She wasn't happy, that was for sure.

"What is it now?" he sighed, noting Freiza on his right hand side. Celera's eyebrows knitted together, and she began talking in a hiss whisper.

"Where is Sonya McGuyver?" she asked with a degree of impertinence. "Bulma told me that you would know something as to her whereabouts." The King shrugged.

"The bluebird thinks she knows everything, doesn't she?" he chortled quietly. He soon regained himself. "If you'd just wait a while longer, you'll find out for yourself." Celera's gasp was quite audible, siting her a glimpse from Freiza.

"You didn't." The King shrugged once more, waving her away.

"It's none of your concern, Celera. Now, go and mingle with some of Lord Frieza's operatives. Be a good advisor, and go find out something for me, won't you?"

Celera growled at him, baring her fangs slightly before noting his two guards. Stalking off, she turned back around to glower at him once more. "As you wish, sire."

~*~

"Sonya? Are you ready?" Sonya was looking into the mirror once more, checking to see that everything was in place. There she sat, on one of the many pillows that seemed to float effortlessly about the harem. Helena was calling to her, and the girl's tail swayed behind her as she did so. Most of the other girls were already set to go, but Sonya was still primping, making sure that every ringlet of blond hair was perfect.

"Almost!" she called back. One more thing, she thought to herself as she attached the bracelet to her ankle, where it fit perfectly. (It was too big to fit on her wrist and not slip off.) Carefully, she walked over to the others. One of the other girls laughed, stopping her.

"No, no, no!" she giggled. "You can't just walk!" The girl slowly walked across the harem, then came back, her hips swinging exquisitely back and forth as she did so. "You have to do it like that, darling!" she cried out as she walked normally back to the group, which was erupting with giggles and laughs. Corona shook her head slowly, then her ears perked up as she peered back out through the curtains.

"Girls, girls!" she whispered. "Quiet, now! It's time!" The giggles stopped at once, and Corona whisked the curtains back. Sonya looked ahead of the pack, seeing that there were several young men (or what appeared to be men, at least) in the dining hall, apparently waiting on them. Disregarding what Quel'Tessa had said about "the walk", she slowly entered the room, eyes catching an approving smile from Turles. She smiled briefly before going to sit down on one of the pillows across the hall. Helena set her head on the other girl's lap.

"Well, now!" Vegeta (King Vegeta) announced, looking towards his guests. "We have some fine company with us here tonight, do we not? Now, go along. Associate thyself with them, if you please." Sonya was tuned out to the whole conversation after that. She just sat there, watching Helena's tail go back and forth as she tried to attract some attention to herself over the others. Two males approached them, shortly, one stooping down to look at her.

"Hiya, cutie," he taunted as her tail wrapped around her waist. "What're you doing over here, hm?" The other one laughed.

"What a stupid thing to say." He glanced at Sonya, then lifted her chin. Something told her that this wasn't the one who she was waiting for. He was curt about what he did, and was examining her, as if trying to determine who she was. "Wow. tell me something," he murmured to her: "Did it hurt?"

Sonya narrowed her eyes. "Did what hurt?" Helena pinched her; she wasn't supposed to be talking to him.

"You know. when you fell from heaven."

"Probably not, but it will hurt when I readjust your spine, mate." The man's head whipped around, and Sonya's jaw would have dropped if she hadn't been trying to be so elegant at the moment. He was beautiful: long green hair, green toned skin, and some sort of ornament hung around his forehead. "Get out of here and leave the girl alone, before I do something irrational and totally out of character." The man's eyes turned to slits, and he left, muttering words in another language. The guy who'd trailed over with him snickered with enlivenment.

"Figures she'd be the one you were talking about." he said, glancing at Sonya. Sonya looked between the two of them, confused. Was one of them supposed to be the one? He was looking at her wrist, like he was looking for the bracelet.

"What's your na-" he began, before he realized she wasn't supposed to be talking to him. His eyes searched her body, and Helena stood up, looking down at Sonya. The girl's ankle was now showing, and the green haired boy smiled when he spotted the bracelet turned anklet.

"Heh. Too big, eh?" Sonya nodded as the boy helped her to her feet, and he and the other guy led them back to the harem. Almost all of the others were gone, by now, and the men were slowly thinning out. The boy that was leading Sonya by the arm smiled to himself. "My name is Zarbon, by the way. Pleasure meeting you." Sonya, too, smiled, finding that she needn't introduce herself to him. The other boy raised Helena's hand to his lips and placed a kiss upon it, gaining a slight giggle.

"My name's Jeice. Pleasure meetin' you." he said, searching for a name. Helena smiled charmingly.

"My name's Helena. This is Sonya, Jeice," she added, motioning to the other. Sonya waved shyly to him, and he grinned. Zarbon, however, led her away from the two.

"Jeice, I need to go. fully acquaint myself with Miss McGuyver. If you'd excuse us." Sonya watched as he grinned broadly, nodding as he walked off with Helena. She smiled from behind her shroud, and mouthed 'good luck' to the other girl as she and Jeice headed towards her sleeping quarters. Zarbon, however, was headed out towards the gardens, which meant he had to eventually pass that blasted fountain of the absentee "Queen" of Vegeta- sei.

~*~ a.n.:

::music starts playing:: Chapter: (singing) Luv me, luv me! [say that you love me!] Fool me, fool me! [go on, review me!] I don't care 'bout anything but you! (and the author, but what the hey?) Le fin.