Author's Notes: Thanks you so much for the reviews you gave for the previous chapter. Those help me a lot. Thanks again! ^^
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"Hey, Kuririn! Don't you think Neab-san was acting a little…um…well…"
"Weird?" Kuririn's eyes shifted over to his taller friend as the two teens strolled along the winding, dirt road.
Kakarotto nodded furiously
in response, his jet-black hair bobbing along with his head. After the boy had done so, an odd silence
lingered between the muscular duo.
Neither one of them dared to say a word regarding the old man. It seemed disrespectful somehow.
Kuririn took the uneasy silence as an opportunity to listen to the wild birds of the wooded area squawk loudly. An air of chaos had suddenly filled his being…perhaps due to his sudden confusion. Yes, suddenly everything seemed to have a feel for this mood. The shrieking birds, the sudden intensity of the wind…and his own grandfather. In his own quiet and calm way, he had managed to fill Kuririn with immense insecurity. And that, of course, made Kuririn worry.
There was more to this than what met the eye. Much more. And yet, Kuririn felt as if he could almost taste it at the tip of his tongue. A certain uneasiness began to overwhelm him; one that he had felt only one time before. And when that had been…he could not remember. This only made his uneasiness grow ten fold. What could it be? What was it?
What was it?
Slowly, Kakarotto's innocent voice found its way to Kuririn's active and apprehensive mind.
"A storm's on its way, isn't it?"
The smaller boy's soulful eyes once again darted over to his companion abruptly. "Wh-what…do you mean?" Kakarotto looked and Kuririn with mild surprise.
"I mean that a storm is coming!" He gestured grandly about himself and Kuririn with his strong, brawny arms. "Look! The wind, the clouds…a storm!" As if to prove his point, a powerful gust of wind curtly brushed past them, sending Kakarotto's hair in a frenzy of movement. "Isn't it great, Kuririn? Vejita-sei hardly ever gets any rain!" An innocent little laugh bubbled from him as he spun around, his arms stretched out in front of his body.
Of course. Kakarotto – innocent, little Kakarotto. Kuririn had almost expected him to forget about such matters as if they never happened. One minute, his inquisitive, child-like mind was searching through endless possibilities for Neab-san's odd behavior…the next he was celebrating the arrival of rain and all the wonderful things that went with it.
Suddenly, Kakarotto stopped spinning and looked at his friend with a certain wide-eyed curiosity that Kuririn was all too familiar with. "Hey!" He waved his arms about him, freely exhibiting the impulsive energy that filled him. "Hey, Kuririn! Why are there so many plants around here if we don't get any rain, huh?"
Kuririn chuckled inwardly. "I all ready explained it out to you, Kakarotto. It's because there is a kind of force field that traps moisture from the occasional rain and lets it out very slowly." He paused. "I think." Shrugging, he went on, saying, "You know, this is the only third classer school that has this thing!"
Kakarotto smiled broadly. "You're so smart, Kuririn!"
The bald boy felt a heated blush creep across his face and ears, the cold wind doing nothing in sending it away. "Aw, not really. I just remember hearing Grandpa talking about it once. If it weren't for that…I don't think I would have known. They don't teach us that kind of stuff in school."
"I guess you're right. But I wouldn't have known if you hadn't have heard it from your Grandpa and told me about it! All they teach us in school is how to fight."
"And military history," Kuririn added. Kakarotto wrinkled his nose at the mere thought of the class. Noticing this, Kuririn raised an eyebrow. "Hey, I actually like it. For some reason…I seem to like it better than…" He turned his head towards the cloudy sky in a slight contemplative mood. "Fighting."
A giggle emitted from Kakarotto for a moment before it escalated into a laugh. "You're the first person I've ever heard say that! Do you seriously like looking through dusty old books instead of learning how to fight?"
Once again, Kuririn silently berated himself for expecting even his closest friend to understand something of that nature. "No," he hastily answered. "N-no, I was just…um…kidding." For effect, he gave a lazy grin, though his muscles were far from relaxed.
Kakarotto's lips turned in an upward direction. "I thought so! You know how gullible I am, Kuririn! Stop teasing me." He gave a playful nudge, his brute strength shoving Kuririn slightly off of his feet. Fortunately, the short teen was able to catch himself before he toppled to the ground. Kakarotto was swift to assist him and merely shrugged in apology.
A crack of thunder suddenly boomed from the vast, grey sky, startling both of students to the point of clinging onto each other in fright. This sort of weather was extremely uncommon on Vejita-sei, the usually cloudless sky having an eerie, blood red hue about it. However, about once a year this peculiar, rainy weather would seemingly come from out of nowhere and swirl about random areas of the planet, sending even the most powerful warriors into a brief, silent wonder.
Once the two boys had recovered their wits, they abruptly let go of one another with an awkward and embarrassed air about their movements. Lightning silently flashed through the sky and was soon followed by a low growl from the heavens. Kakarotto stared up at the sky in amazement, clearly pleased by the sight now. "Sometimes," he said as his eyes remained fixed upon the assembly of the dark clouds, "I just wanna fly up and touch those things." He pointed to another flash of lightning.
"Ah! Kakarotto, are you crazy?" Kuririn looked up at him in bewilderment. "They look dangerous! Why would you want to touch something like that?" The younger boy looked down at Kuririn and shrugged.
"To see if I could do it, I guess. And maybe to see what they feel like." Before Kuririn could even open his mouth to respond, another gust of angry wind shoved past them. Suddenly, drops of water began to pour down through the trees, branches, and leaves. They went on from there to graze against the bases of the trees and through the velvety flowers and the silky grass blades before heavily impacting with the dark, rich soil which gratefully soaked up the much needed water.
His mouth wide open, Kakarotto stretched up his arms as if to embrace the sudden rain. "Look, Kuririn!" he exclaimed with delight. "Look! It's raining! It's raining!" He jumped into the air with jubilee and landed onto the dirt path, now mixed with freshly made mud. Needless to say, he greatly welcomed the cool and countless drops of rain caressing his dirty face and skin.
Kuririn on the other hand, rubbed his eyes with his small hands. As the rain made contact with the dried and crusted blood plastered upon his face, it soon turned to liquid and re-opened the cuts he had received just earlier that day. Frowning, he gave a soft sigh. This was simply not his day. He opened his eyes again and glared at the rain ruefully.
Without even as much as one thought, his mouth slowly and silently began to form the words that seemed to always enter into his mind at this time of year:
Rain, rain, go away.
Come again another day…
He abruptly stopped, suddenly not knowing the rest to this…poem? Song?
Well…whatever it was…it didn't really matter, did it? No, of course not. Songs and poems were foolish on Vejita-sei. He didn't dare recite it aloud. Thus, a certain uneasiness descended upon him once again and he bit his lower lip in an attempt to suppress it.
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He was very upset.
In fact, upset wasn't even the word to describe it. He was furious. He was livid. He was enraged, infuriated, and incensed, too.
But in short, Radditsu was very, very upset. And every student on campus knew what events took place when Radditsu was upset. Even the oldest students stepped away as he stormed by, his furry tail wrapped tightly around his waist with rage. He forced a growl out from his throat, hoping it would relieve some of his tension, but it only served in making it grow. As he stomped outside from one of the many grand gymnasiums that the academy had, his eyes narrowed at the pouring rain with annoyance.
He hated it when his long, black hair got wet. However, he had to get it wet, because he had to find that wretched boy! That horrible nuisance that irked him to no end. That idiot of a Saiya-jin. Where could he have gotten to?! Hadn't it only been just a few hours ago when he had done that shabby job of cleaning the gymnasium floor for him? Where was he now?
Where was Kakarotto?!
He gave a small grunt when he finally stepped completely out into the rain, cringing inwardly as he allowed the rain to make contact with his disheveled hair. Though he despised the rain with a passion, he decided that the thunder and lightening fit his mood very much. And Radditsu found an immense delight in that.
After making a tight, firm fist, he was determined to simply ignore the bother known as rain. He needed to save his anger for his encounter with his little brother. A soft, menacing chuckle escaped from him, but it was almost impossible to hear due to the constant pounding of the rain that surrounded him.
He silently wondered where he should start looking as he took a step forward and glanced about him. All he saw was the dirt pathway that led from the gymnasium and into the thick, dark, woods. He grumbled at the sight. To him, the whole force field idea was foolish. He knew full and well that the only reason they wanted such a hideous thing was because the wealthy were able to live in the few places on Vejita-sei that received rain on a regular basis. They simply wanted to feel to like they were actually worth the same as wealthy warriors.
Feh. Idiots. He could almost taste the disgust in his mouth.
He was suddenly thrown back into reality when he heard Kakarotto's distinct, innocent laughter floating about in the cool rain. The very sound made his blood boil. Kakarotto -- his brother. He found the very thought repulsive and his urge to find the boy became even stronger.
With a dangerously cool and quiet air about him, he quickly wandered into the woods to search for the boy he desperately wished he wasn't related to. All the while he noticed with great irritation that his thick, long hair clung to his broad back and waist. Gruffly, he called Kakarotto's name.
The innocent laughter abruptly stopped.
At first, he felt another wave of anger shoot through his being. Now he would have no idea how to locate the little brat, as he didn't have a scouter on him at the moment and he was having a horribly difficult time learning how to sense people. But then…after the anger had dulled a bit, a wicked smile curled into form and he cracked his knuckles with delight. The swift death of the laughter was a clear sign that his little brother feared him. Yes…Kakarotto feared him greatly.
And why not? He was, after all, one the most feared students in the academy. No one had any desire to get caught up in a conflict with Radditsu. It was simply the way things were and Radditsu loved that fact to no end. His Saiya-jin teachers thought it was such a pity, however, that Kakarotto didn't turn out like his elder brother. He was so innocent and pure, a painful contrast from his older brother. It disgusted them all. But no one was more disgusted than Radditsu. No one. In fact, the burly Saiya-jin was convinced that if it weren't for Kakarotto's ability to grasp onto fighting concepts so quickly, he would have been murdered in his sleep long ago.
Not that he would have minded.
He shook himself out of thought once again, when he heard soft voices, almost obscured by the rain's constant jabber. They cautiously lurked about the trees, pausing every so often in case an intruder was near by. One of these voices sounded vaguely like Kakarotto.
Another smile curled across his face and his eyebrows knitted together with delight. Oh, yes…when he got his hands on that boy…
He took no time to think. Quickly, he charged into the trees until he spotted two dim figures along the wooded path. He closed his eyes with pure bliss as the wind blew across his clumped and soggy hair. With a bound and then a leap, he sprung into the air with frightening precision and pounced upon one of the two poor, unsuspecting travelers.
"I've got you," he hissed dangerously into an ear. A pair of high-pitched female screams greeted him. Radditsu's eyebrow visibly twitched. "What the--!"
"Radditsu!" The female above him shouted furiously. "You pervert!" She kicked him roughly in the side, swiftly sending him into the mud and off of the other flustered young woman. "Get off her!" Radditsu clenched his teeth as he sunk into the sticky mud. The brown gunk oozed freely through his hair, and he was beginning to taste the stuff in his mouth.
Now, normally Radditsu struck fear into the ladies. He had never been a ladies man. However, when women felt threatened in such a way…they had a manner of banning together and letting him have it, physically and verbally. Radditsu found this very amusing most of the time, as he never took females seriously. Today, however…today was not they day for that!
"Yosu!" Radditsu growled at such an ignorant girl who had dared kick at him. "Yosu, it's you!"
Yosu, a very tall and muscular girl narrowed her blue eyes at the muddy Saiya-jin, her short, black hair clinging to the back of her neck with moisture. "Very good, Radditsu. Not get out of here and leave us alone," she spat bravely. Her own tail was wrapped firmly around her waist with anxiety as her blistered and calloused hands remained clasped behind her back.
Radditsu growled and rose up from the ridiculously sticky mud, swaying slightly at the sharp pain eating away at his side. "Yosu," he snarled, warning cutting deeply into his words. Yosu, on the other hand, merely took a step back. She knew full and well that Radditsu was stronger than her. Radditsu knew this as well. Since this was certainly the case, caution was her top priority. Of course…a Saiya-jin's version of caution is far different from a human's.
The girl whom Radditsu had so rudely tackled had stood by now, her armored torso filthy with sludge while her own long, black hair stuck to her back. Her wide, charcoal eyes stared at Radditsu until it seemed like she would bore a hole into the young man with her intense gaze. She was a good deal smaller than Yosu and Radditsu both, thus remaining unusually quiet. Few even knew her name; she was that unimportant to her peers. Radditsu paid no heed to her, seeing that she was not a threat to his pride at all.
"Outta my way," hissed Kakarotto's older brother as he drew his arm back to strike her. Yosu stared at him blankly before wisely stepping aside to let him pass. An amused snort escaped from Radditsu before he proceeded forward, past the small girl and to Yosu's side. After stopping abruptly, he immediately turned to the dark haired girl and without the slightest hesitation, gave her a swift clout across the face. Not even a cry escaped her as the impact from Radditsu's fist sent her flying into the mud, and sliding into the base of a tall, ancient tree.
"Radditsu!" The younger girl cried out for her, taking a step towards him.
Radditsu merely laughed. "She's just lucky I'm not angry." He smirked and turned towards the outraged girl. "And so are you." With that, he turned away from both of them, not giving the slightest thought to what had just occurred and went about his way down the grimy path. He continued to do so without even looking back until he eventually faded into the distance, leaving an air of relief behind him and giving of an air of dread before him.
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A stray droplet fell from one of the branches that towered above them. It brushed against several damp leaves and soggy branches, paying no attention to the obstacles that sat in its way. When all challenges had been passed, the droplet continued its descent through the heavy air until it collided against the back of Kakarotto's sweaty neck.
"Hold still, Kuririn."
Horrible hands gripped onto the smaller boy tightly, keeping him firmly in place on the ground. Kuririn's eyes were squeezed shut as he managed to nod quickly. "I'm trying, Kakarotto." A pause lingered between them. "Just get it over with…"
"Right!" Kakarotto's more than enthusiastic response was somewhat upsetting to Kuririn. What was he so cheerful about anyway? Then again, Kakarotto was always cheerful, wasn't he? While it was one of the younger boy's best qualities, there were times when his cheerfulness wasn't exactly appreciated – nor appropriate. But that was simply the way things were. And you had to accept things for the way they were on Vejita-sei. "Here we go!"
Kuririn immediately felt a cool cloth be thrown against his scraped face, causing him to flinch involuntarily. Before it could slide away from him and land in his lap, a strong hand pressed against the coarse cloth and began to scrape it against Kuririn's scratched skin. He rubbed thoroughly, removing any dirt that could have possibly gotten into the cuts through out the day. When the hand finally drew back with the cloth, Kakarotto examined his handy work closely. "Hmmm. All the dirt's gone on your face now."
"But the cuts are bleeding again, Kakarotto," observed Kuririn as he brought his own hand to his face. Sure enough, he felt the warm blood trickle slowly down his bruised cheekbones and forehead.
"At least they're not dirty!" The taller boy beamed and peered forward at him. "Come on…let's do your head now!" He dipped the cloth into a small bowl of water that sat between them, ignoring the blades of moist grass that tickled against his wrists as he did so.
It was then that Kuririn finally opened his eyes, looking at Kakarotto and then at the tall trees that loomed over them boldly. Their large branches and boughs cast odd shaped shadows against his bleeding face, but Kuririn didn't complain. He enjoyed the coolness against his skin the moisture produced. It had stopped raining several minutes ago and the force fields were all ready beginning to do their labor.
The birds chirped in a meek and quiet manner as the clouds that hung in the sky elegantly drifted away to distant lands that lay far beyond the campus borders. The winds rustled past he and his larger companion, tempting Kuririn to take a deep breath to experience the damp air that swirled gently about him. Kakarotto shifted in the tufts of different grasses that he was nestled in, looking at Kuririn with a curious expression. After a brief moment, the innocent child hummed quietly and rocked back and forth with a playful air about him.
They both suddenly wanted to savor the moment as if they would never have another quite like it again…
It was then that Kuririn felt his hair stand on end. Horrible goose bumps spread across his strong arms and legs. With tensed muscles, he abruptly began to fidget with trembling breath. He felt numb. His stomach seemed to be twisting itself into endless knots of misery and woe. Something…something…
"S-something's watching me," he whispered suddenly.
Kakarotto's humming abruptly died as his head turned towards his friend. "What do you mean Kuririn? We're alone." He looked about him to make sure what he said was true. When he was sure that he saw no one, he beamed and nodded. "Yup! I don't see anyone."
"They could be hiding." Kuririn swallowed hard and bit his lip with apprehension. "People hide when they want to go unnoticed…"
A swift crackle sounded from behind them and Kakarotto immediately sprung to his feet. Swiftly, he held his fist up in front of him, his breathing quick and uneasy. "Come out, you spy! We know you you're there!"
There was nothing save the crowing of some distant birds.
Kuririn watched with fear etched onto his battered face. Had someone followed them here? His eyes traveled over to the looming trees, vexed and upset at the very idea that someone might be lurking among the branches, peering at them, unnoticed.
Kakarotto stayed standing for several tense minutes before slowly sitting back down in the sweet smelling grass. Neither of the teens uttered a word, but sat listening intently instead. Little did they know, a pair of sparkling, violet eyes peered at them from the group of dark trees behind them both. They narrowed in deep thought as pale and flakey fingers gripped onto the stiff bark of a tree. With a foul smile being played, his gaze settled on a particular, smaller boy.
Kuririn…
I'm watching you…
And with a swift movement of an old and faded lab coat, the pair of eyes promptly fell away into the darkness, the fingers disappearing with them. All that was left behind was the faint echo of a deep and sinister chuckle.
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End Chapter 2. Remember: feedback is still appreciated! ^_^
