Disclaimer: Dis = not, claimer = owner

Marron the Spy

Chapter 3: Home Sweet Home

Three whole hours was how long the evening would end and the prelude hadn't even started yet. Marron couldn't believe her luck. She and the rest of the guests were waiting for the dinner to be served, the show to begin, and the evening to be over with. Well, at least she was, considering whom the person seated next to her was. Her name was Ms. Barbara Frank, divorced twice, and looking. She was medium in height and weight. Judging by her looks, she was about late twenties to early thirties, dirty brown hair, curl at the tip, along with a curled bangs. She wore a midnight blue knee-high dress that looked too tight for her to sit properly, with narrow slits on the upper-chest area. 'She must be desperate' Marron thought. That wasn't the reason why Marron was eagerly awaiting for the evening to finish, but from the first time Barbara sat at her table, she never stopped chatting or took a breath of air, at least not from her perspective. It was indeed going to be a long, long night.

"So then I told her, 'you're spoiling your kids. They're running around, all wild and careless of our community.' And since that woman never show up for the town's meeting, you know what I said?" Not waiting for a response, Barbara started shaking her finger. "'You should at least help by raising your kids properly. You must discipline them if you want them to be brought up straight.' That's what I said and you know what she said to me?" She looked at Marron expectantly.

Marron, jolted from her semi-slumber, sat properly like she had paid attention to her mono-conversation the entire time. "What?" she asked confused, but thankfully Barbara hadn't catch on and mistook her confusion and lack of attention as her response, so continued. "She told me, you'll never believe this, but she said, 'You have no right telling me how to raise my children when you don't even have one,' " Barbara mimic. "At that point, I find no need to stand for her insults, and I was only trying to help the poor woman how…" she chattered on.

Marron blocked the woman's constant chatters and returned to her original position, chin on her palms, sighing deeply.

Suddenly, a hand was extended in her view. "Excuse me, but would you like to dance?" In an instant, Barbara paused in midst of her sentence while Marron, without any hesitation, grabbed the man's hand and led them to the dance floor.

"I'll take that as a yes," he laughed as they started a waltz.

"I'm sorry, but I just had to get out of there," she sheepishly replied after realizing what she'd done.

"It's okay. I thought you might've wanted an out. By the way, I'm Carl," he smiled warningly at her.

This got Marron's attention. "Carl as in Carl Vile?" The man in question was of great height, with broad shoulders and through the tuxedo he wore, she could easily figure out that he was very athletic. His maroon colored hair was almost to the point of scarlet hue, but what got her attention were his mysterious green eyes that took her breath away. Whenever she looked up, his eyes were always the first things Marron's laid upon. She felt entrapped in those green orbs, plunging to it deepest depths surrounded by total darkness, but she'd find a way out whenever she felt too caught up in it.

His smile broadened. "So you've heard of me. Since you know who I am, mind if you tell me a little about yourself?" He twirled her around, awaiting her reply.

"There's not much to tell, except my name's Marron. Marron Chestnut." The music in the background ended and this time Carl led her to a group of men gathering in a crowd, drinking champagne and socializing, one of whom she recognized as her boss. In front of him was an elderly man with broad shoulders and surprisingly, considering a man of his age, he was physically built as well. He was almost to the point of baldness and if he wasn't well built, Marron could easily estimate the man, who was in great health, was in his mid fifties. His brown eyes held wisdom that conceals behind his wrinkled skin, his spider's web distinctly showing whenever he laughed. Taking everything into account, Marron estimated the man around his early forties.

The elderly man, amid of his laughter, caught sight of Marron and turned to her. He was halfway getting a word out when Captain Ginyu interrupted him. "This must be the man you spoke of, Mr. Flask. I must say I applaud your efforts for choosing a young man with such determination. Why, this lad had prove times, and times again, from the stories you've told me, that he's a valuable allied on your team, but what I don't understand is why don't you ever send back-up troops just in case something goes wrong?"

Mr. Flask beamed proudly at his bodyguard. "Like you said, Captain Ginyu, he's proven himself worthy enough to gain my trust. If he ever needs help, why I'll be more than happy to send him some men. Fortunately, the missions I've send him, I'm proud to say, were all very successful." He picked up a glass of wine from a passing waiter and handed it to Carl. "You know I'm not a sentimental guy and this has probably be my first time thanking someone, who works for me, publicly or any for that matter. I want you to engrave this occasion in your head, you got that boy?" Carl nodded. "Let's have a toast for your achievements!"

"Here, here!" shouted the crowd now gathering around when the announcement was made. Then cheers from all over the room erupted with a ping of a glass celebrating the occasion.

Marron, who was in awe at the sudden revelation, kept staring at the happy-go-lucky Carl, congratulating by others. Who would've thought a man of his caliber could do so much. Heck, at times of hardship during her work hours, she usually called for a partner. Even Keith himself needed help at times and he was excellent at his job. She should know she was once partnered up with him. She made a decision to find out more about this guy. If he was in fact good at what he does and if he was a threat on her side, then she must extinguish the flame while it was still tiny.

~*~

'Breath, Marron, breathe! You can do this, you can!' Marron bereted herself, 'you have gone through worse situation than this, now all you have to do is just go for it!' With a final deep, relaxing breath, she placed her hand on the doorknob and pushed in. 'This is it…'

Once she walked into the room, while her eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness of the room, the familiar scent flew inside her nostril. The smell not only curved the edge of her mouth, but it opened up long, almost forgotten memories of her childhood. The breeze behind her blew in the ocean's salty scent, along with the gentle, fresh wind that urban dwellers only felt when they went on a cruise. Yes, she was home.

'Home sweet home.'

"Hello, is somebody there?" called out a familiar voice. She averted her attention to the direction of the sound, waiting for the owner to show himself. She was at that state where her mind debated whether or not to stay where she was, or run through the kitchen door just to unleash her anxieties. No sooner had she thought about it, the figure stepped into the room, the weary eyes gone and a surprised look in its place, taking a double look at the stranger that walked into the house. He then, regressed into the room from which he came and no sooner had he left, he regressed into the room again, with someone tailing behind him.

"Mom, dad, I'm home."

"Well, don't just stand there, come here and give us a hug!" Krillen didn't wait for Marron to run up to him; instead he immediately went and hugged his only child. "Marron, I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw you. I thought the sun was playing tricks on me again," he said, his words muffled up.

"Your father had mistaken almost everyone that comes to this island. He would run up to the door, like a little boy after the ice-cream truck and hug the person behind the door, thinking it was you," Juuachigou said with her arms crossed and a tiny smile touched her lips. "One of them happened to be Vegeta and…well, let's just say ever since then he had been careful when greeting guests."

Marron couldn't help but let a few tears roll down her cheeks. She was glad she'd asked her boss to give her some time off.

"So tell us," Krillen interrupted her thoughts, and breaking their tender moments, "how is your work coming along?"

Marron smiled, allowing him to lead her to the couch. "It's great. I sold a lot of insurances to mostly families that wants to be secure after a love ones have pass away. There's really nothing to talk about." She knew she shouldn't lie to her parents, but it would be less complicated and it would definitely be less distracting to the already dangerous work. "Let's talk about something else. What have you guys been up to? Destroyed any evil aliens lately?"

"Nope, it's been quiet since you left for college and doing that insurance internship," Krillen boasted. "You're always kind to others."

"She got that that from you," Juuachigou commented.

She only smiled, allowing them to lead the conversation.

~*~

After dinner, Marron heavily climbed the stairs to her room, dragging her feet like it wasn't a part of her anatomy, but a heavy object that attached itself to her. Once Marron entered her bedroom, her despair gone, she jubilantly belly-flopped onto her bed.

She'd only been home for a couple of hours and already she realized how much she'd changed. She remembered when she was younger how difficult it was for her to lie, now it was just as easy as brushing her teeth. She remembered her as the skinny, considerate, and useless girl living on a small island. Now she's physically built, but not in a bulky tone that she can't be distinguish as a female; secretly infiltrating top organizations; and if necessary, eliminating anyone that oppose her in her line of duty. She laughed at the thought of her father excessively inputting how sweet she was at the dinner table.

"If only you knew how I must kill in order to say alive," she said to herself. 'If only you knew.'

~*~

A/N: I've decided to put this story on hold, seeing as how it's not fair to anyone of you for making you guys wait for my updates. I'm extremely busy now that I'm a senior. What with tests, essays, and whatnot, I just can't find the time to write the next installment. I will do this, however, to those of you who are willing to be patient enough for me. I'm going to start an updating list so that it's not necessary for you guys to excessively check whether or not I've updated. Just leave your e-mail in your review and again, thanks for reading this fanfic! I appreciate all your comments. They just make my worse day into a warm one…until I step outside by house again, then it's all hell breaks loose. J/k!