Chapter four: Word of honour-Promises and bruises
Tien gaped; the was dressed in the skimpiest swimsuit he had ever seen, not that he had seen many, he smiled and offered his hand
"Long time no see, nobody means you any harm, we'll make sure of it" he said, jumping straight into the task of reassuring her, she scowled and her foot sent a shooting pain through his shin, he sank to his knees to find her tanned knee in his face, he heard soft foot steps as she ran back up the beach, he staggered to his feet and followed her, she disappeared inside a tent, he decided to wait, maybe she was just getting changed, no such luck, she sprinted past him in a sarong and loose shirt, he sighed and lifted into the air, she wasn't going to make this easy, he glided up to pass her, she shrieked some new curse at him and skidded to a halt as he landed in front of her, he could see men in security uniforms approaching
"Come on, you know no one's going to hurt you"
"Then how do you explain the bruises on my wrists" she spat, he took a step back, the men were getting closer
"Hey you!" one of them yelled, Tien sighed, trying to think of something to reassure her
"If we wanted to hurt you, would Krillin and I have helped you in the alley?" she started
"If I'm you're only hope then of course you'd grab me no matter where I was" she said, backing away, her fists raised, the men in blue were a hundred yards away
"Come on, I promise nothing bad will happen, we need to protect you from your twin. If she finds you we're all doomed" she seemed to be considering, the security guards were yards away from her, Tien tried once more
"I promise, I will personally protect you, Piccolo won't do it again, he didn't realise he hurt you"
"I don't care, do you have any idea what I went through to get away from you, I nearly broke my shoulder" Tien's eyes widened
"How?" her answer never came, a guard ran up and stepped in front of her
"You ok Nokia?" he asked while three men tackled Tien, he didn't respond, knowing he would kill them by accident if he retaliated, she was watching him through narrowed green eyes, he thought for a second, green eyes? The men pulled him to his feet
"Come on buddy, no touching the models" one told him, they roughly pulled him back up the beach, he was surprised at how far she had gotten, she was fast, dam she was fast.
Nokia considered, Bob took her arm
"You look like you need a drink" she nodded, stress making her movements slow
"What'd he try?" bob asked tentatively as he led her back towards the collection of small tents, she wondered why Tien didn't just shake them off. His third eye was watching her, she looked away
"Nothing, he just wanted to speak to me," she said shakily, putting on as best she could, she was scared, but not for the reasons she would have them believe, Bob patted her shoulder
"Wait" the guards stopped
"She shook away from bob and strode up to them, looking Tien in his three eyes
"You promise?" she asked, unsure why she was doing this, he nodded
"You have my word of honour" he said formally, she took a deep breath, suddenly Vegeta landed next to her, she whirled around
"Gotcha" he said triumphantly, grabbing her arm, Tien jumped forward, smashing his fist into the short man's face, this had little effect except to make him let her go, she jumped away, Tien was standing in front of her, his arms spread wide
"Leave it Vegeta, she's agreed to come back" he said warningly, Nokia shut her mouth, holding back the indignant reply that was on the tip of her tongue, the short man growled and shot into the air, Nokia felt her knees go weak with relief, she looked at her arm, there was a huge hand shaped bruise forming already, the security guards were getting to their feet, she turned to them
"It's ok guys, he's with me" she told them, Tien turned to her
"Ok" she told him
"But let me get properly dressed" he nodded and escorted her back to the tents, the guards walking close behind, she nodded to Bob who grinned and led the others away
"Thanks" she told Tien, letting him take her arm
"I'll let the other know I found you, ok?" he said, she nodded and stepped back into the tent, changing her clothes is quickly into something much warmer. When she came out Tien was standing just before the water, glowing amber, she stared. Sona and Mika came up behind her
"Change of plans guys, tell Robert I won't be back for a few days ok?" she told them apologetically. Sona winked
"We understand" Nokia just shrugged, denying what they were thinking would be pointless
"See you guys" she waved her hand and pulled her sweatshirt closer about herself, she shrugged to herself, her face would have been all over the city in a few days anyway, it was inevitable, Tien turned, the glow fading
"Hey, you ready to go?" she nodded
"Fly slow" she ordered
"The others will turn up in minute or so" she nodded as he rose into the air, she let him place both arms around her waist, holding her beneath him
"Ready?" she closed her eyes
"Go" she said, the air pressure triple as they shot forwards
Gohan felt Tien approach, there was a small ki with him, he whooped triumphantly
"He's got her guys!" he yelled to the others, his father looked up and grinned, Krillin and Yamcha whooped with him
"Who would have thought, Tien, the one she cut up would get her" Yamcha said grinning, the dot that was Tien grew in size as he neared them.
Miko spread her arms out, straightening her body, she heard a chuckle, she grinned, keeping her eyes shut tight, suddenly she was jerked to a stop, she scowled as she nearly slid right out of Tien's grip, he caught her by the hips, her eyes snapped open to see Yamcha below her
"Long time no see" he called upwards, she looked around, Gohan, Goku and Krillin were all grinning from ear to ear, she fought the annoyed blush and settled for a threat, they were all a lot les brave when it came to taking on an angry woman, this gave her an advantage
"If any of you say one word, I will execute each one of you myself" she told them definitely, they all nodded still grinning, how she longed to hit them, she was still seriously annoyed with each of them
"First stop, Capsule Corp" she heard Tien say, his arms tightened around her again, her dyed hair whipped into her face as they jolted into motion, she shut her eyes, the sea far below, she tapped Tien on the shoulder, he looked down
"You ok?" he asked, his third eye watching where he was going
"Go down!" she yelled over the wind, he nodded and they descended, she grinned and dropped her hands to let her fingers brush the glassy surface of the blue water, salt flying onto her skin. She laughed at the unusual sensation, looking up she noticed Tien smiling at her, she blushed and suddenly drove her hands into the water, creating a kid of barrier, sending a bucket full of water into his face, he yelped protestingly as more covered his face, half falling on her, he turned upwards her feet touched the water for a second before it disappeared below her, she scowled at the sopping triclops carrying her
"You prefer flying like this" he stated, she nodded
"Just don't drop me," she said warningly
Tien nodded and grinned, she was incredibly light, and in her current clothes she looked even better than she had the day at the lookout, he stopped his train of thought, wondering where it came from, he felt her move slightly
"Can you not hold so tight, your crushing my ribs" she choked, Tien cursed himself and loosened his grip enough to keep hold of her. She nodded gratefully, spreading her hands again, he grinned and increased his speed, he felt her place her small hands over his own wrapped around her, he noticed one of his arms could make it all the way around her waist with room to spare, in the past even at the lookout her clothes and stance had hidden just how small her waist actually was, he had seen her in that bathing suit though, she was incredible slender, and rather delicate looking, she appeared to grow more attractive every time he saw her, but then again she wore more tasteful clothing each time her saw her. He pulled up his train of thought again, telling himself he just needed sleep; he hadn't slept in three days. He landed outside Capsule Corp, setting her on her feet. She stood for a second then entered the house the house at a hurried walk
Miko called through the door
"Bulma" she heard a distant reply and Bulma came running
"Miko!" She said, crushing her in a hug, squeezing her already aching ribs
"Where've you been?" she said, worry in her eyes
"Goku told me what happened are you ok?" she asked, inspecting Miko's wrist carefully, the bruising was all gone, it became invisible within half an hour if it wasn't serious, the ones on her wrists were, they had faded in a matter of days though
"Don't worry, I was just a bit shaken up, how is Sheme?" said urgently
"I wanted to come back to get him but I was afraid of what would happen to him, they want me dead Bulma, I was scared they'd use him as bait, if anyone knew I was close by I was scared they'd hurt him to get me back" Bulma gasped
"Who?" "Vegeta, Piccolo, I don't know who else but a few of them, something about if they kill me my twin can't reach full power, I wasn't listening to the green brat, I was too busy keeping an eyes on the bigger one. But geezuz, he's strong, but he's not invincible, he'll be still feeling the effects of my fist" she smirked
"Ignorant idiot, he was waiting for me to run, not for me to hit him, unfortunately I could only reach his gut"
"Don't tell me they dragged you back here?" she asked worriedly
"No, Tien gave me his word nothing else would happen, I believed him, but I keep more than one weapon on me just in case, I can handle the average man, not a seven foot giant, still Tien promised, you should've seen his face when Vegeta grabbed my arm" she rolled up her sleeve to show the diminishing bruise, Bulma gaped
"I'll speak to him," she said through gritted teeth
"For some reason I trust Tien"
"Yeah he's a big softie at heart, Sheme is fine, I told him you went on vacation and you said he could stay here, that's ok isn't it?"
"Yeah, it's perfect. Man I haven't lived this well for a long time"
"So what did you do with yourself? Sheme's doing homework right now, I found out where he was enrolled"
"Great" Bulma led her into the house. Miko heard footsteps and Tien tapped her on the shoulder
"I'll stick around if you want, if Bulma doesn't have room for me then I'll take you to Master Roshi's ok?" she nodded and turned to Bulma
"Sure I have room Tien, looks like you found yourself a bodyguard Miko" Bulma said grinning Miko nodded
"Something like that" Bulma led them through the now familiar corridors, Miko heard the others talking behind them, their words only just within earshot
"She didn't beat you up Tien?"
"Not really, she kicked me in the shin and kneed me in the head but nothing after that"
"At least she didn't kick any higher" there were murmurs of agreement. She heard a few chuckles as well
"How'd you convince her to come, she didn't exactly look scared when we met up"
"I promised her nothing else would happen, and then Vegeta turned up and grabbed, her got him by surprise, I guess that convinced her"
"You took on Vegeta!"
"He wasn't powered up or anything, and he wasn't hurt, but it was enough to get her to let her go, I promised I'd make sure nothing happened, and then he turns up, I'd say he left a beaut' of a bruise on her arm though, her face, she was totally freaked, though I would be to if Vegeta got a grip like that on me" there was a low whistle and Miko didn't catch the answer as they entered the living room
"No drinking this time ok?" Bulma said half jokingly
"By the way nice hair" she pointed to Miko's shorn locks
"You'd be surprised the trouble I went to not to be found"
"Yeah, even Dende couldn't find you, he thought your twin might have been blocking him or something"
"Oh ok, hey listen I don't really feel all that happy about staying so close to Vegeta he was one of the ones keen to kill me so."
"He wouldn't actually but I can understand, tell you what, get Tien to take you to Master Roshi's, have you gotten used to flying by now"
"I guess, it's not too bad as long as they don't drop you, still I guess I bring it on myself he way I hang on, I swear the look on Gohan's face when Goku asked him was priceless, It's amusing when you look back on it but a the time it was downright irritating" Bulma grinned
"Gohan still has those marks, hungry?"
"Yeah"
"Vegeta won't be back for a while yet"
"Cool" she heard Tien step up behind her
"Tien, I think I'd rather stay at Master Roshi's or somewhere else"
"Ok, I'll take you whenever you're ready, it's getting close to dark so it'd be better to go soon, I can't see in the dark"
"Sure I'll just get something to eat"
"I'll be outside" she smiled at Tien, he was beginning to give her a warm fuzzy feeling whenever he was close, she scowled to herself, telling her brain that it was just that she felt safe, without the risk of having her neck snapped every second of the day. Bulma reappeared with a plate of food, Miko took it
"Thanks"
"No problem" Miko swallowed a piece of hot steak
"This is good food," she said appreciatively, setting the plate on the coffee table and sitting down opposite Bulma
"So what have you been up to lately?"
"First I bought clothes, got my hair and face down, then the hairdresser told me to go to this place about modelling, so I thought at least I could find a way of getting some cash, and he took me straight away, they did some trial shots and I found an agent and got a three week contract, I was halfway through when Tien turned up, but a woman who I work with sowed me around town and introduced me to a little something called a social life, I intend to keep going, but I'll work with you guys now as well, on certain conditions" she took a last bite of a bread roll
"Do you encapsulise these?" she indicated the half full plate, Bulma nodded
"You've been busy then" Miko nodded
"Very" she swallowed the last of the bread roll and put down her plate
"Thanks, I guess I'll be going now, listen, can Sheme stay with you? I want to keep going with my job, however degrading it is it makes good money, here though he has a friend, I could never afford a decent place before, we lived in a hole, he seems to like it here" Bulma nodded
"Sure he can stay, I'll tell him you'll come to see him soon"
"Great, I'm working every other day so I'll come and see him on my way to work and take him out in the afternoons, the hours are really good you know" Bulma grinned
"Come on, I'll see you off"
"Don't worry about it, you'll only see me either screaming or swearing and you know how much you hate that" she waved her hands and disappeared down the hall that led to the outside
Tien stepped outside to see Goku and Gohan take off, Yamcha and Krillin were waving them goodbye. Krillin turned at his approach
"So what's the deal? We going or what?"
"She said she's coming once she gets something to eat"
"So she's going to Master Roshi's place with you guys then" Yamcha was grinning stupidly as Tien nodded
"Leave her along Yamcha" Krillin warned
"There are other girls, it's bad enough she'll have to deal with Master Roshi" Yamcha grinned
"I wasn't thinking about it, honest" even in the near dark there was a deep blush on his cheeks, Krillin smirked
"Sure you weren't"
Miko wandered outside at a leisurely pace, her stomach pleasantly full. Sheme was going to stay at Capsule Corp, she was glad he had found a friend in Trunks and another in Goten. Bulma said that Vegeta was all talk and would never actually attack her, not with Goku around anyway. This was not very comforting; she made a mental note to keep her knuckle-dusters handy. She hadn't needed them for a long time. She tightened the straps on her sandals. Tien turned as she walked up behind him
"Ready?"
"I have to stop at my apartment to pick up some clothes" he nodded
"Ok, we'll meet you there if you guys want to go ahead" he said to Krillin and Yamcha, they nodded, disappearing in the rapidly falling darkness. Tien awkwardly lifted her off her feet, she sighed annoyedly; she hated being carried. She nodded and took a deep breath while she could. They shot forward
Tien did his best to hold on without crushing her in his fingers or insulting her, he was not succeeding, he let her down as quickly as he could, she unlocked the door and led him inside, a woman in a dressing gown came out of a side room
"Oh you're home Nokia" she said
"Hey, listen Linda, I'm staying with some friends so I may not be back, thank you so much for taking me in on such short notice, I'll send the board up to the end of the month" the woman nodded
"So this is the mystery man who swept you off your feet" she said with a gossip starved air, Tien thanked Dende Miko had placed the baseball cap she seemed to favour on his head to cover his third eye
"You go girl, but geez he's huge" Tien was getting uncomfortable, he guessed now he knew how Miko felt all the time, the woman smirked and withdrew
"Hey, you'll still come and visit, things'll be pretty quiet without you girl" Miko called from the room she disappeared into. Tien stood awkwardly in the doorway
"Yeah why not, I'm still doing the contract, and my face, or more my ass is going to be in god knows how many magazines in two weeks, I'll just get Mr muscle man here to fly me into the city, can you believe the kind of shots they were asking for, like hell I'm gonna wear what they gave me, I couldn't figure out which way I was meant to put it on. Robert said it's ok if I don't wanna wear something like that, but that other magazine, you know the one who offered Malan and me that other three day shoot, that one, they can't seem to take a hint"
"Good on ya, you're not a sell-out like some models I've seen. Cool, yeah they said he can fly, I heard he chased you down the beach"
"Minor incident, new Capsule Corp technology, it was a test to see if it could keep up with some one running, and apparently I'm the fastest runner around" Miko's voice was muffled as she rolled the lies off her tongue, Tien raised an eyebrow, she was good at this. The woman finally addressed him, extending her hand
"Linda. You're awfully quiet, I bet you're sorry already, Nokia isn't your average model, she considers being gawked at degrading, yet she's the hottest thing on the catwalks, or so the critics say" Tien managed a weak smile, as he shook her hand carefully, Miko was pretty strong so he could be less careful with her but this was just another ordinary woman, which meant he could break her fingers without realising it
"Well...you see.....we're not...together....we're just...friends...kind of" Linda winked at him
"Sure you aren't, not many guys can keep their hands off her, she decked some guy right outside the door once, then dragged him three floors down and chucked him into the street" Tien grinned
"That sounds like her, none of the others had any idea she could fight as well as she could, we didn't find out till she crippled one of the best fighters on the planet"
"You mean Hercule? Hell, not even she could beat him" Tien grinned
"I wouldn't be so sure about that" Miko staggered out, her hair half down, giving an interesting effect in the semi dark and her mouth was full of hair pins and clips. She opened the small bag she was dragging and dropped them in. Her cheeks were flushed
"I hope you aren't scaring him Linda, he's awfully shy" Linda grinned
"Worried I'll tell him horror stories about what you've done to guys who've annoyed you? Like that time at the cafe, this guy ran into her and she thought he was trying t-"
"Ok! I'mreadylet'sgo" Miko cut in, her voice slighter higher, Linda grinned
"Another time" she grinned wider as Miko shoved the bag at Tien and pushed him backwards out the door
"See you in a few days Nokia!" Linda called. Miko turned and hugged her quickly, shutting the door behind her. Tien shouldered the bag.
"Nokia?"
"New name" she told him shortly, he noticed a tiny tint of green regrowth poking out from her now loose hair, she placed her arms around his neck and tightened her grip, he lifted off and shot out of the fire escape, speeding through the dark night, Miko buried her head in his chest, he was wearing a tropical shirt Master Roshi had found, they seemed to think turning up shirtless would freak her even more. He pushed down the tiny chill that ran through him as he carried her feather-light weight, she seemed to get thinner every time he saw her as well. She leaned out a little to watch the outer city limits flash by under them. She yelped as he dodged a low hanging cloud, knowing they made it impossible to see where you were going. She yelped again and clung tighter to him. He shot through the sky, as she rested her head under his chin.
He shifted his head to rest on her silken hair. She was probably as pretty as Bulma, he thought to himself, though he had little idea what classified a woman or girl as pretty, some one had told him once that Bulma was extremely pretty, he had taken their word for it, but in many ways she was like Bulma when she chose to show it she had a small slender waist, smooth not overly narrow hips, unblemished skin and beautiful defined features, he supposed that came from her father, apparently Zarbon was one hell of a pretty boy, she must have had a hard time trying to cover her looks, they were unmissable. He abruptly pulled up his thoughts; this was the third time it had happened, what was going on in his head? He mentally shook himself as the inky black of the ocean came into view. He felt Miko relax, he glanced down, she was asleep, he slowed down, it would take twice the time now if he didn't want to wake her, and waking her would result in either dropping her or a repetition of his earlier injuries. he settled for going slow. He glided close to the water, understanding how she had laughed so happily as he flew her low enough to drag her fingers through the glassy surface.
Yamcha trained in the twilight, he felt Tien approach. He went a little faster, it had been a long time since he had worn the familiar orange gi, but if there was any chance he could defend himself he would take it. He heard Tien land with a double thud. A loud protest from Miko as to the rough landing ensued. He grinned and turned around to see her sitting on the sand looking indignant, his grin grew. Tien was standing above her apologising
"Hey you were asleep I didn't know you would jump like that, at least I didn't drop you in the ocean" he said. This seemed to appease her. She got up and dusted off her rear, then shouldered a small duffel bag, after a thoughtful second she shoved it at Tien. Yamcha grinned even wider
"Welcome to our humble training place, I would suggest you tone down the dress while master Roshi is around though" she shrugged, not understanding his words. He sighed, she would find out soon enough
Miko followed Yamcha into the house; it was a little two storey one. She took her bag and dumped it by one of the sleeping mats on the floor of the spacious lounge as she looked about her, there was a flight of steps leading up to the second to her right and a television set sat in front of the bay window now covered by curtains, there were two steps leading into the langue where the sleeping mats were, and a door led into a kitchen from there, a couch and a table were pushed into the other half of the room, there was a sort of half wall separating the entranceway and the lounge, leaving a gap, most of the walls were pink, not her favourite colour. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of old pizza, she would see to that quick enough. And sitting on the couch was the famed Master Roshi. He was reading something, he jumped when she tapped him on the shoulder, the magazine fluttered to the floor, she saw its cover
"Pervert" she made a mental note to watch him very carefully, she wasn't afraid, the old bastard couldn't hurt her if her tried, not many people could, but she had her dignity to think about
"Hello" he said, getting up, he looked her up and down before her hand whipped out and lifted his head to stare at her face
"Master Roshi I presume" she said icily. He nodded; his gaze wandering downward again, a flash of anger shot through her, but if she had to live with the man she didn't want to be hitting him just yet
"Divert your eyes old man," she ordered, he glanced back up at her face, and she was leaning over to hold onto him, thankful she was wearing a turtleneck jersey
"And you are young lady?" his eyes kept sliding downwards she gave up and dropped his chin
"Miko" she said icily, it was taking all her self control not to hit him, She remembered standing in the doorway acting for Robert; that had been degrading but this was much worse. Suddenly she smirked, a hint of fear flashed in his eyes as an evil look crept across her face.
Tien tapped her on the shoulder; Master Roshi was backing away slowly, and the tension was rising. She looked over her shoulder, he stepped back in fear, she looked so, so, evil.
Authors Note: Hmmm, am unsure where to take this one. Ideas would be appreciated. And now we delve into the mind of my favourite green haired vixen, and just what are her real intentions? Stay tuned to find out. No seriously, please? Chou!
The (weak stomached) storyteller of ages
Tien gaped; the was dressed in the skimpiest swimsuit he had ever seen, not that he had seen many, he smiled and offered his hand
"Long time no see, nobody means you any harm, we'll make sure of it" he said, jumping straight into the task of reassuring her, she scowled and her foot sent a shooting pain through his shin, he sank to his knees to find her tanned knee in his face, he heard soft foot steps as she ran back up the beach, he staggered to his feet and followed her, she disappeared inside a tent, he decided to wait, maybe she was just getting changed, no such luck, she sprinted past him in a sarong and loose shirt, he sighed and lifted into the air, she wasn't going to make this easy, he glided up to pass her, she shrieked some new curse at him and skidded to a halt as he landed in front of her, he could see men in security uniforms approaching
"Come on, you know no one's going to hurt you"
"Then how do you explain the bruises on my wrists" she spat, he took a step back, the men were getting closer
"Hey you!" one of them yelled, Tien sighed, trying to think of something to reassure her
"If we wanted to hurt you, would Krillin and I have helped you in the alley?" she started
"If I'm you're only hope then of course you'd grab me no matter where I was" she said, backing away, her fists raised, the men in blue were a hundred yards away
"Come on, I promise nothing bad will happen, we need to protect you from your twin. If she finds you we're all doomed" she seemed to be considering, the security guards were yards away from her, Tien tried once more
"I promise, I will personally protect you, Piccolo won't do it again, he didn't realise he hurt you"
"I don't care, do you have any idea what I went through to get away from you, I nearly broke my shoulder" Tien's eyes widened
"How?" her answer never came, a guard ran up and stepped in front of her
"You ok Nokia?" he asked while three men tackled Tien, he didn't respond, knowing he would kill them by accident if he retaliated, she was watching him through narrowed green eyes, he thought for a second, green eyes? The men pulled him to his feet
"Come on buddy, no touching the models" one told him, they roughly pulled him back up the beach, he was surprised at how far she had gotten, she was fast, dam she was fast.
Nokia considered, Bob took her arm
"You look like you need a drink" she nodded, stress making her movements slow
"What'd he try?" bob asked tentatively as he led her back towards the collection of small tents, she wondered why Tien didn't just shake them off. His third eye was watching her, she looked away
"Nothing, he just wanted to speak to me," she said shakily, putting on as best she could, she was scared, but not for the reasons she would have them believe, Bob patted her shoulder
"Wait" the guards stopped
"She shook away from bob and strode up to them, looking Tien in his three eyes
"You promise?" she asked, unsure why she was doing this, he nodded
"You have my word of honour" he said formally, she took a deep breath, suddenly Vegeta landed next to her, she whirled around
"Gotcha" he said triumphantly, grabbing her arm, Tien jumped forward, smashing his fist into the short man's face, this had little effect except to make him let her go, she jumped away, Tien was standing in front of her, his arms spread wide
"Leave it Vegeta, she's agreed to come back" he said warningly, Nokia shut her mouth, holding back the indignant reply that was on the tip of her tongue, the short man growled and shot into the air, Nokia felt her knees go weak with relief, she looked at her arm, there was a huge hand shaped bruise forming already, the security guards were getting to their feet, she turned to them
"It's ok guys, he's with me" she told them, Tien turned to her
"Ok" she told him
"But let me get properly dressed" he nodded and escorted her back to the tents, the guards walking close behind, she nodded to Bob who grinned and led the others away
"Thanks" she told Tien, letting him take her arm
"I'll let the other know I found you, ok?" he said, she nodded and stepped back into the tent, changing her clothes is quickly into something much warmer. When she came out Tien was standing just before the water, glowing amber, she stared. Sona and Mika came up behind her
"Change of plans guys, tell Robert I won't be back for a few days ok?" she told them apologetically. Sona winked
"We understand" Nokia just shrugged, denying what they were thinking would be pointless
"See you guys" she waved her hand and pulled her sweatshirt closer about herself, she shrugged to herself, her face would have been all over the city in a few days anyway, it was inevitable, Tien turned, the glow fading
"Hey, you ready to go?" she nodded
"Fly slow" she ordered
"The others will turn up in minute or so" she nodded as he rose into the air, she let him place both arms around her waist, holding her beneath him
"Ready?" she closed her eyes
"Go" she said, the air pressure triple as they shot forwards
Gohan felt Tien approach, there was a small ki with him, he whooped triumphantly
"He's got her guys!" he yelled to the others, his father looked up and grinned, Krillin and Yamcha whooped with him
"Who would have thought, Tien, the one she cut up would get her" Yamcha said grinning, the dot that was Tien grew in size as he neared them.
Miko spread her arms out, straightening her body, she heard a chuckle, she grinned, keeping her eyes shut tight, suddenly she was jerked to a stop, she scowled as she nearly slid right out of Tien's grip, he caught her by the hips, her eyes snapped open to see Yamcha below her
"Long time no see" he called upwards, she looked around, Gohan, Goku and Krillin were all grinning from ear to ear, she fought the annoyed blush and settled for a threat, they were all a lot les brave when it came to taking on an angry woman, this gave her an advantage
"If any of you say one word, I will execute each one of you myself" she told them definitely, they all nodded still grinning, how she longed to hit them, she was still seriously annoyed with each of them
"First stop, Capsule Corp" she heard Tien say, his arms tightened around her again, her dyed hair whipped into her face as they jolted into motion, she shut her eyes, the sea far below, she tapped Tien on the shoulder, he looked down
"You ok?" he asked, his third eye watching where he was going
"Go down!" she yelled over the wind, he nodded and they descended, she grinned and dropped her hands to let her fingers brush the glassy surface of the blue water, salt flying onto her skin. She laughed at the unusual sensation, looking up she noticed Tien smiling at her, she blushed and suddenly drove her hands into the water, creating a kid of barrier, sending a bucket full of water into his face, he yelped protestingly as more covered his face, half falling on her, he turned upwards her feet touched the water for a second before it disappeared below her, she scowled at the sopping triclops carrying her
"You prefer flying like this" he stated, she nodded
"Just don't drop me," she said warningly
Tien nodded and grinned, she was incredibly light, and in her current clothes she looked even better than she had the day at the lookout, he stopped his train of thought, wondering where it came from, he felt her move slightly
"Can you not hold so tight, your crushing my ribs" she choked, Tien cursed himself and loosened his grip enough to keep hold of her. She nodded gratefully, spreading her hands again, he grinned and increased his speed, he felt her place her small hands over his own wrapped around her, he noticed one of his arms could make it all the way around her waist with room to spare, in the past even at the lookout her clothes and stance had hidden just how small her waist actually was, he had seen her in that bathing suit though, she was incredible slender, and rather delicate looking, she appeared to grow more attractive every time he saw her, but then again she wore more tasteful clothing each time her saw her. He pulled up his train of thought again, telling himself he just needed sleep; he hadn't slept in three days. He landed outside Capsule Corp, setting her on her feet. She stood for a second then entered the house the house at a hurried walk
Miko called through the door
"Bulma" she heard a distant reply and Bulma came running
"Miko!" She said, crushing her in a hug, squeezing her already aching ribs
"Where've you been?" she said, worry in her eyes
"Goku told me what happened are you ok?" she asked, inspecting Miko's wrist carefully, the bruising was all gone, it became invisible within half an hour if it wasn't serious, the ones on her wrists were, they had faded in a matter of days though
"Don't worry, I was just a bit shaken up, how is Sheme?" said urgently
"I wanted to come back to get him but I was afraid of what would happen to him, they want me dead Bulma, I was scared they'd use him as bait, if anyone knew I was close by I was scared they'd hurt him to get me back" Bulma gasped
"Who?" "Vegeta, Piccolo, I don't know who else but a few of them, something about if they kill me my twin can't reach full power, I wasn't listening to the green brat, I was too busy keeping an eyes on the bigger one. But geezuz, he's strong, but he's not invincible, he'll be still feeling the effects of my fist" she smirked
"Ignorant idiot, he was waiting for me to run, not for me to hit him, unfortunately I could only reach his gut"
"Don't tell me they dragged you back here?" she asked worriedly
"No, Tien gave me his word nothing else would happen, I believed him, but I keep more than one weapon on me just in case, I can handle the average man, not a seven foot giant, still Tien promised, you should've seen his face when Vegeta grabbed my arm" she rolled up her sleeve to show the diminishing bruise, Bulma gaped
"I'll speak to him," she said through gritted teeth
"For some reason I trust Tien"
"Yeah he's a big softie at heart, Sheme is fine, I told him you went on vacation and you said he could stay here, that's ok isn't it?"
"Yeah, it's perfect. Man I haven't lived this well for a long time"
"So what did you do with yourself? Sheme's doing homework right now, I found out where he was enrolled"
"Great" Bulma led her into the house. Miko heard footsteps and Tien tapped her on the shoulder
"I'll stick around if you want, if Bulma doesn't have room for me then I'll take you to Master Roshi's ok?" she nodded and turned to Bulma
"Sure I have room Tien, looks like you found yourself a bodyguard Miko" Bulma said grinning Miko nodded
"Something like that" Bulma led them through the now familiar corridors, Miko heard the others talking behind them, their words only just within earshot
"She didn't beat you up Tien?"
"Not really, she kicked me in the shin and kneed me in the head but nothing after that"
"At least she didn't kick any higher" there were murmurs of agreement. She heard a few chuckles as well
"How'd you convince her to come, she didn't exactly look scared when we met up"
"I promised her nothing else would happen, and then Vegeta turned up and grabbed, her got him by surprise, I guess that convinced her"
"You took on Vegeta!"
"He wasn't powered up or anything, and he wasn't hurt, but it was enough to get her to let her go, I promised I'd make sure nothing happened, and then he turns up, I'd say he left a beaut' of a bruise on her arm though, her face, she was totally freaked, though I would be to if Vegeta got a grip like that on me" there was a low whistle and Miko didn't catch the answer as they entered the living room
"No drinking this time ok?" Bulma said half jokingly
"By the way nice hair" she pointed to Miko's shorn locks
"You'd be surprised the trouble I went to not to be found"
"Yeah, even Dende couldn't find you, he thought your twin might have been blocking him or something"
"Oh ok, hey listen I don't really feel all that happy about staying so close to Vegeta he was one of the ones keen to kill me so."
"He wouldn't actually but I can understand, tell you what, get Tien to take you to Master Roshi's, have you gotten used to flying by now"
"I guess, it's not too bad as long as they don't drop you, still I guess I bring it on myself he way I hang on, I swear the look on Gohan's face when Goku asked him was priceless, It's amusing when you look back on it but a the time it was downright irritating" Bulma grinned
"Gohan still has those marks, hungry?"
"Yeah"
"Vegeta won't be back for a while yet"
"Cool" she heard Tien step up behind her
"Tien, I think I'd rather stay at Master Roshi's or somewhere else"
"Ok, I'll take you whenever you're ready, it's getting close to dark so it'd be better to go soon, I can't see in the dark"
"Sure I'll just get something to eat"
"I'll be outside" she smiled at Tien, he was beginning to give her a warm fuzzy feeling whenever he was close, she scowled to herself, telling her brain that it was just that she felt safe, without the risk of having her neck snapped every second of the day. Bulma reappeared with a plate of food, Miko took it
"Thanks"
"No problem" Miko swallowed a piece of hot steak
"This is good food," she said appreciatively, setting the plate on the coffee table and sitting down opposite Bulma
"So what have you been up to lately?"
"First I bought clothes, got my hair and face down, then the hairdresser told me to go to this place about modelling, so I thought at least I could find a way of getting some cash, and he took me straight away, they did some trial shots and I found an agent and got a three week contract, I was halfway through when Tien turned up, but a woman who I work with sowed me around town and introduced me to a little something called a social life, I intend to keep going, but I'll work with you guys now as well, on certain conditions" she took a last bite of a bread roll
"Do you encapsulise these?" she indicated the half full plate, Bulma nodded
"You've been busy then" Miko nodded
"Very" she swallowed the last of the bread roll and put down her plate
"Thanks, I guess I'll be going now, listen, can Sheme stay with you? I want to keep going with my job, however degrading it is it makes good money, here though he has a friend, I could never afford a decent place before, we lived in a hole, he seems to like it here" Bulma nodded
"Sure he can stay, I'll tell him you'll come to see him soon"
"Great, I'm working every other day so I'll come and see him on my way to work and take him out in the afternoons, the hours are really good you know" Bulma grinned
"Come on, I'll see you off"
"Don't worry about it, you'll only see me either screaming or swearing and you know how much you hate that" she waved her hands and disappeared down the hall that led to the outside
Tien stepped outside to see Goku and Gohan take off, Yamcha and Krillin were waving them goodbye. Krillin turned at his approach
"So what's the deal? We going or what?"
"She said she's coming once she gets something to eat"
"So she's going to Master Roshi's place with you guys then" Yamcha was grinning stupidly as Tien nodded
"Leave her along Yamcha" Krillin warned
"There are other girls, it's bad enough she'll have to deal with Master Roshi" Yamcha grinned
"I wasn't thinking about it, honest" even in the near dark there was a deep blush on his cheeks, Krillin smirked
"Sure you weren't"
Miko wandered outside at a leisurely pace, her stomach pleasantly full. Sheme was going to stay at Capsule Corp, she was glad he had found a friend in Trunks and another in Goten. Bulma said that Vegeta was all talk and would never actually attack her, not with Goku around anyway. This was not very comforting; she made a mental note to keep her knuckle-dusters handy. She hadn't needed them for a long time. She tightened the straps on her sandals. Tien turned as she walked up behind him
"Ready?"
"I have to stop at my apartment to pick up some clothes" he nodded
"Ok, we'll meet you there if you guys want to go ahead" he said to Krillin and Yamcha, they nodded, disappearing in the rapidly falling darkness. Tien awkwardly lifted her off her feet, she sighed annoyedly; she hated being carried. She nodded and took a deep breath while she could. They shot forward
Tien did his best to hold on without crushing her in his fingers or insulting her, he was not succeeding, he let her down as quickly as he could, she unlocked the door and led him inside, a woman in a dressing gown came out of a side room
"Oh you're home Nokia" she said
"Hey, listen Linda, I'm staying with some friends so I may not be back, thank you so much for taking me in on such short notice, I'll send the board up to the end of the month" the woman nodded
"So this is the mystery man who swept you off your feet" she said with a gossip starved air, Tien thanked Dende Miko had placed the baseball cap she seemed to favour on his head to cover his third eye
"You go girl, but geez he's huge" Tien was getting uncomfortable, he guessed now he knew how Miko felt all the time, the woman smirked and withdrew
"Hey, you'll still come and visit, things'll be pretty quiet without you girl" Miko called from the room she disappeared into. Tien stood awkwardly in the doorway
"Yeah why not, I'm still doing the contract, and my face, or more my ass is going to be in god knows how many magazines in two weeks, I'll just get Mr muscle man here to fly me into the city, can you believe the kind of shots they were asking for, like hell I'm gonna wear what they gave me, I couldn't figure out which way I was meant to put it on. Robert said it's ok if I don't wanna wear something like that, but that other magazine, you know the one who offered Malan and me that other three day shoot, that one, they can't seem to take a hint"
"Good on ya, you're not a sell-out like some models I've seen. Cool, yeah they said he can fly, I heard he chased you down the beach"
"Minor incident, new Capsule Corp technology, it was a test to see if it could keep up with some one running, and apparently I'm the fastest runner around" Miko's voice was muffled as she rolled the lies off her tongue, Tien raised an eyebrow, she was good at this. The woman finally addressed him, extending her hand
"Linda. You're awfully quiet, I bet you're sorry already, Nokia isn't your average model, she considers being gawked at degrading, yet she's the hottest thing on the catwalks, or so the critics say" Tien managed a weak smile, as he shook her hand carefully, Miko was pretty strong so he could be less careful with her but this was just another ordinary woman, which meant he could break her fingers without realising it
"Well...you see.....we're not...together....we're just...friends...kind of" Linda winked at him
"Sure you aren't, not many guys can keep their hands off her, she decked some guy right outside the door once, then dragged him three floors down and chucked him into the street" Tien grinned
"That sounds like her, none of the others had any idea she could fight as well as she could, we didn't find out till she crippled one of the best fighters on the planet"
"You mean Hercule? Hell, not even she could beat him" Tien grinned
"I wouldn't be so sure about that" Miko staggered out, her hair half down, giving an interesting effect in the semi dark and her mouth was full of hair pins and clips. She opened the small bag she was dragging and dropped them in. Her cheeks were flushed
"I hope you aren't scaring him Linda, he's awfully shy" Linda grinned
"Worried I'll tell him horror stories about what you've done to guys who've annoyed you? Like that time at the cafe, this guy ran into her and she thought he was trying t-"
"Ok! I'mreadylet'sgo" Miko cut in, her voice slighter higher, Linda grinned
"Another time" she grinned wider as Miko shoved the bag at Tien and pushed him backwards out the door
"See you in a few days Nokia!" Linda called. Miko turned and hugged her quickly, shutting the door behind her. Tien shouldered the bag.
"Nokia?"
"New name" she told him shortly, he noticed a tiny tint of green regrowth poking out from her now loose hair, she placed her arms around his neck and tightened her grip, he lifted off and shot out of the fire escape, speeding through the dark night, Miko buried her head in his chest, he was wearing a tropical shirt Master Roshi had found, they seemed to think turning up shirtless would freak her even more. He pushed down the tiny chill that ran through him as he carried her feather-light weight, she seemed to get thinner every time he saw her as well. She leaned out a little to watch the outer city limits flash by under them. She yelped as he dodged a low hanging cloud, knowing they made it impossible to see where you were going. She yelped again and clung tighter to him. He shot through the sky, as she rested her head under his chin.
He shifted his head to rest on her silken hair. She was probably as pretty as Bulma, he thought to himself, though he had little idea what classified a woman or girl as pretty, some one had told him once that Bulma was extremely pretty, he had taken their word for it, but in many ways she was like Bulma when she chose to show it she had a small slender waist, smooth not overly narrow hips, unblemished skin and beautiful defined features, he supposed that came from her father, apparently Zarbon was one hell of a pretty boy, she must have had a hard time trying to cover her looks, they were unmissable. He abruptly pulled up his thoughts; this was the third time it had happened, what was going on in his head? He mentally shook himself as the inky black of the ocean came into view. He felt Miko relax, he glanced down, she was asleep, he slowed down, it would take twice the time now if he didn't want to wake her, and waking her would result in either dropping her or a repetition of his earlier injuries. he settled for going slow. He glided close to the water, understanding how she had laughed so happily as he flew her low enough to drag her fingers through the glassy surface.
Yamcha trained in the twilight, he felt Tien approach. He went a little faster, it had been a long time since he had worn the familiar orange gi, but if there was any chance he could defend himself he would take it. He heard Tien land with a double thud. A loud protest from Miko as to the rough landing ensued. He grinned and turned around to see her sitting on the sand looking indignant, his grin grew. Tien was standing above her apologising
"Hey you were asleep I didn't know you would jump like that, at least I didn't drop you in the ocean" he said. This seemed to appease her. She got up and dusted off her rear, then shouldered a small duffel bag, after a thoughtful second she shoved it at Tien. Yamcha grinned even wider
"Welcome to our humble training place, I would suggest you tone down the dress while master Roshi is around though" she shrugged, not understanding his words. He sighed, she would find out soon enough
Miko followed Yamcha into the house; it was a little two storey one. She took her bag and dumped it by one of the sleeping mats on the floor of the spacious lounge as she looked about her, there was a flight of steps leading up to the second to her right and a television set sat in front of the bay window now covered by curtains, there were two steps leading into the langue where the sleeping mats were, and a door led into a kitchen from there, a couch and a table were pushed into the other half of the room, there was a sort of half wall separating the entranceway and the lounge, leaving a gap, most of the walls were pink, not her favourite colour. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of old pizza, she would see to that quick enough. And sitting on the couch was the famed Master Roshi. He was reading something, he jumped when she tapped him on the shoulder, the magazine fluttered to the floor, she saw its cover
"Pervert" she made a mental note to watch him very carefully, she wasn't afraid, the old bastard couldn't hurt her if her tried, not many people could, but she had her dignity to think about
"Hello" he said, getting up, he looked her up and down before her hand whipped out and lifted his head to stare at her face
"Master Roshi I presume" she said icily. He nodded; his gaze wandering downward again, a flash of anger shot through her, but if she had to live with the man she didn't want to be hitting him just yet
"Divert your eyes old man," she ordered, he glanced back up at her face, and she was leaning over to hold onto him, thankful she was wearing a turtleneck jersey
"And you are young lady?" his eyes kept sliding downwards she gave up and dropped his chin
"Miko" she said icily, it was taking all her self control not to hit him, She remembered standing in the doorway acting for Robert; that had been degrading but this was much worse. Suddenly she smirked, a hint of fear flashed in his eyes as an evil look crept across her face.
Tien tapped her on the shoulder; Master Roshi was backing away slowly, and the tension was rising. She looked over her shoulder, he stepped back in fear, she looked so, so, evil.
Authors Note: Hmmm, am unsure where to take this one. Ideas would be appreciated. And now we delve into the mind of my favourite green haired vixen, and just what are her real intentions? Stay tuned to find out. No seriously, please? Chou!
The (weak stomached) storyteller of ages