Disclaimer: I don't own lyrics used from the song 'Seven Years' by Norah
Jones.
AN: There was a bit of confusion as to Bulma's state in the last chapter, let me clear that up! Basically, Bulma *has* gone insane. All those things she read from the diary are completely untrue!
She's in her own fantasy world and is creating her own reality. But we don't know the reason why she's like that. It's up to Vegeta to get her back to normal and FYI, Dragonballs won't work.. hehe I'm so cruel!
~*~
Her skin glittered as a thin film of sweat covered her body.
Vegeta frowned, sitting in the large chair as he leaned closer to the bed, catching small murmurs of the torrential dreams that evaded her sleep. He lightly touched her forehead with his thumb, brushing away the few wisps of sea-blue hair.
He scowled violently, not liking his show of weakness and he wondered if she would dissipate under his touch, as though it were he who was dreaming.
Milky rays of light from the holographic moon, filtered through the gauzy and billowing white curtains. He tilted his head, lost in thought, as the rays danced off her pale flesh that was devoid of any coloring. The lack of color in her cheeks gave the illusion of death to Vegeta.
He narrowed his Saiyan eyes in the dark room, focusing on the table clock. He grunted, not in the least bit surprised that he had been sitting in the same position for over three hours. The red numbers flashed in the dark, giving off a red hue to the corner of the room.
Breathing a labored sigh of exhaustion, he slumped back ungracefully into the chair. He couldn't seem to bat away the memories that forced themselves into his mind. He had been trying for hours to fight them off, but he found that he could not fight them any longer.
A wry smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth as he recalled their tumultuous reunion. His brows furrowed, remembering that even back then he had witnessed signs of her mental instability, but had brushed it away, not even regarding the obvious signs.
Vegeta gazed longingly at the pursed lips of his mate, undenying of the memories that took over his mind.
~*~
"Stay out of my way, baka!" Vegeta snarled through his bared teeth. The moronic earthling snorted. At him!
"Why don't you just get back on the spaceship you stole from the Briefs and float in outer space like the piece of shit you are, for the rest of your life, you murderer!" Yamcha wheezed, cradling his broken and bloody jaw in the palm of his hand. Drops of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as he spoke.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes dangerously, "I'd be careful what you say next, worm." His voice grew eerily calm.
"Or what?" Yamcha chortled, indifferently.
"Or I will give you more than a broken jaw," Vegeta growled, stepping forward. "And then, you'll be begging me to end your pathetic life."
Yamcha gulped, backing away momentarily. "I'm only protecting what's mine!" He cried in defense.
The Saiyan Prince had to chuckle, "What? You're trying to protect the little earthling woman from me?" He continued to advance upon the scar- faced warrior, "I don't give a shit about your little whore, so you can stop worrying about her. If I were you, I would worry about my own safety." He said quietly, eyes glittering with rage.
"Yeah right!" Yamcha scoffed, wincing as his jaw began to ache again, "You're a murderer, a cold-blooded killer! Hell, you could even be a rapist and I have a right to protect her from you!"
Vegeta was suddenly growing extremely bored of the continuous cycle this conversation held. It seemed as though where ever he encountered the scar- faced human, this conversation always followed.
It was almost as if some higher being was torturing him by making him spar verbally with the weakling about the same topic for weeks on hand.
It was the first time that he had actually lashed out and physically harmed the pathetic creature before him.
The routine was too tedious for Vegeta and he needed some new leverage. Growling, he shook his head and retreated towards the back door of the Capsule Corp. compound that led to the kitchen.
"That's right, walk away, coward!" Yamcha's voice called out from what he thought was a safe distance.
Vegeta smirked, knowing full well that the weak earthling had no clue about his attuned Saiyan senses. He turned around and flashed a glare that would have melted the entire Arctic.
He suppressed an evil chuckle as he watched the scar-faced human stumble backwards and fly away from the large dome building, not giving a second glance back and leaving the stench of urine in his wake.
Feeling much more at ease for terrorizing the human, Vegeta flipped the latch of the sliding glass door and entered the kitchen swiftly.
A pair of bright blue eyes followed his every move as he made his way to the fridge.
Ignoring the gaze, he flung the wide shining steel door open and retrieved a large bottle of water from the inside of the door. Slamming the door shut, he turned around again and hid his startled expression as the blue eyes were now face to face with his own.
His right brow creased slightly, wanting to edge away from the nearness of her body. "Move," he demanded quietly, gripping the bottle in his hand so tightly that he was afraid of popping it.
"Don't hit him again," she whispered at him, her smooth voice floating towards him in a melodious manner.
"I can't help it if the baka doesn't stay out of my way!" Vegeta snapped, suspicious of the woman's strange behavior. He had been on the planet for almost a week, since his unruly journey to space in search of Kakarott, and in that week he could sense something was amiss with the beautiful woman that stood before him. He shrugged mentally, not caring one bit.
The look in her eyes changed his perspective on things. She gave him the look of a hungry woman. The glimmering blue orbs danced around his face, devouring every dent and every scar that marred his face. He was taken aback when a small and soft hand reached out and touched his cheek softly.
"Vegeta," she breathed as she edged even closer. "Please don't hurt him again?" The husky tone of her voice and her quivering lower lip was enough to drive any sane man crazy with desire.
"What do you want, woman?" He growled in annoyance, trying in vain to control himself. It was beyond comprehension how a small woman a herself could yield such an effect upon him.
The soft, stroking gesture ceased as she removed her hand from his cheek. "Leave him alone or else." She said firmly, before whirling around and striding out of the room.
He gaped at her retreating back, scowling at the odd interaction that had just had.
Shrugging it off, he made his way through the back doors and continued to walk towards the amazing gravity simulator the woman had built him. He could not deny that she was indeed a genius... Odd, but a genius nonetheless.
~*~
A soft moan brought him out of the memory.
Vegeta raised his eyes to the ceiling in defeat. He should have seen his mate's instability from the beginning! But he had just dismissed it, like a fool, and now he was suffering the consequences. He would Heaven and Earth to have her back to the way she was when she was sane.
He smirked as he remembered a catatonic argument they had, following the strange event in the kitchen. She had seemed so normal at that time... She was the woman that Vegeta had fallen in love with. Not this withering and pale woman that tossed in her sleep.
~*~
"YOU'RE SUCH AN ASS!" She shrieked at him from the top of her lungs.
"Quiet woman, you will do exactly as I say, or I'll blow this planet to smithereens." He glared at her menacingly, unaware that his usual threat on the planet's life wouldn't work.
Bulma gripped the large wrench in her hand tightly, she could feel the blood leave her knuckles and turn them into a blanched state. "Get out," she whispered, turning away from him and returning her fixed gaze on a prototype on the desk of her lab.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes, giving her backside the once over. She had looked rather fetching in her blue overalls, cheeks smeared with oil and hair tied back in a messy bun. Albeit she looked good, she had still defied his direct order.
He stormed over to her, not liking her cold treatment of him. Grabbing her arm, he forced her to look at him. "I mean it bitch, you will do as I say and build the drones!" He spat, his smoldering eyes enflamed with rage. He had never once been denied of anything in his life, even in Frieza's service and he was beginning to find out that he didn't like it.
"FUCK YOU VEGETA, FUCK YOU!" She screamed, trying unsuccessfully to wrench her arm out of his grasp. "Let go of me, now!" She hissed, like a defensive feline.
"Not until you tell me you're building those drones." He snarled at her through gritted teeth.
"Fine!" She cried in exasperation. Vegeta smirked in triumph as he loosened his grip on her arm. The smirk was soon replaced by a frown at her next remark. "But if you ever touch me again, I'll sick Goku on you!" He was caught off guard when a hand descended upon his cheek, petting it in a rough manner.
Vegeta felt droplets of black oil trickle down his cheek. He gawked at her momentarily as she laughed at his dumb-struck state. All he could do was sputter with rage as she turned back to continue tinkering with the strange object on her desk.
~*~
The soft moans had turned into full blown cries in an instant.
Vegeta sighed in annoyance, as any man in his position would have done. The little moment in her lab had been rare and he had lost his temper, eventually smashing the gadget on her desk and in turn, earning an ear full of shrieks and screams.
He stood up from the comfortable chair and quietly made his way towards his mate. The painful cries that were coming from her mouth, caused the Saiyan Prince to wince slightly. He kneeled by the side of the bed and buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling the soft lavender scent of her hair and purring against the back of her ear. It was the only thing he could do to make her cries fade away.
He gently took her hand and examined it carefully in the pale light of the moon. The fine-boned structure looked absolutely minuscule under his own and he suddenly felt like a very conscious giant.
Vegeta scowled as he noted that he could break the frail hand with just a flex of his own hand and the thought brought him no comfort.
The whimpering cries had quieted, but he could still hear the strange words that she muttered under her breath.
"Don't hurt me," her sleeping form whispered in the cold night air, "I'll be good from now on, just please don't hurt me!" Vegeta stared at her, pain etching its way onto his features. There was a pregnant pause before her murmurs began once again. "Daddy, please come back! I promise I'll never yell at you again!" She started to flail in against him and Vegeta drew away, his lips pressed together in a grim line.
Her outbursts were not uncommon to him and the had gotten used to the odd, underlying messages she cried out into the night. The first time she had cried out in her sleep, Vegeta had almost felt himself slipping into her insanity.
He was afraid that it was catching and had stopped visiting her for a whole week. But the separation wasn't long, for he could not stay away from her and he found himself returning each night to be in her presence.
As her cries dwindled away to nothing, Vegeta stood abruptly and mechanically pulled away the clothes from his body. The need to have her overwhelmed any sense of reason within the Prince and it was then that he had an inkling of falling into her insanity.
Stripping down to his boxers, he lifted the covers and slipped in beside her. He twisted uncomfortably in the single bed and breathed a sigh of satisfaction as he pulled her body close to his. Entwining his arms around her stomach, he brought her the small of her back into his pelvis and buried his face in the silky strands of her blue hair.
He knew she wouldn't wake for another few hours because of her medication and so he was content to just lay beside her until the time came for him to leave.
Slowly inhaling her wondrous scents, he wondered why the Gods had to be as cruel as to allow him access to her body, but have her heart and soul torn away from him. It was almost as though karma had fallen upon him and was finally claiming everything Vegeta held dear, for the crimes he had committed in the past.
It was true that he had received enough punishment from the Gods, but he secretly pondered when the never ending torture would stop.
He was a changed man, why couldn't the vengeful spirits let him live in peace? Instead, they had decided to ensnare his mate in their clutches and he felt that the Gods were punishing him through the odd emotion of love he felt.
He sneered into the fluff of blue hair, lightly brushing his lips over Bulma's tear-streaked face. It was no surprise that she had been crying in her sleep. It was a common thing for him to see, alongside the cries and mind-bending murmurs.
Choking back his growls, he stroked her stomach as he was lulled to sleep by the rhythmic pounding of her heart against his own rib cage. He lightly nipped at the faded scar on her neck.
"Come back little woman, or else I'll go insane myself and blast everyone into oblivion, myself included," he whispered in a threatening tone against her cheek.
She seemed so frail and small in his arms that he couldn't even recall the lustrous curves she had once been graced with. He was afraid of the slightest movement of his body, fearing she would break in his hold.
With this fear, he allowed sleep to wash over him.
But as one knows, dreams are never a source of escape for troubled minds.
~*~
Fragile as a leaf in autumn,
Just falling to the ground,
Without a sound.
A crooked little smile, on her face.
Tells a tale of grace,
That's all her own.
She's little girl with nothing wrong,
But she's all alone.
~*~
AN: Ok, that's the end of chapter 4. There will be more flashbacks coming in future chapters. Wow.. You're reviews were wonderful! Thanks to DarkAngelB, got_sam, Trinity, StarSweeper, nikki, Nicka, carolyn, AirForceArmygurl, Melina and KamalaKali (love the art in your bio!). Special thanks to Camaro for that *long* and amazing review she left. I can't believe you actually liked my fanfic.. heh, as you can see, not very confident of my writing skills but that's another story. Thanks for reviewing, you rock!
Right, so please review and let me know your thoughts! I hope you all liked it.
*Heartless*
AN: There was a bit of confusion as to Bulma's state in the last chapter, let me clear that up! Basically, Bulma *has* gone insane. All those things she read from the diary are completely untrue!
She's in her own fantasy world and is creating her own reality. But we don't know the reason why she's like that. It's up to Vegeta to get her back to normal and FYI, Dragonballs won't work.. hehe I'm so cruel!
~*~
Her skin glittered as a thin film of sweat covered her body.
Vegeta frowned, sitting in the large chair as he leaned closer to the bed, catching small murmurs of the torrential dreams that evaded her sleep. He lightly touched her forehead with his thumb, brushing away the few wisps of sea-blue hair.
He scowled violently, not liking his show of weakness and he wondered if she would dissipate under his touch, as though it were he who was dreaming.
Milky rays of light from the holographic moon, filtered through the gauzy and billowing white curtains. He tilted his head, lost in thought, as the rays danced off her pale flesh that was devoid of any coloring. The lack of color in her cheeks gave the illusion of death to Vegeta.
He narrowed his Saiyan eyes in the dark room, focusing on the table clock. He grunted, not in the least bit surprised that he had been sitting in the same position for over three hours. The red numbers flashed in the dark, giving off a red hue to the corner of the room.
Breathing a labored sigh of exhaustion, he slumped back ungracefully into the chair. He couldn't seem to bat away the memories that forced themselves into his mind. He had been trying for hours to fight them off, but he found that he could not fight them any longer.
A wry smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth as he recalled their tumultuous reunion. His brows furrowed, remembering that even back then he had witnessed signs of her mental instability, but had brushed it away, not even regarding the obvious signs.
Vegeta gazed longingly at the pursed lips of his mate, undenying of the memories that took over his mind.
~*~
"Stay out of my way, baka!" Vegeta snarled through his bared teeth. The moronic earthling snorted. At him!
"Why don't you just get back on the spaceship you stole from the Briefs and float in outer space like the piece of shit you are, for the rest of your life, you murderer!" Yamcha wheezed, cradling his broken and bloody jaw in the palm of his hand. Drops of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as he spoke.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes dangerously, "I'd be careful what you say next, worm." His voice grew eerily calm.
"Or what?" Yamcha chortled, indifferently.
"Or I will give you more than a broken jaw," Vegeta growled, stepping forward. "And then, you'll be begging me to end your pathetic life."
Yamcha gulped, backing away momentarily. "I'm only protecting what's mine!" He cried in defense.
The Saiyan Prince had to chuckle, "What? You're trying to protect the little earthling woman from me?" He continued to advance upon the scar- faced warrior, "I don't give a shit about your little whore, so you can stop worrying about her. If I were you, I would worry about my own safety." He said quietly, eyes glittering with rage.
"Yeah right!" Yamcha scoffed, wincing as his jaw began to ache again, "You're a murderer, a cold-blooded killer! Hell, you could even be a rapist and I have a right to protect her from you!"
Vegeta was suddenly growing extremely bored of the continuous cycle this conversation held. It seemed as though where ever he encountered the scar- faced human, this conversation always followed.
It was almost as if some higher being was torturing him by making him spar verbally with the weakling about the same topic for weeks on hand.
It was the first time that he had actually lashed out and physically harmed the pathetic creature before him.
The routine was too tedious for Vegeta and he needed some new leverage. Growling, he shook his head and retreated towards the back door of the Capsule Corp. compound that led to the kitchen.
"That's right, walk away, coward!" Yamcha's voice called out from what he thought was a safe distance.
Vegeta smirked, knowing full well that the weak earthling had no clue about his attuned Saiyan senses. He turned around and flashed a glare that would have melted the entire Arctic.
He suppressed an evil chuckle as he watched the scar-faced human stumble backwards and fly away from the large dome building, not giving a second glance back and leaving the stench of urine in his wake.
Feeling much more at ease for terrorizing the human, Vegeta flipped the latch of the sliding glass door and entered the kitchen swiftly.
A pair of bright blue eyes followed his every move as he made his way to the fridge.
Ignoring the gaze, he flung the wide shining steel door open and retrieved a large bottle of water from the inside of the door. Slamming the door shut, he turned around again and hid his startled expression as the blue eyes were now face to face with his own.
His right brow creased slightly, wanting to edge away from the nearness of her body. "Move," he demanded quietly, gripping the bottle in his hand so tightly that he was afraid of popping it.
"Don't hit him again," she whispered at him, her smooth voice floating towards him in a melodious manner.
"I can't help it if the baka doesn't stay out of my way!" Vegeta snapped, suspicious of the woman's strange behavior. He had been on the planet for almost a week, since his unruly journey to space in search of Kakarott, and in that week he could sense something was amiss with the beautiful woman that stood before him. He shrugged mentally, not caring one bit.
The look in her eyes changed his perspective on things. She gave him the look of a hungry woman. The glimmering blue orbs danced around his face, devouring every dent and every scar that marred his face. He was taken aback when a small and soft hand reached out and touched his cheek softly.
"Vegeta," she breathed as she edged even closer. "Please don't hurt him again?" The husky tone of her voice and her quivering lower lip was enough to drive any sane man crazy with desire.
"What do you want, woman?" He growled in annoyance, trying in vain to control himself. It was beyond comprehension how a small woman a herself could yield such an effect upon him.
The soft, stroking gesture ceased as she removed her hand from his cheek. "Leave him alone or else." She said firmly, before whirling around and striding out of the room.
He gaped at her retreating back, scowling at the odd interaction that had just had.
Shrugging it off, he made his way through the back doors and continued to walk towards the amazing gravity simulator the woman had built him. He could not deny that she was indeed a genius... Odd, but a genius nonetheless.
~*~
A soft moan brought him out of the memory.
Vegeta raised his eyes to the ceiling in defeat. He should have seen his mate's instability from the beginning! But he had just dismissed it, like a fool, and now he was suffering the consequences. He would Heaven and Earth to have her back to the way she was when she was sane.
He smirked as he remembered a catatonic argument they had, following the strange event in the kitchen. She had seemed so normal at that time... She was the woman that Vegeta had fallen in love with. Not this withering and pale woman that tossed in her sleep.
~*~
"YOU'RE SUCH AN ASS!" She shrieked at him from the top of her lungs.
"Quiet woman, you will do exactly as I say, or I'll blow this planet to smithereens." He glared at her menacingly, unaware that his usual threat on the planet's life wouldn't work.
Bulma gripped the large wrench in her hand tightly, she could feel the blood leave her knuckles and turn them into a blanched state. "Get out," she whispered, turning away from him and returning her fixed gaze on a prototype on the desk of her lab.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes, giving her backside the once over. She had looked rather fetching in her blue overalls, cheeks smeared with oil and hair tied back in a messy bun. Albeit she looked good, she had still defied his direct order.
He stormed over to her, not liking her cold treatment of him. Grabbing her arm, he forced her to look at him. "I mean it bitch, you will do as I say and build the drones!" He spat, his smoldering eyes enflamed with rage. He had never once been denied of anything in his life, even in Frieza's service and he was beginning to find out that he didn't like it.
"FUCK YOU VEGETA, FUCK YOU!" She screamed, trying unsuccessfully to wrench her arm out of his grasp. "Let go of me, now!" She hissed, like a defensive feline.
"Not until you tell me you're building those drones." He snarled at her through gritted teeth.
"Fine!" She cried in exasperation. Vegeta smirked in triumph as he loosened his grip on her arm. The smirk was soon replaced by a frown at her next remark. "But if you ever touch me again, I'll sick Goku on you!" He was caught off guard when a hand descended upon his cheek, petting it in a rough manner.
Vegeta felt droplets of black oil trickle down his cheek. He gawked at her momentarily as she laughed at his dumb-struck state. All he could do was sputter with rage as she turned back to continue tinkering with the strange object on her desk.
~*~
The soft moans had turned into full blown cries in an instant.
Vegeta sighed in annoyance, as any man in his position would have done. The little moment in her lab had been rare and he had lost his temper, eventually smashing the gadget on her desk and in turn, earning an ear full of shrieks and screams.
He stood up from the comfortable chair and quietly made his way towards his mate. The painful cries that were coming from her mouth, caused the Saiyan Prince to wince slightly. He kneeled by the side of the bed and buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling the soft lavender scent of her hair and purring against the back of her ear. It was the only thing he could do to make her cries fade away.
He gently took her hand and examined it carefully in the pale light of the moon. The fine-boned structure looked absolutely minuscule under his own and he suddenly felt like a very conscious giant.
Vegeta scowled as he noted that he could break the frail hand with just a flex of his own hand and the thought brought him no comfort.
The whimpering cries had quieted, but he could still hear the strange words that she muttered under her breath.
"Don't hurt me," her sleeping form whispered in the cold night air, "I'll be good from now on, just please don't hurt me!" Vegeta stared at her, pain etching its way onto his features. There was a pregnant pause before her murmurs began once again. "Daddy, please come back! I promise I'll never yell at you again!" She started to flail in against him and Vegeta drew away, his lips pressed together in a grim line.
Her outbursts were not uncommon to him and the had gotten used to the odd, underlying messages she cried out into the night. The first time she had cried out in her sleep, Vegeta had almost felt himself slipping into her insanity.
He was afraid that it was catching and had stopped visiting her for a whole week. But the separation wasn't long, for he could not stay away from her and he found himself returning each night to be in her presence.
As her cries dwindled away to nothing, Vegeta stood abruptly and mechanically pulled away the clothes from his body. The need to have her overwhelmed any sense of reason within the Prince and it was then that he had an inkling of falling into her insanity.
Stripping down to his boxers, he lifted the covers and slipped in beside her. He twisted uncomfortably in the single bed and breathed a sigh of satisfaction as he pulled her body close to his. Entwining his arms around her stomach, he brought her the small of her back into his pelvis and buried his face in the silky strands of her blue hair.
He knew she wouldn't wake for another few hours because of her medication and so he was content to just lay beside her until the time came for him to leave.
Slowly inhaling her wondrous scents, he wondered why the Gods had to be as cruel as to allow him access to her body, but have her heart and soul torn away from him. It was almost as though karma had fallen upon him and was finally claiming everything Vegeta held dear, for the crimes he had committed in the past.
It was true that he had received enough punishment from the Gods, but he secretly pondered when the never ending torture would stop.
He was a changed man, why couldn't the vengeful spirits let him live in peace? Instead, they had decided to ensnare his mate in their clutches and he felt that the Gods were punishing him through the odd emotion of love he felt.
He sneered into the fluff of blue hair, lightly brushing his lips over Bulma's tear-streaked face. It was no surprise that she had been crying in her sleep. It was a common thing for him to see, alongside the cries and mind-bending murmurs.
Choking back his growls, he stroked her stomach as he was lulled to sleep by the rhythmic pounding of her heart against his own rib cage. He lightly nipped at the faded scar on her neck.
"Come back little woman, or else I'll go insane myself and blast everyone into oblivion, myself included," he whispered in a threatening tone against her cheek.
She seemed so frail and small in his arms that he couldn't even recall the lustrous curves she had once been graced with. He was afraid of the slightest movement of his body, fearing she would break in his hold.
With this fear, he allowed sleep to wash over him.
But as one knows, dreams are never a source of escape for troubled minds.
~*~
Fragile as a leaf in autumn,
Just falling to the ground,
Without a sound.
A crooked little smile, on her face.
Tells a tale of grace,
That's all her own.
She's little girl with nothing wrong,
But she's all alone.
~*~
AN: Ok, that's the end of chapter 4. There will be more flashbacks coming in future chapters. Wow.. You're reviews were wonderful! Thanks to DarkAngelB, got_sam, Trinity, StarSweeper, nikki, Nicka, carolyn, AirForceArmygurl, Melina and KamalaKali (love the art in your bio!). Special thanks to Camaro for that *long* and amazing review she left. I can't believe you actually liked my fanfic.. heh, as you can see, not very confident of my writing skills but that's another story. Thanks for reviewing, you rock!
Right, so please review and let me know your thoughts! I hope you all liked it.
*Heartless*