Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z and I'm not making any money from
this.
Chapter 6
Gohan lay on a pile of old linen on the floor of the hideout, his makeshift bed. His arms were folded behind his head, and to an onlooker he would have seemed in a deep sleep, were it not for the fact that his eyes were wide open. He was staring, unblinking, at the rickety wooden ceiling, which looked like it was about to fall in any minute. There were large holes in the ceiling, and Gohan could see the stars glinting at him in the clear night sky. He turned onto his side, his eyes suddenly saddening. Videl had loved stars. She used to gaze at them for hours, a dreamy look in her eyes.
"Gohan, isn't it lovely?" Videl had breathed, her blue eyes shining as she looked at the beautiful sky, with the stars twinkling. They had stayed like that all night, Videl resting her head on his shoulder, her arms around him. He had felt so happy with her. So at peace. But no longer. Videl was gone, and he knew that there was nothing he could do or say to bring her back. Her death still haunted him; he could remember it like it was yesterday.
Videl lay on the bed, her eyes dull, and her usually beautiful raven hair lank and lifeless. Her skin had been deathly pale, but still, she clutched at life desperately. And he.... well, he had just been in denial.
"She'll be fine." he had told the nine year old Goten, trying to sound as sincere as possible, but he had been able to tell that his brother hadn't believed a word. And when the doctor had told the two boys the truth, that Videl only had a few days left at the most, Goten had burst into tears. Trunks had just looked away, trying to hide the fact that he was devastated inside. He was always like that. Gohan never knew what that boy was feeling; he could make himself seem so emotionless. Well, one could hardly blame him; after all, he was never taught how to deal with his emotions. Maybe he didn't even feel at all. Maybe that's what set him apart from Goten. Goten could never bring himself to kill as Trunks did.
A cold wind ruffled the young man's hair, and he wrapped his arms around himself.
"Videl, why did you leave me?" he asked aloud, his voice shaky. She had been so stubborn, always hanging on to every idea she got, and succeeding in whatever she set out to do. So why couldn't she hold on just a little longer? It had been typhoid, or so the doctor had said. Gohan hadn't wanted to believe it, wouldn't believe it. He had been at her bedside constantly the day she had died, every so often dabbing her forehead with a cloth soaked in water. And when she had forced her body to sit up in bed, he had thought she was getting better. She had looked at him with those beautiful sapphire eyes of hers and smiled weakly.
"I love you, Gohan. You do know that, do you not?" she had asked. He had nodded, his throat dry. "Gohan, please, I do not think we have much time together, so please listen to me. Your master, Raditz, I know what he told you about your parents. But remember, Gohan, family is the most important thing there is. If you ever find it, do everything in your power to keep it"
Her voice had been barely a whisper, and afterwards she had been overtaken by a fit of coughing. After she caught her breath, she reached for him. He had pulled her into his arms, almost crying when he felt how fragile she had become. He couldn't bear to see her like this, when usually she was so strong. She had looked at him, tears streaming down her pale face.
"I'm so sorry, Gohan" she had wept, and he had held her close, stroking her hair and telling her that everything would be alright, that she would make it through and they'd be together. But he had been wrong. She had told him so by the look in her eyes. Gohan had cradled her in his arms, begging her not to give up, and she had stroked his face and leaned forward, kissing him. He had kissed back; pouring all of his love and passion into that kiss, as if he knew that it would be their last. Then she had smiled, laying back in his arms and giving a little sigh. And it was over. Videl's fight had come to an end. Gohan had stared at her, feeling the warmth draining from her body. Trying to pretend that it was all a dream, that he would wake up and she would be there, as vibrant and lively as ever. Then he laid her down gently, his vision swimming with tears, and walked out of the house. It had been raining all day, and the cold droplets stung his face, flattened down his hair, and made his clothes stick to him. But he hadn't cared. He had fallen to his knees in the middle of the square and he had punched the soaking ground, tears streaming down his face and his breath coming out in sobs. Nothing mattered anymore, nothing was left, and there was no reason for him to carry on. His love was gone. All that remained was emptiness, and it hurt like nothing else in this world.
Chi-Chi walked through the ballroom, snuffing out the candles one by one. All the guests had left now, and Krillin had told her that there was no need to clear up. But she found it relaxing, and it did take her mind off things. She walked through to the adjoining hall, which led to the outdoor balcony, sweeping up all the dust with a broom. Stopping for a moment, she set the broom down and walked out onto the balcony. Marron was standing there, leaning on the sill, and staring at the ground below.
"Miss Marron?" Chi-Chi asked, surprised. She had thought that the young woman would have gone to bed by now. Marron turned to face Chi-Chi, her expression blank.
"My lady, what on earth are you doing out here at this time?"
"Nothing, Chi-Chi. I was just about to retire to my chamber" the blonde haired woman said, her tone emotionless.
"Are you alright?" the maid asked, concerned. Marron nodded, and walked past her back inside. Chi-Chi stared after her in confusion. Something wasn't right.
Trunks walked through the square, his arms folded. He didn't know what was wrong with him tonight. Ever since he had left the Lord's daughter he had felt like this. He felt empty, somehow. Usually he got a kick out of tormenting his victims, heaven knew, he'd done it enough times before. But for some reason, he didn't feel that way tonight. Instead he felt....guilty? That couldn't be right, could it? But he couldn't get her face out of his mind. Her expression of horror and disbelief when he had told her that he was going to kill her. If it had been anyone else, he would have taken great pleasure in knowing that he had caused that expression. But it felt hollow. Why? It wasn't as if he cared about her, of course. He had only just met her! The very idea was preposterous, wasn't it?
Wasn't it?
He frowned, and sank down onto the ground, leaning against the wall and letting out a long sigh. Since when had good old-fashioned assassination gotten so complicated?
As the church clock struck four am, Goten wandered in the direction of the hideout, his eyes downcast. He could not believe what was happening. The first woman he had ever really felt something for, and his best friend had to have killed her fiancée.
"What am I going to do now?" he said miserably. Bra was so beautiful, so kind. And when she found out the truth about Masaki, she would hate him. He finally got into the square and stopped for a moment to catch his breath. His eyes scanned the surroundings, and he saw someone at the far end, near to the town hall.
"Trunks?" he called.
Trunks looked up. "Goten, is that you?" he asked. Goten nodded and made his way over to him.
"What are you doing here? I thought you would have been back at the hideout by now" Goten said, sitting next to his friend. Trunks shrugged.
"I needed to do some thinking. Try and clear my head"
"Why, what's the matter?"
He heard his friend sigh deeply. "I think that I might have really messed up, Goten"
"I know the feeling"
"That girl, Marron. I....don't know what's happening to me" Trunks said. His comrade looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
"I...I don't know. I just feel....a little guilty for how I treated her. Normally I would get a kick out of it, but for some reason...." he trailed off, shaking his head.
The two of them sat there in silence, reflecting on the night's events. Goten turned to Trunks.
"Trunks…we've done something really terrible" he said finally. His friend looked up wearily.
"What do you mean?" he asked. Goten bit his lip.
"Do you remember that man we killed last night?"
Trunks tilted his head to the side, puzzled. "Masaki? Yes, what of him?"
"Well, that girl I was with tonight. Remember how I told you that she was engaged?"
"Yes? Get to the point, Goten" his friend said testily.
"Well, what I didn't tell you was that…Masaki was the man she is engaged to. Was engaged to, now"
He looked at Trunks to see his reaction. His friend's expression hadn't changed at all.
"Trunks! Don't you even care?" Goten cried in disbelief.
"Keep your voice down, Goten!" he hissed. "And why should I care? It wasn't our fault. How were we supposed to know?"
Goten scowled. "I don't understand you, sometimes. You say you felt guilty about how you treated Miss Marron, and now here you are saying that you don't care about killing Miss Bra's fiancée! Can you imagine how she is going to feel when she finds out?"
Trunks stood up and started to walk to the hideout.
"It is not my concern, Goten. The moment that Masaki's heart stopped, it was no longer my concern."
Goten leapt up and ran after his friend. "How is she going to look at me when she finds out? She'll think I am a monster!" he persisted. Trunks stopped.
"She will never know." he said flatly.
"But I will." Goten said softly. His comrade rolled his eyes and set off walking again.
Marron sat on her bed, tears rolling down her face. She put a hand to her lips, remembering how Lord Valmont had kissed her so passionately.
"He was playing with me the whole time," she sobbed. "I thought that he cared about me, but he was just playing with me"
She unclasped the necklace that Bulma had given her and placed it on the vanity table, admiring the way the jewel shone.
"And even though I know all this, and though I know he wants to kill me, still I cannot stop thinking about him. I would happily let him destroy me if it meant that I got to see him once more."
Gohan winced, putting his hands over his eyes to block out the rays of sunlight shining through the gaps in the roof. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, shaking his head to wake himself up.
"Goten, Trunks?" he shouted. The two of them came into the room.
"What is it, Gohan?" Trunks asked with a sigh.
Gohan stood up and walked over to them. "What happened last night? Did you succeed in your mission?" he asked. Trunks sat down on the battered old couch, sending dust flying everywhere.
If you are asking whether we killed Lady Marron, then no." he said, then seeing the look Gohan gave him, hastily added: "I think I will play with her a little while"
Gohan folded his arms. "So you met her then?" he asked dubiously. Goten rolled his eyes.
"Oh, he met her alright. He spent half the night kissing the lady"
Gohan slammed his hands down onto the table, making both of them jump.
"You had better not get attached to her, Trunks! Your job is to kill her, not to have romantic liaisons!"
"Do not worry, Gohan! I do not plan on getting attached to her. As I said, I am going to play with her for a while. Just because it is a serious job, it does not mean I cannot have any fun"
Gohan nodded. "I see. You are trying the 'get to know your victim' approach?"
"Yes. If I get close to her, then she will trust me, and make my job a lot easier."
"You seem to be forgetting the little matter of you telling her that you were going to destroy her." Goten muttered.
Trunks smirked. "So?"
"What do you mean 'so'? She is not going to want anything to do with you!"
"We shall see, good Goten. We shall see"
Trunks got up and walked out of the old house into the square, trying to ignore the guilt that was nagging at him in the back of his mind.
A/N: Sorry this chapter's so short compared with the last one. As usual, reviews would be greatly appreciated, and thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far! (hugs all the reviewers and gives them fortune cookies ^^) Oh, and if anyone wants me to let them know when the story is updated, then just say so when you review, or email me, okay?
Chapter 7 on its way, with more action, hopefully, hehe. But this chapter does explain a lot of things, right? Like why Gohan acts the way he does! Ja ne!
Aerith
Chapter 6
Gohan lay on a pile of old linen on the floor of the hideout, his makeshift bed. His arms were folded behind his head, and to an onlooker he would have seemed in a deep sleep, were it not for the fact that his eyes were wide open. He was staring, unblinking, at the rickety wooden ceiling, which looked like it was about to fall in any minute. There were large holes in the ceiling, and Gohan could see the stars glinting at him in the clear night sky. He turned onto his side, his eyes suddenly saddening. Videl had loved stars. She used to gaze at them for hours, a dreamy look in her eyes.
"Gohan, isn't it lovely?" Videl had breathed, her blue eyes shining as she looked at the beautiful sky, with the stars twinkling. They had stayed like that all night, Videl resting her head on his shoulder, her arms around him. He had felt so happy with her. So at peace. But no longer. Videl was gone, and he knew that there was nothing he could do or say to bring her back. Her death still haunted him; he could remember it like it was yesterday.
Videl lay on the bed, her eyes dull, and her usually beautiful raven hair lank and lifeless. Her skin had been deathly pale, but still, she clutched at life desperately. And he.... well, he had just been in denial.
"She'll be fine." he had told the nine year old Goten, trying to sound as sincere as possible, but he had been able to tell that his brother hadn't believed a word. And when the doctor had told the two boys the truth, that Videl only had a few days left at the most, Goten had burst into tears. Trunks had just looked away, trying to hide the fact that he was devastated inside. He was always like that. Gohan never knew what that boy was feeling; he could make himself seem so emotionless. Well, one could hardly blame him; after all, he was never taught how to deal with his emotions. Maybe he didn't even feel at all. Maybe that's what set him apart from Goten. Goten could never bring himself to kill as Trunks did.
A cold wind ruffled the young man's hair, and he wrapped his arms around himself.
"Videl, why did you leave me?" he asked aloud, his voice shaky. She had been so stubborn, always hanging on to every idea she got, and succeeding in whatever she set out to do. So why couldn't she hold on just a little longer? It had been typhoid, or so the doctor had said. Gohan hadn't wanted to believe it, wouldn't believe it. He had been at her bedside constantly the day she had died, every so often dabbing her forehead with a cloth soaked in water. And when she had forced her body to sit up in bed, he had thought she was getting better. She had looked at him with those beautiful sapphire eyes of hers and smiled weakly.
"I love you, Gohan. You do know that, do you not?" she had asked. He had nodded, his throat dry. "Gohan, please, I do not think we have much time together, so please listen to me. Your master, Raditz, I know what he told you about your parents. But remember, Gohan, family is the most important thing there is. If you ever find it, do everything in your power to keep it"
Her voice had been barely a whisper, and afterwards she had been overtaken by a fit of coughing. After she caught her breath, she reached for him. He had pulled her into his arms, almost crying when he felt how fragile she had become. He couldn't bear to see her like this, when usually she was so strong. She had looked at him, tears streaming down her pale face.
"I'm so sorry, Gohan" she had wept, and he had held her close, stroking her hair and telling her that everything would be alright, that she would make it through and they'd be together. But he had been wrong. She had told him so by the look in her eyes. Gohan had cradled her in his arms, begging her not to give up, and she had stroked his face and leaned forward, kissing him. He had kissed back; pouring all of his love and passion into that kiss, as if he knew that it would be their last. Then she had smiled, laying back in his arms and giving a little sigh. And it was over. Videl's fight had come to an end. Gohan had stared at her, feeling the warmth draining from her body. Trying to pretend that it was all a dream, that he would wake up and she would be there, as vibrant and lively as ever. Then he laid her down gently, his vision swimming with tears, and walked out of the house. It had been raining all day, and the cold droplets stung his face, flattened down his hair, and made his clothes stick to him. But he hadn't cared. He had fallen to his knees in the middle of the square and he had punched the soaking ground, tears streaming down his face and his breath coming out in sobs. Nothing mattered anymore, nothing was left, and there was no reason for him to carry on. His love was gone. All that remained was emptiness, and it hurt like nothing else in this world.
Chi-Chi walked through the ballroom, snuffing out the candles one by one. All the guests had left now, and Krillin had told her that there was no need to clear up. But she found it relaxing, and it did take her mind off things. She walked through to the adjoining hall, which led to the outdoor balcony, sweeping up all the dust with a broom. Stopping for a moment, she set the broom down and walked out onto the balcony. Marron was standing there, leaning on the sill, and staring at the ground below.
"Miss Marron?" Chi-Chi asked, surprised. She had thought that the young woman would have gone to bed by now. Marron turned to face Chi-Chi, her expression blank.
"My lady, what on earth are you doing out here at this time?"
"Nothing, Chi-Chi. I was just about to retire to my chamber" the blonde haired woman said, her tone emotionless.
"Are you alright?" the maid asked, concerned. Marron nodded, and walked past her back inside. Chi-Chi stared after her in confusion. Something wasn't right.
Trunks walked through the square, his arms folded. He didn't know what was wrong with him tonight. Ever since he had left the Lord's daughter he had felt like this. He felt empty, somehow. Usually he got a kick out of tormenting his victims, heaven knew, he'd done it enough times before. But for some reason, he didn't feel that way tonight. Instead he felt....guilty? That couldn't be right, could it? But he couldn't get her face out of his mind. Her expression of horror and disbelief when he had told her that he was going to kill her. If it had been anyone else, he would have taken great pleasure in knowing that he had caused that expression. But it felt hollow. Why? It wasn't as if he cared about her, of course. He had only just met her! The very idea was preposterous, wasn't it?
Wasn't it?
He frowned, and sank down onto the ground, leaning against the wall and letting out a long sigh. Since when had good old-fashioned assassination gotten so complicated?
As the church clock struck four am, Goten wandered in the direction of the hideout, his eyes downcast. He could not believe what was happening. The first woman he had ever really felt something for, and his best friend had to have killed her fiancée.
"What am I going to do now?" he said miserably. Bra was so beautiful, so kind. And when she found out the truth about Masaki, she would hate him. He finally got into the square and stopped for a moment to catch his breath. His eyes scanned the surroundings, and he saw someone at the far end, near to the town hall.
"Trunks?" he called.
Trunks looked up. "Goten, is that you?" he asked. Goten nodded and made his way over to him.
"What are you doing here? I thought you would have been back at the hideout by now" Goten said, sitting next to his friend. Trunks shrugged.
"I needed to do some thinking. Try and clear my head"
"Why, what's the matter?"
He heard his friend sigh deeply. "I think that I might have really messed up, Goten"
"I know the feeling"
"That girl, Marron. I....don't know what's happening to me" Trunks said. His comrade looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
"I...I don't know. I just feel....a little guilty for how I treated her. Normally I would get a kick out of it, but for some reason...." he trailed off, shaking his head.
The two of them sat there in silence, reflecting on the night's events. Goten turned to Trunks.
"Trunks…we've done something really terrible" he said finally. His friend looked up wearily.
"What do you mean?" he asked. Goten bit his lip.
"Do you remember that man we killed last night?"
Trunks tilted his head to the side, puzzled. "Masaki? Yes, what of him?"
"Well, that girl I was with tonight. Remember how I told you that she was engaged?"
"Yes? Get to the point, Goten" his friend said testily.
"Well, what I didn't tell you was that…Masaki was the man she is engaged to. Was engaged to, now"
He looked at Trunks to see his reaction. His friend's expression hadn't changed at all.
"Trunks! Don't you even care?" Goten cried in disbelief.
"Keep your voice down, Goten!" he hissed. "And why should I care? It wasn't our fault. How were we supposed to know?"
Goten scowled. "I don't understand you, sometimes. You say you felt guilty about how you treated Miss Marron, and now here you are saying that you don't care about killing Miss Bra's fiancée! Can you imagine how she is going to feel when she finds out?"
Trunks stood up and started to walk to the hideout.
"It is not my concern, Goten. The moment that Masaki's heart stopped, it was no longer my concern."
Goten leapt up and ran after his friend. "How is she going to look at me when she finds out? She'll think I am a monster!" he persisted. Trunks stopped.
"She will never know." he said flatly.
"But I will." Goten said softly. His comrade rolled his eyes and set off walking again.
Marron sat on her bed, tears rolling down her face. She put a hand to her lips, remembering how Lord Valmont had kissed her so passionately.
"He was playing with me the whole time," she sobbed. "I thought that he cared about me, but he was just playing with me"
She unclasped the necklace that Bulma had given her and placed it on the vanity table, admiring the way the jewel shone.
"And even though I know all this, and though I know he wants to kill me, still I cannot stop thinking about him. I would happily let him destroy me if it meant that I got to see him once more."
Gohan winced, putting his hands over his eyes to block out the rays of sunlight shining through the gaps in the roof. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, shaking his head to wake himself up.
"Goten, Trunks?" he shouted. The two of them came into the room.
"What is it, Gohan?" Trunks asked with a sigh.
Gohan stood up and walked over to them. "What happened last night? Did you succeed in your mission?" he asked. Trunks sat down on the battered old couch, sending dust flying everywhere.
If you are asking whether we killed Lady Marron, then no." he said, then seeing the look Gohan gave him, hastily added: "I think I will play with her a little while"
Gohan folded his arms. "So you met her then?" he asked dubiously. Goten rolled his eyes.
"Oh, he met her alright. He spent half the night kissing the lady"
Gohan slammed his hands down onto the table, making both of them jump.
"You had better not get attached to her, Trunks! Your job is to kill her, not to have romantic liaisons!"
"Do not worry, Gohan! I do not plan on getting attached to her. As I said, I am going to play with her for a while. Just because it is a serious job, it does not mean I cannot have any fun"
Gohan nodded. "I see. You are trying the 'get to know your victim' approach?"
"Yes. If I get close to her, then she will trust me, and make my job a lot easier."
"You seem to be forgetting the little matter of you telling her that you were going to destroy her." Goten muttered.
Trunks smirked. "So?"
"What do you mean 'so'? She is not going to want anything to do with you!"
"We shall see, good Goten. We shall see"
Trunks got up and walked out of the old house into the square, trying to ignore the guilt that was nagging at him in the back of his mind.
A/N: Sorry this chapter's so short compared with the last one. As usual, reviews would be greatly appreciated, and thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far! (hugs all the reviewers and gives them fortune cookies ^^) Oh, and if anyone wants me to let them know when the story is updated, then just say so when you review, or email me, okay?
Chapter 7 on its way, with more action, hopefully, hehe. But this chapter does explain a lot of things, right? Like why Gohan acts the way he does! Ja ne!
Aerith