"Wicked Game" Ch. 5

By Shawna

A/N: I finally saw an episode that gave a more complete history of Vegeta. Well, lets just say that I've decided to call it "creative liberties" here: meaning that the planet Vegeta was destroyed quite a few years later in this story than it was in the series. However, I've tried to keep the story basically the same. Deal with it. ^_^

It was two weeks later when Shiro finally got out of the dungeon. He came trudging back into the servants' quarters just as Katsu was settling down on her cot to go to sleep. For a few seconds she could only stare at him: his face was pale and drawn, streaked with dirt, there was blood on his clothes, a tear in one of his tall ears, causing it to hang over, and he was limping. A second later she ran to him, and wrapped her arms around him gently and carefully to help him to his cot. He said nothing and so Katsu chose not to speak either. She helped him remove his soiled shirt and laid him back softly on his cot. The blood on his clothes had apparently come from a severe nosebleed, and his nose was still swollen. The tear in his ear looked to be getting infected and the first thing that came to Katsu's mind was the tincture that was still under Vegeta's bed, though her cuts had healed sufficiently to not need it anymore a week earlier.

"He beat me," Shiro whispered softly, unexpectedly. "Prince Vegeta. I was doing all right for being in the dungeon until two days ago... The prince came in and beat me. It was the middle of the night. He was in such a rage..."

Katsu laid her hand softly on Shiro's forehead. "Don't talk anymore," she said gently. "Just rest." She stroked his forehead lightly, soothing him, keeping her face calm, but her mind had become troubled. She could not understand why the prince would suddenly become enraged at Shiro like that, in the middle of the night, almost two weeks after the initial incident that had landed him in the dungeon. Vegeta's anger had not made sense in the first place, and it was definitely even more puzzling now.

Shiro's body relaxed and it wasn't long before his breathing was deep and even and she knew he was asleep. She sighed quietly before going to her own cot, settling down onto it slowly. She didn't know why Vegeta's behavior should trouble her so much, because, after all, she hadn't been here that long and this might be the way he always was. Shiro had been here his whole life, though, and he seemed surprised at the way the prince was acting, so something must be different. Katsu had no idea what it could be though, but she was now determined to find out.

The next morning dawned warm, warmer than any day Katsu had felt on this planet before. The season was obviously changing, and Katsu wondered with some dread just how hot it might get in the coming months. A memory returned to her just then, as she was thinking about the weather, that her home planet had always been relatively cool with very little change in temperature between the seasons. She sat still for a while, grasping the memory in her mind. Her memories were returning, slowly, and hopefully it would only be a matter of time before she could remember everything.

"What's wrong, Katsu? You look spooked."

Katsu started when Shiro spoke, not having heard him come up behind her.

"I just had a memory come back to me," she said softly. "It never got hot on my planet. I suddenly remembered that."

"You got a memory back?" Shiro placed a hand on Katsu's shoulder. "Well, thats good, isn't it? Why do you look so upset?"

"I'm just frustrated," she said with a sigh. "It's hard not knowing who exactly I am or where I came from. And..." She paused, looking down and clenching her fists. "I hate it here. I want to get out of here so bad, I want to go back to my planet and remember everything. I don't even know if my planet is there anymore, or if anyone is alive. I can't stand this not knowing. I hate it! I hate everything about this place!"

Shiro's hand tightened on her shoulder. "We all hate it here, Katsu. Everyone wishes they could escape. However, most of us don't have a planet to go back to, because the Saiyans destroyed it. I know how you feel, though. I wish I could get out of here. Its frustrating to be this helpless."

"Has anyone ever tried to escape?" Katsu looked up at Shiro, her eyes shining. "Has anyone ever done it? Has anyone ever gotten away?"

Shiro's face hardened and he pulled Katsu to her feet, placing a hand on either side of her face, drawing her near to him. "No, Katsu," he said firmly. "No one has ever escaped. Those who've tried haven't gotten far, and they've all been tortured to death after they were caught. All of us know now that its stupid to even make an attempt. Don't get any ideas, none at all. I won't let you get yourself killed. I don't want to see you beaten to death, especially not by... that monster."

"The prince?" Katsu was confused. "What does he have to do with this?"
"He's got it in for you, Katsu," Shiro said, releasing her and turning away. "I think he wants to do something terrible to you. I just want you to watch yourself. Now come on, we have to get to work." He walked away quickly, leaving Katsu feeling even more confused. What had given Shiro that impression? Because the prince had whipped her for spitting on him? That didn't seem to say anything, and Vegeta had said himself that he was not out to kill her. Katsu shook her head, feeling suddenly overwhelmed by all that was happening. She hurried after Shiro, trying to clear her mind and relax for the time being.

It was not until that evening that Katsu's wrist cuff sounded and she was startled by the sudden noise. She glared at it for a second, then looked over at Shiro, who was resting on his cot, his nose still swollen and the gash in his ear discolored. He turned his eyes to her questioningly, wondering why she had not yet gone to answer the prince's call. She rose slowly, looking away from Shiro, not making eye contact with him as she passed his cot and went out the door and up the stairs. Dinner had already passed, and she was a bit curious as to what the prince would want, as he never seemed to call her wanting anything between meals.

She knocked on the door to his room softly and entered upon hearing the customary silence. The window was wide open, the light of the waxing moon spilling in and a soft, warm breeze rustling the curtains. The prince was seated before the window, his eyes closed, his arms folded over his chest. Two empty wine glasses sat on the small table beside his chair. She approached slowly, quietly, and stopped beside him.

"Get me another glass of wine," he said in a quiet voice, not opening his eyes.

"Yes, your Highness," she whispered, scooping the empty glasses into her hand and turning around to exit the room. She was almost to the door when the prince spoke.

"Wait."

She turned around to face him; his eyes were still closed, his arms still folded. He had not moved, except to speak.

"Why don't you just bring me a whole bottle," he said, his voice still quiet and monotone. "Something red. I don't really care what."

"Yes, your Highness," she repeated dryly and left the room. She walked down the hall quickly, thinking that it was almost eerie to see the prince so quiet, so still in the moonlight. She found herself wondering if there was something on his mind and what it might be. He rarely drank wine, she knew that, and it piqued her curiosity that he should suddenly want so much of it. She went down the stairs, passed the servants' quarters and to the wine cellar, browsing the selection briefly until she found a deep red wine in a fancy bottle and decided it would do fine. She climbed the stairs slowly, thinking about what might be upsetting the prince, if that were indeed the case. He looked so troubled and so stressed, sitting in that chair, unmoving. She had noticed the way his fists were clenched, his arms crossed tightly, his whole body tensed as if he were about to do something that he was not looking forward to at all.

She was engrossed in her thoughts and forgot to even knock before reentering the prince's room. He did not seem to notice and said nothing as she approached, setting the bottle of wine and the glasses gently down on the small table. His eyes remained closed, but he reached out his hand and wrapped it around the bottle, uncorking it and refilling a glass in one fluid motion. He brought the glass to his lips and took a long, slow drink. She stood silently by, waiting for him to dismiss her, wondering if he'd forgotten she was here.

He said nothing, only heaving a sigh when he set the glass back on the table, then pressing his hands to his face. Katsu was startled. He was obviously upset, but she wasn't sure how to approach the situation. Her first instincts were to try and comfort him, and she almost reached out her hand to touch him before remembering who he was. He was not like people she had known before and it would be unwise to touch him. She reminded herself of the things he had done and that she hated him, but she could not stop herself from feeling sorry for him, and aching to comfort him.

"Come stand here," he said quietly, pointing to the ground right in front of him. She obeyed quickly, but felt confused and a bit nervous, because of what had happened last time he had asked her to stand next to him. She stood before him, keeping her eyes down, her gaze fixing on his knees.

She could make out that his eyes were on her face, and he was taking another long drink from the wine glass, but she kept her gaze down.

"Look at me," he said quietly, and Katsu was startled. She looked up quickly, her eyes meeting his, and she was surprised at the look she found there. His eyes were bright and shining and looked almost gentle, his face was soft and relaxed, not fixed in its usual scowl. The moonlight illuminated his skin, making it glow, and he looked so handsome to Katsu in that moment, and she felt the strongest urge to reach out and touch him. She concentrated on keeping her arms firmly by her sides.

"You're beautiful," he breathed, and there was a touch of surprise in his tone, as if he was just noticing it or was seeing her for the first time. Katsu's eyes widened. It suddenly felt like her stomach was full of butterflies, but it was not an entirely unpleasant sensation, and a blush crept into her cheeks.

"I think you've had too much to drink," she said softly, knowing that that was the only reason he would suddenly act like this towards her, instead of in his usual violent manner.

He laughed quietly, a sound that was gentle and nothing like his usual loud, scornful sound. "I know I've had too much," he said. "Or else I would never look at a servant the way I'm looking at you now." He reached his arm out slowly, wrapped it around her waist. Katsu tensed, but at the same time she was excited, she could feel her blood rushing through her body, her pulse quickening. In one swift motion Vegeta brought her down sideways onto his lap, his arm staying around her waist while the other slipped behind her head. He stared into her eyes.

"I don't think you should-" She began, but he cut her off.

"I just want to hold you," he said gently, drawing her against him, putting his chin on her shoulder. "I'm just going to hold you for awhile. Then you can go."

She tried to relax in his arms, putting her legs over the arm of the chair and making herself comfortable. It seemed the appropriate thing to do, so she wrapped her arms around him. She never could have imagined herself in this position, sitting in the prince's lap embracing him. Something was obviously wrong with him, besides the fact that he had been drinking. He seemed so sad.

"I usually repress my emotions, never show them," he said in a whisper so quiet Katsu could barely hear him. "I'm beginning to not even feel them anymore. Most of the time it doesn't bother me, but I'm a person. I have feelings. Saiyans don't express their emotions much, but they're allowed to have them. I'm being forced to feel nothing. I hate it sometimes... but, like I said, alot of the time I don't feel anything anymore."

Katsu could think of nothing that seemed appropriate to say, especially since she had no idea what he was talking about or why he would be in a situation like the one he was decribing. Instead she just tightened her grip on him, bringing one hand up to run through his hair.

It was some time later when he finally loosened his arms, gripping her around the waist and lifting her to her feet. She stood where he placed her, waiting to see if he would speak again or if he would dismiss her.

"You can go," he whispered.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" She asked without thinking about it. She immediately clapped a hand to her mouth, embarrassed for having spoken out of turn. "I'm sorry," she breathed before turning to go.

A second later his hand was around her wrist and she whirled around to face him and he crushed her against him. He was trembling all over.

I think he's… crying. Katsu's eyes grew wide at this thought.

A second later he drew away from her, and though his eyes were shining she could not tell if it was because they were misty or if it was from the alcohol. He pressed a hand to either side of her face, tilting her head upward, drawing her close as he leaned down. Katsu had the urge to pull away, but she did not. She relaxed, letting her lips part slightly, suddenly feeling a course of excitement through her whole body.

But he stopped before their lips met. He was so close to her, she could see his eyes right in front of hers. All of her nerves seemed to be on edge, and it seemed the next few seconds lasted forever. She was aware of his hip bones pressing into her just above her own, of the fact that she could feel his heart beating against her chest. One of her hands was on his back, and all of his muscles under her palm were tensed. Her other hand was on his neck and she could feel his pulse throbbing against her fingers. His lips were so close, she could just barely feel them touching her own.

And then he stepped back, giving her a slight push that sent her back a few steps as well. She nearly lost her balance, and was surprised and suddenly angry at his abrupt movement. She looked at him, but his head was down and his teeth were gritted.

"Leave," he said without looking at her. "Now. Quickly."

She lingered only a second, part of her wanting to stay, wanting to feel his embrace and his perfect body again, but a stronger part of her suddenly felt very violated by what had just transpired. She turned on her heel and fled the room at a run.

She was only halfway down the stairs when anger and disgust nearly overpowered her. What did I just allow to happen? What's going on? She bashed her fist against the wall in the stairwell, angry and in a deeper part of her mind, sad and frustrated. She took several deep breaths, calming herself so she would not attract undue attention when she got back to the servants' quarters.

Shiro was the only one who looked up when she came back in. Most of the other servants were already in their beds, asleep or getting close to it. Shiro eyed her curiously, but she shrugged, and then faked a deep yawn, not wanting to talk to him at the moment. She picked up her sleeping clothes and disappeared behind the changing curtain. She came out and saw that Shiro was still watching her and so she trudged to her cot and collapsed on it as if she was fighting to keep awake. Shiro stared at her for a few seconds and then laid down himself.

Katsu was awake for a good hour after this, thinking. I saw something special tonight, she thought. I think I might have seen who the prince really is. She tried not to think about the intimate encounter they had nearly shared, but it stayed in her mind, and it made her stomach feel funny to think about. She wondered if she had ever been with anyone on her planet. She thought about this more, thinking it might trigger a memory to return, but she fell asleep still thinking about it, and without any new memories.

It was about a half hour before dawn when Katsu was awakened by the beeping of her wrist cuff. She groaned and leaned down, grabbing her dress where it was folded under her cot, and rumpled it, covering the wrist cuff. The beeping was still audible. The servant in the cot next to hers cursed and she sighed and rose, taking the dress with her. Her brain was still fuzzy with sleep and she did not bother to change into the dress. She dragged herself up the stairs in her white sleeping shirt, clutching her black dress in front of her.

Prince Vegeta was waiting at his door when she arrived. He grabbed her and threw her into his room, slamming the door behind him. This woke her up fast and she quickly noted the raging anger in his eyes. She cowered when he stepped menacingly towards her, but her back hit the wall and she had nowhere to go as he closed the distance between them. He pressed a hand against the wall on either side of her head and leaned his head in close to her, his teeth gritted, dark eyes full of rage.

"I was drunk last night," he said in a voice that was low and dangerous. "Do you get it? I don't even really remember what happened, but anything I said, anything I did, it wasn't really me. I'd just had way too much to drink and you happened to witness it."

"You hadn't had that much," she muttered, feeling angry and hurt that he was suddenly back to his old violent, controlling self.

He drew back one of his hands, clenched it into a fist and she braced for him to punch her. He threw the punch so fast she couldn't see it and it hit with a jarring impact, his fist burying itself in the wall right beside her head. She had been holding her breath and she let it out slowly as she realized that he had not, and was not going to hit her.

"You have no idea how much I'd had before you came," he said in that same hard, quiet voice. "I obviously said something that made you think you could be cocky with me. As I said, I barely remember what happened. You might as well forget that it happened yourself. If you say anything to anyone about whatever happened in here last night, I swear I'll kill you. Do you understand?"

Her face fell out of its defiant look, dropping until she just looked sad and hurt. "I understand."

"Good," he stepped away from her, turning his back. "Now get out."

Katsu fled as she had the night before. Anger and hurt boiled in her veins. I guess I was wrong, she thought. I didn't see the prince as he truly is. I just saw him drunk. He's not sensitive and he's not having some sort of life-changing problem. He was just born the way he is…

This was what she told herself, but she could not help but think in the back of her mind, that she had been right. The alcohol had lowered the prince's guard, dropped his inhibitions and he had shown his true self. He had revealed it to her and now that the influence of the alcohol had worn off it was making him feel vulnerable. He remembered everything that had happened. He was just afraid of what it might mean.

**To be continued…**