This suddenly came to me – I guess it was inspired. I hope that you enjoy…
Just a warning, a change of POV…
Oh, and I've cleaned it up. A lot. Enjoy.
Interlude
I didn't know when I lost her. All I know is that one day, I saw her laugh at him, and I realized that I had a rival – and that I was way behind in the game.
What the hell could she see in him? Him, the cold-blooded murder of billions – no, trillions! – of lives! For that matter, why is Goku so defensive of him? If I or any other person had done what Vegeta had admitted to so proudly, then Goku would fry us without a second thought. But no, Vegeta gets a second chance, and Vegeta gets to live with Bulma!
But I am content to let all that be, to be the adult in this situation. He cannot have Bulma without a fight, though; she means too much to me to let some asshole just walk away with her.
Perhaps it is all those thoughts that urge me to check on Bulma. Something about the errand that Goku had given me seemed wrong. Nothing specific, just somehow off. Off enough that I'm now creeping up to her room to double-check on her.
Funny, Gohan's not at his post outside her door. Is he on the balcony? I reach for her doorknob and then pause. She hates for me to go into her room; she doesn't want me to be scared away by how messy she is, or so she says. As if some crap on the floor would chase me away from her.
If I check on her and she's in trouble, she won't be upset, I reason. And if she's not in trouble, and she gets mad, at least I'll know she's ok. I turn the knob and open the door.
Vegeta is in her room, holding her limp body in his arms. I see her device on his belt, and my stomach clenches with rage. He's has finally shown his true colors and betrayed us!
"You bastard!" I yell, and my heart now twists with fear as Bulma remains still. What has he done to her?
With an alien curse, the Saiyan leaps out the window, flying hard to the west. I start to follow, then hesitate. I can't take Vegeta. But I can't leave Bulma, I have to do something! With my own curse, I follow.
I have to stop him from taking her. "But how?" I hiss to myself as I race after him. In a fight, he'll win and we both know it. If only I were stronger, or he didn't have Bulma—
An idea comes to me, so simple and yet so awful. If he didn't have Bulma, then he wouldn't be able to turn her over to the aliens he's working for. I can't take Vegeta, but I can take Bulma. My eyes fill with stinging tears. Could I do it? Could I kill her to save her?
She could come back with the use of the Dragonballs. And she's unconscious, so she wouldn't feel it, right? Could I do it? Can I be brave enough to let go of her?
Vegeta appears ahead of me, hovering, Bulma held closely in front of him. I growl with rage as I realize that he's using her as a shield, one arm wrapped under her breasts to keep her up. He's practically begging me to do it.
Maybe I should oblige him.
I slam to a quick stop in front of him. "I won't let you get away with this, Vegeta," I scream at him as I draw myself in the fighting stance. I have to be quick – no second thoughts, no hesitation. I'll only have one shot; I can't let thoughts of who my target is stop me!
I can't look at her. My heart is trembling in my chest, trying to both beat and tear itself in two. I have to do this; I can't let him have her! I have to be as strong and as ruthless as he!
"Careful," he rasps in that hateful snarl of a voice. "You can't fight me without risking Bulma." I want to drive my fist into his face. But I have to drive it into Bulma first.
I can't do this. This is Bulma. But my voice, powerful and sure, hisses out, "I know I can't beat you in a fight. But I can stop your plans." My hands call the chi to them, feeling the burning sensation of power strobe down my arms to my hands. I'm sorry, babe.
I throw everything I can at her. For one second, I think I've got him, but he spins around and my blast sears his back. The blast fades, and I see that he must have diverted his shields to cover her; his back is black and blistered.
Then he tosses her up in the air. My eyes follow her, and as I start to think about catching her, something slams into my face, and I fall from the sky.
I don't pass out, not even when the branches from the trees rake my back as I fall through them. Despite the fact that they slow me a little, I still crash into the hard earth painfully, knocking the wind from my lungs.
How long exactly I lie there, panting, trying to breathe again, I don't know. But finally I'm strong enough to stand up and then shakily take off after Vegeta's chi signature. I ache all over, but I can't let that stop me. I have to stop him, somehow!
I draw close to a mountain, and I swoop low, my eye catching sight of a cave. The fates are with me; Vegeta is stumbling from the cave, his steps unsteady despite his ramrod straight back. With a snarl, I gather my chi and fling my blast at him.
The blast catches him hard in the chest, and I'm pleased to see him drop and not get up.
Heh, what do you know? The Mighty Prince of All Saiyans falls flat on his face, just like any other person.
I draw forth another blast, preparing to send him beyond. Goku flies out of the cave, shouting, "Yamcha, stop!" I gasp with relief and joy to see Bulma safely in his arms. Then his words register with me.
"Stop? Are you nuts, Goku?" I cry. "He tried to kidnap her and give her to those aliens! I saw him."
"No, Yamcha," Goku shakes his head at me, his disappointed frown as harsh a blow as his words. "We had a plan. Vegeta saved her life."
I die inside, and in that instant, I know that I've lost her forever. I can and will keep fighting for her, but I know then that she's changed him into the person she and Goku want him to be. All my efforts were in vain; I have lost the prize of my heart, and the only treasure worth keeping.
