The Rules Have Changed

by ditchertypepersonBUM

Bulma's a born Sayain just like Goku. In fact she's his older sister. But when Sayains start reaking havek on their home planet what will happen? And how do she and the prince keep from killing each other?

2. Chapter Two

"Quite the spitfire you have Radditz." He said sending her a cold look before turning to the man beside her.

"True, but if I want to know of her race then I'll have to put up with it. I don't have the patience to break her." Bulma shivered at the thought of being broken, not that she would be an easy task. She may not have been around them long but she had a few ideas on their methods. None of witch was appealing to her.

"You do know of coarse she has been using your invention to her advantage do you not?" Vegeta asked. Bulma was beginning to get pissed, she did not like being talked about as if she wasn't there.

"Yes sire but if I had turned it off she would have escaped."

"And once she gets hold of a senzu been your gonna wish I were dead!" 'That got their attention.' Bulma thought smartly looking at their faces. But before she could make any more smart remarks to them fatigue started to catch up with her again. The last thing she remembered was being caught before she hit the ground.

Vegeta had watched with some amusement when she had to be assisted to stand. She had gone two days without food or drink and was still insulting everyone she saw. He had only infuriated her more when he began speaking of her as if she were nowhere around. But soon her body gave out on her. Radditz had caught her and with permission took her to her new quarters. Once his most loyal officer was gone he had a platter of food sent to the woman's room. He didn't know why but he had the feeling she was going to make life more bearable. Though with the way she behaved he had no idea how that was possible.

Bulma woke up to the arousing sent of food. Opening her eyes she saw that she was actually in a bed. Sitting up she reached for the goblet on the platter. Not caring what it was she drank the blue liquid. Throwing manners to the wind she started to inhale her meal. When she was done she began to think again. Cursing herself for being so weak she tried to get out. But as luck had it the door was locked. 'Not a problem I have my lock picks.' She was about to take the ones from her wrist when the door opened and Radditz met her gaze. "Nice to see that you're up. You've been asleep for nearly a day."

"And I thought Goku had bad sleeping habits." She muttered following Radditz down the hall. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see." Radditz heard her mutter something but not even his hearing was that good. Opening another door he led her into the green house of the ship. He smiled ever so slightly when he saw the look on her face. After letting her wander for a moment he finally asked the question that had been bothering him since she had appeared.

"What were you to my brother."

"What?" Bulma had no clue as to what he was talking about.

"Kakkarrot, my brother. Were you his mate?"

"Your brother. Goku, your brother." Bulma plopped onto the grass suddenly feeling rather ill. "He was…is…I'm not telling. But no I was not his wife. If I had been I would have gone nuts. He wasn't the brightest of people other than when in battle." She watched Radditz from the corner of her eye as she pretended to be looking at a flower. So she had a second brother. 'Interesting.'

Radditz wasn't blind. She was holding back something, but he didn't know what. "How did you find the kink in the collar?"

"Easily. I've built something similar before."

"A woman?"

Anger flared in side of Bulma and she faced him when she spoke. "For your information I was the most intelligent person on Chikyuu, my father before me. I may be a woman but I can bet you I know a hell of a lot more than you think, and have seen things you never will. I've done things you never will, and can do things you can't. So don't go treating me as if your so superior to me, no one has the right to do that. Especially to me." Taking a breath she saw the shock on his face. At least she had gotten her point across. "I'm also the most stubborn bitch you'll probably ever meet." And that was true. She gave him a skeptical look when he started to chuckle. "What are you laughing at?" She snapped not liking the lack of control she had over her life. Radditz didn't answer though; he only motioned for her to follow him once again. Growling many obscenities she did. She saw how the others on the ship looked at her, men full of lust. And the women with a mixture of awe, due to her colors, jealousy, she hadn't a clue why. But most of all they all looked at her with a superiority that she couldn't bare. Something she would have to teach them to lose or die trying. But the thought of the ki collar brought back many terrifying and repressed memories. There was a physical reminder of them, and she always kept it covered. Within the hour Radditz had Bulma working on equations that actually made her have to think, solving math equations that had been worked on for years in minutes had always peeved the other scientists back at home. She could understand that having a 12-year-old girl best you at something like that could be insulting. She didn't hear the slight noise behind her till a hand grabbed her and forced her to turn. She gulped when she came face to face with Vegeta. With all the evil powers around her she had forgotten to keep a lookout for his ki. "What do you want?" She snapped still afraid but braver due to her anger at him for making her scared.

"Seeing what Radditz's new pet is up too." He sneered dropping her back to the floor. She very well knew who he was insinuating.

"Well why don't you go find it and leave me to work. So go bother someone else." She turned to get back to work but after a minute of feeling his eyes bore into the back of her head she turned to face him. "Need something? I may be new here but I think the door out of here is that one." She said pointing to the door at the other end of the room. Before she could blink he had her held against the nearest wall, thankfully not the bored she had been working on, by her throat. She could feel his power rising and somehow knew that what he was showing was nothing compared to what he could truly do. And that frightened her. But she didn't show it, her face became a mask devoid of anything other than the amusement that she had caused him to lose his temper. And even though his grip was cutting off most of her air supply she couldn't help but chide him for it. "And I thought I had a bad temper. Really you should learn to control that." She couldn't say any more because he had completely cut her air supply off.

"You will respect me or be punished." He threatened watching her face begin to show the effects of suffocation.

Bulma could have retorted to him using her mind but didn't. She hadn't any clue as to what normal Sayains were capable, hell she wasn't even sure as to what her potential was, and letting them know what she was capable of would only make escape harder. She felt her face turning blue before he dropped her. Crumpling to the ground she coughed and forces air into her burning lungs. Looking up she made no effort to hide the contempt she felt for the man in front of her. Through bared teeth she did answer him. "I will remember to treat you with respect. But my respect in a person is earned. I trust you know the difference." Still breathing heavily she stood using the wall for some support. "You like to make sure everyone knows you're in charge. I know you are, but that does not mean you control me. No one controls me, many have tried and all have failed." Still breathing heavily she began to walk back to the equation. But he sudden movement caught her and she had to stop before walking right into him. He only seemed to look at her before calmly walking away.

Vegeta had seen the fire in her cerulean eyes. Her anger dominated her fear even when he had been choking her. But her words were what had surprised him the most. She had said that she would treat him with respect, but not necessarily give it to him. Normally any other slave's head would be rolling on the ground before him for addressing him like that. But she didn't fear her death. Not in the least would it bother her to be beaten within a hairs length of her life. He wanted her to be humbled, but at the same time he wanted to be the one to break her will. He didn't have to worry about Radditz doing anything to her, as far as he could tell Radditz had no physical attraction to her. There were very few ways to make her his slave. Kill Radditz, but he didn't want to do that. He was intelligent and obviously so was she, but he was also very loyal and quite useful during battle plan arrangements. She could try and run away, and then whoever caught her could keep her. Radditz could give her to him as a gift or she could attack someone, and if they defeated her she would be his. But he didn't think she was going to attack anyone anytime soon. With her powers hindered he knew she was knocked down the scale of fighting competence severely. But he could tell from all the nick-knacks she had on her that she didn't depend on one thing totally. Something he wished some of his other soldiers would learn to do.

Bulma sighed in annoyance as she looked out the window into the endless abyss. It had been weeks since she had been made a slave to Radditz. She had been occupied herself with the work given to her and finding out as much as she could about how she and Goku had arrived on Chikyuu. So far she hadn't heard a thing about herself but Goku she had. The story had bothered her but it didn't matter much since he had never gone through with it. Looking out into the black and white scenery she wondered if Chi-Chi, Gohan, and Krillin had made it to a safe planet. She worried about them but they were hard to keep at the front of her mind. She was usually so busy with work and avoiding uncomfortable situations with the majority of the male crew she didn't have much time to think about anything other than the present and escape. So far not one good opportunity had presented itself. Pushing away from the depressing scenery she went to the cafeteria, usually the slaves waited till all the Sayains had gotten their meals before even attempting to get a food. But as usual Bulma was too hungry to care if she got a few bruises. She had been slammed into the wall a few times, but now they just pretty much ignored her. She still caught a few lustful looks and confused ones when they saw how she looked and then the amount she ate. But she only ignored them; it really wasn't that different than from what she had gotten from work. As she got into the line she noticed that the room was quieter than usual. Glancing around she saw that the ever-arrogant prince was in the vicinity. For a moment their eyes met, she gave him the look that said she was his equal before turning back to her choices of food. She had been assigned cooking duty only once before and after that they learned that she was only good in the technical and mechanical field. Taking as much as she thought she could eat she set out to finding a table. As she ate she pulled out her notepad. Taking her time she worked on the plans she had been working on. Not that she was going to show them to any Sayain but if she didn't get the work out of her head she would never be able to think straight again. Working out the equations she tuned out the noise going on around her. Pausing for a minute she took another drink of water while she glanced over her work. She nearly tore the pad in two when she refused to let go of it. Looking up she stopped herself from cursing out Vegeta. Still refusing to give him her work she tried to wrench it from his grip. But he was male, physically stronger than her, and the ki collar around her neck didn't help much. Soon he had the pad and gave her a look saying that she had pushed her luck. Of all the men on the ship he was the only one she truly feared. She was pretty sure that if any of the others were given the chance they would try and overwhelm her. But by some act of a Kami she didn't know they stayed away. But that didn't stop wondering tails, eyes, and hands. She watched as Vegeta looked through her notes. By habit there was no indication stating what she was building. And the language was a 'dead' one from her planet, if she still had a planet. So she guessed the only thing he could even recognize was the math work. That is if he was intelligent enough to decipher it

"What's this?" Vegeta asked wondering what she had been working on. Lunch was over and they were the only ones left in the room. Which he noted with some amusement she was finally realizing.

"Notes, equations. Nothing to worry your busy schedule over."

"If you wish to keep this from becoming dust you'll tell me more." He saw the panic, anger, and annoyance cross her eyes. He heard her mutter many things he couldn't understand. But looking up to him fury over riding all other feelings she answered.

"They're plans for my training room. Before all of this I had a life. Training was part of it I made inventions and obstacles to improve my skills I was weak in and strengthen the ones I excelled in. Satisfactory or do you need it in writing?"

"I believe it is in writing." He said smugly thumbing through the rest of the notes.

"I meant in something that you could read." That struck a note, so she knew he couldn't understand anything other than her equations.

"You will make these training rooms and explain to me all that is in this book." He ordered handing it back to her.

"In what world, you may be the one holding all the cards right now but I'm not going to show you my hidden aces." She took pleasure in the fact that he didn't understand the twist of the saying. But she could tell he was pissed.

"You will do as your told slave." He said reminding her of her position.

Standing up she did her best to be eye level with the man only a few inches taller than her. Pointing her finger in his face she spoke through gritted teeth. "I am not, nor shall I ever be a slave. I'm a victim of circumstance at the moment. Not a possession or underling you can't boss me around and expect to tremble in your very presence. I am Bulma Briefs, daughter of Dr. Briefs. The most intelligent woman of Chikyuu and inferior to no one." Calming down slightly she noted the barely suppressed rage in his eyes. "You can threaten me beat me and degrade me, but you can't control me. I've told you before. Its been attempted before, and he's dead now." He voice quaked towards the end at the thought of what had happened that night. Pushing it aside she escaped the horrible memories, lowering her hand she started to pick up her things to leave. She was about to leave when she found herself pinned against the wall. She was beginning to wonder how many more encounters with it she was going to have before it had her impression in it. Glaring at Vegeta she then noticed how close they actually were. She tried to wriggle out of his grasp but she couldn't move. She let out an almost inaudible squeak when she felt Vegeta push her even farther into the wall. Now she couldn't move in the slightest. It was then that her heart started to thunder against her rib cage.

Vegeta seethed with anger as she waved her finger centimeters from his face. She was acting as if she was just as strong as he was. But he didn't miss the shudder that went through her small frame when she mentioned the last time someone had tried to control her. Then as if nothing had happened she started to leave. Without thinking he pinned her to the wall, her belongings strewn about the floor. Not moving for a minute he felt her trying to get out of her current position. Pushing up against her he felt her soft curves against his body. She made a small noise so quiet he almost didn't hear it. Leaning in he came face to face with her. His lips barely brushed hers as he spoke.

"You will do as your told woman or the consequences will be paid." Her gaze to him was a toss up between fright, anger, and something he couldn't quite make out. Stretching his senses he felt that no one was near by. Smiling cruelly he watched her eyes widen before he closed in on the last bit of space between their faces. He heard her muffled protests, and felt her renewed struggles but wasn't bothered by either of them. Forcing his tongue into her unwilling mouth he deepened the kiss, she had stopped struggling but he could still sense the fight in her. Her collar began to hum for the first time in a long time. She was either trying to power up enough to force him to release her or she was losing her temper. And after watching the woman for as long as she had been on his ship he knew it was both that were causing her to do so. Pulling back he put a good two feet between them.

Looking up at Vegeta hair fell into her face. Pushing the stray strands away she glared murder at him. Biting her tongue hard enough to draw blood she was barely able to stop herself from doing one of the things she did best. Cursing. She had just barely been able to push her ki down enough so that she would get the lovely shock it provided. Not moving she waited to see what the Prince would do. Knowing that she was considerably weaker than him made her have to renew her efforts at squashing her ki down. "Don't ever do that again." She whispered her throat so clogged with rage that she couldn't speak properly.

Stepping forward he saw her straiten and prepare to try and run. It was amusing to see that she thought she could escape him. "I do as I please woman. You will tell no one of this. When I get back from my treaty signing you will begin explaining your inventions to me. Is that clear?" His voice demanded a respectful answer.

"As crystal." Her eye's flamed a deep blue that he had never seen anywhere else. Without another word he left. He heard her grumbling, cursing and lifting of her things as he walked down the hall. For once he had something to look forward to at his return.

Radditz watched as his Chikyuu native attacked her workstation. He could see her hatred directed and focused at the papers in front of her; he was surprised that they hadn't burned under the intensity of her gaze. "What's got your tail in a knot girl." He said earning the glare that the papers had been receiving.

"I'm trying to figure out a way to kill your beloved prince and survive the ordeal." She hissed. The last time he had heard such venom in her voice was when she had spoken to Napa.

"I wouldn't recommend attacking him if I were you."

"One you're not me and two why the hell not. I might actually hurt him a little."

"If you did attack him outright or any other male on this ship for that matter you would be basically saying 'take me if you can.' Not something I think you want to do." She gave him a blank stare and he elaborated. "When a female attacks or challenges a male she is basically giving him the chance to take her as his mate. If she loses she will be his if he wants her. And the prince would defiantly run you into the ground, and if he let you live and you survived the ordeal you would belong to him to do with as he wishes. In short you would no longer be mine." At that she paled. Feeling like making sure she wouldn't do anything foolish he put the cherry on top. "And from what I can tell he would very much enjoy your…company." At that she shivered.

With a look that made her seem as if what she was to say was being forced out of her she said. "Thank you Radditz. I owe you for that one." That was exactly the opening he had been waiting for.

"In that case I'll call you on that." She gave him a wary look but he continued. "I want to know how you came to be with my brother and what you were to him if you weren't his mate."

'I can't tell him I'm his sister.' She thought in a flurry. Smiling inwardly she remembered how to get around answering something. Give a different answer. "I was on a quest and found him living in ignorance to the world in the mountains, I was his first and one of his closest friends." What she said was true, she was only neglecting to mention that they were all siblings. 'Minor detail. He doesn't need to know.' She thought sarcastically while starting to replace the objects she had thrown around in her rage. "Any other questions on Goku?" She asked wondering why she felt like opening up to her brother. "I'll make you a deal, you answer some of my questions and I'll answer some of yours. Deal?" He actually looked as if he was considering it.

"I'll start." Radditz said wanting to make sure he got his answers. "How did Kakkarrot get as powerful as he did?" She was silent for a moment then answered.

"We traveled around a lot when we were younger, we met an old turtle hermit who could make ki blasts, Goku tried and did the same thing he did. Master Roshi trained him and Krillin, also Kami our god, trained him. And in turn he trained me…we traded off when it came down to that."

"What did you teach him?"

"My turn for a question before I answer that one. Do you have any other brothers or sisters?" She sounded somewhat hopeful though he didn't know why.

"No…" He said thinking the question over, odd as it was. "Wait, yes. My twin, she disappeared when she had been sent out on a purging mission. Never even made it to the planet." She seemed to process that information while he eyebrows rose slightly in surprise. For the rest of the day they exchanged questions, she asked about the Sayain culture and his sister for the most part, she also learned a great deal of the laws she was to live by. He learned that his brother had taken a mate and even had offspring. He had asked what had happened to them wondering if they had been killed in the masses like so many others had on her home planet, but all she would say was that as far as she knew they were alive and that she had gotten them off planet before Napa or he had a chance to kill them. 'So that was who was in the space ship she had launched before Napa and I captured her.'

"There's enough food to last seven Sayains for five years in there." Bulma said off-handedly taking pleasure in the reaction she saw on his face. Don't ask how I did it I won't tell." He looked a little put off and she saw a trace of the same pout Goku, Gohan, and even herself did when they didn't get something they wanted. "God do you know how much you look like Goku at the moment, stop pouting." She lectured smiling at the shocked face he held. Thinking for a moment she considered doing something. "If you could give me my belt I could show you pictures and stuff of Gohan and Goku growing up." In truth she wanted to look at them. She was homesick and didn't even have a picture to remember her home by. But instead he shook his head.

"Honestly I might actually do that but the prince has your belt, and I'm not going to ask him for it just to see pictures of your family." Then it was her turn to pout. He noticed how she looked like he did in a way, but pushed the thought aside. Even if by some miracle she had landed on Chikyuu her nature and coloring's were all wrong to be a Sayain. But from then on the thought nagged him at the back of his mind whenever he saw her.

It had been a week since her encounter with Vegeta and Bulma tried not to think about what had happened. The very thought of it sent shivers down her spine and rage in her blood, the mixture of emotions only caused her to become angry not only with him for giving them to her but also at herself for even having them. Humming a tune to herself she made a desperate wish for her disk-man, She was busy putting her notes away for the night when she felt someone enter the room. Turning she saw a Sayain who she had seen occasionally in the halls and cafeteria. Scowling she went back to finishing up her work. As much as Radditz knew about her it was still very little as to what she was capable of. She had heard the talk they had containing her. 'Disgusting.' She thought seeing through the corner of her eye the way he obviously stared at her. 'He's worse than any man I ever met on Chikyuu.' Napa being the only one she could compare him to, she was about to leave and take a long well deserved nights rest but to her dismay he was blocking her path. "Need anything?" She said forcing herself to at least sound cordial. She didn't need to be a genius to know what the look in his eyes meant.

"Ya wench." He said in a voice that made her stomach churn. Wrapping his arm around her waist he lead her out the door. Thinking of a way to get out she smiled inwardly at how she would get out of trouble should he be a pain in the ass. "You naked in my bed would be perfect." Grimacing she tried to get him to release her.

"I'd rather not. One I'm not a whore, two I'll never be a whore, and three I'm not even yours."

"That weakling third class trash you have for a master is no match for me. I can and will take you." Tightening his grip painfully around her waist he started to drag her to the doors.

"That's what you think." She grunted freeing one hand. Wrapping her hand around his tail she did something he wouldn't expect. Instead of squeezing it she dug her nails into it. Even when blood started to trickle across her fingers she didn't let go. His grip had loosened enough for her to step away but still she held his tail mercilessly. "Now you listen here Barten." She growled using his name. "I. Am. Nobody's whore. Tell your buddies this for me. Hands off!" Letting go she stormed out the door, meeting Radditz in the doorway. With as much dignity and pride that their prince possessed she walked past him.

Radditz had seen the goings on and was about to step in when Bulma had taken things into her own hands or hand as it was. He almost felt sorry for Barten when he saw what she was doing but not enough to make her stop. When she was done giving her little speech he let her pass without a word. If their had been any doubt about her ability to defend herself without her ki it was put to rest after what she had done. As Barten got up he shot a killer glare at him. "Don't touch what isn't yours Barten. The girl belongs to me and you can't just drag her to your quarters like any whore or palace slave. Turning he sent a few more mocking words to the second class Sayain that out ranked him. "And as you've just learned she doesn't take kindly to being forced into anything." With that he went to go and check up on his little slave. As he entered her room he heard the fountain of colorful language coming from the bathroom. He could only assume she was venting out at Barten and probably the rest of the male species as she knew it. "Girl get out here we need to talk." He ordered giving her time to dress if she had been showering, he had heard the water and therefore given her, her privacy.

"What, you gonna yell at me for what I did?" She said pulling a robe around her. She didn't regret what she had done and the feeling of satisfaction was worth any punishment at the moment.

"Actually no, he had no right to do what he tried. He didn't have my permission to take you so he tried to do it by force. I'm just wondering if he's going to bring it up with the prince. You may be in trouble when he returns." She only shrugged; he couldn't see why she looked so unafraid about the punishment she could receive.

"Somehow I don't think he's going to tell. I mean did you see my hand? Covered in blood. How humiliating would it be to announce that a poor, little defenseless, slave girl…stopped him from even getting relatively close to raping her? I mean all you guys are very egotistical. I doubt he's mad enough at me to make this public. All I have to do is watch my back for awhile." What she said made sense and he couldn't help but smile at the memory of him at his knees before her and not able to do a dammed thing about it.

"True I see what you mean. But the sight of him on the floor trying not to cry was priceless."

"Oh I could put a price on it. The next few days off. I'm dead tired and I think I should lay low for a while. Anyway there are a few things I need to do before your prince returns. He wants me to build him something but I haven't had the time to work out much of the specifics yet." Radditz nodded knowing what she was speaking about. Vegeta had told him that when he returned from his trip he would be using her to build the new training rooms. He consented to giving her the time off knowing that when it was time the prince wouldn't give her any. He smiled slightly as she shooed him into his room and locked her doors behind him.

Bulma slammed her alarm having forgot to shut it off. The temptation to go back to sleep danced across her mind but she pushed it away. Turning the alarm off and deciding she could get the extra rest later she headed for the bathroom. Showering quickly she came out with a puff of steam. Still pouting over not having a mirror she began to wonder just how she looked. She seemed to be getting more attention than usual. Slipping into her fighting gi she decided she would train awhile. Pushing her bed aside she smiled at what little effort it took. The lack of ki did restrain her strength, and with all the things she'd been having to do lately her strength had increased. But that was why she had always worked out while pushing her ki to its lowest. Stretching she did a few warm ups by doing a hundred pushups, sit-ups, and plenty of crunches. As she moved into her old routine she missed the audience member she had gained. Eye's closed she started to do her bar routine along a line that ran down the tile. Moving in ways that one would think the body couldn't she continued her moves as smoothly and slowly as the clouds graced the sky on a summer day. When she was upside-down being held up by her right hand she saw a shadow move. Flipping to a standing position she took the ready. And as she suspected Barten came into view. "Oh its you. Leave you're not supposed to be here and are definitely not welcome." He didn't move only looked her up and down lingering on her chest and legs till he met eyes with her.

"You forget your place slave." He hissed emphasizing the last part.

"Ah but I haven't I know my position. I'm Bulma Briefs of the Briefs family, president of Capsule Corp. and the most defiant Bitch anywhere. See I know who I am, now get. I have the day off and I don't want to waste it talking to scum like you." As she spoke she stretched her senses in search of Radditz. He wasn't that far from her and she was about to try and bolt for the door when Barten appeared in front of her. He was still a good three feet in front of her when he spoke.

"I believe we had plans last night."

"No you had plans for us. I had plans that involved a book, but none of them happened. Get out. Radditz didn't say you could come and I didn't either. So unless you want me to rip off your tail like we had to do to Goku I would leave if I were you."

"And I think we should carry out with them." He said as if she hadn't said a word. Taking a step back she bumped into the table. Cursing herself for getting cornered she grabbed the things that lay on top of its surface. One hand found her notebook while the other encircled something round. Smiling evilly she picked both up and stood forward. He thinking that she was giving in slowly closed in on the little amount of left between them. But then before he knew what was happening she threw the ball in his face. It exploded in a cloud of gray/black powder and she ran for it. All it was was some studies from a planet's surface, dirt in other words. She had put it into the bag to look at later. She never thought that she would use it to make a hasty escape. Running down the halls she tried to avoid plowing down anybody. Using her sense of ki she tracked down Radditz. He was in his office. Not even knocking she ran into his room and slammed the door shut behind her. He looked up from his papers just in time to see her duck behind him. She was either snickering or whimpering he couldn't tell which, maybe both. But before he could question as to why she was there the door slammed open again. This time Barten stormed in shooting a furious glare at Bulma. She found it hilarious at how strongly he had to force his temper down.

Basically what he said was that he had the right to take her because she had attacked him and ran. But in truth she had been defending herself giving her the loophole that allowed her to get away with it. Once he met up with her and Radditz's debating skills he left in a huff. "He never had a chance." She said once the door was shut.

"How so little one." Radditz said getting back to work.

"I was president of the most powerful company in the world. People always tried to prove I broke the law doing something or other. I'd have made one hell of a lawyer if I ever chose to."

Shaking his head he wondered how the planet survived her. She stayed in the room the rest of the day working out for a little while in silence and grace that amazed him then began working in her book she had brought with her. While they ate he questioned her as to what she did exactly at her work. All she said was that she was an inventor, and that she ran the company. She had set it up so it pretty much ran itself yet still relied on her for the major things.

"I was coming home from a meeting when you first landed." She said while biting into a rather large sandwich. "That's why I looked the way I did. Just glad you didn't come the week before. I was kinda stuck in bed I was so beaten." By the look she got she elaborated. "Goku and I sparred rather ruff, he was as bout as bad off as I was when we were done." By the end of the day he discovered that she could hold a good conversation when not bothered or aggravated by others. Over all she was capable of being pleasant company.

Bulma let out one last giggle as she shut her doors. She had reinforced the locks to make sure unwanted intruders didn't come in. Sighing she let her body absorb the heat from the water. She couldn't remember the last time she had let herself relax, half an hour later she came out and wrapped a towel around her small figure. Yawning she walked out to her dresser to find something to wear for the night. She had almost let the towel drop when she noticed there was someone in the shadows. 'I need more lights in here.' She thought dryly trying to figure out how in the hell she would get away from Barten this time. "Get out Barten or do you need to be humiliated again." She said with more confidence than she felt. But then again she would fight and use every dirty trick she knew. But when the figure stepped into the light it wasn't Barten. "Prince Vegeta." She said slowly forcing herself not to stutter. "I…you…" 'There went the no stuttering part.' "What the fuck are you doing in my room?" She used her anger and annoyance to cover her fear and worry. Vegeta was worse than Barten; he didn't need to have permission. Gripping the towel tighter she waited for a response.

"I came to tell you that you start work tomorrow. Meet me in the throne room at five, do not make me have to get you myself." Not speaking she nodded. Having the feeling that he wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon she grabbed a pair of pants and a shirt and walked back into the bathroom. Drying her hair off she came out.

"Anything else?" She looked him in the eye. Though slaves were forbidden to do so she never listened to that particular rule, along with many others. She soon found herself face to face with him. Stepping back slightly she tried to avoid a reenactment of what had happened last time they met.

"Remember your place woman, you need to learn how to hold your tongue."

"Excuse me for having a mind of my own, I've had a stressful time being on your ship." She turned around and went to her table and grabbed some of the food she had brought back with her from dinner to snack on. In truth she just didn't wasn't to be that close to him

"Just be on time." She nearly dropped her snack when he hadn't yelled or threatened her. She just watched dumbstruck as he left.

"Sleep, sleep will make this all go away." She muttered. But it wouldn't have her. Cursing she tried everything in the book. And powering up wouldn't work because being unconscious didn't give you rest, only a headache. Sighing she decided to do what had always worked at home. She meditated; she used it as a last resort only because it was lonely and depressing there. But it did keep her mental control of her ki in tune. She had even invented a few new attacks. Clearing her mind she forced her body to relax. Sighing she soon found herself in the realm where she and Goku had sparred when they were bed bound by injuries. In her little depression she almost missed the ki blast headed at her. And since the ki collar didn't affect her here she blasted it away without a second thought. "Wait a minute." Speeding to where the energy ball had come from she nearly broke into tears. "Krillin! Gohan!" The two ragged fighters stopped mid-pummeling and stared at her. Before she could say anymore she was in the middle of a hug fest. Tears trailed her face as she kissed her nephew and childhood friend on their heads. Little fighting went on as she explained her situation to them. They were frustrated that they couldn't help her but she told them not to worry about her. Gohan complained about the trip being so long and all the studying his mother made him do which only made her laugh of course he tried to be mad at her for knocking him out cold but he couldn't do it. They did some light sparring before something started to tug Bulma back to the physical realm. Whispering a goodbye she added. "I'll come here as often as I can but don't expect to see me too much." Then she was gone.

Blinking she saw that Radditz was in front of her. Getting up her body protested to having been still so long. Noticing the time she swore. "Thanks Radditz." Was all she said before running to get ready. She couldn't believe that she had been out all night. Smiling she took a record time shower and was dressed and dry within ten minutes. Grabbing her notepad she was gone. Radditz only stood stunned by the good mood the blue haired woman had been in.

Barging into the throne room Bulma smiled. She was a few minutes late but didn't care in the least.

"Your late." Looking towards her left she saw who the gruff comment had come from. Vegeta.

"Lighten up, I'm only a few minutes late." She said still smiling and cheer filled in her voice. He only stared at her and she figured that, that was as bout as close to a shocked face she'd ever get from him. For the rest of the morning she explained her plans and how they worked and what they did. As it was she was still on cloud nine when she was busy stuffing food in her mouth she was so busy trying to finish some equations that she didn't notice the women surrounding her till one of them blocked her light. Looking up she gulped what food was in her mouth. These ladies did not look happy. "Need something?" She asked wondering what she could possibly have done to miff them.

"Stay away from the prince you low-class slave." One said knocking the table over. Bulma had just been able to save her work before it hit the floor and meshed with the food.

"I'd love to but it sorta not possible, I'm making him stuff by orders and he sorta has to understand what's going on." Before any of them could continue their charming conversation Vegeta entered the room. Without so much as a word he dragged Bulma out. "Let me go I can walk you know." But he didn't release her till she was in a very vacant room. Looking around she let out a low whistle. "Dam you could fit my lab in here." She said to herself remembering how big her lab was.

"This is where you're to build everything." She nodded silently mentally placing everything in the room. Pulling out her notebook from her back pocket she started to calculate the size of her inventions and the size of the room.

"Well, the rooms big enough." Checking a wall she muttered something about reinforcing it. Giving a last glance around the room she saw that Vegeta was still there. "What?"

"What's gotten into you today? You're…cheerful." Vegeta just couldn't get her, usually she was a moody bitch and now she was acting like a happy child.

"As opposed to my normal mood. I'm not going to bother explaining it to you but I had something happen and it's put a lot of relief on me. You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

"I'm not telling. All I'll say is that I left the ship last night and didn't at the same time."

"Explain wench." She only shook her head and leaned against the wall. He could see that he would have a hard time getting what he wanted to know from her. But he was very persistent and determined. She interested him in a way no other ever had. And if she suddenly did a one-eighty on her emotions he wanted to know why.

"Nope." Bulma was beginning to find the position of being held against a wall by her throat a very common thing when with Vegeta. Looking down at him from her uncomfortable position she tried to force him to let go of her. Giving up she hit a pressure point on his hand making it impossible for use till released. As soon as her hand left it, it functioned again. He looked at her silently then back to his hand. Glaring at her he stormed out of the room. Heaving a sigh of relief she set to work. After a few days of work she had many chunks of support beams and other whatnots ready for welding. She was about to go see if there was anything that would help her do the job when Radditz walked in.

"The prince seems to be a little peeved at you." Were the first things he said to her looking at all she had done.

"To put it lightly, I think the same thing goes with the women of the ship too. I have the feeling I'm missing something here." Looking to her twin she saw that he knew what she wanted to here and wasn't going to say it.

"I'm here so you can use your ki." At that all other thought vanished from her mind at the prospect of actually using it again. "Of course you will be able only to use it in this room and not at full power."

"Knew it was to good to be true." She muttered putting an innocent expression on she smiled. "Would I try to escape from this luxurious life? Never, why would I want to do that. Being a slave is so satisfying." Radditz nearly flinched at the sarcasm and bite her words held. But regardless her made it able so she could use enough ki to weld her creations together. Unfortunately he didn't know how much Bulma could do on such a little amount of ki. She smiled slightly and turning to her work shouted. "About face!" Instantly nearly everything in the room shot into the air. She gasped and it all came crashing to the ground.

"What was that?" He had never seen anything like that.

"I…I guess I'm stronger than the last time I did that. I can use my ki to raise objects. Helps out in the lab."

"But I only gave you enough so you could weld things with your hands, you can't even make a decent ki blast." Bulma only shrugged; lifting the metal puzzle pieces in front of her she began fusing them together.

"It doesn't require a whole lot of ki, mainly a state of mind. My father could have done it with the right training. But usually you need the training of ki so you can understand it." He only stared at her for a minuet longer then left. There was always something you could learn about her no matter what. By the end of the day she had only to program most of her machines so they could be used and touch up on the rest of them. Not wanting to leave the room she began to work late into the night. Tools of different assortments were circling her as she did the manual work on one of her agility training machines. She was about to grab a wrench as it passed her face when a loud voice entered the previously quiet room. All things she had, dropped for a second during time of shock of concentration but nothing crashed. Turning she saw Vegeta in the door.

"Woman are you deaf?!" He shouted nearly causing her to go deaf.

"No I was busy I tune out unwanted distractions when I work, so sorry for trying to get this job done well." She began letting things fall to the ground softly knowing she was likely to leash them at him if she didn't.

Vegeta glared at her, he had come to see what progress she had made since he permitted the limited use of her ki. From what he could tell she had hardly accomplished anything other than a large mess till that day. But as he entered he was surprised to see the room filled with odd structures and other things floating about without a problem. Then he spotted the oddly colored genius with tools revolving around her like it was something natural to her. He had called out to her a few times but she plainly ignored him. Shouting he startled her out of her work and once again they were arguing. "Have you finished anything yet slave?" He said knowing it would anger her to remind her that she could only do things if and when he permitted it. He smiled inwardly as the fire that had caught his attention since they first met ignited into an inferno.

"No I haven't. In fact I'm thinking of holding off the programming till everything is set up." Scowling he began to approach her. She backed up slightly trying to keep a two-foot distance between them but he wouldn't permit it. So she was afraid of him, he could understand that. But he could also see a fear he didn't cause in her eyes. One he didn't like not knowing. She took a deep breath then stopped. "Its easier to program everything at once then at different times. Patience is a virtue, get some."

Bulma hated the fear that was in her. It wasn't her fault she felt the way she did, it was the bastard that had brought it upon her. And never telling anyone had let it eat at her soul and slowed if not halted the healing. Lifting her chin she played up to the tabloids that had raved at her at home. Acting every bit the princess they claimed her to be she looked him in the eye. "It's late and I have a busy day tomorrow, if your set on a tour and briefing on my progress you'll get a better one in the morning." Stepping around him she walked as quickly as possible without actually looking as if she were rushing. Powering down she set foot into the hallway. The warmth her ki provide her left leaving a chill to run up and down her spine. Doubling her step she entered her room. Covered in grease and sweat she headed straight for the bathroom. Taking a quick shower she came out as clean as could be. But the feeling in the pit of her stomach wouldn't leave. Sighing she knew that any chances of sleep had flown the coupe when Vegeta had riled her up. Storming back and forth across her room she neglected to answer right away when Radditz commented on her running a hole in the floor.

"Why is he bent on bothering me?" She nearly wailed at Radditz.

"Who? Barten?"

"Vegeta." She hissed after shaking her head. "Barten I can handle but Vegeta has the ability to get under my skin with his mere presence. I'd give nearly anything to be able to wipe that smirk of his face." Her fists balled at her sides and blood trickled between her fingers in her attempts keep herself from powering up. All of which Radditz noticed.

"You're hurting your hands girl calm down." She paused and looked at them as if they didn't belong on her. She chuckled lightly and shook her head.

"I've done worse. Anyway they'll be gone by morning so don't worry."

Radditz saw that she was in no mood to be questioned; he wondered how others could stand being around her when she had been in full power and control. Leaving her to vent her rage in her own way he left. Vegeta had called for him just before he had entered her room. Walking quickly to the soon-to-be training room he saw the shorter man glaring at blue prints. "I'll take it this is about the girl?" He asked seeing that his prince was in the state of mood he only ended up in when they were together.

"Why do you refer to her as a girl, she is too old and figured to be one?" He said earning a slightly stunned look from Radditz.

"It annoys her I suppose, but also she seems to be a child in many ways. Something in her eyes is so young and innocent. Odd considering she's spilled blood and knows about the evils around her. Why?"

"She has yet to learn her place, the only person she gives anything remotely close to true respect to is you. She sees you as something as an equal in ways." Radditz saw what the prince probably didn't know he was feeling, most likely being the reason he had avoided answering the question. Jealousy, definitely a new feeling for his prince. "What have you learned of her? You said you wanted to know more about her."

"She was a friend to Kakkarrot, she claimed to have found him when on an adventure of some sort. He trained her and she him both teaching their strengths to the other and pointing out each other's weaknesses. She claimed not to be his mate but they were close." When he had mentioned her maybe having a mate Vegeta's eyes had flared. 'By the gods he feels for her, maybe more.' But he kept his thoughts to himself. He was not one to point things like this out. And defiantly not to someone who could fry his molecules out of existence.

"She said he had a mate though, the day we caught her she tricked a woman into leaving without her. She just barely stopped Napa from blasting the ship. But that is pretty much all I know, she was the leader of an important company of her planet and can get around almost any law she sees. Ask Barten about that one." His last sentence held a note of amusement but Vegeta only growled. "Sire may I speak freely." A wave of Vegeta's hand gave him the ok. "It's quite plain that you hold an attraction to her, but don't worry about anyone getting their hands on her. She can handle herself and they see her as too much trouble to bother with. Barten tried and she was able to get out unharmed."

"How?" Vegeta had heard of the incident and could think of no reason to kill Barten without showing his feelings for the Chikyuu native.

"She grabbed his tail and dug her nails into it." His eyebrows shot up at that remark, that was a move he had never even stooped to pull. "She can fight dirty and isn't afraid to do so when needed. But Barten seems to like that in her, but she knows how to get out of all the situations he's created for her and still remain within the law. If it were any other slave of mine you wished for sire I would give her to you. But Bulma I just don't think I could do that to."

Scowling Vegeta understood, they were on good terms with each other and knew Radditz spoke the truth. "What if she were to run, that would give her up for grabs?" He couldn't believe it, he wanted a slave for his own and wasn't ordering for her to be given to him.

"I've warned her of the ways I could loose her to another, she may not take any option she gets. But I'm pretty sure she would run given the chance to do so thinking she won't be caught. But you know others will be looking for her and so will I."

"Why are you willing to help me Radditz."

Radditz sighed. "I wish to see you happy. But she would never work for the science department regardless of what was done to her if I gave her up like a chunk of meat. She sees herself as an equal and superior to much of the crew. She's stubborn and has the will to follow through with her decisions. But if she makes her own decision and gets caught I won't be at fault. She'll have made the decision to run it'll have been her choice and fault."

"Then this will have to be well planned out. Giving her a chance too obvious would make her suspicious. Give her a chance but make it look like a blunder." Radditz nodded agreeing with Vegeta. Though he knew that in a way he was betraying the genius he reined over, he felt that she would be safer belonging to the prince. Anything of his meant 'hands off.' After being dismissed he went to sleep, planning her escape and recapture would take work. And she was not going to be easy to fool.