Chapter Eleven: The Present
A/N: Hey, y'all. Well, I wanted to get the next few chapters out really quickly... to make up for all the time that I wasted before. I hope y'all can 4give me.
But anyway... this story... is going to take a lot longer than I thought. I'm not gonna say anything, because people would just get scared and stop reading. ^_^
Well anyway... on to the story.
P.S. Hey, VJ!!! ^_^ I knew u wouldn't leave me. U've been a really great reader thru the whole thing, and 4 that, I thank u.
But no, I wasn't cussing out a nine year old! ^_^
She hummed as she washed the dishes, a small, pleasant smile of contentment on her face.
She'd realized that this had become part of her daily routine; cooking, cleaning, looking after everyone, no matter if they thought they were old enough or mature enough to take care of themselves. She always seemed to be there, helping them through whatever problems they had.
Not that she minded it; most of her family had grown up and she missed taking care of them.
Her smile widened as she watched her ever-lovable husband through the window of the kitchen. His form lay spread out on the grassy ground, his chest rising and falling slowly as he watched the clouds, not to make shapes out of them, but just to relax after an afternoon of sparring; it was one of his more recent hobbies.
She sighed and pulled her attention back to her present task, her humming resuming to it's original song.
Putting the dish in her hand into the cupboard beside her, she picked up the next dish and began scrubbing it gently, to the same rhythm as the calm tune she was humming.
Her vision was pulled from the florally decorated china dish as Goku's body suddenly twitched on the grass, as though he were surprised by something.
She watched him, a frowning as he sat up abruptly, his ears twitching.
Then, she heard it; the roar of a powerful car engine, speeding through the woods to their house.
"Oh, no," she whispered in a benevolent sort of way, drying her hands on a dish towel and untying her apron.
******
"You what?"
Clarice sank back into the seat of the large car (yet another item that Dryphus had mysteriously obtained), staring out the open window, smiling serenely and letting her eyes slide shut as the wind swept over her face.
"Reese! Reese, are you even listening to me?" cried Dryphus, throwing annoyed glares toward Clarice, who had slid down so far into her seat that the back of her head rested on the spot where her shoulder had once been.
Giving a loud groan of defeat, Dryphus turned left, toward yet another mall. She'd yet again convinced Clarice to stay ("Just one more day, pleeeeeeeaaaaaaasssssse???" ) and was going on yet another shopping spree.
"I just don't understand you," continued Dryphus, barely paying attention to the road ahead. "I doubt that you're a pure-breed, either that, or you were dropped pretty hard after you were born and forgot everything."
Clarice sighed and then smiled, lifting up her left hand and gazing at her ring.
"I never got programming, remember?" said Clarice, letting her hand drop back into her lap. "My father wouldn't allow it."
"Old geezer," muttered Dryphus. "Probably the most stupid move he's ever made, the idiot."
Clarice's face snapped around to stare at Dryphus in horror.
"Take it back," she snarled.
"Fine," sighed Dryphus exasperatedly, imitating Clarice and sinking back into her chair also as they were caught in a small traffic jam. She slowed the large SUV to a stop as the car in front of them halted completely, a slightly impatient frown cutting into her facial expression as she peered further down the crowded intersection.
Still slightly disbelieving, but not wanting to start an argument, Clarice relaxed onto the chair and returned her gaze to the window, watching amusedly as a small boy, probably no older than six, began shrieking with laughter as a small Golden Retriever puppy licked his face lovingly, it's paws on the young child's shoulders.
"I'm calling Mason," said Dryphus suddenly, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a device that resembled a hand-held TV. "Then maybe I won't die of boredom."
Bringing the phone up to her ear, she sighed, "Mason," and it automatically began dialing.
A tiny red light suddenly began flashing, and when she looked down at the screen, it said "Video not available."
Dyphus sucked her teeth. "Piece o' shit," muttered Dryohus, glaring at the phone angrily. "I'm getting the new model as soon as we get home."
"And we will never get there if you keep going shopping," said Clarice, sitting up.
Ignoring her, Dryphus put the phone to her ear, using her shoulder to hold it in place.
"'Ey! Itsoby turi shte?" cried Dryphus, grinning. "Iu moran?.... Ooohhhh," she sighed suddenly, "guess what... that idiot Prizari broke that Jutrian vase that was in the Main Hall!"
Clarice gasped in horror, her eyes widening. The planet Jutry had been destroyed long ago, and the vase was the last relic of it's existence.
"That vase was priceless," she whispered, and Dryphus nodded, listening to Mason as he spoke.
"Jzekleid," whispered Dryphus, smirking. "Mm-hmm. Here. He wants to talk to you," sighed Dryphus,
Smiling, Clarice took the phone and pressed it to her ear, whispering a quiet "Hello."
"Hey, Claire," murmured Mason, and she could tell he was smiling through his voice. "I miss you guys."
"I miss you, too."
"...Dryphus... she told me about your decision," he said, his voice turning serious. "Is she telling the truth...?"
"......." Clarice sighed, frowning, but didn't say anything.
"...I'm guessing she was, then," he sighed, sounding genuinely upset. "But why?"
Clarice sighed and closed her eyes. "If you don't mind, I'd rather talk about something a bit less... depressing."
Mason gave a quiet laugh. "I'm sorry," he murmured, his deep, suave voice rumbling. "But you can't blame me for objecting it."
Clarice smiled, her heart swelling.
"How is everything up there?" she asked quietly, twirling a strand of hair around her index finger.
Mason heaved a sigh. "Well, it's taken about six people to replace you at work. Avram and the others seem to be bored without you there to boss them around all the time-" they both laughed softly - "and not to mention, it just isn't the same without you here."
"Awwwww," said Dryphus in mock syrupiness, having overheard the comment.
Clarice slapped her on the arm playfully before returning to she and Mason's conversation.
Mason, who'd heard Dryphus' comment, said, "Tell Dree-Dree that Greg found someone else."
Grinning, Clarice turned to Dryphus.
"Mason says that Greg is with someone else now," she said, pursing her lips.
"What?" shrieked Dryphus, staring at Clarice. She suddenly grabbed the phone from Clarice and began speaking directly to Mason.
"Who is it...? Lina....!! That skank?!" she roared in disbelief. "Why would he date her?"
Not waiting for an answer, she tossed the phone angrily into Clarice's lap, who was torn between amusement and sympathy for her friend.
"Alright, Mason... I need you to do me a favor," she sighed, her smile faltering.
"Anything," he murmured.
Dryphus frowned as Clarice's voice dropped dramatically, as though she were telling Mason a secret.
"You'd better not be talking about me!" she cried warningly, slapping Clarice on the arm and throwing angry glances in her direction.
"Are you sure you don't mind that?" asked Mason after Clarice had explained the favor to him, sounding disbelieving of her decision. "I mean it took you years to find that one..."
"I know... but he drove me to find it."
"So you want it to be a relic of the worst days of your life?" asked Mason, sounding as though he were slightly amused. "Trying to make him feel guilty?"
"No... he probably feels bad enough."
"If you say so," sighed Mason. "Where's the key?"
"It's with Avram. I even told him to wear it so that he wouldn't lose it," said Clarice, grinning, imagining how funny the old man would look with the locket around his neck.
"I'll get it from him, then. When do you want it there?"
"Tomorrow," said Clarice stiffly, staring down at her ring again, her eyes stinging slightly. "I want mine, not... not my father's. And Mason...?"
"Yeah?"
"..Thank you," she whispered.
"No problem," he spoke softly before hanging up with a soft 'click'.
She turned the phone off and looked down at her left hand, where the large ring sat on her middle finger, adorned beautifully with many different precious stones, not only from saiyajin gems, but from jewels from around the galaxy.
She smiled as she recognized the golden "R" engraved in the middle of it (surrounded by the gems).
She found herself staring at it constantly now, but she didn't know why...
"So what'd you want shipped over here?" asked Dryphus, glancing at Clarice as she drove slightly forward, cursing beneath her breath as the traffic jam only got worse.
"Just a little... goodbye present," sighed Clarice, letting her arm hang out of the door window.
Shrugging, Dryphus again cursed below her breath as the bumper-to-bumper traffic in the already over-crowded intersection got packed in even tighter, so that it was almost impossible for a car to move even an inch.
"Look," sighed Dryphus, turning to look at Clarice and leaning back into her chair, "if we try to go the regular way, we're never going to get there. So can we-"
"And alarm the humans?" scoffed Clarice, jerking her head in the direction of the window, as if to point at the many people outside.
"Oh, c'mon! This is crazy! We'll be stuck here for days!!!"
Clarice "hmphed", but said nothing more.
Dryphus, taking her silence for assent, put her palm against the dashboard of the car. Closing her eyes, her brows furrowed for a moment before the car disappeared completely from the scene, leaving the passengers of the cars around them only to wonder where they'd gone.
Hey, guyz!! I'm sorry the chapter sucked, but I've used up all my writing fuel on school... So what was the sound that Goku and Chi-Chi heard? What did Clarice want shipped to earth? What's gonna happen between Bulma and Vegeta? Will Nazomi ever get to go one the adventure she's always wanted? Find out more in the next chapter of DragonBallZ - The Legends of Chaos
Read and Review!!! (I don't understand why I don't even have half as many reviews as I did the first time!!! Remember my cliff-hanger warning!!!)