Authors note:** Well this chapter was a bit of a challenge. I hope you like it. Your opinion matters so please review! Now on to the story!

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Chapter 7: The Hunt


It was one o'clock at night and all was quiet within the tiny apartment. A figure lay peacefully sleeping, dreaming, suddenly the figure screamed as he relived his dreams turned into a nightmare. The figures body arched backwards as he relived his death at the hands of his enemies. Rolling over, he felt a sudden pain originating from his spine and quickly pressing his hands tightly to the mattress, he sat up grimacing in discomfort. Oh kami, I hate that dream! But it was deferent this time....it actually hurt...

When the discomfort ended, the man arose from his bed and stumbled when his center of balance wavered. Whoa! I've got to watch that first step, he muttered while grabbing onto a nightstand for support. Walking towards his closet and changing into his gi; he never noticed the tail swinging out behind him as he was consumed by a strange restlessness rising from deep within. Frowning, he searched his feelings and found that he was tired of being alone and muttered,Well, since I'm awake and I know I'll never get back to sleep..I might as well go out. Maybe I can find a willing bed partner to take away these strange feelings for the night.


He left his apartment and headed for the nearest all night dance club called, The Amazon. Many people, he noticed were out tonight, making the streets very crowded. He walked for about ten minutes when he suddenly caught the scent of something alluring, glancing upwards, he tried to locate the origin. Where is that coming fromhe muttered quietly, for some strange reason, he liked that scent but when he took a deeper breath, it became mixed with other interesting smells that made it difficult to distinguish where it was coming from.

"Hey there handsome! Want to come to my house tonight," a strawberry blond called as she admired his muscular frame.

"Hey Cat, buzz off! He's mine!," another called as she leaned her scantily clad body against a light pole.

"The man sniffed the air in their direction and growled in annoyance, they weren't what he was trying to find and called out to both of them, "Sorry ladies! I'm busy right now...." he glanced away before politely continuing," Maybe some other time!" Absently he noticed more beautiful women eyeing him in admiration. But, he wasn't interested in any of them. He was more interested in locating that alluring scent, so he unconsciously ignored their admiring glances and catcalls when normally he would have approached them.

Suddenly, someone bumped into his shoulder and stumbled, Quickly, he shot out a steadying hand towards the black hared woman and asked, Are you all right miss?

Lifting her gaze, the woman's blue eyes met his. His heart suddenly skipped a beat as her beauty registered in his mind. She wore a white miniskirt with red top combo and had black shoulder length hair that brushed against her cheeks in a playful manor. Shiny red lipstick set off her lips and made them seem fuller and more inviting. Taking a deep breath, he accidentally inhaled her scent and froze as heat raced up his spine. He absently noticed that her mouth had been moving be he had been so lost in her that he failed to hear her words. .Yes, thank you. I've got to go now soif you don't mind? she muttered while glancing meaningfully at his hand that was still clamped around her arm.

Following her gaze, he blushed furiously and released his grip quickly while trying to apologize, II'm ssorry! I'm don't nnormally ddo that. He blushed brighter in embarrassment, dropping his gaze towards the ground and thought, What the hell is wrong with me! I haven't stuttered this bad since...I was a teenager! Why can't I talk normally............god she's really beautiful! When he snapped out of his musings, she was gone. "Damn!" he cursed, completely frustrated at the situation. Turning round and round, he sniffed the air, trying to determine the direction she had gone. "So that's where you went," he whispered, grinning.

The scent disappeared into a club, eyeing the door, he entered and was immediately blasted by a heavy techno beat; while many sweaty bodies pumped and twirled to the music. Frantically he searched the room for the girl he had bumped into out in the street. Nothing but the flashing lights and noise met his eyes and ears, confusing his senses even more and frustrating his to no end. The room was jam packed and the one scent he knew was the right one teased his senses. He ran his hand through his black spiky hair and growled,"Shit! I know you're in here....and I'll find you!"

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Cherry slouched in her bar stool as she thought about her life. Earlier today,she had gone on a blind date to meet a guy named Mark and he had only been interested in one thing. Now, here she was, in a bar wallowing away in her misery and feeling depressed. How she yearned to find her life partner. But, after six years of looking, she was getting very discouraged."Maybe it's not worth it anymore. Today was the the last straw. Maybe I should just give up!"

Cherry's musings about her day lead her to remember the guy she had bumped into on the street. He was very handsome with his wild black spiky hair and the dangerous air he sported. She couldn't get her mind off of him but something about him made her nervous. If it hadn't been for the date she'd gone on earlier she might just consider getting his phone number. "But, I really shouldn't even try. Maybe I was destined to spend the rest of my life alone..." she sighed as her depression grew worse. Tears threatened to spill and her heart ached to be filled with love. Sniffling, she quickly whipped the tears away and rose to her feet and paid the bartender. Quickly she made her way towards the door, passing directly behind the stranger she had bumped into on the street and out the door. "I guess it's time to go home. I'll drown my sorrow in a gallon of Rocky Road Ice cream and watch some sappy movies," she whispered quietly to herself, but not quietly enough as one pair of Sayi-jin ears recognized the voice over all of the noise.

Whirling around, the Sayi-jin scanned the area behind him and found nothing but a crowded club full of strangers. "I could have sworn that I heard her voice, " he murmured quietly before taking a deep breath through his nose. "Yes, I did hear her and that's her scent but, where is she?" He followed his nose out the door and sighed, "This is going to be harder than I thought," he murdered, a gleam in his eyes. Swiftly he moved, following her trail down the street and into another section of the city. His steps were silent while his breathing slowed and his senses became heightened even more.

Turning a corner, he took another breath and cursed, "Damn! It's faint...maybe I took a wrong turn when I passed that group of people." Turning around he retraced his steps until her scent became stronger. Quickly, he followed it and noticed that he was nearing the park. Grinning in delight, he entered the park and tested the air again. This hunt was so.....stimulating."She's close by...too bad she has no idea that she's being hunted. "Mmmm," he purred, "I'll catch you and you will be mine." Swiftly, he faded into the deep foliage and disappeared from site, "This is going to be..... fun." As he moved through the park, he detected several strange ki signatures but ignored them while continuing to hunt for his prey.

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Something was making her edgy, Cherry had the feeling that she was being followed and couldn't shake the feeling. Glancing over her shoulder, she could see nothing but shadows, but that didn't mean there was nothing there. Picking up her pace, Cherry entered the park and began to jog back towards her apartment on the other side of the park. She had only gone sixteen feet when she was accosted by six shady looking men in the darkest part of the park. "Hey there baby! Why don't you join me for a little bit of fun!" a scarred blue hared stranger taunted while grasping his crotch suggestively.

"Go away!" Cherry yelled, backing up until she was stopped by something solid.

"Now don't talk that way sweet cakes!" a black hared man growled and fingered her arm before quickly grasping it and pulling her closer. His other arm quickly encircled her body and grasped her breast and squeezed.

"Get your hands off of me!" Cherry yelled, struggling fruitlessly in his grasp. Reaching upwards she tried to clawing at his eyes but had her arm wrenched violently behind her as punishment.

"None of that, sweet. If your good...we won't kill you after we have our fun with you!" He laughed evilly as he ripped off her shirt. The other men moved closer, leering at her exposed chest and laughing in anticipation.

"Let me go! Somebody help me!!!" Cherry's scream echoed through the park and reached the keen ears of another hunter. Before she could scream again, one of the men punched her in the face, knocking her out cold.

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As the scream reached his ears, the Sayi-jin recognized the voice and growled as his rage exploded. One minute there was someone standing below a lamp post and the next only the after image remained. Flying as fast as possible in such a wooded area, he rounded a bunch of bushes and saw a group of men surrounding a figure on the ground. As he closed the distance, his acute eyesight and sense of smell confirmed his hunch that this was the woman he had been looking for. "How dare those other males try and claim what is mine," he thought while growling deeply and baring his teeth. Putting on an extra burst of speed, the Sayi-jin plowed through her attackers like a bowling ball through pins. Half of the men went flying in all directions, while others were knocked down only to rise again.

"You better get the hell out of here if you know what's good for ya!" one man threatened while taking a swung at the Sayijin's face. Dodging at the last second, the Sayi-jin grinned evilly and growled menacingly, "Is that all you've got? If you run now, I just might decide not to kill you for touching what is mine!"

"Fat chance buddy! This bitch is ours to play with!" the man replied as he tried aiming a kick for the Sayijin's stomach. His kick only made it to about an inch away before it was stopped by a force like a brick wall. Then, he was thrown fifteen feet away and landed with a thud. As the man rose to a kneeling position, he glanced towards the rescuer and screamed in fear as something behind the man whipped around lazily. Recognizing the object for what it was, the attacker screamed, "Run! He's got a tail! He's one of those aliens who tried to destroy the planet a few years ago!" The other attackers noticed the same thing and ran out of the park screaming like babies.

Frowning in confusion, The rescuer growled out, "What the hell are they talking about!.....I guess I'll worry about that later since I need to see if she's all right," as he made his way over towards the fallen woman. Quickly, checked her over for any injuries and was relieved to note that the men hadn't gotten to far in their attempt to rape her. Satisfied that she was going to be fine, he picked her up and few off towards his apartment. Half way there, she began to stir, "Oh....w-what happened?"

He glanced down at his prize and answered, "You were attacked and I managed to save you. Right now, I'm taking you to somewhere safe. By the way, my name's Yamcha....What's yours?"

Cherry hadn't expected an answer and glanced upwards; she gasped in recognition as the name and face registered, "You're also the famous baseball player? Hey, Your the man I bumped into on the street earlier!" Cherry blushed as she noticed his appreciative look and stammered," My name's Cherry...by the way. Thank you for rescuing me."

"Grinning, Yamcha answered her sheepishly, "Yeah, I played baseball for a while."

"Oh my god! I watched you play in the world series a few years ago. You were really good!" Cherry whispered in awe as she squirmed in his hold.

"Hey, be careful or I'll drop you," Yamcha replied as he adjusted his hold and began his decent to land in on his apartment balcony. Quickly, he removed his keys and unlocked the sliding door, entering, he closed the door behind him. Placing her on his bed, he made his way towards the bathroom to get a cold wash to soothe her bruised cheek.

Cherry took the few moments he was in the bathroom to look around. His apartment, she saw, was neat and furnished in a Mojave style reminiscent of the desert and looked very attractive. Cherry always had a fascination with the desert inhabitants ever since she met her great grandmother when she was four. "I like the way you've decorated your apartment!" she called out as she gazed around the room.

"Thanks, It reminds me of my home in the desert," Yamcha replied as he neared. Gently, he applied the cold cloth to her bruised cheek while fighting his instincts to claim her. Stepping closer, he took a deep breath and silently groaned as her scent aroused him almost to the point of loosing total control.

Cherry noticed his movement from the corner of her eye and took an involuntary gasp of air through her nose, catching his strange musky aroma. "Mmmm," she moaned, liking his spicy scent, it caused heat to flash through her system and she took another deeper breath. His scent was doing things to her body that if she were in her right mind, she would have moved away. But now, she was too aroused to care. Turning her head, she let her lips graze his in a gentle caress. He responded passionately, molding his body to hers until no space remained. His hands ran over her, giving her pleasure like she had never known. Breaking the kiss, he grazed his lips over her jaw and towards her shoulder. Pausing, he liked her skin before opening his mouth and swiftly biting her.

"Aaaa," Cherry cried out at the sudden pain before an unexplainable urge overtook her. Violently, she grasped his shirt and ripped it away from his shoulder. Once his shoulder was exposed, she swiftly returned the bite and cased him to growl in excitement. Cherry felt a strange energy rush through her body before all coherent thought was gone and instincts of another race flooded her mind. Taking the initiative, she ripped the rest of his clothing off his body, grasped his tail and stroked it gently while guiding him onto the bed. Yamcha purred at the arousing sensation while he watched his mate crawl up his body and position herself above his throbbing member. Grasping her hips with one hand, he reached around her and stroked her tail while he guided her down and penetrated her warm wet heat. "Mmmmmaaahhh," Cherry moaned while she shivered as he stroked the new appendage. With an unconscious signal they both began moving at the same time, sending pulses of pleasure through their bodies casing the tension to build until the dam broke. Both cried out at the intensity of their orgasm and at the peak of it, they blacked out as their minds merged.

As they lay on the bed, experiencing each others lives, they didn't notice a new spark flare into being. As two hours passed, the two were so deep in each others minds they communicated silently. "What's going on?" Cherry wondered.

"I think we've become bonded mates," Yamcha replied hesitantly towards the voice in his mind.

"How is that possible?"

"Well, earlier...when I saved you from those men. One of them yelled out that I was one of those aliens from a few years ago. But, that's impossible. I don't have a ...tail..." he paused as a memory of their recent lovemaking ran through his mind. Memories of Cherry grasping something from behind him and then the pleasure that struck his body as she ran her hand over it. Then, the memory of him grasping her tail ran through his mind as well. "Oh kami...I do have a tail...and so do you! We're Sayi-jin's!" his mind whispered in shock while unconsciously projecting it towards hers.

"What the hell is a Sayi-jin!!!" Cherry screamed before the shock overwhelmed them and true unconsciousness took them both into her soothing embrace.

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Authors note:** I wanted to make it difficult for Yamcha to locate his chosen mate but at the same time give it a little twist where he almost looses her. Of course I had to have him save her before she was killed. I hope you liked it since I didn't think it would be fair to bash him. Besides, in this story, it just wouldn't be fair."

Do You still want me to continue this story? Review and let me know!