Disclaimer: DB/DBZ/DBGT belong to Toriyama and other rich Japanese guys, not me.

A Brief Moment in Time

Author: Cka3ka

Chapter 11: Abundant Surprises

BZZZZZZZZz…

"Woman!" Vegeta was scared. He sat in nothing but his skivvies watching Bulma with a wary eye. "Get that thing away from me!" He should never have agreed to this. He didn't know what the hell he had been thinking. The way that Bulma was holding that infernal device in her hands made his eyes widen. He hadn't been afraid of anything in decades but now he found himself quaking in his boots.

BZzzzZzzzz…

"Vegeta…" crooned Bulma, as she slowly walked to him. "You shouldn't make promises that you can't keep. They come back to bite you."

"Woman… I… I think we can talk this over…"

"No, Vegeta… this is the only way. Now sit down in that chair and sit still," ordered Bulma, "OR ELSE!"

At the sound of the steel in her voice, Vegeta slowly sat down in the chair in the middle of the kitchen. He never took his eyes off of that device though. "Woman… Are you sure you know what you are doing?"

"Yes… I've cut Trunks' hair ever since he was a little boy."

Vegeta trembled slightly as he felt the clippers touch the side of his head. He had never once gotten a haircut in his life. Saiyan hair grew in a certain length and style depending on the bloodline of the Saiyan. In a way it was a mark of their rank.

Bulma worked swiftly with the clippers. She knew that he thought she was going to simply trim his hair to make him look different. The two of them agreed that the best way to disguise Vegeta was to give him a haircut, as his hair was unique in the Imperium. It would have served as a beacon for anyone that was looking for him.

"Woman… how much are you taking off?" asked Vegeta nervously.

"All of it."

"WHAT?" Vegeta jerked his head and the clippers, as clippers do, went in a direction that Bulma did not intend them to. They cut a huge swath of hair off on the Saiya-jin no Ouji's head.

"Well… Even if I had been joking, you just made it so that I would have to shave your head."

"Woman… This is outrageous."

"Sit still, Vegeta…" Surprisingly Vegeta sat still. He was mumbling something to himself but she couldn't quite hear what he was saying.

Within minutes Bulma was finished. She stood back and looked at Vegeta's now completely shaved head. "I wish I knew how Krillan always kept his so shiny."

"Woman… if you think I'm going to wax my head…"

Bulma just cracked up. Oh my Kami, this is too funny. Vegeta with a shaved head…

Vegeta's face turned seven shades of red. The veins on his head began to slowly protrude outwards and Bulma recognized the signs of an impending explosion.

"Vegeta, don't worry. It's just a haircut. I'm sure all your Imperial Consorts will still find you devastating handsome." Her words were said in a relatively teasing voice. However, they didn't hide her desire. Vegeta was a very handsome man, and was built like a solid rock. His sculpted muscles rippled with every move. Bulma couldn't help but recall the nights of passion that they once had enjoyed together.

A part of her wanted him to remember the love that they probably had shared in this dimension as well. Yet, looking at him, she knew that it wasn't realistic. He was an emperor, and could have any woman that he wanted. What would he want with an old washed up single mother like her? It was not as if she were unappealing. She knew that she was still moderately attractive. The years of toil had taken their toll, but they had kept her trim and fit. Having to carry parts and food for tens of miles had made sure of that. However, no matter what she looked like, she knew she couldn't compete with the young delicate noblewoman who surely sought his attention.

You don't want to go through this again, Bulma, she thought sharply to herself. She put the razor down and began to slowly clean up the mess that had been caused by the haircut.

Vegeta watched as Bulma bent down and began to clean. He had seen the look she had given him. It was one that hundreds of females from all over the galaxy had used on him at one time or another. None of those females had ever attracted him. Part of the reason was because he couldn't breed with them and that instinctively destroyed any sexual attraction.

However another reason ran far deeper. The counterpart of the woman in front of him had wounded him deeply and he had never allowed himself to even feel the need for release. With his iron discipline, he had kept himself celibate for far too long. His eyes slowly roamed over her body. She was different from the Bulma he remembered. Older, wiser, and much more somber, she appealed to him more than ever. She would make him an excellent empress, he was sure of that. However, the wary part of him would not allow him to act. He would not allow himself to be hurt again in that manner. It had taken quite a long time, years in fact, to regain a semblance of his own greatness after the woman had stripped him of everything. He slowly turned and walked out to go take a shower to clean up and, also, to cool himself down.

Hours later…

"Vegeta!" came the call down the hallway from the control room.

"What woman?"

"We're coming out of hyperspace… You're going to have to come with me. I need you to come along to help me carry supplies."

Vegeta grumbled to himself. He was the damn Emperor. Who was he to be carrying supplies for a lowly woman? Sighing, he knew that he was being unfair. His pride had long been cured by years of battle and putting together of an Empire. Kakkarot's brat and that demonic daughter of an android had always been ragging on him about that. This thought drove his mood down even farther. The fact that Kakkarot's brat may have betrayed him caused him greater hurt than he had imagined. The boy had been his pride and joy. He had taken the simple child and made him into a great warrior. A warrior that all the Saiyan kings of old would have been proud to call their son. In fact, he had intended to make the boy his heir. The boy had earned it a hundred times over, and was nothing like his pathetic clown of a father or weakling of a brother. Slowly he donned his garb and walked towards the control room. He could hear the woman talking to the port authorities to arrange landing rights. It surprised him that he wasn't nervous, that he was confident in the woman's abilities.

The radio burst into static before becoming clear. "Permission granted. Land on pad four 0 five. Be prepared for inspection."

"Roger Mersis Control, Ikegami out."

"Ikegami?" Vegeta asked, somewhat amused.

"I had to think of another name besides Bulma Briefs, as there is another Bulma Briefs who is pretty well known by any Chikyuu-jin, right?"

Vegeta just nodded and walked past her to look at the various blinking lights on the control pad. "We need fuel and some food."

"Ya think?" smirked Bulma.

"Hmmph. Do not get uppity with me woman. I do not handle that well." The woman just laughed at his comment, walked over, and gave him a hug. He stiffened and could hear a sad sigh emanate from her when she felt that. Closing his eyes he allowed himself just a moment… just a moment of respite as he put his arms around her and hugged back.

"Thank you Vegeta," she said simply as she pushed away. "I… It's really been hard for me."

"Hmmph."

The two of them sat in silence as they watched the planet grow larger and larger on the view screen. When the continents, rivers, and then cities, came into view, Bulma stood up and walked over to a bag she had kept in the control room. "Here toss this around your neck so that they can't see the collar."

"A scarf? You think that will work?" Vegeta was now dressed in a few of Buu's cloaks that had been altered so that it would look as if he were a monk.

"Yes… these are port authorities, they don't want to have to deal with extra work when they don't have to. It'll work fine. Just grunt and bow like a monk whenever they ask you something. DO NOT yell at them."

"Hmmph. You ask much woman."

"I only ask so that we will get out of this alive." Vegeta turned and looked at her for a second. She had used the word 'we'. She did not have to help him at all, and he knew that. Yet, she was putting her life on the line. The Bulma he remembered may have done that, but not for him. He wondered how close this Bulma and him really were in their timeline. It was a question he didn't know if he wanted answered. Just as they felt the ship land, he wrapped the scarf around his neck.

She nodded at him to let him know that the collar was unnoticeable and then preceded to finish the docking procedures. Bulma was quite proud of herself, as she had learned everything about the ship in a few days. It wasn't that hard, all she had to do was think about 'what she would have done if she were building a space ship' and follow the thought through. It worked like a charm.

The two of them walked up to the hatch of the ship and opened it. Outside stood four men who were all armed, but looked quite bored. They looked at her and then at Vegeta. "Who's your companion ma'am?" asked one of the authorities.

"His name is Krillan, and he's a monk from the monastery at Canterbury on Chikyuu." Bulma didn't even glance at Vegeta. She knew he would not let the shock that he was certainly feeling slip up his demeanor. Despite the gravity of their situation, she couldn't help but needle him a little bit.

The guards looked him over and then consulted something on some form of handheld database. The lead customs agent then shrugged. "Ok… here are your passes. You'll need to renew them if you stay longer than two days."

Bulma nodded, "Thanks fellas." She walked out of the ship with Vegeta in tow and walked into the city.

"Woman… how are we going to pay for all this stuff?" snarled Vegeta as he carried a load of packages. He was following Bulma down the aisle way of a local shopping center. The two of them were in the Mersis Shopping District, which just happened to be on Bulma's list of places to go. Vegeta was sure this was some plot to torture him. At least he had some normal clothes now. A pair of jeans fit snuggly around his waist and legs and his body was graced with a freshly purchased red shirt.

Bulma didn't force Vegeta to carry all the bags out of a perverse form of pleasure Vegeta, though the torturing Vegeta part did make it an extra bonus. She purposely had Vegeta carry a ton of bags simply because no one would possibly expect the Emperor to be carrying bags around like some menial servant. For Bulma, though, Vegeta's comment was absolutely shocking. He did not whine about it being beneath his dignity, rather it was a more practical question.

"Well… I am Bulma Briefs, and I do have Capsule Corporations account codes. Those things don't change you know?" she smiled wickedly as she looked over some loafers. She decided that Vegeta would look good with a pair, and proceeded to purchase it for him. "I don't think the other-me would mine too much."

"You'd be surprised woman… I've always thought you were a stingy bitch."

"VEGETA!" exclaimed Bulma, shocked at his remark. "ME STINGY? How could you ever think that?"

"I jest woman. Your associating me with that pathetic monk irked me."

Bulma stood there for a moment looking at him with blinking eyes. "You… make a joke?"

"Does that surprise you?"

"You have no idea how much that surprises me coming from your uptight ass."

"You speak of my ass too often. Don't give me the wrong ideas," retorted Vegeta with a light in his eyes. Bulma didn't miss it, but she wasn't about to back down either.

"What ideas would I be giving you, Vegeta?" she asked as they left that particular store and continued their hunt.

"Shouldn't we be searching for a place to get food?" he said changing the subject.

"Hah… You men are always thinking with your stomach," laughed Bulma, "Ok… there's a grocery store. We'll have them deliver to the ship."

"I hunger."

"Well, You'll have to stay hungry until we get back into space and have some privacy ok?"

Vegeta nodded. He wasn't thrilled about it, but he understood her reasoning. He would just draw attention to himself by eating as much as he usually did. "Make sure you buy extra food."

"Okok… Just pick out what you want. Come on." She led him into a grocery store, and a part of her started screaming about the dangers of letting a hungry Saiyan into any place with large amounts of food. However, it didn't really surprise her when Vegeta didn't lose control of himself at all. What did surprise her was his adeptness at food shopping.

She watched in amazement as Vegeta walked up and down the aisles selecting various foods. He sniffed at the various fruits to make sure that they were fresh. He checked the nutritional value of the various canned foods, and the expiration date on meat, eggs, and milk. Bulma had never seen Vegeta shop before, but she was shocked at how expertly he did it.

After about thirty minutes he had about 2,000 credits of food picked out and ordered. The two of them had been told that the delivery would take about two hours. Bulma had Vegeta leave their other packages with the store as well so that everything could be picked up at the same time.

"Two hours woman…"

Bulma frowned for a minute. There wasn't much they could do in two hours. She also didn't want to walk around too much. Someone might still recognize Vegeta. As they were walking back to the ship she noticed a movie theater very close by. "Let's catch a movie 'Krillan'. That will be safe since the place will be dark."

"I find that name offensive woman. Do not use it," he growled.

She just laughed at him, grabbed his arm, and dragged him into the theater.

On another ship headed for Chikyuu…

Trunks woke groggily. His vision swam before him and he swore he saw an angel. The face was beautiful. The skin was the color of porcelain, and framed perfectly with black hair. The eyes were a deep creamy mocha, with such depth that Trunks thought he could drown in them. He reached out and slowly touched the face. The feel was soft, smooth, and gooey!

"Trunks, u wake! u wake. Pan be so happy."

Trunks' vision suddenly cleared up and he found that his hand was caressing the face of Majin Buu. With a cry, he jerked his hand back. What the hell am I doing? he screamed at himself.

Buu straightened questioningly at his actions. "What wrong Trunks?"

"Uhhh. Nothing Buu… What the hell? I'm totally healed." He examined himself where the wounds should have been. There were not even scars.

"Buu have special magic healing power. It magic," explained Buu happily. He loved helping people. It made him feel all warm and bubbly inside.

"Well thanks, Buu," said Trunks sincerely. "Where's Pan, and how long have I been out?"

"You sleep four hours… Pan in control room. She fly… zoom zoom," he said while kind of pretending he was an airplane.

"Ok… can you take me up there?" he asked.

Buu nodded and helped Trunks out of bed. Though he was healed, he still felt a bit stiff. The two of them walked leisurely up to the cockpit. Trunks couldn't help but smile at the way Buu was always happy. Nothing seemed to upset the pink guy, and that happiness was infectious. So it was that when he met Pan, he was already in a good mood.

"Trunks!" she exclaimed. She shot up out of her seat and ran up to him. She pulled up short when she realized how relieved she felt seeing him all right. She bit her lip nervously and then smiled. It was a breathtaking smile. "I'm glad to see you are alright."

"I'm glad to see I'm alright as well," he smirked. "You glad to see me?"

"Jury is still deciding," she smiled.

"Uh huh… so where are we headed?" he asked.

"Chikyuu."

"Oh… going home I see."

"Yeah… I'm hoping my uncle will be there. I have to get into touch with him."

Trunks nodded. Then he asked a far more important question, "What do we have to eat around here?"

"Not much. We didn't have time to pack any food. Luckily Buu can change other things into food. Just try to convince him to change it to something healthier than jelly beans or chocolate."

"Alright, I'm going to grab something to eat then."

Pan nodded. "Ok I'll be down in a bit. I have to check a few more things out."

"See you later," said Trunks as he clapped Buu on the back and hauled him off to provide some sustenance.

From Mersis to Chikyuu…

It had taken them almost a day to pack away all the groceries. Bulma had done almost all of it herself. Her Vegeta never had done any chores whatsoever so it didn't surprise her that Emperor Vegeta didn't help her. In fact, him being an Emperor made him less likely to help out in menial chores.

She sighed as she cut a few pieces of chicken and tossed them into a skillet. She hated cooking simply because she was awful at it. While Trunks was growing up she had always had various automatons cook for her. She just had to input the recipe and provide the ingredients. Two hours later there would be a mound of food ready for Trunks to eat. Now on this godforsaken ship she had none of those conveniences and she had no idea what she was doing.

"Hmm… let me see. It says one teaspoon mild paprika for six boneless chicken breast halves," she said to herself. She picked up a spoon and poured some salt into it. "Ok… now this is like 30 pieces so that's 5 teaspoons. Here goes nothing." She quickly began to dump the spice into the pot.

"Woman… what are you doing?" came Vegeta's voice as he walked into the kitchen area. He had smelled food beginning to cook and decided it would probably be wise for him to come down and have a look. He knew all about Bulma's cooking talents.

"Cooking dinner," she said without turning around. "hmm… ok … match ½ chopped onion and so that's like… ummm 15 chopped onions."

"Woman, what the hell are you doing?" Vegeta shouted as he saw her take out fifteen onions and begin to chop them up. He walked up to her and rudely pushed her aside from where she was doing her work.

"Vegeta!" Bulma screeched, "I'm trying..."

"I will not be subjected to that poison you call your cooking. I'd rather starve."

"You bastard… then you cook for your self, asshole!" Bulma turned to storm out, but before she could even take a step his hand shot out. His grip was like a vice. He whirled her around and stood her in front of the counter again.

"I will instruct you. You will do exactly as I say," he said in a voice that sent shivers down her spine. It was a voice that expected instant obedience, and if that obedience was not met then there would be consequences, unpleasant ones.

"Vegeta…" Bulma was a little scared of that tone. It was like the tone he had used on her right before he had nearly killed her.

"Now woman… you will remove that chicken and wash the absurd amount of spices that you put on it."

Bulma blinked.

"Do it."

With a shaking hand she reached out and did as he had commanded. As she finished up she turned and nearly fainted in shock. Vegeta was standing there slicing up onions as if it were the most normal thing in the world. He seemed to have sensed her shock, but looked at her quizzically.

"What?"

"I have never seen you cook."

"A warrior knows how to cook his own meals," he said sagely. There was a hint of a smirk on his lips. "Now, woman, what possessed you to add such absurd amounts to the meal?"

"Well the instructions say do this per six, and since you're a goddamn saiyan and eat for 10, I figured I'd have to add accordingly," she explained. To her surprise, Vegeta just shook his head in disbelief.

"You think that after spending time around Kakkarot's mate you'd learn something."

"Umm… in my time Chichi's been dead for a long time."

"Good… I can't stand that screeching harpy." Despite his words, Bulma noticed a slight tightening around his eyes. He cut up three onions and tossed it into the skillet with the thirty pieces of chicken. "You do not simply multiply. Obviously your genius is overrated. Observe."

Bulma stood and continued to stare at Vegeta. He's going to teach me to cook… is that what he is doing?

"Quit gawking woman and get to work," he snapped. Bulma couldn't help but bark a laugh.

"Ok… what do I have to do…"

"First you get a pound of mushrooms, and then…" Vegeta continued to instruct her for twenty minutes as they prepared dinner. He then showed her how to heat the dish over the stove in a hot skillet. Bulma was having the time of her life. She couldn't remember the last time she had enjoyed herself so much. Vegeta was a harsh taskmaster, and quick to abuse her when she made mistakes. However, at the same time, whenever she did something right and he grunted in approval, it sent a surge of joy through her.

About an hour later he sat down with her to eat. There was a ton food, Chicken Perkelt, Potato Gnocchi, Pork and Sauerkraut, and Acorn squash. As Bulma tried the food she couldn't believe how good it was. It brought to mind Chichi's cooking.

"Where the hell did you learn to cook like this, Vegeta?" she asked in amazement.

"As I said, a warrior knows how to prepare his own meals."

"I figured that you would have just killed something and eaten it raw," she said as she helped herself to some more food.

"Had I lived alone I would undoubtedly done so. With two brats, however, I was forced to have to prepare meals."

"You mean you didn't force the kids to prepare food for you?" boggled Bulma. That's what she'd expect him to do. Surely the Vegeta of her time always expected her to have food prepared for him.

"Is there a reason you think so lowly of me, woman?" asked Vegeta. His tone was slightly annoyed.

"In certain aspects of life, you are not the most… conscientious of people. I can't imagine you cooking," she answered.

"I was simply curious about the skill and once I tried it, I mastered it as I do to all things I attempt," he stated matter of factly. He continued to eat in the dignified, but quick manner of his. After about ten minutes of scarfing down food, he stopped and looked across the table at where Bulma was relishing each and every bite.

"Gawd… this is amazing…" She stabbed one of the Gnocchi and took a bite. "You've got to try this," she said as she offered her. Their eyes locked as Vegeta took a bite from her fork. She had been hungry when she had begun to eat. Suddenly, she didn't care about that anymore. A different type of hunger, a hunger that had not been satiated for over two decades, replaced her hunger for food. She dropped her fork on the table. It struck with a clang, but the noise went unnoticed by both of them.

Bulma moved round the table until she stood directly in front of Vegeta. Their eyes never left each other's faces. So intense was the feeling, that she thought she could see herself reflected in his dark, abyss-like, pupils. She leaned down and kissed him. Hard. He didn't respond at first, but she could feel his body begin to shake. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself into his lap and moved from side to side seductively inciting a response from him. He grasped her tightly then. He opened his mouth and their tongues met. He slowly traced circles around her tongue and teasingly played with her. They sat kissing for an unknown period of time before he finally broke it.

Vegeta held her eyes in her own, and decided to hell with it, to hell with his celibacy, to hell with rejection, to hell with the past. He growled, and locked onto her mouth with his own. He picked her up and laid her down on the floor and removed his shirt while kissing her. As he removed it, he stopped again.

"Woman…"

"Don't talk…" she said breathlessly.

Vegeta just smirked and began to bring their relationship to a level that they were both, in some way, afraid of. Yet, this fear intoxicated them even more. It was as if this first, perhaps last time, would be the only chance they would ever get to leave their lonely lives behind and enter into a new… perhaps brighter future.

Thanks again to Tanyaneko for proofing the first part of the story.

For anyone interested, the recipe to Chicken Perkelt… for a reasonable family is:

3 Tablespoons Canola Oil

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves chopped up

½ large onion, chopped

2 cubes chicken bouillon

1 teaspoon mild paprika

salt and pepper for taste (that means just a little bit)

4.5 ounce mushrooms.

3 Tablespoons sour cream.

In a large skillet over heat, heat oil and add chicken and onion. Season with bouillon, paprika and salt and pepper to taste. When chicken is almost cooked through, stir in the mushrooms. Cover the skillet and cook for 5 more minutes or until the mushrooms are tender and the chicken juices run clear.

When chicken is done, stir in the sour cream and turn off the heat. Serve hot over rice or pasta. I prefer white rice, or rigatoni.

Try it… it's really really tasty.

Ciao,

Cka3ka