The Colour Red

Sparkling Rubies

They all stood mouths agape, their minds not really processing the words spoken. Even though only Trunks and Goten were the ones that actually understood what he said, word-for-word, Bulma got the gist of it and understood what it meant.

Amnesia, she thought, her heart sinking fast. Vegeta has got amnesia. Even though she knew that it shouldn't really matter in a relationship, it did to her. She and Vegeta had never been really close. He always kept telling her how he really didn't care about her and the only reason he was still with her was because he wasn't about to let his only son be raised by some ningen half-wit, but she simply assumed that he was just saying that because he was a hardheaded prince who felt embarrassed to reveal his true feelings. But, over time, she began to doubt her assumption. She began to think that what Vegeta told her was true. Even though the ningen half-wit referred to Yamcha, she started to feel that he was actually being honest with her. He had never lied before.

"What's wrong with him?" Goku asked in a half whisper. He didn't understand a thing that was going on. He didn't really understand what Vegeta was saying, but he certainly remembered that that was the way Vegeta introduced himself. He remembered it from their very first fight.

"He's got amnesia, Goku," Bulma suddenly spoke up. Goku jerked his head up in her direction to find the blue-haired scientist staring at her husband who was staring straight ahead of him. Tears lined her eyes and made them glitter and shine like a glittering opal. Goku felt his heart wrench at the sight of them. He could feel Bulma's pain not by just looking at her, but by looking at Vegeta as well. Vegeta was quite nervous, as he could see, by the way his hands shook and that was not the Vegeta they knew. He never shook with fear over something like this, never! But something had changed, something within Vegeta had shifted and now he had lost all his memories. Goku knew this simply by realizing that Vegeta did not curse out anybody's name and demand to know why the hell he couldn't see. Vegeta knew everybody by glance and voice. Six months, not even a year, could change that!

Silence filled the air quickly and with a thick layer of tension, too. Nobody dared say a word in case something bad happened.

"Ek...excuse me," he spoke in perfect English, obviously mimicking their way of speaking. "But...what is going on?" Everyone glanced at each other.

Bulma didn't want to have to tell Vegeta he was back at Capsule Corp, his home, only to be told in return that he didn't know a Capsule Corp and he had never been here in his life. Trunks didn't want to tell him because he was still so shocked that his father could have forgotten everything. Goku didn't want to tell him because he simply didn't know where to begin! Yes, he knew the prince better than anyone else, even more so than Bulma. But that did not mean he was any good with explaining anything. Vegeta himself had told him so.

So that left Gohan and Piccolo. Piccolo really didn't want to say anything because this was a different Vegeta and he didn't know how he would react to his bluntness. He may take it easily enough, 'oh-ing' and nodding as Piccolo told the story, but by the skittish look on his face, his brows tensed, his lips pressed together rather tightly and his body shaking uncontrollably, reeking with the smell of fear, he doubted he would so much as sit still.

Turning his eyes on Gohan, he looked down at his former pupil and nodded for him to go.

"What?! Me?!" he yelped.

"You've done speeches, haven't you?" he asked, using all of Gohan's school training against him. He scowled.

"Yeah, but that does not mean that I know how to tell a bratty prince that he has lost his memory and we are his friends!!"

"You're my friend?" they blinked and looked at Vegeta. "But...I don't have any friends." He said with a shrug. "Except for Raditz and Nappa," he paused slightly, as though he only realised something. "Where's Raditz? And Nappa? Are they here?"

Guilt suddenly jolted through Goku's heart as soon as those words left Vegeta's lips. By the sound of it, he was very close with them. The desperation in his voice as he mention their names proved that he was quite dependent on them. More guilt course through Goku's mind as he realised that there was no way he could tell Vegeta that he had killed them! He couldn't even tell him a lie, mostly because he wasn't a very good liar.

Silence flowed even thicker.

"Where's Nappa and Raditz?" he asked again. The waver in his voice had seemed to have gotten stronger, so he seemingly choked his words out.

"They're not here," Gohan quickly said tactfully, hoping to dispose of the prince's nervousness as well as the topic. "We found only you." Gohan knew very well that Vegeta had never let him or his father forget that they killed their only blood relative, and to mention that they killed them would certainly cause Vegeta to breakdown.

"Oh." He said simply. He paused. "Who...who are you all? I can't see you. There's something over my eyes that's making things very dark..."

"That's the bandage I wrapped around your eyes," Bulma explained. "Your eyes were damaged and bleeding." Vegeta nodded.

"Can you take it off?" he asked. "I really want to see your faces." He bowed his head down low, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "I mean, I may not be able to see your faces, but I do know that you all are lying."

The tension had never been layered so thickly before. Everyone's eyes went wide with surprise and a blush flowed over their cheeks.

"I mean," he continued. "I can hear from the tone of your voices that there are lots of things that you are leaving out. Nappa and Raditz wouldn't just leave me. I know they want to protect me, Raditz told me so himself! But, I can't remember why..."

Goku glanced over at his comrade, contemplating on whether to tell him the truth or not. He knew now that Vegeta's frankness was certainly part of him, not due to being reigned under Frieza. And if Vegeta could tell these simply by the tone of his voice, what else could he tell? Age? Race? Gender? He didn't know. All he knew was that even though Vegeta had amnesia his Saiya-jin senses still functioned at the best they were made to be.

No, he decided. Even though Vegeta knows we're not telling him everything, we can't tell him the truth. He thought hard for a bit, shorting out the necessities from the things that would confuse him. Vegeta does have a right to know, but just not everything yet. He coughed, causing Vegeta to jerk his head in his direction.

"Ahm...Vegeta," he said, a rose blush spreading across the arc of his nose. Vegeta cocked his head to one side. "Ah...tell me what you know so far about yourself."

"Nani?"

"I mean...that is to say..." he swallowed hard. "Can you tell us about yourself?"

"Saa," Vegeta suddenly put his index finger up to his lips, gently nibbling on the tip as he thought. This was rather new to the people in the room, and obviously very cute! Bulma could feel the heat in her cheeks as she looked at this adorable display. "My name is Vegeta. I am the Saiya-jin no Ouji. I am fifteen years old. My home planet is Vegeta-sei, but a comet destroyed that many years ago. Nappa and Raditz are the only two Saiya-jin that have survived with me, but I'm sure there's more." He took a breath. "I have lived in space for ten years now, traveling around doing...jitsu wa, I don't remember what I did. And," he paused, his exposed brows knitting together in frustration. "I don't know what happened after that. That's all I know."

Then, Vegeta actually realised what was going on. Suddenly, he felt all around his face, feeling for himself. Then he jerked his head from side to side, all the time asking:

"Doko ni? Doko ni? Nanda yo?!"

"Vegeta, calm down!" Goku said, walking over and clutching the panicked prince by his shoulders. At his touch, Vegeta started to shake and tremble.

Then, that same rose pink blush crept upon his nose again.

Wha...what is happening to me? He wondered. Why am I behaving this way? Is it because Vegeta has just come back? Shaking those sudden thoughts from his head, he turned back to the matter at hand.

"You've got amnesia," Vegeta froze on hearing that. "You've been missing for six months. Yes, you are the Saiya-jin no Ouji and Vegeta-sei has been destroyed many years ago," he said, using the exact same words Vegeta had. "But you're not fifteen anymore." Goku could feel his eyes burning through the thick, white cloth as he stared at him in disbelief.

"Wha...what happened?" Goku loosened his grip.

"You've forgotten a lot about your past, Vegeta," he said softly. "You were sent to live with a tyrant called Frieza and he destroyed your home. Since then, we've destroyed him and you've lived here on Earth with us. The last of the Saiya-jin," Piccolo frowned at that. "We've fought many battles since I first met you and we've accomplished many things that were only thought to be myth and legend."

Vegeta stared in silence.

"There are...more of us?" he asked, barely whispering. Goku nodded.

"Yes, there's me, my two sons and your son." Vegeta remained silent.

Goku suddenly feared that what he had told Vegeta might have been too much for him to process. For God's sake! He thought he was fifteen! But, just when he started to feel like he had fucked things up, Vegeta spoke in a trembling voice.

"I...I know you, don't I?" he asked. "I...think I do. I can...feel you, somewhere inside of me. I think I know you." He turned to Bulma who was right beside him. "Please, take this bandage off my eyes so that maybe I can recognize you! If I can feel you at the back of my mind...I must know you!"

Bulma smiled broadly, tears running down the sides of her face.

Me, she thought happily. Vegeta wants me to take off his bandage. He knows that I'm his wife. Surely he must be able to sense it! Her chest swelling with hope, Bulma leaned over and began the long process of unwinding the bandage from Vegeta's head. Meter after meter it came off, the bloody area starting to show through. She moved slightly faster, hope burning in her chest that he would recognize her as soon as the bandage was off. He would say her name, tell her everything he remembered about her and admit what he never did when he was the obstinate ouji.

Sadly, it didn't go that way.

The last bit of blood soaked material dropped silently to the bed. Everyone stared at Vegeta, his eyes closed and his face neutral. Then, he slowly fluttered his eyes open to reveal his eyes. His changed eyes.

Bulma gasped. Goku stared. Piccolo and Gohan were confused as hell and Trunks let a "HOLD FUCKING CRAP!!" slip out his mouth.

Vegeta eyes were no longer the universal black that they used to be, dark and pupil-less and a shadow to hide all the emotions he could possibly feel. Instead, they were now a beautiful ruby red. They were sparkling with life in the pink and crimson hue of the evening, glittering with all sorts of emotions that were running through his mind.

He glanced all around the room, scrutinizing everyone with his new wide eyes.

That woman, she looks familiar, but I just can't seem to put a name to her face, he thought as he glanced at Bulma. And that boy with the purple hair; he seems familiar too, probably better than that woman, but I can't put a name to him either. The Namek, I know he's a Namek but his name eludes me, too. Growling in frustration, he turned his head to the other Saiya-jin. That boy. I know him, his name reminds me of some type of food, but I can't figure out what it is! And that little one! Kuso! I can't remember his either! All I can remember about him is his innocent smile! His tail swiveling on the sheets of the bed, Vegeta decided to take one last look at the last person in the room.

Out of nowhere, memories ran past his mind. Fighting side by side with this man. Meeting him for the first time, the wind whipping through his flame styled hair as he looked down at this man. Pain lancing through his body and shame burning at his cheeks as he saw blurry images of the man standing above him, gazing at him sympathetically. Anger at the man for not telling him something that was so important to him. Beautiful turquoise eyes glimmering with passion and spirit and silky golden locks swept up in the same style his hair naturally was. A feeling of warmth, becoming one with the man, his carefree spirit and optimistic thoughts melding with his own fortressed mind and heart. Tears shed, hearts broken, friendship offered but slapped away. All this and more suddenly broke loose in an endless flood, seeping into every corner and crack of the folds in his brain.

His eyes going wide and blank, a shocked expression fixed on his face; he only uttered one last thing before he fell back onto the bed, passing out into a dark void of nothingness.

"Kakarotto..."