A/N:                First of all thank you all for your reviews and that you are so loyal to me after I've neglected you for so long. First due to the fact that I had a boyfriend and then since September my life seemed to go downwards. First my boyfriend broke up with me, then I had to go back to work, which I absolutely hate, then all of my best friends moved away and some other personal problems. I hope you understand now why I didn't feel like writing, but I think, or at least hope, that I'm now back for good!

                        Well, I think the only thing to say now is: Have fun with this chapter!

Chapter 30: Hide and Seek

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The beams of the sun in her face, the voices of nature and the shuffling of feet tore her out of her sleep more or less welcomed. It was still early in the morning and after the strenuous day before, including the almost-drowning, her body yearned for more. Everything ached – spending the night on the hard ground wasn't something she was used to – and she desperately wanted to close her eyes again and sleep some more, but her wish wasn't fulfilled.

"About time you woke up," a gruff voice forced her to open her eyes again. "We shouldn't lose any more time. I want you to get on a ship as soon as possible, so that I can finally take care of Frieza."

Bulma only nodded numbly, too tired to argue, and got up. They already had this discussion the previous night and she didn't feel like going through it again. If there was one thing she had learned about Vegeta in the last week, then it was that once he had set his mind on something, he wouldn't stray from it. He had his plan and she had hers and just like him she would stick to it. She got up and stretched her tired and hurting limbs. "Okay, I'm ready."

Vegeta only looked at her. It was a strange thing that she didn't want to continue the argument they had only last night. Maybe she had accepted it, something that seemed to be pretty unlikely of her, but maybe she also was too exhausted. She truly looked weary, the last few weeks finally taking their toll on her. In mind she was so strong, so that she almost forgot under which circumstances she had grown up: a spoiled little brat from the very beginning, probably having more than enough servants so that she did not need to move one of her delicate fingers. It might be that they both had royal or at least aristocratic blood in their veins, but his life differed so much from hers. He always had to fight for survival. They were so different, so it was just a good thing that she would leave this island, probably even this night, if they get moving soon, because a relationship built on those and others problems just couldn't work out. He nodded at her. "Let's go. We'll eat something on the way."

~*~

ChiChi sat on a stone, watching the whole hustle and bustle around her. Piccolo, who had taken on the last night shift, had woken them up at dawn and now the men were packing their belongings, so that they could move on. She herself had slept like a stone, the exhaustion of the night and day before having taken over as soon as she had closed her eyes, and still, she was tired. But she knew she could go on, she just had to. She owed Son Goku that much, as well as everyone else did. She missed him. She couldn't tell how much. She wanted to cry over his loss, but she couldn't, not in front of the others and especially not in front of Gohan. She had shed enough tears and now needed to be strong until everything was over and they were home again. There, when she again had enough time, she would mourn the death of her lover, the father of her son. She would take it in her own hands to organize a ceremony to honor him and his deeds. People would remember him as the hero that he was, but she would remember him as the men who had loved her and their son and who had sacrificed his life for them and his crew.

"ChiChi? Are you coming?" It was Krillin's voice that tore her out of her thoughts. Everyone of them was carrying something on their backs and from the parts of the conversation that she had listened to, she remembered that Krillin was carrying the map, and both Piccolo and Tenshinhan one sphere, so that, if they were attacked and some of them were able to flee, their opponents wouldn't get all spheres. She nodded at the new captain, got up, straightened her back and smiled bravely. They could go on.

~*~

"You wanted to speak to me, Sire?" Zarbon asked, as he stepped into Frieza's throne room. He threw an annoyed glance at Radditz, who was already there, before turning back to his ruler.

"Yes, I intended to speak to you, to both of you. The spheres are moving again and I want you to get them. Radditz, I trust you and your crew would be able to take care of the bunch of weaklings your brother called his crew."

"Yes, Sire. They shouldn't pose a threat for us," Radditz replied.

"Don't disappoint me. They're leaving the forest as we speak and are heading here. With the fastest horses you should be able to reach them today. And you Zarbon, I want you to go after the fool who had found the sphere Vegeta had taken with him. He's heading towards the town at the great river. Maybe he wants to exchange the sphere for other goods or some gold. If this fool is not willing to hand you the sphere you know what you have to do."

"Of course," Zarbon said with a wicked smile on his face. "Dodoria and I will take care of him."

"Excellent. I trust both of you to accomplish your tasks without greater difficulties and I expect you back at the latest by tomorrow night with the spheres. Oh, and Radditz, I would be most delighted if you were able to take your brother's sorry excuse for a crew hostage. I thought that maybe they could be the guests of honor on my ascension. You're dismissed."

"Yes, Sire," the two pirates answered in unison, bowed and left the room.

~*~

Bulma suppressed a groan, as she sat down on the trunk of a tree and rubbed her sore feet. Shortly after they had left for the harbor, Bulma had first noticed that walking through the forest without shoes was not the most convenient thing to do, so she stopped and ripped some pieces of cloth from her dress to wrap it around her feet as a kind of makeshift footwear. However, after walking on them for most of the day her already aching feet were starting to get even worse. What she would do to get some decent shoes right now . . .

She wiped the sweat from her brow and stared through the gaps in the leaves at the sky. She guessed that it was already late in the afternoon and her stomach grumbled again. The only thing they had to eat up until now were some wild berries and after having seen on the ship how much the prince usually ate and knowing Goku's appetite she silently wondered how Vegeta was holding up.

"Are you coming now?" the prince in question snapped her out of her thoughts. Scowling she got up and stomped past him, each time her foot touching the ground cursing that he should try and walk the whole day without real shoes on his feet. "We'll reach the river in about one hour and I hope that the sun has set by then. The darker it is when we meet people, the better. And stop muttering about your feet. In a couple of minutes we'll reach a house, where I'll hopefully be able to steal some clothes for us."

Bulma did not say any more. She knew it was not right to steal, even if it was just something as small as clothes. Well, for some people who do not have anything, clothes could be considered a quite big thing. Otherwise, however, she was really looking forward to have some clean clothes on her back and most importantly a pair of shoes. Besides, Vegeta was right when he had first explained her the significance of new clothes, namely that their chance of being discovered was a lot slimmer than now with clothes that were torn, dirty and reeked. Then there was still this matter of capes. Without a cape or something to cover his head and face with, Vegeta would most likely be recognized as soon as they met people. And just to be on the safe side, she needed one as well.

The house Vegeta was talking about was built in a small clearing. For once in the last couple of hours Bulma was able to take a clear look at the sky from their hiding place in the bushes. She was surprised that it was actually a lot later than she had previously thought, since the sun was already a lot lower than expected. Light could be seen behind the windows though the sun had not fully started setting and they were able to see shadows moving inside. A small smile appeared on her lips, as she looked at what appeared to be some kind of backyard. Kami seemed to be on their side now, because there were clothes hanging on a cord.

"You stay here and I'll get what we need. After that we will get dressed quickly and then we have to get moving again."

Bulma nodded her approval and watched Vegeta sneak towards the desired clothes. She nervously chewed on her lower lip as she watched him picking several things from the cord and than came back to her without having been noticed. He gave her a dress, a pair of shoes and a cape and then disappeared to get dressed. Bulma frowned lightly, hadn't they seen each other naked only a day before? But otherwise it was okay with her, since she still had her small secret hidden underneath the dress she was wearing now.

"Are you ready?" Vegeta asked, just as Bulma fastened the gray cape around her neck. The dress was also this color, contrasting her blue hair. The shirt and cape Vegeta had chosen for himself were completely black and she wondered if he had done this on purpose or if he had grabbed the first thing available. The only other thing she noticed right before he also put the cape around his neck was that his well-built body and broad shoulders were visible through the shirt and that she was able to see a small part of his scarred chest. She shook her head to clear it of those thoughts. She didn't want to think about this nor about the night only one day ago, not when she had to leave him in only a couple of hours.

~*~

The sun was setting already, as the crew of the Kintoun again settled down for the night. After having walked the whole day through woods and over fields, they had again chosen a forest as camp for the night. With the distance they had put behind this day, Krillin was optimistic that they would reach their destination the following night. Unfortunately, he had no idea what to do once they were there. Just barging into Frieza's castle would not be too wise, he was sure of that. Before they left tomorrow he would have to hold a meeting with the others to decide about the best tactic.

He just wished that Goku were still there. He would have known what to do. 'He's the captain of the Kintoun, not me,' Krillin thought, discouraged. He was just some random boy from the street who was happy to befriend Goku. If he had not, he was sure that he would be a pickpocket right now, without a future. As a matter of fact, none of them would be here now if it had not been for Goku. He was the one who had always brought and held this group together. Enemies became friends because of him. And now without him and after they had – hopefully – gotten from this island alive, would they still be able to stay together or would they all scatter over the seven seas?

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" Yamcha, who had sat down next to his friend, asked.

"Nothing important… just… What do you think will happen, when this is over?" Krillin voiced his doubts.

"I dunno," he shrugged. "Maybe I'll gonna try it again with Bulma. I mean, when we come home with her unscathed, don't you think that Lord Briefs will think more of me?"

"Settling down… Sounds good," Krillin said, absently staring at the blond woman on the other side of the campfire. Only two days before they had left for this mission Goku had told him that he would know when he was in love. And now he knew. He was not in love with Marron. He had been attracted to her, that was sure, but the feeling in his stomach had not been love. She was sweet, but he did not really know her. Well, he did not really know her either, but somehow this was different. He could not explain how or why, he just knew. She had lost everything she had, but he did not feel pity. He only wanted to be there for her, with her. Something in him told him that she was the one. Krillin sighed almost inaudibly. If he only knew how she felt…

"Hey, Krillin, did you hear that?" Yamcha suddenly questioned.

"Hear what?" the younger of the two asked as he looked around.

Both strained their ears and waited for another sound, but everything was completely silent. "Just an animal, I—"

"Lookie, lookie, what I found." All around the campfire jumped up upon hearing this voice. Out of the shadows of the trees Radditz, Nappa and several other pirates stepped into the light the fire was throwing. Radditz roughly held a kicking ChiChi with his hand clamped over her mouth while Nappa was holding Tenshinhan with the sailor's arm twisted behind his back and his own arm holding him in a choke grip.

"Mom!" Gohan cried at the same moment as Krillin yelled Tenshinhan's name.

The crew of the Kintoun stood frozen in shock and first as the other pirates advanced on them. Radditz shoved ChiChi into the arms of one of his comrades and Nappa knocked the sailor with one well-placed hit on his neck out, so that they both could participate in the fight. Gohan tried to advance to the pirate who was holding his mother, but Piccolo quickly pulled him back and shoved a small bag into his arms. "Whatever happens, they must not get the spheres! Run!"

"But…"

"No buts! Go!"

Gohan looked between his mother, his fighting friends and Piccolo, before gripping the bundle tightly and disappearing into the thicket.

"The kid is trying to get away!" one of the pirates yelled and only a few seconds later, the sound of horses were heard, as some pirates mounted and dashed through the fighting enemies after the boy.

It did not take long for the pirates to take down Dende, Chao-Zu, Yamcha and Krillin, since they were greatly outnumbered. The only ones who were able to put up a fight were Piccolo und Juuhachigou, but they too were overpowered by the sheer number of pirates Radditz had brought along. Piccolo's only hope as he realized that he was fighting a losing battle, was that Gohan would be able to escape and find shelter where the pirates would never find him.

The boy in question was in fact running for his dear life. The bundle with the two spheres tightly pressed to his chest, he was stumbling over stones, trunks, roots and through bushes. He felt thorns and twigs tearing at his clothes and skin, but he knew that he had to keep going. He thought that he could hear the thumping of hooves on the ground behind him, but it might have been just his heart thumping in his ears. He did not even dare to look around, out of fear it could slow him down.

He just arrived on a path, where it would be a lot easier for him to run, as a large shadow appeared in front of him. Startled, he staggered back and fell when the horse reared. He quickly got to his knees and tried to get up to run in the other direction, but there was also a rider blocking his path. He looked back to the first rider, only to see a pair of hooves coming down on him. But before Gohan could react in any way, he felt a great pain in his back and then only knew darkness.

~*~

The sun was almost down when Bulma and Vegeta were finally sitting on the ferry that would bring them to the other side of the great river. They both had their faces hidden underneath the hoods of their capes and had their heads lowered. Fortunately they were the only ones on the ferry except of the old man, who was pulling at the rope to move the boat. Vegeta had paid him with some gold coins she did not know he had, but it seemed like he always kept some gold or silver on him for emergencies.

The ride on the ferry did not take long, but the sun had fully set, when they reached the other shore. From that moment on there were no possibilities to go into hiding, because on the left and right of the path that was leading to the harbor, of which Bulma could already see many lights, were only fields. From now on they had to rely on their capes and luck.

The walk down to the harbor only took another half an hour, and half an hour more until they had fought their way through the crowds of people of different races to the docks. Bulma thought some of the people that were crossing their way were creepy, but she did what Vegeta had told her and kept her face hidden the whole time. She also stayed close to Vegeta, always trying to go next or directly behind him. Bulma knew that if she lost him, she would be completely lost.

She had also thought that there would be less people at the docks at this time of the day, but it was just as crowded, if not even more, than in the streets of the small town. She still stayed close to Vegeta, as he was negotiating with one of the captains. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see him pulling out a few more golden coins of his pocket, but suddenly her full attention was on two people that completely stood out of the crowd. She did not know what it was, but she somehow knew that these two guys meant trouble. They did not look like traders nor did they look like pirates. They looked more like soldiers.

Bulma kept staring at them out of the shadows of her hood, when all of sudden her view on them was clear and she saw a small piece of parchment in their hands, which suspiciously looked like a map. At that moment her heart missed a beat. They were looking for the sphere! Trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, she edged closer to Vegeta, grabbed his arm and motioned with her head to the two figures.

The captain Vegeta had been negotiating with also noticed them and paled considerably. Knowing that it would mean trouble letting the woman on his ship, when they were somehow involved with Frieza's most feared men, he quickly retreated.

Vegeta however did not even notice that. His brows were furrowed and the look on his face darkened, as he pulled Bulma away from the ship and in the shadows of an alley, unseen by his two enemies.

"Who are they?" Bulma demanded to know.

"Men of Frieza. Zarbon and Dodoria. They're looking for something, or someone. I only wonder who or what. It must be something big if Frieza sent them."

Bulma swallowed hard. It was impossible for her to get on a ship, now that they were here. And if she had interpreted the behavior of the captain right, then it would be impossible to get on a ship this night, since he had most likely told the other captains that they meant trouble. She sighed. Only one thing to do now. "They are looking for the sphere."

"What?" Vegeta sprung around.

"Don't ask me why, but I took one of the spheres before they threw me overboard." She lifted her dress and untied the small bag. "After I woke up and you told me that you would get me on a ship, I thought that if I took the sphere with me and dumped it into the ocean then Frieza would never get the power of the spheres."

"Damn it," Vegeta cursed. What could he do now? If Bulma was right and they were really after the sphere, they would not let go until they had it. The only way to escape was either let them have the sphere or confront them and get rid of them. But could he take on both? He did not want them to get their hands on the sphere, at least not without a fight, so he only had one choice. "Come with me."

"Where are you going?" Bulma asked, as she followed Vegeta further into the alley.

"Away from the crowds. I will have to fight them and I want to choose the place. They won't expect me, so the surprise effect is on my side. It's the only way." He went further into the dark until he spotted a very small gap between two buildings, through which only one person could fit. It was also dark enough that the person would not be spotted. "You hide in here. I'll take the sphere with me. If I don't win this fight, you'll wait until they're gone and then you will go to a ship and go home." He pushed the small sack with the gold coins in her hand. Then he did what Bulma least expected. He pulled both their hoods down and pulled her into a short passionate kiss. "Whatever happens, be quiet and don't come out." Still shocked by his actions, Bulma could only nod and hid in the gap.

~*~

"Here are too many people," Zarbon said frowning. "We will never find him like this."

"Maybe he's in one of the pubs," his companion tried to lure him to get something to drink.

"Wait," the other suddenly said. "It's moving again. He seems to be in one of the smaller alleys."

Without wasting another second, they moved into the nearest alley and followed the dot on their map until it stopped and they were sure that the sphere must be somewhere in close proximity.

"Whoever and wherever you are, come out! Or do you want to play hide and seek?" Zarbon yelled into the seemingly empty and dark alley.

A low chuckle came out of a dark corner and a figure clad in a hooded cape stepped out. "Oh no, the game is long over. No more hide and seek. Now it's time for you to die." He stepped into the light of the moon and removed his hood.

"Vegeta," Dodoria gasped.

"Vegeta," his companion stated, though much calmer.

"The one and only." The prince smirked. Now the time for his first revenge had come.

From where she was hidden in the shadows, Bulma could only watch and pray that everything was going to end well.

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Whoow, finally finished… I hope the fact that I made this chapter a bit longer makes up for the long, long, long, long, long delay!

Please be so nice and leave a review or two… You'll make me really happy, when you do!

Eternally yours

ChibiChibi