Disclaimer: Don't own DBZ. Heh.
AN: ZOMG! Here it has been sitting, for a very long time, and I didn't realize I hadn't updated it /Hides/
Bra's Luck
Chapter 3: Investigation
"Alright! I can't take it anymore!" Goten announced, barging into Trunks' office with all the dramatics of a B-movie hero.
"And whatever it is you can't take requires you to break my door?" Trunks asked, glancing calmly up from his paperwork.
"Yes!" Goten nodded irritably.
"I see." Trunks sighed, looking back at his work. "Then it must be about my sister."
"Look, I have to figure out who it is!" Goten said, walking up, and slamming his hands onto Trunks' work, forcing him to give the flustered youth his full attention. "I can live with her dating some other guy—"
"Can you, now?"
"Yes!" Goten answered adamantly.
"Oh…what a relief, you had me worried there for a minute."
"Trunks!" Goten growled. "Will you let me finish my sentence for once?"
"Oh no, that might possibly end a decades long feud between the Briefs and the Sons." Trunks replied dryly. "What kind of a Briefs would I be if I did that?"
"Trunks!"
"Alright, alright…if I let you talk, will you stop ruining my paperwork?"
Goten nodded quickly, and then spoke. "Anyway, I can't handle not knowing who she's dating!"
"You want to pummel him or something." Trunks asked evenly, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, no, but…"
"Look, I'll see what I can do, okay?" Trunks said quickly, knocking his childhood friend's hands off his important papers. "It was some dating service, if I remember. I'll look into it…satisfied?"
"Not until I figure out." Goten sighed, but headed for the door anyway.
"Good. Now I can actually work…what a novel idea"
Goten paused for an instant, and for one horrible moment, Trunks thought he might decide to stay. Fortunately, Goten only turned and said, "You know what, Trunks?"
Trunks gave a heavy sigh, before saying, "What, Goten?"
"You're no fun when you're like this."
"I'm working, Goten, one day you'll understand." Trunks paused a few moments, as if considering something, before adding, "If you ever manage to get a job, that is."
"Trunks!"
O-o-0-o-O
Yamcha groaned as he hid under his pillow. The phone was ringing, but he did not need to pick it up…he knew who it was…she had called at the same time for the past five days in a row.
Again, the answering machine picked it up, and again the recording played, but what haunted him most was the voice that replied to the recording.
"Come on already, aren't you the least bit tired of this?" There was a pause, before the voice continued. "Well, anyway, I've prepared a lunch for us, and I know just the place we can go! It's so romantic! Well…see you in ten! Bye!"
He whimpered pitifully as it hung up. He knew no matter how hard he fought it; he would be there on time. He had considered turning off the answering machine, but he knew she would just keep ringing all day, until he could not take the noise any more, and answered it. Kami knew what would happen if he left his phone off the hook.
It was not that he disliked going with her—not at all. What scared him was that he enjoyed it…no…more than that…her smile, her emerald hair, the way she laughed just like her mother--what terrified him more than the Saibamen, Cell, Buu, Vegeta, or even the years of torture that would follow his being found out, was that he was falling for a 17 year old girl. The fact that the girl happened to be the daughter of his old girlfriend did not help.
He sighed as he shrugged on his coat, not bothering to be surprised at the fact that he had already gotten up and dressed in spite of his mental protests. He wondered absently what she had packed.
O-o-0-o-O
"A picnic this time?" Her father growled suspiciously, eyeing her small basket.
"Is there a problem, Dad?" Bra asked irritably, as she stood at the door, waiting for her date to arrive.
"Where to this time?"
"Like I would tell you." She sniffed defiantly, meeting her father's harsh gaze easily. "After all, the only thing you want to do is follow me, then barge in, and ruin my date--that's all you ever do. ' It's unbecoming of a Saiyan princess to hang out with human friends at somewhere so low as a mall.' Or is it a café? Or a pizzeria? Maybe it's just the friends. Like for Pan's 14th birthday? 'The princess of the Saiyans shouldn't be going on a…"
Bra paused to make a fake sounding gasp. "A slumber party at her best friend's! What should I be doing, Daddy Dearest?"
He gave her a dangerous glare. "You already know the answer to that question."
"Exactly!" Bra exclaimed, exasperated. "I don't want what you have planned for me! I will not let you ruinmy plansthis time! Oh no, not when I've finally found someone I like! If I even think I see you following me today, I promise you Mother will make you regret it for a long time!"
Vegeta's eyes narrowed, obviously angered at being threatened by his own daughter, but he wisely remained silent…Saiyan or no, it was rarely a good idea to get into a frivolous argument with a half-Saiyaness.
After a few moments of stormy silence, she heard the car pull up. Without even a word of goodbye, she ran out to the car, and leapt in.
"That bad, huh?" Yamcha laughed.
"Yeah, we might need to start meeting somewhere else!"
"Or we could just quit."
She laughed, and kissed his cheek. "Very funny!"
He gave a nervous laugh, and sunk slightly in his seat. "Yeah…hilarious…"
O-o-0-o-O
So she thought keeping him from following her would keep her secret. As if her 'secrecy' had deceived him so far. He already knew whom it was that she was 'dating'…
However, he would never hear the end of it from Bulma if he did not get more 'proof' before teaching the insubordinate human a lesson…catching them in the act would be the perfect excuse…but the head-on approach was not always the wisest course of action.
"So…she left on her date and didn't tell me goodbye?" Pan said suddenly, walking into the hall. She had been over every day as of late.
He smothered a slight smirk as he glanced at her. Perhaps there was another way after all…How will I do this…? Let's see…females of this world seem to prefer the use of their names…
"Oh…Pan…?" He said coolly, as she walked toward the door to leave.
"Uhm…yeah?" She asked, voice wavering slightly in nervousness as she turned toward him.
"Do you have plans?" He was not ignorant of what this planet considered manners…he simply found no use for them except in rare occasions. This was one of them.
"U-uh…no…"
Once again, he almost smirked. This would be too easy.
"I would…appreciate it…if you would do me a favor, then."
O-o-0-o-O
"This…was…uhm…good." He said nervously, trying not to look at her plunging neckline. "Did you…uh…cook this yourself?"
She smiled and nodded. "It wouldn't be a real picnic if I didn't!"
"That's certainly not what your mother would say."
She laughed then. "Believe it or not, I inherited my talent for cooking from Dad."
For a moment, he tried to visualize Vegeta with an apron and chef's hat, but found that he simply could not…and that only made it funnier.
She laughed along with him until there were tears in her eyes, slapping her knees, then said, "But don't ever tell him I told you!"
His mirth vanished in an instant. Do not ever tell Vegeta. Vegeta would fry him for dinner when he found out about this picnic. Yamcha suddenly found it disturbingly easy to visualize the angry Saiyan in a blood-soaked apron—soaked with Yamcha's blood.
"There." Bra said suddenly. "I don't want to talk about my mother, and you don't want to talk about my father."
"O-oh…sorry."
"It's fine…" She said, crawling over across the blanket toward him. "That leaves us…and that's a good subject…don't you think?"
He felt his cheeks flame at her sudden proximity, and everything in him screamed for him to back away, to run as far away from the girl and the lakeside-forest picnic she set up. However, his rebellious body would not respond.
"Wanna swim?" She asked suddenly, indicating the sapphire body of water they were sitting next to.
"N-no!" He stuttered, willing away images of the young woman next to him in a thong, dripping wet, and…No…no…no, no, NO!
She smiled, and leaned uncomfortably close to his face. "Alright then…I'll just settle for a kiss…"
"What?" He cried. Kiss her? No way…no way…there'd be no going back…no chances of survival…not even Hell would accept me…
"Come on…we've been dating for a week now!" She insisted. "Most couples kiss on their first date! It's not like we haven't kissed before!"
"That was different!" He said, voice tinged with hysteria. "And we are not a c-c-couple!"
"Oh, stop it!" She laughed.
For a fleeting, blissful moment, he thought she might have given up. However, an instant later, soft lips were on his, and slim hands were pressed against his cheek, as she leaned into the kiss, nipping at his lower lip, and making a soft whining noise, as if begging for a return from him.
It was not fortunate that his mind froze in shock—or perhaps some form of overload—because that meant his baser instincts won by default. With something of a desperate mewl, he shivered in anticipation, and returned her kiss with a passion he had thought lost.
O-o-0-o-O
That was the first time he called her by name…usually it was 'brat' or 'Son' or some form of 'mutt'…and that brief flash in his eyes…as if he had considered something…but what?
She shook her head slightly. She was on a mission; she could not afford distraction by such thoughts now…those were troubles to think on later.
The very human noise that filtered through the forest was coming from near the small lake—almost a pond—that was one of Bra's favorite places to be. One of the voices Pan heard was most definitely Bra's. The other sounded somewhat familiar, but she could not place it.
Silently, she leapt from treetop to treetop, careful to keep her energy suppressed—just in case—and approached the jolly couple. She almost yelped and fell out of the tree she was in when she got a look at the man who Bra had pushed to the blanket, making rather obnoxious make-out noises.
Yamcha? She had thought of many possibilities while searching for Bra…her uncle, Uub…even considered her father briefly…
But Yamcha? I guess Vegeta was right to ask me to go see whom she was dating…She mused, closing her eyes to block out the stomach-turning scene below. But how will I tell him? I don't want to betray my best friend…but…
Her eyes snapped open when a startled yelp shattered the relative silence of the forest. Yamcha suddenly scrambled out from underneath Bra, incredibly flustered, and raced out of the clearing. Bra had an expression of utmost frustration, as she watched him vanish into the trees.
What in the world…?
Pan noticed suddenly that Bra was wandering away in another direction than Yamcha had disappeared to. Now's my chance to talk to her…and she better have some good answers!
O-o-0-o-O
She loved the feel of his rough hands, running where only years of experience could have taught them to go. She loved how he shivered and groaned under her slim fingers…it was wonderful…magical. It was not that she was inexperienced—hardly—it was because it was him.
However, just like that, it was over. No explanation, he was simply gave a yelp and scrambled away from her, babbling incoherent apologies. She sighed irritably, and shook her head.
So close…we were so close and he just runs away…Can he really be that scared of my family?
She shook her head in frustration, and stood up, choosing to take a different path back to the car, rather than chase after him like some lovesick girl.
"Yamcha, you spineless coward…how can you be like this?" She sighed.
I am falling for an idiot. She allowed herself a small smirk after a moment. Nevertheless, it's an experienced idiot.
"EXPLAIN!" Pan's voice rang out suddenly.
Bra froze, and everything inside her did as well. Clearly, Pan knew. That did not stop Bra from feigning innocence, as she turned toward her best friend. "Explain what, Pan? Why are you jumping randomly out of trees and trying to give innocent Saiyanesses heart attacks?"
"As if you've ever been innocent!" Pan growled, advancing on her. "What the heck did you think you were doing? Tell me that scene was a result of a misunderstanding with Shenron!"
Bra blinked. A wish…could this be a result of a…wish? She shook her head slightly. No way…mom monitors the dragonballs all the time, I'd know if a wish was made—and probably what it was, too.
Pan apparently took her headshake as an answer. "Why are you willingly dating a…goodness, what is he? Fifty?"
"Oh…Pan…you can't tell my father about this!" Bra pleaded desperately.
"Why not? I'd think he would want to know you were dating Yamcha of all people!" Pan challenged. "I bet your mother would be interested that her ex-boyfriend was after her daughter, too!"
"How could you do something like that? You know what would happen to him if Dad found out!" Bra begged, hands outstretched.
"Yeah, he'd get what he deserves." Pan nodded. "You know it's downright unhealthy to date fifty year old men when you're 16!"
"My dad's 70!"
"That's not the same, and you know it!" Pan growled. "Saiyans age differently!"
"You're right, it is different—Yamcha's free." Bra hissed. "Now you listen…I've never even hinted about your crush on both of my male family members to anyone!"
"Y-yeah…well a crush is different from that steamy scene back there!" Pan said, her voice losing some of its edge.
"Please…" Bra whispered, her anger waning away, a sad sort of despair that had her almost to the point of tears replacing it. "I can't bear to see him hurt because of me…"
Pan was silent a few moments, chewing on her bottom lip, before finally replying. "Alright, fine…I won't tell…but only if you quit."
"But…I…can't…"
"You can't?" Pan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Is he forcing you, or something?"
"No!" Bra said quickly, shaking her head. "I mean…what would you do if by some crazy accident, you can finally have my father willingly to yourself…and then some one suddenly arrives and says you have to give it all up and act like nothing ever happened—could you give it up? Would you?"
Pan stared at her wide-eyed for a few moments, apparently playing the scenario over in her mind, before shaking her head. "Th-that's not the same…"
"You know it is, Pan."
She sighed softly, and closed her eyes. "Alright. I'll do it. If…if you really do think you love him, I'll keep your secret."
"Oh, thank you, Pan! Thank you!" Bra cried, hugging her.
O-o-0-o-O
Trunks frowned, it was proving more difficult than he anticipated to track down what service she used—if only his mother believed in Caller ID, it would have been easy—but no, it had to have been invented by his grandfather's rival. Sadly, many things were.
He shook his head. Well. This is not going well—guess I'm not a branch of the government after all.
"Mr. Brief…" The voice of his secretary crackled over the intercom—clearly, it was time to get a new intercom. "Marron is here to see you."
Marron? Why would she be here?
"Send her in." He said quickly, straightening his coat.
The door opened almost immediately, admitting a smiling blonde woman. "Hi, Trunks!"
She somehow managed to make her stride enchanting and alluring, even when just jovially skipping across the room. Perhaps that was just her many years as a supermodel speaking—or it was their many months as a 'couple'.
"Er…what's wrong?" He asked in what he hoped was a tone that hid his nervousness. "Did I miss a date?"
She gave a musical laugh. She had inherited everything from her appearance to her temperament from her mother—normally that would be a good thing, but considering the fact that her mother threatened to go on killing sprees monthly, the latter was not something Trunks entirely appreciated.
"Do you know anything about what your sister has been doing?" She asked innocently--although, unless she was angry, he wondered if it was possible for her to do otherwise. "I haven't really seen her at all in a week!"
He sighed and shook his head. What is with the 'spotlight special on Bra' lately? Can't a Brief do something without the world asking a million questions a day about it? "She's got a mystery boyfriend."
"Oh, who?"
"Like I said…mystery boyfriend…" He said, hoping his smile would hide the sarcastic irritation lacing his words. "She hasn't told anyone who."
"Why haven't you asked Pan?" She asked, frowning. "She's always hanging out with Bra—if she doesn't know, who would?"
Trunks blinked. Why didn't I think of that? "Thanks for the advice, Marron."
She smiled and turned to leave, but paused. "Oh…and Trunks?"
"Yeah?"
"You stood me up!"
CH END
AN: Let's think of the bright side here—since I took so long, I majorly revamped this story. The original 'forest scene' was horrid. That thing was tweaked in the process of updating so many times it's not funny—I think it went the whole spectrum of ratings, too—V.V
I'm considering a sequel/offshoot fic for this—anyone know what about? ;) I may just graft it into the story, though…now I don't know how long this will be….eh-heh.
-Yusagi Sombermoon.