A.N. Hey you guys! It hasn't been that long since I've updated, has it? ;;; Well, anyway, I'm rather proud of this chapter. I've been feverishly working on it for awhile and I'm pretty proud at the way it turned out. I hope that it's long enough for ya! I brought back some old characters you may or may not remember and also as a treat I gave you some flashbacks into Vejita's past. Pretty cool, ne? Well I won't keep ya! Enjoy and don't forget to tell me how much ya love me!

gRiFfYn

Chapter 13

Two months had passed since the Italian lady was first kidnapped and taken abroad the Dragon's pirate ship, but it sure did not feel that long. In fact, it felt entirely too short. So much had happened from the time that she first met James, to the time she now had with Vejita. And these odd feelings in her every time she got within inches of Vejita. Honestly, she loved every second of those feelings and knew that no one else could send shivers up and down her spine like he could. Not even James…

"This is the happiest I've seen you since you first became a passenger on this ship, queenie." Quillian commented as he watched the Italian heiress happily skip around on the ship.

"First of all," Bulma began, turning to face the younger child "I was a prisoner on this ship, not a passenger. Secondly, this is the happiest I've ever been since I've been on The Dragon."

"Why is that? You aren't suffering from a mental illness, are ye? You hated it on here not too long ago." the boy inquired in his thick British accent, his teal blue eyes curiously gazing up at her.

Bulma deeply frowned at his statement. "No! Of course not! Why would you think that! What, a girl can't walk around and be happy without looking like she has gone off the deep end?"

Quillian giggled. "No! I's just curious what ye were so happy for. You've been spending an awful lot of time with the cap'n lately."

Bulma blushed. "Well, he's been…I've been…we've…uh…y'see…"

Quillian laughed some more.

"It's nothing like what you think! We've just been…looking at maps and such. And you know how he is! Back there insulting me and what not! Forcing me to clean his chambers and…" the young woman looked at the boy and saw the amused smile on his face. He could easily see right through her lie.

"Ugh! Stop looking at me like that! You'd think I'd tell you a lie?"

"I dunno, queenie. Being stranded on a ship full of pirates can have an huge affect on your life."

'Kid, you don't know the half of it.'

"So where is the old scalawag today, anyway? I haven't seen him all day." The young heiress inquired.

"Oh, he's in town gathering more supplies for the crew. We're leaving tomorrow morning."

"Supplies? What more supplies could we need?"

"Oh the usual. Oranges, gunpowder, bandages, rum…"

Bulma rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm tired of being stuck on this ship with nothing to do! I'm going to go out on the beach."

"You can't!" Quillian quipped in a singsong voice. "You're forbidden to leave the ship..."

"Well, there's no one around to stop me" Bulma replied in the same singsong voice "So I'm going anyway…"

Quillian giggled and jumped from the barrel he was sitting on. He shook his head as he watched her rebelliously skip off of the ramp and onto the shimmering shores of New Providence.

.:\:.

"This is absolutely the last time I ever let you morons wander around New Providence without a leash!" Vejita hissed as he found another drunken member of his crew in the alleyway. "On your feet! I don't have time to waste with you drunken fools! I've got a ship to run and you're going to do it, piss-drunk or not!"

He gave the man a swift kick in his side as he cried out in pain and lazily opened his eyes. This is the only part Vejita hated about docking. If only his crew could hold their whiskey like real men, but no. They went off the ship and screwed around with loose women, picked fights with other pirates twice their size, got locked up for 'disorderly conduct', or sometimes worse. And he'd have to be the one to pick up after their sorry butts.

"Honestly! You'd think I'd hired a crew full of schoolboys to man my ship. Nappa?" He spoke to the gigantic bald, yet unbelievably muscular man who stood behind him. He was usually the only one Vejita could count on to stay by his side and not wander off into trouble.

"Yes, captain?"

"See who else you can find that belongs to my crew. I don't care what they're doing, if their ass isn't on my ship before midnight, their carcasses will be. Then go back to The Dragon and put them to work preparing my ship. Headaches or not, it will be ready before I get back."

"Yes sir." Nappa obeyed and he turned on his heels and left.

Rubbing his temples, Vejita made his way to Boone's Point and stood on the dock once more and for the final time that week. His obsidian gaze was cast out upon the ocean as he watched the red sun settle beyond the horizon. The soft cries of the gulls and the splashing of the waves as they crashed ashore once again filled his ears. Closing his eyes, the dark captain felt the great ocean softly mist his face with the soft summer breeze that carried it to him. He listened to the tremendous roar of the ocean and tide as it rose and fell, splashing onto the shore. With each crashing wave, his thoughts kept drifting farther and farther away. Away to a time where the ocean and sailing was all he knew…

"Vejita! Mijo (little boy)! Where are you?"

"Here mama!"

"Vejita, what are you doing out here so late? You should be asleep in bed."

"Yo se, mama (I know, mother). Pero (But), I've been inside all day. Besides, I don't get a good view of the stars from inside my room."

Serori softly laughed and sat beside her son. "Do you know how to find any constellations?"

"Sí! There is the Big and Little Dipper," the young boy demonstrated by pointing his finger to the sky "…Orion's belt, Pisces, y (and) Virgo."

Serori smiled at the intellect of her young son. Only 8 years old, and has so many constellations committed to memory.

"I think you're forgetting one, mijo."

"Qué? (What?) Which one is that?"

"See? Right there, the brightest star in the sky." His mother pointed above the small boy's head to the most beautiful and glittering star in the night sky.

"Oh, yes. What is that one?"

"That one is la Estrella del Norte."

"The North Star…"

"Sí. Whenever you are lost and have no map, you can always look to the North Star to guide you. It will always point you in the direction you need to go. Remember that, and nothing can ever stop you." Serori brought her son into her arms squeezed him tightly.

"Always follow your dreams, mijo. They can lead you places no ocean could ever take you."

Vejita opened his eyes and stoically stared onto the ocean again. He knew his mother meant well at the time, but there was no star or dream that could help him now. You needed to plot your own course and make your own path. Nothing or no one would be willing to help you, either you wanted something or you didn't. He did listen to one thing she said, though: he never let anything stop him.

Then, a new sound filled his ears. It was a soft melody, being hummed in a soprano voice. A melody he'd known since childhood.

Gazing around the beach, he then spotted the blue-haired girl that had escaped from his ship. She was in direct violation of his orders! Like she would follow them anyway. She was one of those women who took orders from no one but herself, even if it was for her own good.

"Woman!"

She quickly spun on her heels and fearfully looked at the pirate who called her name. Once she saw it was Vejita, her demeanor rapidly switched.

"Yes! I AM out of the ship! I don't think it's fair that you and all the bumbling morons you have for crew members get to run amuck in town drinking yourselves into a stupor, whilst I sit on that rickety old tub and waste my life! No thank you!"

"And what would you have done if it wasn't I who discovered you here alone, hm?"

"I can handle myself, thank you very much." Bulma turned her back to him once again and began to walk barefoot in the water.

'Can you?'

In little time at all, the pirate prince was right behind her and had her arm twisted behind her back and her wrist locked inside his tight grip.

"What now? You're at my mercy, little princess. Let's see you take care of yourself."

"You cheated!" she shot at him as she futilely tried to struggle away.

"Well, I am a pirate. You'd expect me to play fair?" he replied with a sadistic smirk. He pulled her closer to him as he leaned forward to caress his lips on the bare milky skin of her neck. The feel of his warm breath on her tender skin sent shivers through her spine like wildfire.

She swallowed hard. "I could break your neck if I wanted to." This only made the man behind her laugh skeptically.

"I'm afraid you couldn't break an egg, milady." He teased, only causing her to twitch in his grasp again. He loosened up a little bit to let her spin around in his arms and face him. Fiery blue eyes met coal black ones.

"I'm not as helpless as you think! You think sweet manners was all I was taught?"

"Heh, I have no doubt they taught you "self-defense"." Saying his last words sarcastically. "But it only matters if you know what you're doing."

"I do! I could get away if I wanted to." Vejita pulled the tiny woman close to him once more, and locked her arms at her sides.

"So, what are you going to do now?"

"This." And in no second flat, she pressed her rosy pink lips to his and locked him in a passionate kiss. As much as this startled the pirate, he did not loosen his grip. He'd seen this move before and he'd be a fool to fall for it. She'd have to try harder than this.

Bulma was able to wriggle on of her arms free, as she slowly snuck a hand up his chest and around his neck, using her ring finger to caress the nape of his neck as gently as possible. She then freed her other hand, and wrapped it around the pirate's torso. She could tell by the way that he kissed her that he was untrusting in her motives, but she honestly had nothing up her sleeves. It had been at least 3 days since she'd kissed him last, and did she ever miss those succulent Spanish lips of his.

A short time later, she had gained his trust and he returned abundantly the passion of her kiss. Wrapping his sinew arms around her waist, he indulged in what he had been denied for so long. He had been in town for almost 3 days straight to gather up his crew. He hadn't realized the actual need he had for her since he'd been gone. But right now, all he wanted was her.

He pulled back from her for a small time and took off the long leather duster he was wearing and laid it on the beach behind him. Then he scooped Bulma up into his arms and laid her onto the leather duster, unfurling her wavy aquamarine hair.

"Vejita! We can't possibly do this here, can we? I mean, what if someone sees us or…"

Vejita began to unclothe himself, firstly removing his black shirt and uncovering the rippling muscles and tan skin beneath.

"Since when do you give a damn what anyone thinks or sees, hm?" he muttered, pulling himself up to her and slowly untying and removing the dress she wore. It was more than he could stand once his fingertips brushed her soft, creamy skin.

"Well you may not care what anyone thinks of you but I have a reputation to keep and…" the pirate put a finger over mouth and slowly pushed her down so her head was laying flat on the ground.

"Woman, stop talking. I'm getting tired of hearing you're rambling. From now on, the only words I want to hear coming from your mouth are my name. Got it?" he finished silkily, staring deep into her azure orbs. Once again, Bulma was deeply entranced with this pirate who had kidnapped her. His words were spoken so smoothly; they alone sent shivers up and down her spine once more and a burning sensation straight to her core.

"Yes, captain my captain."

.:\:.

Awaking the next morning to the feel of cold ocean water caressing his feet, Vejita slowly sat up on the beach. Still a little groggy from the night's events, he stretched out his arms and feet. It was then that he noticed that Bulma was not next to him. Instead, there was a note.

Told you I could get away. Grazì for the shirt!

He smirked. That woman and her wit, neither ever ceased to amaze him. Wearing only his pants, boots, and a duster, Vejita Ouji stood to his feet and stretched out once more. It was sunrise, and it was time to go. He had clues to follow and a treasure to find. God help anyone that got in his way this time.

.:\:.

"Come now, miboy. It won't be as bad as you think." The dark voice coaxed as his icy white hand reached out for his.

"No! Never! Papa!" Vejita stood adamantly beside his father, refusing and resisting participating in the trade.

"Well, well your highness. Looks like you haven't made good on your promise afterall, now have you? Perhaps I should go back on what I agreed on as well." the snake-like voice hissed to the regal man Vejita called father.

"Vejita!" the duke reprimanded his son. "Go with him. I will not order you to again."

"Papa, how could you? He's a tyrant and a monster! He's destroyed 20 ships in our navy and terrorized our townspeople! You couldn't possible trust him!" the boy tried vainly to persuade his father, but not even the ferocious rain that beat down from the storm swayed his father.

"I grow tired of this foolishness, Vegeta. Either hand over the boy, or watch your town and your mate be reduced to cinders."

It was with those words that the Duke turned to his son and looked into his eyes. Vejita watched helplessly as he begged silently that his father rescue him. His father only reached his hands up, took off his gloves, and removed a silver ring from his finger. Clutching it in his hand, he lowered it once more to his side.

"Vejita, you must go with him. We've discussed this before and you know what you must do."

"But…"

"Do not shame me, Vejita! Never tarnish our name! Open your hand to me now."

The boy reluctantly did as he was told, and his father dropped the ring into his hands.

" This is all you need, Vejita. Now go."

"Father?"

Vejita was viciously grabbed by his arms and drug onto to ship next to his father's.

"Father! No! Father!…"

It seemed that his cries fell on deaf ears as Frieza's ship sailed farther and farther out to sea, farther away from his home.

"Put our little royal brat in the brig. We'll teach him later his place later after we have some fun with his father…"

Darkness. Cackling. Loud explosions. Cries and shouts for help. The smell of fire and smoke and the stench of death in the air. Then, two red demonic eyes in the darkness coming straight for him…

Vejita awoke with a gasp and a start, sitting straight up in his bed immediately as thunder clashed loudly outside the wooden walls. He threw off his covers and ran his fingers through his hair. Casting a side-glance at the woman beside him, he slowly stood up and made his way over to the desk by the window. Opening a drawer in the desk, he pulled out a cigar, lit a match, and attempted to calm his nerves. He took a deep drag from the cigar, then slowly let it out as he rubbed his temples.

'What was that dream for? I haven't dreamt about that day in a long time.'

He took another drag on his cigar and gazed out at the tumbling ocean. A storm was slowly brewing behind them, and slowly, but surely creeping up. He watched the lighting jump from cloud to cloud and heard the shattering boom of the rolling thunder.

'Damn you, father. I'll never forgive you for that.'

He looked down at the ring on his finger, the ring his father gave him all those nights ago. It was silver and had a dragon snaked around a sapphire stone. That's how he got his name, The Dragon. It was fearsome and struck terror into the hearts of men. A dragon was vicious, hardly ever seen, you would always know when it was coming, and where it had already been. He wouldn't wear this ring in remembrance of his family, but to corroborate his image.

Slowly, the cigar began to calm his nerves and settle him down to a placid state. Then he heard a small voice rise from the bed sheets.

"Vejita?"

"Go back to sleep woman."

"What…what are you doing? Are you okay?"

"It's nothing. Go back to sleep." He said, getting a little more irritated each time he said it.

"Hey, you can't tell me what to do! You should know that by now. Is it so hard to answer a simple question?" She rose from the bed and walked to where he stood with the bed sheets around her for modesty.

"Woman, I said…" Vejita cut off quickly when his ears picked up a high pitch whistling that slowly got louder and closer to the ship. His eyes got large and he tackled Bulma to the ground. "Get down!"

Suddenly, there was a devastating boom that ferociously rocked the ship.

"Jesús Crísto, what was that?" Bulma cursed aloud.

"We're being attacked." Vejita growled lowly.

"By who?"

The whole world froze as a sultry, yet sadistic voice rose from the open door of the room.

"Knock knock. Hope I'm not interrupting anything." In the doorway stood a tall, shadowed figure that was illuminated by lightening whenever it flashed. But Vejita immediately recognized his single blood red eye.

"The devil himself."

A.N. Ha! D I rule! I cannot wait to write the next chapter! From here on out, it will be the action you all have been waiting for! Thanks for staying with me and please review!