Endgame
Chapter 37: Open Invite
A/N: Heads-up for readers: the academic year has begun again and with it comes a likely slowdown in the pace of updating. Don't expect what happened this time last year to happen again, though- I'm still writing every day and whenever I get a chance. With that, enjoy the chapter!
Trudging through the snow, Chiaotzu carefully made his way down a neatly blanketed path, leaning forward to carry the precarious pack of supplies on his back. The storm had let up a few hours earlier- he reckoned he had another few hours of clear weather to finish his trek up the mountain
He groaned. I hate drawing the short stick… And it doesn't even make sense for me for doing this kind of stuff. He nearly tripped after stepping into a too-deep patch of snow. This would be much easier if I was allowed to fly.
Hours passed. Chiaotzu's legs became progressively heavier, slowing him to a crawl. Even worse, the storm was creeping back down the mountain, threatening to resume its earlier flurry. Caught up in self-pity, Chiaotzu failed to notice he had come to the end of his hike. Rounding a corner around a cluster of boulders, he abruptly saw the familiar shack amidst the snow. He promptly picked up his pace, burning through a chunk of energy he had kept in reserve.
He reached the shack and unstrapped himself, setting the pack down next to the door. He was about to walk inside when the door swung inwards for him. Near a small table in the center of the shack, Tien was scowling at a piece of paper, seemingly upset at the content of it. Launch had pulled the door open. 'I'll find Chiaotzu,' she barked over her shoulder at Tien, 'and get his- Oh.' She turned, halting once she saw him. 'Great timing!'
Launch ushered Chiaotzu inside. A moment later, Tien shoved the piece of paper into Chiaotzu's hands.
'This had to be a joke,' he said bitterly, 'who would send us a-'
'Just let him read it,' Launch chided Tien.
The paper was blank except for a date typed into the center of the and two black "Cs" printed into the top left corner. 'That's it?' Chiaotzu asked after a moment. 'What is this?'
'Turn it over,' Launch directed him.
He did so. "Party" was hand-written in black ink on the other side. 'Is this a party invite?'
'That's what I think,' Launch said. 'Considering the date on the front. But there's no address…'
'Who would send a party invite halfway up a mountain?' Tien argued. 'Trust me- this is blackmail, or some sort of a trap.'
Launch looked away from Tien, rolling her eyes.
Chiaotzu took another look at the first side he had examined. After a moment, it clicked. 'Isn't this the Capsule Corp. logo?' He asked, holding up the front side of the paper to them.
Launch squinted at the paper for a moment, then snapped her fingers. 'Bulma's throwing a party! So the date-'
'New Year's Day, 758,' Chiaotzu answered for her. 'So pretty soon...'
'What are you talking about? A year from now isn't "soon".' Launch said.
Tien and Chiaotzu exchanged looks. 'Wait here a second,' Tien instructed Launch. He walked away; a few seconds later he came back brandishing a calendar. 'You see the year on the top?'
Launch took the calendar and examined it. Progressively, her face drew into a more and more confused expression. 'Really?' Launch scratched the back of her head. 'The tournament was nearly two years ago? Doesn't feel that long. And why do you own a calendar?' She questioned Tien, narrowing her eyes.
'Because you constantly forget the date,' Tien replied, swiping the calendar from her hand. 'You aren't very good at keeping time…'
'I forget the date one time and I never hear the end of it!' Launch shouted, throwing up her arms.
'That's because you left me stranded on a mountain fifty miles away when I was too tired to fly!' Tien shouted back.
'Uhh… so we're going to the party, right?' Chiaotzu asked meekly.
They both seemed to remember Chiaotzu was present; they turned their heads to him. 'I'll think about it,' Tien said after a moment.
'Do we need to send her a message that we're coming? You know, like an RSVP?'
'Chiaotzu, please,' Launch said, 'this is Bulma Briefs we're talking about. There's no way she thinks we're not coming.'
0o0o0
'Uhh, Korin... ' Yajirobe called as he examined a small card in his hands. 'you better see this.'
From below the floor, Korin climbed up a stairwell, his staff and the steps creaking in equal measure. 'What? What is it?' he responded crankily. 'I'm knee deep in it, you know that-'
'I have to go to a party,' Yajirobe stated.
'What?'
Yajirobe handed the card to Korin. The cat quickly skimmed it. 'Next month? Are you kidding me? This is the busiest part of the year!' Korin went to rip up the card but Yajirobe quickly grabbed it out of his hands. 'I can't care for all the crops by myself! I don't have that much love and attention to throw around!'
Yajirobe briefly considered giving in to Korin's demand, but ultimately, he held his ground. 'Korin, I know we have a deal, but I haven't left this tower in years,' he said sternly. 'I deserve a break!'
Korin glared at Yajirobe. 'I thought you liked it up here!'
'A man needs to be let out of his cage every once in a while!'
'Fine!' Korin smacked his staff into the floor. 'Go ahead, then! More senzu beans for myself!'
The samurai flinched at the last sentence, but he held his nerve and let out a long, measured breath. 'I'll be seeing you,' he said before tightening his sword-and-scabbard to his waist, walking over to the edge, and swinging over to climb down.
Left alone, Korin felt a pang of loneliness strike him. Come back soon, you oaf.
0o0o0
The first thing Krillin did every morning was rise out of bed, wander over to the river, and bath in his thoughts. It was never a particularly fun experience. Instead, it was more akin to a period of considerate thoughtfulness; in the river he could sit and take stock of where he had gone (Did I finish chopping up all the wood yesterday?), where he would go today (Is today or tomorrow the day I need to run to East City for some supplies?) and where he was going (If I train tomorrow and the day after, and do a little today, I should be on track…). As his mind moved from topic to topic water would meander past him, matching the speed of his own thoughts.
Occasionally, Rayne would join him. Those were the more exciting days.
Today, as it were, after Krillin rinsed, scrubbed, and rinsed again, he wandered back to the house, curious as to whether Rayne was up and about yet. When he entered into the clearing that contained their odd, almost two-building house, he found her outside, examining a package on the ground. 'What's that?' he asked, stepping closer.
Rayne glanced at the sky, back at the package, and then at the sky again. 'This just… dropped from above. With no explanation. There are no markings, no return address.' She looked over at Krillin. 'You thinking what I'm thinking?'
Krillin caught her gaze. They were both silent for a moment before they both quickly said in unison, 'BOMB.'
'I want to open it,' Rayne said, grinning.
'I want to open it,' Krillin said, playfully pouting.
'Tough luck. I found it!' Triumphantly, she tossed the box into the air. When it came back down, she impaled it on one ki-extended hand. Dexterously, she spun the box around, sawing it open and in two, and caught one half in each hand.
Krillin applauded.
It only took Rayne a few seconds for her to judge what was inside. She started smiling. 'Krillin,' she announced, 'it's time we found a tailor.'
'What?'
'Or a decent outlet store.'
0o0o0
Retu had a habit of making the workshop as dark as possible. He would tape up the windows, doors, even the air ducts, to prevent any light from entering the room. Once that was done, he would use his own ki like a workman's lamp, lighting specific sections of the device he was working on when needed. He found this practice to be very useful in doing focused mechanical work. It also caused him to be scared shitless at times.
'Retu!' Bulma yelled as she burst into the room, letting in a flood of harsh white from the hallway outside. Retu nearly toppled over in his chair and would have crashed to the ground if not for him quickly anchoring himself to the counter. The immediate shock over, he steadied himself and glared at Bulma. 'Really? After all I've said?'
She pouted. 'I know, I know. But I'm just so excited!' She ran over to him and slammed a piece of paper on the top of the workshop. 'Look at this!'
Curious, Retu picked up the piece of paper and quickly examined both sides. He quickly frowned and set it back down. 'This is an invitation to your party. Bulma, I know you want everyone to participate, but-'
'No buts!' she exclaimed, pressing a shushing finger over his mouth. 'You're always making excuses not to come to my social events. Well I'm done letting you have your way! You can't spend your entire life cooped up in the dark in this lab!
'Bulma, there's a reason I don't come to your parties, 'Retu said, sighing. 'I don't, you know, actually enjoy parties…'
A sneaky look passed over Bulma's face. 'Oh?' she asked. 'And what if I told you who was coming?'
A few seconds later, Retu's expression of mild disinterest morphed into genuine excitement in record time.
0o0o0
The multi-day journey to West City went as planned. Tien and Launch dropped into the West City skyline just as the sun was dipping below the horizon. It wasn't very difficult to spot the visually noteworthy Capsule Corp building, and it was even easier to distinguish a large, lighted gazebo as where the party was taking place. Bulma's flair manifested as a blinding source of light in an otherwise unlit outdoor garden.
Almost immediately after they touched down, Bulma and Yamcha approached them arm in arm. They were in full formalwear- Bulma was laced up in a brilliant and simple purple dress, while Yamcha was decked out in a black suit.
'Welcome! It's so nice of you to come!' Bulma spoke first, trying to offer each of them a glass of wine. Launch graciously accepted the drink- Tien waved his glass away.
'How could we refuse such an invite?' Launch asked before taking a sip of her wine. 'Neither of us have seen what a Bulma Briefs party entails, after all. Isn't that right, Tien?'
Tien muttered something to himself, then said, 'Yes…'
Yamcha stifled a laugh. 'To be honest, I'm surprised you're here, Tien,' he said before taking a sip from his own wine glass. 'I wouldn't have figured you as a party person.'
'I'm really not,' Tien replied unintentionally monotone. 'The original plan was for Chiaotzu to come with Launch,' Tien explained, 'but he had some kind of stomach bug. So I'm going in his stead…' Tien said full of self-loathing.
'Oh, don't be such a downer,' Launch said, slapping Tien in the back and causing him to jolt upwards. 'You're going to have a good time here even if it kills you.'
'That's not very comforting,' Tien muttered to himself.
Bulma smiled at them, and then with the awareness of a hostess, tugged on Yamcha's held arm. 'Come on, Yamcha. Let's mingle with the other guests for a bit.'
Yamcha nodded and the two of them moved away.
After they wandered off, Tien got a good look at everyone else in attendance. It seemed like he and Launch were the last ones to arrive. On one end of the room, he saw Krillin, Rayne, and Suno chatting away. On the other side, he saw Yajirobe and some older people he thought he recognized as Bulma's parents. Overall, it was a pretty small party, but he felt out of place when he saw Krillin was also dressed in a full formal suit. He and Launch had come in their best clothes- which was nothing more than the least stained sets of their training ware. Where the hell did Krillin get a suit? He noticed Krillin and Rayne were side-by-side, joking and exchanging a lot of quick looks between them. Tien thought on this for a moment. They must be training together a lot.
Launch nudged him, bringing him out of his thoughts. 'You do know that you're supposed to talk at a party, right?' She placed her hands on his back and began pushing him forward. 'C'mon, it won't kill you to speak…'
Tien grumbled at the thought of that.
0o0o0
'I like your outfit, Suno,' Krillin said. 'It really says "World Traveler".'
Suno cursorily looked over her dark blue gi, tightened to her body by white straps and belts going across her wrists, ankles, and waist. On top of this, she was wearing a thin, snug black cowl, which she had wrapped around her body. 'The gi was originally given to me by my mom- I had to check back in Jingle Village and get that fixed up after the tournament. The black coat was given to me by someone I met on my travels- a farmer that I helped out of a bind.'
'A farmer? How'd you help them?' Krillin asked.
'Uhh…' Suno scratched the back of her head. 'It's kind of a long story… all I'll say is that it involves some bureaucratic corruption and negligence.'
'Ah,' Rayne said, 'classic.'
'For sure.' Suno took a swig from the wine glass in her hand.
Krillin and Rayne looked at each other. 'Suno,' Krillin inquired, 'how old are you, abouts?'
'Get off my case, dad,' Suno said flippantly. 'I turned 18 a few months ago.'
'It was just a question…'
'Since when did you become an adult?' Suno asked after taking another sip.
Krillin and Rayne looked at each other again. 'It's a gradual process,' Rayne said with a sneaky smile.
Suno snorted. 'Alright, sure.' Disinterested, she wandered off.
Once she was gone, Krillin did a snort of his own. 'Adults. We're not adults.' He faced her. 'Right?'
Rayne let out a little laugh. 'No, we're not. In fact, we're-' mid-turn, she noticed that tears were welling up in the corners of Krillin's eyes. She immediately dropped her jovialness. 'Krillin... ' Rayne brought one arm around him and pulled him closer to her. 'What's the matter?'
'I- I don't know.' His gaze swept over the rest of the party. 'I'm looking at everyone, and I'm… sad.' His mouth contorted. 'I can't place it. I don't know why.'
Rayne held him close, feeling his voice resonate up and down his body. 'Okay. That's okay.' She hugged him. 'Do you want a drink? Would that help get your mind off of… whatever it's on?'
His gaze lingered on the other attendees of the party. 'Yes,' he replied, 'it might.'
'Wait one second,' she told him, 'I'll be right back.' She squeezed one of his hands and left his side, trotting to the other end of the gazebo. Bulma better have a freakin' ton of wine. As she approached what she presumed to be the drink table, the round, brown object dominating its center came into focus. Is that… a keg? Perplexed, Rayne grabbed an empty glass and filled it from the keg's tap. A dark purple wine flowed out, sploshing peacefully into the glass. A wine keg? Bulma… you evil genius…
As she was filling up a glass of her own, someone tapped her on the shoulder. 'Could you get me a glass?' the person behind her asked.
Rayne prepared herself; she recognized that flat voice anywhere. 'Yajirobe,' she said as she turned and handed him a glass of wine. 'It's been a while.'
'Yep. It has.' He took a long, greedy sip of his drink. 'Feels nice to get out of the house.'
'You mean that shack out to the north?'
'Nah, I haven't been there in years. I've been living with Korin.'
'Huh? Why?' Rayne paused. 'Also, where does Korin live?'
Yajirobe patted his stomach, jiggling it. 'I help him grow senzu beans so I can eat some myself. And we live in a giant tower to the south-west of here.'
'Is… is it nice?' Rayne asked.
'Yeah.' Yajirobe took in another mouthful of wine. 'It's alright. Korin gets on my nerves, though. He didn't want me to come to this party.'
'Why?'
'I dunno. He's weird.' Yajirobe looked at something over Rayne's shoulder and distractedly walked off in that direction.
They're probably good for each other, Rayne mentally decided after a moment. She turned back to the wine keg and after preparing two wine glasses started traveling back to Krillin. She sighted him talking to Tien and Launch. 'Hey,' she greeted them as she handed a glass to Krillin, 'it's nice to see you two.'
'Hey!' Launch thrust her glass into Tien's startled hands and threw one arm around Rayne's neck, pulling her closer. 'What's up!' As she said this, however, she leaned in and started whispering in Rayne's ear. Rayne's gaze flickered to Tien. 'Excuse us,' Rayne said. Suspiciously, she and Launch drew back, still whispering.
Tien stepped to Krillin's side. 'Do you have any idea what that was about?' he asked.
Krillin shook his head no and took a sip of his glass. 'Beats me.'
'Hmmph,' Tien grunted. 'Coming here was a bad idea.'
'Why?'
'This is easily the most dangerous position I've ever put myself in my life.'
'Tien, surely you're jokin-'
Krillin withered under a startlingly severe stare from Tien. The moment passed, however, and Tien let out a long, drawn-out sigh. 'Sorry. Forget I mentioned it. How's… how's, uh…'
'How am I?' Krillin finished.
'Yeah. That.'
'I'm good. Things are good.' Krillin glanced over at Rayne, who, along with Launch, was skirting around the keg on the other side of the gazebo. 'We're… good,' he ended warmly.
'You and Rayne?'
Krillin cast a strange look at Tien. 'Who else would I be talking about?'
'Just checking. I mean, it makes sense.'
'Really? How so?'
'Training together helps builds friendships.'
'Friendships? You-' Krillin shut himself up, suppressing a laugh. 'Sure. That makes sense…'
0o0o0
Bulma was in the midst of directing some caterers when Suno grabbed her by the arm and spun her around. 'Bulma,' she said somewhat drunkenly, 'tell me you invited Chi-Chi…'
'I did!' Bulma waved her hands appeasingly. 'I promise. I dropped the invitation off at Fire Mountain personally. She'll come.'
Suno briefly let go of Bulma swayed for a second before rocking back forward and seizing Bulma's arm again. 'Good…' she detached herself from Bulma. 'Good. I have some things to tell her…'
Bulma looked up and down Suno before making a snap judgment and snatching the glass of wine out of Suno's hands. 'Are you okay?' Bulma asked while casually placing the glass on a tray of a passing waiter.
Suno swayed again, then nearly fell into Bulma's arms. 'Ugh…' she muttered.
Moving with Suno's weight, Bulma staggered backward. She fastened her grip around Suno's arms and half-led, half-dragged the younger woman into a chair near the edge of the gazebo patio. Ungracefully, Suno plopped down into it.
'Is she alright?' Tien asked, walking over with Krillin. 'She looks…'
'Drunk, yes, I know.' Bulma squatted down and snapped her fingers in Suno's face a few times. Suno lethargically blinked. 'What's wrong with her? Has she never drank before?'
'Probably,' Krillin said. 'She just turned 18.'
'Nooo…' Suno spoke up, catching everyone's attention. She shifted in her seat- her movement was a bit too coordinated for her to be drunk, but it was also a bit too sloppy to be considered sober. 'It's not that… I'm just sad…'
'Sad? Why?' Krillin asked.
'So she's a sad drunk,' Bulma murmured. 'Interesting...'
'Chi-Chi's not here…' Suno frowned. 'There's so much I wanted to tell her. All the cool things I did, people I met-' Suno's face froze. 'People… person… cat…'
'Korin?' Krillin jumped in.
'No!' Suno yelped. 'No… oh, yeah!' Suno snapped her fingers. 'Puar!... Puar had a message?'
"Did you just say Puar?' Yamcha had walked over to see what everyone was gathering for. 'What about her?'
'She… uh…' Suno's face went limp for a second, like she was trying to remember how to remember. 'she says… hi.'
'Really?' Yamcha's eyes lit up. 'I haven't seen her in years… Where is she? What's she doing?' He asked, his voice growing more excited.
'She said hi-' Suno screwed her face in thought, '-back at the World Tournament.'
'World Tournament?-' Yamcha choked on his words. He drew back, hurt.
'What?' Suno looked from Yamcha to the others. 'What?'
'Suno,' Bulma said calmly, 'that was over two years ago…'
'Yeah,' Suno replied somewhat annoyed, 'I knew that…'
Yamcha and Bulma exchanged glances. Sighing, he started walking over to the wine keg.
'You really are a sad drunk…' Bulma tutted.
Suno gave a sluggish shrug.
0o0o0
Retu was having fun watching things unfold from the sidelines of the party when someone came up to his side. 'You okay over here?' the person asked.
Adjusting himself on his crutches, Retu angled himself slightly towards Yajirobe. 'I'm fine. I'm just not a big party person. It's nice to watch everyone interact, though.'
'How so?' Yajirobe asked, genuinely curious.
'You get to see the little things people do with each other,' Retu explained. 'Like how Tien keeps his arms as close to his body as possible. And how Launch likes to startle him and jolt his arms out.'
'What else do you see?'
'Uhh…' Retu squinted. 'I see Rayne and Krillin are very clearly enamored with each other. I also see how Bulma and Yajirobe are not.'
'Wow.' Yajirobe looked towards everyone else for a moment. 'You want a drink?'
'I'm good.'
They stood next to each other for a few minutes. Unexpectedly, Retu started turning. 'I'm going to call it a night,' he said to Yajirobe. 'I'm feeling pretty tired anyway.'
'Really? You don't want to talk to anyone else?'
'Nah,' Retu responded. 'I already chatted with Krillin. That was nice.' He glanced at the crowd of people once more; his sight seemed to catch on one spot. 'Yeah, I'm going to bed.' He began moving away. 'Goodnight.'
Yajirobe waved to Retu's backside. After this, he examined his wine glass and ultimately gave it to a nearby waiter and leaned against the gazebo's railing. That guy sounded like he was having fun watching people. I'm gonna watch some people. So Yajirobe watched.
0o0o0
Krillin came up behind Yamcha, who was filling up another glass. 'You okay, bud?'
Numbly, Yamcha nodded before turning and leaning to sit on the table. 'Yeah.' He was rubbing his arms together. 'I'm alright…'
'You miss Puar?'
'I do,' Yamcha admitted. 'I haven't seen her in… forever. I saw her very briefly at the tournament- but she didn't tell me what she was up to.'
'Hmph.' Krillin moved closer to the table and sat on it next to Yamcha. 'You know, I don't think you ever told me how you and Puar met.'
Yamcha cracked a small smile. 'Puar was my first real friend. She was basically the reason I left the village I grew up in in the first place. Somehow, she filled my head with a bunch of dreams and convinced me to go off and search for them. Honestly, I don't know what I'd be doing if I hadn't met her.'
'Wait, so… that's what you were pursuing when me and Bulma met you out in the desert? You were trying to fulfill your dreams? Are you telling me,' Krillin asked, chuckling, 'your dream was to be a bandit?'
'Yes!' Yamcha nudged Krillin in an effort to quiet him. 'What's so funny about that?'
'It's… just…' Krillin reigned himself in. 'I don't know… what's so desirable about being a bandit?'
'Bandits take what they want, when they want. If they see a nice car, they take it. If they see a nice home, they take it. If they see- you get the idea.'
'Huh.' Krillin leaned back and put a hand to his chin in thought. 'When you put it like that, I can see the allure.'
'My village wasn't exactly the cheeriest place, if that puts things in context more,' Yamcha said. 'Most people who left went on to become criminals.'
'Really? Why?'
'It was a bad place,' Yamcha said, his eyes glossing over an old memory. 'I'm guessing you grew up somewhere better?'
'Eh, not really. I don't remember anything before growing up in a temple. No idea who my parents are- same goes for my peers. The older monks never told us any of that stuff.' Weirdly enough, Krillin looked around him, as if paranoid that some Orin temple monk might hear them. 'Wanna hear my personal theory?'
'Sure.'
'I think parents who can't deal with their young children dump them at the temple. Leave us on the doorstep, give us away, that sort of thing.' Krillin grabbed a glass from his right and sipped on his wine. 'I don't see any other reason for why the other kids my age were such... dickheads.'
'They were that bad?'
'That bad.' Krillin paused and set his glass down. 'We had pretty crappy childhoods, huh?'
'Yeah…' Yamcha's gaze swept out over the 'Look at us now, though.'
'Hmm?' Krillin glanced at Yamcha. 'What do you mean?'
'We made it- kind of. Considering where we came from, what we did, what we saw… we came out alright, right?'
Krillin's mouth fluctuated, caught between a smile and a frown. 'We had a lot of help along the way. He…'
'You don't have to say it- I miss him too,' Yamcha said.
'Yeah…'
'Have you been to his house?' Yamcha asked. 'I keep meaning to, but…'
'Soon,' Krillin stated. 'Soon.' He turned to Yamcha and extended a hand as if to shake. 'We'll go together?'
Yamcha nodded, grabbing Krillin's hand. 'Together.'
After they shook, Krillin stood. 'C'mon,' Krillin motioned to Yamcha, 'let's get back in there.'
0o0o0
Surprisingly, by the time Krillin and Yamcha had rejoined the general group, they found that Suno was up and on her feet and looking remarkably coherent. 'I met some really strange people in my adventures,' Suno loudly said to everyone in earshot. As she was talking, she deftly grabbed a plate of appetizers from a waiter and started plopping them into her mouth. 'A dog samurai-'
Tien's face jumped up from the glass of water he was sipping on. 'Dog samurai? Why does that sound familiar…'
'You're losing it,' Launch teased from behind him. The next moment she appeared next to Tien, gripping a large bottle of wine by each hand. 'Or, should I say,' she continued, pushing a bottle into Tien's arms, 'about to lose… it…' She frowned. 'That sounded better in my head.'
'What are you talking about?' Tien asked, suppressing the fear he felt from earlier.
'I figured out how to get you to have fun. We're going to have a competition. Whoever can drink more from their bottle in ten seconds wins,' she explained.
'Wins? Wins what?' Tien questioned.
'There's no prize.'
'...okay… then why would-'
'-You're going to compete,' Launch interrupted him, 'because you hate losing.'
Tien scoffed. 'That's now true. I chose to lose at the World Tournament!'
'Did you, though?'
Something flashed across Tien's face. 'What are you implying?'
She motioned to their bottles and started raising hers.
After a moment, Tien did the same.
Krillin turned to Yamcha to crack a joke but froze when he saw Yamcha raising a bottle of his own to his face. He glared at Yamcha. 'What?' Yamcha asked, offended. 'I want in on the fun too.'
'I guess…' Krillin said hesitantly, 'I'll go get a stopwatch.'
0o0o0
'Thanks for the bottle of wine,' Rayne said to Bulma, who had returned to her hostess duties. 'I think Tien might be able to loosen up some now.'
'Glad to be of service to you two.' Bulma finished smoothing out a fresh tablecloth; Yamcha spilled wine on the previous one. 'Does this look good?'
'Perfect.' Rayne made a point of picking up Bulma's untouched glass of wine and handing it to her. After eyeing the glass, Bulma accepted it and took a swig. 'Thanks,' she said after swallowing. 'Sometimes I forget to breathe at parties.'
'You do know we're all friends, right Bulma?' Rayne asked. 'You don't have to impress us by having everything perfect.'
'Who said I'm throwing this party for you?' Bulma asked flippantly, putting her hands on her hips. 'Maybe I'm making it perfect for myself.'
Rayne pursued her mouth- eventually, Bulma rolled her eyes. 'I'm doing it for both of us,' she griped, compromising.
'Glad to hear it.'
0o0o0
As time wore on, the atmosphere at the party became more and more friendly. They were old friends, after all- two years isn't nearly a long enough period of time to change that. Gradually, everyone approached their own preferred level of tipsy. Suno in particular made a heroic comeback from her brief lapse earlier in the night. She frequently found herself in the center of the gazebo, recounting her adventures to a captured audience.
'Let's see, who else…' Suno rhythmically tapped a finger to her chin. 'I met a guy with a tail-'
Everyone's ears collectively perked up-
'- who turned out to be a very friendly Werepig in disguise-'
And several sighs of relief were let out at once.
'-but, otherwise,' Suno finished, smiling, 'it was time well spent. I can't imagine I would have gone to most of the places I went to if I wasn't pushing myself to see as much as I could. I need to thank Chi-Chi for the idea-' Suno hitched, her eyes going wide with recognition. 'Actually, speaking of, is she here yet?'
A few people gave half-hearted shrugs. Yamcha, however, stepped forward with a big, alcohol-induced grin plastered across the face. 'Who cares!' he obnoxiously yelled, raising a glass of wine above his head haphazardly. 'The night is still young!'
Bulma very quickly went to his side and pried the wine glass from his hands. 'Haha- Yamcha, could you help me with something?' she asked as politely as someone hiding their anger could.
Dumbly, Yamcha gave an exaggerated nod and let himself be led away by his arm. 'This night… so young…' he babbled to himself.
Tien and Launch were locked in a tipsy and good-natured sniping duel with each other. They had already recited all their pet peeves about living with each other verbatim- they both agreed, however, that Chiaotzu was an absolute joy to live with. Close by, Yajirobe was stuffing himself with finger foods.
It was at this moment that, after trading a warm smile with Rayne from across the room, Krillin disengaged from the group and walked out to the edge of the gazebo. In his slightly inebriated state, he really wanted to look at the stars. High above them, the sky was alight with a thousand different distant pricks of light. Amongst it all, the moon shone with a powerful sheen- it was nearly full.
After a few minutes of skygazing, Krillin looked back at the gazebo full of friends. My friends.
Krillin wasn't particularly prone to pride or vanity, but a part of him always felt proud about his actions at the 23rd World Tournament. Sure, he may not have won, but preventing a bloodbath with the person whose existence permits them to come back from the dead? That felt special. Seeing everyone here, in this time and place… he suddenly felt responsible for every single good and happy thing that had and was happening tonight.
By Kami, this is the wine thinking and feeling for me, but… this is because of me. This is all me. If I didn't exist, wasn't fulfilling this role… none of this would be here. That's certainly something. He rose his own glass, leading a one-person toast. To me, and them-
Tac. The tell-tale sound of boots touching back to the ground sounded from behind Krillin. In his slightly tipsy state, he was overjoyed. I'm going to be the first person to welcome Chi-Chi to this party, if it's the last thing I do-
'You-' a distinctly unfamiliar voice called out, '-who are you?'
Krillin turned around. Somewhat disappointed by what he saw, he replied with a question of his own. 'Who are you?'
The stranger, who had a tangled mane of black, spiky hair and was clothed in strange, sectioned armor, gave him a grin. An eminently baneful one. 'I'm going to ask you nicely one more time, so as to not disrupt this pleasant occasion.' His expression darkened, drawing his mouth into a long, violent grimace. 'Who are you, and where is Kakarot?'
A/N: Endgame begins in earnest. I don't mean to overhype things, but… this is going to be a really fucking important arc in the story. Be warned.
Also, timeline note: this is two years after the 23rd World Tournament. In canon, Raditz didn't arrive on Earth until five years after the 23rd World Tournament. A consequential change...
Reviews:
LWexe: I freaking love character development! Characters are the life and blood of a narrative! If your characters aren't interesting then there's no point in writing a story.
TC9078: Write. Write a heck-ton. Write until you're sick of writing and then write some more. In my opinion, the collected canon of DB/DBZ is such a weird, scattershot collection of tropes and genres that there is a ton of potential wherever you go in the universe. I, for one, am very excited to embrace Dragon Ball's sci-fi themes very soon.
And I agree! Chi-Chi is underrated! Great character with tons of potential IMO.
Luke: Keep your fingers crossed. The narrative is going places.
Red: I'm not quite sure what it is about negative reviews, but for whatever reason, I always learn a lot from the commentary left by them. And regardless of what you thought of my story, thank you for leaving a review!
I plugged your comment into google translate and here were my thoughts in order:
Well, the plot actually does differ from canon, mostly because I barely knew DB canon as I was writing. I didn't even bother to write the weird rabbit arc.
I think google translate mangled most of your review.
I had to look up who Kirito is. Apparently he's a character from Sword Art Online? I've never read or watched that thing so honestly, I would be impressed if my character exactly matched a character from it. Can other reviewers follow up and tell me if this is true?
Guest/ Anon12 (I think you two are the same person?): Yea, messed up on my math there. I'll edit my timeline explanation/age approximation out of the previous chapter at some point.
