Jungle Boy

A Tarzan AU

Chapter 2: This Growing Need to be Beside Her

"It's a good find this time."

Bardock agreed with the large silver back next to him with a head nod. They were walking on their knuckles back to the nests. Baskets that Gine had made were filled to the top with fruit for the troop. Smaller adult apes were following behind with their own baskets on their backs. "Zaire, does it ever bother you that my kind kills other animals for meat?"

It was a question he had been wanting to ask for awhile. He had put his two crew members and family through enough with mimicking the apes' lifestyle, but changing their eating habits was asking entirely too much. He will never forget the day Vegeta brought the carcass of an alligator to the nests and ate it whole, or the stunned look on the apes' faces as they watched the then five year old with blood all over his face.

Zaire grunted. He was the leader of his troop and the largest silver back in the jungle. "No harm to us. You take care of predators. You protect us."

The two leaders exchanged looks of mutual respect before turning their attention back to the grassy path in front of them. They were almost to the nest, and just in time before darkness took over. The troop is hungry. The females had hustled towards the males and gratefully removed the baskets from their backs. The infants joined their mothers for their dinner.

Zaire had his own basket, and rightfully so. Before he could remove a banana from the basket, he tapped Bardock on the shoulder to get his attention away from a crying mother. "Your mate. She's upset."

Bardock looked in the direction of where his large finger was pointing. Gine was standing on the rocks that were above the nests. She was standing up straight, something she'd hardly done since living in the jungle unless it was serious. Her bare arms were crossed over hide covered chest and her wide eyes were small from scrunching her face together. He couldn't help but smirk.

"Uh oh. Looks like I'm sleeping with you tonight, Big Guy."

"I'd rather you work out your issues," Zaire took a bit of his banana at last and tossed the peel over his shoulder. "I don't want you next to me. You smell."

Bardock snorted and shook his head. That dry sense of humor never failed to amuse him. Still keeping his walking form apelike, Bardock found his way to Gine. His oldest son was behind her cutting up an ocelot into even pieces for the family of four with a knife he had found last year while scavenging. He was completely avoiding eye contact with his father, which only raised more concern.

"What's wrong?"

Gine began tapping her barefoot against the smooth surface of the rock. She was waiting for Bardock to stand up. He growled, but did it anyway. The mother let out a huff as she looked up at his face. "Didn't I always tell you that the strict regulations you put on your sons would bite you in your butt one day?"

"Boy!" he barked suddenly, causing Raditz to jump. The eldest son was sweating profusely now but continued to get dinner ready. "What in the hell did you do!?"

The protective mother jabbed him in the chest, causing him to move back one step. "It wasn't him! It's Kakarot," her eyes narrowed but her voice softened. "He went to the other side of the river to kill the beast. It took Kiah's son... That was hours ago. Something so simple for him shouldn't take this long."

The father could feel his blood beginning to boil. His exposed chest was beginning to heave while he did his best to conceal his breathing. The troop in the nests below were growing concerned and stopped eating to look up at him. "Fasha, Tora!" he ordered, and the two came scurrying over to him from behind the rocks. They had just returned from their own hunt.

"What is it, Bardock!?" his loyal friends said in unison. They were crouched down and prepared to do whatever he asked of them.

"Kakarot," his teeth were out. "He could be-"

All the Saiyans and apes turned their heads to look at the noise that was coming from above. The son in question was emerging from the tree tops, holding on tightly to a vine with one hand while the other kept his discovery in place. With their noses flared, Bardock and Zaire made their way to the front of the crowd that were gaping at what Kakarot dropped onto the nest he landed on.

Kakarot was smiling brightly as he pointed at the sleeping woman. He jumped from foot to foot, thinking that the looks everyone was giving him was out of excitement. "Dad, look! She doesn't have a tail and she sounds funny but she's just like you and me!"

Bardock blinked for a moment, and Kakarot mistook that silence for adoration. Instead, his father's lips curled in disgust and his voice came out cold. "That thing is not like us."

The soon scratched his head. He had stopped jumping and was crouched down like the others. He lifted up a strand of her dark hair gently and tried again. "Yes, look-"

"NO," Zaire's voice was loud and commanding. The sound of it made Kakarot gulp. He had never heard the silver back's tone be so hateful. "That thing is a human! Humans are dangerous. Evil. You need to get rid of her."

Kakarot frowned, heartbroken. He wasn't expecting this reaction at all. Some of the young apes wanted to get close to Chi-Chi but their mothers gathered them up quickly and hid behind the trees like she really was something dangerous. But that couldn't be true. She wanted to kill the beast, not him. She shared her delicious food. She laughed like his mom does. She was warm and her heart beat like theirs. If she was a human, what was he?

He looked to the one person who could help him out.

After he had caught her eyes, Gine shook her head sadly. It was going to be hard to save her son from this one, but she would do her best. "She knows that we exist. Why don't we keep her around until we are certain she won't tell anyone about us?"

Zaire got inches from her face while pounding his chest violently. Bardock had intervened with his own series of loud grunts and stood protectively in front of her. "Bardock! You know what a threat that human is to our family!"

"We're in danger no matter what!" Bardock snarled. The troop and Saiyans weren't sure what to do. They had never seen the leaders in each other's face before. "If we kill her or keep her, someone comes looking for her! If we release her she'll reveal all of us to this world!"

Kakarot cleared his throat to break the tension. The males shot lethal eyes in his direction. "She was all by herself when I found her. Nobody is gonna come looking for her! She was afraid of the dark and wanted to leave. Can we keep her around for just a little bit? Please?"

Raditz raised an eyebrow. Why the hell did Kakarot care so much about this female? Was it because she was the first he had found that he could mate with, or just that damn sensitivity in him that he inherited from their mother?

Zaire closed his eyes and exhaled through his nostrils. "A few days. Then she leaves. We'll need to find a new home after she's gone." The silver-back didn't even bother to make eye contact with his ally who he was just at odds against. He disappeared into the trees while the rest of the troop hesitantly went back to finishing their dinner.

Kakarot looked around at his family who remained. He reached out a hand to apologize to his father, but Bardock grabbed his arm tightly and tossed him. Gine screamed and crawled to Kakarot's side. His aching head was resting against his mother's shoulder as she seethed at her mate.

"You don't need to be such a jerk, you know! Kakarot was just trying to help the poor thing! He doesn't know any better!"

"Yeah," Bardock turned his back on his family. His youngest son had put their entire existence in danger and she didn't see that. "And whose fault is that?"

Raditz, with his knuckles pressed deep in the ground, watched silently as his father walked by him. Fasha and Tora mumbled something under their breaths and followed him. His mother was crying and cradling her son like he was baby again. "Stop that," the oldest rolled his eyes. "Kakarot's not bothered, are you little brother?"

Kakarot wasn't crying like his mother, but he was pretty bothered. His eyebrows had bunched together as he pulled away from his mom's grasp to look her in the eyes. "I know we aren't humans because Zaire wouldn't be living with us," he glanced over his shoulder to Chi-Chi who was still asleep. "But look at her, Mom! We're the same! You never told me there were others out there!"

Gine smiled sadly and wiped her tears away with her wrist. She placed a hand gently on her son's face to bring his attention back to her. "You're not a human, Kakarot."

The son shrugged his shoulders as he looked into his mother's eyes. "Then I'm an ape?"

"No. You're not an ape," Gine chuckled and brought her son up with her as she stood up. "I'll tell you about it another night. Maybe you'll understand why your father is the way he is."

Kakarot sighed and blew breath out of his mouth. His stomach growled signaling it was time to eat again. "Can she stay in the cave with us tonight?"

Gine looked up at her other son for an answer. Raditz towered over her more than Kakarot did. He simply rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, just keep it away from me."

It was a smell she had recognized more than anything.

Fire.

Her eyes opened slowly. She wasn't in her soft, comfortable bed but on a hard, cold surface. The last thing she remembered was being lifted high into the trees. She shot straight up with wide eyes. That damn jungle boy kidnapped her!

Being the oh so cautious person she was even during a time of crisis, Chi-Chi knew not to react too quickly. She managed to control her breathing as she observed her surroundings. It was completely black save the light illuminating in a far off corner on the other side. Her backpack which had surprisingly survived the trip was leaning against the wall near the fire. Next to her backpack was a man with messy hair pointed out in all directions.

Jungle boy's back was facing her. He was studying the fire.

As she got to her feet, she realized that there were bodies surrounding her. It was too dark to tell who or what they were, but that didn't matter. She had a score to settle with the monkey man. She was able to avoid stepping on any of bodies as she navigated her way through what she know knew was a cave. Her face grew hot as she got closer, and it wasn't from the fire. She hadn't realized the loincloth only covered the front side. The bare butt of the monkey man was hovering inches from the ground as he squatted.

She wasn't sure if it was her breathing or he used some animal sense to detect she was there, but she found herself slammed against the cave's wall in an instant. Chi-Chi felt a shiver run down her spine when she realized this wasn't her jungle boy. The man who was pinning her wrists was older than Kakarot. His skin was slightly darker and a scar in the shape of an 'x' was crossed deep in his cheek. What had to be the biggest difference and what scared Chi-Chi the most were the eyes. His were the same dark color as Kakarot's, but reflected no light. They were cruel and burning her as she looked into them.

He was grunting at her and showing his teeth. He was speaking to her, but not as loudly as she had anticipated. Maybe he didn't want to wake up the others. His hard gaze continued to burn her, but she wasn't sure what he wanted to hear. Her high school never offered a course in monkey language.

"I'm Chi-Chi," her own voice sounded foreign to her. It was hoarse and weak. "Kakarot is my friend."

He really was her friend, in a way. She wondered if this guy was his dad or brother, and the idea that there could be multiple jungle boys out here made her a little uneasy. The princess held in her breath as he inhaled her scent. He must not have liked it very much judging by the disgusted look on his face. Just to get him back, Chi-Chi mocked up by inhaling deeply herself and then started coughing.

"You're no prize yourself, sir!"

He didn't seem to like that. His grip on her wrists had become tighter and she knew it would leave red marks behind. She was about to kick him right in the loincloth to free herself when a sleepy faced woman popped up behind them. She was standing up straight and speaking in that monkey language to each other. Chi-Chi couldn't help but notice the woman was pretty. They were about the same height, making them both shorter than the angry male. He released her after two loud grunts.

Now the two were arguing. Chi-Chi rubbed her swore wrists and began backing away from the situation that could get hostile at any moment. She was more concerned for the male than the female. As tiny as she was, she was feisty. Whatever she had told him caused him to free Chi-Chi, but it clearly pissed him off. Both their fangs were showing as they continued to clench and shake their fists.

"Chi-Chi?"

"AH!"

She whipped around expecting to see yet another stranger but immediately sighed in relief when she saw the sweet face she was looking for. After her encounter with the other one, she had forgotten she was planning on hitting Kakarot with a punch and kick combo. "Kakrot!" she couldn't help but gather him into a tight squeeze. It was a relief to see a sort-of familiar face. The princess glanced up to see him looking at her with those intense eyes of his. Her cheeks were glowing as she chuckled nervously. "Your home is very nice but, uh, I'd like to go home now."

"Home?" he repeated her but it was clear he didn't understand. He looked to what she assumed was a couple, who had stopped yelling at each other when Chi-Chi hugged him. She still hadn't let go, and even squeezed tighter when the male who attacked her earlier was sending ice cold daggers in her direction. They were all speaking to one another now with the female being the mediator. She was trying to keep Scarface from losing his temper, which Chi-Chi wondered if that happened often.

Scarface threw his hands up in the air and walked through the entrance of the cave. The female was holding her head as if the situation was hurting her. Chi-Chi felt Kakarot's hands gently push her shoulders away from him to go and comfort the woman. With the flicker of the flames illuminating their faces, the princess saw that they were indeed related. Their faces contained the same sweet eyes.

She had to be his mother.

Chi-Chi clasped her hands and pulled them close to her aching heart as she released an, "Aw!" She had always wanted to find a man that loved his family. It gave good insight of what kind of father he'd be.

Wait, what?

Did she really just think that?

Holding his mom's hand, Kakarot walked her over to Chi-Chi. He released her and then pushed her forward so the women were looking at each other. The mother smiled sweetly after moment's hesitation then pointed to her chest with two fingers. "Gine."

Chi-Chi had returned the smile and even waved. Her voice was gentle. "Hi Gine," she pointed to herself. "I'm Chi-Chi. You are very lovely." The princess watched as Gine elbowed her son's chest and told him something that made him turn red. He grabbed the top of her head and gently moved her out of the way so now he was the only one in front of Chi-Chi.

Kakarot gestured to the ground where Gine was beginning to lay down. He continued to point downwards. "Chi-Chi."

The woman in question blinked. She then placed folded hands against her cheek and closed her eyes to see if she was understanding correctly. "You want me to sleep?"

Kakarot eyes lit up the same way it always did when they understood each other. "Chi-Chi, sleep!" he pointed at himself. "Kakarot, sleep."

He was asking her to sleep with him. She'd slap him across the face if he was anyone else but an innocent monkey man. She shook her head then used her thumb and index fingers to pry her eyes wide open. "No sleep. Wide awake."

Kakarot frowned and rubbed his chin, trying to think. That smile came back as soon as he started nodding. He took Chi-Chi by the hand and brought her outside where she had seen the male escape to. If Gine was his mother, then that guy had to be his father. Sure enough, the brute was standing there with his arms across his chest. Unlike Kakarot, his tail was wrapped around his waist.

"Chi-Chi," Kakarot was still grinning, but it was a bit uneasy as if he wasn't sure what he was doing. He dragged her towards his dad, who was looking just as pissed as before if not even more. "Bardock."

"Um," Chi-Chi wiped her free hand on her shorts to get rid of the sweat and offered it to Bardock for a handshake. If these people knew what a hug and holding hand was, maybe there was a chance a handshake was universal as well. "Hi, Bardock. Sorry I scared you earlier..."

Thanks for nearly breaking my wrists, asshole.

That's what she should have said, anyway. They wouldn't understand her.

Instead of shaking her hand, Bardock shouted something at Kakarot that made him wince. As the two began shouting different noises at each other, Chi-Chi awkwardly tucked her hand into her pocket. This felt like one of those cliche movies where the beloved perfect son brings home a rebellious street girl. Although she was far from it, this Bardock guy was making her feel she had red flags written all over her.

Hello, your son basically kidnapped me.

After Bardock had dismissed them by returning inside the cave, Kakarot told her something and rubbed her back as if to say everything was going to be okay. He then pointed to his own back and crouched down low. He wanted her to get on.

"Finally taking me home?" she sighed as she straddled herself on. Her thin arms were wrapped around his thick neck for support. "We're going to need my backpack-AH!"

Leaving her belongings and the cave behind, Kakarot and Chi-Chi disappeared deeper into the jungle.

He liked the way she held on tighter to him as he climbed the highest tree in the jungle. She didn't want to sleep and it was obvious she had never been here before. He needed to show her what he loved the most about his home, and it was only visible at night.

Chi-Chi's screams had stopped once they got halfway there. He was worried that she had fallen asleep again, but he felt her little arms and legs tighten around him to let him know she was wide awake.

"Almost there, Chi-Chi! Don't you worry!"

Kakarot hoped that what she would soon see would keep her here. It was much better than being out in the jungle all by herself. She even told him himself that she was afraid of the dark. Why would he leave her alone like that? After a couple more climbs, they emerged from the top of the largest tree. Kakarot was beaming as he watched the leaves part to reveal the dark blue sky. It was lit up with a trillion bright white stars.

He felt Chi-Chi climb off his back to sit on the branch he was crouched on. He was studying her face and pumped a fist in succession when her eyes and mouth opened wide. Kakarot figured she had never been this close to the stars before, seeing as she couldn't climb as high as he can. Whenever her eyes blinked, those long eyelashes moved along with them.

She was releasing more of those pretty sounds until she made eye contact with him. She was so much like him. Why did his dad show so much hatred towards her? And Zaire? Whatever human they had encountered before, she was entirely different. There was no evil bone in her body, as far as Kakarot could tell. He reached a hand up to hold the side of her face. He could feel it getting warm.

"Are you a bad person, Chi-Chi?"

That look she was giving him was the only answer he needed. She was resting her hand against the one that was supporting her. Her lips moved and the sounds came out quietly. There was one word that stuck with him.

"Beautiful..." he felt a strange feeling in his stomach when she laughed. He had never experienced this before. Was he going to throw up? He held onto his stomach and fell backwards. Kakarot knew Chi-Chi was afraid by the way she screamed but then she wasn't. He stopped himself by falling all the way down by using his tail to hold onto the branch.

He did a half way sit up so he was able to look at the face staring down at him. She was breathing out in relief and holding her hand to her chest. For the first time since meeting her he really wished she wasn't giving him those eyes. It was making him feel funny and he wasn't sure if he liked it or not. She was mouthing something to him before she pointed at his tail that was still curled around the branch.

She's freakin' scratching it!

Pulling it was a whole other story, but scratching it!? Scratching it!? He could feel his eyes rolling into the back of his head until only his whites were showing. Chi-Chi noticed it and immediately stopped. Somewhat finding his strength again, Kakarot used his core strength to bring him back onto the branch. Her face was as red as the berries he ate in the morning. He could see it despite her covering her face with both hands. She must have noticed something else.

"Well, what do you expect!? Looking at me like that, scratching me!" At least she was giggling behind her hand-mask. It made him smile through his own embarrassment. "Can I show you my other favorite place?"

Once her face returned to a normal color, she removed the circular item from her wrist. He frowned when he noticed the skin still revealed where Bardock had grabbed her. She put her long hair up so her neck was fully revealed. Kakarot looked at the sweat that glistened on it. This climate was rough on those not use to it.

"Here," he smiled and offered her his hand. Hers fit into his like a glove. "My other favorite place will cool you down quick."

When Chi-Chi awoke, she felt the hot breath of the person holding her breathing into the nape of her neck. Kakarot's arms were wrapped tightly around her waist and he was snoring loudly. The night sky had been replaced by morning, and the vibrant colors of the jungle were aplenty. After the tree incident, he had brought her to the river. They both needed a cool down.

Being the respectful lady she was, Chi-Chi got in fully clothed except for her boots. She actually thought the humidity of the jungle would dry her through the night, but her clothes were still sticking to her. She needed to get her backpack as soon as possible and change before her own scent would make her sick. The monkey man behind her smelled surprisingly decent, like fresh rain despite no precipitation reported.

She used all her strength to pry his arms off her. Once free, she sat up and looked down at him. He certainly was good looking and sweet, even though he had no sense of personal space. Knowing that there were more of his kind out here, she knew he wasn't some feral child adopted by apes. He looked as every bit human as her save the bushy tail. So, what exactly was he?

Chi-Chi sighed and scratched his chin gently with one finger nail. He stirred and smiled, then kept snoring. She stood up and stretched her limbs out, and winced when she moved her shoulders up. The jaguar's marks still ached and she hadn't noticed until now that the straps of her yellow tank top had her dried blood on them.

The jaguar.

She felt her heart drop. The old man and her father had to be worried sick about her by now. She said she would return within hours, and it had been close to a day gone. Kakarot didn't seem to be holding her against her will. She needed to find a way to tell him she needed to be brought back to the entrance of the jungle. It's not like his father was a big fan of her, anyway. Maybe Bardock could give her a swift kick to the butt and send her on out of here.

Chi-Chi knelt by the river and splashed water onto her face. A teeny tiny eensy weensy part of her didn't want to leave just yet. Had she gone crazy or actually enjoyed jungle boy's company, she wasn't sure. Probably a little bit of both.

Something in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She looked over slowly, hoping it wasn't another deadly wildcat. Sitting on a large boulder a few feet away from her was yet another monkey man. His legs were a lot shorter than Kakarot's and he had them stretched out in front of him. His palms were pressed down onto the rock and his chest was pushed outward. He had hair like a black flame. His eyebrows were scrunched together like he was already pissed off this early in the morning. His tail was like Bardock's, wrapped around his waist.

If he had noticed her, he didn't seem to care. His eyes were scanning the water. When Kakarot released a loud yawn followed by an arm stretch, Chi-Chi noticed the other male's vein in his forehead pulsated. There was some noises coming from Kakarot and somewhere in between the monkey noises she swore she heard a name.

Vegeta.

When Vegeta didn't respond to Kakarot, jungle boy walked over to him on his knuckles and knocked on his head. Vegeta bit his hand and shoved Kakarot away from him. After waving around his momentarily injured hand, Kakarot motioned for Chi-Chi to join his side.

"Come on, Vegeta! Don't be a jerk! Say hi! I told her you were my best friend!"

Kakarot wasn't sure what he loved more: annoying Vegeta first thing in the morning or watching the way he twitched when he called him 'best friend'. For awhile, he thought Vegeta was his brother but he quickly shot that down. Raditz told him he was a prince, but a prince of what? The jungle? The apes? He never acknowledged them. The only person he had ever seen Vegeta be somewhat nice to was Gine.

Chi-Chi still hadn't removed herself from the edge of the river. Vegeta's grumpy mug was probably scaring her. "Can you at least smile for once in your life or something? Ever since I brought her here, everyone's been so mean!"

"I know this is hard for you because you have a pea sized brain," Vegeta finally looked away from the water to glare at Kakarot. "But just think for a damn moment about what you did. Your father's been bitching for years about doing everything possible to not expose ourselves and then you bring a little harpy to his sanctuary."

"Harpy?" Kakarot blinked. "But I thought she was a human..."

Vegeta ground his teeth together. How badly he wished he could blast Kakarot's ass into the next dimension. All this built up anger was going to be released on someone one day. He chanced a look at the female by the river. She was purposely avoiding eye contact with him. "Is this about mating, Kakarot? You want to be like dear old Mom and Dad?"

Kakarot's dopey expression still hadn't changed. He was still stuck on the whole 'harpy' thing. He scratched his head and shrugged. "I saved her from the beast. She was all by herself and afraid so I brought her here." That's all that it was. The fact that his body and his heart did all sort of funny things when they are together didn't mean a thing. Right?

Vegeta scoffed. He tossed a pebble into the river and watched it skip all the way to the other side. "Sure, Kakarot. I saw you fondling her last night like you were searching for the last morsel of alligator meat."

The messy haired male's face burned. "Did not!"

"Did too."

"DID NOT!"

Chi-Chi looked over when there was a sudden splash. She began to sweat. The two males were rolling around in the river choking each other.

It had been five days since she disappeared.

Gohan drank a glass of water with a shaky hand. It took him awhile but he had come across the body of the jaguar but no Chi-Chi. Her sword that she brought with her to slay the beast was haphazardly placed in the tall wild grass. She wasn't killed. She was taken. Being as old as he was, he couldn't travel that deep into the jungle to find her. He needed help. He took one more sip before placing the glass down on his coffee table.

He dialed the number of the one man who would go through hell and high water to find her. He played with the twisty coil as he waited for the king to pick up, making an even bigger tangled mess.

"Hi!" Gohan cleared his throat as soon as he heard the large man greet himself. "Ox, it's Gohan. It's about Chi-Chi...no, it wasn't the jaguar. Something much more dangerous. Someone. Bring others with you...She didn't believe me when I said she needed reinforcements. Well, to be honest, I'd do it as soon as possible. Yes. See you soon."