I'm actually thinking of completing one story at a time instead of working on multiple's at once. I've actually got a bit of headway with this one so I might complete it first. It gets a bit taxing working on multiple stories at once. A lesson I thought I'd learned. LOL. Anyway, enjoy this chapter and when this story is finished I'll move to the next one I make headway with.

-VP

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Chapter 17

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Tights walked down the hall happily chatting away with Goku while heading towards her old room. She was excited to be in town for a month, her longest stay in five years. Usually she'd pop by for a week and then go back overseas. However, she was feeling more homesick than normal and something told her she just had to stay longer. She ran a hand through her blond hair as she turned the corner to see a tall, tan, muscled man with long black hair walking towards them.

Her eyes widened as they met twin pools of endless night set in an angular face. She completely forgot where she was headed and who she was talking to as said person bumped into her back and she lurched forward, only to be caught by said man she just happened to be admiring.

"Hey, Raditz!" Goku said from behind her and said man grunted in greeting before looking down at her.

"Giving her the tour, little brother?"

"Nah, this is Bulma's sister, Tights. She lives here."

"Ah. The Princess requests your presence in the dining area. Dinner is about to be served."

"Food?" Goku rushed passed them both and they were left looking at the trail of dust he left in his wake.

"I see he hasn't changed much." Tights chuckled, finally able to break the spell he hand upon her. "Tell Bulma I'll be down in a minute. I need to change out of my traveling clothes."

"Hnn ..."

Tights watched as he walked away and she started trembling. Who was that strange man, and she kind of hoped that he wasn't Bulma's.

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Raditz leaned against the wall and bonked his head against it. The first day of coming to shore and he finds his mate? Fuck. This shouldn't be happening, and it's Vegeta's woman's sister no less. If she hadn't touched him, he might've been able to ignore it. Yet, he tingled from head to toe. His body awash with desire to just be near her. He wondered if this was how mer felt when finding a mate.

A sigh escaped his lips then and he forced himself to move down the hall to the dining area. It was true, the kingdom was in ruin and nothing could be done to revive it, but how could he turn his back on the sea? It had been his home for so long and having a human mate would complicate things. He could never tell Vegeta, and he certainly couldn't let himself be swayed by the land-dweller's charms. He was a warrior above all else and he did not want that to change.

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Dinner was a quiet affair and Bulma couldn't be more grateful for that. As she left for her lab, she watched her sister and parents exit the room to talk about her travels. She wasn't all that interested and was extremely happy that her parents didn't invite her along for a drink and reminiscing about old times. Sometimes Bulma felt odd around Tights. Scratch that, all the time she felt odd around her.

She had come to terms, long ago, that since she was the second child that a few things would be less. No, Bulma didn't want for anything and she always felt loved, but sometimes she was jealous about how much attention Tights would get over her. Especially when she came up with new calculations, inventions, and other things. When Tights called, it was awkward. Not that she was ignored, it just felt like she didn't fit.

Maybe it was the age difference? Maybe it was the path she chose? It didn't matter, right now she had a job to do and Vegeta was counting on her. The tritan worked as a weapon but didn't help Goku with his memory. She felt like a failure but she was dealing with unknown tech. She scratched her head and started thinking of a new design and started sketching up plans in her scrapbook. Then she scratched it out.

A thought hit her then. What if the pendant can be used to regain his memory? Maybe an amplifier from a blood relative would help? She started sketching again with that idea in mind and it became her focus for the rest of the night.

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Vegeta found his mate in her lab early the next day. He shook his head as he lifted her from her leaned position on the desk, hair strewn about, mouth slightly agape as she slumbered on her plan book. He'd seen this one before and remembered this was where she always started ideas for inventions before putting them onto the blue paper for drafts. He eased the book closed after marking her page and lifted her up into his arms to take to their room. He didn't know when she finally fell asleep, but it appeared that she had been here all night. Vegeta shook his head as he realized that she was avoiding her sister and he knew the feeling all too well.

Tarble was a stain on the mer royal family, his father having an affair with a lower-class mer and Tarble was sent into exile after he was discovered. Of course, he never got along with his younger brother in the first place. He was a bit jealous of the attention the swine would get, but it didn't change the fact that he had to act the part in public, but once he was discovered to be of different parentage, he was never seen again.

A soft sigh escaped his woman and he looked down to see her snuggling against his chest and a soft smile settled on his lips before he let it go. A feminine chuckle brought him out of his thoughts as he looked up to see a blonde woman a little older than Bulma stopped in front of him.

"She feel asleep in her lab again didn't she?"

"Yes. It seems to be quite a habit of hers." Vegeta replied as he opened the door to their room.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to introduce myself properly before. I'm Tights."

"I am aware of who you are." He stated bluntly as he entered their room and heard the bothersome sibling follow behind. He gently removed Bulma's lab coat and shoes before settling her into the bed.

"I take it that you're her boyfriend?"

Vegeta sighed. "I am her betrothed. My name is Vegeta."

"It's nice to meet you." She smiled. "I see you treat her well."

"What is it that you really want?" He pinched the bridge of his nose and turned to walk out of the room to give his woman some peace. He could tell her sister had questions not directed at their relationship.

"Who's the guy that showed up yesterday? I tried to talk to him but he left after dinner."

"That is Kakarot's brother, Raditz."

"You mean Goku?"

"The simpleton's true name is Kakarot. He was lost to his original family when he was very young. Raditz and I are from his original home."

"Is he available?"

"You are just as vulgar as your sister." He groaned. "He is unattached. I have no desire to know what you do with that knowledge. If Raditz accepts you, good. Whatever. Go away now."

Vegeta walked away without even waiting for a response. Bah, land women.

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Raditz enjoyed swimming in the indoor pool provided by Bulma and her family. They had been more than accommodating, but he had been having a lot of trouble staying under Tight's radar. The past few days had been a strain on his resolve and he was going to lose it if she decided to corner him again. Yesterday had almost been his breaking point, especially when she ran her hands down his chest towards his … He shook his head to clear it.

It was too late to figure that Vegeta didn't know now. He just had to focus on the battle at hand, their strategy, trying to finally gain the peace their kingdom needed. Yet, the last meeting had been a total wash out as he remembered the blonde-haired vixen walking towards him with those brown eyes trained on his very soul.

"Raditz!" Vegeta bellowed and he turned around to see the prince standing there with a frown. "You will stop this behavior at once! Go to the simpering female and do what must be done. She's annoying me now with her never-ending questions!"

"I have no desire to ..."

"Don't lie to me, least of all yourself. Be a warrior, not a fish. I know what she is to you and if you think you can run away from that, you're a fool. We're going to need your full attention if we're to win this battle on our terms and we've already got one brain-dead mer. I don't need another one." Vegeta huffed out before leaving the room.

"Fuck!" Raditz bellowed to the empty room and flopped his tail fin down into the waters surface. This wasn't going to end well for him, he knew.