A/N: Here's the replacement chapter for chapter 43 that was mysteriously deleted somehow. Reviewers for chapter 42 will be acknowledged just like they were in the original chapter.

…..

Thanks to humancygrax, Guest, SSJ2 Silven, Dark Domination, Ingarra, Perfect Carnage, icewolf, Ryo-chan-wolfgirl, Simitar X and Hoshi124 for all the reviews on chapter 42.

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or any of its characters, Akira Toriyama does!

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Zailora snatched her hand away from her male counterpart," I can buy my OWN drink!"

"I'm quite aware of that!" Daiz shot back.

The dark green-haired female put her hands on her hips and glared at him, "What are you up to, Daiz?"

"I'm not 'up to' anything. Can't you just accept a friendly offer without thinking that there's more involved? Get over yourself!" the former royal huffed.

Zailora gave a long sigh. Was she just being paranoid where her crewmate was concerned?

She practically had to run to catch up with the Kabochan male's long strides.

"I'm sorry. Is it too late to take you up on your generous offer?" Zailora asked softly.

"No, it's not," Daiz broke into a wide smile and proffered his arm. Turles's only female crew member linked her arm in his.

"Ain't they gettin' cozy?" Gartoas mumbled under his breath as he caught sight of them.

….

Gohan walked over to where Turles was musing over some charts and patiently waited for the Saiyan pirate to acknowledge him.

"What is it, Brat?"

The little half-blood lifted up the thick volume he was carrying and pointed out a page.

"Master Turles, I can read this but I don't know what that word means."

"That's a Saiyan word, have you not become quite proficient in the Saiyan language?" Turles questioned.

"Yes, Commander, but that word's new to me," Gohan persisted.

The dark-skinned Saiyan sighed and lifted up Gohan and the book. He explained the meaning of the word and had the youth to repeat the word. It pleased him to hear his native tongue spoken. He listened as the demi-Saiyan read further into the chapter.

Gartoas nudged Daiz in the left shoulder "Ya be seein what Ah be seein?"

The two pirates dropped their jaws in amazement. Gohan was perched on Turles's lap!

…

Gohan bit his lip nervously as Daiz and Turles surveyed the ship. He'd had to make an emergency landing on planet Yaros due to a rogue comet slamming into it.

Daiz whistled as he took in the damage to the hull of Turles's ship as a result of the comet's impact..

"Will you be capable of making the necessary repairs, Daiz?" the pirate commander questioned.

"Yes, Master Turles, but the damage is considerable and it will take some time," the Kabochan male answered.

"This is all MY fault!" Gohan declared as he hung his head dejectedly.

The little half-blood had been piloting the ship when the comet plowed into its hull.

"Nonsense!" the dark-skinned Saiyan growled. "The ship's systems were unable to detect the comet until it was unavoidable. You managed to land a damaged malfunctioning craft without incurring further damage or any injury to its crew. Far more experienced pilots than you would have found that a difficult if not impossible task. That is nothing to find fault with."

Gohan brightened at his commander's veiled praise.

As Daiz began his work, Turles's looked down at the icy white surface of planet Yaros. Snow! He hated snow! The cold, wet substance was absolutely useless! Being raised on the desert planet of Vegeta-sei, he deplored cold temperatures.

The little demi-Saiyan was delighted at the sight of the pristine snowdrifts that lay around him. It had been some time since he'd seen snow. Turles looked up to see that the Earth-raised youngster had disappeared. Where had the brat wandered off to?

Gohan darted about catching snowflakes on his tongue then he flopped flat on his back and started making "Snow Angels." The Saiyan pirate watched in utter disbelief as the giggling child cavorted about in the snow. Surely he'd taken leave of his senses to behave in such a manner.

A bewildered Turles stood watching as Gohan rolled several bits of the frozen matter into an armload of small balls. He slowly crept over to where Daiz was working. The half-blood hurled several of his creations at the former prince. Daiz whirled around as a laughing Gohan raced away. The dark-green-haired pirate threw several of the icy projectiles in return at the seven-year-old. Had Daiz become addled as well?

Suddenly Daiz stopped returning 'fire' so to speak. When Gohan peeked out from behind a fallen tree, a fist-sized ball of snow struck him square in the forehead. Hearing footsteps behind him, the son of Goku swung around and hurled several of the snow balls. His eyes bulged as one of the icy spheres landed …..right into Turles's hair!

"Brat's in fer it now!" Gartoas whispered. Daiz held his breath. What would Turles do?

Gohan burst into laughter and took off as the Saiyan flung several volleys of snow balls at him in rapid succession. The two pirate crewmen watched in utter disbelief at the sight. Turles was actually finding it quite amusing to hurl the frozen balls at the fleeing youngster and then to duck for cover when Gohan responded in kind.

"Enough!" Turles finally growled. "Let's see if this overgrown ice cube has any game worth hunting,"

Gohan squealed in excitement at the thought of going along on a hunt with the pirate commander.

"Where are they going?" Zailora asked as she exited the ship to see Turles and Gohan heading off in the opposite direction.

"I suppose they're going to try their luck to see if they can track down something worth eating around here," Daiz said shrugging his shoulders.

Zailora stepped forward and nearly lost her footing on the icy ground. A strong arm wrapped around her waist and kept her from falling. Daiz was now standing mere inches away from her, his arm was still around her. Her face flushed and the dark-green haired female looked out at the planet's snowy landscape.

"So beautiful!" she said in almost a whisper.

"You certainly are!" Diaz said huskily.

She stared up at him in surprise. The former prince leaned forward and his lips brushed hers.

Feeling no resistance, Daiz pulled her fully against him and deepened the kiss. Zailora wrapped her arms around his neck. The couple shared several long sweet kisses. At the sound of footsteps, the female pirate pulled away and hurried back into the ship.

"An' watcha be grin'in about?" Gartoas muttered.

"None of your business!" Daiz said with a wide smile.

…

So what did you think? Not the original chapter but as close as I can remember.

daughterofrisingsun