VFC: I couldn't decide what to change on this chappie…-.-
"Talking" 'Thinking/Flashbacks/dreams…etc.' Saiya-go (A/N: Author's Notes)
One Girl, One Wish
Chapter Four: Earth
"Show me how it ends, it's all alright
Show me how defenseless you really are
Satisfied and empty inside
Well that's alright
Let's give this another try"
– Breaking Benjamin: So Cold –
Bulma hesitated as she stood inside the vessel that would take her and Vegeta to Earth to rescue her parents and her friends. They had already been away from Vejita-sei for about two hours, and she was beginning to have second thoughts about going back to Earth… Mostly because of what Vegeta had said before they departed.
"Bulma…" Vegeta said as he watched the teenaged girl gather her things and place them into a suitcase she had produced from one of her capsules. "First of all… Do you really need all of that shit just to go to Earth then come directly back here?!"
Bulma looked at him and frowned, "Of course I do! You never know what you'll need, even on short trips! And girls like me, like to be prepared incase something happens… Most women do it……"
"…'Most women do it'…? Are you sure about that…?" Vegeta asked.
"Yes… If you didn't know that, then you've obviously never met a woman before…" Bulma declared.
"No…I've met plenty of women…just none as bitchy and odd as you are…" Vegeta muttered inaudibly.
"There!" Bulma said happily as she placed the last item into the suitcase. She pressed a button on the side, and the suitcase "poofed" back into a capsule. Vegeta flinched slightly. He would never get used to these crazy bombs…The way they explode and produce strange things larger than the capsule itself…He shook his head.
"Are you absolutely certain you want to return to Earth?" Vegeta asked.
Bulma nodded, "Yep!"
Vegeta looked to the side, "…You do know what Frieza will do if he captures us…right…?"
"He'll kill us, won't he," Bulma replied apathetically.
Vegeta shook his head slowly, "Worse…"
Bulma blinked, "What could be worse then death?" Bulma gasped. The look Vegeta was now giving her made her skin crawl. She just wanted to hide, to be out of his sight. He reminded her of one of those people from movies she had seen where someone had lost everything and everyone they cared about.
"There are many things…worse than death…" Vegeta said, looking Bulma in the eyes, "Being held captive by Frieza for most of your life is worse than death…Getting beaten daily for Frieza's own pleasure is worse than-" Vegeta felt a lump in his throat. He tightly clenched his fist. "Never mind…" he added quickly, turning away from Bulma.
"Vegeta…" Bulma said softly as she gently placed her hand on Vegeta's shoulder. Amazingly, he didn't flinch or push her away. He just stood there, looking down at the floor. "Does he-Does Frieza…?"
"…Just…don't allow Frieza to think you are……'fond'… of me or anyone else…Perhaps he'll go easy on you…" Vegeta said, trying his best to contain his emotions.
"Ok, I'll try my best…" Bulma replied softly, "Maybe I shouldn't ask…but…what would he do…if…he…thought that…I- you know…"
Vegeta turned to face Bulma, "Things you don't even want to imagine…" he said darkly.
Bulma wasn't sure what those things could be, but by the way Vegeta had said that sentence made her not want to know… She didn't even want to think about what that Frieza monster could do.
"What's your problem…?" Vegeta asked.
Bulma shook her head to clear her thoughts, "What are you talking about?" she asked as she placed her hands on her hips.
"You seemed to have misplaced your very small brain for a moment there……" Vegeta replied, smirking.
"Oh shut up, you big jerk!" Bulma shot back as she stuck her tongue out at Vegeta, making him glare at her. Bulma sighed, "So, how much longer do you think it will take for us to get there?"
"About another hour…" Vegeta said, indifferently.
Bulma panicked, "An hour?! So…we're almost there!?"
"What's the matter? You're the one who wanted to go, remember…?" Vegeta replied, a bored tone in his voice.
"Uh…! N-no! You misunderstood how I said that…um… I'm, uh, excited that we're almost there!" Bulma said, her voice shaking slightly.
Vegeta rolled his eyes, "Whatever…"
Bulma glanced around nervously for a moment then she decided to peek out the window. What she saw made her eyes bulge and her jaw drop. She saw…planet Earth.
"Vegeta! I thought you said we had another hour!" Bulma asked, a hint of fear in her voice. She didn't know why she was afraid, it was her own planet for, Kami's sake!
"The computer said an hour last time I looked at it…" Vegeta replied.
Bulma folded her arms, "Well, when was the last time you looked!?"
Vegeta thought for a moment, "…About an hour ago…"
Bulma temporarily lost her balance, but she managed to remain standing. Vegeta shook his head and walked towards the window. He glanced out the window and inspected the blue and green planet. He tilted his head a little to the side. He "hmphed" then turned back to face Bulma. "It doesn't look like much…"
"Well, you must be blind!" Bulma argued, "Earth is a beautiful place! It's kind of like your planet, only the sky isn't red and freakish!"
Vegeta glared at her. Soon the glare was replaced by a sinister smirk, "Well… You should get ready to land or else you'll end up red like the sky on my planet…"
Bulma laughed mockingly, "That doesn't even make sense!"
Vegeta clenched his teeth and growled, "Just shut the fuck up and get ready to land!"
Once the ship had landed Bulma poked her head out and examined her surroundings cautiously. Vegeta, growing impatient, pushed her out of the ship. Bulma yelped, but quickly covered her mouth. She just knew that Frieza could be anywhere watching and waiting for them, ready to strike at any given moment. Bulma gulped and turned to Vegeta. "M-My house is th-that way…" she stammered as she pointed towards the direction of the Capsule building, "Do…you think you could… f-fly us there…?"
Vegeta shrugged, "Sure…if you want to get captured by Zarbon…"
Bulma was confused, "Well, if we flew wouldn't Zarbon not catch us…? I mean, he wouldn't be able to find us, would he?"
Vegeta shook his head, "Trust me, he'd find us… If I were to fly us there, I would have to raise my ki, he would then find my ki with his scouter…then we would be dead………or worse…"
Bulma sighed, she was still a little confused but she decided she had better trust Vegeta's word. "So…that means we have to walk, right…?" she asked sorrowfully.
Vegeta nodded. Bulma sighed, then began the long trek to Capsule Corp. followed by Vegeta.
"Lord Frieza…" said a short, pink, bulky man with spikes on the top of his head and encircling his wrists. "You'll be glad to know that the girl you were after and the monkey prince are now on Earth."
The purple lizard twisted his lips up into a malicious grin, "Excellent… Now Dodoria, I want you and Zarbon to go and seize the girl…"
"Yes, Lord Frieza. And what do you want us to do with Vegeta…?" asked the pink alien, Dodoria, as he bowed to the lizard.
"Ah, the monkey… Do whatever you please with him… but don't kill him… I still have use for him…" Frieza chuckled evilly, "…as my personal punching bag…"
Dodoria chortled as he turned to leave, but he was halted by Frieza, "And Dodoria…" he began, "do not harm the girl…"
"Yes, Lord Frieza…" Dodoria responded as he took flight.
Frieza chuckled to himself, "Vegeta, I thought you were smarter than that…" his twisted smile returned, "…but I guess not… because it seems that you have fallen right into my little trap…"
Bulma stood with her eyes wide and her mouth agape in the remains of what used to be West City. "What…What happened here…?" She took a few steps forward as she looked for anyone that had survived whatever had taken place here. She saw nothing but rubble. Even the Capsule building where she had lived all her life was in ruins. Bulma fell to her knees. Tears began forming in her eyes. She knew… there were no survivors.
Vegeta looked around. Something didn't seem right. "…We should leave…" he said quickly.
Bulma nodded slowly. "Yeah…" she said, wiping tears from her eyes.
Vegeta heard a noise coming from behind. He spun himself around to meet whatever had caused the noise. He was ready to take action, but he saw nothing. He turned his head to look at Bulma, "Hide…" he said quietly. Bulma was puzzled but did as she was told. She hid somewhere where she could see what was going on. Vegeta looked forward, "I know you're hiding here… Show yourself…" he called out sternly. Vegeta heard voices, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. Then, he saw a blonde haired woman and an old lavender haired man with a cigarette in his mouth and a small black cat on his shoulder emerge from their hiding place.
"Mom! Dad! You're ok!" Bulma cried as she ran towards them.
"Yes, it's a good thing we had that underground shelter built underneath Capsule Corp." the man, Bulma's father, said.
"Bulma, dear, we've been worried sick about you!" the blonde, Bulma's mother, chirped. To Vegeta, she sounded the opposite of worried. "Ooooh! Bulma, who's your friend?"
"Oh…um…this is Vegeta…" Bulma replied.
"Oh my! He's a cutie!" the bubbly blonde giggled.
Vegeta glared at the woman then looked away. Bulma blushed, "Y-yeah…he…he is…" she said nervously and quietly. "Uh…we're supposed…to be get-getting…married…!"
"Oh, that's wonderful! My baby is getting married! Congratulations, Sweetie! When is the wedding supposed to be?" Bulma's mother said happily.
"Um, Bunny, Dear?" Bulma's father cut in, "Isn't Bulma still a little too young to get married…?"
"Oh…that's right…" the blonde said sadly.
'That's right! I'm only sixteen…' Bulma said to herself. She looked to Vegeta. 'But he's so—'
"We should leave…now," Vegeta said sternly, interrupting Bulma's thoughts.
Bulma sighed, "Alright… Mom, Dad, we're taking you to Vegeta's home planet. It's a lot safer there right now."
"Ah, space travel… So where is this planet?" Bulma's father asked while stroking his mustache.
"Well, it's—" Bulma began to explain but Vegeta shot her a glare as if to say "We don't have time for this". "Uh… I'll tell you on the way…"
"Bulma, are your friends on that planet as well?" Bulma's father asked when they arrived at the ship.
Bulma froze, she had almost forgotten about Krillin, Tien, Chiaotzu, the pig, Turtle and the perverted old man! She looked to Vegeta, "Um…Vegeta? Do you think we could…um…go to this little island and…get my other friends…?"
Vegeta shrugged, "Whatever……but we have to do it quickly…"
Bulma nodded, "Right."
"BULMAAA!! OH! It is you! Bulma!!" called a voice.
"Huh?" Bulma turned to look in the direction the voice had come from. What she saw was an old man running towards them. He was dragging a screaming pig by the ears behind him. Behind them, there was a short bald boy with six forehead dots, a tall man who was also bald with three eyes, a boy that looked like a mime/clown, and a sea tortoise.
"Ok, so maybe we won't have to go get them…" Bulma said softly.
"Bulma! We have to leave! This planet's gone crazy! There's giant purple lizards, green haired gay men, weird spiky pink guys, and a lot of other crazy things! WE HAVE TO GO NOW!!" the old man said so quickly that Bulma barely understood him.
Vegeta blinked, this girl had crazy friends and family… He shook his head and sighed. Suddenly, he heard a rustling in the bushes. His whole body grew tense, "Let's go," he said.
"THANK KAMI!!" the old man exclaimed as he scampered onto the ship, still holding the pig by the ears.
Vegeta raised an eyebrow. Bulma blinked, "Uh…ok…? Let's go…everyone…"
Vegeta hesitated for a moment after everyone had boarded the ship. He had this feeling that someone was watching him. He glanced around a few times.
"Is something wrong?" Bulma asked.
Vegeta looked at her and shook his head, "No…it's nothing… Let's go…" he said as he also boarded the ship.
"Damn it…" said Dodoria as he watched the ship take off into the air. "If that stupid old man hadn't gotten in the way, we would've had her!"
Zarbon tucked a stray strand of his emerald hair behind his ear, "Oh well… We'll get her next time."
"What do you mean 'oh well, we'll get her next time'?! You're way too calm, Zarbon…" Dodoria barked to the blue alien.
Zarbon chuckled, "Perhaps, but remember that Lord Frieza only wanted Vegeta to know that she was missing…"
Dodoria shook his head, "Yeah, but once he knows isn't he going to tell someone?"
Zarbon smiled, "No. You should know as well as I do how stubborn Vegeta can be. He would try to rescue her himself…and that's when we get to have some fun…"
Dodoria chuckled, "Oh yeah… Heh heh… But won't Lord Frieza be angry once he finds out they got away?"
"Probably not…" Zarbon said coolly, "We just have to tell him that there were too many witnesses…"
"Oh, right," Dodoria replied, "…I'll let you talk to him anyway…"
Zarbon smirked, "Come now, Dodoria, don't tell me you are afraid of Lord Frieza…"
Dodoria growled, "I'm not afraid of Lord Frieza… I just don't want to be there if he really is furious about them getting away!"
"Fine then… I will speak with him myself…" Zarbon said calmly.
"Good…" Dodoria replied.
"The sky…is red?!" the pig, Oolong, gasped.
"That's interesting, isn't it, Kitty?" Dr. Briefs said. His cat just "meowed."
Bulma gazed at Vegeta. "Hey, Vegeta… On Earth, what were you—"
"Zarbon and Dodoria…were close by…" Vegeta interrupted.
Bulma gasped, "They were!? Well, why didn't you tell me?"
Vegeta shrugged, "No idea…"
"Vegeta, Bulma. You've made it back safely, I see." King Vegita said as he walked towards the small crowd of people. "I assume these are the people you set out to bring here."
"Yep," Bulma replied, "These are my parents and my other friends."
"I see," said the king, "Well, I want you to know that they are welcome to stay at the palace as well."
"Palace?!" the bald boy repeated, "We're staying at a palace!?"
"Yes, Krillin, we're staying at a palace…" Bulma said.
"Cool! Where is it?" Krillin asked as he looked around excitedly.
Vegeta stared at him, "Gee, I don't know… is that it?!" he said as he pointed to the palace…which was right in front of Krillin.
Krillin blinked, "……Oh……"
Vegeta rolled his eyes, "Where do you find these people…?"
Bulma laughed nervously.
VFC: … -sneezes- I hate the stupid cold virus…But enough about me!! I still don't like this chappie! …Must…change…it…somehow… … … … Toast… Ha ha ha… Well, that was creepy…O-o; Stupid cow!! Whoa… I'm just full of randomness today… I'm gonna blame the cold virus for my randomness… I think peanut pudding would be gross… I'm just gonna shut up now… … …