Chapter II
Vegeta's POV
Why does everybody seem so obsolete these days? It's not like those turds don't really love their job but this business of killing, conquering, warring, and enslaving galaxy communities is just making them sick. And I don't mean sick just like getting tired of it, but the kind of 'sick' that knocks one off and tells him what he's been doing is goddamn useless. I talked to Ginew a little earlier and asked if his battalion's done with their mission and he just nodded to me as if I were a mere lieutenant. I checked out what was up then only to learn that they hadn't covered half of the job. They had only killed around 17 local warriors (out of hundreds and hundreds)and only three of which were top ones. I wonder if Antiopian (Antiopia being the name of this kingdom) guys are tough enough to stand a week of battle with Frieza's crew. As far as I'm concerned, among the hundreds of planets we've been into none was ever as plucky as to prolong a war with us, far less drive us away from its territory by force. But this one seems stiff and promising on the first day, Antiopia…And the rest hadn't gone as far as an inch ahead. I almost flared and ended up threatening them with Lord Frieza's capabilities. Speaking of whom, he would have to intervene and use his infinite strength unless our men could man this duty by themselves; and that has never happened before. I can only cringe at what's Frieza's going to do if this culminated to the point of his necessary entrance to the war. How I wish the time would come; I'm dying to see again how strong this creature is, it's been a long time since he released his avarice in my presence. And isn't it a wonder though that I was almost raised by him and yet I have very little idea of his prowess' magnitude? Except that of course, I know he is very, very strong, even unimaginable.
So in the morning I was on my way looking for the Lord to give the report of how his men were. To tell the truth I was almost excited to give him news that his men are practically slacking off; just imagine my joy on the thought of punishing full of hot air sonuvabitches like Jiez and that squat pumpkin Gordo. So I searched the Lord out in the spacecraft but his guard said he was in the palace, having 'diplomatic exchanges' with the royal family. Usual status quo. Frieza just loves to talk to the monarchs before breaking them the good bit; 'we're going to take over this kingdom and when we're done scraping every bit of wealth in it, we're gonna blow this whole thing up.' Yes, exactly his words to the poor families he's murdered and left to bits amidst the universe. They'll be lucky if their daughter is cute because for sure my Lord's going to spare her and make him his you-know-what.
Anyway, I immediately felt his familiar aura in one particular spot in the palace because it seemed really dying to break loose, meaning, the Lord must've been really angry at that time judging by the nature of his power. And then I witnessed a peculiar scene once I found him; Frieza was pulling a girl by the hair. So this must be the source of his anger. Anyhow, it turned out that this was the princess. Ha! I thought princesses were wise enough not to blow Frieza's top! But not this one surely; she insulted Frieza in front of me and must've been doing so in my absence. The story? Typical; Frieza proposed a marriage, which isn't uncommon because he proposes nearly to every beautiful princess of the planets we've been into, and this one has caught his soft spot again. Unfortunately, the girl refused and the surprising thing about it is the arrant fact that she refused. Would anyone really believe it if I tell him that Lord Frieza almost always married every girl he wants even if he just blew up the girl's planet and killed every one of her kin? Yeah, Frieza has never been rejected by princesses before no matter how mean he's been; in fact they married him, girls from different planets did. And the only thing that kept him from having children is…
Knock…knock…knock
Knock on the door. Who could it be? It's Frieza probably; a little earlier he asked me to leave him and the girl so they could sort the thing out.
Knock…knock…knock…
'Come in,' I say, almost sure that it's the one I'm expecting.
'Door's locked!' A female voice from outside called irritably. I twist the knob open and…
Just then the girl enters. It's her alright, the one that almost made Frieza put her head in the oven.
'I never thought I'd live through the day when I'd be knocking on my own bedroom's door.' She says and rolls her large blue eyes; sarcasm drips from her words. Her gestures demand territory over the place and her head moves with such haughtiness only a true royal could succeed in doing.
'So this is your room? It's nice.' I say, almost in mockery. It never occurred to me that I'll pick her room for my office.
'Yeah, it's nice and all so you better get out now before it gets hellish.' She snaps as she collapses entirely on the chair near the powder mirror. Has she ever heard of the word 'manners'? And she's supposed to be a princess for crying out loud.
'Oh well.' I say, pause awhile and, 'Your people told me that the Princess is the most beautiful creature they have ever seen...I never expected that she would be the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.' I grin.
'Thanks. Go away now before I do something so unprincess-like...' She snaps as if she heard nothing of my not-so-well-intended compliment.
'Whoa, hold yer horses, dear. What's your name?'
'Call me Princess or your royal highness or your majesty…anything.'
'I'm asking for your name, not title. Do you think I'll lower myself calling you such rubbish when me and my men just conquered your kingdom? Well, if you must know, miss, none of this will be yours again so better free yourself from the delusion that all this is under your possession. Even that title will no longer be yours in no time.' I say.
She looks murderously at me. For a she moment opens her mouth to release protest and having found none, keeps quiet and leans back on the chair.
'Your name again?' I ask with less discourtesy.
'It's Bulma, Vegeta. And if you think…'
'Bulma, yeah. Well, Bulma, you better start calling me my Lord, Prince, or your highness from now on.' I smirk, loving at the moment the reversal of our lovely situation.
'And why would I be as dumb as to do that?
'Because I already told you; all of these are mine now. Unless you marry my Lord father, then, we can fix your appeal of ownership. And speaking of which, when is your wedding going to take place?' I grin, picturing again for the hundredth time Frieza's wedding day whose sequel would eventually be short lived.
'No. Not that shit again. He already let me go, you know.' She says triumphantly.
'Come again?' Did I just hear her right? Frieza let her go and yet, what a shock it is that he didn't kill her after she just refused!
'You heard me just right, Prince,' She mocks, putting heavy emphasis on the word Prince. 'he says I can go marry someone else even if it isn't him.'
'And he didn't promise to burn you tomorrow?' I ask. Stupid question.
'No. You can ask him later if you want.' She says dismissively. I can't tell from this side whether she's lying or not, but come to think of it, lying isn't exactly going to help her. So she must be telling the truth.
'Lord Frieza gave you permission to marry someone else, even if it's not him?' I repeat her exact words. 'And what did you do to make him let you?'
'Let me what?'
'Let you live, let you do something else, let you insult him and then get away with it.' I say, feeling my irritation for her slow catching up.
'I don't know. I just told him I'd rather die than to marry him and bear his children, I mean, no one can stomach that, right? Not even a steel bellied woman…' she doesn't finish though I know perfectly well what she wants to convey with her wanting words. She seems pesked by today's events and slams her hand on her lap; a clear sign of exhaustion. I don't blame her; she almost lost everything in a matter of few hours since we landed here.
'Yes, I can imagine your brutal refusal, and let me be the one to break it to you that no one has ever done it before, that Lord Frieza gets everything he wants; whether it's wealth or territory or women.' I grin while trying to look proud at the knowledge which I know so much more of. Somehow I'm expecting her to fear for herself but instead,
'You're kidding. Are you telling me that women never reject him? And if they don't then why would he be asking my hand when he has women? Why does he have no heir or children? This smells like the worst case of polygamy to me.' The girl seems befuddled but in fairness more drawn with interest to the conversation. She stops leaning his back on the chair and puts a palm on her chin.
'In the first place, Bulma, Lord Frieza never gets rejected because everyone fears him or at least princesses with presentable manners know a lot better than to reject him. Secondarily, his proposal to you is grounded because he has no wife in the present and his wives normally die like flies either through suicide or execution. Hence he has no heir; actually, he's had some young but the genetic structure of the mother is always very incompatible with his and thus the children cannot survive in any way (at this point, the girl's hands fly to her mouth in shock, looking so nauseated). Now he goes around the galaxy looking for a worthy woman who would be capable of sustaining his younglings, in other words, he's trying and this time he wants to try you. For the last, he could be polygamous because he's so powerful he can do anything he wants. Now tell me, girl, do you now feel an immense fear for his greatness?'
'Yes, but only about the offspring part. Yuck.' She replies childishly and closes her eyes as if to picture the whole thing.
'Goddamit! Don't you get what I'm trying to say here? I want you to fear him because you have to! He's going to blow you up and this trash of a planet you have. You really need a lot of growing up to do, girl, and when the time comes when the Lord is fed up with you, don't count on your cheekiness to save your neck because, mark me, it's not taking you any further from the gallows.' I hiss as I step a little closer towards where she's resting supine. I'm so pissed off by her playing the extremely dumb I'm-so-high-and-almighty bitch here. Why can't she understand that Frieza can do the worst she can imagine in that tiny grain of brain that she has? And…is it just ignorance or plain courage that makes her put on this kind of fearlessness?
'There is only so little left of what he hasn't done yet. What else have I got to fear when he's been threatening to burn this whole thing down and kill us all for the last 12 years? Tell me, your majestic highness, is there anything else to expect? Why, are you just mad because you wet your pants with fear of him while I don't?' She says, thoroughly unruffled. I want to strike her but…
'Yes, I am afraid of him. I am afraid of him because I've seen the lot he could do, I've been in actuality, I've been there with him and I have felt his power, and you haven't. You're just being naïve, like all over confident fops that we've run into.' I say calmly this time but deep inside, my anger must've something to do with her daunt, maybe.
'You say so.'
'It takes a lot of ignorance to defy the Lord like you did, and now that I've known you, even for a little while, I think that perhaps it's the arrogant ignorance in you that saved you from his wrath.' I say.
'What do you mean?' She says rather lazily.
'My Lord isn't as easily considerate as that. I presume there is a condition…'
'Ah yes, of course there is. And you know what?' She says, suddenly keen to pursue this stupid rigmarole.
'What?'
'He wants me to marry somebody else instead, that's what.' She says, dropping her voice in dismay as if somebody just died.
'And who is it he wants you to marry, if I may ask?'
'Tell you what; you are in perfect right and position to ask. Only I don't feel like telling you.' She says. Now this catches me in a haze, why would I be in perfect position to ask?
'Why is that?' I get on to play her game. Hell, I don't even know why a destiny of a cute girl would intrigue me.
'I don't know.' She says in a confused tone and knits her blue brows. 'I…I feel so embarrassed; I planned on telling the guy next week, you know, so why would I be telling anyone before him or even before that time? And besides, I never wanted anyone to tell me who to marry. Even I already warned my parents not to arrange my marriage.' She finishes with another childish scowl and takes on a new gesture to further attest her immaturity; she folds her arms like a toddler beaten out in a wrestling match.
'Which explains the attitude. What a brat.' I say even before I can stop me; really, I wasn't really planning to say it aloud. It's just that…goddamn spoilt royals really need a lot of maturity to work on.
'Excuse me? Unless I've been misinformed, you are a prince, hence spoilt as well.' She says, seeming to have read what I've been thinking.
'A warrior prince, that is. Meaning, I have more than discipline one needs to act properly.' I correct her. This argument is so useless, pointless, and meaningless altogether. And have I mentioned purposeless? Sounds very much like a teenage persiflage to me, and smells like one too. But come to think of it, I'm not yet 19 and she…
'Bulma?'
'Yes?'
'How old are you?' I ask. Now how awkward is that?
'17' she answers quietly and, 'You?'
'I'll be 19 in a few months.' I say disinterestedly. It only makes me remember the amount of years I've been in training, and the awful memories of those sessions are just…argghh. 'Well, you will be married soon in quite a young age. I wonder if you would tell me now whom Frieza wants you to join hands with?' I ask with a smile. I don't really know if I am counting on the intimacy of the info exchange that just passed between us but, maybe I am.
'You won't laugh if I tell you?' She says with a sigh. And this answer makes me all the more confused why she gives in so easily. Maybe the trick works; and I didn't even mean it to be a gimmick to lead her into telling. Phew.
'No, I won't.' I say, crossing my fingers behind me. I am ready to prepare myself with uncontrollable laughter; what if it was Kiwi or Dodoria? And what would they look like as they sweep by the aisle? Proverbial beauty and the beast, I say. Hahaha.
'Frieza says…oh, he's such a bastard…' She stammers a little and I hang on, 'He says…he wants…grrr, I'm losing it!' She wrings her head in defeat. Now this is getting funnily thrilling.
'Relax, it's just a little…' I try to calm her but,
'Relax! Fuck, Vegeta, your father wants me to marry YOU if I can't be his. That's what he said and now I shamed myself I might as well replace the court's jester…Arrgghh, fuck it!'
'What!'
'Dammit, you just heard me! And please don't say NO to me because it would mean my demise…I would die, this whole world would and I'll be miserable in hell. I beg you, please, if you don't, well, I already told you…I…' Bulma pauses in a considerably long while until… 'Will you marry me?'
TBC
A/N: Will he refuse? Uh yeah, marriage is such a pain in the ass but remember what Maxim Gorky said 'Marriage is like falling in ice water; you fall once and you remember it for the rest of your life.' For better or for worse. Anyhow, this is another teenage fic, as was revealed above. I told you I can't be serious, i.e., I can't write that mature age love and sap sap all, y'know.