Of Fairy Tales and DragonBalls

by Hipstergecko

This is a collection of fairytales from around the world that have been DBZ-ified. Mostly humorous in nature, but varied in categories. Funny, dark, romantic, adventurous, mysterious, and more! I've tried to hit on ones that aren't very mainstream. AND I accept requests if you have a favorite! Newest story: Darling Roland

9. Darling Roland

Darling Roland
Based on the German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm and DBZ-ified.
Starring: Bulma, Yamucha, Vegeta, Dr. Gero, Android 16, Raditz, Nappa, Goku

A hurt/comfort/romantic/humorous Vegeta/Bulma fic.
A/N: I changed the ending a bit BECAUSE THE ORIGINAL SUCKED.

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Once upon a time…

"Confound it Bulma!"

The young lady with blue hair flinched. "I'm sorry Gero…"

"That's DOCTOR Gero to you!" Dr. Gero raved. "How DARE you tamper with my beautiful creation!"

"But he's missing key components!" Bulma protested. "He has no emotions, no sense of right or wrong, and you put a bomb in his chest…"

"Don't question my scientific decisions!" Gero roared back at his young charge. "The reason I took you in off the street was to help my creative genius! Not tamper with and ruin my inventions!"

"He's not ruined! I've fixed him more times than you have! I'm the one who upgraded him too many times to count!" Bulma glared at him. "I'm way more of a genius that you are! You couldn't invent your way out of a cardboard box!"

"Please," Android Sixteen said softly, "do not fight over my design."

Gero stared at him, appalled. "You… you… idiot girl! What have you done to him?!"

"I gave him an emotion chip." Bulma said proudly. "It's so state of the art, it actually evolves when he learns about new…"

"YOU FOOL!" Gero slapped the poor girl across the face. "You thought this foul business would impress me?!" Tears welled up in Bulma's eyes. It just enraged Gero all the more. "Get out of my lab! GET OUT!"

The blue haired genius fled the lab. The big, mohawked android looked distraught and got up to go after her.

"No!" Gero pushed him back down on the examination table angrily. "No, we need to correct what she's done." He opened up the panel in Sixteen's brain and started removing the expertly wired chip. "I swear that girl has done more harm than good ever since I brought her here."

"But, she is kind…"

"She is temperamental, emotional, and an idiot!" Gero snapped. "She disrespects and infuriates me purposefully to no end! She doesn't recognize true genius!"

Android Sixteen's voice became more robotic as the chip was disconnected. "She does have her services."

"Yes yes… cooking and cleaning. But what good is that? She's built bots that do those jobs for her. In her laziness, she has completely erased the need for her services!" Gero pulled out the chip. "The only real reason we keep her around is for the income the government gives us to care for her. The only perk of being a foster parent. Other than that, she has rendered her services obsolete."

"Then what should be done?" All emotion was erased from Sixteen's voice.

Dr. Gero frowned in thought. "She needs to be taken care of. If the government still thinks we are caring for her, we need not worry if she is actually still here." Gero tossed the chip in the incinerator. "Tonight, we shall kill the girl and finally be rid of her."

"Yes Dr. Gero."

"Android Sixteen, you are to watch over her. Do not allow her to leave her room. At the stroke of midnight, when she is asleep, you will cut her head off." Gero said with a maniacal glint in his eye. "I personally can't get my hands dirty. If someone finds out, I can blame it your malfunction."

"Confirmed."

"Good." Gero shut the panel on his head and dismissed him. "Now go! There are things I must do beforehand."

Android Sixteen stiffly got up off the table and left the lab. He promptly made his way to Bulma's room and entered the small room without knocking.

"Ah!" Bulma gasped in fright when the door slammed open. She lifted her head from her desk and tried to scrub away the signs of tears on her face. "Sixteen! I'm sorry, I didn't…"

"You are not to leave this room."

"What?! But that's…" Bulma gave him a hard look. "He removed your emotion chip, didn't he?"

Sixteen's robotic voice answered her. "Affirmative."

"Just when I thought I could have a friend around here…" Bulma sighed. "Permission to reinstall emotion chip?"

"Access denied."

"Oh come on Sixteen!" Bulma exclaimed. "We've had this discussion! That monster just wants to make you into a ruthless killing machine! You're far better off being upgraded to further integrate with human society."

"Confirmed." His face remained stoic. "Access denied. Authorization required."

"That's just great." Bulma grumbled, rubbing the red mark on her face irritably. "Initiate authorization protocol 1685G7."

A light seemed to flicker in the android's pale blue eyes. "Please state voice key."

Bulma reached into the drawer of her small desk and pulled out a device that looked like an oversized microphone. She held it up to her lips and spoke into it.

"Dr. Gero. Authorization X7113." She said in Gero's voice.

"Access granted." The panel in Sixteen's head popped open. He knelt down beside her. "Proceed."

"I hate how he does this to you." Bulma muttered. She reached into the same drawer and pulled out a chip identical to the one Gero incinerated. "You are a marvel of science. One of a kind! It's only fitting that we should seek to improve you."

"Confirmed."

She sighed again. "Hang tight. I have to rewire some things." It took the better part of an hour to fit an identical chip into the android's head. This time it was better hidden in cranial cavity. She tugged off her welding gloves and shut the panel. "Okay, all done. How do you feel?"

"I feel." Sixteen said simply. He smiled at her. "Thank you Bulma."

"No sweat big guy." Bulma said. "I just wish you didn't have to go through that. I swear a box of rocks has more intelligence than that guy does."

"Don't say that." Sixteen moved to sit on the bed. It was the only thing in the room apart from Bulma's desk. The poor bed creaked painfully under his weight. "His intelligence rivals no others."

Bulma looked at the big android and pouted. "What about mine?"

Sixteen grinned. "It does not rival yours as yours is light-years ahead."

"Thanks Sixteen." Bulma giggled, feeling better. "I just wish he would let me use it. I could do so much good for the world!" She paused. "Did you really mean it about not letting me leave my room?"

"I'm afraid so." Sixteen said sadly. "I have orders to kill you."

"Kill me?!" Bulma was shocked. She scrambled away from the big android, pressing up against the wall in fright. "B-but why!?"

"He finds you superfluous."

"B-but you can't! It's wrong to kill!"

"I know. I don't want to kill you."

She rushed to him and grabbed hold of his hand. "Then don't do it! Please don't do this Sixteen! We're friends!"

"I know." Sixteen's face fell in despair. "You've given me choice, emotions, the ability to think for myself. I do not want to do this, but Dr. Gero is my creator. I physically cannot deny his wishes. I'm programmed that way." His sigh sounded like the fizzing of electrical sparks. "Even if I could disobey, he would surely kill you himself. I wish that I had any other choice."

"Oh Sixteen, what am I going to do?" She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. "I don't want to die! Oh Kami I wish I never had run away from home."

Sixteen didn't move, but his face softened. "What about Yamucha?"

"Yamucha?"

"That male you like." Sixteen said. "The one you see sometimes. He can help you."

"How?" Bulma asked, wiping the tears from her eyes. "You won't let me out of this room."

"My order is to behead you at the stroke of midnight. Dismantle me and go to him for help before that time."

"B-but Sixteen! If I dismantle you…" Bulma took a shuddering breath. "If I dismantle you, it'll enable that protection program. I don't know the access code for complete disabling. It would activate the anti-theft protocol and erase your data banks." She looked away from him. "You would essentially die."

"You're my friend." He insisted. "You have shown me things I would never have seen or understood about life had you not given me this chip. It is all stored in my memory banks. To protect that, I would give up my body gladly."

"Sixteen…"

"Please do it." He said with a small smile. "If it helps, you can take my memory bank with you and rebuild me when you are safe. The greatest mechanical genius can surely do it."

She laughed a little brokenly. "Yeah, you're totally right. I could rebuild you in a heartbeat." She released him from the hug. "You're going to have to disable yourself then. Enter sleep mode or…" She snapped her fingers. "Can you enter recovery mode? When Gero updates you, most of the functions are turned off until they are fully upgraded. That way I'll have a short amount of time to pull your memory banks before the wipe initiates."

"You have 14.638 seconds before the wipe gets to the long term data storage." Sixteen told her. "Begin as soon as the update protocol commences."

"Right." Bulma went to her desk and pulled out her tools. "I don't have much time then. It's already 8 o'clock and it'll take awhile to permanently dismantle all your systems." She gripped the back of her chair so tight, her knuckles turned white. "Sixteen, I don't want to do this."

"You have to." Sixteen said. "It is the only way."

She hesitated for a long minute. "Alright." She said softly. She pulled on her safety goggles and turned to face Sixteen. "Goodbye Sixteen. I swear I'll rebuild you someday."

"I know you will." Sixteen said with a small smile. He carefully got up from the bed and knelt on the floor next to her cluttered desk. Then his face went blank. "Initiating Update."

Bulma worked fast. Faster than she knew she could. She swiftly cut through Sixteen's skull with her torch, revealing the technology that gave him life. She reached in, heavy work gloves protecting her from the sudden heat of the data wipe, and yanked out his memory bank. A shower of sparks followed her.

"Update canceled." Came the robotic voice. "Rebooting system."

Bulma swore. That reboot was going to reset Sixteen. He'd kill her without any problems now. She brought her torch down and cut through his thick neck. His head hit the ground with a metallic thud.

"Please reconnect cranium." The robotic voice called out. Bulma ignored it and started cutting apart the arms and legs to render the android immobile while she destroyed the systems beyond repair. It was hard work; she had to dodge sparks left and right. It pained her to do this, but she had no other choice.

"Please reconnect cranium." The head said again. She continued ignoring it. The head contained most of the data input. The other systems were in the torso, arms and legs. She'd have to start on the torso to prevent any alarms being set off. Quickly she cut through the chest cavity. She stuck her torch directly into the mess of wiring and circuit boards, careful to avoid the bomb installed there. The metal warped, the plastic bits sizzled and popped, and the wiring fried. As a final measure, she cut through all the connections within the system itself.

"Please reconnect cranium." Bulma was getting irritated at the constant reminder that she was actively destroying her only friend in the house. She continued working on the arms and legs. The systems were easily corrupted and destroyed like in the chest cavity. She melted the connectors just in case Gero wanted to re-use any part she'd accidentally missed.

"Please reconnect…"

"Oh shut up!" She grabbed the mohawked head and thrust it under the mattress. It muffled the noise just enough to appease her. Then she moved to her window and began the laborious process of dumping as much broken machinery as she could out into the yard. The torso casing was far too large, so she wedged it under her desk. It fit, but only barely. It would have to do.

Bulma rushed to her computer and tried to hack the security system so she could escape undetected. Unfortunately Gero had changed the operating system again. He wised up after the fifteenth time she'd destroyed it. Growling, Bulma pulled her safety goggles back down over her eyes and grabbed her torch once more. She pulled a small device out of her desk and used it to find the electrical cables in the wall that spanned the house. The torch cut straight through the steel protecting the cables. She spliced the wires expertly to her little laptop and BAM! The security was hacked to show that both she and the android were still in the room. Had to go right to the source, but it worked! And it was only half past eleven!

She grinned triumphantly. No technology was a match for Bulma Briefs! She quickly did a full wipe of her computer, saving the information she wanted into Sixteen's memory bank. She hurried to her desk, pulled out her personal gadgets, namely her shrinking watch, voice changer, and capsule case and stuck them in the pockets of her jumpsuit. Then, with a final, sad peek at the head beneath the mattress, Bulma left the room. She snuck down the stairs and out the door, being sure not to accidentally trip any alarms Gero had set in and around his house.

When she was far enough away, she broke into a full out sprint. Yamucha lived just inside town, so it didn't take her long at all to reach his house from the outskirts of the nearby forest.

"Yamucha!" She banged desperately on the door. "Yamucha! Please be home!"

"Coming…" She heard a sleepy voice from inside. Yamucha opened the door, only half dressed and sleepy eyed. He looked at her in surprise. "Bulma?"

"Oh Yamucha!" She threw herself at the scarred young man. "Thank Kami you're home!" She cried, bursting into tears that she'd been holding in ever since she left the house.

"Bulma!" Yamucha wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. "What's happened? Are you alright?!"

"No! No I'm not alright!" She babbled tearfully. "Gero… Gero tried to kill me!"

"What?!"

"He ordered Sixteen to kill me tonight!" She cried into his shoulder. "I had to d-dismantle him to g-get away and… and…"

"Shhhh…" Her boyfriend soothed. "You're here now. I won't let him hurt you."

"Oh Yamucha…" They stood on the doorstep, holding each other for a long moment. Then the blue haired genius shook her head. "We can't stay here. When Gero sees what I've done…"

"He won't be able to do anything babe." Yamucha said firmly. "We've got the law on our side. I'll protect you."

"You don't understand." Bulma pulled away from him. "He's got technology. Weapons that no one can compete with…" She shook her head. "We've got to get away from here."

"But how? I haven't got the fastest car in the world and Gero's got so much tech that we don't stand a chance."

Bulma looked worried for all of two seconds. Then her eyes grew hard with determination. "We have to go sabotage his lab."

"Bulma, that's suicide!" He exclaimed.

"It's the only way to ensure that he won't be able to follow us!" Bulma looked at him pleadingly. "Please? I won't be free of him until we're gone from this wretched place."

Yamucha set his jaw. "Fine, but I'm coming with you."

"Thanks." Bulma stood on her tippy toes and gave him a kiss. Yamucha kissed her back. They broke apart and Bulma patted his chest. "Go get dressed. I'll meet you back at Gero's."

She ran back the way she came and Yamucha sighed. "You better know what you're doing…"

Bulma reached the house she just left and shivered. She really didn't want to go back into that horrible house. Gero hated her guts from day one and she couldn't leave. Now thanks to Sixteen…

She shook her head. Time for memories would come later. She crept back into the house and through the dark halls. She reached the lab and entered the pass code. The doors whooshed open and she crept inside, careful to keep herself quiet. As fast as she could, she disabled or just plain broke as many inventions that she could find. She knew that there were some things that Gero kept on his person at all times, but hopefully they could still escape without having to worry about them. She went through his computer as well, erasing blueprints and plans as she went. Bulma knew he planned to do some terrible things, but revive the red-ribbon army? Horrified, she sent a copy of the files to the local police and hurried along in her search to destroy all useful information.

It was into the wee hours of the morning when she finally finished up. Before she left, she swiped two things that she refused to destroy. One was a beautiful hoverbike. They needed a fast getaway vehicle. The other was a camouflage prototype. It could disguise anyone as anything. She put it in one of the capsules she had on hand. She snuck back out, hurrying as fast as she could without alerting the security system.

"Bulma!" A loud whisper called to her. She turned to see Yamucha motion to her from a short way off. She ran to him, embracing and kissing him soundly.

"Let's get out of here." She whispered. Together they ran until they were far enough away to use the hoverbike. Then they rode off into the night.

The next morning…

"Well… Seems Android Sixteen has accomplished his mission." Dr. Gero looked at his tablet screen smugly. "He has not disposed the body yet, but that could just be a programming error. Should install a murder protocol for him to follow…" He muttered to himself as he walked to the room. He opened the door without knocking.

There was no one in the room.

Gero was shocked. "What in the…" No sign of Sixteen. No sign of headless Bulma. Nothing. Angry he stalked over to the window. He observed it irately. "No sign of forced exit." He surveyed the room carefully. "No sign of struggle." He stared at the readout on his tablet and scowled. "She must've hacked the security for this room again!" He angrily started back towards the door when he heard a muffled sound. Curious, he followed it until he was standing at her mattress. He lifted it and pulled out Sixteen's severed head.

"Please reconnect cranium."

Gero's eyes went wide. He darted to the window and threw it open. He looked down and saw the pile of trashed robotics. He swore loudly and lengthily, dashing the head to the floor and stomping on it in a fit of rage.

"How DARE that little WRETCH! When I find her…" He left the room and ran straight to his lab.

Upon seeing the state of his lab; the smoking computer, the wreckage of inventions strewn hither and thither, he called Bulma many nasty names. He lost his mind in his anger. Nothing could ever compare to his rage. In a violent passion, he ran outside and used the technology he kept on him all the time. Namely rocket boots and a laser pistol of amazing killing strength.

"They won't escape me!" He howled. He lifted into the air and shot after Bulma. There was only one road in and out of town. He followed it until he could see Bulma and Yamucha on the motorbike they'd stolen from him.

Bulma was starting to feel finally free of the evil man when she turned and saw him flying towards them. She screamed and Yamucha nearly drove off the road.

"What?! What is it?!"

"It's Gero!" Bulma cried. "He's right behind us!"

"Hang on babe!" Yamucha shouted, pushing the bike to incredibly dangerous speeds. The engine screamed in protest, but they didn't stop to listen. Still the crazed inventor flew closer.

Bulma reached into her pockets, swearing when she realized she didn't grab anything that she could use for defense. In a panic, she pulled out her capsule case and pulled out the first capsule that came to hand. Desperate, she hit the button and hurled it at the closing Dr. Gero.

The man flying behind them didn't have the reflexes required to dodge the capsule. With a loud BOM the capsule opened, dumping a load of frilly under-things right in his face.

"AAAAAACK!" Gero was thrown off as the underwear blinded him. He was entangled almost instantly and lost ground to reorient himself.

Bulma blushed a bright red. How was she to know she had her underwear in that one? Anyway, she was thankful that he wasn't chasing them at the moment. She turned to Yamucha. "Find a place to hide! Now!"

"Where?!"

Bulma pointed to a dense grove of trees. "There!"

They swerved into the grove, but they were going far too fast to do anything but jump from the bike as it careened about crazily. It finally smashed into a tree and exploded.

"Oh my Kami!" Bulma scrambled to her feet. "Yamucha! Are you alright?!"

Yamucha sat on the ground, dazed. "Aww. It was such a nice bike too…"

"You doofus!" Bulma hauled him to his feet. "Come on! We've got to hide! That explosion will lead him right to us!"

They ran through the grove until they came to a clearing. There was literally nowhere to hide. Bulma heard loud cursing behind her.

"He's nearly here!" She looked at Yamucha desperately. "Pick me up!"

Yamucha shook off his shock. "W-what?"

"Pick me up! Now!"

"But shouldn't we find a place to…"

"NOW Yamucha!"

"Alright!" He picked her up bridal style. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the camouflage prototype. She put in a few settings and smacked the big red button on top. Instantly, they were gone. In their place sat a small lake. A duck swam peacefully on its surface.

"Uh… what just happened?" Yamucha the lake asked.

"Yamucha, shut up!" Bulma the duck hissed. "And whatever you do, don't move!"

At that instant, Gero came roaring through the forest. He came upon the small lake and looked around furiously. He cursed some more and then took off again. Bulma and Yamucha waited in silence. Soon he came back, circling the lake suspiciously. He grumbled and shot off in a different direction. Twenty minutes passed. Bulma and Yamucha were about to breathe a sigh of relief when he came hurtling back through the trees to the lake.

"I KNOW YOU'RE HERE!" He screamed at the lake. "YOU and that STUPID PUNK BOY of yours are going to SUFFER FOR WHAT YOU DID!" He screamed at the trees. "I WILL find you and WHEN I find you, I WILL MAKE YOU PAY! You will BEG ME FOR DEATH by the time I'm finished with you! I WILL DESTROY YOU!" He screamed at the duck. "STOP MOCKING MEEEEEEEEEE!"

And then he flew out of the forest. An hour passed before either of them had the courage to speak.

"Is… is he gone?" Yamucha the lake asked.

"I think so." Bulma the duck said. "Yeah. He's gone."

"Good." He moved and POOF the disguises fell away. They were normal Yamucha and Bulma again.

"Thank Kami." Bulma sighed. She hugged Yamucha. "That was close."

"First off, two things." Yamucha said, setting Bulma down gently. "One, what the heck was that? And two, WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!"

Bulma was surprised. "You okay Yamucha?"

"NO! NO I am NOT OKAY!" He cried. "We were almost killed by a guy flying around with a death ray and we suddenly changed into a lake and a duck!" He was getting hysterical. "There was NOTHING okay with what just happened!"

"Yamucha. Calm down." Bulma said firmly. She placed gentle hands on his shoulders. "He was coming after us using rocket boots. Yes he had a death ray, but we have a personal camouflage device that can disguise us as anything. As long as we don't move, the disguise works."

"Wait… it can disguise us as anything and you picked a lake and a duck?"

"Well," Bulma said sheepishly, "we are in the middle of a forest so…"

Yamucha stared at her in disbelief. "I think you're crazy sometimes."

"But you love me anyway." She giggled, kissing his cheek. "Come on. We've got to get out of here. No telling if that nutcase is gonna come back."

"Yeah…" Yamucha said uneasily. Together they walked out of the wood and headed on down the road. They walked all day and into the late evening before a scream of rage behind them alerted them to Gero's presence.

"Oh no! He must've found the empty clearing!" Bulma cried.

"We've got to go!" Yamucha grabbed Bulma's arm and started sprinting.

"No! Yamucha please stop!" Bulma panted. Her legs shook. She felt like collapsing. "I can't go on like this!"

Yamucha looked back at her, eyes hard. "Then what are we going to do?!"

Bulma felt tears well up at his harsh tone. She sank to her knees in exhaustion. "I don't know…"

Yamucha stared at her a moment. "Use your disguise thingy!"

"My… Oh!" She pulled out the device and set it. She hit the button and instantly Yamucha became a man with bright red hair and jogging shorts and she became a rose growing in the hedge behind him.

"At least it's better than a lake…" Muttered Yamucha.

"Shhh! Here he comes!"

Gero came out of the sky, cursing and swearing up a storm. He landed on the ground and pointed an accusing finger straight at Yamucha in disguise.

"YOU! Improperly dressed jogger! Have you seen a scarred man and a woman with blue hair come this way?!"

"Sorry mister." Yamucha said in a horrible German accent. Bulma desperately wanted to facepalm. "Haven't seen anyone like that come this way."

Gero glared at him suspiciously. "Of course you haven't." He sneered. He was about to activate his boots and take off when he caught sight of the rose. A single red rose in the middle of a boxwood hedge. A slow, sinister grin stretched his face. "Do you mind if I pick that rose behind you? My wife loves roses."

Yamucha's eyes went wide. "I… uh…"

"Oh of course you don't mind." Gero got up in his face, pulling the death ray flush against his side. "Move out of the way." His grin stretched wider. "I dare you."

Yamucha stammered and Bulma panicked. They couldn't move or else the disguise would drop! If they didn't move, he would shoot Yamucha! His finger twitched to the trigger and Bulma made a snap decision. She threw herself out of the bush, the disguise dropped and she barreled right into Gero, knocking the gun out of his hand. It hit the ground and fired a bolt of laser death that grazed Bulma's leg.

"What the… YOU!" Gero set his sights on Bulma. She froze and instantly he was on her, choking her with his hands. "YOU RUINED MY LIFE!"

"Wolf Fang Fist!" Gero was forced to release Bulma as punches plowed into his side. He spun around and reached for his gun, but was taken down by two more well aimed hits to the head.

Bulma watched, awed as Yamucha beat down the man who tried to kill her. Finally, Gero was knocked to the ground and lay still. She held her breath for a moment. "Is… is he dead?"

"No." Yamucha said grimly. He lowered his fists. "Just knocked out." He turned to her. "Can you go on?"

Bulma shook her head, swallowing nervously. "I… I don't think so… my leg is…"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah… It's just a scratch. I need to rest a while." Bulma smiled at him weakly. "The next town isn't too far from here. Why don't you take nutjob here to the police? I sent all the evidence I could find to them when I sabotaged his lab. They'll be glad to have him in custody."

"Are you sure?" Yamucha knelt down in front of her worriedly. "You'd be safer if you came with me."

"I have this remember?" She held up the camouflage device. "I'll be fine. Just a quick rest and then I'll catch up when I can."

Yamucha nodded reluctantly. "If I don't see you there by morning, I'm coming back to get you."

"In that case, I'll wait right here." Bulma smiled and pulled him in for a kiss. "When you come back for me, let's go to my father. My real father. He may not care, but he'll at least give us permission to get married."

"M-m-married?" Yamucha's face went up in a blush. "You want to get m-m-married?"

Bulma giggled. "Of course I do. I love you Yamucha."

"W-wow." Yamucha grinned goofily. "Wow! I'll… I'll go get your dad!" He clasped her hands excitedly. "I don't want to wait! I'll go get your father and come back with him!"

Bulma laughed. "Excited much?"

"Don't move a muscle!" Yamucha said, slinging the unconscious nutjob over his shoulder. "I'll be back with your dad in no time flat!" And with a final kiss goodbye, he jogged off into the night.

Bulma sat beside the hedge for a while. In the cool of the night she shivered, suddenly wishing she'd gone with Yamucha instead of sitting out in the dark like this. Uneasy, she hauled herself up and limped to the hedge that she hid in earlier. She used her disguise to make herself appear as merely a small blue stone beneath the hedge. She promptly fell asleep there.

Yamucha practically ran to the town. He was surprised to find that it wasn't far away at all. He went straight to the police station and turned over the criminal. The police were surprised but ultimately pleased by his efforts. They promptly incarcerated Gero and took his weapons and boots. They kept Yamucha there a while, asking him for his statement, having him promise to testify, and other things like that. By the time they had finished, the scarred man was dead tired. A sympathetic policeman offered to take him to a nearby inn to rest the night. He ignored the Yamucha's protests and set him up in a comfortable room. The policeman asked the inn keeper's pretty daughter to keep an eye on him which she was more than glad to do. She found him very handsome. She begged him to stay the night. Yamucha in turn was charmed by the girl, tired as he was. He listened to her and promised himself to go back for Bulma in the morning.

The next morning…

Cheery birdsong greeted Bulma as she awoke from a dead sleep. However, the blue haired genius wasn't cheery like the birds were. She was tired, dirty, smelly, stiff, and needed a cup of coffee. Her body ached from spending the whole night under a hedge. She got up to stretch, but cried out when pain shot through her leg. She looked down and saw the fierce burn on her lower leg. Not just a scratch after all. Groaning in distress, she tore a strip off the bottom of her shirt. She used it as a bandage, hoping that it would keep infection out.

Bulma looked around. No sign of Yamucha yet. She sat there for a long time, waiting less than patiently for her boyfriend to return. She sighed. Why had she let him find her father right away? She could've been sleeping in an actual bed instead of on the side of the road like this. Now he was probably running all around town trying to find her dad. Well, hopefully he wouldn't be too long.

As she waited, she took another look at the personal camouflage device. It was pretty primitive as far as new technology went. She took her tools out of her capsule case and began tinkering with it. The long wait gave her plenty of time to study its workings and to make it better. It was, after all, only a prototype. She got hungry, but she didn't think to bring any food. She didn't bring any shelter either for that matter. So she staved off her hunger and discomfort as best she could. It wouldn't be too long now. Yamucha was sure to come back for her!

By the time the sun was beginning to set, she had greatly improved the little disguising device. Now, she could move about without losing the illusion. It was super handy. Still no Yamucha though.

Sighing, Bulma relaxed back under the hedge, letting the camouflage box do its work to make her little more than a pretty blue stone. She fell asleep again, listening to the sounds of the forest.

The next day…

Bulma awoke again to bright sunshine and birdsong. Another night and no boyfriend. She sighed in irritation. Where was Yamucha?

She got to her feet slowly, testing her injured leg. It wasn't too bad. She tested her weight and winced as pain flared up her leg. She decided that she should rest some more. She wouldn't be able to get far.

Still, her throat was really dry. She smacked her chapped lips and looked for water. She limped a short distance away and found a small stream. It looked clean enough. She had a good long drink and then went back to her spot under the hedge. While she waited, she fiddled with her shrinking watch. It had been ages since she built it. It could shrink you down to fit in someone's pocket and then back to normal whenever you wanted. It used the same technology that capsules did, but with living tissue. It wasn't dangerous; she used to use it all the time.

Idly, she shrunk down to the size of the rock she was supposed to be. Then she grew back to normal. She grinned. It still worked.

And so Bulma waited another day through to the night.

The next day…

"He's probably lost or something, right?" Bulma asked the squirrel she'd been watching for over an hour. The squirrel froze, looking around frantically. It couldn't see anyone. It nervously went back to gathering nuts.

Bulma sighed deeply. "He really should've been back by now. What's keeping Yamucha?" She looked up at the clear blue sky and frowned. "Maybe Gero tried fighting back again and hurt him. Ugh… what a nutjob." She absently scratched her wound, flinching when it stung her. "At least it isn't raining. And I got really lucky to have a clean stream nearby. Otherwise I would be in real trouble."

She picked idly at a blade of grass. "Haven't seen a single person on this road. I could probably hitch a ride into town if the person isn't a total sleazebag." She looked long and hard up the road, but there was no sign of any car or any Yamucha. With her injured leg, she was practically stuck here until somebody came along.

"This stinks."

The next day…

Bulma rubbed at her eyes. She looked up at the sunny day and felt like crying. "Where's Yamucha? It shouldn't have taken him this long to get to town and back." Her stomach growled and she winced. "He… he didn't forget about me did he?"

There was a rumble from up the road. Bulma perked up and grinned. That was the sound of a car! She got up as best she was able and deactivated the camouflage. A truck came into view and she waved like crazy.

"Hey! Stop! Help me out here!"

The truck honked once and went roaring past.

Bulma stood there in shock. Anger bubbled up from her chest and she yelled at the retreating vehicle. "YEAH?! WELL I DIDN'T WANT A RIDE WITH YOU ANYWAY YA BUTTFACE!"

She stomped back to her spot beneath the hedge and sat with an angry pout. Her leg hurt with the movement, but she was too angry to care about the pain. "Stupid leg injury and stupid truck driver and stupid Yamucha and stupid Gero and…" She ripped out a clump of grass near where she sat. "Where is Yamucha?!"

Her anger dissipated after an hour. Instead, her thoughts turned back to the idea that he forgot about her. "He couldn't have forgotten, right?" Tears slipped down her face. "He just… he just had to have gotten lost or something, right?"

Nothing answered her and she felt her heart break. "He did, didn't he? That jerk got distracted chatting up some girl like he always does and forgot about me." She brought her knees up to her chest and held herself in a little ball, trying not to cry too loudly. "I'm in trouble and he forgot about me! Why else wouldn't he be back here? He said he wanted to get married and he said he…"

She cried until she fell asleep that night.

The next day…

She was weak. The lack of food had really done a number on her. Bulma slumped where she sat. She couldn't hunt. She didn't know which berries to eat for fear of poisoning herself. She could only sit there and preserve her energy. And cry, but she'd had enough of that. Now she was just tired and sad.

And maybe a little angry.

"When I find him, I'm gonna punch him right in the mouth." She grumbled. "Right in his dirty, flirty little mouth. I'll punch him so hard his grandchildren are gonna feel it. And they won't be my grandchildren either." She didn't want to marry that jerk anyway… right? The thought hit her that he didn't want to get married. She buried her head in her arms, trying to fight back more tears. "Am I not good enough? Didn't I treat him well enough? Am I not pretty enough?"

"Why didn't Yamucha come back for me?"

The next day…

"I wish I was dead." Bulma murmured. "Nobody cares for me anyway. I'd be better off a stone under someone's foot. Ground into dust." She laughed sadly and weakly. "Bunch of Bulma dust drifting in the wind. Making people sneeze and screwing with allergies. When I'm dead, I'll go haunt Yamucha." Her heart tightened in her chest at the thought of his name and she sighed. "Why did I go out with him anyways? Was I that needy? That rebellious against Gero?" She laughed again. "Of course I was rebellious against Gero. That guy was an evil jerk."

"It doesn't matter. Nobody cares anyway." She said bitterly. "Nobody cared at home. That's why I ran away. Nobody cared at Gero's except Sixteen and he…" She swallowed back her tears. "And now Yamucha. The guy I thought I loved." She buried her face in her hands. "Kami… I wish I was dead."

She pulled out her watch and made herself shrink down to the size of the stone she was disguised as. "I bet if I wait in the middle of the road, I'll get crushed by a passing car. I won't have to wait around to die slowly." She crawled into the middle of the road and lay curled up, small and defenseless and hoping for the end.

Just then, pressed to the ground, weak from hunger and heartache, Bulma looked up and saw three men traveling down the road. Strangely enough they were just walking along the highway. All three were dressed as though they had just come back from the military. Each wore camouflaged fatigues and carried a military duffle. One of them had many arrows and stars of rank. They got closer and she could hear them talking.

"… and I'm telling you, they have the absolute best hot dogs you've ever tasted."

The large bald man laughed aloud. "Raditz, as long as it's covered in ketchup and served by a pretty girl, you couldn't care less about how it tastes."

The long haired man laughed with him. "You know me so well Nappa." He leaned over and nudged the shorter man that walked between them with his elbow. "Hey Vegeta, what are you going to do on your leave?"

The short, very handsome, scary looking man grunted in irritation. He was the one with all the stars and arrows of rank. "We're mercs. We don't get leave."

The one Bulma identified as Raditz drooped. "Oh come on Vegeta. Sure we're mercs, but we're mercs for the royal army! Can't we say we're on military leave?"

Nappa, the big guy, chuckled and cuffed Raditz over the head. "You only want to say that to get girls." He looked at the shorter man. "Seriously Vegeta. You can't stay holed up in that little house all the time. You need to get out every once in a while."

Vegeta, the short hot scary one, glared at him. "And you should train every once in a while." He said mockingly. Nappa shrugged it off nonchalantly and kept walking. Their heavy footsteps brought them closer and closer to Bulma. She curled up tighter in her little ball of misery. With any luck, the big guy would step on her and crush her without a thought.

Vegeta scowled at his comrades. What a bunch of idiots. They'd rather waste their time on frivolous things instead of training. Suddenly a glint of sunlight off something on the ground caught his eye. Vegeta stopped and looked down. A bright blue stone sat in the middle of the road. It shone in the strong sunlight. Had it not shone so much, he probably would've walked right past it. Glancing at his teammates, he made sure they weren't looking and reached down to scoop the small gem up.

Bulma squeaked softly. She didn't expect anyone to pick her up!

Vegeta looked around. He thought he'd heard something just then. When he saw nothing but his idiot teammates, he looked back at the stone he held between his thumb and forefinger. It was strangely warm to the touch and a beautiful aqua blue. His favorite color.

Bulma stared wide eyed into his dark, intense gaze. She knew he was studying the rock, but it felt like he was looking right into her soul. She should've felt frightened, but those eyes captured her and she felt her heart flutter instead.

Vegeta looked the stone over and contemplated it. Without changing his expression, he flipped his shirt pocket open and dropped the little gem inside. He buttoned it securely and walked on, ignoring the fact that his teammates were staring curiously at him.

Inside the pocket, Bulma was thoroughly jostled, alarmed, and frightened. She was being unintentionally kidnapped by scary mercenaries! This was the absolute worst! But much to her dismay, the pocket was warm and she was tired. Weary in body and heart. Before she knew it, the gentle rocking motion had lulled her to sleep.

Vegeta walked with Raditz and Nappa all the way to the town. Then, when they went to find some fun, he left them. He walked a ways until he had eventually left the town again. Traveling over the fields and meadows, he came at last to a little house nestled in a grove of trees. He scowled over his shoulder for a second before unlocking the door and going in.

The house was small. It was a single room that was a kitchen, dining, living, and bedroom rolled into one. The bathroom was the only other room in the house. It was small, sparsely finished and scrupulously organized. It was also very dusty.

Vegeta sighed and dropped his duffle beside the door. He walked over and unceremoniously flopped on the bed. A cloud of dust arose from where he landed. He coughed and scowled at the dust cloud.

"I should really clean in here." He muttered half heartedly. It had been a long time since he'd been to the little house. The place was covered with dust and grime. He bet the food in the fridge had gone bad as well.

He rubbed tiredly at his eyes. "Perhaps tomorrow." All he really wanted to do was rest without worry that someone would stab him in his sleep. He had been out on a mission for far too long and was exhausted. No one, not even his closest comrades, were allowed to see him display any sort of weakness. He figured that if they were to know he was but a little tired, they would think less of him. He was already a very stubborn and driven individual and the need to show no weakness was overwhelming. Perhaps that was why he never went out.

Vegeta shook the thoughts from his weary mind. Thinking could happen later. If he thought too much, he'd surely have nightmares again. So he got himself comfortable on the dusty bed, not even bothering to change his clothes. He was asleep almost instantly.

That night…

Bulma awoke to close darkness. She gasped and struggled against the enclosing walls of her prison. Somehow she was able to pop a flap open and scramble out. The effort alone exhausted her and she flopped on the rather firm, warm surface. The surface shifted at the slight movement and she let out a little gasp.

She was lying on someone's chest!

Bulma blushed heatedly and stared at the man's sleeping face. It was the short scary man from yesterday. She'd forgotten that he had picked her up. In sleep, he was relaxed and far more handsome than scary. Slowly, so as to not disturb him further, she looked around the room. In the moonlight coming through the window, the one room house looked simple. Dirty, but non-threatening.

At least it was better than sitting on the side of the road. Bulma sighed. She didn't want to be saved by this guy, but she didn't want to die anymore either. Better to get out of there while she could. Slowly, she edged her way to the edge of the bed. She was gauging the distance from the bed to the floor when suddenly her injured leg gave out. She shrieked and toppled to the floor with a sharp bang.

Vegeta was instantly on his feet. Startled out of a dead sleep, his body was immediately on the defensive as he stood on his mattress with knife in hand. He looked around the room wildly. Was it an intruder?! An enemy?!

Bulma went very still. As far as she knew, she was still disguised as the blue stone. With any luck he wouldn't see her.

Slowly, Vegeta lowered the knife. He cursed softly and ran a hand through his jet black flame of hair. "Stupid nightmares…" he muttered tiredly. He sat down on the mattress and held his head in his hands.

Bulma looked up, wide eyed as the man composed himself. He looked ready to stab someone just then! Good thing she was so small. Otherwise she'd be in trouble. Suddenly his eyes opened, landing squarely on her. Fear made her freeze up. He'd seen her! What would he do now?!

Vegeta reached down and picked up the small blue gem he'd found on the road. It must've fallen from his pocket and awoken him. He scowled at it for a moment. Then he sighed. It was his own fault for not securing the pocket, he supposed. After all he was still dressed in his fatigues. He got up from the bed and walked to the table. He put the small stone on its surface and bent down to undo his shoes.

Bulma watched, stunned beyond belief as the man started taking off his clothes in front of her. She was going to scream, but he stopped and walked to the bathroom. She let out a sigh of relief. She needed to get out of here before something irrevocably embarrassing happened.

She tried to get up, but gasped in pain as she put weight on her injured leg. She glanced beneath the makeshift bandage and winced. It didn't look healthy at all. It was slightly green and was had a sweet odor to it. Bulma was smart. She knew it had gotten infected. She needed medicine, fresh bandages, and clean water. Fast.

So wrapped up in her own problems, Bulma almost didn't notice the door to the bathroom opening. The man returned to the room, dressed in a loose pair of sweatpants. Her eyes went wide as she took in his shirtless form. Wow was he was built! Yamucha was pretty muscular himself, but this guy put him to shame! Her face turned beet red as he stretched, rubbing a hand over his face tiredly.

She really needed to get out of here.

Vegeta headed back to bed. Right as he passed the table he stopped. He sniffed the air. Something smelled sickly sweet. Like… infection sweet. He sniffed deeply and looked for the source of the smell. He looked down at himself, frowning. He hadn't been injured too badly on the mission. Whatever injuries he managed to get had already been healed. He didn't see anything bad enough to give off the smell of infection. He sniffed again and looked down at the table.

Bulma held back a squeak as the shirtless man leaned over her and sniffed. He looked confused as he stared at her… er… the little blue rock. He reached over and effortlessly picked her up once more. He held her to his nose and sniffed deep. Bulma tried her best not to scream, freaked out as she was by the scary handsome man sniffing her.

Vegeta eyed the blue stone warily. "Why does it smell like…" Infection and strawberries? He set the stone down on the table and rubbed wearily at his eyes. That last mission apparently messed him up more than usual. "I'm too tired for this." He muttered. Then he turned and crawled back into bed.

Bulma waited until she heard his breathing turn even and slow. Finally he was asleep. That was too close for comfort. She pressed the button on her watch and grew back to normal size. She climbed down off the table slowly to keep her injury from hurting. She limped to the bathroom and quietly shut the door. Once safely inside, she turned off the camouflage device and searched for a first aid kit. The guy was a mercenary. He just had to have a first aid kit somewhere.

She eventually found it in the linen cupboard alongside some fresh bandages. It was large and held all the medical supplies she needed. Including some things she was sure weren't sold over the counter.

Taking off her jeans, she set about cleaning the wound. She wasn't a doctor, but she knew what she was doing. After it had been thoroughly cleaned and bandaged, she gave herself an injection of penicillin. With any luck it would knock the infection out of her system. However, it would take time. She was still so weak from the lack of food and water that she could barely make it through dressing her own wound.

In other words, until she was healed and back to full strength, Bulma wasn't going anywhere.

The next morning…

Bulma awoke from her position curled in the linen cupboard to the most delicious smell she had ever had the pleasure of smelling. Someone was making breakfast. She took a deep sniff and felt her stomach rumble with desire. Eggs, bacon, French toast... it smelled so good she could practically taste it!

Even though she was still weak from the lack of proper nourishment, Bulma moved quite quickly from the cupboard, eager to get some of that food for herself. She activated her camouflage and slowly crept out of the bathroom.

The short, scary handsome man whose name she could not remember was cooking. He was standing in the kitchenette, expertly flipping pancakes. Her eyes went wide at the sheer amount of food he had made. There were stacks of pancakes, towers of toast, mountains of eggs and a log cabin made of bacon. Bulma had to keep swallowing her drool or else she would've made a puddle on the floor.

Did he really get up, get dressed and go into town to shop for food all before Bulma woke up? Dang but he must get up early. Was he expecting company or something?

Bulma watched with wide hungry eyes as he flipped what must've been the fiftieth pancake. Then he shut off the stove and carried everything over to the table. He walked back over to the cabinets and pulled out a single plate and matching utensils. Then, grabbing a jug of orange juice, he sat down at the table and wordlessly tucked in to the huge breakfast. Bulma was shocked as he shoveled food in his mouth like he was starving. Was all that food really for him? He wasn't expecting company?

She was half disgusted; half amazed to watch him eat. Food disappeared before his voracious appetite. And he was still trim and fit! Where did it all go? The food shrank down to mere impressions of its former glory and Bulma felt a sudden misery. He was going to eat it all. She wasn't going to get any of it.

Suddenly a phone rang.

Both Bulma and the short scary handsome man jumped. He frowned and reached into his pocket to pull out his cell phone. He looked at the caller ID and groaned through his mouthful of food. He hit ignore and set back to his meal again, but before he could get into it, the phone rang a second time. He scowled at the phone and once more, hit ignore.

Almost immediately the phone started ringing again.

He finally answered it with a huff. "What do you want Raditz?" His voice growled low and angry.

Bulma gulped nervously. Wasn't he in a good mood? Hopefully he wasn't one of those angry mercenaries that threw things. He listened for a moment and she was surprised to see him lean back in his chair and rub the bridge of his nose. "Again? What did you two idiots do this time?" There was another pause as he listened. His face took on an incredulous expression. "You did what?" Another pause and then a heavy irritated sigh. "You imbeciles. I'm not bailing you out." He paused again. "I don't care. You got yourselves in, you can get yourselves out." And he hung up.

He sat there for a moment and then resumed his meal. Bulma watched him, appalled. He wasn't going to help his friends out? What a jerk!

There was approximately three minutes of silence, minus chewing noises, when the phone rang again. The man scowled and glared at the phone. He read the caller ID and his gaze got darker. He swore softly and stood up before answering.

"This is Ouji." His voice was cold, professional. There was silence as he listened. "Understood." Then he hung up. He stared at the phone for a moment. Without a word, he crossed over to the window and looked out into the woods. He stood there, trembling slightly. Bulma watched, quite freaked out, as the phone he was holding in his hand was slowly crushed.

Vegeta stared out the window angrily. Figures his only comrades go and get themselves thrown in the slammer right before a job. He looked down at the crushed phone in his hand and grimaced. The fact that they called him instead of Nappa was his own fault. He should've known better than to keep a burner. He turned and tossed the remnants of the phone on the bed. He gave a passing regretful glance to his unfinished breakfast before going to get his gear. There was literally no time to waste. This job had a limited window of opportunity.

He paused. There was no time to get Nappa and Raditz out. He cursed softly and resumed packing. It didn't matter if it was a three man job. He was more than capable of doing it himself. He'd done it before. Many times. He was a loner anyway. It was better that way. Vegeta no Ouji didn't need anyone and he liked it that way.

Or so he told himself.

Vegeta hefted his bag over his shoulder and left the little house, making sure to lock the door properly before he left. He sprinted away from the home, focusing his mind on the task before him.

Bulma, now alone in the house, turned off her camouflage, grew to normal size, and devoured the remaining breakfast. She moaned in appreciation. The guy could cook! It was the best tasting eggs and bacon she's ever had! Or… that she's had after not eating for so long. She ate too fast and her stomach couldn't handle it so she ended up getting sick, but she felt much better after eating.

After polishing off a good portion of her unwitting host's breakfast and saving an equally large portion for lunch, Bulma undid the dressing on her leg and took a careful shower. The hot water stung her wound, but it felt oh so good to be clean! Actually, the medicine and clean bandages seemed to help tremendously. It didn't have such a sickly sweet scent as it did before.

She re-bandaged her leg and then washed out her dirty clothes as best she could in the sink. She then let them dry in the sun outside. While they were drying, she took a careful look around the house. It was quite simple. No television, a small bookshelf, a bed and a table apart from the kitchenette. There was a decent layer of dust and grime over everything. It wasn't cluttered, but man oh man did it need a good scrub down.

Bulma nodded to herself. She wasn't at full capacity yet, but cleaning a one room house would be easy. It was the perfect way to say thank you for the unwitting rescue she'd received.

And so, Bulma spent the day cleaning up a stranger's house.

That night…

Vegeta was tired. Each step he took seemed to get harder and harder to take as he dragged his bruised and beaten body back to his house. The job hadn't gone quite as planned. There was an ambush and he almost walked right into it. But nobody gets the drop on Vegeta no Ouji. Nobody. Luckily he was able to take out the armed men and escort the package to the drop point, but it all made him dead tired. And he was only running on half a breakfast.

On the plus side, he was assured that there wouldn't be any more missions for at least another day. Thinking on it, he almost envied Raditz and Nappa. They were relaxing in the county jail right about now. Vegeta scoffed to himself. Lazy bums.

He reached the little house and warily checked his surroundings. He'd made very sure he wasn't followed. He unlocked the door and slipped inside. Finally alone, he sighed. He flicked the lights on and dropped his duffel on the floor.

And promptly froze.

It was absolutely spotless. The entire house was clean from top to bottom.

Bulma, who had been hiding underneath the bed in order to watch his reaction, tried hard to keep from bursting into laughter. His face was priceless! However, her inner laughter died when he whipped his gun out of its holster and dropped into a defensive stance.

Vegeta's senses were on high alert. Someone had gotten into his house! He flattened himself against the wall and edged slowly to the only room in the house besides the main room. He paused a second before whipping the bathroom door open.

Nothing.

He scowled at the empty bathroom and slowly lowered his gun. There was no one in his house. But who would've come in and not taken… His eyes went wide and he dashed to his bed.

Bulma let out a small yelp as he ran to the bed. The jig was up! She threw herself to the side as he effortlessly lifted the whole frame and tossed it vehemently against the opposing wall. It crashed against with a loud bang. The man ignored it, going for a loose floorboard where the bed used to be. Bulma watched with wide eyes as he pulled it up and put it to the side, revealing a small cache of things. He stared at it, his eyes flicking to and fro, cataloging all the items. Slowly his scowl relaxed and he sighed heavily.

All his most precious possessions were still there. They hadn't been taken.

Vegeta sat back on his heels and ran a shaking hand through his flame of hair. That was close. He looked at his small cache of secrets and frowned. He looked around the room again and the frowned deepened. It was strange. Nothing was stolen. Nothing was broken. Who in the world would break into his house without any sign of forced entry only to clean the place? He knew literally no one in the town. He made it a point to never be friendly with the locals. No connections, no friends. Who could've done this? His paranoia grew. Nobody did that. That's not how the world worked.

His frown softened slightly as weariness reasserted its pull on him. He was too tired for this. Putting the board back in place, he got up and moved to the mess that used to be his bed. He hauled the mattress up and fluffed it, putting it and the pillows and blankets on the floor. He would have to fix the frame in the morning.

Bulma watched him cautiously. While she was curious as to what was in the cache hidden under the floorboards, she was far too small to investigate. Plus, she was sure that he thought there'd been an intruder. How seriously did this guy take his privacy? He looked angry and panicked instead of delightfully surprised. Didn't he appreciate the fact that his house was clean? She pouted. Sure she would've probably acted the same way if someone did that to her lab, but she still felt sore about it.

The man sat down on his mattress and pulled off his black shirt. Bulma blushed, but the red flush across her cheeks faded at the number of scars and bruises and injuries she could see littered across his torso. She shouldn't be surprised, he was a mercenary, but her heart still clenched in her chest as she saw the scars. Some of them were old, but they still looked painful. He stretched a bit and the blush came back. The scars certainly added to his bad boy image. She couldn't say she didn't like the way they looked. He wore them well.

Vegeta sighed heavily. "I need a shower." He felt gross and didn't want to admit how sore he felt. Tomorrow was going to suck. But the house was clean, so at least he wouldn't have to worry about that. A smile picked at the corner of his lips. Whoever it was that did it, he didn't know whether to gut them or thank them. Maybe both? His brain was fuzzy with exhaustion. He lay down and closed his eyes. Yeah. Both.

Bulma watched as the man fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. She glanced at the loose floorboard and bit her lip. She was painfully curious, but decided not to look. Her blue eyes drifted back to the mercenary and she felt her heart soften at his tired face. She walked over and sat beside his pillow, watching him. What was his story? Why did he have so many scars? More than your average mercenary?

She sat there, watching him until she drifted off to sleep beside him.

The next morning…

Bulma awoke to the sound of the soft grunts. She nearly jolted up from where she had fallen asleep on the mattress next to his pillow. Panic raced through her. Had she forgotten to set her disguise? Did she forget to set her watch?

No… no everything was fine. She looked around blearily until her eyes landed on the source of her awakening.

The mercenary was working out. He was currently doing pushups nonstop, sweat dripping from his shirtless form. His dog tags hung from around his neck, clinking together softly as he went up and down unceasingly. Suddenly he switched to one hand and did one handed pushups.

Bulma felt her jaw drop a bit. He was doing pushups at dark-thirty in the morning!? Wasn't he tired and sore? He certainly looked exhausted last night! Those bruises he was sporting didn't look any better either. He suddenly stopped the pushups and switched to lunges. She watched him do that for a while as well as many other bodyweight exercises. Her admiration rose even further for the man as his face showed none of the discomfort he must be feeling. This went on for a long while until he finally stopped.

Instead of resting, he surprised Bulma by walking to the door and going out into the weak pre-dawn light. She scrambled from her position to see what he was doing. He was doing a complex martial arts kata in the field in front of the house. Stunned at his determination, Bulma watched for a while, blushing at the sight of him. He was certainly attractive.

She shook herself. This was no time to be watching the man. She had to change the bandage on her leg before he came back. She hobbled to the linen cupboard and became her normal size again. She disengaged the camouflage device and changed the bandage on her injured leg. She was surprised to see that it was already starting to heal. The clean bandages and medicine were working wonders.

"Who's there?!"

Bulma gasped and fumbled with the bandages. Quickly she hit the button on her watch and shrank down to a miniscule size.

Vegeta burst in to the bathroom, a fearsome look on his face. "Where are you?!" He charged to the shower and ripped the curtain back. "I know you're in here!"

Bulma tucked herself behind the toilet, quivering in fear. Then her eyes went wide. She'd left the device on the counter! She squeezed her eyes closed and prayed the man wouldn't see it.

Vegeta growled angrily. There was no one in the bathroom. He stomped out into the main room, ferocious glare sweeping the room. No one here either. He kicked the broken bed frame in a foul temper. He could've sworn he saw someone in the bathroom! He paced back and forth like a caged tiger as he tried to puzzle out what he could've seen. An enemy? Some sort of ninja? A pro sent to murder him in his sleep? Vegeta huffed. Impossible. Nobody could pull one over on Vegeta no Ouji. His mind was just playing tricks on him.

He sighed angrily and stomped back into the bathroom. He was sore, tired, and hungry. Once his needs had been met, then he would worry about how crazy he was going this time.

Bulma practically ran out of the bathroom the moment she heard the water start to run. The water masked her footsteps. Her leg was throbbing with pain, but she made it out with all of her things in her pockets. As soon as the mercenary left the room she had grown big and snatched the camouflage device. She hit the button just in time. A second later and he would've seen her.

The whole experience tired her out. She needed energy. Hopefully the scary man would go to the store and pick up more food. She slumped against the wall and gave a sigh. She couldn't believe she was doing this. Stealing from this man, living in his house right under his nose, eating his food, what had the great Bulma Briefs come to? But she also figured that he would just turn her away if she came out and asked him for a place to stay.

She didn't have any other choice.

Bulma watched warily as he emerged from the steamy bathroom, fully dressed. He went over to the door and put his boots on. And then he left. An hour later he returned to the house, arms laden with grocery bags. He kicked the door closed behind him and went about the task of putting things away and cooking something edible.

The mouthwatering scents had Bulma's tummy rumbling when a sudden loud banging came at the front door.

"Vegeta! Vegeta I know you're in there!"

Vegeta paused in his cooking and groaned aloud. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Open up!" A man's voice rang angrily through the door. "Let us in RIGHT NOW!"

He turned the stove off and walked to the door to glare at it angrily. "When did they let you idiots out of jail?"

"OPEN THE STUPID DOOR VEGETA!"

There was the sound of another man laughing. "They let us out this morning. Said we were too much of a trouble to keep for more than 24 hours."

"RAAAGH!" The door shook violently from the impact of a shoulder. "LET US IN!"

Vegeta crossed his arms. "No."

The angry man raged harder and Bulma heard a sigh. "Listen Vegeta," the second man said through the door, "we know about the job you took."

"And?" Vegeta sniffed.

"WHY would you take that job YOURSELF?!" The angry man threw himself full tilt at the door. The poor thing shuddered, but held its ground. "You could've bailed us out! WE COULD'VE HELPED YOU!"

"I didn't need your help." Vegeta sneered.

"YOU POMPOUS… ARROGANT… SON-OF-A…!"

"Breathe Raditz." The second voice grew stern. "We were worried."

"I'm far superior to…"

"We know." The stern voice cut him off. "But we weren't there." The voice grew softer. "You know we are the last ones Vegeta."

Vegeta stiffened. When he spoke, his voice was even. "I am aware."

"We can't afford to…"

"You won't!" Vegeta snapped. He reached out and ripped the door open. He deftly side-stepped a charging Raditz and watched as the long haired man tripped over his broken bed frame and crashed to the floor. The other big merc came in after him with a heavy sigh.

"Raditz, pick yourself up would you? You're embarrassing me."

The fallen man got to his feet, shaking his head to clear it. "Shut up Nappa! I wouldn't be falling over myself to get here if sir jerksalot hadn't gone on that stupid mission and made us worried sick!"

Vegeta scowled at his comrades. "Your concern is unnecessary."

"UNNECESSARY?!" Raditz spun on Vegeta. "How can we NOT be worried?! Half the time you come back from solo missions inches from death! And for what?! To prove yourself to some unknown higher power?! To get stronger?!" Raditz was yelling now. "You're a moron! There is absolutely no reason to endanger yourself like that! You go solo on missions that would kill anyone else!"

"Well, it's a good thing I'm not anyone else." He replied snarkily.

Raditz let out and angry roar and charged the smaller man. Vegeta merely smirked and led Raditz on a merry chase round the room. The long haired merc swung wildly at him, but nothing landed. Vegeta dodged the intended blows with almost comical ease. Eventually he led Raditz out into the clearing, backing out at the same pace as the rushing man. Nappa watched this all silently. The large, bald man shook his head and followed the pair outside. The fight would be entertaining at the very least.

Bulma watched all of this from the safety of the bathroom door. She really had no idea what they were talking about. Wasn't mercenary work dangerous to begin with? Why would they be so worried about him? She shook herself out of her reverie and rushed to the stove, growing to her normal size on the way. Better take the opportunity to get some food before it all disappeared.

The genius woman hurried, but she really didn't need to. The morning stretched to midday before the three finally came back inside.

"You two are slipping." A sweaty Vegeta was saying. His arms were folded across his chest. "It didn't take me nearly as long to disable you as it should have. AND I was going easy on you."

A very beat up Raditz looked over irritably from beneath swelling eyelids. "Oh gee. Thanks for going so easy on us, your highness."

An equally roughed up Nappa cuffed him from behind. "Mind your manners."

Raditz scowled heavily at the older man. "Oh like you're one to correct me? What did you call Vegeta during that spar? A weak willed, spineless, quivering baby brat?"

Vegeta shot a death glare at Nappa. The older man smiled and shrugged it off like water off a duck's back. "Heat of the moment I guess."

The short flame haired man sighed. "Idiots." There was a brief stretch of silence as Vegeta seemed to mull something over. When he spoke he had the attention of the other two men immediately. "The missions are coming faster. We won't be getting a moment's rest." He averted his gaze as he continued speaking. "No doubt to make us weak and unsuspecting."

Nappa swore. "You think they'll try something?"

"I don't doubt it. We've been a thorn in Frieza's side for too long." Raditz spat off to the side as he said the hated name. "He's probably ready to take us off the priority list."

Vegeta regarded the window of his home with silent intensity. Raditz and Nappa griped some more about Frieza being a complete jerkwad, but he remained silent. Suddenly he spoke gruffly. "You were in jail." The two other men went instantly silent. Vegeta looked uncomfortable with attention, but went on. "I had no choice."

Another stretch of silence. Nappa smiled a personal smile and Raditz sighed, tension leaking out of him gradually. "Yeah," the long haired man said tiredly, "we figured. Why else would he throw a mission at you while we were gone?"

"Knew you'd be fine though." Nappa said, stretching his sore muscles.

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Are you finished now?" Seemingly satisfied, the two mercenaries took their leave with grumblings and jokes. Vegeta closed the door behind them and relaxed. He ran a hand through his flame of midnight hair. He knew how they felt. They always ranted and complained to him after a solo mission. They knew why he did what he did and he knew why they worried. At this point, it had become a ritual between the three of them. A pointless ritual in Vegeta's opinion. One in which he apologized in his own way, making him feel downright embarrassed.

He grumped his way back to the kitchenette. He was about to serve himself from what he'd cooked, but stopped. He growled, slamming his plate on the counter and dashing back to the door. Throwing it wide, he hollered at the retreating figures.

"AND QUIT STEALING MY FOOD!"

The next day…

Bulma watched, highly amused as the three mercenaries played cards at the little table in Vegeta's home.

"Got any threes?"

"Go fish."

"Dangit!" Raditz scowled at Nappa. "I could've sworn you had threes!"

Nappa rolled his eyes. "Raditz, you are a three."

"Hey! I'm at least a seven!" The long haired man said indignantly. "Girls go after lucky sevens! Not after some bald giant with an IQ of three!"

"Ladies love the bald look! Makes me look tough!"

"Makes you look old!"

Vegeta fought down the urge to sigh at his comrades. "Idiots." He muttered, deftly pulling a five out of Raditz's hand and laying down a match.

Raditz shot him an irritated look. Then he smirked. "At least we don't have to worry about Vegeta getting a girl." He spoke to Nappa slyly. "I mean look at him. Short, world's biggest widow's peak, what girl wouldn't run screaming for the hills?"

Nappa smirked in kind and gave Vegeta a very uncomfortable slow look from top to bottom. "Well, perhaps if he didn't scowl all the time he'd actually be a looker."

"You think?"

"Oh I know." Nappa leaned on his elbow, ignoring the slowly rising fury in his commander's face. "Remember that time in the Belgium hospital?"

"With that one nurse?" Raditz broke out in a grin. "Brunhilda?"

The pair cracked up laughing and Vegeta blew his top. Bulma had to stifle a giggle as he effortlessly flipped the table into the two men's faces and screamed at them.

"WHY ARE YOU IN MY HOUSE?!"

Nappa laughed. "You were the one who said we needed to be on the lookout for more missions. We need to stick together."

"Think about it Vegeta." Raditz said testily, picking playing cards out of his long black hair, "If we go out and get ourselves thrown in the slammer again, how would we be able to help you?"

Vegeta crossed his arms and scowled menacingly. "So you are just sitting in my house," he shot a scathing look at his now empty fridge, "eating my food, and waiting for a mission?!"

Nappa shrugged. "Pretty much."

"AAAARGH!" Vegeta launched himself at the men. They started tussling and Bulma was amazed to watch Vegeta actually come out on top. She figured that, being the smallest fighter, he'd be at a disadvantage. Instead, he proved himself to be the strongest of the three, easily beating up and evading the other men. She watched him in appreciation, smiling to herself. So far he hadn't figured out that she was really the one eating his food.

Then, almost as soon as the fight got serious, a phone rang. The mercenaries froze. They swapped a grave look with each other as Nappa moved to answer it.

"This is Shikikan." He said coldly. There was a stretch of silence. "Understood." And he snapped the phone shut. He looked at his comrades gravely. "It's another takeover."

Vegeta's scowl got darker and Raditz cursed. "Are we the only team?" Nappa grimaced and Raditz swore a little louder. "I knew it. They still think Vegeta's in poor shape."

Vegeta smiled a deathly cold smile. "Let's prove them wrong, shall we?"

Bulma felt a sudden dread at his expression. The other men nodded curtly and together they left the house without another word between them. Bulma waited until they had gone out of sight before she disabled the camouflage. They had talked briefly about the dangerous missions they'd been sent on. Who was the guy that was trying to get them killed? Bulma shivered. She had a bad feeling about this.

But them being away also meant that the house would be empty.

Bulma smiled broadly. While the cats were away, the mouse would play. Or in this case, go shopping for food and supplies. She was running out of bandages and medicine. And clothes! Honestly, the ones she'd been wearing were beginning to smell like last year's trends. Bulma tested her injured leg, figuring that she was strong enough to go out and shop for a little while.

A thought struck her as she left the house. How was she going to pay for all of this? Bulma frowned. She didn't have any money to buy anything. Guess she was going to have to use her camouflage device some more. Stealing wasn't something she wanted to do, but what other choice did she have? There was no telling when the merc would come back and she was hungry!

She reasoned that she'd pay every shop back after getting back on her feet. After all, getting a job wouldn't be too hard. A genius engineer like her could totally find a job as a mechanic or something. Bulma pushed her doubts to the back of her mind as she headed off to steal some basic necessities.

She finally limped back late that night, muscles screaming as she carried all that wouldn't fit in her spare capsule. Guilt weighed heavily on her mind. She'd never stolen before. The adrenaline rush helped push her to get in, get it, and get out, but now it was gone and she was exhausted. Her injured leg wasn't helping matters either. All she wanted to do was go back to the house, cook something, get a shower and go to sleep.

Bulma opened the door to the little house and kicked it closed behind her. She set the bags down with a sigh of relief. She should've picked up some spare capsules. She flicked on the lights.

And screamed.

Vegeta lay in the middle of the one room house, bleeding everywhere. His wheezy breathing was labored and his arms and legs were lying in awkward directions. Blood absolutely soaked his torn clothing. The skin that wasn't covered in blood was deathly pale or already starting to discolor with harsh bruising.

Bulma forced herself to breathe in and out. This was no time to panic. Hopefully it wasn't as bad as it looked. She went to his side and tried to gauge his injures. Her face paled at the number of stab wounds and bullet holes. The amount of blood on the floor was staggering. She could plainly see that his arm was broken. His collarbone was probably broken as well.

What in the world did this crazy merc do to himself? She felt woozy as she assessed his condition. Something terrible no doubt. She took a steadying breath. Bulma couldn't afford to faint if she wanted to save his life.

Disregarding her own clothes, she did her best to hoist him up. She barely got him off the floor when she had to put him down again. He was heavy! Instead, she dragged him slowly to his mattress, propping him up against the wall as gently as she could. She left him there for a moment, opting to go and prepare the supplies she'd thankfully gotten while she was out.

Summoning all of her nerve and medical knowledge, Bulma Briefs went about the work of cleaning, suturing, and bandaging Vegeta's wounds. She took out as many bullets as she could find and staunched the bleeding as best she knew how. She dosed him with pain medication and with a good shot of penicillin to prevent infection. She knew how bad it sucked if any of those injuries went septic.

While she was working on saving his life, Vegeta slowly began to wake from unconsciousness. Something or someone was pulling him from that sweet darkness. The ministrations were gentle, but they disturbed him nonetheless. He furrowed his eyebrows. Who would do such a thing? Who would try to tear Vegeta no Ouji out of unconscious bliss? Blearily he opened his eyes.

And saw an angel.

Blue eyed and blue haired, she was the most gorgeous person he'd ever seen. There was a faint glow around her, or so he thought, as she worked busily at something he couldn't see. Her clothes were somewhat bloody and she was holding clean bandages. She looked like she was worried. Why would an angel be worried? What was she doing?

She turned back to face him and froze. Wide blue eyes met dark bleary ones. Vegeta looked at her in wonder. Was she worried over him? He opened his mouth to ask, but only a painful groaning noise emerged.

Her face softened. "Shhh…" The angel soothed. She ran a hand through his hair tenderly. He shivered at the contact. He hadn't been touched like that since he was a child. She leaned close and he caught her scent. It was like sweet summer strawberries. She smiled kindly and whispered, "Go back to sleep Vegeta."

And surprisingly, he did.

The next day…

Strong sunlight was what finally pulled Vegeta from the deepest sleep he'd had in months. He shifted slightly and grit his teeth. His whole body was sore and painful. It felt like he'd been run over by a freight train. Twice. What had he done to feel so bad?

The mission!

Vegeta sat bolt upright. He immediately fell back on his mattress with a painful hiss. His ribs and collarbone screamed in pain. Forcing himself to breathe calmly to assuage the pain, he looked around. He was in his house. That was good, but how did he get here?

Slower this time, he pushed himself into an upright sitting position. He winced and felt his entire body throb. He looked down and saw that he was well bandaged. His arm was even in a makeshift sling. It was obvious that it had been reset thanks to the wood splints keeping it straight. Were those pieces of his bed frame? He blinked. Did he really come home and care for his injuries this well while bleeding to death?

Vegeta scowled and tried to remember. They'd done a successful takeover of a small rival kingdom, but faced an ambush of 'friendlies' that were suddenly 'not-so-friendly'. They managed to hold their own and survive the conflict, but Nappa and Raditz were in no shape to go anywhere afterward. Somehow, he'd have to figure out how exactly he did it later, Vegeta managed to hotwire a car and drive it to the hospital in town. He remembered the emergency ward and giving his comrades into the hands of the hospital staff. He also remembered starting the walk home, thinking he didn't need any hospitalization.

Then the second ambush happened.

Vegeta groaned aloud at the memory. Two ambushes in one day. Frieza was out for blood for sure. Somehow he managed to fight off the would-be assassins, but he was left in such a state that getting inside his house was nearly impossible. The last thing he remembers is coming in, shutting the door and… darkness.

Could it be that he somehow woke up, stopped the bleeding, got himself some bandages, and fixed his body up with only the use of one arm? Vegeta knew he was good, but he didn't think he was that good. He didn't remember any of that. But he did remember a dream. The one with the blue haired angel. What was that about?

Vegeta took a deep breath through his nose, his eyes falling shut. He was nearly positive he was going crazy. It would make sense after all the crap he's been through. Suddenly he paused and sniffed again. Oregano, chicken broth, and… he sniffed once more… basil?

Someone was making soup.

A cold shiver went down his spine and his eyes snapped open. Someone was making soup in his house! He looked around frantically and saw no one. Where was that smell coming from?! He looked down and saw a bowl of hot soup with a glass of water right by his mattress.

Correction, someone had already made soup in his house.

Vegeta tensed up, though his body hurt like the dickens. He knew for a fact that he hadn't made any soup. He also knew for a fact that both his comrades were in the hospital. He knew no one from town and no one knew him well enough to risk coming inside his house while he was unconscious. He put on his fiercest glare and scanned the room.

"Who's there?!" He demanded, trying to sound as if he weren't still badly injured.

No response from the empty room.

Vegeta's scowl faltered. "There's… no one here." He said. He looked down at the soup. "Then how…" More accurately, who how where and most importantly, why? Who would risk his wrath to bring him soup? How would they even get in? Where was this person and why would they care so much to nurse him back to health?! This soup didn't come from a magic soup fairy!

He sniffed the air again and his stomach, traitorous thing that it was, growled in hunger. Vegeta's eyes returned to the steamy bowl of goodness. Curses but it smelled delicious. He hadn't had anything to eat since yesterday morning. But what if it was poisoned? What if it was a trap?

His stomach growled again. Vegeta growled right back at it. He couldn't just eat the stupid soup. He was far too paranoid to do that. Then again, he had the inkling that whoever fixed him soup also fixed him up. Someone who helped him survive wouldn't just poison him right afterward. That was counterintuitive.

Deciding to accept the gift, Vegeta lifted the bowl slowly to his lips with his good hand. He drank the soup in one go. It wasn't bad, but there really wasn't enough to satisfy him. He set the bowl back down and took one more look around the room. His tired mind spun as he lay himself back down on his mattress. He lay there silently for a while until he finally slipped back into sleep.

The next day…

Vegeta awoke to more delicious smells. He turned his head and saw not just two bowls of soup, but also a loaf of bread sitting next to his mattress. His stomach growled even before he mustered the strength to sit up. He'd always been a fast healer, but it was going to take some time to bounce back from this.

He reached over and drank his soup, using the bread to mop up the remnants from the bowl. He sighed, feeling better with some food in his belly. He looked around the room again, noticing perhaps for the first time the mess in the kitchen. He narrowed his eyes at the ingredients sitting on the counter and the pot of soup on the stove. Someone had definitely been using his kitchen to make his food. Had they simply stepped out for a moment? Were they hiding from him on purpose?

"Show yourself!" Vegeta shouted. "I know you're here! There's no use in hiding!"

Silence.

Vegeta set his jaw. He would wait until the person showed themselves. Minutes passed and a sudden hissing sound drew Vegeta's attention to the stove.

He smirked. "Your soup's boiling over!" He called out.

And the ladle suddenly moved. Vegeta's eyes went wide. The soup was being stirred, but nobody was stirring it! That same nobody turned down the heat so that the soup wouldn't boil over.

The ladle stilled. Vegeta rubbed at his eyes. Did that just happen?

"I need more sleep."

The next day…

Vegeta stared intently at the wall, scowling ferociously. More soup had appeared next to his bed. Still no sign of the person making it. Did he really crack his head hard enough to lose his sanity?

No. There had to be a reasonable explanation. Nappa probably hired someone to take care of him when he wasn't around. Overbearing mother hen. Vegeta snorted. This felt exactly like something he would pull. Or maybe it was Raditz trying to set him up with another girl. Hide her in his house, ask her to care for his wounds and form a 'bond'. Nosey overdramatic idiot.

Vegeta no Ouji was not crazy. He just had crazy comrades.

Satisfied that it was one of them behind all this, he fell into a light doze. He wasn't sure when exactly he fell asleep but he was startled awake by a sudden banging on the door.

"Ouji! Open up!"

Vegeta swore softly and tried to scramble over to his bag. Frieza had finally gotten word of the failed ambush. These were probably his men sent to finish the job. He was still too injured to fight and he knew it. Every part of his body, while on the way to healing, painfully protested every movement. His legs still felt like they were made of jelly. His ribs groaned in pain and his collar bone throbbed. If they got inside, he was probably going to die.

The door shuddered violently and Vegeta cursed again. They were going to break down his door. It was still weakened from when Raditz tried bulldozing it down a few days ago. He made it about halfway by army crawling on one arm when the lock on the door broke and three armed gunman charged inside.

The lead gunman pointed his piece at Vegeta and smirked. "Lookee here. The great Prince of the Saiyans reduced to such a state." He spat off to the side. "You're almost not even worth offing."

Vegeta grit his teeth. "Even weakened…" He hauled himself unsteadily to his feet. "… I still far outclass you worthless wastes of humanity."

"You the one who's a worthless waste!" The man sneered. "Look at you! Barely able to stand and still talking smack!"

Vegeta smirked, finally standing completely upright. "I only state the truth." He lifted his good arm and assumed a shaky fighting pose. "Even injured, I will still defeat you easily."

"Ha!" The lead gunman must've had something to prove as he tossed his gun off to the side and shrugged out of his jacket. "I'll take that bet."

The guys behind him lowered their guns and smirked as their leader took a fighting pose and faced Vegeta. They had heard about how powerful this particular merc was. How favored he used to be in Frieza's eyes. Now, staring him down while he was so injured gave them the confidence to beat down the best. They figured this would be a piece of cake.

Vegeta eyed the man's stance. He smirked. It was almost too easy. Well, too easy if he was fully healed. But if he timed it just right…

As the man leapt forward to attack, Vegeta crumpled. As he fell, he kicked up with his leg, catching the man dead in the chin. The man toppled backwards, knocked terribly off balance as his brain was rattled inside his skull. He fell to the floor and Vegeta used his own momentum to whirl around and bring the same leg down in a hard axe blow straight to the man's face. Blood sprayed into the air as the man's nose was well and truly broken.

The man shrieked in pain and scrambled away from Vegeta. The prince was winded so he didn't pursue him immediately. His muscles shook with effort and pain, but he made no sound. He couldn't let them see his weakness. He panted heavily and got to his feet, looking down the barrels of their guns. After their leader's defeat, these men were sure to simply shoot him. Still, it was worth it.

The man held his bloodied nose and finally found his footing. He snatched the gun out of his partner's hand and pointed it right at Vegeta.

"Now you die!"

And then the man was hit by a plate. It shattered over his head. He hit the floor with a thump and was out cold.

The two men stared at their fallen leader. They looked wide eyed to Vegeta. He was just as stunned as they were. They shook themselves and pointed their guns back at Vegeta. Another dish came out of nowhere and hit the wall directly to their left. Both men turned and fired blindly.

There was nobody there.

"W-what's going on?" said one man, shaking in his boots.

More plates flew hither and thither, shattering as they hit the walls around the two would-be killers. They cowered, searching for the source of the plates and failing. Bullets peppered the walls. One or two grazed Vegeta, but he ignored them. Instead, he looked around just as frantically as the thugs. Who was doing this? The person Nappa hired to take care of him? The girl Raditz convinced to make him soup? There was literally no one else in the house!

"Crap man! This place is freaking me out!" The one goon said to the other.

"Let's just kill Ouji and leave!" They turned to face Vegeta.

Suddenly, the door behind them slammed shut. All three men jumped. The lights flickered out. There was a loud FWOOSH as the gas stove erupted up gouts of flame. One of the men screamed and Vegeta stumbled back a little. A deep eerie laugh started from no discernible location. It grew in intensity until it made Vegeta's ears ring.

Then it stopped. It was dead silent for a solid minute.

"LEAVE."

One of the goons wet their pants as the two fled the house. Their leader was left lying unconscious on the floor.

Vegeta looked around the house slowly. That had to be one of the creepiest experiences he'd ever had. He'd experienced creepier, but it was pretty high up there on the strange-o-meter. He put a hand to his head and wobbled slightly. Maybe he was still feverish and this was all a dream. That sounded better. Hallucinations explained everything.

He ran a hand down his arm and hissed when he touched a spot that had been grazed by a stray bullet. Okay, not a dream. He was about to stumble back to bed when a roll of bandages hit him smack in the face.

"Bwah!?" He stumbled back. "Who would dare…?" Still no one in the room except for the unconscious goon. He stared at the bandages. They smelled faintly of strawberries. Suddenly, he felt someone pushing on his chest. He jumped back awkwardly, wide eyed as he still saw no one in the room. He felt the hands pushing on his chest again and he lashed out. His hand glanced off something soft and firm. He heard a gasp and then something smacked him hard across the face. He fell backward, knocked off balance, right onto his mattress.

It hurt a bit and he cursed. "What the heck is going on?!" There was nothing there. Nothing! All his senses told him there was nothing there and yet something had pushed him back and knocked him down on his mattress.

Wait.

Vegeta looked down. His mattress. The force had backed him up and knocked him on his mattress. With a roll of bandages.

His jaw dropped. As he sat there, staring blankly at the empty room, he swore he could hear someone, or something, giggle.

The next day…

Vegeta relaxed on his mattress in the morning sunshine. Peace filled the air as quiet birdsong heralded the day. His body no longer felt like it had been made into pavement. His breathing was even and his posture relaxed.

His house was haunted.

What was he supposed to do about that? Hire an exorcist? He didn't even believe in ghosts. But the events of yesterday were undeniable. There was a legitimate ghost haunting his house. And worse, the ghost was trying to help him! Of all the humiliating things to have ever experienced, Vegeta was sure this had to make his top ten. He didn't need anyone's help! And he certainly didn't need help from a ghost. He just needed to heal and get back to training.

Actually, training sounded really good right about now. Nodding to himself, Vegeta slowly got up from his position and started into his daily workout. He started with sit-ups and crunches, wincing when his ribs protested the movement. He grit his teeth and powered through it. He needed to be ready in case trouble showed up again.

He had just flipped over to start his one armed pushups when something kicked him in the side. He toppled over onto his mattress with a light thud. Instantly he was up again, searching the room for the perpetrator.

Nothing.

The now angry merc growled in annoyance and went back down to finish his pushups. Again a force struck his side and he fell to the mattress.

He leapt up. "Come on!" He shouted at the empty house. "I have to continue my training!"

Something poked him in the ribs and he took a few steps back, startled.

He scowled. "My body is healing just fine! Leave me alone!"

That same force shoved him hard in the chest. He was unprepared for the sudden attack and fell back on his butt.

"Insolent ghost! How dare you try to make me rest! I am no longer injured!" He snarled. "I need to train!"

There was silence and he snorted. He slowly got back to his feet and started towards the door when he met resistance. Namely the previously open door slammed shut and locked of its own accord. He watched as the key was tossed carelessly out the window.

"I swear you're as bad as Raditz!" Vegeta raged. He heard some snickering and swore. The ghost knew he wasn't able to force the door in his current state. He stomped back to his mattress and sat down. No use trying to fight a ghost whose powers were beyond his ken. Still, there were other ways of fighting.

He scowled at the empty room. "The least you could do is make something different for sustenance." He smirked. "That is, if you can manage to make anything besides that dirty dishwater you call soup."

A bowl was chucked at his head. He dodged it easily with that smug smirk stuck on his face. It shattered against the wall.

"You missed me. What happened to your aim? Do try to do better next time."

Another dish flew directly at him. He smoothly evaded the dish and caught it as it whizzed by.

"By the way, the laundry needs done since you seem so keen on doing my housework."

A knife this time. It sliced cleanly into the wall.

"And now you're damaging my home?" He snorted and got to his feet. "Some houseguest you are."

A barrage of cutlery flew from the kitchen nook. He was actually hard pressed to avoid them all. He tested his mobility and flexibility as he dodged knives and spoons. His body was healing nicely indeed. Then came more dishes. He challenged himself to catch them all with one hand. He had actually worked up a sweat with the light calisthenics. Finally a few towels flew through the air. They hit him and fluttered limply to the floor.

Vegeta looked at the carnage of kitchenware around him and grinned. "Thanks for the workout." He said, cocky and smug. "At least you're good for something." He waved at the empty room and moved to the bathroom to shower. As he went, he heard a muffled curse and his smile got wider. One point for Vegeta no Ouji.

But as he was showering, the water went ice cold. "BWAGH!" He leapt out of the tub, chilled to the bone. He slapped a towel around his waist and burst into the main room of the house.

"STUPID GHOST!"

There was laughter all around him and Vegeta swore. No ghost, not even a helpful ghost, was going to make a mockery of him and get away with it. But he had no way of fighting a ghost. How could you punch something incorporeal? He needed some advice. Frankly, there were only two people he tolerated enough to ask.

The next day…

"My house is haunted."

Raditz sprayed beer in a great arc. Nappa likewise choked on his drink. He coughed violently and looked at Vegeta with wide eyes.

"Haunted?!" Vegeta nodded and Nappa's jaw dropped. Then he laughed. "You've taken one too many hits to the head Vegeta."

Vegeta scowled at his comrade. "My head is fine." He muttered testily.

"Are you sure your house is haunted?" Raditz said after cleaning up his mess. "You've never been one to believe in ghosts."

"Believe me, I don't."

"Huh." Raditz gesture to the barman for another drink. "Well think about it then. We've killed a lot of people Vegeta. Any one of them might be after you in the hereafter. Odds are someone might just be following you around to get revenge."

Vegeta grunted. "A benevolent spirit of a person I've killed? I doubt it."

"Wait, benevolent?" Nappa quirked an eyebrow. "It's helping you?"

The short merc scowled harder. "After I gave you two to the hospital I was ambushed going home. I fought off Frieza's men and was bleeding out on the floor. I had neither the strength nor the mind to save myself." He gestured to his steadily healing body now seated at the bar with his other similarly bandaged comrades. "Yet here I am, bandaged and healing."

Raditz shook his head. "You expect me to believe that a ghost saved you? C'mon Vegeta! It's more probable that mother hen over here hired someone to save your sorry self."

Nappa cuffed Raditz over the back of the head. "I didn't hire anyone! Vegeta here is just too good at survival to die like that anyway."

"I assure you, my house is haunted." Vegeta restated. "A few of Frieza's goons showed up a few days ago to finish me off." He smirked. "They tried to beat me down, but as usual they were no match for me." His comrades snorted in mirth and he continued. "But they were still going to shoot me until the ghost intervened."

"Seriously?" Raditz asked. "What'd it do?"

"Plates and cutlery flew at them. The stove burst into flame." Vegeta said nonchalantly. "Door slammed, lights flickered, and then came the laughter."

"Laughter."

Vegeta nodded. "Scared the goons right off." He smirked. "Weaklings wet their pants as they ran."

"So you've got a protective ghost." Raditz mused into his fresh drink. "Neat."

"No, not neat." Vegeta's scowl returned. "Between the two of you eating my food and this ghost appearing, I've had no peace! It won't let me train and it barely let me leave the stupid house to come here!"

Nappa, who had remained silent while thinking, frowned as he spoke. "I don't think it's a ghost at all."

Raditz shot a skeptical look at Nappa. "How come? Seems legit to me."

"For one thing, ghosts don't eat." He looked at Vegeta seriously. "I know you're a good cook, but we haven't touched any of your food since we got back from that big job a week ago." He nodded to himself. "I think it's a live person, not some ghost."

Raditz scowled. "Who made you the expert?"

"Since I've actually seen ghosts, I believe I have the best advice." Nappa tapped the side of his nose with a smirk. "You've got a mouse in the house Vegeta. Somebody with enough skill or tech to stay right under your nose without being seen."

Vegeta scowled hard. Someone was making a fool out of him. He put aside his pride for a moment and looked hard at Nappa. "What do you suggest?"

"Well, you're still healing right? Make like you're super tired and pretend to fall asleep. Watch the room carefully and when you see something out of place, throw a blanket over it."

Vegeta's face went blank. Raditz's face was incredulous. "A blanket."

Nappa nodded. "A blanket."

"Just sneak up and throw a blanket over it?" Raditz facepalmed. "There's a ghost in Vegeta's house and you tell him to throw a blanket over it."

"I'm telling you it's not a ghost!" The conversation quickly devolved into an argument between Raditz and Nappa.

Vegeta sighed heavily as the two injured mercs tried to fight it out in the little restaurant.

"Idiots."

Later that day…

Bulma turned from her place at the stove as soon as she heard the door open. She smiled at the healing Vegeta as he grumped inside tiredly. He'd gone to town first thing in the morning, presumably to check on his teammates. Or at least that's what she'd like to think. He didn't seem the type to run away because of a little 'haunting'.

She giggled to herself. The look on his face yesterday was priceless! Now that he thought she was a ghost, she didn't have to hide as much. It made life a whole lot easier. They spent almost the entire day yesterday playing pranks on each other. He irritated her to no end, but somehow she enjoyed herself.

She watched him flop down on his mattress and wondered when she had become so attached to the merc. They hadn't even formally met. Sure he was pretty handsome, but why she did she feel so compelled to help him?

In truth, she had been more than a little scared when those men arrived to kill Vegeta a few days ago. They had muscles, guns, and outnumbered him three to one! She was so sure he was going to die. But when he stood up to them fearlessly like that? She smiled at the memory. Even beat down and injured he still had them whipped!

So when they brought out the guns to shoot him, Bulma felt she had to step in. Playing a ghost was a lot easier than she'd thought it'd be. With her voice changer in hand, she did the whole flying plates and cutlery routine. She was actually surprised at how effective it was. The would-be murderers ran away scared and Vegeta was cowed enough to be pushed around. He was so bewildered and lost looking, it just made her giggle.

She watched him fall asleep there on the mattress. He must've worn himself out. Poor guy. He seemed so alone. Did she feel a connection to him? He surely was stubborn and hardworking. Things she admired in a man. Strength of character aside, he was also dangerous. A bad boy if she ever saw one. Perhaps she had a weakness for them?

Bulma shook the thoughts from her head. It didn't matter. She was almost completely healed from her leg injury. That meant she'd be free to leave the merc's house.

At the thought she almost sighed aloud. She kind of didn't want to leave. It was nice to live invisible to the world for a while. It was also nice to live with someone who didn't expect anything from her, even though he said really irritating things to make her show herself. Just the fact that she could be herself was nice. Even if it meant he didn't really care for her or even know she was really there.

She stirred the soup and fought the lonely feelings inside. Bulma was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't notice Vegeta creeping up behind her. He threw a white blanket over her head and she shrieked.

"Hah!" Vegeta gripped her tightly in a bear hug. Bulma panicked and tried to wrest away from Vegeta. His arms were like iron bars. She struggled as best she could, but couldn't break free from his grip.

Then, in a flash of inspiration, she hit the shrinking button on her watch. Vegeta grunted in surprise as the person shaped thing he was holding shrank down to nothing. He swore loudly. Nappa said it was a person! What kind of person could do that?! Angry, he ripped the blanket away to reveal the small blue gem he'd picked up last week.

Vegeta stared hard at the gem. Things suddenly clicked in his mind. All the strange happenings started when he brought the small stone home. There had to be a connection, especially after what he just witnessed. Slowly he reached down and picked it up, holding it gently between his thumb and forefinger. He scowled at it and brought it close to his nose, sniffing deeply.

Strawberries.

"I knew it." He said.

Bulma, disguised as she was, went pale at his words. He couldn't have figured her out that quickly, could he? Well he did throw a blanket over her. Who does that anyway? He tossed her lightly into the air and she couldn't stop the cry that burst from her lips.

"Alright little ghost." He said venomously once he'd caught her. "Show yourself."

Bulma was petrified. He'd found her. What would he do if she revealed herself? Kill her? Kick her out?

Vegeta waited. No response from the blue gem. He scowled. "Fine." He walked over to the window and prepared to pitch the rock as hard as he could out into the woods.

"Don't!"

He stopped. He looked at the small stone in his hand and frowned. "Then you'd better cooperate." He growled.

"… Fine." The stone said. "Just put me down first."

Vegeta set the stone down and waited impatiently. Nappa was right and his idea actually worked. That only happened once in a blue moon. He stared hard at the little stone, willing something to happen. He'd seen enough impossible things that he mentally dared it to surprise him.

Suddenly the stone vanished. In its place stood a gorgeous woman he'd seen before. Blue hair framed a beautiful face. Blue eyes were downcast in shame.

The blue angel.

"You." He breathed, completely and utterly surprised.

Bulma flinched. The jig was up. For real this time. She couldn't meet his eyes.

"H-hello Vegeta."

Suddenly she was pressed up against the wall of the little house, a sharp knife at her throat.

"Who are you?!" Demanded Vegeta in a quiet, dangerous voice.

Bulma swallowed nervously, her blue eyes meeting his dark intense ones. "M-my name is Bulma Briefs."

"Who sent you?"

"N-no one sent me."

The knife was pressed into her neck a bit harder.

"WHO SENT YOU?!" He shouted.

Despite being scared, Bulma felt her anger burn. "NO ONE SENT ME YOU CRAZY MERC!" She shouted back. "Now LET ME GO!"

Something sparkled in Vegeta's eyes. "Why should I?"

"Because if you'd remember, I SAVED YOUR SORRY BUTT! YOU OWE ME!"

"I owe you nothing."

"ARE YOU SERIOUS!?" Bulma was really getting into her rant. She didn't even notice when Vegeta removed the knife. "I scare off those IDIOTS who WANTED TO KILL YOU, BANDAGE YOU UP, and THIS IS WHAT I GET!?"

"Your assistance was un-"

"DON'T YOU TELL ME IT WAS UNNECESSARY! You would've died YOU STUPID JERK!"

Vegeta rubbed his temples. "You really are as bad as Raditz." He backed away and looked at her tiredly. "What are you doing here?"

"I SAID I WAS SAaa..." She trailed off. "You… aren't going to kill me?"

Vegeta snorted. "It would be a pointless waste of energy." He gestured her over to the table and chairs. They sat down and Vegeta gave her a pointed look. "Why are you here woman?"

"It's… it's a long story." Vegeta looked disgusted and Bulma snickered, feeling slightly better. "The short version is I ran away from home, joined up with a psycho scientist who tried to kill me…"

"Why did you join him?"

"And… what?"

"If he was psycho, why did you join him?"

"No I… I didn't mean…" Bulma paused to correct herself. "He wasn't psycho when I met him, but he turned out to be a horrible, evil scumbag that wanted to kill me. I escaped with…" Bulma hesitated. He stared hard at her and she inwardly cursed him for being a good listener. "…my boyfriend." Bulma forced. Then she smirked wryly. "Ex-boyfriend actually. He left me to die on the side of the road. That's where you found me."

"The blue gem."

Bulma nodded. "I have a device that can disguise me as anything and shrink me down. I was hiding when you picked me up." Vegeta's eyes hardened and Bulma sighed. "Look Vegeta, I'm sorry I deceived you, but…" She averted her eyes. "… I was injured and had nowhere else to go. You essentially saved my life."

"Why haven't you left?"

Bulma's breath caught in her throat. Why hadn't she left? She swallowed. "I-I was returning the favor. You saved my life, I wanted to save yours."

There was silence. She glanced up at Vegeta and found him looking away, expression unreadable. Her heart started to sink. "I'll leave, if you want me to." She looked away shamefully. "I've done nothing but leech off of you all this time. I understand if you don't want me to…

"It's fine."

Bulma blinked at his interruption. "W-what?"

"I said it's fine." Vegeta wasn't looking at her. "You were in need and used what you had to your advantage."

Bulma's eyes went wide. "You… don't care?"

"Hn."

"You aren't… kicking me out?"

Vegeta grunted. His eyes flicked over to her. "You have nowhere else to go, right?" She nodded and he sighed. "You may remain here."

Her jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "If you don't believe me, you're free to leave."

"No! I… it's just…" Bulma hesitated. "Why let me stay?"

She was surprised to see his cheeks color some as he looked away. "You... kept me alive not knowing who I was. You are alone, trusting me to give you what you need." He closed his eyes, though the blush stayed on his face. "Somehow the idea of betraying that trust sickens me. You may stay."

Bulma blinked. Did this hardened, scary merc actually care? She broke out into a broad smile and got out of her seat to hug Vegeta tightly. "Aww thanks Vegeta! You must really like me!"

Vegeta's face and neck flushed red. "Get off me woman!" He struggled to get out of the hug. "Quit pushing your luck!" Bulma released him with a blush of her own and Vegeta looked away, uncomfortable. "Just… keep doing what you're doing and you can stay."

Bulma beamed at him. "Sure thing Vegeta."

The merc scowled. "But you need cooking lessons." He smirked as she was dumbfounded. "Even as a ghost you could barely pass off that gruel as soup."

Bulma quickly flushed with anger instead of confusing feelings.

"JERK!"

The next day…

Vegeta was relaxing at the table, watching Bulma go about preparing her first non-liquid meal at his house. Apparently her forte lay in mechanics, not culinary endeavors. He smirked as she cussed a blue streak while trying to keep vegetables from burning. She was intriguing. Her temper was a brilliant blaze of fire and she was stunningly beautiful when angry. She was gorgeous even when she wasn't angry.

He shook himself. Those weren't the kind of thoughts he should be entertaining. Vegeta was a loner. No close friends, no weaknesses, that sort of thing. She was only here until both of them were fully recovered. Or so she assured him. He watched her flit about frantically in the kitchen and felt the smirk return. Perhaps being with someone at home wasn't so bad. He'd certainly enjoy her company while she stayed.

There was a banging at the door. "Hey Vegeta! You get rid of your ghost problem?"

Vegeta half turned and regarded the door with disinterest. "What's it to you?" He called out in a bored tone.

The man hesitated on the other side of the door. "I don't know if I wanna come in if you still got that thing hanging around. Go get an exorcist or something."

There was a yelp as another man surely smacked him. "Stop being such a pansy."

Bulma snickered and Vegeta grinned at her impishly. Seconds later the door burst open and Vegeta's fellow mercs stormed the premises.

Raditz held a cross and bottle of holy water out in front of him. "I ain't afraid of no ghost!"

"I told you, it's not a ghost!" Nappa scowled at Raditz angrily. "A ghost can't eat food like a…" He trailed off as his eyes landed on Bulma. His jaw dropped. "Girl."

Raditz rolled his eyes. "Well of course no ghost can eat food like a girl. Girls only eat salads and ghosts don't care about that sort of thing." He looked at Nappa's shocked face and frowned. "What?" He turned and saw Bulma.

He blinked. "Oh."

Vegeta laughed. The two men were more surprised than ever. Their leader only seldom laughed like this. It was a rare sound without malice or sarcasm. He grinned at his comrades and gestured to the lady. "Nappa, Raditz, meet the mouse."

The two mercs gaped at Bulma. She smiled and waved back cheerily. "Hey guys. I'm Bulma."

There was a stretch of silence. Raditz slowly turned to look at Nappa. "Nappa, there's a girl in Vegeta's house." Slowly Nappa nodded and Raditz continued, somewhat awestruck. "And it's a pretty girl."

"HFIL has as well and truly frozen over." Nappa said.

Vegeta growled audibly. "Are you two finished yet?"

Bulma scoffed at him. "Oh come on Vegeta. Lighten up would you?"

He scowled at her, but his scowl turned to a smirk. "Your stir fry's burning."

Bulma cried out in dismay and rushed back to the stove. There was a string of curses as she tried to stop the disaster that was food. Vegeta laughed and she turned on him, throwing anything that came to hand. He dodged all the things, throwing insults back at her. She in turn threw insults back at him until there was a fully fledged shouting war going on. It was quite the scene; complete with smoke courtesy of the failed lunch.

Raditz and Nappa swapped looks. Together they burst out laughing.

"What a pair they make!" Nappa wiped a tear from his eye. "Who's gonna kill the other first?"

"I'd say Bulma," Raditz said between gouts of laughter, "but her aim is terrible!"

He was promptly beamed in the head with a frying pan. He fell flat to the floor with a cry of pain.

"How's THAT for aim YA JERKFACE?!"

Nappa thought he'd die from laughter.

Eventually, the blackened mess nobody called lunch was cleaned up and the four ended up sitting around the table talking over coffee. Nappa and Raditz thanked her for her efforts in saving Vegeta's life. The short merc merely snorted and ignored them. Bulma told them her story and they sympathized more than Vegeta had, though in a different way.

"Wow! What a jerk!" Raditz said vehemently. "That Yamucha guy seriously needs to get his priorities in order if he thinks he can ditch this beautiful woman on the side of the road and forget about her!"

"I know right?!" Bulma agreed. "He's just the type too! Womanizing knucklehead!"

"That's what gets me! You're too much of a catch!" Raditz reached out and took Bulma's hand. "I swear if that was me, I'd have you back in my apartment in a heartbeat!"

"Speaking of womanizing knuckleheads…" Nappa tugged on Raditz's long hair. He let out a yelp of irritation and released Bulma's hand. The old merc chuckled. "Don't get involved with this one here. He won't forget about you, but if you even think the word 'commitment' he'll run for the hills."

Raditz scowled at Nappa. "No I won't."

Nappa rolled his eyes. "I've seen it at least a half a dozen times." He looked at Bulma and winked. "You need someone who won't high tail it out of there at the first sign of danger. Someone strong and of noble lineage…" His eyes drifted over to Vegeta. "Someone who would take care of you and protect you with honor…"

Raditz caught his look and winked slyly. "Oh I know someone exactly like that. He's definitely the strongest guy I know. Dark eyes… Pitch black hair…"

"Enormous widow's peak…"

Vegeta glared a death threat across the table. "Shut UP you idiots!"

The old merc did his best to appear innocent. "What? I'm just saying that she could do better than that foolish ex. You're one hundred, dare I say a million times better than this Yamucha guy ever was. Plus you actually like her."

"Nappa!"

"You know that even if he likes her, he won't just come out and say it." Raditz said to his comrade with a smirk. "I mean, he's got a stick waaaaay too far up his butt to even…"

Vegeta's glare caused his words to shrivel up and die. Yet as soon as he looked away, Raditz continued in amazement. "Good Kami, you're right! He's totally got a thing for Bulma!"

Then came a roar from Vegeta and the table was toppled and coffee flew everywhere. Bulma watched, embarrassed and slightly amused as the still injured mercs started tussling on the floor. She knew they really said those things to incite Vegeta, but the fact that he didn't deny any of them made her blush.

She cleared her throat, interrupting the scuffle. "So, how'd you guys meet? I mean, it's rare that mercs work together so willingly."

Vegeta stood up and dusted himself off. "Who'd ever work willingly with these two?"

Nappa rolled his eyes. "We are all of the same people." He likewise stood up and reset the table. "We're Saiyans from the western wilds."

"Saiyans?"

"An ancient clan of the wilderness. Nomads if you will." He paused, giving a Vegeta a careful look. "We had many people, but because we had no land we were denied a nationality of our own. Then some years ago our king petitioned the world king to become a true nation. It was granted to us."

"Then why are you mercenaries?"

"It's a long story." He sighed heavily, passing a hand over his face. "You see Bulma, when a people as powerful as ours becomes a nation, there are definitely going to be rivals. One nation in particular, the Kold Empire, didn't like the fact that we were acknowledged by the world." He said grimly. "So they attacked us."

Vegeta and Raditz stiffened in memory, both wearing similar expressions of pain and anger as Nappa continued. "Coming into our new land as envoys of peace, they attacked us out of nowhere." He lowered his head to rest between his hands as he spoke. "It was a slaughter. All of our people were hunted down and killed save we here."

Bulma was wide eyed and pale. "How did you survive?"

Nappa hesitated to answer. Vegeta swore softly and left the building. Raditz winced, but didn't follow him. The two men waited until Vegeta was out of earshot before Nappa continued. "Our prince, young as he was, sold himself to the general of Kold's army in a plea for his people." He spoke slowly and gravely. "The general accepted, but it was in vain. Our people were already dead." He met Bulma's horrified eyes. "As far as we know, we are the only survivors."

She gulped. "A-and the prince?"

"He still lives." Nappa turned to look out the open door. "But he carries the weight of his guilt and vengeance."

Bulma put two and two together and her jaw dropped open. "Vegeta's a prince?!"

Raditz chuckled dryly. "Yep. Hard to believe huh?" His mirth faded quickly. "Frieza, that scumbag general, trained him to be a living weapon. When he was old enough to go on missions he was sent, along with his bodyguards," he gestured to himself and Nappa, "out into the world. We've been mercenaries ever since."

The blue haired genius sat there for a few moments, absolutely thunderstruck. Then she gathered her thoughts and looked up. "And now Frieza wants to finish you off."

Nappa nodded. "That's right." He allowed a small smile to cross his face. "We've been forced to serve the Kold empire for years. It's about time we started rebelling openly. Frieza finally wizened up to us screwing with his plans."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Well, there's not much we can do right now." He gestured to his own still bandaged body. "But we plan to infiltrate and assassinate Frieza and Kold himself."

Raditz frowned. "Though that's not too likely to happen." He said with a sigh. "They know our faces too well. We'd never get past his security without a firefight."

"We need another person." Nappa said. "Someone skilled enough, brave enough, or at least dumb enough to risk their lives with us."

"No one will help us." The three turned to see Vegeta lingering in the doorway. His face was set, almost as if it was carved from stone. "We have no allies in the world of mercenaries."

"We're too infamous." Raditz cracked a grin at Bulma. "Nobody would partner with us because they know we're Saiyans." He sighed. "If only another Saipan survived."

There was a long silence. Grief filled the room. A quiet sense of defeat came from two of the men. Vegeta, however, was a different story.

"It doesn't matter." Vegeta crossed the room with a dark, determined look in his eyes. "I'd rather die fighting to avenge than in a hospital bemoaning my fate." He stared hard at Nappa. "You said that I am not allowed to die. That is false. I will die defying the murderer of our people!"

His words reached Nappa's sad eyes and hardened them. Raditz straightened his shoulders and stood tall before his prince. Like a fire lit in dry tinder, the grief in the room burned away to firm determination. Bulma knew hope was scarce for these men, but in that moment she believed they would do whatever it took to bring the Kolds down. And then she remembered something.

"Say Nappa, do all Saiyans have dark spiky hair?"

Nappa blinked. "Uh…" He rubbed his own bald head. "Yes. As a matter of fact, they do."

"Mostly." Raditz snickered. He got an elbow in the ribs for his comment.

"And do all Saiyans like to fight like you guys do?" She asked.

"Pretty much." Raditz shrugged. "My dad used to say it was in our blood. I used to scrap all the time with my little brother until…" He trailed off.

Nappa looked at her curiously. "Why do you ask?"

"Call it a hunch, but I know a guy." She said with a small smile. "I'm sure he'd like to help."

Vegeta's eyebrows shot up. He picked up what she was laying down. "You mean… you know another Saipan?" The pointy haired prince asked.

"I think so… I mean, he was an orphan. He doesn't know where he came from." Bulma said. "But his adopted grandfather found him just outside the western wilds in an abandoned jeep. He has this crazy black hair and loves martial arts."

Nappa shook his head. "It might be just a coincidence. In all our years we've never found a survivor from that day." He leaned back in his chair and sighed. "I don't think this friend of yours would help us anyway. You don't seem like the type to associate people like us."

"Oh shut up! Who says who I can and can't associate with?" Bulma huffed, irritated.

Raditz snorted with mirth. "Alright Bulma. We'll humor you a bit. What's this guy's name?"

"His name is Goku." Bulma said huffily. "He's really strong and has an appetite to rival Vegeta's." Her look turned thoughtful. "But you know… when he was really little, he said his name was Kakkarot."

Raditz's face went pale and his eyes went wide. "K-Kakkarot?"

"Yeah. Weird name, right? His adopted grandfather changed it when…"

"That was my little brother's name!" The long haired merc interrupted, leaping to his feet. "Are you telling me he survived?!"

Nappa frowned at Bulma. "Are you sure that was his name?!

"Sure I'm sure. I practically grew up with the guy." Bulma said. "He's married now and has a kid."

"Kakkarot is alive!" Raditz shouted. "Sweet Kami my brother lives and has a kid of his own!"

Nappa was stunned. Then he let out a booming laugh. "Well slap me twice and kiss my mother! There might be another Saipan still around!" He slapped his knee. "We might actually be able to do this fool thing!" He grinned at Bulma. "Please tell me you know how to get in contact with him."

Bulma nodded with a similar grin. "I can call him up if you want."

"OF COURSE I want you to call him! My little brother is alive!" Raditz dashed over and lifted Bulma from her seat in a bear hug. He whirled her around ecstatically. "Kami on high you are literally my most favorite person in the world right now!"

Bulma laughed aloud. "Put me down you big hairball!"

The long haired merc acquiesced then looked over at his prince pleadingly. "Vegeta I know you've got this whole loner thing, but you can't let this one go! We've got to keep her around!"

Vegeta scowled at the laughter coming from both Nappa and Bulma. He turned his slightly blushing face away from the group.

"Idiots."

Later that day…

"Hey Goku!" Bulma said cheerily into Nappa's cell phone. "It's Bulma! How are you?"

The mercs could hear an excited babbling on the other end of the phone. Bulma laughed. "It's good to hear from you too. I… No I'm not calling to talk about my dad. There's… Goku listen! I just met some guys who used to know you." A pause. "No, like… from before I met you. Like from when you were born."

There was another stretch of silence. It was finally cut by another stream of excited babbling.

Vegeta scowled. "He sounds like an idiot."

"Well no wonder. He's related to this moron after all." Nappa motioned to their long haired companion.

"Hey!" Raditz groused.

Bulma gave them a warning glare, but then smiled. "Yeah they wanna meet you! Are you free to come to…" she frowned, "a wedding? When? … Next week? … Bummer."

Raditz gaped at Bulma. "He already has plans?! Are you serious?!"

The blue genius held up a hand to silence him. "Where's it gonna be? … Ohmygosh that's perfect! We literally live just outside of town. Would the happy couple mind is we crashed the party to visit you?" She listened for a moment. "You think so? I mean… It's Chichi's relative that's getting married after all." They heard laughter on the other side and Bulma grinned. "As long as she thinks it would be okay… Really? Then it's settled! Me and my friends will meet you at the wedding."

Nappa sighed heavily. "I hate weddings."

"Shut UP Nappa!" Raditz hollered at him.

"Oh Goku, it'll be so good to see you!" Bulma grinned. She had really missed her friend. He was one of the only people she thought actually cared about her back at home. "… Yeah I know I should've called sooner." Her happy expression fell a little. "Goku, no offense, but I really don't wanna talk about that. You know how I felt when I left. That hasn't changed." She tried perking up again. "Forget all that. Who's the lucky guy?"

Goku said the name and Bulma went instantly pale. The mercs saw this and were immediately on the alert.

"Oh." Bulma started shaking slightly. "I… wow. That's great." There was a pause. "No… I'm okay. I've just gotta go now. I'll see you in a week, okay?" Another pause. "Yeah. Bye Goku."

Then she hung up the phone. There was a brief stretch of silence.

"Bulma," came Raditz's concerned voice, "are you alright?"

She shook her head and buried her face in her hands. Suddenly she felt strong hands on her shoulders, forcing her to sit in one of the chairs surrounding the little table. Blue teary eyes looked up. Vegeta met them stoically. He ignored her grateful look and went back to his own seat. The three mercs waited in silence as Bulma composed herself.

She took a deep breath and managed a shaky smile. "Goku is coming to a wedding in town next week. He agreed to meet up with you guys there." She shrugged. "Maybe he's Saiyan, maybe he's not, but he's willing to meet you guys and find out."

Nappa nodded. "Alright, but what's the bad news?"

Bulma laughed mirthlessly. "It's Yamucha's wedding."

Nappa and Raditz swore. Vegeta tensed and narrowed his eyes. This was bad. They knew the man had left her for dead on the side of the road two weeks ago. Now he was getting married?

"Sleezebag works fast." Nappa muttered.

Raditz turned to Bulma, sympathy in his eyes. "Look Bulma, we appreciate all that you're doing for us. If this is too much for you, you don't have to go." He shook his head angrily. "I know I wouldn't want to see that scumbag again."

Bulma stayed silent. What could she do? Goku wouldn't recognize these guys and if Raditz tried to hug him out of nowhere, there was bound to be a fight. But that meant she'd have to go with them and see Yamucha and his blushing bride and feel heartbroken and maybe start to throw things and make a spectacle of herself because she's a weak little nobody who nobody cares about and…

"Stay here."

Bulma jerked her head up at Vegeta's gruff voice. "What?"

"Stay here." He looked pointedly at her. "He's not worth crying over."

She put a hand to her face, surprised to find tear tracks down her cheeks. She blushed and scrubbed the wetness from her eyes. "No, I'll go. How else will you be able to find Goku?"

"Hey, he's my brother. I'll recognize him in a heartbeat." Raditz boasted. "If you really don't wanna go, you don't have to."

She lifted her head and met Vegeta's eyes. They were not mocking. Instead, those dark orbs challenged her. She felt her confidence return like a flame and said, "No. I want to go." She scowled angrily. "If anything, I'll go just to punch him right in his stupid face."

Vegeta smirked. "That's more like it." Then he looked at Nappa and Raditz. "We need to focus on recovering and training until Kakkarot arrives. Once we've established his identity, we will move on the Kold empire."

The two mercs saluted. "Yes sir!"

One week later…

Bulma pulled the cloak she'd picked up at the store over her shoulders. She tied the cloak in front of her and pulled the hood up to cover her blue hair. She looked in the bathroom mirror and sighed. Hopefully this would be enough to disguise her. She didn't want Yamucha to recognize her if she could help it.

She turned and looked to Vegeta. He was gearing himself up with various weapons. In jeans and a tight black t-shirt, he looked very nice. Bulma fought down a blush as she watched him strap a knife to his boot, concealed under the leg of his pants. He was going with her. He would protect her is things got tense, she was sure of it. Bulma smiled to herself and turned back to the mirror, pulling out her makeup kit. The past week spent in the surly man's company had been fantastic. They got along well. True, they fought like cats and dogs, but there was never any real malice behind their fights. Each had gone to bed each night with a smile on their faces.

Plus the merc didn't make her cook anymore.

Bulma sighed. Vegeta was great company, but what did that mean? She applied her makeup carefully, considering things. Did she want to start a relationship with him or something? She grimaced slightly. No, she'd wait some. She liked him for sure, but didn't want to be like Yamucha who only waited a week or two to fall in love with someone else and get married. Her hand shook slightly as she applied mascara. What a jerk.

"Woman."

Bulma turned to see Vegeta staring at her. "I have a name you know." She replied testily. The thought of Yamucha soured her mood.

"You are a woman, so I will call you as such." He smirked and she stuck out her tongue at him. "Are you ready to go?"

"Almost." She said as she turned back to the mirror. "I've just got to calm down is all."

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're scared to see him."

"I'm not scared!" Bulma whirled on him, scowling. "I just don't want to see that idiot get married to another woman!" She looked away. "It's hard you know? I thought we were really in love. That we'd get married someday."

Vegeta snorted. "If he truly cared for you, he wouldn't have left you like he did." He turned from the bathroom door and walked to the little kitchenette. "Drink something. It will calm your nerves."

Bulma followed him slowly. Maybe he was right. Maybe Yamucha wouldn't recognize her. If he did, maybe he wouldn't care. He didn't seem to care that day all those weeks ago. Vegeta handed her a cup of coffee and she smiled. That's right. She was going to meet up with Goku and get help for this man who helped her. The man who cared.

Vegeta looked at her and narrowed his eyes. "Feeling better?"

Bulma blushed and looked away. She'd been staring again. "Y-yeah." She sipped the coffee and really did feel better. Sure it would be tough seeing Yamucha again, but she had backup this time. She grinned at nothing in particular and chugged back the coffee. Her hood fell from her head with the motion. She finished the coffee and smiled at Vegeta. "Thanks. I needed that."

Vegeta had to remind himself to keep breathing. Kami she was beautiful. He forced himself to take the empty mug over to the sink. This was bad. He was growing too attached to the woman. Bulma was working her way further and further into his heart and there was nothing he could do about it. He wanted to rage and curse and throw her out, but couldn't find it in himself to do so.

He liked her. A lot. While he wanted to deny it, it would do him no good to act like a coward. Something needed to be done. She would probably leave after introducing him to Kakkarot. But that was no good. For some reason or another he wanted her to stay. She was one of the only people he found he could trust. He wanted her to stay.

Vegeta turned to her and looked at her soberly. She was ready to go. This could be the last time they were together. Who knew what the day would bring? He had to ask her. It was now or never. He took a deep breath.

"Bulma."

The blue haired beauty turned around suddenly, eyes wide. Vegeta never used her name. She saw the intense look on his face and swallowed nervously.

"Yes Vegeta?"

Vegeta looked away, crossing his arms as if he was irritated. "I don't know what you are planning on doing henceforth, but this place will always be open to you."

Bulma was thrown a little bit. Was he repeating himself? "Uh…"

"You can stay here as long as you like." The merc growled. He turned fully then, showing her his back. "What I mean is… I want you to stay."

Bulma blinked. Then warmth spread from the top of her head to the bottoms of her feet. She beamed at the back of Vegeta's head, positive the merc was blushing hotter than a house fire. He wanted her to stay. He really wanted her to stay. He cared for her. The thought made her happy. It must've taken a lot for the reclusive merc to say that. She'd accept, but first she'd tease him some.

"Thank you Vegeta. I'd love to stay but," Bulma said slyly, sneaking up behind him, "I'll have to think about it."

"Hn." Vegeta grunted. "What is there to think about?"

"Well, I don't want to be moving in with a man I hardly know. I mean, I am a beautiful, single, intelligent woman. I'm gonna want options." And she ran a finger up Vegeta's spine.

Vegeta startled violently. He spun about and Bulma was pleased to see his face really was redder than a fire truck. "WOMAN!"

Bulma giggled and fled the house.

Later that day…

The three mercs formed a kind of protective barrier around Bulma as they wove through the crowds. They met up just prior to entering the town. The two other mercs winked slyly to each other when they saw Bulma's good mood and Vegeta's blush, but joined them without any comment. The group moved slowly towards the church/reception hall in the center of town.

Bulma felt her nerves return, but kept alert, trying to spot Goku in the crush of people. They further they went, the more likely it was that she'd see Yamucha. The mercs were on high alert, easily plowing through the crowds. It was almost like the people were afraid of them. They weren't that notorious were they?

They abruptly broke free from the general crush and found the reception area. On the one side, buffet tables were lined end to end. On the other, the wedding party sat eating and laughing happily.

Bulma saw this all in the space of a single breath. She saw Yamucha dressed in a black tuxedo, eating and laughing with his bride. She was a beautiful brunet all dressed in flowing white. Probably an airhead by the way she was laughing. A little pampered daddy's girl who simpered and sighed into the hearts of anyone who she met. Some little tart who had stolen her boyfriend away from her and…

The blue haired genius was torn from her thoughts as Vegeta grabbed her by the shoulders. Her wide, startled, blue eyes looked into his stern dark ones.

"He does not deserve you." He said, voice low. "Do not give him the consideration he does not deserve."

Bulma's voice shook. "B-but…"

Raditz came beside him, blocking her view of the bridal party. "She's nothing compared to you." He grinned rakishly. "She's not even a 4."

Nappa joined them. "Bulma, if it's too much, we can take you home." He said solemnly. "You didn't come to see that mess."

She looked from merc to merc. Slowly, her face moved into a smile. These were the people who cared. Way more than Yamucha had. "Thanks guys. I'm good." She turned in the direction of the buffet tables. "We'll start looking over there. Goku's appetite will lead him here before long."

In fact, they had barely gotten to the food when a familiar mop of spiky untamable hair appeared. The tall dark haired man beamed at the buffet and quickly filled his plate, stuffing what he couldn't carry into his mouth.

Nappa blinked. "Certainly eats like a Saiyan."

Bulma snickered. "This is nothing. You should see him at an all-you-can-eat restaurant." She waved over at him and hollered. "GOKUUUUU! OVER HERE!"

The man looked up from his plate. His eyes went wide and he swallowed hurriedly. "Bulma?!" He set his plate down carefully and bounded over to Bulma, sweeping her up in a bear hug. "BULMAAAH! You're here!"

"Of course I'm here you big doofus!" Bulma laughed, allowing Goku to swing her about. "Now put me down! These are the guys I wanted you to meet!"

Nappa's jaw worked soundlessly for a moment as they stared at the mysterious man. "He's the spitting image of Bardock." He said quietly to Vegeta. Vegeta just stared at him, torn between the desire to fight him and remaining silent for Bulma's sake. Raditz was plainly dumbstruck.

Goku dropped Bulma and turned cheerily to the three stunned mercs. "Hiya! My name's Goku. Bulma says you know me from way back when?"

Raditz was the first to break free from his shock. "Kakkarot!" He darted forward and gripped the younger man's shoulders tightly. "It's you! Tell me it's really you!"

"Woah!" Goku easily shook off the other's grip. "Take it easy! I don't know if it's me or not!" He looked at each merc in turn. "I've been Goku ever since Grampa Gohan found me in the wilds. I don't know if I'm this Kakkarot or whatever kind of insane thing you think I am."

Nappa snapped out of his stupor. "It's Saiyan, you ingrate." He growled.

"Sorry. I couldn't think of the name." His eyes kept returning to Raditz. He frowned. "You know… you actually look kinda familiar."

"Kakkarot, it's me! Raditz!" Hope poured off Raditz in waves. "C'mon Kakkarot! It's me ya little bedbug!"

"Bedbug?! I'm not a…" He paused. Then Goku's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. He looked from Bulma to Raditz and back again. Bulma smiled broadly, hood thrown back from the bear hug Goku caught her in. She nodded and he swallowed thickly. "Ra… Rara?"

"Yes!" The long haired Saiyan opened his arms wide. "I'm your big brother, squirt!"

"No way!" Goku staggered back. "It can't be! I thought that was all a dream!" Then he came nose to nose with his brother and sniffed deeply. Raditz did the same. After a moment both men opened their eyes and grinned.

"BIG BROTHER!" Goku tackled Raditz in a hug.

"LITTLE BROTHER!" Raditz returned the hug just as fiercely.

"Idiots." Vegeta mumbled, unable to keep himself from showing the smallest smirk. The brothers were reunited. It was heartwarming even to the coldest of hearts.

Then Raditz proceeded to give Goku 18 years worth of noogies.

"AAAGH! STOPPIT RADITZ!" Goku cried out.

"I've missed you SO MUCH! This is for not telling me you were alive!" Raditz noogied harder. The group around them laughed as Goku struggled to get free. "Eighteen years Kakkarot! There's so much we have to catch up on!"

"Enough of that." Vegeta spoke tersely, warm fuzzies banished. Raditz released his brother with a cheeky grin. "There are more important things than your stupid sibling rivalry."

"Right. You wanna talk about freezer or whatever his name is." Goku nodded soberly. Then he beamed. "But forget about that for now! You gotta come meet my family!" And he gripped Raditz and tugged him off into the crowd. They were quickly lost to view.

Vegeta facepalmed. Nappa simply chuckled. "He's found a piece of his surviving family. Give him this." The old merc headed off after them. "I'll make sure he doesn't forget why we came."

Vegeta nodded. Then he turned to Bulma. "Woman, we should…"

Bulma was gone. His eyes went wide and he looked frantically from side to side. What happened? Where did she go?! He glanced to the wedding party and saw her familiar blue hair right next to… the weakling who left her.

Vegeta was stunned for a moment. She went to go talk to him? He growled vehemently and stalked toward them, warding people away with his angry aura. If the weakling even dared to harm a single hair on her head…

There'd be HFIL to pay.

Slightly earlier…

"B-Bulma?"

Bulma felt prickles run up and down her spine. She knew that voice. She had really hoped that he wouldn't recognize her. Swallowing back the butterflies, she reminded herself that Vegeta, Nappa, Raditz, and Goku were right behind her. Slowly she turned.

"Hi Yamucha."

Yamucha's jaw fell open. "Bulma! You're alive!"

Bulma was confused. "Of course I am alive. Did you think I was dead?"

"That's… that's what my…" Yamucha suddenly looked furious. "Come with me!" He grabbed her wrist and swiftly towed her away from the group.

"Ah! But wait! I…" She looked back. Everyone was watching the brothers hug. She was a little freaked at seeing Yamucha, but she smiled. Things were going right for them. They cared and she was strong enough to be worthy of that care. She took a deep breath and tugged her wrist free from Yamucha's grasp.

"Yamucha! We need to…"

"Lima!" Yamucha shouted at his new wife and gestured angrily at Bulma. "You told me Bulma was dead!"

Lima, the pretty brunet, looked wide eyed at Yamucha. "But I thought she was dead, dearest!" She looked at Bulma. Her eyes narrowed and Bulma immediately saw the dislike, the hatred, the jealousy there. "The police reports came back that way! I told you tha-"

"You lied to me!" Yamucha shouted. "You knew I was in love with Bulma! You knew that I would've gone back for her, but you convinced me to let the police handle it!" He grew angrier. "You told me that she left! That she didn't want me! That she died on the road somewhere! You LIED to me!" He was getting quite worked up.

"Yamucha I didn't…"

"LIAR!"

"YAMUCHA!" Bulma yanked on the back of the scarred man's collar. "Get a GRIP!"

Yamucha stared at Bulma for a second. Then he took a deep breath and grinned. "It really is you. I'm so glad you're alive Bulma." He turned and glared scornfully at his 'wife'. "You deceived me and used me. I don't want anything to do with you!" He ripped off the ring and threw it at her. "Consider this wedding null and void!"

The bride was shocked. The wedding party was shocked. The crowd around them was shocked. Bulma herself was shocked. "Wow Yamucha. That was harsh."

"She deserves it." He looked at her and his face softened. "I'm so sorry Bulma. This was a mistake. I was grieving and she took advantage of that. If I had known you were alive I'd…" He shook his head and took her hands up in his own. "Please tell me I haven't screwed things up for us. I still love you Bulma. I never stopped loving you. Please tell me you still want to get married."

Bulma was stunned. She was so convinced that Yamucha ditched her because he didn't care. But he was purposely misled?

Yamucha saw her dismay and dropped to one knee. There was an audible gasp from those around them. "Bulma, will you marry me? Everything is still set up. We can get married right here, right now, today."

"But I…"

"Don't worry about your father." Yamucha smiled winningly. "I know he'll approve. Please, let yourself be happy. I'll do everything in my power to make all your dreams come true. What do you say?"

"I… um…" Bulma looked out at the crowd to buy time. Her eyes flicked among the disbelieving faces. Was this really happening? Could she really get married to Yamucha? She had been wrong. He didn't stop caring; he was lied to and led astray. Marrying him would be an end to all her worries. She'd be taken care of for the rest of her days. She could be happy with Yamucha. Is that what she wanted?

Then she saw Vegeta.

He stormed through the crowd, people scurrying out of his way. He looked ready to murder someone. Then he saw her. His eyes went wide as he took in the scene. The merc was obviously shocked. Then she watched helpless as his eyes went dark and cold. He stood there motionless. Silent as a statue. Her heart clenched in her chest. She wanted to cry out to him. Tell him that this was all a misunderstanding, but was it really? She didn't know what to do. The crowd parted behind him and Goku, Raditz, and Nappa made their appearance.

"Vegeta! Glad we found you. You've gotta come meet Kakkarot's…" Raditz trailed off. He took in the sight before them and turned narrowed eyes to his prince. "What is this?"

Vegeta remained silent. The muscles in his jaw rippled in the effort it took to remain so. Nappa leaned over and said, "It's nothing good."

Goku looked from Vegeta to Bulma and back. He swallowed nervously. "Hey Bulma? What's going on?"

Yamucha finally clued in to the little group behind him. He stood up and turned around. "I just asked her to marry me!" He frowned at the group. "Hey, aren't you those mercs who live outside of town? Bulma, do you know these guys?"

"I…" Bulma started. Vegeta's eyes burned into her and she nodded firmly. "Yes. They saved my life."

Yamucha smiled though his eyes were wary. "Then I owe you a debt of thanks for saving my future bride's life. Please, if there's anything you need…"

"Wait a hot second! Future bride?" Raditz's eyes went wide. "You mean to tell me that you still want to marry Bulma? Even after you abandoned her to die on the side of the road and got married to someone else?! What kind of messed up jerkface ARE you!?"

"You have no right to her hand after treating her like that!" Nappa agreed loudly. "She deserves someone worthy! Not some easily swayed, two-timing, pig-faced, son-of-a-hamster!"

"No! It's not like that!" Bulma cried in Yamucha's defense. She didn't miss the darkening of the merc's faces as she did so. "He was misled and lied to! It wasn't his fault that he thought I left him and died!"

"Yeah! I had no idea she survived! I was taken advantage of while I was grieving!" Yamucha defended himself. "I still love her and would do anything for her!"

"Yeah, except when it comes to going out and looking for her despite the police reports!" Raditz spat at him, visibly angry. "Seriously! How gullible can you be?! Did you even care about her that much in the first place?! I bet you-"

"Enough!"

The group went quiet at the barked command. Vegeta glared impassively at Bulma, face betraying none of the turmoil in his gut. "We are done here." He nodded to Nappa and Raditz and turned to leave.

Raditz looked aghast at Bulma and Yamucha. "But sir! What about…"

"The woman makes her own choices." Vegeta ground out bitterly. "We've more important things to do." He stopped in front of Goku. "Kakkarot, meet us at the edge of the forest. We'll discuss things from there."

"Ah… Sure, but what about Bulma?" Goku replied. Vegeta ignored his response and set off through the crowd. People parted before him like a shoal of minnows before a shark. Raditz and Nappa swapped a look before hurrying after him. Goku looked from the group to Bulma. He gave her an uneasy shrug and headed in a different direction to find his wife and child.

Bulma was left on her own. Her heart hurt in her chest as she watched the mercs walk away. She wanted to call out to them. She wanted to cry out and tell them to wait. But she didn't. Yamucha was standing right beside her. She felt so conflicted.

What was she doing?

She looked at Yamucha and saw his uneasiness vanish with the merc's disappearance. He turned to her, concern on his face. "You okay?" She nodded and he sighed. "Bulma, I can't tell you how sorry I am. It must've been horrible out there all alone for so long. And you put up with those shady guys?" He shook his head. "I've heard some things. They've got blood on their hands. Killers and dirty mercs no doubt." He took her hands in his own. He smiled soft and sure. "But forget about them. We're together now and that's all that matters."

Bulma blinked a few times. Forget the guys who saved her life? Forget Vegeta?! Was he nuts?! Sure, he wasn't the dirtbag she thought he was, but he really wanted to put everything behind them? She couldn't do that even if she tried! She cared about them too much! Bulma was not the same person as she was before. Yes she knew Yamucha still loved her and cared for her, but he still abandoned her. Yes he was lied to and carried away by another woman, but he allowed himself to move on so quickly. He loved her enough to completely ditch that other woman for her, but would he do the same for another woman? Would she be the one he ditched the next time around?

And what about Vegeta? He wanted her to stay. Not marry him, not invent for him, not be a cook or perfect housekeeper for him. He just wanted her around. Vegeta liked her, she was certain of it. And she liked him too.

Kami, why was she struggling with this? The choice was obvious.

She smiled beatifically at the man. "Sorry Yamucha. It's been good to see you, but I've gotta run."

Yamucha blinked. "What?"

"Yeah." She dropped his hands. "I've got loads of things to do. Androids to build, plans to make, kingdoms to conquer, that sort of thing." She grinned up at him. "From the sound of it, you'd think I was turning into a proper villain."

"You're… wha…"

Bulma took pity on poor befuddled Yamucha. "I'm not marrying you Yamucha. I realized that you aren't the right guy for me. I'm sorry that I thought the worst of you when you didn't come back. Just goes to show that I'm not the right girl for you either."

"But Bulma, I love you!" Yamucha pleaded. "You can't just up and leave like that!"

"Yes, I can." She said simply. "I understand things better now. I know you didn't mean to leave me like you did and I forgive you, but I've moved on. I hope you will too." Then she glanced behind them to the bridal table. "But between you and me, you could do way better than Lima as a wife. Pick someone who's not desperate, yeah?"

"B-but…"

"You'll be fine." She reached up and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you for everything. Be seeing ya!" The blue genius winked and trotted off into the crowd. She was lost to view in a matter of seconds.

Later that day…

The three mercs waited at the edge of the forest in silence. Raditz and Nappa kept swapping glances over their enraged leader's head. Bulma did not come with them. Vegeta surely felt betrayed. After all, they didn't have knot-holes for eyes. They saw the way he looked at her. The two men looked at their shortest member and swallowed nervously. They could practically see the dark foreboding aura coming off him. But what could they really do? Their powerful leader wasn't so free with his feelings.

Nappa cleared his throat. "Vegeta…"

Dark eyes filled with loathing snapped to him and he fell silent. The old merc fidgeted under the intense gaze until Vegeta looked back in the direction of the road. He sighed. This was going to be much harder than he thought. There was no talking to Vegeta when he was like this.

But as usual, Raditz couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"This is stupid!" Raditz whirled on his leader. "Just go back and get her! Throw her over your shoulder and haul her back here!" Vegeta's glare made him hesitate for a split second, but he plowed on regardless. "That fool doesn't deserve her and you know it! And don't you give me guff about how she's made her own choice! We were supposed to protect her from crap like that!"

"Raditz…" Nappa said in warning.

"Oh shut up Nappa! I know you're thinking the exact same thing!" Raditz growled. "What gets me is that she's supposed to be this super genius or something! How could she have gone back to that jerk after all that?! How could she abandon us after all we've done for her?!"

"Raditz!" Nappa's warning increased in volume, but the long haired man paid it no mind.

"I mean, she liked you Vegeta! You saved her life! She saved your life! She should've come with us instead of going to talk with that idiot and now what?! Did you even tell her that you love-"

"Raditz." Vegeta grit out. "Shut. Up."

Raditz blinked. Then he scowled. "No. I won't shut up. I'm not afraid of telling you how it is! You're the coward who didn't tell Bul-"

The long haired merc was slammed into a tree. He didn't have time to wince when another punch came toward him like a thunderbolt. His eyes went wide and he ducked just in time. There was a cracking noise as the blow hit the wood and the tree snapped in half. Raditz fell back on his rump in awe as the tree crashed to the ground.

"I'm no coward!" Vegeta spat. He reached down and hauled Raditz up by his collar. "How dare you mock me?! Defeating Frieza is the only thing that matters! The woman means nothing!" He released Raditz viciously, sending him falling flat on his back. "She made her choice! She has no obligation to us! We don't need her! I don't need her! She went back to that weakling and that is the end of it! Bulma is gone!"

"Hey guys!"

The three mercs froze. As one, they spun around to see Bulma standing behind them. She held takeout in one hand and a pack slung over one shoulder. "I had to stop to get some supplies. We were running out of bandages back at the house." She held up the takeout. "Also I figured you guys might get hungry waiting for Goku. I'm sure Chichi is keeping him late."

The mercs kept silent, so Bulma kept on talking. "Also Vegeta, you just punched a tree in half. How is your hand not broken and bleeding?"

Vegeta straightened and schooled his features back into that cold impersonal mask Nappa and Raditz had seen on countless occasions.

"Woman, what are you doing here?"

"Helping plan the raid on the Kold empire of course." Bulma rolled her eyes. "What are you doing here Vegeta? Apart from some lumberjacking I mean."

"Don't you have a wedding to attend?" Sneered Vegeta. "You know. The one with the weakling you so honorably told us had been misled about your demise?"

"Wow, jealous much?" She looked at Nappa with a longsuffering sigh. "Vindictive little troll isn't he?"

Nappa chuckled a little. "You said it, not me."

"Tch." Vegeta crossed his arms and turned away. "If you are only here to volley insults, prepare to be sorely disappointed. We are here to speak with Kakkarot. Not to bandy words with wenches."

"Seriously? I come out here to explain myself and that's the response I get?!" Vegeta ignored her and Bulma's eye twitched. "Well this wench has a thing or two to say to you mister vertically challenged!" Vegeta twitched and Bulma grinned. "That's right ya midget! I've got a bone to pick with you! You think that I ditched you to hook up with Yamucha? You idiot! Who in their right mind would stay with a guy like that? Give me a little credit!"

Raditz smirked from where he sat on the forest floor. "I knew it."

"And how dare you say that I mean nothing to you?! If that's true, then why did you tell me you wanted me to stay?!" Nappa's jaw dropped and Raditz's eyes went wide. "I know you like me at least enough to want me around! Or was that all a lie?! As the last of his people, you'd think that prince Vegeta had enough courtesy to mean what he said!"

While Bulma ranted, Nappa and Raditz watched the back of their prince become even more rigid. Slowly, Nappa backed up to where Raditz was sitting. "I'm gonna sit this one out."

Raditz nodded. "Same." Then he watched Vegeta twitch as Bulma laid into him some more. "Bet he snaps soon."

And sure enough, Vegeta whirled on Bulma in a rage. "SHUT UP you LOUDMOUTHED HARPY!" He roared. "What do you know of keeping an oath?! You switch from one opinion to the other when the mood suits you! How dare you think that I don't mean every word that I say!?"

"So what are you trying to say?!"

"I wanted you to stay!" Vegeta came nose to nose with Bulma. "For some blasted reason, I enjoy your company and want you around! But if you were to leave and go after that weakling I WAS PREPARED TO LET YOU GO!"

"Should've brought popcorn." Raditz whispered to Nappa. The old merc nodded. They'd never seen Vegeta like this before.

"Why else would I have offered my home to you?! Why else would I be speaking to you now instead of breaking your legs and sending you back to where you came from?!" Vegeta gripped Bulma's shoulders. "You are a thorn in my side! You make me wish for more and it sickens me! How DARE you try to come back after choosing to marry that fool?!"

Bulma's mouth, which had dropped open in surprise, closed. "I didn't choose to marry him." She said softly. "I chose to throw my lot in with you guys. That's why I came back." She smiled at his astounded expression. "I want to stay with you ya big dummy. You cared for me more than anyone else in my life has. I don't want to give that up." He released her shoulders and she leaned in with a sly smile. "I've considered my options and decided I want you too."

Vegeta's surprised face immediately turned an interesting shade of red. He turned away from her and crossed his arms in an irritated fashion.

"Th-that doesn't mean anything." He said, trying to shut out the applause and cheers from his comrades. "I am pleased you wish to assist us in our endeavors. You may remain with us." He smirked at her. "As long as you stay out of the kitchen that is."

Bulma laughed and smacked him on the shoulder. "Oh shut up Veg-head."

"Wow Bulma!" Raditz said as he came over from his spot under the trees. "You talked down an angry prince of all Saiyans without bodily harm! I've never seen anyone do that!" He turned and grinned at Nappa. "Told ya she was a keeper."

"Idiots." Vegeta muttered, embarrassed beyond belief.

Soon…

"So that's the plan." Vegeta's sharp eyes pinned each member of their small group in turn. "We'll leave for the border at dawn."

"I don't know… This seems awfully risky." Raditz said hesitantly. "Are you sure about this?"

"Aw c'mon Raditz!" Goku boxed his shoulders playfully. "Don't tell me you're scared!"

"I'm not scared!" Raditz protested. "It's just… so many things could go wrong is all!"

"Well, that's common with any mission." Nappa said solemnly. He turned to Vegeta. "Only one question. If all goes as planned, then we will have a clean shot at Frieza. Are you certain you want to bring Bulma along?"

Vegeta swapped a look with the blue beauty. Her eyes were firm, confident and fierce. He smirked. "She belongs with us. Her input on the facility is invaluable. We'll do this together."

Under the table, Bulma's hand was held firmly in his. She squeezed his hand and smiled at the friends around her.

"Let's go kick Frieza's butt."

THE END