-A few days later-
Gohan sat in his history class, trying to keep up with the terms that the teacher told them, but he didn't know what half of them meant. He sighed and put his chin on his fist and looked out the window. It was a nice day and he'd rather be playing out in the forest rather than stuck here learning about a past and history that no one seemed willing to explain to him. As he looked out the window, he let his mind wonder about.
Over the last few days he's been approached by several handsome young men, some interested in how he gained the prince's favor, while others wanted to get in his pants. He frowned a little remembering how some of them let their pheromones ferment the air and well they ranged from over steamed beef to rotting food; in other words: they weren't potential mates, more like potential nausea.
"... after the civil wore, their majesties' family came into power, the Sei family is very power and has been the longest empire to date- I want those notes on my desk first thing next week; dismissed."
Gohan got up and packed his belongings before he left the classroom, making his way outside and instead of heading for his dorm, he went towards the wood's edge and disappeared into the treeline. As he walked along the familiar path, he kept thinking back on the last few days.
One of his biggest concerns was mating season, since this would be his first time going into heat and well, he wasn't exactly keen on getting mated at such a young age and even worse when he thought about being with someone he'd never love or hated with a passion; not like he could ever hate anyone.
'What am I going to do? Looking for a potential mate is grandpa's number one concern at the moment because he doesn't want what happened to daddy to happen to me... But no one's shown an interest in me...'
Liar!
He jumped hearing the voice and felt panic buildup in his throat like bile, but before he could freak out, an image appeared in his head. Prince Sei Vegeta.
He's a fine man! Do not be daft, boy, take him as your mate! He's courting you and you have not declined his advances!
The voice hissed and he blinked, realizing for the first time that it was right. Vegeta had appeared every day after class let out or he'd have a gift delivered to him. He still had the box of sweets, he got breathtaking flowers and he even scent him a small box that had a book in it, a fairy tale book. He blushed wondering how the prince found out about his guilty pleasures, but was kinda glad. The gifts were simple, but they spoke volumes since he taken his time to select each and everything and made sure it was perfect and delivered properly.
'But he's a prince... He'd never show interest in someone as pathetic as me...' Gohan thought, getting depressed.
Boy... Look behind you.
Gohan blinked as he turned and nearly jumped out of his skin seeing Vegeta leaning on a tree not too far from where he had stopped to look at the flowing river, which he hadn't realized that he reached while deep in his thoughts. When the realization wore off he immediately ducked his head to hide his face and his eyes, his tail curling over his leg shyly.
"Your highness! I didn't know you where there..." He said, risking a quick glance up and then quickly looking down again. "What are you doing out here?"
"The same as you. Hiding away for a while..." Vegeta said, smirking.
"But I'm not-"
"Don't lie; you're not very good at it." Vegeta cut him off, teasing him a bit as he got the reaction he wanted, a cute little pout and a tinting of the cheeks.
He pushed off the tree and Gohan gulped and shrank back a little as the older, bigger male approached him. He flinched slightly when a gloved hand reached up and touched his heated cheek. When nothing happened he slowly peeked open an eye and looked at the prince with confusion.
"There's no reason to be afraid. I will not hurt you; I will not force you to do anything... I just want your acceptance." He breathed softly.
Gohan gasped in shock and blushed brightly, dark brown eyes growing wide. Vegeta took a advantage and slowly brushed his lips over Gohan's in a butterfly light kiss. It was barely a brushing of skin, more like a teasing of body heat before he pulled back and turned to fly off.
"I shall call on you soon... I pray you will accept me." He said and took off as Gohan sank to his knees in a daze, his face a vibrant red as he lightly touched his lips.
… Do you still doubt he is interested, boy?
-Later that evening-
Gohan was still flushed in the face when Cayenne came in. The other Saiyan was excited about something as he came running into the room.
"Gohan- Eh? Are you alright; you look flushed..." Cayenne asked, worried as he touched Gohan's flushed cheeks.
"... I'm fine... Um, you look excited. What's going on?" Gohan asked, shaking his friend's hands from his face as he smiled at him.
"... Well..." he began, still looking unsure of his friend's condition. "I talked to Devon this afternoon, when I was leaving study hall... some of the other dominants got a little rough with me and he protected me. After he chased them away, he asked if I was okay. I told I was fine and he said., 'Good, I don't want anyone messing with my Iompróir.' Gohan! He asked me out!"
"EH!" Gohan gasped, the flushed pink going as his dark eyes got a few shades lighter as he looked at his happy friend.
Cayenne's dark gray eyes sparkled as he nodded and he pulled his long cayenne pepper red hair over his should to show a dark purple ribbon with a crest sewn into the end's.
"Devon gave you the ribbon!"
"Hai! Apparently, he was listening on our chat about Earth courting and he figured he try it out instead of using one of the Saiyan ones."
"The ribbon is a gift?"
"It's an engagement gift... you're looking at the future Atlis Cayenne... My mother and father will have heart attacks when they hear!" Cayenne cried happily and Gohan couldn't help but join him in his happy dance.
He was so glad for his friend, secretly hoping that one day his own prince charming would sweep him off his feet.
"Well Paprika Cayenne, you're on your way to being a happy mated man!"
Cayenne nodded as he couldn't stop smiling. Gohan had been right about that fuzzy feeling and smiling like there was no tomorrow...
-Time Skip-
Gohan sat in his room, gasping for air. Cayenne was out at a formal dinner an sleeping at the Atlis house after being introduced as Devon's mate-to-be. So that left him all alone for the night, but he didn't mind that was until now.
He felt so dizzy, but he had fine until a few seconds ago. He stumbled over his own feet and crashed onto his bed, trying to breathe, but the more he took deep breaths the dizzier he got. He looked up at the moon and saw that it was red.
Sleep, soon you will take and bear many...
He moaned, that voice was back! He reached for the scouter on the beside table, though he didn't need it, and pressed the communication button. It flickered to life and all he could gasp out was a weak plea for help...
-Royal Palace; Communications Room-
"...help...please..."
"Hey! Hey! Shit!" shouted a fish like alien as he shot up and ran to the throne room. The curtains had been drawn shut and the prayer ceremony to the red moon was going on.
He gulped before sneaking in, knowing that Saiyans had keen hearing and moved quickly to find Burdock. The Admiral was by the king and he glared at him from the corner of his eyes as he knelt beside him and muttered in his ear what he had to say before Burdock was up and out the door, swearing rather beautifully as he went.
The alien gulped as the King gave him an ice cold glare and so did the Prince. The other Saiyans let out low threatening growls and he quickly left, knowing that he just interrupted a sacred ceremony, but he needed to, someone was in danger and sounded like they were dying. He told Burdock it was from the academy.
'I'm a dead man...' he thought as he waited outside the thrown room for his demise...
-Academy-
Burdock threw open the doors and ordered all the instructors to have the rooms checked. They didn't question him, they just knew that he was panicked about something. They searched every dorm and every room, waking up most Saiyans, interrupting a few others, and scaring the rest half out of their wits.
"Dorm's A-D have all been checked, nothing, sir!"
"That leaves the Iompróirí Dorms... SHIT!"
They all ran off for the dorms and kicked in the doors, they got all the rooms checked, moved the Iompróirí moved out into the halls as they made sure all of them were accounted for. Burdock got to the last room with two of the instructors and they all instantly felt their bodies heat up and felt something primal pulling them in.
"Whose room is this?"
"Paprika Cayenne, Son of Pepper and Salt. And Son Gohan, Son of Kakarot and Cornelius." One man said, falling to his knees, gasping to try and fight back his instincts.
Burdock opened the door and peeked into the room. Gohan's bed was right in his line of vision and he could see the boy was sprawled out over the bed. He quickly ran in, the room was literally soaked in the scent coming from his grandson. He checked for a pulse and picked him up. He cried out when his Ki flared and burned his hands a bit.
He dropped Gohan back on the bed and looked at his hands and hissed before he blinked, why was the room bathed in a pinkish red glow-
He looked out the window to see the three moons of Vegetasei in the sky. The first moon was glowing a bright red.
"Brídeach an Gealach Dearg." He breathed and then spun around and slammed the door shut as hard as he could, smirking hearing twin yelps of pain. "Back off! Do not come near here!"
He heard the two shuffle away, but he didn't move from the door. The scent was strong, too strong. He couldn't believe that one of Vegetasei's oldest legends was true. And it was his own grandson. He couldn't touch Gohan, but the least he could do was guard him until morning.
He looked over the room and found a burner and some strong incense. He lit the burner and put the liquid in the dish and kept his head over it. The potent smell of the incense would keep his nose stuffed for a few hours.
After he blocked his nose, he got on his knees and bent over, covering his eyes as he muttered an old prayer his own grandmother taught him.
"Bolg le gréin a dhéanamh i ionraigh an ghealach dearg, bheannaigh t-iompróir agus nua beo a thabhairt dúinn. (Bask in the glow of the red moon, blessed carrier, and give us new life.)"
-Next morning-
The doors to the Iompróirí dorms flew open as Vegeto and Vegeta walked in, an armed escort with them. Kakarot and Radditzu were there as well, both having that nagging feeling a mother gets. And believe me, telling them no was the last thing that anyone of the Elites wanted to do. Students and instructors all bowed deeply seeing the king and prince.
"Your majesty, we didn't except that you were coming... Please forgive the mess."
"Where is Burdock?"
"He's upstairs sitting with the young Iompróir. He fell ill last night and we haven't heard a word since."
"Which one?"
"My roommate, sire...Son Gohan." Cayenne said, stepping forward and bowing deeply to the king.
Kakarot gasped and ran up the stairs with Radditzu on his tail. It was a while before they came back down, Gohan was being supported between his father and uncle as Burdock came down carrying a couple of bags.
"You three! Get you asses up stairs and pack up the rest of my grandson's things! And if you miss anything or break anything, I will skin you alive with a rusted wooden spoon!" Burdock yelled and the three instructors he indicated ran up the stairs, tripping over their own two feet, one of them stepping on his own tail.
Vegeto took one look at the boy and new instantly something was either terribly wrong or horrifically right. He took the bags from Burdock and hurried out the building, Vegeta following like a shadow behind Gohan, flaring his Ki to see off a lot of scouters, smirking when he heard many gulps of how much power he had when all he did was relax a little to let some of it peek out.
As soon as the Son Family was in the coach, Vegeto grumbled darkly and turned to his son.
"You and Nappa go to the mines and bring Cornelius here. He has a right as the sire to know that his son is ill. Go now!"
"What about the execution?" Nappa asked.
"That'll have to wait."
"Yes, sir." With that the two left.
Vegeto turned to leave, but was stopped by Cayenne's voice.
"Your majesty? May I come? I want to make sure that Gohan's okay..."
"Hai, Iompróir." He said and offered his hand to the young man and led him out to the second coach that had just arrived...