Reconnecting
She didn't particularly want him to come for a visit. She was having a harder time than her family accepting him after what he did to them. But she was the wife of the most forgiving man on the planet, and her son was following in his footsteps. Chi-Chi Son sat down at the kitchen table to start scaling another monstrous fish Gohan brought home. She was tired of having fish for dinner almost every day, but she didn't want to discourage her son, so she kept her peace. She picked up her knife and started cutting the scales off.
"Goku, I don't like him. I don't want him hanging around here too much. He'll be a bad influence on Gohan."
"Aw, he's not so bad, Chi," Goku said. He sat down in the chair next to her and rubbed her shoulders with one hand. "I know he made some mistakes, but you should give him a chance."
"I haven't thrown him out yet, have I?" she snapped.
"Well, no, but—"
"But nothing, Goku!" she shouted. She turned her head to face him, her scowl making her look years older than she was. "He's been here every day for the past four months! When do I ever get to see you? You're always out training with that brother of yours!"
"I know, Chi-Chi, but this Frieza guy is coming and we have to be ready for him!"
"I don't care about Freezer, or whatever his name is!" Chi-Chi slammed her hand down on the table, stabbing it with her knife. "You were gone for almost a whole year, Goku! A year!" She covered her face with her hands as tears welled up in her eyes.
"Please don't cry," Goku said, pulling her into his arms. "I'm sorry, Chi, I didn't know it bothered you so much. I'll call him at Capsule Corp and tell him to take a couple days off, ok?"
Chi-Chi buried her face in Goku's chest, her hands tightly gripping his training gi, and nodded slowly. "Thank you, Goku. It's not wrong for me to want some time with my husband, is it?"
Rubbing her back, he sniffed her hair and smiled. He loved her scent. It was warm and comforting, and it reminded him of some of his best memories. He hadn't known her too well when he married her, but over the past few years he had grown to love her. She was a wonderful wife; a bit high-strung and overbearing, but she meant well. She was pushy because she wanted what was best for her family, and he appreciated that about her.
After a while she sat up and brushed away her tears with the back of her hand. She sniffled a little and laughed at herself for her conflicting emotions. "Why don't you call now? He might already be on his way. I'm going to go get Gohan ready to visit his grandfather."
Goku stood up and crossed the kitchen. He picked up the phone and started dialing the number to Capsule Corporation. "He's visiting your dad?"
Chi-Chi grinned. "I just decided a minute ago he hadn't seen him for entirely too long."
"You know, I think you're right." Goku caught her hand and spun her around before pulling her against his chest. He tilted her chin up with his free hand and kissed her.
…
Mrs. Brief hung up the phone and ran out of the kitchen to catch Raditz before he left. She was heading upstairs when she saw him walking down the hall toward the front door. She waved her hand at him, but he didn't see her. "Raditz! Mr. Raditz!" She ran down the stairs and stopped him. "Goku just called and said you should take a couple days off from training. He has other matters he needs to attend to."
"Other matters?" Raditz frowned. "What other matters?"
The blonde woman covered her mouth as she giggled. "His wife, for one thing," she said, playfully elbowing him. "Those two lovebirds must need some time alone."
"Thank you for planting those disgusting mental images," Raditz groused. His face scrunched in a grimace as he gently pushed past Mrs. Brief to go outside. If he couldn't train with Kakarrot then he would train by himself out in the yard. He found Nappa outside furiously punching and kicking the air and circled around him to avoid being hit.
"What are you doing here?" Nappa asked. He never paused in his training.
Raditz leaned against the wall of the compound. "Kakarrot doesn't want to train today. Interested in a spar?"
Nappa grunted and stopped punching the air. "Been making much progress?"
"I think so." Raditz started stretching his arms. "I can almost keep up with Kakarrot now."
"Almost?" Nappa laughed. "And to think you almost killed him."
Raditz shrugged, chuckling. "Yeah, well his training in Otherworld gave him a pretty big advantage. I was stuck in a coma while he was learning some great techniques." He remembered him talking about the Kaio-ken technique and the spirit bomb. He hadn't seen either of them in action, but the way Kakarrot described them, they sounded incredible.
"Excuses. You ready?" Nappa moved into his fighting stance. He hadn't been gaining power as rapidly as either Raditz or Vegeta. It was just a sign that he was moving out of his prime while they were moving into theirs, so it didn't bother him too much. If anything, it was something to be proud of. Few saiyans reached his age. The ones who did were looked up to as mentors, having learned and practiced techniques they could teach the younger generations. He didn't think he'd be much help in the fight against Frieza, but he still had some tricks he could teach his prince and Raditz.
Raditz smirked and took his own stance across from Nappa. "Yeah, I'm ready. Don't go easy on me."
At lunch, Vegeta walked into the kitchen and saw both Nappa and Raditz sitting at the kitchen table already eating. Both of them looked beat up. Nappa had a black eye and Raditz's lip was busted. He sat down and start piling food onto his plate. "Why aren't you sparring with your idiot brother?"
Raditz swallowed his bite of food. "He didn't want to train today."
"And you didn't go over there and make him?" Vegeta sneered and emptied a bag of potato chips onto his plate. "You're going soft. It's disgusting."
The third-class saiyan shrugged and continued eating. He already knew Vegeta didn't particularly approve of his efforts to mend his relationship with his brother and his family. He thought it was weak the way he was making an effort to get along with Kakarrot simply because he was blood kin. He was still a brainless fool and a traitor to the throne of Vegeta-sei. Of course Vegeta would hold a grudge against him, being the prince of their race and all. Anyway, he was a good sparring partner and Raditz was steadily catching up to his power level. He was almost on par with Nappa now. He proved that in their spar before lunch.
Nappa grunted between bites. He would have pointed out to Vegeta that he was likewise going soft with the Briefs, but he didn't want his face pulverized. He tried to get Vegeta to train with him as much as possible, drawing him away from their host family. He could see that Vegeta was still very much attached to them, and if anything, he was growing more attached instead of less. He didn't think his prince could afford that liability when Frieza came to Earth to find him. The lizard could and would use them against him, threatening and taking their lives before his eyes. Vegeta was much better mentally than he had been for the first year and a half after he was put in isolation, but underneath his healthy exterior lay his madness, always there and ready to take over his mind. If the Briefs were killed, Nappa had no doubt that Vegeta would slip into madness again and never recover. He had to break free of his bonds with them. It was the only way he could survive.
It was because of his need to protect Vegeta that he kept trying to drive a wedge between him and the Briefs, making subtle comments to raise suspicion about their benevolence and generosity. He gave the whole family the cold shoulder, silently telling them to back off and leave him and his prince alone. They didn't seem to take the hint, and he hated them for it. They were making Vegeta weak. Maybe they really did care about him. He doubted that, but whether or not they did, they were ensuring his demise at the hands of Frieza. How hypocritical for Vegeta to dog Raditz about going soft when he was the one who had turned into a lump of clay in the humans' hands.
Mrs. Brief brought another plate of grilled salmon to the table and sat down across from Vegeta, smiling as he grabbed a large piece of fish and tore into it. She loved seeing him enjoying her cooking. She poured him a glass of water and folded her hands in her lap. Making sure they were fed was her top priority, so she usually waited to eat until the saiyans were done so she was sure they had their fill.
"You've been working so hard, sweetie," she said abruptly. "Why don't you take a little break from your training and help me with the shopping?"
Vegeta shoved another piece of fish in his mouth and looked up at her as he chewed. She was smiling at him. So she had been talking to him. He shook his head and swallowed, then took another bite.
"Oh, come on dear," Mrs. Brief insisted, "One hour won't hurt. It's hard for me to do all the shopping alone. You three go through an awful lot of food, you know."
The prince glanced over at the others, who were still shoveling food into their mouths almost faster than they could chew and swallow. He sighed and took another bite and a drink of water before he grudgingly nodded. If she needed help, then he would help her. He didn't think shopping was a very big deal, but then he had never actually gone shopping for groceries before. He winced when she giggled in triumph. He immediately knew it was not going to be a pleasant experience for him.
Nappa glared at the blonde woman, but she didn't notice. He was angry that she would distract Vegeta from his training, even if it was for only one hour. That was an hour better spent training. Didn't she care that the most powerful creature in the universe was going to come to her planet, ready to kill everyone and destroy everything? What an idiot. How she managed to rein Vegeta in to such a trivial task was beyond him. He made a mental note to keep her away from Vegeta as much as possible. She was poison to him.
Vegeta finished his lunch and pushed his plate away. He sighed and stood up, ready to go train some more, but he was stopped on his way out when Mrs. Brief grabbed his hand. "Why don't you go shower and change clothes, honey? I'll have a bite to eat and then we can go."
"Hn." Vegeta pulled away from her and left the kitchen. The way she smiled at him reminded him of why he was willing to give in to her request. The woman was absolutely insane, but she was like a mother to him. It was his duty to help her, to be there for her when she needed him. He rolled his shoulders back and lifted his chin proudly as he went upstairs and into his guestroom to shower.
When Raditz and Nappa finished eating, they got up and went back outside to continue training together through the afternoon. Some of their minor cuts and bruises were already mostly healed from their morning session, so they felt good going into their spar. They faced off and took their fighting stances.
"They're not good for him," Nappa said as he charged forward and started a flurry of punches that Raditz was barely fast enough to dodge.
Raditz caught one of Nappa's fists and swung him around several times before throwing him into the air. He chased after him with ki gathered in his hands. "I know. If he lets them keep distracting him from his training he'll never be strong enough to defeat Frieza."
Nappa hit the ki balls away and blocked a kick with his left knee. "We have to make him see what they're doing to him." He punched Raditz in the jaw and kicked his ribs.
"He doesn't want to see it," Raditz panted. He clutched his ribs with one hand and fired a beam of ki at Nappa's abdomen.
"Doesn't want to see what?"
The two saiyans looked down at the ground and saw Vegeta standing there with his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face. Behind him, Mrs. Brief was closing the front door and searching through her purse for her hovercar capsule. Nappa and Raditz lowered themselves to the ground and saw that Vegeta was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans, a plain black shirt, and a gray jacket. He almost looked human.
"Nothing, sir," Raditz murmured.
Vegeta sneered at them before turning to walk to the driveway behind Mrs. Brief. "That's what I thought."
Mrs. Brief tossed her capsule on the ground and got in the driver's seat when her car appeared. Vegeta walked around to the other side and got in the passenger seat. He buckled his seat belt – for once not having to be told to first – and crossed his arms over his chest. He still wasn't thrilled about shopping with her, thinking back on the shopping trips he had to endure when he was a boy. Of course that had been clothes shopping, which was probably worse. At least he was interested in food.
She rested her hand on his forearm and told him, "I'm glad you decided to come with me, Vegeta. It's so nice to get to spend a little time with you. You're such a busy man."
"Hn."
She started the engine and pulled out of the driveway. "I think Bulma would like to spend more time with you, too. I know she's been training with you, but I think she'd rather do something a bit more fun. You know, like going to see a movie or something."
Vegeta gave her a one-shoulder shrug. He didn't know or care if Bulma wanted to do anything 'fun' with him. He had much more important things to do. He had allowed himself to be distracted by her the last time he was on Earth and needed to train and work on his space pod, but this time he was determined to stay on task for her sake. For all of them, actually. He admitted to himself that he wouldn't mind seeing her more, but it simply wasn't an option for now.
Mrs. Brief turned right at a stoplight and continued down the street for several blocks, all the while chattering about senseless things Vegeta knew nothing about. He had no knowledge of gardening or cooking, which were Mrs. Brief's two hobbies and the only things she did seem to know much about. He grunted every now and then to show he was listening when really his mind was on other things. Namely, how to increase his power faster. Dr. Brief had mentioned he had come up with a way to help his training, but it wasn't complete yet and wouldn't be for another two weeks. He was eager to see what it was, but Dr. Brief insisted it was a surprise and wouldn't tell him anything more about it.
The saiyan groaned when he saw where they were going. Mrs. Brief pulled into a large parking lot filled with cars in front of an enormous building that was, presumably, filled with foods of all sorts. It wasn't that he wasn't interested to see what sorts of foods were available, it was more that he wasn't excited about being around so many humans. When she parked, he unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car. He was surprised when Mrs. Brief didn't capsulate the car as she usually did. When she came around the car, she linked her arm through his.
"Now, I know you're shy, sweetie, but don't worry," Mrs. Brief said, "There's a lot of people here but they won't pay you any mind. Stick close to me so you don't get lost."
"I'm not a child," he grumbled.
"Oh, of course not, dear," she said. They went through the automatic sliding door, which startled Vegeta, and she let go of his arm and got a cart. She set her purse in the child seat and pushed the cart down the first aisle with Vegeta trailing on her heels.
Vegeta sniffed the air and, despite having eaten a large lunch less than an hour ago, his mouth started watering. He could smell raw meat, fish, fresh fruit and vegetables, spices, sugar, and chocolate. He quickly forgot any doubts he had about accompanying Mrs. Brief on a shopping trip and decided this store was one of his favorite places on the planet. While he was looking around at all the options, Mrs. Brief pulled a lengthy shopping list out of her purse and started picking boxes, cans, and bottles off the shelves without seeming to look at what she was choosing.
She stopped when she picked up a box of sugary cereal. "You do like this kind of cereal, don't you, dear?" she asked.
He looked at the box. There was some sort of fat man with a bushy white mustache and wearing a ridiculous hat on the front. There were bright colors all over it. He shook his head and picked up a box that had a simple picture of a bowl of cereal. There were no obnoxious colors and no childish creature on it. He handed it to Mrs. Brief.
"Are you sure this is the kind you want?" she asked as she tossed the box into the cart.
"Hn."
"Alright then." Mrs. Brief pushed the cart to the next aisle and again started picking food off the shelves without ever stopping. Vegeta followed behind her, marveling at her ability to fill the cart with the right foodstuffs without even looking. He nearly bumped into her when she stopped abruptly. "Vegeta, would you be a dear and get me that box of macaroni on the top shelf?" She pointed to the largest box there was. "Actually, I'll need as many boxes as they have."
Vegeta could reach up and get the first box, but to get any more he had to levitate off the ground. He didn't think anything of it, and apparently neither did Mrs. Brief because she didn't say anything about it. He was sure that if Bulma had been the one with him she would have yelled at him for drawing attention to his superhuman powers, so he was glad Mrs. Brief didn't mind. He handed her all the boxes of macaroni and then dropped back down to the floor.
The cart was completely full by the time they got through two aisles. Mrs. Brief pushed the cart to a check-out station and started unloading the contents onto a conveyer belt. Vegeta watched her for a while before he started taking things out of the cart and putting them on the belt as well. He was irritated by the constant beeping that came from the other end, where an old woman with blue-gray hair, thick glasses, and hot pink lipstick was taking everything off the belt, swiping them over some kind of red light, and sliding it across a counter where a teenage boy with red hair and freckles was struggling to shove it all into brown paper bags.
When everything was out of the cart, Mrs. Brief pulled it to the other end where the teenager started putting the bags in the cart. Mrs. Brief took her purse out of the cart and pulled a small plastic card out of one of the pockets. Vegeta stood at her side, keeping an eye on the boy to make sure he didn't try stealing any of their food. The bagboy must have felt watched because he looked up at him, met his gaze for a second, gulped, and turned back to bagging the groceries.
The old lady pushed a button on the register and told Mrs. Brief, "That's 1,346 zeni, ma'am."
"Here you go," Mrs. Brief said happily as she handed the woman her plastic card.
The old lady swiped the card through some sort of machine and handed it back to Mrs. Brief with a slip of paper. Mrs. Brief pulled a pen out of her purse, wrote something on the paper, and handed it back to the cashier.
"Have a nice day," the woman said. She didn't sound like she meant it. Vegeta glared at her as he walked past.
"Thanks, you too!" Mrs. Brief chimed as she started pushing the cart toward the doors.
Vegeta walked alongside her, still looking around at everything in the store. "Is that all you're going to buy?" he asked when they got outside.
"For today," she answered. "I go shopping every day, sweetie. This is Monday, so I buy what I need from the first two aisles. Tomorrow I'll buy what I need from aisles three and four, and so on."
He didn't ask any more questions. He did feel a little guilty that he and his comrades went through so much food that she had to come here and spend so much money every single day. She didn't seem to mind, and he knew the Briefs had more than enough money to support their grocery bills, but he still didn't like that she had to spend so much time and money on them. When she wasn't sleeping, she was either cooking, washing the dishes, or going shopping. Her whole life revolved around the saiyans.
She opened the trunk of the car and started putting the grocery bags in. Vegeta gently pushed her away and put the rest of the bags in the trunk and shut it.
"Thank you, Vegeta," Mrs. Brief said as she took the cart to the nearest corral.
Vegeta got in the car while she put the cart away and buckled his seatbelt. She got in the driver's seat and turned the car on. "There, now that wasn't so bad, was it?"
"Hn." He looked out the window as she backed out of her parking space and turned out of the parking lot.
"I know it's not the most exciting thing to do," she said, "but it needs to be done. It was wonderful having you with me to help reach those things on the top shelf. And lifting those bags. Sometimes they're awful heavy."
When they got back to Capsule Corporation, Mrs. Brief opened the trunk and Vegeta grabbed some grocery bags and followed her inside. She told him to put them on the counter in the kitchen so she could put everything away. He went back outside and grabbed the rest of the bags, closing the trunk with his tail since both of his hands were full. He carried the groceries to the kitchen and set them down. He stood there a minute, watching her taking things out of the bags and putting them in the appropriate cupboards.
"Do you need help every day?" he mumbled.
"It would be nice," she said, "But I know you're a very busy young man. You don't have to go with me every day."
Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll go with you tomorrow."
Mrs. Brief giggled and folded up an empty bag. "If you want to, honey."
"Hn."
That settled, Vegeta went to the indoor garden to train until dinner. He had to make up for lost time, and the time he would be losing from every day from there on out. He stopped in his usual starting spot and began his kata. He had a lot of work to do for the next few hours because after dinner he would be busy training Bulma. After that, he might train another hour or two before bed, but most of his day was shot. The Briefs were consuming a good amount of his training time. He knew it, but he couldn't push them away when they needed him.
Being needed. What a strange concept to the saiyan prince. The only people he ever knew who needed him for anything were Raditz and Nappa, and he had never been much help to them, aside from taking the brunt of the punishment when they messed up. He kept them alive, but that was about it. For the most part, he left them to their own devices, only making sure they trained every day when they got lazy. They didn't need him in the same way the Briefs needed him. He still wasn't entirely comfortable providing his services to them. He felt ridiculous going to the grocery store with Mrs. Brief and he was getting frustrated with Bulma in their training sessions. The only thing that kept him going was the instinctual drive to help and protect his pack. That drive overruled any of his rational misgivings, aggravations, and humiliation.
Even a month ago he probably wouldn't have gone with Mrs. Brief to the store, let alone offered to go with her every day. He wouldn't have felt guilt for taking advantage of their resources. Though he had never been handed anything in his life, he had a deep-seated sense of entitlement, which meant the Briefs should spend all their time and money on him, making sure he is comfortable and that he has proper training time and facilities. But now, a month later, he didn't want to use them; he wanted to help them. He didn't want to take from them; he wanted to give to them. Their relationship was becoming more mutual. They cared deeply for him, and he cared even more deeply for them. He knew his attachments to them were strengthening, but for the first time he didn't even want to resist them. He wanted to give in, to know what it meant to truly belong. If that meant giving up some of his precious training time, so be it.
…
Bulma walked through the front door of the compound, a gust of early April wind blowing in behind her. Shivering, she set her briefcase on the table in the hall and unbuttoned her coat. She hung it in the hall closet and ran her hands through her hair, trying to tame the tangled mess. "When is it ever going to warm up?" she groused as she headed for the kitchen to get a cup of tea before dinner.
She spent the day at headquarters attending meetings and reading contracts. Not the most exciting day for the adventurous heiress, but it needed to be done. The only bright side was that she got some human interaction other than talking with her parents. Not that she minded talking to her parents and hanging out with space aliens, but sometimes she needed a break from them. She walked into the warm kitchen and sniffed the air. She could smell fresh bread baking.
"Hey, Mom," she sighed as she went to the cupboard to get a mug and tea leaves.
Mrs. Brief glanced up from the kettle of soup she was stirring. "Hi there, sweetie. How was work?"
"Boring." Bulma filled the tea kettle with water and put it on the only burner on the stove not covered with pots and pans. She turned on the fire and leaned against the counter next to her mother.
Mrs. Brief giggled. "That's what you always say."
"It's always true. I hate working at the office. I'd rather be in my lab."
The blonde woman raised the spoon to taste the soup. She smacked her lips and smiled. It was almost perfect, but it needed a little more spice. "Could you hand me the oregano, dear?"
Bulma looked through the jars of spices lining the counter. There were at least a dozen there. The picked up the oregano and handed it to her mother. "I know I'm supposed to take over the company when Dad retires, but I don't think I want to."
"Don't be silly, dear, you've dreamed of being president of Capsule Corporation your whole life." Mrs. Brief shook the oregano into the soup without bothering to measure it. She tasted it again and nodded in satisfaction. It was just right.
Bulma shook her head. "No, you and Dad have dreamed of me being president my whole life." She turned off the fire under the tea kettle when it started whistling.
Mrs. Brief shrugged. "You're the only one who can take over. Would you like to taste the soup?"
"Sure." She took the spoon from her mother and tasted the soup. "It's good. Might need a little more salt."
"I thought it might." Mrs. Brief started shaking some salt into the soup.
Bulma poured the boiling water into a tea pot and added the tea leaves. She looked at the clock so she would know when it had steeped for exactly three minutes. "Well, in any case, I hope he doesn't retire too soon because I don't want the company. He can keep it as long as he wants. I don't mind being vice president, but that's because I still get to work here most of the time."
After three minutes, she poured the tea through a strainer into her mug and carried it to the kitchen table. "Hey, I know, why don't we have Vegeta take over?" she joked.
Giggling, Mrs. Brief shook her head. "I don't think he'd be interested, dear."
"Neither am I."
The blonde ignored that comment and opened the oven to pull out the loaves of bread. She set them on cooling racks and brushed melted butter over them. "Would you set the table, honey?"
"Yeah." Bulma stood up and went to the cupboards to start gathering bowls, plates, glasses, and silverware. "You know, if we keep these saiyans around we might need a bigger table."
"I've already ordered one, dear."
"You what?" Bulma rolled her eyes. "Guess it's official then. We have three permanent saiyan residents."
"Maybe." Mrs. Brief pulled a knife out of a drawer and started slicing the bread. "I know Vegeta will stay with us."
"How will Yamcha feel about that?" Bulma murmured. She set the table and sat down to drink her tea. She didn't want to think about how Yamcha and Vegeta would get along. She already knew: not well. Her parents weren't worried about it, but she was. But she made up her mind that she wasn't going to give up on either one of them. She was going to marry Yamcha and she was going to let Vegeta stay at Capsule Corporation. If they tried to force her to choose between them, she would leave and let them settle their differences on their own. Hopefully without trying to kill each other.
"Did you see Mr. Nappa and Mr. Raditz outside when you came in?" Mrs. Brief asked.
"No, but I think I heard them out back."
"Alright. I'll go tell them dinner is ready."
Bulma sipped her tea and waited a few minutes before her mother came back to the kitchen. She started bringing the food over to the table. Soon, the saiyans started trailing into the kitchen, their bodies glistening with sweat and covered in wounds. Nappa and Raditz collapsed in their seats, and surprisingly the chairs held up under their weight.
Vegeta turned down the hall to go to the kitchen when he saw the front door open and Dr. Brief blew in, clutching the evening newspaper under his arm and holding his briefcase in his hand. His other hand was already unbuttoning his coat. He looked up and saw the flame-haired saiyan. "Ah, Vegeta, my boy, good to see you."
"Hn." Vegeta stopped in front of the kitchen door and waited for Dr. Brief to hang up his coat and set his briefcase on the table next to Bulma's. He opened the door and went in, holding it open for Dr. Brief behind him.
They sat down at the table where the others were already waiting for them. Dr. Brief unfolded his newspaper and started reading while Mrs. Brief served the food. "Sorry I got home so late, dear. I had a devil of a time getting out of the office."
"That's alright, sweetie," Mrs. Brief said.
Their meal went peacefully, with Dr. Brief occasionally making comments about the articles in the paper and Mrs. Brief asking if anyone wanted more food. Bulma didn't say much, and as always the saiyans were silent while they ate. It had become a sort of routine for them, a comfortable silence when they could enjoy each other's company and relax after a long day.
When he was finished eating, Vegeta pushed his chair back from the table to get up and leave to train more. He looked expectantly at Bulma and noticed for the first time that she wasn't wearing training clothes. She was wearing a blue blouse, a gray suit jacket with matching gray slacks, and black high heels. "What are you wearing, girl?"
"What do you mean? It's called a suit, Vegeta. People wear them when they go to work." She stood up and stretched. "I didn't have time to change before dinner. I'll meet you outside in a few minutes." She walked out of the kitchen and headed upstairs to her room to change.
Vegeta was left standing in the kitchen, rather confused. "Work?"
"She means work at headquarters, Vegeta," Mrs. Brief explained. She got up and cleared the dishes off the table to wash. "She hasn't been to the office much since you've been here but she had to go in today for some meetings."
"Hn." Well, that explained why he hadn't seen her at lunch. He hadn't thought much of it. It wouldn't have been the first time she skipped lunch when she was busy in her lab working on something.
Vegeta went outside and stretched while he waited for Bulma to come out. When she finally appeared she was again wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt. He thought that was unnecessary, considering the weather was improving. It was above freezing, though the wind was still bitterly cold.
"Ok, I'm here," she said as she ran across the lawn to him. She stopped and immediately started stretching. "What're we going to work on tonight?"
"Blocks."
"Fun."
"Hn." He didn't need to explain to her that a strong defense was just as important as a good offense. He'd already told her many times before. Maybe learning defensive techniques wasn't as interesting as attacks, but they could save her life. That was what concerned him.
Bulma finished stretching and took her fighting stance – improved since Vegeta had been training her – and waited for him to give her some instructions. She was thrown off guard when he swung at her with a right hook. She automatically raised her left arm to block, but while she was doing that he caught her with a left uppercut. She staggered back a few steps and rubbed her chin. "Vegeta, seriously, go easy on me! We're not fighting for real. Damn that hurt."
He rolled his eyes. "I'm trying to go easy. But I am over a hundred times stronger than you."
"Granted." She sighed and took her stance again. "You didn't tell me you would use both hands."
"Neither would someone who's trying to kill you."
"You're not trying to kill me," she reminded him. "So at least let me know what to expect."
"Fine. I'm going to use both hands. And if you're doing well enough I might just start using my legs too." A few punches later, he again hit Bulma, this time in the abdomen. She grunted and doubled over in pain.
"You're too fast," she groaned.
He snorted. "You're not fast enough."
"It's the same thing!"
"That all depends on where you want to place the blame. You like putting it on your opponent. You're mad that I'm stronger and faster. Will you also blame Frieza's soldiers for being stronger and faster, or will you admit that you're not strong and fast enough to fight them? They're not going to lower themselves to your level. It is your job to raise yourself to theirs."
"Whatever."
"And remember to contract your abdominal muscles."
"Yeah, yeah." Bulma took her stance one more time. "Maybe I should try sparring with someone closer to my level."
Vegeta feinted to the right and brought his left arm around to strike her ribs, but she blocked with her forearm. He drew his arms back and tried another assault aimed at her face, but she managed to block every one of his hits. "Who would you spar?"
Bulma ducked under a hook and crossed her arms in front of her chest to block a kick. "I was thinking Chi-Chi might be up for it. She used to be a fighter too."
When she jumped over his sweep kick he caught her leg with his tail and swung her to the ground. He stood up and crossed his arms over his chest while he waited for her to get up. "Kakarrot's harpy?"
"Goku's wife, yes." Bulma stood up and dusted herself off before resuming her stance. "She was actually stronger than me a few years ago. She made it to the quarterfinals in the World Martial Arts Tournament." She caught one of Vegeta's fists in her hand and blocked the other with the palm of her hand.
"But you're stronger than her now," he said as he spun to deliver a roundhouse kick. She blocked with her left leg and hit his left fist away from her.
"Probably. I don't think she's trained much since she married Goku."
He brought his knee up to kick her gut, but she blocked with both hands, leaving her open to attacks with his fists. He punched her face with his left hand. She fell to the ground and rubbed her cheek. She felt tears forming after that one.
"I hope that doesn't leave a bruise."
"Does she know ki manipulation?" Vegeta grabbed her arm and dragged her up to her feet, ready to go again.
Bulma shook her head. "I don't think so." She raised her hands defensively and nodded for him to go ahead. "Just basic martial arts."
Vegeta's kick was blocked with her right arm and his right uppercut was stopped by her left hand. "Fine. Train with her three days a week and I'll train you how to use your ki the other four."
"Assuming she wants to." Bulma fell for another feint and took a hard elbow in the ribs. She gasped for air, struggling to stay on her feet.
"She will if she hopes to live."
"I'll call her tomorrow."
"Hn." Vegeta waited impatiently for her to shake off the pain and take her stance for another round of blocking. They continued like that for an hour before Bulma collapsed on the ground, panting for breath. He was pushing her to her limit when it came to speed and she still wasn't able to keep up.
"I can't," she breathed, "Can't go any more."
Vegeta sighed and paced back and forth a few steps. He wanted her to keep going. She was getting the hang of blocking all his attacks, and she was no longer surprised by multiple limbs flying at her simultaneously. She was a fast learner, but her body wasn't responding as quickly. She needed work on her ki if she ever hoped to increase her speed enough to hold up a solid defense. "Fine. Go to bed, girl."
She glared up at him. "No, Veggie. It's too early for bed."
"Fine. Go do whatever you want. I don't care. I have training to do."
Having caught her breath, Bulma stood up and stretched her aching muscles. She was probably going to have some nasty bruises from her training session with Vegeta. "More training? All you do is train! Why don't you take the rest of the night off and relax a little? We could watch a movie or something."
"I don't have time for such trivial things," he immediately responded.
She huffed and pushed her sleeves up over her elbows. "Yeah, that's what you always say." She went inside the compound, slamming the door closed, and headed upstairs to her room to take a long, relaxing bath before bed.
The next morning, Bulma stayed true to her word and called the Son residence after finishing her breakfast. Vegeta and the other saiyans had already left to train and her father was helping clear the dishes from the table before leaving for work. Bulma leaned against the counter while she waited for someone to pick up on the other end. The phone seemed to ring an infinite number of times before she finally heard someone answer.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Chi-Chi! This is Bulma."
"Hi, Bulma." The homemaker sounded distracted, probably keeping an eye on her son to make sure he was keeping his nose in the books. "Don't tell me Raditz wants to come over to train today. Because if he does, you can just tell him—"
"No, Chi, it's not Raditz I'm calling about. Actually, I was wondering if you would be interested in training with me a few days a week." Bulma bit her lip as she waited for a reply. It was slow in coming.
"You want me to train with you? Why?"
Bulma sighed. "Well, Vegeta says we should be ready for when Frieza comes too. He'll bring his army and there'll be soldiers everywhere. He wants us to be strong enough to defend ourselves against him."
"By 'we', you mean 'me,' right?"
The blue-haired woman laughed nervously. She couldn't pull the wool over her friend's eyes. "Technically, yes. But he's got a point. Look, I know you're a good fighter, Chi, and I need a sparring partner closer to my level. I can't keep up with the saiyans. And I think it would be good for you, too. I don't want you to get hurt when Frieza comes."
There was the sound of Chi-Chi screaming at someone to put down a cookie, some whining from a grown man, and a little boy's laughter. Chi-Chi sighed. Bulma could practically see her rubbing her temples as she fought off a headache. "Just a few days a week?"
"Yeah. Like three days. Not too much. Just enough to get us in shape."
Bulma heard some muttering about needing to lose a few pounds and wanting to be able to catch Gohan when he decided to climb out the window and run off. "Alright. When do you want to start?"
Bulma grinned. "How about this afternoon? I can come after lunch and you can get dinner started, then we can spar."
"Wonderful. I'll see you later."
"Bye." Bulma hung up the phone and left the kitchen to go get dressed and ready for another boring morning at headquarters. She decided to pack her training clothes with her so she wouldn't have to stop at the compound before leaving for Mount Paozu. She was excited about sparring with Chi-Chi. They had never trained together before, but she saw her using modified Turtle techniques at the World Martial Arts Tournament that had been very impressive. If she wanted to practice blocking and dodging fast strikes, Chi-Chi was the woman to go up against. She didn't have brute strength, but the speed and precision of her hits was what made her a formidable adversary.
'It'll be good to see her again anyway. And Goku and Gohan. We haven't visited much lately.' Chi-Chi was always too busy cooking and cleaning to come to West City, and Bulma was far too busy with work to take spontaneous trips to Mount Paozu. It was going to be hard to make the time to fly out there three times a week, but she figured it would be worth the hassle. She would improve her fighting technique while spending time with another woman friend. That alone was enough to make her want to do it. She was around men way too much. It was about time she spent time with another woman.
A/N: So here's the early chapter, as promised! Of course that means you'll have to wait longer for the next one (Tuesday), but you'll manage, I'm sure. I finally finished chapter 57, and I think it actually turned out quite well, so that's good news.
Okay, so there was a lot of debate over the power levels of the characters as stated in the last chapter... hm, let me try to explain. Goku's power level isn't "too high" because his previous level of ~10,000 was not powered up... ~25,000 is his current maximum power, and he's been training with Raditz for a while, which explains why both of their power levels have increased so much - Remember, Raditz was only at 4000 before he was put in a coma. Nappa and Vegeta likewise have been training together, beating each other up, recovering, etc. along with getting adequate nourishment, so their power levels have risen accordingly. Gohan and Piccolo have been training together, which is why they've about doubled their power since the fight with the saiyans (in only two months, mind you; that's pretty fast improvement). Basically, the saiyans are going to grow much faster than everyone else because they're going to keep beating each other senseless in their training. Then once the gravity room is introduced... explosion of power. The other warriors are training, but they're not growing much faster than in canon, which is why I didn't list their power levels. Tien is a lot stronger than canon, so his power is probably over 7000 by now.
Beta'd by lilpumpkingirl
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