Revival
Bulma grinned and set the last of the devices on her desk in her laboratory. Finally completed. There were five of them, and they were all working properly. She carefully packed them into her brown leather messenger bag and ran out of her laboratory. Her friends were waiting for her upstairs. The tension had eased between them over the past two weeks and they were back on good terms with each other. Perfect timing, because she needed their help now. She ran down the hall to the living room where they were gathered.
"Hey everyone," she said as she came into the room. She looked around at them all; Raditz and Nappa standing near the door, Goku and Gohan sitting on the floor in front of the couch where Tien, Chiaotzu, Krillin, and Roshi were seated, Oolong and Puar sitting with Launch in one of the recliners, Vegeta sitting by himself on the loveseat, and Piccolo hovering off the floor in the corner meditating. "I just checked them all and they're ready."
"That's great, Bulma," Goku cheered. "You ready to get your fiancé back?"
Bulma's grin broadened. "Yeah, I'm ready! Okay, so here's the plan…" she opened her bag and pulled the dragon radars out, then went around the room handing them to Gohan, Goku, Krillin, and Tien. "We're all going to be traveling in groups. Raditz and Goku will be Team 1. Team 2 will be me, Nappa, and Vegeta. Tien, Chiaotzu, and Launch are Team 3, Roshi, Oolong, Puar, and Krillin will be Team 4, and Piccolo and Gohan are Team 5. Any questions so far?"
No one raised any questions, so Bulma continued, "We have to find all the dragon balls today. We used them exactly one year ago and Vegeta and Nappa arrived exactly one year ago. So, that means we have to make our wish today if we want to bring everyone back who died."
Oolong frowned and crossed his arms. "And what happens if we don't find them all?"
Bulma's smile faltered. "Then they can't be brought back." She cleared her throat. "So you see, we have to work fast. Teams 1 and 2 will both be searching for two balls since their members move the fastest. Once you've found your ball, go to Mount Paozu and wait."
Gohan raised his hand. "Shouldn't we help find more balls if we get our ball right away?"
The blue-haired leader shook her head. "No, we need you to get to take your ball to the designated meeting spot as soon as you get it and stay there so if any whack-job tries to come steal them, there'll be someone there to keep them safe. Chi-Chi will be there, but if more than one person comes, she might have trouble. We're not taking any chances with this operation."
"Do you really think anyone else will be looking for the balls this time?" Tien asked.
Bulma shrugged. "I hope not. It would save us a lot of time if we don't have to fight for them for once."
Krillin laughed. "Yeah, and no more pirate robots!"
Bulma chuckled. "Alright, if you're holding a dragon radar, turn it on." There were five beeps. "Okay, you should be able to see all seven balls now. Team 1 will get the balls in the east quadrant, districts 390 and 143. Team 2, south quadrant 691 and 512. Team 3 will get the ball in west quadrant 885. Team 4 will get the ball in west quadrant district 1039, and Team 5, your ball is in north quadrant 1167. Does everyone know where you're going?"
Everyone nodded or grunted in the affirmative, so Bulma reached into her bag and pulled out four capsule cases. "These cases are packed with everything you should need. Submarines, weapons, excavation tools, jets, cars, extra food, and money." She handed the cases around and then reached into her bag again. "These are communication devices, modeled after the saiyans' scouters. I have one for each team so we can talk if we need to. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it and please report when you've found your dragon ball. Okay, guys, I think that's everything, so if you're ready, let's go!"
The others all stood up, some stretching and yawning, and headed outside to get started on the hunt for the dragon balls. It was different, searching for them in groups like this. They never had so many people on the same side looking for them before. It would hopefully go much faster. They didn't have days or weeks to travel around the planet. They had one day to do it, and damnit they were going to do it.
Bulma was the last one to leave the compound. She was wearing a pair of hiking boots, jeans, a sweater, and a light jacket, but goose bumps rose on her arms in the chilly October morning air. She stood on the front step, watching her friends take off into the sky to begin their searches. There was only one team using a jet because only one member could fly. That was why she gave Team 4 the closest dragon ball since they would be the slowest.
Honestly, she didn't know if they needed so many groups. They could all fly pretty fast, but she didn't want to take any chances. Better to have it done with plenty of time to spare than to wait until the last minute. She descended the last step and tucked her dragon radar and capsule case in her bag. She put the communicator on and walked over to where Vegeta and Nappa were waiting for her. "Alright, guys, what do you say we go find those dragon balls?"
"About time," Vegeta grumbled. He wrapped his arms around Bulma and took off to the south with Nappa close behind. They flew high in the atmosphere where the air was thin and cold. Bulma was glad Vegeta was holding her. Her sweater and jacket wouldn't have been enough to keep her warm, but his body heat and ki formed a comfortable cocoon around her.
When they had been flying for over an hour, Bulma pulled her dragon radar out of her bag and pushed the button. Immediately seven dots lit up across the grid. She pushed it again to zoom in on the closest dragon ball. They were getting close. It was about fifty miles farther southeast. "Hey, Vegeta, you need to head east a little more." She showed him the dragon radar, and, after receiving a nod from the saiyan, returned the radar to her bag.
They landed a few minutes later in a marshland. Bulma's nose wrinkled in disgust as her feet sank into the mud. She used the dragon radar to find the location of the dragon ball, Vegeta and Nappa flanking her. She wasn't really watching where she was going, her eyes instead glued to the dragon radar, so she was surprised when she was yanked back by her jacket.
"What the heck—"
"Watch where you're going, girl," Vegeta snapped. He pointed to the ground in front of her. Well, really the lack of ground. She almost stepped into a pool of murky water. It was hard to tell how deep it was.
"Oh. Thanks, Vegeta." She looked at her radar, then at the water. She grimaced. "Uh, guys, I think the ball's in there."
Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Of course it is. Nappa, find it."
"Why do I have to do it?" the tall saiyan griped. Receiving a withering glare from his prince, he stepped into the water. He sank down until he was waist deep. "How far out is it?"
Bulma pushed the button on the radar again to hone in on it. "I'd guess about 15 feet, straight ahead."
While Nappa ventured deeper in the water, which, by the time he was 15 feet out, was up to his shoulders, Bulma received a transmission on her communicator. "How does this thing work? – Give me that! – Hey, I was doing – Shut up! Can everyone hear me? Whatever, this is Team 1. We've got the five star dragon ball from east 143. Heading to east 390. Out."
Bulma laughed as she listened to the transmission. When Vegeta quirked his eyebrow to inquire what was so funny, she told him, "Goku and Raditz got the five star ball."
"Hey, I think I found it!" Nappa called over to them.
"So get it!" Vegeta shouted back.
"Aw, come on! Don't you have something I can use to get it so I don't have to go down there?"
Vegeta rolled his eyes. "You're already in up to your neck, what difference does it make?"
"That is so gross," Bulma muttered. "He's going to stink the rest of the day. This place reeks."
"He always stinks."
"Granted."
"I heard that!"
"Shut up and get the ball!"
"Alright!" Nappa took a deep breath and disappeared underwater. He was only down there for a few seconds before he shot out of the water, holding the six star ball. "I got it!"
"Good job, Nappa," Bulma said. She took the ball from him after he flew over to them and wiped it off on her jeans before putting it in her bag. She pushed the button on her communicator to send a transmission to all the others. "Hey everyone, this is Team 2. We just found the six star ball in south 512. Out."
Vegeta picked Bulma up and levitated off the ground. "What way?"
She got the dragon radar out of her bag and pushed the button. "Southwest about two hundred miles." She showed him the radar again before putting it back in her bag. "Let's go!"
...
Piccolo and Gohan landed in their district near where the dragon ball was supposed to be. Gohan sank into the snow up to his shoulders and immediately started shivering. He hadn't dressed for a blizzard when he left home. Piccolo only sank into the snow up to his knees, and he didn't feel the cold. He was again thankful for his immunity to extreme temperatures.
"Where is it, Gohan?"
The young demi-saiyan took his dragon radar out of his pocket and pushed the button three times. Through chattering teeth he managed to say, "Th-that w-way, Mr. P-Piccolo." He pointed to the northeast. "T-twenty yards ab-bout."
Master and student trudged through the deep snow in the direction the radar indicated. Gohan wrapped his arms around himself and rubbed his arms with his hands, but by the time they trekked twenty yards, he felt like he was frozen stiff. He had an icicle hanging from his nose and snow collected in his thick, wild hair.
"Should be around here, huh?" Piccolo asked. He kicked the snow. "Well, let's start digging."
Nodding, Gohan put the radar in his pocket and started digging through the snow. His hands were frozen and his fingers were turning blue, but he kept digging. Piccolo was not far away, only a few feet, also digging through the snow. He looked over at Gohan and frowned. "Use your ki to keep warm, kid."
Gohan stopped searching for a moment to concentrate on his ki. Soon he had an aura of energy crackling through the air around him, keeping him warm and melting some of the snow around him. He resumed digging and a few minutes later, three feet down in the snow, his fingers brushed against something hard and smooth. He dug deeper until he could pull the object out. He lifted it out of the hole and held it up, jumping around and cheering. "Look, Mr. Piccolo, I found it! It's the four star dragon ball!"
Piccolo grunted and took the ball from him. "Better tell the others."
"Right!" Gohan put the communicator on and pushed the button to send a transmission. "This is Team 5. We got the four star ball in north 1167. Out." He followed Piccolo, who had already started flying south back to Mount Paozu.
…
"Well, I guess it was a good thing Bulma gave us the capsules. Looks like we're going to need a submarine," Tien said. He, Chiaotzu, and Launch stood on a beach looking out at the ocean. The dragon radar indicated their dragon ball was a few miles out, probably at the bottom of the ocean.
"That's for sure," Chiaotzu agreed.
Launch took the capsule case out of her pocket and opened it. "Now which one is the submarine, do you think?"
Tien looked in the case. "I think this one." He pulled out the capsule labeled 80 and pushed the plunger, then tossed it into the water. A small submarine emerged from the puff of smoke.
"Alright! Let's go get the dragon ball!" Chiaotzu said.
Tien, Launch, and Chiaotzu climbed into the submarine and sealed the hatch. Tien took the controls while Chiaotzu was put in charge of navigating with the dragon radar. "Oh no! Tien, it's moving!"
"What? What do you mean it's moving?"
"Look!" Chiaotzu handed the radar over to Tien. Sure enough, it was slowly moving northward. "Do you think someone else found it? What if someone else is looking for the dragon balls?"
"Guess it doesn't matter," Tien said. "Whoever it is, we're taking that ball. We've got to wish everyone back those saiyans killed."
He headed for the dragon ball, the submarine moving much faster than the ball. It took them over an hour to catch up to it, but when they did, they found it wasn't a person who had the dragon ball. They discovered they were chasing a whale.
"What do we do now?" Chiaotzu asked. He had his hands and nose pressed against the glass window, watching the whale lazily swimming on with their dragon ball.
"Oh my, do you think it ate the ball?" Launch asked.
"I don't know," Tien said. "We'll have to find out. Does this submarine have an escape pod I can use to go in the whale's mouth?"
"I would think so," Launch said. She leaned forward to look at the controls. "There, is that it?" She pointed to a big red button.
"Yeah, that controls it, but where is it?" Tien asked. He looked around the small cabin. It wasn't as if it could be hard to find. There were only four seats total and they didn't allow for much leg room. He took the dragon radar as he got out of his seat and moved to the back and felt around the wall until he found a lever. He pulled up on it and a door opened, revealing the escape pod. He climbed into it and sealed the hatch. Once he was ready, Chiaotzu pushed the launch button and Tien was shot out of the submarine.
Tien steered the pod ahead to catch up to the whale. It seemed like an hour dragged by before he finally reached the whale's mouth. Its mouth was open to suck in krill, just wide enough for Tien to guide the pod inside. He turned on the lights so he could see where he was going. He pushed the button on the radar to locate the dragon ball. Luckily, it wasn't farther back, which would mean deeper inside the whale. So it had to be in its mouth somewhere, probably stuck in its baleen. He searched around the whale's mouth for several minutes before he caught a glimmer of orange.
"There it is," he murmured as he carefully guided the pod closer to it. He pushed the button to put out the pod's hands so he could grab the dragon ball. He slowly eased forward until the hands were on either side of the ball, then he grabbed it and yanked it out of the whale's baleen. "Now I just have to get out of here."
Tien turned the pod so he was heading back the way he came in. He was able to slip out of the whale's mouth without a hitch and looked around for the submarine. When he spotted it, he steered the capsule over to it and, when he could see Launch and Chiaotzu, pointed up. They gave him the thumbs up and took the submarine up to the ocean surface. Tien followed them and surfaced a few yards away from them. He opened the hatch and jumped out.
"We got it!" he called over to them. He took the ball and flew over to the submarine where the others were waiting. He handed the ball to Launch and took the communicator from her. He pushed the button and sent a transmission: "This is Team 3. We got the two star ball from west 885. Heading to Mount Paozu. Out."
…
Krillin felt like he had been circling over the forest for hours. It was already after noon and four of the dragon balls had been recovered. His team had reached the district with their dragon ball an hour earlier, but the forest was so thick he couldn't find a place to land the jet. He was getting thoroughly irritated with Master Roshi's backseat driving and Oolong's unwanted negative input, and he was about ready to jump out of the jet and let them fly around while he found the dragon ball himself.
Puar was the only one being even somewhat helpful, looking out the windows on all sides of the jet trying to find a safe landing spot. She flitted back and forth through the jet, clearly excited that she was finally going to get Yamcha back. But, despite trying to be helpful, she was also annoying and distracting and Krillin was about to snap at her to sit down and buckle in.
"There, Krillin!" Puar said, pointing out the window on the passenger side. "I think I see a small clearing, but it should be big enough for the jet to land."
"Where?" Krillin stretched over to see where she was pointing. "I think you're right. Hold on, I'm taking her down."
Ignoring the screaming of his passengers, Krillin descended in a nosedive to the clearing, bringing the jet back to level just before touching down on the ground. It was a good thing Capsule Corporation jets could land like helicopters, otherwise they would never have been able to land in the forest.
After they all got out of the jet, Krillin pointed to the west. "Okay, the ball should be somewhere in this general area, so split up and start looking."
The four team members spent quite a while searching, digging through the dead leaves on the forest floor, looking in rabbit holes or hollows in trees, and overturning stones, but they couldn't find the dragon ball anywhere. Krillin sat down on a tree root and looked at the dragon radar again. It showed that he was practically on top of it. Each time he zoomed in on the dragon ball, it still showed it was right at the center of the grid.
"Boy, I sure am hungry," Oolong griped. "Didn't Bulma say she packed a food capsule?"
Krillin glanced up at the shape-shifting pig and nodded. He pulled the capsule case out of his pocket and handed it over to him. "This is weird. The dragon ball should be right here, but I don't see it anywhere."
Master Roshi walked over to them and looked around on the ground. Krillin had dug through the leaves and the dirt around the tree, but he hadn't found the ball there. Strange. Roshi tilted his head back and looked up at the tree trunk. There were no hollows he could see and no orange orb. "Puar, can you fly up there and see if the dragon ball is anywhere in this tree?"
Puar, who had been peeking under a small rock, turned to them and grinned. "Sure!"
She flew over to them and followed the tree trunk all the way to the top, looking around on every branch for the elusive dragon ball. She was about to give up when she saw a squirrel nest nestled in the crook of two branches, and inside it was the dragon ball. "I found it!" she called down to them as she flew over and picked the dragon ball out of the nest. She lowered herself down to the ground and handed it to Krillin.
"Alright! This is great!" Krillin yelled as he jumped around. "We'd better get to Mount Paozu now. Come on, guys!"
"Can't I at least finish my lunch?" Oolong grumbled. Roshi whacked him on the head with his staff.
Krillin put on the communicator and sent his transmission to the others. "Team 4 has the seven star ball. Out."
…
"So where do you think it is?"
"How should I know?"
The saiyan brothers stood on a mountaintop looking down at a tawny, rugged terrain with dangerous crags, steep bluffs, unwelcoming caves, and deep canyons cutting through the mountains. The sky was overcast with dark clouds tinged orange.
"Well, what's the dragon radar say?"
"You have it."
"Oh, yeah," Goku laughed, rubbing the back of his head, and pulled the radar out of his pocket. He pushed the button and looked at the grid before scanning over the terrain. "It should be in… that direction," he said, pointing vaguely to his left.
Raditz rolled his eyes. "How far?"
Goku pushed the button a couple times. "Uh, it's still pretty far."
"How far?"
The younger saiyan kicked off the ground and slowly flew over the land, watching the blinking dot on the radar moving closer to the center of the grid. "Man, it kind of stinks here."
Raditz flew next to his brother and surveyed the ground as they flew over. "Yes, that would be the smell of brimstone."
"Oh." Goku rubbed his head. "I think I've been here before."
"Why would you ever want to come to this dump?"
"I think this is Frying Pan Plains. Chi-Chi and me had to come here to save her father before we were married. Mount Five Element is around here somewhere. That's where the gate to the Dark World is. I got to meet my grandpa. He was working for the guardian of the furnace." Goku stopped when the dragon ball they were looking for was right in the middle of the grid. "The dragon ball should be straight down."
"Great." Raditz sighed as they dropped to the ground below. He could understand why it was called Frying Pan Plains. The air was sweltering hot, but the ground was even hotter. He could feel it through his boots. The ground was covered in sharp rocks, soot, and sand. Any hope they had of the dragon ball standing out with its bright orange color was shot. The whole land was orange.
Goku started kicking up the dirt and rocks to see if the dragon ball was buried after landing a year ago. "I don't see it anywhere."
"You're sure we were right over it?"
"Yeah, why?"
Raditz looked a few yards farther east and shrugged. "Just wanted to be sure it wasn't in that canyon over there."
"Shouldn't be." Goku got down on his knees and started digging through the rocks, not caring that they were scraping and cutting his skin. "Come on, help me find it."
"Right." Raditz crouched down and started digging.
They had scoured the area for two hours and still hadn't found anything when Goku's stomach growled. "I'm so hungry. Maybe we should stop and eat something before we keep looking."
"What time is it?"
"I don't know. I can't even see the sun with all those clouds." Goku fell over onto his back, sweating and miserable, and clutched his empty stomach.
"You can eat the food Bulma packed. I don't need anything." Raditz handed the capsule case to Goku and put the communicator on. He remembered seeing it had a clock. He turned it on and saw that it was mid-afternoon. They needed to hurry and find the dragon ball so they could get back to Mount Paozu. So far five of the dragon balls had been recovered. They had to be close to finding the sixth. Vegeta's team would probably be finding the last one soon.
Goku grabbed the capsule case and opened the capsule with food in it. He barely stopped to see what all there was before he started eating voraciously, shoving food into his mouth with both hands and barely giving himself time to swallow before he put more in. Raditz's lip curled at the sight.
"While you eat, I'm going to keep looking. I think it's safe to say the dragon ball isn't here. We've dug up fifty square feet. I'll check the canyon just to be sure it's not there."
"Okay!" Goku said, his voice muffled by the gob of food in his mouth. He tossed the dragon radar over to Raditz.
Raditz walked over to the canyon and jumped down from ledge to ledge until he was at the bottom. So far he hadn't seen the dragon ball anywhere. He pushed the button on the radar and saw that there were three dragon balls clustered together far away, probably Mount Paozu. That was a good sign. There were two other balls close together far south, presumably where Team 2 was. And then there were two more dragon balls right next to each other on the grid. The dragon balls he and his brother were supposed to get. They had one, but the other was still missing in action. He zoomed in on the dragon ball they didn't have and found that he was several yards east of it. So it couldn't be in the canyon because it ran north-south.
Still wearing the communicator, he received another incoming transmission. "This is Team 2. We've got the three star dragon ball. We're heading to Mount Paozu now—hey! Don't drop me, you jerk! Team 1, do you have the last dragon ball yet?"
Raditz pushed the button to reply. "This is Raditz. We're still looking for the last dragon ball. We're in Frying Pan Plains. Shouldn't be long 'til we find it. Over."
"Frying Pan Plains? Oh, man. Well, be careful and hurry! It's getting late. Out."
The long-haired saiyan looked around in the canyon and paused when he saw a hole in the wall. He walked over to it and looked inside. It was deep. He stuck his hand in, but he couldn't reach the back of the hole. It felt like it was a hollow in the wall of the canyon with only a small entrance. 'The ball's probably in there. That's why the radar showed we were right above it. We were, but it was underground.'
Raditz gathered a small ball of ki in his hand and threw it at the base of the wall, jumping back to avoid the explosion and flying debris. When the dust settled, he could see a dark, narrow crevice. He didn't know if he could fit in there without getting stuck.
"Hey, Kakarrot!" he yelled. "I need you to get the dragon ball!"
Goku appeared at the top of the canyon, still gnawing on a turkey leg. "Where is it?"
"In there," Raditz said, pointing to the newly opened cave.
Nodding, Goku finished the turkey leg and threw the bone aside. He hopped down to the bottom of the canyon and peered into the narrow crevice. "You sure it's in there?"
"Only one way to find out." Raditz shoved Goku in. "Now hurry up and find it so we can get back to Mount Paozu. Vegeta's team found the last dragon ball and they're heading there now. Everyone's waiting on us."
Goku huffed as he picked his way between the stone walls. "No pressure."
Raditz leaned against the canyon wall and crossed his arms over his chest. If the dragon ball wasn't in there, then he had no idea where it could be. He waited impatiently for a few minutes before he heard Goku yell something.
"I got it!"
"It's about time," Raditz muttered."
There was the sound of feet scuffling around on the dirty, rocky ground and Goku quickly made his way back out to the canyon. "I never would have thought of looking for a dragon ball underground," he said as he emerged, now covered in soot and dust from head to toe.
"That's why you have someone with brains with you," Raditz teased. "Come on, let's go."
"That wasn't very nice!" Goku yelled as he followed Raditz into the air.
Raditz, chuckling, pushed the button on the communicator to send his report. "This is Team 1. We just found the one star ball. We're on our way back – Kakarrot, leave the food – way back to Mount Paozu."
…
The sun was slipping behind the mountains on the horizon at Mount Paozu by the time the two third-class saiyans returned with their dragon balls. The rest of their friends were already there waiting for them, the dragon balls set in the grass, flashing with a brilliant golden light. Goku carried the last two dragon balls over to them and set them down on the ground.
When Bulma saw all the dragon balls laid out, she jumped on Vegeta and hugged him with all her strength. "Thank you, Veggie."
Taken aback, Vegeta tried to pull her off. "Thank you for what?"
"For letting me have my wish." She kissed his cheek and ran over to the dragon balls. "Everyone ready to bring some people back to life?"
Nappa and Raditz grumbled, still not entirely happy that Vegeta's wish was being overlooked this time around. They thought it was more important for him to gain the power to kill Frieza than for a few weakling humans to be brought back to life, but their prince was set to let the blue-haired girl have her way. Vegeta frowned as he watched Bulma summoning the dragon. He, too, would rather make his wish than let her waste the wish, but he gave her his word and he wouldn't break it.
Bulma held her hands over the dragon balls and shouted, "Shenron, by your name I summon you forth to grant my wish!" At first it seemed nothing was happening, but then the seven dragon balls glowed even brighter as the sky darkened with black clouds. Lightning bolts weaved through the clouds as a blinding ray of light shot out of the dragon balls, high into the sky, winding around, taking the shape of a serpent. Within seconds the dragon appeared, hovering over them, his body filling the sky.
"Why have you summoned me?" Shenron's deep voice shook the earth. "Name your wish and I shall grant it."
The blue-haired woman looked over her shoulder at Vegeta, as if asking permission to ask for her wish. Her small smile slipped when he stared back, never nodding, no smile, nothing. She sighed and turned back to the dragon, not wanting to keep him waiting. He was impatient, after all.
"Shenron, I wish for everyone the saiyans killed since their arrival on Earth one year ago to be revived!"
The pause seemed to drag on like years before Shenron's eyes glowed red. "Your wish has been granted." Like fireworks, Shenron turned to light and exploded as the dragon balls rose from the ground and shot out in seven directions to scatter across the globe once again.
"That was anticlimactic," Vegeta muttered.
After the dragon disappeared, Bulma turned around and looked all over. She saw all her friends cheering that the lives were restored, but she didn't see Yamcha among them. The saiyans did not look nearly as pleased, which made her feel a little guilt. She knew they wanted Vegeta to have his wish. She knew he needed his wish to defeat Frieza. Hopefully they would have time to make that wish before he got here.
"So where's Yamcha?" she asked quietly.
"Don't worry, Bulma," Goku said. "Maybe he went to train with King Kai like me and Tien. If he did, he has to go all the way down Snake Way to the check-in station and Kami will get him and take him to the Lookout. He'll be here soon."
Bulma smiled weakly. "I guess so."
"Hey, Bulma," Krillin said, "Do you want your radars and capsules back?"
She shook her head. "Nah, you can keep them. Never know when you'll need them, right? Well, I should be getting back home. My parents will want to hear the news."
"Alright, we'll see you later, Bulma," Krillin said.
Goku gave her a hug before she went over to Nappa and Vegeta. "It was good seeing you."
"Yeah, Goku," she said, her smile growing. "Don't be a stranger at Capsule Corp. Thanks for all your help."
"No problem. And hey, let us know when you finally decide to finish marrying Yamcha. We want to be there!" Krillin laughed.
"Sure, guys. Bye!" Bulma waved to all her friends as she ran over to Vegeta. "You ready to go? I bet Mom's got a big dinner ready for us."
"Hn." Vegeta picked her up and blasted into the sky with Nappa and Raditz following.
After they landed at Capsule Corporation, Bulma put her hands on her hips and looked up at the saiyans pointedly. "Now guys, when Yamcha comes to see me, I want you on your best behavior. He won't be happy to see you, so if he tries to start a fight, please refrain from beating him to death again."
"Aw, that's no fun," Nappa said with a grin.
Bulma laughed. "Maybe not, but I want him to at least stay alive long enough for me to marry him. And Raditz – you're not allowed to interrupt our wedding again, got it?"
"Yes, ma'am," he agreed mockingly.
Bulma didn't really know when the change happened, but sometime after Vegeta spent a few days recovering from his fight with Goku, the other saiyans started treating her respectfully, almost on the same level as Vegeta. They still weren't as comfortable with her as he was, but they seemed to at least be making an effort to get along. They responded to her teasing well and, like now, sometimes even teased her back. She liked them better this way. It made living with them much easier.
Mrs. Brief had indeed prepared a bountiful feast for them, and even the saiyans were getting full before the food had run out. During dinner, Bulma told her parents about their adventures finding the dragon balls, though compared to some of the adventures she had when she was younger, they were pretty blasé. There were no blue midgets seeking world domination, no evil army trying to steal the dragon balls, no dinosaurs tried to eat her, they didn't meet any crazy new friends, nor did they make any new enemies. Really, the most exciting part of the story was the part where Bulma summoned Shenron and wished for everyone –including Yamcha – to be revived.
"So where is he?" Mrs. Brief asked once Bulma finished her tale.
Bulma sighed. "Goku said he might've gone to train with King Kai so it'll take him a while to get back to Earth. I'm sure he'll come here when he's back."
"I hope so, dear," Mrs. Brief said. "I have missed his visits."
"Yeah," Bulma agreed, "And I can finally marry him. I've only waited half my life for it."
"Oh, you're still planning on marrying him?"
Bulma shrugged. Honestly, she hadn't really thought about it. She always figured things would automatically go back to the way they were before he died. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Mrs. Brief's smile dimmed. She stood up and started clearing dishes from the table. "I just thought that since you didn't finish marrying after Raditz came that you weren't going to get married after all."
Did she sound disappointed? Bulma looked at her mother suspiciously. "We were both too busy."
"Of course, dear." Mrs. Brief filled the sink with dishes. She didn't dare face her daughter at the moment. She actually was disappointed that she still wanted to marry Yamcha. He was a nice boy, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that there was much better husband material right under Bulma's nose and she hadn't even noticed.
Vegeta stood up and stretched. He didn't mind spending the day flying around the planet, but there were still a few hours he could spend training. "Your idiot's on his way here. I'm going to go train."
"My idiot? You mean Yamcha?" Bulma asked. But Vegeta had already left the kitchen. She looked over at Nappa and Raditz, but they were actively avoiding eye contact. She sighed and hurried out of the kitchen to go wait for Yamcha outside. She sat on the front step and looked up at the sky, hoping to see him flying toward her.
It was only a few minutes before she saw a white streak of fire shooting through the air, but she was already shivering in the cold October air. She grinned when she saw him and stood up to wave to him.
Yamcha landed in front of her and took her hands in his. "Wow, B, you look even better than I remember." He smiled and pulled her in for a long embrace.
"Yamcha, you're back," she breathed. After waiting an entire year, she had felt like this moment would never come when she was reunited with her lover. She threw her arms around him and held him tight, never wanting to let him go again. "You're really back."
"I sure am, thanks you to." Yamcha lifted her chin and kissed her softly. "I missed you."
Tears glistened in her big blue eyes as she coughed out a laugh, almost a sob. "I missed you too, you big dummy. Promise me you'll never die again."
Yamcha grinned. "Not until I'm old and gray."
She kissed him, then, forcefully, demanding entrance into his mouth with her tongue. What more needed to be said? They were together again, happy as ever. When they finally broke apart for air, Yamcha stepped back from her, though he still held her hands.
"Is Goku here? I thought I felt someone's power."
Bulma freed one of her hands and raked it through her hair. "Actually, no. Goku's home. Um… why don't you come in and sit down?"
One of his eyebrows quirked as she pulled him to the living room. He was made more suspicious when she opened the door and peeked in before tugging on his arm to pull him in. Yamcha sat down on the loveseat and Bulma sat down next to him with her hand resting on his leg. "Now, before you get upset, Yam, I just want you to know that they aren't bad people."
"Who? What are you talking about, B?"
Bulma cleared her throat. "Well, you see, the saiyans…" She paused for a minute, biting her bottom lip. "The saiyans, they're living here with me and my parents."
"They're what?" Yamcha exclaimed as he shot up from his seat. His hands balled into fists as he backed away from Bulma, shaking his head incredulously. "What do you mean they're living here? Bulma, they're the enemy! They killed me! Are they forcing you to house them?"
"No, Yamcha. Please, would you sit down and let me explain?"
"What is there to explain? How you lost your mind?" he shouted.
Bulma sighed and held her head in her hands. She knew he wouldn't be happy about the saiyans staying at Capsule Corporation. She expected him to be angry with her. But whether or not she knew it, it still didn't make his reaction easier to deal with in real life.
"This is a joke, isn't it?" Yamcha asked, searching for a reasonable explanation. "It's really Goku and the others here, and you're just trying to scare me before they jump out and yell 'surprise,' right?"
"No, Yam, I meant—"
Out in the hall, they could hear the kitchen door opening and closing, then two voices conversing.
"Mr. Raditz, did you hear someone yelling?"
There was a snort. "I think it was her fiancé or whatever you called him."
"Oh, my. Are they quarreling already? They never could seem to get along. Their fights were never like the arguments Bulma and Vegeta have…"
Bulma glanced over at Yamcha after the voices faded. He was wearing a shocked expression, gaping at her as the realization that she was telling the truth finally sank in. He pointed to the door. "That was your mother. And Raditz."
"Yep. They get along pretty well." Bulma stood up and rocked forward on the balls of her feet. "Listen, I know you don't like the saiyans. I can't blame you. Nappa did kill you. But please, give them a chance. They're not evil. They've lived here since you died and they've never given any of us trouble."
"Why would you even let them stay here?" he grumbled.
"I knew Vegeta when we were kids," she explained. "I know he's done some bad things since then, but he's still my friend. I trust him."
"You're crazy."
"Maybe." Bulma walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his messy hair. "But let's forget about them, huh? I don't want to fight after you just got back. Did you get to train with King Kai?"
Yamcha still looked uneasy, but he forced a smile. "Yeah. I didn't get there until half the year was over, but I made it. I trained with him the last six months. I'm a lot stronger now."
"Yeah, I can tell," she said, winking at him. She trailed her hands over his shoulders and down his chest. "What do you say we go upstairs, hm?"
"I like the sound of that," Yamcha said. Holding hands, they left the living room and hurried upstairs to Bulma's bedroom.
Vegeta didn't care what the girl did with her scar-faced weakling. Really, he didn't. But when he sensed their ki moving in the compound, he had difficulty keeping his anger reined in. He wasn't thrilled with the idiot being invited into his home in the first place; his stench would linger for hours. Then, if that wasn't bad enough, the girl was practically on top of him. Maybe under him. He shook his head, forcing any unwanted mental images out of his mind. That was disgusting. For the next half hour, he tried to keep training, but he couldn't stop thinking about Bulma – and her 'fiancé.' Finally, after being distracted for what must have been the hundredth time, he shut off the gravity simulator and went inside, intent on kicking out the weakling.
Nappa was training in the back yard when Vegeta emerged from the gravity room, fists clenched so tight he was drawing blood from his palms. His tail lashed behind him as he stormed across the yard to the compound. Nappa watched him as he continued punching and kicking an invisible opponent. He smirked when Vegeta disappeared inside, knowing full well what had the prince so infuriated.
"Raditz, you might want to avoid Vegeta. He's having territory issues."
"Shit."
Inside, Vegeta stalked through the hall to the stairs. Silently he ascended them and padded softly down the hall to the door to Bulma's bedroom. Instead of knocking, he barged into the room, nearly ripping the door off its hinges. He growled when he saw both of them on her bed; it didn't take a genius to figure out what they were doing – or about to do. Actually, his nose told him more than he really wanted to know.
Bulma shrieked when the door burst open and she saw Vegeta standing in the doorway, looking as if he were ready to kill someone. "Vegeta! What the hell, get out!"
He ignored her as he came into her room, headed straight for them. Yamcha, who had been on top of her, sat up, ready to defend them from the insane saiyan. He wasn't going to stand for being interrupted when he was about to score for the first time in two years.
"You've overstayed your welcome," Vegeta snarled. He grabbed Yamcha by the throat and dragged him off Bulma's bed, not caring that he was only wearing his boxers, and pushed him over to the balcony doors. He slid it open and shoved Yamcha out.
Bulma pulled her covers up to her chest and screamed, "Vegeta, leave him alone! What do you think you're doing? Let him go!"
"What's going on, sweetie?"
The blue-haired woman turned and screamed when she saw both parents in her doorway looking panicked after they heard her screaming at Vegeta. "Get out of my room! All of you!"
"All of who?" Dr. Brief asked. He looked around her room, but she was the only person in there.
"You!" Bulma screeched.
"Honey, are you sure you're all right?" Mrs. Brief asked.
"Out!" Bulma screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Oh, my," Mrs. Brief fussed as she closed the door. She looped her arm through her husband's and leaned on him as they walked back to their bedroom. "What was that all about?"
"I don't know, dear," Dr. Brief muttered. "I'm sure it was nothing."
Once her parents were gone, Bulma turned back to the balcony doors – now closed – and roared furiously. "Vegeta! I'll get you for this!"
She got out of bed, carefully wrapping herself in her covers, and ran to her closet to get a robe. Once decent, she opened her balcony door and went outside, but no one was there. Everything was quiet. Except for the gravity simulator. Her eyes narrowed as her hands tightened into fists.
Bulma went back inside, crossed her room, and left to go downstairs and outside to have a little chat with the saiyan prince. The second she stepped outside she wished she had put more clothes on, but it was too late for that and she was too mad to care. She hurried over to the gravity room and started banging on the door with fists and feet. "Vegeta! You open this door right now!"
A few minutes later, she heard the sound of the gravity simulator powering down. After that, the door opened and Vegeta stood there, arms crossed and scowling. She scowled right back and poked him in the chest. "What the hell was that? Did you hurt Yamcha?"
"No." But he wanted to. He wanted to tear his entrails out and shove them down his throat. He only refrained for her sake.
"Why did you do that?" she demanded.
"He was distracting me."
Bulma didn't even know how to respond to that. "He – he was distracting you? How? He was in my room, you were in here!"
"I sensed his pathetic power and I kept losing focus as I imagined ways to destroy him. If I can't feel his presence then I will no longer have such thoughts."
"Oh, right," she spat. "Let's try an alternate explanation: You were jealous!"
Vegeta scoffed. "Jealous? I saw nothing worth being jealous over."
Why that hurt so much, Bulma didn't know. Did she want Vegeta to be jealous of her and Yamcha? That was ridiculous. Why would he be? Why would she want him to be? She slapped him and turned around to go back inside. She couldn't believe the nerve of that man. Barging into her room, throwing her fiancé out, and then acting as he had done nothing wrong. As if he was justified! Now Yamcha was really going to hate it that she let the saiyans live with her. She was stuck in the middle of another fight, and it didn't look like there was going to be a simple solution.
A/N: Wow, there were a lot of reviews (and subsequently, a lot of questions and comments) on the last chapter, so I'll try to address them here. Sorry if I miss anything that won't be answered by the story itself. Okay, first, thanks for all the positive response to the idea of adding a chapter to the story. I'm probably going to add at least one more that I think would fit well and fill in some information that would otherwise be left out or tacked on somewhere where it didn't fit. I know a lot of you hate Chi-Chi, but she's not all bad. Crazy, yes, but I'm trying to at least put some reason behind her psychotic ways. Hrm, is Goku really that OOC? Let's be honest: in CU, he was totally flat, basically a Mary Sue. So, if he's more "serious" and "intelligent" in my story, I don't consider that a bad thing. Besides, he was a little less goofy and crap in manga (a little), right? Also, sorry about any hot beverages causing pain while reading potentially humorous lines...should I put a warning at the top of the chapter for possible laughs? :)
A special thank you to Someone for the honest - albeit harsh - review. It was long, so I don't know that I'll address everything here, but I'll give it a go. Your concerns with the story are legit, and yes, there may be some problems with how things are playing out, but it all has a point. Trust between Vegeta and the others isn't exactly building fast...you'll see that better later. If anything, they've just decided not to absolutely hate him, about at the level of trust as they were in the Namek saga when he was a reluctant ally. Yes, this is an AU so character portrayals are somewhat different than CU. I try to round out the flat characters (which, in all honesty, is most of them) and I try to explain why they do/think what they do. If that's not satisfactory, I'm sorry. I know at times this story can be similar to Rediscovering Honor, but it also has some pretty huge differences. This is a story all its own, but you have to remember... they're both my stories and so they will have similarities considering that's how I write and think. Well, anyway, I hope this chapter and future chapters piss you off less and become more enjoyable. I appreciate your honest criticism, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want a more positive review next time.
Beta'd by lilpumpkingirl
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