The wind threaded her dainty fingers through Vegeta's hair as he flew top-speed across the terrain. He breathed deep, feeling the icy cool air fill his lungs. Flying always helped him clear his head. He hadn't meant to go off like that, and he certainly hadn't meant to go Super Saiyan in front of Pota, but what happened, happened and he knew he'd have to go back eventually. He frowned.
Vegeta wasn't entirely sure why he was headed towards his current destination, but he kept flying. He landed in front of the little teapot house of the Sons minutes later. He strode up to the door and knocked twice, then stood back and waited.
The door opened to reveal Goku's eldest, Gohan. The demi-Saiyan looked surprised to see him but smiled anyways.
"Vegeta, hi."
Goten peeked out from behind his older brother and waved.
Vegeta smiled lightly.
"Is Kakarrot here?"
Gohan shook his head.
"No he's out training somewhere in the forest. That way, I think." He indicated the direction.
Vegeta nodded his thanks and blasted off in search of Goku.
o-o-o-o-o
Goku landed lightly on his toes and wiped the sweat from his brow. Smiling, he prepared to work through the routine again, but stopped when he felt a familiar power approaching him.
He turned and watched as Vegeta executed a front flip and landed a sort ways from him.
"Hey." Vegeta said.
Goku smiled.
"Hey." He replied.
Vegeta looked around the area awkwardly.
"Would you spar with me?"
Goku nodded and got into a fighting stance.
The two warriors sparred and trained for a good two hours before they stopped for a break.
Goku tossed Vegeta a water bottle and sat down on a tree stump.
"Wow, you've been training hard." Goku laughed.
Vegeta nodded and continued to sip his water quietly. Goku looked at his comrade.
"Something's bothering you." He said softly. Vegeta finally looked at him. Sighing, he sat down next to Goku on the huge tree stump.
"My sister arrived on Earth late last night."
Goku looked surprised.
"You have a sister?"
"Half-sister if you want to get technical." He looked down. "Kakarrot. How would you describe me? What am I to you?" He looked at the other Saiyan.
Goku reclined back on the stump and looked thoughtful.
"I consider you my friend, possibly my best friend, besides Krillin of course. You're one of the proudest people I've ever met. You motivate me to keep up my training. You train so much harder than the rest of us; you never give up; you do what needs to be done, regardless of the situation. Sometimes I wish I was more like you." He turned and smiled at the shocked Prince.
"I know you'd never say it out loud, but I always hope that you consider me a friend, Vegeta."
The Prince was silent for a moment before looking at Goku nervously.
"You consider me a friend, Kakarrot? If what you say is true then… then you won't judge me."
Goku looked perplexed but motioned for him to continue.
"I… wasn't planning on telling anyone but." He chuckled. "I can honestly say you're one of the few people I trust on this planet." He looked venomous. "Don't tell anyone I said that." Goku smiled but kept quiet.
Vegeta still looked uncomfortable so Goku forced himself to be patient. It wasn't often that he and the Prince had real conversations aside from yelling at each other, much less a heart-to-heart discussion. He locked up his muscles to keep from bouncing with excitement.
"The night of your party. You found Piccolo and me by the lake. He told you we were sparring…"
Goku nodded.
"He… lied." Vegeta admitted.
Goku was surprised. Why would Piccolo do that?
"I put us in a… interesting situation… that changed in a way neither of us expected…" The Prince struggled with his words, and Goku remained ever patient.
"We were just messing around and… I hadn't intended for it to become… intimate."
It went without saying what Vegeta was talking about, and Goku really didn't know what to say initially. He was silent for a second before he gently put his hand on Vegeta's shoulder.
"Well just so you know, both of you have my support." He smiled and Vegeta visibly relaxed.
"So you and Piccolo huh?" He chuckled. "I never woulda thought of that."
Vegeta gave him a questioning look.
"Not in a bad way. You guys just seem like you don't get along." He looked at the smaller man. "So Piccolo has feelings for you?"
Vegeta nodded.
"Yes. I'm not sure how deep they go but… I'm pretty sure it wasn't a one-time thing." He didn't bother to mention that his statement had already been validated the last few days.
"And what of your feelings for him?" Goku asked.
Vegeta looked at his hands and shrugged.
"I don't completely know. The boys and I moved into the Lookout yesterday. I couldn't stand to be in that house. So, I've been closer to him." He looked at Goku with honesty in his eyes. "I do have feelings for him. But… I'm not sure what they are exactly yet. It might be love… maybe. I don't want to rush into anything yet… Bulma, you know…" He looked back down. Goku nodded.
"Yea I understand. Do Trunks and Mirai know yet?"
Vegeta shook his head.
"I probably won't tell them until after Bulma's funeral when we've all calmed down a bit. I don't want them to think anything bad, like I was having an affair or something. You know how kids are these days."
Goku made a sound of acknowledgment.
"You have my support no matter what, and I hope you guys make each other happy. Oh, I wanna meet your sister sometime."
"Pota. Her name is Pota."
"Pota, then. I wanna meet her."
Vegeta stood and stretched.
"Sure, I guess." He turned and suddenly glared.
"If you tell anyone about this…" He warned. Goku grinned.
"I know. You'll turn me to slime. You have my word. This stays between us until you say otherwise." That put a smile back on the Prince's face. Without another word, he powered up and headed back to the Lookout.
o-o-o-o-o
Pota was blowing off steam by wailing on her punching bag. The 900-lb. bag went flying into the opposite wall of her training room after a particularly powerful kick. She straightened out of her stance with a glare. She bared her teeth and blew the bag to bits with a finger beam. A new bag automatically replaced the old one. CAI's voice resounded in the hollow room.
"Saiyan Prince Vegeta approaching."
Pota shut down the training room and exited for a shower. She was done in 2 minutes flat and dressed in new robes just in time for CAI to talk to her again.
"Vegeta has landed. Should I grant him entrance?"
"Yes." Pota answered.
The door hissed open and Vegeta's light footsteps were heard against the metal. The female Saiyan stood in front of her chair with her arms crossed as Vegeta came into the control room. His posture mirrored hers, and for a moment, neither of them spoke. Pota's expression softened.
"I'm sorry Vegeta. I know you're hurting." Vegeta's eyes never left her face as she turned and sat down in her chair.
"I know what it's like to lose a mate." Her words shocked Vegeta greatly. Pota never seemed like the type to actually settle down and stay with one person more than a night.
"Do you remember Kyuuka?" She spoke whilst looking at the floor. An image of a short girl with shoulder length, wild hair and bright, innocent eyes entered Vegeta's head. He made a sound of recognition.
"When I left Planet Vegeta, she followed me. She found me and, after much fighting and arguing, I let her come with me. She grew on me, and I fell in love with her. A year later, I made her my mate. Two years later… she was taken from me." Her voice sounded strained.
"In the same battle that I lost my eye, I lost her." She looked up at her brother with watery eyes. "I know how much it hurts. She's been gone for a decade, and I still find myself aching and having nightmares." She smiled weakly.
"I never moved on; I haven't had the will to do so. I swore up and down that there was no one else for me, and I meant it. But you were able to find common ground with someone who could make you happy and help you heal."
Vegeta sat in shocked silence. This was the second time today that someone close to him had shocked him this much.
Pota stood and hugged him briefly before releasing him and holding onto his arm.
"You are my little brother, but you are first and foremost my Prince. Either way, I fully support you and will learn not to stick my nose where it doesn't belong."
Vegeta smiled and nodded.
"Thank you Pota. Your support means a lot to me."
Pota chuckled.
"You're welcome. Now I've got to go apologize to Piccolo." She sighed
Vegeta raised an eyebrow and Pota laughed.
"Don't ask."
o-o-o-o-o
A/N: Nice long chapter for you guys. :) Keep those reviews coming! If you haven't already, go bookmark my LiveJournal. It'll keep you up-to-date on everything going on here on my FanFiction. R&R as always!