#I hope someday I can return to the water with my pod and there we can reconcile with the humans

[a-minke-whales-tale]

I Never was a Therian

I have for years felt unwelcome in the therian community because of being a clinical zoanthrope. Although some individuals would be kind to me and reassuring, still many places simply would not allow those like me, or if I was allowed I was always on the edge and would have to make it known to everyone that I knew my experience was delusion and was not real in the way the experience of -real- therians were. It took many years to feel that I was even allowed to use the term therian for myself, still I always would have that doubt if I was actually welcome.

Sometimes it feels that maybe the tide might be shifting a bit - we are not outright rejected as often as we used to be. Still though, even when we are accepted it is still always under the requirement that we make it known our experiences are delusion and not real. At still it is nearly every day I am reminded how many therians think we do not belong - how many therians think we should not even have our own communities or spaces. It is nearly every day I see somewhere people concern trolling us, how we need to be in therapy, on medicines, put into hospitals as though those are not things almost all of us actively deal with. I hear how people think we need to constantly be brought back to reality and not have out delusions validated (by which they mean simply being in spaces with other CLCZs, spaces we can talk and be ourselves and support each other).

I want to believe that the humans would someday accept us into their communities - that we could somehow reconcile with them. I know it is only a few humans who hurt us directly. But so so many support the things done to us, including so many therians. We do not belong, that has been made clear to me time and time again. I am too animal for the humans, and yet also too animal for the therians. I do not think I want to call myself therian anymore, or try still to cling to that label.

So many therians seem fundamentally interchangeable to humans to me, just wearing a (normally) fuzzy coat. Many therians would baulk at that comparison - indeed in discussions of misanthropy so often people bring up that you simply cannot tell. And therein lies the problem; when you look up and the person standing over you - another in the long line that have hurt you before - in the shadow of the sun's glare, I cannot see that bit of fur, and they look to me the same. -and in the end, the result is no different. The humans are in charge and I have to obey them, even if that human feels sometimes as animal. I am sure this will probably upset a number of therians, but then I never -was- a therian, the community has made that much clear.

[teacup-set]

halcyon days

Summary: The sea rages as it yearns for its lover, but for one fortnight each year, it's perfectly still. [SasuSaku, Mythical!AU]

FFN, AO3

AN: I wrote this story a long while ago, but got around to editing it recently while shifting my work to AO3, so decided to give it one more chance on here.

x

I sit on the warm, white sand and watch my mother and father embrace moments before my father is to embark on a sea voyage. She softly kisses his cheek and he offers her a reassuring smile as he walks back to the dock, where countless men work on countless ships, inspecting every nook and crevice to ensure that the vessel is ready for the sea.

My mother joins the rest of the women as they all wave their hands in goodbyes and shout good wishes. It is only an empty ritual though, everyone knows that for fourteen days around the winter solstice the sea is absolutely calm and still. Only a gentle sea breeze races across the water’s surface, filling the sails of the ships and spraying droplets of water into the air where they catch the rays of the sun and explode into iridescent colors.

A legend dictates that any man who sets sail between the seven days before the winter solstice and the seven days after would find his way back to his lover's arms unharmed, which is why my people chose this day to embark on a voyage.

But it's not like they could have chosen any other day. For these fourteen days the sea is calm, but for the rest of the year, it rages. Mother says the sea is clawing at the land in longing, because something it loves lives here. Tide after tide attack the shore with such ferocity that it is impossible to dwell anywhere near the sea.

Which is why my tribe lives in the very heart of wave country, far away from the enraged sea, and only travel down here once a year. The beach is barren and soulless, save for one house over the low cliff.

My eyes trail away from the departing seamen and glance over to my left, where the old man who lives in the cliff-top abode is sitting on a boulder, something close to relief reflected on his face.

He's been living in that hut for more years than I've been born, but somehow the waves never seem to touch his little home.

I've seen him walking along the beach before, with an uchiwa fan sewn onto the back of his Yukata. I recognize it, it's the emblem of the Uchiha tribe, the fire wielders from the land of leaves, so why did this old man reside in wave country?

I see grandma Ino slowly walking towards me, and I make up my mind to ask her about the mysterious old man. She seems about as old as he does, perhaps she has some answers.

It takes another few moments for her old, frail knees to carry her to the spot where I am sitting, and as soon as she reaches she settles down at a spot behind me and weaves her fingers through my hair.

I inherited her long, pale blonde hair and she loved to weave it into elaborate braids, while I enjoy the welcome pressure of her fingertips on my scalp. She sets to work, parting and twisting my hair, and I finally ask her the question that had been ricocheting inside my head.

"Ino baa-chan," I say, "Who is that man sitting on the rocks over there? The one who lives by the sea?"

Even though I cannot see her face, I know she is smiling and I can hear it in her voice when she speaks.

"Mira, did you know, there was once a time that the sea was calm and quiet all year round?"

I'm a little annoyed, because she doesn't answer my question, but her words have piqued my curiosity. "Really, baa-chan? This fearsome sea?" I ask.

"Aa," she says, and I can tell she is still smiling "This very sea."

"What changed, then?"

As soon as I said those words, her hands became still, and I know she is going to tell me a story. I don’t not mind though, Ino baa-chan tells the best stories, so I remove my legs from underneath me, turn to face her, and sit down in a more comfortable, cross legged position.

She inhales deeply, and with a faraway look in her eyes, she begins...

x

A young woman sits on the rocks by the sea, looking out at the endless expanse of water before her. Her long coral hair cascades down her shoulders in soft waves as she rests her head in the palm of her hand and smiles softly.

The trance she is lost in is interrupted when she hears a distressed mewling in the distance. White dress flowing in the wind, she gets up and breaks into a run towards the sound, coming to halt when she sees a dolphin beached on the shore and a man hovering over it.

She opens her mouth to yell at him, and ask him to stop what he was doing, before promptly shutting it close when she realizes that he's trying to drag the fish back into the water, not to the land.

Quickly, she rushes over to him, and they both heave and grunt as they try to push the beast back into the sea. The man's eyes widen in surprise when the tide reaches in farther into the shore and takes the dolphin with it as it returns to the sea.

They watch as the dolphin wades through the shallow water until it finally reaches the deep, and then swims away in search of its pod. 

"Thank you for helping her,” she says, smiling sweetly, “What's your name?", but it takes him a long minute to grasp what she has spoken because he is stunned by the changing colors of her eyes, every single one of them a different shade of green. When his senses return to him, he covers his surprise with a cough and then answers, "Aa. Something that belongs to the sea must return to the sea. I could not watch it suffer." he pauses, "My name is Sasuke."

Her smile widens a little and she moves closer to him. Standing on her toes, she presses her lips to his in a soft, chaste kiss and his eyes fall close at the delightful pressure. When he opens them again, she is gone, and there's only the taste of salt on his lips.

.

.

The man with the dark hair and darker eyes returns to the same spot the next day, a little while before the sun immerses itself into the sea, and waits in hopes of seeing the roseate woman from yesterday.

He waits and waits until the sea swallows the sun and the sky turns a rich black, punctuated with stars glowing dimmer than the green eyes of the mysterious woman. He has almost abandoned hope and is about to return to his lodgings, when the sea on the far end of the beach swirls into a tiny whirlpool and out emerges the woman from yesterday.

He watches in awe as the water parts and makes way for her to come to the shore, and before he can ever recall commanding them to move, his feet are shuffling to the woman who was born from the sea.

He approaches her, and if she has noticed his presence, she doesn't acknowledge it. Caught off guard by her dismissal, he ponders how to approach her.

"Hello..." he begins somewhat unsurely. She stills, hands that were untangling seaweed from her hair falling to her sides, as she stares at him dumbstruck. 

"Y-you can see me?" she says, sounding surprised.

Frowning, he counters. "Should I not be able to?"

She laughs a little, and his heart flutters at the sound. "Most people can't. I am only seen by those looking for me." she says, looking into his eyes.

His frown only deepens, and she looks like she understands the questions swimming through his mind. Grabbing hold of his left hand, she brings it to her chest. His eyes widen when instead of a heartbeat, he can feel the vibrations of waves thundering within her rib cage.

"I am a sea goddess." she says with a smile.

.

.

The goddess and the man spend the rest of the night talking away as the goddess explains to him how her mother is the ruler of the oceans, and how her and each of her six sisters rule a portion of the seas. He wonders if he ought to be more surprised at this discovery of a whole new world, but something deep-seated within him believes every word she says without question. 

They talk until the sky is streaked red and the goddess tells him she must return to the sea. Standing up, she turns to him and says "Goodbye, Sasuke-kun. I really did enjoy our time together, I hope we can do this again some day." Turning around, she begins walking back into the sea.

"Wait!" his voice calls her, laced with slight panic at the realization that despite talking all night he was still missing a crucial piece of information, "You never gave me your name" she stops in her stride and turns to look at him.

"For when we meet again." he adds.

Her eyes twinkle as she answers. "Sakura."

.

.

They begin to meet often after that night. They would lie on the soft sand and talk under the cover of the stars as the sea goddess played a beautiful symphony with the sound of the waves.

More often than not, it would be her who did all the talking. She would tell him about life underwater, the conflicts among the gods, stories from the wars she had witnessed in her centuries of existence. But every now and then, he'd share pieces of his life with her too and she would greedily absorb every piece of information he would impart.

He told her about his hometown in the land of leaves and how he was living with his brother's friend in wave country to help him build a bridge, he told her about his childhood, his family, he speaks with a passion about the fire she had been afraid of all her life, and about the flowers she was named after.

He was surprised to learn that despite being named Sakura, she had never actually seen cherry blossoms in bloom. "I can't stray too far from the sea." she told him, "but I hope to see them someday."

He nods.

A few weeks later, the bridge is built and his work in wave country is done. On his last night in wave country, as they sit on the beach, they don't speak a word. Somewhere in the middle of the night, he takes his hand in hers and they sit there watching the waves roll in.

When the sun begins to return to its place in the sky, she finally turns to him and speaks. "I'm afraid I might be in love with you."

For a very long time he is silent, and she feels her heart sink like a stone in the water. Just before he gets up to leave, he tightly squeezes her small hand.

"Do not be afraid, for I think I might be in love with you too."

.

.

That night is not the last they see of each other. At every chance he got, the fire heir would run to wave country to spend a few days wrapped in the arms of the sea goddess.

In the spring he brought her a book filled with the stories of the land, and a single cherry blossom flower pressed in between.

In his absence, the goddess shares her loneliness with the god of the wind, Naruto-kami. Legend says that the ruler of the skies was also once in love with a mortal, blind woman, and so could sympathize with her pain.

He could never marry her because of the wrath it would incur from heaven, so he loved her in secret. He fathered a child with the marble eyed woman, and the child was born with the same white eyes as his mother but with vision that surpassed any mortal. His unique vision was carried on by his progeny and gave rise to the famed Hyuga clan.

After the woman succumbed to mortality, the wind god never wed in all the centuries that followed.

.

.

The sea goddess and her lover steal many nights and days together, basking in each other's love, but a storm begins to brew in the sea.

The eldest sister of the goddess learns about her affair with the mortal and is enraged. Unable to stand the unnatural connection of a mortal and an immortal, she informs the heavens of her sister's misdeeds.

A summit of the gods is organized at once to address her crimes.

"What you are doing is unacceptable!" the overseer of the council tells her, "It simply cannot be!"

But the goddess stands defiant. "I love him" she says, "and that will not change."

"A mortal and an immortal are not destined to be together, such is the law." he insists and the goddess watches the wind god standing behind the council of gods wince as if in pain.

She can see the pain that reflects in his cerulean blue eyes and she knows it's not a pain she would be able to bear.

"Then, gods, I give up my immortality." she declares.

Gasps echo all across the room as the gods break into hushed whispers.

"Tsunade! Do you hear your daughter? Will you allow this?" the ruler of heaven barks at the queen of the sea.

The mighty sea goddess stares into her daughter's defiant eyes for a long time, her inner conflict betrayed on her pained face. Then, she sighs — "All I want is my daughter's happiness, and if she has found it in a mortal then so be it."

Sakura looks at her mother's eyes and hopes the unshed tears in her eyes will convey her apology as Tsunade leaves her throne and chants a spell. The next instant there is a blinding pain wracking every inch of the younger goddess's body as she feels her soul being incinerated and remodeled again. Through the pain she opens her eyes and glances at Naruto, his eyes a mix of pride and regret, and she knows she has made the right choice.

The pain is eventually too much to bear and she feels her consciousness slipping. When she awakens, she is at the beach where she met her lover.

She extends her hand to the sea, and it does not respond.

.

.

She spends the next week waiting for her lover to return. An old widow grants her shelter, and Sakura visits the beach every night anticipating Sasuke's return.

The night they are united, she quickly runs into his arms and buries her face in his sturdy chest.

"Sakura? What's wrong?" he asks, his voice laced with worry.

Breathless, she tells him about all the things that had conspired, down to the ultimatum that heaven presented her with. His eyes widen and he holds his breath as he waits to hear her choice. Wordlessly, she takes his palm and presses it to her chest, just like she did when they met for the second time.

He hears her heart thrumming beneath his touch.

.

.

He sends a messenger back to his hometown to convey he would be late in returning this time, and spends the next few weeks by his lover's side.

They stay at a local inn and every morning he would disappear, and return to her at night tired and weary. She questioned where he would go, but he only asked her to be patient. At the end of three weeks, he took her back to the beach and showed her a small wooden house near the edge of the cliff, overlooking the water.

"I built this. For us." he said.

With tears streaking her face she wraps her arms around him and mouths a question into his chest. "How can we stay here? Your life is in the land of leaves."

"My life," he holds her equally tightly, "is where you are. And your life is where the sea is."

She sobs in his embrace.

"I don't know how to repay you." she says, her voice hoarse.

"Marry me."

.

.

They decide on a spring wedding. Two weeks before their wedding, he tells her he must visit home one last time to inform his family and to take care of some business.

He returns to wave country two days before the wedding. It's a simple, short ceremony and that night when they retire to their house by the sea, he gives her a hollow quartz necklace with a liquid inside.

"It's the essence of cherry blossoms. You will always smell like them." he tells her.

Smiling a brilliant, blinding smile, she lets him clasp the necklace around her neck.

.

.

Peace reigns over the couple as they share three years of marital bliss, their love for each other only growing with each day that passed.

But things took a turn for the worse when Sasuke returned home one day clutching a piece of paper in his hand and something akin to desperation swimming in his eyes.

"What is it? What's wrong, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura is immediately filled with worry.

"It's a letter from home." He explains "My brother is missing. He went to the Ame islands, but he has not returned. I must go find him."

As soon as he finishes his revelation, Sakura shakes her head violently. "No, no, no, no." she insists. "You can't go to Ame. My sister rules those seas, Sasuke, she's violent and she hates me. You won't make it back alive."

But even as she says those words, she knows they will have no effect. Sasuke's love for his brother was as boundless as her sister's hate for her. He would stop at nothing to save him, she knows, so she asks for something different.

"Take me with you. Please. You cannot leave me here." she begs.

"No, Sakura. I won't put you in any needless danger. I will go alone." his answers decisively.

She cries and begs and pleads, but the fire wielder is resolute. For the first time in all the time she had known him, when he held her close to stop her tears, she found no comfort in his arms.

.

.

Sasuke's ship sets sail three days from that day, and until that time they spend every waking moment wrapped up in each other.

When the day finally arrives, she kisses him softly on his lips, wishes him well, and folds her hands to utter the same prayer to the sea that people used to recite to her years ago.

.

.

The sailing is smooth for most part of the journey, and he thinks perhaps he'll actually make it back to the arms of his beautiful wife, but things begin to turn sinister as the ship approaches the territory of the Sea Goddess's eldest daughter.

Large waves slam against the hull of the ship, and the waters around it begin to swirl, first lazily, then with rigor, trapping the vessel in a massive whirlpool. All men aboard the ship cling to its sides, holding on for dear life as it sways violently, mouthing prayers to the sea goddess. But there is only one name on Sasuke's lips.

"Sakura..."

A mammoth wave slams into the side of the ship, destroying its left completely, tossing the men overboard into the waiting waters. They collide with each other and the ship’s debris as the whirlpool twirls them around violently.

There's a loud roar of gushing blood in Sasuke's ears and a fire growing in his lungs as he tries to keep his head above the water. There's a sting of salt along his left thigh and he thinks there's a deep gash there left by one of the ship's sphincters, but the pain fades into insignificance as he imagines his wife standing on the shores, awaiting his return.

He fights with renewed vigor, but in his heart he knows this is the end. He nears the center of the whirlpool and immediately feels a strong tug trying to pull him under. Expending every last ounce of energy he fights the suction, but he's only one man against a mighty sea and the water overwhelms him, engulfing him completely.

Immediately, the waters on the surface lapse back into stillness. But the fire in his lungs has spread to every single cell in his body and Sasuke knows he will not see the shore again.

Sinking slowly, he closes his eyes and says a prayer to the queen of the sea.

"Let my body wash to the shore. Let my wife not wait an eternity in vain..."

In the heavens, Tsunade let a solitary tear glide down the curve of her cheek as she willed the currents to carry the body of the man who loved her daughter back to her footsteps.

.

.

Sakura is in restless slumber when her eyes shoot open. The moon is missing from the sky but the tide is high, and her heart is beating wildly in her chest like a panicked animal in a cage. Her breath comes out in rapid succession and she knows, she just knows something has gone terribly wrong.

In the middle of the night, she runs down the rocky path to the beach, unmindful of the cold wind flapping her hair and nightdress around. She runs and runs and runs without pausing to breathe and only slows down when she sees the outline of a body near the water.

"No. Oh gods, NO!" she says as she picks up pace again.

Her knees fold underneath her as she lowers herself near the limp body. Stretching her hand, she turns his face towards her, and all the tears that had been gathering in her eyes since she awakened trickled down like waterfalls as her eyes recognized the face she woke up next to for years.

Holding his face to her chest, a broken cry erupts from her throat.

.

.

The first rays of the sun found Sakura still on the beach, clutching the body of her beloved, chanting his name like a mantra.

Her voice begins to crack and her face becomes stiff from dried up tears. She looks to the skies and screams,

"Please, give Sasuke back to me. I beg thee!"

But Sakura too was once an immortal, and she knows that the price of life can only be paid in kind. Wiping the remains of the tears on her cheeks, she stands up.

“Return my husband’s, and I shall sacrifice myself to the sea I was born from.” she says, determination ringing in her voice.

She glances at the lifeless form of her lover at her feet and she wants to bend down and kiss him but she knows that the taste of his lips would shatter her resolve, so with one final look, she takes a step towards the sea.

Placing on foot after the other she lets the familiar waters pull her in, and when the water is almost to her neck, she turns to see her husband beginning to stir at the shore.

Smiling sadly, she sends an apology his way, and lowers her head into the sea.

x

Ino baa-chan becomes quiet for a long time and I ponder the story as we sit in shared silence.

She breaks my train of thought when she speaks again, "Since that day, the tides became fierce, pounding onto the shore as though the water goddess’s spirit was trying to return to her lover."

She paused before continuing.

"The heavens were awed to witness a love so pure that in his last moments, the man only thought of his wife, and his beautiful lover who adored him enough to make the ultimate sacrifice. To honor their love, the rest of the gods allowed Naruto-kami to turn the spirit of the sea goddess into a sea breeze so she could return to the land and reunite with her lover for one fortnight each year.

And that's why, young Mira, for the entire year the sea aches to be with her beloved, but during the fourteen days in which they are united, the sea is calm."

I look out to the sea which is completely still under the sun, feel the light ocean breeze running through my hair while her words sink in. I smile-

"That's a really good story, Ino baa-chan. One of your best."

She breaks into a wide smile when she hears my words.

"Oh no, my child. It's not a story, it's very much real." she says, eyes twinkling with mischief.

I look away from the sea and turn my attention back to her as I laugh. "What do you mean it's real, baa-chan? It's only a legend." I say, waving my hand in disbelief.

"It most certainly is not." she bends closer to me and speaks into my ear, "Tell me Mira, what do you smell in the air?"

I'm a little surprised by her question but I humor her anyway and breathe in deeply. "Cherry Blossoms." I say.

As soon as the words leave my mouth, my eyes widen. There are no cherry blossoms in wave country.

My head reels as I recall the details of the story baa-chan told me, and suddenly realization strikes. Getting up so fast that my head spins, I look at the old man who lives on the cliff sitting on the rocks near the sea. And sure enough, I saw it-

Hidden in broad daylight, visible only to those who were looking for her, a woman with long pink hair pressed snugly into his side, her contented smile mirroring the one he wore on his lips.

Fin.

[aliveanddrunkonsunlight]

Marriage, Year Two

Author’s Note: Part of my ongoing Tarth series of ficlets; this gets a little smutty.

There are a couple details in here that might be incorrect - for example, not sure what Jaime’s title would be when he marries Brienne. Lord of Tarth?

Brienne places a hand on her stomach, thinking of the women she saw that day, nearly all of them round with child. As much as she wished she could ride on and pretend she did not see them, as Evenstar, she knew it was her duty to be friendly to all who lived on Tarth. Seeing the glow in their cheeks, the women’s smiles as she wished them well with their babes, made Brienne’s throat tighten with envy, desire, wanting. She carried the ache in her heart back to Evenfall.

It wasn’t a new desire, but a wish long abandoned. One of the many she never expected to be granted, but she was starting to learn, just as they found ways to heal themselves, after hurt and after war, the world found ways to fulfill those long lost hopes.

The ease with which Jaime talked of their family made it seem a near possibility, even though Brienne was still wrapping her mind around having him, having Jaime. “Someday we’ll have four or five wee warriors running around,” he promised. Four or five seemed too many, but she knew however many the gods saw to bless them with, their children would be lucky. They were going to have the best father in all the Seven Kingdoms.

Every month, when she told him her moon’s blood had come, disappointment and loss in her voice, he only ever offered his open arms to her and murmured soft words in her ear. “I need not have a child to be happy, my love,” he told her once as he wiped away her tears. “I am happy. With you.”

He did not laugh at her determination to find out all she could, riding far and wide to visit midwives and maesters, nor when she spoke to him about finding a ward.

“It has not been long. You may be surprised yet.” Jaime remained more hopeful than she could allow herself to be. It has been nearly a year’s time.

It’s only when she returns home in tears, after a meeting with a maester who is visiting from Storm’s End, does he begin to show worry.

She stalks up to their chamber, him following after, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Will you tell me what happened?”

But her tears choke her, preventing her from speaking. He waits patiently, stroking her hair. “It’s my fault,” she rasps out. “The maester said it was me, since-”

“Since what?”

Brienne hesitates and then lets it out in a breath. “You have fathered children.”

Through the haze of her tears, his face falls. Ever a knight, ever a fighter, he picks himself up for battle, eyes shining, his chin jutting out stubbornly. Anger in his voice when he speaks, an anger which is not directed at her. “Brienne, no. This does not fall on you alone.” His words only make more tears come and he reaches for her, touch trying to assuage her pain. “Please,” he begs her, voice trembling. “Never compare yourself to her. You are kind-hearted. You suffered others’ japes and never offered a cruel word in reply. You are patient with everyone who asks things of you, even when you do not have the time. You took Pod under your wing and gave him a job and now a home. And you love me, which may be the biggest sacrifice you ever made.”

“Jaime,” she whispers. “That’s far from true.”

“You are beautiful in ways she could never be. And those children, yes, once I might have wished them to be mine, but they never were.”

Something has broken her open and she cannot seem to staunch her tears. Jaime stays with her, rubbing her back and when she finally stops, again able to take in long, hiccuping breaths, she finds his soft eyes on her. “Perhaps we should take a rest for a time. When I lie with you, it is not to create an heir. It’s because I love you.”

“I know,” she nods.

“I do not wish you to dwell on it so often.”

“Jaime-”

“Do not make me forbid you from seeing maesters about the matter.”

A laugh bursts from her lips, surprising them both. “My husband has never forbidden me from anything, my good ser.”

“Maybe he should start.” His eyes twinkle.

She sits up, glad to have his teasing distract her. “Is that a threat?”

“It’s a promise, my lady wife.” Jaime drops a gentle kiss on her forehead and another at the crown of her head.

The following afternoon, they take a walk together. Brienne doesn’t ask where they’re going. She simply enjoys the way Jaime reaches for her hand and laces his fingers through hers. The sun is shining brightly as they traipse across meadows, heading for a familiar glen in the woods. Once they enter this soft green place, it feels like a cocoon. Somewhere they can be safe together, where their problems cannot touch them.

The sound of water trickles through a shallow stream bed, which they follow until they reach a waterfall tucked so carefully into the rocks, it nearly masks the sound of the rushing water. Jaime lies out on one of the large boulders and it’s unclear whether he is worshipping the sun or if he is the one being worshipped. Half a god.

When he grows too warm, he strips off his breeches without any embarrassment and dives into the clear, cool waters. “Come on,” he waves at her to join him, shaking water from his hair. It’s growing long again, almost as long as when she first met him, and even though she teases him about being presentable since he’s Lord of Tarth now, she secretly enjoys running her fingers through it. “Please,” he begs and the tilt of his head alone makes her blush. She hides behind a tree as she undresses and then steps quickly into the water. The chill takes her breath away and she keeps her head above water until her body gets used to the temperature.

Jaime swims to meet her, his hand landing at her waist as he kisses her. Their bodies press together underneath the surface and Jaime’s green eyes catch hers as he pulls away for a moment. A prick of desire flutters in her stomach, spreading out to her hands and feet, a buzzing underneath the surface of her skin. A heat.

The water has beaded in Jaime’s hair, rivulets running down his face, over the taut, tanned muscle of his chest. He’s still beautiful. Hers. She carefully winds a strand of his hair around her finger. He’s watching her carefully and when she gives it a tug, a come here command, his eyes widen. Brienne’s lips on his. Needy, hungry. Jaime is soft with her and patient, but sometimes, she doesn’t want that. Sometimes she wants raw, animalistic. There’s almost an anger to it, a demand.

He shivers under her touch as her other hand travels down the side of his body, reaching for him. A groan in the back of her throat when she finds he’s already hard. “What do you want?” he nearly hisses in her ear.

“I want you to make me forget.”

Jaime presses her back against the rocks, but when he starts to bend to her breasts, she tugs at his hair again. “No. I want this.”

“Now?”

She wants to tell him to not look so surprised, but all she can manage is a choked reply, “Now.” There’s a fraction of hesitation from him and a tiny part of her is grateful for it because she has no doubt she is loved, but this is not the moment for it. “I need you,” she nearly growls, her mouth nipping at his ear. She sees the switch flip then, the hunger in his eyes. His hand pins her against the rock as well as he can before he thrusts into her. “Yes,” she whispers, encouraging him.

She would not normally be this uninhibited outside of their bedchamber, would worry someone might come across them. But Jaime keeps up his rhythm, panting in her ear and her spine pressing into the rock, she lets her head fall back and closes her eyes, giving herself over to the sensations in her body. Not thinking, not worrying. The sounds they are making are not human, they are wild, unbridled, except for the occasional curse that slips out of Jaime’s mouth.

The only gentle thing she allows him to do is cradle the back of her head when she cums. He is right there with her and he presses his forehead against her the moment afterwards, letting out a heavy, satisfied sigh, their warm bodies a tangle of arms and legs. “I…” Brienne watches the rise and fall of his chest as he falters for the right words.

“I need more of that,” she breathes. Off his raised eyebrows, “Not right now.” She presses a hand to his chest, feels his heart racing. “But soon.”

“Gods.” He bites at the hollow of her neck. “Why did you not tell me so sooner?” She shrugs, already falling back into her inhibitions, but she feels emboldened. “Brienne,” his voice is gravelly in her ear. “You only need ask. I do what you bid. And gladly.” He smiles lasciviously. A charming yet conniving Jaime Lannister smile she knows too well. But this time it does not get under her skin or make her stomach flip. No, instead she finds power in it, a feeling of control over her body, their bodies, where a day ago, she felt she had little.

“I’ll remember that, my ser husband.”

“Your play thing.” He corrects, but then sees her glance and shakes his head. “Oh, believe me, I am not objecting.”

“As I told you, my husband has never forbidden me from anything.” Jaime laughs, the corners of his eyes crinkling up when he smiles, a feature of his face which she adores. She presses a gentle kiss to his left eyelid. “I love you,” she murmurs into his skin. “But I’m cold.”

Jaime stands and reaches for her, leading her out of the pond, and helping her get dressed. His hand pauses to worry over the red marks along her spine from where it was pressed against the rock, but she tells him, “I’m fine.”

“Good.” He draws her close, a hand in her damp hair as he kisses her, a long, slow kiss, paying extra attention to her lower lip. A new, different love blooms in her chest. They can be everything to each other. They confide their darkest moments, their deepest desires, and they can still come back to this. To love and caring and safety.

If for some reason, they can never have a family, it would not get in the way of their happiness. They would find a way to love through it and to get what they desire, all at once.

*

A month later

Jaime meets her in the library after dinner, as is their custom, and is surprised to see Brienne already in her nightclothes. “Are you feeling all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” There’s a small smile on her lips but she does not say anymore. His gaze lingers on her but then he sits and pours them both wine.

He takes a sip and notices she’s not, is simply watching him. “Are you sure you’re well? It’s your favorite wine.”

She bites her lip. “I think I might be.”

“What? Ill?” He startles, frowning.

Brienne laughs and turns towards him, her eyes shining with tears. “No, Jaime. I might be with child.”

Jaime’s hand is shaking so much he nearly drops his goblet. “Oh, my love.” It’s all he can manage before the tears start to fall. She stands to meet him and he wraps her in his arms and presses his mouth to her ear. “My darling. My knight.” He cannot think of any words for the love and gratitude he has for her, but the look on her face, the stars and fire written there, are enough. His hand slips to her stomach and neither of them can stop smiling. “I wish to hear everything,” he says, drawing a chair up so he can sit with her in his lap. “What makes you think so?”

She touches her hand to his cheek. “My sweet husband. This child is going to be very lucky.”

“Not luckier than I.” He replies, pressing his lips to hers.

[lovixcore]

With Clods Like You (Amedot Fic) (Rewrite)

One-Shot

Notes: So originally this was like 800-1000 words. So it was shorter. Originally this was my favorite to write, I think just because I enjoy writing banter (I enjoy banter between them in general tho) and I enjoy writing these two, and enjoy writing comfort fics. I don’t know. I just had fun writing this one. But I like rewriting my stuff so here it is. I have 3 more fics left to rewrite, and then I’m finally finished with this fic rewriting shit for now lol.

Word Count: 1401

Ao3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15864399

Even though it was dark outside, Peridot decided that she had needed some fresh air. She would usually be in the bathroom, but it just felt so depressing and cramped. She sat on the shore of the beach. She sat on the shore of the beach, staring off into the ocean, thinking about Lapis Lazuli, the one who left her and took everything she had, because of her fear of the diamonds. Lapis had been on her mind a lot, wondering if and hoping that she would return someday. Everytime she thought about her, it stung. But she couldn't keep her mind off her. She heard something or someone shuffling through the sand, and then she turned around to see a short figure that appeared to be Amethyst.

"Hey P-Pod," Amethyst smiled at her.

"Oh! Amethyst! Hi!" Peridot said, slightly brightening up. For some reason, it always brightened her mood, even just a little bit, everytime she saw Amethyst. There was just something about Amethyst that never failed to make her happy.

Amethyst sat down next to her, "So.. how ar'ya feeling? Ar'ya doing okay?"

"Well.. I was just thinking.."

“About what?”

“Lapis.”

"Oh.. Yeah.. you still miss her, don't you?" Amethyst asked with a hurt-sounding tone.

"Uh, of course I do! After everything.. why wouldn't I?" Peridot asked.

"I dunno," Amethyst shrugged. She wanted to say 'Dot, you know that you shouldn't spend all of your time beat up over Lapis, right?', but she knew that right now wasn't the best time to say so. "So.. tell me.. What's on your mind, regarding her?"

"That I wasted my time," Peridot quipped. "On Lapis, of course. But.. I spent so much time with her, getting close to her, and she opened up to me. I even opened up to her, because maybe she would've understood my struggles with transitioning lifestyles and homes. We had Camp Pining Hearts, Pumpkin, farming, and the meep morps. I thought that everything was perfect. But aparently, that was just a huge waste of my time, because the amount that she cared about me was not nearly as much of the amount I cared about her, and looking back, deep down, I most likely wasn't happy because of the constant need to go out of my way to make sure she was happy, with no recognition whatsoever."

Amethyst looked at Peridot, straight in the eyes, "Okay.. Look dude.. I know it hurts.. I've lost someone important to me too. Maybe didn't we have the same bond. And maybe it wasn't the same situation. But she was the closest friend I had, other than you and Vidalia. But.. You can't stop living life just because she left. And you can't be sad over her forever. Life goes on."

“I know..."

"And you do know that.. I'm here for ya.. I will always be here for you. So if you ever feel like coming up to me and wanting to cry on m'a shoulder, or wanting vent to me, that's okay, because you're my best friend, Peri, I'm here for you," Amethyst comforted.

Peridot half-smiled at Amethyst, her cheeks now a light blue, "Thank you, Amethyst. You're very important to me too."

Amethyst's purple cheeks turned a few shades darker, smiling back, "I'm glad I am."

After moments of silence, Peridot finally spoke, "...Amethyst?"

“Huh?”

"W-what if.. What if you leave me too?" Peridot asked, anxiously.

"Dude. I'd never leaave you. Never ever," Amethyst answered, sounding like she was on the verge of laughing. "Buhsides, I'd be a complete idiot if I did."

"No. You'd be a clod, to be exact," Peridot said, teasingly correcting her.

Amethyst blushed, now smiling again, "You're such a dork, Peridot."

"HEY! Peridot hissed, playfully pushing Amethyst, now giggling. Amethyst started giggling too.

“Oh man.. I miss this.."

“Miss..what..?” Peridot asked, now confused.

"I miss being able to hang out with you!" Amethyst exclaimed. "I missing laughing with you, I miss getting to do things with you, I miss pissing you off, I miss being with you. And.. even though you're right here, I miss you, so much.. Ugh.."

"I've missed you too, Amethyst," Peridot admitted, now blushing herself.

"I feel like.. that we only get to hangout when one of us feels like crap," Amethyst said, pointing out the obvious.

"I'm sorry," Peridot apologized.

“Uh. For what?” Amethyst asked.

"I was so invested in Lapis, so invested in taking care of her and make her happy that I forgot about you and the others.. And even when we did hangout, and Lapis was there, I was more attentative to her then anyone else."

"Peri, don't apologize. It's okay. You were just looking out for your friend," Amethyst reassured. "But on the brighter side, now we can hangout alot more often! There's so much I gotta introduce to ya!"

“Like.. what exactly?” Peridot asked

"Like that.. ocean!" Amethyst pointed out. "I love running through it, barefooted. And I love getting to see m'a hair flow in the water." She then pointed to the boardwalk, "And the awesome food that the Beach City Boardwalk has! And Funland! And the arcade! And the activities! There's so many fun things here."

"Welll.. I do need something else to do other than reside in the bathroom all-day," Peridot said. "But - I do need someone to do it with me."

"I got'cha covered, Dot," Amethyst said. "Buh-sides, I actually need to hangout with ya anyways! It's literally been light years."

"Well actually, Amethyst, it's roughly been a week," Peridot corrected.

"No no no nerd. I mean just the two of us. No Stevo, no Garnet, no Pearl, no Lapis, and definitely no drama. Just fun! And just the two of us, of course!" Amethyst insisted.

"Well, I suppose that we can."

"Yes!" Amethyst bursted out with glee, wrapping her arm around Peridot's shoulder and embracing her, in excitement.

Peridot smiled back at the excited quartz, and then sighed, "Amethyst.. do you think Lapis will ever.. come back?"

"Well.. if ya want me to be honest and not sugarcoat the whole thing, I don't know Dot," Amethyst admitted. Peridot frowned. And Peridot frowning made Amethyst upset because she hated seeing Peridot upset. "But! Uh. Let's hope that she will! But once again, let's not have you spend all your time locked up in the b-room, moping over her. Okay, Peri?"

"Okay," Peridot said. Amethyst then leaned on Peridot's shoulder, making her blush. "So.. you promise that you'll never leave?"

"I promise," Amethyst said. "Buttt, while we're making promises and stuff, can ya promise me somethin?"

“Of course."

"Promise me you'll never fake who you are and your happiness just for someone else's sake ever again. And promise me you won't bend over backwards for someone else's sake either. Okay? It's unhealthy and I definitely like the real you better."

"Wait. You knew that I was being 'overly happy' and 'bubbly' for a reason?" Peridot asked, sort of suprised.

"Uh dude. It was painfully obvious. I literally noticed it whenever I saw you and Lapis near each other," Amethyst said. "But.. I never really said anything just because I thought it was because I was jealous or somethin like that."

“You were jealous?”

"I mean.. a little.. I guess. It's hard not to when your someone who gets jealous easily and your bestfriend devotes all of her time and energy to another gem," Amethyst explained, blushing a little out of embarresment.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

"But. I do mean it when I say now that I'll never fake my happiness, and bend over backwards just for her. It's important and good to be selfless, but.. not to the point where it's unhealthy," Peridot promised.

"Thank you, Peridot. I'm glad you realized that," Amethyst smiled. Silence hit them for a moment, or two, then Amethyst finally spoke, "So.. do you ever think about Homeworld at all?"

"Of course I do, Amethyst," Peridot answered, sounding mildly defensive.

"I meant, do you miss it?" Amethyst asked. "Like.. at all?"

"No. I do not."

"So if ya had the oppurtunity to ever go back, you wouldn't?" Amethyst asked.

“Nope. Never.”

“Even though you’re stuck here with clods like me?” Amethyst asked, half-teasingly, half-serious.

"Yes," Peridot smiled, hugging the gem who was still leaning on her shoulder. "With clods like you."

Amethyst blushed, snuggling into the green gem, "Yeah.. I'm actually really happy you're here too Dot."

[browniefox]

Burn Out The Alcohol

Pro No Evens Production - Burn Out The Alchohol

Another KHRxAAO crossover. Sequel of sort to Not Even Our Dying Will Can Unite Us

Man, ideas for this just keep coming. I’ll probably end up doing another part after this too. Feel free to give me suggestions too :D

This one features flowers as a warning, exposition on flames, and a sky embracing what is his.

Please go check out Against All Odds at @royalflushstories

oOo

“You’re here rather early.”

Matpat looked up as Officer Static entered the building, shrugging off his coat. Matpat nodded at him, tired and nursing more than a small hangover. It had definitely not been a good idea to drink so much at Kjellberg’s last night. Absentmindedly, he rubbed his thumb across a seed pod he’d found in his coat pocket. He’d almost been unable to sleep thinking about what it might mean.

“I need my ring.” Matpat’s throbbing head wasn’t allowing him to think straight enough to be polite. Maybe later in the day, but it’s far too early for ‘pleases’ and ‘thank yous’

“Alright grouchy.” Static chuckled a bit, unlocking the ring vault. He carefully looked over the worn metal jewelry until he found his own familiar lightning ring and Matpat’s sun ring. “Be careful begging for your ring around some of the more jumpy Officers. They might think you’ve gone power hungry.”

Matpat gave a grunt as answer, accepting the black and yellow ring from Static and returning back to a desk. Static chuckled again, locking the vault back up and grabbing a seat until his partner came in, busying himself with cleaning his gun. Mat meanwhile pulled over a small pot from the corner of the desk, sticking the seedpod into the some-what damp dirt. He lit his ring up, and the bright yellow of the sun flame served to aggravate his headache. If the station was so strict about flame usage, he might’ve tried to see if sun flames could cure a hangover, but he resisted the urge.

He let the yellow fire sit in the pot, and for a moment nothing happened. Then, slowly, little green sprouts poked out of the dirt, reaching upwards, surrounded by the flames. Despite his headache, Matpat continued to urge the roots to spread and the stalks of the plants to rise, getting bigger as leaves unfurled from them, greedily accepting the energy given to them. And then, finally, clumps of buds came into being and opened up, revealing beautiful light-pink flowers with ruffly petals.

Matpat couldn’t help but to smile.

This was almost as good as proof that Foxglove had a speakeasy.

“Well those are pretty,” Patrick remarked, wiping down some part of his gun. “Are they for a case?”

“Yeah.” Mat stared at the blossoms. “It’s a rhododendron. They symbolize danger.”

It would seem the mob boss was trying to send him a message.

Too bad for her, he was more stubborn than that.

oOo

“Hey, Tom?”

Tom looked up from where he was underneath a table. It was one of those rare, treasured days where he didn’t have work. And Tom had decided that the best way to spend it was to help out around the Tiny Box. He was currently fixing up one of the tables, the leg of which had been wobbly for ages, before anybody came in. They weren’t quite open yet luckily.

Mark had squatted down beside him, brow pinched a bit in thought, something obviously bugging him. Tom set down his screwdriver and slid out from underneath the table. Mark deserved his attention. Lord knew he wasn’t able to give any of his family members the time they needed, being at work for so much of his time.

“Yeah Mark?”

His brother adjusted his glasses a bit and sat down on one of the chairs. Ah, so this wasn’t going to be a short thing.

“Well, uh, so there was that really big incident a little while ago. You know, the one where those two mobs were fighting, and there were dying will flames everywhere?”

Which could explain just about every single fight going on in Boston on any day.

“Yeah.” He had a feeling he knew where this was going.

“What are they, exactly?”

Tom pulled over one of the other chairs. Yeah, that’s about what he thought Mark would ask. He had always avoided talking about flames, since any mention of the war seemed to cause Mark to put up an immediate wall. But if Mark was initiating the conversation, Tom was more than happy to spend a moment having an actual conversation. It’d been too long since they’d had one.

“It’s sort of like… well, they’re called Dying Will Flames for a reason. They’re created from your, I guess passion is the best way to put it? By how much you love what you’re doing, or fighting for, how far you’re willing to go for it, when you’re ready to throw everything to the wind and die for your cause.” Tom did his best to describe it. The person who had explained it to him had done a far better job, but then again it had been that guy’s job.

“Is there a reason that people wear those rings?” Mark hand was rubbing at his right ring finger, as if imagining one on his own hand.

“They don’t really manifest without them. You sort of… channel? Your will into the ring? I only ever had to do it once, so I’m not really the best to ask about them.”

“Once?” Mark cocked his head to the side curiously.

“What I was told was that the military tries to avoid using flames. At this point, we don’t know very much about them and nobody wants to be the side that starts using them. Especially when you have no idea how much access the other side has to rings. Basically they had me find out my flame and then took the ring back.” Tom could still remember the moment, thinking about his family back home, what could happen to them if things went south over here. About going out into the fray of war and face the very-real possibility of never coming back. And how it would be worth it as long as they were safe. The image of the light blue flame was burned into his mind. The ring had been on his thumb, as they’d made him wear all seven different types at once. One of the guys watching had whistled at the sight, remarked that it was one of the bigger flames he’d seen.

“What kind was it?” Mark’s eyes were looking at Tom intensely, almost unnervingly so.

“Rain.” It had been fire, and yet it’d looked like water, dancing around smoothly. “They’re named after sky-element-things.” Tom quickly added. Mark probably wouldn’t know that.

“Do you… think they’re bad?”

That drew Tom’s attention.

“Bad?”

“Yeah.” Mark was no longer looking at him, eyes somewhere off to the side. “Y’know, since they’re mostly used by mobs and stuff. They’re sort of what caused a lot of the problems here. We’re so ring and flame dense here that there was no other choice than to give the police rings too.”

“You’re right, it does cause a lot of problems.” Tom had seen too much damage caused to this city by flames. Obviously it might be hard to outlaw them right now, but he hoped someday to reach that level. “But I wouldn’t say they’re evil. They’re weapon, definitely. They hard people. But they can also be helpful. Our police force use them to help protect and save us, and I’ve seen what those men have done with them. It’s amazing, stunning even. I’ve seen people brought back from the brink of death, collapsed buildings eroded away to save the people trapped inside. So I don’t think they’re evil. They just reflect the person who uses them.”

Mark was silent for a moment. He was still rubbing his ring-finger, looking at nothing, deep in thought.

(In weeks to come, Tom doesn’t notice the steadily-growing mark on his brother’s hand)

oOo

The kill order rings in PJ’s ears.

And it shakes him to the core.

The Godfather, old and frail, doesn’t seem to notice just how shaken PJ is, how he hasn’t moved, hasn’t breathed since the words left the man’s mouth.

PJ shouldn’t be so bothered by this. Death happens all the times in mobs. Jordan failed in what he was supposed to do. This was the consequences, for both of their actions. But something was stopping PJ from saying ‘okay’, from thanking the Godfather for at least sparing PJ himself, leaving, and shooting Jordan in the head like a horse with a broken ankle. At simply the mere thought of doing so, something deep within PJ stirred in revulsion. It screamed out that he shouldn’t, he won’t do that. He refused to kill Maron.

The Godfather rested his head against the pillows again, eyes closed in exhaustion, unaware of frozen PJ.

PJ stood for a moment more, dwelling on the feeling boiling in him.

Oh.

Wait.

It’s because Jordan is his.

He picks up the pillow.

-

Jordan stands with his back to PJ, shoulders carefully relaxed, hands clasped behind his back. There is a half-crumpled paper in one, and PJ wonders if it’s a final note or a will or a last message from somebody he once loved or loved him to take with to the grave. PJ knows Jordan knows he’s here, but the man doesn’t flinch, doesn’t move, hardly seems to breath.

He knows what is supposed to be coming.

PJ steps forward, and Jordan does flinch when PJ’s hand falls to his shoulder. It’s a whole body flinch, like his skeleton has attempted to escape its flesh prison. His eyes meet PJ’s, and he looks both terrified and resigned.

PJ doesn’t say anything. He holds his hand out, and almost reluctantly Jordan brings his free hand out from his back. PJ drops the ring into his friend’s hand, the cool silver metal with a purple gemstone. It’s scratched up and he’d had to scratch a bit of blood of the side.

Jordan Maron says nothing, and PJ slides the old ring off the others finger.

The Cloud Guardian of the Ligouri Family puts on his new ring.

oOo

Mark would lay awake at night.

He has many worries.

But he’s often dwell on the wellbeing of six specific people.

And he’d wonder why he’d care so much over people he knew could handle themselves.

As something warm burned inside of his chest.

[chojin-cu-chulain]

Captain Starmaster 3010

**Content warning, and Trigger warning for suicide: Even though it is depicted as a fictional event even within the confines of the story, a character commits suicide. This isn’t to glorify it, but to show an in universe shocking twist in the fictional game, and because the character was experiencing an existential crisis. I apologize to any survivors, or loved ones of people who have committed suicide who might get offended**

The following is taken from a now deleted blog called “Games Addiction” run by a user calling themselves “OldHerbz” or Herbz for short that mostly specialized in the review of obscure video games from the 8 bit, and 16 bit eras occasionally going to into other types of games.

March 15, 2015: Yo Yo everybody it’s your boy Herbz here, and welcome to another installment of Games Addiction were I find old games no one’s heard about, and see if they’re Class 5 classics for Class 1 crud.

So today I was at the local flea market like always scoping out for new games when I saw a counter run by some old guy I had never seen before.

The counter had a bunch of games I had seen before like sports games, shooters, Zelda 2, etc but there was this one Sega Genesis cartridge that caught my eye.

It didn’t have a sticker on it just a piece of white tape with the words “Starmaster” written on it.

I thought it sound like a spaceship shooter like Raiden or R Type, so I asked the man running the counter, and he said it was $5 so I poneyed up the cash and bought it.

So, let’s see how this game plays shall we?

So, we got the usual stuff like “Licensed by Sega of America”, and some logos from a company called Cytek or something that I never heard of before, but the copyright stuff says 1990.

Now there’s a shot of the Earth in outer space, and some white text crawling up.

The text says “Earth: the year 2010. War, and pollution have taken their toll on the Earth, and it cannot continue to support human life.”

We see what looks like a futuristic city with some flashing explosions, Then the screen goes white, and when it clears the city is in ruins

There’s a clip of some scientists working in a lab which pans to show this giant spaceship that looks like some giant tower poking out of a flying saucer

“The surviving governments of the world have decided to put aside their differences just once to come together to combine their collective intellect to create a space colony called the Eden”

there are some guards in futuristic military clothes leading a crowd of faceless people into ramp that leads into the ship.

“The Eden will take a small 10, 000,000-person population into space in the hopes that someday when the effects of man’s ravaging of the planet undo themselves man can return to his home.”

It goes back to Earth in space only now it looks all weird, and alien, and post-apocalyptic, and all that stuff

“The year is now 3010, Scientists on the Eden have determined that the Earth is once again fit for human inhabitation but there is one problem:

In the intervening millennium Earth has been overrun with dangerous, and carnivorous life forms.”

We see a bunch of weird looking monsters the most normal looking ones I can think of look like some humanoid mammal monsters with claws, and slanted eyes but even then they have horns coming out of their elbows, their arms are held out like a mantis’s, and their walking like their sitting down.

The weirder ones look like flying blobs or lizards with what look like moaning human faces, or they look like something out of an old episode of Star Trek.

Then one of these monsters looks directly at the player, and slashes at the screen leaving these white claw marks

“The only hope for humanity is to send down the Eden’s greatest, and bravest soldier Captain Starmaster down to Earth to eliminate the predatory mutants so mankind can reclaim the Earth.”

We see some guy step out of the darkness, and he looks like something out of VR Troopers or Ropcop with this white or silver armor, a black visor, and all sorts of glowing lights on him.

All the while there’s this bad ass sounding super heroic music playing.

“Captain Starmaster is equipped with the most powerful, and deadly weapons in human history as well as various tools which can help him explore any terrain no matter how treacherous”

Now there’s a POW show that looks life your typical red screen with techno crap all over including a target.

Next, we see Captain Starmaster firing some futuristic machine gun that shoots lasers.

We then see the various monsters from earlier being hit and blown up by the lasers in the most PG rated way humanly possible.

Then it shows Captain Starmaster, and the title screen shows up in these futuristic silver letters that say “Captain Starmaster 3010”

There’s a thing that says, “Start Game”, and another that says “Menu”

I go down to “Menu” first, and hit start, and it shows the usual stuff like Passwords, Dificulty, Music all that Jazz.

Anyway, on to the actual game itself I go up, and hit start game

The first level seems to rocky mountain level.

A green text box with a red orb of light next to it shows up.

The text box reads “Captain Starmaster this is Eden do you read us?’

Then the red orb is replaced with a picture of Captain Starmaster’s face.

He says “I read you. My goodness it’s worse than we thought”.

The Red orb replies “Starmaster we need you to clear out all the mutants in this area. We are sending you a Sonic Wave Gun, and some Climbing Claws to help you with your mission.”

Starmaster than says “Understood Eden commencing mission”

The red orb replies with “Good Luck Captain you are only hope”

The game itself seems to be some Metroid knock off.

I don’t think Sega had too many of those except for Slime World but they did have a lot of Mario, and Zelda clones.

The controls are pretty simple you use the D Pad to move around, A jumps, B fires your weapon which is the laser machine gun from the cutscene Start pauses, and C brings up a menu where you equip weapons, and gear which is blank for now.

I move around the level there’s all sorts of weird flying turtle monsters with Xenomorph looking teeth, and rocks that look like they’re part of the background but then when you get too close, they turn out to be some centipede looking creatures.

Eventually I get to some futuristic white pods I can go into.

When I do Starmaster glows green, and a text box says, “You now have Climbing Claws”, and “You now have Sonic Wave Gun”.

When I go to the cliffs, I can now climb up them, and when I switch to the Sonic Wave gun Starmaster’s gun now shoots this yellow wave at enemies that can shatter certain rocks so I can move forward.

After what seems like forever I finally get to the boss.

It looks like some weird mix of a gorilla, and a mole on top but the bottom looks like an earth worm or a snake.

It attacks by shooting its own wave attack, and then launching a couple of rocks that attack the player in some circular motion.

It takes me forever but eventually I find out you supposed to hit the monster’s eyes until some green jewel like orb shows up on its stomach, and fire at it.

Eventually I win, and the monster explodes in typical 16-bit fire effects.

That’s all for now but tommorow I’ll get to the other levels.

I’ll try to be as brief as I can with the next few levels.

So now we have a forest level.

The trees are a mix of the kind you’d see in a forest in California, the kind you’d find in the jungle.

Some of them have seeds that look like angry faces with sharp teeth, and move around with spider leg like roots, and attack by waving their branches around like whips.

Some of the monsters look like a cross between a wild cat, and some bug like a termite or a wasp.

I’m supposed to get a weapon called “Homing Sniper”, and an item called “Wood Saw”

The homing Sniper ends up being some blue laser that locks on to enemies in an L shape, and the wood saw clears trees you can’t get past.

The boss is weird I don’t know if it’s one creature or two.

The top part looks like some yellow, and black insect with dragon fly like wings, spider eyes, and a grasshopper like body while the bottom looks like some tumble weed with a billion purple eyes, and these giant white, and red flowers that shoot lasers.

I find out the weak spot is the wings, and the tumble weed part, and move on.

Next is an ice level with these creatures that look giant balls of fur with teeth and tentacles, and giant sea urchins that look like they’re made of ice.

I get these boots that let you walk on ice without slipping, and a flame thrower for melting blocks.

The boss is some weird lizard creature that looks like a brontosaurus with a turtle shell, and a t rex head that breaths freezing mist, and shoots lasers out it’s eyes that I have to shoot the neck of when it’s not attacking.

Next is volcano level where I get a heat shield, and an ice beam.

Some of the monsters here are weird looking like these green blobs that turn into humanoid shapes, and some hoping stick insects that fire spread shots.

The boss reminds me of Gudis from Ultraman towards the future only skinnier, and purple.

It attacks with these blue energy rings, and this green gas.

I’m supposed to use the freeze ray to freeze the gas into a platform that I can use to climb and use my other weapons to attack the exposed brain which is the weak spot.

Now it’s a water level there’s all these weird monsters that look like a cross between a crab or a lobster, and some coral.

Another looks like some squid or octopus, but its tentacles are electric eels

I’m supposed to get an item that allows Starmaster to move through the water without sinking, and an “Electro Gun” that fires electricity in a weird trident formation.

I get to the boss, and it’s some cross between a shark, a whale, a manta ray, and a bunch of other sea animals.

The weirdest thing is that sometimes it points itself up, and the bottom which is now the front looks like some deformed mermaid or something.

I’m supposed to hit this angle like tail it has when it goes to the mermaid stage.

After that I get another cutscene where the red orb of light says “Captain Starmaster we believe we have found your last target enter the ruins, and eliminate the mutant menace once and for all”

Starmaster replies “Affirmative Eden I will not fail”.

The next level is a sewer level they bring back some of the monster from previous levels and include some of the monsters from the opening cutscene.

It also seems like a final exam level because I’m supposed to use all the weapons, and items I collected so far.

I also have to get one last time that lets Starmaster go through radiation clouds without getting hurt, and this thing called “The Super Laser” that’s this big laser that takes up a third of the screen.

Not only that but I have to fight the bosses again.

Then I get another section and it looks like the surface of the ruined city from the opening cut scene.

I fight all the various monsters until eventually I get to the final boss.

I’m trying to think of a good way to describe it other than it’s like a PG rated version of something you’d see in John Carpenter’s The Thing.

It’s got four legs, and four arms, it has insect wings, and bird wings.

The legs look like a mix of reptile, and mammal.

I think has fins, and gills, and it has some weird mollusk like head with a billion eyes, and some melting looking human face for a stomach.

It’s not surprisingly the hardest boss in the game since you have to use every weapon in the game to hurt it.

It swipes at you with its arms that your supposed to freeze into platforms to climb and shoot the head.

Then it fires lasers and breaths fire, and you’re supposed to use the electro gun, and homing sniper on the head.

Next it spits acid, and you’re supposed to use the Sonic Wave gun to disorient it while you use the flame thrower on its acid sacs.

Finally, it fires a wave attack from the melting face while you use the super laser to finish it off.

At last we get one final cutscene.

Captain Starmaster then walks through the ruins of the destroyed city and enters a building.

He walks up to a computer, and a spike comes out of his arm like in Robocop and he enters it into a port.

Some binary code flashes on the monitor, and then we see an image of a man in a recording.

Some text appears on the screen.

“They abandoned us. They thought no one else was left on this planet but we were”.

The man continues “Please if you can hear us there are still people trapped on Earth. Pleas rescue us”.

The recording continues “It’s no use we’re stuck here our best bet is to try to survive, and repair what’s left of the Earth”.

Then the recording shows the man only now his teeth looked like fangs, and his eyes were all yellow.

The man said “It’s too late. Our scienitsts say because of all the lingering chemicals, and radiation those of us left behind are starting to mutate.”

He adds “At first it will be physical but at some point, our minds will revert back to knowing only how to kill or be killed. Oh god why us.

Then finally it just shows one of the monsters from the game, and the text now says “Meat. I must have meat”. Then it shows him roaring, and it plays the sound file for the monsters roaring.

Starmaster then asks, “Did you see that Eden?”

Then the red orb of light appears and replies “unfortunately yes captain”.

Then it flashes back to the Eden leaving Earth.

Then it shows a still image of people on the Eden as the text says “At first when humanity left Earth in the Eden everything was peaceful, and everyone was happy”

Then it shows the people looking frightened.

The text says “But it didn’t last the survivors realized they weren’t enough resources to survive a permanent existence in Eden”

Then it shows Eden’s computers, and the inhabitants looking at the Eden’s robotic workers.

The text now says, “Faced with a difficult decision the survivors made the hardest choice they could make”.

It then shows the people in tubes next to computers with glowing lights, and then cut to the lights on the eyes of the Eden’s robots lighting up

The text continues “The inhabitants of Eden downloaded their brains into the ship’s computers, and then uploaded them into robotic bodies.”

It then cut back to Starmaster in the building saying “So that’s it. It was all for nothing”.

Then it shows Starmaster taking off his helmet to reveal a Terminator like robot skull.

Next Starmaster reaches into his own chest plate pulls out a device that looks like a cross between a mechanical heart, and a miniature nuclear reactor, and crushes.

Then his red eyes go dead.

Next, we see the Eden land, and its robotic inhabitants walk out.

We see the robots doing experiments on the mutants.

The text says “Unfortunately the inhabitants of Eden were unable to return the mutants to human form but they after continuous experimentations were able to restore the inhabitants’ sentience.

Then it shows the robots growing mutants in tube, and then showed them going back into the mind transference machines.

Then it shows the mutants in the tubes waking up, and it showed the robots, and mutants living in harmony.

Then the text says “And so the sad tale of Captain Starmaster came to a happy end. Humanity maybe extinct but life will find a way to continue who knows for sure if this is truly the fate that awaits us but if we continue on our current path it might”.

Then it shows the Earth in space again with the letters Game Over The End.

Well that’s Captain Starmaster.

The graphics are great for the time.

The gameplay is awesome.

I wonder why they never released it publicly other than obviously the big twist would have been seen as a bit too intense for young kids.

Not to mention I can’t help that a lot of players would have thought the twist would seem like a fuck you ism to them.

Still considering that environmentalism was a big deal back then, and this was just before the USSR ended, I can see why they felt the need to make a point on what the aftermath of war and pollution.

That is why I’m declaring Captain Starmaster a class 5 addicting game.

This is OldHerbz saying stay addicted.

[writingtopasstime]

Wrong Lover

Overview: A fellow hunter who is in love with Dean realizes that maybe he isn’t the one. (ReaderxSam [Friendship])

Song Inspiration: Chasing Cars (Cover) by Sleeping At Last

Heavy by Oh Wonder (I’ve been obsessing over their new album!)

Trigger Warning: Angst, Then Fluff, Unrequited Love

Word Count: 1917 Words

Note: I might write more of this if you guys want probably just two or three parts.

"Come on Dean please?!" Y/n looked up at the eldest Winchester brother putting on her best puppy dog face.

"Why do you want a vacation it's almost friggin' Christmas!" Dean argued back.

"But that's exactly why we should vacation! When's the last time we did anything for ourselves?" Y/n asked pouting out her lower lip. It was her last hope of actually getting Dean to agree. Dean ran a hand over his face.

"Fine but I get to choose where we go first." Y/n squealed. She turned towards Sam and ran into his arms jumping up and down.

"Did you hear that, vacation time?!!" Sam chuckled hugging Y/n. The pair were like two peas in a pod. Sam hadn't seen her this happy in a long time. What he didn't realize was her happiness was about to be crushed.

It had been hours since they all left and Dean still hadn't said where he was taking them but he said they were close. The closer they got the more Sam fidgeted around. Y/n, on the other hand, was excited. She didn't really care where they were going as long as they were all together. But that happiness faded to confusion when they pulled up to a house.

"Why are we at a house?" Y/n scooted up til she had her head between the two brothers. Sam was glaring at his brother. "Please don't tell me this is a case." Dean turned his body towards Y/n.

"No, but what you said gave me an idea. We all do deserve a vacation so you guys can borrow Baby and I'm gonna be here with Lisa and Ben." Y/n's smile dropped. She fell back in her seat.

"Oh, okay." Her voice was quiet, barely audible. Both brothers got out of the car and started to argue.

"I can't believe you just did that!"

"Did what? She's the one who said we should have a vacation so I am."

"She didn't want this and you know it."

"It's not my problem." Dean slammed down the trunk causing the car to rock. Sam walked back to the driver seat. Once he was settled he turned to look at Y/n who hadn't moved.

"He's a dick. Where do you wanna go?" Y/n stared ahead. She was trying not to look over at where Dean and gone. "Y/n," Sam asked quietly.

"Just drive please," Y/n's voice cracked. She slumped forward. She couldn't hold it back anymore. She sobbed into her hands. The pain in her heart slowly spread through her chest then into her limbs. Sam pulled into the nearest motel he could find. He quickly got out and checked in even before Y/n had calmed down.

"Let me help," Sam reached in and easily lifted Y/n out of the backseat. She was silent. Her arms held onto Sam's neck but her body was numb. He placed her down on the bed closest to the door. "Do you want anything," Sam kneeled down next to his friend. Y/n held out her hand. Sam lacing his fingers with hers.

"Can you hold me," Sam gave her his famous puppy dog look. It didn't take long before Jules started to cry again. Sam pulled her against his chest. His large body encompassed her tiny one. Y/n mumbled into his chest half coherently.

"You deserve so much better. You're beautiful and caring and funny, even if you make stupid pun jokes." Y/n looked up at Sam. He swiped the tears away. He was smiling back and something in Y/n's chest began to pull at her.

"Sam," she whispered.

"Yea."

"Why do you do this?" Sam's head scrunched up confused.

"What do you mean?"

"This, why do you comfort me? Why are you so good to me?" Sam's smile returned. He leaned forward and planted a gentle kiss on her hairline.

"You're my best friend, of course, I'm gonna comfort you." Y/n took in the words. She felt the ache in her heart swell. Nobody ever wanted anything more than friendship with her.

"Thanks, Sammy," Y/n curled into his chest again. She shut her eyes and fell into a deep sleep. The nightmares were always consistent but this one was different. This one wasn't looking for one of the boys. This time she was looking for herself.

Y/n was jolted awake. Her body registered warmth but her face was frozen. She blinked her eyes open. It wasn't the motel. She actually was laying flat on a leather bench. Hands rubbed circles into the tips of her feet. Her eyes moved along to Sam sitting behind the steering wheel. His eyes flickered to hers briefly.

"Hey, good morning, sorry about that jolt the road's tough to drive on." Y/n broke free of her cocoon of blankets and sat up. Her gasp that made all of Sam's hours of driving worth it. White. Everything for as far as the eye could see was blanketed in a thick layer of snow.

"Sam," she breathed out. Her eyes were glued to the little sprinkles of flakes that landed on the windshield. "Thank you." She looked away to a look back at Sam. Tears burned behind her eyes but this time they were filled with happiness.

"Anytime," Sam took a hand off the steering to pat her leg. He rested it there his thumb repeating the same motion he used on her feet.

"So where are we going may I ask?" Y/n let go of the feelings she had yesterday and focused on the present.

"There's supposed to be this road somewhere up ahead that leads to a lake. I thought we would go see if it's frozen. What do you say?" Y/n smiled at Sam. She scooted to his side. She slid her arms around his waist.

"I say you're too good for me," she pecked him on the cheek before moving away. She slid the blankets off her body revealing that she was still in the same clothes as yesterday. As she started to fold the thick sheets she noticed something. "Sam Winchester tell me you did not steal these from the motel" Sam's whole face burned red.

"You were really warm I didn't want you to get cold." Y/n let out a full fledge snort filled laugh. She dropped her head back catching her breath.

"What am I going to do with you?"

"Marry me" he smirked. Y/n smiled back. She focused back on the road and the drive became comfortably silent.

"We're here," Sam announced. Y/n shoved her feet into her boots before bounding out of the Impala not even waiting for Sam. She immediately ran over to the edge of the lake. "Hey, careful. Don't run out on the ice."

"I know I'm not stupid," Y/n yelled back. Her body shivered against the cold air. Sam came up behind Y/n. "Here give your hand," she turned around with her hand out. "I want to see how solid the ice is," Sam took her hand as she placed one foot out onto the ice. She squeezed Sam's hand and shifted her weight 'til she had her whole weight on the ice. It was solid. She took another step and another until she was walking slowly along the lake. She dropped Sam's hand.

"Don't go too far," Sam warned.

Y/n turned back to the shore. She stilled moved her way out onto the ice. Her eyes focused on Sam. He was staring, laughing as she wobbled around on the slick surface. There was something in that moment that made Y/n realize that she did deserve better. She deserved someone like Sam. The moment only lasted for a second before she plummeted into the water. Her body went into shock. Her muscles tightened. She flailed her arms hoping to keep them out of the water and herself afloat.

"Y/n!" Sam yelled. He gently made his way across the ice he tried to be fast but he knew if he fell in they both be doomed. She was slipping fully underwater when he yanked her out. Her skin was already turning an alarming shade of blue. "Y/n! Hey!" Sam shook her gently. His fingers ran along her jugular. The pulse was steady but her skin frozen. He knew he had to get her back to the Impala, to warmth.

Y/n started to come to consciousness as Sam began to strip her. Y/n didn't know what was going on. She tried to fight against him but her body was weak. All she could do was shiver uncontrollably. Sam dropped all her wet clothes into the back seat until she was completely naked. Sam didn't take advantage of the moment to stare, he was too worried about her. He wrapped the hotel blankets around her so only her face was uncovered. Sam started the car, heat blasting through the vents, causing the Legos Sam put in there as a kid to rattle.

"I should have never brought you here it was a stupid idea," Sam ran his hands through his hair in frustration. Y/n wanted to argue but she could hardly feel anything. She instead snuggled into Sam's side. "I'm sorry." He pulled her up against his body. "Let's get out of here. We need to get you something hot to drink and some warm clothes."

Y/n hadn't said anything yet. She sat with her coffee on the edge of the bed. Sam had gone outside to grab their bags out of the trunk. Y/n had warmed up a bit so when Sam came in she was ready to talk. "Sam it wasn't your fault," Sam dropped the bags down. She gestured for him to sit with her. "Look I know you you're probably still gonna blame yourself but that was my fault. I shouldn't have been that far out on the ice."

"Well if I hadn't taken you to the lake-"

"Stop," Y/n placed her drink next to her on the ground. "Sam, look at me," he lifted his head barely meeting eye contact. Y/n reached out for his face. "You're amazing. You made me feel better. Even more than that you made me feel like I was worth more. You made me realize that I don't have to stand for Dean's bullshit anymore." Sam's face softened. A small smirk brightening his face. Y/n smiled hoping that he was truly hearing her words.

"You are worth more and you do deserve better. Someday you're gonna find someone who loves you unconditionally and treats you like all woman should be." Now it was Y/n's turn to smirk. She brought their faces closer. All the parts of her that were still frozen melted. She was just a puddle in Sam's arms.

"I think I already have." Y/n leaned up until her lips were pressed against Sam's cheek. She pulled back her smile never leaving her face.

“So how about we stay in bed all day and watch some movies,“ Sam questioned.

“Can it be Harry Potter?“ Y/n said hopefully. Sam laughed.

“It’s whatever you want as long as you’re safe.“ Y./n squealed. pulling Sam’s arm as she crawled up further on the bed. “You’re the best,” she mumbled as the pair settled in for the night.

[thetravelersjournal]

Programming A Date- A ShardxNicole Story

This is for the ShardxNicole summer contest, which can be found here. I really like how this turned out, and I hope you enjoy as well!

At any rate, enjoy!

“Gear? Are you awake?”

I snort the last part of my snore and cough before opening my eyes slowly. Nicole was standing above me.

“Oh… *Yawn*... I guess I fell asleep. What’s up? We haven't hung out in a while.” I slowly sat up against the tree I was lying under, stretching my aching bones. It felt good to get some sleep for once. I grunted a little from the pain flaring in my hip; the hilt of my sword had been digging into it.

“I… I know, sorry,” Nicole said sadly, sitting down beside me and looking at the nearby Lake of Rings, “But with everything going on, I…”

“No, I understand. Team Freedom- and us at the SFF- have a lot to deal with. Not to mention your whole exile thing.” I didn’t mention Sally.

“Right…,” her voice trailed off. I peered at her suspiciously.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“Huh? Nothing. I just came to-”

“Nuh-uh. I can read you like a book, Nicole. What’s up?” I repeated.

She stared at me for several seconds before hanging her head and sighing.

“Well… It’s about Shard…,” she mumbled.

“What about him? He’s fine now, right? Me and Chuck fixed his core and everything.”

“Yes, but… we have been spending more and more time together lately, and… I am starting to get confused again, like I was when I first started using this form.” She gestured to her holographic body.

“Ah, new feelings springing up? Describe’um for me!” I leaned back and closed my eyes.

Nicole stared at the ground a little longer while she thought up some words to describe her feelings. “Hmm… It feels like my stomach… ceases to exist... when we meet up, and I feel rather nervous, but that goes away after we hang out for a little while, being replaced by... sort of a happy, hot tension in my chest… and when he leaves, I feel sad for some reason.

“I’m sorry,” she sighed, “That was a terrible way to describe-”

“Love,” I stated simply, smiling, “You’re in love with Shard.”

Nicole looked at me keenly before whispering, “Love?”

“Sure, sounds about right. Never felt the emotion myself, I suppose, but that’s what most people describe it as.”

“Love,” Nicole rolled the word around in her mouth, tasting it, making a face that told it was both sweet and sour.

“Are you sure?” she argued, “I don’t know if that accurately describes it.”

“If it doesn’t, then you need to explain it better. I can only do so much.”

“Love,” Nicole repeated. She gazed at the lake, becoming quiet.

I followed her gaze, becoming absorbed in my own thoughts. It was a pretty well-known fact that Shard liked Nicole- the guy couldn’t hide anything worth beans- though it made a little sense that Nicole herself didn’t recognize it. An idea formed in my head.

“You know… you could always ask him on a date.”

Nicole swiftly turned around. “A date?” she asked.

“Sure, test the waters and what-have-you-not.”

Nicole stared at me intensely. I realized a second too late I had said the wrong thing. “Test the waters? I am barely aware of my feelings towards him. Besides…,” she sighed heavily, “Do we really have time for that, with everything going on with Naugus, and Knuckle’s people, and… Sally?”

She became quiet towards the end of the sentence, leaving a hollow silence that traveled across the lake.

I observed her for awhile, before turning my snout towards the dark heavens. Alien lights simmered in the blackness, trying to light up the moonless sky on their own.

“Nicole… why do we look to the stars?”

She peered at me, perplexed.

“Do we dream of journeying up there someday, exploring the unknown? Maybe. Do we contemplate and appreciate its beauty? Perhaps. But do you know what I see when I look up? I realize, that somewhere out there, someone is facing the same struggles I’m facing. And they’re winning. They’re going up against the odds and beating them by a milestone. And, well… it gives me hope, really. I know that, no matter how hard the obstacle, I can always move forward, as long as I have the will to do so.”

I stopped my speech and looked at Nicole, who was now staring into the black abyss above.

“Sorry, that was kinda corny, wasn’t it?” I said sheepishly.

Nicole didn’t respond. For several minutes, she continued staring up, perhaps in search of the hope I had described.

“You’re right,” she finally stated. She stood up and started to walk away before looking back at me.

“I’m going to face my problems head-on. Nothing can stop me, as long as I put my mind to it. Thank you, Gear. And… I’m willing to give it a shot. I’m going to ask Shard out on a date.” And with a small wave and a little smile, she disappeared from sight.

“Atta girl,” I yawned, continuing my stargazing.

“Hey, Gear. Wake up.”

I grunted, surprised that I had fallen asleep yet again. I looked up at the silhouette of a metal hedgehog.

“That better be you, Shard,” I said, drawing my sword.

“Relax, essh,” Shard said, stepping into the limelight.

I breathed a sigh of relief, returning my weapon to its sheath.

“What can I do for you? And you realize other people might have similar reactions if they see you, right? I didn’t use all the duct tape and glue I possess on you just for you to get stoned by a mob.”

“Yeah, I know, I was just… Looking for Nicole,” he said, mumbling the last part of his sentence, “Have you seen her?”

“Nicole? Dunno. She usually meets me here, but-”

“Alright,” grumbled Shard, “I’ll just look somewhere else.”

“What do you need her for?”

“What? Oh. That. Well, I wanted to see if she could run up a training simulation in preparation for our next mission. Need to practice some new one-liners I came up with,” He smirked.

He might’ve bought my lie, but I didn’t buy his. “You gonna ask her out?”

“O-out? Wait, no, seriously? Are you even listening to yourself? There’s no way I…” He stopped talking, stunned into silence by my glare.

“Ahem… You were saying?” I smiled coyishly.

“Alright, Foxx… You got me. Though you’re wrong about one thing- I wasn’t (technically) asking her on a date. Now will you tell me where she is?” He tapped his foot in annoyance.

“So you’re not asking her on a date? Why not?”

Shard stared at me. “Wait… You actually want me to…?”

“Well, duh. I’m pretty sure everyone you know is waiting for the two of you to pair up.”

“Everyone I know? Who the heck would that be?”

“Nicole, for one.”

“Really? Because she seems preoccupied to me.”

“Are you even listening to yourself? That is a terrible reason not to ask someone out.”

“What would you know? Have you ever even had a girlfriend?” Shard replied.

“Yes,” I said.

“Technically, if you count the human side of me,” I thought.

Shard fell to the ground in a sitting position. He examined me angrily, before sadness swiftly swept onto his face.

“It's just… what if she says no? I know that she may not really fully understand love yet, so…” He sighed

“Well, isn’t that what dating is for?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“People don’t date to show their love for one another- that’s what marriage is for. No, people think they might be in love with someone, and that’s why they ask them on a date- to see if they actually love the other person. All the other person has to do is like them enough to say yes. You and Nicole are like peas in a pod, there’s no way she would say no,” I explained.

The wind dissolved for a few seconds.

“I… guess that makes a surprising bit of sense,” Shard said slowly.

“Surprising?”

“Coming from you, yeah.”

“Jeez, why do I even bother…,” I muttered, leaning back up against the tree.

“But… basically, when I ask her out, I just have to hope she likes me enough to say yes, right?”

“Yeah,” I nodded, “It’s a good first step at any rate.”

We sat in silence for a while. Finally, Shard worked up his courage.

“Okay… I’m gonna ask her.”

“Good to hear. She went that way, by-the-by,” I announced, pointing to the right.

Shard looked at me with annoyance before smiling and striding off. I watched him disappear behind some trees, before turning my attention skyward once again. The stars started blinking out one by one as my eyelids slowly closed.

“All in a day’s work,” I mumbled, before my body slowly slid down the length of the tree trunk and I fell into yet another peaceful sleep.

Gear belongs to me.

Nicole and Shard belong to SEGA and Archie(?)

[ablackbirdsinging]

Like Calls to Like: Chapter 4

Nina/Sturmhond, Grisha Trilogy/Six of Crows crossover! Flirting and whales and hand jobs, oh my! (In other words, this chapter is NSFW. Finally!)

If you need to catch up: LCtL Chapter 1 LCtL Chapter 2 LCtL Chapter 3

If you’d like to read over on AO3, here’s a handy link!

@bharatanatyamandballet, @rowanismybae, @runesandfaes - here’s a new chapter! 

In the days that followed, there was a marked difference in Sturmhond’s demeanor. His step was lighter, and the dark circles beneath his eyes were too. Nina’s ministrations had worked wonders and the members of his crew who had known him before the Darkling’s attack saw their old friend and Captain once again. When she saw him, she remembered that he was just a young man, only a handful of years older than Nina herself.

Sturmhond often sought Nina out in those days, standing with her at the deck to point out birds, hooking one of her elbows and dragging her to his map room to show her where they were on their journey to Fjerda, attempting to teach her to whistle so she could stop torturing everyone on board with her singing voice. He often claimed the spot next to her on the crowded bench where the group ate their supper, even when Nadia was already there chattering away to Nina.

“Budge over,” he said, shouldering between the two women.

“We’re in the middle of a conversation here,” Nadia complained as she scooted down the bench.

“Oh yeah? About anything good?” Sturmhond asked as he filled his plate from the platters on the table.

“About hair conditioners. Is that of much interest to you?” Nina asked.

“Oh yes, absolutely. I've always wondered how you get your hair so shiny,” and he listened attentively as Nina, Nadia, and Tamar talked all through dinner about hair products, knee pressed against Nina’s under the table the whole time.

When the crew began to disperse, Sturmhond got up without another word to Nina and took up his turn at plate-scraping duty at the refuse bin at the end of the kitchen, leaving her confused and missing the warmth of his touch.

----

Afterward, Nina paced around her room, which really was the size of an orange crate, trying not to cry.

The first man she had ever really loved, and the first man who ever loved her back, was lying dead in the hold of this ship while she made new friends and flirted with a man she barely knew and hoped that any second he would knock on her door and take her in his arms and kiss her and kiss her and kiss her and never stop.

She felt like every beat of her heart and every shuddered breath was a betrayal of Matthias, who had been such a good man, but wanted to be better, for her. She tried to write a letter to Inej. To tell her all of this, but so many tears fell on the paper that the ink ran in messy streaks and she had to tear it up and throw it away.

She missed him. She missed Inej. She missed her old life which was never the life she wanted, but it was still a place that she fit. She didn't know how she fit into this ship or into Niko’s life, and how all that would change once they returned to Ravka again. It was all too much.

She wanted to get out of her stifling room, but she knew that she might run into Niko and she didn't trust what her body might do when she saw him again. So instead she stripped out of her clothes, laid down on her bed and went to sleep.

----

Nikolai walked as quickly and quietly as he could through the narrow halls of the ship. He knew Tamar, on duty, was trailing him, keeping a respectful distance. He let her catch up to him.

“What's up boss?” Tamar asked as she approached.

“There's something I need to show Zenik. Any chance you can give us some space?” Tamar thumbed an axe holstered at her side.

“Space? Sure. But I'm not going to go climb into bed and leave you alone for the night. My brother would throw me overboard if something happened to you. And then once I swam all the way back to Ravka, the Triumvirate would chop me up and feed me to the birds. And then you would have to answer to Nadia, who’s grown so attached to me lately. So in short, no.” Nikolai sighed heavily. He expected as much. There was a reason the twins were his personal bodyguards. They were the most hard-headed people he knew.

“Listen, I just need to get Nina and bring her up to the top deck. Can you meet us there? Off the port side. I just need to show her something.”

“What is it?”

“It's a surprise.” Tamar eyed him warily.

“It's not your penis, is it?”

“No! It's not my - it's not any body part at all. Saints, Tamar.”

“Well, I just needed to check. Alright. I'll meet you on the deck.”

As she started to walk away, Nikolai stopped her again.

“Wait, Tamar. Go get your girl and bring her too.” Nikolai smiled at the spring in his bodyguard’s step as

she hurried away to wake up Nadia.

He knocked quietly at Nina’s door and when there wasn't a response, he pushed it open tentatively. She hadn't been exaggerating the other day. It really was the size of an orange crate. There was barely enough room for Nina’s trunk and the bed.

The room was so dark that he could barely make out her sleeping form, the spill of dark hair across her sheets.

“Nina,” he whispered. “Nina!” A little louder, and he reached to touch her shoulder. She jerked away, looking startled. “Sorry, it's just me.”

“What are you doing here?” She sat up, touching her hair self-consciously, and her sheets pooled around her waist. In the dim light from the hall lanterns filtering into her room, Nikolai tried and mostly failed not to look at the silhouette of her full breasts through the light shift she wore.

“There's something I need to show you. Up top on the deck. Can you get dressed quickly and meet me in the hall?” Nina rubbed her face groggily.

“What time is it?”

“I'm not sure exactly. Two bells maybe? But it can't wait till morning. Wear something warm, it's cold this far north.” And then he disappeared out the door so she could change.

A couple minutes later, Nina reopened her door and stepped out. She was dressed in trousers and a worn brown sweater, with a fur lined cloak slung over one arm and a furry cap clutched in her hands. She’d twisted her hair into a messy chignon, but there were already pieces starting to escape and curl around her face. She looked decidedly more awake and devastatingly beautiful.

“This better be good,” she muttered as he led her topside. She swung the cape over her shoulders and donned the hat, and Nikolai pulled his own fur lined trapper hat low over his ears, as they picked their way across the deck, every exhale visible in the cold air.

“It's worth it, I promise,” he said as he reached for her hand. They had never done this before, held hands, but it felt natural to pull her along this way, squeezing her gently out of excitement, as they headed for the deck railing. When they were steps from the rail, a crash resounded from out at sea, water frothing up and nearly misting them where they stood.

Nina froze in place and he came up close behind her to peer over her shoulder.

“Niko, is that?” And then they watched as a large white body lifted out of the water and crashed back down again, sending another great spray in all directions. In the water, barely visible by the moonlight, other bulbous white heads bobbed up and down.

“Whales,” Niko breathed into her ear. “Belugas. I've never seen one, but I've read about them. I was walking the deck when I heard their song.”

“They sing?”

“About as well as you,” Niko shrugged. “They make distinctive noises - whistles, clicks, a sort of keening sound that's not so different from your song voice actually.”  

She half turned in indignation to shove his shoulder with her own, but he caught her and walked her the rest of the way up to the railing so they could watch the whale pod better. Even in her cloak and hat, she was shivering from the cold, so he opened his coat and stepped behind her, tucking her against him, arms around her stomach, chin on her shoulder. She breathed deeply and relaxed against his chest.

“I'm sorry it's so cold,” he murmured against her neck. The proximity of his mouth to her skin made them both shiver.

“Don't be sorry. This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, Niko.” Below them, the whales swam and played in the moonlight like large white ghosts gliding through the waves, one occasionally breaching the water with an exhale of air, then melting back down, paying no attention to the ship.

Out of the corner of his eye, Niko saw Tamar and Nadia come up on deck too, wrapped up in a blanket. They excitedly peered into the water at the whales, and settled against the railing with their arms around each other, far enough from Niko and Nina to give them some privacy.

----

Nina stomped her feet a bit, trying to get the feeling to come back to her toes. Niko’s arms wrapped tighter around her body. She couldn't decide what was better - watching the whales in the water, or standing on deck in Niko’s arms.

“Have you seen a lot of interesting animals on your journeys?” She asked, breaking the silence.

“A few. For the most part we’re not out sight-seeing, but there have definitely been a few places where the whole crew just has to stop and take it in. In the south we've actually had dolphin pods follow us for kilometers, just swimming and chattering and playing beside the ship. If you go really far north to the hard ice, you might see polar bears or leopard seals on land as we sail past. We once tracked a sea dragon, did I ever tell you that?”

“A sea dragon? Are those even real?”

“Well, one is. Was.”

She turned to look at him, sadly.

“Was?”

“It's a long story,” he shrugged.

“I’d like to hear it someday.” Now facing him, she stepped even closer and wrapped her arms around him inside his coat.

“You're freezing, Nina. Do you want to go inside?”

“No, not at all. I want to keep watching them, I just need to warm up a bit.” She pressed her face into his chest which rose and fell steadily. It reminded her of another time with another man who promised to keep her warm, despite himself. She closed her eyes for a second and willed herself back to the present, where she was with Niko and Matthias was dead.

“Are you ok?” He asked her softly. She knew there were tears shining in her eyes.

“Yes,” she whispered. “I'm better than ok, really. I'm just overwhelmed.”

“Alright. Tell me if you need to go inside.” He rubbed her back briskly, trying to warm her up. Then he began peeling off his gloves.

“What are you doing?”

“You need these more than I do,” he said huskily.

“But you never take your gloves off.”

“Well, I do, actually. Just not with, with other people.” He swallowed thickly. He trusted her, Nina realized. This man who didn't trust anyone. Who kept a bodyguard outside his room all night on his own ship, trusted her.

Before he could hide his hands in his pockets or behind his back, Nina caught one of his bare hands in hers. She ran her nearly numb thumb over the scars, the thick and twisted fingernails, keeping her eyes locked on Niko’s.

“You don't have to hide any part of yourself from me, Niko.” He slid his bare hand up to cup her cheek, and Nina felt the jump of her blood under his hand. She knew he felt it too.

“I feel like a monster sometimes.”

“Thank the Saints that we are more than the sum of our scars, Niko. That you are more than the shadows under your skin or the crooked nose and lopsided grin on your face.” She slid her hand across his shirt to rest above his heart just like she'd done a few nights earlier when she'd cleared the shadows from his chest. “What I like about you is in here, Niko.”

He looked at her with such earnestness in his eyes, that Nina’s heart jumped into her throat.

“Nina, there's something I need to tell -” but he was interrupted by a loud splash and a frustrated clacking noise from the water. Peering over the rail, they saw a large beluga bobbing in the water, chattering away at them.

“Maybe we should move away from the edge,” Niko said, pulling Nina away.

“Are they dangerous?”

“I don't think they'd attack the boat, but I'm not sure.”

They resettled away from the railing, seated on the deck floor. Niko’s back rested against a stack of shipping crates, Nina nestled against his chest. He handed her his gloves and she slipped them onto her own hands. They were still warm from his body heat and wearing them felt so much more intimate than anything they had said or done yet.

The whales continued their songs, swimming alongside the ship as it slowly cut through the frigid waters. Somewhere further down the deck, Nadia had pushed Tamar’s back up against the ladder to the next level, and was kissing her fervently.

Nina let her eyes fall shut, feeling comfortable and cradled in Niko’s arms on the rocking ship.

----

They stayed like that for a long while, as the songs of the whales grew more distant and the sky began to lighten. Nina’s eyes were shut but he didn't think she was sleeping. His bare hand rubbed circles against her back. He had almost told her who he really was. Niko knew he needed to have that conversation with her, preferably before things became more serious. But he couldn't help but feel grateful for this time when they could get to know each other as Nina and Niko, not the King and one of his subjects. But he needed to tell her. Soon.

Tamar and Nadia left their spot on the deck and came closer to the place Nikolai and Nina were sprawled.

“It's too cold out here. You two should get to bed,” Tamar said. The implication was clear. He looked down at his chest where Nina’s head rested, eyes fluttering open.

“Not yet. I can still hear them and I'm not ready to say goodbye.” Nikolai looked at Tamar and shrugged.

“You heard the lady.” His bodyguard looked back at Nadia who was wrapped in the blanket from their room a few paces away.

“You get one night. Go straight back to your room from here and don't go anywhere in the morning until I'm back at my post.”

Nikolai knew she was giving him a gift, but he supposed he had given her one first. He nodded his agreement.

“Bossy, isn't she?” Nina muttered as Tamar and Nadia walked back to their room.

“Oh you have no idea.”

“I like her. I like all of them. They remind me of my friends back -” Niko thought she was about to say “home” but stopped herself. After spending so much time away from Ravka, perhaps Nina didn't know where to call home anymore. Nikolai could understand that.

----

Nina’s eyes fluttered shut again. She had almost called Ketterdam home. It wasn't, of course, but in a very real way, Inej, Kaz, Jesper, and the others had become her home. The feeling of missing them was a tangible ache in her chest.

Niko’s bare hand had moved up to trace the lines of her face.

“Is this what it felt like, touching me the other night?” Nina laughed.

“Yes.” She knew what he meant - the way her blood sang for him as he traced one shadow-carved finger over her skin.

“How did you stand it?”

“I barely did. As soon as you stumbled into your room I passed out. Exhausted from using my power, but also from holding back.” His lips brushed against her temple in the barest hint of a kiss.

“I wish you hadn't held back.” She pulled back to look at him better, to run her gloved hand across his stubbled jaw. “What is this?”

“The Grisha principle, like calls to like. You've heard of it?” He nodded. “The death in you. The death in me. It calls to itself across our bodies. It yearns for you.” She felt self-conscious saying it but he nodded and she knew that he had felt it too.

“What do you think it wants?”

Nina shrugged.

“How could we possibly tell? Maybe it just wants to reach out to something similar. To know it's not alone.” She licked her lips, chapped from the cold and the bite of the wind. The movement caught Niko’s attention and his green eyes lowered to her mouth.

“Maybe that's all that any of us want,” he murmured and then he was leaning into her, kissing her so tenderly that Nina nearly felt the broken pieces of her heart knit themselves back together again in her chest.

----

When the feel of Niko’s hands on her face and lips on her mouth could no longer stave off her shivering, he finally dragged her away from the top deck and through the halls.

“Is this ok?” He asked as they neared his rooms. Nina's mouth was too dry to form coherent words, so she just nodded.

His bedchamber was smaller than his antechamber, but not by much. It was filled with a large bed, draped with red bedding and framed by two dark wood nightstands. An armoire was pushed against one wall and across from it was another door.

“What does that lead to?” Niko’s smile lit up the room.

“My bathing room.”

“You have your own bathing room?” She asked, astounded. The rest of the crew took care of their business in a tiny water closet, washing up with buckets of sea water. It was a far cry from life at the Little Palace or The House of the White Rose.

“David and I experimented with some modifications in there to get running water piped through. We’re hoping to roll it out through the fleet soon.” Nina moaned.

“Running water? You know this means I'm never leaving this room, right?” Niko just laughed. He left her to the bathing room to do her business and wash her hands and face, and when she returned to the room Niko was already in bed, lamp turned low on his bedside table.

She had already taken off her sweater and was only wearing a lace-trimmed camisole underneath. She slid her trousers off and let them land in a pile on the floor, then jumped into his bed and burrowed under the covers.

“Hi,” she said, smiling at him sweetly.

“Hi,” he responded, relaxing a bit at how comfortable she seemed. “Aren't you going to be cold in just that?”

“You're a gentleman, Captain. Surely you wouldn't let a woman freeze to death in your bed, would you?”

“You're too much, Zenik,” he laughed, and then he reached for her.

----

There was a time, before, when Nikolai had been no stranger to the body of women. But he had not let anyone see him, touch him, in over two years. He knew, with a tendril of embarrassment, that he would not last long with Nina in his bed looking like sex incarnate.

They lay face to face, hips to hips. Her curls were loose and wild around her shoulders and the pillows. Her eyes were dark and her lips kiss-bitten. One strap of her camisole was already slipping down a freckled shoulder. Saints, he wanted to touch every part of her.

He took his time kissing her, memorizing the feel of her mouth and tongue against his own, the small needy noises she made under her breath. He remembered Genya’s words about Nina not being ready to give him what he wanted and he knew he should go slow with her. But every second that passed with her skin under his mangled hands, he felt his control slipping.

Where Nikolai’s body was hard and sharp and carved deep with rivulets of shadowy death, Nina’s was soft and curving and voluptuous. Her cleavage spilled over the top of her camisole, drawing his eyes and then his fingertips to trace the curve and dip of her flesh, while she laughed. She was ticklish everywhere, dissolving into giggles as he ran his hands over her shoulder blades and traced the line of her panties as they cut across her upper thigh. He cupped one of the cheeks of her ass, running his thumb over her sensitive lower back and dipping lower. He pulled back in hesitation as she writhed under his hand, but she pulled his mouth down to hers and breathed “don't you dare stop,” across his lips.

He was happy to let her take control then, let her set the pace as her hips rocked into his, as she grabbed one of his hands and used it to cup her own breast. He thumbed her nipple until it was hard and peaked, then pushed the lace of her camisole down so he could take her into his mouth, her back arching up, moans spilling from her lips.

Her hand grabbed one of his again, pushing it down to swirl around her belly button, then lower to the elastic of her panties.

“Please,” she begged. “Please touch me.” He ran his fingers down the outside of the wet satin while she trembled, rubbing her gently through her underwear. He knew this was not what she wanted. Not all she wanted. But he hesitated.

His hands were no longer the gentle hands of a prince. His fingernails were thick and twisted. His hands sometimes twitched with phantom pain, curling in on themselves like claws. He wasn't sure if he could trust himself to give her what she wanted.

“I don't want to hurt you.” Her eyes flashed and she ground her hips against his erection until he was seeing stars.

“I won't let you hurt me, Niko,” and then she was pulling aside her own underwear so he could touch her. Nikolai could feel his resolve splintering and slipped a finger inside her, thumb circling her clit.

“Have you ever?”

“Yes,” Nina spoke around a low moan. “But not for a long time.” It was enough to know that she wasn't a virgin. That he didn't have to be that gentle, at least.

----

It had been a long time. She and Matthias’ hadn't had enough time together to do much more than grope each other blindly in the hotel suite where Jesper’s father had been staying. But the Grisha were progressive about sex, and she'd done her fair share of experimenting when she was studying at the Little Palace, and even after in the Second Army.

Despite his initial hesitation, Niko worked his hand in and out of her quickly, confidently, while she writhed around his fingers. It was only as she moaned again and he bucked his hips into his own hand working inside her panties that Nina realized she'd been ignoring him a bit.

She gripped his forearm to still him for a moment, flipping over so he was spooning her, rubbing her ass against his cock, straining against the tight cotton of his underwear. She reached behind her to push his underwear down, getting them far enough down so that he could kick them out of the way himself, then took his cock in her hand.

His hand, which was working in and out of her again, lost its rhythm at her touch, but she set a furious new pace that he picked up in an instant. Her head fell back to rest on the spot his shoulder met his neck, the sound of his frenzied breaths filling up her entire world.

“Saints, that feels good, Nina,” Niko muttered as her hand kept up a brutal pace, twisting and pulling his dick. The feel of his fingers inside her, heel of his hand grinding against her clit, while his cock rutted against her backside, suddenly became too much. With a string of filthy curses and then his name over and over again, Nina came hard around his beautiful shadowed hand. It only took another twist of Nina’s hand and the sight of her arching back and ample ass tensing inside her underwear, for Niko to bite her shoulder and come across her lower back.

They lay together, panting and damp with sweat and cum, for a few minutes. Gentle strokes and quiet breaths in the aftermath of their orgasms.

“I'm sorry, I've made a mess,” Niko said self-consciously as Nina looked over her shoulder to the damp spot between their bodies.

She laughed.

“I'm a Heartrender. Bodily fluids don't bother me much. And besides,” she kissed him sweetly. “What good is running water if you're not going to get messy now and then?”

He laughed with her.

“You're amazing. You know that?”

“Of course I know that,” then she climbed out of bed and headed to clean up. Before she disappeared into the bathing room she turned and threw him a smile over her shoulder. “You're pretty amazing yourself, Captain.”

[sarahw-world]

“A Prince’s Proposal II”

Hey guys!

As some of you may already know, I wrote a one-shot a couple of weeks ago based on a play along left in my inbox about Vegeta proposing to Bulma. It turns out, quite a few people wanted a sequel to the story so, by popular demand, here it is!

I can’t turn this into a full multi-chapter fanfic right now because I’m still fully committed to my fic “A Dark Heart”, but I hope you enjoy this little one-shot and, if people are interested, I might consider writing a proper Namek AU in the future.

(By the way, I’ll have less time to write, for personal reasons, for the next couple of weeks, but I already started the next chapter of “A Dark Heart”, and hopefully I’ll finish it by the end of this week. Sorry to keep you waiting!)

In case you haven’t read the first part of this story and you’re interested, here it is:

https://sarahw-world.tumblr.com/post/160631848374/the-characters-vegeta-and-bulma-au

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10888425/chapters/24225726

I hope you like the second part!

“A Prince’s Proposal II”

Vegeta landed carefully on Namek’s blue grass. Nearby, Nappa and Raditz were partaking in some friendly sparring as they waited for their Prince to return.

He’d spent the past couple of hours inspecting the planet without success, as usual.

The three Saiyan warriors had landed on the small planet three days ago, and so far, they’d only managed to gather up six out of the seven mysterious Dragon Balls Frieza had instructed them to collect for him.

No sign of the seventh Dragon Ball.

And no sign of Bulma…

He run his hands through his hair frustratingly, feeling as if he were running out of excuses in front of his comrades. Vegeta knew they’d already become suspicious about the strange behavior he’d been displaying ever since they’d embarked on this mission.

“Hey, Vegeta!” Raditz said, panting loudly as a consequence of Nappa’s amicable ass kicking. “Did you find it?”

The Prince shook his head, staring angrily into the ground.

“Man… Seriously?” Nappa sighed. “Vegeta, trust me. I know you said we couldn’t kill anyone on this mission, and I’m not even going to ask why, but, you know, if you just let me kill a couple of those green assholes, you can bet your ass they’ll start singing. I’m sure they’re hiding the last one somewhere…”

Vegeta crossed his arms, pinching the bridge of his nose and exhaling heatedly.

He’d fucked up.

He’d fucked up, big time…

The woman wasn’t even on the planet.

He’d given her every last credit he owned in this world and the woman had, very possibly, just taken the money and run. And who could blame her? He probably would had done exactly the same thing under similar circumstances.

And that wasn’t even the worst thing.

Sure, he’d given her the money so she’d be protected, free to go and buy whatever she needed, but Space was a dangerous place, and a gorgeous creature like Bulma would always find herself in danger unless she had a strong man by her side to protect her.

Fuck!

If only she’d accepted his proposal…

Wasn’t he good enough? That was the problem, wasn’t it? He’d been thinking non-stop about the possible reasons behind her rejection and the only thing he could come up with was that the woman was, most likely, repulsed by him.

And why not? He worked for Frieza, after all…

Sure, it was against his will, and the Gods knew the only reason why he hadn’t rebelled against the slimy bastard yet was because he still wasn’t strong enough to defeat him and he didn’t want to die before he could take him down, thus avenging his planet and his people.

He’d even ordered Nappa and Raditz not to kill anyone during this assignment, in some insignificant, pathetic attempt to become a better man.

For her…

And now the woman wasn’t even where she’d promised to be.

“I’m going to take another look. If I can’t find it this time, we’re killing one of those bastards and burning this place down…” Vegeta announced irritably.  

“Now we’re talking!” Raditz said happily.

The Prince turned around, ready to take off.

“You two, stay here! And, Nappa?”

“Yeah?”

“Do not lift a fucking finger against anyone or anything unless I say so, you got it?”

The bald man shrugged disinterestedly.

“Sure, Vegeta…”

“I mean it, old man! And the same goes for you too, Raditz!”

Before the long-haired giant could give his Master a response, Vegeta took off furiously into the sky, telling himself that he’d thoroughly inspect the planet one more time before he’d finally have to relent and admit defeat.

Damn it!

He shouldn’t have let her go! Now he’d never see her again!

He’d never hear her giggle as she told him her funny silly stories, and he’d miss the way her cute little nose scrunched up in disapproval every time someone brought her some disheveled space pod to repair. He’d never be able to stare, almost entranced, at that waterfall of turquoise waves and those sparkly blue eyes and…

Wait.

‘What the Hell was that?’            

In the distance, he could discern a figure dressed in some kind of orange clothing. As he got closer, he realized it was a male figure, kneeling on the ground by the edge of a lake, seemingly filling up some empty bottles with water, and…

‘No way…’

It couldn’t be…?

“You!” Vegeta yelled irately, immediately increasing his speed.

The loud sound of his voice startled the man, who turned around and, after giving the warrior a quick glance, grabbed the water bottles clumsily and started running towards a cave nearby.

The Prince shot a small ki blast by his foot in warning, making the male stop dead in his tracks. He took down dangerously close to him, approaching him slowly from behind.

“Don’t even try it…” Vegeta said menacingly in a very, very low voice, making the man’s already trembling frame shiver even more.

“Turn around!” He ordered, lifting his chin knowingly at the sight of the cowardly man’s face.

Yamcha.

“I knew it…” Vegeta muttered, grabbing him by the neck of his strange orange clothing and effortlessly lifting him off the ground. His head was spinning in a million different directions. So, she was on the planet! Had she lied to him when she’d told him the weakling wasn’t her mate? And why? Had she simply felt pity for him?

“I fucking knew it… Where is she?!”

“W-Where i-is wh-wh-who?” The terrified earthling asked, deep down suspecting who the warrior was talking about.

The Saiyan sneered, absolutely disgusted by the male’s spinelessness.

This?

This was the man the woman had chosen over him?

What the fuck?

Vegeta knew he was far from the perfect man, but he sure as Hell was a much better choice than some pathetic, wobbly idiot that looked as if he were about to piss his pants.

“The woman! Where is she?!”

“Wh-wh-what wom-woman?”

He brought the Earth male’s face even closer to him, his mouth furiously panting against the pale scarred face now covered in cold sweat.

“Don’t play stupid with me, or the Gods help me…” Vegeta took a deep breath, wanting nothing more than to turn the asshole into ashes right fucking there, but he knew it wouldn’t sit well with the woman, so he made a superhuman effort to keep his rage in check.

“Bulma… Where is she?”

Yamcha frowned slightly.

How did the Saiyan know Bulma was on the planet? Had she told him about their plans? And if so, just how much did Vegeta know about the Dragon Balls and the incredible things they could accomplish?

“H-how do you…?”

“Is she your mate?” He cut him off, incapable of concealing the jealousy now very present in his voice anymore.

“M-my wh-what?”

“Your mate, you fool! Your woman!”

Yamcha’s eyes widened in shock.

So, that’s what it was? Jealousy?

He’d already suspected Vegeta was interested in the woman. The frequency with which he visited the small repair shop was unusual, especially for someone like him, who had subordinates to order around to do menial tasks in his place. And yet, whenever he wasn’t off planet, the Saiyan would find excuse after excuse just to be able to spend time around Bulma. Sometimes even helping her as she worked, for instance, using his enormous strength to lift the heavy vehicles for her, allowing her to get underneath and finish her tasks faster.

The weaker man had undeniably felt envious of how comfortable and open the striking woman always seemed to feel around Vegeta, in spite of how many times he’d warned her about him and about the very dangerous tales Yamcha had heard about the Prince. Tales of death, planet purging and cruelty, and yet, the young woman would treat him almost as if he were a friend.

Still, Bulma had brought Yamcha with her on her trip and not him, so maybe she didn’t trust the warrior just as much as he’d previously thought. Perhaps it was a territorial thing, and if he told him Bulma was indeed his girlfriend, he’d leave them alone. After all, it was only a matter of time before he finally convinced her to be his girl. No matter how many times the woman had refused his advances, Yamcha was damn sure Bulma was just playing hard to get and someday she’d be his, especially once they wished Earth back and he had her all to himself with Vegeta out of the picture for good.

“Y-yes… She is…” He nodded, swallowing hard and awaiting, expectantly, Vegeta’s reaction.

The Saiyan dropped him at once on the ground, roaring desperately in fury.

How could it be? A mere human woman rejecting the Prince of all Saiyans for… this…

It made no damn sense!

Vegeta needed to find her, make her look him in the eye and give him a proper explanation. He deserved, at least, that much.

‘I don’t doubt it…’ She’d said in reply to his statement about him being the ideal mate for her.

“Take me to her!” He violently instructed.

“Wh-what? Ve-Vegeta… Look, sh-she doesn’t… She wants nothing to do with y-you… Th-That’s why we-we left…”

That did it.

Without further warning, the Saiyan tackled him, aggressively jumping right on top of him and trapping Yamcha’s body between his robust knees against the ground.

The earthling didn’t see it coming…

Just like he didn’t expect Vegeta to punch him right on his nose.

Twice.

“Shit! What the fuck?!”

“Be quiet, you idiot! Where is the woman?! Y-you… You are fucking lying! Did you do something to her? What have you done?!”

Vegeta wrapped his strong hands around Yamcha’s neck, ready to literally squeeze the life out of him.

He was lying.

He had to be!

There was no way Bulma had fled the planet in order to run away from him…

“Ve-Veggg…”

“Don’t! Don’t even! You’re not even worthy of pronouncing my name! Where’s the woman?!”

The earthling gave up at last.

His face felt hot and dizzy, and his vain attempts to try to get the warrior’s hands away from his neck were failing miserably…

“P-please… I’ll… I’ll tell you… Sh-she’s…”

Right away, Vegeta punched him again.

“Fuck! Wh-why?! I was gonna tell you where she was!!!” Yamcha asked in shock.

“That’s right, you asshole! You were going to tell me where she’s hiding! What kind of a fucking mate are you if you’re going to betray your woman just to save your sorry ass?”

The earthling squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head and utterly disconcerted.

That damned Saiyan was absolutely insane…

“A-Alright, th-then I won’t tell y-you…”

“Oh, you will! You will tell me right fucking now if you know what’s good for you!” Vegeta threatened.

“B-but I… I thought you just s-said…”

“I was just teaching you a lesson, you fool! Where’s the woman?”

“I… I…”

“You know what? Fuck this shit! Now that I know she’s on the planet, I’ll find her myself!”

Vegeta began forming a ki ball on the palm of his hand, pointing it right at Yamcha’s face. The human, haunted with fear, simply froze in shock, incapable of moving or even breathing anymore.

“You don’t deserve her…” The Saiyan sadistically grumbled.

“Vegeta, don’t!”

A feminine voice suddenly brought him back to reality, and he promptly extinguished his ball of energy, dropping Yamcha’s body as if he were nothing. He turned around, setting his eyes on the owner of a voice he knew as well as his own by now.

“Bulma…” He whispered, his voice a mixture of relief and amazement, not only at finally being able to see her again, but at the sight of the mysterious men that kept grabbing her in an ineffective effort to restrain her as she kept walking towards his spot.

There were two of them, one of them short and bald, and the other one much older, wearing a colorful floral shirt and sunglasses.    

“Bulma! Don’t! He’s dangerous!” The younger man warned, still trying to stop her by clutching her arm, while the old guy had tripped and fallen, and was now lying on the grass, lecherously looking down the woman’s skirt.

“I said, let go of me! Goddammit!”

“Bulma! You don’t know…!”

“I know him, Krillin! And now, let go of me!” Bulma commanded furiously, finally managing to get the younger man’s hands off her. “And you! Stop that shit right now!” She yelled at the old man on the ground, whose nose had mysteriously started to bleed. When the man wouldn’t move, she kicked him out of her way, sending him flying several meters away.

Finally free of what the warrior thought the oddest group of freaks he’d ever seen, she proceeded to walk towards him unhurriedly but confidently, finally standing right in front of him. She stared at Vegeta in awe, her shimmery eyes inspecting him curiously as if she couldn’t truly believe he was there with her.

“You’re… You’re here…” She finally said in a low, breathy voice.

The Prince simply nodded, feeling the bundle of nerves he always felt right in his stomach, whenever he was in her presence, coming back to him in full force.  

Bulma allowed herself a tiny smile full of wonder.

“You came because of me?” She asked shyly, a shiver of hope hiding behind her girly voice.

“No,” he quickly replied.

Her pretty face immediately fell into an unmistakable sad frown.

“Oh…” She muttered in disappointment.

‘Fuck!’

Why had he even said that?

‘Of course, he’d come for her!’

Damn him and his Saiyan pride!

“Bulma, I…” The Saiyan started to say, trying to find the right way to express himself, but the woman cut him off.

“Wanna go talk inside our house?”

He frowned at that question. How had the woman built a house on a planet she’d just arrived in?

“Your what?”

She giggled, finding his confusion humorous. He looked so damn cute when he didn’t know what was going on…

“My house. It’s right there, inside that cave.” Bulma indicated, pointing to one of the many dark caves on the island they were standing on. Planet Namek seemed to be full of them.

“Are you crazy?!” Yamcha yelled. He was still on the ground, sitting with difficulty on the grass with the help of Krillin and pitifully covering his bleeding nose. “Bulma! The guy just punched me on the nose! THREE TIMES!”

Bulma gave him a quick glance, apparently not bothered at all by his injuries. The truth of the matter was, she was already sick of him and his antics. Throughout their entire trip, he’d been nothing but a bothersome sickly-sweet idiot that kept hitting on her, even though she’d already made it quite clear that she wanted nothing to do with him, at least, not romantically. But the guy just couldn’t seem to take a hint, so she sighed tiredly, crossing her arms and squinting suspiciously at him.

“What did you do to him?”

“What?! What do you mean?! Bulma, the guy is trouble! He…!”

“He told me he was your mate,” Vegeta informed her calmly, inwardly enjoying the complete disinterest the woman was showing in the scarred-faced idiot.

He knew it…

The Earth woman was too good for a pathetic weakling like Yamcha…

“He, what???!!!” She screamed furiously.

“B-Bulma, I… I was just trying to…”

“And he said you’d traveled to planet Namek in order to escape from me,” he declared triumphantly, knowing by now the woman would not be happy with the asshole.

Oh, she wasn’t.

“WHAT?!”

In the blink of an eye she knelt down and aggressively punched Yamcha on the shoulder.

“Ow! And what was that for?!” Yamcha asked miserably.

This was not his lucky day…

“That’s for fucking lying about us, you idiot!” She punched him again.

“What the Hell?!”

“And THAT’s for lying again! How could you say something like that when you guys were the ones who convinced me not to ask him to come?!”

“You, what?” Vegeta asked in surprise and disbelief.

Bulma nodded demurely, suddenly embarrassed about having revealed such a thing.

Would he mock her?

She knew he’d basically proposed to her just mere days ago but, would he still want her after having been rejected so brazenly? If there was one thing she’d learned about Saiyans was that pride was one of their most prized possessions.

“I did…” She whispered, boldly stretching her arm and offering Vegeta her hand.

He took it without hesitation, making Bulma’s heart flutter. She bravely intertwined her delicate fingers with his, affectionately squeezing his strong hand and giving him a timid smile.

“Come with me,” she said, her shy smile widening when the warrior automatically followed her and gently clasped her hand back without a second thought.

They both walked into the cave, under the astounded watchful eyes of all her friends, who didn’t seem to comprehend how it was possible for a powerless woman like Bulma to be so apparently carefree and trusting around the frightening Saiyan Prince.

When they reached the door of the small Capsule Corp. house Bulma had settled inside the dark rock shelter, Vegeta inspected it with inquisitorial eyes.

“Bulma, how…?”

“It’s a capsule house,” she proudly explained. “Remember how I told you my father was a scientist? Our company created all sorts of products that we encapsulated. You see that button by the door?” Bulma asked pointing at it. “If you press it, the whole house will turn into a capsule so small it’ll fit in the palm of my hand.”

Vegeta blinked in surprise a few times. The woman’s claims seemed quite surreal to him and yet, he believed her. He’d gotten to know her and her many talents during the few months they’d known each other, and it had become quite evident to him that her brains were just as brilliant as her beauty.

“Let’s get inside; it’s cold in here…” Bulma continued, opening the door and guiding him through the small home, never letting go of his gloved hand until they reached her bedroom. When they did, she got in, finally releasing him, much to Vegeta’s disenchantment, and she closed the door behind them.

“Sorry about the mess,” she mumbled self-consciously.

Being alone with him inside her room was suddenly making her feel bashfully vulnerable. She sat awkwardly on her unmade bed and pointed towards a small chair in front of her.

“Please, take a sit.”  

The Saiyan silently followed her instructions, uncomfortably sitting on the tiny chair as he warily inspected his surroundings. Just as he’d suspected, based on seeing Bulma work on the small repair shop, the woman was a mess. The entire room was cluttered, full of odd books, magazines and pieces of paper, scattered around with other equally unusual items the Prince assumed were ‘feminine objects’. As a man who had spent his entire life surrounded by other males, the whole situation seemed almost dreamlike to him: one moment he’d been alone, miserable and ready to give up on the idea of ever seeing Bulma again, and the next, he was sitting in a closed space with her, in her private surroundings no less, encompassed by her most intimate belongings and, worst of all, almost dazed by the sweet aroma invading his senses.

Her scent…

It was getting harder and harder for him to control his most primal urges, so he chose to focus on Bulma’s actions instead, who was now fidgeting apprehensively with her dress, still sited on top of the messy bundle of girly pink bedsheets.

“So… What’s your wish?” She finally asked.

“I’m sorry?”

“Your wish… You guys are the ones who have most of the Dragon Balls, right?”

“Bulma, how do you…? H-How do you know that?” Vegeta asked perplexedly.

Bulma chuckled sadly. On one side, she was glad to finally find out the reason behind the Saiyan’s presence on Namek but, on the other, she couldn’t help but feel another tinge of disappointment at Vegeta confirming, once again, that she wasn’t the reason behind his visit. Her carefully premeditated plan was quickly vanishing, and it was pretty obvious the Prince had already forgotten about his intentions of dating her.

“Well, if you’re not here because of me, then I assume it’s because of the Dragon Balls. This is just a small planet without much else to offer.”

“I see,” Vegeta replied cautiously.

Was it his imagination or had the woman’s stunning face shown a look of displeasure when he’d lied to her by telling her she wasn’t the real motive behind his trip to Namek?

Did that mean he still had a chance with her?

Perhaps she regretted having rejected him in the past…

“So, what’s your wish?” Bulma asked again.

“Woman, I’m sorry but, I haven’t got the faintest idea of what you’re talking about. We’re here on a mission; we’re taking the Dragon Balls to Frieza.”

The earthling’s eyes widened in shock, and she gasped softly, absolutely horrified by the man’s words.

How could Vegeta do such a thing?

“You can’t be serious! Oh, Gods, Vegeta! You can’t do that!”

Vegeta frowned in confusion, still dumbfounded and not having a clue about what the woman’s problem with his assignment was.

“Why not?”  

“What do you mean ‘why not’? Do you have any idea what Frieza could do with that kind of power?!”

Okay.

Now he was really starting to lose his patience. It hadn’t even really crossed his mind what the damn Dragon Balls were for and, if he was totally honest with himself, he didn’t give a crap about this mission either. The only reason he’d chosen to accept it was because Nappa had told him the planet was the same place Bulma was supposedly about to travel to. In fact, the night he’d drunkenly attempted to drown his sorrow in alcohol, he’d been dangerously close to sending everything to Hell and asking Frieza to kiss his ass and find some other idiot to do his dirty work for him, even if that meant the lizard would finally kill him.

After all, what was the point of living?

He had no home, no family, and no real friends besides Nappa and Raditz. And his ascension didn’t seem to arrive, regardless of how hard he trained and worked towards it. He’d been envisioning a pretty dark future for himself, beginning to lose hope, until he met Bulma.

She was the purest, most beautiful thing he’d ever known, and he’d come to believe that maybe, just maybe, if she accepted him as his mate, he’d finally get to experience a taste of happiness for once in his life.

Of course, the woman had declined his proposal. He shouldn’t have been surprised.

When had life actually given him a break? Did he even deserve it? And, with a woman like Bulma?

She was, after all, one of the few survivors of her race, and her planet had been purged and destroyed, which was precisely what he did for a living. The fact that it had been the Ginyu Force and not him, the ones who had done the job, was purely coincidental.

Why would a delicate, honorably good creature such as Bulma agree to have someone like him as a life companion?

Eventually, her soft, understanding voice broke his pessimistic train of thought…

“You don’t actually know what they do, do you?”

Vegeta shook his head, relieved that the woman had finally understood his predicament.

Bulma sighed wearily. “I see… Alright, I’ll tell you…”

And she did.

She told him everything.

She told him about her discovery of the mythical Dragon Balls back in her home planet when she was a young teenage girl. About how she’d built a radar capable of finding the mysterious objects, which, by the way, were way smaller than the ones from Namek. It was during her journeys that she’d met Goku, a child Vegeta had deduced was, in fact, none other than Bardock’s son, Kakarot. Bulma had already alluded to him in the past, during one of their many conversations in her old repair shop, when she’d noticed his tail one day and she’d mentioned she’d once met a little boy who had a tail and transformed into a horrifying, ridiculously strong giant ape during nights with a full moon. Based on the description of the kid and the location of her now gone planet, Vegeta had reached the conclusion that the boy was, indeed, Raditz’s brother.  

Bulma explained how she and her friends had finally found the Dragon Balls, all seven of them, and the legend had turned out to be real: the Dragon could make their wishes come true. The Dragon from Earth could only grant one wish, the one from Namek, three wishes.

In her small shop, she’d met an enigmatic green man that reminded her a lot of one of Goku’s old enemies, a strong warrior named Piccolo that had once threatened the Earth but who’d ended up being defeated in battle by the young, third-class Saiyan. The mysterious man had told her a little bit about himself and about his race, confirming her old suspicions that there was another planet, the one Namekians originated from, that also possessed Dragon Balls, and from that very day, three months ago now, she’d started saving as many credits as she could to buy an old, second-hand ship, which she’d been secretly repairing and upgrading during her spare time in order to escape the small planet she’d been living in, travel to Namek and bring her home planet and its inhabitants back to life.

The story was absolutely incredible, and yet, if someone like Frieza was so damn interested in those secretive Dragon Balls, perhaps there was some truth to it.

“So, you see now? We can’t let Frieza get hold of them, Vegeta! Only the Gods know what kind of wishes that bastard would ask for!” Bulma warned him, still perturbed, as soon as she finished her tale.

Vegeta nodded in agreement, not even wanting to imagine what Frieza was planning to achieve by getting the Dragon Balls under his control. If he knew his Master well, and sadly he did, it’d probably be something sinister and insane that would allow him to stay alive and rule forever, such as immortality. Vegeta had already heard stories, through the years, of the despicable lizard employing and enslaving all sorts of scientists in his endless quest for power and eternal youth. He had to admit that, at one point, immortality had seemed extremely tempting to him, if only because it would keep him alive until he was strong enough to bring the filthy Overlord to his knees, right before he ended his life. However, if he pondered such a wish with a cold, analytical mind, he knew that desire would end up being a curse more than a privilege, so he truly didn’t think he’d ever actually pursue such a mindless goal.

“So…” He finally replied, his speech slow while he attempted to put all the pieces together. “One wish to bring your planet back into existence, one wish to resurrect all its inhabitants and… I presume, one last wish to take you and your friends back to Earth?”

That last sentence automatically filled him with despair. The thought of the woman he was in love with vanishing from his life forever was absolutely devastating, and yet, if going back to her home planet would bring her more joy than sharing her life with him, he was prepared to let her go.

“That was supposed to be the plan, but… But then it changed…” Bulma explained reservedly.

This was it.

She was about to reveal her secret wish to the man sitting right in front of him. Bulma knew that if Vegeta’s feelings towards her had changed, she was about to make a fool of herself. Yet again, hadn’t the Saiyan opened his heart to her during his proposal? It couldn’t have been easy for someone like Vegeta, a warrior that very possibly felt uncomfortable expressing his emotions, to declare his feelings for her, and it must have been even more humiliating for him to deal with her rejection.

What had she even been thinking?

She wanted this man…

And she wanted him all to herself, the thought of him moving on and ultimately spending his life with another female made her mad with jealousy.

He deserved to be treated with the same kind of honesty he’d offered her in the past, so Bulma took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself to show her vulnerability.

“I… I don’t understand, Bulma. What changed when?”

“It all changed…” She sighed timidly, her eyes fixated on the lavender carpet on the floor. “It all changed the moment you walked out of my shop, the last time I saw you…”

Vegeta remained silent, feeling his mouth go dry and his heart skip a beat.

Was she talking about what he thought she was talking about?

He didn’t dare open his big mouth and get into trouble if it turned out she was actually referring to something else entirely, so he waited quietly but impatiently for her to carry on with her explanation.

Bulma looked at him, anxiously biting on her thumbnail before finally revealing her secret plans to him.

“One… One wish to bring Earth back into existence, one wish to resurrect all its inhabitants and… Well… I was actually going to do as you just said, and take my friends and I back to Earth but… But, by my calculations, the improvements I made on our ship and the amount of fuel we’ve bought would take us comfortably back to our home planet so… So, there was no need to waste a wish on that if… You know… If I wanted something else…”

Vegeta held his breath momentarily, and his Adam’s apple bobbed nervously.

“What…? What did you want, Bulma?” He asked, incapable of waiting anymore for the woman’s reply.

“I… I just thought… Well…” She raised her gaze again, her soft cheeks flushed in mortification.

The Saiyan thought she’d never looked lovelier than in that very moment…

“Yes?” Vegeta said, gently coaching her into revealing her true intentions.

“I was going to ask the Dragon to bring you to Earth with us… Well… With me…”

Bulma kept staring at him, waiting for some kind of a reaction, but, much to her disappointment, Vegeta’s face remained immobile, void of any expression that could tell her whether he still wanted her back or whether she’d just made a huge fool of herself. And suddenly, it hit her that perhaps he’d misunderstood a small aspect of her hypothetical wish.

“Oh! I wouldn’t have done it without your consent!” She quickly clarified, waving her tiny, nervous hands defensively in front of her. “The… The Dragon can’t actually bring someone to another place without asking them first! So, you know… You would have had a choice…”

“Would you have wanted me to say yes?”

The woman assented meekly.

“More than anything…” She quietly whispered, her fingers fidgeting again with her flowy blue dress, never having felt more exposed and raw in her entire life.

Vegeta shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut in puzzlement before setting them again on her.

“Bulma, I don’t… Forgive me but, I just… I don’t understand. You… You rejected me. Why…?”

“I know I did and I… I felt so terrible, Vegeta!” She declared, now raising her voice passionately. “I was… I guess I was scared, you know?”

“Scared?” His heart sank. “Scared of me?”

“Oh, no! Not of you! Never of you!”

She’d never been afraid of him?

That was a new one…

“I guess…” Bulma kept saying, “I guess I just felt overwhelmed, you know? We were supposed to escape that same night, and… You… Your proposal… From what I know from you and from your, from your words… You weren’t really, um… It was a serious thing, right?”

“Serious? Of course, it was serious! Woman, what…?”

“No, I mean that… I assumed you weren’t just asking about one date. It was a real commitment, not just sex or something like that, right?”

“Of course not!” Vegeta yelled, offended by the woman’s implications. “Is that what you thought I wanted from you?”

“N-no, that’s what I mean… You, you were asking for something real, something serious, the same night we were supposed to leave and, then… And then, there were the Dragon Balls… The night we escaped I even asked my friends if I could bring you with us, you know?”

“You did?” The warrior asked with a mixture of shock and hope within his voice.

“I did.” She confirmed. “But they… They said you weren’t trustworthy, and that you’d just steal the Dragon Balls from us and…” Bulma stopped, shaking her head at the memory. “I shouldn’t have listened to them…” She whispered, almost as if talking to herself. Then she observed him carefully, with those deep blue eyes of hers, and she declared firmly. “They were wrong.”

Vegeta thought for a moment.

Had the woman’s friends been wrong or were their fears founded?

They probably were…

In the back of his mind, he knew that his old self, the ruthless warrior solely concerned about his own survival, whatever the cost, would have undoubtedly jumped at the chance of joining the group of trusting weaklings and betray them in the end, when they’d reach their destination.

But now…

Well, now he wasn’t so sure anymore…

The woman had changed something in him, deeply and fundamentally. And no, he would never dare to call himself good, the Gods knew there was still a special place in Hell reserved just for him because of his past evil deeds but, at the same time, something about Bulma and her generous, vivacious heart, made him want to do better, to be better.

A better man, just for her…

“They were wrong, woman,” he finally answered. “I would have never, ever betrayed you if you had asked me to join you and your comrades.”

Vegeta realized at once he must have said the right thing, because the most enticing, radiant smile drew itself on Bulma’s lips.

“I knew it,” she declared triumphantly. “I knew you’d never hurt me or my friends. They… They told me you were just like Frieza, but I knew… I just knew, deep in my heart, that you’re nothing like him.”

The Saiyan inhaled sharply, deeply offended by that comparison and yet, again, he knew his friend’s assumptions weren’t too far from the truth. He had, after all, done terrible things throughout his life.

“Bulma, I am not like Frieza, but… You must know, my past… My past is not an easy one. I’ve…”

“I know,” she simply replied.

“You do?”

“Yeah… Some people on the planet said things about you, and, you know… Yamcha did as well. He was always trying to warn me about you, trying to make me stop talking to you so much, but… I knew it was because of Frieza, you’re not free to do what you want, are you?”

Vegeta felt his fists automatically clench, his body trembling in rage and shame…

Despite his ‘Prince of All Saiyans’ bravado, he knew he was basically a slave. Sure, he was sometimes generously rewarded for his ‘services’, but even so, he was still a man obligated to serve a Master he despised.

“No, woman…” He confirmed, a deep, ragged breath abandoning his lungs. “I am not free to do as I wish.”

“I see… So… If you, if you could escape from Frieza, if you could…”

“I will never escape from Frieza, Bulma! I’d rather die than go into hiding from that filthy bastard! Besides,” he continued, eyeing her warily. “Do you really think someone, anyone, could hide from Frieza? Sooner or later, he’d find them, and then he’d…”

“I know that, Vegeta! But I don’t mean hiding from him indefinitely! It would be more like… Like buying time. Time until you were ready… You do want to fight him, don’t you?”

The Prince immediately assented.

“And… And if you won, you’d never be like him, would you Vegeta?”

“Never,” he promised.

He was telling the truth.

His only goal in life was putting an end to that miserable, filthy creature, but his old dreams of universal domination no longer appealed to him. If only he had this woman, and he could go live somewhere in peace with her, after getting rid of Frieza, of course, he knew he’d have everything he’d ever need. After all, he’d gone through enough mayhem and destruction to last an entire lifetime.

“Promise?” She asked again, an honest, hopeful smile on her face.

“On my life, Bulma,” Vegeta declared solemnly.

The earthling’s smile widened, brightly illuminating her marvelous features, and she speedily stood from the bed, giving him a strange, mischievous look before turning around and walking towards a small desk placed in the corner. She grabbed some large wrinkly documents and joined him once more, kneeling on the carpet and proceeding to talk excitedly about her plans.

“So, remember when you told me about your planet? That day, back in the shop?”

He remembered. How could he forget? It was the only time anyone had ever asked him about Planet Vegeta out of innocent, harmless curiosity.

“I do.”

“Yeah… So, anyway… You were telling me about how the gravity was higher and about how hard it was for you to get stronger these days and, um… About how, if you… If you could find a way to challenge yourself, you’d become stronger and you’d, uh, what was it called?”

“I would ascend and become a…”

“A Super Saiyan, right?”

Vegeta nodded, stunned at the discovery of the woman recalling one of their many conversations in such great detail. He’d truly believed she’d only ever asked him about his past out of politeness, perhaps even because of boredom, but apparently, she’d really been listening to his stories and concerns.

“That is correct.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought… So…” She carried on, her enthusiasm growing as much as his curiosity. Her energy and positivity were contagious, and he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or if it could get him in trouble really fast.

“So… I couldn’t stop thinking about it ever since…”

“You couldn’t?” He asked, absolutely dumbfounded.

“Nope. You see this?” She enquired, unfolding the white and blue documents right in front of his face. They looked like blueprints, blueprints written in letters and numbers he’d never be able to decipher, not in a million years.

“They were my dad’s…” Bulma whispered, a tinge of sadness hidden behind her chattiness. “They were plans we designed for a special project for one of our planet’s military…”

“The two of you?”

“Yup!” She proudly declared.

He knew it…

The woman was more than just a mere mechanic.

“What…? What is it about?” The Saiyan asked, incapable of hiding his inquisitiveness.

“They’re plans for a Gravity Room! And I just solved the final equations! You know what that means?”

He blinked a few times, shaking his head.

“It means I’m ready to build it! It’d be perfect for you! Think about it!”

“Bulma, I don’t… What…? What does it do?”

“It’s a Gravity Room! I just told you, silly! It would be a closed space where you could increase the gravitational forces by up to 400 times Earth’s gravity. Maybe even more once we perfect the system!”

Vegeta’s mouth opened, but no coherent sounds came out of it.

Was such a thing even possible?

“So, you’d… You’d build this on Earth?”

“Yeah! What do you think?”

“Well, it’s… It’s a generous offer… Perhaps too generous…” He replied, uncomfortably scratching the back of his head, not quite knowing why a woman that had rejected him just a few days earlier was willing to help him this way.

“What do you mean?” Bulma protested in discontent. She’d certainly expected him to be way more excited than this.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is… Why would you do something like that and help me in such a way?”

“Because that’s what mates do.” She sincerely replied. “Wasn’t that what you said to me?”

Mates.

Bulma had actually used the word ‘mates’.

‘What the Hell was going on here?’

“What…? What I said about what?” The Saiyan cautiously asked, still afraid of getting his hopes up. His already wounded pride wouldn’t be able to handle any more rejection. Not from this woman.

She gently put aside her blueprints, still sited on the floor, and she raised her head, finally choosing to put all her cards on the table.

After all, what else had she got to lose?

“You told me you’d fight all my battles with me, by my side.”

“I did…” He muttered, feigning a confidence he didn’t have.

“Then I’d do the same for you… That’s what mates do, right? I know… I know I’m not some strong Saiyan warrior, but… But I have other strengths Vegeta! And if you… If you and I…”

“Bulma, wait, what…? Are you…? Are you trying to imply that you are agreeing to be my mate?”

Bulma nodded in assent, thus putting all his doubts to rest.

She’d said yes…

She was saying yes to him!

“Bulma,” he whispered softly. “Do you really mean that?”

“I do, Vegeta…”

“What…? What made you change your mind?”

“I haven’t, actually… I always wanted to say yes, Vegeta…”

She finally found the courage to get closer to him, gently caressing one of his cheeks, his skin both burning up and unexpectedly soft at the same time. “I wanted to say yes so badly… I just told you, I got scared and… But I do want you, Vegeta, and I’ll help you. We’ll fight Frieza together, as a couple! What do you say?”

What did he say?

Every fiber of his being was internally screaming ‘yes!’ but, for her own protection, he still felt it was his duty to warn her about the danger she was about to put herself in.

“Bulma… I am Saiyan. If I take you, I take you for life, do you understand?” He asked gravely.

“I know...”

She didn’t care. Bulma knew there was no way she’d ever meet a man more perfect and suited for her than the one sitting right in front of her.

“And if you are mine, that means you will also be a target for Frieza. And rest assured, woman, he will find us eventually.”

“I know that, Vegeta! But it’ll be months, possibly even longer before he does. He… He destroyed my planet and all the other ones around it, right?”

“As far as I know, yes, he did, Bulma.”  

“So, he won’t even start looking in our side of the Universe for a long time and, when he finally finds us, we’ll be ready for him!”

Vegeta humbly placed his hand on top of hers, stubbornly keeping her touch close to his skin. Never had he been touched in such a gentle, kind manner, and for the first time, he understood all those tales of men that ended up committing insane acts in the name of the women they loved.

Only this time… This time things could, in fact, work out…

Bulma’s plan made sense. He knew the Legend of the Super Saiyan was getting closer and closer, so much that at times he could even taste it. All he needed was a little push, an extra challenge, and this incredible woman was willing to help him with his training and to share her life with him.

This time, he wouldn’t fight alone…

And, when the time came to finally face his old Master, not only he’d be ready, but he’d also have something else to fight for other than his pride and the old ghosts from the past that had constantly tortured and haunted him ever since he could recall.

Next time, he’d have someone to fight for, someone to protect…

Wasn’t the risk worth it?

Even if he died, would he ever find a more honorable cause to give his life for?

But he wouldn’t die, not with Bulma as a mate, by his side…

Vegeta took a deep breath, feeling the adrenaline rushing through his veins. The excitement of knowing a new chapter in his life that was about to begin. He let go of her hand, slowly removing his gloves and standing from his chair. He then looked down at Bulma, who was now expectantly gawking at him, waiting for his answer.

And she got one when Vegeta eventually smiled at her, a real, honest to Gods smile, so unlike his usual playful smirks, which were equally devastating to her. He sat on her still unmade bed and he offered her his rough, ungloved hand, which she took without hesitation, graciously getting up and standing impatiently in front of him.

“Tell me about your planet, Bulma…”

She gave him another one of those dazzling smiles as she shamelessly sat on his lap, landing her pert little bottom on top of one of his strong thighs and wrapping her slender arms around his neck as if it were the most natural thing in the world to her. As if they were already lovers and they’d shared such an intimate gesture many times in the past.

And then she talked…

She told him about her planet: Earth. About her mother and how much she adored tending to her garden and watch over their wide variety of house pets; about her dad, his inventions, his big mustache and his black little cat. ‘Did he know what a cat was?’ He didn’t. ‘Oh! It was the cutest thing ever!’ And strawberries! ‘He had to taste strawberries!’ They were juicy, sweet and ripe. The Prince inadvertently run his tongue across his suddenly very thirsty lips. And she lived in a huge house with a massive swimming pool. ‘Did he know how to swim?’ He did. ‘Oh, then they had to visit her family’s own private island!’ It was so secluded they could indulge in some skinny dipping! ‘Did he know what skinny dipping was?’ He had no idea. She giggled playfully, whispering the meaning of the very naughty expression in his ear. ‘Sweet merciful Gods! Was that true?’

Bulma kept chatting, inundating his now very dizzy mind with hopeful promises of happiness and pleasurable experiences.

Earth was beautiful, she said. And even though it had a wide variety of different climates, the weather was mostly warm where she lived. Warm. And blue. Oh yes, the sky and the water were turquoise blue, just like her hair and her eyes.

‘He liked that color very much…’

And then there was even more delicious food. And books. And music. And trips. And movies. And shopping. ‘They had to go shopping!’ Even though men didn’t usually like that a lot, she said.

‘And he had no idea what any of those things were, but he’d happily indulge her anyway…’

Every now and then, she’d get even closer to him, close enough for him to subtly nuzzle her rosy cheek, and she giggled again, illuminating the whole damn room.

‘How could she even do that?’

And she’d play with her glossy hair, twirling it distractedly between her long, delicate fingers while she told him all he needed to know about her home planet. It had constantly amazed him how someone like Bulma, a woman who enjoyed doing manual labor, could always possess such silky hands.

His eyes would always end up hungrily gazing at her fully exposed creamy neck, and he wanted nothing more than to sink his fangs into her warm, ivory skin and mark her for all to see. Making her his for all eternity. He wondered what the woman would think of that particular custom from his race, would she find it barbarian? If she did, he wouldn’t do it, but something told him the impetuous woman would let him get a little taste of that delicious part of her anatomy.

By the time she was done with her stories, he was nowhere near closer to understanding a single thing about her world, but he’d already decided it didn’t matter anyway. After all, he had no home himself, no roots to speak of, so by joining her, he was sacrificing nothing but his own loneliness.

“So…” Bulma asked in a low voice, nervously biting her lip. “What do you say? Are you coming with me?”

Vegeta grunted affirmatively, nuzzling her cheek possessively one last time.

He would.

He’d follow this extraordinary creature to the end of the world and back.

“Really?” She asked, her eyes brightening with joy. “Oh, Vegeta! You’re gonna love it! You’ll see!”

Bulma hugged him even tighter, pressing her forehead against his, staring into his enigmatic dark eyes. He really was the most attractive man she’d ever met, and not just physically, there was something else about him, a mystery that kept begging to be unraveled, and she’d spend the rest of her life trying to figure it out.

“I’m excited…” She whispered gleefully. “Are you?”

He closed his eyes, overwhelmed by her near presence, her exotic scent pervading his senses as he found himself unable to take his eyes off the luscious lip she was nibbling again.

“I am…” He muttered, closing the distance between them and finally locking his lips with hers, making the woman inhale sharply by the unexpected move. However, she soon allowed herself to relax in his embrace, kissing him back slowly, languidly, simply savoring the moment.

He was real, he was here, with her, and now he was her mate.

It was hard to believe…    

There was something sweet, almost childlike about his kiss, and she guessed pretty soon that he probably hadn’t kissed a lot of women, the same way that she hadn’t really dated more than a couple of men before her planet had been destroyed and she’d ended up alone.

In many ways, they were the same. They’d both experienced the grief of loss, but in her case, she’d only endured it for over a period of a few months, while he’d been alone throughout most of his entire life. Now, she was going to show him what having a home, a family and a partner felt like.

They lazily kissed for a few more minutes, basking in each other’s presence. Melding their bodies together, and all Vegeta could think of was how perfect she felt against him, it was as if she’d been specifically designed just for him.

Just as he was about to boldly deepen their kiss a single knock on the door awoke them both from their reveries.

“Bulma!” A voice yelled from behind the door, not even waiting for her to reply before he opened the door. “I’m sorry to bother you guys, but we have a couple of visitors and they look… Wow!”

Krillin’s speech was immediately cut off by the sight of his friend sitting on the lap of the very frightening and very dangerous Saiyan Prince.

“Uh… Um… I’m s-sorry, b-but…”

“They must be your friends, right Vegeta?” Bulma asked sweetly, apparently unperturbed about having just been caught in such a compromising position.

The Prince grunted in assent, a fierce scowl now invading his regal face in a strange mixture of embarrassment and fury at the bald man’s interruption. However, his hands were still greedily clutching Bulma’s hips, obstinately refusing to let his woman go.  

“You think they’ll wanna come with us?” She enquired again.

‘Shit!’

He’d been so entranced by his obsession with Bulma that he hadn’t even stopped to consider what Nappa and Raditz would want to do next.  

Vegeta sighed, reluctantly releasing her petite form.

“I guess I should have a talk with them,” he finally replied, helping the woman stand up and doing the same himself. “Would it be a problem if they wanted to join us?”

“Of course not! They’re your friends, so they’ll always be welcome in our home!” She replied in all honesty. “Besides, a bunch of strong Saiyan guys protecting the Earth can only be a good thing, right?”

The Prince nodded once more in agreement. Even though he was, by far, the strongest of his gang, having his comrades fighting by his side, defending his woman’s planet, would unquestionably be a positive thing. And he’d make damn sure those two idiots wouldn’t misbehave when they got to Earth.

Bulma grinned with enthusiasm. “Great! See, Krillin?” She declared cheerfully. “Vegeta will take care of everything, don’t worry about it…”

The bald monk couldn’t believe his ears. Was Bulma actually going to bring those brutes back to their home planet with them? And, why the kiss? Had she secretly been dating Vegeta all this time and she hadn’t told them? Even though he had a million and one questions on his mind, he really didn’t dare to ask any of them, afraid he’d make Vegeta snap and turn against him. Besides, Bulma appeared to be so relaxed, so comfortable in his presence that he hoped, and prayed, she’d keep the Saiyan under control.

“Uh, um… Sure… G-Great… I’ll leave you guys alone then… I’ll wait outside…” He stuttered, leaving the small bedroom as fast as he could.

“I’ll go outside to deal with my comrades, Bulma,” Vegeta declared, making a move to follow Krillin, but the woman’s voice stopped him all of a sudden.

“Oh! Vegeta, wait! I almost forgot…” She said, unzipping one of the small pockets of her blue dress and grabbing the small object it contained: the black card the warrior had given her the last time they’d seen each other.

“I believe this is yours,” she whispered, offering him the valuable item, which Vegeta straightaway refused to take back, crossing his arms and shaking his head.

“Keep it, Bulma. Now it belongs to you.”

“B-But, Vegeta… Where I’m going to, I won’t need it…”

“Neither will I,” he shrugged.

Bulma sighed, her hands trembling slightly as she recalled the overwhelming emotions she’d felt when she’d discovered Vegeta had presented her with a small fortune.

“But it’s so valuable, Vegeta…” She whined. “What if you ever have to go on a space trip again?”

“Then I’ll ask for it. In the meantime, I’m entrusting you with it, woman.”

She took one last look at the card, finally putting it back in her pocket, making sure she closed the small zipper.

“Fair enough…” Bulma concluded, now walking in his direction. She placed her hand on his shoulder, slowly running it across his tanned skin until she gently scratched the back of his neck affectively, making Vegeta immediately shiver in desire. “I’ll keep it safe for you,” she promised confidently, wrapping her other arm around his neck.

“Vegeta…” She said in a small voice. “Can I ask you something?”

“What is it, woman?” He asked back, finding it increasingly hard to concentrate with Bulma lazily running her fingers through his wild mane.

“Why…? Why did you give me such a large amount of credits?”

The Prince frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean… I didn’t even know you were such a wealthy man…”

“I’m not anymore. I gave you everything I possessed. Everything I’ve earned through my years under Frieza’s service.”

Bulma’s blue eyes widened in surprise.

“What? Oh, Gods, Vegeta! Why…? Why did you do such a thing?”

“Because I knew you were lying, Bulma,” he replied matter-of-factly. “I was pretty sure your boss hadn’t granted you permission to leave the planet. Was I wrong?”

‘Clever Saiyan…’

“N-No… You’re right, he didn’t. But then… If… If you knew I’d probably never come back, why would you…?”

“It’s very simple, woman,” Vegeta said, swiftly cutting her off. “Wealth is power, and when I offered you the chance of being my mate, I promised to protect and cherish you… And…”

He paused, feeling increasingly uncomfortable about having to talk about his emotions.

Vegeta was a warrior, and it just wasn’t in his blood to openly discuss such matters, not even with the woman who’d just agreed to become his mate.

“And?” She asked sweetly, encouraging him to finish his thoughts.

“And…” He exhaled heavily. “Well… I realized that, even if you rejected my proposal, I still wished all of those things for you. So, I… I felt that giving you my wealth was in a way like offering you a part of my power, so that you’d be safe, free and protected.”

‘Gods…’

If she hadn’t already loved this man, she would have fallen for him right after hearing those words.

‘He wanted her to be happy, even if it wasn’t with him…’

She hugged him tighter, pressing her body against him and kissing him softly on the lips one more time, lovingly holding his smooth face between her hands and looking at him as if he were the best man in the world. The adoration in her shimmery eyes was both exciting and deeply disturbing.

Nobody had ever looked at him that way…

“Thank you,” Bulma mumbled gratefully against his lips.

He nodded, not quite understanding how his woman could be so moved by his actions. After all, he’d only done what he’d thought was the honorable thing to do.

“Do not thank me, Bulma,” he answered, carefully removing her hands from his face. If she kept touching him and looking at him like that, he’d end up having his way with her right then and there, and he couldn’t allow himself to do that. A woman like Bulma deserved more than a quick fuck inside a cave in the middle of space. When he finally mated with her, he wanted to do things right, savoring and relishing every single inch of that perfect body.

“I must talk to my comrades before they lose their patience and do something stupid.”

“Oh… Right! Of course!” Bulma quickly replied, blushing like a school girl about her previous brazen behavior. Her flushed skin wasn’t lost on the warrior, who proceeded to walk out of the small room, not before turning around first, flashing her one of those maliciously cheeky smirks.

“All in good time, little woman,” he said. “All in good time…”

Bulma stood on wobbly legs, alone inside her bedroom for a minute.

‘That cocky bastard…’

If he could make her feel like that with just the mere promise of his touch in the future, what would happen when they actually consummated their relationship?

She swallowed hard in anticipation, her heartrate sky rocketing inside her chest. Her mind wandered briefly, trying to imagine what being with Vegeta would be like, not just intimately but in general, living together and sharing their lives as a couple.

She smiled softly, shaking her head and mentally preparing herself to leave the tiny house and join the rest of her friends. There was no point in being nervous or worried about the future. It was time to be brave, get outside, make those wishes and go back home.

Bulma recognized that as long as Frieza lived they wouldn’t be completely safe, but she also knew that both Vegeta and she were strong-willed, intelligent and tough people. Neither of them was afraid of working hard if that meant achieving their goals, and now, they were together, which meant they’d be there for each other when things got hard.

‘It was time for a new beginning…’

By the time Bulma left the cave, Vegeta was already having a private discussion with the other two Saiyan warriors, a few meters away from her small group of friends, who were sitting on a rock, absolutely flabbergasted as to what was going on exactly. Yamcha’s face was not only astonished, but also filled with jealousy and anger. Someone must have brought him an icepack from inside the house, and he kept carefully pressing it against his nose, which had already stopped bleeding but was now uncomfortably swollen.

Bulma stood cross-armed by the rest of the earthlings’ side, waiting patiently for Vegeta to inform Nappa and Raditz of the new situation. Every now and then, the two Saiyans would give her a surreptitious glance, raising their eyebrows in shock and interest, but the woman could tell they didn’t look angry or upset, which she took as a positive sign.

“So… Earth, uh?” Nappa finally asked as soon as Vegeta finished telling the story.

“I’m in!” Raditz exclaimed, looking rather excited about these new developments. “I mean… It seems like a sweet deal. A nice planet, no Frieza for a while and training equipment…” He gave Bulma another look, elbowing the Prince playfully. “Man… She’s really hot! I can see why you like her…”        

“If you know what’s good for you, you will never, ever, refer to my mate in those terms again,” Vegeta threatened in a low, menacing voice. “This is not one of your space whores, Raditz. This woman is to be treated with the utmost respect, is that understood?”

The long-haired man waved his hands in front of him, trying to make some peace with his Prince.

“O-of course, Vegeta! Sure! She’s your mate, I get it! It won’t happen again…”

Vegeta nodded, choosing to let the matter go this time. He was in such a great mood that not even Raditz’s antics could spoil things for him.

“What about you, Nappa?” The shorter man asked his subordinate.

The older man shrugged. “You know me, Vegeta. You’re my Prince, I’ll follow you wherever you choose to go,” he vowed.

“Vegeta, that planet is the place my brother was sent to, right?” Raditz asked again.

“That is correct.”

“So… If we bring its inhabitants back to life, that’ll include my brother too?”

“I suppose…” Vegeta responded. “He died in battle, from the description Bulma gave me of his enemy, it must have been against Ginyu. Apparently, he held his own quite well…”

“Really? Wow! I thought Kakarot was supposed to be really weak. His power level must have increased a lot!” He shook his head, chuckling in disbelief. “A brother… Man! I never thought I’d have any family again… It sounds pretty good, if you ask me...”

“I agree,” Nappa said. “That means we’d be four Saiyans in total standing against Frieza when the time comes.”

“Five,” Vegeta quickly corrected, making his two friends stare at him in confusion.

“What…? What do you mean?” Raditz enquired again.

“Your brother has a son, I believe he’s about four years old.”

Nappa couldn’t believe his ears. “Wait, we can breed with them? How…? How is that even possible?”

“I honestly do not know. Perhaps we share a common ancestor… Who knows…” Vegeta responded thoughtfully. “But apparently, the child was strong, very strong for his age. He attacked Ginyu and even managed to damage his armor.”

“What?!” The other men yelled in shock.

“He did. But he did so in a fit of rage, so I assume the little brat hasn’t learned much about fighting or about how to control his power yet. Still, his potential seems promising.”

“A brother and a nephew, uh? Alright then, let’s meet your woman and get this party started!” Raditz declared excitedly, already walking towards the place where the earthlings waited patiently. Before he got too far, he turned around. “Am I allowed to talk to her?” He asked prudently, not wanting to get punched in the face by his Prince before they even got to Earth.

“Sure, but Raditz?”

“Yeah?”

“Keep your hands to yourself if you want to keep them,” Vegeta threatened.

Raditz goofily winked at him, giving him thumbs up. “Gotcha!”

The Saiyan Prince kept his eyes fixated of the taller man. When he stood by his woman he saw how Bulma extended her hand to him, a sign he’d learned was the way earthlings introduced themselves sometimes, and he assented when Raditz gingerly looked at him, as if asking for his approval. Bulma smiled cordially at him and they talked as if they were best friends already.

‘That woman…’

She certainly had that effect on people…

There was something warm and comforting about her, and something told him she had a thing for welcoming outcasts into her vibrant world.

Nappa’s voice brought him back to reality.

“Vegeta,” he said, standing by his side, watching Bulma pensively through his more experienced eyes. “If we turn our back on Frieza… Well… You do realize how dangerous that is, right?”

“I know,” Vegeta agreed. “But I trust that the woman’s technology will get us ready in time.”

Both Saiyans shared a brief silence, until the bald one spoke again, never taking his eyes off Bulma.

“Is she worth it?”

Vegeta smirked, fully understanding the meaning behind his subordinate’s words.

Was she worth walking away from everyone and everything they knew, just to end up living in some backwater planet in a galaxy far away? The consequences and the implications of what Frieza would only consider a betrayal were heavy, and certainly deadly, based on what he’d seen so far, but…

There she was, standing fearlessly in front of one of his men. A warrior that was at least twice her height and could kill her with the tip of a finger, and yet, she remained confident, cheerfully talking to him with a smile on her face.

“She’s worth it, old man…” He simply replied, walking towards her, wanting nothing more than to join her and remain by her side forever.

“Whatever you say, kiddo…” Nappa mumbled to himself, loyally following his Prince with a smirk on his rugged face.

‘Who knew?’

Vegeta was no fool, that much was true. Unlike Raditz, he wasn’t some mindless idiot who thought with something other than his brain. The Gods knew how many stupid decisions the long-haired warrior had made through the years because of his love for the ladies, unlike Vegeta, who’d remained single, always focused on doing his job and training hard in order to increase his strength and avenge his people.

If his Prince had ever had a woman, he wouldn’t know, given how private, lonely and discreet the younger man had always been so, whatever he’d seen in that young woman, it must have been something else besides her very obvious, almost ethereal physical beauty.

And if what she’d said about Kakarot’s son was the truth, she’d be able to give him a child, an heir to carry the Royal bloodline of the House of Vegeta.

A new Saiyan Prince…

Yes, when Frieza eventually found them, they’d be ready and waiting for him, and perhaps it would do his Prince some good to have a mate and a child to fight for this time. Maybe the desire for protection would also get him closer to his ascension, enabling him to finally become the Legendary.

“Oh, you’re gonna love her! You’ll see!” Bulma enthusiastically told Raditz.

“Who’s going to love who?” Vegeta asked, finally joining his new mate and the taller man.

Bulma quickly turned around, smiling at the Prince once more. “Hi, there! I was just talking to Raditz about a girl that’s perfect for him!”

Vegeta interestedly raised an eyebrow at that.

“We haven’t even gotten to Earth yet and you’re already thinking about bedding women?”

“Hey, now! She’s the one who offered, actually…” Raditz replied, slightly embarrassed.

The shorter man chuckled in amusement, glancing at Bulma. “Is that so, woman?”

“Yeah… But it’s only because he asked if all women on my planet were hot!” The woman whined defensively.

Vegeta couldn’t help but shake his head at that.

‘Was he the only one who took things seriously around here?’

“Anyway… I told him there are some really pretty girls on Earth, and I have this old friend of mine that would be great for him!”

“I’m listening…” Raditz replied with serious mockery.

“Well, she’s really hot…”

“I like her already.”

Bulma giggled at that. She liked Raditz, he had a playfulness that definitely was missing on Vegeta, and she could tell the giant rascal was probably the funniest of the gang.

“Yup!”

“What does she look like? Does she have hair like yours?”    

“Mmm… Not really… She actually changes her hair quite often… Sometimes it’s dark blue, sometimes she goes blonde… But you’re really gonna love her! She’s a little bit like two different people… She can be really sweet but also real feisty at times…”

“Mmm… Feisty, uh? Sounds good to me… I like women with a backbone.”

“Oh, trust me…” She promised mischievously. “You’re never gonna get bored with this girl…”

Vegeta witnessed the exchange silently, getting the impression that his woman was messing with Raditz in some way. There was a barely concealed humorous tone in her voice that he knew oh, too well. He supposed it was one of the perks of having spent so much time around her, trying to learn as much as he could about the pretty woman.

“Hey guys! I found him!” Krillin’s voice yelled happily.

They all turned around, only to find the hairless man standing with a young Namekian child by his side.

“Ah! Great!” Bulma spoke excitedly. “This is Dende,” she explained to the two Saiyans. “He’s going to make the wishes for us.”

“Why him?” Vegeta inquired.

“The wishes can only be voiced in the Namekian language, apparently there’s also a special formula that must be pronounced.”

The Prince nodded in understanding. “I see… I assume you and your friends have the seventh Dragon Ball…”

Bulma smirked naughtily. “We do.”

“So, are we ready to start the process now?”

“We are. You have the rest of them, right?”

“We do.”

“Then it’ll be easier to bring ours to the spot where you’ve hidden yours.” She looked at Krillin and spoke authoritatively. “Krillin, will you bring the Dragon Ball, please?”

“Um, sure…” The monk quickly replied, having given up on trying to comprehend what the Hell was going on here a long time ago. Bulma looked really chummy with those three Saiyans, so he figured she’d have everything under control by now. As long as he didn’t end up getting killed, he truly didn’t mind whether the crazy woman brought those three guys to Earth or not.

“Oh! I almost forgot! I’ll go get the house…” Bulma said, making a move to leave in order to go back to the cave and encapsulate the small dwelling, but Vegeta stopped her immediately, grabbing her arm softly but firmly.

“I’ll do it. Wait for me here.”

“Oh, um, thanks Vegeta…” She whispered, blushing at the intense look the Prince was giving her. “You just have to press the large yellow button by the door.”

Vegeta assented, letting go of her and following her instructions.

Nappa quietly observed the couple’s exchange and he smiled knowingly at the sight of his Prince falling in love for the first time in his life, something he’d never thought he’d ever witness.

A girly voice got his attention. “Nappa, right?” She asked, politely offering him her hand, a gesture he’d seen her share with Raditz just moments earlier. He took it, carefully squeezing it back.

“That is correct.”

Bulma gave him a warm, welcoming smile, and Nappa rapidly understood how Vegeta was so taken by this small creature. She looked fragile in appearance, but her spirit was brave and exuberant.

“It’s nice to finally meet you…” She replied, and after a brief pause, she asked him the question that had been on her mind for quite a while now. “Um, can I…? Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Did you remove some pieces from Vegeta’s scouter?”

The older man’s eyes widened in shock. “What?”

“His scouter… When he lent it to you? Did you…?”

Raditz laughed loudly at that, intruding in their private conversation. “Nappa borrowing Vegeta’s scouter? Ha! That’s a good one!”

Bulma frowned in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Child, Vegeta is extremely fussy and possessive when it comes to his property, his scouter in particular. He’d never let anyone else touch it!” Nappa answered in all seriousness, he then tilted his head to the side curiously. “What made you ask such a thing?”

“No reason…” The woman replied with a mysterious smile on her lips, which turned into a huge grin as soon as Vegeta came back to her and placed the small capsule on the palm of her hand. Before the Prince had time to open his mouth to ask the reason behind her beaming expression, she threw herself into his arms, literally clinging to him.

“Woman,” he whispered, feeling his cheeks grow crimson. “What are you…?”

“I thought we were ready to go,” Bulma simply answered.

“We… We are…”

“So, I can’t fly,” she pouted childishly. “Aren’t you going to fly me with you?” She asked, fluttering her long eyelashes coquettishly.

His throat bobbed nervously, and it became quite evident Vegeta was not used to such public acts of affection.

“Or, you know… I could ask one of the other guys to fly me there. Maybe Krillin, or perhaps even Yam…”

Vegeta immediately locked his arms around her waist, so greedily and tightly Bulma couldn’t even finish her teasing sentence.

“Over my dead body,” he whispered possessively in her ear, making her giddy with excitement. He simply took off into the sky, and a side-eyed glance told him Bulma had been teasing him purposefully to get her way. “You really are a troublesome woman…” He muttered.

Bulma giggled in delight, nuzzling his cheek and kissing it indolently. “Oh, you have no idea, Prince Vegeta…” She mumbled tantalizingly, already impatient to make her wishes come true and finally get to spend some alone time with the handsome man, who was now groaning and pressing her against his deliciously muscular body even tighter in response to her blatant attempts at seducing him.

He smirked maliciously, barely succeeding in keeping his carnal urges in check.

“Just wait until I have you all to myself…” He threatened wickedly. “You’re playing with fire, little woman…”

She just buried her face in the crook of his neck, protecting her delicate visage from the cold air and inhaling his musky, masculine scent.

“I can’t wait…” She whispered breathlessly.

They all finally landed on the spot where the three Saiyans had hidden the Dragon Balls, and Nappa and Raditz went to find them, beginning the process of arranging them in the right position, with the help of her friends, under Dende’s instructions while Bulma and Vegeta waited calmly, both sitting cross-armed on a nearby rock, silently witnessing the scene.

“Bulma, I’ve been thinking… If Frieza eventually comes to this planet himself…”

“It won’t matter…” Bulma cut him off, having guessed already what his concerns were. “The Dragon Balls will be useless for a while after we make our wishes.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah… And even if they are back to normal by the time Frieza gets here… Well, let’s just say that I talked to the Namekians, and they’ve told me they’d rather die than letting that asshole use the Dragon Balls…”

“He will do just that, you know that, right?” Vegeta kept warning her.

“I know… And again, it won’t matter…” Bulma coolly replied. “Once the Earth is restored, so will our Dragon Balls. So, we can bring the Namekians and their planet back to life in the future anyway without Frieza’s knowledge.”  

Bulma felt Vegeta’s shocked eyes on her, wordlessly staring in admiration.

“I am a genius, after all…” She smugly stated, lifting her chin in an arrogant but devastatingly attractive stance.

Just as the Prince was about to retort in some futile attempt to bring his woman down a notch, Krillin interrupted them once again.

“Um, guys? We’re ready!”

“Alright,” Bulma declared, standing up and shaking off the dust from her lovely bottom. “Let’s go, Prince Vegeta…” She said walking in Krillin’s direction without even giving her mate a second glace.

“That woman…” Vegeta mumbled. A side of him felt deeply offended by her woman ordering him around, and the other one just followed right behind her like some unpracticed, naïve young boy.

“Bulma, you never told us what your third wish was,” Krillin enquired. “I assumed it was to take us all back to Earth, but you said…”    

“That’s exactly what it is, Krillin,” Bulma confirmed, running her eyes over her friends and the three strong Saiyan warriors that awaited her orders diligently.

Who would have thought that three of the strongest, most intimidating warriors in the entire Universe, would be now on their side?

She had a good feeling about the future…

Bulma placed one of her hands firmly on the monk’s shoulder, addressing him with friendly self-assurance.

“Let’s ask the Dragon to take us home.”    

Krillin smiled, also happy about the idea of returning to their home planet as soon as they could. He knew Bulma had told them about the possibility of using the third wish for something else and simply use their old, disheveled ship to travel back to Earth, and he wouldn’t have minded it too much if it meant eventually getting back home, but it was good to know they wouldn’t have to endure another unpleasant journey squeezed together inside the tiny vehicle.

“They’re coming with us, then?” He asked again, his head pointing at the three Saiyan fighters, trying to confirm the orders he had to give the young Namekian.

“They are.”

“All three of them?”

“Yup!”

“Are you sure about that?”

Bulma’s dirty look was all the answer he needed before he found himself waving his hands in front of her, apologizing nervously.

“Alright! Alright! You know best…”  

Krillin knelt on the grass in front of the small Namekian child, giving him his final instructions while Bulma stood by Vegeta’s side. She could feel her heart hammering furiously inside her chest, eager to be reunited with her parents and her friends back home. She couldn’t wait to see them all again, and to show her mate her old home, inviting him into her life.

“Is everything alright?” Vegeta asked, his sharp Saiyan senses immediately noticing her nervousness.

She nodded anxiously in reply.

“Everything’s fine. I’m just excited, that’s all…” She whispered with her heart in her mouth.

Dende’s loud voice filled the air, pronouncing enigmatic words in a foreign language. Soon, his words provoked a reaction, and the enormous orange spheres flickered, shining brightly as the green Namekian sky darkened and a magical, artificial night fell upon them.

The Namekian Dragon, Porunga, finally materialized before their very bewildered eyes, and his large, red eyes illuminated briefly every time one of the first two wishes were made. The earthlings jumped and cheered in pure joy while the Saiyans stood stoically, although barely able to conceal their stupefaction at the unusual spectacle they were a part of.

Just as the Namekian child commenced the process of making their third wish, Bulma felt the warm, comforting presence of Vegeta’s fingers intertwining with hers, apparently not caring about his gesture of affection being seen by anyone else, especially now that everyone’s eyes were focused on the gigantic magical creature in the sky. She immediately squeezed back, responding to his touch and closing her eyes shut as she felt her body slowly evaporate, vanishing into thin air in a bright flash of light.

When she finally dared to open them again, the familiar rays of the Sun almost blinded her.

Her planet’s sun…

Vegeta blinked a few times, fleetingly disoriented by the unfamiliar sounds, scents and colors surrounding him. Despite having spent most of his life traveling throughout countless Galaxies, discovering and exploring a myriad of planets, it was always confusing visiting a new world.

But this time, he wasn’t visiting.

This time, he was here to stay.

He felt his mate’s hand clasp his lovingly one final time, wordlessly attempting to get his attention. When he finally set his eyes on her, he allowed the ghost of a smile grace his lips. And in that moment, the unadulterated joy in her features made him realize she’d never looked more beautiful.

“Welcome to Earth, Vegeta,” she whispered merrily in his ear, placing a warm, feathery kiss on his strong jaw.

Vegeta raised his eyes, admiring the magnificence that now enveloped him.

Earth: a planet that was beautiful, warm and blue, just like his Bulma.

He loved them both already…

Thanks a lot for reading!

In case someone is interested in my other works, you can find them here:

http://archiveofourown.org/users/SarahW/pseuds/SarahW

https://www.fanfiction.net/u/8599955/SarahWDBZ

[spyvstailor]

Hiii, can you write another ? Maybe something along the lines of Walter waking only Daniels up at some point while the rest of the crew is still asleep ?

Hey Nonny, Nonny, Hey! Since you didn’t specify smut, and since my mind runs pretty clean (somedays), I decided to make this one sweet and cute. We cool with that? Cool. Here it is! (sorry, it took me forever to write this, work, ya know?)

“Walter,” Mother cooed to him. “There is a malfunction in one of the pods. Life support is failing.”

Looking up from watching the stars drag by the window on the bridge, Walter asked, “whose?”

“Daniels Branson.”

Running from the bridge. Walter made a sharp left into the hall that led to the room where Daniels pod rested. He knew the room well, it had become one of his favourite on his tour around the Covenant.

Kneeling by the side of the pod, he frowned at the inferior design of it. Weyland-Yutani were his makers, he could see no wrong in their company or all it stood for, but he also knew a design flaw when he saw one.

Someone was going to die in the pods one of these days.

But not today. Daniels was too important to the mission to lose.

Pressing in his override protocols, he safely began the sequence to wake Daniels up. If he had been any later she would have run out of oxygen, as it was he moved across the floor to prepare a mask for her to breathe into.

As the lid was finally retracted from the pod, Daniels burst upright, coughing and vomiting. Walter waited for her to heave out a healthy amount of stomach bile and watery liquid from the feeding apparatus, before offering her the oxygen.

She inhaled deeply, before turning her face away and vomiting again.

“We will get you situated in a new pod soon enough,” Walter said, hoping to ease her concern.

Her dark eyes just gazed at him, before she blinked and said weakly, “Walter, I just got pulled out of–” she broke off to vomit. “I just got pulled out of one of these things,” she murmured, wiping puke from her mouth, “I’m not getting back in one for at least a lifetime.”

He was quiet. There was nothing he could add to improve the situation. Daniels would have to get back into the pod, but he also understood her concern. They were flawed.

Patting his shoulder as she hopped down from the pod, she swayed a little on her feet, unsteady from lack of use.

Walter steadied her with his arm, her hands clutching at his forearm.

“Water?” She asked.

He waited until she was strong on her own feet, before moving across the room towards the cooler where water was kept, clean and fresh.

“How long have i been out?” She asked.

“Nine months,” he said.

“I’m a pretty big baby,” she teased half heartedly.

Walter returned with her water, offering her one of his rare grins.

She snorted into her water. “Is that really how you smile or are you mocking me?”

His smile died.

“It’s just, you look like you’re gonna eat me while smelling something nasty.”

“I’ve been working with Mother to improve my smile,” Walter said. “She informed me that the first grin programmed into my core functions was too ‘sharky’. This smile only flashes the top teeth, less predatorial.”

“You have put a lot of thought into your smile,” she mused, walking across the room to where Jake was hanging, still in his cryotube.

Walter watched her walk with protective eyes, worried she may yet collapse onto the hard floor.

“Wow, this place is creepy with everyone out,” she mumbled.

Walter quietly followed her, walking in her footsteps until he stood just behind her.

Sipping her water, she turned to him and asked, “so,what do you do for fun?”

He blinked.

“I know!” She beamed. “Chair races down the halls? Only, I guess with just you, it’s Walter trying to beat his record?”

“Forty-three seconds from bridge to cargo hold,” he stated.

Daniels laughed. “So, you have tried it!”

Walter was quiet.

“You are the Space Cowboy,” she teased, heading for the door.

He wanted to remind her that they needed to return her to her pod, but he also wanted to see what she was up to, she mystified him sometimes. So he followed her, walking just behind again as she wandered the halls and corridors.

“Do you know who the Space Cowboy was, Walter?” She asked, calling over her shoulder as she moved freely around the Covenant.

“Steve Miller Band, The Joker, 1973,” he explained. “Some people call me the–”

“You don’t need,” she interrupted him quickly, “to do that.”

They moved into the bridge and she just climbed into the Captain seat. Not only boldly climbed there, but tucked her bare feet up under her.

Figuring with bare feet that she may be cold, he moved to a nearby emergency closet and pulled out a blanket kept there for shock victims. He would wash and replace it later.

Draping it over her and around her, Walter wrapped her up.

“You don’t nee to do that, Walter,” she said.

He was quiet, standing beside her.

“Wow, we must be the only living things awake for light years,” she mused, eyes on the endless stars.

Wanting to object to her error of calling him ‘living’, he opened his mouth, but closed it again.

“It’s kind of scary, isn’t it?” She asked. “How do you do it?”

“Do it?”

“How do you handle the loneliness while we’re in hypersleep?”

This was a curious question which Walter didn’t quite know how to answer. “It’s my job,” he said, hoping it answered her question.

“But don’t you get lonesome?”

“I have Mother and tasks to keep me busy.”

“Do you peek into our dreams?” She teased.

The synthetic feeling of shame came to him, it was more like the opening of a program within him, one that made him still in fear, while drawing his mouth closed more securely. He supposed to Daniels, it would look like he was pressing his lips between his teeth.

Her dark eyes turned up towards him as she took another sip of her water. “What do I dream about? I can’t remember having any.”

“Snow,” he said. “You always dream of snow.”

“What do you think Jung would say about that?”

He was quiet.

“You do know Jung, don’t you?”

“Yes.“

“If you could dream, what would you dream about, Walter?”

He didn’t know, when even attempting to access that query internally, he came up blank. Nothing came to his mind. But with a burst of colour, he saw plants. Rows and rows of flowering plants and sunshine.

“Flowers,” he said.

“Flowers?”

“I believe I would dream of flowers.”

She smiled gently. “Why flowers?”

“Flowers are simple, they need only simple things to thrive.”

“Not because of the colour or the scent?”

He was quiet.

“Well,” Daniels sighed, setting her water aside, “maybe when we get to Origae-6 you can open up a greenhouse or something.”

There would be no greenhouse for Walter, he didn’t have the chance to tell her that he was to be decommissioned once they arrived at their destination. Or perhaps he had the chance, but he didn’t have the words.

In order to protect the humans of the Covenant, he wasn’t meant to subject them to such troubling thoughts. Being decommissioned was like death, it was a final act. Humans found it disturbing to think about.

He wouldn’t worry her needlessly.

“So?” She asked playfully. “Chair race then back to sleep?”

Her slanted, wicked grin was returned by his own.

“We’ll work on that grin when we get home,” she teased, pushing to her feet. “Because it looks painful.”

[your-iron-lung]

Mixed Up 19 | Karuna |

Chapter Word Count: 4310

Pairings: Zoro/Sanji

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Chapter Warning: Strong Language

Previous Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 , 17, 18

Next Chapter: 20

For what must have been the third time since she'd called Sanji that morning, Nami apologized.

"It's just, I got pretty wasted," she admitted with a sigh, walking slowly through her kitchen to prepare herself some coffee. "And I ended up bringing my date home with me, and, well, you know how that goes."

"I don't mind! I'm just flattered you remembered to call me at all; you really are so sweet!"

Despite the early hour, Sanji already seemed to be running on full energy, which at first had been kind of annoying, but was now starting to become tolerable. He'd been so chipper when she'd first called that, for just a moment, Nami'd thought that he'd gotten over his issues himself.

But whenever she started to mention Zoro, Sanji would either abruptly change the subject or stop talking altogether. As if his forced attitude wasn't annoying on its own, the fact that he was unwilling to confront his problems was beginning to wear her down as well.

Ignoring the monumental headache her hangover was causing her, she did her best to keep herself in a positive mood. She'd been worried at first that his attitude was because he was upset with her for neglecting to call him like she'd promised the night before, but she was sure now that it was just because he was struggling.

Barefoot, she stepped as quietly as she could across the linoleum flooring through the kitchen. Her skin stuck and peeled with each step she took, and though the action hardly made any noise, she felt like her date, still sleeping in her bedroom, could probably hear it.

"How was your date, by the way? Did he treat you as well as I did on ours?"

Sanji had been casually trying to get details from her about her evening throughout the duration of their conversation. He'd been subtle about it at first, but when he realized subtly was getting him nowhere he began to ask about it directly. She wouldn't have minded so much if she didn't know that he was just using it as an excuse to avoid talking about his own romantic issues.

"My my," Nami teased, tucking and holding her phone between her ear and shoulder as she spoke. "Is that jealousy I'm sensing?"

She heard him scoff as she filled the Keurig machine with water and then sifted through the pile of k-cup coffee pods she kept to find the flavor and strength she wanted.

As she turned it on and began to wait for the water to heat up, she set the phone down on the counter briefly to hoist herself up to sit beside the coffee maker.

"I'm just making sure that the standards a woman of your caliber must have, have been met!" Nami laughed quietly at his words as she picked her phone up to hear the tail-end of his rant. "Especially since you brought the man home!"

A cheeky grin crossed her face that Sanji couldn't see.

"Not that it's any of your business, but, yeah, I'd say my standards were met," she mused, stretching out her legs. "But, hey, enough about me; we both know that this conversation isn't supposed to be about me and my romantic interests."

That shut him up, but if he was going to be direct with her, then, well, she'd just have to be direct with him in return.

Waiting for Sanji's response, Nami yawned and stuck her k-cup pod into the machine once it alerted her that the water had finished heating up. Almost as if called in by the machine itself, Nami's sister appeared in the kitchen.

Fully dressed and in the process of tying her dyed blue hair up into a bandanna, Nojiko quirked her brow when she noticed Nami was on the phone.

"Who're you talking to?" she half whispered, half mouthed.

"New friend," Nami quietly replied before muting herself on the phone so Sanji couldn't hear them. "How is it you always know when I'm making coffee?"

"Who's the new friend?" Nojiko asked, ignoring Nami's question as she approached, applying the finishing touches to her hair.

"Some guy Zoro found at the Sunny." She took her filled cup of coffee out of the machine so Nojiko could use it and set it aside to cool. "He's having like, an identity crisis of sorts."

"How kind of you to be there for him."

Nojiko's sarcasm made Nami frown.

"It is way too early for you to be throwing this much attitude at me," Nami said, angrily taking a sip of her coffee, which ended up burning her tongue. "Fuck, ow. What'd I do this time?"

"Put some pants on," was all her sister had to say as she set up their coffee machine to start a brew for herself.

As Nami was about to retort with, no, she would absolutely not put on pants and would, in fact, walk around the house all day in nothing but a t-shirt and underwear if she wanted, Sanji ended his silence.

"Sorry. I just don't know how to really approach it."

"That's okay," Nami said, giving Nojiko the stink eye before she realized she was still muted. As she unmuted the phone, she repeated herself. "That's okay. I know it can be tough."

She was aware of Nojiko watching her and listening in to the conversation as she waited for her coffee. Giving her a scowl, Nami slid off the countertop and grabbed her mug and wandered away into their living room.

Settling into her favourite armchair, she sighed contentedly as she took another sip of coffee and relaxed into the cushions. The mug warmed her hand as she held it, eventually forcing her to place it on a side table when it grew to be too hot. Alone in the room and finally able to start self-medicating her hangover, Nami could give Sanji her total and complete focus, though it seemed as though he'd clammed up again.

She wondered if there was anything she could do to help ease him into talking openly with her. As it stood, it was obvious he wanted her help, but didn't know how to make himself available to it. His pride or whatever it was was getting in his way.

"I have an idea," she said, sticking her tongue out at Nojiko as she passed through the room and out the front door. "A way to make this easier to talk about for you."

There was another patch of silence on the line before he said, "Okay."

"And, hey, if you don't want to, you know that's okay, right? We don't have to talk about anything you don't want to."

"Thank you for your concern," he said with honest relief. "I really appreciate everything that you're doing for me."

Nami leaned up out of her chair for a moment to grab the television remote. She pressed the power button and then immediately muted the TV as it turned on, fulfilling her desire to have something going on in the background that she could offhandedly watch.

"I'll just have to have you return the favor someday," she remarked casually, flipping through the channels until she found one that was airing some cartoons. "But yeah, it's no problem. Anyway, back to my idea.

"You know the game 20 questions, right?" she asked, and once she had gotten affirmation that yes, he did, she continued. "Well I was thinking we could do something like that, except instead of asking questions like to try and figure something out, we ask them back and forth to figure each other out.

"I'll ask you a question, you answer it, and then you ask me something. It can be about anything, but we both have to answer, no matter what the question is. Fair?"

It was the only thing she could really think of that would help ease him into finally having a conversation about Zoro. Offering and demanding total and complete honesty was going to be hard for the both of them, especially since they were near strangers to one another, but it would definitely serve to bring them closer as well.

This way, she'd get to know more about Sanji and whether or not he really was attracted to Zoro in some fashion, and he'd be able to trust her without issue.

They just had to be honest with one another, which would likely be easier said than done.

"Is there a question limit?" he asked.

"Let's start with five for now; see how well it works out."

"Okay."

Scratching at her undercut, she mentally noted how long it was getting and hoped she would remember to ask Nojiko to shave it back down for her later.

"You go first," she said, grabbing her cup of coffee again and drinking from it readily.

There was a pause as Sanji thought of what to say next. While he was quiet, she thought up some questions of her own as she waited, wondering what it was he would ask her first.

"You're sure it can be about anything?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yep. Anything."

Her eyes were directed towards the TV, watching whatever child's animation was being broadcast when he finally asked his first question.

She was momentarily caught off guard when he said, "Who's Luffy?"

It was her turn to fall silent as she processed his question. Briefly stunned, her vision blurred out of focus before she shook herself out of the slight stupor.

"Um, wow," she said, taking in a deep breath as she set her coffee aside. "Going all out on question one, huh?"

"You said anything," he said guiltily. "If that was out of line, then I apologize-"

"No, no, it's fine, I just- just wasn't expecting that."

Leaning back into her chair, Nami ran a hand through her hair. Sanji didn't know it, but his question was difficult to answer. There was just so much when it came to Luffy that she rightly didn't know how to take what she knew about him and turn it into a satisfactory answer for him.

Honestly, she'd expected Sanji to ask something about Zoro, not about one of her old bandmates, which led her to wonder what exactly it was he wanted to know about him. Did he want to know who Luffy was in general, or who Luffy was to them specifically?

"Luffy was- is -" Sighing in frustration, Nami furrowed her brow and blankly stared ahead in an attempt to collect her thoughts. Where had Sanji even learned of Luffy's existence to begin with? Though, she had told Sanji to look up their band in the past, so it wasn't unlikely that he'd found out about him indirectly from her.

"He started the band," she finally said, speaking slowly when her eye wandered over to where she kept a flag that had been detailed with their band's jolly-roger logo. "Our band; it's his."

All three of them had gotten a flag emblazoned with their logo once the Mugiwara Menace had taken off and started to become popular. The flags were a reward and a memento for successfully recording their first album together; a reward the three of them prized highly in their own way.

Zoro hung his in his bedroom, Luffy used to have his tied to the antenna of his car, and Nami kept hers framed in the living room, just above their fire place beside a large portrait of her mother.

They were, the three of them, united by the jolly-roger's grin.

"A few years ago his brother died and he went away because of it," she continued, her gaze fixed upon her flag. "It was really bad- the rest of us were on tour, and we knew something was up with Ace, but we all kind of hoped whatever it was he was mixed up in would just- resolve itself, you know? Luffy didn't think that way, though; said he needed to leave about halfway through to check on him but his brother died almost as soon as he got to him. No one's seen or heard from him since."

It hurt to talk about. She didn't even really want to, but part of her hoped that Sanji would recognize how difficult the subject was for her and be able to unburden himself the same way when it was his turn to answer an invasive question.

"He promised he'd come back, though. So that's what Zoro and I are doing right now. Waiting for him to come back."

She had to wipe away some wetness that had begun to creep out of her eyes. They all knew they'd handled Ace's situation poorly. There was so much more they could've done for him if they'd just tried. Nami wasn't even sure why they hadn't tried harder for him, especially since it'd been super apparent that he wasn't doing alright.

And even though they hadn't heard from Luffy in years, Nami still retained the belief that he would come back when he was ready, regardless of his current Richey Edwards status. She knew that he didn't blame them for Ace's death, but likely blamed himself and needed to learn how to live with it as a result.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Sanji finally said after a quiet moment. "But thank you for sharing that with me."

There was more to Luffy than just that, but it was all she felt she could say without breaking down entirely. Nami sniffled and took a moment to collect herself. Walking back in through the front door, Nojiko noticed her upset appearance and quirked a brow, but Nami waved her off before she could ask about it.

"Of course," she said, speaking to Sanji as her sister passed by, giving Nami another odd look. "Ready to answer my first question?"

"No," Sanji replied, making them both laugh a little. "Of course I am."

With the mood lightened just a bit, Nami drank more of her coffee before shifting around in her seat.

"Okay. My question to you is this: what is it that you like about Zoro?"

Over the line, she heard Sanji splutter and cough out whatever it was he'd been drinking previously. She couldn't help but laugh as he struggled to clear his throat and felt her creeping sadness dissipate.

"I knew that was coming," he said, speaking hoarsely, making her laugh again.

"So you must've thought up an answer then, right?"

Genuinely curious, she hoped Sanji would take the question seriously.

"Uh. I have, but, honestly? Nothing."

"What? Are you being serious? We agreed we had to answer honestly!" Frowning, she couldn't help but be annoyed by his answer, especially after she'd opened up and said so much to him.

"I did! I'm sorry, my sweet, but that's my honest answer," he said. "I've thought about it, and I think… I actually hate him?"

"Wow," she said, bitterness seeping into her voice. "Well, there has to be something, otherwise you wouldn't be, y'know, in 'like' with him."

"I don't know why I am."

With a frustrated sigh, Nami sat up from her slouching position and crossed her legs over the cushion. Her headache that had slowly been going away started to return with how agitated she was becoming.

"Is it… his talent?" she asked exasperatedly, desperately grasping at straws, trying to find anything at all that had attracted Sanji to Zoro.

"I think he is talented, but no."

Nami groaned.

"Well… is it his attitude? His 'fuck off' demeanor?"

"…No, absolutely not."

"Do you think he's handsome?"

"Oh God, no-"

"Then what?!"

"I- I don't know!"

"Ugh, well, there goes the rest of my questions," she said bitterly.

Angry that she'd sped through them all trying to pinpoint where his attraction had come from, she slouched back into her seat and unmuted the TV. She kept the volume down low enough so that Sanji probably couldn't hear it and waited for whatever it was he had to say next.

"There was one thing," Sanji said around a sigh, speaking slowly and in a manner that sounded as though he were ashamed of himself.

With her interest piqued, Nami looked away from the television, but couldn't help but sound half-hearted when she said, "What thing?"

"It seems… really trivial, now that I think about it, but it's really the only thing I can think of.

"When I had that lesson with him the other day, he… touched my fingers. Maybe it's because I work so much with my hands, but when he did, I- I don't know, something happened. I think about it a lot," he admitted with some reluctance.

His attraction to Zoro wasn't as cut and dry as Nami had initially thought it'd been, which would likely make things more difficult down the road, but this made more sense. Just the other day Sanji had been trying to convince her that he'd never had feelings for another man like this before, so obviously Zoro must have done something extraordinary for Sanji to be attracted to him so strongly in such a short amount of time.

"Your hands?" she said, quirking her head in thought. "That's interesting."

"They're important to me," Sanji mumbled. "They're my livelihood, and he was… gentle."

Nami could practically feel him cringing to himself as he spoke to her about it, but this was the reciprocated honesty she'd been looking for when she started their little questions game.

"I know it's hard to believe, but sometimes Zoro's really considerate. He may seem like a blockhead a lot of the time- and he is!- but he's also fairly decent. He's not always the asshole he makes himself out to be, I mean, hell, there was a reason I dated him."

She'd meant for it to come out as a joke to try and lift Sanji's mood, but he didn't laugh. Instead, he asked, "Why did you date him?"

If Nami had thought his first question was tough to answer, his second one turned out to be ten times worse. Her shoulders slumped as a forlorn expression took over her face. These weren't the kinds of questions Nami had figured Sanji would be asking, and was definitely not prepared to answer.

"I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that," he said quickly when she lapsed into silence. "That one was out of line."

"Yeah, a little bit," she agreed, forcing herself to laugh a little to ease the sudden tension their conversation had accumulated. "But I would have."

"I know."

Their speech stalled as they each tried to deal with the awkwardness created by Sanji's question. He berated himself mentally for distressing Nami at all and decided he no longer felt up to the task of finishing the game they'd started.

"Nami, my darling, thank you for calling me. I feel much better about… everything after having listened to your voice for so long, and I am deeply, truly sorry for upsetting you at all." The sincerity in his voice was genuine as he apologized. Nami took note of it, and was appreciative of how genuine he was as a person. She needed more friends like that. "I think I'll ask you my remaining questions another time, though, to save you any further grief that I may accidentally cause."

"Trust me, you've done about the worst you could do already," she said with a smile, speaking in a tone that would hopefully let Sanji know that she wasn't really all that upset with him. "And that's fine, but I'm counting that question about Zoro and I as your second, which leaves you with three."

"Fair enough," he said, sounding far more relaxed than he had previously. "I'll talk to you later my sweet, gracious darling."

"Later, Sanji."

Upon ending the call, she dropped her phone onto the side table and groaned, rubbing at her eyes. The coffee she'd been drinking was growing cold as she picked up the mug and drank from it, and it was then that she realized Nojiko was standing nearby, watching her.

"How long have you been there?" Nami asked crossly. Nojiko's attitude from before still had a negative impact on her overall mood.

"Long enough to find out new guy has a crush on Zoro," Nojiko replied flippantly, entering into the room and taking a seat on the couch next to Nami's chair.

"You can't tell him," Nami said hastily, glaring daggers into her sister, who took the remote and turned the TV off.

"Calm down, I wasn't going to."

With the TV off, Nami understood that they were about to have a serious conversation. Already mentally taxed from having to deal with Sanji and his pent up problems, she groaned and sunk as deep as she could into the confines of her chair.

"There's a lot of new people in your life lately," Nojiko began, speaking calmly. She kept her eyes on Nami, who kept hers focused on the cooling cup of coffee in her hands. "You didn't tell me you were going to bring a girl home with you last night."

"What was I supposed to do?" Nami retorted, unable to keep her voice from sounding angry. "Tell her, 'hang on, I've got to call my sister and let her know you're sleeping over to make sure it's okay'?"

Nojiko remained calm and impassive through Nami's outburst, blinking at her slowly when she'd turned to yell at her.

"Relax, I'm not mad," Nojiko replied. "And no, I'm not saying you should have done that. I'm saying that you should've told me you were seeing someone at all. You're starting to cut me out again."

"It's not like I've been keeping her a secret," Nami argued, trying her best to keep her voice as level as Nojiko had managed to keep hers. "And I've really only known Sanji for a week!"

"And your girlfriend?"

"We're not-" Nami spluttered, taken aback by the direct language Nojiko had decided to label them with. "Well, not yet, but, no! We aren't there yet."

The look on Nojiko's face told her that her answer wasn't satisfactory. It also told her that she'd hurt her sister somehow by withholding the fact that she had been actively seeing someone.

It'd never been her intention to keep it from her, but there honestly hadn't been much of a chance for her to tell Nojiko she'd started dating again anyway. Their schedules were just so different now that Nami was working for Franky and Nojiko was busy tending to the farm, that there simply wasn't enough time for it. The only times they ever really got to hang out or do anything together anymore was when they went to concerts or Nami had the rare day off.

She could see where Nojiko was coming from, but at the same time it frustrated her because she knew she hadn't done it on purpose.

"Her name's Vivi," Nami said quietly in an attempt to placate Nojiko's want for information. "And I wasn't trying to hide her from you, it's just hard to find the time to tell you something like that without it seeming insincere, y'know? I didn't want to just do, like, a drive-by and say hey, I met someone without being able to really talk to you about it."

Nojiko's lips twitched downwards as she sighed and looked away, but she seemed to understand where Nami was coming from. There wasn't much either of them could do to solve their communication issues at that point, given their respective situations.

"You don't have to work at that store, you know," Nojiko eventually said.

"I know I don't," Nami said, setting her coffee aside. "But I want to. I like being around the music. I like being around Zoro."

Even though she told herself she no longer harbored romantic feelings for him, she still felt a strong need to stay involved with his life. Without Luffy there to give them a reason to be together, she was afraid that there wouldn't anymore reasons for them to hang out and keep being friends.

She'd explained this fear to Nojiko several times in the past, and despite the many assurances Nojiko gave her that Zoro wouldn't just drop off the face of her earth like that, the fear remained in the back of her head like seeing and knowing that you've squished a spider, but unable to find it's corpse afterwards.

"Speaking of Zoro," Nojiko said slowly, attempting to keep the conversation from being a repeat of similar conversations they'd had in the past. "How does new guy crushing on your man make you feel?"

"I hate that you call him that. He's not my man," Nami said sharply.

"Regardless, my question still stands."

"I don't care. Zoro's allowed to see other people; I am, after all."

"Then you should invite new guy to his hockey game tonight." The look of surprise Nami had on her face made Nojiko laugh. "What, did you forget he was playing?"

"No, I'm just surprised that you actually had a good idea for once," Nami teased, grabbing her cellphone to type up a quick text message invite to send to Sanji.

A bit awkwardly, they settled back into how they usually interacted with one another, much to their mutual relief. Sanji replied to the invitation with hesitant confirmation, to which Nami offered to pick him up and drive them all to Zoro's game together.

She assured him that, even though he had next to no knowledge about the sport, he'd have a fun time just hanging out with her and watching him play. With their evening planned and her relationship with Nojiko on the mend, Nami retreated back into her room where Vivi was still sleeping and got into bed beside her.