#I’ve been obsessed with Ganondorf for over a year now

[sir-avodoodles]

I think it’s been over a year since I started trying to learn extensive lore about LoZ, thus leading to the fact that this guy darn near single handedly ties the whole series together.

[sorrowsofsilence]

the bet • bad omens

pairing: all bad omens members x fem!reader

words: 8.4K • read part two here

warnings: 18+, fwb and lust, smut with each member (you are the bet lol)(penetration pls wrap it b4 u tap it, male!receiving, photos taken, fem!receiving, swearing, nicknames: pretty girl, princess, good girl, baby girl), jealousy, mentions of alcohol/smoking/edibles)

summary: each of them want you- so they decide to make a bet.

note: this is purely self indulgent and filthy lmao, i hope you enjoy.

PS. THIS IS A FANFIC ABOUT REAL PEOPLE IN FICTIONAL SCENARIOS. I AM NOT IMPLYING THIS IS HOW THESE PEOPLE ARE IRL OR THAT THIS SITUATION WOULD HAPPEN. IT IS FOR FANFIC PURPOSES ONLY!

Folio finished licking the wrapper, rolling the buds to form a joint and twisting the end, smiling down at his handy work. Noah sat across from him on the couch, while Jolly opened a beer on the left, placing it on the coffee table.

Ruffilo sat next to Noah, the two sharing a bag of chips and rambling about their prior super smash bros session.

“I always win on little Mac,” Noah mumbled, still salty that Nicholas kicked his ass as Ganondorf.

“Do you?” Ruffilo laughed, shovelling a few chips in his mouth, “I think it’s time to leave little Mac behind.”

Noah sent him a glare in response, before eyeing Folio.

Nick lit the joint, taking a slow drag before blowing the smoke out his nose and leaning across the table to hand it to Noah.

It’s been a while since they got to enjoy each other’s company like this. With five consecutive days off until their next show, and only one day of travel between- this was the longest time to relax that they’ve had this whole tour.

Noah sucked the smoke into his lungs, before passing it to Nicholas, “Man, I’m so glad we finally have some time to catch up on sleep.”

All of them nodded their heads in agreement, sinking into their seats.

Jolly now held the joint between his fingers, rolling it between them, “I don’t think I’ve caught up… ever.”

Nick agreed, scrolling on his phone and hooking up to the room’s speaker, “I’d like to get out and enjoy the scenery too. Go for a walk like a normal human or some shit.”

Noah hummed in agreement, sitting up to take a sip of his water. The room became hazy in no time, the smell of weed pungent and stagnant within the small room; and the conversation jumped from topic to topic.

Eventually, each of them became quiet, only the music ringing between the walls anticipating Nicholas’ question.

“Where’s Y/N? Did she go to bed?”

Noah’s eyes flicked over to Folio, analyzing his expression before darting to Jolly, who stared at the can on the table.

Ruffilo’s gaze danced between the boys as they sat quietly until Jolly spoke.

“Nah. She goes to bed late. Probably busy doing something with Matt.”

His name echoed between each of the members, ringing in their ears with resentment. They loved Matt, but the amount of time he got to spend with the one girl that drove them all mad, made them question his motives.

Folio took a quick puff, passing it over the table to Nicholas, “You think they’ve hooked up?”

Jolly took a long sip of his beer, face scrunching subtly.

Noah shrugged, eyes rolling in annoyance at the thought.

“What,” Nick laughed, gaze narrowing in hinted understanding with his friend, “jealous?”

Noah coughed from the weed, and accusation, waving his hand in front of his face to help dissipate the everbuilding smoke; but the word hung heavy in the enclosed space.

Noah, Folio, and Ruffilo all tried to hide their envious glances towards the eldest member, who chugged the remainder of his drink before twisting the empty can in his fingers.

Anything to distract himself from the tension.

To say you affected the boys was an understatement. They were completely enamoured by you, obsessed with every smile, every laugh, every lingering touch.

You had joined their crew a year ago, partnering with Matt on sound mixing during their live sets. You were a phenomenal addition to their ever-growing team and a much-needed asset. However, your work ethic and talent weren’t the only things that had them engrossed.

Every time you sat next to one of them, or even looked in their direction- each was ready to fold, not afraid to fall onto their knees and succumb to your every desire. If only you asked them to.

And the one lucky bastard who got a sweet taste of your alluring, lascivious touch one night three months ago? The one who remained silent at Folio’s burdensome allegation?

Jolly kept his eyes on the can, playing with the metal tab as he fought the smile that twitched on his lips.

“Fucking lucky asshole,” Folio whined, throwing a pillow in annoyance at the Swede.

Jolly snickered, throwing it back at the drummer who barely dodged it with brows furrowed bitterly.

“It was one time,” Jolly rolled his head back, “and it’s not like we had sex.”

Noah grabbed the joint from Ruffilo, closing his eyes as he inhaled, “Yeah,” he exhaled, “but you got, and I quote, ‘the best fucking head I’ve ever had, hands down,’ end quote.”

Jolly didn’t even hide the wide smile that grew on his lips, earning another pillow being thrown at him, this time from Noah.

God, what the singer would give to have your lips wrapped around him. What the Nicks would do to have a peek at the secrets beneath your hoodie.

“I’d kill to have just one more night with her,” Jolly said.

“At least you had one,” Noah glared. He was jealous. They all were.

It was silent momentarily, before Folio sighed, speaking for the room, “Fuck, what I’d do to get a piece of that ass.”

Noah and Jolly nodded along.

“Same,” Noah ran a hand along his face, “That pretty little mouth of hers? Shit.”

Although Ruffilo agreed with everything they said, he needed to bud in, “Don’t like, objectify her.”

Noah immediately scoffed, turning his head to face his best friend, “Don’t act like you don’t think about what it would feel like getting your dick sucked by her.”

Nicholas shrugged, reaching into the chip bag, “I mean yeah, Y/N’s hot-” He wanted to continue to discuss her wonderful personality- but Noah interjected.

“See? Point proved,” He said, passing the blunt to Jolly.

“She’s got all of us dick whipped bro,” Nick shook his head, taking a swig of his beer, “and she’s simply just existing.”

Jolly laughed, sitting up in his chair, “I bet she’d suck my dick again. At least once more.”

Nicholas raised a brow, hiding his jealousy with a handful of chips.

“Yea?” Noah leaned onto his knees, elbows perched on either one, “I bet she’d let me rail her.”

The slanted smile that grew upon Jolly’s face said it all as Nick took the last puff of the blunt, before tossing it into the ashtray, “Hey- I bet I could do both.”

The three of them shared a glance, then turned to Ruffilo.

“I bet all that and more,” He said, head resting on his palm.

“How does one win then?” Noah began, raising a brow.

Jolly crossed his arms over his chest in contemplation, “first to do anything sexual wins.”

Noah shook his head, “No because you automatically have a one-up. First to get two consecutive nights with her wins.”

“Winner gets what exactly?” Folio asked, staring between the boys.

Nicholas sat back on the couch, shrugging his shoulders at his suggestion, “Dibs?”

A stare-down commenced before Jolly leaned forward to place his hand above the coffee table. Nick joined, his hand on Jolly’s before Noah and Nicholas followed, stacking their hands and signing away their pride.

“Ok, Bet.” Folio’s smirk lit up his face.

“Bet.”

=

You were completely oblivious to the deal behind the door as you knocked on the wood with your foot, arms full of various snacks. Matt stood next to you, carrying boxes of drinks as you waited for the door to open. Their talking quieted as the knob turned, the drummer nervously coughing. The smell of weed slapped you in the face as the dank haze that flowed out filled your lungs.

Folio’s eyes remained fixated as he held the door, a faint blush tinting his cheeks as you nodded gratefully at him, walking past and into the room. The immediate silence from the members as you headed to the counter made your chest tighten, nerves running to the ends of your fingertips.

You weren’t oblivious to the stares as each of the boys watched you place the items on the faux marble, their gazes lingering longer than usual. There was an odd energy in the room you couldn’t quite put your finger on, but when you turned back around each of them quickly distracted themselves with their drinks or snacks.

Flashing them a small smile you hid your overthinking thoughts. Maybe they didn’t want you here.

With a nervous breath, you swallowed that thought, reaching for the can Matt held out to you.

“Sorry that we took so long. We did a quick rehearsal for Friday, then ran to the store.”

Noah glanced at you quickly before averting his eyes, Nicholas doing the same. Folio sat back down on the couch, Matt plopping next to him with a grunt.

The room felt heavy as they continued to bounce silent words between each other, the challenge of the bet, unknown to you, sinking in their minds.

Matt took a sip of his drink, scanning each of his friends and their demeanour, “The fuck is wrong with y’all?” he said, scoffing with a raised brow, “Why are you acting like a bunch of fucking weirdos.”

Nicholas coughed, taking a swig of his drink before handing the bag of chips to Noah, who immediately shovelled a handful into his mouth as if avoiding the question.

“We were just having a deep conversation before, is all,” Jolly clicked his tongue, staring at you longingly before turning his attention to Matt, “How did the rehearsal go?”

Standing there awkwardly for a moment you swung your legs, a way to distract yourself, before looking at the taken seats. Tuning out Matt’s rambling you didn’t know where to sit, until you noticed the arm of the chair Jolly sat on.

You were decently close to Jolly- considering his cock was shoved down your throat during that one drunk escapade- but all things considered, you knew he wouldn’t mind if you sat next to him there.

As soon as you walked across the room you felt each of their gazes burning into you, watching every move you made. Jolly's brows raised in surprise as you approached him, and you hummed nervously before taking a seat on the hard arm of the chair.

Giving them all a curt smile you took another sip, staring at the carpeted ground.

“Surely that can’t be comfortable love.”

Jolly’s accent was thick, snapping you away from your thoughts.

“Here,” he tugged your wrist, motioning for you to sit on his lap, “Trust me I don’t mind.”

“Oh-” was all you could say, before allowing his hands to grab your hips, pulling you down onto him.

You chewed on the inside of your cheek, trying not to wiggle too much above the guitarist, but needing to get comfortable. His fingers still gripped your hips, moving with your shifting.

Nick’s eye-roll and Noah’s snarl went unnoticed, but you caught a glimpse of Nicholas’ clenched fist, his knuckles tightening momentarily.

“Are you sure?” You mumbled, shaking your head, “I’m okay on the arm, or even the floor-”

Jolly laughed, the melodic sound leaving the hairs on your arm to stand. His enigmatic personality always left you nervous, “I am more than sure.”

Matt picked up the conversation again, the boys finally joining at a more normal pace; but your mind felt foggy as one of Jolly’s hands crept from your waist, down to the top of your thigh.

He stilled his movements for a few minutes, your chest tightening.

“Maybe we can go to an aquarium, or-” The thought was cut short, breath caught in your throat once you felt Jolly’s inked fingers rubbing up and down your skin, slowly reaching to squeeze the inside of your thigh.

With your gaze kept forward you took another sip, “-a movie?”

Matt’s eyes wandered to Jolly’s hand, squinting in confusion momentarily before standing up to grab one of the snacks you picked from the counter.

“I’m down for whatever,” the blonde said, tossing you a bag of candy.

Smiling at him gratefully, you opened the bag and took a piece, using it to distract you.

“I like the sound of a movie,” Noah said, staring at Folio as he spoke. He tried to hide the ever-growing jealousy in his chest, “Haven’t been to one with people in forever.”

“Why is it you like going alone again?” Folio asked, eyes locked on Noah, shielding his vision from Jolly.

Noah laughed, “No handjobs, just me and my vitamin water.”

You tried listening to their conversations but felt the swede shift beneath you, slowly guiding your hips in a circular motion.

Jolly’s growing arousal pushed against you from beneath, leaving your stomach swirling at his advancement. You crossed your legs in an attempt to squeeze your desire, but he knew. He knew the effect he had.

The way his fingers kept kneading at your thighs left your heart pounding.

As the boys began dragging on about Elden ring, Jolly adjusted to whisper in your ear, “You forgot something in your room, right?”

Heat rose to your cheeks, goosebumps adorning your skin at your growing lust. All you could do was nod before standing up, taking another quick sip and tossing the can into the bin.

The conversation stopped as you walked toward the door, Jolly standing up from the chair.

“Where are you going?” Nicholas asked you, biting his lip to distract himself from the envy that grew in his chest. They all knew.

“I just- forgot something in my room.”

Once you left all eyes turned to Jolly, the smug smile on his face radiant in satisfaction.

Folio stood up, pointing an accusative finger, “You just- I- that’s cheating.”

Jolly grabbed the hair tie off his wrist, pulling his dark strands into a quick bun as he walked toward the door.

Turning to face his competitors, his best friends, he smiled, “Don’t hate the player. Hate the game.”

=

Jolly’s mouth moved with yours as he held you on top of the desk in your room. You didn’t think you’d be in this position with him again, but you didn’t mind.

“Do you think about that night often?” He asked, hands holding your hips in place.

You’d be lying if you said you didn’t think about your previous night with him, but you always tried to push the thoughts away. You didn’t think anything would happen again, and you knew deep down you couldn’t continue anything with him.

You liked him, sure, but weren’t committed to the idea of a relationship.

One more night wouldn’t hurt, right?

“Sometimes,” You whispered, hands clasped around the back of his neck, “do you?”

Pulling you off the desk he held you close to him, lips devouring yours for a second longer, “More than I probably should.”

His admission made your knees weak. You didn’t care if they were only words of infatuation, you loved the effect you had on him.

Taking your hand you tugged on his belt, letting your hand rub along his covered erection. Jolly’s immediate whimper made you smile against his lips.

Allowing yourself to kneel before him you pulled the leather apart, undoing the zipper.

He was sensitive to every touch, eyes never leaving you, absorbing every movement you made. Knowing this you couldn’t help but tease him, leaning in to graze your teeth over himself in his underwear.

Looking up at the swede through your lashes he watched, lips parted in need as you pressed your tongue against the tip, still using the cotton as a barrier.

Jolly’s fingers ran through the side of your hair, tangling in the strands as you took a finger, gliding it between the hem of his boxers. He shook his head, giving you an exasperated smile. Finally tugging down the fabric you ran your tongue along the length, swiping along the head before trailing back down.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” He breathed, the teasing smile causing him to lick his lips. You were titillating to him.

“Why not give you something more to think about?” You shrugged, taking your hand to hold him, before wrapping your mouth around him. The immediate relief on Jolly’s face made you chuckle along his cock, the taste of his pre-cum salty against your tongue.

Swirling around the tip you swallowed him, taking everything he offered as best you could before pulling away, allowing the string of saliva to follow.

You twisted your hand around, using your saliva to assist your movements before taking him into your mouth again, sucking and pressing your tongue along the base.

“Fuck,” he groaned, his other hand replacing yours on his cock, holding it up to your mouth.

You clasped your hands behind your back, only using your mouth as you bobbed along, being sure to keep your eyes on him.

He watched you with furrowed brows, the crease in his forehead evidence of his growing orgasm. His hips slowly rutted into your mouth, matching your movements in a synchronized wave.

“Shit princess, you’re so fucking hot.”

His encouraging words made your face warm, cock buried in your throat as you gagged along him.

“let me take a picture of you. A memoir if I may?”

You pulled off of him, using your hand momentarily as you thought, “Only if you keep it to yourself.”

Jolly smiled, reaching for his phone on the desk, holding it above you, “Of course.”

Using your hand you stroked him as you sucked, until Jolly spoke.

“Just your mouth,” He whispered, “That’s it.”

You held your hands behind your back once again, being sure to look up into the camera.

Jolly continued with praises until you felt him stiffen, eyes fighting for closure.

A deep groan crawled from him as he held you along his cock, release hitting the back of your throat. Closing your eyes you swallowed all of him, sticking out your tongue

“That’s a good girl,” He ran his fingers along your scalp.

Standing up you helped him with his pants, pulling them back over his waist and putting his belt back together. Jolly leaned into your body, holding your jaw as he kissed you once again.

“Let me take care of you,” He said between kisses, and you pulled away smiling.

Looking at the clock on the nightstand it was well past 2 am, and you needed some sleep before travelling tomorrow.

“I love sucking you off, so don’t worry about it,” You said slowly, leaning in to give him a quick kiss, “but I need sleep. Rain check?”

Jolly’s eyes flashed with something you missed, fighting back a cocky grin, “of course. you know where to find me.”

Once the guitarist made it back to his hotel room, the boys were still sitting in their spots, glaring daggers towards him.

“One down. One more to go,” Jolly said, licking his bottom lip in accomplishment as he thrust into the air, showing off.

“Dick,” Noah mumbled, to which Matt stared at his friends, confused once again.

“I’m missing something,” The blonde shook his head.

=

After hours of travelling, you were exhausted, the crew pulling up to the next hotel. Things were going smoothly until checking in at reception.

“What do you mean we’re short a room?” Matt said to the lady, clearly confused, “We’ve had this booked for weeks.”

“I’m sorry but you only had three rooms in the original booking.” The woman was sympathetic, hands folded in front of her, “There aren’t any more available but we can put a cot in one of the rooms.”

The one thing you respected about the boys was how they always gave you a room to yourself; but it would be ok to share for a night, wouldn’t it?

The boys looked at each other, before shrugging.

“I guess that’s fine,” Matt said.

Looking at them you scratched your arm nervously, “I can share my room, I don’t mind.”

“With who?” Folio asked quickly, each of them turning to watch you intensely.

You almost laughed at how weird they were being, before shaking your head, “Uh I don’t care.”

Quickly glancing at Jolly, you knew it would be a bad idea if you two were together.

So you looked at the brunette next to him, his thick brows raising in surprise once he met your eyes.

Nicholas stared at you, blinking rapidly before calming his composure. He wanted to share a room with you so bad. But he knew the others would too. Would you pick him?

When his name fell off your lips he almost yelled, ready to pump a fist into his chest then and there.

“Uh, Ruffilo? Care to share?”

The sweet boy was always one of your favourites, even if you tried to avoid bias between them. He’d be a harmless partner, right?

The way his face flushed a deep maroon made you smile nervously, afraid you put him on the spot.

“Y-yeah, that’s fine with me.” He peered at Noah, who stared at the ground, “That ok with you Noah?”

“Sure man,” Noah’s curt grin made your stomach swirl as his gaze flicked at you, unspoken words lingering in his gaze.

Grabbing a keycard you nodded at Nicholas, who trailed behind you.

You didn’t see how he glanced back at his friends, holding his fingers up in an ‘L’ on his forehead.

Heading various scoffs behind you, you turned to raise a brow, “What is with you guys lately?”

They all shook their heads as everyone entered the elevator, leaving you to eye Matt who just shrugged, looking as confused as you.

“Tired,” Noah said, his eyes lingering on your figure for a moment too long.

“Hungry,” Folio said, licking his lips as he peeled his eyes away.

Jolly didn’t even glance at you, his face neutral- an attempt to hide his disappointment you chose Ruffilo over him.

He was this close to winning the bet.

Once you got to the room you held the card against the sensor, waiting for the door to click. Opening it, you and Nicholas stood in the doorway, your chest tightening as you entered.

“I don’t mind joining them on a cot-” Ruffilo began, but you gave him a shrug.

There was only one bed, meaning the two of you would be sharing.

“It’s alright with me if it’s alright with you.”

Nicholas only smiled, his nervous wading back as he placed his suitcase into the room.

“I guess we should get ready to go to dinner?”

=

Getting back to the room was a blessing and a curse. You were tired, but also nervous as Nicholas trailed behind you.

As you two got ready for bed you tried to avert your eyes while Ruffilo unbuttoned his shirt in the corner, the brunette glancing at you every so often.

Coughing shyly, you averted your eyes as you grabbed your change of clothes, sliding into the washroom to change.

It felt almost scandalous to be wearing such small shorts and a thin tank top, but you pushed that away and reminded yourself that it was just one night. It would be fine.

Ruffilo sucked in a breath when you walked out, and you tried to hide your staring as he stood there shirtless and in his shorts. Your eyes darted back to his chest, following the lines of his tattoos.

“I hope it’s ok I don’t wear a shirt, I run warm,” He said restlessly as he sat on the edge of the bed. His leg bounced up and down and you suddenly felt bad you asked him to stay here. Maybe he was more uncomfortable with this than you had thought.

“Nicky you don’t have to share with me-”

“No!” He stood up, hands out in reassurance. His reaction made you chuckle as his face warmed again, shaking his head, “I mean, no it’s okay. I- I want to stay here with you.”

“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” You said, arms folded across your chest.

“You don’t- I-” He stood there, tucking his hair behind his ear, “I just- You make me nervous, but that’s not a you problem.”

You chuckled again, turning off the main room light, and clicking on the nightstand lamp, “I make you nervous?”

Crawling into your side of the bed, Nicholas followed, tucking himself beneath the covers on the edge of his side, afraid to be any closer to you.

“Why do I make you nervous?” You asked, pulling down the hotel room pillows, and lying on your side to face him.

The bass player followed your movements, facing you as he got comfortable. He closed his eyes, contemplating his words before speaking his confession.

“You’re mesmerizing, Y/N. Everything about you makes my heart pound.” He said softly, his words sinking deep within your skin.

All you could do was stare at him, his grey eyes flickering between your own, waiting for any response.

“Really?” Was all you could say, your stomach swirling with butterflies as you bit back a smile.

Nicholas nodded, hands beneath his head as he watched you with a shy grin.

Your heart began to race as you hid your face in the pillow.

The evening was spent sharing random stories and laughing at each other’s jokes. You couldn’t stop smiling as you and Nicholas turned off your lamps, rolling to face away from each other and letting sleep take over.

However, your mind raced with a chest warm with admiration, before finally falling into a deep slumber.

Waking up you felt a set of strong arms wrapped around your waist, body pressed against your back.

Your limbs were entangled with Nicholas’ body fitting against yours; however, something else caught your attention.

Nicholas’ body was stiff as you accidentally moved your hips into him, trying to pull away slowly- but his grip on your torso tightened, holding you against him.

His cock pressed into you, causing your heart to pound.

God, this would be so wrong, wouldn’t it?

Ruffilo’s hands gripped your hips as he rolled into you slowly, breath brushing across your neck.

Closing your eyes you smiled, contemplating whether to do this or not; but what’s the harm in a quick morning fuck?

You pushed back against him, rutting back and forth along him teasingly. The groan that left Nicholas’ chest caused your body to warm, tingling from the excitement as he squeezed the skin beneath your tank top.

“I want you so bad Y/N,” He whispered against your ear, lips grazing down the lobe, toward your neck.

“Then take me,” you breathed, taking your hand and holding his thigh, pulling him closer toward you.

Ruffilo’s lips attached to your neck, teeth biting along the delicate skin. You allowed him to suck, marking you.

Nicholas hooked a finger in your shorts, pulling them down your legs swiftly as he still spooned you. Taking his inked fingers he dipped them between your thighs from behind, running them thoroughly along your folds.

His touch made you squirm, buzzing from the thrill of him.

“You’re so fucking wet,” he said quietly, a mix of awe and lust as he used your arousal to lubricate his erection.

“I woke up with your cock pressed against me, what do you expect?” You laughed as he lined up to your entrance, pushing just the tip inside.

You cursed as the brunette held your hips once again, nails digging into the skin as he sunk further into you, right to the hilt.

Allowing your body to adjust you moaned at the feeling of Nicholas taking over your body. His thrusts were quick as he held your hips, fucking you from behind as you two lay on the bed.

“Oh my god,” he groaned, his infatuation with your pussy leaving you a smiling mess as he continuously pounded into you, hands worshiping your skin, “you feel so fucking good.”

The lewd sounds that left the both of you filled the room, and once Nicholas reached between your thighs, fingers pressing into your core with a circular motion, you almost screamed at his touch.

You sighed, fingers gripping the white sheets in desire as he thrust deeper.

“I’m not going to last long,” He breathed, leaning in to bite your shoulder as he held you close. His admission pushed you over the edge, his fingers pressing into you, cock buried deep.

With the scream of his name, you clenched around his body. Nicholas pulled out, stoking himself quickly as his release coated your ass, the warmth making you jolt.

The two of you lay there, chests heaving. Nicholas watched you in awe as you turned, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, and heading into the bathroom to shower.

Your mind spun as your body came down from the orgasm, as Nicholas sat up in bed, high-fiving himself.

One he was just happy to even get a taste of your body, but two, he was officially on par with Jolly.

=

“Point for this guy.” As he approached the boys at breakfast, Ruffilo pointed his thumbs toward himself proudly.

You were busy in the hotel room packing a backpack for the aquarium, and Nicholas knew he had to gloat before you overhead.

“No fucking way,” Folio groaned, while Noah ran a hand down his face.

Nick and Noah felt defeated, both still needing at least one encounter to be even close to winning this bet.

Jolly folded his arms over his chest, sinking into the wooden chair at the breakfast table, “You’re just lucky she picked you to share the room. I would’ve already been calling dibs by now if it wasn’t for that.”

“Sure,” Ruffilo rolled his eyes, “but she picked me!” With a radiant smile, he dug into his breakfast, the eggs tasting even better than normal.

You and Matt walked into the room, stopping at the table. Nicholas met your eyes momentarily, both of you flushing as you recalled this morning’s events.

“To the aquarium?” Matt asked, snapping you out of the trance, and Ruffilo shovelled down the rest of his food.

Folio ran a hand through his hair. It was now or never, and he didn’t want to lose.

Standing up he adjusted his shirt before approaching you, wrapping a hand around your wrist and leading the two of you out of the restaurant.

“Where are we-” you began as the drummer tugged you behind him, pressing a finger up to his lips to shush you.

His hand was warm as it held you taught against his side, pulling you out one of the back doors.

“Nick, where are we going?” You asked but moulded into his touch, allowing him to pull you freely.

He didn’t say anything as you two made it outside before pulling out a small bag. Two square gummies sat inside the plastic as Folio tauntingly held it up.

“Let’s get high,” He said, letting go of your arm and opening the bag, holding the gummy out to you.

“What?” You laughed, raising a brow.

“Trust me. It’s so fucking fun at aquariums.”

Chewing on your cheek you smiled, “Alright Folio. Bet.”

His eyes clung to yours for a second too long at the word that left your lips.

The two of you took the edibles and you savoured the taste of the berry flavour.

“And now what?” You asked.

Folio shoved the bag back into his pocket, the devilish smirk on his lips eating you alive, “Now we wait.”

=

The two of you were non-stop giggling in the car towards the end of the drive, as Nick reached for your hand, pulling you out of the vehicle.

It felt like a little secret between the two of you, yet everyone in the car glared towards the youngest member.

It wasn't very busy at the aquarium, with only a few people strolling around the different enclosures. You and Folio were glued to each other’s sides, laughing at every single thing until it started driving the rest of the boys crazy.

“What is wrong with you?” Matt asked, pulling you aside. His annoyance mixed with concern made you smile, admiring his care for you.

You laughed, unable to take him seriously as you placed a hand on his shoulder, “Me and Folio took an edible,” the snort that came from your lips made you giggle even harder, Nick covering his mouth in the background, “Sorry Matty, I can’t stop laughing.”

“Jesus,” Matt laughed, shaking his head in amusement, “Why am I not surprised?”

The blonde just smiled down at you warmly, and you pulled away from his interrogation as Folio dragged you toward a tank of angel fish.

“Oh my god, look,” you said excitedly, holding Nick against you as you pressed your face against the tank.

“It’s more fun watching them swim around this way, isn’t it?” Folio chuckled, and you nodded in agreement.

The two of you were attached at the hip, running ahead of everybody and taking in everything you could see.

You were too absorbed with Nick and the Fish to notice the annoyed grumbling that came from Nicholas, Noah, and Jolly

Once you got to the otters, there was a chance to walk outside.

You and Nick followed the wooden pathway to the outside enclosure, taking a seat on a bench.

The peak of the high felt like it was wearing off, and you felt yourself getting a little sleepy.

Resting your head on Folio’s shoulder you closed your eyes, still smiling as the sun beamed against your skin.

“This has been so fun, Nick,” you whispered.

Folio reached for your hand, holding it between his as he placed his head on top of yours, “it really has been.”

Pulling away you sat up, staring at the otters jumping and swimming in the water, until you felt a set of fingers gently reach under your chin.

Following Nick’s direction, he turned you to face him, leaning in slowly.

His heart was pounding so fast that he almost felt scared. What if he didn’t want this to be part of some bet? What if he wanted this to be real?

The closer he got to your lips, the more nervous he felt. This was real for him.

You didn't pull away from him, allowing the drummer to press his mouth against yours. The kiss was delicate and soft, leaving your limbs tingling- a mixture of your inebriation and excitement.

It felt wrong to be kissing him- especially after everything that happened with Jolly and Nicholas- but you couldn’t stop.

His lips were so soft, his kiss growing hungrier as he became filled with need. He reached his hand up to cup your cheek, and you pulled away from him, face warm as your fingers touched your lips.

“Not in public,” you said, giggling as he almost pouted.

“There’s no one out here at least,” Folio whispered, leaning in teasingly, nose touching yours.

Biting your bottom lip you laughed, pressing your forehead against his as you closed your eyes, inhaling the fresh air.

“Ok, then where?” you met his ochre eyes, the deep brown almost enchanting as he watched you longingly.

Folio immediately stood up, eagerly holding onto your hand.

Walking together he pulled you inside, only for you to be stopped by Noah and Matt.

“Whatcha doing?” Noah asked, eyes darting between the two of you. You stared at him, swallowing nervously. You knew that he knew, and it made your ears turn hot.

“Snack,” Folio said, giving them a thumbs up.

“Oh, can we join?” Matt asked, and Noah nodded quickly.

“Yeah, that sounds like a great idea,” Noah said, watching you now.

“Uh,” you began, but Nick tugged on your wrist, pulling you away from them.

“Nope! Bye!” Folio said, sticking out his tongue at Noah, dragging you with him.

You began giggling once again, the high coming in waves. Nick looked around the place until he saw a single bathroom.

Dragging you inside he locked the door behind the two of you, turning to pin you against the frame.

Your laughter stopped as he loomed over you, your heart matching his pace as he kissed you again, tongue pressing against your bottom lip.

With a hand on your chin and a hand on your hip, he held you there, his hips holding you to the door.

You moaned into his mouth, allowing your fingers to trail up into his hair, running them through the gelled strands.

“You have no idea what you to do me, do you?” Nick breathed between kisses, the hand on your hip reaching further down to grip your ass, “To all of us?”

Swallowing his words as he spoke, your chest tightened. Three boys in the last two days? Where was all this coming from?

You weren’t oblivious to their stares or their advances- but it was odd that all of a sudden it felt like a challenge for them to take you on.

And really? You didn’t mind at all.

Folio’s fingers gripped your chin harder, holding you to his mouth as his tongue pressed against yours, before pulling back.

“I won’t let you forget me.” He said, a suggesting smile radiating above you as you looked up at him.

Your body almost vibrated at his words, anticipation ringing in your ears as he led you to the counter, lifting you to sit on the edge.

All you could do was watch as your limbs tingled, and Nick pulled your jeans down your thighs, leaving you exposed in your underwear.

Folio kissed you briefly again before trailing kisses down your neck, tugging your t-shirt down to kiss your shoulder. You lifted the shirt for him, allowing his tongue to dip between the valley in your chest and down your stomach until he was kneeling before you.

Your breathing already felt erratic as you watched him smile up at you, his eyes lidded in lust as his fingers tugged your panties to the side, sinking between your folds.

Nick ran his fingers along your arousal for a moment, before sticking them into his mouth, tasting you.

“Fuck baby girl,” he moaned, positioning his hand at your entrance, “you taste so good.”

He pushed into you, curling and twisting until he found the spot that made your mouth open from pleasure. Bet and all, he wanted to make you feel good- to remember this moment despite who wins.

His attentiveness made your stomach swirl as he kissed the inside of your thigh, trailing towards your desire. Nick pressed his tongue against your clit, flicking momentarily to match the pace of his fingers, before latching his mouth around you.

You covered your mouth with your hand, afraid of the ungodly sounds that fought from your chest.

As your head fell back into the mirror you couldn’t help but rut your hips into his mouth, seconds away from an orgasm as the tension in your abdomen built.

“Ohmygodnick,” you mumbled behind your hand, brows furrowed as your eyes squeezed shut and he ate you out feverishly.

You hadn’t noticed how Nick’s other hand held his erection free from his pants, jerking himself as he devoured your body, hungry for your release and his.

You cried his name as his tongue pressed against you firmly, body shaking against his mouth as you reached your orgasm, your hand pulling his hair.

Nick was seconds behind, the sound of your muffled moans pushing him to his climax as he came all over the floor and his hand.

Pulling his mouth from your body he smiled up at you, lips wet from your arousal. He stood up, and you noticed his mess, smiling shyly at him.

“That’s so hot,” you whispered, causing him to laugh, the two of you now in a fit of giggles.

Folio helped clean you up, then himself, before holding you in a hug.

Melting into his chest you wrapped your arms around him.

“Whatever happens, just know how much I care about you alright?” He said, his words lingering.

=

Two days later the boys were sitting on the bus, almost bored. As much as they loved the days off, the anticipation of the next show always ate away at their nerves.

Jolly and Nicholas were watching YouTube videos, as Folio sat upside down, chucking a rubber ball at the wall.

Noah’s ears rang with each throw, the thunk on the wall driving him crazy.

“Can you cut it out?” Noah mumbled, glaring at Folio.

Nick stopped, raising an accusative brow, “What’s got your panties in a twist?”

Folio knew, but didn’t want to say anything- but Jolly spoke for him.

“He’s just pissed he hasn’t gotten a chance with Y/N yet. Admit it, Noah, you’re gonna lose.”

Noah held up his middle finger, causing Jolly to chuckle.

“Better make a move sooner than later. Even I think Folio’s got a better chance at winning, as annoying as it is.”

Those words made Noah’s skin crawl as Folio beamed beside him, throwing the ball against the wall once again.

Noah had noticed how you’ve been staring at Folio ever since the aquarium, and shit, everyone but him.

The singer stood up, frustration evident on his face and as the ball bounced back toward Nick’s hand, Noah reached over, pushing it across the bus.

“Hey!” Nick snapped, but no one else said anything as Noah left, slamming the bus door.

You sat with Matt outside, sharing memes as you heard the door, an angry Noah storming out.

Sharing a look with Matt you stood up, watching as the Brunette folded his arms in frustration as he paced.

“Noah?” You approached him warily, worry evident in your tone.

His eyes softened when they met yours, but he still held his own body.

He was frustrated, and for what? They all bet on this, and all agreed.

However, the jealousy was starting to get to him, and he didn’t know how much more he could take.

Standing in front of him you felt sad, he looked conflicted, and you didn’t know how to help.

“I’m fine,” Noah said sharply, inhaling quickly.

“You’re clearly not fine,” you said, reaching out to place a gentle hand on his arm. He melted into your touch, face flushing at your care.

“I just need a distraction,” he said, mostly to himself. It was true.

He wanted a distraction from you, but deep down he also wanted you to be the distraction.

You looked at the time on your phone as it was still early in the afternoon, “Want to go see a movie?”

=

There wasn’t much to offer in the theatre, considering it was a random weekday. You decided to let Noah choose the movie, considering you were here for him.

The brunette purposefully picked some bullshit boring movie that nobody would book a ticket to since it was one of the last days it would be showing.

Walking into the theatre Noah pushed you up the stairs by the small of your back, the feeling of his hand lingering even as you sat down at the back of the theatre.

Nobody else was in there, and you suddenly felt jittery that it was just the two of you.

You and Noah sat in silence as the movie began, almost afraid to speak to each other.

The movie was immediately boring, and you kept watching the way Noah nervously rubbed the tips of his thighs, his inked fingers rubbing along his sweatpants.

Eventually, the singer grew the courage to place that hand on your thigh, making you jump slightly from the contact.

Slowly his hands crept up and down your thigh, warmth radiating off of his skin- but you froze as the words came from his mouth.

“I know you fucked all my friends.”

Something about the way he said it made the hairs on your neck stand up, and he turned to look at you, the movie illuminating his features.

His eyes were dark, as they bore into you, “You saving the best for last?”

Your mouth ran dry, unable to respond as he patted his lap, holding your hand to tug you along.

Unsure why you followed, you did, and facing him you placed a leg on either side of his hips, sitting in his lap.

Noah let his hands squeeze your hips before roaming up your body, kneading against your clothes before reaching your Neck.

He lightly pulled you down to his face, mouth inches from yours. His breath was warm as he spoke.

“I bet I can make you cum three times in this theatre.”

Shivering at his words you let him take control. His behaviour and promise alone almost pushed you to the edge, and you didn’t doubt his promise for one second.

His lips brushed yours, but he didn't dare give you a taste as he dipped his fingers into your waistband, sliding them past your underwear and right along your arousal.

He only chuckled at the feeling of your soaked core, knowing that you’d fold the second he put two fingers inside of you.

Noah did just that, pressing his thumb against your clit as his inked fingers sunk into your body.

As he pushed his fingers deeper, thumb rutting in rhythmic circles, he held you up by your neck.

“That’s it, pretty girl,” Noah praised, your mouth agape from the pleasure.

Your body clenched around his fingers and in no time, you cried as he pushed you to your first orgasm.

“Fuck, maybe I can get four in if it's that easy,” he grinned, pulling his fingers away from your core and toward your mouth.

He only nodded toward you, prompting you to take his fingers into your mouth, licking your mess and gagging on them as you did so.

The brunette’s smile was radiant as he watched proudly, before pushing you onto your knees, between his legs.

You knew what he wanted, and Noah had to stop himself from cumming right then and there at the sight of you between his thighs, the place he’s dreamed of many nights.

Pulling down his sweats eagerly, you gripped his cock, leaning in to lick up from the base. You wasted no time in sucking along him, swirling your tongue and bobbing down his body.

“Fuck,” he whispered, pushing you down, thrusting his hips into your throat.

You coughed, pulling back up before sliding down again, using your hand to assist with what you couldn’t take.

“Touch yourself,” he said, sharing a slutty smile as he fucked your mouth, “use your fingers to cum while you suck my cock.”

Obeying him, you took your fingers and found the familiar spots along your desire, pleasing yourself how you knew best to Noah’s words.

It was almost embarrassing how much saliva emanated from your mouth and onto his arousal as you devoured him.

“You’re such a good girl. Jolly was right, you do give the best fucking head.”

Moaning at his words you closed your eyes, gagging on him once again as you worked yourself to another orgasm. Knowing that the boys talked about you made your ears warm, and you were sure Noah would then be talking to them about this.

With one final thrust, you pulled your mouth away from Noah, breath catching in your throat as you came again.

Noah smiled down at you with pride.

Standing up he spread his thighs, stoking himself as he made you turn around with a finger.

“I want to watch your ass bounce on my cock. So turn.”

His hands guided your hips down onto his arousal, relishing in the feeling of how hard he was.

Noah’s groans were erotic as he pushed you up in down, letting you ride him.

He then held you up, using his hips to thrust from underneath momentarily.

Your third orgasm was approaching, the sound of Noah’s whimpers and curses causing you to clench around him in need.

“Fuck don’t do that, I’ll cum,” he hissed, pulling out and pushing you to rest over the railing in front of you. Noah stood behind you now, holding your hips as he thrust into you mercilessly.

He leaned forward, pressing his chest to your back “Let me take you on a proper date tomorrow night, make you mine, yeah?”

Moaning his name you clenched around him and let your body convulse along his cock, letting your third orgasm wash down each of your limbs.

Noah’s breathing was erratic as he pushed you to your knees, holding your chin to his arousal as he stoked himself to his climax.

You took the tip in your mouth, swallowing his release with need, sucking until the brunette pushed you away from the sensitivity.

The two of you stood in front of each other, breathing heavily as your eyes were fixated on each other.

There was no going back now, each of the boys had confessed their need, leaving you a withering mess.

Noah held the back of your head, pulling you in for one more needy kiss, before grabbing your bag for you and pulling you down the stairs.

He was silent on the walk back to the bus, both of you hand in hand.

Your mind raced with what-ifs, memories of each boy taking over the next.

When you two finally made it back, you heard Matt yelling from inside.

“Ya’ll have a bet for her and didn’t even fill me in? Fucking pricks, I woulda had the best shot outta all of yall.”

Looking over at Noah, he ran his fingers through the onyx strands with a nervous smile.

“A bet Noah? Really?”

He nodded, and then the bus door opened, revealing the other boys.

They cursed under their breath as you folded your arms, shaking your head in amusement.

“So who won?” You pried, eyes lingering on each of them for a moment.

“Definitely not fucking me,” Matt mumbled, annoyed.

“I don’t think any of us did,” Ruffilo spoke slowly, looking at each of his friends.

Rocking on your toes you chewed back a smile, “Then I bet I can make you do it all over again.”

Part two

tags:

(i tagged everyone since this has all the boys in it :) if you want on or off the taglist, please let me know!

@thefallennightmare @xxkittenkissesxx @deathblacksmoke @nyxisnotok @anameunmusical

@sitkowski @sammyjoeee @cookiesupplier @th4t-em0-k1d @dsireland86

@whenthesummerdies @spicywhenspeaking @veronicaphoenix @lma1986 @calleyx13

@somewhere-diamond @auratheopossumwitch @blackveilomens @skulliecadaver-blog @silentglassbreak

@darkmxgician @sprokat @thatchickwiththecamera @reyadawn @xserenax-13 @foliosgirl

@philomenie @illmakeyousaywow @nyxisnotok @wh0th3h3llisbucky @into-the-grey

[risingsouls]

Conversations: 5

[I finally finished this. They kept wanting to keep talking and I struggled to figure out where to end it :’3. So it’s a dumb end but fitting lolol. I also got to reference the one of my favorite things I’ve written about Vegeta which I will shamelessly plug here.

Also I edited this while like half asleep so forgive me for typos and shit.

Bonus end: Vegeta returns and carried her to her bed because I’m a sap and this is my OTP. ;3;]

“Want anything to drink?” Nabooru pulled the fridge open and leaned down, considering her own options. “I’ve got pretty much anything in here: water, juice, soda, alcohol.”

Vegeta lowered himself onto one of the couches, watching her disappear behind the island’s counter separating the kitchen and the living room. He folded his arms and crossed his right ankle over his left knee. “Whatever’s fine.”

When his day began, even after the tumultuous morning he suffered at Capsule Corp., he never would have imagined he would follow Nabooru home, spend time with her outside of sparring seated comfortably on her couch, or consider staying in the guest room she offered. To spare his pride at least for the first few times (if it became something regular at all; that_ he had yet to decide), he planned to train later than her and return while she slept. However, he had every intention of ensuring she made good on her promise and explain her earlier claim, her motive behind the almost too generous offer.

“Don’t think you’ve gotten out of answering my question from earlier.”

Truthfully, she hoped he had forgotten. She fished out a few bottles of water and considered the coming task at hand. Standing, she closed the refrigerator and opened the freezer, pulling out a barely touched bottle of whiskey. A gift from Nappa.  “Of course you didn’t.” Opening the cabinet, she grabbed two glasses and filled them with the amber liquid. She wasn’t about to tell this particular story without a little help nor would she drink alone. She idly wished she had waited to change from her training clothes to the dull orange camisole and a pair of dark gray shorts; at least that would offer her another chance to stall.

She picked up each glass, holding them by the lip between her thumb and forefinger, and, after a second thought, tucked the bottle of whiskey beneath her other arm along with the pair of water bottles. “You sure you don’t want to change or something? Take a shower?” She placed one glass of whiskey and bottle of water in front of him on the circular table before taking a seat on the couch across from him on the other side. “I could probably talk to Lanu about potentially fixing your armor, too. She’s good at that sort of thing.”

“You’re stalling.” His glare slid from her to the drinks offered to him. He snorted when he caught a whiff of the alcohol. If her attempts to distract him weren’t evidence enough to it, the liquor more than solidified the fact that the story was not one she was fond of telling. It seemed to be their normal vein of conversation if the topic didn’t revolve around fighting. “I don’t have anything here to change into, and I’m not wearing your clothes or some other stupid suggestion you might come up with. Now talk.”

“Have you just been dwelling on this all day?” she huffed, disappointed her every tactic fell flat. She swirled the liquid around in the glass, considering where to begin. “I’ll have to give you a little background to how I ended up in that state of mind…”

She shrugged the stap of her tank top back up onto her shoulder. The story at hand would force her to delve back into her most painful memories. Those that started the unfortunate domino effect that forced her into tough scenarios and even tougher decisions. Many of which she wondered if she chose correctly and the potential alternates kept her up at night. Those loose ends left untied that niggled at her mind and perturbed her.

"You remember how I told you that our king had planned to overthrow Hyrule and likely take it over himself?" 

Vegeta nodded once. Though most of those who thought they knew him best would protest, the Saiyan prince remembered more details about the people around him than he let on. As long as he deemed it useful or the more rare occasions he found it actually interesting. Her story fell under both categories.

Nabooru considered a swig of her whiskey but held off. Her chest felt too tight, even after all these years. It was almost laughable, her claims questionable. A woman whose very purpose in life for as long as she could remember was to serve and protect her people, to pull them from the deepening pit they found themselves in and better their lives and allow them something sustainable that didn't rely on scavenging and scraping by. Who had pride and passion in them, who admired their ambitious but equally passionate king committing the highest crime against the two things she held most dear.

"As his second in command, he trusted me with his plans. It started as a wild dream chasing an artifact I'm still not sure exists that could grant a wish to help us to...something darker. More dangerous. I saw him change right before my eyes over those years. He became obsessed, and the line between helping our people and securing power became blurry." Now she took a drink, the burn of it easily disregarded in conjunction with the pain of memory. "Our relationship aside, it worried me. It all felt dangerous and wrong, a power not meant for us or any other mortal. He not only endangered himself on this quest, but I saw how it could further endanger our people. The Hylians believed we worshipped our kings like gods anyway, so it wasn't a far leap for them to assume that, should Ganondorf fail or be found out, that we would rise up and try to finish what he started. Give them more reason to hate us and incite violence against us with a more solid stance than they held previously.

"Had we not suffered so much in the war, if Hyrule's alliances with the other races remained more tenuous and their hate for us was a little milder, maybe I would have had his optimism in the plan, knowing we could defend ourselves if things went wrong. I hadn't yet fully seen the walls we faced in resolving our differences diplomatically, and that is, unfortunately, where my optimism had lain. We argued plenty about his obsession with the Triforce, but it wasn't until I found out that, in order to obtain whatever he needed to gain access to it, he had attacked the other races when they wouldn't comply. Such show of force when we were all meant to be unified, such violence of degrees that could severely damage whole communities, wouldn't go unnoticed or swept under the rug. That is when I knew I had to stop him." She felt as though she was back in that moment in the Spirit Temple, face to face with Ganondorf for one of the last times. The weight of her decision to defy and actively try to stop him crushing. What that decision meant by their law.

"And I did try to stop him and sabotage his plans. I gave him the impression that, at his warning and what he considered mercy, I was self-exiling myself to avoid execution. I disappeared into the desert for several days before returning to our temple which he had since closed off to use as his base of operations. I defied the orders set that all Gerudo stay away from the temple, information I gathered from Aveil when I returned to the fortress first. None of them knew I had even been technically exiled, likely so he could save face and maintain the appearance that he wasn't up to something they might not like. But, when I returned to the temple, I was captured by his mothers and imprisoned, set to face trial for treason against our king and our people, the only things that truly mattered to me."

Sipping at his own drink, Vegeta didn't miss the twisting of her expression when she uttered the word treason. The pieces of her history were clicking together far more succinctly than they had with the first telling that lacked these more...personal details. He supposed they hadn't been needed to answer his first question about who filled the role of Frieza in her life to answer it sufficiently. He employed similar tactics when he could get away with the bare bones of the information, either to protect himself or avoid discussing matters he didn't care to or found irrelevant. Though he could not relate to her dismay of betraying her king and country, as he never got the chance to do so, and betraying Frieza hadn't required much emotional searching. All he had to fear was death for the attempt, and he never particularly felt alive during that time, anyway. She faced her entire people's scrutiny and the personal shame of turning on her king and by proxy them, which likely called her trustworthiness and allegiance into question. Among other things.

“And yet you weren’t executed, obviously.”

Nabooru sensed the hint of impatience; she supposed she should have warned him the preamble was a lengthy one. It wouldn’t deter her from telling the tale correctly. “No. I was given a trial and we both told our sides of the story. My service to the Gerudo in the past and genuine concern apparently helped me avoid outright execution, much to Ganondorf’s disappointment. He and the Elite instead sentenced me to the Kavi Dorova, a cave that leads to a series of unknown challenges. No one had ever survived it, so it was as good as a death sentence. On the off chance I did survive, I could return to the Gerudo with my rank intact.”

Vegeta snorted. “I take it your king had little faith you would survive, then. Or he planned to strip you of your rank on the off chance you returned despite the judgement.”

“I never got to find out,” she replied, chewing the inside of her lip. She drained her glass and refilled it. “He was gone by the time I healed up after the ordeal. Which is where your question comes into play.

“I don’t know how long I had been down there or how far I had gotten. Each fight was harder and felt more pointless than the last with more numerous and powerful monsters each time. Half of them I didn’t even recognize. I was starving, dehydrated, had sustained more injuries than I could count, and had almost been frozen to death by some ice beast. As I tried to rest, curled around the lone torch in the room for warmth, I was ready to give up. Nothing mattered to me any more. Not my pride or my people, not fighting or my talent as a warrior. None of it had saved me down there and I was ready to just perish. It would be easier than going on. Easier than facing the Gerudo again if I ever escaped that hell."

She rested her back against the cushions. "But...I was never one to just settle for easy. I was too stubborn to let that pit beat me. Somehow, I fought on. I remembered what my people had suffered and, despite the hole they tossed me into and a fair portion of them wanting me killed on the spot, I had dedicated my life to being a Gerudo warrior and protecting them. I convinced myself I had to get back and make good on that promise no matter what they thought of me.

"The last things I remember is nearly being gutted by a Darknut, stabbing him with its own sword, and dragging myself on the ground toward a light. Aveil said they found me barely alive outside the cave and losing a lot of blood. I woke up to finding out Ganondorf had been captured and arrested and that I would have to take over as leader."

The Gerudo's laugh was short, bitter, and she took another hearty swig of the whiskey. A position she never thought she would ascend to since a king sat on the throne in her lifetime. She wanted to feel honored, but the increasingly hostile environment she awoke to made the promotion a bittersweet one. Between a split tribe at home and fighting a losing battle for the barest of scraps to help her people abroad, it was a wonder how she didn't snap and lead them into that losing war anyway. 

"It didn't take long for that confidence to waver. I quickly realized that the monsters down there were far easier to combat than those I found on the surface: I didn't feel guilty about killing them for my survival."

"Guilt is a pain, isn't it?" He smirked at her and poured himself another glass of the whiskey. "I'm sure you would have felt much more satisfied if you tore through the bastards that wronged you like you did those beasts in the pit. I may not have gotten Frieza, but I killed three of his best men who were almost as bad along with the better portion of his special forces."

To his surprise, Nabooru smiled herself, and she laughed softly. "I'm not sure there's a day that doesn't go by that I fantasize about it. That I don't play out potential strategies in my head that might have brought us success. I even drew a few up when I was bored once. Burned them but…" She trailed off and raised her hand, palm to the ceiling. An orange-to-yellow gradient ball of ki materialized atop it. "The others seem happy enough here. Safe might be a strong word, but learning ki has helped us stay protected." 

Save for the one time they all died apparently. The lack of memory of that event still bothered her. Another story she wanted to press from Vegeta if she got the chance.

"If we had this knowledge back then...for our whole existence…" She closed her fist around the glowing energy, dissipating it in a small shower of sparks. "I wonder how things would have been different…"

The prince understood those longings, the constant wondering what could have been done better, what one aspect could change the outcome of his life. Back when he served Frieza and before. In more recent memory. He knew it was all pointless conjecture, and he suspected she did, too. But it didn't stop them from wondering about the lives they, perhaps, should have had.

"Chances are some bastard like Frieza or his brother Cooler would take interest in your warrior race and forced you into their servitude. And if you were lucky, they would leave more than a few of you alive to serve in their army." Lucky. he had come to despise that word since Frieza used it in regards to him not being blasted to bits with the rest of his race. "Lucky might be a strong word, though."

Nabooru sipped her whiskey, glad for the warmth and lightness it began to provide. She should stop, if only for the risk of facing the consequences in the morning, but, as if in direct defiance of her own thoughts, she finished off the glass and poured another. "You're probably right." Shifting to the side, she rested her weight against the arm of the couch and stretched her legs out to the side of her, tracing the rim of her glass with her finger. "Tell me about those guys you killed. Like how you did it. Maybe I can live vicariously through you."

“Is that how that works?” Vegeta snorted and drained his second glass, filling it again to join her on the third round. He wondered at the strength of this liquor. Earth’s typical fare didn’t usually affect him after two drinks. He wouldn’t describe himself as tipsy yet by any means, but he was willing to blame the alcohol for silently turning their casual conversation over drinks into a contest. “Fine.That was the better half of that damn trip to Namek…”

Before everything went horribly wrong, and, when he saw her tilt her head slightly to the side and her lips part to ask what he meant by that, he drew her focus back to the first request. Strange as it was, considering what he gathered from her thus far.

“Let’s see…” He raised a glove hand, casting the bare tips of a few of his fingers a fleeting glare. “I blew up Cui and Dodoria. Blew a hole through Zarbon.” He ticked each one off on his fingers. “I decapitated Guldo, knee dropped Burter in the throat, and blasted Recoome and Jeice to oblivion.” He decided not to mention that Recoome and Burter had been incapacitated by Kakarot in an impressive display of speed and strength prior to his finishing blows. 

“Wow…” None of the names meant much to her, but she had no trouble believing those men who served a monster like Frieza so loyally possessed the same mindset he did. And if Vegeta found issue with them and he wasn’t exactly a glowing beacon of kindness and fairness, unless he was outright lying which she doubted on this, she had no reason to question that they had caused him and perhaps the other remaining Saiyans trouble while they were in Frieza’s service. “Sounds like you did have a good day, then.”

He draped his free arm over the back of the couch. “Did that satisfy you?”

Nabooru had to bite back a giggle, the haze of alcohol in her mind sliding it toward the gutter. “Not in the way I was hoping, unfortunately. But what made the rest of that trip so horrible?"

"Besides Kakarot becoming a Super Saiyan before me and killing Frieza?" He tapped his chest near his heart. "Frieza killed me. Don't give me that look. It didn't last long. Kakarot's idiot friends accidentally revived me with the Dragonballs because they wished everyone killed by Frieza and his men back to life. That included me."

Nabooru did her best to wipe the stunned expression from her face, and her gaze followed his hand. With a chunk of his armor missing, she could just make out the jagged edge of a faded scar. He really just didn't catch many breaks, did he?

She finished off the drink in her hand and set the glass on the table before slumping further into the couch to sprawl out more comfortably on her side. "For what it's worth, I'm glad they messed that up." The words left her lips before she could stop them, and, though she hated how sappy they sounded, she supposed the truth in them made them worth uttering. "I mean...we wouldn't have met otherwise, and I wouldn't have a training partner that could help me improve as much as you have."

“Hmpt, how flattering…” He didn’t doubt her words. With staging her tournament and with those who answered her call, she could have requested a sparring partner from many of the other combatants that would provide her at least entertainment if not a challenge to her unexpected strength. And with Kakarot there as well…

“Why did you ask me over Kakarot, anyway? You had the chance to ask him to train with you, and you didn’t.” 

Nabooru propped her elbow beneath her and rested her head on her palm. The question wasn't out of place; even he begrudgingly admitted Goku surpassed him in strength, so it would make sense she seek out the most powerful person to train with. Instead, she had chosen him. Second place over first.

"It was just a guess, but I figured you would be a better trainer for me. Close to the hardened, take no prisoners style of training and fighting I'm used to. I doubted Goku would push me as far as you could. And after finding out that you and I had a similar story in some ways..." She shrugged a shoulder. "Besides, I guess I'm a little biased still after watching the two of you fight that clown android. I know Goku wasn't exactly at full capacity but...well, watching you tear that thing to scrap, feeling the drastic rise of your energy when you transformed...I guess it just stuck with me after all these years. Not to mention your performance in the Warrior Games."

Vegeta had forgotten she had shown up to that fight, no matter how briefly she remained among their band of eould-be heroes. He had been too focused on dismantling a couple androids to pay her much mind. Perhaps if he had, he would have had a competent sparring partner all this time. Decent company, too. His mindset had been so different back then, more erratic and laser focused on his one goal...would he have even bothered should she have asked him to train with her before she returned to her people that day? After the Cell Games? Had she sought him out before her own tournament?

“You were likely correct. Kakarot is too soft to properly train and spar with anyone. He would be too afraid of hurting you, even though you’ve proven you’re more than capable of taking hard hits.” Nabooru stifled a yawn, and the Saiyan noted her heavy eyelids with mild annoyance. “Are you drunk already, woman?”

She stretched languidly and giggled. “No, I’m just a little tipsy.” A slight fib; she had forgotten Nappa’s warnings and her own singular experience with the liquor he gifted her. The effects of it snuck up on her and caught her off guard each time. “Mind your own business. I’m fine.”

Vegeta rolled his eyes and stood, arching his back to stretch his spine. He finished off his drink and snatched up the bottle before she could try to make herself another. She reached out a whole two second too late to stop him and he snorted. “Your shit reaction time says otherwise.” He strode to the kitchen and slid the bottle back into the freezer. “Drink your water and go to bed. I’m going back out to train and no, you can’t come with me.”

Her whine devolved into another fit of giggles and she flopped onto her back. “Training I can’t help with, huh? Just let me know if you do need an extra hand.”

Vegeta paused with his hand on the door knob, the meaning of her suggestion dawning on him far too slowly. He swiped his other hand over his face. “Don’t be crude. Go to bed.”

She flipped him off with a lazy grin. “Goodnight, Vegeta. Don’t have too much fun without me~.”

He merely groaned in response and slipped back out into the cool desert night, door slamming behind him.

[gerudospiriit]

Read to Me

[So, uh. I know I mentioned that Ganondorf-centric fic. But I wanted to revive this instead because I’ve been feeling more fluff than angst lately.

Anyway, cleaned this up, so have some sweet Nabsgan to brighten(???) your day :3]

Ganondorf had returned several hours ago, before the sun had even sunk beneath the horizon. Pride and the memory of their last spat before he left for one of his longer trips to Hyrule Castle still fresh on Nabooru’s mind prevented her from immediately greeting the king as he arrived at the fortress. Until that quarrel, she had planned to go with him, perhaps offer him better company than those stuffed shirt nobles. But, he ruined that notion quickly, a day before leaving, too.

That day she rose with the sun and met him at the stables as she always did to see him off. The tension  palpable, both of their bodies stiffened like a couple of animals ready to fend off a predator should the need arise. They managed to keep their farewell civil, though the couple remained silent until they reached the entrance to the valley. Once out of the guards’ line of sight, she slipped my foot into the stirrup on top of his, hoisted herself up, and planted a quick peck on his cheek before making him promise to come back safe.

Though grudgingly, he did. She even saw a tiny smile crack the too serious expression he donned more often than not these days.

And yet, she still couldn’t help the clenching of her jaw, watching from the sanctuary of the meeting room window, as he rode his black stallion back up to the fortress two weeks later. Several of the guards had abandoned their posts to greet and escort him to the stables, circling around him and beaming at their king. Ganondorf even seemed to be in good spirits, smiling and chatting with them, not a single qualm with the questions they pelted him with.

Though this should have alleviated some of her fears, Nabooru couldn’t convince herself that another shouting match would not come within hours of the two making contact. As with many of their arguments, there always seemed to be a calm before the storm. Like a mirage of an oasis as you’re dying of thirst before the reality of barrenness becomes apparent.

Thus, she avoided Ganondorf for the rest of the afternoon, busying herself with even the most menial task she could think of. She did not return to her room until late evening after grabbing a quick dinner on the fly when she was sure he would not be around the meal hall. An insurmountable task, especially without raising suspicion.  

She hummed a tune softly to myself as she began to remove her jewelry, toeing off her shoes as I padded over to the vanity mirror across from her bed. She slipped the ruby from her hair with a relieved sigh, crimson hair spilling over her shoulders as I picked up her brush. She only managed to glide it through the length few times before stopping short, bristles halfway down and her fingers gripping the ends.

After all the evasion and fear of either of them finding a reason to argue, she hadmissed the infuriating idiot.

Setting the brush down, she groaned at her reflection and shook her head as if the image in the mirror would talk her out of what I was about to do.

“You’re a masochist, Nabooru…I hope you know that.”

Despite the self-scolding, she pushed herself up from the vanity and headed back out into the hallway. Rising in rank to Second in Command meant a new room, one closer to the king’s quarters in case anything should go awry. Just a right turn and a quick jaunt down a torch-lit hall brought her to her destination: an ornate, red door with gold embellishments surrounding their people’s symbol.  

A familiar sight, as she often found herself in his room for one reason or another; sometimes business, other times pleasure. But recent visits always left her feeling a little colder than they used to. Hesitant to enter. The sensation was always strange as she stood in front of it these days, wringing her hands and holding her breath like a little girl, gathering up the courage to ask her instructor for permission to train with the older girls. And the ache in her chest…that desire for the warmth and comfort the couple used to enjoy with each other.

Before she could convince herself to turn back, she raised her fist to knock, but paused before knuckle struck wood. Rolling her eyes at her own stupidity, Nabooru lowered her fist to the knob instead, gripping it too tightly and turning it, slowly pushing the heavy wood forward.

The sweet scent of burning incense mixed with the smell of the burning torches on the wall innediately assaulted her nostrils. The crackle of fire and the low lighting soothed her anxiety a touch. She took a few seconds to admire how they made the shadows of the decorations and fixtures around the room dance in broken steps. It reminded her of graffiti she saw in the Market years ago: wild looking figures danced around their burning victim. She could not tell whether the garish figures were meant to be humans or monsters.

At first, she deemed the room empty, a mixture of relief and disappointment causing her shoulders to slump. Though, upon scanning the room, she found the man in question at the other side of his large quarters, stretched out on one of his couched, one made specially for him considering his substantial size (though, somehow, it still looked incredibly small beneath him). In place of the black armor he had sported upon arriving home, he now donned a simple pair of pants similar to my own, only black in color. He held a book in one hand, expression calm as he scanned the pages, his other hand resting behind his head for extra support.

He did not even twitch as the mechanisms of the door clicked softly as Nabooru closed it behind her; he merely turned to the next page in his book, shifting his left leg off the couch, foot planted on the rug below him. She knew better; he was fully aware someone had entered his room and, because she hadn’t knocked, he knew very well it was her.

“Just got back and you’re already working?”

“This is hardly working, Nabooru,” he remarked, finally tearing his amber eyes from his book to watch her cross the room. The light of the torches flickered in his irises, mesmerizing the woman. “I’m relaxing after a long week and a half of negotiations. Not to mention a long, boring ride back here.”

She snorted softly at the rather pointed glare he shot her. As much as she wanted to inform him that it was his own fault she decided not to join him, she bit my tongue; he deserved a night of relaxation and she did not wish to ruin that for him (or herself) by inciting an argument. Plus, she grew tired of the fighting, the nonstop bickering. She knew lovers fought, but surely not as often as they seemed to lately…

Nabooru paused at the nearby bookshelf and hummed to herself, gliding her fingers along leather spines of volumes on any topic from history of Hyrule’s races to Gerudo fighting styles through the ages. She selected one at random, hardly concerned with the contents, and turned to face him. “Mind if I join you?”

Instead of a verbal answer, he merely shifted so that his back rested more fully against the arm of the couch, beckoning her over with a lazy wave of his free hand. Smiling gently, she strode over to him with her book selection and carefully rested between his legs, reclining so her back rested against his torso, head on his chest.

“Comfortable?” he asked, his voice surprisingly genuine as he lifted his book to eye level once more.

She simply nodded in response, cracking her own hefty volume of…a quick glance at the cover informed her she had made chosen a book about potions and their properties. Nothing she even remotely cared about, her eyes glazing over just reading a single sentence.  

Boring subject matter aside, her focus suffered as his fingers danced absently along her bare side, from the top of her hip to just beneath her ribcage. She could not stop the pleased sigh that passed her lips as that simple touch disarmed her, any fears or trepidations dissolving. Her eyes slipped closed as she  indulged in his warmth, soothed by the sound of his steady breathing and heart beat pumping next to her head.

“Potions too boring for you? Does seem like an odd choice…”

“Mm?” Nabooru blinked rapidly and tilted her head back. Her eyes met his, eyebrows furrowing in confusion; surely she hadn’t fallen asleep! Caught in her act anyway, she set the potions book aside. “Did I fall asleep?”

“No, but you were about to.” His gaze had returned to his own book, though his hand gravitated upward, resting just above the armband she only removed when bathing. His fingers occasionally stretched to trace the intricate metalwork and inlaid gem (his own design), dipping in between gold to caress tan flesh. Each few seconds of contact sent a tingling sensation through her body, and part of her swore he used magic. Though, deep down, she knew she just craved the contact. The intimacy. Something other than arguing.

Her eyes shifted to the book in his hand–an attempt to tear her focus away from such thoughts. The characters on the page were Hylian, the pages torn at the edges and discolored from age and use. As she skimmed through the page he was on, she deemed that it discussed the myths and history of Hyrule. She wasn’t surprised, but her heart still sank, mind flashing back to the disputes revolving around this very topic. The yelling. Spurned words spewed that she, at least, didn’t mean. Desperately holding back tears and stubbornly wiping them away when out of sight. The letters on the page seemed to taunt her in that moment, reminding her how tenuous their relationship had become because of this…this obsession. She thought to grab the book and tear those yellowing pages from their binding in that moment, as if that would snap Ganondorf back to his senses, release him from the spell he was under. To see how potentially dangerous his tentative plan could be.

Instead, Nabooru rested her head against his chest again, releasing a slow breath through her nose as he turned the page. His hand did not return to her arm, however, favoring her hair draped over her shoulder instead. His fingers combed through the locks, occasionally twisting stands about his fingers.  

She relaxed once more. He must have sensed her discomfort, something the two had a knack for, at least with each other. Not that they paid it much mind these days, so he surprised her with the gesture, as he knew it was one that rarely failed to calm her. Though, judging how his eyes never left the pages of his book, the action most likely only served as a way to keep his free hand occupied, one of his preferences as he read, wrote, or merely as he lost himself in thought.

Still…she convinced myself it was the former.

Nabooru lifted herself up and sat on his thigh instead, draping my legs across his lap, my bare feet hanging over the side. It wasn’t until moments like these she really noticed the difference in their size. Tall as she was, he still had a head and a half on her in height. Not to mention his muscular build which aided his ability to dwarf anyone who came near him. But, it never bothered her…except occasionally in sparring sessions.

“Will you read to me?” Nabooru tilted her head back to look at him.

“What?”

“Read the book to me? Out loud?”

His expression flashed from annoyance to amusement as he met her gaze. “Have you not been practicing reading Hylian? You’re my Second in Command, Nabooru. I can’t have you being all brawn and no brain.” He prodded her forehead with a light chuckle, the first sincere one she had heard in a long time, unmarred by malice.

She swatted his hand away, lower lip poking out. “I can read and speak Hylian just fine and you know it. Besides, I know how much you love hearing your own voice.”

He laughed again, draping his arm around her waist hand resting on my thigh. “Very well. I’ll indulge you this time.”

Smiling at her small victory, she laid my head on his shoulder. He must have just bathed because she could smell the fresh scent of his favorite soap emanating from his skin; a spicy aroma but with a hint of freshness akin to the smell in Hyrule Field after a spring rain.  

He began to read, his deep voice lowered to a soothing volume. His smooth tone never faltered over the Hylian words, as if it were his first language. Always a perfectionist, it did not surprise her; he had appearances to keep up to avoid the judgmental gazes of the more pompous Hylian nobles.

Though she preferred listening to their own language, she still found solace in his voice as he unfolded the story of the Triforce and iterated the author’s theories about it. The content did not interest her, however, so much as the voice relating it. The warmth currently in his tone was a rarity anymore as he preferred to adopt a colder, more indifferent timbre when dealing with her. Thus, she reveled in it for now. Lost herself in it.

Naboor saw his eyes flick over to her–though it did not interrupt his reading–as she brushed her fingertips along his chest, tracing faded scars along the expanse of bare flesh. The fingers of her other hand walked along his back, shoulder blade to shoulder blade. Up the back of his neck and into his hair. The ends were still damp from his bath.

She allowed her eyes to shift to his face. She always admired his features, sharp and defined. The lids over his eyes were half closed over amber irises as he followed the words on the pages. His habit for precision showed once more in the perfect grooming of his sideburns, hair, and eyebrows. Her gaze then drifted to his lips, lingering there for several seconds, suddenly fascinated with how they formed each word with flawless precision.

“Hey.”

The first time his voice broke off since he started reading aloud. He turned his head, annoyance flashing across those handsome features. She couldn’t help the cheeky smirk that curled her lips; pushing his buttons was a bit of a guilty pleasure.

Before he could reprimand her for interrupting, Nabooru leaned forward, gently pressing her lips to his, hands on either side of his face. When she pulled away and opened her eyes, she was relieved to see that a small smile had replaced the exasperated grimace on Ganondorf’s face.

“I missed you,” she breathed, resting my forehead against his.

He didn’t respond, not with words. She felt him shift beneath me, hand holding the book dropping off the side of the couch as he reconnected their lips. She heard his book drop to the floor with a dull thump, muscular arms circling around her frame.

Smiling against his lips, she readjusted her position, placing her knees on either side of his hips. She looped her arms over his shoulders, one hand weaving into his hair and urging his head forward to deepen their kiss. His hands slid up the back of her top as he forced my body flush against his.

Nabooru opened my mouth to protest when his lips left her, but the disgruntled huff turned to a delighted moan as he kissed the corner of her lips, along her jawline to her chin. She tilted her head back, baring her throat to him which he eagerly latched on to. A breathy sigh escaped her throat, the alternating kisses, bites, and licks down the length of her neck sending a shiver down her spine as well as igniting the familiar heat of passion in my veins.

“Will you be staying here tonight, my love?” She shuddered as his breath tickled the sensitive skin dampened with a thin strip of saliva from his licks. She could feel him smirking as he nipped and kissed along her collarbone. She could have punched him for being so smug.

Instead, Nabooru returned her head to its normal position, smiling coyly at him. “If that is what my king wishes,” she purred, letting her fingers trace his jawline. She nipped at his lower lip. “I only want you to be happy, love.”

Grinning, she slipped off his lap. However, she only managed two steps toward the bed before Ganondorf’s arm snaked around her waist, yanking me back into his body. She yelped and laughed as he easily hoisted her over his shoulder, carrying her the rest of the way to the bed.

Nabooru squeaked as I was unceremoniously dumped onto the bed and immediately pinned beneath Ganondorf. He held her hands above her head, lacing his fingers with hers. “That wasn’t fair, you know,” she said, pretending to struggle beneath him. “Could have given me a little more warning.”

“Now, where would be the fun in that?” he responded, chuckling at her half-hearted struggle. “Maybe you shouldn’t have tried to escape me.”

Nabooru rolled her eyes with a grin, lifting her head from the pillow to peck his lips. The chaste gesture earned her a more passionate kiss, a content moan sounding in her throat as she arched her back up toward him.

Ganondorf parted his lips from hers, capturing her gaze with little effort. He released one of her hands in favor of caressing her cheek with his thumb.  “I love you, Nabooru.”

Shebeamed upon hearing those words, her heart thudding so hard against her ribcage she was sure he could hear it. She never thought She would hear him utter those words to her again.

“I love you, too, Ganondorf. Always will.”

[melancholicwriteaholic]

Link: What even was your plan, Ganondorf?

Zelda: Hey, yeah. All you did was take a fruitful country and utterly destroy it. How does this benefit you or anyone else?

Ganondorf: Oh my Goddesses, you guys think I have a plan? Hah! I wish I was such a maniacal genius! I wish this was all on purpose! Heh, no, no, no, this was actually all because of the voice inside my head.

Link: . . . Voice?

Zelda: In your head?

Ganondorf: It’s just my luck, really. You’re the first male gerudo born in a hundred years and your race is unfairly situated in the middle of the freaking sandpits while the rest of Hyrule enjoys easy living peace. So, naturally, you decide to use all of your cunning and charisma to land yourself a position in the castle, where you can begin plotting to take over the kingdom.

Link: Yeah, that’s what happened, but-!

Ganondorf: Unfortunately you ALSO happen to be the “incarnation of the hatred of the ancient king of demons” who calls himself “Demise” and lives right in the middle of your head where it whispers hate and half-baked cosmic schemes every night since childhood. Because of this you grew up knowing all of the spells necessary to resurrect evil dragons before learning what numbers and letters are.

Zelda: I’m sorry, an ancient demon king named what again?

Ganondorf: Hey, believe me! It wasn’t funny from my perspective, alright? I mean, one minute I’m being welcomed as a friend to the royal family and plotting a carefully laid out ten year assassination, next thing I know I’m in the middle of a fucking volcano arguing with Gorons over a plan to steal the power of the Gods! This damn demon’s got my brain so twisted up that I punished those Gorons by sealing their cave in with a boulder! A BOULDER! I TRIED THREATENING A RACE MADE OF ROCKS, WHO EAT ROCKS, WITH A BIGGER ROCK! I mean, it ended up working somehow, but still! Talk about petulant!

Link: You can’t just pin the blame on some psychosis of yours when thousands of people were killed!

Ganondorf: You think I don’t know that??? You think I never tried to curb this stupid demon voice and all of its fucked up urges to kill things? You wanna know how I’ve been spending the last seven years doing? Trying to find the great and legendary Princess Zelda!

Ganondorf: Since you off and disappeared the demon part of me has been unreasonably furious and I swear it felt like my head was going to burst into flames during some of my worst episodes.

Ganondorf: But hey! As long as it distracts “Demise” from ruining my life any more than before I thought why not? Seek out the girl! Try to put all of my attention on finding Zelda, who hasn’t been seen in forever and is probably either dead or fled to some far away kingdom by now, and NOT focus on ruining this kingdom anymore than we’ve already had. I mean, what were the odds that I’d actually find you???

Ganondorf: Well, I think you already knew how that turned out in the end. Not only was the princess right here where I wanted her and so easy to kidnap, but she’s also helping out the warrior killing all of my (and by my I of course mean “Demise’s”) minions and ruining my day. Woo hoo, I found you. By the time I got around to sealing you in the giant pink magical rupee I had just given up. 

Ganondorf: The Gerudo are still just as badly off as they were before, I’m surrounded by monsters I don’t even like, I might just get killed by the kid with the magical sword forged by the Gods, and I officially have nothing aside from my haunting musical skills. Might as well give in to the flow of fate at this point! Might as well have fun making speeches and playing magical tennis before shit gets serious! 

Ganondorf: And you know what’s the funniest part of all of this? And by funny I mean haunts my dreams every Goddamned night? Even if this never happened and I did just go through with my “quietly have the royal family killed and take over Hyrule” scheme? A part of me still wouldn’t be happy ruling a peaceful, happy land. 

Ganondorf: Either I rule Hyrule, the kingdom that I was borderline obsessed with ruling when I was a young bandit, but I’m deeply, violently unsatisfied for the rest of my life...

Ganondorf: Or I Destroy It Forever.

[startrek-z]

STZ V: Part 4

Link endured the Astro-botany, a class in interstellar economics, and an Earth history class-mandatory  for all non-Earther  cadets. But while he sat shivering and clenching his jaw shut to keep his chattering teeth still, he found his mind constantly floating back to his conversation with the girl Melissa and her offer to fence later- and most surprisingly of all his acceptance of said offer and the subsequent butterflies in his stomach.

 ‘Why do I feel this way?’ he wondered as he walked back to his room after the Earth History  class.  ‘Am I actually feeling nervous about it? Does she feel she has something to prove after I criticized her the other day?!’  He came in to the room and threw his books and himself down on the bed. Jeremy looked up from his desk and raised and eyebrow but didn’t say anything, for which Link was grateful. The human was beginning to learn about his room mates odd moods.   After a few more minutes off silent rumination Link got up and went to his own computer terminal and was pleased to see he had a message waiting for him. His excitement grew when he saw it was from Pavel on the Reliant.     Dear Link, I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you, but sending  messages from this far out it takes a while to receive/reply.  How is the academy? I’ll bet not much has changed sense I left. You may not love Jeremy, but at least he’s a human…you could have gotten stuck with a Vulcan!   I heard from Sulu the other day, he said he’d be sending you a message, but I’ll bet a months pay he forgets. Some things never change.   Life here out in the middle of nowhere hasn’t been very interesting. After a while all the planets start to look the same, and so far we haven’t discovered any new life forms or civilizations. Makes  me wish for the ‘good old days’ on the Enterprise with Admiral Kirk when there was always something going on.   Any way, send me an update soon, I’ll be waiting. Oh, Kyle says ‘Hi.’ I’ll tell him you said ‘Hi.’ Back you he’ll leave me alone! Maybe sometime when were in range I’ll send you a vid message.   Be good and do well in whatever your asked to do. I’m proud of you and miss you. And don’t forget to take care of your sister!              Much love,                 Pavel Link couldn’t help but feel the tears well up in his eyes for a second as another strong wave of homesickness hit him. Leave it to his friend to remind him to take care of  Zelda!   After taking a deep breath, he reread the note, and this time couldn’t help a chuckle. Kyle was the Reliant’s Communications officer and a friend of sorts, and Link found himself remembering a trick he and Pavel had palyed on him a year or so ago…was it really only that long?!    Jeremy smiled at Link’s back as he watched his room mates total demeanor change, so he ventured to ask, “Who’s it from? Your sis again?”    “No, it’s from Pavel.” Link replied not minding the prying. “As in Commander  Pavel Checkov…Kirk’s navigator!?” Jeremy gasped.   Link gave him a long suffering look, ‘I thought we’d been over this before!’ he thought mildly  irritated. “Yes one in the same. He’s a good friend of mine, and one of my sponsors.”    “Oooh, makes sense…” Jeremy mumbled to himself, “Your really lucky you know that?”    “Yeah I guess…” Link sighed, sometimes, actually most of the time he wasn’t really. Jeremy was continuing to go on and on about how ‘lucky’ Link was to be tight with the former officers of the Enterprise , but the other boy wasn’t listening.  He was too busy composing a reply.     After a space of quiet work for both of them Jeremy’s stomach made a loud noise. “I’m hungry.” He complained.   “Your always hungry,” Link replied automatically, forgetting who he was talking to. “Yeah, so sue me!” Jeremy laughed, “Why don’t we head out for dinner now?”     Link looked up a the clock ,it was  19:30, there was only half an hour left for dinner. Then he had to meet up with Melissa. Again the butterflies wiggled in his stomach.    “Sure, lets go.” He said getting up and shutting the economics book.   “Yes!” Jeremy exclaimed shooting up from his desk a putting a fist in the air. “Food, here I come!”    The Hylian shook his head in mock despair. “You remind me of some one you know that?” he commented dryly.   “Who?”  the other asked as they walked down the hall.      “My sister. She’s obsessed with food.” He replied. “Really?  There’s nothing wrong with that…she sounds like my kinda girl.”   Link could only snort in laughter at that one.    “What?!” His friend demanded., but he didn’t get a reply. They went into the room and it was mostly empty and quiet due to the late hour.  They had very little competition in the food line . “Maybe we should eat this late all  the time,” Jeremy suggested, “We can eat in peace. No crowds , no fights , no noise…”   Link had to admit it was nice. You could actually hear yourself thinking, and it was easier to hold a conversation- if you were inclined that way any way.  Time passed quickly and Link found he was actually hungry for once, and he ate more than usual. He was thinking about going up for one more cookie- a new indulgence of his- but he saw the time and realized he had go.   “See ya’ later Jeremy,” he said casually getting up and pushing in his chair.   “Hey! Where ya’ goin’?” the human asked as he walked away with a little wave. “Freako.” Jeremy muttered, looking around for someone else to ‘hang’ with. *** “You’re late,” Melissa said with a slight grin. Link uncertainly returned the smile, fighting off waves of the in-explainable nervousness. She tossed him a mask and blade. “Let’s get started, shall we?” He nodded, fumbling a bit with the mask as he put it on. He didn’t feel the warmth he normally did as he wrapped his hand around the blade’s hilt. The weight of the weapon felt unfamiliar and awkward. 'What’s wrong with me?’ he wondered nervously. This had never happened before. Was his focus really that offset? “Link? We gonna start?” Melissa asked, watching him closely. He straightened, snapping to attention. Her violet eyes locked with his, and again the nervousness clouded his being. When had he felt this before? 'Malon.’ The realization of it startled him, and he literally flinched. He had felt this way about Malon. So now, why did Melissa make him feel this way? 'Because you love her,’ Impa, Zelda’s sheikahn attendant had told him. Of course, she’d been talking about Malon at the time. For a moment, those purple eyes seemed blue, and the light hair looked beautifully red. “Link?” “Um…yeah,” he stammered, shaking his head a little as though throwing off the memories. “Let’s go.” The bowed to each other, then began. They circled wearily, both anxiously looking for an opening. Link could feel beads of sweat gathering on his face and neck. She attacked; he dodged. He didn’t feel the rythym–his focus refused to return to him. What was happening to him? There was an opening. He lounged forward to strike. Suddenly, he was fighting Ganondorf again…he was running the Master Sword through the monster’s skull–he could feel the tension ease as the blade passed through bone and into brain. The fencing foil dropped to the ground with a clatter before it even touched her. Melissa stared in surprise as Link put a hand to his head. “Link?” “I’m sorry, I can’t do this tonight,” he murmured. “Are you alright?” “Yeah, I…I just have a headache is all,” he lied, pulling off his mask with a trembling hand. “I’m sorry, I’ve wasted your time.” “No, not at all!” she stammered, shocked at the ghostly white pallor of his face. “Are you sure you’re alright? Maybe I should take you to the infirmary–” “No! …no, that’s not necessary. I just…need some air. I’m sorry, I’ll talk to you later, okay?” She nodded, and watched worriedly as he walked out. As soon as Link was outside, he started running. He ran and ran and ran, trying desperately to get away from the memories. He wasn’t aware when the buildings stopped and the trees began, hoping to pound out the troubling thoughts with each jarring step. His breath clouded in the cool evening air with each heavy gasp. He’d been running for nearly 20 minutes before he finally stopped, tired and short of breath. He’d reached a long rocky shoreline. The sea stretched out forever before him; the smell and taste of salt was so strong, he wondered how he’d overlooked it on his way here. The water was calm and still, tinted with a light shade of maroon, the color of dusk. The sky seemed alive with red and orange flames. Without warning, another memory exploded into his eyes. Blood ran thick down his hands as the huge form of Ganon loomed over him, screeching. Violent splotches of scarlet blinded him and he heard that horrifying roar once again. He was on his knees, retching, trembling. He was back on Earth, near the shore, the remains of his dinner now splashed over the cold rocks and dripping into the violet seaweed below. As his senses returned, he crawled a distance away, and lay down on a large flat boulder, pressing his flushed cheeks against the cool, rough surface. 'what is happening to me?’ he wondered again. For awhile he simply lay there, breathing deeply, trying to calm down and regain control of his racing mind. It was long after dark before he finally sat up, feeling a little better, though very drained. Shimmering drops of moonlight danced on the calm sea waters, and above him the stars twinkled brightly. His blond bangs fluttered a bit in the breeze. He knew it had to stop. He couldn’t keep going with images dancing in his head, rendering him senseless. The waking nightmares were disturbing, and he couldn’t imagine trying to explain it off if one suddenly struck during a class or field exam. But… Who could he turn to? He didn’t want to worry Pavel, he’d done enough of that for one lifetime. Zelda was out of the question…after all, she’d just told him to stop living in the past. He didn’t dare say anything to Jeremy or Melissa; they’d probably write him off as crazy. He wasn’t sure he wanted to see Melissa anytime soon, anyway…not after realizing that he was attracted to her. He felt ashamed of those feelings–Malon was his love…his fiancé. Though now they would never get the chance to marry, he didn’t think it right to have his eyes on other women; it was an insult to her memory. “Malon,” he whispered, looking up at the twinkling stars, “I’m so sorry.”

Previous | Index | Next

[risingsouls]

Conversations: 5

[WELP. Another I’m reposting (probably). Feel free to read if you want, but if you’ve been following either series, you probably read it already :’3]

“Want anything to drink?” Nabooru pulled the fridge open and leaned down, considering her own options. “I’ve got pretty much anything in here: water, juice, soda, alcohol.”

Vegeta lowered himself onto one of the couches, watching her disappear behind the island’s counter separating the kitchen and the living room. He folded his arms and crossed his right ankle over his left knee. “Whatever’s fine.”

When his day began, even after the tumultuous morning he suffered at Capsule Corp., he never would have imagined he would follow Nabooru home, spend time with her outside of sparring seated comfortably on her couch, or consider staying in the guest room she offered. To spare his pride at least for the first few times (if it became something regular at all; that he had yet to decide), he planned to train later than her and return while she slept. However, he had every intention of ensuring she made good on her promise and explain her earlier claim, her motive behind the almost too generous offer.

“Don’t think you’ve gotten out of answering my question from earlier.”

Truthfully, she hoped he had forgotten. She fished out a few bottles of water and considered the coming task at hand. Standing, she closed the refrigerator and opened the freezer, pulling out a barely touched bottle of whiskey. A gift from Nappa.  “Of course you didn’t.” Opening the cabinet, she grabbed two glasses and filled them with the amber liquid. She wasn’t about to tell this particular story without a little help nor would she drink alone. She idly wished she had waited to change from her training clothes to the dull orange camisole and a pair of dark gray shorts; at least that would offer her another chance to stall.

She picked up each glass, holding them by the lip between her thumb and forefinger, and, after a second thought, tucked the bottle of whiskey beneath her other arm along with the pair of water bottles. “You sure you don’t want to change or something? Take a shower?” She placed one glass of whiskey and bottle of water in front of him on the circular table before taking a seat on the couch across from him on the other side. “I could probably talk to Lanu about potentially fixing your armor, too. She’s good at that sort of thing.”

“You’re stalling.” His glare slid from her to the drinks offered to him. He snorted when he caught a whiff of the alcohol. If her attempts to distract him weren’t evidence enough to it, the liquor more than solidified the fact that the story was not one she was fond of telling. It seemed to be their normal vein of conversation if the topic didn’t revolve around fighting. “I don’t have anything here to change into, and I’m not wearing your clothes or some other stupid suggestion you might come up with. Now talk.”

“Have you just been dwelling on this all day?” she huffed, disappointed her every tactic fell flat. She swirled the liquid around in the glass, considering where to begin. “I’ll have to give you a little background to how I ended up in that state of mind…”

She shrugged the strap of her tank top back up onto her shoulder. The story at hand would force her to delve back into her most painful memories. Those that started the unfortunate domino effect that forced her into tough scenarios and even tougher decisions. Many of which she wondered if she chose correctly and the potential alternates kept her up at night. Those loose ends left untied that niggled at her mind and perturbed her.

"You remember how I told you that our king had planned to overthrow Hyrule and likely take it over himself?" 

Vegeta nodded once. Though most of those who thought they knew him best would protest, the Saiyan prince remembered more details about the people around him than he let on. As long as he deemed it useful or the more rare occasions he found it actually interesting. Her story fell under both categories.

Nabooru considered a swig of her whiskey but held off. Her chest felt too tight, even after all these years. It was almost laughable, her claims questionable. A woman whose very purpose in life for as long as she could remember was to serve and protect her people, to pull them from the deepening pit they found themselves in and better their lives and allow them something sustainable that didn't rely on scavenging and scraping by. Who had pride and passion in them, who admired their ambitious but equally passionate king committing the highest crime against the two things she held most dear.

"As his second in command, he trusted me with his plans. It started as a wild dream chasing an artifact I'm still not sure exists that could grant a wish to help us to...something darker. More dangerous. I saw him change right before my eyes over those years. He became obsessed, and the line between helping our people and securing power became blurry." Now she took a drink, the burn of it easily disregarded in conjunction with the pain of memory. "Our relationship aside, it worried me. It all felt dangerous and wrong, a power not meant for us or any other mortal. He not only endangered himself on this quest, but I saw how it could further endanger our people. The Hylians believed we worshipped our kings like gods anyway, so it wasn't a far leap for them to assume that, should Ganondorf fail or be found out, that we would rise up and try to finish what he started. Give them more reason to hate us and incite violence against us with a more solid stance than they held previously.

"Had we not suffered so much in the war, if Hyrule's alliances with the other races remained more tenuous and their hate for us was a little milder, maybe I would have had his optimism in the plan, knowing we could defend ourselves if things went wrong. I hadn't yet fully seen the walls we faced in resolving our differences diplomatically, and that is, unfortunately, where my optimism had lain. We argued plenty about his obsession with the Triforce, but it wasn't until I found out that, in order to obtain whatever he needed to gain access to it, he had attacked the other races when they wouldn't comply. Such show of force when we were all meant to be unified, such violence of degrees that could severely damage whole communities, wouldn't go unnoticed or swept under the rug. That is when I knew I had to stop him." She felt as though she was back in that moment in the Spirit Temple, face to face with Ganondorf for one of the last times. The weight of her decision to defy and actively try to stop him crushing. What that decision meant by their law.

"And I did try to stop him and sabotage his plans. I gave him the impression that, at his warning and what he considered mercy, I was self-exiling myself to avoid execution. I disappeared into the desert for several days before returning to our temple which he had since closed off to use as his base of operations. I defied the orders set that all Gerudo stay away from the temple, information I gathered from Aveil when I returned to the fortress first. None of them knew I had even been technically exiled, likely so he could save face and maintain the appearance that he wasn't up to something they might not like. But, when I returned to the temple, I was captured by his mothers and imprisoned, set to face trial for treason against our king and our people, the only things that truly mattered to me."

Sipping at his own drink, Vegeta didn't miss the twisting of her expression when she uttered the word treason. The pieces of her history were clicking together far more succinctly than they had with the first telling that lacked these more...personal details. He supposed they hadn't been needed to answer his first question about who filled the role of Frieza in her life to answer it sufficiently. He employed similar tactics when he could get away with the bare bones of the information, either to protect himself or avoid discussing matters he didn't care to or found irrelevant. Though he could not relate to her dismay of betraying her king and country, as he never got the chance to do so, and betraying Frieza hadn't required much emotional searching. All he had to fear was death for the attempt, and he never particularly felt alive during that time, anyway. She faced her entire people's scrutiny and the personal shame of turning on her king and by proxy them, which likely called her trustworthiness and allegiance into question. Among other things.

“And yet you weren’t executed, obviously.”

Nabooru sensed the hint of impatience; she supposed she should have warned him the preamble was a lengthy one. It wouldn’t deter her from telling the tale correctly. “No. I was given a trial and we both told our sides of the story. My service to the Gerudo in the past and genuine concern apparently helped me avoid outright execution, much to Ganondorf’s disappointment. He and the Elite instead sentenced me to the Kavi Dorova, a cave that leads to a series of unknown challenges. No one had ever survived it, so it was as good as a death sentence. On the off chance I did survive, I could return to the Gerudo with my rank intact.”

Vegeta snorted. “I take it your king had little faith you would survive, then. Or he planned to strip you of your rank on the off chance you returned despite the judgement.”

“I never got to find out,” she replied, chewing the inside of her lip. She drained her glass and refilled it. “He was gone by the time I healed up after the ordeal. Which is where your question comes into play.

“I don’t know how long I had been down there or how far I had gotten. Each fight was harder and felt more pointless than the last with more numerous and powerful monsters each time. Half of them I didn’t even recognize. I was starving, dehydrated, had sustained more injuries than I could count, and had almost been frozen to death by some ice beast. As I tried to rest, curled around the lone torch in the room for warmth, I was ready to give up. Nothing mattered to me any more. Not my pride or my people, not fighting or my talent as a warrior. None of it had saved me down there and I was ready to just perish. It would be easier than going on. Easier than facing the Gerudo again if I ever escaped that hell."

She rested her back against the cushions. "But...I was never one to just settle for easy. I was too stubborn to let that pit beat me. Somehow, I fought on. I remembered what my people had suffered and, despite the hole they tossed me into and a fair portion of them wanting me killed on the spot, I had dedicated my life to being a Gerudo warrior and protecting them. I convinced myself I had to get back and make good on that promise no matter what they thought of me.

"The last things I remember is nearly being gutted by a Darknut, stabbing him with its own sword, and dragging myself on the ground toward a light. Aveil said they found me barely alive outside the cave and losing a lot of blood. I woke up to finding out Ganondorf had been captured and arrested and that I would have to take over as leader."

The Gerudo's laugh was short, bitter, and she took another hearty swig of the whiskey. A position she never thought she would ascend to since a king sat on the throne in her lifetime. She wanted to feel honored, but the increasingly hostile environment she awoke to made the promotion a bittersweet one. Between a split tribe at home and fighting a losing battle for the barest of scraps to help her people abroad, it was a wonder how she didn't snap and lead them into that losing war anyway. 

"It didn't take long for that confidence to waver. I quickly realized that the monsters down there were far easier to combat than those I found on the surface: I didn't feel guilty about killing them for my survival."

"Guilt is a pain, isn't it?" He smirked at her and poured himself another glass of the whiskey. "I'm sure you would have felt much more satisfied if you tore through the bastards that wronged you like you did those beasts in the pit. I may not have gotten Frieza, but I killed three of his best men who were almost as bad along with the better portion of his special forces."

To his surprise, Nabooru smiled herself, and she laughed softly. "I'm not sure there's a day that doesn't go by that I fantasize about it. That I don't play out potential strategies in my head that might have brought us success. I even drew a few up when I was bored once. Burned them but…" She trailed off and raised her hand, palm to the ceiling. An orange-to-yellow gradient ball of ki materialized atop it. "The others seem happy enough here. Safe might be a strong word, but learning ki has helped us stay protected." 

Save for the one time they all died apparently. The lack of memory of that event still bothered her. Another story she wanted to press from Vegeta if she got the chance.

"If we had this knowledge back then...for our whole existence…" She closed her fist around the glowing energy, dissipating it in a small shower of sparks. "I wonder how things would have been different…"

The prince understood those longings, the constant wondering what could have been done better, what one aspect could change the outcome of his life. Back when he served Frieza and before. In more recent memory. He knew it was all pointless conjecture, and he suspected she did, too. But it didn't stop them from wondering about the lives they, perhaps, should have had.

"Chances are some bastard like Frieza or his brother Cooler would take interest in your warrior race and force you into their servitude. And if you were lucky, they would leave more than a few of you alive to serve in their army." Lucky. he had come to despise that word since Frieza used it in regards to him not being blasted to bits with the rest of his race. "Lucky might be a strong word, though."

Nabooru sipped her whiskey, glad for the warmth and lightness it began to provide. She should stop, if only for the risk of facing the consequences in the morning, but, as if in direct defiance of her own thoughts, she finished off the glass and poured another. "You're probably right." Shifting to the side, she rested her weight against the arm of the couch and stretched her legs out to the side of her, tracing the rim of her glass with her finger. "Tell me about those guys you killed. Like how you did it. Maybe I can live vicariously through you."

“Is that how that works?” Vegeta snorted and drained his second glass, filling it again to join her on the third round. He wondered at the strength of this liquor. Earth’s typical fare didn’t usually affect him after two drinks. He wouldn’t describe himself as tipsy yet by any means, but he was willing to blame the alcohol for silently turning their casual conversation over drinks into a contest. “Fine. That was the better half of that damn trip to Namek…”

Before everything went horribly wrong, and, when he saw her tilt her head slightly to the side and her lips part to ask what he meant by that, he drew her focus back to the first request. Strange as it was, considering what he gathered from her thus far.

“Let’s see…” He raised a gloved hand, casting the bare tips of a few of his fingers a fleeting glare. “I blew up Cui and Dodoria. Blew a hole through Zarbon.” He ticked each one off on his fingers. “I decapitated Guldo, knee dropped Burter in the throat, and blasted Recoome and Jeice to oblivion.” He decided not to mention that Recoome and Burter had been incapacitated by Kakarot in an impressive display of speed and strength prior to his finishing blows. 

“Wow…” None of the names meant much to her, but she had no trouble believing those men who served a monster like Frieza so loyally possessed the same mindset he did. And if Vegeta found issue with them and he wasn’t exactly a glowing beacon of kindness and fairness, unless he was outright lying which she doubted on this, she had no reason to question that they had caused him and perhaps the other remaining Saiyans trouble while they were in Frieza’s service. “Sounds like you did have a good day, then.”

He draped his free arm over the back of the couch. “Did that satisfy you?”

Nabooru had to bite back a giggle, the haze of alcohol in her mind sliding it toward the gutter. “Not in the way I was hoping, unfortunately. But what made the rest of that trip so horrible?"

"Besides Kakarot becoming a Super Saiyan before me and killing Frieza?" He tapped his chest near his heart. "Frieza killed me. Don't give me that look. It didn't last long. Kakarot's idiot friends accidentally revived me with the Dragonballs because they wished everyone killed by Frieza and his men back to life. That included me."

Nabooru did her best to wipe the stunned expression from her face, and her gaze followed his hand. With a chunk of his armor missing, she could just make out the jagged edge of a faded scar. He really just didn't catch many breaks, did he?

She finished off the drink in her hand and set the glass on the table before slumping further into the couch to sprawl out more comfortably on her side. "For what it's worth, I'm glad they messed that up." The words left her lips before she could stop them, and, though she hated how sappy they sounded, she supposed the truth in them made them worth uttering. "I mean...we wouldn't have met otherwise, and I wouldn't have a training partner that could help me improve as much as you have."

“Hmpt, how flattering…” He didn’t doubt her words. With staging her tournament and with those who answered her call, she could have requested a sparring partner from many of the other combatants that would provide her at least entertainment if not a challenge to her unexpected strength. And with Kakarot there as well…

“Why did you ask me over Kakarot, anyway? You had the chance to ask him to train with you, and you didn’t.” 

Nabooru propped her elbow beneath her and rested her head on her palm. The question wasn't out of place; even he begrudgingly admitted Goku surpassed him in strength, so it would make sense she seek out the most powerful person to train with. Instead, she had chosen him. Second place over first.

"It was just a guess, but I figured you would be a better trainer for me. Close to the hardened, take no prisoners style of training and fighting I'm used to. I doubted Goku would push me as far as you could. And after finding out that you and I had a similar story in some ways..." She shrugged a shoulder. "Besides, I guess I'm a little biased still after watching the two of you fight that clown android. I know Goku wasn't exactly at full capacity but...well, watching you tear that thing to scrap, feeling the drastic rise of your energy when you transformed...I guess it just stuck with me after all these years."

Vegeta had forgotten she had shown up to that fight, no matter how briefly she remained among their band of would-be heroes. He had been too focused on dismantling a couple androids to pay her much mind. Perhaps if he had, he would have had a competent sparring partner all this time. Decent company, too. His mindset had been so different back then, more erratic and laser focused on his one goal...would he have even bothered should she have asked him to train with her before she returned to her people that day? After the Cell Games? Had she sought him out before her own tournament?

“You were likely correct. Kakarot is too soft to properly train and spar with anyone. He would be too afraid of hurting you, even though you’ve proven you’re more than capable of taking hard hits.” Nabooru stifled a yawn, and the Saiyan noted her heavy eyelids with mild annoyance. “Are you drunk already, woman?”

She stretched languidly and giggled. “No, I’m just a little tipsy.” A slight fib; she had forgotten Nappa’s warnings and her own singular experience with the liquor he gifted her. The effects of it snuck up on her and caught her off guard. “Mind your own business. I’m fine.”

Vegeta rolled his eyes and stood, arching his back to stretch his spine. He finished off his drink and snatched up the bottle before she could try to make herself another. She reached out a whole two seconds too late to stop him and he snorted. “Your shit reaction time says otherwise.” He strode to the kitchen and slid the bottle back into the freezer. “Drink your water and go to bed. I’m going back out to train and no, you can’t come with me.”

Her whine devolved into another fit of giggles and she flopped onto her back. “Training I can’t help with, huh? Just let me know if you do need an extra hand.”

Vegeta paused with his hand on the door knob, the meaning of her suggestion dawning on him far too slowly. He swiped his other hand over his face. “Don’t be crude. Go to bed.”

She flipped him off with a lazy grin. “Goodnight, Vegeta. Don’t have too much fun without me~.”

He merely groaned in response and slipped back out into the cool desert night, door slamming behind him.