Everyone watched Vejiita until he appeared as nothing but a tiny speck in the sky, then turned back to Bulma, who was staring after him with her blue eyes misted over with tears. She was moving her lips as if she were speaking, but no words were coming out, and her hands were clutching the crayon written note so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

Gohan shifted from one foot to the other and looked around at the house and the area around Capsule Corp. It was big, yes, but not that big. With her size and age, Bra could not have gotten that far. He put a comforting hand on Bulma’s shoulder.

“She couldn’t have gone far. After all, she’s not that old and she can’t fly. She has to be around here somewhere. Why don’t we all split up and search the grounds around Capsule Corp.?” He suggested, and everyone nodded at the idea.

“What was she wearing, Bulma? It would be easier if we had something to look for.” Juuhachi-gou inquired in a quiet voice. It looked as though something were bothering her, though Gohan couldn’t say what it was. The cyborg was standing tall next to her brother Juunana-gou, who didn’t even seem to realize that the little girl was missing, and if he did, he didn’t care. Gohan realized that he hadn’t seen Kuririn and Juuhachi-gou together all morning, and that Kuririn also looked quite upset himself.

Bulma thought about her question for a moment, then buried her face in her hands. “I don’t remember!” She sobbed. “What kind of a mother am I, that I can’t even remember a little thing like that?! I can’t believe this….”

What would it be like if Pan were the one that had run away? Gohan wondered. The way Videl has been acting lately, I think she would be much worse than Bulma about now. He didn’t even like it when Pan wandered more than a few feet away from him, let alone run away. The mere thought of it made him sick to his stomach with fear. It made Bulma seem a little less crazy at the moment, and Gohan felt terrible for her.

“Bulma-san, don’t cry.” Goten pleaded, looking rather uncomfortable.

“Don’t tell me what to do, baka!” She screamed at him, momentarily forgetting her manners.

Gohan started. Things were getting a little out of hand. “Please, everyone. We aren’t going to find her by screaming and we aren’t going to find her by crying. We will split up and search the area methodically until we have found her.”

“Hai, Kaasan. We’ll find her.” Trunks reassured his mother, and walked up to Goten, his eyes full of determination. “Goten and I will find her.”

The group broke apart then, everyone heading off in different directions yelling Bra’s name and searching for the little girl. Only Bulma was left behind, standing in the middle of all of the crates and boxes ready for loading, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I hope so.” She whispered softly. "And maybe while you're out there....Do you think you could find my husband too?"

Piccolo was flying towards Capsule Corporation quickly. He knew he wasn’t arriving there on time, but since he had no luggage to take with him and no need for food, he didn’t see why he had to be there when everyone else arrived. Let them take care of their own human priorities first, and then I will join them when it’s all over with.

He was exicted about the mission, he had to admit that. Not because he was too eager to save ChiChi or anything to that effect, but he missed the thrill of a battle. The last real battle had been over ten years ago, and although sitting on a rock all day meditating was enjoyable, it wasn’t exactly entertaining for him. As much as he hated to admit it, the battle just a few days ago with Sukuashi had been the highlight of the past few years, and it made him feel like himself again.

I guess there is no better feeling than looking into the eyes of your enemy and experiencing that wonderful surge of adreniline go through you like electricity. He could remember the sound of fist hitting skin, blow to blow, striking bone, feeling someone lurch over in pain; the exileration of a win, and the humbling of a loss. It was all there, all there in a battle, and he missed it.

He was flying close to Capsule Corp. now, over a large grassy field that waved before him in the wind like the waves of the ocean, mixing the light gold with the dark gold, and looking rather beautiful indeed in his harsh eyes. He stopped to admire it, looking over the sea of golden grain, transfixed by the way it waved back and forth in front of him.

Then, in the distance, as if to ruin the beauty of the scene, he spotted a small figure, too large to be an animal, too small to be an adult, wading through the field of grain, parting it like a parting of the sea. She was running as fast her small little legs could possibly carry her, a joyful grin on her pretty little face as she spread out her arms like an air plane and twirled around in the wheat for a moment, before continuing on her original path.

He stood still, suspended in air for a moment of decision, then began to fly towards the ground, landing amid the long strands of golden grain, looking rather out of place. At the sudden block in her path, the girl stared at his feet in confusion.

She looked up, and up, and up until she could see Piccolo’s face, squinting her blue eyes in the bright sun. The girl stopped then and stared up at him with wide eyes and an open mouth, gazing at him in wonderment.

Circling the area again in a wide arc, Vejiita looked over the trees in search of Bra, getting angrier and feeling more desperate by the second. Why would she run away? Why would Bra just get up and leave like that? This isn’t like her. She is happy.

Sure, he hadn’t been exactly the father of the year. He wasn’t a very loving parent or person, and never could be, but he had never hit her, and always fed her. Vejiita couldn’t understand the whole circumstance, but it felt very suspcious to him, and although he didn’t know what was going on just yet, he knew that it wasn’t right. There was something more to just Bra’s running away.

Speaking of, if he didn’t find her soon, he was going to lose his mind. All he could see was Bulma’s tearful face before his, as she screamed that it was all his fault for being such a bakayaro and never paying any attention to her.

If that was all it took to make a child run away, Trunks would have been gone long ago.

He uttered a low growl and paused for a moment, closing his eyes. He was too blinded by anger and desperation to concentrate and find her ki before, but now he just might be able to do it. In an instant, he knew where she was, surprisingly right close to another familiar ki: Piccolo.

He drew his brows together in confusion, then headed off to the field at the east of Capsule Corp.

“Why are you green?” Bra asked him suddenly. She had been silent so far, ever since he had picked her up and started walking back to Capsule Corporation with her. He was holding her by the back of her little jacket, and she was dangling from his arm, just above the wheat, kicking her legs back and forth as if it were a ride. He refused to look at her.

“What?”

“You’re green.” She informed him, grinning.

“I know that.”

“But why?” Bra insisted.

Piccolo’s eyes darted to the side, finally looking at her. “Why do you want to know?”

“Because you’re green!”

“I know that.” Piccolo growled. This was beginning to get rather tiresome.

She giggled, putting her small, gloved hands over her little mouth and closing her eyes. Piccolo noticed that she was wiggling more than usual and looked down at her in surprise. For some reason, he began to feel very self-conscious.

“What are you laughing at?!” He demanded angrily.

“You’re green.” Bra giggled, pointing at him.

He stopped walking and stared at her angrily, lifting her up until she was almost at level with his eyes. “Be quiet brat, or I’m going to just leave you here.”

She smiled. “What is your name?”

He didn’t answer her for awhile, but she started staring at him in question, and he couldn’t stand to have her looking at him like that.

“Piccolo. My name is Piccolo.”

“Piccolo-san is green.” She giggled.

“I know that.”

“You’re not very pretty.”

He stopped walking again and stared at her in confusion. What an odd little thing. No wonder her parents sent her away. I would too. Gohan never said anything like that to me….And who cares if I’m green? I hope she isn’t going with us.

His thoughts were inturrupted by a loud screech of happiness from Bra. “Papa!!”

She squirmed out of his grasp and dropped down into the wheat, joyfully skipping to where Vejiita stood, with his arms crossed tightly over his chest and a stern look on his face. He didn’t even seem to notice that Piccolo was there. When Bra finally reached him, she threw herself around his leg, hugging it tightly.

Vejiita didn’t move, and his expression didn’t change. He just stood there staring down at her, looking like a statue standing in the middle of a wheat field. “Where did you go!?”

“I ran away.” She informed him happily, looking up at his face with a warm smile.

“Why?!”

Bra bit her lip and looked down at her toes. “I can’t tell you that.”

“Why not?!”

She didn’t speak, just continued to stare down at her shoes, which were shiny red one with a single strap that were so tiny it looked like a doll shoe. With one hand, she dusted off her skirt, keeping the other tightly wrapped around Vejiita’s leg.

When she didn’t speak, Vejiita finally looked up at Piccolo. “You take her.” He ordered, and then took off with a start, leaving Bra grasping nothing but air, but she didn’t seem too concerned about it. She merely turned around and made a beeline for Piccolo, throwing herself around his legs as well. She looked up at him with a grin on her face.

Piccolo stared at her in horror, then shouted after her father, who was disappearing rapidly away from them. “Vejiita!”

Chapter 15
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