Marron sighed, and tugged on one of her blond pigtails in anger. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t seem to get her hair to do anything that she wanted it to. And no matter how hard she tried, she could never manage to look sexy in pigtails. They stayed fluffy and sickeningly blond, bound in pink bands with curls like she was a five-year-old girl. And her face, no matter how much makeup she painted on it, still looked chubby and childlike. It was completely frustrating. Especially when she saw Tayhei, who wasn’t that much older than her, looking as though she had just stepped out of a fashion magazine. She could probably get any guy she wanted, any time she wanted. It was just too unfair.

She cursed and kicked at the cupboard beneath the bathroom sink, wishing that she looked like her mother instead of a female version of her father. Instead of a hard kick at the cupboard though, her foot slipped on the slick metal, and she felt her balance kick out from under her. She wavered for a moment, flailing her arms about in a pinwheel-like fashion in attempt to regain her balance, but she ended up on the tile floor anyway, landing straight on her ass.

“Kuso!” She cursed again, smashing a fist into the tile angrily as she struggled to get back on her feet.

Tayhei chose that moment to enter the bathroom, looking cool and confident and especially beautiful at that moment. She glanced at Marron, raising one perfectly shaped eyebrow, then rolled her eyes in annoyance. She crossed her slender arms across her chest, which made her perfect figure stand out even more, and watched as Marron scrambled along on the floor.

“Don’t even say anything!” Marron snapped, and she jumped to her feet, rubbing her rear end with a grimace. “Anyone could have fallen down like that.”

Tayhei blinked. “Yes, but you did it with such style, Muffin.”

“My name is Marron!”

The older girl rolled her eyes in contempt. “Whatever. It isn’t my fault you have the grace of a water buffalo. At least I can maintain my balance with little or no complications.”

Glaring at her, Marron nodded towards the door, as if making a suggestion. “Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping, you troll?”

Tayhei glanced at her sideways. “Unlike some people, I don’t need a great deal of beauty sleep.”

Marron threw her hands on her hips and let out an angry breath. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?!”

She smiled sweetly. “Let’s face it, Mary. You aren’t exactly the most attractive thing on Earth.”

“MARRON!” She screeched, raising her fists up to Tayhei’s face. “My name is MARRON! How hard is that to understand?!”

“I don’t care what your name is.” Tayhei said slowly, as if Marron couldn’t understand her. She lowered her hands to the sink and turned on the water. “I just came in here to wash my hands. If you have a problem with that, I suggest you wait outside until I’m finished.”

“You….You….” Marron threatened. “You are the meanest, most terrible person I know! In fact, I hope one of those Saiya-jins shoots you dead!”

“Now, Marion, that’s just plain cruel.” Tayhei gasped in mock surprise, drying her hands on the peach towel next to the sink. “What would Goten say if he heard you threatening me like that? I may be new here, but I know for a fact that Goten appreciates kindness….”

“What would you know about kindness?” Marron asked, her eyes misting over with tears. “I bet you’ve never done a kind thing in your entire life! You’re going to die an old, bitter woman with no friends, no money, and a whole lot of cats! And not even the cute kind of cats! You’re going to have the ones with big ears and no hair, with those pushed in faces that always look like they’re mad! And you’re going to be ugly too! And fat! And you’re going to have ugly, unstylish clothes that are too big for you! And you’re probably going to live in a box and sell yourself….” She lowered her voice. “Like the whore you are.”

“And now I’m a whore too?” Tayhei questioned, laughing lightly. “Anything else before I go?”

“Yeah! You’re not making me feel too great, you know? You’re not doing good things for my self esteem.” Marron added, tearfully. “I think you are a really, really terrible person. I don’t see why anyone likes you at all. You should be shot. I’m nice! And I know I’m not ugly, either. I don’t care what you say.”

Tayhei reached out and put a finger under Marron’s chin, lifting it slightly. Marron wasn’t sure, but she thought she detected just a bit of sympathy in her eyes. “Oh, Muffin. I don’t do this to tear you down. I do it to build you up. Maybe someday when you grow up, you’ll see that.”

She was out the door in seconds, leaving behind only a cloud of perfume and Marron, still sniffling and crying like an abandoned child. “My name is MARRON!”

She appeared ahead of him like a vision, a tear streaked face, deep blue eyes and feathery soft turquoise hair. The hallway was empty except for them, and although there should have been the sound of their footsteps, he heard nothing. He ceased walking and remained unmoving until she was at his side; he could sense that something was disturbing her heart. Her eyes were clouded, her mouth drawn in sorrow. She didn’t speak a word to him, but simply took his strong, powerful hand in hers and stared deeply into his eyes. Although there was no logical reason for it, he could feel her pain seeping into his own skin. He stared down at her, unblinking and steady, trying to find the answers deep within her soul.

There was no one around to see, no one around to witness any weakness, and it was because of this that he reached out his free hand and placed it gently under her chin, a sign of affection and understanding. In their relationship there hadn’t been very many affectionate moments. There had been a lot of passion and a lot of anger, but affection wasn’t something either of them chose to use often. Vejiita was proud and found simple things like holding hands or giving hugs and kisses something of a weakness. There were times though, when things like that were necessary. He didn’t like to admit it, but sometimes just a brush of Bulma’s lips or the feeling of her warm hand in his own was enough to comfort him for years on end. There weren’t very many things in life that Vejiita feared, but losing that, losing her, was one of them. And he felt, somehow someway, that it was about to happen.

Bulma closed her eyes and melted against him, wrapping her arms limply around his neck. “Oh, Vejiita. What’s wrong with me?”

He said nothing, a little surprised. He hadn’t expected her to speak.

“I feel so lost….” She murmured against his chest. “Everyone is moving, living on, and I’m standing still. I feel like I’m slowly dying. I keep having these dreams and I just….” She broke off, her chin trembling against him. She was small and fragile in his arms, seeming almost breakable. His heart warmed, and he had the strange impulse to wrap her up as tightly as he could in his arms and keep her there forever.

He said nothing, and she continued to speak, taking deep, shaky breaths in between words.

“I look at Tayhei and I just see myself….Like she’s living on in place of me. I want to tell her so much, I want her to know everything about life and how complicated it can be. I want to take care of her. She’s me, Vejiita. In some strange, twisted way….she’s me. I want to fix everything, I want to make it all right. And Bra, I’m so worried about her, I don’t know what I’m supposed to do….” She let out a cry. “And Trunks, oh Kami, he’s grown up so much. I’m so lost, Vejiita, I just don’t know why I’m feeling like this.”

Vejiita blinked and placed a stiff hand on the back of her head, loving the silkiness of her hair. She felt cool and lifeless in his arms, the heat and passion that he usually felt with her was gone. That intense heat had always been there before, and that’s what worried him the most. Before when they had touched, it felt as though he was roasting, burning from the outside inward; Bulma was the light, the center of warmth, a raging fire in his heart. Now it seemed as though the warmth was fading, slowly the fire was being extinguished, by what he didn’t know. It was like he was losing her, little by little, day by day. It wasn’t anything he wanted. If he had it his way, that burning feeling would remain with him for all of eternity. No, it wasn’t him, and his feelings hadn’t changed. He actually was losing her, slowly, painfully, in a way that he never thought he would.

She sobbed again. “I don’t know what’s happening to me. Oh Kami, Vejiita….What’s happening to me?”

He wanted to comfort her in some way, to stop her tears from falling, but he feared that if he spoke, he’d have to tell her the truth. And sometimes, the truth was far too painful to say out loud. So without words, and without pausing, he carefully lifted her head and met his lips to hers, pressing gently. He may not have spoken, but the kiss said everything that he could have possibly hoped to get across: I’m here, don’t leave me, you’re everything. Her tears increased at his kiss, spilling across both of their cheeks like drops of rain. Her arms tightened around his neck, her hands shook unsteadily at his back. She was falling apart in his arms, but he remained steady and strong, just like he always had, and just like he always would.

Piccolo was thinking, as usual. There was a lot to think about. The entire mission so far had consisted of mainly childish squabbles and one mishap after another. He was beginning to wonder why he associated with these people in the first place. Even Gohan, who was usually a stable force in his life, was beginning to wane a bit. Marital problems, Piccolo assumed, though he wouldn’t know much about that. He couldn’t imagine sharing a life that intimately with someone. There would be so many complications, and so many weaknesses left behind. He felt sorry for the whole population of married men, and their wives as well. Thinking about Bulma and Vejiita’s relationship, he wasn’t even sure which one he felt sorrier for. Bulma or Vejiita. Until recently, Gohan and Videl seemed to have the smoothest marriage, but evidently every marriage had its ups and downs.

“She got so angry when I said I wanted to go back to rescue Kaasan. I promised her before that I wouldn’t try to be a hero, but it’s my mother!” Gohan was explaining to him and Gokuu, a frown on his face. “Even though the circumstances have changed now and we’re going to Sukuashi anyway, I still can’t forget what she said. It was like she didn’t even care about Kaasan at all.”

“ChiChi has been like a mother to her.” Gokuu mentioned absentmindedly. There was a look of extreme concentration on his face, as if he were searching intently for something in his mind, or in his heart.

“Exactly!” Gohan agreed, exasperated. “Kaasan loves Videl like a daughter. I know she’d walk through hell and back just for Videl, and I can’t believe that Videl would give up on her like that. I’m not even sure why she said that. I think it might have something to do with Pan, though.”

“Why do you care?” Piccolo questioned, and glanced out the window at the millions of tiny stars before him.

“Because she’s my wife and I love her?” Gohan looked at him like he was crazy.

He didn’t reply, so much as grunt. He was busy watching their other companion. Gokuu was staring glumly out of the ships large picture window, sweat beading along his temples in concentration. Suddenly, he snapped to attention and jumped up, his muscles bound and tense. He stood still for a moment, as if listening to something, then turned to Piccolo and Gohan with an expression a mix of happiness and anxiety.

“What?” Piccolo asked, his eyes meeting Gokuu’s quickly. He already knew what it was of course; he had been searching for it since they left. He himself hadn’t felt anything, but he knew that the bond between ChiChi and Gokuu was far greater than any connection he could summon up between him and the woman.

“I can feel ChiChi’s ki!” Gokuu exclaimed, he reached out a hand and grabbed onto Gohan’s shoulder to steady himself. “Something’s happening to her. I have to---”

“No.” Piccolo commanded instantly, narrowing his eyes. “Absolutely not.”

His friend began pacing the room, his hands wringing anxiously in front of him. His usual light and cheerful eyes were full of nervousness. Little by little, his ki was growing, filling the room with a crackling sensation that left Piccolo at a loss for words. Gohan just looked startled.

“Listen! I can feel her ki!” Gokuu insisted, looking at them with wild eyes. “She’s alive, she’s okay! I have to go to her. Shunkan Idou will only take a moment! We wouldn’t even have to land.”

“We have to land anyway.” Gohan said, attempting to reason.

“Just let me go to her and get her here and keep her safe!” Gokuu pleaded, reaching his hand up into Shunkan Idou position and staring at them. “I don’t see what the problem is….”

“The problem is it’s too dangerous.” The Namek calmly asserted, and he brushed Gokuu’s hand away from his forehead. “By using Shunkan Idou, you’d be transporting yourself into a potentially dangerous situation, and you might get killed, which would defeat the whole purpose of going to Sukuashi.”

Gokuu threw his hands up in frustration. “I’ll only be there for a moment!”

Piccolo shook his head. “You cannot go rushing into unknown situations like that. Until we know the full extent of the danger we might be facing, we have to be logical and careful.”

Gohan nodded. “Piccolo’s right, Otousan. As hard as it might be, we have to wait. Tayhei said we’d be there soon, right? Kaasan can hold on just a little longer, I know she can. She’s stronger than anyone really gives her credit for.”

“I think something’s happening to her, though.” Gokuu looked down at his hands, his breath quickening. “What if she doesn’t make it because I didn’t get there fast enough? This is all my fault in the first place! It’s like I’m getting a second chance to save her and I’m failing again. What if this is my one chance to save her and I don’t take it?”

Gohan reached out and placed a hand on his father’s shoulder. “It isn’t, I promise. We’ll save her, Tousan. We just have to be cautious and patient.”

The pain on Gokuu’s face was evident, and it made Piccolo’s heart ache slightly. I may not understand this human love thing in its entirety, but I can recognize it when it’s there. As dense and idiotic as Gokuu may seem, he’s still capable of feelings deeper than any of us realize. Perhaps the most complex of us all, noting his mental strength in battle and his view of life in general….As Piccolo thought about it, he had another sudden realization. Annoying as Gokuu might be at times and as much Piccolo tried to fight it, he really did admire Son Gokuu. There was so much kindness in the Saiya-jin’s heart, so much pure, amazing strength in his soul. He had stumbled across many people in his lifetime, but no one had ever managed to touch him quite like Gokuu. Gohan was his friend, and always would be, of course. The two of them had an unbreakable bond and a great understanding, but Piccolo had never admired Gohan the way he had Gokuu. Now with Gokuu’s newfound determination to save his wife, he could only admire him more. There had been many strong and valiant fighters in the universe, but none could even come close to having the heart that Gokuu did. Gokuu didn’t fight for power, or for the kill. He fought to protect the people that he loved, and just for that reason, he had developed into the most amazing fighter the universe had ever looked upon.

Son Gokuu, you are truly a warrior.

Chapter 41
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