Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Crossed Paths ❯ Saiyajin Pranks ( Chapter 9 )

PAIRING: Hints of Bulma/Vegeta, and....  ???
RATING: PG so far. But that will change.
WARNINGS: None yet
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters, but we both wish we owned Vegeta. (We do own Vegeta action figures. Does that count?) These characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation, even though the last one is a crying shame. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball itself. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic.
SUMMARY: What might have happened if Nappa had been the one sent to Chikyuu to destroy it, rather than Radditz? What might have changed? And how might Vegeta and Radditz have reacted afterwards?
CHAPTER SUMMARY: Radditz plays some practical jokes. The Z warriors see Bulma's ship for the first time.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: I don't have a beta anymore and I wish I did. Unfortunately since I'm no longer active in the DBZ fanfic community I don't know anyone who would be willing to beta. (shrugs) So no acknowledgements, except to thank my friend Zab Jade for input occasionally when I needed it on this.
NOTES: When I wrote this over three years ago I hadn't yet seen the Bardock Special, so I didn't know much about the continuity of it. I apologize in advance for the fact that this is NOT accurate; I wouldn't make the same mistake had I written this now. I also think I write better than this now, but it is what it is, as a friend of mine would say.

Radditz made his way to the rooms that the others had been given. Despite his irritation with the stubborn human and Saiyajin below he couldn't help a grin. The enormously loud snores emanating from one of the rooms told him exactly who had taken this one. Without knocking - or any other pretense at politeness - he slammed the door open and stared down at the little boy who had jumped to startled wakefulness at his entrance. He scowled when he saw his brother still lying in the bed, his mouth open and drool sliding down his cheek as he continued to snore loudly.

"KAKAROTTO!" he roared at the smaller Saiyajin. "This is NO way to act when your prince is around! Wake up, like the warrior you are supposed to be!"

Goku bolted upright at the loud voice, blinked his eyes a few times to focus on the armored chest that was leaning over him, then relaxed when he realized it was simply his brother.

"I think you woke up people in the next country," Goku complained, not the least bit upset at the rude awakening.

He opened his mouth to continue when his stomach made its presence known by growling loudly. "Is breakfast done?" he asked hopefully.

"Breakfast," Radditz continued to roar at his smaller sibling, "is not only done, but is almost GONE! Get your ass down there and eat so we can leave! Vegeta wants us to leave NOW, and if you were a proper Saiyajin warrior you would have been ready to leave long ago!"

Radditz stormed out of the room and then grinned once he got into the hallway. Despite his words and behavior he wasn't angry at all with his brother, but was simply acting the way normal Saiyajin siblings did towards one another. The fact that his brother wouldn't be familiar with Saiyajin customs was something that simply didn't occur to him. All he knew was he had always believed his little brother was dead, and now for the first time he was allowed to act the way he had always wanted to with a little brother he had never had a chance to meet.

Gohan looked up at his father, trying to control the trembling in his limbs left in the wake of the giant warrior. Gohan wasn't sure what to think of this strange new uncle to whom he had just been introduced. Part of him was terrified of the giant Saiyajin, and part of him wanted very much to like the enormous man who seemed to have some sort of tie to his father. He thought Radditz might like him as well but wasn't sure how to interpret the Saiyajin's actions.

It wasn't like he really knew how to interpret peoples' behavior. There weren't many people he knew well - his parents, his grandfather, and now Piccolo were about it. He had only met Yamcha, Kuririn and Bulma for a few minutes before he had been dragged off by Piccolo to survive in the wilderness, so he really didn't know them at all. And he had never met anyone else; his mother had kept him fairly well secluded.

So he wasn't sure what to make of his Uncle Radditz. His loud, gruff personality kind of reminded him of a combination of his grandfather and Piccolo-sensei. In some ways he was as prone to violence and temper as Piccolo was, but in other ways he seemed as inclined towards laughter as his grandfather. It was a combination Gohan found very confusing.

He decided he didn't want to worry about it at the moment. "Daddy, are we going with them?" he asked his father, half-curiously and half-timidly. A part of him was anxious to get home to his mother, but he also felt drawn to whatever adventure they were about to go on. He didn't know it yet, but his Saiyajin heritage - the thirst for adventure, for challenge, for conflict - was just beginning to assert itself. And once it had done so it would never be able to be suppressed again.

"Yes, we are. And I think we better get ready before Radditz comes in here yelling again." Goku shook his head, not knowing what to make of his older brother. While Radditz' aura had proclaimed no anger at all, his shouting was certainly enough to make the bravest of warriors flinch.

Goku pushed the covers off and got dressed, watching as Gohan followed suit. He smiled to himself as he observed his son. The boy had changed much in the past year, all of it for the better. He was still smiling when his son looked up at him, waiting to see what his father would do next.

"Let's go see if there is anything left to eat." He ruffled his son's hair on his way to the door. "Come on." He opened the door and gestured his son to go through before him.

Despite Radditz' claims, there was still plenty of breakfast left for two hungry Saiyajin, and both father and son ate with a gusto that would have surprised anyone not familiar with their eating habits. Chi-Chi would also have been dismayed at her son's mannerisms. All of the table manners she had drummed into him since he had been a baby had gone out the window over the past year; he now ate with the same ferocity as his father.

Radditz looked around, trying to determine which of these rooms had been taken by each of the human warriors. He sniffed carefully and smelled the small human warrior's scent in one room, and the larger, scarred human's slightly muskier scent in the room across the hall from it. With a wicked gleam in his eye, he had a sudden urge to play a prank on both human warriors, maybe scaring the hell out of both of them.

Radditz' proclivity for mischief was one that had often gotten him in trouble on Freeza's ship. Fortunately, because Saiyajin tended to be more distant with non-Saiyajin, his pranks were often directed only at Vegeta and Nappa. It had annoyed his fellow Saiyajin on more than one occasion, but although they often rebuked him for his insolence, they actually tolerated his practical jokes surprisingly well for beings with their temperament. It was probably because Radditz' jokes were very Saiyajin in nature, something they understood, and instinctively they knew how to handle his actions.

The other warriors on Freeza's ships, however, had never understood Radditz' 'jokes', and on several occasions when he directed them at one of the other warriors it had gotten him into trouble. When those he had directed them towards had been weaker, the three Saiyajin had taken care of it, making sure Freeza and his lieutenants simply never found out. But there had been occasions when his jokes had been directed at the wrong people - such as when he had replaced Zarbon's shampoo with a sticky sap-like substance that had matted Zarbon's hair and had been almost impossible to remove - and there had been repercussions.

Fortunately, he had grown more careful over the years and made certain any jokes he played on Freeza's lieutenants were not traceable to him in any manner. Although many times the others had suspected him, nothing could be proven, and even on Freeza's ships accusations wouldn't be leveled without proof. It hadn't hurt that many of Radditz' more subtle jokes involved a time delay, so sometimes wouldn't be set off until he and the other Saiyajin were off the ship. It was difficult to accuse someone of being the prankster when he wasn't even around, which made the idea that there was either a second prankster on the ship - or someone else doing the role entirely - and that small doubt was what had kept Radditz' hide intact more than once.

An idea made itself known to Radditz as he stood in the hallway debating what he should do. Then with a sudden roar he pounded on both doors and burst loudly into the room he knew the larger warrior was residing in.

If there was one thing Yamcha hated, it was being startled awake. Nothing annoyed the Z warrior more than being woken up with his heart pounding in his ears. The sudden hammering and yelling at his door had Yamcha practically flinging himself out of bed and automatically sinking into a battle stance as he quickly scanned the room for enemies. All he found, to his bewilderment, was a smirking Radditz. Yamcha's emotions passed over his face in seconds - annoyance that he had been awoken, embarrassment and anger at being the brunt of a joke, and finally confusion.

Radditz couldn't help the wicked grin that crept over his face as he surveyed the human warrior who had leapt out of bed, ready for what he could only interpret as an immediate threat. He surveyed the human, his gaze sweeping appreciatively over the nude warrior, noting that he had the same tanned smoothness of his prince, not the pale skin of Radditz and his brother or even the other humans in the group. This one seemed to come from a warmer area, if the darkness of his skin was any indication.

"Is that an invitation?" he teased the human. "My, you humans are most forward. I can appreciate that. Most species play games instead of just being open about things. But if you humans are up front about these things you will find dealing with us Saiyajin much simpler."

There was a gleam in his eyes, and along with his wolfish grin it spoke of promises to the young human that he wasn't sure he was ready for yet.

::What the hell is he looking at?:: Yamcha frowned, until his brain registered several seconds later that he was naked. He was about to scream his frustration at being scared to death, but then his eyes met those of the Saiyajin warrior's and their gazes locked. The look caused Yamcha's heart rate to kick into overdrive again. As Radditz' gaze perused his body, wherever his eyes lingered Yamcha got the feeling his skin had been touched with more than just the other man's eyes. ::Kami, why is he looking at me like that? I am a man, for crying out loud.::

Yamcha felt himself flushing in embarrassment, not used to such scrutiny. "Do you always barge in on people like this?" he asked, and silently cursed himself for the way his voice shook. Trying to look nonchalant he made his way back to the bed and reached for the sheet that had ended up in a heap on the floor. Yamcha did not look up as he wrapped the sheet around his waist, telling himself he was covering himself to appease his sense of modesty. It had nothing to do with the fact that he wanted to get that obsidian gaze off his skin. He tried to ignore the little voice that whispered he was lying to himself.

"It's rude. I don't suppose you have ever heard of this little thing called manners?" He crossed his arms over his chest and gave Radditz what he hoped was an intimidating look.

Radditz' grin widened. "Oh, didn't you know? We Saiyajin are all barbarians. At least, that's what Freeza always says, and your woman seems to agree with him." He shook his head at Yamcha's sense of propriety. "Why cover yourself up? You have nothing to be ashamed of. What shame is there in showing others your perfect form? Would you like to see mine?" His hands moved as though to undo the buckles at the shoulders of his armour, his eyes twinkling with pure mischief.

"NO!" Yamcha shouted a bit louder than he had intended, and realized he had almost given in to panic. Normally Yamcha would not have thought anything about another man disrobing in his presence, but something about the other warrior undressing disturbed him greatly.

"No," he repeated a bit more quietly, trying to ignore Radditz' smirk and his own growing unease. "Saiyajin may do that kind of thing, but humans do not." Yamcha forced himself to calm down, took a deep breath, determined not to let the other warrior rattle him before speaking again. "Is there something you wanted?"

Radditz shrugged, pretending to be indifferent. "Only to let you know that your woman wanted you and your friends to come down and eat breakfast before we leave. You might want to hurry," he added as an afterthought. "Kakarotto is already downstairs eating, and from what I've noticed he eats more than any other Saiyajin I've ever seen. There may not be anything left by the time you get down there."

He leaned against the wall, watching Yamcha curiously, making it very apparent he wasn't going to go anywhere until Yamcha did.

"I'm sure there will be," Yamcha said, glad his wits were coming back to him. "Bulma and her mother always make extra when Goku's around. They're pretty used to his eating habits by now."

He took a deep breath trying to rationalize his current situation. There were several things that did not make sense to him. If Radditz' claims were true and Bulma had sent him to wake the rest of them, then he had done what he had been asked so he should be leaving. But no, the other man was leaning against the wall trying to make idle chitchat with him. This struck him as somewhat odd. The Saiyajin were a warrior race and didn't seem to be the type of people to just hang out in someone's room and have a casual conversation. But Radditz was still there, watching him with that disturbing gaze of his as if he were studying him for flaws.

"I guess I will get dressed and be down then." He spoke slowly after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence hoping the other man would get the subtle hint and leave.

Radditz nodded, still grinning. "You do that. I'll just wait for you right here," he told the human male.

"Hey, Yamcha, what's going on?" The sleepy-looking monk was rubbing his eyes as he stepped into the room, still barefoot although already dressed in the standard orange gi that carried Roshi's turtle master insignia. "Hey, what's he doing here?" he asked, blinking blearily at the large Saiyajin glowering down at him.

Radditz looked at the little monk in annoyance. He had been hoping for some time alone with this interesting human, and the smaller human was interrupting him.

"Everyone is up and getting ready to leave. He just came by to tell us that and was leaving," Yamcha replied, giving the older warrior a pointed look. ::Kami, can't this guy take a hint? What do I have to do - forcibly remove him from my room?::

Radditz arched a brow at the scarred human warrior. "Actually, I wasn't. I was planning on waiting until you were ready to go. After all, I was ordered to see you downstairs and to make sure you were ready to go. I don't want to disobey orders, now do I?" Once again he grinned wolfishly at Yamcha, too amused by the human's reaction to want to leave.

Kuririn scratched his head in confusion. Very little of this was making sense to him. "Well, in that case, I guess I'll just meet you downstairs. You still need to get dressed and all that. See ya!" With that, he gave the two a little wave and padded his way down the stairs to join Goku and Gohan in the dining room.

Yamcha's jaw dropped open in surprise and then snapped shut after Kuririn left them. Yamcha suddenly felt inexplicably angry that Kuririn had just taken everything Radditz had claimed at face value. A scowl settled across his handsome features as he silently promised himself he would kill the little monk for committing the heinous crime of abandoning a friend in a time of need, and for not noticing how uneasy he was at being left alone with Radditz.

"No need for you to wait, really," Yamcha ground out, a little of his displeasure showing in his voice. "I'll be down in a few minutes. You don't have to stay."

"Oh, I don't mind waiting, not really." Radditz looked at him innocently. "The view from here is quite nice." He was doing his best to suppress his laughter; this human was simply so much fun to bait.

"Fine!" Yamcha snapped at him as he finally lost his temper. He marched over to the chair where he had discarded his clothing the night before, snatched his pants and shirt, and then stomped his way into the bathroom to dress. ::The nerve of that guy! What the hell is he doing?:: Yamcha grumbled to himself as he pulled his clothes on in a rush. If he had been thinking clearly, the young warrior would have been shocked that another man looking at him could have such an effect.

He glared at Radditz as he made his way back into the bedroom, then stomped past him without a word and headed to the kitchen. Yamcha suddenly wanted to be as far away from the Saiyajin warrior as far as he could get. There was no way in hell he was going to turn around and look to see if the other man was behind him.

Radditz followed Yamcha down the stairs with a grin. He knew he hadn't really had to wait for Yamcha - or any of the others - to come downstairs. Bulma had only asked them to wake her friends up, not to make sure they came down. He simply found teasing the human to be too irresistible, although he wasn't entirely sure why. He knew Yamcha was attractive - that much was obvious - but he wasn't currently on the lookout for a mate.

But as he followed Yamcha his eyes narrowed and he concentrated on sniffing the air. Yes, that was it. The human male was attracted to him and was releasing pheromones to tell him so. Radditz wondered if humans had a taboo against same gender pairings. He knew many species did - some even had death penalties for such things. He, like all Saiyajin, thought that was stupid. Then again, with the Saiyajin females were so rare that same-gender male pairings were fairly common. That didn't mean a male wouldn't leave his male lover if a female chose him and insisted upon it; he would, although more often both males came as part of the package. The female rarely objected to it. Why should she, having two males giving her attention?

Such situations were not only accepted on Vegeta-sei, they were fairly common. But such would be the case with a culture like theirs, where only one-fifth of the population was female. Radditz frowned, wondering what the population was like on this planet. From what he had seen so far there seemed to be far fewer females than males, but they had only encountered a small proportion of the population. He had no idea what the rest of the planet was like or what they might accept. Even if Yamcha were attracted to him, his culture might make such an attraction forbidden and he might not be able to act upon it.

Feeling suddenly a little despondent, Radditz decided it was time to seek out his prince again. Without a word to any of the others he gave a simple nod to his brother, and strode out of the house looking for Vegeta.

"That's really odd," Goku commented as he watched his older brother leave the house.

"Goku, that's the understatement of our lives," Yamcha muttered, sitting down at the table and helping himself to some of the food before Goku ate it all.

"Nah, Radditz is acting weird," Goku noted, leaning back in his chair. He was curious about the way Yamcha flushed when the other man's name was mentioned but he said nothing.

"You're telling me," Yamcha managed to gasp out after swallowing a mouthful of food. "He nearly broke down the door trying to wake me up. Scared the shit out of me." ::And worst of all he made those... suggestive comments.::

Goku nodded. "He did something similar to me."

"Could be just how he is," Kuririn added.

"Maybe," Goku said thoughtfully. "But I thought for sure he would sit with us for a bit."

"Who knows?" Yamcha shrugged, as he glanced to the doorway where Radditz had just disappeared. He wondered where the smirk Radditz had been wearing for most of the morning had disappeared, and why he had even noticed the abrupt change. ::Kami, I thought Bulma's moods were bad. And to think that we are going to be stuck with these people for months. This isn't good. Definitely not good.:: It was then he recalled he was going to be in an enclosed space with Radditz for at least two months, and he shivered. ::It's nothing to worry about,:: he comforted himself quietly. ::This morning was a fluke, it will never happen again.::

"Hey, what are you guys so worried about?" Kuririn cut in, looking puzzled. "Who knows what's normal for him anyway? He's an alien, remember? All these aliens are really strange, either wanting to destroy the world or take it over or something." He shuddered, not remembering that Goku was one of these aliens.

Gohan had been listening to the adults as they had discussed the large Saiyajin, and without thinking about it suddenly spoke. "I like him," he piped up. He blushed slightly in embarrassment at his presumption, and looked down at his plate, so missed the surprised looks the adults shot towards him. "I mean, he seemed a little mean at first, but I think he's a lot like Piccolo-sensei. He just needs a friend. He was nice to me!" he added defensively, not sure what else to say.

Goku placed a reassuring hand on Gohan's head, silently telling the boy he had not spoken out of turn. "I like him too, Gohan. He may be a little rough around the edges, but he has a good heart."

Yamcha gaped at him. "You trust him?" he asked incredulously. "But Goku, he's...." He trailed off as the younger man's gaze touched his. There was something in his friend's eyes he hadn't seen before.

"I trusted you, didn't I? You tried to sabotage us in the beginning and you were a bandit, but your heart was good." Goku smiled at him. "You became one of my best friends, same as Tenshinhan and Chaotzu. I think things will work out with Vegeta and Radditz."

Yamcha blinked, surprised by the younger man's comments, and he wondered if the blow to his head Goku had suffered in his youth was finally affecting him. His mind protested that Saiyajin were not humans, and that they had pretty much forced the Earth warriors into this battle with Freeza. Normally Yamcha would have been willing to give the two Saiyajin the benefit of the doubt, as Goku's instincts were never far from the truth, but something about Radditz put him on the defensive. The incident earlier in his room had him trying to find faults with the two Saiyajin - Radditz in particular, for he did not want to like or trust the man. Part of his mind was screaming that he was being entirely unfair about the situation, as he muttered, "I just don't know, Goku." He stared at his food. "I hope you're right."

Kuririn was completely confused by the entire conversation. It almost seemed as though there were several conversations going on at once, and Kuririn could only hear one of them. But that didn't make any sense. "Well, if you guys are done eating, maybe we should go and see what Bulma wants. I don't know about you guys, but I'm more worried about her getting mad at us than those aliens getting mad at us! I think she's more dangerous than they are!"

The other men laughed at that, even as they all secretly agreed, and the Z warriors left the house without even thinking about who would clean up their mess. None of them had ever been to Bulma's new lab before, but they could sense where her ki was as well as that of Vegeta and they followed that direction. Despite the fact that this lab was considered off-limits normally, no one stopped these strangely garbed warriors from entering and making their way towards the hangar. They all gaped in surprise at the ship they saw before them.

"Kami!" Kuririn breathed in awe. "Bulma made this over the past year? I didn't think even she could manage something like this!"

Radditz had seen their exit from the house and had followed them to this location, not sure how else to locate his prince. He arched a brow in surprise at Kuririn's statement. "This isn't something she had before?" he asked curiously.

Kuririn was too awestruck by the ship to be nervous about speaking to the large Saiyajin. "No! She told us she had made a ship based on the space pod we found of your friend's and some blueprints she found in his eyepiece, but I had no idea it was anything like this! Wow!"

Radditz was impressed as well. The level of technology that they had believed this planet capable of was belied by what sat in front of them. He wondered once again about the beings with whom they had allied themselves, particularly the human female. He was starting to believe - ever so faintly - that they might have some hope of success after all.

Yamcha shook his head, eyes wide in amazement. "That's our Bulma. Always managing to one-up us." He chuckled. "She may not fight like we do, but her brain certainly makes up for it, eh?"

"It is a good thing someone here uses their brain," came an unexpected deep voice from behind Goku. "If we had to rely on you, we would all be in trouble."

Yamcha looked over his shoulder and his jaw nearly dropped open when he saw that Piccolo had somehow snuck up on them and was eyeing the ship speculatively. "Hey! That's not fair!" he protested.

"Isn't it?" Piccolo's mouth curved upward in what could only be called a sneer. "And what do you call this? Going to another planet to get the dragonballs before a creature named Freeza can." Piccolo snorted derisively. "We know practically nothing about him or them." He inclined his head towards Radditz. "Yet you are going on their say-so to fight him."

Yamcha opened his mouth to bite out a hot retort, but to his surprise Goku beat him to it. "That isn't stopping you from coming with us, is it?" Goku eyed the other warrior knowingly. "You are just as dense as we are, wouldn't you agree?"

Yamcha's jaw dropped in surprise. ::Where the hell did that come from?::

Piccolo snorted. "You don't think the reason I am going is to help you, do you?" He gave a sharp, bitter laugh. "I am going to see the planet where my father was born. That is the only reason I would go and be stuck with the likes of you for the next two months or more."

Yamcha opened his mouth again to yell at him, but Goku's hand on his shoulder stopped him. "Sure, Piccolo. Whatever you say."

Gohan didn't care what the others said. "I'm glad you're coming with us, Piccolo-sensei!" he blurted out, smiling happily at the Namek. "I would miss you if you didn't go! You're the best!"

The others blinked in surprise at that. They had noticed the odd almost-friendship between the Namek and the little boy, but the open admiration and affection Gohan felt for Piccolo was still a shock to them. Piccolo had been their enemy for so long; it was difficult for them to shift gears so quickly and think of him as an ally.

"You don't have to trust us, Namek," Radditz commented bluntly. "You don't even have to come along with us. Prince Vegeta and I came here for Kakarotto and no one else. Right now, as far as I can see, the most useful allies among you are Kakarotto and the woman. The rest of you are so weak compared to the two of us, you aren't even all that useful. You are just along for the ride, as far as I'm concerned. You can come or not, I really don't care, nor do I care if you trust us."

He didn't wait for a reply to that statement, but simply strode up the hatch to the ship. He didn't know where he was going, so hesitated in the gangway, then picked a direction that seemed to be the main route, heading for the bridge without realizing it.

Goku blinked, then sighed. "This is going to be a really long trip."

"You're telling me," Yamcha agreed, crossing his arms over his chest, feeling inexplicably hurt that Radditz would say he was worthless. He knew he shouldn't take it personally, but he was finding it difficult to keep his emotions in check when he was around the much bigger Saiyajin. "Well, we really shouldn't keep Bulma waiting any longer. You guys ready?" he asked.

Goku nodded. "Of course. Come on, Gohan. Let's get settled in."

Yamcha watched as Goku and Gohan made their way up the gangplank with Kuririn right behind them. The baseball player hesitated a moment before following them. For just a moment Yamcha had the sinking feeling he was starting something that would change his life forever. He wasn't sure where the idea originated. He shook himself mentally and finally followed the others up the ramp, hoping he knew what he was getting into.

Radditz had managed to find his way to the bridge where he saw a very irritated-looking Vegeta drumming his fingers impatiently on the console. Radditz arched an eyebrow at the smaller Saiyajin and said the first thing that came to his mind, which wasn't necessarily the wisest.

"Where did the woman go, Your Highness? Did you lose her already?"

Vegeta had sensed when Radditz had walked into the room, then scowled when his question finally sank in. "You really have to learn to watch your tongue, Radditz," he snapped at the larger man, anger radiating off the much smaller warrior in waves. "It is going to cause you unspeakable pain one of these days."

Radditz blinked in surprise, realizing he had said something to irritate his prince. He thought back carefully on the last few minutes, then nodded silently. "I see," he said quietly. "I apologize, Your Highness. Perhaps I should find her for you?" He wasn't sure if he was saying the right thing now, but was absolutely certain that if he didn't tread carefully, Vegeta was going to give him a training session he would seriously regret. It had happened many times in the past, and Radditz didn't doubt it would happen in the future, but he would prefer to avoid it if at all possible.

"No," Vegeta replied after a moment's contemplation. "She will eventually come up here."

His eyes narrowed on the console in front of him, then lifted to meet Radditz' gaze. "The others are on board." It was more of a statement than a question, though the comment was directed at the other man. "On second thought, go and get her. Tell her we are ready to depart, and see if she is still hiding in her quarters."

Radditz nodded and turned away. It might have surprised anyone else that he treated his prince without formality, but it was difficult to be formal with anyone when living in close quarters with someone for so long. Familiarity, as they said, often bred contempt, and while it hadn't bred contempt in their case, it had led to a fairly casual relationship. Although Vegeta and Radditz would not be considered 'friends', they were as close to it as almost anyone could ever get with Vegeta.

The group of warriors ambled through the ship, not really knowing where they were going. The first floor, they discovered, was the engine room, so they had quickly gone up to the second floor to search there. Gohan somehow managed to make a game out of guessing where each door went. They managed to find the sleeping quarters - and, to Goku's delight, the cafeteria - with relative ease. But after a few minutes of wandering about as a group, Piccolo went off by himself, which did not put the remaining warriors at ease.

Yamcha shook his head. "I really don't understand that guy."

"I don't think he understands us, either," Goku replied, watching Piccolo disappear into one of the rooms. "I think it will be ok. Now we just need to find Bulma."

"I wish she would have thought to put up a map or something. You know, the kind with the little star that says 'You are here'." Yamcha grinned at his long-time friend. "Can you imagine the havoc we could create by wandering into the wrong place on the ship if we were simply looking for a midnight snack?"

"We should probably ask her for a tour," Goku agreed.

Several long minutes later the group came upon Vegeta on the bridge. He didn't turn or acknowledge them in any way, and the bunch of them found themselves in yet another awkward situation. ::Kami, we are going to have to work on his social skills,:: Yamcha mused to himself. ::This is *really* not going to be a fun trip.::

Radditz frowned and hesitated as he exited the door from the bridge. He had absolutely no idea where to go from here. The corridor led off in three directions. One led to the hatchway, he knew, but he had no idea which of the others led where. And although his relationship with his monarch was relatively casual, he knew better than to ask Vegeta for directions when he was in one of these moods.

::Vegeta said she was hiding in her quarters,:: Radditz thought to himself. ::Which one leads to the sleeping quarters?::

With a shrug, Radditz selected a random direction, taking the left-hand corridor. The ship wasn't large, but he found himself eventually in a corridor with numerous closed doors on either side. He sniffed carefully but the woman's scent permeated everything. He wasn't going to find her that way, as it didn't seem any stronger from one direction than another. On a whim he started opening doors randomly to see if he could find her.

He was surprised when each door opened with a mere touch, but none of them led to any sleeping quarters. He found what appeared to be a small mess hall, a galley, a medical bay, and a hydroponics farm. He knew by that point he was as far from the sleeping quarters as he could get, but he was so curious about what he was finding that he continued to explore. It was when he opened a door to a room that was lined with shelves that he finally found Bulma. She had a clipboard in her hands and seemed to be taking inventory of some sort.

He frowned at the sight. What she was inventorying he couldn't tell. The shelves seemed lined with cases of some sort, which she was popping open and checking their contents. Radditz had no idea what was in the cases. Medical supplies, perhaps? Weapons? He couldn't think of anything else that could possibly be that small, so dismissed it as being of no real importance.

"Woman!" he barked out, startling her and catching her attention. He was amused by the way she jumped, but didn't let it show, making him appear disgruntled and irritated, which he was far from feeling. "Prince Vegeta wants you on the bridge, now!"

Radditz watched her bristle and hid his amusement with a scowl. "Well, His Royal Pain-in-the-ass can just wait a while! I'm checking to make sure we have enough supplies before we leave! Unless you'd rather we ran out of food while we're in outer space!"

Radditz frowned at her words, his brow pulling together in puzzlement. Starve to death? What did the supplies here have to do with them eating? It didn't make any sense. He couldn't see any food supplies in here at all. What were they going to eat? Pills? Didn't she know Saiyajin couldn't live like that?

"Well, I thought I would inform you that your friends have arrived on your ship. So if YOUR 'Royal-pain-in-the-ass' wants to go find them, maybe we can actually leave this dump of a planet!"

Bulma blinked, her mouth forming an 'O' of surprise. "Well, why didn't you tell me?" she demanded, putting a clip carefully on the clipboard to mark her place, even as she hurriedly placed it on a holder on the wall. "I think we have everything, anyway. I can't see that Daddy missed anything important. We should have plenty of food, fuel, and replacement parts for any emergencies to last up to a year, even with all you hungry Saiyajin!"

She smiled wryly at him. "I know how much Son-kun eats, so I just planned on what it would be like with about six of you - just to be on the safe side - and for a year, just in case. It won't hurt to have the extra."

Radditz frowned as Bulma moved past him. "How could you store that much food, woman? Even Saiyajin ships can't hold that much food. And it would go bad long before a year is up! Saiyajin need meat, not bird food!"

Bulma gave him an irritated glance. "I know that. I've dealt with Son-kun for a long time. I know his eating habits." She shuddered, remembering when he had offered her coyote with centipede for flavoring. "I've used capsules. The vacuum sealing will store it for years without degradation. Don't worry; it's all handled. Just trust me."

Radditz followed her, his brows furrowed in thought. He had no idea what she was talking about. He didn't entirely trust her, but knew if she were lying he and Vegeta could just kill her. Or they could raid other ships and planets for the food they would need and not worry about the humans. It wouldn't matter anyway.

Bulma and Radditz arrived on the bridge shortly after the Z warriors arrived. Bulma arched a brow at the way Vegeta was pointedly ignoring the others, and noted with further surprise the way Radditz - whether consciously or not - automatically moved next to Vegeta, hovering over him protectively. She suspected he wasn't as powerful as the smaller warrior, yet somehow he seemed to feel it was his duty to protect his prince, even if he really didn't have the power level to do so.

"Well, nice of all of you to make it," she said dryly, smirking at the others. She gave Vegeta a pointed look at the way he had taken over the pilot's seat, then turned away from him again. "If you're all ready to go we can leave at any time."

"Bulma-san?" Gohan said timidly, not wanting to interrupt the adults, but suddenly realizing that this might be his last chance. "Can I see my mommy, please? I just want to let her know I'm all right."

Bulma blinked at him in surprise, then looked over at Goku. "Goku? Didn't you call Chi-Chi yet? Haven't you gone to see her at least? You've been dead for a year, don't you think you at least ought to visit her before you take off again?"

Goku gave Bulma a sheepish grin. "Umm, no, I kinda forgot."

Yamcha smacked the palm of his hand against his forehead and rolled his eyes. "Goku, how could you forget to see your wife? You've been married to Chi-Chi for the last six years! She's going to have a fit if you don't at least call her!"

Even though they had thought it impossible, Goku managed to look even more apologetic. "Yeah, she's going to yell at me for that, isn't she?" he asked a bit wistfully. "But this is important."

"Goku...." Yamcha sounded a bit exasperated. "Stopping Freeza from getting the dragonballs is important, but I think she would never speak to you again if you left without saying goodbye. Besides," Yamcha arched a brow at him, "you wouldn't want to hurt her feelings, would you?"

Goku shook his head, looking dismayed at the prospect of hurting Chi-Chi. "Is there some way we can call her?" he asked Bulma. "I think we need to hurry, but I should say goodbye to Chi first."

"Goku...." Bulma sighed and shook her head. "I know we're in a hurry, but not so much that you can't go home and visit her for a few hours. You have been dead for the past year, and Gohan's been off who-knows-where, training with an evil demon - no offense meant to Piccolo."

"None taken," the Piccolo replied in his deep, rumbling voice, startling them as he entered the room silently.

Bulma blinked at him, then cleared her throat nervously. "Um... yeah. Anyway, my point is, Goku, Chi-Chi has been alone for the past year. Don't you think you should at least stop in and let her know you love her? You might die on this adventure, and then how would she feel? If you die again, you can't be brought back by the dragonballs this time, you know!" She looked over at Gohan, who was looking up at his father earnestly. "And don't you think Gohan should see his mother again before you drag him off into danger?"

Goku nodded solemnly. "I think you're right. I'm sorry about you having to wait, but..."

"But nothing," Yamcha said, swatting the other warrior playfully on the shoulder. "Go home and say goodbye. We'll wait for you."

"Thanks, Yamcha." Goku smiled brightly at the older man as he lifted up his son and set him on his shoulder. "This won't take long."

Vegeta rolled his eyes in obvious disgust. How was it possible the man in front of him seeking the approval of his friends could even be worthy of being called a Saiyajin? Where had the younger Saiyajin's aggression gone? Did he not remember what it was to be a Saiyajin, to answer to no one but himself? How could this pathetic excuse for a Saiyajin have ever defeated Nappa?

"I don't believe this!" he snapped at them, the sudden outburst causing most of the others to start in surprise. "Do you realize how much time we are wasting while we wait for you to go home and fawn over your female? This is simply unacceptable!"

Goku blinked at the hostility in the other man's tone and he offered Vegeta an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Vegeta. I understand the need to hurry. But I haven't seen her in a year. Gohan hasn't, either. I doubt she will forgive either of us if I take off again with Gohan without telling her."

"Kakarotto...." Vegeta's voice sounded menacing even to himself. "This is no time to be playing around. You realize that if Freeza gets there before we do, he will wish himself immortal. Then we will have no way of defeating him. Then this," he gestured around him, "will simply be destroyed in his wake, along with your mate."

Goku's eyes narrowed on the shorter Saiyajin, his expression taking on an edge the others hadn't seen very often, usually only when Goku really wanted something. It was this determination to do what he thought was right that had won them many battles in the past. Vegeta had apparently also noticed it, for his expression changed as well, looking thoughtful as he studied the third-class Saiyajin.

"Then I'd better hurry," Goku replied, eyes fixed on the Saiyajin Prince. "For if we lose, then I won't get to see my wife again, will I?"

For a few minutes silence filled the room as the two men stared at each other in a battle of wills. Then, finally, after what seemed like an eternity to the others, Vegeta snorted and folded his arms across his chest. "Fine, then. Go see your female. But be back here in three hours or we are leaving without you."

Goku nodded once, tension leaving his body at the Prince's acceptance of his decision, for he had honestly thought he was going to have to fight Vegeta over it. To the surprise of the others he bowed to Vegeta politely. "I won't be late. Thank you."

Goku straightened, still holding his son, and made for the door, leaving the others staring after him.