A Light in the Darkness - part 28: Introductions
by Mia Skywalker & Wataruo

PAIRING: Pairings? I don't see no pairings here! *whistles innocently*
RATING: G
WARNINGS: None
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters or anything about DBZ, but we both wish we owned the Saiyans. All of them. At least all of the ones with hair. 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. We just have fun writing it.
SUMMARY: Introductions
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Thanks to saiyengerl for beta'ing!

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Last time on Dragonball Z: A Light in the Darkness....

Vegeta looked up when he felt an unfamiliar power near him. Vegeta was more than surprised when he saw the Saiyan space pod pass him; he was absolutely shocked. The ki he sensed inside the pod made the warrior pause. If whoever was in the pod was bent on destruction, only one other person on the planet besides himself would be able to beat them. ::And he would most likely invite him to dinner first:: Vegeta grumbled. 

He took to the air, following the direction of the pod. ::If you want trouble, I'll give you some:: he promised the unknown occupant. ::I won't let you hurt Bulma.::

~~~~~*~~~~~

Goku felt the ki even before he was completely awake. Not to alarm Chi-Chi he got out of bed, dressed and headed to the door. He looked back to see that Chichi had been awakened by the crash and was giving him a worried look.

"It's okay, Chi," he assured her. "I think I know who it is." 

Without giving her time to a reply he opened to the front door to see a familiar face. Goku smiled at the warrior. "I thought you said this would be a wasted trip?" 

"I decided that I am tired of mercenary work," Hakusai replied with a grin. "I need a vacation." 

"Maybe you'll settle here?" he asked. 

"Maybe." She inclined her head. "Depends on how interesting things get here."

"It's a nice planet and you could find work here. Maybe Bulma will even give you a job," Goku suggested. "Some of your engine designs should catch her interest." 

"I don't know Son-kun," Hakusai said grinning. "I don't think she could get in touch with my professors for references." 

Goku chuckled. "You have a point. But I'll introduce her to you later." 

"If you insist. Am I in time for breakfast?" she asked hopefully. 

"I'll ask Chichi to make us something." Goku frowned as he looked up. "Oh no. Chi-Chi isn't going to like this." 

Hakusai groaned. "Is that ki who I think it is?" 

"It's Vegeta," Goku said, watching the sky. "He must've have sensed you." 

"Oh goodie," she remarked. The two waited for the Prince of the Saiyans to arrive.

Chi-Chi was irritated by the way Goku had run out on her, and she hastily cleaned up. She didn't have time for more than just washing her face and brushing her teeth, then running a comb through her hair before going downstairs. She didn't have time for a shower, so she didn't feel particularly clean at the moment. 

She came outside to see Goku standing there with a tall, dark-haired woman, and she felt a pang of jealousy when she saw how familiar the two seemed to each other. ::Who is she? How does Goku know her if I don't?:: 

She looked over at her husband. "Well?" she prompted him. "Are you going to introduce us?"

"Yes, Son-kun." Hakusai folded her arms across her chest, doing an unconscious imitation of her younger brother. "Why don't you?" 

"Oh, this is my wife, Chi-Chi," he said. "This is Hakusai, Chi. We met on Yardrat." 

"Nice to meet you." Hakusai surprised the other woman by bowing politely. "Son-kun has told me a lot about you and Gohan while we trained together last year. He claims that you are the best cook in the universe." 

Goku shrugged. "Well, she is." He offered his wife a small smile. "Hakusai may be moving to this planet." 

Hakusai chuckled. "You just don't quit, do you Goku-san?" she asked.

Chi-Chi looked her over carefully. "Oh. You're a Saiyan." At Hakusai's arched eyebrow, Chi-Chi shrugged unapologetically. "That's the reaction you're going to get from most people here. Saiyans aren't really all that much liked. Not after the way they keep trying to destroy our planet." 

Then she seemed to realize she wasn't being particularly polite. "Well, if you'd like some breakfast, you're welcome to join us. But as we've just woken, I haven't made anything yet, so it'll be a little while."

"Don't let it bother you," Hakusai said with a wave of her hand. "I am used to it, and I don't mind the wait. Especially if you are used to catching your meal first," she said dryly.

Goku was about to comment when Vegeta dropped down out of nowhere right in front of them. "Morning, Vegeta," Goku said mildly. 

This earned him a snort from the other warrior as he looked over at Hakusai. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded. 

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, didn't he?" she said mildly. 

"Don't toy with me, woman. I am not in a good mood," he snapped.

"Saiyan males are never in a good mood," she replied. "But my name is Hakusai." ::Kami, he looks exactly like father.:: But something was wrong with him. He looked unnaturally pale underneath his olive complexion. 

"Are you not feeling well, Vegeta?" she asked. 

"My health is not your concern." 

"It should be yours. You don't look good," she commented. 

"You should be concerned with your own health," he snarled at her.

"Umm Vegeta..." Goku said, trying to stave off a fight. "Hakusai isn't a threat. She is a friend of mine." 

Hakusai watched as Vegeta glared at the other man, taking note of his mannerisms. There was something familiar in the way he was acting. She had seen it before, but where that was she couldn't remember. 

"Stay out of this," he growled as he turned his gaze back to Hakusai.

"He is right, Vegeta-san," Hakusai said. "I am here to visit Son-kun. I met him last year and he invited me to visit." She eyed him carefully. ::What ails you, little brother? I don't know you well, but I know something is wrong.::

"Would you like breakfast, Vegeta?" Goku asked. "We were about to eat." 

"I am not eating with the likes of you!" he tossed over his shoulder. "As for you, I'll be watching." And with that, the Saiyan took to the air, leaving the group extremely confused.

"Something's wrong with Vegeta," Goku said. "I have never seen him act like this." 

"Hmmm...." Hakusai watched Vegeta's ki trail disappear. "It's probably nothing more than a bad mood." 

"I hope so." Goku looked over at his wife. "So Chi-Chi, what's for breakfast?" he asked.

Chi-Chi surprised him by smiling at him and asking, "What would you like for breakfast, Goku?"

Goku blinked a few times. First Vegeta acted odd, now Chi-Chi was doing things that were not normal. At least normal for her. "Umm, how about miso soup?" he asked giving her a sheepish grin. It had been what he was trying to make the day before when he had accidentally caused that mess in the kitchen.

Chi-Chi frowned at him. Miso soup? "All right," she said agreeably. "But it'll be a while."

She went into the kitchen and began preparing breakfast, leaving the two Saiyans to themselves.

~~~*~~~

Vegeta was more upset at the fact that a complete stranger had noticed that something was wrong with him, than the fact that her power level was in Goku's league. He flew aimlessly, not really knowing where he was going, when he found himself back at Capsule Corporation.

He frowned, wondering why he had ended up here again, when he felt himself being drawn towards Bulma's balcony once again. He landed lightly and concealed himself in the plants when he realized that Bulma was still in her room. That was odd. She was always up by now and the fact that she was still in bed was a little unsettling. He stood there quietly and waited to see what she would do.

Bulma remained huddled on her bed for a long time before she managed to get to the bathroom to get a drink of water. She drank it slowly, holding the glass with a shaky hand, and curled up in the bed again. Her throat still felt swollen, like she'd been swallowing something harsh. Her eyes felt puffy and bloodshot. She didn't want to sleep, but she didn't want to face the world, either.

She found her thoughts constantly drawn to Vegeta. Everything about him drew her; had always drawn her. From the way he moved, the way he spoke, his voice, the grace of his movements, the passion in his eyes. She realized that she'd even been drawn to his anger. She'd feared him at first because he'd tried to kill them, and that fear had changed to anger. 

She wondered when it was that she'd learned to like him. Somehow her entire perception of him had changed this past year, and she didn't know how, or why, or exactly when. But over the past year, she'd found herself hanging for the rare smiles or compliments that he might give, even if they were often very backhanded ones. Like, 'You're not so ugly right now,' or 'Sometimes you aren't too stupid.' For some reason those statements meant more to her than the most lavish praise bestowed upon her, since she knew that for him such comments were grave concessions.

She remembered a few days ago, when he'd touched her with such passion.... Even if he didn't say the words, didn't his actions mean that he loved her? Maybe? A little? ::If that's so, then Yamcha must love every girl he meets. And prostitutes love every man that pays them money. No, that doesn't mean he loves me.:: 

Tears started flowing from her eyes again, silently, causing her throat to close and her nose to clog. She choked on them as the tears ran down her throat, whimpering softly. ::Why would I have to fall in love with him? The one person that can never love me? First Yamcha, who loves every woman, and then Vegeta, who can love none. Why do I do this to myself?:: She closed her eyes and continued to cry.

Vegeta wanted to go to her as she wept into her pillow. He had never seen her like this and it hurt him. He stayed where he was however, knowing that she wouldn't be happy to see him. Bulma had made it a point never to cry in front of him and if he went to her now, her reaction would be unpredictable. 

Vegeta sighed inwardly, hating himself for his weakness, but he found that he couldn't leave either. Even if he couldn't hold her, being near Bulma was comforting. But what he really wanted was to go into her room and snap her out of this depression. 

Vegeta didn't realize that he was feeling almost exactly what Bulma was feeling at that moment and if he had he would've solved an important piece of the puzzle. But because Vegeta did not make a connection, he stood there helplessly as Bulma cried, unable to help her, but unable to move from his position on the balcony. 

To be continued.....

~~~*~~~

And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness...  A sympathy visit to a sick friend.