A Light in the Darkness - Part 77: Krillin Enters
by Mia Skywalker & Wataruo

PAIRING: Krillin/Marron
RATING: G
WARNINGS: Marron's an airhead....
C&C: Please! ^_^
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. And yes, we're including Yamcha and Ryouga in that, now you know. Dragonball Z and the associated characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation, even though the last one is a crying shame. Ranma 1/2 and the character of Ryouga Hibiki are owned by Viz, Rumiko Takahashi, and some Japanese studio I don't know the name of. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball or Ranma 1/2 themselves. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic. We just have fun writing it. Oh, I guess we do own Hakusai and Serori. But I doubt anyone cares. ^_~
SUMMARY: Krillin and Marron enter the scene.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Thank you to Selenity Jade for beta-ing this. 
NOTES: Yes, this chapter is short, but I'll post the next one (also a short chapter) fairly soon.

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

Ryouga turned oozaru and rampaged out of control, and Gohan was injured.

~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~

It was midday when Krillin heard the frantic message from Pu'ar. He had to play back the message several times before it even began to make any sense. Pu'ar's voice was always a bit hard to understand, but when she was speaking this fast and furiously, it was even harder. Marron was in the bathroom putting on some lipstick and wasn't paying any attention, and Krillin wasn't sure what to make of the message. Yamcha was missing? He disappeared sometimes for a few days at a time. Why was Pu'ar so worried?

Krillin checked the date of the message on his answering machine, and realized it had been sitting there for several days. He blushed in embarrassment. Marron had wanted to go shopping in East City, so he had taken her there, even though it was a several week trip. He thought she liked shopping way too much, but he couldn't keep himself from indulging her. She was so nice to him, and so pretty.... And she liked spending time with him! 

He sighed. Marron was special.

Then his mind focused back on the message. "Hey, Marron! There's a message from a friend of mine on the machine! My friend Yamcha might be in trouble!"

"Who?" Marron came out of the bathroom, her lipstick now impeccable. He had thought it was impeccable before, but Marron was always very concerned about her looks. She stared at him blankly.

"Yamcha. That friend I told you about, the tall one." He hadn't told her very much about Yamcha. Of all his friends, he had felt that Yamcha would be his biggest threat in his relationship with Marron. If Marron met him, who knew? She might decide that Yamcha was a better choice. He was tall and had hair, after all, and Krillin knew that girls found Yamcha attractive. Yamcha was with Bulma, but that never seemed to stop him from flirting with other women.

Marron blinked at him, her face a study in vacancy. "Okay, whatever. Krillin, can I get something to eat?" She had already dismissed anything that didn't have to do directly with 'Marron' from her mind.

"Sure, Marron," Krillin said with a sigh. He dialed the number for the apartment where Pu'ar and Yamcha lived, and waited for one of them to pick up.

~~~*~~~

Pu'ar was at home, waiting to see if Yamcha would come home again. She hadn't gone out for several days, worried that he might call and she would miss the call. It didn't matter to her that they had an answering machine; if he was hurt, or in trouble, she wanted to know now!

When the phone rang, she dove for it instantly. "Moshi moshi!" she squeaked out, praying desperately that it was Yamcha, and that he was all right.

"Pu'ar?" Krillin winced. She only used that tone when she was extremely upset about something. "It's Krillin. I got your message." ::Way to go,:: he thought. ::State the obvious.:: "What's going on?"

"Krillin! Where have you been?" She shook the phone in her agitation. "Oh! Have you heard about what's happened to Yamcha?" she wailed in despair.

"Sorry, Pu'ar, I was in East City with Marron. What's happened to Yamcha?" Krillin asked, as he watched Marron brush her hair. "He's all right, isn't he?"

"Marron?" Pu'ar sounded confused. She had no idea who Krillin was talking about. But she dismissed it almost immediately as being unimportant compared to what had happened to Yamcha. "Oh, Krillin! It's terrible!" The rest of what she said was completely incoherent as she began to speak and cry at the same time.

"What is? Did he get hurt?" Krillin asked as he found himself hoping that he hadn't gotten himself killed again. "Break up with Bulma again? Tell me what's going on!"

"He broke up with Bulma, but that's not important!"

Krillin was shocked at that statement coming from Pu'ar. She had always been one of the staunchest supporters of that relationship. He knew that it had to be something dire indeed if she said that it wasn't important. "Then what is it?" He felt like he was pulling teeth to get her to say anything.

"It's terrible!" She wailed again. He was about to shout at her to be more specific, when she continued. "He... he's turned into a SAIYAN!!!"

Krillin opened mouth to speak, but found that his brain wasn't cooperating with him. "NANI?" he squeaked. "How could Yamcha turn into a Saiyan? That's not possible. He's human!"

"He isn't!" Pu'ar sobbed into the phone. "He's a Saiyan now! He's gotten a tail and everything! Bulma says that he's always been but that we didn't know it before, but I think they did something to him! Oh, Krillin! You have to go help him!"

Krillin blinked a few times, trying desperately to gather his wits. Yamcha? A Saiyan? How was that possible? The short warrior figured the best course of action would be to visit his oldest friend, Goku. ::But then again he doesn't know how to explain things very well.:: 

"I'll go talk to Bulma," Krillin finally said. "Maybe she can tell me what's going on."

"Oh, no!" Pu'ar exclaimed. "Bulma's one of the ones that did this to him! She dumped Yamcha for Vegeta, and they want to turn everyone into Saiyans...."

"Bulma is dating Vegeta?" Krillin choked out. "Has the world suddenly gone crazy?" Before the little cat could respond Krillin continued. "I knew it! He forced himself on her! When she was nice enough to offer him a place to stay. That kisama! See, if Goku were here this never would have happened."

"Krillin, Goku is back! And he hasn't done anything to stop Vegeta!" the little cat wailed in despair. "He's let them turn poor Yamcha into a Saiyan! He's probably in on it with them!"

"Pu'ar," Krillin said, once his mind started working, "Goku would never do that. I'll talk to him and find out what is going on. There has got to be a logical explanation."

"He was there, Krillin!" Pu'ar wailed. "He was right there, watching them hurt poor Yamcha! And they wouldn't even let me stay there because they knew I'd stop them!"

"Pu'ar..." Krillin said, desperately hoping the little feline would lower her voice. It was giving him a headache. "You know Bulma wouldn't do anything like that to Yamcha. There has to be a reason. Everything Bulma does has a reason."

"Krillin! You have to help me! They're hurting him, I know it! Oh, Krillin! Can you go there and help him out? Please?"

"Calm down, Pu'ar," Krillin said, trying to sound more sure of himself than he actually was. "I'll find him. I swear."

"Oh, Krillin! They're torturing him over at Capsule Corp! I know it! I...." Suddenly his words penetrated her ranting. "You will? You'll go over there and stop all of them from hurting him and torturing him?" The little cat sniffled. "Oh, Krillin! You're his only friend!"

"Ummm yeah." If Pu'ar had seen him she would have been surprised to see him blushing like mad. The real reason he made the offer was so he could get her off the phone. True, he wanted to know if Yamcha was ok, but he knew he was nowhere near as brave as Goku. "I'll call you when I know."

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" 

The shape-shifting cat was still thanking him profusely when he almost abruptly hung up on her. He was still blushing slightly, and he scratched the back of his head in consternation. "Now what do I do?" he muttered. He wasn't sure he was brave enough to face Vegeta... or especially Bulma! But he had promised Pu'ar that he would go, and he always kept a promise. No matter how much he might not like it.

He heard Marron humming to herself in the kitchen, and walked in after her. "Hi, Krillin!" she said excitedly. She hardly seemed aware of the fact that he had been on the phone.

"Hi, Marron," he said, a little less enthusiastically. "Hey, Marron. You want to meet some of my friends today?"

"Ooooh!" Marron gushed at him. "Really? Those friends that are from a different planet?"

Krillin sighed. Something was not right about his phone conversation with Pu'ar. There were just too many unanswered questions, too many things that didn't make sense. "Hai, some of them are aliens. Let's get going, Marron." The short Chikyuu warrior wanted to solve this problem and ease his mind about certain things. And the best way to do that would be to see Goku as soon as he could.

"Oooh! Goodie goodie goodie!" The little cyan-haired girl couldn't contain her enthusiasm. She had wanted to meet his alien friends ever since she had first heard about them. They were one of the reasons she had sought him out in the first place. She had grown fond of him over time as well, but it was still the aliens that were the draw.

She grabbed her purse and bounced eagerly towards the door, ignoring the fact that she had left food out on the counter. "Let's go, Krillin!" she called out eagerly back to him.

Krillin's eyes followed the way her hips swayed as she walked out the door, then he blushed in embarrassment. ::You really shouldn't think of her that way,:: he scolded himself as he held the door of the aircar open for Marron. ::She deserves better.::

"Just wait until you meet them," he said aloud as he climbed in on the driver's side. "I have known Goku since we were kids."

~~~*~~~

It didn't take Krillin very long to get to the Sons' house, in the fast new aircar convertible he had bought. He liked watching the way Marron leaned back in the car as the air wove its way through her hair, and her smile of delight from the speed of their movement. When they arrived, it was almost a disappointment, but Krillin was as gentlemanly as ever, opening the door for Marron and escorting her out.

They reached the door of the Sons' and as Krillin knocked he searched for Goku's ki. His brow furrowed when he realized his best friend wasn't anywhere nearby. He sensed him some distance away... to the east? But there was nothing out there, nothing but desert and rock.

He frowned. What was Goku doing out there? He sensed Vegeta's ki as well - although Vegeta had gotten much stronger, a fact which worried the small warrior greatly - and... three others? He didn't recognize the ki signatures of the other three with them. And where was Gohan? And Yamcha?

He searched for Gohan's and found it very weak, some distance away, towards Capsule Corp. Gohan had been hurt? And where was Yamcha? He couldn't feel anything that was recognizable as his friend's ki at all. Krillin felt the first twinge of panic. Had Vegeta managed to find some people to help him attack Goku and the others, maybe even some other Saiyans?

Instinctively, he was about to flare his ki and head out towards them - without even thinking of the fact that he would be leaving Marron in a lurch - when Chi-Chi opened the door, answering their knock.

"Hello?" Chi-Chi looked at the two of them in surprise. She hadn't seen Krillin more than once or twice during the past year, and she had never met this girl before. She was shocked to see him, and even more shocked at seeing the pretty girl with him. "Krillin? What are you doing here?"

"Chi-Chi, hi!" Krillin put his hand behind his head in embarrassment. "Sorry to bother you. But do you know where Yamcha is? Pu'ar called me and said something was going on."

"Yamcha!" Chi-Chi exclaimed in surprise. "Why is she worried about him? He's staying at Capsule Corp right now, with my Gohan. Why is she so worried?"

"She says he has been turned into a Saiyan." Krillin laughed nervously. "I honestly don't know what she is talking about."

Chi-Chi scowled. "Yamcha's a Saiyan. I don't know anything besides that. Goku only saw fit to tell me about it today. His own wife, and he didn't think I was important enough to know about something like that!"

Marron was peering around her into the doorway. "Is this the place where those aliens live?" she asked eagerly.

"Aliens!" Chi-Chi's face darkened. "I'll have you know this is a respectable home...!"

Marron blinked vacuously at Chi-Chi. "Oh, I'm sorry! I guess an alien wouldn't live here with an old woman!"

"OLD WOMAN!" Chi-Chi advanced on the blue-haired girl, who seemed completely oblivious of her danger. "I'll have you know...!"

"Ahh Marron, Chi-Chi is human," Krillin said quickly hoping to stave off the fact that Chi-Chi looked ready to kill the other woman. "This is Marron. She is my girlfriend."

"Well, you should pick better girlfriends!" Chi-Chi replied with venom.

Marron gave an empty-headed giggle. "Come on, Krillin! The old woman doesn't know where the aliens are! Let's go somewhere else to find them!"

"Oh man," Krillin muttered when Chi-Chi looked like she was on the verge of killing his newest girlfriend. "Umm, thanks, Chi-Chi. I'll go look for him. Sorry to have bothered you."

Chi-Chi slammed the door on them, almost before they were off the porch. Krillin sweat-dropped, but Marron didn't even seem to notice. "Krillllinnnn..." she said in a sing-song tone. "Do you know where we can find them?"

"Nani?" Krillin was still looking at the closed door. ::Aw man, now I did it. Chi-Chi is mad at me.:: He blinked a few times and looked over at Marron. "Hai, I think I know where they are."

"Oh! Goodie goodie goodie goodie!" Marron bounced around in an interesting manner, distracting Krillin for a few seconds. "Let's go find them!" she called out, getting into the car.

They arrived some time later to find Goku in deep discussion with a boy he had never seen before. It seemed to the bald warrior that Goku was demonstrating some kind of ki technique that the young man was watching intently.

It wasn't unusual for his oldest friend to train someone; he and Goku had traded techniques back and forth for years. He smiled when he realized that since Goku was back, they could spar again. What caught Krillin's attention then was Vegeta sitting on a boulder, legs crossed at the ankles, watching the proceedings with apparent disinterest. His eyes grew wider when he saw Vegeta scowl for no apparent reason, and noticed then that there was an attractive woman leaning over his shoulder and grinning at him about something he had just said.

Krillin almost choked when he saw Vegeta respond, causing the woman to laugh. The big man standing next to her wrapped his arm about her shoulders and laughed as well. Krillin was rendered speechless - he knew that tall man. It was Yamcha. Pu'ar was right; he had changed.

Krillin approached the group with a wave. Every one of them had turned to watch his arrival. Goku broke out into a warm welcoming grin. "Krillin!" Goku exclaimed. "Where have you been? It's been ages!" The big man clapped his short companion on the back.

"I was in East City." Krillin looked up at Yamcha, staggered by what he saw. Not only had he grown several feet since he had seen him last, but his ki had increased so much that he had not recognized him. "Yamcha? What happened? You grew...." He trailed off, not really knowing what to say.

"I grew?" Yamcha put one hand behind his head, looking embarrassed. "Yeah, I guess so. I couldn't really help it, though."

"In more ways than one," Hakusai murmured suggestively, earning an answering blush from Yamcha.

Krillin looked up at the woman and frowned. He knew that she was implying something, but he couldn't figure out what. "Pu'ar said you are a Saiyan? That Bulma turned you into one?"

Yamcha blinked, startled at that comment. "Turned me into one? No, she didn't turn me into one. I always was one, but I just didn't know it until a few days ago." He grinned sheepishly. "I think that growing the tail was the big give-away," he said, lifting his tail in one hand and showing it to his friend.

"Tail?" Krillin squeaked. "What's going on?'

"Well..." Yamcha scratched his head, looking perplexed. "Maybe Bulma should explain it to you. She could do it better than I could."

"Oh boy. I think I have a headache," Krillin complained, plopping down on the ground.

"Poor guy. Doesn't look like he is taking it very well," Hakusai remarked dryly.

"Chrome-dome never takes anything well," Vegeta remarked from his position by the rock.

"Well, we could head back to see if Bulma has got those devices finished. And it is getting close to dinnertime. We could let her explain it to him then," Goku said.

"Bulma? I guess you are right." Krillin gave Yamcha a doubtful look and looked up startled when he heard the unknown woman chuckling.

"Maybe you ought to sit down and we can explain it to you." Hakusai gestured to one of the boulders. "It may take awhile."

"He doesn't have the brain power to comprehend what happened. Yamcha is half-Saiyan. How complicated can that be?" Vegeta glared at Krillin, making the smaller man nervous. But then, Vegeta had always made the little monk nervous. It unnerved Krillin, but somehow Vegeta seemed different. He couldn't put his finger on what it was, but something had changed in the small Saiyan since Krillin had last seen him.

"Now, now, Vegeta. Try to be polite," Hakusai said, linking her fingers through Yamcha's. "I know it is a near impossibility, but you could try."

Vegeta turned his head and fixed Hakusai a glare that would have scared most people, but the woman merely shrugged. 

"Umm, excuse me," Krillin broke in hoping to keep Vegeta from pounding on her. "But I don't think I know you."

"That's Hakusai," Goku spoke up. "Vegeta's sister."

"Nice to meet..." Krillin's eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he realized what had been said. "VEGETA'S SISTER????? But how..."

"It's very simple, baka," Vegeta said, standing and brushing himself off. "We have the same parents."

Goku shook his head. "I met her on Yardrat last year. She and her sister Serori are moving here. Ryouga," Goku said gesturing to the teenager that Goku had been demonstrating ki to earlier, "is Yamcha's half brother."

"And before you ask...." Vegeta sneered at the little monk, enjoying the way he was squirming under his gaze. "They have the same mother."

Krillin's jaw dropped open. "You have a brother?"

"He has two," Goku put in. "Ryouga has a twin he was separated from at birth. We are hoping to find him at the Budokai tomorrow."

"Twin brothers?" Krillin found that he was having a hard time absorbing all this information, and reluctantly admitted to himself that he would have to go and see Bulma for any of it to make sense. "Maybe I should go talk to Bulma."

"That's the most intelligent thing I have heard you say," Vegeta remarked sarcastically. "Let's go home."

Goku nodded. "Chi-Chi will probably have my head if I don't get back before dinner. So I'll see all you at the tournament tomorrow, ne?"

"Nothing could keep me away from there. Especially since I am going to beat the living shit out of you," Vegeta informed him.

"Sure, Vegeta." Goku smiled. "I am looking forward to it." And without another word, he turned and headed for home.

Vegeta glared after 'Kakarotto' in disgust, then flared his own ki and headed back towards Capsule Corp. Yamcha shrugged at that, then turned to Krillin. "See you at Bulma's?" Krillin nodded, then saw an intimate look pass between Yamcha and the Saiyan woman. The two linked hands, flared their ki, and took off, with the strange boy that was supposedly Yamcha's brother right behind them.

Krillin sighed, and put one hand behind his head. "I wonder if this is going to make any sense, soon...." He was about to flare his own ki and take off after them, when a voice interrupted him.

"Kriiiiilliiiin!" came Marron's voice from the direction of the car. She was walking towards him, a slightly worried look on her face. "Were those your alien friends?"

"Yeah, Marron," Krillin replied, blushing slightly when he realized that he had forgotten about her and had been about to abandon her. ::Oops!::

Marron pouted prettily. "You didn't introduce me to them! I wanted to meet your alien friends!"

"Ahhh!" Krillin's blush deepened. He couldn't believe that he had been ignoring her that whole time! "Well, we're all going to meet at Bulma's. You can meet them there."

"Oh, goodie goodie goodie goodie!" she squealed, clapping her hands together and dancing up and down.

Krillin's eyes were drawn to certain interesting parts of her anatomy when she did this, and he blushed again. ::I shouldn't be looking at her that way! She's a nice girl!:: "Ah... let's get back to the car, and we'll go there."

To be continued.....

~~~~~*~~~~~

And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness... Bulma meets Marron... and likes her about as much as Chi-Chi did.