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The Burning Leftovers of Temporary Madness	By : KahlanN Category: Dragon Ball Z > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2168 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own DragonballZ, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Title: The Burning Leftovers of Temporary Madness

Chapter Number: 3

Author: Kahlan Nightwing

Pairing: Pi/V

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: Angst, character death, yaoi

Disclaimer: Dragonball Z is the sole property of Akira Toriyama and all parties therein. I do not claim to own Dragonball, Z, GT or any of its characters. I am making no money from this story.

Summary: It's been 25 years since Vegeta left Earth, leaving behind a grown son and a lot of pain. Now an evil is threatening Earth and he is called to duty. But why did he leave, and what will he find when he gets back?

Archive: Ask first. I like to exchange links.

Website: http://www.geocities.com/dbcseries

Chapter 3

My eyes snap open as the ship shudders and shakes and I jerk upwards in my chair, growling as the seat belt snaps and pulls me back harshly. I unbuckle and then proceed to tap keys in an effort to find out what is wrong.

I lean back with a sigh on my lips. I�m entering Earth�s atmosphere. It�s perfectly normal for the ship to shake as if it�s being torn apart as pressure and heat buffets the thin metal that protects me from airless, cold space. Leave it to me to have such comforting thoughts.

I can�t stop the chuckle that forms on my lips. Of course, only I would find my own thoughts amusing. The Namek was right�much too twisted. Comes with the territory I guess.

I stop my train of thought as I flick the screen that serves as a window on, taking in a breath as the blue and white planet forms before me. It�s been years since I�ve seen it from up here and all kinds of strange and conflicting emotions surface. I bat each one aside one by one, distracting myself to make sure the landing gears, brakes, and such are in working order. It would be just my luck to crash as soon as I got planetside.

Luckily Vulgur has taught me all about these ships. When he found out I only knew about Frieza�s pod technology, he�d made it his responsibility to educate me. I remembered really hating him then.

A few minutes later I coordinate the ship to set down at the capsule house that I last left Trunks at. He should be there, since he�s expecting me. Hopefully the �big, bad thing� is nowhere in the vicinity and has taken the famous �Cell break� of three months. Not likely, but nice to wish nonetheless.

I set the ship down so gently I think even picky Vulgur would�ve beamed, and stand. Forgot to buckle back up. That would�ve been nice if I�d crashed.

I step to the door, feeling for any ki�s outside of it. Nothing. But Trunks might be keeping it in check until he knows it�s me. I�m keeping it in check. Like father, like son.

The door opens slowly, hissing upward, and the ramp retracts down. A lot faster than the Earth model did. Funny I notice that first and not the man in front of me.

The purple hair is the only think that reminds me of the boy I left behind. He�s grown into my shoes it seems, taking those last words I gave him to heart. His muscles strain the simple black bodysuit he wears. It looks torn and there�s definitely the smell of blood in the air. Seems I�ve landed in time for battle. This seems like role reversal somehow. I�ve switched places with future Trunks.

We stare at each other for a long moment, he studying my own outfit. It is a forest green bodysuit, but flashier than his. Black and white spikes streak down it like lightening. Vulgur practically demanded I wear something other than black and blue. I tried telling him that was a way of warning my opponents; telling them what colors they were going to be. He countered by saying I should wear the color of blood then. How it got to the final design I now wear I have no idea.

�Fa-ther?�

He seems to choke on the last syllable of the word and I stare closely into his eyes, wondering at the dull color there. What happened to my fire in her eyes? In fact, his shoulders seem to be slumping. He looks too much like his counterpart.

I nod silently and start down the ramp, hearing it pull up and the door shut as I step onto ground that I never wanted to settle on again. �You called?�

He seems to be physically restraining himself from something and I tense in expectation of a yell, punch, attack�anything but this silence.

Finally he breaks my gaze, looking toward the house and not exactly answering my question. �We can stay here and talk for a while. It hasn�t come this far yet.� He sounds tired, as if he�s fighting a losing battle. I frown to myself, but he catches it anyways. He stares at me, looking surprised, as if he�d forgotten my face; what I looked like.

I smirk for his benefit. �Lead the way. Don�t spike the coffee this time.�

He smiles then, a real smile I half-feared he�d forgotten, turning and walking into the house.

I sneeze upon entering, waving dust away that the mere opening of the door stirs up. I have to stop myself from gazing in stupidity at the inside of his �vacationing� spot. It looks as if it hasn�t been touched in years. I glance at Trunks from the corner of my eye as we make our way to the kitchen, but he doesn�t seem to care about the state of things; the cobwebs, dust, and general disarray of the house. She would throw a fit!

He turns then as he enters the kitchen, looking as if he just remembered something. �Um, we don�t have anything to eat or drink here. In fact, we haven�t been here in years.�

My ears perk up at the pronoun, but I let it slide. He�s probably as tired as he looks. �So tell me about this �big, bad thing�.�

He sighed, running his hands through hair that was just a shade darker than when I saw him last. �We have no idea what it is. I think Pan saw it first, but only a glimpse. She said it was dark. She was the first to die.�

I couldn�t have been more shocked. �Pan?� I remembered black eyes looking up at me, framed by a short cut of black hair, smiling as she said hi to her �Uncle Vegeta�. She had been the tomboy of the �new generation�. �It killed her?�

Trunks shook his head, pulling out one of the chairs by the table and plopping himself down on it, ignoring the plume of dust that rose up. �Yes and no. She just�withered away, like she was growing old, but she was still young.� He shook his head. �We don�t know how they die. They see it and they�just go.�

I sneezed again, frowning as the dust tickles my nose and tells me I�ll be doing so again. Irritably, I wrinkle my nose. �Is it destroying cities, giving ultimatums, anything that villains normally do?�

He stares up at me, obviously missing the cool thinking of someone outside the group, as I have always been. Emotions only weaken you. �No. Nothing like that�.� He trails off and catches my frown again, tilting his head to study me again. �What are you wearing?�

�Involuntarily wearing. Comes with the job. Where�s�he at? He�s usually the one who does all the planning�if you could call that planning.�

He pauses, his face paling considerably. My eyes narrow as he stammers out a reply. �W-well, actually, no one�s seen him since�� His voice chokes and the weariness that had gripped him when I first saw him literally seems to shake him. His head bows and his shoulders slump forward, as if to hide himself.

I am by his side in an instant, tilting his head up with a finger under his chin. It rises with resistance and I�m met with blue eyes that have tears overflowing from them. My own eyes and voice stay calm, though inside I�m panicking. �Trunks? Tell me.�

He seems to cling to whatever my eyes hold, his hand coming up and gripping the arm that holds him. �She�s dead.�

The soft words strike me, making me fall back but for the grip on my arm. He�s suddenly pulling me into him and embracing my unresisting and stunned form.

My eyes are open, I know this, but there�s nothing in my vision. I can�t focus on anything.

�She�s dead.� It�s not possible. She was fine when I left, healthy and hale and happy. He had said she was happy. �Was she happy?�

I can hear his tears now. My voice came out dead, and it�s probably worrying him. I pull out of his embrace, grabbing his arms and forcing him to look at me. �Did it kill her?�

He seems surprised by the lack of reaction I�m having. He doesn�t know I break down in front of no one�. There have been a few exceptions to that rule, but this is not one of them. Maybe I�m in shock.

�No. She was old. She died in her sleep. Peacefully. N-no pain.�

�When?�

The questions are jolting him out of his sorrow. �Eleven years ago�.�

Fourteen years after I left. Fourteen years with him. I don�t want to know if it was longer than with me. I stand suddenly, going back toward the empty chair but not able to sit.

He seems to need to fill in the silence. �After she died, he just disappeared. Everyone felt flickers from him now and then, but no one could find him. He would disappear again before we could get to him. A year later Pan saw it and two months after that, she died. People were reporting seeing this thing and then dropping dead, the time depending on how strong they were. Gohan lasted the longest at fighting it.�

I feel like chill water has just been poured over me. �Gohan�?� Of all them, Gohan dying seems inconceivable. It had seemed inconceivable when we�d thought Buu had killed him.

�He saw it. He knew he would die. He tried to find it, wanted to go down fighting. He tried to find him, but he died before he could do either.�

My mind heard one thing. ��wanted to go down fighting.� The boy had been more Saiyan than I could have ever hoped. �Who else?� My voice is hoarse, but I�m beyond caring. If I had been here�

If I had been here, there would be no here. The Namek�s forced meditation was merely a respite from the maelstrom boiling beneath the surface of my skin.

�Videl went not two weeks after Gohan, on the exact day he died. She died of a broken heart. Krillin saw it and�Eighteen deactivated herself to go with him. Marron would�ve gone too, if not for Goten.�

My mind stuck on the idea of Goten and Marron, but it made sense. They were happy. I would have to find out if she had been happy.

�All the rest are okay? Piccolo�the dragonballs?�

Trunks nods, biting his lower lip, �They don�t work though. Whatever this thing is, it isn�t killing anybody violently. We can�t wish them back.�

I recall words he had said before we entered the house. �Not here yet�.� My mind jumps to the conclusion. �Satan City.�

He nods. �It appeared at Western Capital next. Both cities are deserted.�

I raise an eyebrow, taking in his appearance again. �You make it sound like no one�s fought the thing, but you�� I wave a hand at his appearance.

He looks down as if he�s forgotten. He seems to blush a bit; then looks back up at me. �Uh, Goten and I were sparring. The sensor I set up to detect foreign spacecraft entering Earth�s atmosphere went off and I came right here from it.�

I nod my head, a smirk on my lips. It will be nice to get some fighting in, to see if my son�s improved. He better have. There�s no way I�m going easy on him. I turn to the next topic of interest. �So, if you�re not here and you�re not at Capsule Corporation, then where are you?�

He stands, brushing dirt and dust he just now notices off the black suit. He�s unsuccessful. He looks like a waif and I frown again. That is not the way the son of a Prince should look. �Goten and Marron have a place near here. It�s better to be in a group. It only appears to one person at a time.�

I sigh, moving with him to the living room as I run my fingers through my hair. �We�ll you need to get cleaned up and I wouldn�t mind a meal and a bed. I�m not staying in this pigpen, so Goten better have an extra room.�

He laughs, a sound I�ve been craving to hear for twenty-five years, as we exit the house and he locks it back up. �He does. I�m sure he won�t mind an extra person.� What he says next surprises me. �He missed you. We all missed you.�

I fold my arms across my chest and snort, and he just smiles.

I pause as we pass my ship and open the door back up. �Hold on. I have a few items.� I disappear into the ship with Trunks looking on curiously.

A few minutes later he joins me in the cargo bay to find me cursing Vulgur in every language I know. The �few items� turns out to be enough for four people to carry. �I told him I didn�t need much! That prick! He did this just to laugh in my face after I�m gone! I�ll skin him and make a new bodysuit out of it!�

Trunks looks a little confused at my outburst as I stumble along the organized clutter, deciding I�ll take what I need and leave the rest of the crap; like extra clothes. I turn around to see him heaving a chest of said items onto his back. �Please no! Not that one! Leave it and get the weapons. I�m hardly worried about my appearance.�

Trunks looks at me wide-eyed for a moment before breaking into a grin. �Who is this guy? I want to meet him and congratulate him. I think you just begged.�

I grit my teeth and growl, waiting for him to put down the chest. He doesn�t. He just smirks at me, picks up a few other items he knows I won�t like, and exits the ship. I let out an aggravated screech. I had to have a son like Trunks, couldn�t have something nice and obedient�.

I join him outside the ship once I pick up things that will be needed, weapons and things that can detect certain energy spikes and signatures, body heat, or anything else that can be measured. He eyes all the stuff I carry while I eye all the stuff he carries. He gives a satisfied nod and I give a snarl. Amazing how things can just settle back into place.

<* �*�*>

We arrive at Goten�s house a little out of breath. We don�t power up to carry the stuff. We might alert too many people and a shower, food, and rest is all I want at the moment.

Trunks walks right in the door courtesy of a key I hope I get a copy of. Goten pokes his head out the kitchen, looking distracted. �Oh, hey Trunks!� His head vanishes back in.

I raise a brow as his head pops back out, eyes wide as he takes in my presence. �Holy� Vegeta?� The rest of his body comes out with his head and he is barreling toward me. I�m barely able to get my hands up and hold him back.

�What the hell do you think you�re doing, brat? I�m not a stuffed animal! I don�t�hug!� I growl at him, wondering when exactly he got license to get taller than me. He�s not as tall as his sire, but still�.

He grins up at me and I slowly release him, assured he won�t jump me. He stares at me for a few moments and my eyebrow rises again. �Vegeta!� His arms grab me and he practically lifts me above his head. I growl and fling my concern of the other�s out the window.

Trunks lets out a sound of dismay as he hurries toward Goten, who has made a good-sized dent on the far side of the wall. I smirk as he woozily rises from where I threw him. �I�m here for bed and breakfast, not hug therapy. If this is how I�m going to be treated, I�ll go back to the dust bunny mansion.�

�Who do you think you are, mister? You can�t just come into my home and throw people around! You better have a good explanation for this or I�ll�� As I turn around to view this new speaker she covers her mouth with one hand, cutting herself off.

It�s been more than a few years, but I can tell this is Marron. She may have looked like Krillin when she was young, but she�s definitely all Eighteen now. I feel my own eyes widen as she suddenly lets out a squeal and runs toward me.

I quickly phase out before she can run into me and give me a hug like her mate, reappearing behind her staring husband. My waspish voice behind him makes him whirl around with a hand on his chest. �Call her off!�

He grins, but seems to think better of grabbing me again when he notices the dent in the wall behind me. He speaks to Marron who is coming up beside him a little more composedly. �It�s Vegeta!�

I roll my eyes. �Thank you so much. I�d forgotten who I was for a second there.�

He looks wide-eyed at Trunks. �Is that why you left so suddenly? Why didn�t you say anything? What�s he doing here? How�d you get him here?�

Trunks holds up two hands, trying to stave off his best friend�s questions. �Hold on. One question at a time, Goten!�

Goten puts his hand behind his head and chuckles as he grins cheekily. �Sorry.� He turns to me, laughing outright when he notes my put-off stance; arms crossed over my chest as I glare at him. �Sorry, Vegeta. So?�

Marron suddenly turns to her husband, whacking him on his arm. �Goten! Where are your manners? He�s probably hungry and wants a bath and bed! He can answer questions tomorrow.�

Goten laughs again, murmuring yet another apology. I smirk appreciatively at Marron. At least someone here remembers something. Marron smiles at me brightly and leads the way into the kitchen, the rest of us trailing after her. The place is small, more like the cottage it was built to resemble than what I�m used to. Quaint.

We all sit as Goten and Marron set the bowls and platters of food on the table. There isn�t much, but I figure with both of the big cities of Earth gone, there wouldn�t be even this much. They must have a secret supplier.

We eat in silence; though I can tell Goten and Marron are brimming with questions. I stand after finishing the slice of pie that served as dessert. �I�d like that bath and bed now. Trunks can answer most of your questions.�

Marron nods, rising and wiping her mouth on a cloth. Goten watches her movements with open admiration and I feel the sudden urge to leave the room before I open my mouth and sour the mood. Trunks notices the look on my face and tries for a small smile. I merely grunt at all of them and allow myself to be led out of the room.

Marron stops before a door after a short walk down a hallway. �You can take this room. There�s a bath inside.� She studies me, much like Eighteen would have; a cool gaze that assesses whether I�m �all there� or not. The half-lidded look I give back is answer enough, for she steps back and lets me past her.

As I turn around to close the door, she�s still standing there. I sigh as blue eyes that remind me of that cursed android bore into me. �What?�

She blinks. �Oh, I just� Sleep well.�

I roll my eyes. �There�s something all of you aren�t telling me and when I find out what it is, I�m not going to be happy, am I?�

She smiles shakily. �We talk in the morning. Remember?�

I nod, shutting the door practically in her face. Shower, bed; that�s all that�s on my itinerary. I look around the room, noting the sparseness of the place. Just the way I like it, nice and �Spartan�, as these Earthlings call it. I strip as I move to the shower; smirking as I think of the fit Vulgur would throw at the careless way I left my clothes. If it was my regular training outfit, I would�ve hung it up, but I could care less about that green monstrosity.

Twenty minutes later, I feel refreshed enough to step out of the shower. I could have used that Namek and his meditative state right now, but I�ll have to make due with sleep. I move back to the bedroom, still naked. What�s the use of clothes in bed? I just cover myself up with blankets.

Maybe I will go pay the Namek a visit. The death of Gohan will have hit him hard, and no one�s said anything about him but that he�s alive. Maybe I�ll bring some alcohol with me and we can both get drunk. I�ve never seen a buzzed Namek.

I pull the sheets back on the bed and crawl in, barely noticing their sky blue coloring as I stare out the window at the night stars. Still the same after all these years. Stars don�t change unless they explode, after all.

A/N: Twist is next chapter�. That is where you people will probably state �ew�. That�s what all my friends who I�ve thrown the idea to say�.

Kodachi: Thanks for the encouraging words!

Vegitalover: Wow! Diehard V/B fan, huh? Well, you may like it yet. Keep reading. Tell me if I produced tears! Lol

Wawashkeshi: It took me many years of practice to be a �natural�. Lol

Manga: Yeah, must have humor. Even if it�s snarky humor! Lol

Skittlekicks: roflmbo. Yeah, I try not to read fics from people who can�t write a complete sentence correctly. Some are great plots, but it drives me nuts! That�s why they exert such control, they have the most fear of losing it�. Oh, Psych major for a year, then switched to English�.

Lady Wolf: Love your name! Here�s more!

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The Burning Leftovers of Temporary Madness