Saiya-jin

Vegeta-Ouji pulled his fur cloak closer about his body and curled deeper into the plush chair he was sitting in. He sighed and turned another page in the book he was reading. \"Damn it,\" he silently cursed. \"Why doesn\'t \'Tousan have the fire built up more? It shouldn\'t get this cold in here.\" He shivered a little. He knew that he should have left to meet Bardock hours ago, and reading the text bodidndidn\'t help anything; they kept telling him the same thing. But how was he going to explain to his father that he had to leave the palace grounds to meet his partner because he\'d bonded to a third-class boy even younger than he was?
Suddenly the door to his room banged open. \"Why are you still here, boy?\" his father demanded. The older saiya-jin strode purposefully into the room.

\"Otousan,\" Vegeta-Ouji started. \"I...I can\'t...\"

\"You don\'t have a choice in the matter,\" his father said gruffly. \"I don\'t care who you are bonded to, as long as it doesn\'t come out in public. I know it\'s not an elite, because I\'ve had the palace grounds searched top to bottom.\"

Vegeta-Ouji paled. He looked quickly at the ground and shivered again. \"What do I do?\" he asked quietly.

His father walked up to him and gripped him by the shoulder. \"I already had bags and travel arranged for you; I told the members of the court that you are going on a personal retreat.\" He hesitated. \"Most bonding takes two to three days; stay however long it takes, just make sure that you\'re acting normal again when you return.\"

\"Hai, Otousan,\" Vegeta-Ouji said. He stood to face his father; he couldn\'t shake the feeling of cold and brought his cloak closer around his body.

Vegeta-Ou frowned. \"And take a parcel of firestones and kindling with you when you go. There\'s no reason for you to be so cold; it\'s plenty warm in here. Whoever you\'re bonded to must be without a fire right now.\"

Vegeta-Ouji gulped slightly. \"Hai, Otousan,\" he replied again. He quickly left the room and headed down to the stables. He found a steed ready, just as his father had said, complete with full saddle bags. He quickly discarded his fur cloak for a riding cloak and started to climb up onto the saddle.

\"Forgetting something?\" a voice behind him asked.

The saiya-jin no ouji looked over his shoulder and saw his father standing in the doorway, holding a bag in his hands. \"You\'re not going to get very far starting a fire without this,\" the elder saiya-jin remarked.

Vegeta-Ouji closed his eyes momentarily, berating himself for his idiocy. \"Gomen, Otousan, I forgot,\" he said.

\"Hn,\" his father replied. \"You\'d forget your head if it wasn\'t attached right now.\" He handed the satchel up to his son. \"Don\'t get yourself lost,\" he said. \"If you can\'t find your partner, your link should be strong enough for him or her to guide you there.\"

Vegeta-Ouji nodded. \"I\'ll be all right,\" he said.

\"I don\'t doubt it,\" Vegeta-Ou replied. \"If I did, you wouldn\'t be going on this trip. No get out of here.\" He slapped Vegeta-Ouji\'s mount on its hindquarter, sending the animal sprinting out the door.

Vegeta-Ouji pulled the hood of his riding cloak over his head, concealing his face. Once he left the palace grounds, he really didn\'t want to be recognized. It wasn\'t unusual for the elites in general to ride through the countryside, but the ou and ouji always drew attention.

He realized as he rode that he didn\'t really even know where Bardock lived. He reached out to the young man through their bonding link. \"Bardock,\" he said, \"I\'m riding out of the palace grounds right now. Tell me where to find you.\"

Bardock heard him and immediately responded. \"Do you know where the village I lived in is at?\" he asked.

\"Hai,\" Vegeta-Ouji replied.

\"Follow the road through town and head toward the west,\" Bardock continued. As he thought it over in his mind, Vegeta-Ououldould see the landscape Bardock was envisioning as clearly as Bardock could. \"You\'ll find a slight trail that leads up to the cliffs. I\'m staying in one of the caves in those cliffs.\" The image shifted slightly in their minds, racing over the dusty ground to the cliffside, then focusing in on the cave Bardock was staying in.

\"Ok,\" Vegeta-Ouji said. \"I think I can find the place. I should be there shortly.\" He urged his steed into a faster clip and rode down into the town below.

He rode quickly through the quiet village and out the west side of town as Bardock had instructed him. Faintly, he could see the dusty trail Bardock had mentioned and the silhouettes of the cliffs in the half-moon light. He carefully followed the trail up to the cave that Bardock had spoken of.

The cave entrance was dark. Vegeta-Ouji hesitated, then dismounted and walked up to the entrance. \"Bardock?\" he called tentatively.

\"In here, m\'lord,\" Bardock called. He lit a small ball of ki as Vegeta-Ouji stepped through the entrance. \"Sorry about it being so dark; I couldn\'t find decent firewood. Everything is either green or wet and won\'t stay lit for shit.\" He kicked at a small pile of wood at his feet for emphasis.

\"So that\'s why you were without a fire,\" Vegeta-Ouji murmured. \"Wait here,\" he said. \"I\'ll be right back.\" He walked back outside and returned quickly with his bags. He brought out the firestones and kindling, and lit a small stack of them with a short burst of ki. They crackled and popped, then began to blaze higher as fire consumed them. After a few moments, Vegeta-Ouji was able to add a couple of small pieces of wood from Bardock\'s pile to the blaze, and it mellowed into a stable campfire.

Bardock stared at the fire for long moments. Finally he spoke. \"Thank you, Sire.\"

The Vegeta no Ouji took Bardock\'s chin in his hand. \"\'Vegeta\' is fine, as long as we\'re alone,\" he said. He leaned in and delicately took Bardock\'s lips in his own.

Bardock leaned into the kiss and moved his lips to meet Vegeta\'s. He angled himself closer and wrapped his arms around the older saiya-jin\'s waist.

Vegeta ran his hands down over Bardock\'s muscular arms and was surprised by the coolness he felt on the other\'s skin. \"Gods, I guess you are cold,\" he said. \"Let\'s see what we can do to remedy that.\" He moved away and bent over one of the bags he had brought in.

Bardock looked a bit disappointed as Vegeta broke the kiss. His eyes widened a bit as he watched Vegeta remove three thick blankets from the bag.

\"These should help,\" Vegeta said. \"Do you have a bedroom yet?\"

Bardock was at a loss for words. \"Ah...not really...\" he began. \"We could use this shallow room up here, it\'s near the fire.\" He indicated a shallow indentation in the wall a few feet from him.

Vegeta walked up to it and glanced inside. \"Plenty of room for a bed,\" he said. He tossed down the first two blankets on the floor of the hollow, then spread the third on top of them and folded it back a bit. He quickly undressed and set his clothes in a neat pile near the wall, then climbed up onto the blanket bed. He looked over and smiled suggestively at Bardock. \"Care to join me?\" he asked. \"I\'m sure it\'s much warmer in here.\"

Bardock swallowed hard and nodded. He quickly discarded his own scant clothing and climbed up beside Vegeta.

Vegeta pulled the blanket over the two of them and pulled Bardock close against him. He wrapped his arms tightly around the younger saiya-jin. \"Gods, Bardock, it feels good to have you close again,\" he whispered.

Bardock sighed with pleasure and nodded. He snuggled down closer to the warmth of Vegeta\'s body. \"Yes, it does,\" he agreed.

The two of them lay there, quiet for a moment, just enjoying each other\'s presence. Bardock began to slip into a drowsy, semi-sleep state, and he sleepily trailed kisses along Vegeta\'s collarbone and neck. Vegeta bent his head and met Bardock\'s lips, returning the kisses and starting a lingering one of his own.

Bardock\'s lips parted slightly, allowing the older saiya-jin access. He moaned a little as he felt Vegeta\'s tongue slip into his mouth and begin to explore its depths.

Vegeta rolled on top of Bardock and pressed his body downward, grinding his hips against Bardock\'s. Bardock bucked upward instinctively to meet his hips, and the friction between them caused them both to pant a little bit.

Suddenly, a voice and a brief knock on the stone of the cave entrance interrupted them. \"Bardock?\" the masculine voice called.

Bardock blinked. \"My friend, Toma,\" he told Vegeta mentally. \"I forgot that I asked him and the others to come up tonight.\"

Vegeta sighed a little and rolled off of him. \"It\'s fine,\" he replied. \"If they are going to be your pack mates, I\'d have to meet them sooner or later anyway.\"

Bardock nodded and propped himself up on one elbow. He looked out into the main room and saw Toma still standing in the doorway. \"Come on in, Toma,\" he said.

Toma entered hesitantly and looked around. His eyes widened slightly as he spotted the bags of goods and Vegeta-Ouji\'s clothing. \en, en, Bardock, if I\'m interrupting...\"

\"It\'s all right,\" Bardock said. \"I need to talk to you and the others anyway. Are they here?\"

\"Iie,\" Toma said. \"The bonfire was canceled because the wind is picking up. I just came up here to let you know...\"

Bardock sat upright and slid out of bed. \"Do you think you could ask them to come up here anyway?\" he asked. \"It\'s important.\"

\"Ne?\" Toma asked.

\"Hai,\" Bardock replied. \"I...I consider you and the others as pack mates, even though all of us haven\'t left home yet. It\'s only fair that I let all of you know about things that have changed with me...and I have changed.\"

\"Changed?\" Toma asked. \"How?\"

Bardock hesitated. \"I...I bonded last night, Toma,\" he said. \"Those clothes and bags belong to my partner. I want to introduce all of you while he\'s here with me.\"

Toma swallowed hard. \"You...bonded?\" He was having a hard time taking it all in. \"He\'s...\"

Bardock put a hand up to silence him. \"You know who it is, Toma; I know that you are in no way stupid.\"

Toma looked at the ground. \"Hai...\"

\"Please, try to get the others up here...but don\'t speak a word of this to anyone, including them, until you are back inside this cave. I can\'t risk anyone overhearing.\" Bardock lowered his hand and stared solemnly at Toma.

\"All right,\" Toma said. \"I should be back soon.\" He started to leave.

Bardock put a hand on his shoulder. \"Thank you, Toma,\" he said simply.

Toma nodded shortly and left.

Vegeta looked up curiously as Bardock returned to the makeshift bedroom. \"You\'re sure you can trust him with this?\" he asked.

Bardock nodded grimly. \"I trust Toma with my life; I know I can trust him to keep this secret.\"



*


Toma crept silently up to the darkened home before him. He could see a candle flickering inside one of the windows and hoped that it was Celipa still up late, and not one of her parents. He listened a moment for sounds from inside the house, but all he heard was a light creaking sound. He carefully peered in the window.

Celipa was sitting in a rocking chair working diligently with a needle on a pile of furs on her lap. The candle was perched near her giving her a dim light to work by.

\"Sst! Celipa!\" Toma hissed.

Celipa\'s ears caught the sound and she turned to look at the window. \"Toma?\" she asked.

\"Shh...keep it down,\" Toma whispered loudly. He motioned for her to come over to the window. \"I need to talk to you.\"

Celipa lifted the furs off of her lap and moved closer to the window. \"What is it, Toma?\" she asked quietly.

\"I\'m trying to round everyone up,\" he said. \"I need all of you to come with me.\"

\"With you?\" Celipa asked. \"Where?\"

\"I...I can\'t say, at least not now,\" he said. \"There\'s too much of a chance someone could overhear. You gotta trust me on this one, Celipa...\"

\"You\'re not just trying something to get me alone with you, are you, Toma?\" Celipa asked suspiciously.

\"No!\" Toma replied quickly. He realized he\'d said it louder than he\'d intended to and lowered his voice again. \"No, I\'m not,\" he said. \"It\'s just...it\'s something that we can\'t let just anyone know...it\'s about Bardock.\"

\"Bardock?\" Celipa asked in shock. \"I...\" She glanced quickly around her. \"All right, I\'ll come with you,\" she said. She quietly put her work in the rocking chair, extinguished the candle and slipped out the door.

As the two of them walked quickly in the darkness, Celipa glanced over to Toma. \"You said this is about Bardock,\" she commented. \"What\'s going on? He can\'t possibly be alive...\"

Toma shook his head in negation. \"Not yet,\" he rep. \. \"I want to pick up my brother, Panboukin and Totepo first.\"

\"All right,\" Celipa conceded.

They quickly gathered up the other three. Toma motioned for them to follow him and took off to the sky, heading out to Bardock\'s cave. They landed outside the entrance.

\"Ok,\" Toma said quietly. \"We\'re safe out here, now we can talk.\"

\"About time,\" Celipa grumbled. \"So I take it Bardock is alive?\"

\"Hai,\" Toma replied. \"Alive and well. I spoke with him earlier tonight; this is his place now. He\'s not living at his parents\' home any more.\"

\"He\'s left home?\" Panboukin asked. \"Isn\'t he a little young for that?\"

Another voice interrupted them from the entrance to the cave. \"Show\'s how much you know,\" Bardock said.

Celipa, Panboukin, Totepo and Costoluto looked up in surprise.


\"Bardock!\" Costoluto exclaimed. \"You\'re all right!\"

Bardock gave them a leering grin. He leaned against the entrance to his cave; the dim light from inside made a dark silhouette of his nude body. \"Of course I\'m all right,\" he said. \"I can\'t believe the lack of faith in me all of you have.\"

\"Come on, Bardock,\" Toma said. \"Not just anyone challenges the saiya-jin no ouji and lives through it. Give them a break.\"

Bardock waved for them to follow him back into the cave. \"Come on,\" he said. \"We can talk inside.\"

As they walked into the cave, Bardock hopped up to the small bedroom and leaned into the recess where Vegeta-Ouji was quietly reclining on the blankets. \"They\'re all here,\" he said quietly.

\"I heard,\" Vegeta-Ouji murmured. \"I also heard your little bit of boasting.\" He gave Bardock a playful jab in the ribs.

Bardock scrambled away, grinning. \"We can see if I\'m right later on,\" he said. He winked at the saiyajin no ouji, suggesting a meaning other than the most obvious.

The group huddled around the small fire, eyeing Bardock up carefully as he spoke to someone in the bedroom. They could hear muted voices, but the words weren\'t distinguishable. After a moment, Bardock hopped down into the main room and stood before them again.

\"Bardock, who else is here?\" Celipa asked.

Bardock sighed and thought carefully about how to choose his words. \"I had Toma bring all of you up here in secret for a reason,\" he said. \"I bonded last night, and it\'s important that the identity of my bonding partner be kept secret. However, I trust the five of you as I would true pack mates, and I felt that it was important for you to know him - especially if we do end up together after all of you leave home.\"

\"Why the big secret?\" Panboukin asked. \"I know plenty of bonded saiyajin who don\'t keep their partners a secret. Is he a higher class warrior?\"

Bardock started to speak again, but he was interrupted by a voice from behind him. \"You could say that.\"

The group looked up to see Vegeta-Ouji lounging in the entrance to the bedroom alcove. He gave all of them a short nod and smiled slightly at their speechless expressions.

\"Your Highness!\" Celipa said. She fell to her knees and bowed low; the others followed suit. Bardock blushed a little and glanced at Vegeta-Ouji, wondering uneasily if he should do the same or if he should remain standing.

Vegeta-Ouji waved dismissively toward them. \"There\'s no need for that, in here at least,\" he said.

The five saiyajin kneeling on the floor looked up uncertainly. \"Ouji-sama?\" Celipa queried.

\"Hai, I\'m the one Bardock is bonded to,\" Vegeta-Ouji replied. \"That\'s why it\'s important that the relationship be kept quiet. Bonding is instinctual, but it could still cause a lot of grief for the royal family if it were to get out that a royal had bonded with a lower-class warrior.\"

\"So what\'s this mean for Bardock?\" Toma asked. \"Is he going to have to hide out here forever, then?\"

\"No,\" Vegeta-Ouji replied. \"We\'ll come up with a decent cover story to explain why he\'s still alive. I\'ll be here for a couple of days, to finish out the bonding, so we\'ll have plenty of time.\"