Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Eye of the Tiger ❯ Part 1: "Fighter" ( Chapter 1 )

Email: Mononokehime@gmx.net

Archive: Ask first

Warnings:
Yaoi of course, a little PWP, lemony goodness, general weirdness, slight OOC on the main characters and MAJOR OOC on behalf of Shenlong. *tidal sweatdrop

Pairing:
Vegeta x Goku
This is YAOI! Means male x male-intimacy! Go flame your own behind, if you don't like it!

Rating:
NC-17 (You kids have been warned so don't run off and complain to mommy and daddy)

A/N:
This started of as an idea for a picture (might still do that), then turned into a story (after a particularly interesting dream I had one night.. *blush). At the start I wanted to do a nice little short PWP (for those not familiar with the term: That means "Plot? What plot?") to take my mind off my epic fics and practise some lemon - this is my first real one. But it seems I can neither write short nor real PWP-stories - somehow a plot sneaked in while I was writing.

Hmmm.. romantic, a little violent, a bit funny and very lemonish at the end.

Takes place some years after the Buu-saga. But the last tournament has never happened, and Goku has not run off to train Uub. (don't you hate that end, too?) Bra has never been born.

This is partially a songfic to "Eye of the tiger" by survivor. I was thinking about that song and then I red the lyrics and then I was astounded just how good this fitted into the story…

English is not my native language, so please go easy on me.

Honours:
I must admit that I used an idea of somebody else for a small section of the funny part of this fic. Here my flat mate served as an involuntary muse when he told me about that idea of his (it was the Shenlong-knot-thing) and asked me if I would do a little Doujinshi about it (I do those sometimes, you can see a few of them along with my other arts on this page http://www.fanarts.de/zeichner.phtml?id=767 - Sorry, all german..). and I had the nerve to shamelessly use it for a yaoi-fic (!!). I'll still do the douji, though, so I hope he'll forgive me for that… *ggg

Thanks to my dear friend Azurite, who once again volunteered as a beta-reader. Arrigato, chibi!

Disclaimer:
If I did own Dragonball Z, I'd be the happiest person alive. Do I look very happy? Hmmm?

Translations:
aishiteru = I love you
aishiterumo = I love you, too
baka = idiot
hai = yes
kami = god
nani = what?
nani wo shimasuka = What are you doing?
onna = woman (here used with a disregardful side-meaning)
oozaru = name of the shape-shifter-form of the Saiyajin
owari = the end
o yasuminasai = Good night!
shimata = Damn! Shit!

Last second note: I just realized that this so called "one shot" ended up having more than 32 pages.. err.. ^.^'' I decided to split it into three chapters so it will be easier to read…

~~ <0> ~~

Eye of the Tiger

~~ <0> ~~

Part One

Fighter

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Tiger, tiger burning bright

In the forests of the night

What immortal hand or eye

could frame thy fearful symmetry?

~William Blake~

~~ <0> ~~

A soft glow surrounded the seven perfect spheres which lay on the ground before him.

Vegeta simply stared at them, his gaze captured by the orange glow, the glow that promised him everything he wanted.

Everything.

Whatever he wanted.

He had wanted a lot throughout the years.

He had wanted power.

He had wanted fame.

He had wanted to take revenge for the destruction of his planet, the genocide of his race, the humiliation and abuse of himself, the last prince of the Saiyajin.

He had wanted the strength to rebuild his kingdom, the ability to best and defeat anyone who would stand in his way.

He had wanted immortality.

He did not seek such things anymore.

Now, almost thirty years after he had first laid eyes on the dragonballs way back there on Namek, just before he had been put to death by the hands of his greatest nightmare, his ultimate torturer - Freezer - they lay before him here, awaiting his call, ready to fulfil his wishes.

But he had changed.

More than one could possibly imagine.

Much more.

~~ <0> ~~

Risin' up, back on the street
Took my time, took my chances
Went the distance
Now I'm back on my feet
Just a man and his will to survive

~~ <0> ~~

Bodies clashed way above the ground. Fists pounded onto unguarded flesh. There were soft grunts of pain and fury, as two fighters kept dancing in a complicate woven pattern which seemed to have existed for all eternity, solely for the purpose of having these two graceful forms moving through it. It was timeless..

Vegeta did a double twist then slammed his foot with stone-cracking force into Goku's chest. The bigger fighter grunted but recovered quickly throwing a lightning fast uppercut towards Vegeta's jaw. His fist crushed into the other man's face and the prince flew back, momentarily stunned but never loosing his grace. He blinked a few times and became aware of the slight break his opponent was giving him to recover. Something he himself would never have done. He smirked. And he used it to his advantage.

Back and forth they danced, throwing whirring punches at each other, bodies bending and twisting, feet flying. Occasionally one would form a ki-ball and throw it at the other, but most of the time they just flickered in and out of existence, following each other in hot pursuit, dancing through the sky in an almost weightless manner.

Vegeta let out a feral snarl. The heat of the fight was making his body feel so very alive! He could feel his blood rush through every cell, felt his heart beating strong, felt the thrill pushing him forward again and again.

He cast a glance at his opponent.

The younger Saiyajin seemed to radiate a glow. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were alight with a spark that Vegeta had never seen anywhere but when the two of them were sparring. He loved to see his fellow Saiyajin like that, he loved to see the warrior beneath the surface, the true Saiyajin behind the human facade.

Goku was fully alert, dancing around his prince, carefully avoiding blows and yet throwing his fists at him as fast as he could. Goku knew that when it came to speed he had a slight disadvantage. He was definitely the stronger of the two, almost unlimited in his power. But when it came to speed and tactics, the cunning dark prince was superior and he knew.

Vegeta could not help it. He knew that he shouldn't but he simply had to gape at the younger Saiyajin in awe. At his perfect body, muscles shifting beneath silken skin, remarkably unscarred by the numerous battles of the past. At the raven hair spiking in every direction. He wondered if it was soft to the touch or not. At his ebony black eyes, emitting that fiery gaze which made him shiver in forbidden desire every time it swept across him.

At the soul that lay just beneath those entrapping eyes.

A soul so pure and light that he could not even bear to look at it for longer than a second.

Because it set his own soul on fire.

He had burned for this symbol of saiyan perfection on the outside and overall perfection on the inside for so many years now. He had stalked him, tried to best him, tried to surpass him and finally found himself following him, helplessly drawn to wherever the younger one chose to go. He had even followed him to death and back!

It had started the day he had first laid eyes on him, although it took him a long time to recognize it and even more time to admit it to himself. And after they had been enemies, then comrades in battle and then... even friends in some strange way for so many years... he was finally able to look at the truth without withdrawing from it.

He was lost.

Lost in that blinding light making his own shadows so much darker.

Incinerated by that innocent eyes.

Bound to the side of that baka, seemingly naïve, yet so different from anything the others believed him to be.

It had taken Vegeta quite some time to recognise this. It had probably begun to dawn on him when he, one day long ago, had found the other lying in the grass and... reading. Kakarott had been so deep into that book, that he never knew that Vegeta was even there. The prince had been stunned by the unfamiliar expression of serious concentration on his rivals face After that he had started noticing things.. about the way the other acted. And he had figured it out. Kakarott was not half as dumb and naïve as he made them believe. It was easier for the others to handle him that way and he had been smart enough to realize that. A nearly godlike powerful warrior and hero was hard enough to handle, but someone like that who actually HAD brains might just have been enough to make everyone fear him for what he was. So he had kept carefully quiet about this. On the outside he was the always happy-go-lucky babbling idiot... but on the inside... things ran deeper.

Beside his never stopping mockery, beneath all the insults the prince had thrown at the "worthless scum of a third class baka", he had long since learned the truth. Kakarott was not only physical perfection and a pure heart and soul.. he was so much more.

He was everything.

And Vegeta had never wanted anything less than the best.

~~ <0> ~~

It had been years since he and Bulma had grown apart. He had foreseen it long ago and he had allowed it to happen purposefully. He had always known from the start that her and him were just too much alike and yet too different at the same time to ever be together the way he - or she - longed to. They had just comforted each other in their respective loneliness. And he knew that he had not been able to give her what she wanted. What she deserved. And neither had she. And so they had drifted apart, still remaining friends - somehow. They still had a son to bring up together. Though he did not show it very often, he was grateful for this gift Bulma had given him. His son.

It had not surprised him when a similar thing had happened between Kakarott and his wife. The baka onna had always treated her husband more like one of her children and not like a grown man. Vegeta had sincerely wondered about what had happened to her. Bulma had once described to him how Chichi had been when they were young and he briefly pondered about what had changed her. (1)

But whatever it was, both Kakarott and his harpy-wife had agreed that they would simply rearrange their relationship. They had not really been like a married couple for some years and so Kakarott just moved out some kilometres away into a small lodge. He was still caring for his wife and children but he had time to be on his own. It had relieved him of a huge amount of stress that had always made their relationship a difficult one and had been one of the reason for the younger Saiyajin to leave his home and even his beloved sons for such long periods. Since then Kakarott had changed even more, had lost that forced happy-go-lucky attitude and gotten calmer. And he had found ways to spend his spare time. One of it was what they were doing now.Uh oh… Shimata…

Vegeta didn't even see the fist coming that made him race towards earth like a falling meteorite and crash into it with bone-snapping force, creating a fairly large crater. That was how it ended mot of the times they were sparring. Either he was distracted - though he had an iron will and knew that staying focused within a battle was just about everything, but when it came to Kakarott, he simply failed - or was simply not strong enough to keep up… However, he still lost most of the time. Kakarott was still surpassing him. Vegeta felt a spark of the old rage flicker into life, as he gazed up to the other man who hovered above, looking down on him, probably trying to decide whether he was too hurt to move on or not. He probably even pitied him.Kuso!

And yet..

Beautiful.

Vegeta still couldn't help but stare at the younger Saiyajin.

I want... him... I want him so bad… If only I was strong enough to be his equal.. maybe..

Suddenly an eerie smile crept to his face.

If I can't win like this, maybe I'll win in yet another type of fight.

Quickly a plan started to grow in his cunning mind.

Vegeta did not even notice how a small trickle of blood ran out of his mouth as he unconsciously snickered and he did not notice the startled expression on Goku's face either.Just you wait... I WILL win you… Kakarott…

However long it may take.

~~ <0> ~~

So many times, it happened too fast
You trade your passion for glory
Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive

~~ <0> ~~

Vegeta took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, steadying himself. He had waited so long and finally he was so close to achieving his goal.

"I call forth thee, Eternal Dragon, Shenlong, rise and fulfil my wishes!"

In awe he saw the dragonballs lighting up until it was almost painful to watch them. The sky darkened, but since it was evening already that did not make so much of a difference.

Then beams of light shot out of the spheres on the ground and a huge thing made it's way towards the sky, more and more gaining his true form while doing so. Seconds seemed to stretch into eternity until at last the Great Eternal Dragon Shenlong hovered high above the deserted area. His green scales glistened and his big red eyes burned like all fires of hell set loose.

Dammit... I keep forgetting how HUGE that thing really is.

Vegeta just realized that his jaw was still down when the dragon noisily cleared it's throat. Hastily he shut his mouth.

"WHO HAS SUMMONED ME?"

The booming voice of the dragon rang out and made the Saiyajin's sensible ears ring.

Vegeta shook his head to clean it from the dizziness the presence of the powerful being had caused him and gazed upwards - and upwards.. and upwards until he finally stared into the fiery red eyes of the dragon. He gathered himself, once again standing proud and tall.

"It was me, who called you, Eternal Dragon. Vegeta, Prince of the Saiyajin!"

"OH, IT'S YOU AGAIN."

Vegeta stared a him, jaw dropping again. That was not what he had estimated to hear from the Eternal Dragon.

"Whatcha mean, it's me - again?"

"WELL, YOU HAVE BEEN AROUND AWFULLY OFTEN WHEN I WAS SUMMONED LATELY."

"Lately?"

"WELL, YES. I MEAN LATELY LIKE IN THE LAST 30, 40 YEARS. YOU SEE, I CAN'T EVEN GET SOME SLEEP CAUSE YOU GUYS KEEP WAKING ME UP ALMOST EVERY YEAR! HOW FOR HEAVENS SAKE IS AN ETERNAL DRAGON SUPPOSED TO STAY FIT AT THAT RATE, I ASK YA?

"Err.."

"OH SHEESH, DON'T BOTHER TO ANSWER THAT. SO WHATEVER… BACK TO THE TRADITION."

The dragon cleared it's throat once more, finally booming out in an impressive voice:

"YOU WHO HAVE SUMMONED ME, I SHALL GRANT YOU TWO WISHES. I SHALL DO EVERYTHING AT YOUR COMMAND AS LONG AS IT LIES WITHIN MY POWER!"

Had the dragon not been so occupied with fluffing himself up to look impressive, he might have noticed the spark of mischief sported by Vegeta's eyes. It was clearly evident where Chibi-Trunks, in his younger days the terror of all sentient creatures not fast enough to run away when he was approaching, had gotten his ideas from.

"I wonder…"

The dragon cast his eyes downwards to the tiny figure at his non-existent feet.

"WHAT?" he asked, curiosity clearly evident in his voice

" I wonder, if someone used their wishes to order you to do something really stupid, would you still do it?"

"IF IT WAS WITHIN MY POWER I WOULD HAVE TO DO IT. ERRR… STUPID AS IN..?", the dragon asked back with more than just a little bit of nervousness in his voice.

Vegeta thoughtfully seemed to ponder that question.

"Weeeell.. stupid like in if somebody wished for you to tie yourself up into a knot. Or make yourself shrink to the size of a lizard. A yellow lizard with pink stripes. Or if someone wished for you to wear a tutu and perform swan lake in midair… "

The dragon visibly paled.

"ENOUGH!"

Vegeta's smirking listing of possibilities was sharply cut off. He saw the dragon glaring daggers at him.

"I AM PRETTY SURE THAT NO ONE WOULD DARE TO WASTE PRECIOUS WISHES FOR SOMETHING A PROFANE AS THAT…!!" Shenlong's voice trailed off dangerously. Unluckily the dragon had a very vivid imagination.ACK! IMAGE! JUST FOR BRINGING THIS UP I SHOULD TRY AND GET BACK ON THAT BAKA PRINCE!

"AND NOW YOUR WISHES IF YOU PLEASE…"

Vegeta snickered heartily at the impression on the dragon's face, but quickly got serious again as he got ready to formulate his wishes. He found himself growing weary about the intense stares the dragon was giving him. Maybe it had not been such a good idea to taunt the powerful creature…

Vegeta swallowed.

"Err. Yes, my first wish is for the moon to be restored to this world."

"GRANTED AND DONE. WHAT IS YOUR SECOND WISH?"

AND IT BETTER BE NOTHING EMBARRASSING OR ELSE…

"My second wish is that I and Kakarott grow tails again so that we can transform."

Vegeta did not look up to the dragon as he said this because at that very moment he saw the moon between the clouds for the first time in decades and was totally bewitched by the beauty of it. So this time he was the one to miss the spark of mischief in the other's eyes.

THAT'S IT? I THINK I SENSE A NASTY LITTLE PLAN IN YOUR MIND, BAKA PRINCE... HMM... THAT WAS NOT VERY ACCURATELY FORMULATED... I WONDER... YOU WANT SOME TAILS AND A TRANSFORMATION? AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU'LL GET, LITTLE SAIYAJIN…BUT SINCE IT INVOLVES GOKU, TOO, I BETTER NOT DO SOMETHING TOO DRASTIC. AH, YES...THAT SHOULD BE FUN FOR EVERYONE…

"GRANTED AND DONE. ALL WISHES HAVE BEEN GRANTED. THE DRAGONBALLS WILL REMAIN DORMANT FOR ONE YEAR FROM NOW ON."

And with that the dragon started turning into light again and shrinking down to earth.

"Oyasuminasai!" Vegeta called out almost cheerfully, already looking forward to what was going to happen next and therefore completely missing the really odd snicker that escaped the giant mouth of the fading dragon before the light exploded and propelled seven balls of fire to seven different directions.

After the dragon hat disappeared again, Vegeta sighed. Then he turned his attention to a tingling sensation he had felt for a few minutes already, staring down to the base of his spine over his shoulder. He smiled at the sinewy furry appendage that was now connected to his lower backside. It swayed as if to greet him, trashing through the air energetically as if looking forward to the next part of his plan. For a second he quirked his eyebrows, having the feeling that something was not as it should be. He looked down at the tail but it was really too dark to see anything in detail. Then he shrugged. What could possibly have gone wrong anyway?

Here he was, there was his tail and now it was on with the plan.Watch out, Kakarott... here I come…

~~ <0> ~~

End Part One