Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Sculpted In Gold ❯ A Scandalous Proposition ( Chapter 16 )

Sculpted In Gold

Chapter 16

With Durmast quietly excusing himself from attending dinner, and skulking off to the privacy of his chambers, the rest of the Purge Alliance seemed to behave themselves quite well- for them at least. They stayed at their table and talked among themselves, not even paying much attention to the serving girls, much to Raya's surprise, because she had assigned mainly herself to their table because their habit of pawing the servers tended to unnerve the other girls to the point where they refused to return to that table after 15 minutes of trying to be hospitable to them. Still, although they didn't actually pull Raya into their laps and try to kiss her or anything like that, every time she came around with the wine, almost the entire line of them subtly took the opportunity to feel her buttocks or her breasts.

By the time dessert was served, Raya would have liked to fall into a chair and not get up again, but she didn't. She kept making rounds of the table along side the other servants with more fresh glazed strawberries and whipped cream to top the freshly made ice cream and then making another pass with the wine. Finally the dining nobles seemed finished and began to excuse themselves from the tables. Raya gave a heavy sigh of relief. She worked with the other servants to clear the tables and continued to keep watch over the purge alliance table, since it appeared they weren't in any hurry to leave. When Frieza went over to join them, Raya growled. She could still feel his icy hand on her throat and she didn't trust that arrogant bastard without other presentable guests around, so she used magic to summon everything off of that table onto one they had already cleared and collapsed into a chair suddenly feeling dizzy from the effort. When she tried to get up, another servant placed a hand on her shoulder. "The rest of the night staff will be in the kitchen in a few minutes. You've done more than enough, just to prepare for the party and you served the worst table almost totally by yourself, rest for a while and thank you, my lady. Are you hungry? The others told me that you haven't eaten anything all night."

"No, thank you, I'm fine."

"Truly, my lady, you do too much to help us! Let me help you this time. Before you and the Lady came to live here, we used to have to manage these affairs by ourselves and without magic. You and the Lady's servants don't know how much you have done to help us already. Let me bring you something light, while you rest." The Lady she spoke of, of course, was Shinesta, and Raya knew that like herself, the palace staff loved the Elven Empress, they would do anything for her, but Raya never realized that the regular palace staff also considered her to be above their status. Raya sighed, she had been born a countess, but she had been raised to be Shinesta's closest friend and confidant and that made her a handmaiden by default, so she had never bothered to act the part of royalty. She had always seen to her duties among the other servants and although all her life, every one of them had always deferred to her, she never thought anything of it. Raya looked up, and smiled at the gratitude she saw in the face of the young servant and finally nodded. As the servant hurried into the kitchen, Raya looked around at the dinning room and sighed. Everyone but the members of Frieza's purge alliance was already out of this room.

The musicians would retire for the night in about an hour, but for the moment they had already returned to the ballroom to play where Shinesta and a few of the society matriarchs and the younger women who had come unescorted were talking, in the ballroom. Vegeta and Shani were one of a handful of couples still dancing. Raya giggled, it was interesting to see them having such a nice time together, for when the evening had begun, those two had barely said anything or even looked at each other.

Most of the party guests had already wandered out into the gardens to enjoy the beautiful night and the secluded benches in pairs. A veritable lover's paradise, the huge gardens were made to be a romantic retreat after parties of this sort. Long ago she had vowed to herself to get Zarbon to make love to her in this moon drenched paradise but he had never taken the bait. She sighed, it was hard to be spontaneous with a man that was perpetually planning everything, but he was careful because not only of his reputation as an incorrigible cad, but to protect her as well. She was not even supposed to walk to or away from his room; for he had warned her long ago that to let anyone know that she was his lover could place her in danger- you only had to be seen leaving his room once for it to be said that you were one of his mistresses. Still, she looked wistfully at the gardens through the beautiful beveled glass windows, it would be a wonderful night for getting lost in the hedge maze, the weather was perfect and the palace gardens were never more beautiful than in midsummer.

Raya's keen blue eyes no sooner found Radditz than the two Elven servants came up to him, no doubt to invite him to join the two of them for the evening. She sighed happily as the large Saiyan let them lead him away; she had no doubts that he would enjoy himself with those two. Remembering what she finally had to do to get Napa to meet Charsi, she giggled, congratulating herself on her successful round of matchmaking…

"My lady," The servant girl said quietly beside her, offering her a goblet of something red and a plate with buttered green beans and a sandwich made from one of the evening's croissant dinner rolls and still hot roast turkey being smothered by melting cheese. "Here you are, and yes, it's only grape juice."

"Thank you." Raya said as the servant girl grinned and then headed back to the kitchen. It dawned on her only after she finished the last bite of the sandwich that she must have been starving, but Raya was finally feeling better after eating, so after placing her dishes in the stack with the others waiting to be washed, she bounded out into the ballroom, hoping to find Zarbon. It wasn't a surprise that he was missing though, even at an event like this, he was always kept busy managing Frieza's empire. So she resigned herself to joining Shinesta, who was finally alone now, all the unescorted young ladies had retired for the evening with the elder matriarchs as was proper, so she was watching her only child dance the evening away with her fiancé.

"They make a very striking couple, don't they?" Raya ventured aloud to the Empress.

"I suppose they do, but they are still too young, Raya. This isn't fair to either of them." Shinesta said without turning around.

"Of course not, but look at them. They are happy now and isn't that what matters? If we were from any other race you know that we would feel relieved and ecstatic that those two are suddenly getting along this well. "

"Yes but we are Elves… She's going to live a dozen lifetimes longer than he will- even if they are this happy together for years to come. And what about Frieza? What if he tries to break them apart?"

"You know, she is very mature for her age. She always has been. Shani has never been afraid to speak her mind and go after what she wants. From what Zarbon tells me, Vegeta is the same way. Look at them, anyone can tell that right now what they want is each other, Not even Frieza will come between them, if they stay this way. I know you aren't ready to see her falling in love, but you and I both know that if it is meant to be, we shouldn't interfere with Shinalla's will."

"I knew you would say that." Shinesta sighed. "I just feel so foolish for trusting him, Raya. Frieza betrayed me and the worst thing is he really doesn't understand how much he has hurt me this time. Now I have to trust him with my daughter's heart as well as her future and I don't think I can do that anymore. I've lived this way for too long and I hate it more than ever now."

"I know. But she needs you. We can't do anything drastic yet." Raya sighed sadly, resting her head on Shinesta's shoulder. "We should tell these two tonight, that they can see each other privately or it's only a matter of time before they both disappear again and next time it might not be so innocent and we might not be the ones that catch them. After all, Lady Jefferson is going to be arriving for the Anniversary party in just a few days. At least if we know where they are, we can keep them from being disturbed."

"Don't remind me. Things are no fun at all when she is here. But you know I'm glad you're here, Raya. I would never have been able to survive this long without you. I couldn't believe it when he tried to kill you, I-"

"You are wrong, Shellan. You are stronger than you will ever know. I'd be lost without you, actually. Without you, I wouldn't have any purpose at all."

Raya gave her a half hearted smile and drew away from her as the band stopped playing; she went to join the princess and her fiancé who were talking to Zarbon as they headed for the doors. Shellan, the Elven Empress thought curiously? Surprise kept her rooted in place for a moment, but she couldn't help smiling after her. Shinesta grinned impishly after her, for, in the ancient elvish tongue, the word Shellan meant-

"Well, another successful party, down, one more to go next week." Frieza purred behind her. Rage hit her harder than she would ever have thought possible, startling her right out of her thoughts and leaving her too angry to think of anything but getting away from the arrogant bastard that was quite suddenly totally alone with her.

"No thanks to you." She hissed, and stalked away from him. He caught her arm and for the first time she found herself wincing beneath his grip. She couldn't help feeling more shocked than hurt for a moment, but he didn't let go, nor did the grip on her arm loosen at all.

**

"Unhand me, you bastard." She snapped hotly, in spite of the unyielding pressure on the slender bones of her forearm.

He grinned at her he released her arm. He was glad to see that her wounded pride had not sapped any of her spirit, not only had she refused to look for help in getting away from him. She had kept her eyes firmly on his, but she made no further move to escape him, practically daring him to do it again, as if she thought she could make him let go if he tried it again. He was surprised though, that the party had done nothing to dull her anger at him.

He would not be enjoying her company tonight, it seemed, although he knew he could simply carry her off, it was her surrender that he craved and to demand it wouldn't be nearly as entertaining as it was to pleasure her into giving it freely. For in the end, he knew that it would take away her spirit and whatever was presently left of her fierce pride and determination. She was the only challenge that he never tired of. Her strong will and stubborn streak made him want to possess her completely and yet to simply tame her by force and be done with it would kill her- literally. He knew if she died he would not be able to savor his victory so he had done the only thing he could. He had kept her as his secret mistress, meaning he got to show her off at parties like this, then he'd usually take her to his chambers and ravish her privately, but this seemed to be one of those rare occasions where the stunning vixen was determined to sleep alone.

"I was just trying to thank you for throwing such a nice little gathering on such short notice." Frieza told her lightly, letting his garnet eyes drop to look at her sumptuous evening gown and the way it showed off her body beneath the luxurious fabric.

"No what you wanted was to find out if I'm still angry with you. Let me assure you that I can't forgive you for what you have done."

"So she's engaged- so what? It isn't like you won't get to see her any less than you do now."

"You bring her to see me once a year for exactly 14 days- since she was a small child I have only seen her a dozen times? How in the name of the goddess can you tell me that is fair?"

He shrugged. "It seems fair to me, or have you forgotten that I don't have to let you see her at all?"

"I'm certain you'd like that arrangement. Then I would have no assurances at all that she is even still alive! You could keep me in my chambers locked up for centuries on end with no more than your word that you were keeping your promise?"

He laughed, unable to stop himself; he never failed to find her temper adorable, and of course this was no exception.

"It isn't funny, you pompous bastard. You have already proven that you can't be trusted! You gave me your word. A promise to me that you know perfectly well that has already been broken and still you refuse me my freedom? How dare you expect me to be anything but angry?"

"Knowing you I'd venture a guess that your little display of that nasty temper of yours has left you hot in a few other places. You tend to cool off much faster in bed so I..." Without thinking she slapped him, but all that happened was she hurt her hand and he laughed again. "I was saying that you are taking all of this too seriously right now, in the morning…"

"You gave my daughter- who was still a virgin to one of your most deadly warriors! She might have been killed; or scarred for the rest of her life, you addled idiot! I haven't even started to be upset that she is already engaged to be married when she is still decades too young to begin going into season!! How could you be so thoughtless, Frieza? And to make up your mind that the two of them should get married without asking my permission?? How dare you tell me I'm being too serious? You play with people's lives without any regard for their feelings! I can't stand it that you don't care whom you hurt!"

"First of all, Vegeta is talented beyond his years in the ways of war, but he has never harmed a woman he has bedded, much to the dismay of my other warriors, so I knew he wasn't going to hurt the little minx. Besides, your virginal daughter was flirting rather dangerously with some of my most… unpredictable warriors when Zarbon found her, compared to them, Vegeta is a saint, my lady. Vegeta took one look at her and let's just say I thought he had good taste."

"You bastard, you are absolutely impossible! I'm going to bed- alone. Will you be joining us for afternoon tea in the gardens tomorrow or hopefully will you be off in the harem or better yet, out whoring in the city with your Purge Alliance buddies?"

"You are joking aren't you? Having tea in the gardens??"

"Yes, I mean to have tea served in the gardens tomorrow, you bastard! Everyone but us has retired for the night, but in case you hadn't noticed, you still have a palace full of guests! Someone needs to entertain them. Besides, your gardeners maintain a wonderful garden, Lord Frieza; it is a shame that you don't take the time to enjoy it." She said, heading for the door.

"I would love to take my time enjoying you." He purred mischievously, she had moods where she laughed when he said such things to her- but this wasn't one of them. She made a strangled noise of displeasure and abruptly disappeared from the ballroom completely. When Shinesta reappeared in the elegant library of her chambers she was still so furious that she didn't notice that Zarbon and Prince Vegeta were there talking to Raya and Shani. Instead she undressed magically and stormed up the stairs, and her long hair didn't come out of it's elegant style and manage to cover her backside until she had nearly reached the top of the stairs. "Raya, darling I'm going to have my bath, now."

"Mother?" Shani called after her, after a moment. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes dearest, I've just been talking to Frieza, and the bastard still isn't willing to listen to me." She came back to the railing that looked down upon her library and finally noticed that there were guests present. Shinesta couldn't help growling, but didn't bother to summon a robe, knowing they had seen everything anyway. "Shall I join you down there now or might I be able to have my bath first?"

"We weren't going to stay much longer, my lady." Zarbon assured her, trying not to stare at her statuesque figure. Although she and Raya were of strikingly similar build, she was still strikingly exotic with that rich golden skin. He had heard this woman argue with Frieza enough times to guess that the tyrant had been determined to bed her again and that she had only been interested in trying to talk to him- or more likely yelling at him, which he never took seriously, and from the look on her face this hadn't been an exception.

It was a little colder than usual in her chambers so when she appeared in the library she was wearing a floor length dressing gown and a thick terry robe. "Forgive my unusual entrance, gentlemen, I was not aware we were still entertaining." She growled, sitting down on the sofa next to Shani. "So," She tried to smile as she glanced at her daughter. "What's got you blushing, dearest? I suppose Raya was trying to deduce whether or not you two would like to see each other before you are married?"

"I thought at court that would be strictly forbidden?" Vegeta asked unable to hide his surprise.

"While we were waiting for you I was actually telling them about how I got Charsi and Napa together, my Lady, and I don't know when our sweet, innocent Charsi grew up to be such a sassy flirt, but I have to say, I'm proud of her, it worked! Poor Napa was so surprised didn't seem to know what to do till she kissed him and dragged him off to bed; if we see those two at all tomorrow I'll be surprised. But since you brought it up, my lady… Yes Vegeta, most of the court would say the idea is forbidden. But most of the court lords and ladies are a bunch of silly prudes. We are elves, you two have already been together once and Shani assured me that she found you highly enjoyable, Prince Vegeta. Remembering that, it would be silly for us to try to keep you apart for the next year when it would be much easier to just let you do as you please in a private room where no one will bother you so the rest of the court just won't know that you are lovers…"

Shani choked on her wine hearing Raya put it so casually, as if she were talking about the weather instead of speaking of encouraging the two of them to "live in sin" for an entire year as any of the society matriarchs would have put such a preposterous idea. But she knew she shouldn't be surprised, Raya had never been one to take the "rules", particularly those of other cultures, seriously. And to keep young lovers apart was most definitely not the Elven way- even Elven nobility was not discouraged from taking on lovers before they were finally forced by their titles to marry for the sake of producing an heir, although after the vows were spoken, it was expected that the married couple exercise discretion if they weren't sleeping with each other.

Considering Raya's less than innocent habit of seducing the most handsome visiting noblemen to get the interesting gossip out of them, (and apparently, to pass the time without Zarbon, these days); she truly was a scandalous choice to be head of the servants in her mothers household, but Shani loved having her around anyway. It was that same devilish sense of humor and her all too obvious distaste for propriety that made her so irresistibly charming, after all. Uninhibited and wildly sensuous as was to be expected of any priestess of Shinalla, Raya was still not a person that other women found it threatening to be around- although most women found it a little surprising when Raya flirted playfully with them too. Her mother had told her long ago that Raya had always been typical of her Silver Elf brethren, being completely open to male or female advances, though her amorous seductions were most often directed toward men, even after she had come out of the Temple of Shinalla as a High Priestess of the goddess.

"And how would we hide it them if she were to get pregnant of something?" Vegeta growled, not understanding why anyone would let a servant speak as boldly as this one seemed to do constantly, although in spite of his misgivings he had to say that these Elves were sounding more and more like the Saiyans had been, all the time, and he was really starting to feel quite comfortable with them- especially after hearing that they had even been so accommodating as to find Napa and Radditz some females to play with.

Shani couldn't help it, she laughed. "I'm too young to get pregnant, silly! I'm not going to begin having my seasons until I'm between 65 and 75 years old. I'm only 37! Besides, even if my body was more in tune with itself I'm still not going to be likely to get pregnant, even while I'm in season until I'm 700 or so."

Vegeta smirked, this was getting better all the time, and after she said it, everyone else stayed so nonchalant that he actually believed it! As beautiful as she was and he wouldn't have to worry about getting her pregnant? He already knew that she wanted him and it seemed that he was welcome to have her by their custom regardless of what the rest of court would have said.

"Still," Shinesta said interrupting his thoughts. "Even though we won't ask you to pretend privately that you haven't touched my daughter, we still expect that you show her the respect and courtesy as you would have to if you hadn't touched her. By this I mean you will not keep any mistresses, nor will she be allowed to be alone with anyone but you. If any part of my warning is at all taken for granted and ignored then believe me, you will regret your lack of discretion and honor. Basically you may consider this year to be a trial marriage, because the two of you will be required to continue making periodic public appearances as you had to tonight. While you are together you will be expected to follow the silly prudish rules that are so popular with the other nobles these days, to the letter. This means no more strolling the gardens without an appropriate chaperone, Shani. And Vegeta no more grabbing her and pulling her closer for a dance than would be proper. If you can do that I believe I will allow you to marry my daughter. Is this arrangement going to be satisfactory, and do you have any questions?"

"If you don't want people to talk about us seeing each other without a chaperone, how are we going to have these secret trysts? All of it will be obvious if we keep coming out of the same door every morning."

"Again, dear boy," Raya assured him, "We are elves. No one will see you leaving the same room every morning, because her room will be enchanted so that you- and only you- came come and go freely between her room and yours through a magical door."

Vegeta was speechless, and as he looked around he noticed he wasn't the only one who didn't know what to say.

"How do you intend to do that, Raya?" Shinesta wondered out loud.

"Do you remember that elder high mage named Lord Carrington, and that mirror trick of his, my lady?"

The Empress laughed. "You're truly incorrigible, Raya! I don't believe he would teach you to do that! Oh that's unbelievable- you are a genius though, to think of that on such short notice. "

"Thank you, my lady." At which point Raya turned to Vegeta and giggled. "So, exactly how long will it take you to get to your chambers and place your hand on the glass of your tallest mirror?"