Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Dark Duke ❯ The Missing Viscount ( Chapter 3 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ, or the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Warnings: Minor adult content

A/N: Well that's a doozy, isn't it? I feel slightly evil leaving it Vegeta's announcement, but sometimes you need a good cliffhanger for a chapter ending. Also, big shout out to all my reviewers. Honestly, you guys make me smile, even on the crappiest of days.

Chapter Three: The Missing Viscount

"WHAT?!"

Someone's voice had rung out, loud and clear, in the seemingly frozen room, and as everyone turned to look at her, Bulma frowned as she realized it had been her. She could not help herself, though--this infuriating man had just entered their home, been nothing but rude to her, and then came to tell her that her brother was his cousin?! One could not hear a bombshell like that and be expected to not shout out in shock.

But everyone had only turned to her for a second, before their eyes had swiveled back to the Duke who was standing in the corner of the room, drawing everyone's attention like a magnet. Bulma ignored the urge to glare at the hateful man, an instead her eyes had fallen on her younger brother.

Goku's white face, thin lips and frozen stance alerted her to the inner turmoil he was feeling, letting her know that while she was shocked, Goku was absolutely lost. How could he not be? A proclamation like Vegeta's could not be taken lightly.

Without thinking, Bulma softly whispered, "Goku," walking over to a very dazed looking Goku, knowing that he needed her at that moment, more then she needed to walk over and deck the smug looking Duke who she really, really, really did not like.

Bulma walked straight up to Goku, smiling at him, trying to let him know it would all be okay, putting a hand on his shoulder. At her touch Goku finally looked away from the Duke, staring at her, his features softening as he saw her face. She gave him a nod, trying to wordlessly verbalize that it was going to be okay, and he gave her a slight nod back.

As she dropped her hand from his shoulder, turning away from Goku, to look at the Duke again, Bulma felt Goku's hand wrap around her own. Bulma did not even blink, and instead gave her younger brother's hand a squeeze, as if to say she was there for him, hoping he could get some form of comfort from her familiar grasp. She did not care what this man had come here to say, Goku was, and always would be her little brother.

Without letting go of Goku's hand Bulma forced herself to turn fully towards the Duke, subtly standing slightly in front of Goku as she spoke, needing to clear the air, "look, Vegeta, I appreciate the fact that you have come from London to meet Goku, but you must be mistaken. Goku is my brother, not your cousin. I don't know where you got your information, but it's wrong."

Vegeta barely heard Bulma speak, as he was staring so intently at Kakarrot and her, as he waited for Kakarrot to come to him, to accept the fact that he was his cousin. He had been sure that when he had told this American he was actually British that Kakarrot would be extremely pleased--but instead, Kakarrot just stood there, dumbfounded, looking at Vegeta as if he was a snake. Then the girl had walked to Kakarrot, and Vegeta might have disappeared since Bulma had claimed his attention fully.

Vegeta felt a flash of something perturbed at seeing their ease around each other that he did not allow himself to interpret as he instead registered Bulma's statement. Vegeta tore his gaze away from their joined hands, and frowned at Bulma as he spoke, "he admittedly has a different last name then you do, and yet you call him your brother?"

It was Kakarrot who piped up, answering Vegeta, his familiar black eyes locking with Vegeta as he spoke, "that's because I am their adopted son--but I was raised by my grandfather, Gohan Son, until he died when I was eight, here in America, where I was born." Kakarrot swept his hand towards where the older couple who was still seated, "the Briefs took me in when I was discovered living by myself a year after that, and I have been their son ever since. I can't be the man you are looking for."

Vegeta took a moment to observe the pair silently, shocked at seeing Kakarrot deny his heritage, but showing nothing, as he answered Kakarrot. "You said this Gohan, the person who raised you, was your grandfather, Kakarrot. Who are your parents?"

Bulma frowned at Vegeta's question, and turned to look up at Goku, feeling his hand tighten around her own at Vegeta's words. But Goku only shrugged to the question, eyeing the older man in front of him, "I don't know. It was always just me and grandpa Gohan."

Vegeta crossed his arms, looking triumphant as he cockily asked, "and you have never wondered where your parents were?"

Kakarrot shook his head, looking down at Bulma as he spoke, "I didn't even realize that I was supposed to have parents until I came here. I always thought that it was normal to have it be just me and Grandpa." Kakarrot looked up, back to Vegeta, determined, his voice confident as he spoke, "The Briefs are my parents, they are the only parents I've ever known, the only parents I ever want to know. "

Vegeta took in the way that Kakarrot was starting at him, and felt his patience growing thin quickly. If he were in England, or any of its other colonies, the mere fact that he was a Duke would make it so he would never be questioned--never. The way these Americans, Bulma and Kakarrot, were staring at him, defiant, unbelieving, questioning him, HIM, the Duke of Vegetasei, was unbelievable. He had to fight the rising anger that was inside of him, and forced himself to calmly speak to them. "They are not your parents, though--,"

Kakarrot's steely tone cut him off, his teeth gritted as he spoke, "yes. Yes, they are."

Vegeta let out a soft growl, his anger rising, but rather then respond to his cousin's blatant defiance, Vegeta reached into his pocket, and pulled out a locket, his ace in the hole, which he threw at Kakarrot. Vegeta's interest grew as he saw Kakarrot snatch it from the air without even looking, his reflexes impeccable. That was interesting. But Vegeta had no time to consider this as he watched Kakarrot open his fist, looking at the closed locket, before he handed it to Bulma.

Vegeta frowned inwardly as he saw Bulma turn to Kakarrot, the two huddling closer together, as Bulma carefully looked at the locket, turning it over, examining it. As she finally opened the locket, the clasp clicked loud and clear in the empty room. Vegeta carefully watched the second it took for them to absorb the picture that was inside the locket, smirking as they reacted, Kakarrot's face going stark white, while Bulma let out a loud gasp.

Vegeta knew he had them with the locket, but he made sure his voice was even when he spoke next, resisting the natural urge he had to gloat. "That portrait inside is a commissioned miniature my uncle, Bardock, your father Kakarrot, had done for his mother, my grandmother, the Dowager Duchess of Vegetasei, right before he left for the New World. He left seventeen years ago for Boston, with his wife, and two sons, Radditz, who was four, and Kakarrot, who was not even two years old yet."

Kakarrot's eyes finally lifted from looking at the locket, looking Vegeta straight in the eyes, his mouth set in a firm line as he took in the older man, unknowingly looking exactly like his real father, Bardock. Kakarrot's voice was curious as he met Vegeta's eyes, "what happened to them? Your uncle...Bardock...and his family?"

Vegeta frowned, "after they left for Boston, we did not hear from them, and we assumed the worst." Vegeta looked away from Kakarrot for a moment, looking at the still down-turned blue head of Bulma, unable to look away from the woman when he spoke next, "our fears were later confirmed when we heard that the ship crashed after getting caught in a storm. No one from the ship was said to have survived." Vegeta's eyes lifted from Bulma's head, meeting Kakarrot's unwavering gaze again, "we assumed you had died with everyone else on board, Kakarrot."

When Bulma could finally tear her stare off of the portrait, her eyes were wide as she passed the locket to her parents. She felt speechless. She felt speechless, and numb, and more than a little confused. She felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room, and she could only stare dumbfounded.

The man in the locket could be Goku's identical twin. Well, the man in the locket could be Goku's identical twin except for two things--a scar that bisected his lower left cheek, and the grim face the man had. Goku's face was hardly ever not smiling, and she could not imagine Goku's birth parents not being completely genial and amiable like Goku was. How could the unsmiling person in the locket be Goku's father?

Bulma heard her mother's gasp behind her, her fathers "I say," but she ignored them both as she turned back to Goku. Seeing his face set in a frown, one that made him look EXACTLY like this Bardock, Bulma's own numbness disappeared as it was replaced by concern for her younger brother. She whispered his name softly, trying to let him know that everything would be okay, but he only responded by squeezing her still clasped hand again.

There was a silence as the whole room tried to process the information the Duke had brought to their home, before Vegeta spoke again, breaking the silence. "Look Kakarrot--"

Goku seemed to hit some sort of breaking point, and shocked everyone in the room by raising his voice to the Duke, "that's not my name! Stop calling me that! I am Goku Son, an American, not some cousin of a British Duke!"

Vegeta's lips grew thin, his eyes flashing dangerously, "that is your name, Kakarrot, and I will call you that whenever I please, because I am a Duke, and that's truly who you are--my cousin."

Goku emphatically shook his head, his grim face turning angry, "no, no I'm not! I don't care if you're the King of England! I am not Kakarrot, and I don't have to listen to you!"

"You will show me the respect I deserve as both your cousin and as a Duke!"

"I will do no such thing, as you have not earned my respect, and we could never be family!"

Bulma's head swiveled between the two men, as the tension in the room rose with both of their voices, feeling as if she was about to witness something monumental. Vegeta took a step closer to them, and Goku let go of her hand, and pushed Bulma behind him, getting into a fighters stance. The tension in the room was so thick, one could choke on it, and Bulma was afraid that things were about to get physical. Goku was not a violent man by nature, but he was a fighter, and if he felt like the Duke would cause any harm to the family, Bulma knew that Goku would do everything he could to protect them.

So Bulma grabbed Goku's hand again, knowing she was physically incapable of holding her younger brother back, but that she could still try and calm him. She knew Goku was strong, but something about this Duke...she just knew she did not want Goku impulsively rushing into a fight with him. Goku looked back at her, frowning as she tugged at his hand, trying to stop what seemed to be inevitable at that point.

But just as it seemed as if the two men were about to swing, Dr. Briefs voice carried across the room, commanding everyone's attention, "well, this is a lot to try and comprehend, my lord, as I'm sure you can appreciate. Goku means you no disrespect, but I think everyone in this room can agree that it seems we are at a stalemate, as you are convinced Goku is this Kakarrot, and Goku is convinced he is not."

Vegeta, who Bulma watched out of the corner of her eye, gave a slight nod, before Dr. Briefs continued, "I think we need to speak to the turtle hermit and his sister. They should be able to clear up Goku's past, as they are the one's who brought him to us after Gohan Son died." Dr. Briefs turned towards Goku, "Goku, would you tell Bernard we need to have the carriage sent to them?"

Goku looked at the only man he had ever called father, nodding once before he left the room to go find the butler, without even a backwards glance to Vegeta. Bulma let out a breathe as the tension in the room dialed down to a much more bearable (and un-hostile) level, and Bulma silently thanked her genius father for breaking up a fight before it even had the chance to happen.

Another silence descended upon the room as soon as Goku left, and Bulma felt her eyes drawn to the Duke, who was silently staring at the door Goku had just left through. She used his distraction to study him, closely, looking at him, not with the eyes of an attracted woman, but as the scientist she was. Vegeta's face was set, cold, angry, and impassive--the complete opposite of anything she had ever used to describe her (admittedly) adopted brother. But could it be true? Could the boy she had called brother for over ten years truly be the cousin of a British Duke?

Before she could really contemplate the question, Goku reappeared at the doorway, claiming everyone's attention as he looked to her parents, informing them, "Bernard sent the carriage, and said they should arrive first thing in the morning."

Her father nodded, smiling at Goku, which seemed to relax the tiniest bit. Goku finally entered the room fully, taking his place by Bulma's side again. As soon as he was next to her, his hand reached for hers, and she wrapped her hand around his own, her fingers sliding between his, trying to comfort him. When she looked up to him, she frowned when she saw that Goku's eyes were locked, once again, with Vegeta's. Bulma had to resist the urge to shiver as an intensity crackled between Goku and Vegeta, almost like sparks of energy, as they continued to stare at each other.

Bulma forced herself to speak, knowing it was the only way to break the tension between the two. She forced herself to look directly at Vegeta, asking the question she knew Goku would not, claiming everyone's attention as she spoke, "what happens if Goku is this Kakarrot person? Where do we go from there?"

Vegeta turned to look at her, and Bulma forced herself to keep her gaze even with him, even as she felt a heat spread across her body. Bulma was starting to realize she would not like to be alone with this man, ever. Something about him frightened her--and not just because he was scary (which he was), but because of the emotions he invoked in her. She did not want to feel like this--especially for this man, who had come to rip her life apart.

Vegeta finally spoke, low and slowly, answering her question, "when it is proven that he," motioning towards Goku, "is Kakarrot, then he comes with me back to England, where he can assume the Viscount title and land holdings that are his birthright. He has responsibilities in England that are waiting for him."

Bulma's eyes widened, shocked for what felt like the hundredth time that day (and somewhat shocked she could even still register shock at that moment), "Goku is a viscount?"

Vegeta shook his head, chuckling at her question, before his eyes met Goku's again, "no, Goku isn't." His lips set in a firm line of determination as he continued, "Kakarrot is."

Bulma could only softly murmur, "oh," before she too fell silent.

Before silence could choke the room again, Mrs. Briefs spoke, her voice calm and sure as she said, "well, since the only person who can answer some questions won't be arriving until tomorrow, my Lord, why don't you join us for supper tonight and stay here? The inn at town is not up to standards for one such as yourself, and we have plenty of bedrooms that would suit you, I'm sure."

Vegeta looked at her mother, briefly, weighing her words, before he nodded. "I will stay here tonight as it will be more convenient in the morning if I am already here when this turtle hermit arrives. But I will not be joining you for supper, as there are some things I need to discuss with my valet in private. Please send food up to my chambers, instead."

Mrs. Briefs only nodded, but Bulma felt an irrational surge of anger at the Duke and his requests, and his bombshells. How dare this man? How dare he come with the sole purpose of taking her brother away? How dare he go about commanding everyone as if he was the bloody prince of England, and they were nothing but peasants? They were the Briefs, dammit, not some backwards family that would fall over themselves at his request to take one of them away. She was Bulma Briefs, and she would bend to no man!

And this man, this Duke--he could not even eat dinner with the family he had come to rip apart? Did he have so little respect for them that he would not join them for a simple meal?!

Bulma felt her shock melting away, giving way to an irrational anger, one that was directly centered at the Duke. She began to gear up for one of her infamous tirades, her lips thinning, her blood pounding in her ears, and she took a half step forward, towards the Duke. But she could get no further as Goku held her hand tighter, holding her back, drawing her attention. Bulma tugged at her hand, longing to free it so she could slap this man, but when Goku did not let go, she finally looked at him, shocked to see his eyes pleading with her, as he minutely shook his head.

He was trying to tell her no, that it was not worth it, and though she longed to disagree, Bulma only nodded back, understanding the silent entreaty from her younger brother. She sighed, the fight leaving her just as quickly as it had come, before she sighed, and turned back to the Duke, resigning herself to glaring at him from where she stood. But Bulma was completely surprised to find Vegeta watching Goku and Bulma with anger in his eyes, as his eyes traveled from her face, to where Goku and Bulma were still holding hands, back to her faced, there eyes clashing, black meeting blue, once again.

Bulma felt her curiosity grown, as well as her confusion, but in trying to read Vegeta's thoughts, to understand where his anger was coming from, he, once again, closed off his face from her, making it impossible to know what he was thinking. Bulma quirked her lip, sardonically, realizing that with the Duke, this was not unusual. He was not an emotional person, and any flashes of humanity were quickly hidden so he could go back to being more machine than man.

As she continued to stare at him, contemplating him, Vegeta turned back towards her brother, his voice stern. "Kakarrot," Goku's head turned at hearing his Ôname,' and Vegeta continued, "tomorrow, when it is proven that you are my cousin, I will want to leave almost immediately so we can get to my ship by tomorrow night, and sail back to England in two days time."

Goku's jaw clenched, though he released it as he spoke, "if it is proven you are my cousin you mean."

For the first time since meeting him, a slow smile spread across the Duke's face, changing the hard planes and angles of his handsome face. The smile altered Vegeta's face, transforming his handsomeness, giving him more accessibility, making him more...human. But before she could become too entranced by the smile, she realized it had a cruel edge to it, as this smile was not just confident--it was cocky, self-assured. "No, Kakarrot, I do not mean if, I meant when." Before anyone could say anything in response to that, Vegeta simply nodded once, before he left the room, disappearing before any other questions could be asked.

There was yet another stunned silence that descended upon the room, though this one was quickly broken by Mrs. Briefs sighing, "well Bulma dear...I don't know if you should marry him, even if he is quite handsome."

Bulma's mouth dropped open, before her eyes met Goku's, and though neither of them were in a particularly good mood after the meeting, they grinned at each other, before Bulma turned to her mom, rolling her eyes, and letting out a frustrated, "mother!"

~~&~~

Vegeta was standing with his hands behind his back, facing the window, lost in thought, when he heard a knock on his door. Without turning, he murmured, "enter."

He heard the door creak open, and heavy footsteps entered the room, alerting Vegeta to the fact that it was Nappa who had just entered the room. Especially when the footsteps ended right before the impressive offering of food the Briefs servants had brought up, the groan of the chair testament to the large man sitting before the food. Vegeta still did not turn, even as Nappa questioned, "so are we leaving tonight?"

Vegeta frowned, seeing his reflection in the glass, before he finally sighed, turning away from the window to look at his inferior, who was grabbing at the food and drink like a man who had not eaten in days. "No, Kakarrot refused to believe me, and we have to wait until tomorrow morning for some hermit to confirm what we know to be true."

Nappa stopped from drinking from his goblet, his displeasure obvious on his face, "what?! We're stuck here tonight?"

Vegeta lip thinned with his distaste, as he joined Nappa at the table, but he nodded, waiting for the man to gulp down some more wine before he queried, "what did you find out?"

Nappa shrugged, placing the empty wine goblet down, looking Vegeta in the eye. "Not much that we didn't know. The only thing they would tell me is that this ÔGoku' is the Briefs adopted son, and that the family is extremely rich and smart. I tried to bribe, I tried to intimidate, but they all have nothing to say of worth. Even the stable hands are loyal to these Briefs, refusing to let secrets slip."

Vegeta nodded, realizing that the wealthy Briefs would not be foolish enough to employ servants who would talk. Especially since Dr. Briefs' inventions were considered nothing short of miracles, revolutionizing the way people lived, and would need to be closely guarded before he obtained patents. The servants would be paid well for their silence, and they would not be likely to spread gossip about a family that gave them such good wages. But this did not help Vegeta.

Vegeta felt himself growing restless as he continued to watch Nappa eat and drink, so he stood from the table, facing out the windows he had originally been staring out of, as he took in the dark grounds, speaking to the window as he said, "you will need to go into town then, and see if anyone there is more willing to speak to us about the Briefs. Go to the tavern, find a barmaid or drunkard who is more ready to talk about the family, I want to know all of their secrets."

Nappa grunted his assent, finishing off the rest of the wine and food, before he stood, heading towards the door, before Vegeta's voice stopped him. "Oh, and Nappa, see what you can find out about that shop keep from earlier, as well as Bulma."

Nappa's mood had lifted when he had heard that Vegeta wanted to find out more about the shop keep (Nappa figured it would lead to him being able to finally teach that boy some manners), but frowned at the mention of that girl, "the Briefs daughter?" He was so confused he could not stop the second question that popped from his mouth, though he knew he was not likely to get an answer, "why?"

Vegeta's head turned, his eyes flashing dangerously at his subordinate's questions, "it is of none of your concern."

Nappa only blinked, slowly, once, before he nodded again, then hurried from the room, knowing that it was unwise to push Vegeta when he was in this kind of mood.

Vegeta waited until Nappa was gone until he let his stance relax, still looking out to the night sky, contemplative as he thought of his request to Nappa. It had not been planned, but something about the shop keep was bugging him, and something about the Briefs daughter definitely had him intrigued. He frowned at that last thought, before rubbing his face with his hand, sighing.

She was a rude, bratty girl, who was begging for someone to teach her some manners. But she was also warm, flesh and blood, and he desired her beyond compare. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair, to see if it was soft as it looked, he wanted to taste her lips to see if they would be as sweet as they promised, or tart as the anger she had spewed at him, and he especially wanted to see her naked, writhing underneath him, those red lips moaning as he drove himself into her warm sheath, over and over again.

Vegeta moaned at this last thought, his head rising as he met his own flashing eyes in the glass, barely resisting the urge to reach down, cupping his suddenly heavy erection. He had iron control over his body, and he forced himself to stare at only his face in the glass, willing the suddenly too hot blood that flowed through his veins to chill, for the fantasy of Bulma naked before him to disappear, before he relaxed his frozen stance.

When his erection subsided, Vegeta finally walked from the window, and sat in front of the meal, forcing himself to eat, and to forget about that blue-hared woman. Whatever it was about the daughter that was intriguing him was nothing but a minor distraction that he needed to be squashed out, before he did something stupid.

Like try and seduce the extremely desirable chit.

~~&~~

Much later that night, Vegeta made his way to the family wing of the Briefs mansion, keeping his eyes and ears alert for the sounds of anyone else moving around at this extremely late hour. Satisfied that he was alone, Vegeta strode silently to where he had earlier learned Kakarrot's room was, though he made sure to keep to the side of the hallway, staying in the shadows of the darkened mansion.

Vegeta had originally been intending to wait until tomorrow to speak to Kakarrot again, but Vegeta wanted to speak to him alone, and he was unsure of being able to do so if Kakarrot refused to leave his Ôsisters' side, like he had earlier that day. Kakarrot did not seem willing to speak to him alone, anyways, so Vegeta wanted to catch him off-guard, in his room, where he could more fully explain the legacy he was inheriting by becoming part of the Vegeta clan.

So Vegeta made his way cautiously down the dark hallway, allowing his finely tuned senses to guide him in the dark. Just as he was about to come to the door he knew to be Kakarrot's, Vegeta felt a prickle of awareness that someone else was in the hallway with him, and he instantly moved, flattening himself against the opposite wall, behind some curtains, where he had a perfect view of Kakarrot's door.

Not a second later, the sound of footsteps on carpet became clearer, and Vegeta cautiously looked out to find Bulma making her way boldly to Kakarrot's room. She was dressed as if she was going to sleep, a dressing robe pulled over a matronly white nightgown, but her hair was loose around her shoulders. Her hair came down to her waist, in soft, blue waves, and he found himself battling the desire to reach out and touch the long, silky looking strands.

As she moved, silently along the carpet, he saw the way the flame of her candle caught the highlights of her hair, shimmering ocean blue in the light, dark midnight blue in the shadows. His mouth went dry, and he felt the swell of desire from earlier erupt within him. Something dark and primitive in him wanted to grab her, pull her into the shadows where he stood, and completely ravish her.

But he did not, and instead tried to rid himself of the baser instincts he felt around this girl. He now knew he had gone way too long without a woman, if the mere sight of this girls hair was causing his senses to go into complete overdrive. He closed his eyes, and slowed his heart rate, breathing, taking control of his body, and his mind, before he opened his eyes again, observing the girl, critically, rather then sensually.

What was she up to? Was she on her way to her own room? His frown deepened when he saw her stop right in front of Kakarrot's door. He resisted the urge to growl, and instead silently observed as she lifted her hand as if to knock, before freezing, her whole body stilling, before she turned, peering into the darkness, straight to the curtains Vegeta was hiding behind.

Vegeta flattened himself further, unnecessarily since the hallway was already so dark, as Bulma continued to stare at him, and he fought the urge to show himself, and take her in his arms--whether to throttle her, or to kiss her, though, he was not sure. Finally, satisfied that she was alone (her senses were as sharp as her wits, Vegeta wryly noted), Bulma nodded, before she turned back to the door, softly knocking. Not a second later Kakarrot opened the door, a frown on his face.

The second he saw his Ôsister,' Kakarrot's frown turned into a smile, and he pulled the woman into his arms, holding her to him as they stood in the hallway, their arms wrapped around each other. Vegeta watched with curiosity as Bulma's head tucked under Kakarrot's chin, her arms wrapping around his back, the two of them looking extremely comfortable. After a few moments of hugging, Goku pulled back, smiling at her, before he grabbed her hand, and pulled her into the black of his room, both of them disappearing as Kakarrot shut the door.

Vegeta waited a few more seconds to make sure they would not emerge again, or that anyone else was up and about, before he moved from where he had been partially hidden, frowning at the now closed doorway to Kakarrot's room, thinking about what he had seen between the two of them all day today. Not only had he seen Bulma enter Kakarrot's room at a very inappropriate hour, but earlier, their hands had been constantly joined...it was hard not to draw conclusions about what the actual relationship between the two of them was.

They might call each other brother and sister, but they were both aware that there was no blood relationship between them, and Vegeta was not surprised if what had been childhood companionship had grown into a more mature, adult sort of relationship. Vegeta frowned at himself as he walked back to his room, partly angry from having been denied a private audience with Kakarrot, but, angrier about the conclusions he was drawing about Bulma and Kakarrot. He had to bluntly ask himself, were they lovers?

Did it matter if they were?

Vegeta's frown turned into a scowl when he realized that it did.

~~&~~
A/N: Phew, a lot to get through in that chapter. I'm not sure I like how it turned out, as I generally tend to write more comedies then dramas, but there is no way of avoiding the drama in a story such as this. Next chapter, we get some more answers, and find out who Goku really is