Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Trinity ❯ Chapter 4

Trinity

Author: Xero Sky

Pairings: Oh, Vegeta, Vejitto, and Goku, or various combinations thereof.

Warnings: YAOI AU, lemon, language, violence, at some point. Silliness here and there. Intelligent Goku. Plus whatever warning's appropriate to intimate contact between a fusion and his separate selves . . . O.o

Author's note: /.../ means telepathic speech. Thanks to legendary chibi vegeta for beta reading.

Disclaimer: All copyrights belong to their appropriate owners. No profit is intended from this work of fan fiction.

Chapter Four

Son Gohan was having a bad day.

Videl was angry at him for something he'd said. Or not said. Or said at the wrong time. Or something. Since she wasn't speaking to him at all, it was hard to tell. It was also equally impossible to fix. He'd tried a blanket apology for any offense he might have ever committed, or might ever commit in the future, but apparently that wasn't specific enough. If anything, it only made her more angry at him, somehow.

Girls were a freaking mystery.

On top of that, he'd failed his last math test. Completely failed it. He'd stared at the screen like he'd never seen numbers before. He didn't remember covering any of that material. He hadn't missed any school since Buu… but he couldn't recall having seen any of those equations before. When he'd finished the test and entered it, the numbers had flashed up on his terminal and on his math teacher's terminal at the same time: 34%. The look his teacher had given him was almost one of betrayal. Perfect student Gohan, failing a test?

What was he thinking?

A lot of things, actually. None of which had anything to do with school.

Fighting was one. He trained a lot now. His performance against Dabura embarrassed him, as well as Vegeta's comments about it. He had the power, certainly, but he'd slacked off on the techniques. Without his father around, it had been too easy to get into the all-study-all-the-time mode his mother wanted. Being the Great Saiyaman hadn't helped. Saiyaman hadn't made an appearance since the end of the world. His opponents were too weak to be worth the time.

That was another thing. Gohan didn't feel very ningen anymore. He'd always known and been proud of his saiyajin blood, but while his dad had been gone, he'd kind of… Well, he'd started thinking of himself as a ningen, hadn't he? That was part of what the Great Saiyaman thing had been about. If he acted like a superhero with a secret identity, he could actually be more ningen. His saiyajin talents had been channeled into that silly superhero, as if they were something separate from him.

That wasn't true, though. They were part of him. They were him. And denying them had had consequences. Even after the Old Kai had released his power, he still hadn't been able to fight Buu for long. And the thing with Dabura… It all made Gohan feel a little sick. He hadn't been able to do his part in the fight, because he had forgotten who he was.

He brooded about it all a lot. And he trained.

And, last but not least, he thought about sex. He was fairly certain that was pretty normal for his age. What probably wasn't normal was that he was dating a hot, sweet girl and he wasn't satisfied with her. Videl was probably one of the most desirable girls on the planet. She was cute, she was in love with him, and he'd personally seen her kick an opponent in the head so hard that she'd broken his neck. She'd dealt with his family issues pretty well too, considering that she still had her memories of the whole Buu situation.

The fact was, though, that she was a ningen, albeit a tough one, and he was afraid he was going to split her in half. She moaned and yowled and crooned "Gohan, you're the greatest!" afterwards. He excused himself to take care of certain still-hard realities afterwards.

Not exactly the stuff of fantasies.

He had a number of those, however. His mom would spontaneously combust if she ever found the stash of magazines he had hidden under one of the roof tiles above his room. Kamesennin, who seemed to think he was passing on the secrets of the universe, had given him some reading material. He knew perfectly well that his secret was safe with the old pervert, who seemed to think of him as a protégé in the arts of perversion.

Gohan doubted that, but he'd learned a few interesting things.

And lately… He felt his cheeks heat up at the very thought of it.

He'd asked Tien to teach him the technique back when he'd thought he could just train the sex off his mind. The very first time he'd used it, though… Well, one randy teenager was a problem. Two identical randy teenagers was a solution, it turned out.

He knew there had to be something wrong with having passionate sex with yourself. Hairy palms or acne or being struck by lightning or something. But so far the worst he'd suffered was catastrophic soreness after the first time. Since then he'd learned a few things, including the fact that there's always time for lubrication. Since then…

He couldn't stop grinning.

A thought struck him as he saw Videl glare in response to his happy face, and his stomach suddenly flopped over. He'd been with her last night, but his mind hadn't actually been on her, had it? She'd been mad at him when she'd flown home, but he hadn't really noticed then, had he?

His face flushed red with mortification as he suddenly realized what might have happened. But he wouldn't have, would he? He couldn't have. He met Videl's infuriated gaze and hoped furiously that it wasn't true.

Surely he couldn't have been moaning his own name while he was having sex with Videl?

The sudden surge of ki he felt only confirmed the fact that this really was a bad

day.

*****************

The bad thing about Gotenks, Vejitto decided, was that he had an even bigger mouth than Vegeta did. The cocky fusion wasn't as strong as Vejitto, but you'd never have guessed it from the trash he talked.

"What kind of lame-ass punch was THAT?"

Voices that were boyish and sweet separately had combined into the rasp of a juvenile delinquent.

"Do you need lessons, you pathetic excuse for a fusion?"

And this was while Gotenks was getting his ass kicked. Vejitto shuddered to think what the brat X2 would sound like if he was actually winning the fight.

"Why are you wasting my time with shit like that?" Gotenks queried, barely avoiding a kick that would have killed either of his component brats on the spot.

"Are you gonna fight, or just talk me to death?" Vejitto finally got in. He was a rather mouthy fighter himself, but Gotenks was just out of his league that way.

"Either way, you don't stand a chance. By the way, where's your earrings? I bet you looked so sweeeet in them!"

Vejitto punched him in the head.

The fight was a good one, really. It was by far the best he'd had since Buu's death. In his own timeline, he hadn't been able to coax the boys away from their mothers long enough to get a fusion going, and Gohan hadn't wanted anything to do with him. In this timeline, he hadn't been able to get anybody to spar with him, though Goku had seemed willing enough before his wife got involved. Being able to fight someone near his own power level was almost bliss.

Plus it would soon serve other purposes.

Grinning, he went after Gotenks with renewed enthusiasm, driving the arrogant fusion back about half a mile before he could recover. When he felt the first few sparks of approaching ki, he was unable to keep himself from laughing.

Gotenks gathered himself and wiped the thin trail of blood from his mouth. He didn't know what Vejitto was so damned happy about, but it didn't look like a good sign.

*****************

Vegeta glared at Kakkarot's ass.

Or rather, his heels. Yeah, that was it. Just because he was flying behind the baka and looking forward, it didn't mean he was looking at his ass. There were definitely better things to be looking at than that ass.

Which he wasn't looking at anyway.

Scowling, he stared down at the ground they were passing over. Baka low-class fighter, dragging him half across the continent just because their brats had fused and were sparring with that… freak. Who cared? It was good training for the boys, and who cared what the freak did with his time, anyway? As long as he stayed away from Vegeta, the prince was happy.

But, no… here he was, tearing his way through the atmosphere to see the freaky fusions at play.

Because Kakkarot was afraid of his wife. Or something like that. Vegeta didn't truly understand it. He hadn't spent a lot of time with Kakkarot even before he died, and he didn't really have a good grasp of what the other saiyajin's home life was like.

He'd heard things, of course. There were always jokes being made, or little references to a situation everybody but Vegeta knew about. Looking ignorant was, in his experience, the same as begging for pain, and it had taken him a long time before he'd asked his onna what was wrong with the woman.

"Chichi's a little mean and a little crazy," Bulma had said sadly. "But mostly it's just… You know she's a princess? Really. It's an honorary title, but she grew up like that, waiting for the hero to come and sweep her off her feet. Except when the hero showed up, he was saiyajin."

Vegeta had hotly demanded to know exactly what was wrong with that, but Bulma's wistful smile had stopped him. "I never expected a hero, Vegeta, so you and I get along fine. But poor Goku… he's failed her at every turn, and he doesn't even know it."

There hadn't been any more of that conversation, mostly due to Trunks accidentally setting the kitchen on fire while trying to show Goten he could cook. But Vegeta had turned it over in his mind since then, trying to decide if Chichi was simply insane or not. He didn't like dwelling on it; after all, it wasn't his problem. Still, the idea that Chichi considered her husband a failure rankled him.

Kakkarot might be a third-class nobody, but he was a legendary third-class ascended nobody, and he was Vegeta's only remaining full-blooded subject. He was a saiyajin. How dare that woman think him a failure?

And how dare Kakkarot act like a whipped dog around her? What kind of example was he setting his sons? Saiyajins were meant to be warriors.

And why the hell did Vegeta keep thinking about it? He hadn't been able to believe what he was hearing when he'd offered the saiyajin a job. He hadn't exactly felt bad for the big baka. It was just that the idea of a saiyajin warrior, the legend of his race, out amongst the ningens scrounging for a job had been so keenly humiliating that Vegeta had felt it like a stab to the chest.

Without even thinking about it, he'd offered Kakkarot the first job he could think of, and been absurdly pleased when the saiyajin had accepted it.

Which was stupid, since the baka should have fallen over backwards showing gratitude to his prince. But, then, the bastard never did do what Vegeta wanted him to.

He'd stayed dead all those years, for one thing…

Caught up in his musings, Vegeta nearly ran straight into Kakkarot. Only his inherent agility and grace rescued him from a much closer examination of the saiyajin's ass than he could possibly ever want.

Vejitto and Gotenks stood about 20 feet away from each other, looking at the new arrivals. Vegeta, who'd never seen Gotenks before, just stared at the mutant combination of his heir and Kakkarot's spawn. He ignored the other fusion altogether.

"See something you like, old man?" Gotenks said with a mock leer, making fun of the prince's stare.

"What are you doing here?" Vegeta snapped back haughtily.

"Kicking his ass," Gotenks said, gesturing at Vejitto, who snorted, crossing his arms in an eerie mirroring of Vegeta. "What are you doing here?"

"Wasting my time, if the only thing out here worth seeing is you two freaks."

"You want a shot at me, old man?" the fusion purred smoothly, his doubled voice eerily mature for his apparent age. Young eyes gleamed as they met dark eyes full of malice.

"What are you two doing out of school?" Goku said sternly. All three saiyajins turned to stare at him.

"Well," he continued somewhat lamely, "your mothers will be furious."

"You mean Mom will," Gohan said, appearing suddenly between Gotenks and Vejitto. He had flown fast enough that stopping made little wisps of steam trail into the air around him before the wind stole them away.

"You're right," Goku said dully. 'Furious', in fact, was probably an understatement. If Chichi found out that Goten had skipped out of school…

…to go train…

…as Gotenks…

…with Vejitto…

Both un-fused Sons shuddered at the thought. This single afternoon's sparring would push practically every one of Chichi's buttons.

If she found out.

Goku looked hopelessly over at Gotenks' ripped clothing. He couldn't remember how well the clothes transmitted back and forth between fused and unfused states, but he was pretty sure that the boys' clothes were in just as bad a shape.

They would need a bath, too, and some story to explain the cuts and bruises.

With a sigh, Goku said "Alright, we'll tell her this was my idea. I took the boys out early for some training."

Gohan's face fell. "Aww, Dad, we don't need you to get in trouble for this."

"Better me than Goten," he said, shrugging. It was a merciful fact of life that Chichi couldn't have abused her children physically even if she'd wanted to. Her tongue was far crueler than her fists, though.

Gotenks, who didn't have the same memory of his component saiyajins that Vejitto had, looked confused. "You really think I'm afraid of her?" he asked, clenching his fists.

"No, but Goten is," Goku said. Then he turned his eyes towards the trouble-maker, who stood with his arms crossed and his tail swaying behind him. "What the hell were you thinking, Vejitto?"

"That it wouldn't hurt the boys to get some high-level training, and it wouldn't hurt me either, since no one else will spar with me," Vejitto said calmly.

"So you thought you'd pull my son out of school to amuse you?" Vegeta grated, his eyes very cold now.

"You forget, Vegeta, that he's my son too, even though he doesn't know me that way. I did what I wanted to do. And don't pretend you care about his schooling. The only reason he's in a public school is because the onna insists he have contact with ningens his age," Vejitto responded coolly.

"You dare question my son's schooling?" Vegeta snapped.

"Don't waste breath defending something that bores you senseless. If not for Trunks' ki, you couldn't even find his school, and you have no idea what he does there. You're only pissed because I'm involved. If you'd done this yourself, you wouldn't even bother to justify it to Bulma."

"What business is it of yours?" the saiyajin no ouji growled.

"It's as much my business as I want it to be," Vejitto smirked.

There was only one outcome to this match up, no matter what Vegeta thought. Goku sighed and stepped in to save his 'friend' and employer from it.

He flashed to a position right in front of Vejitto just as Vegeta was set to deliver a punch. The gloved fist, crackling with power, barely tapped the end of Goku's nose, and he had to admire the control behind that.

"What are you doing, you idiot?" Vegeta grated out.

Trying to keep you from humiliating yourself, Goku thought almost fondly, but his words and demeanor were altogether different.

"I'm sorry, guys, but we don't have time for this," he said firmly, smiling at them both as he moved out from between them. "The boys need to be gotten home and cleaned up before anyone else notices. Maybe we can still keep this quiet."

"No good, Dad," Gohan said with a sigh. "The school will have called home by now."

"Well, then, we'll just have to do the best we can. Vegeta, can Goten go home with you and Trunks to get cleaned up?"

Vegeta turned to glare at him. "Who said I was going home?"

"Please, Vegeta?"

A scowl of monumental proportions appeared. "I'm not arranging my day around your brat. I don't care where he goes. I have training to do."

With that, the prince of saiyajins departed.

"I'll take that as a yes…" Goku said slowly, blinking. Recovering somewhat, he turned to Gohan. "Can you take Goten and Trunks to Capsule Corp? There'll be less trouble if he's cleaned up."

"Sure, Dad… But aren't you coming?"

"I have something to take care of," the saiyajin said darkly, glancing at Vejitto. "I'll join you before you get to our house."

"Hey! Don't I have anything to say about this?" Gotenks asked angrily, his aura flaring impressively. Lightning crackled around him.

Unfortunately for the awesomeness of his display, the fusion wore off just then. Two small boys blinked at the saiyajins around them.

"No," Goku snapped. "Now get going."

Meekly, the trio set off towards Capsule Corp. Because he was feeling cranky, Gohan didn't explain what had happened until they were almost there.

******************

Vejitto watched the whole process, wincing slightly as he saw the care the Sons took not to anger the bakayaro onna any more than necessary. It was disgusting watching them cater to that woman's moods. He understood something of their reasons - Goku's guilt and the boys' natural affection for their mother - but he hated watching them all capitulate without a fight.

It was so un-saiyajin.

Also, he knew it hurt Goku, and he was less and less willing to see that happen ever again. Especially not on behalf of that harpy.

Dark eyes were turned on him, and Vejitto met them calmly.

"You can't do that again," Goku said. "Leave the boys alone."

"I have as much right to see to their training as you do," Vejitto said.

"I won't argue that," Goku said, surprising him. "I've seen how you look at all three boys. But that's not how Chichi sees it. And she's the one that Goten's got to live with. You can't do this to him again."

"Maybe you should be protecting him a little more, instead of defending your baka wife."

"Don't talk about her like that."

Vejitto snorted. "I know all about her, in case you've forgotten."

"And in case you forgot, she's my wife. It's none of your business."

Vejitto nearly winced. Goku sounded defiant, of course, but also tired, even a little defeated. He was always so loyal, as he saw it, and the rewards this time were so thin. It hurt Vejitto to hear him. The urge to hold and comfort the saiyajin was strong, but this wasn't the time.

"I won't stay away from my sons," Vejitto said.

"I'm not asking you to, just…" Goku shrugged. Getting Vejitto near Goten or Gohan with Chichi knowing was going to be nearly impossible. He did sympathize with the fused saiyajin. After all, he didn't know what he'd do if he couldn't see his sons. Being dead for so long had been a huge mistake; even though it had been the right thing to do, he'd missed out on so much with his boys.

He felt a sudden keen sympathy for Vejitto. The saiyajin was always alone, without any one at all. He acted like he didn't need anybody, but… Wait. Why else would he have taken the boys out today? He must just be lonely. Goku could understand that.

"Look, how about I start arranging some time with you and me and the boys? Trunks, too, but... well, you know Vegeta," Goku said, rubbing the back of his neck. Then he realized what he'd just said and laughed.

Vejitto just smiled at him, stunned by this display of compassion. Maybe he'd been wrong about this whole thing…

Well, there was only one way to find out…

"Kakkarot," he said quietly. Goku turned to look at him, still smiling. Vejitto simply leaned forward and kissed him, following that by winding strong arms and a tail around the other saiyajin.

It went much as he'd thought it would. Kakkarot was frozen in simply shock for a few moments as a warm tongue began exploring his mouth. Then he began to struggle, gently at first, as if giving Vejitto time to pull away and claim it was all a big mistake. Vejitto simply wouldn't allow it. Winding his tail around a brawny thigh, he ran a hand underneath the other saiyajin's shirt. The other hand took hold of Goku by the back of his neck and forced the kiss deeper.

There was a muffled protest at last, but Vejitto chose to ignore it. The mouth beneath his own wasn't willing yet, but it would be. He knew there was unexpected fear in Kakkarot's heart now, and the first hint of something else. But first things first. It was time for the trial of strength.

As he'd thought, Goku's ki spiked soon as his attempts to free himself failed. The struggle escalated at a breathtaking rate, but Vejitto never let go of him, and though Goku probably didn't realize it, neither of them used ki against each other.

First level, second level… Vejitto held him and let his mouth wander from Goku's lips down to his throat, running his tongue over the tender flesh. When Goku burst suddenly into the third level, Vejitto matched him effortlessly, marking the moment by nibbling on a sensitive earlobe.

He was gentle, for he understood.

So far in Goku's life, stronger creatures than himself had always brought death and tragedy. Always. His entire life had revolved around being the strongest, by nature and by need. All his experience said that being held like this, with Vejitto acting so oddly, was nothing but a prelude to a disaster of some kind.. He would face it, as he always had, but didn't want it.

He had never felt anything like this kissing before. No one had ever bothered to seduce him.

Vejitto knew the secret fears running through his future lover's mind and body. No one else knew. No one had truly been close enough to guess they even existed.

He was patient, knowing other secrets as well.

When Goku suddenly relaxed into his arms, the fight done with all at once, Vejitto was ready for him. He gathered the other saiyajin closer and decreased power levels as the forms fell away from them. When clear, dark eyes looked into his own, calm and confused, Vejitto brushed the hair from Goku's brow and then brought their mouths together again.

It was a soft kiss at first. Just a touching of lips, the fleeting vulnerability of being so close to each other. Then there was the sweet, delicate touch of the tip of a tongue, and the warmth between them grew as they opened to each other. Lashes fanned shut and pale cheeks grew flushed.

Goku's shyness faded quickly, or was teased and tickled away, stolen by Vejitto's honest, open desire. His hesitant hands found their way around Vejitto's waist and the former fusion purred, the sound rumbling between them until it was joined and echoed. Smiling, Vejitto saw Goku's surprise at the purr coming from his own chest and kissed the saiyajin's nose, making him blink and stare with an expression so adorable Vejitto wrapped his arms around him again and kissed the breath out of him.

Goku's purr deepened. He had accepted this strange kiss, and now every part of him meant to enjoy it. Laughing, he played with the soft tail, threading his fingers through the fur and stroking it, relishing the way it made Vejitto arch and moan. He mostly remembered pain from his own tail, but he knew they were supposed to feel good. It certainly looked like they did.

The two of them knew the deep pleasures of having a willing and ardent body to cling to, to embrace and press against without fear of doing harm. Hands roamed and clothing was torn here and there as it got in the way. A delicious slow heat built within them, between them, as they seemed to dance in the sunset together.

It was a long kiss, as perfect a kiss as either had ever dreamed of…

And then Vejitto ended it, taking his warmth away from Goku and standing a pace back to watch his reaction.

Goku felt light-headed with disappointment and desire. It took him some time to speak, and when he did, his voice was quiet, and sad. "Why?"

"Because you needed a proper kiss," Vejitto said simply.

"Why you?" It wasn't quite the question Vejitto had expected, but he was ready for this one too.

He put a hand out and cupped Goku's chin. "Because I understand how lonely you are."

Wide, dark eyes looked into his. There was anger in them, yes, but also a type of despair, and a vast well of loneliness, unguessed at by the outside world. Of course no one would ever suspect that the great hero, surrounded by his family and loving wife, could ever feel so isolated. He was so strong, and seemed so happy. Surely such a radiant being couldn't be lonely??

But he was.

Goku sucked in air, preparing to say something, or make some defense, but he gave it up almost immediately. What was there to say? A look almost of defeat came into his eyes.

Vejitto ran his thumb gently over full lips. "I know, I know… but remember this: you are safe with me. You can always come find me if you need someone. Always."

There was a soft impression of a mouth against his own, and then Vejitto was gone, leaving Goku alone in the fading light

He touched his mouth absently with his fingers, feeling the moisture there and the tingling ghost of heat.

It had been such a simple thing. Just a kiss. That was all.

Just a kiss.

It didn't really matter to him that Vejitto was male, or that he was a fusion of himself and Vegeta. Gender was mostly irrelevant anyway, and while he understood the idea of fusion, the fact was that he was never supposed to be standing face to face with Vejitto anyway. Some things you just had to accept and move past.

He and Vejitto weren't supposed to exist at the same time, but that didn't change how cold he felt now that the other saiyajin was gone. It did nothing to relieve the hollow ache in his chest.

He wanted…

But it was useless. He had to go home now, to take the heat for Goten having been out of school, and to conspire with Gohan to hide the reappearance of Gotenks from Chichi. It would be an ugly evening, and he would be expected to fall into bed beside her afterwards like a dutiful husband. He would stare at the ceiling until well past midnight before falling asleep. Just like always.

Wise eyes might have seen his bright soul dim with bitterness now as he stood there alone.

He tried so hard, but, in the end, it didn't even matter. He was always wrong. Somehow he didn't seem to fit here anymore.

Maybe it was his own fault. Maybe he'd been dead for too long, fighting and training in the other world. He knew his reasons for being gone had been good enough, though it hadn't saved anybody from the pain of the Majins later on. How could he have guessed what would happen while he was gone?

The shock of seeing Goten for the first time had nearly driven him to his knees. He'd felt guilty, as any father would, and did everything he could to make himself a good father to Goten now, but he knew it was never enough. Not in Goten's eyes - the little boy adored him, a feeling that was enthusiastically mutual. Chichi, however, always acted like he was a terrible father.

He could already hear her words tonight. How could you? You irresponsible… Off playing with that bastard instead of getting a decent job… abandoned us, abandoned your son…And the one that always did him the most harm, the one she saved for last: You weren't even here to see him born!!

He loved Goten fiercely. He had loved Gohan from the first time the boy had kicked inside Chichi's belly.

He didn't think he loved his wife anymore.

But they were his family, and without them… he had no one at all.

With a sigh, he lifted a hand to his forehead, preparing to teleport home. As he did so, a different voice sounded in his head, and he appeared amidst the chaos of the Son home with a wistful smile on his lips.

You are safe with me.

*****************

Evenings at the Lookout were rare and beautiful. While the Lookout still glowed with the last golden rays, the earth below was shaded towards darkness. The stars were just coming into view above, and the faint breeze was soft and fragrant. In the flowerbeds, rare night-blooming flowers were just opening, their blossoms adding a delicious scent to the air. A feeling of exotic peace and contentment was everywhere.

Vejitto was walking across one of the wide courtyards on his fingertips, humming to himself. He wasn't able to keep his tail from coiling and waving to signal his good mood, no matter how much it complicated the balance issue.

Kissed him! Kissed me back!

It was silly, but the two phrases kept echoing back and forth across his giddy mind.

Things hadn't gone exactly as he'd planned, but he'd kissed Kakkarot and been kissed back. Kissed back enthusiastically.

Delicious.

Life was damned good, sometimes.

As if in universal answer to his mood, soft boots appeared in his field of vision. They were attached to legs, he found, and to a waist, the usual torso arrangement, and a dour face. Since the whole collection was somewhat greener than usual, Vejitto waved with one hand and said "Hi, Piccolo!"

"Hn."

"Determined to spoil my good mood, green bean?"

"That was a shitty thing you did to them, you know that?" Piccolo said sternly.

Vejitto sighed and flipped right side up. Brushing his bangs back from his forehead, he said "No… It was supposed to be a shitty thing, but it didn't quite work out that way."

"What were you trying to do?"

"Are you going to try to interfere?" Vejitto asked over his shoulder as he went to sit on the edge of the Lookout. Between his dangling boots, he could see a flock of white birds flying through a gap in the clouds. Beneath them, the land was in darkness.

"Not unless you actually hurt someone," Piccolo said, and Vejitto turned to grin lopsidedly at him. There wasn't a thing Piccolo could do, but he absolutely meant to try if his friends were likely to be hurt. Vejitto found he liked the big green guy, even if he was kind of a sullen pain in the ass.

"I definitely mean no harm. At least no lasting harm," he said, leaning back on his hands. "I was trying to drive a wedge in between the harpy and her husband."

"By getting the boys in trouble?"

"Oh, Kakkarot would protect them. I had no fears of that. She hates me, and Gotenks, and I figured the fight would be spectacular. Then I could figure out the next spike to drive in," Vejitto said, without a touch of remorse. "But Goku surprised me…"

"How is that possible?"

"Huh?"

Piccolo tried not to smirk, thinking of how much Vejitto looked like Goku just then. "I mean, how can anything Goku or Vegeta does surprise you?"

Vejitto lost his smile slowly, looking pensive somehow. "I'm not either one of them, you know. I'm myself. I have their memories, sure, but it's not all sorted out in my head. It's like a database with a half-built index."

Piccolo couldn't hide his smirk that time. That database remark was definitely a Vegeta contribution. Vejitto caught his expression and frowned.

"It's not like it mattered, anyway. Things went a lot better than I expected."

"How so? He's still going to have a fight with Chichi tonight."

"Yeah," Vejitto said almost absently before brightening up considerably. "But he offered to bring the chibis so I can see them! I didn't have to convince him I wasn't a threat or anything. And then… I thought it would take a couple of months before I got that kiss!"

His dark eyes sparkled with enthusiasm and Piccolo finally had to laugh. "You really don't know much about your forefathers, do you?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Vejitto said, his tail bushing out slightly.

"You're trying to seduce Goku, right? And yet you forgot he can read emotions. He knows you didn't mean any harm, you idiot. He might not have expected that kiss, but once he got over his surprise, he certainly had no trouble reading how lonely you are. If he wasn't agreeable to some extent, you'd still be fighting down there. You know that," Piccolo finished, almost chiding him.

Vejitto gaped at him. "How… how do you know…?"

"I've spent most of my life watching Goku. He's not that hard to read. Vegeta's a little harder, but not much. Which means you're about right in the middle. And since you've obviously been spending your time lately brooding over someone, it's not that hard to figure out who."

Vejitto snorted and looked away, annoyed. It was almost enough to disrupt his good mood. Almost.

Piccolo wasn't quite finished, though. "I'm not sure why you want to mate with Goku, but I doubt it will take much work. He's a lonely man. Even Mr. Popo says so, and he's…" He faltered, trying to think of a phrase to describe the creature.

"…thick as a brick?"

"Yeah, something like that. So Goku's not your problem."

"I can handle Chichi…" Vejitto started, but Piccolo cut him off.

"You haven't done your homework. There's something else you should have realized by now."

"Like what?" Vejitto crossed his arms and glowered.

"Goku and Vegeta. Meditate on it and I'm sure it'll come to you."

"You're not going to tell me?"

Piccolo stretched and took his turban off, scratching around the base of one antenna. "Nope, I don't think I will," he said before wandering off towards the buildings, leaving a fuming fusion behind him.

"Hn," Vejitto said gruffly. He'd never liked that Namek. Well, Goku had, but Vegeta never had, and Vejitto agreed with the bastard prince at the moment.

Still…

Now that he thought about it, the green man might have a point. There was something tickling at the back of his mind, something fairly obvious that he should have known already.

Damn it.

Closing his eyes, he let his conscious self drift, idly turning thing over in his mind. Goku and Vegeta, Vegeta and Goku…

Admiration, anger, hatred, hurt, betrayal, envy, disgust, jealousy, pity, sorrow, rage… Memories and emotions flickered past Vejitto's inner eye.

Goku in oozaru-Vegeta's fist, feeling the traitor's bones break. Begging Kuririn not to kill him. Laughing as he knew Furiza would die by a saiyajin's hands. Watching his prince flame to super saiyajin the first time and knowing he could never tell him how proud he felt of him. Looking down at Kakkarot's gleaming, oiled skin, the golden ornaments of a concubine wrapped around his tail and neck. Watching Vegeta's nearly hidden pride when Trunks won the tournament. Feeling the majin power explode.

Wait a minute.

What was that?

His brow furrowed as he tried to track down the images. Then his eyes went very wide as he found it. Not a memory, though…

A fantasy.

Vegeta purred as he looked over his new concubine for the first time. The teenager was strong and well-formed, though his ki was low. Although his head was bowed, Vegeta knew the features were fine and handsome, with large dark eyes and thick lashes fanning them. His skin was the color of pale gold, and it gleamed in the fire and torch light.

Kakkarot was his father's gift to him, a present on his birth anniversary. He was truly a splendid gift. Lean and muscular, his body the vision of a sculptor, Kakkarot was flawless, without scars or the blemishes of nature.

The young concubine knelt on the thick carpet, awaiting his prince's pleasure. He was bare of everything but the adornments of a concubine, a royal possession. Thin gold bands enclosed his neck, ankles, wrists and tail - signs that he was owned by a generous master. A brief scarf of gold cloth was wrapped around his waist, leaving only the details to the imagination.

The crest of the Saiyajin no Ouji was tattooed on his back, just above his tail.

"Who are you, boy?" Vegeta asked, sitting down in a leather chair and observing his new possession.

"Kakkarot, my lord prince. Your slave."

"You may attempt to pleasure me."

"Thank you, master," the teenager purred. He crawled toward Vegeta on his hands and knees, his black, glossy tail curling and coiling in the air above him. "I live only to serve you."

"Holy fuck."

Vejitto blinked and stared at nothing. There was a great deal more of that particular fantasy, but he didn't feel like taking a cold shower at the moment, so he didn't dwell on it. There was enough to think about already.

Vegeta had a thing for Goku. A big, serious thing. Not really love, because it was, as far as Vegeta was concerned, totally un-returned. The baka prince wasn't even totally aware of how deep his feelings went. He had astonishingly detailed and perverted fantasies about Kakkarot, but he somehow justified them as normal sexual fantasies. His feelings he masked behind contempt, and he was so good at it he almost believed the whole charade these days.

Unfortunately for them both, Goku believed it too. He'd given up a long, long time ago.

Well.

So…

Vegeta wanted Goku but was convinced Goku would never return his desires.

Goku wanted Vegeta, but had given up on him, convinced he would never return his desires.

If Vejitto seduced Goku, Vegeta would fly into a jealous and possessive rage.

Which would likely make Goku realize Vegeta did care, and Vejitto might lose him to the baka prince.

Still aching from that kiss, Vejitto sighed in exasperation. Why the hell did everything have to be so fucking complicated?

As darkness fell and the stars bloomed above him, a twinkle of an idea came to the fused saiyajin. Suddenly he grinned and twirled up into the air, immensely pleased with himself.

So what if they wanted each other?

So he'd just have to have both of them.

*****************

Trunks leaned up against the door of his father's gravity room and tried to look casual.

He failed. Abysmally.

It didn't matter, though. Not really. He had a secret, and he just had to tell someone. His mom was in a meeting, his grandmother wouldn't have understood how awesomely cool this secret was, and his grandfather was locked in his lab, trying to work out the kinks in the cyborg version of his recently deceased cat. His father wasn't usually the best person for telling secrets to, but he was the only one left, and Trunks was desperate.

Besides, it concerned Goku, and his father was usually interested in anything Goku did, even if he tried to pretend otherwise.

Trunks squirmed, trying to control himself. This was the best secret ever.

He'd had to go back to where they'd been sparring with Vejitto. He'd left his shoes there, tied by the laces around the branch of a tree. They were brand new and his mother had put all sorts of cool things into them, like warming and cooling units, plus a holographic tv projector. He didn't want them hurt when he fused with Goten, so he'd stashed them and then forgotten when his father and Goku had shown up.

He hadn't even made it home when he'd remembered and gone back. The shoes were easy to find, and as he was sitting on a branch lacing them on, he'd looked up and seen something he'd never, ever expected.

Goku and Vejitto had been kissing.

Suppressing his ki, the wide-eyed young boy had watched the struggle, the kiss, and then the two saiyajins parting. It had taken everything he had not to go roaring home right away, so he'd run as fast as he could through the woods until he was pretty sure he was too far away to be noticed.

He'd had to be patient all through dinner. If he didn't tell someone soon, he was gonna burst.

"What are you doing here, boy?" His father's voice made him jump.

"Can I tell you something secret, Papa?"

The prince's dark eyes narrowed as his son spun his tale, but he said nothing until the boy was done.

"Okay, thanks," he said with uncharacteristic gentleness before going into the gravity room and shutting the door on his son.

Sulking, not having gotten anything like the reaction he thought his news deserved, Trunks wandered off to go destroy something.

Inside the gravity room, the saiyajin no ouji stared at nothing, his fists clenching and unclenching slowly. His face twisted into a snarl.

How dare he?

~tbc~