Author�s Note: Short chapter, this time. Thanks goes out on this one to Emma, who inspired Raditz� wish on the dragonballs.
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I stare in fascination at the last one. The last dragonball we need. Vegeta holds it from the water triumphantly, his usual sneer widening to a victorious grin as he drags himself from the rushing river. The weight of the water pulls his hair into a long fall down his back, plastering it down one side of his face, and his bare chest shimmers enticingly in the desert sun. Kakarot and I perch on two outcroppings from the canyon wall, but as I watch my prince avidly, my brother jumps down, swinging his bag from off his shoulder, and spilling the rest of the dragonballs in a haphazard pile on the baked sandstone which serves as a riverbank.
Vegeta shakes his head, almost dog-like, dislodging great sprays of water that form brief rainbows, leading lives of sparkling color for a few seconds. Freed of some of the weight, his hair makes a sincere attempt to spring back into its normal proud flame, but fails, flaring backwards like porcupine�s quills. He leans over to add his discovery to the pile of golden spheres, and I watch the sinuous curve of his spine melt into the gloriously tight flesh of his ass. Yeah, I�ve got it bad.
He and my brother stare down at the pile, until I call out to them. �Well? Aren�t you going to call the dragon?�
Kakarot grins at me, excitement dancing in his dark eyes. �Yeah, I guess we should, huh?�
�Get on with it, Kakarot,� Vegeta commands.
Kakarot nods, and squats down, leaning his torso over the dragonballs and casting a heavy shadow. But surprisingly, at least to me, the balls themselves begin pulsing with light, like a slow, steady heartbeat. Vegeta looks uninterested by the whole affair, so I assume this is what usually happens when the dragonballs are used.
�Arise, dragon!� my brother calls out, stretching his arms over the dragonballs. Suddenly, the glow no longer pulses, but brightens swiftly, producing a savage golden light that is almost blinding in its intensity. I turn my head from the light, looking up instead at the sky, and witness something new.
The sky, which had been a faded, burning blue, has darkened as a mass of what looks like black clouds gather. The brilliant midday sun is extinguished, and instead flickers of yellow-white lightning rage across the stormy heights. I watch in fascination, impressed by the pseudostorm that heralds the arrival of Shen Long. Suddenly, my attention is drawn back to the balls as a huge mass of light streams out from them, a sort of long streamer of illumination racing into the sky.
The light forms itself into the intricate emerald coils of an enormous dragon, its adorned head rising above us. In a huge, deep voice it speaks. �I AM HERE AS SUMMONED. TELL ME YOUR WISHES THAT I MAY RETURN TO MY SLUMBER.�
I find myself gaping up at this massive creature, as Kakarot addresses it as if it was an old friend. �Hey Shen Long! We�ll try and make this quick for you.�
�OH, IT�S YOU. DIDN�T YOU SUMMON ME JUST A SHORT TIME AGO?�
�Yeah, but we have another two wishes now.� I blink at my brother, as a sudden thought hits me. What was his second wish when he brought me back from the dead? Or did it take two to bring me back? The specifics of this whole wishing thing seem fairly complex, and Kakarot hasn�t exactly done the best job of explaining it to me.
�GET ON WITH IT.� Huh, seems like the dragon and Vegeta share an attitude.
�Okay, my first wish is that all Saiyans-� He stops suddenly, blinking, then rubs his chin. �Actually, I don�t know if I want to put it that way�um, hang on a sec.� He looks over at me, raising his eyebrows in question.
�Really, Kakarot, what�s the problem?� Vegeta has his arms crossed over his chest, tapping one finger impatiently against his bicep. His hair�s starting to dry, I notice idly.
�Well, I want everyone, us and Trunks, Goten, and Gohan to get tails back. And maybe Pan and Bra. How do I put that? Or do I just say everyone�s name?� Kakarot tilts his head to the side in confusion, and I stifle a snicker.
�Just wish for everyone who was born with a tail to get theirs back,� I suggest mildly. My brother�s eyes light up and I smile indulgently at him.
�Perfect. Okay, Shen Long, I�m ready!�
�IT�S ABOUT TIME. WELL?� It�s actually pretty funny hearing this big booming voice sound annoyed.
�I wish for every one, here on Earth, who was born with a tail to get their tails back.� Kakarot grins up hugely at the dragon, looking about twelve years old in his delight.
�YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.�
I expect there to be a flash of light, or something, anyways, but there isn�t any visual cue that anything has changed. Of course, the twin wordless exclamations of shock from Vegeta and Kakarot pretty much confirm that the wish has indeed been granted. I look over at my brother first. He�s wearing a pair of his baggy gi pants, and I can see something snaking around his leg under the fabric. Completely unabashedly, he pulls down his pants a few inches, letting a long length of soft brown fur twist loose. Laughing in wonder, he grabs it loosely, pulling it around front to stare down at it.
Vegeta, on the other hand, has already slit a small hole in his shorts in preparation. His tail now dances freely behind him, a darker, reddish- brown, sleek and compact, just like him. Vegeta was always extremely expressive, and looking at him with his tail back reminds me of it. When he was�when we were both younger, we could carry on entire conversations with just our hands and tails, rarely needing verbal confirmation to grasp the other�s meaning.
My prince carefully wraps his tail around his waist, tracing his fingers lightly over its soft length. His eyes are dark and unreadable as ever, but a strange smile hovers over his lips. I remember what my brother told me, that his tail was cut from him when he first came to this planet. It must have been incredibly traumatic, to have it ripped from him in adulthood. But something about his smile...there�s a serenity, a joy there that I�ve rarely seen on his face. It�s absolutely breathtaking.
�WELL?� the dragon suddenly interrupts, and I stare up at it, suddenly annoyed. Almost forgetting it�s my turn next. �YOU HAVE ONE MORE COMING. WHAT IS IT?�
Kakarot looks over at me, still grinning like a loon. �Looks like you�re up,� he throws at me laughingly. I nod, then bite my lower lip. I really don�t want Vegeta to hear this�
Making up my mind, I take to the air, spiraling up to the dragon�s head. It�s far enough away from my brother and my prince that I�m fairly confident I won�t be overheard. �WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP HERE, LITTLE MONKEY?� Shen Long asks me in mild interest.
�I�d like to keep this wish between you and I, if you don�t mind.� The dragon regards me curiously, blinking gleaming ivory eyes, so much bigger this close. I can see the line of every glorious scale, the tiny cracks in his horns�
�VERY WELL.�
�Okay,� I say, taking in a deep breath of cleansing air. I�ve been thinking about this for the last few days, ever since my brother brought it up. What do I really want? �I wish that, at a time of my choosing, I will be able to sense, read, hear, whatever Vegeta�s thoughts for a period of�oh, say, an hour. And project to him, if I choose.� An hour should be about right. Enough time to find out what I want to know. Not so much that his thoughts overwhelm me.
Not surprisingly, considering our social nature, Saiyans are not strangers to telepathic bonds. Families are often bonded in this way, and hunting packs form them as well, when spending extended amounts of time with each other. Life partners as well, and sometimes, if the relationship is intense, in even brief flings lovers can form them. I had one with Kakarot when he was a baby, and with my father as well. I started forming one with Vegeta long ago, but it was destroyed before it was complete. I�m pretty sure I�m starting to form one with Kakarot now, as it becomes easier and easier to understand his emotions and motivations, things that were such a mystery to me before.
But Vegeta is the one I really want to know about. And he hasn�t changed so much that I can ask him about these things. If he deigned to answer at all, it would be some sarcastic comment or insult. So, it�s an incredible invasion of privacy. So the fuck what? The need to know burns through me, and this is how I�ll find out. Needless to say, I�m not a patient man.
While I revisit again my fear that this is a terrible waste of a wish (what happened to immortality? World domination? Being able to kick Kakarot�s ass at pick-up basketball?), the dragon cuts off any avenues of indecision. �YOUR WISH IS GRANTED. GOODBYE, YOU STRANGE MONKEYS.�
And as suddenly as he came, the dragon is gone, sucked back into the dragonballs that now rise into the air, curiously blank and white, and then shoot in seven different directions at incredible speed. I land heavily next to Kakarot, who smiles at me curiously.
�So what�d you wish for?� I just grin at him. I�ve never been much of a liar. �You�re not going to tell me?� His voice rises an octave in surprise and disappointment.
�I�ll tell you. Just not now.� His tail flickers behind him in frustration, and my grin widens. There�s always been something wrong, something missing with Kakarot. It�s not missing any more.
�I doubt it would be of much interest,� Vegeta drawls in a bored tone. I glance over at him, and his arms are crossed over his chest again. But I can see his tail sway back and forth, belying his apparent disinterest. He hasn�t had it back long enough to be able to control it properly. Of course, I can�t control mine, either, and I don�t have any excuses.
�Sure, Vegeta,� I practically purr, walking smoothly by him and reaching out to lightly thread his tail through my fingers. It�s considered an incredibly intimate gesture among us, and it�s extremely rude to do to someone who isn�t family or a lover. I�m willing to risk it, though. And the low gasp it wrings from him is definitely worth it. I run the entire length through my fingers, giving the tip a little twist before letting it drop. I hop back up to my previous perch and scoop my bag up, finally turning to look down at him. He�s gazing up at me inscrutably.
Feeling incredibly pleased with myself, I jump down again and deliberately address only my brother. �So do you want to head back tonight?�
Kakarot considers, glancing over at Vegeta, then grinning at me. A very out-of-place grin, on him, anyway, all secret and knowing leer. �Hmm, no, let�s take a night or so to enjoy our wish,� he decides, waving his tail languidly. Yep, we�re definitely starting to form a bond.
I turn to give Vegeta a once over, letting my eyes run up and down his sleek body suggestively. I have to admit, it�s a wonderfully good view, his tight black shorts clinging to slender hips and muscular thighs. �Well, my prince? Do you approve?� I leave the question purposefully vague, open, and he snorts. He knows what game I�m playing, but he doesn�t reprimand me.
�Very well,� he tosses out, turning his back as though entirely unaffected by the whole thing. Of course, this gives an unobstructed view of his ass, now made even more enticing by the luxurious auburn tail that glides gracefully over the backs of his thighs. Oh, he must know what kind of a show he�s putting on. I find myself staring openly, and force myself to look over at my brother. He�s staring right where I was, his tongue darting out to lightly caress his upper lip. He looks over at me then. And we break into identical broad grins as we realize just how alike we are at times.
Vegeta looks back at us, one elegant eyebrow arched quizzically as Kakarot and I each throw an arm over the other�s shoulder and begin laughing hysterically.
Part Twenty-one |
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