I wake slowly. It�s still deliciously early in the morning; I can hear the birds singing, but there�s only the faintest glimmer of the dawn peeking through my window. I love this time of day, and a lazy smile drifts across my lips as I just lay there, enjoying the silence. Chichi will break the peace in only an hour, so I�ve learned to cherish these moments. Funny, how much I enjoy the times when no one�s around. Or maybe just sad. I shake my head as I push back the covers slowly, relishing the chill of the air against my sleep warmed skin.
I take in a deep breath, hoping to catch some of the lingering scent of night through my open window, but all I can smell is sweaty Saiyan. Huh, time for a shower. I rise from bed slowly, letting the bedclothes fall behind. Leaving the room dark, I rummage through Gohan�s chest of drawers, looking for the little bag I keep just for these circumstances. I still can�t think of this as anything but Gohan�s room...it isn�t really mine, I�m just borrowing it. I suppose I�ll need to get my own place, soon. If Kakarot�ll let me. It�s not that he doesn�t trust me, I think he genuinely just likes having me around. I don�t really think of him as my brother, he�s sort of a combination uncle/distant cousin. He doesn�t understand me, and I don�t understand him, but still, we have some good times together. But he�s also an authority figure, which is where the �uncle� bit comes in. So I�m confused about our relationship, what else is new with me? If I was smart, I wouldn�t be here in the first place.
I find my bag with a little smirk of triumph. It�s got my shampoo, soap, washcloth, and a heavy-duty brush in it. I grab some unsoiled clothes at random, then duck out into the hall to grab a couple of clean towels. I hold them to my face briefly, letting that delicious fresh smell envelope my face. Okay, so Chichi�s good for a lot of things, clean linen being one of them. Clean linen, good food, and I guess she must be one wild ride in the bedroom, the way she whoops and hollers in there. I slip back into my room with that amusing thought keeping my face lit, grabbing a duffel bag to shove everything in, then I let myself out the window, swooping out into the early morning twilight.
I don�t know why I love early morning and evening so much. Maybe it�s because they�re half-and-half times, in betweens, like me. Neither one thing nor the other. But they manage it with a grace I can only envy. I�m just bewildered, sunrises and sets are glorious. I laugh to myself as I spin through the air, out among the trees. Oh, fuck it all, who cares? I�ve been spending too much time analyzing things, anyway. It�s not like me, and I resolve to just be myself today, just act without thinking, and maybe get myself into trouble. Sounds like fun.
I skim over the tops of trees, then duck below to dodge and dart around the trunks and branches, admiring the splintered light. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful! When did I start thinking of this place as my home? I don�t know, but I feel a startled warmth rise from my chest, contrasting with the delectable bite of the air rushing by my face, chilling my hair and naked skin. I burst out above the lake that was the scene of my first meeting with Piccolo in my new life. It really wasn�t his lake, he just wanted me to shove off that night. He likes to have the upper hand, get in the last word. Petty bastard. Guess it helps him keep up his mystic image.
But I frown in dismay down at the two figures laughing and splashing. Damn, it�s my nephew and Vegeta�s kid. I thought Goten was staying over at Trunk�s place last night? I guess they decided to get up and come here, or knowing Goten, they never went to sleep at all. Why they had to pick my lake, though, is beyond me. I decide to find somewhere else; I�m not in the mood for company just yet.
I rise above the trees, closing my eyes and spinning to pick a random direction. Keeping my eyes squeezed tightly shut I push myself as fast as I can, trusting my skill to keep me even and not crashing into any objects in my path. It�s pretty damn exhilarating, and when I finally open my eyes, I have no idea where I am. Perfect. I start scouting around for a body of water, and find a good-sized stream just itching to be a river. I follow it down stream to find it rushing into a small waterfall that drops into a clear pool. It�s ridiculously idyllic, and my goofy grin echoes my brother as I drop my bag on the rocky shore.
�Bonzai!� I scream mightily as I spiral into the pool, letting myself simply fall. The first bite of the water is sheer glory, and it almost makes up for the shrieking pain that warps my head as I hit the bottom really hard. Oops. I surface spluttering and rubbing my head. I can�t quite stand on the bottom at the deepest part of the pool. I swim leisurely to shore to root through my bag, bringing out the soap and the rest, before swimming back out to the waterfall. The water here barely covers my waist, again, just perfect. Gods must be playing some trick on me, nothing is just perfect in my life these days. I�m learning to treasure the little things, because the big things are invariably fucked up.
But not today, not thinking today, just enjoying. I wet my hair in the waterfall, before dumping some shampoo on top of my head and proceeding to the lengthy task of working it through all of my hair. I rinse with a will, turning my face up to receive the waterfall�s refreshing benediction. My skin is becoming chill in the icy water, but I don�t care, in fact, it feels wonderful. Out with the soap, and a healthy all over scrub, hiking my legs out of the water to get everywhere. And finally, my tail.
Some men just have to have a good old yank in the morning to get them going. Not Saiyans, though. For us, it�s our tails. Or maybe it�s only me, I don�t really have anyone to swap masturbation stories with anymore. I snort to myself, but refuse to be distracted. Carefully pouring out a small portion of the green shampoo, I wrap my tail around my hips to my front to allow easier access. I spare a brief mournful thought to all the Saiyans left but me, left mutilated. But I�ll be damned if I�m going to let that spoil this glorious morning, and I begin slowly massaging in the sweet, herbal smelling shampoo. Tingles of pleasure start their erratic climb through my body, little fingers of electricity awakening my nerves.
I let out a soft sigh, my tongue wetting my lips with a warmer moisture than the stream provides. I don�t do my usual careful planning out of fantasies today, instead I let my mind drift as my fingers work gently through the dark pelt of my tail. Of course, Prince Vegeta pops in first. He�ll always be my ideal of beauty, so sleek and compact, like a cat. Next to him, I�m some clumsy giant. But for now it�s just the image of his agonizing body, the flush of crimson that colored his cheeks and throat when he cried out in pleasure, the joy I had in cracking that haughty fa�ade. A moan escapes my lips, and I move my fingers down to the very tip of my tail before running them back, ruffling the slickly wet fur.
Just thinking about Vegeta has gotten me aroused, and I wrap my tail around that, too, before continuing ministering to my longing flesh. The pleasure�s becoming more intense, and I speed the pace a bit, running my fingers behind me to rub at the base of my tail. Ebony eyes slip closed as I picture my prince in my mind. But as usual, I fuck it all up, because I don�t see him in his youth, when he was mine, but as he is now, in my brother�s arms. I hate it, seeing him like that, but somehow I�m more excited than ever, and I can�t stop. More images flash through me, the young prince, resplendent in just his long, lavender hair, and a more alien beauty, emerald and rose...
�Piccolo...� I whisper softly to the gracious air.
�What? What are you doing?� The gravelly voice cuts through my reverie, and my eyes snap open. Oh, not him again!
�For God�s sake! What is it with you, me, and water? What do you want, Piccolo?� I�m frozen in my irritation, but I�m not going to duck into the water like some embarrassed child. He wants to spy on me, he�s getting the full damn view!
�I want you out of my pool!� His voice is furious, like he�s caught me pissing in his drink or something. I unwind my tail, letting it wave angrily behind me. Of course, the gesture is sort of lost in the waterfall. Oh, well, free rinse. I am also sorta undercut by the fact that I�m still erect. Damn Saiyan biology mixing up sex and fighting.
�Oh, you are not going to tell me this is your pool, too! You tried that one on me already, remember? Look, I�m just taking a goddamned shower here, so if you�ll excuse me...� I turn my back on him, my tail slicing through the water furiously.
�Raditz, look off to your left, back through the trees about a hundred yards.� His voice is flat. Yep, he�s ticked. But I look, and see some sort of rock face, like maybe a cave? With...with a door set into the rock. Shit.
�That is where I stay when I want to get away from the Lookout. And you are in my pool.�
I turn around, still a little annoyed, though some of it is now directed at myself. I didn�t thoroughly check out the area...what if someone not so friendly had lived nearby? �Look, I was just taking a shower, Piccolo, nothing big.�
�What you were doing was painfully obvious! Ple-...Mas- ...doing....THAT,� he says, spluttering, and gesturing at my bobbing erection, �And saying my name, like some....well, I don�t know! Like something!� Oh, shit. But I�m not going to feel embarrassed. Not today. I walk out of the pool, doing my best Vegeta imitation and sneering at the Namek.
�Look, us non-asexual people do things like that. And why the hell would you care who�s name I�m whispering, or hollering for that matter?� I turn my back to him, and lean over to grab a towel from my bag. I�m surprised to hear a shocked gasp from behind me, but not so surprised when I hear:
�COVER YOURSELF! I have no wish to see your little peep show, Saiyan!� Piccolo is way more angry than I�ve ever seen him, even when I�m trying my best to get him going. I�m going to have to remember this. Feeling smugly perverse, I wrap the towel around my shoulders and turn around.
�No one�s asking you to look,� I snort at him, and begin drying my front briskly. �You may want to stand back,� I add, and then proceed to shake out my hair before he�s moved a muscle. Heh, got him dead on. He stands there gaping at me, too shocked to speak, just making choked noises. Wow, he�s even more of a prude than I suspected. Too bad he�s not wearing that stupid turban or the superhero cape, I only managed to wet his gi. And little crystalline droplets dangle tantalizingly from the ends of his antennae. I wonder why he�s not attacking me, though? Probably has some sort of weird honor thing about attacking naked people. His loss.
Finally he gains back some control of his vocal chords. �What is this all about, Raditz?� he asks, his voice now dangerously low. He�s thinking instead of just reacting, which means my fun is about to be ruined. I guess I better cut him a break. I shrug wide shoulders, as I try to actually analyze my behavior. He owes me, for making me break my promise to myself this early.
�Oh, I dunno,� I sigh, wringing out my hair, and rubbing it with the other towel to give it at least the semblance of being damp instead of dripping wet. I fish for my shorts in the bag, this time not leaving my back to Piccolo. �Part of it is I just like to piss you off. But I really didn�t know this was your pool, I was just doing my usual...uh...thing that I do when I wash in the mornings.� I examine the pair of cut-off jeans critically, then pull them on. The come to just above the knee. All my shorts are cut offs, it�s really hard to find clothes in my size, and pants were all they had in the thrift store.
�I was just kinda letting my mind wander. I have no idea how to explain masturbation to you, I think my ability was sucked out at the whole being in love thing. But what you think about when you�re doing it isn�t always under your control, you know?� I pull out my brush and sit down on a rock that is just beginning to be warmed by the rising sun. I admire the swirling mist dancing over the surface of the water before continuing.
�I�ve always had a thing for strong people, like most Saiyans. Guys, in my case. And I guess I think of you as a man, not a woman, and not even...well, whatever you are. But it wasn�t my conscious choice. Hell, I was thinking about Vegeta at first, and you know what a lost cause that is. So don�t take it too personally.�
My hair is deciding to be stubborn today and I yank painfully on one of the many knots trying to detangle it. I don�t look at Piccolo, and he doesn�t say anything. I guess he�s doing some analyzing of his own. I glance up at him curiously, but his face is empty of meaning. Piccolo is the master of the blank face, only 18 is better at it, from what I�ve seen. I offer something that I still have trouble with. �Sorry.�
He just stares back at me, and I turn back to my hair. I don�t feel like squirming under his gaze today, so I won�t. I let my mind drift pleasantly as I work, ignoring my unintentional companion. So it�s quite a surprise when I feel his clawed hand at my shoulder, then the soft touch of his forearm sliding by my cheek as he reaches over to pluck the brush from my hand. �You�re making a mess of it,� he says in his usual growl. And then I�m completely freaked, because he�s grabbing a small handful of my hair and gently teasing the tangles from it.
I have a sudden terrible thought...is this going to turn out like one of those crazy stories that Gohan had stashed in his room where one guy catches the other masturbating, and is so turned on by it that he jumps the second guy�s bones? �Uh, Piccolo?� I ask cautiously, �What are you doing?�
His hands tighten in my hair and I let out a startled yelp. He works the brush through a particularly nasty tangle before answering, �I�m brushing your hair, idiot.� I want desperately to look over my shoulder, see the expression on his face, but I�m afraid to. This is just too strange. Piccolo is not a tender or caring kind of guy, this is way out of character for him. I decide to just sit still, and try not let my mind run away with this.
Actually, once he gets the knots out, it feels pretty nice. There�s something very primal in having someone else brush your hair; a warm, safe, tingly kind of feeling that is unfamiliar to me. I find myself letting out happy little �mm� noises as he draws the brush from the crown of my head down the entire length of my mane. The sun is starting to heat the surface of my skin, and lazy droplets of water trail ticklishly down my back into the waistband of my shorts. I let my shoulders relax, my hands fall open where they rest on my thighs. I almost lean back comfortably into Piccolo, but stop myself just in time.
Finally he hands the brush back to me, and I dare to glance back into his face. The amused little smirk I see there makes me blink. Then I realize...�You were fucking with me, weren�t you?� I ask, somewhat surprised with myself for the pang of disappointment that taunts me. Do I miss companionship so much?
�I don�t know, Raditz, was I?� he asks archly and I want to stamp my feet like a child in frustration.
�Oh, fine, whatever! I don�t want to play your games today, you sadistic Namek.� I stand, gathering my things angrily. He�s probably snickering to himself, glad he�s finally found a way to get me back for all those cracks about Gohan. I pull on a baggy black t-shirt, and swing my duffel bag, burdened now with wet towels, over my shoulder. �I�m going to go get breakfast. I won�t come and use your pool again.� I�m snarling, furious I can�t get a better hold of my own reactions. Ah, this is why I consistently analyze everything I do...it keeps me from making quite so much of a fool of myself. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking, too.
�You�re welcome to it any time you like,� offers Piccolo. I turn, gaping at him, but he�s already gone, and I see the door to his cave opening and a green and indigo flash slipping inside.
�YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO HAVE THE LAST WORD, DON�T YOU, YOU SNEAKY SON OF A BITCH!�
Part Six |
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