Note: Sry about the ) but it's the only way I can divided the text into proper paragraphs.
Cold
Vegeta was outside contemplating whether to go to the work out area for some sparring with Bulma's inferior toys or get something to eat first when he heard his name being called in a rush, an edge of fear to it. Raising an eyebrow Vegeta got to his feet to watch Mrs. Briefs running towards him or trying to in heels. She looked distress and Vegeta wondered if there was a mouse in the house or perhaps a spider, both seemed to send human women into fits despite the size difference. Then again they were human, Vegeta expected no less then stupidity and weakness from them. "Something wrong?" Vegeta asked crossing his arms in front of his chest, hoping it was a spider and not a rodent as the rodent would take more of his valuable time up.
"It's Bulma." Mrs. Briefs said as she rung her hands looking more distraught then Vegeta had first realized. "You know how's she's been away visiting her sick friend right? Well apparently there have been a lot of ice storms and blizzards in that area and anyway Bulma was coming home and I was talking to her and she was saying how the weather was really bad. Then I could hear alarms going off and her muttering about something being wrong and then the line just went dead." Mrs. Briefs said looking like she could burst into sobs at any moment which Vegeta hoped feverously would not happen. "I tried to call her back but I couldn't get an answer. She was suppose to drop in on a friend of the family to stay there till tomorrow since the weather was so bad but they just called to say she never showed up."
)
Processing what was important from her rambling Vegeta had to admit she had a valid reason for worrying. Bulma was an annoying and opinionated female but she wasn't a thoughtless one and had she been able to call her mother back she would have knowing how Mrs. Briefs would panic. Which would suggest the little idiot had landed herself into trouble..again. "Have you informed the authorities?" Vegeta asked, trying not to sneer too much when he said it since he had no faith in a human's ability to find their own car keys much less a human being. Grumbling under his breath about all the trouble the woman caused the people around her he was surprised people were always so quick to rush to her rescue. He'd be tempted to lave her there.
"Yes but apparently the area she was in is suffering from a severe blizzard and it's impossible to go looking for her much less even confirm that she's still In the area. That's why I came to get you, I knew that if there was anyone on this earth who could save her it would be you or Goku." Mrs. Briefs said with a complete faith in her eyes that made Vegeta slightly uncomfortable. It was unnerving that she thought that he could find Bulma without any trouble, especially in the kind of weather she was talking about. Not that he couldn't do it of course, if he wanted to go find her he would and a lot faster then that idiot Goku. That monkey couldn't even find his tail if the fool had still had one, Vegeta thought sourly. "I haven't called Goku yet to see if he could do it but I'm sure he would..if you're too busy, Vegeta." Mrs. Briefs said, her eyes shining with tears as she looked at him with eyes designed to make you feel guilt as well as pity, two emotions Vegeta didn't often feel.
Blinking under such a look Vegeta considered the pros and cons to going after Bulma. On the one hand she was an annoying pain in the ass and he'd been enjoying her not being around to bother him. Plus he was training and didn't have time for such a stupid interruption as finding the dumb idiot. Not to mention the fact that the girl could possibly be fine where ever she was and on her way making him going a waste of time and energy. But on the other hand he did need her to continue to make him training equipment and armor, plus if she did die her father might be too distraught to make the armor and gadgets in her place. Also if she really was in trouble and he saved her she'd be in his debt which was a most appealing thought indeed. It would indeed be a fine day to have that woman owing him something so valuable as her life. After all however worthless her life was to him others would likely care and if that wasn't enough of an incentive refusing would make it seem like he wasn't up it and then if Goku went..well there was no way he was going to let it be said that he feared to do something Goku had done. Grumbling for a good minute about the inconvenience Vegeta finally gave in knowing he was going to go after her. "I'll go, give me the coordinates."
)
Hours later
Flying through snow was one of the most annoying things Vegeta had ever encountered. It was as if he were in an ice cold white room and it was impossible to see anything around him clearly. Mrs. Briefs had insisted on his bundling up which meant for the first half of the trip he'd been steaming in the heavy garments but now he was grateful and even considering thanking her once he got back. It wasn't likely but the fact that he was even thinking about it was telling. Luckily for everyone Bulma had installed a homing device for her little ship and left one of the trackers with her parents just in case. He was closing in on her position not that he could tell, Vegeta thought with a more then pissed off look on his face. She better appreciate this or he might well blow up her ship with her in it and use the excuse that it was like that when he found her. No one would dare question him about it. Well that idiot ex boyfriend of hers might but he'd been wanting to blow the idiot up for a while anyway. No great loss to the universe. In fact there were likely people who would thank him for putting the useless dog down. The beeper going off Vegeta descended and tried to land only to go through the snow and ended up waist deep in snow. Cursing a blue streak Vegeta blasted the area in front of him clearing a path which was filling up with snow already which only made him madder. Walking along nearly blindly Vegeta finally saw a flash of yellow and walking through the drifts since he couldn't risk accidentally blowing her up Vegeta finally hit solid metal. Feeling his way along Vegeta cursed when metal tore into his skin, indicating that the ship had been broken up at least a little causing jagged edges. Finding the door Vegeta felt out the door opener and opening it got into the ship, closing it behind him to find himself in utter darkness. Cursing Vegeta felt around as he walked then seeing a faint light walked into what was the sleeping area from the looks of it. There was a single black flashlight standing up on a table, illuminating a figure huddled in what appeared to be several blankets barely moving. "Woman, why the hell is it dark in here? Why isn't there any heat?"
)
When no answer came Vegeta marched over and lifted up the covers to yell at her for ignoring him but the words died in his mouth as he stared at the pale face before him. Her face was as white as the snow he'd been in and here lips were tinged blue which was not a good sign obviously. She appeared to still be conscious but she didn't look like that was going to be the case shortly. She seemed to be aware he was there but in too much shock or just too cold to speak. Frowning fiercely Vegeta felt a tinge of fear when he realized that this was serious and that the little idiot could actually be dying. Obviously the ship had been damaged enough that she hadn't even been able to get the heat and lighting back on or she had simply gotten too cold too fast to make a dent in the repairs. She needed to get some place warm and quick before she up and died on him. The fact that the idea of her actually really dying for real bothered him was something to be thought about later as he tried to figure out what to do. Obviously she couldn't stay in this place but where could he take her that wasn't just as bad? There was nothing but forest around them and he couldn't fly in this with her, it would be too risky and actually being outside would only kill her quicker. Pacing Vegeta stopped to wrap the blankets more tightly around her and tried to come up with a feasible plan.
"Hit...mountain..didn't see it..till too late." Came a weak voice and Vegeta's head turned quickly as he stared in Bulma's direction at the barely understandable whisper of sound when the voice came again in the form of his name. "Vegeta?"
"Yes I'm here." Vegeta said as he walked over to crouch down so that she could see his face, noticing that she seemed to have found the strength to at least speak a few words. Plus she actually looked happy to see him which was certainly a new experience since people were seldom happy to see him under any circumstances. She must know she's in rough shape to be glad to see him. Thinking about what she'd said Vegeta got an idea and reached out cupped her face in his hands to insure her attention. "How big is the mountain?"
"Very..don't make fun." Bulma said after a moment thinking he'd asked so that he could make fun of the fact that she'd been stupid enough to not see a huge mass of rock in her way. But the weather had been so bad..and she was just so cold and couldn't help but be glad to see him. He was likely just a mirage or some other figment of her imagination but she didn't care, she felt better with him there whether he was real or not. Vegeta was strong, strong enough to get her out of this.
)
"Hmmm, I have a plan. Stay here and don't die before I get back." Vegeta ordered then standing up straight was shocked when one of her hands shot out to grab his and a faint voice begged him not to leave her alone. Feeling as though he'd just been blasted out of nowhere Vegeta stared at their joined hands then shook her loose though his voice was as close to nice as it would ever get in his opinion. "I'll be back. I give you my word, Bulma." Not reaching for his hand again Vegeta took that to mean she understood he was coming back and trusted him enough to do as he told her. Leaving the room Vegeta headed out the way he'd come and once he'd found the mountain and felt around to confirm that it was an actual mountain of considerable berth and height flew back to hover over the ground then concentrating his energy blew a fair sized hole into the mountain. Flying over to it Vegeta walked down his hole estimating it was around Piccolo's height which suited his purposes. Going to the very end Vegeta very, very carefully shot a hole up through the mountain and got out of the way as small pieces fell. Once they stopped falling Vegeta moved back over to look at the fist sized hole directly above him which went all the way to the top which would let in fresh air and give the smoke from the coming fires somewhere to go. Having created an adequate shelter now Vegeta headed back out and promptly blew several trees into thousands of pieces. Carrying stacked pieces into the hole Vegeta places the splintered remains into several piles that soon became small fires. Once they were going well enough that he was sure they wouldn't go out Vegeta headed back out to retrieve Bulma. Finding the ship with a lot less difficulty this time thankfully Vegeta entered the room to find her exactly as he'd left her which was startling since the woman never did what he told her to do. Picking her up in his arms Vegeta carried her out of the room, mildly concerned that she wasn't saying anything and that her breathing was hard to hear. Holding her close Vegeta got her into the hole as quick as possible and making his way to the back carefully deposited her in the middle of the room he'd created, surrounded on three sides by fires giving off heat. Leaving here there for a little bit longer Vegeta headed back to the ship to retrieve food, more blankets and some supplies. Using several of the larger pieces of lumber he shoved them in front of the hole as a type of barrier against the cold air coming in, using snow to pack the wood in place. Leaving that alone Vegeta walked back in to find still on the ground only she was visibly moving, shivering as her body tried to absorb the heat of the fire but couldn't do it quick enough.
)
Frowning over the fact that it was obvious things were not going well Vegeta walked over to sit beside him then gave a surprised yelp as he suddenly went flying backwards as she hurled herself against him, burrowed against him, Vegeta realized with a start as he sat up while she wrapped her ice cold hands around his waist. Seeking warmth, Vegeta thought with a flash of insight. Speaking of which all these layers would do her more good then him, Vegeta though as he forced her to let him go while he took stock of what she was wearing. She was dressed for the weather or at least ordinary snowy weather but not like this, certainly not without proper protection from the elements. Shedding his thick coat in a hurry Vegeta pulled the blankets off of her and forced her arms into the sleeves of his warm coat before pulling the blankets around her while he shed more layers till he was only in a thick wool sweater and pants. Looking down at her he saw that her color was getting a bit better.
"Vegeta..you're really here..aren't you? You aren't...a..figment of my..imagination?" Bulma was finally able to ask weakly. When she'd thrown herself towards him it had been in joy that he'd come back, that he hadn't left her and when she'd encountered solid muscle and warmth, oh so much warmth it had been like heaven. She'd been thinking that she must have imagined him but this coat she was now wearing was real and it smelled like him. She had a hard time imagining Vegeta coming to anyone's rescue much less hers but it would appear he had and she'd never been so happy to see the grumpy Saiyan prince. "Are we..in a cave?"
"In a matter of speaking and yes I'm here, idiot." Vegeta said as he dumped the pile of clothes in front of her then frowned when she made no move to put any on the layers on. "You need the warmth, woman now put them on."
"I know..but my body..won't work." Bulma admitted as she just managed to tilt her head up to meet his gaze. "Think I'm almost..frozen solid." She added, trying to joke but it wasn't funny at all. She felt so weak and faint, like she wasn't completely there anymore.
Not at all pleased with that answer Vegeta crouched down and placed a hand on her cheek which were as cold as ice and her hands were worse. The fires weren't producing enough heat and she needed to warm up fast. Humans were so weak, it was no wonder they were so easy to kill off. You didn't see him freezing to death did you? Then again he was a Saiyan and as such had a superior body and ability to channel his energy so that his body temperature..oh damn. Blinking Vegeta realized that since he couldn't risk building the fires any bigger and the clothes weren't doing their job fast enough there was really only one other method that would have guaranteed positive results. She needed his body heat. "I knew I should have left this to Goku." Vegeta grumbled even as he was sliding his shirt off since he knew skin to skin was the best way to go about it. Taking the second largest blanket he set it on the ground and spread it out, feeling Bulma watch him.
)
"Why did you..what are you doing?" Bulma asked as she watched him thinking he was extremely stupid to have taken his shirt off even if there were fires everywhere. Not that she could feel them so good but he probably could and even if he couldn't he'd probably say something like his body was so superior to hers that he didn't need to worry about such things as getting cold. Course he'd say that just to irritate her, Bulma thought with a hint of a smile that changed to a look of shock as Vegeta suddenly moved over to crouch in front of her, removing the blankets and then the coat causing her to goggle at him in shock. What was he thinking? Feeling him undo the zipper to her own coat Bulma gasped in protest. "What are you doing? I need those." Was he trying to kill her? It was Vegeta after all and this might be some twisted revenge against Goku or just because he was a mean son of a bitch who didn't know the meaning of the word good. What the hell was he doing?
"You need to get warm, woman and I have the large amount of body heat you need. It will be easier to give it to you skin to skin. Now quit trying to talk unless you need to, woman or I'll shut you up personally. You need to save whatever puny strength you have at the moment." Was Vegeta's answer.