The Art of Lying

"So..." started Goku as he picked up a card from the pile. "Amnesia, huh?" He glanced to Bulma as she sat in a near by chair. He noticed her glancing at the cards in her fingers. He noticed her bite her lip. It was a nervous habit she unknowingly picked up.

"Yeah. Apparently he doesn't remember anything other than colors," she replied before turning to Krillin. "Do you have any fives?" The bald martial artist handed her a card from his hand. She smiled before pairing it with another five from her hand. She carefully placed the two cards down before looking to Nappa, who had uncaringly joined in the game. "Do you have any threes?"

"Go fish," the saiyan gruffly stated. He was still bedridden and still glum as the day he woke from the coma.

"Colors?" asked Goku with wide eyes, "Did Vegeta note any specific colors?"

Bulma nodded her head picking up a card from the pile. She smiled, as she paired it with another card from her hand. "Yeah. He said he remembers black and white. I have no idea what that might mean."


Everyone around paused as Krillin rubbed the bottom of his chin. "Do you have any jacks, Gohan?"

The young boy, who sat beside the monk, shook his head side to side. "No sir. Go fish."

Krillin chuckled, "Your mother has you trained with these manners." His hand reached for the pile of cards. Gohan merely blushed before hiding his eyes in the cards. Moments passed. Silence loomed as Nappa looked at his cards making a decision for what card he would choose to look for. The saiyan set his cards on the white sheet of his hospital bed before sighing.

"Vegeta's memory was of space."

The humans and saiyans turned to the incapacitated warrior. He was silent for a few moments while Goku and Krillin looked at each other. Bulma felt her mouth dry from nervousness. Maybe Vegeta wouldn't have this amnesia for long. It would be to their frustration as well as horror if a strong warrior as Vegeta realized his rivalry with a certain earth-grown saiyan. That was something those in Goku's circle of friends refused to think about. And yet it was a terrible possibility.

After recollecting his thoughts, Nappa turned back to Bulma. "Most of our lives, Vegeta and I have traveled in space with the only intention of purging planets. After the destruction, we returned to the mother base to report our progress. The most time we ever traveled in space was over a three-year time span."

There was dead silence as Nappa looked to the other warriors in the room, who watched him in horror, Gohan especially. Nappa mentally glared at the boy. That child was so sheltered, he didn't know which way was up. He knew nothing about being a warrior-- sure that little boy had more latent power in his body than his father. Power meant nothing unless their was experience behind it. Picking up his cards, he glanced through them. "Have any of these?" Nappa asked gruffly, as he faced the card to Bulma.

Unexpectedly, she blinked before looking to her own hands. She shook her head, "I-I do not have any kings. Go fish."

The saiyan placed the card in his small stack before lowering his hand to the side of the bed. Gohan's small hand gave the saiyan warrior's bulky fingers the paper.

"Mr. Nappa?"

The saiyan looked down to the child who sat on the floor. "Do you have any kings?" The saiyan handed the child the card. Gohan smiled brightly before adding it to his ever increasing pile of pairs. "Thank you!" Nappa's lip curled into a snarl before he looked out the window, not caring when his own turn would happen.

"So," stated Bulma biting her lip again, "What are we going to do? What approach do we need to take around Vegeta? Although he may seem calm right now, he still has the potential to remember the past at any time." The female looked over to the silent saiyan. "No offense Nappa, but I think we should keep you and Vegeta as far away from each other as possible."

"Then where would we keep Nappa for the time being?"

"Here of course," stated Bulma with a frown setting her cards on the floor beside her, "He still has a long way down the road of recovery."

"Then where should Vegeta go?" asked Krillin setting his cards to the ground. Goku and Gohan followed the same actions of their friend. They turned to Bulma. She frowned.

"What?" she questioned becoming defensive.

Goku rubbed the back of his head with his uninjured hand. "Well... you're the genius in the group. You figure out the answers to all the hard stuff."

Bulma blew some air from her mouth before looking to the group, well, all except Nappa. He simply stared out the window. "I know Vegeta is in no condition to travel. I would have suggested that he remain with Goku during this time... that or go with Krillin to Kame House."

"A-are you insane Bulma?" shouted Krillin with wide eyes. "There's no way I can take him with m-me!"

Bulma raised an eyebrow, "And why would that be?"

"I'd be in this hospital longer than Goku and Gohan! I'm only human if you haven't realized! Besides," stuttered Krillin thinking of another excuse to keep the dangerous and potentially psychotic saiyan away from him, "what if Roshi decides to drag Vegeta into a drinking night? Remember the last time Goku downed a keg of beer?"

The female closed her eyes as her mind searched for said memory. And then it hit. Her face paled, and her eyes widened immediately. Not only did she remember, they had the moon back then. Goku, still with his tail, mistakenly looked into the sky while in a drunken stupor. It took a lot of lies to explain why Kami House was in ruins... and why there was now a hidden basement fifteen meters under the Kami House which was "oddly" in the shape of a Kame-Hame-Ha Wave.

Okay... so scratch the idea of Vegeta going to Kame House. Bulma nodded her head agreeing with Krillin. "We might need to cut off Vegeta's tail in the near future before he recovers from the amnesia too."

"Disgraceful!"

The group turned to the saiyan as his eyes widened in horror. They gave him confused stares just as the burly saiyan shook his head in denial. "I may have been disowned from the saiyan race, but I will never allow you to disgrace the prince of saiyans by cutting off his tail during his time of weakness!" He used his arms to shift himself easily into a sitting position. Obviously, the warrior's upper body strength was still intact. His eyes were blazing. It surprised those around that this man, this warrior who could not pass off a decent threat would still defend the prince who disowned him from his race?

'What loyalty,' mentally considered Bulma glancing to Goku as well. Goku also expressed that diehard loyalty to his friends and to what everything good represented. The saiyans' eyes were wide, as Nappa tried shifting his body towards the scheming group. Bulma could only nod. Maybe it was a saiyan trait-- to remain loyal to what they considered their own. Bulma then started to have a plan form in her mind... Maybe she could manipulate this situation so Vegeta would remain loyal to them, and not to anything evil.

'So what if brainwashing was looked down upon?' mentally questioned Bulma biting her lip once more, 'however, many more lives would be saved if we could get the prince to call earth his true home... it might work."

"Goku," stated Bulma. She looked up to her childhood friend, "Do you think Vegeta could stay with your family?"

The saiyan laughed nervously. "Well, I wouldn't mind it for one. He'd be a great sparring partner! I'm not sure if Chichi would be happy about it. She might also pull out the frying pan and smack him with it a few times if he angered her."

She completely forgot about Chichi's pan-happy ways. Vegeta had enough brain trauma to last anyone five thousand lifetimes. The last thing he needed was another whack to the head. Maybe that would actually trigger something and cause the saiyan prince to remember something. That something may link to his past; that could be trouble for the Z-warriors in the future. No... maybe Vegeta wouldn't be best suited in the Son home. Yeah, the fresh air, the vast open country, and Chichi's cooking were all pros to living with Goku; there was always those few factors that outweighed the good.

It was worth a shot.

"Why doesn't he stay with you Miss Bulma?" asked Gohan's soft child-like voice. "He still has a way to go in the recovery process. The doctor might want to keep an eye on him after all this brain trauma. There might be some negative repercussions Mr. Vegeta could face in the future."

Bulma stared at the five-year-old. Why did that child have to be so damn smart?

"You know..." stated Krillin a few moments later, "Gohan's right. He needs to remain close to the hospital for medical reasons."

"But then Nappa would need to be relocated and he needs the physical care the hospital has to offer," pointed out Bulma desperately trying to figure out something to work out. There had to be some place a good distance away and yet not too far away...

"Why not listen to Gohan? He has a point. Move Vegeta to Capsule Corporations. I'm sure everything will be fine," confirmed Goku with a smile.

Opening her mouth to reply why it could never work out, her voice was caught in her throat. Her mind began reeling over that thought. 'What if Vegeta DID stay at Capsule Corporations?' She knew her family had more space than they knew what to do with. There was a huge garden on the first floor of the complex, and Bulma knew she could afford to purchase as much food as a saiyan stomach needed. Hell, she could feed an army of saiyans and still have cash to live off of for five hundred years thanks to her her father's business. The more she thought about it, the more she liked the sound of it.

"You may be onto something Goku," replied Bulma after about a minute of silence. She glanced to the clock. It was nearing the afternoon-- almost time to check on Vegeta.

"Do I have a say in what my prince may be facing in the near future?" demanded the saiyan warrior. The earthlings blinked at the saiyan's outburst before Bulma shook her head side to side, "We need to keep you hidden in the mean time, Nappa. If Vegeta finds out about you... and it strikes a memory, everything will be for loss."

"It will be loss to YOU," snapped the saiyan, "I have already lost everything."

"You have another chance Nappa. Earth can be your new home. You should know that as well as I do. Interesting things happen around here."

"Until one of Freeza's units decides to come down and destroy everything in our place," sourly stated the saiyan, his lips curling.

"Freeza?"

Nappa's lip curled into a sardonic smirk, "You honestly didn't think Vegeta and I flew around aimlessly destroying civilizations without a second thought, did you?"

"Quite frankly," inserted Krillin glancing to the cripple, "We did."

"Fools."

With that, effortlessly, Nappa returned his body to its normal laying position before grabbing the cards. His hand moved over the edge of the mattress; he dropped the cards into Gohan's lap. They landed in a scattered mess. "I'm done playing." And not another word was uttered from Nappa. That was his informal way of telling his guests to leave the room. They did just that.

-------

Vegeta turned his head to the side just as the door opened. He held back a smile just as his blue haired angel walked through the premises of his private room. He didn't want to seem so eager for her company. He didn't understand why he wouldn't crack a simple smile her way. Maybe she would think of him as a fool for doing such. Maybe he should simply greet her and speak of how beautiful this day was becoming. After all, she had visited him for the past three days.

If he tried such a thing, his voice would be caught in his throat. What if he stuttered? What if he couldn't fully tell her what he was trying to say? What if...

"How are you doing Vegeta?" she simply asked the saiyan. She sat on a chair beside his bed. His head turned towards her. His lips remained unmoving-- his eyes were unreadable. He was terrified to speak to her.

She waited for a good minute or so as he stared at her, and she returned it. 'This is foolish...' thought the saiyan as a sneer made its way onto his lips. Vegeta turned his face away from hers. He was desperately trying to keep a blush of embarrassment from covering his olive colored skin. Of all times. This was the part of day he waited for! She always arrived at 12 PM. She gave her greetings and tried to make friendly conversation. He felt his face relax and the embarrassment fall from his system. He hated how his body reacted in the stupidest ways.

Finally, she released a sigh. "Not speaking to me, eh?"

Vegeta refrained from closing his eyes in anger. He was angry at himself. He couldn't make a simple reply.

How foolish.

"Well, I talked to the doctors earlier and they said you would be able to leave the hospital within the next two weeks. It's still a little ways off, but it's better than nothing. At least you won't be here forever resting with an IV needle stuck in your arm and monitors constantly beeping behind your head," Bulma lightly joked with a smile.

Vegeta's lip curled. Two weeks? Two more weeks before he would be separated from her? What would happen after that? For that matter, where would Vegeta end up? Yes, his brain had suffered from massive injuries, he understood that. But why did that not stop him from thinking about a possible future without her brightening it up. She was one of the first people he saw after waking up. Obviously she had the answers he could not recall.

"What will happen after I leave hospital care?"

Bulma's eyes widened. He actually spoke to her! The last couple of times she came to check on him, he became less and less sociable. He spoke little the second day he saw her and said nothing the third day. She heard that Vegeta wasn't one to talk much thanks to Nappa, unless he was throwing painful insults at people. Apparently his sarcasm alone could make anyone cry... or laugh, depending on what side of the situation you were in.

Bulma glanced to the tiled floors. How was she going to tell Vegeta? The way he was becoming so anti-social made her nervous, and her logic told her things would not end up nice if he lived at Capsule Corporation. Maybe Vegeta would be better off with Goku, even though there was a risk of him becoming more brain damaged...

"You will be residing at my home in Capsule Corporation." She noticed his eyes widened to the slightest degree. Immediately, she began speaking before he could say another word. "Now Vegeta, I know you're probably not very excited about this proposal, but we think it's best that you live in a location close to the hospitals. We're not very sure how severe these injuries to your brain may be, so we wanted to keep you close to the doctor. I can also purchase enough food to fill your stomach. My father owns Capsule Corporation, a very successful business, and with the earnings by the hour alone we--"

"Fine."

Bulma, not used to people cutting her off so much in a day, opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. Finally catching her composure, she nodded her head. "So... you will live at Capsule Corporation for the time being?"

He turned away from her to look at the blank aqua colored wall. He was desperately trying not to stare at her too much. If so, she might become more nervous than she already was. His stare alone unnerved nurses and occasionally the doctor. Vegeta did not understand why they feared him so much. Bulma seemed to be the only one with enough gall to stand there unintimidated.

He liked that.

He nodded his head, "Do what is best."

Bulma's lips curled into a small smile. Maybe there was hope for the saiyan yet... Maybe if she tried conversing a little more. "So, Vegeta. Have any memories resurfaced?"

The prince closed his eyes.

------

Screams, shouting, horrible, horrible laughter...

Fire blazing all around as the sky grew dark.

------

Vegeta opened his eyes. Mentally he contemplated what he should reveal. How could his mind enjoy replaying such horror? And yet every time he'd see them his stomach would clench in pain?

"I only see black and white," he replied.

Vegeta did not want to reveal the horrors his mind replayed over and over. It was like a broken record player-- repeating the same thing until someone snapped him out of the trance. His eyes turned to Bulma. Her blue ones filled with curiosity. He remained firm; he wanted to convince her he spoke no lies.

He had no idea of Bulma's intention. Apparently his life would become one big lie.

And she would start at this moment.

"Woman."

"The name's Bulma," she stated surprised at her new nick. Okay... so maybe she would start lying after she clarified her name.

"Bulma," he corrected. Her name rolled off his tongue like smooth molasses. His eyes were shining with curiosity; his mind wanted to be filled with answers about the past. "Can you tell me anything about my past?" She was stunned at his question. She had not much time to formulate a plausible story to include some "abnormalities" he may have-- even if Vegeta knew he was not of a human population. Vegeta watched her face as she remained silent. It was a simple question he asked, yet he didn't realize the complexity of what should and shouldn't be revealed. He wanted to see how much she made up-- he knew he was good at picking up any form of lying. Would his angel try and be deceptive like others in the past?

Bulma wasn't sure what should be said and what should be held secret. From what she could pick up, Vegeta was a good liar. She came to visit him at night well after he was asleep. The pain etched on his face spoke of the memories which could flood him at any time. And from the look in the saiyan's eye, she saw his ability to pick up lying as well.

A plan came to mind. She would simply speak what she knew. She's simply leave out the parts about chaos and destruction. May she would add a few things to soften the edges of his life. And maybe try to add a lie or two. That'd work, right?

"To be honest," started Bulma looking the saiyan in the eye, "I cannot give you any information about your past."

Vegeta examined her eyes. Her face was straight. There were no twitching nerves, and her eyes were not flitting in different directions. He internally growled. So, he was wrong. She was telling the truth. Strangely, it was... refreshing, but it was also frustrating. How could she know nothing about his past? She was the one who always came in to see his progress.

"No information?"

Bulma nodded in confirmation, "No information other than you are of an alien race from outer space."

Vegeta's eyes widened.

------

There were many streaming lights passing him in the void of darkness.

He saw various colors every once in a while from near by planets and moons...

------

Glancing down to his waist, he saw the brown patch of fur. His muscles began to naturally unwind it as it took the appearance of a tail. A saiyan tail. His obsidian eyes darted from the tail to Bulma once more, "This tail comes from the alien race?"

She nodded her head. "My friend Goku is of the saiyan race. He had a tail when he was a child. His son Gohan also had a tail."

"You mean Kakarot?"

Bulma furrowed her eyebrows. "Who?"

"Kakarot." He rolled his eyes in frustration at the question still lingering in her eyes. "Goku."

Realization became clear in her eyes until something different gripped her spirit. Vegeta knew it well...

Fear.

------

567,233.

He saw families huddled together...

One common trait...

Fear.

Their purple faces became numbers in his mind.

Blue light engulfed them...

567,237.

------

Vegeta closed his eyes and rubbed his aching forehead carefully. Bulma stood ready to call a nurse or doctor at any moment.

"Don't."

She stood still as he bore the pain. Moments passed-- they felt like eons until his skewed features became normal once more. He looked up to the woman. He felt his anxieties drain away.

"What was it?" she quietly asked.

He simply shrugged and looked the other way.

"I know that was something, Vegeta. Please tell me."

"Why should I?" he replied with a neutral face. "You know 'nothing about me'."

Her eyes narrowed. So, was this Vegeta's sharp tongue Nappa told her and her friends about? His sarcasm seemed mild, completely fluid as it left his lips. She bit her lip for the umpteenth time that day. He may not know of his past, but his personality sure was prominent. Only Kami knows how much of this she could take. Inwardly, Vegeta reminded her of... herself. That's what scared the human more than anything. If he became as bitchy as she did, then Capsule Corporation would become a hell zone of anger, arguments, and challenges.

Yet.

Maybe he was just miffed he couldn't receive answers he so desperately yearned for. Bulma knew if she was in such a state, she would grab any information about her past. Not knowing who she was would slowly kill herself internally.

She looked to the saiyan prince. His eyes were gazing into hers. At that moment, she felt a connection with the prince-- she felt a smidgen of his pain. Bulma made a decision.

"So, you cannot give me any more answers?" he asked feeling his chest sink to the slightest degrees.

Bulma's lips pressed together, as a plan formed in her mind. It was worth a shot. "You always kept silent about your past." He narrowed his eyes in confusion, but she received a vibe from the prince to continue. Obviously, his curiosity was piqued. "You told me something about not wanting to remember your past. It was filled with horrors you wanted to forget."

Vegeta looked to the sheets.

------

The screams echoed in his ears.

He slowly approached an army.

Untrained men.

Many stood there; they were only meat shields to protect their women...

They never stood a chance.

------

Vegeta's fingers gripped the sheet. He looked up to the woman, her eyes reading the pain in his. He obviously was trying to forget something great... something that gripped his very heart.

It must be memories trying to resurface.

'Wonderful,' she mentally uttered. 'There is no way I can let him rediscover his past.' She tried keeping her face as blank as possible. Only then did she know Vegeta wouldn't suspect a thing.

"I'm sorry you have to suffer this way," Bulma apologized trying to sound as sincere as possible. She watched as he stared at her for a moment. Again, she felt her gut wrench, as he silently examined her. He then looked away. Bulma knew it was his way of accepting her answer. She had to release a mental breath. He believed her lie. She also noted how easy it was for her to lie effectively. She looked to the sky. She noticed some clouds forming in the sky. It looked like rain may be coming their way.

Great.

"Do you want me to let you rest a little more Vegeta?" she asked. She felt the saturated tension in the room. It was very comfortable, and she waned to try and avoid it as much. Especially with an unstable saiyan prince. She still needed to discover what triggered Vegeta's memories. Once that problem was solved, the prince could start his new life without continuing his killing streak.

Then again...

Vegeta may return to his fighting instincts. Bulma refrained from biting her nail in nervousness. That's what happened to Goku. Even as a child, her friend always participated in a good fight. That's why she enjoyed having him around as a body guard during her first and second dragon ball hunts.

Her eyes opened wider. 'The Dragonballs!'

YES!

She smiled and nodded her head to the prince. His solemn expression changed to curiosity, as he watched her features change in two seconds flat. He instantly knew something was up. Being under the rule of Freeza taught him a thing or two about schemers. Obviously, he needed to keep high alert for what she may do within the next month.

Wonderful...

Bulma was beaming at her brilliant idea. She would simply find the Dragonballs and make a wish for Vegeta to have his mind permanently erased! It was perfect! Then she nor the Z Warriors would have to worry about his memories resurfacing!

Brilliant!

She gave a small laugh; she saw Vegeta's suspicious eye and giggled further. 'Just laugh it off,' Bulma mentally stated to herself, 'It will just confuse him.' Just as she thought, Vegeta turned his eyes away from her. His eyes shifted to the wall, and he kept them there. He began to sneer. Stupid woman. Her lips curled up a little more. It worked.

"I just had a brilliant idea!" exclaimed Bulma as she clapped her hands together.

He scoffed keeping his eyes from her, "I can tell."

She forced the smile to remain on her lips. She was ready to curse him out of the room. No one in their right mind would smart mouth her! Even if they were one of the biggest threats to the planet earth, the human population, and maybe any other races that existed in this galaxy...

She tried shaking those thoughts out of her mind. So maybe the Dragonballs would be needed this time around. After Mr. Popo's visit from a few days back, hope resurfaced once more. He spoke mainly to Goku about Namek and the original set of Dragonballs. The news brought joy to the Earthlings. They could wish back their fallen comrades and Piccolo too. Bulma's cheeks brightened. Just at the thought of having Yamcha back placed butterflies in her stomach. And yet...

Her eyes traveled to the dark prince. His eyes turned back to her as he closely examined her moment of joy. The universe could not afford to have another blood-thirsty saiyan running amuck. She was sure the Namekians would allow her to make one wish for Vegeta's memories to be completely erased.

Right?

Maybe she needed to talk it over with her friends first. She sighed. Why is it that her friends and she always faced the most dangerous of tasks while the other citizens of earth just lived like nothing terrible would ever happen?

Her stomach growled, and her cheeks reddened with embarrassment. She couldn't believe all this thinking was making her hungry! "Well, I for one am up for Chinese Food takeout. I'm sure you're becoming tired of the hospital food."

Vegeta scoffed, "Please, Bulma. The slop I once ate on Freeza's base makes hospital food look like a ten course meal of the finest delicates." His lips curled in distaste, "I could care less what food you give me to eat. It's better tasting than most meals I forced myself to choke down."

Her mind instantly went into overload at his words.

'Slop? Base? Freeza...?'

She had no idea what he was talking about, but she had a strong feeling it had to do with his past. He just unknowingly mentioned a memory that could completely unlock his forgotten memories. She chose not to speak of such words to the prince. She would, however, discuss them with Nappa. He spoke about Freeza just before she came into this hospital room, but he only gave vague details. Maybe he would be willing to give her details as to who this 'Freeza' was. Her mind started concocting a plan to smoothly move away from his spoken words. Maybe he didn't realize what his mouth uttered...

"Well, every time we went out, you saiyans always preferred the Chinese Food. Mostly because they served large quantities for a little cost," uttered Bulma as an after thought. Even though Vegeta and Nappa never tasted Chinese Food in their life, she thought it might be a good food choice considering how much Goku enjoyed it. Growing up with the child saiyan opened her eyes to his outrageous appetite. She was surprised to find he had preferences as well. Chinese buffets and Japanese steak-houses were on his favorite list of food as well as Mexican and Italian cuisine. Surely, Vegeta couldn't that much different, right?

"Really?" questioned Vegeta with a raised eyebrow. Sure, he could blame this amnesia for not remembering past events, but he mentally swore he never ate this so-called 'Chinese Food'. Call him crazy, but his gut feeling remained. He looked to the woman. He caught her in a lie.

His lips narrowed into a thin line.

Maybe she wasn't as pure as he wanted to think...

"Yeah," Bulma nodded before pulling out her hand held communicator. She pressed the screen before looking to the device. "I've never seen you turn away from Chinese Food."

"Of course," he muttered sarcastically. It was a soft reply, too soft for her ears to pick up. He saw the side of her eye twitch. She was about to spew another lie.

"I'll make sure to order a little bit of everything. I don't want your stomach to become sick from some of the fried stuff." She then proceeded to order food from the communicating device. It was different and quite primitive. Nothing like a scouter...

------

He tapped the side button on the scouter...

Numbers flashed before his eyes.

These warriors were incredibly weak...

They were perfect toys.

------

His eyes narrowed. Why was he having the strangest memories? Surely, it was from a past he couldn't remember; yet, every word the woman spoke of made no sense of his strange recollections.

Too many unanswered questions.

Vegeta mentally gave a sigh before Bulma turned back to him. A smile crossed her lips. "They'll be here with the food in an hour. Of course, with your saiyan appetite you guys need to consume large amounts of food--"

"You spoke of another saiyan."

Bulma paused. She really didn't want to continue the conversation, but the look in his eye said he would have it no other way, even if she tried to change the subject. "Goku?"

Vegeta nodded his head.

"What about him?" she cautiously asked.

"I want to see him."

Bulma blinked. "He's... unable to do that right now."

Vegeta saw the same nerve beside her eye twitch. She was lying, yet again. He was becoming pissed off. Maybe he shouldn't rely on her for information, not if she spews lies like this! "Cut the crap, woman, and get him for me!"

"But he can't--"

"I know you are lying."

Bulma instantly shut up. She didn't know what else to say. All words and reason became lodged in her mind as she tried to come up with another lie to cover what had been exposed. She felt Vegeta's eyes watching her and calculating her every move. His eyes were daring her to lie again, to express words of deceit so he could have a reason to shun her... to destroy her.

She looked to her lap. Bulma knew if Vegeta saw Goku his memory would be spurred. And his flashbacks were coming back in droves. So much for a long period of amnesia like the doctors suggested.

"I will need to talk to Goku first."

His hand reached to her face, and his fingers lifted her eyes up. He saw no deceit, and he nodded in understanding. A hint of a smirk curled on his lips. 'Good girl,' his mind whispered. He was pleased to realize she learned her lesson about speaking truth. She must be smarter than he first thought, at least smart enough to want to keep her life. He nodded his head to her in understanding. He wasn't quite sure why. He had a feeling he wasn't naturally calm and patient with those he existed around.

Bulma turned her eyes away from the dark prince and quickly stood up from her chair. "You might want to rest. It'll be a while till the food arrives."

Neither uttered another word as the human quickly left the room. Vegeta's eyes narrowed as he watched her hasty retreat. His chest slowly began to tighten. Hopefully, she would be back soon.

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AN: Thank you all for your encouragement for the first chapter to this story! Now, my request for you is to write a review. I know it's "time consuming" but I would really love your feedback, questions, comments, etc. I will get back to you if you do have a question.

Again, thank you ALL! And please review. :D I love receiving feedback!