"THE UNPARDONABLE SIN"

A Vegeta/Marron 'fic. Anything is possible.

Author's Note: All the characters belong to Akira Toriyama. I wrote the 'fic.

Well, here we are folks. The last (sniff) chapter. Thank you so much for reading and especially to those who gave reviews! You are my inspiration! I hope you had as much fun reading as I did writing. On with the show…

Chapter 7: A TIME TO HEAL

Marron stepped out of the air car and shielded her eyes from the sun's rays as she surveyed the island where Vegeta was supposedly staying. There was no sign of Vegeta, but from the ravaged plantation and charred soil, there was no doubt that he was recently there.

She took a deep breath before starting her search to find him. To be honest, she was a little nervous about how he would react to seeing her again. They had not seen each other since the last time they spent the night together…the night before her life would be changed forever. Everything had happened so quickly since then, that she barely had time to even think about what she was doing. Yes, she admitted to Trunks that she loved Vegeta, but there was still the tiniest seed of doubt that perhaps it wasn't enough. There were so many obstacles that still faced them. Maybe he would even reject her because of her miscarriage.

Marron mentally shook herself out of her reverie. No, she came here with one purpose in mind. Either she would leave with Vegeta, or not at all. And she had no intention of leaving by herself.

Meanwhile, Vegeta had just finished his morning workout and was about to take a dip in the ocean to cool off. All he had done since he arrived on the island was train and occasionally carve out a new piece of terrain, which was an inevitable consequence of his ki blasts. With his focus back on training, he wouldn't have to deal with his pain or the emptiness he felt. It was ridiculous to have such emotions, especially at his age.

He frowned slightly in contemplation. It hadn't been easy to leave Bulma and his family behind. After all, he had spent almost half his life with her. But then again, he never thought that he would fall for Krillin's brat. Here he was, a man more than twice her age and galaxies apart, as far as their personalities and backgrounds were concerned, and yet despite his own resistance, she had managed to find her way into his heart. But he had convinced himself that she was better off without him and so he stayed away from her. It was no use brooding about it now. What's done is done.

Vegeta made his way to the beach and stopped immediately in his tracks when he saw a slender and petite blonde already submerged halfway in the water up to her waist. Could it be Marron?

Marron sensed Vegeta's presence and turned around to find him staring intently at her. She had tied the tails of her shirt around her waist leaving her midriff bare as her sarong skirt wrapped around the lower half of her body. His face showed no visible emotion, but from the look in his eyes, she could tell that he was clearly surprised by her presence there.

She walked out of the surf and onto the beach until she was face to face with him.

"You look awful," she said bluntly, as she surveyed his appearance.

He looked like he hadn't eaten at all in days, as the bones on his face were very defined. There were shadows under his eyes, and it looked like he was nursing some very painful cuts and bruises. What had he been doing to himself? It was as if he was imposing some kind of self-punishment.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded. It was more of an accusation, rather than a question. Marron wasn't affected in the least, and brushed it off easily.

"Believe it or not, I came to see you."

He frowned slightly. "We have nothing to discuss."

"Says you. Did you really expect me to let you walk out of my life just like that?" she replied, snapping up her fingers.

"You're wasting your time, girl. Do us both a favor and leave me the hell alone," he barked and walked past her towards the water.

Marron's hands balled into tight fists angrily. He certainly was going out of his way to push her out of his life. She abruptly turned around. "If you think that I'm going to let you just wa…"

Her voice trailed off in distraction when she saw that he had stripped off every article of clothing and plunged into the warm water. She saw just enough to make her heart beat an uneven tempo. Damn. Now was NOT the time to be having these kinds of thoughts. After all, she had seen him like this on more than one occasion. She had to be strong.

Marron walked up to the edge of the water and waited there with her arms crossed over each other, until he emerged from his swim. He walked up to her unashamedly and began to suit up again, leaving his chest bare.

"You don't give up, do you?"

"Not when I care about something, no," she answered as-a-matter-of-fact. "Just answer me this. Why are you trying so hard to push me away? Do you blame me for what happened to the baby?"

"What kind of question is that?" he retorted angrily.

"An honest one," she answered softly.

Vegeta just sat down on the sand and rested his elbows on his knees, letting his hands dangle in between his legs, as he stared out over the horizon.

"I don't blame you," he answered softly.

Marron sat down next to him. "If it's any consolation, I don't blame you either, Vegeta. I don't blame anyone."

"You SHOULD be blaming me," he replied in a somber voice.

"Why? It wasn't your fault."

"Don't make excuses. You never would have gotten pregnant in the first place if I hadn't slept with you."

"Are you changing your mind and saying that you regret what happened between us?" she demanded.

"I'm just saying that all the pain you went through would have been avoided if it wasn't for me."

Marron touched his shoulder and was glad that he didn't pull away from her.

"Did it ever occur to you that I might actually care about you Vegeta?"

He turned his head to look at her with those fathomless coal black eyes. "I've never given you any reason to."

"What's this I'm hearing? Could it actually be humility coming from the 'Great Saiya-jin no Ouji'?" she mocked lightly.

Vegeta searched Marron's blue eyes and found genuine warmth behind them as she teased him. The corners of his mouth twitched reluctantly, in amusement.

"Never. I'm just stating the facts."

"That's sounds more like the man I know and love. If anyone told me that I'd end up falling in love with an alien prince who was worlds apart from me, I would have said they were out of their mind. The truth is, ever since I came back home, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."

She leaned a little closer before continuing, "No matter how pompous and arrogant you were to me."

"Of course. I wouldn't have expect anything less," he replied confidently.

"Shall I further inflate your ego your majesty?" she asked sarcastically.

"By all means, continue."

"Seriously Vegeta, I came here because I know you feel the same pain I do. I want you to know that I'm here and I'm not going anywhere." Marron moved her hand from his shoulder to hold his hand in hers. "Couldn't we go through this together?"

He turned to look back at the ocean. "All my life, I thought I knew what my destiny would be. I was the best warrior of all Saiyajins. Then along came that third class baka, Kakarrot and in an instant I was nothing. Everything my father told me was worthless. Ever since then I've been chasing a useless dream. All that mattered to me was that I had to live up to my birthright. I didn't care who I hurt or who got in the way. I had to be the strongest and the most powerful warrior. "

She sympathized with him in silence. It couldn't have been easy for Vegeta being stranded on Earth without anyone to really understand what he was going through. It was no wonder that he was always scowling.

"But you changed. You had two beautiful children with Bulma and stayed with your family."

"Did I really change? The drive to be the best, and the thirst for combat still surges through my veins. It's a part of who I am. I thought Bulma understood that. Oh she tried to, but after 30 years, she couldn't take it anymore."

"You may still have that insatiable drive, but you're not the same man you were when you first came to Earth. You don't kill for pleasure anymore. You do it to protect your loved ones. You learned to care."

"When Bulma and I were separated, I swore I'd never get involved with another female ever again. I even convinced myself that what I was feeling was natural. That it was because males on Vegetasei did not remain with their mates."

"Do you still feel that way?" Marron asked quietly.

"I thought I did, but…"

"But what?" she prompted.

"You're not going to make me say it, are you?"

"I think you owe me that much. Do you care about me Vegeta?"

"I wouldn't have stayed out all night outside your hospital room on the ledge, if I didn't," he replied.

Marron was touched. He had been there with her after all. She closed the gap between them and kissed his cheek softly.

"You don't make it easy to love you, Vegeta," she admitted.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and smiled knowingly. "Good. What fun would easy be?" he replied before bending down to claim her lips. She tasted so good.

Marron linked her arms around his neck, and pressed herself against his bare chest as he lowered her onto the warm sand and returned his kiss hungrily. He suddenly broke away from her abruptly.

"What's the matter?" she asked in concern.

"Are you sure it's okay to…you know…?" he asked hesitantly, pointing his gaze to her stomach.

Marron smiled and pulled him close to her. "I'm sure. Just be gentle."

His eyes wandered down to her abdomen again as his hand caressed her bare midriff, in a surprisingly tender gesture.

"I wanted to have the baby, you know," he admitted.

"I know. I wanted it too. But we can always try again. That is…if you want me to be a part of your life," she replied uncertainly.

He chuckled softly. "Ironic isn't it? Who would have ever thought that I would end up falling for a gorgeous blond who used to be such a crybaby?"

"I want you to know that I resent that."

He responded by teasing her lips seductively before answering, "Live with it."

Five years later….

"Nii-chan! Nii-chan!" a cute little 3 year old with ebony black hair done up in two pigtails ran from her older sister into her brother's outstretched arms. (Think of the little girl from Monsters, Inc.)

Trunks picked up his half-sister and gave her a great big bear hug, which she returned enthusiastically.

"Hey, squirt. What have you been up to?"

"Nee-chan bought me a new dress. See?" Geta (pronounced "jee-ta") replied, holding out the folds of her sapphire-blue frock, which matched her eyes.

"ANOTHER one, Bra? That's the fourth one this month. Don't you think you're spoiling her?"

The twenty-two year old demi-saiyajin shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "Come on Trunks. I've waited forever for a little sister. You wouldn't want to deprive me of the pleasure, would you? And besides, what about the toy you just bought her the other day?"

Trunks turned a light shade of pink. It had taken time to get used to his childhood friend being his stepmother now. But time had indeed healed all wounds, especially after Geta had been born. Even his mother had taken a shine to the little girl. He was glad that his parents were still friends, even after everything that had happened.

"I'll make you a deal. I won't tell if you won't."

Bra laughed. "Deal."

The three year old didn't know what was going on, but she didn't care, as long as she was getting presents from her two older siblings.

Marron crossed her arms over each other as she fondly watched her daughter sleeping peacefully on her father's chest. Vegeta was sleeping on the patio lounge on the veranda of their island home after dinner later that night. Geta had climbed up on top of him and made herself comfortable, before drifting off to sleep.

Like her father, Geta was headstrong and independent and did pretty much whatever she wanted, except that she had a much sweeter disposition. Marron would never forget the son they lost, but their daughter filled that empty void. Even her parents had mellowed out regarding her decision to stay with Vegeta once they realized that they were going to be grandparents. And Krillin had been a doting grandfather.

She went over and gathered the toddler into her arms as she took her up to her room.

"Mama?" the little girl asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes with a chubby hand.

"Come on, sweetie. Time for bed."

"Will you tell me a story?"

"Of course, my little chestnut."

"And the prince and the princess lived happily after. And now it's time for you to go to sleep." She bent down to kiss her cheek. "Good night."

Vegeta was leaning against the doorframe watching them. Marron motioned for him to come over.

"What is it?"

"She just wanted to say goodnight."

He came over and sat down next to his daughter. Geta reached up to kiss his cheek lovingly. "Good night Daddy," she said before drifting off to sleep.

His eyes softened. "Good night, little one," he murmured and touched her hair softly, before leaving the room.

"You know how I disapprove of you filling the girl's head with those foolish stories," Vegeta remarked later that night as he watched Marron brush her long hair.

She put down the brush she was holding and turned off the lamp before joining him on the bed.

"I have to do something to counter all those martial arts moves you've been teaching her," she replied, poking her finger accusingly at his chest. "As if you didn't know."

His hand caught hers and kept it splayed against his chest. "She has much potential. She will make a strong warrior."

"Geta will be whatever SHE wants to be," Marron corrected him.

"Can I help it if she wants to follow in my footsteps?"

She looked at him dubiously. "And I'm sure you did everything to dissuade her," she replied sarcastically. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Every minute."

Marron smiled at him. "You're a good father, Vegeta."

He responded by giving her his trademark smirk and began to undo the strings of her nightgown before sliding the sheer material off her shoulders.

"I make an even better lover," he replied huskily.

"I'll be the judge of that," she countered back, her eyes reflecting lust.

"I believe you mentioned something about throwing me on the bed and having your way with me until I cried for mercy?" he reminded her, as they lay entangled in each other's arms.

Marron gave him a smirk that rivaled his own and forced him on his back, hovering over him like a hunter with his prey. She began to kiss her way down the length of his body from head to toe, paying particular attention to all his sensitive areas, causing him to make a sound that could only be described as a purr of satisfaction.

She worked her way back up until she reached his earlobe. "And I'm just getting started," she replied huskily.

Several hours later, after a night of unbridled passion, Vegeta found himself awake as he reflected on his life. He stared at the woman curled up in his arms thoughtfully. What did ever do to deserve a caring and loving woman like Marron? She was stronger than he had given her credit for, that's for sure. What was it about her that made her special? Could it be this love she was always talking about it? Whatever it was, one thing was for sure. He would never leave her again.

"I love you Marron," he whispered ever so softly, before falling asleep.

Marron smiled to herself. It was the only time he had ever uttered those words to her. And it was just like him to say it when she was supposedly asleep. With a sigh of happiness, she settled down against Vegeta and joined him in blissful sleep.

Flowers may fade and friends may come and go

But the love between two people, no one can overthrow

THE END

Written by: Sweet Babboo on 9/9/02