Quest: Training

Chapter 19 - Training

Vegeta studied the boys closely, watching their technique as they sparred. He wanted them to learn how to fight without relying on their ki. Kakorr sat beside him, cheering both Trunks and Goten on.

He saw Trunks' mistake, even as he was making it, and was impressed with how quickly Goten saw the opening and took advantage of it. Kakorr let out breath at the force of the blow when his son punched Trunks. Vegeta winced inwardly in sympathy as his son was hit hard, tumbling backwards, stunned and in pain.

Goten reacted just as he had been taught, moving forward, pressing his advantage, about to attack again. If the boys were fighting with ki, he would have let the spar continue, but at this stage of their training they needed to stop or Goten could seriously injure his friend. Trunks was struggling to regain his balance in an attempt to defend himself against Goten's impending onslaught.

"Stop!" he growled, crossing over to the boys. He knelt in front of his son, checking for serious injury. He knew it hurt like hell - he had made the same mistake as a child when training with Radditz - but the boy was hiding it well.

"Is Trunks okay?" Goten asked, wide-eyed with worry. "I didn't mean to-"

Vegeta studied the dark-haired boy for a moment. He was starting to come into his own as a fighter - that assault had been skilled and effective. It wouldn't be fair to discourage Goten, making him doubt his abilities. "He'll be fine in a minute. That was well-done, brat."

Goten smiled at him, and he couldn't help but grin back at the miniature copy of Kakorr. Speaking of which... ::Who is that, Kakorr?:: He was slowly coming over, accompanied by a ningen male.

::He works with Rezu. He just came by to get some stuff he loaned her, but saw us training and came over for a closer look.::

He mentally shrugged and turned back to his son, giving him his full attention. No bones broken, although he was going to be sore. "Do you hurt anywhere else?"

"No," Trunks said in a small voice. He knew that tone - the boy was ashamed.

"You recovered quickly, ready to defend yourself," he told him reassuringly. The technique the boy had attempted was difficult to master, but effective if performed correctly. He hadn't even taught it to the brat yet - Trunks must have seen him use it when sparring with Kakorr.

"I bet I wouldn't have gotten hit if we were using ki," Trunks said.

"I'll bet you would have found your ass wrapped around a tree if you had been using ki. I know mine was," Vegeta smirked.

"You dad? You never screw up like that," Trunks protested.

Vegeta looked at the boy with a mix of surprise and pride. Surely his son didn't believe he never made a mistake? "I made the exact same mistake you did, brat," Vegeta growled.

::Really?::

::Yes. Really. One of the few times Radditz flattened me. I had gotten too cocky.::

::You? Never,:: Kakorr teased.

::You know I'm never over-confident,:: Vegeta told him with amusement.

He glanced up to see Kakorr's grin before continuing to check the boy over for hidden injuries, explaining what had gone wrong with his technique and how to prevent the same thing from happening again.

He could feel Kakorr's warm approval and heard the man speaking softly to him. They were close enough to hear what he was telling the boys, but Vegeta noticed the man was maintaining a polite distance. The boys knew better than to let themselves be distracted from the lesson and kept their attention on him.

He allowed some of his ki to soak into a knot of muscle in his son, satisfied when he felt the area around the injury relax. ::Can you get an ice pack? I want him to rest for a few minutes.:: Training was one thing, but he didn't like the idea of his son experiencing unnecessary pain.

Kakorr nodded and went over to their supplies.

"Would you like me to check Trunks?" the stranger asked. "I don't have my kit, but I can take a look."

Vegeta stood and looked at the man - about Gohan's height with dark blonde hair. He looked familiar - he might have seen him at the wedding.

"Hi Pete," Goten piped in, knowing the lesson was over.

"Hey kid," Pete said, smiling. He turned back to Vegeta. "Sorry, I should have introduced myself. I'm Pete Torton. I'm a paramedic at Rezu's station. I could check Trunks out for you if you would like. That was some punch he took."

Vegeta turned to look at his son. His Saiyan blood would ensure he was quickly healed, and the injury minor - but a ningen wouldn't know that.

"I'm fine. Dad fixed it," Trunks said with pride.

"Kakorr has an ice pack ready. You two brats can take a break," he said. He looked at the man as the boys ran off. What was he supposed to do now? What would Kakorr do? "I'm Vegeta. Thank you for the offer, but my son will be fine."

"You're Vegeta? The Vegeta?" Pete said, awestruck.

Vegeta blinked. What in the hell?

"It is an honor to meet you, sir. I've heard so much about you," he said, holding his hand out.

"From...?" he asked, confused, surprise keeping him from objecting when his hand was shaken. What could this stranger have heard about him that would make meeting him an honor?

"Well, the kids... Rezu... Chichi when she comes by... I've heard about you since I started at the station. The kids talk about you all the time - I half expected you to be some kind of superhero."

"He is," Kakorr put in, laughing. "This is just his secret identity."

"I wouldn't be surprised," the man said, smiling. "You're the one who taught them how to fight like that? They are really good."

Vegeta just stared as the man gushed over him. This kind of attention...it happened to Kakorr, not him.

"Vegeta has trained the kids for years," Kakorr said. "Hey, Pete. We're just sitting down for lunch. Want some?"

The man seemed to hesitate and Vegeta glanced at Kakorr, hiding his confusion. The boys were already sneaking food off plates, hoping not to be noticed, but they saw Vegeta's frown of disapproval and stopped with guilty giggles.

"Eat with us. There's plenty," he said, shrugging mentally. Who was he to disagree with Kakorr over such a little thing? He doubted a ningen could eat enough food for them to miss.

"Sure. Why not? Thanks," Pete said with a grin.

Vegeta headed over to the picnic table, Pete trailing behind. Kakorr was smiling at him and he felt a touch of amusement and pride as the man continued speaking. Hero worship - from someone he had never met. This was a new experience.

There was stunned silence from the human at the amount of food, but he didn't comment. Vegeta was pleased to notice the boys refrained from grabbing at the food, careful to leave enough for Pete.

Kakorr asked Pete questions between mouthfuls and Vegeta learned he had been studying martial arts for several years and was close to becoming a 'black belt'. He was still looking for an instructor since his move to this country was relatively recent.

"What level black belt are you, sir?" Pete asked.

Vegeta looked at Kakorr for an answer. He still didn't understand what that meant - you could fight or you couldn't. Why would you wear a piece of cloth telling everyone how much you knew? Kakorr had tried to explain to him once, but finally gave up - he just couldn't grasp the concept.

"We don't wear belts, Pete," Kakorr told him.

"Sure you do," Trunks said as Goten giggled.

"Yeah, otherwise your pants would fall down," Goten finished when Trunks began to laugh.

Vegeta smirked. Smart asses. "Are you brats done eating?"

"Yes," they answered between giggles.

"Good. Go work on katas. Same rules as before."

"Aw, maannn," Trunks complained.

"But don't forget to do the 50 pushups you just earned first," Vegeta said.

Trunks blinked and opened his mouth to protest before snapping it shut. "Yes sir," he muttered. He and Goten crossed to an open area where Goten chose to join him in his punishment.

Vegeta watched his son with satisfaction. He was glad the boy had such a good friend.

"Your sons are really good kids. Full of mischief, but very considerate of others."

Vegeta blinked - the remark was directed to him. He looked and saw Kakorr was about to correct the ningen. But...in a way, Goten was his son too. He had spent more time with him than Kakorr had. And if Kakorr belonged to him, didn't that mean his sons did too?

"My sons have always made me proud," he said, smirking at Kakorr's huge smile.

::Thank you Makoto.::

"Vegeta...sir...is there any chance of you showing me that move you were teaching the kids? It looked interesting, but I only saw part of it."

::Go ahead, Vegeta. It might be fun.::

It actually was fun.

____________

Vegeta landed on his favorite spot on the cliff, watching the late afternoon fade away. Once they finished training for the day, Kakorr had left for Bulma's, choosing to fly home with the boys instead of using his instant transmission. He came here to be alone for awhile, trying to clear his head.

While he waited for Kakorr to join him he gathered some firewood. He had decided not to wait any longer to ask his lover to become his mate - even if he never learned the Saiyan tradition, Kakorr would know his intentions. He might even allow Kakorr to talk him into a ningen ceremony if that would make him happy - but there wouldn't be any of those ridiculous flowers and lace. That was fine for the women, but he was a Saiyan prince, damn it. And no dancing!

He grinned as he opened the capsule he had hidden here. He and Kakorr had been here - made love here - so often they left supplies. No chill, hard ground for him - he hated being cold, and when the cool of evening came outdoors he usually found himself pressed against the comforting, heated body of his lover.

He still hadn't gotten used to the person he was becoming - had become? He didn't really object to the change - he was much happier as a result - but it disturbed him sometimes. Apparently there was a huge divergence between who he thought he was and how others saw him. And from the sounds of it, this disparity had been growing for years. When had it happened? Why hadn't he noticed?

Today had been...odd. It had happened again - a ningen treating him with respect. He had found himself split, unsure how to react. His years with Frieza had taught him to trust no one, and as a result he was used to responding with violence.

Kakorr said he understood, and not to let it bother him, but every time it happened Vegeta felt ridiculous, and it annoyed him how off-balance it made him feel. He was a prince, damn it! Not some shy little girl! But these ningen always managed to bewilder him. But still... he had really enjoyed the attention - and Kakorr had grinned at him like a damned fool when he told the ningen he could come back sometime.

"Figured this is where you would go," Kakorr said, landing on the ground beside him. "I stopped and picked up another blanket - I couldn't remember if we replaced the other one."

Vegeta looked up at his lover and grinned.

"You're actually thinking about it, aren't you?" Kakorr laughed.

"Of course not." Vegeta tried to frown but failed and grinned again. He hadn't really taken the ningen's suggestion seriously - the idea of him running a school was absurd. He chuckled.

Goku looked at his prince and couldn't help but smile. Vegeta had become much more relaxed since the brainwashing was removed. Every day he looked forward to seeing what new facet of his personality would be revealed.

He hadn't been sure at first how Vegeta would react to Pete, but he had been amazingly patient with him. When he had begun discussing strategy, Goku just sat down and listened, impressed by his prince's brilliant mind.

"I think it would be kind of cool. Prince Vegeta's V fighters."

"Don't be ridiculous, Kakorr," he snorted.

"Aw, come on," he said, draping the blanket over Vegeta's shoulders before walking over to light the fire. "You could have an entourage with me as your personal assistant. And before every class, I could introduce you like Satan."

He grinned at Vegeta's amused smirk and let his voice deepen as he gestured theatrically. "Ladies and gentlemen, please rise-"

"I prefer bowing," Vegeta chuckled, interrupting.

Goku grinned. "Ladies and gentlemen," he repeated, "please bow down before the great, the one, the only, the Prince of All Saiyans, his royal highness, Vegeta Ouji-sama." He felt a thrill of pride at the stunned expression on his prince's face and beckoned him over. "And then," he continued in his normal voice, "you would stroll-"

"I never stroll," Vegeta interrupted again.

"Stride?" Goku suggested. He was smiling so much it almost hurt, but he couldn't stop himself. He had never seen Vegeta like this - he was actually playing.

"Swagger," Vegeta smirked.

"You would swagger powerfully into the room-" he tried again.

"How big is this room?" Vegeta asked, the huge smile on his face matching his own.

"Auditorium?"

"Stadium."

"Swagger powerfully into the stadium to a huge cheering crowd," he grinned, "internationally televised," he added before his prince could interrupt again, "and I would sweep your cape off," he pulled the blanket off his shoulders and swirled it through the air with a flourish, "and you would be revealed to millions of admiring fans, cheering and chanting your name."

"The whole thing?"

"Just Vegeta - that way they could say it more times."

"Geta is shorter." Vegeta's tail swayed behind him happily. This was fun.

"Not allowed. I would IT and thwack-"

"Thwack?" Vegeta asked, eyebrows raised.

"Thwack. To hit over the head with a fish," he said solemnly.

"Thwack. I'll have to try that technique," Vegeta nodded, arms crossed, as if seriously considering it.

"Very effective, although it does tend to use up the fish quickly. Where was I?"

"Thwacking."

"Oh yes. I would IT and thwack anyone who dared to shorten your name to anything but Vegeta."

"You did."

"Yeah, but it was your fault," he grinned.

"Baka. Get your ass over here and kiss me."

Goku promptly obeyed, nearly bowing Vegeta backward in his eagerness, wrapping himself around the muscular heat of his prince. Vegeta purred against his chest, wrapping his arms around Goku's head and shoulders, burying his fingers in his hair.

He rumbled happily in response before thinking of something and began chuckling into Vegeta's mouth. Vegeta pulled back, mock-glared at him, and growled before tripping him and pinning him down against the cushion.

He couldn't stop laughing even as Vegeta straddled his stomach and grinned at him.

"What was so funny you had to interrupt my kiss for?" Vegeta demanded.

"I'm sorry," he laughed, trying to catch his breath. "I just- I just had this horrible mental image."

"Of?" Vegeta asked, capturing and stroking his tail, making it even harder to speak.

"You are going to kick my ass for this..." he gasped before breaking into laughter again.

"Like I need a reason," Vegeta smirked.

"I had a mental image of your students, but they were all-" he erupted again, laughing even harder when Vegeta chuckled along with him. "They were all in those dorky black spandex shorts outfits like you put Krillin in on Namek."

Vegeta grinned. "They weren't that bad."

"Aw, come on Vegeta. On Nappa? I mean, here's this BIG GUY," he said in a deep voice, holding out his hands like he was describing a huge fish, "wearing this," he put two fingers together and made his voice squeak, "little tiny outfit. It looked ridiculous. Even most of the Ginyus wore those dinky little outfits. Couldn't the lizard afford pants?" He began laughing hysterically, tears pouring from his eyes.

Vegeta stared... and blinked... Oh GodS - he grinned - poor Radditz. He had hated that uniform. He couldn't help himself - he roared with laughter.

TBC