Bulma's Confusion
By: Ravyn Night

Bulma awoke feeling chirpy for some unknown reason. As she was NOT a morning person, this was strange.

Until she remembered what had happened last night.

She bolted upright and looked around. Vegeta was nowhere to be found. Had it all been a dream?

She tried to get out of the tangle of sheets she was in, but changed her mind and sat back down when she felt a distinct soreness between her legs. Nope, no dream. She'd had sex with VEGETA of all people. It'd been too intense to be a figment of her unconscious mind, anyway.

Of course, as soon as the fact that she had slept with Vegeta-the same man who had at one time threatened the existence of her planet-sank in, the moral ramifications hit her. Sure, she'd had dreams about doing...things...with the prince, but she had never thought she'd live them out. She'd turned down that cheating bastard, Yamcha, countless times, claiming that she wasn't ready for sex yet, that she wanted to wait, and then she'd gone and had a one-night-stand with His Royal Pain in the Ass. What kind of slut was she? And that HAD been a one-night-stand, right? Or were there any cultural nuances about Saiyajins that she should know about? That cheery mood she'd awakened with was rapidly dissipating, like a turquoise-blue pond in the middle of a drought. The endorphins had, quite obviously, worn off.

Even though she didn't have anything to compare him to, she knew Vegeta was an incredibly skilled lover. He had to be, to give her that kind of pleasure. Grabbing the sheets he'd slept on, she brought them to her nose and inhaled deeply. The cool cotton smelled distinctly of a certain Saiyajin no Ouji. She let her mind wonder back to last night. The way he had used his hands, his body, dear Kami his TONGUE, to give her pleasure, and to keep her at that point just before climax for so long....

Damn, she was getting aroused again. How could she still be like this after what Vegeta had done with her last night? Was sex addictive, like a drug? Then again, it was probably Vegeta that was addictive. The way he'd looked when she fingered the area his tail had once come from-all shocked and aroused and untamable-that look was priceless, a bona fide aphrodisiac.

A faint wetness had developed at a place still sore from last nights exercise. 'Stop it!' she told herself. 'You have work to do, this is unproductive. Get up and go take a cold shower. Do cold showers even work?'

Well, the shower didn't help out too much, but it did bring clarity to her jumbled mind, brought about the realization that she had a presentation due in a few hours on the Capsule Case; the invention she'd stayed up late last night finishing.

What the Capsule Case was designed to do was allow multiple items to be put in one capsule, and one thing to be extracted-via password and audio selection-without decapsulizing the rest. So you could stock a capsule (which were, at this point in development, rather oversized, about the size of a General Foods' instant cappuccino can) with all your medication, and only take out what you needed, or have a Capsule Case Refrigerator filled with food, and only take out an apple, without having to open the refrigerator yourself. And her presentation on it was due TODAY. She could think about Vegeta later.

It wasn't the greatest presentation she'd ever given, as her mind kept wondering to the occupant of the gravity room, but apparently it was enough, as the board agreed to start working on further development, mass production and advertising immediately. It helped that one of the more influential of the board members had to spend five minutes digging in his briefcase for a contract, and the Capsule Case would have eliminated that problem. She signed him up for one of the first devices off the line.

She REALLY needed to analyze these emotions she had towards the prince. She already had, once, but that was before her dreams had quite literally come true.

When she had first seen him, fighting with Son-kun and keeping that oversized idiot Nappa in check, she'd been afraid of him. Deathly afraid. His utter confidence, the ruthlessness he'd displayed when he killed Nappa, his appearance of complete control; all conspired to make him appear all the more frightening.

On Namek, she'd briefly glimpsed one of Vegeta's few weaknesses, one that she herself shared: a fear of failure, his need to be the best. How triumphant he'd been when he had finally defeated Zarbon. Even in her state of terror, she could tell that they'd fought before, and the Prince had lost. Vegeta couldn't stand the thought of another being stronger than him. And for some reason, that weakness dredged up a touch of sympathy, of understanding and compassion, in the blue-haired genius. Because she knew that feeling well. Years of high publicity, everyone expecting her to live up to her father's reputation, until she herself couldn't bear not to. The obvious truth was that Doctor Teddy Briefs regarded his offspring as more of an employee than a daughter. Always, she had to make intelligent conversation with business prospects, media, diplomats, et cetera, when she'd rather be doing *anything* else. Expected, at five years old, to hold conversations over the dinner table about propaganda techniques of the French Revolutions, in flawless French, or discuss the pros and cons of the Mesopotamian city-state structure, in German, citing paleo-archaeological and sociological research as part of her arguments. The only thing she was good for was her mind, and what if that just wasn't good enough? So she loudly proclaimed her own genius, to reassure herself and others that she was brilliant and perfect and *acceptable* as the child of Dr. Briefs, and as the heiress to Capsule Corp.

And Vegeta, obviously, was stuck in the same situation. He *needed* to be the best warrior, and did everything he could so that he could hold that title. Perhaps, on Vejiitasei, his strength had been regarded in the same manner as her intelligence. He felt that he had to be the greatest, unsurpassed. And, like her, his one strength, which in this case *was* his strength, was the only thing that made him feel worthy. Worthy of being Prince, worthy of being one of the last of the Saiyajins, worthy of respect.

Of course, if asked, she couldn't articulate why she felt she had this feeling of comprehension about Vegeta's motives, it was all in the shadowy realm of barely understood truths, half-formed thoughts, and fleeting impressions. Some things were best forgotten about, and all their similarities amounted to was a bit of compassion on her part. Compassion that he would refuse, if she offered it. She knew he wouldn't appreciate sympathy; she wouldn't, either. But the connection between them, however undesired, was there. So when His Highness came, homeless and defeated, hoping that Goku would die so the Prince could have his pride, she'd offered him a place to stay. And while he'd learned the most effective ways to piss her off, she'd learned to read him like a book, almost. She still couldn't figure out why he felt the need to insult *her* more than anyone else; however, she had learned to see that flash of elation when she first presented him wit the gravity machine, "to keep him from annoying her." He'd glared at that part, but oh well, as long as he didn't think she had made the machine with the express purpose of making him happy....

It is said that there is a very thin line between love and hate; such a line also exists between fear and desire. She found herself becoming ever more attracted to the growly prince as time wore on, though she never let it show and tried to make things work out between herself and that ass she'd thought she had been in love with, Yamcha. Vegeta appealed to all of her senses, even as he pissed her off. He had that harsh, do-not-touch façade that, conversely, made her want to go hug him and ease away the pain she knew he had gone through. He didn't ask for sympathy, and would've scorned her for comforting him if she tried. But damnit, she'd lived with him long enough to figure a few things out. He didn't talk about his past, but every once in a while something would slip.

~~~~~~~~~~flashback~~~~~~~~~~~

"A little to the left! Your other left, damn idiot!" The foreman groaned, embarrassed to have the crane-driver act like an idiot in front of Ms. Briefs. The alien wreckage the crane was positioning had been found by amateur divers at the bottom of the Atlantic, and, as Bulma Briefs was arguably the most intelligent person on the planet, she got first crack at working with it. It was damaged, supposedly from when it had crash-landed ages ago, and years underneath so much water had taken their toll, but if anyone could learn from the ship, the Briefs could.

If the baka crane-driver could get it on the ground.

"Left, you fool, that way!" Finally, the intelligence-challenged construction worker got the message, and swung the wreckage in the proper direction, although a little to quickly. And he never saw the strong figure that came flying out of the domed building nearby, so intent on food that he didn't see the heavy mass of twisted metal until it hit him in the head.

"Vegeta!" Bulma ran towards the rather dazed prince, concerned. "Are you okay? Sit down, I'll call for help. I *said*, SIT DOWN! Vegeta---"

"Stop yelling, woman, I'm fine, I got hit worse than this when I was a kid, and by people a lot stronger than some piece of metal, so stop screaming!" He rubbed his temple lightly, but was quickly regaining his equilibrium. He flared at the ship, and with one flick of his ki, the ship was no longer there. Bulma was going to yell at him for destroying what *could* have been useful to the further development of technology, but then she reconsidered. After all, it did just injure him, he might as well strike back, and what had he meant when he said he had been hit as a kid? Had Vegeta been abused? She opened her mouth to ask, but he was already entering Capsule Corp, in search of food.

~~~~~~~~~~End flashback~~~~~~~~~~~

There had been a few other instances, where she'd picked up on how Vegeta had grown up, which led her to the conclusion that she only saw the tip of the iceberg, and that there were many other atrocities he'd endured, that gave him that cynicism, not to mention the permanent scowl.

At first, she felt only sympathy for him, she wanted to hold him, to comfort him. Then, she'd found herself respecting the prince, jerk though he may be, for surviving the hell she knew he'd lived through, and keeping his pride intact. It probably would have broken a weaker spirit, but Vegeta clung to his pride, wrapped it around him in an impenetrable cloak that could withstand almost anything. Of course, respect did not equal obedience, and if he though he could just order her around like some kind of slave he had another thing coming. Attraction---well, she couldn't even remember when that had began, it had crept into her heart before she recognized it. What was next, love? Did she love the arrogant Saiyajin no Ouji?

Disturbed by her own thoughts, the blue-haired beauty glanced at the clock. Almost noon. Vegeta would be coming in for lunch soon. How would he act? Would he be frustrated as usual, would he ignore her, would he pay more attention? Did he expect them to sleep together again, or had it been strictly a one-time thing? Did he care about her at all? And how would *she* behave? Should she smile at him, or try to forget what had happened last night?

Better start making sandwiches, anyway.

Eventually she got all fifteen of Vegeta's sandwiches, and her single one, completed. As she waited for him to come in, she nibbled on her solitary sandwich, and by the time she was done, Vegeta still wasn't in from training. By now, he normally would be yelling at her to hurry up, and shoving them down his throat. Where was he? Well, it wasn't so much a question of where, she knew *where* he was, but why was he still in there? Was he hurt? Or was he avoiding her?

Only one way to find out. She stacked the food on a plate, and started towards the gravity room.

Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door. Nothing happened. She knocked again. And she got the same result. Could he not hear her, or was he ignoring her? Only *he* would have the audacity to disregard her. Bulma Briefs is *not* someone who should be ignored. With a rather angry expression on her face, she put the sandwiches down on a conveniently placed chair, and slid the secret panel near the door to the side, exposing a second set of controls. He was training in 300 G's. Or he *was,* until she flipped off the power, anyway.

"Nande kuso?! What happened? Grrrr....stupid machine....baka woman can't do anything right...." Vegeta threw open the door, ready to go find her and yell at her for making such fragile machinery. He hadn't even done anything to make it break! Of course, he wasn't expecting her to be right in front of him.

"So, were you going to eat today, or did you think it would help your training if you starved yourself?" Bulma queried, in a smart-ass voice.

"I was going to get something to eat eventually, baka, and then this damn machine of yours BROKE for no damn reason, and who the hell cares if I eat late anyway, my training is more important than ANYthing else! And what the hell are you doing here, anyway!" He was in a baaadd mood, that was obvious. What had she done to make him so mean today? Most guys would be extra nice the day after, wouldn't they? And who the hell did he think he was, yelling at *her,* the smartest woman on the planet?

"I WAS going to be nice today and give you your food, but if that's how you're gonna act, fine! Stupid Saiyajin, the grav room didn't *break,* I just shut it off. Most marginally intelligent people would realize that when the lights go out and all the sensors shut off, the power's gone. But NOOO, you're too stupid to realize that. I would have thought you'd be nicer today, after what happened last night, but I guess I just HAD to be wrong, didn't I? Still have to act like the arrogant ass you are, don't you? Can't let your guard down for a minute? What the hell was I thinking?"

"Last night was nothing, woman! I just hadn't had a woman in a while, and you were available. And easy. I would've thought you'd have at least made some token protest, but I guess that just shows how much of an ugly slut you are, huh?"

"Slut?!?! You mother-fucking little ass! How dare you? I oughta---"

"Oh, shut up, bitch, you're giving me a headache with all your shrieking. Turn the machine back on. Is this how you turned it off?" He flipped the switch back, and the machinery started making it's whirring sound again. Then he grabbed the tray from the chair, stepped back into the chamber, and slammed the door in her face.

Bulma just looked at the door in shock for a moment. Then, like a cloud passes to allow the scorching sun, indignation fried the supergenius' brain. 'Nande kuso!? I go to all the trouble of making him lunch and *bringing* it to him, just to make him happy and find out what he thought about last night, and he insults me and *slams the door in MY face?!* What the hell? I try to be nice and THIS is how he responds? That kusottare! Why did he think he could do that to *me?!* Why...why did he do that to me? After what happened between us last night, why was he so mean today? Does he think I'm a whore now? Does he no longer give me what minimal respect he did to begin with? Does he hate me now? Why? All I did was give him what he wanted. Was it because I was a virgin? Did I not please him? Why?' Bulma's anger transmogrified into a self-doubting demon of confusion and despair. Tears pricking her eyes but denied escape, she walked back to the housing part of Capsule Corps, with eyes blurrily focused on the ground and tumbling forth to conceal her pained expression. Finally, acrid tears escaped to scorch myriad paths down her face.

Why? Why why why!? Why did she always have such horrid luck with men? Why did she always fall for the bad-asses that never loved her back? Why couldn't she get lucky for a change? She told everyone she was beautiful, but she was deluding herself, and them, about that. Obviously she had *something* wrong with her, to be nearing 30 and have no husband, no kids, no love. She didn't even have a boyfriend anymore! And when she finally found herself sexually attracted to someone, he ended up being Prince Vegeta of Vejiitasei, Prince of the Saiyajins, genocidal would-be ruler of the universe extraordinaire. Complete jerk. And after all the importance she put on his presence in her life, she was nothing but a side-note in his. Just some slutty chick he stayed with on Earth. Just an easy lay. An easy lay who didn't even have the experience to do more than hold on during their night together.

It was just sex for him. No emotions involved. Just basic, perfunctory, animalistic sex, with no ramifications to clutter up the rest of his life. He didn't care about her at all, did he? Obviously not, look at how he treated her! Wouldn't most men be happy the next day, or at least civil?

Well, if that's how he wanted it, fine. She could be just as cold and unemotional as he was. So she was attracted to him, so what? No big deal. No reason for her heart to start acting up. People had sex with people they didn't care about all the time, no reason she couldn't do it, too. So he just wanted sex, hmmm? Fine. But she *was* still attracted to him, so he was gonna have to deal with her a few more times. Just until she got him out of her system.

But if he didn't want her anymore? Then what? Bulma's mind pondered this for a moment, before she remembered what had happened when she touched his tail-spot. He'd lost control and she had nearly passed out from the pleasure that *his* pleasure brought. So all she had to do was finger the dark circle on his back, and she'd get what she wanted. Sure, he might hate her for it later, but he despised her anyway, so what would be the difference?

Firm in her resolve, the confused, beautiful blue-haired goddess with low self-esteem began to plan the seduction of the Saiyajin no Ouji.

Bulma twirled in front of the huge mirror in her room, smiling wickedly. She was wearing a pale blue silk dress that went to mid-thigh, and was so deeply cut that if she took a deep breath she chanced the risk of popping out. She was wearing a garter, just high enough that one *might* catch a peek of it when she sat down...her feet were bare, but for the delicate silver polish coating the nails...and that was ALL she was wearing. She'd managed to get her parents out of the house, convincing them it'd be good to show off the Capsule Case in person. It was almost noon, time for Vegeta to come in for food. Food wasn't all he was going to find, however. It had been two days since the Gravity Room Incident, plenty of time for Bulma to figure out what she was going to do about her Saiyajin no Ouji.

Bulma had been born with quite a bit of insight into the ways of things, as her occupation demonstrated. She could take an obscure, seemingly useless theory, and turn it into something useful. She smirked. 'Like the Capsule Case...or rather, the Capsule *Room.*' Who said she couldn't work large-scale? She grinned at herself, proud of her genius. Vegeta was doomed.

"Woman! Where's my food?! Dammit, are you just to stupid to realize that I need to eat?" Vegeta barked, acting far more belligerent than normal, but she refused to respond to the bait.

"It's right here, Vegeta." Bulma removed a HUGE platter of good-smelling food (conned from ChiChi for a 'company meeting.'). Vegeta thought he was so good at hiding his emotions, ha, she could read the confusion in his eyes, though the mask he always wore hadn't shifted in the least. He wanted to know why she hadn't replied to his insult, and/or why she was wearing such a seductive dress. He gave her a look, a slight variation of his scowl, and began to decimate the population of meats, vegetables, rice and breads. Bulma just smiled softly; 'you have no idea what's going on, do you, Veggie? Heh heh heh, that's alright, I'm sure you'll catch on soon enough,' she thought.

Walking slowly over to the dishwasher, she opened it and pulled out her little toy. As her back was turned, she failed to see Vegeta's face pale as his head snapped up to stare at her. Suddenly, she found herself pressed against the refrigerator, Vegeta glaring into her eyes. She might have enjoyed it if he didn't look ready to kill her.

"What the hell's going on? What're you planning, bitch? *What* will I catch onto soon enough? You'd better answer me, woman, if you know what's good for you." Nani? How...how did he know something was going on? And how much DID he know? And what should she do about it?

"Ummm, planning? What're you yelling about? Did you hit your head a little too hard?" Brazen it out; that was her only option. She'd gone through too much trouble to back out now.

"You know quite well what I mean, bitch." Vegeta growled. Actually growled. If she weren't so disturbed she would've asked him to do it again. It sounded kinda cool...but now was probably NOT the time....No choice but to go ahead with her little plot. She very slowly reached over and grabbed the control, knowing Vegeta saw it, hoping he'd let her get away with it long enough for her to finish. She twisted the pre-set knob a bit to the left, and pressed the purple button. Black boxes whirred to life, emitting invisible light that was exactly opposite the frequency of reflected full-moonlight. He didn't know he was looking at it, but he *was* looking. The numerous mirrors she'd placed about the room made damn sure the light got in his eyes. His eyes widened in anger and horror as he felt his power level drop.

"What the hell did you do, woman? Turn it off. Now!" He was pissed. He was also nearing helpless.

"Ah ah ah, Vegeta, it's my turn now." She smiled at Vegeta's worried face as he realized that he couldn't hold her in place any longer....

Bulma smiled in a manner that can only be described as demonic. She grabbed Vegeta's wrists, pulling them from her shoulders, and slowly put them behind his back, leaning forward as she did so to press close. Her lips, bare of lipstick, brushed lightly across his temple. He was pissed, trying to struggle his way free, jerking and trying to evade her. But with those *lovely* little boxes, each only about two square inches, he was far weaker than she. Looking into his eyes, she found, behind the anger, a trace of fear. She liked it. She liked being in control. Her smug grin widened, and she whispered the words "rope, hands." In her palms, there appeared a length of royal-blue rope. It soon found it's way around the prince's wrists. She stepped away slightly, smiling at how her strong, arrogant Saiyajin Prince had been so thoroughly restrained. Vegeta was so shocked at what had happened that he had yet to open his mouth to yell at her.

"Table, leave. Chairs, leave. Bed, floor." The table and everything on it vanished, as did the chairs, only to be replaced with a HUGE four-poster bed, complete with midnight blue silk sheets and black canopy. She glanced at Vegeta. He didn't just seem a little scared anymore, now he seemed terrified, though he tried to hide it. His eyes had widened, his face was pale, and he looked more than a little worried. She dragged him over to the bed, pushed him into sitting position on it, and sat down beside him.

Oh yeah, he was frightened. But a faint flush had begun to replace his former pallor. 'Almost like he was starting to enjoy this...'

"Woman, what the hell are you doing?" '...not that he'll ever admit it. So I guess we're gonna have the talk before, rather than after.'

"It's simple, Vegeta. I want you, you want me. Neither one of us is involved with someone else, so I see no reason why we can't just have a purely physical relationship until we tire of one another. I wasn't sure if you'd listen to me, 'cause your too damn arrogant to admit you want something, so I made sure you had to. You can agree now, or later, either way is fine with me, but you *will* agree. This way, neither of us has to go without. We obviously work well together in bed, there's no reason why pride should stop us from taking advantage of that. It will-"

"Woman, if you don't let me go, I'm going to-"

"Gag, hands." Vegeta found his protests halted by a cloth that was gently placed around his mouth. The scowl deepened.

"Vegeta, I talk now, you can later. As I was saying, this is going to be purely physical, so we don't have to worry about emotions interfering. I've had too many bad experiences with emotions, and somehow I doubt you want to mess around with them, either. So, do you agree?"

"Mmmrphmrahahwommhum!" Bulma wasn't quite sure what he had tried to say, but it was probably bad, seeing as he was as pissed as could be. She sighed, still keeping up the confident demeanor, refusing to think of what would happen to her if she *couldn't* convince him. 'well I guess I'll just have to convince you, Veggie.' The Saiyajin mumbled something more. It was almost as if he could here her thoughts or something. Eerie. She'd have to think more on it, later.

Right now, she had a prince to seduce.

She looked at Vegeta, his well-defined muscles, well-proportioned body, smooth skin, clenched fists, half-aroused manhood pushing against his bodysuit....

She grinned, seeing the state the prince was in. She gently pushed him back and bent over with him, placing a gentle kiss on his chest. It wasn't much of a kiss, a shy whisper of flesh against flesh, really, a tiny enticement, urging Vegeta to accept what was to come. She repeated it again, a third time, and finally, Vegeta leaned into her, trying for more. Bulma backed away, seeing the prince's face go from confused to angry in a matter of milliseconds.

"Don't worry, I won't stop..." She considered just packing his shirt into subspace as she had the table and chairs, but decided against it. Instead, she withdrew a small dagger, and carefully cut the fabric away. The collar, however, was a bit more difficult to cut through, and she accidentally sliced the flesh between the Saiyajin's neck and shoulder. Seeing this, she uttered a small exclamation and went to lick up the blood. It tasted...delicious. She never would have thought of herself as a vampire, but Vegeta's blood tasted like some wonderful wine, sweet, strong, intoxicating.... She greedily sucked yet more blood from his shoulder, before she could make herself let go. She looked at the prince for his reaction to her drinking.

Vegeta's eyes were wide, his cheeks flushed, and his expression animalistic. Suddenly she felt something touch her mind, something foreign, something she'd never felt before. Thoughts, not her own, entered her mind. ~...mated...life...forever...bonded?... weakling...customs...how?...kuso...~ She was confused, what had just happened? All she had done was clean up the blood she spilled when she cut him...what was this?!

~Bonding, baka. My turn to ask a few questions. How the HELL did you know about the Saiyajin mating ceremony and I THOUGHT YOU SAID THIS WOULD BE TEMPORARY!!~

Okay...Vegeta was speaking into her mind, and apparently he assumed this was her fault and that she had PLANNED to be able to read His Royal Pain in the Ass's thoughts. And he had found a way to yell at her even after she took the time to gag him! Life just wasn't fair....When would this go away?

~Never, baka! Now would you let me go so I can and KILL YOU!? ...risk my life...~

"What?! You can't kill me, you need your gravity machine!-

~...end up killing myself, too....~

"And what the hell is this about killing yourself. Sex with me wasn't THAT bad, was it? You didn't seem to mind to much last time!" Needless to say, Bulma wasn't feeling in control anymore.... 'Why do guys always hate me? I do my best to look acceptable and they still think I'm too stupid to sleep with...I thought he enjoyed it last time...'

~...grrrr, baka doesn't understand....~ ~It's not that, Onna no baka. You shouldn't have drank my blood, especially not from my neck. It's part of the Saiyajin mating ceremony. NOW WOULD YOU LET ME GO!~

'That's gotta be a load of bullshit...it had better be...' "Oh, I get it, you think if you scare me into thinking we're connected for life somehow I'll give up and never bother you again! Tough luck, you're stuck with me until I decide we're through!" So saying, she ignored the frantic warnings that Vegeta thought, both those he projected and those she picked up on accident. She slammed her mind shut and concentrated on what she was doing, careful not to let any thoughts in or out. How she knew how to do this, she didn't know. She easily held him down, and told the Room to remove her clothes. As angry as she was, she still wanted him. In fact, she wanted him more than she had before...

She kissed his chest, trailing kisses randomly, before focusing on a nipple. She lapped at it, smiling at Vegeta's labored breathing. As she scraped her teeth lightly across the small brown nub, she caressed his back, his sides, and the firm bulges of muscles on his arms. Finally, she moved to the neglected one, and repeated the process. She made her way down hardened stomach, kissing, biting, and licking the naturally hairless flesh. She tasted the smooth warmth of salty Saiyajin skin, so silken and delectable. She could hear Vegeta's muffled curses change to muffled groans as she approached the part of him that was more than willing to do as she desired.

She considered teasing him, as he had done an eternity ago, by ignoring the straining organ, but decided to give him what he wanted...for a while, anyway. The Chikyuu-jin placed a kiss on the top of him, and ran her hands along the side. She took some of him into her mouth, and heard a loud moan escape the gag. As she continued her ministrations on him, swirling, bobbing, lapping, even biting lightly, she decided to use his apparent ability to read her mind to her advantage.

She couldn't let know too much, there were secrets she could never tell, insecurities and fears that she would never want him to know about. He already considered her a weak baka, she didn't want to worsen his opinion. Instead, she focused on every erotic fantasy she'd ever had, especially those regarding Vegeta himself, and what she intended to do to him. Slowly, she raised the gates on her mind, letting him see what she wanted him to and nothing more. She couldn't have been more pleased with his reaction. He moaned loudly, tensed, and nearly climaxed, but restrained himself. Good, she wanted to have some more fun with him in this state. With her mind still partially exposed, he picked up that thought, or most of it. A deluge of thoughts rained down on her, and as they did so she found that he'd had a few fantasies of his own...then she slammed the wall back up as fast as she could, because she REALLY didn't want Vegeta to know how often she'd imagined having sex with him. Releasing him, knowing instinctively that if she continued there he would be unable to hold back, she looked into his eyes. Lust, possessiveness, shock, and something else mixed. Vegeta's cold, expressionless mask, which had never worked as well as it should have on her, had shattered to fragments long ago. He wasn't fighting this anymore. He wanted her. And he wanted her NOW.

She pushed him onto his stomach in the middle on the fluffy bed, oriented the correct way this time, and began to massage his shoulders. He didn't even try to stop her, knowing that he was as helpless as a paralyzed zebra before a hungry lioness. He was beyond thought, beyond everything but the intense sensations she was giving him. Bulma was sitting on the back of his thighs, knees on either side of the bed. She untied his wrists, only to bind them again, above his head. She trusted that he was too aroused to think to remove his gag. As she massaged him, she leaned forward rocked back and forth on her perch, arousing herself at the same time she relaxed him. She slowly worked his shoulders, trying to ease the tension she herself had caused. She pulled some almond oil from subspace, and spread it into the skin of his shoulders and back. Vegeta WAS relaxing, however involuntarily. He was still quite tense, but the blue-haired genius had not desire to calm him completely. Running her fingers up to his, she intertwined them briefly, his wrists still bound by silken rope, and placed above his head.

She scooted back to give herself a better angle, and nibbled on the back of his neck. Running her teeth along a length of skin, she returned to lick the abrasion away. She tongued his spine, enjoying the way his body unconsciously contorted when she changed speed or method. The lower on his spine she went, the more desperate he became. 'Don't worry Veggie, I'll get there...' But her mental shield was still up, and he didn't get the message. She moved farther down, to inform him in a more basic way.

After quite a bit of teasing, she got to his tail spot. She pushed on it with her tongue, swirled around the perimeter, and held onto the prince as he shuddered. He hadn't climaxed yet, and her massage had gone a long way towards giving him some control, so she could torment him even more.

"This is what you get for trying to scare me, Vegeta. How long will your control last?" He moaned, and she scraped her teeth along the dark circle. It wasn't a moan this time, more like a muffled scream of pleasure. She moaned herself.

She had doubted Vegeta's control, taunted him, but how long would her own last? The sounds and motions he made were driving her mad. She was sopping wet, and needed release herself. She moved one hand to her own arousal, and tried to relieve the pressure. Her hips rocked back and forth unconsciously, her torture of the prince temporarily halted.

He rolled, shaking, desperate, and pushed her back onto the giant bed. She could easily push him away, he was so weakened by the boxes, but she chose not to. His bound hands awkwardly undid the cloth at his mouth, but he didn't call a halt to their exertions. He didn't say anything, as she had expected him to do, but instead he bent to drink some of the overflowing moisture at the apex of her thighs. Bulma made her own noises of inflamed passion, screaming and moaning and gasping as he worked her. But he was too aroused to last much longer, and moved up to kiss her, the first mouth-to-mouth kiss they'd shared since this began. Then he thrust into her, going as deeply as he could, and trying to hold back. He was amazingly successful, as they moved in perfect harmony with each other. Finally, the supernova they had built in each other exploded. Perhaps Vegeta embraced a little too strongly, and perhaps Bulma's nails gouged a little to deeply, but both were so lost in the conflagration that they didn't notice.

Nor did Bulma notice that all her little black boxes had turned white, as they were supposed to do when their batteries were dead, drained from the effort of keeping a certain Golden Warrior's ki down to that of a weak human.

Bulma concentrated on breathing. She wasn't sure she'd ever be able to move again. Slowly, she registered the massive weight on top of her. Vegeta was lying on top of her, panting in her ear. She smiled softly. '...He looks so beautiful when he's like this.... I think I like being in control. That was intense.... Vegeta's so heavy!...'

Suddenly, Vegeta growled and rolled away. ~Your little mental shield isn't up anymore, onna no baka.~

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that.... how the hell are you speaking in my head?"

"This is your fault, onna. Maybe I should ask how the hell you can block me?"

"Huh? Oh, that...I dunno, I just can."

"Now that polite inquiries are over with..." He snapped the rope in half and glared at her, "you're gonna pay for doing that to me."

'Oh shit, he looks pissed, how did he break the ropes? Oh FUCK, the boxes are white, they're not doing anything anymore, oh shit oh shit oh SHIT!' She jumped off the bed, and ran. Only to have an infuriated Saiyajin in blur before her. She looked frantically for another exit, but besides the windows, there wasn't one...and she knew damn well that she wouldn't be able to climb out of them before he caught her. She was helpless...her parents were gone; she'd made sure there was no one else in the house. 'No one to hear her screams...' the cliché flashed across her mind, across his, and was met with a sadistic smirk.

"How DARE you do that to me? I'm the Saiyajin no Ouji, and you think you can just...tie me down and have your way with me!?" Fury was written across his brows, and for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, she was afraid of him.

The prince walked up to her and pointed a glowing finger at her bare chest. Bulma felt her face blanch.

~...so beautiful...shouldn't be...fear...can't do it...why?...mated...bonding-related insanity...che...'

'Bonding-related insanity? The hell? What are you thinking, Vegeta?...this is kinda disturbing...'

"If you humans had halfway decent telepathy, you'd know. Disturbing, huh? You have no idea..." She raised that instinctive wall against his thoughts. As interesting as they were, she had to concentrate on surviving. He was still holding that miniscule but deadly pinpoint of ki at the end of his finger, but the expression on his face had shifted slightly from pure fury to...pain? Had she hurt him? Of course, his pride...she'd assumed she'd have time afterwards to soothe him, to make him realize that she didn't do what she did to shame him, but she never had the chance.

"How dare you do this to me...." She closed her eyes, knowing that she'd be seeing Enma-sama soon...only to open them when nothing happened. Vegeta was gone. What had just happened?

There were so many questions...she was starting to remember what had happened in this room...what had he been talking about? Saiyajin bonding ceremonies and mating and her fault and killing himself and so many other things....

She'd lied when she said she didn't know how she was blocking him...it was a skill she'd learned as a child. When she was very young, she'd been able to sense people's intentions, and every once in a while she picked up a thought or two. She'd hated it. It was very difficult to pretend to have perfectly loving parents, when you could sense their indifference or, worse, her father's disappointment. So she'd taught herself how to block what she received...she hadn't heard someone's thoughts in her head in so many years...why now? What was it about Vegeta that knocked down the half-wall she had against everyone; what was it that made her able to sense things from him, but still be adequately protected from everyone else?

And why, when he'd so obviously wanted to kill her, had he changed his mind and left? And why had he seemed so hurt when he left...was it just his pride? Usually his pride made him angry, not sad...and certainly not at the same time.

Perhaps...if she could see his thoughts, while keeping her own mind clear...but would she be able to find him...usually to read someone's thoughts he or she had to be in the same room. 'Can't hurt to try...'

But first....she removed the bed and returned the room to normal, took a shower and dressed. She cleared away the dishes, and retreated to her room.

Sitting on the bed, Bulma took a bracing breath and concentrated on Vegeta. Then, she let her mind's gates swing open.

~...Gods damn it, I'm mated to her...I knew I was getting to close, but this?...she's afraid of me...after all this time I thought I'd found someone who wouldn't be afraid of me, but who didn't think I was worthless...mated, to a weakling human...shit! I never should have bit her in the first place...why did I DO that? She was so beautiful...and then she, she DOMINATED me! That's not how it's supposed to be! Now SHE's the one in control! ...HOW did she find out about the Saiyajin mating ceremony...now I'm stuck with her for the rest of my life! I couldn't even hurt her...I know I can't kill her, that would end up killing me, but shouldn't I at least be able to hurt her? ...stupid emotions, I wasn't strong enough to hurt her...I don't WANT to hurt her...does she even realize what she's done? Does she know that this is forever?...doubt it...she doesn't want me enough to have me around forever...she's dangerous...she had complete control over me...can't let it happen again...shit, how am I gonna stay away? If I don't end up killing myself from need, I'll go insane and starve to death! She's so strong, I thought I'd finally had someone...someone...someone to what? What were you thinking? That she'd calmly accept you hanging around and killing anyone who tried to get to her? ...how did she bond with me, anyway? I thought only Saiyajins or could bond to Saiyajins...and how did she keep me out? I've never heard of anyone who could successfully block their bonded mate from his or her mind...I'm doomed...I can never get away...what is she going to do to kill my pride next...I thought I could keep in control, and she wouldn't be able to hurt me...kuso...~

Bulma slowly closed the door again, more than a little shocked. This WAS serious. She supposed the reason why she could hear his thoughts so clearly was because she was concentrating. She'd hurt him. She didn't want to cause him agony, never. He'd endured enough. His pride, his sense of honor, was all he had left...and she'd stung it. She hadn't realized what a blow it would be to him. They were 'mated' now...but the permanency with which he thought of it, it sounded more like they were married. Was that it? Was "mating" the Saiyajin way of getting married. And what was 'bonding?' Was it the same as mating, or different?

It was nearing nighttime, and Bulma decided that she might as well try to sleep. Instead she stared at her room for hours on end, thinking, remembering, and trying to analyze what exactly she felt for Vegeta, and what, besides anger, he felt for her.

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