~J.J

Bulma shuffled into the bathroom, her royal blue housecoat wrapped tightly around her shoulders. She felt…somehow…different this morning. She smiled around the mouthful of toothbrush she had. That could be because of her little ‘kiss’ she shared with Vegeta the other morning. Again, as she had expected, they were both awkward and uncomfortable around each other. Well, Vegeta had definitely showed her a ‘real’ kiss. She felt warmth in her cheeks. But this time it was a different, almost pleasurable sort of awkwardness that she felt around him. A sort of embarrassment that made her feel like a great and terrible weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Almost like everything had somehow been solved. And Yaumcha had not entered her mind once after they had kissed. Not once.

Bulma opened the door, closed it with a click, and turned to head for the shower. She stopped dead in her tracks. Spider stared at her from his position in the bathtub, where he had taken to sleeping. Except…now…as he blinked orange eyes lazily at her and yawned, Bulma realized something was very, very different.

He was the size of a small German shepherd.

She staggered back at step, completely unafraid, but completely shocked. He had only been the size of a small puppy last night! She was holding him in her arms! Now…he was absolutely huge! How in the hell could he have grown so big in such a short time?

Not knowing what to make of it, Bulma hurried from the bathroom and into the hallway, halting in her tracks where the other Roctorn infants sat on their haunches. Each and every one was the size of Spider, although slightly smaller in their builds. They clambered up to her with, their multi-tails wagging back and forth. Bulma heard Vegeta’s door open, and watched his reaction as he stepped out into the hall. He stared with eyes as equally large as her own. Behind her, Spider thundered out of the bathroom at breakneck speed and slammed into Vegeta, nearly knocking him over. Vegeta staggered back a step and tried to push the giant cat-creature off of him, who was meowing and pawing and wagging happily at his ‘masters’ surprised stare.

"I should have remembered…" Vegeta trailed off, finally dislodging the furry giant off of his chest.

"What?" Bulma cried.

"Roctorn’s go through a vicious growth spurt during their maturity into young adults." He said, looking over the rest of them who sat in the hall, staring back at him with orange eyes. "It is usually fast and intense."

"I guess so!" Bulma said. "He fills up the whole bathtub now!"

Spider wagged his six tails especially fast, seemingly proud of himself. Vegeta shook his head.

"So what now?" She asked. "Is this it?"

"Oh, Kami no." Vegeta snorted. "They’ll continue to grow at a rapid rate, just not nearly as fast as this. This was their one growth spurt. Now they’ll continue at their normal pace, which I might add is still abnormally fast. They’ll probably be as big as their mother within…" he trailed off, thinking. "About three weeks."

"Three weeks?" Bulma cried, incredulous. "They’re going to be that big in three weeks??"

"I told you," Vegeta said calmly, "Roctorn’s are notorious for being exceedingly fast-developing creatures."

Bulma shook her head. "There’s no way we’ll be able to fit them in here. Not all of them, anyway."

Vegeta nodded. "Hn. I suppose we’ll have to start arranging for a new home soon." He stopped and caught himself. "I mean…we’ll just dump them off somewhere. They’ll be fine on their own."

Bulma smirked and put her hands on her hips. "And what are we supposed to do with your precious Spider?"

"Keep him, of course." Vegeta smirked right back. "If he lays down, he can easily fit in the basement of the ship." He paused. "What? Did you think I was going to leave him here?"

"You’ve become quite attached." She muttered. "And you say I’m the crazy one? You want to bring back a seven foot tall, 1500 pound cat to my backyard?"

"Yes." He said evenly. "Your father can build a doghouse."

"A really huge doghouse!" she cried. "Vegeta, think about what you’re saying! We can’t bring something like that back to Earth! Think about what could happen! He might eat somebody!"

Vegeta shook his head. "That wouldn’t happen."

Bulma advanced, picking her way through the Roctorns. "You don’t know that!" she said.

Vegeta reached out and yanked her to him. "Are we having a spat?" he asked, smirking. Bulma glared at him. "Yes. We are."

"Oooh, goody."

"Shut up!" she tried to struggle from him but he held her firm. "Are you going to have a bath?" he asked suddenly.

"If you want to clean out the tub; it’s full of his hair." She nodded to Spider, who lashed his tails in response.

He released her. "Would you mind terribly if I accompanied you?" his voice turned from mocking to unusually lustful. Bulma couldn’t help her immediate reaction. An unwanted heat blossomed in her thighs and redness spread across her face.

"N-No…" she said quickly, wondering hopefully at his intentions. She wouldn’t mind a bath with him. After all, she missed physical contact terribly, and their kiss the other morning had been enough to fill her mind with naughty thoughts.

She turned awkwardly from him and went to the bathroom. Vegeta had to turn halfway there and shoo away Spider, who obviously didn’t like the idea of someone else in his bathtub.

Once in the bathroom, Bulma turned the tap on and leaned against the counter, waiting. Vegeta stood across from her, eyeing her fully, taking no measure to hide his approving glances. "Well?" he asked softly. "Are you going to get in?"

"I…in a second." She stammered. Her fingers lingered at the sash on her robe.

"Need help with that?"

"N-no!" she said. "I’m fine…"

"Woman," Vegeta approached her quickly, taking her hands in her own. "There is no need for embarrassment between us. Is there?" he lifted her chin with his index finger and forced her to look at him.

"Vegeta…are you…going to…" she couldn’t finish the sentence.

"What?" he asked softly, his face deliciously close to her own. His voice was oddly gentle.

"Are you going to…make love to me…?"

He abruptly pulled away. Not completely, but enough to be able to look at her fully. He chuckled softly. "Woman…"

Bulma was horrified. She had just made a complete fool of herself. Untying her robe she dropped it to the floor and ungracefully seated herself in the bathtub. She drew her knees to her chest and listened to him as he discarded his clothing. Seconds later he was sitting behind her, his legs on either side of her. Bulma could feel his growing hardness pressing against her lower back.

"Bulma," He leaned into her, his face right on her neck. It was exactly the same way he had sat with her when the Forae had attacked her that night, except that night he had been completely devoid of any sexual intentions. Now, he was fighting a loosing battle with himself. Did she want him to make love to her?

"I would love to make love to you…" he said softly. "But…we…"

She saved him. She turned around and saved him from having to continue. She looked him straight in the eye and smiled. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pressure either of us. We don’t have to…if you don’t want to…"

"Don’t get me wrong, I-

She put a finger to his lips, silencing him. "It’s all right." She turned around again.

His brows furrowed in annoyance. What was with her? One minuet, she wanted him. The next she was telling him to shut up. He sighed and leaned back against the tub, grabbing the washcloth. He worked up a good lather and began to wash her back. She sighed pleasurably and leaned forward, hunching her shoulders.

"Things are different now." She said quietly as he washed her. "Aren’t they?"

"Obviously." He snorted.

"I meant," she turned her head a ways and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "We’re…a couple now, aren’t we?"

The bathroom fell silent. "I told you…Yaumcha and I aren’t together any more." She added.

Vegeta leaned his head on her shoulder. "How did that come to be?"

Bulma looked down into the water. "He cheated on me." She turned to him. "I never want to go through that again."

Vegeta left the obvious question unanswered, though he knew the answer.

Never.

* * *

"Now you can be my bodyguard!" Bulma said happily to Spider, who padded along ghost like upon the red earth. And this was an unexpected development indeed! Now Bulma would be able to visit Koru in her last few days on R’haksin without the angry and unpredictable Vegeta breathing down her neck.

Spider growled softly deep within his throat. He had identified this creature he was walking with as his ‘masters’ master. Although Vegeta would have argued that, he somehow knew. He would protect this creature as long as his master had told him to do so. Spider’s brain swelled with bits and pieces of color and information that told him to be proud of himself. He was already nearing his mother’s size. Soon, nothing would be able to defeat him.

"You’ll like Koru." Bulma said softly as she ruffled his pointed, tufted ears. "But try not to scare her. She might wonder what I’m doing with a brute like you." Bulma rummaged around in her pants pocket and tossed him a piece of bacon left over from Vegeta’s breakfast the other day. Inside the plastic baggie there were all sorts of Roctorn tidbits that she had arranged for their trip to The Dungeons.

"Can’t have you going all hungry on me." Bulma said absently. Spider vanished for a moment before reappearing, wriath like, out of the shadows lining the forest path. He slunk up beside Bulma so quickly that she nearly screamed, before remembering that she had to be extremely quiet.

She knelt down beside Spider and took his furry head in her hands. "Hey big guy," she said, "You gotta do a favor for me, can you do that?"

Spider yawned loudly, his giant pink tongue lolling out of his gaping jaws. "All right." Bulma mumbled. "I’ll take that as a yes. Anyway, you have to be really quiet for me, ok? We’re not supposed to be doing this right now."

Spider bumped her head with his own, a deep purring rumbling in his throat. It was strange how he had changed overnight. Not only was he ten times as big, but his mischievous personality seemed to have broadened as well. Now he seemed…more protective? Mature? She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but she missed the tiny little ball of fury that had attacked her fuzzy slippers when she walked around the kitchen.

"Promise to be quiet?" Bulma whispered. Spider drew back, leaned down, raised his rump in the air and pounced at her, his six tails lashing out as he wrestled her to the ground, refusing to let her back up until she had laughed hard enough.

Guess I was wrong, Bulma thought between giggles. At last she managed to get him off of her with a great amount of difficulty. Spider rolled onto his back, his tongue hanging out. "You look more like a dog than a cat." Bulma said with a laugh. "Now, you have to be quiet, ok? We’re almost there."

They approached The Dungeons after a great amount of difficulty, what with Spider wanting to play the whole time. When they finally arrived, the playful Roctorn bounded off toward the entrance, sniffing the marble walls carefully. He stepped aside when his ‘inspection’ seemed to be over and let Bulma through. She began to descend the steps and felt the nervousness that she had been trying to ignore the way over finally worm its way up into her gut. She swallowed against it, listening to Spider’s big feet as he padded down softly behind her.

They ended up on the floor of The Dungeons shortly, and Bulma made a point of getting to Koru’s cell before the giant cat did. "Koru?" she whispered into the darkness. She heard the chains clinking, what sounded like sniffing, and then a worried noise.

"Bulma! What are you doing with a Roctorn?"

Bulma sat down in front of the cell, putting her hands through it. She held Koru’s in her own and smiled as the beautiful Storkrin came into view. "It’s a long story, and I don’t have much time." She said. "Don’t worry, he’s very friendly. His name is Spider."

Koru smiled. "How have you been? Did you find Ghost?"

Bulma sighed. "Yes, he was in a cave. That’s where we found this guy. So much has happened!" she said. "I came here to tell you something…if you didn’t know…the Psytrim has grown. I’ll be cured and off this planet in four days."

Spider padded to her side and plopped down on his haunches, looking Koru over with curiosity.

"Please…don’t hate me." Bulma whispered when Koru didn’t say anything. "I feel so horrible…you’ve been down here for two years…dying…and then I come along and take away your only chance."

Koru shook her head gently. "No, Bulma. It’s not like that. They wouldn’t give me the cure, anyway." She said softly. "That’s why I’m down here. So they can forget about me."

"It’s not fair." Bulma said. "I wish there were two plants, so that we could both be cured."

"You’ll be gone in four days, then?" Koru shifted around and looked suddenly sad. "I’ll miss you."

"I’ll miss you too." Bulma said. "I’ll come to see you again before we leave." She patted Spider’s head. "He’s my new bodyguard. If I’m not back soon, Vegeta will kill me."

Koru smiled. "When will I see you?"

"Soon." Bulma said as she stood, Spider at her side. "Soon."