Monkey Moon

Nappa grinned. "I'd nearly forgotten...I suppose we'll have to hear strident accusations, eh?"

"They can screech all day, it changes nothing." Raditz insisted as the others approached. "Kakarot knows his life."

Piccolo stalked down the incline first. "What's going on here, saiyans?"

"'Saiyans?'" Vegeta mocked, wide eyed. "My, how formal. And here I thought we were past such distinctions."

"Save it, Vegeta. What have you done to Goku?" he glanced at the prone figure.

Vegeta glanced at his fellow saiyan and smiled, gently sweeping his tail across the handsome face. A small grin curved upward on swarthy features.

"The mouse roars." Nappa pointed his ham hock at them all. "Why are you people here? We're enjoying a quiet breakfast, and don't appreciate foolish interruptions."

"We're here out of concern for Goku." Tien responded. "Let's just say we aren't convinced he's here voluntarily."

Vegeta made a grand gesture at his side. "As you can see, he's sleeping peacefully."

The saiyans roared with laughter. Raditz shook his head somberly. "Are all humans so ridiculous?! What would drugging him achieve?"

"Who knows? Your motives haven't made sense since you arrived on earth."

"Ah, but they do. We simply haven't revealed them."

"Bull!" Krillen shouted. "You've got a hidden agenda. What is it?"

"Nothing sinister, I assure you." Vegeta said smoothly. "If you don't believe me, ask sleeping beauty here." he pointed at Goku.

Krillen kneeled next to his friend, shaking him gently. "Goku, can you hear me?"

A strange keening sound came from the saiyan's throat. Krillen shrugged at the others.

"Hn, don't remember last night but it sure was hot!" Goku mumbled.

Yamcha coughed into his hand, grinning. "Well...at least we know he isn't drugged!"

"Will you wake up already." Krillen shook the saiyan again. "We don't need a porn recording!"

Goku sat up slowly, rubbing his head. He stared at his friends.

"Chi Chi was concerned about you." Piccolo supplied. "So were we."

"She briefed us on some...changes that have occurred."

Tien stepped up. "Just enough to make us wonder if you were okay."

Vegeta gave a flip of a hand. "They're wondering if you've grown another head, Kakarot...or perhaps mutated into a green frog!"

"Do join us for breakfast?" Nappa offered sarcastically. "There's plenty for all." he indicated a huge boar on a spit. "We even left the skin on!"

Raditz held up a bowl. "The brains go well with fruit for relish. We filled the stomach with banana leaf mash."

Yamcha turned gray. "Uh, no thanks...we ate on the ship."

"Goku, are you all right? Really?" Piccolo wanted to know.

The tall saiyan stretched in the grass. "I'm fine...I appreciate the concern, but there's no need."

Krillen stared in fascination at his tail. "I'd forgotten you used to have that..."

Goku grinned, waving it about. "Yeah, it still seems a bit strange, but I'm getting used to it."

"And the other changes as well?" Piccolo wondered.

Goku suddenly gave a goofy grin, rubbing the back of his head. "Gee, what changes? I'm still just me!"

The saiyans glanced at each other in surprise. Krillen laughed in relief.

"Me too." Tien agreed. "I think you overreacted, Piccolo."

"Maybe, but that still leaves the matter of the Dragonballs."

"We know you intend to use them, Vegeta. The question is for what?"

"That's none of your business, Piccolo. Keep your nose out of our affairs."

"Goku, why's he being secretive? Has he told you anything?"

Dark brows pinched, perplexed. "No...the topic hadn't come up, though I'm a bit curious myself."

"Our interests don't involve your precious earth, namek." Nappa stated. "You have nothing to fear."

"Well I have a question." Tien spoke up suddenly. "Were you responsible for all the damage done in this area?"

Vegeta nodded and smiled. "We had a little party...things got out of hand."

Goku stood slowly, shocking the other saiyans. "I think so...I need to clear up a few things with Chi Chi."

"Kakarot!!" Raditz hissed, starting to rise. Vegeta motioned him to be still.

Krillen patted the dark saiyan on the arm. "Goku knows who his true friends are."

Raditz couldn't believe his eyes as they watched Goku leave with the others. He stood up angrily.

"Vegeta, why'd you stop me?! Kakarot's going back to that shrew-"

Furious, Raditz flopped down. "Everything is undone now!"

"Hardly. Although I was mildly surprised he wanted to leave, it wasn't shocking. What did you expect? Despite his change, he knows the comfort of a lifestyle with that ningen."

"Great. So he thinks to be all things to all people again? That's what fractured him in the first place! Did you see that insane act he slipped back into?!"

"Huhh." Nappa grunted, still chomping. "Well enough. He played the buffoon perfectly for those saps."

"There's a difference, Raditz." Vegeta stated. "The clown is but a skin now, to be worn in convenience. They wanted Goku, he gave them Goku."

Raditz pulled some meat off a bone. "You sound confident..."

Black eyes blazed wildly. "Comfort isn't fire. Familiarity isn't love. Let blood boil and bones burn. The final truth will rip him free!"

Nappa nodded. "The choosing is done. Now let the chosen be bonded."

"He's yet to be touched." Raditz murmured a soft smile, tail lashing slowly.

Vegeta stretched his toes. "Ai...a final night of kisses will render him ours forever. Then will he cry my name under the moon!" the ouji shouted in triumph.

"Honey to my lips." Raditz purred, thinking of things to come.

Goku talked and chattered nonstop on the flight back. Krillen laughed, while Tien covered his ears. Yamcha could only shake his head in amazement.

"You're going a hundred miles an hour, Goku!" he commented.

Piccolo sat in a corner of the cabin, unimpressed. "Too much, I'd say."

Goku shrugged. "Ah, don't be like that, Piccolo...I had fun! The jungle's really beautiful once you adjust to the heat-"

"It's not the heat, it's the humidity." Krillen made a face, fanning himself.

Goku stood at the viewscreen, a silly smile plastered on his face as he stared at blue skies. Piccolo couldn't take anymore. He stalked over to the tall saiyan's side.

"You heard me. Maybe you can fool the others with that routine, but I'm not buying it!"

"What's your trip, Piccolo?" Yamcha wanted to know. "Goku's cool...are you looking for trouble?"

Goku laughed, his tone abruptly changing. "You won't tolerate it? Since when do I answer to you?!"

Everyone stared in silence. Goku stopped, mortified. He glared at the namek.

Piccolo folded his arms smugly. "Sorry...I had to break through the pretense."

"And if I walked around looking grim, would that make me honest?"

"Lighten up, Piccolo." Tien told him. "Goku isn't under a microscope here!"

"All right, Piccolo." Goku waved him off. "You've made your point. Satisfied?"

"I'm not." Krillen stared. "You're still the same basic person, Goku. Despite what we were told, I still have faith in you as a friend."

Goku smiled, clapping his shoulder. "I can always count on you, Krillen."

"That makes two of us." Yamcha added. "Who are we to judge? You've saved earth more times than I can count."

Piccolo turned his back. "I never doubted you, but these changes...what do they mean for the future?"

Tien shook his head. "I don't like the sound of that...are you really so different now?"

Goku was serious. "Yes and no. I can't go back to being the way I was before, but I won't forget friends. Count on it."

"But if you hook up with the saiyans, won't that be a conflict of interest?" Yamcha wanted to know.

"They're my own people, Yamcha. Raditz is my brother. What would you have me do?"

A pause. "I just hope this doesn't create problems for us all down the road."

Goku looked out the viewscreen again. "You and me both."

An agitated Raditz paced around the campfire. "We should have stopped him!!"

Vegeta snorted. "Stop thinking with your cock, for Kami's sake. Kakarot has no choice now. The seed is planted in his soul...it will bloom soon enough!"

"So you say, prince. But you and I both know my brother is stubborn!"

"An inherited trait, apparently. Sit down and eat, Raditz. Your bellowing strains my ears, and other thoughts occupy my mind now."

The burly saiyan paused in thought. "It would be a quick turnaround for him to get back by nightfall."

"Hn, no distance is too great when the blood burns."

"The prize is mine, so there's no need for haste. I've learned to be more patient."

Nappa laughed, gulping a beer. "A patient saiyan...now there's a contradiction in terms!"

Vegeta flashed a wolfish smile. "Only to a point, Nappa. What I want, I get. Any who interfere with our plans will pay dearly!"

Nappa purred in satisfaction. "Loving, fighting, and a universe to conquer...what saiyan could ask for more?"

Raditz plopped next to him. "Immortality, once we get the remaining dragonballs..."

Nappa stroked the thick tail in his lap. "Hai, handsome one. Our dreams will be complete then."

Vegeta stretched out in the warm sunshine. "And none can stop us."

Goku made his abbreviated goodbyes when they got back. Piccolo wasn't so quick to leave his side as they stood outside the house.

"Goku, I have reservations about what I'm sensing. I'm convinced the others have plans for you."

Goku spun. "Stop hovering over me. I don't need watching, and I'm not a monster!"

Piccolo was grim. "All right. But I have a terrible feeling of disaster down the road."

"Explain yourself, I'm not interested in riddles."

"I don't want to lose your friendship, Goku. Our history has been checkered, I know."

"Where's this coming from? That's all in the past."

"The future worries me. There's more to this than either of us know, and the changes in you are shocking."

"No...unlike the others I can sense what goes on within. I _know_ how you've changed."

Goku considered that. "I see. You think I'll betray everyone someday?"

"Motives change with desire. I sense what you truly want isn't here."

Saiyan temper flared. "You dare look inside me?!"

Piccolo sighed. "For Gohan's sake, I had little choice. The passions and needs of your race...are unfathomable to me."

"Our blood runs hot." Goku replied savagely, looking completely saiyan at that moment. He turned to open the door.

"I appreciate your concerns, but nothing will happen. I just need to spend some time with Chi Chi."

Chi Chi was in the kitchen, resignation in her posture. "So. You've decided to return."

Goku reached for her. "Why wouldn't I, Chi Chi? This is our home!"

She moved away. "Is it? I get the impression you'd rather be somewhere else."

"At Tami's house. Her brother is having a pajama party."

"He asked about you. I came up with a suitable lie."

Goku sat at the table. "I'm sorry...what did you tell him?"

She smiled bitterly. "I told him you were investigating an alien sighting."

Her slim form plopped across him at the table. "Why, Goku? You've made your point perfectly clear."

He took her hands. "Forgive me...maybe my new attitude is somewhat harsh."

"That's an understatement. What were you doing all night?"

He flushed, looking away. "Nothing much. I found out where Vegeta and the others are staying."

She blinked in shock. "But why? They've been here for days, doing nothing. It makes no sense!"

"Vegeta is looking for the missing dragonballs."

A small fist slammed the table. "I knew it! All that phony bull by Raditz-"

"It wasn't phony." Goku flared at her. "He honestly wanted to know you better."

"I don't have a clue, but I intend to find out."

"I'm going back there later, to observe. Maybe they'll let something slip."

She stared at him hard. "Are you telling me all of it?"

Dark eyes welled up. "I'm sorry, I can't believe you."

Goku couldn't stand her distress. Strong arms swept her up in a bear hug.

"Something's going on with you and those saiyans." her voice was snuffled against him.

He stroked her hair. "You're my wife, Chi Chi. That's why I'm here now."

Goku sat down, pulling her into his lap. "I know the last few days have been bizarre. I'd like nothing better than settling into our old routine, but that just can't happen."

"You mentioned change...I'm not sure this is for the better."

Black eyes were glazed, wild. "It's unbelievable, Chi Chi! I've found out so much about myself, things I never knew. My mind, my heart have been opened-"

He realized he'd said too much. She stared at him in shock and dismay.

"You'd better tell me the truth. Now." her tone was ice.

"Save it. This isn't about change, or compromise. You've made a decision!"

Goku fell silent momentarily. "I needed to talk to you..."

She pushed off his lap and stood. "No. This time YOU listen."

He was startled to silence again. Chi Chi paced slowly around the kitchen.

"You've spoken your mind, and now I'll do the same. Do you think I'm a fool? You're planning something with those saiyans-"

"Shut up. Do you know how it makes me feel when you disappear at a crucial point in our marriage, then come back excited about being 'awakened?' Do you want to know what I REALLY think?!"

She slapped him so hard his ears rung. "Freak!! You're going there to satisfy those filthy perversions I wouldn't agree to!!"

He glowered at her, guilt and shame stopping comment. Chi Chi continued, in a rage.

"Admit it! I see it in your eyes, hear it in your voice. You say you can't be what you were. Well guess what? I can't be what I'm not!"

Goku found his voice. "I see. What are you suggesting?"

"Time for both of us. We need to think things through, and I mean hard."

A soft growl escaped the tall saiyan as his tail bristled. "You doubt my love?"

"Yeah, mister, I do. There's all kinds of love, and I'm realizing that now the hard way." her eyes welled up again. "You never loved me like a wife."

"Did you ever love me as a husband?!" he snapped back.

"Maybe I wasn't always responsible, but at least I cared."

"Don't turn this around, Goku. You always took every opportunity to leave, whether it was a threat to earth or some lamebrained adventure!"

Red haze dotted Goku's vision. "Lamebrained...you think I enjoyed being treated as a child by my own wife?!"

"You're so tough...if you were any kind of man you would have said something long ago!" she shot without thinking.

Goku stood slowly, backing her against a wall. "Say that again." he snarled, glaring through lidded eyes.

Chi Chi saw those eyes, feeling fear for the first time. "I didn't mean it." she whispered.

Strong fingers gripped her chin. "Shall I tell you an impulse I feel right now?"

"The saiyan in me would fracture your jaw." he hissed softly. Her eyes went wide in fright.

"However, I would never do such a thing." Goku released her abruptly. "Were I as weak as you say, you'd be lying on the floor."

She dropped in a chair, trembling. "So it's come to this now...threats of physical violence?"

Goku folded his farms in indifference. "I told you, I'd never do such a thing. You always mistook my tolerance for weakness, Chi Chi."

Dark eyes burned furiously on him. "There's no mistaking that saiyan arrogance. You sound just like them!"

"I _am_ them. But I regret this conversation didn't go the way I'd hoped."

She was shaking in anger. "Oh, I get it. Was I supposed to congratulate you on being a true saiyan? Throw a party because you've embraced the 'real you?' Fat chance, mister!"

He turned to leave. "Your words were wiser than you know. Distance is best for all concerned."

Chi Chi could only stare at his retreating form.

She sat miserably for over an hour before he returned, his face closed.

He sat at a small distance. "I honestly don't know. Maybe it's just a case of so much happening in so short a period."

Her eyes were dull. "It doesn't feel that way. What are you going to do?"

"I don't know what I want anymore. Everything's turned upside down."

"It isn't the same, Goku. You love other things more."

"I can see your eyes, they have a different light. Dark. Dangerous."

He folded arms around his knees. "You make me sound like a maniac."

"I guess I've seen it for a long time, really. But you were so gentle, I tried to discount it as wanderlust."

"In my heart I always wanted adventure, fighting. You knew that."

She snorted. "Hai, nothing changed, even when Gohan was born."

"Did you expect me to turn house husband because we had a child?"

"No...but more responsibility wouldn't hurt. Sometimes I felt you treated family as a joke."

"Moveable pieces you could set aside when you got bored."

She held his face. "I only want the truth. Can you give it to me?"

Dark eyes held hers steadily. "Yes. I am saiyan."

A pause. "No..." he looked away briefly. "Forgive me."

A tear rolled past her eye. "Nothing I didn't already know...I just wanted the truth."

"Better than living a lie. We married so young, I just thought maybe you were unsophisticated. I never realized...you didn't feel the same way."

"But why did you marry me? I don't understand."

"It seemed the right thing to do. Your father pressured me, remember?"

"Hai, at the cost of my feelings. I wasn't a charity case!"

"No, never that. Whatever else you believe, know this. In my mind you could have anyone you want."

She sighed, leaning against him. "I only wanted you."

The saiyans sparred throughout the afternoon, fighting amongst themselves in celebration. A human might call them insane, inflicting wounds and injuries in the name of fun. Three tattered and bloodied forms took a dip in the river.

"A good battle, I'd say" Raditz purred, shaking his mane clear of water.

"Hn, loose bones crack well." Vegeta flexed his fractured arm, wincing.

"I'll get the sensu." Nappa staggered to the keep, a break evident in his tail from fighting.

Raditz laughed at the broken appendage. "Hai, knot tail...get that thing fixed, you look ridiculous."

"How did that kick in the nuts feel, eh?" the bald warrior retorted.

Raditz grunted, holding his groin. "Not good...I'd rather have Kakarot's kisses there! He made a promise."

"You look real sexy with that black eye, rag hair."

"He is still mine." Vegeta reminded them both. "Once claimed, you may do as you wish. This night will be hotter than the last!"

Nappa tossed them sensu. The saiyans instantly healed after ingesting them.

"Nifty beans." Raditz flexed his fingers. "It's good we discovered how to duplicate them."

Vegeta fell back in the grass. "Hai, faster than germination."

Nappa jerked a thumb at the keep cave. "I'm going back inside. My show's coming on!"

Vegeta shook his head. "You and those infernal programs..."

Nappa grunted, grinning. "It's the fifth chapter of As The General Days of My Life Turn For All My Children."

Raditz stared in disbelief. "That's ridiculous."

Nappa tossed a wave. "So what? I like seeing humans act foolish, even in fictional shows."

Vegeta yawned lazily. "I feel somewhat foolish myself..."

Raditz sat at his side. Broad hands massaged curvy shoulders under blue spandex. Soft tremors ran through Vegeta's body in pleasure.

"Hn, Kakarot's right. You have excellent hands, Raditz."

"May I serve my prince this final night of jungle run?"

Goku was restless for most of the afternoon. A strange sense of anticipation he couldn't explain tingled under his skin. Powerful hands chopped firewood in the back.

_I've got to make things right with Chi Chi somehow. But how, without arguing again?_

Goku smiled at his wife. "Me too. Are we something or what?"

He looked her over slowly, taking in the delicate features. Chi Chi wore a multilayered scarf dress that showed her curves. A scoop neckline highlighted her small but high cleavage.

"I'm thinking how pretty you look with your hair down. I almost forget how long it is sometimes."

He stroked the long strands. "Don't you dare."

He pecked her forehead. "Get a fresh start. I never give up, you know."

Chi Chi chuckled. "Tell me about it. I see you've been chopping wood."

"Yeah, there should be plenty...the evenings are pretty crisp now."

She leaned against her saiyan. "It's that transitional time of year. Hot during the day, cool at night."

Chi Chi looked sharply at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Goku rubbed against her. "You're beautiful..."

She blinked in amazement, feeling a rock hard erection against her hip. "I don't believe this..."

Eyes of black velvet smouldered now. "Inside, Chi Chi...I need you really bad."

Hot lips kissed her jawline. "Rrrr....come on!"

Chi Chi panted, feeling her body respond despite her annoyance. "After everything we've said? You think it'll just roll over like-"

A smothering kiss halted her protests as Goku scooped her up. Chi Chi managed to pull her lips free momentarily.

Goku nuzzled her neck as her carried her inside. "Don't fight it, Chi Chi. I can smell your heat."

"Stop smelling stuff! Are you a dog or something?!"

The tall saiyan bounded upstairs with his wife. "I will be."

Goku bounced her mercilessly, his tail flying everywhere. Chi Chi found herself riding a wild saiyan, her own body aflame with need. Arms wrapped around in a crushing embrace as they rocked the bed.

Sharp teeth pressed against her neck, cutting into her haze of lust. In panic she realized his intent, eyes snapping open.

He snarled in her ear, pulling off. A hard kiss prevented Chi Chi from saying anything else as Goku plowed into her.

Anger, confusion and lust swirled a mad mix in her brain, smashing all thought as her body was pummelled.

"Oh Kami..." she moaned as the world went red.

They lay quietly a short time later, Goku grinning like a fool. Chi Chi struggled to sit up, flushed and haggard.

She pulled hair from her eyes. "Go to hell, mister."

He purred in content. "I love it when you look like that."

"Idiot! I'll be sore for a week...are you trying to kill me?!"

"Never." a thick tail looped lazily in the air. Chi Chi sniffed at a spicy fragrance that suddenly filled the room.

Another purr with slitted eyes. "No...you turn me on."

She gawked in astonishment. "What the...you mean?" her eyes nearly popped as a fine mist swirled from the base of Goku's tail. The spicy aroma was overpowering now.

"Oh ghods, this is too freaky!" Chi Chi stumbled out of bed. Goku didn't move to stop her, purring blissfully. A sweet ache heated his bones now, and he sensed the true source.

He glanced lazily out the window at darkening skies. The pattering sound of Chi Chi's shower distracted his thoughts.

_What's she washing off for? I don't understand humans._

Goku blinked, surprised at his own train of thought. "Maybe Chi Chi's right" he whispered to himself. "Maybe I have become alien."

Pulling on a pair of loose pants, he quietly slipped out of the house.