The Saiyajin Pet

Chapter 2: Acclimation

Chapter 2: Acclimation

Vegeta slouched upon a boulder in the enormous greenhouse, face in his hands, as he morosely watched the saiyajin familiarize himself with every inch of his new surroundings.

What the hell was I thinking? he despaired silently. I'll have to keep the groundskeeper out of here, so I suppose now upkeep of this place is my problem, and Father will burst a blood vessel if he finds out I spent four million on "birds." Hggh... Well, Vegeta, you've got your very own Wookie– now what are you going to do with him?

The trip back to the estate had been quite an experience. Kakarot had been cramped into the very narrow backseat along with a cage of terrified, shrieking finches, and unfortunately the shopkeeper had neglected to mention that he'd never been in a car before. Vegeta had tried to impress the creature on the expressway (and perhaps intimidate him a bit, too) by showing off the fast moves and powerful engine of his newest Lamborghini. However, the only result was Kakarot turning green and white and very nearly decorating the backseat of a $300,000 car with saiyan technicolor yawn.

Fortunately he recovered from his car sickness quickly and was thrilled with the place Vegeta declared to be his new home. As they entered the greenhouse, the saiyajin managed to grab his wrist before he could pull away.

:: Friend Vegeta, this is amazing! A little jungle inside a house, a jungle in the city– how beautiful, how perfect! ::

Vegeta gasped and jerked his hand out of his grip; the mental speech unnerved him to no end. "Hey, now! Look, how about you do that only when I offer you my hand, or when you have something really important to tell me."

The saiyan looked at him wistfully, but finally nodded with a small smile and strolled off to tour the area. Vegeta sat on his rock and observed the creature for a time before drifting off, constructing strategies on how to take care of him and hide his presence from his father and the rest of the staff.

Preoccupied with his own concerns, Vegeta lost track of the creature until he landed with a solid thud directly in front of him, making him jump nearly a foot in the air. Having memorized every nook and cranny of his new domain, the saiyajin turned his full attention back to his companion. Kakarot landed only for a moment, grinned at his owner's surprise and then leapt over Vegeta to land again at his back. Vegeta spun in his seat to keep an eye on what he was doing but the saiyajin gripped his shoulders firmly and turned him back.

"Hey! Hold it, what do you think you're–"

Vegeta stopped as he felt long fingers thread through his hair. Slowly, almost ritualistically, the creature continued to comb his hair with his fingers, separating tangled strands and smoothing rumpled areas. Unsure what to think, Vegeta tilted his head just slightly enough to be able to look into his face. Kakarot only smiled genially, almost proudly at him.

Well, I suppose he's not hurting anything, Vegeta surmised, with still some unease as to the creature's intentions. Why in the world would he want to play with my hair?

Then it struck him and he almost laughed at the realization. Grooming. He thinks he's grooming me! He seems to be part monkey, and monkeys pick at each other's fur for cleanliness and as a social behavior.

Satisfied with this answer, Vegeta closed his eyes, sat back against the saiyajin's knees and allowed himself to enjoy the unexpected hair treatment and scalp massage. I suppose I should be offended that he thinks of me as a fellow monkey, he thought, amused. Ah well, I'll let it pass for now; his behavior is interesting. This actually feels nice.

Vegeta sighed, and let his mind wander as he pondered the mystery of the saiyajin.

Sometimes I think Man's biggest mistake was coming down from the trees, he mused. Are we even evolving anymore? Does humanity still maintain "survival of the fittest?" Everything we do seems to go against the natural order. We work ourselves to death, we can't seem to live anywhere without destroying the world around us– we just have to make everything so damn difficult ...