Chapter 1: Late Night Java
I've never seen two people that fight more than my parents, Trunks thought, shaking his head as he wandered around the small, lush park. It was a chilly night, but he was wearing his Capsule Corp. jacket and didn't feel the crispness in the air. His parents were having a fight for the fifth time that day and he hadn't wanted to stick around and listen to them bicker at each other a second longer.
Walking through the serene setting of the park, his lavender hair swayed gently in the breeze as he looked up at the glistening night sky. I wonder just how many worlds there are up there that we don't even know exist...
Trunks enjoyed the park in darkness more than any other time. Usually, he would walk through the crowded sidewalks during the day and be bombarded by anonymous girls asking him for a date or a phone number. He was extremely shy and easily embarrassed, so he usually just hurried as fast as he could to escape the madness before everyone saw the rosy color of his cheeks.
He knew he was good looking, but he didn't handle girls all that well. That was Goten's department. He chuckled at the thought of his life-long friend and the many girlfriends he had accumulated over the years. Trunks had had girlfriends too, but they were never...well...right. After a few weeks, the spark that had drawn him to a certain girl would fade away like a dying ember, and leave him right back where he had started.
Suddenly, he sensed something with his ki. He looked up as he heard the sound of an object coming fast and furious towards him through the air. His gaze darted everywhere but he couldn't pinpoint where the sound was coming from. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a sword with a razor sharp edge flying at his head. Before he could grab it though, he found himself face down on the ground, just barely avoiding a very close haircut.
He looked over his shoulder to see what had pushed him, and was prepared to counter attack, when his eyes rested on the owner of the weapon. It was a young woman, maybe twenty or so, with elegant chestnut hair and the body of a goddess. She was sporting a clinging black tank top and baggy dark blue jeans. Surprisingly, what kept his interest were her lavender eyes, shining out from underneath an extremely concerned countenance.
"Gomen nasai," she apologized, her eyes reflecting her sincerity. "I was just practicing over there and then you came out of nowhere! I'm sorry if I pushed you a little hard but I figured you'd rather have a few scrapes instead of a missing head!" she rushed to explain herself. This had not been the best of nights.
"Don't worry about it! Daijobu," he replied, his eyes scanning the weapon. "That's some blade you've got there, though. You been practicing long?"
She sheathed her sword into the case strapped to her back. I guess it's the only way to travel, Trunks mused.
"I've been using it ever since I can remember. It's sort of a family thing," Kari told him. She didn't dare tell him that her family had been known as the best group of swordsmen on Arquinia.
"Honto? Me, too! I mean, I've been fighting with one since I was little."
She reached down a hand to pull him up and yanked him onto his feet. He was taken aback by her strength, and even by her speed in reaching him before he could react to the threat. Maybe she just works out a lot. Besides, Krillin is human and he's really strong. Who am I kidding? He's the strongest human on Earth!
"Again, gomen nasai. I don't ever mean to kill people when I come here," she apologized meekly. Glancing up at the darkening cloudy night sky she said, "Well, I better get going, it looks like it's about to rain. Maybe I'll see you around." She turned to leave, her chestnut hair swaying gently behind her in the sudden cool breeze that had stirred the stillness of the evening.
For reasons beyond his comprehension, Trunks felt he couldn't let her leave just yet. Something in his gut was telling him there was more to this girl than what met the eye. "Hey, do you want to go get a cup of coffee or something? Coffee always calms my nerves after a brush with death," he offered, grinning.
At first, she hesitated. She knew the conversation would turn to the rudimentary things like family and home, and she wasn't prepared to let down her defenses surrounding her true identity for anyone. Still, something about his smile and the circumstances convinced her. Her instincts had never steered her wrong before... Besides, coffee sounds pretty good right now. "Hai, why not? By the way, I'm Kari. And you are...?"
"Trunks, Trunks Briefs," he supplied, extending his hand towards her.
"Alright then, Trunks, let's go have some coffee," Kari said, shaking his hand as she flashed a friendly smile at him.
He was absolutely bewildered by her, like she was a spool of mystery just waiting to be unthread one delicate strand at a time. He wanted to know more about her, her skills, where she came from, anything and everything.
They walked down the dim, deserted streets and found a small twenty-four hour coffee shop and stepped inside just as the rain started coming down. They ordered their coffee and sat down at a table by the window, watching the rain as it came down in sheets and thunder and lightning clapped incessantly. Talking as they sipped, Trunks began to learn a little more about the history behind this mysterious woman.
At least, it was what he thought was the truth behind her. Kari had plenty of stories to spin for any chance occasion such as this.
Her parents had put her up for adoption when she was nine, and as a last present they had given her a sword. Life at the adoption center was miserable for her and so she ran away. She had been living on her own since then and hadn't ever had a place to call home. Immediately Trunks offered his house to her, after all it was huge, but she said she had finally saved up enough money from odd jobs to rent her own apartment and had already put a bid in.
In return, Kari learned much about the young man in front of her whom she had previously thought common.
He lived in a mansion of a house and his mother was the president of Capsule Corporation, Bulma Briefs. His father, Vegita, was brusque and curt most of the time. He was always cutting him down or commenting on his weakness of strength, but sometimes, far and few between, he would get a word of praise from his father. He knew his dad cared for him, his pride just wouldn't allow him to show it, and so Trunks didn't mind the constant berating.
His parents fought and bickered incessantly, though, and that's why he came to the park often at night. But he knew they both loved one another very much and they demonstrated unswerving loyalty towards each other when things got rough. Kari was absolutely transfixed by the stories that this lavender-haired young man was telling her, and she felt her a small part of her defenses slowly being chipped away by the gentleness in the depths of those cobalt orbs.
At one-thirty she announced it was time to head home. As they were leaving the coffee shop, though, something flashed through Trunks' mind. "Oi, can I have your phone number?" he asked innocently. He felt as if there was a great deal more to this young woman than what she was telling him, and he fully intended to find out what it was. He wanted to rid himself of this nagging feeling in his gut and satisfy his curiosity.
Seeing the surprised and guarded expression on her face at the mention of his request, he quickly added a reason to his last question. "Maybe we could do something this weekend. You can meet my best friend, Goten. He's a nice guy but, if he gets carried away, just smack him and it should be fine," Trunks said with a chuckle in his voice.
Kari regarded him warily, not knowing what to make of his sudden impulsive suggestion. She felt her defenses quickly rise up once again, until a gentle voice inside of her urged her to let down her walls, just this once. Damn my instincts. They're going to get me killed. "Hai. I don't have a home phone number, but I do have a cell phone."
They exchanged numbers and sayonaras, and then went their separate ways. The rain was finally letting up and the sky was once again becoming visible between the scattered storm clouds. The stars were twinkling almost mischievously beside the pale crescent moon, as if whispering amongst themselves that this chance meeting between the two was more than just a simple twist of fate.
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