Part 2

The morning serenade of singing birds rang through the young girl’s ears. She started to come out of her dreamland, the only place she seemed to find happiness. Her eyes opened a tiny slit, but the brightness of the morning sun stung them enough to close again.

Finally, after telling herself over and over that it was time to get up, she sat up and looked around. She was still in the same corner of the arena where she had been the day before. She had only hoped she would wake up in her own warm bed to find it all a dream.

Alas, it wasn’t. However, she did feel warmer than she had. After realizing this, she looked down to see a blanket draped over her body. She couldn’t believe it. Where had that come from? Cell? No, it couldn’t possibly be that he felt sorry for her…

Speaking of the devil, he was nowhere in sight. Alora got to her feet and stretched her aching body. She looked around again, including the sky, but he wasn’t there. “Where do androids go in the morning?” she asked a blue bird looking for its breakfast on the dirt next to the arena.

A sharp pain in her stomach followed by a small rumble gave her the thought of food. Her dry throat wasn’t helping the matter either. Although, now that she thought of it, she remembered seeing a stream when they drove out here yesterday. Cell wouldn’t know if she ran out there to see what she could find. She’d come back, of course; that way she wouldn’t cause any trouble with him.

Alora folded the blanket neatly and placed it next to the pillar. Looking around before she left, she hopped off the platform and hurried in the direction she thought they came. Luckily, she had guessed right and she saw the stream not to far ahead.

The girl quickly knelt down and used her good arm to bring water up to her mouth. The coldness felt good going down her dried out mouth and throat. Now if she could only find something to eat.

“You weren’t trying to run away, now where you,” a deep voice asked her.

Alora jumped up to her feet to meet those sharp magenta eyes. “I was thirsty, so I came here. Nothing more.”

Cell smirked. “So, you were intending on coming back.”

“Yes…”

“Good.” Cell took off into the air and went back towards the arena.

Alora couldn’t believe he just left her there like that. “Well thank you for the lift back!” Her stomach yelled at her for food once again, but unfortunately there was nothing edible around. Sighing deeply, she went on towards the arena. Her arm ached, making her wish that she had Advil with her. But her purse was in Justin’s car, which is now a pile of ashes.

Cell looked slightly over his shoulder to see the girl walking back to him. To his delightful surprise, she was coming back. “Interesting. She wants to leave more than anything, yet she’ll come back. Loyal human.”

Alora sat on the edge of the ring, her back towards the android. They remained silent, or that is until Alora’s stomach called out again. She cringed a bit, hoping that he didn’t hear.

A boyish chuckle caused her to cringe even more. “I’m glad you find my starving humorous, Cell.”

“I do. A pity that you can’t survive without food or water.”

“Why must you find it so funny to mock humans all the time? Are you jealous or something?”

“Jealous?” Cell laughed. “Why in the world would I be jealous of such inferior creatures? I’m much more powerful than any of them will ever be.”

“Perhaps strength wise, but you’ll always lack the qualities we all possess.”

Her words echoed in his head for a while. “And what qualities would that be?”

Alora sighed, finding it annoying that she had to explain everything to him. “Honestly Cell, if you’re so perfect, why must I explain things to you?”

“Fine. I won’t bother to ask a simple question again. It just seemed fair for you to answer a small question after what I’ve done for you.” She heard him slide around on his feet so his back would face her’s.

“After what you’ve done for me? You mean starving me to death, making me sleep on the hard surface, and almost killing me twice? That’s the sort of kindness I should expect from you?”

“Oh stop complaining. I was nice enough to find you a blanket so you’d stop shivering last night. And I also went through the trouble of finding you food, which you haven’t even noticed is under that blanket.”

Alora’s eyes went wide. Food? She quickly leaned over and picked the blanket up. She couldn’t believe her eyes. There she saw two apples, a banana, and a muffin. “Where…did you get these?”

“Its amazing what you can get when you kindly ask others for something.” He smirked, remembering the man in the black and white outfit in what humans call a restaurant. They had been very helpful.

Alora couldn’t hold herself back from eating. She quickly gobbled the banana and muffin down and bit into the first apple.

“Nothing like saying thank you,” Cell said only loud enough for her to hear.

Alora looked up and felt bad that she had accused him for treating her badly…well, not completely. He had hurt her and is holding her hostage, but for the most part, he had shown her some kindness.

When she had finished the two apples, she wiped her mouth with her sleeve. “Thank you,” she said finally. It hadn’t been that loud of a reply, but she knew he heard it. Only she didn’t expect him to start walking over to her.

“Here,” he said with only his eyes looking towards her, keeping his head held high. His hand opened and let a small bean fall into her lap.

Alora looked at it, picking it up in her dirty hands. “What is it?”

“A sensu bean. One of the competitors was so nice as to let me have one.”

She was still a bit confused. “I don’t understand. What does it do?”

“Well eat it and find out.”

Alora did so and was amazed at what she felt only a few seconds later. It was as if she was as good as new. She felt strong and alive.

“You’ll find that your arm is healed. You don’t need those disgusting bandages anymore.” And with that, he went back to the center of the ring with his arms crossed and his eyes closed.

Purple eyes were shocked to see that the results were true. Her arm was healed; no more blood and no more pain from the break. It was a total miracle. But why…that was her only question.

“I thought you didn’t possess those qualities,” she said slowly to herself.

Cell didn’t turn his head. He rather just asked her to repeat what she said, although he did hear her the first time.

“I said before that you don’t possess any human qualities. I was wrong.” She got to her feet and took a few steps towards him, not quite sure what a safe distance would be. “You can be kind if you want to.”

Silence. The android didn’t say a single word. Alora took that as a signal to leave the subject alone for now. She didn’t feel like getting into another argument.

A little later in the day, Alora awoke from another nap that she had taken. She had nothing else to do, that is. She wasn’t surprised when she saw that the android hadn’t moved since she last checked. He seemed to be either meditating or sleeping himself, yet he didn’t even sway back and forth from standing for the past three hours.

After being cold the night before, and wishing she had a jacket, Alora was beginning to feel the exact opposite. The late spring sun was getting hotter as the day went on, and she wished that she had a pair of shorts with her. Her only alternative was to take her shoes and socks off. She had hoped the sudden noise of movement would’ve sparked the android to look over, but alas, he didn’t budge.

“So,” she started, getting a bit tired of the silence. “How many more days until the tournament?”

The only response she got was a gust of wind blowing through, stirring some of the dust on the ground. She pulled her knees to her chest and looked to the side, wondering what she did to keep him so quiet all the time.

“Four,” Cell replied after the silence seemed to have stretched out far enough.

Alora looked at him, a little happier that he finally answered her. “Oh,” she said.

“You’re keeping something from me,” he started.

Raising an eyebrow, Alora asked, “What?”

The android’s back was still facing her, his black wings shinning in the sunlight. “Human qualities. You said I could be kind if I wanted to. That’s only one quality. You said it in the plural form. What are the others?”

“Respect, honor, love…” she started, remembering a similar conversation she had had with her father before he died. He had told her to always be kind, give everyone respect, honor your family, and love all. She smiled as she remembered this, knowing that even the perfect Cell wouldn’t understand such things.

“I have honor. I do have Saiyan DNA in my body. I only respect those who are a match against me, which there are few,” the android said as he turned around to face her.

“But you don’t have love. And you probably never will.”

“There you go again, acting as if you know me better than I know myself.”

“Explain this to me then, Cell, what does love mean to you?”

Cell pondered for a moment as he thought of a decent answer to her question. “It’s a foolish human emotion. I have no use for it, nor is it necessary to have.”

“Ah, but you’re wrong there. Without love, you can’t have respect and honor, or kindness.”

“You yourself said I showed you kindness.”

“Yes, but only a few times. When you love someone, you always give them kindness, not just when you feel like it. It’s as simple as that, Cell. You probably have the ability, but you just don’t want to use it.”

Cell stood in silence once again. He was tired of her getting the best of him in almost every conversation they engaged in. He hated to admit that she was right though. He didn’t have respect or honor for anyone but himself.

The android was starting to understand what the girl had been telling him, and it was something that he didn’t want to mull over. Why does a perfect being as myself need such foolish nonsense? I have no use for it. Its pointless nonsense, just…pointless.

Alora wondered what he was thinking. He seemed to be in a sort of trance himself. She wished that something would sink into his head and he’d stop this ridiculous idea of destroying the world. As time went on, she didn’t have the heart to see him get hurt, although she knew he deserved a good kick in the face.

His smooth voice startled her, probably because she didn’t expect him to continue on with their conversation. “Alora,” he said. “Go home.”

Alora looked him curiously. “What did you say?” She asked having trouble remember what he had just said, as if the words went in one ear and out the other.

“I said go home. You don’t need to stay here anymore. I don’t want you to be the prize. Just go.”

“I’m…free?”

Cell’s answer was picking her up with one arm wrapped around her waist. He flew steadily, yet quickly towards the city that he figured she came from. It didn’t take long, and when he was on the outskirts of the town, he placed her down and expected her to run away. However, her actions were the exact opposite. Instead she stood there and looked up at him innocently.

“Why are you just standing there? I said go home,” he told her once again.

Alora smiled and reached her hand up to touch his face. Cell’s head leaned back a bit, but let her hand touch his skin. “Thank you, Cell. Good luck in the games.”

The android’s eyes followed her down the street until he could no longer see her jogging off. He took to the air once again and went back to the only place he could call home. On the way, he had the urge several times to look behind to see if he might still be able to see her. Only once, did he give in to his desire.

Alora didn’t stop jogging until she reached the front steps of her small condo. She saw her mom’s car parked in the garage-less driveway, obviously having taken a day off from work because of her daughter’s disappearance.

“Mother!” She called as she knocked on the front door, having lost her keys with her purse.

“Alora!” her mother called as she opened the door. “Alora! Alora, where in Kami’s name have you been? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine Mom. Really, I am,” she assured her mother. “I was in an accident with Contessa and Destiny yesterday, but I’m alright now.”

Alora’s mother couldn’t find it within herself to release her daughter from the tight hug, but finally the teenager asked to be able to breathe again.

Night fell onto Alora’s part of the earth once again. This time she was in warm clothes, and would be sleeping in a comfortable bed. However, she couldn’t stop staring out of her bedroom window. It faced the south, which is where the Cell Games would be taking place. Though she knew he was an evil android out to kill every living thing, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. His smooth voice and soft eyes kept reflecting in her memory. Perhaps one day, she’d see him again.