Trusting Strangers (P, NK, Zuq)

Questions upon questions went through went through Zuqetta's mind as she traveled the Earth; there seemed to be hostility in all directions and without her ship there was no making any kind of retreat. In public places she saw occasional battle from a unit that seemed like a super charged police force, and defending herself saw additional conflict from the most un-heroic "heroes" she'd ever met! Through the multitude of fights, she'd begun to pick up on a bit of the situation; she still didn't exactly know who this "Chomei" was, but he was gonna get such the talking too if she ever got the chance to meet him! As well as maybe a bit of a smack to the jaw, a good ol' "Fox Fist Uppercut" as she called it!

That was a concern for later however, for now, she was still on the search she'd originally been on when she came to Earth. Russ wasn't in East City, and revealing her energy to draw him out like she did before had been a HUGE mistake, not one she was gonna be making again. She had pursuers after escaping the city, Jets and some few battle hungry "vigilantes", but these machines and low powered individuals were completely incapable of keeping up, allowing her to give them the slip as she escaped across the sea.

And so, here she was!

She'd arrived at the tail end of a curious fight, a bit short of breath from the constant fighting and over-exertion. Zuqetta would drop down from above, landing just at the edge of the battle, immediately taking notice of the sprawled out bodies littering the ground. In the center of the field of battle, a strange looking blue creature about the same height as her holding a heckuva massive egg!

"A Majin?" Zuqetta question, before looking back towards the men and seeing the guns they'd been holding, "Heh, ooooookay, I see what's up here!" she'd laugh, before shaking her and and taking a few steps forward. She'd look towards the Majin with a rather intense stare, before looking back down towards one of the men she stood by. In a swift motion, Zuqetta would lift a leg and crush the rifle that was to his side, giving a heavy sigh before crossing her arms, "You were just tryin' ta enjoy a meal, and these idiots came tryin' ta hurt ya? Is that it?" she'd ask rhetorically with a huff, "So their ire ain't just towards Saiyans, well I'm happy ta not be singled out a guess, but the nerve!"

She'd continue walking towards the Majin, intentionally stomping out the rifles of the few men she passed before reaching her. She'd offer the girl a smile, her tail swaying about behind her playfully as a sign of her lacking hostility.

"Sorry ya had ta deal with that, I'm glad ya didn't kill 'em though! That was nice of ya!" she'd say happily, an awkward expression coming to her face as she thought of something, "Had these guys tried somethin' like this with my cousin... ehhh, I'd rather not think about it." she'd say, laughing a bit, "Anyways, nice ta meetcha! I'm Zuqetta-" she'd introduce, before looking towards the Majin's egg with a wide eyed expression, "-hey do ya... happen ta have anymore?" she'd ask, pointing lightly towards the egg, "I haven't eaten all day, I could REALLY go for just about anything!" she'd finish, nearly drooling from the thought of having scrambled eggs from an huge THAT huge.

Zuqetta gave a sigh of relief at Laezi's response; having dealt with war, and no small amount of fighters who thought it best to end the lives of assailants, it was a nice breath of fresh air to meet someone NORMAL for once! Zuqetta nodded in agreement, not hurting people was the normal thing to do!

She'd been just a bit panicked when Laezi previously fiddled with the rifle, but recalled the elasticity of Jinx; if the girl ended up shooting herself, it'd have likely been little more than a tickle for her, but Zuqetta thought it best not to let her develop any weird habits. Luckily, the issue resolved itself as the girl seemed to toss the rifle aside.

When Zuqetta had mentioned the egg, the Majin had reacted almost immediately; she very clearly seemed defensive over the egg, something Zuqetta could understand quite well. Had Zuqetta herself been so starving and procured such a thing, only to be constantly attacked for it, even she'd be pretty defensive and wary. To her surprise however, something changed with the Majin; her demeanor softened as she thought about Zuqetta's words for a moment. The result, something that caused Zuqetta's eyes to widen with a momentary joy and excitement.

"Really!?" she'd exclaim, nearly jumping in place as her mind raced with anticipation for the upcoming meal. She'd reach out, but immediately pull back, conflicted over the choice, "Wait, no!" she'd protect, shaking her head, "That's YOUR egg, you earned it, and you need to eat too!" she'd explain, though the rumbling of her stomach nor riled by the anticipation betrayed her.

She actually wasn't too sure if the Majin needed to eat; if she based her assumption off of Jinx, then it didn't seem like she'd need to. Jinx was fairly tall however, much taller than Laezi. Laezi was about the same size as Zuqetta herself, so it made her wonder if Majin's actually DID need to eat in order to gain the same kind of mass to be as big as Jinx. Curious questions for later, or maybe even never considering there was nothing to be gained from such information. For now, the focus should have remained on the idea of food!

Zuqetta would take a deep breath, steeling her resolve and ignoring her growling tummy. "How about this-!" Zuqetta would remark, lifting her index as she spoke, "Since you're willing to share, instead of giving me the whole egg, why don't I cook it for us?" she'd say happily, "You found it, I'll cook it! We will have done half the work, so we can both share it together!" she'd smile, hoping the girl would think it a decent enough idea, "And if not that, I don't mind goin' off ta find another. I've never seen an egg THAT big before!"

Even if Laezi accepted the first option, Zuqetta wouldn't have been against finding more eggs regardless, more than happy for the two of them to eat their fill if they could!

There was a clear confusion that flashed upon Laezi's face upon the initial denial of the egg, portrayed by a mix of constantly changing emotions before she seemingly became neutral as if her thoughts had fled her momentarily. Zuqetta would have been worried for the girl, but the idea she'd pitched was immediately jumped upon, with Laezi beaming with delight and enthusiasm. She'd forced the egg over to Zuqetta, the girl taking it with the utmost caution not to drop it and ruin their meal. Holding it, she found herself even more impressed; it was the same size she was and pretty heavy, with a shell surprisingly hard. She wondered what kind of creature it could've hatched into, but quickly dismissed the thought, with MORE interest in how it was gonna taste!

"Hehehe, you got it!" Zuqetta would cheer, releasing the egg from her grip.

To the surprise of an onlooker however, the egg would not fall; Zuqetta having immediately taken to using her telekinesis to keep it airborne as she prepared. She salivated in anticipation for the meal, fidgeting with delight as she began to materialize components. A skillet, a metal frame to act as a stove top, utensils and plates. She'd look over the plates and skillet, then back to the egg, raising a brow; with a snap of her fingers, the plates would double in size, while the skillet tripled, being now plenty large enough to cook upon.

Laezi had begun to make inquires however, the first of which caused Zuqetta to give a long drawn sigh. She'd pout as she turned her attention towards the previously armed men, her tail reaching out and flipping he unconscious man over.

"Well, I guess not THIS guy specifically-" she'd remark, looking back over towards the rest of the fallen forces, "-but all these armed Earthlings. They blew up my ship for some reason, and they've been chasing me and I haven't done a thing wrong!" she'd explain with a huff; luckily, it'd been a nuisance more than a terrible problem, so she wasn't near any kind of breaking point yet.

Laezi's next question however was something that caused Zuqetta's eyes to sparkle!

"Really!?" she'd exclaim, "You think it's cool?" she'd question happily, moving left and right to show it off before turning about with a small twirl, smiling profusely, "Thank you! Thank you so much! I thought it looked super cool too, like a knight!" she'd cheer, her expression softening a bit, "Most at the palace think it's too strange, or soft. I've had plenty saying it makes me look weak..." she'd sigh, shaking her head and looking back towards Laezi excitedly, "But, I could make you something similar, if ya like that is." she'd remark, her tail swaying back and forth behind her excitedly, "I made it myself after all, materialized it with magic!"

Laezi jumping about certainly made for a bit of a laugh, though as her antics continued, Zuqetta couldn't help but to begin taking notice of something. From her steaming mad demeanor, to her childish rambunctiousness, Laezi seemed pretty bouncing and outgoing with her emotions. She shifted from one emotion to the next in quick succession, but to her credit, they were at least in favor of Zuqetta herself. There was a small worry when the Majin knocked away one of the men with a kick, but with his groan, she was relieved to know he'd just been pushed around a bit, nothing he couldn't handle most likely. Still, Laezi's demeanor was much different than Jinx, that was for sure; Jinx could be pretty excitable as well, but always came off a bit more... mature?

The thought wouldn't last long, as Laezi's sudden compliment had Zuqetta blushing with a pretty smug smile. She hadn't felt this way since the days she was constantly in contest with Zerori. Of course, thinking back on it now, she felt pretty bad about it considering those contests were typically for Zriracha's praise and affection, at least from Zuqetta's side.

"Hehehe, I try~!" she'd remark, her tail coming around to rub smugly at her nose as she crossed her arms.

Laezi had lunged forward, much to Zuqetta's surprise; she'd lowered the egg with her telekinesis in case Laezi sought to tackle her. Her posture suggested she may have intended a hug, but Zuqetta didn't intend to take chances with the egg. To her surprise however, Laezi would swiftly sneak around and jump forward with a kiss planted firmly on Zuqetta's left cheek.

"It's no problem at all!" she'd laugh, watching as Laezi jumped around excitedly just for some clothes, "Heheh, outfits are my specialty!" she'd explain with an accentuated accent on the word "specialty", rubbing her cheek with her tail before turning her attention back to the egg setup, "I have a whole wardrobe capsuled I could show off--!" she'd say excitedly, before quickly stopping herself, "Err, had rather, but it was lost when my ship was blown up... well, I can still materialize new clothes, so no worries there!"

As she spoke, she'd lift a hand and give a snap of her fingers; as she did, a swathe of white sparkles would spread across the area and out into the trees. Moments later, twigs and larger dried branches would begin to quickly float into the area, setting themselves up beneath the burner she'd set up. Another wave of her hand would see the sparkles of light fluctuate around Laezi's unconscious victims; they'd be pulled off to the treeline as a few ropes were materialized to tie them in groups against the largest trees.

"I didn't think you'd be so excited though, hehe, you're like a big kid!" she'd laugh, not minding too much considering how childish she herself was, especially when it came to things she liked, "Actually, you have a pretty interesting armor yourself. Where'd ya get somethin' like that on Earth?" she'd ask, "Oh! And how would ya like your eggs?" she'd finish with a grin, materializing an incredibly large bowl directly beside her with the intention to do scrambled if Laezi had no preference herself.

Zuqetta would have a moment of contemplation while she continued to work on their meal; much to her embarrassment, Laezi really WAS a big kid! Though, they didn't considering themselves a child, but that didn't really make Zuqetta feel any less embarrassed. "Are... are you sure?" she'd ask with a somewhat nervous laugh, "You're the same size as me, are ya sure you're not just a biiiiiiiiiiiiit older?" she'd give a small sigh, finally coming to terms with her own unfortunate small size. Ayu was still smaller than her at least, but she knew it was only a matter of time before even she outgrew her.

She would let it go, there was nothing to be had pestering Laezi about such a thing; her self-conscious behavior was merely beginning to get the better of her. Instead, she focused on the eggs, using the bit of magic granted by Ayu to listen to the voices of the nearby plant life. She couldn't yet grow plants as Ayu could, that power lost once they're swapped their magics back, but being able to listen to nature allowed her to still find what she was looking for.

"Anyways, scrambled it is!!" she'd cheer excitedly, scrambled eggs being her favorite!

A flurry of magic seemed to spiral around the area almost haphazardly, all while the massive egg loomed above peacefully. Zuqetta seemed to juggle multiple magical tasks at once, her focus on the job intense. Each of the items she summoned would float on their own with telekinesis, growing in size to accommodate the size of the massive egg. She was glad to have such an ability, as using such large instruments with her hands would have been downright comical!

"Oh, be careful by the way, don't touch this no matter how pretty it looks!" she'd warn, summoning a concentrated ball of light that would float a short few feet away from Zuqetta.

Further plants would swoop in from the woods, nuts, stalks of root, and strangely fragrant bushels of leaves. A bucket would fly in as well, carrying some acquired water. With a bit of more dangerous appearing magic, the nuts would be coupled with the water and placed into a perfectly sealed glass container, only to be placed into the ball of light and spun rapidly. The roots and leaves however would begin to be chopped upon a floating cutting board, diced up into unrecognizable slivers.

"Heheh, Ayu always loves when I use magic to cook, I hope you're enjoying the show yourself!" she'd say with a laugh, materializing a whisk next which would grow in size and float with the bowl, "So, your mom gave ya that huh? Hehe, my mom left me some armor too, but I don't wear it anymore." Zuqetta would begin to explain as the massive bowl would float down to her level, "Not because I don't like it, but I wanted to stand out amongst the rest of the Saiyans in Sadala. I wanted them to always be able to recognize me." she'd say, her tone becoming somewhat more somber as she spoke, "I never knew my mom, So I don't really know what it's like ta have one... I mean, I've read books and seen other moms, so I have a good enough idea I suppose!"

Zuqetta seemed to forcibly shrug off her somberness, ignoring the bit of emotion she'd begun to feel. She'd hold her hand out towards the egg, giving a gesture of her finger and calling the egg over to her; the grande finale was at hand, and taking the massive into her grip she'd give in a seeming soft tap with her knuckle, before opening the thing above the bowl and allowing the yolk to fall within.

"Now I've got Ayu and barely know---" Zuqetta would sigh, shaking her head before looking back towards Laezi, "Hehe, if ya don't wanna be a kid, I won't argue with ya, but I will say you're missin' ouuuut~!" she'd say, somewhat teasingly, "Kid's get hugs, and free food, and tons of love and affection! Adults have ta work, be all serious, and have ta be suuuuuuuuuuper boring." she'd explain, laughing just a bit as the whisk would float down and begin beating the egg yolk.

Laezi began to explain her perspective on what having a mother was like, something that began to cause Zuqetta's heart to tighten. She was glad to be facing away from Laezi as her eyes became a bit watery, but with a deep breath, she'd suppress the growing emotion if only for the sake of not worrying the incredibly emotional Majin.

The whisk would continue to beat the eggs lightly, as the chopped ingredients were added; meanwhile, Zuqetta would turn her attention to Laezi, approaching her and placing a hand on Laezi's head softly.

"Heheh, adults still hurt, just in a different way, and we hide it well." she'd remark, giving Laezi a smile, "And when we hurt, there isn't usually anyone around to hug you and make it better. As for everything else? Well, I guess that depends on who you're dealing with." she'd say, giving a light hum of a sigh as she envied Laezi's innocence.

"Now then, don't think I can't hear that tummy of yours!" she'd say, furrowing her brow before rubbing Laezi's head more aggressively, "I'll finish this up lickity split!"

Imitating a gun with her fingers, she'd reach behind her and shot a bolt of ki at the wood that'd been gathered beneath the burner, setting it ablaze. The overly large pan would set upon it, quickly becoming red; at the same time, the glass that'd been within the magic orb would be withdrawn and moved to the bowl, with the glass de-materializing, the contents would be added to the bowl and whisked into a fluffy light yellow hue. With oil delicately squeeze from a root added to the pan, finally the cooking process would commence as the mixture in the bowl was added to the pan!

Unlike the prep time, the cooking time would be incredibly faster by comparison, the delicious smell of the eggs along with the added ingredients wafting through the air pleasantly. In only a couple minutes, the fluffy yellow scrambled eggs were ready; Zuqetta would materialize a rather large table, placing the previously materialized plates upon it and portioning out the eggs evenly between the two.

"Heheh, sorry if ya felt tortured by the wait!" she'd remark, materializing a pair of forks in hand and offering one to Laezi, "Now, hungry as ya might be, try not ta scarf it all down in one go! Eat it nice and slowly or you'll give yourself a tummy ache." she'd warn, materializing a pair of chairs and taking a seat upon one before her own plate of eggs. She'd de-materializing all the rest of the cooking components, snuffing out the fire with a large metal lid, before finally taking a bite from her eggs. She'd flinch, momentarily surprised, but with a long happy hum she would relax, enjoying the savory flavor and fluffy texture of her impromptu creation.

Zuqetta could feel her heart tighten one more at the second mention of a mother, but she'd already steeled herself. She'd give it a bit of thought, smiling instead even as weakly as the smile might have been, wondering if Laezi might've been right, but it wasn't something she was likely to ever find out. She was happy enough that Laezi was able to enjoy the show, laughing a bit as she took notice of Laezi emulating her actions. The two had both found their seats and Laezi was beginning to enjoy her meal, with Zuqetta doing much the same, holding herself back from simply devouring the portion in an instant. Her own stomach growled ferociously, but she refused to be the reason an impressionable child would develop bad habits!

As the two ate however, Laezi would double back on her previous question; to which Zuqetta would finish off another forkful before speaking.

"Well, adult stuff is complicated-" she'd begin, placing her fork on her plate and staring off into the sky, "Like you said, there's plenty of adults everywhere, but adults need to look after themselves and their families first before they concern themselves with others. And it wouldn't help to make others worried, so if something hurts them and someone close to them can't help, it's better to keep it secret otherwise the hurt you suffer will hurt another person, and you'll be dealing with two problems instead of one."

She wasn't too sure if that explanation made sense, especially now that she realized how young Laezi was; she'd close her eyes, crossing her arms and thinking for a bit. The nice breeze of the outdoors and ambient sounds of nature serving to calm her nerves and bringing a smile to her face.

"But you said you're an adult, yeah? Well, despite my size I'm an adult too Laezi, but I'm much older than I appear." Zuqetta would begin to explain, looking back to Laezi, "Even if you can do things on your own, and even if you grow really big really fast, most don't consider you an adult until you're eighteen, which is what I am. So to me, you're just like my little Ayu. You might stand as tall as me, but you're still a child from my perspective." realizing Laezi might take offense, Zuqetta would quickly follow up, "I'll bet you and Ayu would get along well and have a lot of fun, but she can be rather shy." she'd explain, laughing just a bit as a much more genuine smile came to her face.

Quick, her gaze would narrow however as a bit of a teasing smirk came to her face, "Also, hehe, you shouldn't talk with your mouth full!"

She couldn't help but to laugh as she included that bit of observation; despite Laezi being a few years older than Ayu, she was certainly much more immature!