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It was the day of Vegeta’s coronation. He’d been up for hours, and had recently started pacing. This was supposed to be an exciting event for him, why was he pulsing with anxiety? He chalked it up to the fact that Kakarot was being crowned, as well, as King Consort. He supposed he was anxious for Kakarot, who’d spent years proving himself to the royal court. They’d only fairly recently accepted him as Vegeta’s mate and promoted him to Vegeta’s Royal Guard, and allowed him to sleep in the same bed as the prince. The two had been mated for years, secretly, before revealing the secret.
The rustling of sheets caught his attention, and the prince turned to his mate, who was blinking sleep out of his eyes, arms stretched over his head as he yawned. “Whatcha pacing for, Geets?” he rasped, voice scratchy from sleep.
“Have you forgotten what day it is, Kakarot?” Vegeta stopped pacing and crossed his arms over his chest.
Kakarot blinked, pushing the sheets off, and as Vegeta expected, he was completely naked. Of course. “Uhh… yes?” He scratched the back of his neck, looking sheepish.
“It’s my - our coronation. You know, the ceremony where I become king? And put some clothes on, please.” Vegeta heaved out a sigh, throwing boxers at Kakarot, who pulled them on with a teasing frown.
“I thought you liked seeing me naked.” Kakarot pouted, smirking at the way Vegeta’s cheeks flushed. “When’s the coronation, anyways? And why am I being coronated? I’m not royalty or anything like that.”
This wasn’t the first time Kakarot had asked this. More like the fiftieth time. “Because, Kakarot, you’re my mate. You’re important to the crown and the future of our planet." He placed a soft, chaste kiss on his mate’s lips, eyeing the bruises he’d left all over him the night before. “Might want to cover those up, Kakarot.” He said, deciding he really needed to get ready for the coronation. His father would lose his mind if Vegeta was less than an hour early, and they were really pushing it.
Sifting through battle suits and armor, Vegeta finally withdrew the outfit only by touch. He found the whole outfit to be pretentious, but he could appreciate it, now. “Kakarot? Would you dress me?” He gently set the outfit, cape and all, on the bed. This was a test. The outfit was complicated at best to put on.
“Of course, my lord.” Damn him. Kakarot knew very well what that specific title did to him. He was trying for a quickie. He wasn’t going to get it. Kakarot stripped any unnecessary clothing Vegeta had put on last night, tossing that aside.
“You’re insatiable. We went several rounds last night and you still want more?” Vegeta teased as Kakarot began to dress him, pulling on his armor and fastening his cape. Kakarot at least had the decency to blush, but the younger Saiyan simply shrugged, as if it was a nonissue.
“I can’t help it. I’m addicted to you, Vegeta. You’re gorgeous.” He stepped back once all of Vegeta’s clothes were on, stepping back to admire his handiwork. “There. I believe I did everything correctly.” He smoothed the cape out with a gentle hand and gave Vegeta a short kiss on the lips before he went over and pulled on his much less complicated outfit.
Once Kakarot was dressed, Vegeta was dragging him to his father’s quarters, where he had been ordered to come. His father gazed appraisingly at the two of them before nodding his approval. For the first time in Vegeta’s life, he realized the King was old. His beard was gray and he just looked tired. He’d been ruling his people for a few hundred years, as the Saiyan lifespan was just that. A few hundred years. The royal family lived longer, naturally.
On stiff limbs, the King pushed himself up and approached his son, who bowed. “No need for that, my son. You’ll rank above me, soon enough. Are you ready to inherit the throne of the House of Vegeta?” It was a loaded question. Are you ready to inherit the throne? Are you ready to rule your people and make decisions that could affect your people in the future? Ready for all the responsibility?
And Vegeta had only one answer. “Yes, father. I’ve been ready for this for my whole life.” He said, head held high. He looked over to Kakarot, who gave him an encouraging smile and a nod.
And, finally, the King’s gaze turned to his mate. “And Kakarot?” Kakarot’s head snapped over to the King, mirroring Vegeta’s head dip. “Behave yourself and don’t make a mockery of the royal court. However… this is your moment as much as it is Vegeta’s, so… congratulations.”
Kakarot’s eyes widened. That meant a lot from the King, who had never spoken positively to him before. “Thank you, your highness.”
The King merely nodded. “I’m sure you’re aware of the procedure? You will accompany Vegeta, as his royal guard. It is your job to make sure he is not injured. As his coronation is being performed, you will stay by his side until it is your turn. Once you both have been coronated, you will renew your mating bites. Yes, in front of everyone. It will solidify your union in the eyes of the court, and our people. It is necessary. Is that understood?” It was a question for Kakarot, but Vegeta nodded along, anyway. “Very good. Now, find Raditz and Nappa and tell them to stand guard outside of the castle, and wait for them to tell you to come in. Don’t ruin this.”
With that, Kakarot bowed and stepped out, Vegeta giving his own little bow to his father before following him. Raditz greeted Vegeta with a bow, and his brother an affectionate slap to the shoulder. There had been a time where Raditz had been bitter towards his brother, feeling as if Kakarot had ‘stolen’ Vegeta from him, despite Vegeta breaking up with him months earlier. Raditz had accepted this eventually, and eventually came to accept Vegeta and Kakarot’s relationship.
A few hours later, Raditz’s scouter pinged and he turned to Kakarot and Vegeta. “You’re free to head in.” He said. “Good luck, brother. And you too, Vegeta.” He dipped his head and pushed the doors open for the couple.
Vegeta, bringing up the front and Kakarot bringing up the rear, slowly made their way to the front of the throne room, kneeling on the floor in front of his father. The King stood up slowly, gesturing to Kallabash, the highest-ranking member of the royal court under the King and the Prince. “Rise, Prince Vegeta.” He ordered, and Vegeta stood, with practiced grace. “On this day, we will be crowning our new king, my son.” He turned to Kallabash, who nodded and placed a hand on Vegeta’s shoulder.
“Prince Vegeta, are you willing to take this oath?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Are you willing to risk your life for your people, and rule over them, making fair and just decisions?” Kallabash recited.
It was a loaded question, and Vegeta’s mind raced back to Broly, the Saiyan that his father had sent away because of his massive power level that contended with Vegeta’s own. “Yes, I am.” He answered, vowing to never let anything like that happen again.
“And do you promise to treat each Saiyan equally, regardless of rank and wealth?”
“I do.” It wasn’t even a question, not anymore. Kakarot had been a third-class warrior, and he’d treated him negatively, at first. He’d learned his lesson.
“Then, under the watchful eye of the Moon Goddess, I name you King. Long may you reign.” Vegeta’s father stepped forward, taking off the necklace he adorned, and placing it around Vegeta’s neck, officially confirming him as King of the Saiyans. He swiveled his gaze to Kakarot, whose gaze was full of respect and awe for his mate. Resisting the urge to kiss him, he sat down on his throne, one leg folded over the other. “Kakarot. Step forward.”
The normally confident warrior rose, and Kallabash, in turn, put a hand on his shoulder. “Kakarot, do you promise to love and care for Vegeta, and protect him from all harm that should come to him?”
Kakarot nodded before realizing they needed verbal confirmation. “Yes. I do.” He answered steadily.
“Kakarot, with this, I name you King Consort.” A smaller necklace was set around Kakarot’s neck, and the taller Saiyan met Vegeta’s eyes with a smile. “It is time for you and the King to renew your mating bites, under the watchful eye of the Moon Goddess and the royal court, you two will officially become mates in their eyes.”
Vegeta rose from his throne and over to Kakarot, taking his hand gently tugging him over. He’d seen this performed plenty of times. Kakarot exposed his neck to Vegeta, exposing his already placed mating bite. Vegeta sunk his teeth into the mark, licking up whatever blood poured and healing it with a kiss, pointedly ignoring the way Kakarot gasped and pressed against him. Once Vegeta drew back, Kakarot returned the favor, a rush of pleasure coursing through the king at the feeling.
With that, Kallabash named them mates, and the royal court was dismissed. Vegeta went to ask Kakarot if he wanted to head back to their quarters, but Kakarot’s family pushed through the crowd, clearly wanting to talk. “Ah. Go ahead, Kakarot. Your family wants to talk to you. Come meet me in our quarters when you’re done.” He placed a kiss on Kakarot’s cheek before heading off.
The only thing he heard as he walked away was a “how’s it feel being royalty, eh?” from an obviously very jealous Turles. Vegeta’s tail twitched in annoyance. He’d never been a fan of the Saiyan, who was, unfortunately, family by a technicality. He shot a glare over his shoulder at him, and Turles met his gaze with an equally spiteful glare. An inaudible statement from Bardock brought him to his family, and with that Vegeta rolled his eyes and stalked away to mingle with the Royal Court and his guards.
Soon enough, Turles would realize that he was never going to be royalty. Vegeta would see to it personally.