A/N: 54 chapters… man, this thing is growing large! I still have quite a few to go though! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, you guys really help me keep working on this goliath :)

Cell watched impassively as the woman opened her eyes and turned her head to him, blinking a few times as if making sure she wasn't dreaming. He had laid her down on the cold white marble tiles of his arena, waiting patiently for her to regain consciousness.

"Rise and shine, my dear," the android said while she slowly got up into a sitting position.

"How long was I…"

"Two hours, 16 minutes and 32…"

"Yeah, yeah, I get the idea," she groaned, massaging her temples. Then she suddenly looked up and narrowed her eyes at him, glaring coldly.

"I do not remember giving you permission to touch me."

"I do not remember needing it."

"Pervert."

The android frowned, slightly insulted by what the woman was implying.

"I assure you I am far above such human desires, Lara."

"That's the lamest pick-up line I ever heard," she snorted, but there was a mischievous glance in her eyes.

Amusement, Melancholy, Regret…

Cell sensed her emotions and shook his head. Her presence seemed to exaggerate his new powers, making them even harder to control. It was quite uncomfortable, but he could not let the woman know he had gained not only parts of her memory, but her senses as well. The woman would no doubt try to shield her emotions if she knew he could read them.

He looked up at the alien, who was eyeing him suspiciously. He decided to distract her by changing the subject.

"Who is this… 'Hercule'? His name is not registered in my database."

"Ah, that's right… He wasn't that well known yet when Dr. Gero programmed you," she nodded, then a grin spread across her face. "He's the most obnoxious, loudmouthed, pompous and arrogant ass you will ever meet. He's the official World Martial Arts champion, but in title only. He's strong for a human, but nowhere near the Z-fighters' level."

"You seemed rather fond of him in your timeline," the android cocked an eyebrow an she lowered her gaze.

"I was…" she mumbled, her eyes clouded. "When the Borg attacked… most of the planet population perished. Drones were beamed down by the thousands and people were caught completely off guard… The Z-fighters amongst them. History was changed when I asked you to destroy Capsule Corporation. Had I not intervened, you would have been assimilated and everything would've been over. In my timeline, they used you to get their hands on the rest of the Z-fighters. Piccolo… Krillin… Tien… one by one they fell. When the West City Dome was finally up and running, only me, Gohan and Vegeta were left. But eventually, the Borg got them as well… and I was alone, until Hercule found me and took me under his wing. The Borg had taken his daughter away from him and left him a bitter, but determined man. Vegeta was already gone and when Gohan and his wife were assimilated, Hercule stepped onto the plate as the leader of the Resistance and lead us in our fight to protect the last surviving city on Earth."

"Gohan and his wife? But the child is only…"

"Eleven?" Lara snorted. "You keep forgetting I age more than three times slower. I might only have looked a little older in your vision, but that unfortunate day when West City fell was ten years from now. Gohan and his wife were assimilated three years earlier, a few days after their wedding. Those bastards…"

Anger! Rage! Hatred! Pain!

"One thing I still fail to understand, my dear," Cell said quickly before the woman lost it again. "How did those creatures assimilate me? Even in my imperfect form, they wouldn't have stood a chance. Did they use Goku, perhaps?"

"The Borg aren't strong nor are they fast. But the Queen is cunning… very, very cunning. You underestimate her by thinking she would even consider using Goku, her strongest drone, as cannon fodder."

"Then how?"

Lara stayed quiet, avoiding his eyes.

Doubt, Reluctance…

She was considering to tell him, carefully weighing her options. It annoyed Cell to no end.

"I'll find out eventually, Lara," he all but rolled his eyes.

"Then why do you even ask?" she suddenly snapped, her eyes blazing. The woman sprung up and all the android could sense was…was… what was it? Despair? Hopelessness? No, it was something else… a specific kind of emotion he could not put his finger on.

"You keep asking me what happened, and drive me… Oh, who am I kidding? I'm already insane! But do you relent? Do you grant me my last days in peace? Do you ever give me a fucking break? No, you have to KIDNAP me, drag me to this kamiforsaken place and keep prodding me until…"

"You're faking it."

The look on her face was priceless, but Cell had not intended to call her bluff. He had sensed it and before he knew, it had slipped. But he couldn't help it, he had been so utterly surprised!

"What… did you say?" she whispered with wide eyes and the android sighed, knowing he couldn't hide his new ability any longer.

"I gained your ability to sense other's emotions, or in your case: lack thereof. You acted angry, but you were not. Why?"

She just stood there, frozen. He could sense a brief spark of shame before he was locked out.

"Because it is better if a distance remains between us, Cell," she sighed. "If you know what's good for you, you'll let me leave, don't follow me and refrain from absorbing my memories once my time is up. I know you won't do the latter, so until now I attempted to at least limit our contact as much as possible. But I can't continue to…"

Lara let out another sigh and leaned against a pillar, slumping down on the white marble floor and pulling her legs to her chest.

"What can you not do, my dear?" Cell pressed on, still not quite used to the woman's unstable behavior. She was calm, collected and perhaps even a tad cheerful one minute, a trembling nervous wreck the next. It took very little to set her off.

"Don't call me that…" she muttered halfheartedly, not a trace of annoyance or irritation in her voice. It was as of all energy had been sucked out of her and he was talking to an automated puppet.

"How many days," she suddenly asked, looking at him with empty eyes.

"Until the Cell games?"

"Yes."

"Nine days, 18 hours, six minutes and 22 seconds," he answered after consulting his internal clock. "What will you do until then? Fight? Flee? Keep your precious distance? No matter where you go, no matter where you hide, I will find you." The android smirked at her. "You might as well stay here."

"Agreed."

Cell nearly fell over. Of all possible responses, he had not expected THAT one!

"But first I will need to get food, water and a thick blanket. Temperatures on this planet tend to drop rapidly at night and as an Uranian, I don't do well in cold."

"You… actually plan on staying?" he asked, his jaw almost dropping.

To his amazement, the woman nodded.

"Yes. I tried running, I tried hiding and I tried keeping my mouth shut, but all three plans have failed. You are too persistent and will never stop hunting me down and prodding me until I tell you what you want to hear. By staying in one place, at least I can put an end to the first. It will save both of us energy that could be spend on more important matters. Since I am tired of running, hiding and being woken up in the middle of the night by the occasional drunken human staggering through the streets, setting up camp at your arena seems to be the wisest move."

"Drunken humans?" Cell couldn't help but frown.

"Your doomsday broadcast seems to have brought out the worst in some of the planet's inhabitants. The cities are in chaos and even the once quiet, abandoned areas are crawling with bandits who keep trying to persuade me into helping their general Tao-what's-his-name build a dome of some sort. They were quite annoying and persistent, but I doubt they will follow me here."

"Such cold logic, my dear," Cell chuckled, a hint of mockery in his voice. "Is the point of your indifferent attitude to convince me of your boldness? Am I now supposed to believe you lack any feelings of dread? Are you not afraid?"

"I'm terrified, Cell," she said, her face still blank. "But not because of what you could possibly do to me now."

"Ah, those elusive memories of yours again, Am I correct?"

Lara nodded and closed her eyes for a moment, as if thinking of a plan.

"If it would get you off my back, I perhaps could tell you bits and pieces of my history," she finally said. "It would be far better if no one knew, but you will find out anyway and I believe I can trust you with keeping this information to yourself, since it is in your own best interest not to corrupt the Timeline. But a few parts of my story I will alter… and some things are better left unsaid."

"And if those 'secrets' of yours happen to unravel themselves in one of my visions?"

"You'll kill me where I stand. And I can only appeal to whatever honor you have as a warrior to do so without speaking a single word."

Cell was greatly confused by this. All this time… the woman had been so ridiculously paranoid because she was afraid he'd somehow hurt her feelings!

"You would honestly prefer sticks and stones over words?" he asked, baffled.

"A thousand times and more," she said softly, her once cold eyes now looking at him pleadingly. "Do I have your word?"

The android didn't know what compelled him. He wasn't programmed with pity, compassion or even respect. But for some reason he found himself nodding, pledging a silent vow. The woman then did something even more peculiar, something he had not expected at all. The alien walked up to him and suddenly threw her arms around his neck, hugging the stunned android.

"Thank you," she whispered, briefly tightening her hold before letting go and flying towards the city in search of supplies.

This… was a most interesting turn of events indeed.