Author's Notes: Yeah, because every little sadist- er, I mean Vegeta-fan, has to write a fic where Vegeta is left all alone. I put a little spin on it because I hate completely unhappy endings. Bulma is dead but they're going to wish her back with the dragon balls. They just need to wait a year. Why a year? What did they wish for? Maybe Goku depleted the Earth's food source. I might address that question later if it really bugs people. However, this story is more about Bra/Trunks/Vegeta bonding because I'm a sucker for Daddy!Vegeta. I wrote this with I Love the Way You Lie by Eminem playing on repeat in the background… Win One for the Reaper is an instrumental track from the LOST soundtrack, in case you're curious to my soundtracks when I write, hah. Anyway, here you all go. The first installment of my new series Win One for the Reaper.

The leaves were colored with shades of caramel and deep mahogany. Sweet warm traces of molasses seemed to glaze all the filling foods cooked for the meals of every day as the vegetation slowly died off with the summer season. It was autumn and Vegeta had never been so aware how it was the representation of death until this afternoon.

His hand was laying on little Bra's shoulder, his thumb gently rubbing her skin to soothe the sniffling young girl. The wind whipped her bright blue hair around her face and a leaf with a highly saturated red hue brushed onto her black shoes. She leaned down and picked the leaf up quickly, holding onto it before lifting it up to her father, "It's so red, Daddy," her voice was shaky from tears.

Vegeta looked at the leaf before looking away. All he saw was blood and fire.

Trunks smiled, he was so quiet now that Vegeta found himself forgetting about the young teenager. He knelt down and took the leaf, "You want to take it inside and we can preserve it so you can look at it later?" he asked his sister sweetly. Trunks's eyes were glazed from tears unshed unlike the glassy stoic finish to his father's black orbs.

The wind teased Trunks's tie out from the loose buttoning of his suit, making it whip out and trail behind him like a tiny make-shift cape. Trunks kept his eyes on Bra kindly though as he awaited her response.

Bra looked at him with cerulean eyes before she turned her gaze back up to the Prince, "Daddy, what do you think?" she took the leaf back from Trunks swiftly before thrusting it up at her father. The stem snapped slightly and fell onto her black silk dress before dropping onto the golden dying grass. Dying…

Vegeta didn't spare another look at the leaf like he had before. He was staring at that confounded stone in the ground.

Was that really all that a human left behind? Their legacy remained in memories, perhaps, but the physical memories were all brought to one singular point. A small little monument on the ground. A rock. This was all that was left of her- a rock.

"Daddy!" Bra's little voice cracked at the end as she demanded his attention.

"Father…" Trunks' voice was soft as he looked up at his father from the ground where he had knelt to be closer to his sister.

Vegeta looked away from the stone before looking back at his children.

Funny. Before the two had been 'their' children. Sometimes 'her' children. Now they were only his. He was all they had and they were all he had.

He turned his head back to the stone again.

Bulma Brief

There were similar inscriptions on the stones that marked the graves of Bulma's father and mother.

They had all died at the same time. Some experiment gone wrong. Dr. Brief was working with Bulma at his side and then Mrs. Brief had been giving them food, no doubt.

Vegeta had been at the Son's home with Trunks and little Bra when it had happened.

The explosion had wiped out half of Capsule Corporation's main facilities but the repairs had been quick and easy. Technology was easily replaced, after all. Far more easily replaced than that of a person's life.

They had been burned so extremely that Vegeta couldn't even recognize Bulma by the time he got to Capsule Corp.. He had arrived approximately 1 minute after the explosion. Trunks would have followed him but Vegeta had left Bra behind at the Son's house and the small girl had exploded into tears.

She whimpered at his feet, "Daddy," the little girl who looked so much like the woman he loved whimpered, "Daddy, look at the leaf," she stood on her tippy-toes to thrust it up towards him more.

"No."

Bra's breath cut off and she broke into soft tears. Trunks picked her up, shooting his father a look of irritation and pity before taking his sister into the home.

It would take a year before they'd be able to use the dragon balls to wish the three back to life.

Until then, Vegeta would have to raise Trunks and Bra without her.

So far, he wasn't father-of-the-year in any shape or form.

He took a deep breath, lifting his head to stare up at the sky as he watched it slowly change in color from a light gray to a deep navy blue.

"Father! Come inside!" Trunks said from the doorway that led from the home out to the backyard where they had buried the three Brief members for the 12 month duration it would take to let the dragon balls cycle through and then to find them.

It made sense. They couldn't very well leave the three out in the house to rot. Besides, they had smelled bad enough due to their smoldering skin.

Vegeta couldn't imagine explaining to Bra the smell of such extreme decay.

However, he probably could do it. After all, he was well acquainted with the smell of burning bodies and the steps of decay that might follow that he was a very experienced professor.

There was suddenly a hand on his shoulder now and Vegeta jerked away like a wild animal before looking up and realizing the hand belonged to his violet-haired son.

Trunks had his hands lifted palms-out as he looked down with a warmness in his eyes that reminded Vegeta of the old doctor when he had looked at the prince.

"Father, it's been six hours," the boy's voice was soft. He was speaking to Vegeta like he might to soothe a child. "Come inside and eat dinner with Bra and I."

Vegeta scowled, "I'm not hungry."

"Then just come inside…".. for Bra.

The second part of the sentence seemed to be spoken clearly as day. Vegeta glanced at his son to realize it had been him. Telepathy wasn't something Vegeta ever thought Trunks had been able to do. Of course, his son always managed to exercise his mind more than his other muscles.

The prince turned away from the grave and he walked inside, his boots crunching down on the fallen leaves the entire way to the door.