Two Worlds -- Chapter 10
Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.
Countless thoughts swirled through his head. 'Would she want to marry? How could I do this if she didn't? What will everyone think when they learn I am fathering a child with her? Kakarott will laugh. What do I know of fatherhood?' This list went on as Vegeta sat staring into the fire.
Bulma had hurried to town to buy a pregnancy test. She believed Vegeta's story, but wanted the comfort of a genuine result from a proven testing method. She was still so elated, it was frightening to Vegeta. He was sure the realization of the situation would hit her soon and she wouldn't be so thrilled any more. He had come to know her too well.
She loved her freedom and her life just the way it was. Being chained to pregnancy and the responsibility of a child would destroy the lifestyle she enjoyed so much. Vegeta felt responsible for this, and worried Bulma would come to resent him for the cause of her misery-to-come.
Feeling sicker by the moment, Vegeta decided to go outside for some fresh air. Being outside in the icy winds, he could try to clear his head. It was a vain attempt, but one he made as he stood staring into the trees beyond the cabin.
The words of his ancestor burned in his head. He could see himself now, just like Kakarott. He, Bulma, and a little brat running around. His warrior lifestyle was at stake, just as Bulma's days of carefree frivolity were crashing down. They would become a standardized, cookie-cuter family, complete with the family portrait on the mantle.
Anger was starting to course through him now. He wondered if he would be the one resenting Bulma. It was a fine line they were starting to tread, one that could spell disaster for the both of them very easily. It just wasn't fair! Finally, he had started to open up to this girl. He had put his best foot forward to rid himself of his old ego for her, and look what it got him!
"Give love an inch and it will take a mile." He mumbled to himself. The irony was too much. But as he stood pondering the words that had just come out of his mouth, he came to a realization.
"I love her." He said it aloud, and the sound of his voice saying that scared him perhaps more than learning he was going to be a father. He knew then and there that he was doomed. He could replace his old barriers of ego and arrogance, but the truth would not be hidden.
He was in love with her. He had been for a long time now. And when she produced that slimy little infant, he would love it as well. That little baby would be the personification of his love for her, and his own soul, all in one half-breed bundle.
A faint smile crossed his face, try as he might to stop it. And when he began thinking about it in this new, positive light, things didn't seem so bleak. Nothing would really change for them. He had made his mind up long before to make Bulma his partner for keeps. Marriage and a child would only solidify this decision that had already been made. And providing for the child certainly wouldn't be a problem. They had the money from Capsule Corp. to fund their parentage.
He would continue to train, and this would be like a normal father going to work every day. Bulma could cart the child around during the day, shopping with her or going to the park. Yes, this may actually be doable, he thought.
***
Bulma arrived a while later, all smiles still. Vegeta thought again about when the realization may hit her. He had talked himself into it, but she was another matter entirely. He knew enough about females to know their hormonal imbalances were absolutely enigmatic. Throw a pregnancy into the mix and you've got a pot of boiling trouble waiting to blow.
He greeted her with a smile though when she walked in the door, which made her light up even brighter. When she had left, he was still in a fog, having not yet come to terms with this development.
"Hey Vegeta." She said, giving him a hug.
"Hello Bulma." He replied, returning the hug.
"You seem to be in a better mood." She said timidly, not wanting to risk setting him off.
"I am better," Vegeta said, releasing her from the hug, "I have thought a great deal about all of this while you were away." He paused, seeming reluctant to continue.
"And?" Bulma prompted, wondering what conclusion he had come to.
"I…love you, Bulma." Vegeta said, looking her in the eyes.
Upon hearing these words, her entire being seemed to brighten. Joyous tears blurred her eyes, as a massive smile spread across her face.
"So I know," Vegeta continued, "that whatever happens, that will not change. If you have a child, I will love it as well. I am no longer worried about myself."
"That's wonderful, Vegeta." Bulma said, still beaming. She threw her arms around his neck again and kissed him. He had made her day by handling the situation this way. She had been afraid since he had told her of his encounter with Baranoth that he would grow to resent her and the child, if he didn't already.
"Do you mind if I take this test though, just to be sure?" She asked, referring to the bag that had been dropped at the door.
"Sure. Do whatever you need." Vegeta said warmly, letting go his hold on her.
***
The test was positive, Bulma was pregnant. They had both known all along really, but something about seeing it with their own eyes made it that much more real. They said nothing for a while, both rapt in their own thoughts. Finally Bulma looked over to Vegeta tentatively and found him looking at her.
"Penny for your thoughts?" She asked.
"Penny?" He asked, unfamiliar with this saying.
"What's on your mind?" She corrected.
"Well to be honest, I am a bit excited to see what the child will turn out like. I hope it's a male, so I can craft the perfect warrior out of him from birth. I will teach him everything I had to learn the hard way so that when he is grown, he will be the mightiest warrior in the universe."
"You…want to make him a warrior? But why?" Bulma was a bit taken aback by this revelation. She was picturing in her head Vegeta throwing their infant around in a couple hundred times gravity. The thought was a bit sickening. Surely he wasn't serious.
"He will have my Saiyan blood flowing in his veins. He will have the thirst for combat from an early age and I will cultivate that as soon as he is able." Vegeta saw the worry in her eyes and understood what she must be picturing, "Of course I will wait until he is old enough. I wouldn't want to kill our child."
Bulma smiled with relief. Of course he wouldn't be so careless. She knew him better than that, "I know you wouldn't Vegeta. I'm sorry I thought that. But…what if it's a girl?"
Vegeta was stunned by this one. He said nothing, unable to wrap his mind around what he would do with a female child. Could he train her the same? Saiyan females were often warriors on par with the males but a half-human? He could picture trying to teach her to fight when all she wanted to do was play with dolls and makeup. The thought was a bit sickening.
"I…suppose I could train her the same." He said at length, carefully gauging Bulma's reaction. He wasn't expecting her to fall over in laughter.
"Train her?" Bulma gasped between her spasms of laughter. Vegeta stared at her, red as a beet with embarrassment, "Are you serious?"
"You think that would be a bad idea?" He asked, exasperated.
After finally calming down, Bulma answered, "Vegeta, seriously. If we have a boy I will let you teach him to fight when he is old enough. But a girl is different. There may be female warriors in the Saiyan race, but here on earth it's just not that common. I want her to fit in like a normal girl. I can just see her first little boyfriend trying to kiss her and her sending him flying through a wall!"
"There will be no boys kissing her. I will see to that personally." Vegeta said, emphasizing his words with a growl.
"You are just too cute." Bulma said with a laugh, leaning over to kiss him.
"I am not cute."
***
The months flew by in a whirlwind of events. Bulma's pregnancy went as most women's. She was plagued with the cravings for odd foods, the mood swings, emotional distresses. Vegeta tried his hand at playing the understanding and tolerant man, but just couldn't deal. He never lost his temper with her, but made sure he wasn't around a lot instead. His training held newfound solace for him because of the hurricane of oddity in the outside world.
When he proposed to her, she cried for a week. She was overjoyed that he wanted to marry, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She had sworn since she was little that she would never be tied by marriage. Vegeta understood mostly, his unpredictable nature being what it was. His only snag was that it was all but the law on planet Vegeta to be married if a child is had.
That dispute caused some friction but Vegeta finally caved. He realized that his home planet was dead and that he was no longer bound by its customs. Other than the Saiyan tradition, he had no other reason to marry. He didn't have the human views of marriage being the ultimate display of love between a couple.
The baby was scheduled to arrive at just about the two year mark since the revelation of the androids was given. That would leave him one last year of unobstructed training after the birth. Bulma would be busy tending to the child and since Vegeta had no desire to deal with a snotty infant, he was more than happy to let her have it for a while.
The decision was made not to tell anyone of course. Vegeta would have died if Kakarott were to be privy to the news. He didn't care if anyone else knew, but he knew that it would get back to Goku somehow if the others were told. Bulma was fine with this, they would all learn of it sooner or later after all. Let Vegeta have his way for a while.
Dr. and Mrs. Brief were overjoyed, much to no one's surprise. They both flocked to the idea like buzzards to a carcass and made sure Bulma had all the doting and care of a Hindu cow.
So the whole ordeal went smoother than anyone could have predicted. Once they learned it was to be a boy, Vegeta swelled with pride to the point of bursting. He gave the boy the name Trunks, after a cousin of his back on Vegeta. Bulma didn't object, finding it amusing that the name somehow fit with her family's name.
Trunks was born on a warm spring night in West City Hospital. The Brief family was gathered there, along with Vegeta to witness the miracle. Vegeta was doing his best to maintain his composure, but it was obvious that his nerves were raw with anxiety.
He was white as a sheet through the whole spectacle in the birthing room. He watched the procedure with eyes wide and teeth clenched. Vegeta was familiar with the process of childbirth, but witnessing it firsthand was another matter entirely. He had seen enemies dismembered and splattered on the battlefield, but something about this shook him to his core. Deep down he knew it was because he cared about the woman writhing in agony on the bed beside him. But he developed a rather profound respect for females for enduring this.
The little ball of flesh came out wailing loud enough to wake the dead. Tears dimmed the proud warrior's eyes as he witnessed his offspring for the first time. As Bulma held the baby in her arms, Vegeta knew then and there that his home was indeed here now. This woman and this child held sway over him now more than Frieza ever had, but it was a welcome hold.
When it was his turn to hold Trunks, he did it with pride. Awkward though he was with an infant, he knew just as he had predicted nine months ago that he loved this thing now more than his own life. Suddenly, defeating the androids held new meaning for him just as he knew it would. He had a family now, and that family was all that mattered to him.
As the night of the birth wore on, he heard the words of Baranoth in his head again, "…your old self will completely fall away into the dark oblivion. You will become soft and weak. Your warrior instincts will dull away until they are but a distant memory."
"No." Vegeta said to himself, "I will not let that happen. My training will continue, and I will grow to surpass Kakarott and that kid from the future. My power will never dwindle, but grow to greater and greater heights. My son will learn from me, coming into his own as the new Prince of Saiyans."
A.N. -- We've come to it at last...the end of the tale. Bulma continued to raise Trunks as Vegeta trained for the androids. With about six months to spare before the android arrival, Vegeta took to space once again to put some finishing touches on his training. He wound up arriving a bit late, but we all know how that played out. Vegeta never shows much emotion in the way of his family, but it burns hot deep within his soul. The proud warrior that he is, when it's time to focus on battle, he has no time to be soft. But he knows the real score, as well as Bulma. And that is all that matters for his family.