"Well, actually…" Dende chuckled. "We already have one on the way."
It took a while for Muuri to comprehend what he had just heard.
"E-excuse me… Did I hear you right?" he asked, in shock.
If possible, Dende's smile spread even further. "Yes. Piccolo and I are expecting."
Muuri was silent for a while out of sheer amazement. He didn't really know how to address the situation.
"That is… That is wonderful news, Dende!" he congratulated, after gaining back his voice.
"Tell me about it." The younger man said, smiling. "I don't think I've ever been happier in my life."
"That is indeed the most amazing thing I've heard in a good long while… Oh, I can't wait until the others hear about this!" Muuri said, exhilarated.
"Oh, how far along are you, if I may ask?" he added, curious.
"Oh… I guess it's been about… two and a half to three months now." Dende recalled.
"Ah, I see." The Elder said. "Oh, by the name of Porunga! I will never again doubt the power of the natural instincts in all of us… I mean, who would have thought... The little Dende, one of the very youngest of the children of Guru, rediscovering the ancient ways of life of our kind all his own and thus turning a brand new page in the history of our kind!" he proclaimed.
"Thanks to you, our kind will no longer suffer from the disadvantages of the extensive, unilateral parthenogenesis that all of us others have been forced upon due to the lack of reasonably unrelated mates… Hopefully after a few generations it will no longer be a problem though, especially now that you have introduced the mixing of genes back in our race once again… Oh, praised be the Most Supreme for blessing us like this… What a truly remarkable day!" he said, finishing his speech.
Dende was silent out of pure awe. He couldn't help but feel that the Great Elder was giving him way too much credit than what he earned in reality.
"I thank you for all the honoring you give me, oh Elder, but that is way unnecessary. Besides, I didn't do it alone. Piccolo is the one you should be thanking, instead of myself." the younger man said, feeling a little embarrassed for all the praise he was receiving.
"Oh, of course, son, of course. Is he there with you? I would like to offer him my most sincere compliments." Muuri chuckled.
"Um, in fact… No, he is not. He's been… acting a little weird ever since we discovered he was gravid."
The Elder was silent for a moment.
"Oh, he is the one with the child? Oh, please excuse me for my mistake… I somehow took it for granted that it would be you. How embarrassing." he apologized.
Dende left out a few small chuckles. "Don't worry about it, oh Elder. Quite frankly, I find the idea of having sired this child unbelievable myself, and Piccolo does too." he said.
"In fact, I think he is a little bit bitter about the whole thing." he added, sounding now a little sad.
"Oh? How so?" The older man asked.
"Well…" he began. "He's been more or less avoiding me ever since. He's even more closed up now than he was before, and whenever I try to approach him for whatever reason, all he does is grunt and either pushes me away or leaves the scene himself." Dende said, now clearly sad.
"Hmmm, I see. I'm sorry to hear that, son. I know you must love him very much and now that you're having a child together… I can imagine you would only want to show him how happy you are about it."
"Yes, that is correct." the younger man admitted. "But how can I, when he is behaving like he does? I wonder if he even loves me anymore." he said, depressed.
"Now, Dende… I'm sure that is not the case. Think about it yourself. You know him better than any of us. I'm sure he will come around after the child is born." Muuri assured.
"That's funny… Master Korin said the same thing. I guess you're right." he said, forming a half-forced smile.
"I'm sure I am. However, now that you mentioned it… I searched Guru's memories and it seems like the gravid Namekians very often experienced changes in their behavior, such as becoming more closed up, even slightly hostile towards their mates, especially if they became too distressing towards their pregnant partner... I need to study this more later. But could as well be that this is some sort of a natural reaction, however for what purpose it is, is anyone's guess."
"Could that be really it?" Dende asked. "Though I guess it would make sense, somehow… I know some Earthling species are the same way, though not nearly all of them are monogamous the first place. But that is an intriguing idea." he said.
"You're right, it is intriguing. Maybe you should talk to Piccolo about it, when you manage to see him again. The Elder suggested.
"I think I'll do just that. I don't know, I feel kind of stupid for not thinking of that the first place."
"Oh, don't worry about it, son. How could you have known?" Muuri consoled.
"I'm afraid I have to be on my way now, though. I have some business to attend to. But please, tell Piccolo I'm tremendously excited for both of you and wish you both, and the child, all the best." he said, smiling.
"I sure will. I want to thank you on the behalf of both of us. It was very nice talking to you after such a long time." Dende replied.
"Thank you. It sure was good to hear from you, and what wonderful news you had to deliver. I shall be sharing them for our brothers tonight. I'm sure they shall be equally happy about this as I am." Muuri smiled.
"You do that. Tell them all I said hi!" Dende exclaimed.
"I will. May the Most Supreme watch over the both of you and your child."
That said, Muuri closed up their connection. Dende felt much better now, after talking to him. He thought about the party that would be held the following day and despite still feeling a little uneasy about it, he decided to go to bed. It was nearing midnight already and he was sure he wouldn't sleep any better if he stayed up any longer, so he shut out the lights and lay down. For better or worse, tomorrow would be a BIG day.