A/N – Okay, prepare yo-selves for a shocker. Btw, I can come up with some pretty crazy &@#(, wait'll you see ;) It's all those citric acid crystals I eat...
Changing Faces
Part 3 – Of Dragons and Ladies
Chapter 8 – News Fit for a King
She materialized in a huge open room, with tall white pillars extending into the sky and climaxing at an unknown point.
"Huro," Videl breathed.
Videl remembered the throne room of Huro vividly, in all its splendor and exquisiteness. Beyond the pillars was a beautiful garden with trees, flowers of many colors, ponds with fish and water plants, and much more of Nature's magnificence.
The open courtroom of Huro represented the democratic government ruling the planet. Representatives were elected from territories, who in turn debated the topics of concern and voted for the best resolution. The Royal family was no more than a figurehead to the government, but the King was consulted if an agreement could not be reached by the representatives.
Currently, King Sill was standing to the side of a massive dragon.
The dragon 'fell' back into the circle of Dragonballs, which then rose far above their heads and dispersed with a high-pitched whine similar to fireworks.
Videl looked at Sill, "We're alive. Thank you so much for your help, King Sill."
He approached her and took her hand, "It was my pleasure, My Lady. Please join me tonight, in a banquet celebrating our return."
Courtly protocol kicked in as Videl bowed low, "I would be honored, My Lord."
Weeks later, Videl approached Sill as he walked down a castle hall.
"Sill, I have news for you," she said quietly as she gestured him into a close room.
"This is urgent," he asked.
"Yes, yes it is," she took a breath; "I am pregnant."
She expected surprise, confusion, maybe anger, but he appeared happy!
"This is wonderful, My Lady," he smiled.
It ended with Videl being surprised and confused. Her legs gave and she collapsed into a chair.
"Do you remember the banquet, the second night?"
She nodded.
"We exchanged pheromones. Perhaps humans are unable to sense them like Devoroys, but in any case, the exchange worked."
Next, Videl encountered shock.
"So... I'm carrying your child," she asked slowly.
"Our son," he corrected, "I released male pheromones. In time, you will bear a male human child, with blue hair."
The exchange had happened successfully before, in a number of cases. Devoroy pheromones acted much like airborne viruses, invading a female's system, seeking her reproductive cells, and modifying itself to physically reflect the host's chromosomes. In the end, a child of the mother's species, with both parent's genes, is created.
(Ha! Someone paid attention in biology!)
Videl slumped back in her seat, "I don't believe it."
Concern crossed Sill's face, "You are not happy, my dear?"
She took his hands, "Yes, I am pleased at the prospect of being a mother... And I was very curious who the father was. I simply forgot about how Devoroys reproduce."
"Perhaps you wanted a girl instead," he prodded gently.
She laughed lightly, "It is of no matter, a boy or a girl is fine with me. I'm not like the rest of my kinsman. Men can be as strong as women."
Gohan showed me that...
"I am very pleased that you are happy now," Sill pulled her into a hug.
Am I?