Chapter Thirteen: Contentedness and a Prophecy
Fall 774 AD
Life was turning out well. The victims of a dilemma had shown their strong character and persevered to live life to the fullest. The wounds of broken hearts were healed, and newness was present now as a second chance in life was granted.
***
"Gohan, Goten! It's past seven already! Hurry up!"
Nineteen-year-old Son Gohan hurried in putting on his black school vest, as he heard his mother's voice from the kitchen. It was the first day of school, and Gohan knew Chi-Chi wanted him to make sure Goten got to his school on time.
Speaking of which, where was he?
Gohan looked around as he buttoned his vest, and smiled as he saw his little brother hopping out of the kitchen, pulling on one of his shoes and chewing on a piece of toast in his mouth.
"Mm most eddy 'Nii-chan!" Eight-year-old Goten murmured. He hopped over to Gohan and sat on the floor, pulling on his other shoe. "What?" Gohan asked. Goten took the toast out his mouth. "I said I was almost ready, 'Nii-chan."
Their mother retreated from the kitchen, making sure they were leaving soon. Chi-Chi sighed to herself, watching her sons as they grabbed their sweaters, ready to go. She couldn't believe how big Gohan and Goten had gotten and that they were only going to grow up faster.
The doorbell rang just then.
"That's Videl," Gohan said. "C'mon, Goten." He turned to his mom and smiled. "Bye, Mom." "Bye, Mommy!" Goten cheerfully said. Chi-Chi smiled as well. "See you guys later. Do well." Gohan answered the door and he and Goten grabbed their things as they went outside with Videl.
Once on the walkway, Goten fidgeted and stuck his fingers in his collar, loosening it. Videl looked down at Goten and laughed. "What's wrong with you?" Goten frowned. "I don't like this uniform too much," he admitted sheepishly. "I'd rather wear a training gi."
"You would," Gohan laughed, and then reassured Goten he looked good in his uniform. He really did look good in his navy blazer and slacks. Gold buttons streamed down the front of the blazer, and a crisp white collar from a polo shirt was visible around his neck. He lastly wore shiny black shoes.
Only his unruly hair remained the same. Goten hoped he would do well in school. He had been taught by Chi-Chi since he was 3, and now he would be in the third grade at Orange Star Elementary.
He wondered if Gohan ever worried about school. Well, now it surely didn't seem like it, now that he hung out with Videl...a lot.
"Hey, 'Nii-chan?"
"Hm?" Gohan answered, ducking under a tree branch in the walkway.
"When are you going to marry Videl?" Goten asked simply. "Kuririn and the others keep talking about it."
That question made Videl and Gohan stop in their tracks as they were silenced, blushing. Goten turned around, confused. What was wrong? "Huh?"
Gohan scrambled for a good answer, looking around nervously as he felt Videl's shy eyes on him. Then he saw Goten's school in the distance. "Look, you don't want to be late for school! Go, Goten, go!" he blurted.
Goten looked to where Gohan was looking and then he nodded. "Um, okay. See ya later, 'Nii-chan!" He put the straps of his yellow bookbag over both his shoulders and flew away.
Once Goten left, Gohan sighed with relief. "Kid brothers," he chuckled nervously to Videl. She laughed softly, nervous as well. "Lucky you." The walk to school was going to be awkward now...
***
Goten stared in amazement at how big his school was, and how many kids there were in his class. How could he, just another little kid, ever feel at home in such a big and confusing place? Would he get lost in this sea of unfamiliar faces? And what about his teacher?
Goten gulped and made his way to the cubbyholes in the back of the room. He hung the top strap of his bookbag under the hook of the cubbyhole where it was labeled with his name. There, he had done that right.
Then Goten looked at the ground next to the cubbyhole next to him. A green bookbag with a label on it. Goten squinted at the handwriting. It was a kid's handwriting, and not a parent's, like Goten thought it would be.
Then he looked at the label on the cubbyhole.
Trunks!!
Goten's face lit up and he looked in the sea of screaming, playing kids. He could see past them to find a hunched figure leaning against the wall in the corner. Yep! It was Trunks.
"Trunks, Trunks!"
The lavender-haired boy looked up suddenly as he heard a familiar voice. His face changed from solemn to confused as he saw Goten run to him. "Hi, Trunks! Gosh, I never thought you'd be here!" Goten gushed, excited.
"My mom sent me here," Trunks grumbled.
Goten just smiled, cheerful. "Maybe our moms knew I was going to go here and your mom must've arranged you to be in my class! Boy, it's gonna be a fun year!"
Trunks just crossed his arms, smiling weakly.
"Hey, lookit that kid!"
Goten and Trunks turned around as the crowd of kids' noise decreased. They had stopped playing and screaming as they stepped out a certain boy's way. The boy pointed at Goten.
"Look at that weird hair!" He began to laugh and walk toward Goten, followed by two of his friends. "Who did your hair? Or does it just look that way when you wake up?"
Goten growled, clenching his fists. "Stop making fun of my hair! It's just like my daddy's!"
"Whatever," the older boy laughed. Then he pointed at Trunks. "You're not as goofy as your pink-haired friend here." He scrutinized at the nametag Trunks wore. New students wore one until the teacher could register their name in the list.
"Briefs Trunks," the boy read slowly. Then he laughed. "Briefs? Your name is Briefs? Haha! And you have pink hair too!"
"Hey!" Goten said angrily. "Stop being so mean! We didn't do anything to you! Leave us alone!" Trunks held out a hand in front of Goten. "It's ok, Goten," he said solemnly. "I can handle this."
Goten watched as Trunks walked toward the bully and his friends. Trunks came to a halt, glaring at the bully in the eyes. He was two inches taller than Trunks, and a little bigger too, with brown, messy hair, and mean gray eyes.
"Wha'cha got?" he taunted Trunks, and then held up his hands, urging Trunks to come closer. "C'mon, c'mon, wha'cha got? Huh, huh? Wha'cha got?"
"I've got more than you," Trunks said, and then he turned his head, seeing Goten walk toward him. He whispered into Trunks's ear, and Trunks smirked.
"You wanna see what I got, kid?" he asked the bully.
Trunks turned into a Super Saiyan, and surprise was written on the bully's face, and all the kids behind him. "Woah, how'd that kid do that?" One boy asked. "He looks so tough, and he's cute!" One girl squealed.
"Heh, heh, heh," Trunks chuckled under his breath, eyeing the bully. He could tell he was trying to remain strong. One of the bully's friends stepped back. "Wait a sec, Mashiro," he told the bully nervously.
"Whaddya want, Toru?" Mashiro asked, keeping his eyes on Trunks. "Can't you see I'm about to beat up this blonde punk?"
"Man, don't be stupid!" Toru objected. "Don't you watch the Tenkaichi Budokais on TV? That kid is Vegeta's son!" Mashiro blinked. "That really tough guy who says he's the Prince of all S-Say Its? You're his kid?"
"Duh, you idiot," Trunks said.
"Woah, man, sorry. I meant nothing against you," Mashiro said, and easily backed away from Trunks and Goten. "You have a nice day..." When Trunks and Goten were isolated from the crowd, Trunks changed out of his Super Saiyan form.
"That was so awesome!" Goten raved. "You could've knocked out that kid with one punch if you wanted to!"
"Yeah, I could've," Trunks agreed, smugly, looking like his father right now. "Now everyone knows not to mess with us. It's gonna be a fun year..."
***
Chi-Chi was sitting in her bedroom, sewing a sweater for Goku. Now that both Gohan and Goten went to school, Chi-Chi found more time to do other tasks, and even things she wanted to do, like read and….knit a sweater for Goku.
Her husband was eating lunch in the kitchen right now, and then he would probably go train, Chi-Chi figured. That was okay. She wanted to finish knitting this pine green sweater for him.
He would look good in it. Heck, he looks good in all colors. This was one reason why Chi-Chi would rather he wear a variety of clothes, instead of insisting on his gi being washed. He looks cute no matter what he wears.
Jeans, shorts, an undershirt, swimsuit, boxers...
Though she had been concentrating on getting every stitch of the sweater right, Chi-Chi could feel herself blushing. She remembered the last time she saw Goku in his boxers. He was like an animal that day... So wild and...sexy.
It had been a long time since he was like that... And the results of it were more than what she could ask. Her children.
Chi-Chi navigated the needle through the soft cotton material, and she was reminded of how she had made Gohan and Goten's clothes when they were smaller. Yes, every single one of her boys was cute, and Chi-Chi felt she couldn't be more blessed than she does now.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
Chi-Chi looked up, hearing that voice, and then she was surprised. "Oh, Goku!" She looked over at the closed bedroom doors to see that Goku had entered without her knowing. Then she looked down at the sweater in her lap.
"Well, um, this was supposed to be a surprise," she quietly admitted to Goku.
"What was?"
Chi-Chi took the needle and thread out of the sweater and lifted it up for Goku to see. "This," she explained. "I made it for you as a surprise. I thought I could finish it before you finished eating."
Goku titled his head, smiling at the sweater. "Thanks," he said, cheerfully, and hugged Chi-Chi. It was simple things like this that made Goku glad to have Chi-Chi as his wife.
Goku took the sweater and tried it on. "It's really comfy!" he said, and then looked at the sleeves. "It's a nice color too. I remember when you used to make stuff like this for me and sew up my old gi when we first married. Do you remember when we first married, Chi-Chi? It was like this, just us in this house."
"Yeah," Chi-Chi answered. "I miss those days. We spent our time trying to understand each other." Goku took off his new sweater and placed it to the side, and he smiled at Chi-Chi shyly.
"What?" she asked, softly, smiling herself.
"I remember we did other things in our time too," Goku said, sitting on the bed next to Chi-Chi, his hand stroking her stomach and then descending. He looked up to see his wife smiling slowly, her cheeks painted red with blush.
She laughed softly. "We are alone... C'mere," she said, cupping Goku's face with her hands and kissing him gently. Goku kissed her back, laying her on her back, but she flipped him on his back and pulled away.
"Hmm," she protested, huskily. "My turn."
Goku was fine with that decision as well.
***
It was four o' clock when Gohan and Goten returned from school, and Chi-Chi asked how Goten's first day of school was.
"It was cool, Mommy! I didn't know Trunks was going to be there! Did you and Bulma plan this?" Goten asked.
Chi-Chi crossed her arms and smiled. "It wasn't so hard to do. But make sure you're friendly to the other kids, too, okay?"
Goten nodded obediently. "Ok. But it's going to be hard. Not everyone there is so nice. This one boy was being mean. His name was Mashiro. He made fun of my hair."
"That wasn't nice," Goku said, frowning. He ran a hand through his hair. "Hmph."
Goten nodded. "Yeah. He made fun of Trunks too because his surname is Briefs. But Trunks took care of that!"
"Trunks hit him?" Chi-Chi asked, worried.
Goten shook his head. "Nope! He turned into a Super Saiyan and Mashiro got so scared! His friend told him Trunks was Vegeta's son and that's why he should back off."
Goku laughed. "Yep! No one wants to mess with Vegeta!"
Gohan suddenly remembered something at the mention of Vegeta. He remembered the telepathic conversation he had with Vegeta when he had gone to Capsule Corps. to talk to Trunks and Bulma. He remembered saying he would revive him with the Dragonballs. And that was exactly what he was going to do...
***
Fall 775 AD
Two years had passed since Vegeta's sacrifice, and Gohan was intent on keeping his promise. With the help of the other Z warriors, he found the Dragonballs and decided to revive him on this day.
Gohan and Goku, Kuririn and his family, Trunks, Bulma, Piccolo, Yamcha, and Master Roshi were all at Kami's Lookout, where the summoning of Shenlong would take place.
Gohan laid out the Dragonballs and cast his hand over them. Hopefully, this will the last wish I have to make, he thought. "By my command, I summon Shenlong!" he chanted.
The mystic dragon appeared in the sky, with the blinding light accompanying him as always. "Speak your wish," he said.
Gohan stood to his feet and smiled. "I'm going to keep my promise. I wish that you would summon Vegeta's soul here!"
"Your wish has been granted," Shenlong replied, and a small white form stood in front of Shenlong. The white form turned into Vegeta, and he looked at his hands, knowing he was really alive.
"Vegeta, Vegeta!"
Bulma and Trunks ran to Vegeta and embraced him tightly, so happy to have him back. Vegeta squirmed, uncomfortable, and blushing a bit.
"Aww," Kuririn cooed. "Ain't nothing like it when a man knows his family loves him." He held Marron tighter in his arms, and Juuhachigou smiled slightly.
"What is your second wish?" Shenlong interrupted the happiness.
"Get me a woman!!" Master Roshi screeched. "The requirements are-"
"Sorry, Master Roshi," Gohan cut him off, sweatdropping. "I promised Vegeta he could have the second wish. I owe him it."
"Yes," Vegeta agreed, glad Gohan had stopped the pervert Roshi from continuing his speech. The fool would say something crude, anyway.
"Dangit," Roshi murmured.
Goku sighed. "Man... I'm so hungry. I wish I had some food..."
"Your wish has been granted!"
Vegeta spun around. "What? NOOO!"
Instantly, a feast appeared in front of Goku, and he stood there, blinking. He laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Heh, heh.... Sorry, Vegeta. I honestly said it to myself, but I guess Shenlong heard me and thought-"
"KAKAROT!!! I will never forgive you!!!"
"Sorry," Goku said again, and then looked at the feast in front of him. "I'm really hungry, but you can have half the food if you want, Vegeta."
Vegeta growled.
"Ok, ok, you can have it all!" Goku said, whining a bit. "Man...but I really am hungry!"
"I don't want the food, Kakarot!" Vegeta yelled. "Eat it for all I care! I'm going home!" He began to fly away, but Shenlong said, "Wait."
Vegeta stopped flying and stepped to the ground. Everyone looked up at Shenlong, and he spoke.
"There is something the warriors in this place need to know. I will foretell a prophecy..."
Everyone was silent, paying attention and listening to what was coming up next.
Shenlong continued, "In three months, a new evil will arise out of hell. That evil is the creation of the father of an evil wizard. He is the strongest character you will ever have to face. He wants world domination, and will not wait much longer for it. Prepare yourselves. I assure you that this is the most difficult battle you will endure. Farewell."
Shenlong and his usual blinding light vanished into the sky, leaving the shocked audience behind.
"A new evil?" Yamcha asked. "Man, we just had seven nice years of peace and now this..."
"I'm confused," Kuririn said, scratching his head with one hand, while holding Marron with the other. Marron laughed and imitated her father in scratching her head as well. "Shenlong could have at least told us a little more about this new evil. How does he get out of heck anyway?"
"It doesn't matter," Goku said, solemn. "We've gotta train..."
To be continued...
Chapter Fourteen: Prophecy Fulfilled