Chapter Seven: Labor Day
Two weeks later…
"Juuhachi, are you sure that I shouldn't shave my head bald again?" Krillin asked his android wife, as he studied his reflection in the bathroom mirror in the bathroom that he and his wife shared as part of their bedroom. Juuhachigou was already dressed in a red cotton blouse and denim shorts that showed off her long, slender legs nicely. Since she was already dressed, she was sitting on the bed, working on Marron's two trademark pigtails; Marron was dressed in a cute pink blouse and cherry-red jumper. When she finished, she released her daughter and sauntered over to her husband in their bathroom.
"For the last time, Krillin, no. I like your head just the way it is," she told him, as she idly ran a hand through the thick thatches of hair on her husband's head. "There's nothing like thick, dark hair on a man…the kind I can run my hands through."
"I like Daddy's hair," Marron added.
Krillin laughed. "I take it that I'm outvoted."
Juuhachigou playfully tugged on some of her husband's tresses. "I take it you are! Now hurry up; it won't be long before the food is done, and the rest of the guests arrive. I hope Candy and Roshi remember that at least half of our guests eat enough for three armies. I hope that twenty dozen hot dogs are going to be enough for everyone, including our famous Saiyans."
Krillin hoped so too, especially since he had been hankering for some Swiss hot dogs for days.
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A couple of hours later, Bulma, Vegeta, Trunks, Videl, Goten, and Chichi were at the table filling their plates and cups. Chichi was irritable because Goku had decided to skip out on the barbeque in favor of training privately in some mountains near their home. Her sons were disappointed that their father wouldn't be joining them, and so was Krillin, for he had hoped for a good sparring match with his best friend.
No one had been able to find Tien and Chaoztu in time to invite them to Kame House, so they were not present. But Yajirobe had come, and he was currently trying out the new chili that Candy had prepared. And, to everyone's surprise, Piccolo, whom had been invited by Krillin, had actually showed, but he privately told Gohan that he was only staying for an hour. He and Gohan were quietly talking on the shore, allowing the currently gentle ocean waves to wet their boots and ankles.
"I wish my father had come, but I'm glad that at least you're here," Gohan told Piccolo in a cheerful tone. "How have you been?"
"I've been fine, Gohan, really, I-what the-?" Piccolo gasped, as he looked out of the corner of his eye to see a man who looked very much like Nappa come out of Kame House, carrying a chocolate cake on a tray. Rapidly turning around, he saw the Nappa-look-alike lick some icing off of his fingers.
Gohan hurriedly looked in the direction of his sensei, and he cried out when he saw "Nappa". "Pi-Piccolo, how could Na-Nappa be alive-hey, wait though, he doesn't feel like Nappa, or as powerful as Nappa was. He's not even as tall."
Piccolo then released an enormous sigh of relief. He took another look at the Nappa imitation, and then he smirked, especially when Juuhachigou smacked "Nappa" hard in the back of his head for sampling more of the cake with his finger. He cried out and rubbed the back of his bald head.
"Nothing to be alarmed about," the Namek said easily. "That's just Oolong, that pig friend of Krillin's and Goku's."
"But why would Oolong want to disguise himself as Nappa?" Gohan asked, puzzled.
Piccolo closed his eyes and concentrated for a few moments, trying to think. The part of him that came from Kami helped him to be able to read minds, and he sighed and shook his large, green head when he finally divined Oolong's true motives.
"He's doing it to impress a woman," he grumbled. "He figures that she won't accept him, if she finds out what he truly is."
Gohan grinned. "That Oolong! But how does he expect to look like he does the whole time that his crush will be around. Dad and Krillin both told me that Oolong can only hold his shape for five minutes."
Piccolo chuckled, as he managed to read more of Oolong's mind. "He's been managing okay so far, thanks to Puar's help. But I doubt he's going to be able to keep it up forever. Eventually this female he's seeing is going to catch on."
"He might as well just tell her the truth," Gohan asserted. "The longer he puts it off, the harder it will be when he finally has to reveal himself."
"I agree, Gohan, and I hope that he'll tell her today, like he's planning to."
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Vegeta nearly choked on his tenth hot dog when he saw the Nappa-wannabe casually placing a chocolate cake onto the dessert table. "Who in the hell is that?" he demanded to know.
Juuhachigou placidly settled a pitcher of freshly made orangeade on the drink table next to the food table. She didn't often speak much to those outside of Kame House, but she answered quietly, "That's just Oolong, in human form. His new girlfriend's coming over today for all of us to meet her, but she thinks he's human. So for now, we're going along with his charade until he finally tells her the truth-which hopefully will be soon."
Vegeta smirked. "Just how long is he going to be able to keep his act up? And why did he decide to make himself look like Nappa, of all people?" The Saiyan prince then gagged.
Bulma replied, "My guess is that Oolong figured that women like tall men with big muscles, and that his new lady first met him in that form."
"Well, he's a fool," Vegeta scoffed. "Nappa wasn't that great-looking, even though many women of different species we came across thought differently. What women ever saw in Nappa, I can't begin to imagine. Anyway, I'm still hungry, so I'm going to finish my meal. The pig's courtship rituals are none of my concern." And he began squirting mustard on an eleventh hot dog.
As he was Vegeta was eating away, Oolong automatically transformed back into his original shape, and the human-turned-pig was relieved that Suiza had not yet arrived. Within the next ten minutes, everyone had learned of Oolong's plans, and what the pig didn't know was that Goten and Trunks had made a bet (involving their favorite toys) to see just how long Oolong would be able to keep up his deception.
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Ten minutes later, Oolong, once again in his Nappa disguise, was thankful to Yamucha and Puar, who had agreed to pick up Suiza in his car to bring her to Kame House. His jaw nearly dropped in awe, as he saw the woman of his dreams breezily step out of Yamucha's snazzy new red air car. As usual, she was a dream, dressed in stonewashed denim shorts and a teal blue tank top, with her golden hair falling loosely around her slender, tanned shoulders and back. A mesmerized Yamucha was stepping out of the car, staring at her from head to toe. But Suiza seemed to have little interest in her chauffeur, as she sauntered over to Oolong with a big grin.
"Hey, Ooos," she said wickedly, as Puar, almost unnoticed, climbed out of the same car.
"Hey, beautiful," Oolong stuttered, entranced by her.
"So, where are all of your best buds?"
Oolong took her hand. "C'mon, I'll show you around."
He decided to take her to Roshi and Candy first. Roshi was over at the food table while Candy, dressed in a short, pale green maternity dress with puffed sleeves, was sitting awkwardly on the side of a chaise lounge. A softly moaning, swollen Candy was holding her lower back with one hand, as if she was in pain.
"Hey, Candy, are you okay?" Oolong asked worriedly, looking at her with concern.
Candy rubbed her aching lower back ruefully. She managed a brave smile. "Oh, I'm fine, Oolong, really, thank you." She smiled again at Suiza, "Oh, hi, Suiza! Oolong told me you were coming. How have you been?"
"Great," Suiza told her. "How's the bike doing for you and your hubby?"
"Roshi tells me it's a smooth ride with few problems," Candy replied after a spasm ran through her back. "Was only able to ride it once after we bought it. But it won't be too long until my baby's born, and I'll be able to use the bike more often." She continued to rub her lower back.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Suiza asked. She saw that Candy was trying to keep up a happy attitude, but it was obvious that the pain was worse than what the maternity wear model would admit.
Candy nodded. "My back's aching more now, but I'm due to give birth in a couple of weeks. Ooh, I'll have to ask Roshi later, if he'll give me a back massage...he's great at giving them. Oolong, why don't you introduce Suiza to everyone? I'll be along in a few mins, okay?"
"Um, sure, Candy, but are you certain that you're okay?"
Candy nodded, but a groan escaped from her. "Sure thing."
"We're getting Roshi," Oolong insisted firmly.
"Yeah, no offense, but you don't look like you're okay," Suiza added.
"No, no, I'm fine. A backache is normal for me right now. Really, I'll just take those pain pills that my doctor prescribed, and I'll be great."
Before either Oolong or Suiza could protest further, Juuhachigou, Chichi and Master Roshi came over, and concern splashed onto their faces the moment they saw Candy still holding her lower back. And now, Candy was looking a little pale.
Roshi's eyes bulged. "Candy! Are you okay? Is it the baby?" He rushed to her side and sat down beside her.
"It-it can't be," Candy whispered. "My due date is not for two weeks."
Juuhachigou gently laid a hand on Candy's shoulder. "Yeah, well, I don't think anyone told your baby that."
"I'm going to get Bulma to get her helicopter ready," Roshi insisted. "Babies don't always come by doctor's due dates. We're getting you to a hospital."
Candy was about to protest, but then she felt a painful contraction run throughout her body. "No, no…oh! I think I just did feel a contraction. OHHH!"
Her moans of pain nearly prevented Oolong from hearing his watch beep, but when the pig-turned-human finally heard his timepiece, he started to shake.
"You stay here with her, Master Roshi! Puar and I will go get Bulma!" Oolong ordered, and then he ran away. But he didn't go to Bulma right away; instead, he ran to the side of Kame House, out of everyone's sight. He panted anxiously, as he waited for his body to change back into pig form. Only then, he raced to find Bulma.
Vegeta was gobbling down his thirty-fifth hotdog while Bulma was "reminding" him to think of the other people who needed to eat. When a frantic Oolong literally bumped into Bulma and startled her, Vegeta was grateful for the reprieve from his wife's guilt trip towards him.
"Hey, watch where you're going, Oolong!" Bulma cried angrily.
"Sorry, Bulma, but Candy's going to have her baby! Her contractions have started! We need to get her to the hospital!" Oolong cried.
Bulma gasped, "Oh no! Okay, okay, I'll go start up the helicopter right now!"
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When the hospital finally landed in the heliport of West Capital City Memorial Hospital, Puar and Oolong were as weary as Candy, whose contractions were coming closer and closer together, was. The two animals were the first to dash out of the helicopter when the engine had stopped running.
Just before they had boarded the helicopter, Oolong had begged a hesitant, agitated Puar into disguising herself as his human form until they arrived at the hospital. The purple cat reluctantly agreed, and she had done her best act ever as the human Oolong, talking with Suiza near the front of the plane. Oolong was thankful to her, but also to Yamucha, who had agreed to let Oolong disguise himself as his belt. When Oolong could remain in belt form, he would simply wrap around Yamucha's real belt, and when he had to change back, he would hide under an old blanket that had been lying on one of the seats. Suiza had come along because Oolong had, and Oolong had come to be there for Roshi and Candy.
Bulma had summoned for help at the hospital before she had arrived with her friends, and so a team of doctors and nurses were headed towards the heliport to escort Candy to the maternity ward. Piccolo had remained behind at Kame House with Gohan, Videl, Umigame, Goten, and Trunks, so those who had come along with Candy hurried into the hospital with the doctors and nurses rushing Candy inside.
A frantic Roshi was rushing around excitedly, worried for the safety of his wife and child. He was in the faces of the medical crew, demanding the best care possible for Candy and generally making a pest of himself until Vegeta cuffed him in the back of his head and told him to shut up and calm down.
"Your wife is not the first woman in the world to give birth, old man!"
"Er, sure, Vegeta, right, right-oh, hold on, Candy!"
Roshi was anxiously running alongside Candy's wheelchair, reassuring her that he loved her, and that he'd hold her hand throughout the entire time. However, Roshi's friends could hear him howling when Candy had taken her husband's last promise seriously and was now tightly squeezing his hand until bones could be heard cracking.
"Oh, oh, OH!" Roshi cried, and when Candy finally released him, Roshi's hand was huge, red, and swollen.
"Oh, oh, OH MY! OH!" Candy screamed, as another contraction came. "Won't someone hold my hand, please?"
Following this request was a series of arguments and protests. "You hold her hand; you're her best friend, Juuhachigou!"
Juuhachigou paled visibly. Both of her hands were crushed from letting Candy hold them on the helicopter ride. She waved her injured hands in protests, as she and the others followed Candy's entourage. "I stuck by her during morning sickness and made sure her clothes remained in fashion. How about you, Krillin?"
"Um, that's okay, Juuhachi, you're stronger than I am."
"So you finally admit it. I would, but my hands have now been rendered useless."
"Well, how about Vegeta? He's supposed to be stronger than all of us."
"Hell no!" Vegeta protested. "The old pervert impregnated her; he should be the one to have his hands crushed. That's part of the father's job!"
Bulma bit her lips to prevent herself from saying the first thoughts that came to mind: that, if holding the laboring mother's hands was the father's job, why hadn't Vegeta held her hands when she had been giving birth to Trunks? In fact, why hadn't Vegeta been there to see his son's birth?
"Someone hold my hand, please!" Candy wailed.
The arguments continued. Most of the others cared for Candy dearly, but none of them wanted to wind up like Roshi or Juuhachigou. The doors to the maternity ward were coming closer and closer. Krillin pulled Roshi away to go to the front desk to check Candy in.
As Candy's pains increased, she screamed at a departing Roshi, "Roshi, I love you, but after today, I'm staying celibate! Don't touch me again!"
Roshi was frantic at hearing this, but Krillin whispered in his ear, "Don't worry; Juuhachigou told me the same thing while she was giving birth to Marron. It'll pass."
"I hope so!" Roshi groaned, as his shaky hand began to fill out the papers that the nurse at the desk handed him.
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Four hours later, as the party waited in the waiting room, with only Roshi and Juuhachigou having been in the delivery room, a giddily grinning Roshi slowly crept out from between the double doors of the maternity ward, carrying a red-faced infant son, wrapped in a pale blue blanket.
"Meet my son, Kane Kame Roshi!" Roshi declared triumphantly, and happy cheers followed. Even Vegeta gave a small smile. Everyone else gathered closer to look at the plump, wrinkled bundle of life swaddled in the soft blanket.
"He's precious!" Chichi squealed. Baby Kane was still wrinkly and red, but even so, it was plain to see that he had inherited his mother's candy-apple red hair. His squinted eyes, bluish-gray, were very likely to turn green sooner or later.
Juuhachigou studied the newborn for a few moments before allowing a smile to come across her face. She was remembering the day that Marron had been born, and for a few minutes, she wondered whether she and Krillin should try for another child, as she gently ran a finger along the blanketed baby.
Suiza wanted to tickle the baby, but she wasn't sure if it would be safe for her to touch him just yet. He looked so delicate that she felt nervous, so she just contented herself to look at him. Oolong stood near her, debating whether to make goofy faces at him, but before he could decide, the child fell asleep.
Krillin grinned. "Congratulations, Master Roshi! You're a lucky guy!"
Roshi laughed. "Don't I know it!"
"Way to go, Roshi!" Oolong cheered.
"Krillin's right; you're a lucky guy," Suiza agreed. "Hmm…you and Candy may have just started my biological clock."
"He is cute," Bulma added. "Who'd ever thought, Master Roshi, that you could produce something that adorable?"
"I certainly didn't," Yamucha joked.
"Who'd ever thought that Master Roshi would be a father?" Puar asked. "Congratulations to him."
Roshi smiled, looking down with pride at the warm, sleepy infant in his arms. Gently, he stroked the thatch of downy hair on his son's head. Never in his dreams had he thought that he would be a father.
"How's Candy?" Chichi asked.
"Tired, but happy. The doctor says that she'll make a speedy recovery," Roshi assured her. "I'm proud of her, and if everyone will excuse me, I'll take our son back inside to her. My little fellow here will probably be hungry again soon."
"Give her our best," Chichi told him.
Roshi promised that he would, as he carried away his new, precious treasure back to Candy's room.
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Sitting between Suiza and Puar in the cafeteria, Oolong wasn't sure who was more exhausted-him or Candy. During Candy's labor and birth, Oolong and Puar had taken advantage of frequent "coffee breaks" or "potty breaks" to keep Suiza from finding out Oolong's true identity. Suiza began to look at them more and more suspiciously, especially since either Puar would keep going away with Oolong, or Puar would leave behind him shortly after.
Finally, Oolong came up with an actual good excuse-he wanted to go check on Roshi and Candy, and he told Suiza this.
"No problem; would it be okay, if I came along?" Suiza inquired.
"Umm…" Oolong replied nervously in his human form, looking around at his friends for help. Finally, it was Juuhachigou who saved Oolong's pigskin.
"Actually, Suiza, I was hoping that you could tell me about your motorcycles," the blond android interrupted. "My brother's thinking about buying a new one."
Suiza, running slender fingers through silky blond hair, perked up then. She always loved talking about motorcycles. "What's he interested in?" she asked.
Juuhachigou told her, and Suiza began to speak at length about the best kind of motorcycles for Juunanagou's lifestyle and home terrain. While she and Juuhachigou were talking, Oolong and Puar quickly slipped away from the table, where they had been having a late dinner. He looked gratefully at Juuhachigou, who winked at him.
As the human-once-again-turned-pig and the cat reached the elevator to get to the floor that Candy and Roshi were on, Puar spoke quietly to Oolong, "Oolong, Suiza's really starting to get suspicious. I could tell, from the strange looks that she was giving us. I don't think she's buying your bathroom break excuses or your coffee breaks anymore, or at least she won't be for much longer. We've been at least two other dates with her since that last time we went to the movies, and it's getting too much for all three of us. I understand why you didn't tell her today, but Oolong, you can't put off telling her the truth for much longer."
"I know, Puar, I know," Oolong said wearily, as he and Puar waited for the elevator. "I just wish there was some way I could keep my human shape for longer periods of time."
"Just tell her," Puar encouraged. "If she really likes you, she'll accept you for who you truly are. And if she doesn't, well, it's not meant to be."
Oolong sighed. "I wish there was a way for me to know for sure that Suiza liked me just for who I am, no matter what I truly look like. Could she ever love this little pink pig standing right here, or could she only love this?" And after that, he transformed into his Nappa-look-alike and back again to his natural pig form.
"If she truly cares for you," Puar told him, "then she'll love you in your real form as well. Why don't you just go back to her in your real form and tell her then and there? I'll go back with you after we leave Master Roshi, Candy, and their baby."
"I guess it's time then, isn't it?" Oolong agreed. "And Puar, I know that I've put you through a hard time these past few weeks, but I really do appreciate all the help you've been giving me."
"Thanks," Puar panted simply. "Although, I'll be glad when we don't have to keep up this deception any longer. Trust me, Oolong; you'll feel better once you reveal yourself, no matter what happens."
"I hope so," Oolong told her uncertainly, as the elevator doors opened. He and Puar entered the empty elevator, but unbeknownst they weren't entering alone.
Puar turned around to press the button, but when she did, she bumped into someone, a young man with a menacing grin. Before she could react, he seized Puar by her throat, and Puar shrieked a loud meow.
Oolong abruptly turned around, and he shouted at Puar's attacker, "Hey, you let her, you-oh, no!" He gulped, seeing Puar's captor surrounded by three other human men.
"Oh, yes, little piggy and little kitty," Puar's captor replied cruelly. "So, Oolong, I knew you were hiding something. So you're really a pig? Wonder how Suiza will take to that. Hey guys, you think that my woman will want to date a piggy?" He ran his thick fingers through the blue-green Mohawk on his head. The arm that the fingers belonged to was wrapped with gauze bandages.
"You let us go!" Puar shrieked.
"Oh, we will, pretty kitty," her captor promised her. "Just as soon as we have a chat with you and Suiza's new piggy boyfriend there." He then flung Puar's small feline body towards Oolong, who caught her in time.
"You have no right to bully us!" Oolong insisted.
"Nor do you have a right to deceive my Suiza, right, boys?"
The other men laughed and agreed wholeheartedly. Oolong and Puar huddled close to each other, as the elevator moved up. They both started shaking when Puar's blue-haired captor pulled out a long switchblade and casually licked the tip of it.
Both Oolong and Puar tensed, as Teal and three of his fellow Rumblers walked stealthily towards them, as one of Teal's friends pushed the emergency stop button on the elevator. Teal grinned wickedly, as he calmly brandished his switchblade.
Two weeks later…
"Juuhachi, are you sure that I shouldn't shave my head bald again?" Krillin asked his android wife, as he studied his reflection in the bathroom mirror in the bathroom that he and his wife shared as part of their bedroom. Juuhachigou was already dressed in a red cotton blouse and denim shorts that showed off her long, slender legs nicely. Since she was already dressed, she was sitting on the bed, working on Marron's two trademark pigtails; Marron was dressed in a cute pink blouse and cherry-red jumper. When she finished, she released her daughter and sauntered over to her husband in their bathroom.
"For the last time, Krillin, no. I like your head just the way it is," she told him, as she idly ran a hand through the thick thatches of hair on her husband's head. "There's nothing like thick, dark hair on a man…the kind I can run my hands through."
"I like Daddy's hair," Marron added.
Krillin laughed. "I take it that I'm outvoted."
Juuhachigou playfully tugged on some of her husband's tresses. "I take it you are! Now hurry up; it won't be long before the food is done, and the rest of the guests arrive. I hope Candy and Roshi remember that at least half of our guests eat enough for three armies. I hope that twenty dozen hot dogs are going to be enough for everyone, including our famous Saiyans."
Krillin hoped so too, especially since he had been hankering for some Swiss hot dogs for days.
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A couple of hours later, Bulma, Vegeta, Trunks, Videl, Goten, and Chichi were at the table filling their plates and cups. Chichi was irritable because Goku had decided to skip out on the barbeque in favor of training privately in some mountains near their home. Her sons were disappointed that their father wouldn't be joining them, and so was Krillin, for he had hoped for a good sparring match with his best friend.
No one had been able to find Tien and Chaoztu in time to invite them to Kame House, so they were not present. But Yajirobe had come, and he was currently trying out the new chili that Candy had prepared. And, to everyone's surprise, Piccolo, whom had been invited by Krillin, had actually showed, but he privately told Gohan that he was only staying for an hour. He and Gohan were quietly talking on the shore, allowing the currently gentle ocean waves to wet their boots and ankles.
"I wish my father had come, but I'm glad that at least you're here," Gohan told Piccolo in a cheerful tone. "How have you been?"
"I've been fine, Gohan, really, I-what the-?" Piccolo gasped, as he looked out of the corner of his eye to see a man who looked very much like Nappa come out of Kame House, carrying a chocolate cake on a tray. Rapidly turning around, he saw the Nappa-look-alike lick some icing off of his fingers.
Gohan hurriedly looked in the direction of his sensei, and he cried out when he saw "Nappa". "Pi-Piccolo, how could Na-Nappa be alive-hey, wait though, he doesn't feel like Nappa, or as powerful as Nappa was. He's not even as tall."
Piccolo then released an enormous sigh of relief. He took another look at the Nappa imitation, and then he smirked, especially when Juuhachigou smacked "Nappa" hard in the back of his head for sampling more of the cake with his finger. He cried out and rubbed the back of his bald head.
"Nothing to be alarmed about," the Namek said easily. "That's just Oolong, that pig friend of Krillin's and Goku's."
"But why would Oolong want to disguise himself as Nappa?" Gohan asked, puzzled.
Piccolo closed his eyes and concentrated for a few moments, trying to think. The part of him that came from Kami helped him to be able to read minds, and he sighed and shook his large, green head when he finally divined Oolong's true motives.
"He's doing it to impress a woman," he grumbled. "He figures that she won't accept him, if she finds out what he truly is."
Gohan grinned. "That Oolong! But how does he expect to look like he does the whole time that his crush will be around. Dad and Krillin both told me that Oolong can only hold his shape for five minutes."
Piccolo chuckled, as he managed to read more of Oolong's mind. "He's been managing okay so far, thanks to Puar's help. But I doubt he's going to be able to keep it up forever. Eventually this female he's seeing is going to catch on."
"He might as well just tell her the truth," Gohan asserted. "The longer he puts it off, the harder it will be when he finally has to reveal himself."
"I agree, Gohan, and I hope that he'll tell her today, like he's planning to."
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Vegeta nearly choked on his tenth hot dog when he saw the Nappa-wannabe casually placing a chocolate cake onto the dessert table. "Who in the hell is that?" he demanded to know.
Juuhachigou placidly settled a pitcher of freshly made orangeade on the drink table next to the food table. She didn't often speak much to those outside of Kame House, but she answered quietly, "That's just Oolong, in human form. His new girlfriend's coming over today for all of us to meet her, but she thinks he's human. So for now, we're going along with his charade until he finally tells her the truth-which hopefully will be soon."
Vegeta smirked. "Just how long is he going to be able to keep his act up? And why did he decide to make himself look like Nappa, of all people?" The Saiyan prince then gagged.
Bulma replied, "My guess is that Oolong figured that women like tall men with big muscles, and that his new lady first met him in that form."
"Well, he's a fool," Vegeta scoffed. "Nappa wasn't that great-looking, even though many women of different species we came across thought differently. What women ever saw in Nappa, I can't begin to imagine. Anyway, I'm still hungry, so I'm going to finish my meal. The pig's courtship rituals are none of my concern." And he began squirting mustard on an eleventh hot dog.
As he was Vegeta was eating away, Oolong automatically transformed back into his original shape, and the human-turned-pig was relieved that Suiza had not yet arrived. Within the next ten minutes, everyone had learned of Oolong's plans, and what the pig didn't know was that Goten and Trunks had made a bet (involving their favorite toys) to see just how long Oolong would be able to keep up his deception.
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Ten minutes later, Oolong, once again in his Nappa disguise, was thankful to Yamucha and Puar, who had agreed to pick up Suiza in his car to bring her to Kame House. His jaw nearly dropped in awe, as he saw the woman of his dreams breezily step out of Yamucha's snazzy new red air car. As usual, she was a dream, dressed in stonewashed denim shorts and a teal blue tank top, with her golden hair falling loosely around her slender, tanned shoulders and back. A mesmerized Yamucha was stepping out of the car, staring at her from head to toe. But Suiza seemed to have little interest in her chauffeur, as she sauntered over to Oolong with a big grin.
"Hey, Ooos," she said wickedly, as Puar, almost unnoticed, climbed out of the same car.
"Hey, beautiful," Oolong stuttered, entranced by her.
"So, where are all of your best buds?"
Oolong took her hand. "C'mon, I'll show you around."
He decided to take her to Roshi and Candy first. Roshi was over at the food table while Candy, dressed in a short, pale green maternity dress with puffed sleeves, was sitting awkwardly on the side of a chaise lounge. A softly moaning, swollen Candy was holding her lower back with one hand, as if she was in pain.
"Hey, Candy, are you okay?" Oolong asked worriedly, looking at her with concern.
Candy rubbed her aching lower back ruefully. She managed a brave smile. "Oh, I'm fine, Oolong, really, thank you." She smiled again at Suiza, "Oh, hi, Suiza! Oolong told me you were coming. How have you been?"
"Great," Suiza told her. "How's the bike doing for you and your hubby?"
"Roshi tells me it's a smooth ride with few problems," Candy replied after a spasm ran through her back. "Was only able to ride it once after we bought it. But it won't be too long until my baby's born, and I'll be able to use the bike more often." She continued to rub her lower back.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Suiza asked. She saw that Candy was trying to keep up a happy attitude, but it was obvious that the pain was worse than what the maternity wear model would admit.
Candy nodded. "My back's aching more now, but I'm due to give birth in a couple of weeks. Ooh, I'll have to ask Roshi later, if he'll give me a back massage...he's great at giving them. Oolong, why don't you introduce Suiza to everyone? I'll be along in a few mins, okay?"
"Um, sure, Candy, but are you certain that you're okay?"
Candy nodded, but a groan escaped from her. "Sure thing."
"We're getting Roshi," Oolong insisted firmly.
"Yeah, no offense, but you don't look like you're okay," Suiza added.
"No, no, I'm fine. A backache is normal for me right now. Really, I'll just take those pain pills that my doctor prescribed, and I'll be great."
Before either Oolong or Suiza could protest further, Juuhachigou, Chichi and Master Roshi came over, and concern splashed onto their faces the moment they saw Candy still holding her lower back. And now, Candy was looking a little pale.
Roshi's eyes bulged. "Candy! Are you okay? Is it the baby?" He rushed to her side and sat down beside her.
"It-it can't be," Candy whispered. "My due date is not for two weeks."
Juuhachigou gently laid a hand on Candy's shoulder. "Yeah, well, I don't think anyone told your baby that."
"I'm going to get Bulma to get her helicopter ready," Roshi insisted. "Babies don't always come by doctor's due dates. We're getting you to a hospital."
Candy was about to protest, but then she felt a painful contraction run throughout her body. "No, no…oh! I think I just did feel a contraction. OHHH!"
Her moans of pain nearly prevented Oolong from hearing his watch beep, but when the pig-turned-human finally heard his timepiece, he started to shake.
"You stay here with her, Master Roshi! Puar and I will go get Bulma!" Oolong ordered, and then he ran away. But he didn't go to Bulma right away; instead, he ran to the side of Kame House, out of everyone's sight. He panted anxiously, as he waited for his body to change back into pig form. Only then, he raced to find Bulma.
Vegeta was gobbling down his thirty-fifth hotdog while Bulma was "reminding" him to think of the other people who needed to eat. When a frantic Oolong literally bumped into Bulma and startled her, Vegeta was grateful for the reprieve from his wife's guilt trip towards him.
"Hey, watch where you're going, Oolong!" Bulma cried angrily.
"Sorry, Bulma, but Candy's going to have her baby! Her contractions have started! We need to get her to the hospital!" Oolong cried.
Bulma gasped, "Oh no! Okay, okay, I'll go start up the helicopter right now!"
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When the hospital finally landed in the heliport of West Capital City Memorial Hospital, Puar and Oolong were as weary as Candy, whose contractions were coming closer and closer together, was. The two animals were the first to dash out of the helicopter when the engine had stopped running.
Just before they had boarded the helicopter, Oolong had begged a hesitant, agitated Puar into disguising herself as his human form until they arrived at the hospital. The purple cat reluctantly agreed, and she had done her best act ever as the human Oolong, talking with Suiza near the front of the plane. Oolong was thankful to her, but also to Yamucha, who had agreed to let Oolong disguise himself as his belt. When Oolong could remain in belt form, he would simply wrap around Yamucha's real belt, and when he had to change back, he would hide under an old blanket that had been lying on one of the seats. Suiza had come along because Oolong had, and Oolong had come to be there for Roshi and Candy.
Bulma had summoned for help at the hospital before she had arrived with her friends, and so a team of doctors and nurses were headed towards the heliport to escort Candy to the maternity ward. Piccolo had remained behind at Kame House with Gohan, Videl, Umigame, Goten, and Trunks, so those who had come along with Candy hurried into the hospital with the doctors and nurses rushing Candy inside.
A frantic Roshi was rushing around excitedly, worried for the safety of his wife and child. He was in the faces of the medical crew, demanding the best care possible for Candy and generally making a pest of himself until Vegeta cuffed him in the back of his head and told him to shut up and calm down.
"Your wife is not the first woman in the world to give birth, old man!"
"Er, sure, Vegeta, right, right-oh, hold on, Candy!"
Roshi was anxiously running alongside Candy's wheelchair, reassuring her that he loved her, and that he'd hold her hand throughout the entire time. However, Roshi's friends could hear him howling when Candy had taken her husband's last promise seriously and was now tightly squeezing his hand until bones could be heard cracking.
"Oh, oh, OH!" Roshi cried, and when Candy finally released him, Roshi's hand was huge, red, and swollen.
"Oh, oh, OH MY! OH!" Candy screamed, as another contraction came. "Won't someone hold my hand, please?"
Following this request was a series of arguments and protests. "You hold her hand; you're her best friend, Juuhachigou!"
Juuhachigou paled visibly. Both of her hands were crushed from letting Candy hold them on the helicopter ride. She waved her injured hands in protests, as she and the others followed Candy's entourage. "I stuck by her during morning sickness and made sure her clothes remained in fashion. How about you, Krillin?"
"Um, that's okay, Juuhachi, you're stronger than I am."
"So you finally admit it. I would, but my hands have now been rendered useless."
"Well, how about Vegeta? He's supposed to be stronger than all of us."
"Hell no!" Vegeta protested. "The old pervert impregnated her; he should be the one to have his hands crushed. That's part of the father's job!"
Bulma bit her lips to prevent herself from saying the first thoughts that came to mind: that, if holding the laboring mother's hands was the father's job, why hadn't Vegeta held her hands when she had been giving birth to Trunks? In fact, why hadn't Vegeta been there to see his son's birth?
"Someone hold my hand, please!" Candy wailed.
The arguments continued. Most of the others cared for Candy dearly, but none of them wanted to wind up like Roshi or Juuhachigou. The doors to the maternity ward were coming closer and closer. Krillin pulled Roshi away to go to the front desk to check Candy in.
As Candy's pains increased, she screamed at a departing Roshi, "Roshi, I love you, but after today, I'm staying celibate! Don't touch me again!"
Roshi was frantic at hearing this, but Krillin whispered in his ear, "Don't worry; Juuhachigou told me the same thing while she was giving birth to Marron. It'll pass."
"I hope so!" Roshi groaned, as his shaky hand began to fill out the papers that the nurse at the desk handed him.
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Four hours later, as the party waited in the waiting room, with only Roshi and Juuhachigou having been in the delivery room, a giddily grinning Roshi slowly crept out from between the double doors of the maternity ward, carrying a red-faced infant son, wrapped in a pale blue blanket.
"Meet my son, Kane Kame Roshi!" Roshi declared triumphantly, and happy cheers followed. Even Vegeta gave a small smile. Everyone else gathered closer to look at the plump, wrinkled bundle of life swaddled in the soft blanket.
"He's precious!" Chichi squealed. Baby Kane was still wrinkly and red, but even so, it was plain to see that he had inherited his mother's candy-apple red hair. His squinted eyes, bluish-gray, were very likely to turn green sooner or later.
Juuhachigou studied the newborn for a few moments before allowing a smile to come across her face. She was remembering the day that Marron had been born, and for a few minutes, she wondered whether she and Krillin should try for another child, as she gently ran a finger along the blanketed baby.
Suiza wanted to tickle the baby, but she wasn't sure if it would be safe for her to touch him just yet. He looked so delicate that she felt nervous, so she just contented herself to look at him. Oolong stood near her, debating whether to make goofy faces at him, but before he could decide, the child fell asleep.
Krillin grinned. "Congratulations, Master Roshi! You're a lucky guy!"
Roshi laughed. "Don't I know it!"
"Way to go, Roshi!" Oolong cheered.
"Krillin's right; you're a lucky guy," Suiza agreed. "Hmm…you and Candy may have just started my biological clock."
"He is cute," Bulma added. "Who'd ever thought, Master Roshi, that you could produce something that adorable?"
"I certainly didn't," Yamucha joked.
"Who'd ever thought that Master Roshi would be a father?" Puar asked. "Congratulations to him."
Roshi smiled, looking down with pride at the warm, sleepy infant in his arms. Gently, he stroked the thatch of downy hair on his son's head. Never in his dreams had he thought that he would be a father.
"How's Candy?" Chichi asked.
"Tired, but happy. The doctor says that she'll make a speedy recovery," Roshi assured her. "I'm proud of her, and if everyone will excuse me, I'll take our son back inside to her. My little fellow here will probably be hungry again soon."
"Give her our best," Chichi told him.
Roshi promised that he would, as he carried away his new, precious treasure back to Candy's room.
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Sitting between Suiza and Puar in the cafeteria, Oolong wasn't sure who was more exhausted-him or Candy. During Candy's labor and birth, Oolong and Puar had taken advantage of frequent "coffee breaks" or "potty breaks" to keep Suiza from finding out Oolong's true identity. Suiza began to look at them more and more suspiciously, especially since either Puar would keep going away with Oolong, or Puar would leave behind him shortly after.
Finally, Oolong came up with an actual good excuse-he wanted to go check on Roshi and Candy, and he told Suiza this.
"No problem; would it be okay, if I came along?" Suiza inquired.
"Umm…" Oolong replied nervously in his human form, looking around at his friends for help. Finally, it was Juuhachigou who saved Oolong's pigskin.
"Actually, Suiza, I was hoping that you could tell me about your motorcycles," the blond android interrupted. "My brother's thinking about buying a new one."
Suiza, running slender fingers through silky blond hair, perked up then. She always loved talking about motorcycles. "What's he interested in?" she asked.
Juuhachigou told her, and Suiza began to speak at length about the best kind of motorcycles for Juunanagou's lifestyle and home terrain. While she and Juuhachigou were talking, Oolong and Puar quickly slipped away from the table, where they had been having a late dinner. He looked gratefully at Juuhachigou, who winked at him.
As the human-once-again-turned-pig and the cat reached the elevator to get to the floor that Candy and Roshi were on, Puar spoke quietly to Oolong, "Oolong, Suiza's really starting to get suspicious. I could tell, from the strange looks that she was giving us. I don't think she's buying your bathroom break excuses or your coffee breaks anymore, or at least she won't be for much longer. We've been at least two other dates with her since that last time we went to the movies, and it's getting too much for all three of us. I understand why you didn't tell her today, but Oolong, you can't put off telling her the truth for much longer."
"I know, Puar, I know," Oolong said wearily, as he and Puar waited for the elevator. "I just wish there was some way I could keep my human shape for longer periods of time."
"Just tell her," Puar encouraged. "If she really likes you, she'll accept you for who you truly are. And if she doesn't, well, it's not meant to be."
Oolong sighed. "I wish there was a way for me to know for sure that Suiza liked me just for who I am, no matter what I truly look like. Could she ever love this little pink pig standing right here, or could she only love this?" And after that, he transformed into his Nappa-look-alike and back again to his natural pig form.
"If she truly cares for you," Puar told him, "then she'll love you in your real form as well. Why don't you just go back to her in your real form and tell her then and there? I'll go back with you after we leave Master Roshi, Candy, and their baby."
"I guess it's time then, isn't it?" Oolong agreed. "And Puar, I know that I've put you through a hard time these past few weeks, but I really do appreciate all the help you've been giving me."
"Thanks," Puar panted simply. "Although, I'll be glad when we don't have to keep up this deception any longer. Trust me, Oolong; you'll feel better once you reveal yourself, no matter what happens."
"I hope so," Oolong told her uncertainly, as the elevator doors opened. He and Puar entered the empty elevator, but unbeknownst they weren't entering alone.
Puar turned around to press the button, but when she did, she bumped into someone, a young man with a menacing grin. Before she could react, he seized Puar by her throat, and Puar shrieked a loud meow.
Oolong abruptly turned around, and he shouted at Puar's attacker, "Hey, you let her, you-oh, no!" He gulped, seeing Puar's captor surrounded by three other human men.
"Oh, yes, little piggy and little kitty," Puar's captor replied cruelly. "So, Oolong, I knew you were hiding something. So you're really a pig? Wonder how Suiza will take to that. Hey guys, you think that my woman will want to date a piggy?" He ran his thick fingers through the blue-green Mohawk on his head. The arm that the fingers belonged to was wrapped with gauze bandages.
"You let us go!" Puar shrieked.
"Oh, we will, pretty kitty," her captor promised her. "Just as soon as we have a chat with you and Suiza's new piggy boyfriend there." He then flung Puar's small feline body towards Oolong, who caught her in time.
"You have no right to bully us!" Oolong insisted.
"Nor do you have a right to deceive my Suiza, right, boys?"
The other men laughed and agreed wholeheartedly. Oolong and Puar huddled close to each other, as the elevator moved up. They both started shaking when Puar's blue-haired captor pulled out a long switchblade and casually licked the tip of it.
Both Oolong and Puar tensed, as Teal and three of his fellow Rumblers walked stealthily towards them, as one of Teal's friends pushed the emergency stop button on the elevator. Teal grinned wickedly, as he calmly brandished his switchblade.