Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or the characters

Special thanks to bval1, HowlX23, DaniellaDBZ4ever, RaiynetheHedgehog, KimiruMai, sonia-animeaddict, Senako-Hime, lintu-lvr4, threeam inkblot, vegetas4evasweetheart, LunarSinner, iluvveggie, Ermilus, Angelwolf22, Ocean Eve, xSapphirexRosesxFanx, and various guests.

Vegeta peeked his eyes opened as soon as the light peeked through his window. He moved to stretch, but realized that he had Bulma resting against him. He gently slid her to the other side of the bed so that she could continue sleeping while he went to check out the throne room. As he left the room, he cast her a glance full of longing before closing the door.

The throne room looked bare, clean as if a fight had never occurred. The only things that could convince Vegeta he was in fact free were the broken throne and ki-singed pillars. He was looking around when Nappa entered the room.

"It's over now, Vegeta," he said. "The palace designers will be redoing the throne room. They plan on restoring it to its former glory."

Vegeta nodded his approval. "Good," he said monotonously. "Send a guard out to the people. He will tell them that the king is dead. A celebration will be held at the end of the week so that I may publically accept Bulma as my mate. I want the council reinstated before then so that Bulma and I may be coronated. The old laws must be restored, and I want the workers to get restarted on rebuilding homes soon after. A feast will be held to restore their strength, and I want everyone to receive water for their families."

Nappa smirked at the young prince, soon to be king. "Yes, your majesty."

"Cut the crap, Nappa," Vegeta growled slightly. "You know better than to use titles with me."

"Right, kid," Nappa replied with a smile. "Anything else?"

"Yes," Vegeta stated. "Have a few ships ready. I want some designated for the army after the coronation. I want to send ambassadors to the remaining allied planets. We need to restore my grandfather's friendships. I also need two large ships for the concubines. I will give them each an allowance so that they can buy their freedom when they return to the slave planet. They can go wherever they want, but they are not staying here. They should be able to return their homes."

"I'll get the allowances taken care of, kid," Nappa offered. "You go do what you have to." Vegeta nodded and sped out of the throne room. He then made his way for his father's wing of the palace.

Bulma woke up and realized that she was alone. She wasn't surprised since both she and Vegeta had a lot to do. There was a knock on the door as soon as she stood up to change, so she answered it. Queen Kalina was standing there with Tarble, who was wheeling in a large breakfast cart.

"We thought you might be hungry after such a long fight," the queen said. "Would you mind if we join you?"

Bulma smiled and stepped out the way, motioning for them to enter. "Not at all," she said. "Come in."

Tarble quickly got the cart inside so that he could give Bulma a hug. "Hi, sissy," he said happily.

Bulma was slightly shocked by the new nickname, though he had called her that once before, but she loved it nonetheless. She hugged him back and ruffled his hair making the young boy laugh. It was the first time Bulma had seen him this happy. Her heart clenched thinking of the fact that neither prince could experience much of a childhood. She now understood why Vegeta called the palace a prison. The only time she saw the elder prince experience any joy was when he was out with the people, playing with the children. Even his relationship with her had originally been a trap. Vegeta had truly never been free. Bulma frowned at the thought of being another weight that Vegeta had to bear.

"Bulma, are you all right?" Queen Kalina asked her. "You look pale."

Bulma smiled at her concern. It almost reminded her of her own mother. "I'm fine," she lied. "Just very tired."

"Well, that is to be expected," the queen replied. "You had a very trying day yesterday. You should just take the day to recuperate."

Bulma was shocked that the queen would say that. Today was very important. She and Vegeta needed to work together to fix the planet's problems. "But I can't," she said. "I need to finish working on the plans for the water purification system. That, and I was going to have Chi Chi and Bardock help me figure out what medical tools we have to work with. The healthcare system needs to be fixed. Oh, and I need to update the shield system and-"

"Bulma!" Queen Kalina interrupted. "You need to breathe. There is a lot that needs to be done before you can implement your new projects. You and Vegeta must be coronated and I'm sure he is having the council reinstated for that. Then the people who would be the ones doing all of the building work for the new projects need to be refreshed. My mate did not take care of his people well. And that's just the technical stuff that needs to be dealt with. Have you forgotten that you are pregnant, and with a Saiyan child no less? You need to rest, especially after yesterday."

Bulma sat back down on the bed. It wasn't that she had forgotten about the baby, but she hadn't been focusing on her health or the risks of a human carrying a Saiyan child. "You're right," Bulma whispered, feeling slightly guilty about overlooking her own safety. "I'll rest today."

The queen and Tarble smiled at her and then to each other. They both truly cared for the human girl and were worried about her. They hadn't meant to scare her, but neither wanted her to overdo it. Things would be difficult for the people over the next few months, but fixing everything wouldn't happen overnight, no matter what the queen's stubborn son and his mate wanted to believe.

"Alright," Tarble spoke up. "Let's eat breakfast. I'm starved."

Bulma smiled at her little "brother-in-law" and nodded. At least he seemed happier. It made all of the drama from the day before well worth it.

Vegeta made it to his father's quarters and took a deep breath to prepare himself. He opened the doors and walked into the large room only to see hordes of women waiting there. They all looked towards the door as they heard it opened. They were tensed and fearful at the initial sound, but relaxed when they saw that it was not the king, but the prince. A few of them started to move towards him.

"No," Vegeta stated forcefully. They stopped dead in their tracts looking to the young prince with confusion lighting their eyes. "I am not here for that. My father is dead and I am here to let you go. Do not worry; you will all be taken care of."

None of the girls spoke. They were trained not to, unless they were asked of course. Vegeta sighed as he remembered his father mentioning something about that rule. "If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to me or anyone else on the planet. We will make sure you have enough money to buy your freedom and return to your homes."

He heard a group of gasps. It made him cringe as he thought of them not being able to speak because of his father's laws. How could he treat a woman like that? Was that how his father had expected him to act with Bulma? No, he could have never have silenced her in such a manner. It was complete and utter disrespect, and no one deserved that.

One girl hesitantly walked up to Vegeta. She was wearing a long robe with long sleeves that covered her hands. Vegeta couldn't believe it. She looked to be only thirteen years old. Before Vegeta could ask her, the girl grasped his arm with her small hands and looked up at him breaking down into tears.

Vegeta grew uncomfortable, but then looked around to all the other women. They were all crying, too. It amazed him, to be surrounded by so many despairing women. He knew he hadn't caused their pain; he knew he hadn't kept them trapped in here. What he did know was that they were crying because they didn't know what to do with their newfound freedom; the news had overwhelmed them.

Vegeta couldn't stand not being able to do anything, so he awkwardly hugged the younger girl back to comfort her. He knew he was doing the right thing when the tears stopped and he was met with smiles. "Pack your things," he told them. "You'll be leaving tonight."

"Thank you," the young girl in his arms whispered. He heard a few gasps, but ignored them.

"You're welcome."

Bulma was lying in bed, still thinking about how Vegeta was stuck with her. He hadn't had a choice when his father proposed his challenge. The whole thing wasn't fair. Now Vegeta would never have the freedom to explore his other options. He would have had plenty had she not come into the picture, maybe even a Saiyan girl instead of a weaker human like her.

Vegeta entered the room without Bulma's knowledge. He had traced her ki to the room. She had not left it all day, which pleased him knowing that she had gone through a lot of stress the day before. She didn't hear him come in, nor did she notice his presence. Vegeta froze when he smelled the scent of fresh tears. His mate was crying, hurt, saddened by something, and he didn't like it. He chose to comfort her and quietly slipped into bed next to her.

Bulma gasped when she felt the bed shift, but relaxed when she felt Vegeta's strong arms around her. "Hey," she greeted quietly.

"Why are you crying?" Vegeta whispered in her ear. "I hate it when women cry."

Bulma smiled slightly and rested her hands on top of his. "I just feel bad that even though you're free of your father, I am still trapping you."

Vegeta scoffed and said, "That's the most foolish thing I have ever heard you say. I willingly took you as a mate, Bulma. It was my decision."

"Based off of a challenge your father posed," Bulma responded. "If we hadn't been placed in that position-"

"I would do it all again," he finished. He felt Bulma tense in shock. "Does 'anata wa, watashi ni tarinai subete o oginatte kureru' mean nothing to you?" Bulma relaxed when his husky voice whispered the words into her ear a few more times. He dusted her cheek with small kisses. "You are my yuubutsu, my bonded mate," he reminded her. "You are the mother of my unborn child, and soon you will be my queen." He nuzzled into her hair. "And I wanted you to be mine."

Bulma shivered as he started to kiss her neck, though not in fear. She didn't even stop him when he slid her sleeve to uncover her shoulder. When his tongue met her bare skin, Bulma leaned her head back against his chest. Vegeta smirked against her shoulder. He was not planning on pushing her much farther than this, at least for the moment. She still needed to warm up to him again after all that had happened last time.

His hands moved under her shirt to reach her stomach. He still couldn't believe that she was pregnant with his child. Vegeta felt like he needed to sense its energy. After everything with his father, he would not take his mate's or child's life for granted. He focused his energy to find the little life inside of his mate. His eyes opened wide at what he felt. Shock could not even begin to describe the look on his face.

Bulma felt Vegeta freeze and turned to face her mate. When she saw his expression, she frowned. "What?" she asked him while gently stroking his cheek.

"Twins," he told her. "We're having twins."

Vegeta was still in shock when Bulma nearly tackled him off the bed. She was laughing, a new wave of tears falling from her smiling face. Vegeta remembered her saying something about crying because of extreme happiness once before. These tears Vegeta could handle.

His arms found their way around her again, this time pulling her into a hug. He nuzzled her nose against her neck, and she did the same to him. They both let out a sigh of contentment. Tomorrow, they would definitely be shouting this news from the rooftops. The king was dead, their family safe, and now two little lives would be brought into their world. No one could ask for anything better.