Age 522, Planet Sadala, Universe 7
"It's a girl!" the doctor said over the screaming baby. A baby they didn't need to spank to get her to breathe; she was already screaming when she came out of her mother. A mother who was exhausted from how long it took to give birth.
Peparia reached out from the table, asking to hold her daughter. Two hours of labor, pushing and resting, of pain nearing her fight with Lottus all those years ago, all for this moment. And when the doctors had finished their battery of tests on the infant, they finally placed her into her mother's arms.
"Welcome to the world, Celes," Peparia said, giving the girl the name that she and Arugu had decided on. It was a strong name for a girl, one meant for greatness. She was a Dakkon, strong and proud, and a Chilli, cunning and charismatic. And one day, she would carry their race to greatness.
But right now, she was a helpless infant. She lacked ki control, or any real strength really, and couldn't hold her head up by herself, just like anyone else. The only thing that marked her strength was her tail; it had wrapped itself around her mother's arm instinctively, almost as if she were claiming her mother.
Peparia smiled as they rolled her bed out of the delivery room and into her room. It was lavish, as one would expect of a noble house, and once she was alone with the girl, she pulled down her shirt so she could feed Celes. Peparia knew that she had never truly, completely known love until this very moment, as she bonded with her daughter.
A couple of hours later, after Celes was taken from Peparia so they could perform scans and other necessary medical tests, Lottus and Arugu entered the room.
"How are you feeling?" Arugu asked.
"Exhausted," she said as the father of her child walked over to her. "but happy. You should have seen Celes; she's so beautiful and strong!"
"We know," Lottus said, taking Peparia's hand as she approached the bed. "We could sense her as we came into the building. We stopped by to see her before we came to you."
"Her ki's that strong?" Peparia said, with surprise in her voice. She felt her daughter's physical strength when Celes' tail grabbed Peparia, but she'd been too tired to concentrate on ki sensing in the delivery room.
"Oh yeah," Arugu said. "And when she learns how to control that power, she'll be the strongest of us all, I'd bet."
Peparia was shocked. "Then we need to start her training early," Peparia said. "How good a telepath are you?"
"Okay," Arugu said. "Not the best in my family, but not the worst either."
"Then the early training will fall to me," Peparia said. This child with such high power was going to need to learn ki control and do so quickly.
"Of course," Arugu said, knowing that telepathy was a standard technique for House Dakkon, being a requirement for their Great Ape control teaching. "Your father and I have set up a room in your house for us and Celes, so you've got nothing to worry about in that respect."
"Thank you," Peparia said, squeezing Lottus' hand. "Can Lottus and I have a few minutes alone?"
"Certainly," Arugu said, bowing respectively at them. "I'll be checking on Celes if you need anything."
Once Arugu was out of earshot, Peparia looked at Lottus and smiled. "So, how are things on your end?"
"Good," Lottus said, smiling sadly. "Mom and I have finally chosen a mate for me, so we're just about ready to have our heir."
"And you decided on one of those new gestation pods, right? The one where you put the egg and sperm into and allow the baby to grow from there, right?" Peparia said.
"Right," Lottus said. "I can't be taken out of the spotlight like you could, after all."
Things for quiet for a moment before Peparia picked the conversation back up. "Look, just because Arugu and I will be raising Celes together doesn't mean I care about you any less. I just want my daughter to have the same kind of experiences I had."
"I know, I know," Lottus said, wiping a tear away from her eye. "But you're not going to have as much time for us as you used to. Neither am I, for that matter; mom has been prepping me to take over the role of head of household for the last year, and I think she's going to have me take over soon. I mean, she IS older; she's in her 70s. She doesn't have that many more years before she falls apart."
Peparia knew what Lottus meant; Saiyans stayed youthful and strong until they were 80, at which time aging finally caught up with them. Yes, they could live a hundred years or more, but once they reached that limit, their bodies were no longer as strong as they used to be. And among the nobles, the head of household was required to fend off challengers within the house if other members didn't feel they were doing a good enough job. For that reason, it was in the previous head of household to ensure the heir was both wise and strong, something that both Peparia's parents and Lottus' mother had done.
"We'll find time," Peparia said. "Just like we did when we were kids and still trying to hide things."
Lottus grinned slightly, remembering how they tried to be discreet for those first two years. They were finally told by their parents finally told them that no, they hadn't been discreet, but they approved of their relationship anyway.
"Okay, we'll make this work," Lottus said, squeezing Peparia's hand. "For now, you get some rest; you've had a very trying day."
Peparia smiled as Lottus walked away, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.
