Author's Note - This is for the people who haven't seen Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods and those of you who may have questions regarding this story's timeline. Orange Star High ended right after the dance. The prologue to this story happens when Videl tries to wake Gohan up for Bulma's birthday party. That is pretty much where the events of that movie takes place. If you had seen the movie many of you may have guessed and understood why I ended the story there.
I often forget that not everyone has seen the movie so this is my attempt to remedy any kind of confusion those of you who haven't seen it may feel reading this. I wasn't sure just how much of the movie to put into this story. I'm not too fond of spoiling things people are interested in so I used only the characters and established canon. Events changed obviously because this is an alternate reality story. If you haven't seen the movie, see it. I didn't care much for it but it was nice seeing Gohan and Videl together as well as the rest of the cast.
Videl and Gohan sat at a table as they watched the God of Destruction stand before the birthday girl. "I just want to say that I'm truly sorry for what I've done." Bills bowed slightly then was put into the Seiza position when Whis swiftly hit the back of his legs. He carried on with the apology as Bulma cut it off and forgave him. Gohan placed his hand atop Videl's.
"I'm a God now but I'm still not quite strong enough to best him. If I can't beat him how can I help you save our reality? Our child-" Videl placed a finger to his lips.
"Our child will be fine. Provided that we don't have to save our reality as fast as possible we have just enough time to watch her provide us with grandchildren." He smiled then stood as he walked over to her and knelt. Gohan rested his head near her lap.
"We barely know our child and it's already taken a part in saving the world." Videl ran her hands through his hair.
"Not an it. We're going to have a girl." He sighed then looked up at her.
"You did it again, didn't you?" Videl was straight-faced for all of three seconds before she displayed a smile she tried hide.
"Oh come on. Can you blame me? Of course I'd want to know what our child would be like. In almost all the realities I've checked we mainly have a girl. The possibility of us having a boy is incredibly rare so yeah we're going to have a girl. Do you want anymore spoilers?" He kissed her belly then nodded.
"Sure, I don't mind. It just kind of takes the surprise out of it all. Though there is that great chance that whatever it is you tell me turns out to be wrong. It would be interesting if we just happen to be that one in a billionth couple that ends up with certain things not matching. So feel free to spoil me." Videl bent down a bit and kissed his forehead.
"Our girl will look like me and your mother. I don't see any of her in you at all. Which I guess is normal considering that you look like your mom and her father while your brother looks exactly like your father." His eyes rose at the statement.
"You really think I look like my Grandpa?" He looked over to where the Ox King sat where he raised a mug of Hetap and drank alongside Master Roshi. He looked back to her. "How do I look like him?" She grinned widely.
"If you ever decided to grow out a beard you'd be a leaner, more compact version of your Grandpa. Oh, but now that I think about it our daughter will have just one feature from you. I'm surprised that I forgot but she will have your eyes." Gohan laughed.
"Well, at least I'll have something. I take it that you've already come up with a name for her already. Did you come up with it on your own or did you decide to take cues from the other realities?" Videl seemed to be deep in thought for a moment.
"That's a harder question to answer than you think it would be. I can tell you now that the inspiration to give her the name I chose didn't come from any reality I looked into. Though it makes me wonder…the inspiration I had for that name in particular that almost every one of our daughters have is strange to me. Are we supposed to name our daughter that as a way of synchronicity or is it a never ending chain of coincidences?" Music began to play as Gohan stood and extended his hand out to her.
"It's a good question for which I don't have an answer for. Though I do believe I could come up with one while on my feet, care to join me?" Videl accepted as they moved onto the dance floor. He placed his left hand down at the small of her back. Gohan held her right hand as they moved to the sound of the music as he continued. "Let's talk about the possible power of our nomenclature for a moment. In several realities we retain our names and everything that makes us who we are to a point with little to no variations. It makes me think of a line from one of my favorite plays. What's in a name?
I heard a story from my Grandfather regarding a woman who drastically changed her future because she changed the name of her nephew. Imagine this if you will. What if we decided to not go with the name you felt inspired to choose. That act alone just might set off another reality in which you decided to choose the name you decided beforehand. So many events are set in stone though I can't help but wonder how much power a name can have." Videl looked thoughtful.
"What you say does make me wonder a bit. Have there been several versions of me that felt inspired the same way I have? Have you ever thought that the many things that happen in our lives isn't fate in the simplest of terms but something more? I've noticed a few things when I read some of the notes regarding many of the realities that don't exist anymore. Let's take our love for example. I love you unconditionally. Yet it seems that in at least eighty percent of the other realities I've gleamed reflect that and of those only a few of those realities have become defunct.
In the other twenty percent I cheat on you or decide to be with Vegeta, Goku, Goten or Trunks. The very thought of it sickens me though once more, but there is a question to be asked here. Does it repulse me because I truly feel that way or was I designated to feel that way to begin with? I'm sure that you've noticed the discrepancies as well. When it comes to you on an alternate reality scale you have a wider selection of people you often end up with than I do. Strangely enough that includes not only my unlikely suitors but your usual ones as well. I like to think I know you as well as I know myself but if we were to really dig into this deeply it could be more disturbing than we'd expect. Take for example the fact that we've already established that we love each other. I'm attracted to you as you are to me, but are you to Erasa?" Gohan shook his head.
She's cute, I won't it that but I don't feel that way about her. Though what does that mean for 18? I felt lust for her at one point that vanished and hasn't come back. That odd. "No. I don't feel that way about her and I don't think I ever will. It's like we were drawn to each other, magnetic really. I've never felt that way about anyone else before. Are you attracted to Sharpner?" Videl shook her head as he continued. "Have you ever felt the way you do about me towards anyone else?" Once more she shook her head.
"I never put much thought into it…none really. It's as I've already said before. When my father stole the credit for what you'd done at the Cell Games I actively stayed isolated from others. I became jaded in a way. I had so many people trying to be friends with me so they could get to know my father. I got so caught up in who my real friends were and who the fakes were that I became weary of people.
My father was a supposed hero and I was popular because of it through no merit of my own. I trained to become as strong as my father, to be a hero. Not only to be worth that new found popularity but to do some good while I was at it. Throughout all that time thoughts like love never really entered my mind. Was my father supposed to steal credit in order to make me into the person I am today? I've seen some realities where you rightfully take credit for what you've done.
My father is still The World's Martial Arts Champion but in the majority of them only a few things change. I still end up training but I'm more open and outgoing. I don't think we'll ever know how those changes came to be. The name that I have planned for our daughter…should we go with the name I felt inspired or compelled to choose?" He spun her around then gazed into her bright sapphire eyes.
"I've heard that time usually has a way of correcting itself the majority of the time. I believe something as seemingly insignificant as a name skews it a bit because of how simple it is. In those realities we still found each other and fell in love didn't we?" Videl nodded and he continued. "Let's say that you chose the name you were going to go with. Our daughter ends up acting the same way she always does according the realities you've gleamed but if we changed her name what would she be like? There's a chance that she'd be the same, though we can't be sure. The only thing we can do is sadly peek into a future that isn't our own. I trust your judgment on this matter." As the song ended they returned to their chairs. Bills made his way over to them.
"I can see it in your eyes. You have many questions for me, don't you?" Videl nodded.
"Do you know anything about alternate realities?" Bills laughed.
"That is amazing. I never thought I'd hear a question like this. I'm used to be asked tedious mundane questions like how many Gods there are and so on. So this is a real treat for me. I know enough to realize that this one is stable for a good fifty years or so." Gohan felt his face display the shock he felt.
"How do you know that? How could you know that?" Bills dolefully smiled.
"I'm the God of Destruction. Have you forgotten? I can feel it. If you have this many years left it means that not a whole lot must have changed. Not bad. When it all ends it will be painless, for that I can assure you." He yawned then continued. "All this talk about the end sure is making me sleepy. Do you have any other questions?" Videl searched for Gohan's hand and found it, seemingly receiving comfort in it.
"Just two. Is there a way to stop the destruction of this reality? And why is it that you don't seem to care that it will come to an end soon?" Bills shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know. Just because I'm a God doesn't mean I know everything. I highly doubt that you can stop it. I bear the title of a God which is nice and all but I'm not the Demiurge or Creator God if you want it in simpler speech. I can destroy everything this reality has to offer and I'd accomplish nothing. The Creator wouldn't know or care really. As for the second question I honestly don't care. I've seen just about everything there is to see…starting today I believe.
I don't think there are any more surprises. So the end doesn't stress me out as much because I've existed longer than you can imagine. I find it funny that there's a good chance that I'll be asleep when it happens. I have no comforting words for you. The best I can do however is tell you that The Creator is always willing to listen. Take that how you want." There has to be a way to save this reality. Whis walked up to Bills with Taiyaki in one hand and Manjū in the other.
"The food on this planet is amazing." He ate the Taiyaki then continued. "You fought well Gohan. As a consolation prize I think I may have something that will make you and significant other happy." Whis finished the Manjū then placed a middle and index finger to his forehead and phased out. He returned a moment later with a fish in a bowl. I wonder.
"You taught the people on Yardrat the Instant Transmission technique, didn't you?" Whis nodded.
"I figure it was the least I could do. Every now and then I look in on planets and see what they have to offer. That planet only had wide open space and food. They welcomed me there so I bestowed them the gift of Instant Transmission. What I have here is an Oracle. What he will tell you will be random and won't answer any of your questions but it's something. Care to hear what the Oracle says." Gohan felt Videl squeeze his hand. He looked to her and in silent agreement they said "Yes." In unison as the fish looked to Gohan.
"By the time nine months have passed you will have more than one child to look after. Those children will provide you with unexpected answers. I look to you because you'll have the most while both of you will be filled with slight unease when it comes to both of your children." The fish looked at Videl and continued. "You will have to make the most difficult decision in your life a little over a year from now. No matter what you choose the end result of it will haunt you." Whis tapped his staff onto the ground.
"Well, I hope that was enlightening. I wish the two of you the best of luck in your future endeavors." With the Oracle in tow along with Bills they took to the air and waved goodbye to everyone before leaving. Videl sighed.
"Your...our children…well even though it's too soon to tell I do believe that there's never been a time in any reality where I've had twins, triplets, quadruplets, quintuplets and so on so I have a feeling that this will be Silver's doing. It makes too much sense for him not to be the reasons since he did say that we'd seem again eventually." I expected him to appear sooner or later…but with kids...my kids and Videl's? Gohan placed a hand over her stomach.
"We know that two of the same person cannot exist within the same reality. If he were to show up with some of our children from the different realities and one of them just happens to be the child you're carrying what will happen?" Videl wrapped her arms around Gohan.
"I don't know. I can't lose another child. If only we knew where he was so we could ask him what he's doing." He returned her embrace as he laid a kiss upon her forehead.
"I can't believe I'm about to say this but there could be a good chance that he already knows that you're pregnant and won't do anything to harm you…intentionally. If he's been monitoring alternate realities for as long as he says then our child might be alright I'm sorry that I upset you. I didn't think before speaking." Videl kissed him and shook her head.
"No need to apologize. Remember, we said that we'd be more open with each other. There's been a lot to wrap my mind around lately. I think you may be right though. He needs me so I there's a good chance that he wouldn't give me a reason to kill him." They watched Bulma cling to Vegeta as Videl continued. "I believe this is the night Bra is conceived." Gohan sighed.
"Peaking in on your alternate self is one thing but others just seems a bit wrong. Though, I will admit that I'm happy that at least our daughter will have a friend to talk to." Videl shrugged.
"It can't be helped. You pick up a little of everything when you look into other realities. Why don't you look into it as much as I do?" He shrugged.
"I guess for me I care more about the here and now. I think I've had my fair share of alternate realities..." He paused for a moment as a thought came to him. My alternate self. If the basis of a reality ceasing to exist has to do with change then how long is it before the reality I visited will be destroyed? Videl placed her left hand along the side of his face.
"Gohan, what's wrong?" He slumped in his chair and took a deep breath.
"There's a reality that I have to visit as soon as possible."
Author's Note - For those of you wondering just what in the hell is the Seiza position it is a "proper" sitting style that has been a part of Japanese Culture for hundreds of years. Many of you who read manga and watch anime may have already come across before as it is usually used in the form of punishing unruly students or troublemakers. I plan to release a new episode every Thursday. Unfortunately the time of release during the day will be random. If I'm ahead I'll drop another on any Sunday.
bigblukrew - I thank you for pointing that out to me. I often write the way I speak and the majority of the time it doesn't transfer over all that well. I often speak in a semi fast consistent matter. So as I re-read the previous episode I saw what spoke of and will try to fix that. Thank you.
LegendOfTomorrow - Twists can be fun but also frustrating. As for Frost...what can I say? She's incredibly fun to write. I feel that way about Silver to a point as well. I'll be implementing the weekly release plan you suggested. See you next time.
dcp1992 - Children are going to be an interesting part of this story to say the least. Glad to have you back.
Anthem - Sup.