"Alright, I'm out," Tora announced as he grabbed up his bag and slung it over his shoulder. He was sweaty and sore from the training session that day and he needed a shower. He placed his hands on his hips and leaned far back until his spine popped, then stood straight again and sighed. He wrapped his tail around his waist and grinned. "I'll be back tomorrow to kick your asses again."

Trunks snickered as he turned off the gravity machine. "Yeah, right. Sure you will," he teased back. He looked at the taller Saiyan and shook his head. "It's still weird that you're not living here at Capsule Corp anymore. I think we all got used to you hanging around."

"Ah well," Tora shrugged. He liked Capsule Corp and he still spent a great deal of his time there, but after a year of living there, he'd started to feel like he needed to have his own place. He'd decided to make Earth his home now and it was time he settled in properly. He'd managed to save up enough money by entering minor martial arts tournaments that he could now afford the nice apartment in a building only a few blocks away from Capsule Corp. The timing had been perfect, really. Just as Bulma had started helping him look for his own place, Rose announced that she and Dende were officially engaged and she'd moved to the Lookout shortly thereafter. It was only a few days later when Tora moved into her old apartment. It was just right for him. Just a simple one-bedroom place where he could eat, sleep, and shower. And lots of wallspace for the finely-crafted bookshelves he paid Tien to make for him. Tora had two earthling weaknesses: raw steak and good books.

"I like that little apartment," Tora admitted. "It'll do for now." He adjusted the bag on his shoulder and gave a wave as he headed for the door. "See ya, Trunks. Bye, Prince."

Vegeta gave a nod as Tora left and headed into the house with his son in tow. "Your sister is here," he said as he sensed Jenny's energy in the living room of the house. While not biologically his daughter, Vegeta considered Jenny as his own and referred to her as such and no one dared question it. She was the one who had pushed all of them to see themselves as a family now. Even though they were different species and different races from around the globe, and even different times when you considered Trunks, the Z-Warriors were family. It was still sort of an odd concept to the prince to have so many people care about him and for him to care about them in return, but there you had it.

A small smile pulled at Vegeta's lips as he entered the living room, but it quickly faded as he saw the somber expression on Jenny's face, the fearful look in her dark brown eyes. He steeled his nerve, prepared to hear the worst. "Go get your mother," he said quietly to his son, who gave a nod and hurried away. "Jennifer, what is it?"

Jenny didn't know what to say. She had never before had a father that cared about her well being when she showed up at the house in tears. Now that she was faced with a father who did care, she wasn't sure what she would say… could say in his face, " Daddy…" She started, intending to finish with "I have cancer" but she stopped short, he might not even know what that means.

Vegeta's concern grew and he hurried over to her side and sat next to her on the couch. Jenny usually wasn't a weepy sort of person and for her to look at him with those tear-filled eyes sent a jolt of fear down his spine. This was bad. Whatever it was, it had shaken her. His mind went all sorts of places, thinking about the Atlantians that they had battled for so many years now, of Fasha who was still lurking out there somewhere, of the Greek gods they'd just got done battling. "Tell me what it is," he said in a low, but firm tone. "Are your children okay? Is Piccolo? Are you?"

Jenny nodded, tears slipping down her cheeks once again, "Yeah, Piccolo and my children are alright." She looked at him with a serious expression on her face. How did she tell this terrible information to her father? To the man she considered her father. It was a formality really. If someone called you daughter, cared for you, changed your diapers (figuratively speaking), did they not deserve to be ones father?

Vegeta took her hand in his calloused one and looked at her with an expression that was a strange mix of curiosity and sternness. "Out with it," he said. "Whatever it is, we'll deal with it." He grabbed her chin with his free hand and turned her face towards him before he roughly brushed the tears from her eyes with his thumb. "Stop that. You're a Saiyan," he said and poked the brand on her shoulder, "Now tell me what is bothering you."

He looked up just as Trunks came into the living room with Bulma and Catie right behind him. They all looked concerned and Vegeta waved them over so that whatever Jenny had to tell them wouldn't have to be repeated a million times over.

Jenny frowned, but tried not to show it. She hadn't planned on explaining her situation to her ENTIRE family at that exact moment. It was personal! Wasn't it? Wasn't it supposed to between family members? Family-in-laws? She didn't know, but shook her head anyways and said in a small voice, "I have cancer." She paused, not sure if she could include everything that entailed, "I… I can't have children any more. On Monday, they are going to take the cancer out of my body. Since the cancer is located in my uterus, that's what they are going to remove."

Vegeta blinked at her, not quite understanding what she was saying. Like Piccolo, he'd heard of the disease, but had never paid it much thought before. "You mean surgery," he said flatly as he tried to absorb all the information she'd just dropped in his lap. He looked at their family; the other three looked horrified. This was more serious than he realized.

"Oh gods," Trunks gasped and grabbed his girlfriend's hand to steady himself. He and Catie thought of Jenny as their sister; he couldn't believe what he'd just heard. He ran a hand through his waist-length hair and turned away and spat curse words. Couldn't they ever catch a goddamn break? There always seemed to be some sort of catastrophe to deal with. If it wasn't someone being kidnapped or crazy gods trying to send the world into oblivion, it was always SOMETHING. But nothing could have prepared him for this. He angrily brushed a tear from his eye.

For once, Catie's normally laughing, joking manner vanished. She felt like she could have been knocked over with a feather. She squeezed back at Trunks' hand and pressed her lips to a thin line. What do you say to something like that? I'm sorry didn't seem to cut it. Her mind raced through a million thoughts until she finally landed on one that didn't sound completely cliche. "What do you need us to do? Trunks and I can watch the girls for you if you want us to," she offered, thinking it was the only thing she could do to help.

Bulma hurried over and moved to sit next to Jenny on her other side, wrapping her arms around her shoulder. Tears brimmed her eyes as she looked at her husband before back at their daughter, "You just tell us what you need, baby. I don't want you to worry about anything but getting better. Do you understand?" She asked, rubbing at her back.

Jenny felt more tears welling up in her eyes and she squeezed Vegeta's hand tightly as she nodded her head, "I was hoping my babies would be at the hospital, you know, just in case something goes wrong." She couldn't stop herself from blubbering the last few words and she leaned over her knees, crying harder.

"They will be," Catie answered quickly. "We'll do whatever you want, sis."

Vegeta's eyes narrowed at Jenny's words as he allowed her to squeeze his hand as hard as she wanted. In case something went wrong? He realized then that she meant in case she died. He squeezed back at her hand and frowned. "How did this happen?" he asked, looking at his wife. "I don't understand the cause of this. Her life is at risk now because of this disease? This doesn't make any sense to me."

Jenny shook her head, "No one knows how it's exactly caused. Abnormal cells just started growing inside of me, replaced the good cells." She shook her head, wiping furiously at the tears that slipped down her face without pause, "No wonder I couldn't get pregnant." She said bitterly.

Bulma reached to the coffee table and grabbed up the box of tissues, offering one to her, "Is the surgery the only thing or are they going to do chemo as well?" She frowned at Jenny's nod, "Oh honey, I'm so sorry to hear all of this. Why can't we just get a break?" She shook her head.

"Chemo?" Vegeta asked. "What is that? Some sort of medication?"

Trunks had to resist the urge to clap a hand to his face. How many years had his father lived here and he still didn't know these sorts of things? He heaved a sigh. "Chemotherapy is a treatment for cancer. They inject a drug into her system through an IV that'll kill off the cells. It's different than just taking some medicine, Father."

Vegeta was trying to understand. He really was. And he was desperate to hear the thing he wanted to hear; that Jenny would be okay. "So you have the surgery, do this treatment and then you're fine, right?" he asked, the firm tone still in his voice. He didn't want to let himself sound worried or confused for fear that it might upset her even more.

Bulma looked over at her mate, giving him a small smile that he was trying to understand, trying to simplify it so he could grasp the concept better, "It's a little more complicated than that, but should everything go right, Jenny will be as good as new. You will be okay, hon. We are going to help you through this every step of the way. Just don't be afraid to ask us if you need something."

Jenny nodded, rubbing at her eyes. Hearing her dad simplify the disease made it seem less serious than it really was, but maybe it would be easier if she thought about it that way, "I'm not sure how long I will be on chemotherapy. I think it just depends on how quickly it kills off any lingering cells."

Vegeta felt a little better at that. Jenny was tough. Jenny was strong. She'd been through hell and back several times over in her life and he knew she was a survivor. "You're a Saiyan," he said firmly. "You're going to be just fine. Remember that. And whatever you need from us, you have but to ask. You know that." He knew there was more to this than he understood, but part of his mind just couldn't wrap around it. This disease was bizarre to him, how could it just invade her body like that and cause so much destruction? In his mind, she was his daughter, a Saiyan of royalty and to hell with what anyone else had to say about it. Even as he tried to remind himself that physically she was human, his mind just couldn't accept that.

Jenny nodded, feeling a numbness spreading inside of her. She felt sick, felt like the whole world was crushing in on her, "I...I'm scared." She said in a voice that was barely louder than a whisper.

Vegeta blinked at her. He never thought he'd heard her sound so vulnerable in his life and it made his stomach clench painfully. Jenny never admitted defeat, never showed weakness in that way. He sat up straighter and stared at her as for the first time since she'd made her announcement, real fear curled around his heart. "This really is serious, isn't it," he said, his statement not quite a question. He looked across her to Bulma, "What do we do?" He was at a loss now. Usually when someone around him looked like giving up, he would bark at them to straighten up, to knock off feeling sorry for themselves, but that wouldn't work here. He didn't know what to do.

Bulma rubbed at Jenny's back as she started crying again. She looked over at her husband and shook her head, "There's nothing we can do. Dende can't heal this kind of stuff. We are going to have to trust the doctor's doing her surgery and hope that they get it all. This surgery has a fairly high rate of survival from what I've read in the past." She looked at her daughter, "You are going to be alright, sweetheart." She swallowed hard and stood up, looking to her other daughter and son, "Keep her company. She's staying for dinner. I'm going to go cook up something. Chocolate cake and something. I don't know. Bacon! Bacon is a good comfort food." She wandered out of the room and towards the kitchen.

Trunks nodded and moved to take his mother's place at Jenny's side. He fought the urge to let his tears fall. He was scared for her. "Mom's right, you know. You're going to be okay. It might not feel like it right now, but you will. I promise," he said softly and pulled her into his arms to hug her tightly. "We love you. It's all going to be okay."

Piccolo couldn't just stand around the Lookout while Jenny went to talk to Vegeta. His mind was in a million places and there was just too much nervous energy building up inside him. He needed to vent, to talk to someone, to just do something before he exploded. After making sure that Rose didn't mind watching the girls, he headed to the first place he could think of. One of the few places that made him feel peaceful. The cabin.

He landed in the yard a short time later and frowned. With his preoccupation over Jenny, he'd forgotten that Tien and his mates had their own problems to deal with. The cabin was still in a state of rebuild and he could see that it was going to be a bit bigger than before. The floor was built and part of the walls and there seemed to be a second room added onto the first.

Sabriena was sweeping away some of the sawdust from the much bigger front porch they were adding onto the new cabin, but paused when Piccolo landed. "Hey," she said, surprised to see him. He looked even more sour than usual.

"Are your husbands home?" he asked.

She pointed over near the treeline where their building supplies laid. "Over there."

He gave her a nod and walked over to the two men who were looking over the plans Tien had drawn up for the new cabin. "Am I interrupting?" he asked, the stoic expression back on his face. He really didn't want to break down in front of his friends, but he feared he might. He swallowed harshly as he fought to keep his composure.

Goku paused as he was going over the next set of instructions that Tien had laid out in front of him to look up at their friend. There was something wrong, he could tell. His friend's voice was thicker, heavier than usually. How Tien had sounded not long ago when they learned the dragon wasn't able to rebuild their house, "Hey Piccolo! What's up? Are you alright?" He looked back down at the plans and then back up, "We are actually at the perfect point to be interrupted, we were just about to begin building up the walls so we can get a foundation going for the new loft." He said happily.

"Yeah, I'm," Piccolo paused in his lie, unable to say it. He wasn't fine. Nothing was okay in that moment. He paused and shook his head as he looked down at the ground. He shouldn't have come here. Saying it aloud would only make it worse, wouldn't it? Make it seem more real. More dangerous. Like he was sealing his wife's fate by telling their friends what was happening to her.

Tien looked up in concern. "What is it, Piccolo?" he asked in a kind tone. Something was bothering the Namek, he could tell. Expressing their emotions was not something he or Piccolo were good at and Tien understood that all too well. Piccolo had come to him and made him talk when he'd been attacked in his own home, injured and helpless. Now it was his turn to help Piccolo. "Talk to us."

Goku looked at Tien for a moment before he pushed away from the table and walked over to Piccolo, seeing the tenseness in his friends form and his mind started clicking as he looked around. If Piccolo visited, it was usually with Jenny or his girls, but he didn't see any of them. He spoke softly, "Is it a personal problem?" He asked, thinking maybe his friend was having some trouble performing in the bedroom. He remembered that the Namek and his wife were trying for a son.

"Not exactly," Piccolo answered and finally looked up at his friends again. He swallowed once more before he spoke, deciding that he might as well just get it over with. "There's not really an easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it. Jenny has cancer." The words felt like a slap to his face even as he spoke them. He shoved his hands into his pockets as his fingers curled into fists. He was so angry at the situation and so scared of the future, he didn't know what to do.

Of all the things he thought might have been bothering Piccolo, that was not what Tien had expected to hear. He felt like the air had been knocked from his lungs. "Wh-what?" he gasped. "But… but she's too young for that, isn't she? I mean, she seems healthy! You can't be serious." He rubbed at the back of his head and turned away for a second, trying to wrap his mind around it all. This was going to crush Sabriena. This would crush all of them if they lost Jenny. She was kind to all of them, she'd helped them in so many ways and sacrificed so much for their family. "Did they catch it in time? What kind of cancer is it?"

Piccolo thought for a moment before he answered, "I can't remember what they called it. She's going in for surgery on Monday. They have to remove the cancer. We can't have any more children." He frowned and looked down at the ground again.

Goku's eyes widened, darting over to Sabriena who was still sweeping away the sawdust on their porch. His eyes went back to Piccolo, he felt tears gathering in his own, "What, what do you mean you can't have any more children? It has something to do with her, down there?" He shuddered, surgery. He hated hospitals, hated what they represented, needles and everything that went with it, "What are they cutting out, Piccolo? How dangerous is this procedure?" He asked a little bit louder than he probably should have.

Sabriena looked up at Goku's words. "Procedure?" she asked loudly and set her broom down as she walked over. "The hell is going on?" she demanded.

Piccolo sighed. "Her uterus. It's a hys.. hyster…" He stumbled over the words.

"Hysterectomy?" Sabriena offered. "Who? Jenny?! I… but why? I thought she wanted more kids?"

Tien walked over to Sabriena and took her hand. "Jenny has cancer, sweetheart. She's going in for surgery." He cringed at the terrified look that filled Sabriena's eyes. "She's going to be okay," he said quickly. "That's what doctors are for, right? They'll take care of her."

Sabriena shook her head violently and turned away from them, but didn't leave. She crossed her arms over her chest and went silent as the information rolled around in her mind.

"I don't know how dangerous it is compared to other surgeries," Piccolo answered Goku's second question. He looked up and met the Saiyan's eyes as tears brimmed in his own, but he refused to let them fall. "She said she could die in surgery, so…" He trailed off and shrugged in a defeated sort of way.

Goku reached out, putting a hand on Piccolo's shoulder, "Well, you know from what I understand, any surgery has that risk. Someone who goes in for something minor could also have that risk. They do tests and stuff before they go in to make sure that she will be alright. If the risk of the surgery outweighs whatever cancer she has, they wouldn't do it, would they?" He scratched at his head, "Gosh, I can't even imagine what she's going through. What you are going through. I'm so sorry Piccolo. Jenny is going to be alright, you know how strong she is. She's a fighter. A survivor. You know that!" He squeezed the shoulder he held onto, "Is there anything we can do for you both? Just name it."

Piccolo swallowed the knot in his throat and asked the only thing he could think of in that moment. "Spar with me?" he asked thickly. He had to get rid of the energy coursing through his system that made his hands sweat and tremble. The energy that made his stomach coil and his head hurt. "I just need to blow off some steam."

Tien gave a nod and walked away from their building supplies and out into the yard. He turned back towards his husband and his friend as he lowered himself into a defensive stance. "Come on, Piccolo. Goku and I can take it. Don't hold back on us."

Goku looked at Sabriena a moment, "Just a sec guys, you can start without me, I'll jump in." He walked over to his wife and reached out for her shoulder, turning her around, "Hey you." He looked at her carefully, he recognized that look on her face. The quiet as she drew into herself, "I know that look." He said as he cupped her cheek.

Sabriena clenched her jaw and tightened her grip on her own arms as she looked up at her Saiyan husband. "I can't do this," she whispered to him. "I can't lose Jenny. I don't… I…" she stammered as her breathing quickened, her heart racing in her chest. "I've always had Jenny and Lindsey! If we lose Jenny, if she dies, what the hell am I supposed to do?! She's my best friend! We've been friends since we were little! She's more like a sister to me." She felt like she couldn't breathe and she swallowed harshly as she fought the urge to pull away from him and just go hide for awhile.

Goku pulled her close, leaning down to kiss the top of her head as he held her securely, "You aren't going to lose her, Sabriena. You know that. You know how much Jenny means to all of us. Remember our dysfunctional, big family?" He pulled back and tipped her chin up, "You should have seen what losing you did to Jenny and Lindsey. It nearly tore them apart. You have to keep hope strong and everything will be alright. If she is falling down, you and Lindsey need to catch her." He leaned back and scratched his head, "Does that make sense? Sorry, you know how I ramble…"

She gave him a sad smile. "I know what you're trying to say," she said softly. She stood on tiptoe and gave him a little kiss on the lips. "You go spar with them. I won't, you know, pull away this time. Just give me a little bit to process, okay? I just need to deal with it for a minute in my way." She hugged his waist for a moment and buried her face in his chest. "Just for a little bit."

Goku hugged her tightly to him, closing his eyes as he relished in the feeling of having her there in his arms, "Alrighty. You do what you need to do, we're here if you need us. And if you want to go visit with them, just let me know. I'll take you myself." He promised for he kissed the top of her head and pulled away. He turned around and powered up, flying after the other two so he could join in.

Sabriena watched them for a minute before she calmly walked back over to the cabin and started viciously sweeping the front porch. She felt like screaming and on the inside, she was. She couldn't imagine her life without Jenny. She remembered Dende's words, that if someone died of natural causes, they couldn't be brought back.

She wished their home was built so she had something more to clean. She didn't know what to do with herself. She supposed she could go spar with the men, but she and Piccolo still had that awkward dislike between them for the most part and she didn't want to intrude. He needed time with Goku and Tien and she understood that. If nothing else, they respected each other enough that way.

She huffed when there was nothing left to sweep and angrily slammed her broom down on the porch before she looked around. Laundry. There was laundry to be washed. She hurried down to the river and filled her basin before she dragged it back up near their little camp they'd set up. At least the weather was hot so they could sleep in the tent while the cabin was being rebuilt. She threw herself on the ground and began to scrub the clothes as hard as she could, trying to distance herself from the fear and pain she felt in her heart.