"I hate you. I hate you all." The young woman tried to still her panic behind a mask of anger. No one was fooled, unfortunately not even herself.
The doctor sighed and looked over at his long-time friend. Dr. Briefs shrugged and tried to comfort his only child.
"He just feels it isn't safe to ..."
Bulma turned away from him even as she vainly tried to brush off her mother as she hovered and patted, cooing at her daughter that everything would be fine. Finally, her mother handed her a tissue and Bulma balled it up in her hand.
"I'm a horse." The turquoise-haired woman bemoaned. "I haven't seen my ankles in months and my back hurts constantly. When the baby rolls too high, it's even hard to breathe! I can't even eat what I want because of the indigestion!"
The doctor shook his head and shrugged helplessly. "I just don't know what is safe and what isn't. I wish I'd had a chance to meet the father before this trip you say he's on."
Bulma scowled, sending her poor mother into a frenzy of petting and cooing. "No you don't, trust me. Dratted male, running off into space and leaving me here to face this alone." Her mother nodded and pulled out another tissue to hand to her daughter.
The doctor took off his glasses and shook his head. "Look, I didn't want to believe that you had met and married an alien basically. But I know you. I've known you all your life. I know your father. And I know that you have technologies being developed in Capsule Corp. that just has to be seen to be believed."
"Induce me." Bulma nearly wept. "It's been eleven months. I've been pregnant for eleven damn months!"
But the doctor refused. "You said the only other hybrid child looked small when delivered by C-Section at ten months. I just don't think it's wise to induce. For one thing, the drugs used to induce are not harmful to you, but what about the child? We don't know about how these drugs will affect him."
Bulma sucked in a sobbing breath and shook her head. No, she did not want to put the baby at risk, but neither did she want to carry for another month! A whimper escaped her, even as her mother handed her another tissue. Bulma was surprised the box had any more tissues left in it, actually.
"I know I've asked before, but is there ANY chance of getting a blood sample at least from either the father or another of his species? Even the other hybrid child?" The doctor looked almost pleadingly at her.
Bulma bit her lip. She'd denied him his request outright for the past few months, ever since taking him into the family confidence to monitor her pregnancy. Vegeta had forbid her to tell anyone of her condition. Not Chi Chi, not Gohan and certainly not Goku.
And she'd stuck with that. But Vegeta had been gone for four months now, and she was absolutely miserable. She was waddling down hallways now, not walking ...waddling like an overstuffed duckling ...or an olive. A weak smile ghosted her lips for second, then disappeared.
Sensing her resolve wavering, her father leaned forward. "Perhaps ..." Dr. Briefs began, but was cut off by the look on his only child's face.
Bulm steeled her expression and shook her head. "No, no. So I'm a horse. They have an 11.3 month gestation period. Not much farther."
The doctor sighed. "What if you're not a horse, but an elephant? That's 22 months."
Bulma paled, went gray and had to clutch at her mother's hand for a moment. Then she shook her head. "Goh ...I mean the other child was perfectly formed and healthy at 10 months, just small. I'm sure we're close to the end." She prayed.
Disappointed, the doctor nodded. "That's your call. But you're running out of space in there." He pointed at her belly. "And I'd feel more comfortable with more information. Any bit of information really."
"He could have a tail." Bulma's mother said in a weak but still hopeful voice. "Not that we mind. I'm having trouble cutting holes in the cloth diapers and keeping them so they still work. But it'll work out I'm sure."
Startled, the doctor stared.
Bulma groaned. "Mother, the ultrasound didn't show a tail."
"I don't trust machines." The woman whispered, ignoring the startled look from both her husband and daughter, both of whom built machines like that.
"Tail?" The doctor whispered. "How come you didn't tell me?"
Dr. Briefs' frown deepened. "There was no tail on the the ultrasound." But he didn't sound sure.
The doctor looked like he might faint. "Tail as in rigid, or tail as in prehensile?"
"Monkey." Dr. Briefs said, then shot his daughter an apologetic look and blushed slightly. "Think monkey tail."
"But the ultrasound?" Bulma asked weakly, not liking the sudden fear on her doctor's face. Not liking that his fear was ratcheting up her own.
"The images weren't examined for a tail!" The doctor sighed, shaking his head. "Still monkey tails are made up of both bone and cartilage, so it should show up. SHOULD. Aliens, why did you have to marry an alien?"
"Only should show up?" Bulma's voice sounded distressingly weak. Her mother nudged her and handed her another tissue.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Four months. It wasn't long. Vegeta scowled. It had taken over two months just to arrive at the barren planet. So he'd only really been training on the barely life sustaining rock for a month. What was a month?
Yet dissatisfaction ate at him. The Saiyan Prince sighed and powered up. Energy rolled off of him in waves, energy he wasn't currently directing. Enough energy to take over a planet by himself. Maybe.
Vegeta sneered and clenched his fist. Power rolled over his body, turning back on itself and building up even higher. The rubble around him stirred and rose with the power he was creating. The warrior's feet sunk into the rocky surface of the small planet for a moment before he willed himself to defy the heavy gravity, hanging in the thin atmosphere as he frowned.
There was no distraction here. No mate. No sex. Limited resources. And a hostile environment. Vegeta eyed the thick storm heading his way over the barren rock-scape. It looked vicious and he was looking forward to experiencing the storm first hand.
Yes. Yes, this is where he'd learn to master becoming a Super Saiyan.
The storm was wild, but reflected the deep feelings roiling within himself. Vegeta welcomed the storm, letting it roll over him with it's power and intensity. In a strange way, he could identify with the storm. Often in his life he'd felt like lashing out at everything and nothing, especially since the destruction of Planet Vegeta.
The hot-blood Saiyan roared out his approval to the universe ...and it rejected him. Dark eyes narrowed as he saw the shapes coming toward him. Meteorite shower. Nothing too bad, yet, but it looked like it could get worse.
The worrisome part was that it could destroy his supplies ...and his ship. His only way off this small and very desolate planet. Vegeta sneered. Like he was going to let a little thing like a meteorite shower bother him.
The sneer turned into an evil grin as the Royal Prince used his energies to protect himself and his supplies, as well as his only vehicle to return home with. Meteor after meteor was destroyed.
Vegeta yelled out a challenge to the storm, that could not be heard over the multitude of lightning strikes and energy blasts.
One such blast came so close to his space ship, it blackened the protective outer skin of the craft. Vegeta frowned and shot forward to deflect the energy blast. He was here to get stronger, not to be stranded out here. He needed to be more careful.
No. He had a home to return to when this was done.
In the midst of holding back the storm, the fact that he'd just called Earth home ...escaped his notice.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Bulma winced and rubbed her back as she tried to stretch, but couldn't really find any relief. She couldn't even take a deep breath!
Her blonde mother waved her hands in concern and pressed another tissue in her daughter's hand.
The turquoise-haired woman looked down at the tissues in her hand and then over at her mother's nearly empty box. She sighed and walked over to the trashcan to drop nearly the entire box of tissues inside. Why did her mother go overboard with stuff like this? On the way over though, she got distracted when she glanced over at her father, who was in a deep discussion with her doctor. Bulma sighed, then winced as another shooting pain went down the back of her thigh and leg. Sciatica sucked.
The pain was sharp and shooting, and ...Bulma opened her eyes to find everyone staring at her. She shook her head negatively and pointed at the ground. "Water didn't break. It's just my sciatic nerve. Again."
The doctor frowned. "Water doesn't always break like in the movies, in fact at least 75% of the time the water doesn't break until after the onset of labor."
Bulma's mother shook her head. "Mine broke at the hospital." She smiled. "I'm sure everything is fine. Her shamic pain is getting worse though."
"Sciatic." Bulma sighed and shook her head.
The doctor looked over at the blonde and looked intrigued. "Worse?"
The sweet blonde woman nodded. "Every few minutes or so, lasts for at least half a minute."
"How often?" The doctor and her father asked at the same time.
Bulma shook her head. "I've been having sciatic pain for two months now, nearly constantly." She said defensively. "I haven't been counting! It's not labor, it's just back pain!"
Dr. Briefs' wife smiled. "Since we've been here, I've given her a tissue every time she winced in pain."
Everyone looked to Bulma's hands, where she carried an untold number of tissues, all eyes turned to her mother who was holding a near empty box. The blonde smiled. "That was the right thing to do, right? I just didn't want her not to have a tissue if the pain made her cry."
Bulma suddenly winced at the sudden pain once more. The doctor looked at his watch and then sighed. "You're not a horse after all. You are in labor now, not in the 10 more days you were predicting."
The turquoise-haired woman tried to smile, but found she couldn't. Another whimper escaped her as she suddenly felt more afraid than ever. Not even when facing down monsters on Planet Namek had she felt this panicked.
"I'm not ready!" She wailed.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Hours later
Vegeta was soaked through with a rain he could swear was slightly acidic, and his own sweat. But at least the meteor shower seemed to be slowing, probably ending.
Suddenly, he sensed something ...danger? Looking up, his dark eyes widened. No small meteor was now heading toward him, but the mother of all meteors! Huge! And his ship was in it's destructive path.
Normally this type of meteor he could handle without a problem. But ...but ...he'd been training nearly non-stop in x450 Earth's gravity. He'd been destroying smaller meteors for over several hours now. Vegeta had nearly nothing left in the tank.
Actual fear reared it's ugly head.
If that ship was destroyed, there would be no way home.
This time the word registered. Home? Shock stalled out his mind and he lost precious seconds as the huge meteor hurtled toward him.
Quickly he shot off a huge amount of his reserve energy, and it exploded too soon! The resulting energy back-lash sent the Saiyan Prince tumbling out of control to the ground below.
He struck the planet surface as hard as any meteor.
Vegeat crawled to his hands and knees, looking out as the huge meteor rushed downward to destroy his only hope of ever getting off this planet. His only way back to Earth. To show Kakarot he could best him, to see his child, and to see his mate.
Blood dripped from a hundred small cuts and bruises. Death swam before his vision. A lonely and pitiful death. Away from everything he cared about.
And then, all of a sudden... he no longer cared.
Vegeta screamed in defiance of fate itself and ...let everything go. He didn't care if he beat Kakarot. He didn't care if he lived or died. He didn't care if he never breathed again. And he didn't care if his mate had to mourn his passing.
He. Didn't. Care.
Freed from all worry, freed from all care, and freed of any motivation ...his body started to change. Blood poured through suddenly unrestricted veins. A heady form a strength overtook him and without thought, without strain and without direction ...
Vegeta went Super Saiyan.
o.O.o.O.o.O
"You're beautiful." Dr. Briefs' tucked one of his daughter's errant curls behind her ear.
"Liar." She laughed, exhausted. Bulma paused and glanced at the nurse, then looked at her father. "The baby?"
Dr. Briefs' smiled. "Your mother can't tear herself from the nursery window." He assured her. "Ten fingers and ten toes."
"Tail?" Bulma whispered.
Her father smiled and shook his head negatively. There had been no tail.
Bulma nodded and smiled.
"He's a handsome and healthy young infant." The nurse smiled and came over to the bed, smiling reassuringly at the new mother. "And he'll be plenty hungry too. They'll be bringing him in here in a few moments."
Startled, Bulma blinked rapidly. "So soon. I just gave birth."
The nurse nodded. "Immediately after birth is natural, but we of course have to make sure he's healthy first and then he can feed."
Dr. Briefs' smiled, "I'll just step out in the hallway."
Bulma felt panic rising up in her. Feed? As if from her? Breastfeed? A Saiyan child, or at least a half-Saiyan?
Dr. Briefs' smile faded slightly. "What's wrong darling?"
Bulma swallowed and shrugged. "You don't think he'll eat as much as his father, do you? I don't know if I ...will ...have enough ..."
Both Dr. Briefs' and his daughter shuddered at the memories they had of Vegeta and Goku both, eating as if their lives depended on it. Gobbling and eating more than any human could. Bulma paled further. "Gohan isn't much better." She whispered.
The nurse shook her head. "Normal fears, but you'll be fine. Nothing wrong in a healthy appetite in an infant."
Bulma's eyes were wide as they brought in her new son. Her hybrid Saiyan son.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Vegeta laughed. Power flowed through him like never before in his entire life. Pain meant nothing, and indeed was absent. He'd never felt better, not once.
The meteor was gone, destroyed. The capsule that was his space ship ...survived.
How ironic. By ceasing to care about anything and everything, he was able to save his future. He could return home. He could see his son and mate. And he could fight Kakarot as a Super Saiyan.
By not trying to force the power, he gained the power he'd always dreamed of having.
Vegeta laughed again, letting his dark joy roll over him and the surrounding landscape as he reveled in the achievement. But only for a moment.
Sobering, the Saiyan Prince let his ultimate satisfaction flow away. Now. Now, the REAL training could begin.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Bulma smiled down at the infant who'd proved to have no trouble latching on at all. She touched the ultra soft skin of the baby's cheek.
"No tail." She whispered. "And eating like a true human." She said with relief.
The baby made no comment, of course. Suckling away with a healthy, if normal, appetite.
"Your father said I could name you once, and he's not here to protest. So ...Hello Trunks. My sweet baby, Trunks." Bulma let the name roll off her tongue and smiled.
Eleven months of being pregnant and hours of labor. All the frustration flowed away as she held her small, infant son.
"Trunks?" The new mother whispered. "Your father is a hard man, and it won't be easy on the two of us. But I want you to know, he wants you. He may never say the words, but he wants you."
Bulma stopped, catching her emotions before they could overflow again.
"I don't know if he can ever learn to love me." She smiled wanly. "But you will have a relationship with him, I promise. In fact ...that dratted man said he'd take me to battle with him and I'm going to take him up on it."
The baby stopped suckling a moment, hiccuped and then went backto feeding.
Bulma nodded to herself. "Yes. I don't know when your father will be back, but I definitely know he'll be back to fight the androids. And you and I will be there. After all, I want to see them too. And your father? He did invite me."
o.O.o.O.o.O
Not cannon. And posted much later than I thought I would, sorry about that. But I did try to stick with most of what Vegeta went through to become Super Saiyan. The rest, is fanfiction. LOL.