Sorry for being late on the upload, but I was busy last night and forgot. It's here now, though, so I hope you enjoy.

Meadow

Tears brimmed in my eyes as everyone returned, Locke with them. The moment his feet touched the ground, I took off running, and would have tackled him if I was strong enough. He gratefully returned the hug.

"I'm back," he said softly, stating the obvious. I was too choked up to respond, burying my tear-soaked face in his shirt.

His mom spoke up from behind me. "So you beat Oreg?" she asked.

"Uhhh..." It was only then that I noticed that Goku was with them, but it was a little late to point it out now.

"What happened?" Ms. Brangwen asked.

Locke took one of his arms off me to scratch his head. "Ah... I might be heading back to Hell pretty soon." My sobbing came to a shuttering stop. "I challenged him to a one-on-one match tonight. He wins, he takes my energy and kills me."

Faster than even I thought I could move, my hand whipped up and smacked his head back. "You idiot!" I shouted. "Do you realize you can't come back twice?!"

He nodded. "I was short on time. He somehow knows Instant Transmission, but since he doesn't have ki, we wouldn't have been able to track him. This way, even if I lose, everyone can jump in and finish him off. No matter what, this apocalypse ends tonight."

Cell put his hand on Locke's shoulder. "And don't worry. If things go south, I will step in, despite this agreement."

I huffed angrilly, but the rage quickly faded and I hugged Locke again. "Just don't die again," I quietly begged. "I can't go through that twice."

"You shouldn't have had to even once," Locke sighed. "I'm so sorry." He put his hand under my cheek and made me look at him. "I'm not going to die today." He came down and placed his lips against mine. Overcome with joy, I threw my arms around his neck and pulled him against me even tighter. I reluctantly released him and we smiled, then his eyes saw something behind me. "Ah!" I looked back and saw both of my parents, my dad having requested that Cell bring him before the fight, looking dissaproving of our passionate moment.

My smile turned into a short fit of laughter. "Shut up," I happily told them. "Isn't it okay for me to show affection to my future husband?"

"Huh?!" Everyone looked utterly shocked.

Locke looked the same. "I-I thought you wanted to keep that a secret," he said.

I turned and went up to kiss him again. "I'm too happy to care right now."

Goten gulped loud enough to be audible. "Wait, is that wishful thinking, o-or...?"

I hugged Locke tightly. "He didn't really have a ring, so I guess it isn't official yet. But he asked." For some reason, Cell looked like something had clicked in his head.

Locke smiled. "Well, since we can't really do anything about Oreg until tonight, and it's relevant..." He reached into his pocket. "Would you mind if I fixed that?" My eyes widened as he pulled out a silver ring with, ironically, an orchid diamond set into it. "I asked Cell to make it on our way back here. Now..." He dropped to one knee and took my hand, wrapping it around the ring. "Officially this time: will you marry me?" he asked for the second time. Joy flooded my heart. One word, and it would be official. I opened my mouth to answer again.

"Absolutely not!" We all turned to my mother, shocked by her outburst. "Meadow, this is the... the... thing that killed your brother!"

"What happened while I was out?!" Goku yelled in exasperation.

I glared at my mother. "We've already been over this, Mom! Sanow helped Oreg just because he was mad at Locke. He almost ended the world because he didn't want anyone dating his sister. He got what he deserved."

"Actually," Locke awkwardly interjected, "I kinda felt like I went overboard with that. You know, the whole two new transformations at once and such... not easy to control."

Mom crossed her arms. "It doesn't matter. You have to be twenty to marry without permission from your guardians, and I happen to be one. I won't let that Androi-"

Dad cut her off. "Would you shut your damn mouth?!" he roared. "George was clearly insane, Georgia! If he went to Hell like they told us, then he got what he deserved!"

"Why you-!"

Dad cut her off again. "And as for permission, they have my full consent when Locke turns eighteen. And you don't get a say; I'm applying for full custody as soon as I can." Mom's eyes widened at that last piece of news.

"Huh...?" That was me. It slowly sank in that we'd only have to wait a little less than half of the time we would have before. The happiness from before returned.

Locke smiled up at me, clearly just as cheerful as me. "So, you have a proposal to respond to," he pointed out.

I smiled and kneeled down with him, cupping his face in my hands. "Nothing would make me happier." I kissed him, and a small cheer rose through the crowd around us, slowly growing as everyone caught up with the fast-paced events that had just transpired.

Goten

Despite my best efforts to forgive him, I suddenly hated Locke now more than ever. But Meadow looked so happy, I couldn't ruin it. I left to keep my spoiled mood hidden.

I walked around the corner of the house and lightly tapped my head against the wall. "Goten?" I looked back and saw that Trunks and Pan had followed me.

"Uncle Goten, what's wrong?"

I scowled and turned away. "Nothing."

"Goten," Trunks sighed. "Don't lie. Admit it: you're upset that your crush for almost two years just got engaged to your friend." I started to protest, but he continued. "Your friend who we tried to kill twice, almost succeeding the second time, and who died to take down a world-threatening villain."

"If I confess, will you shut up?" I sighed. He'd perfectly summed up my inner struggle.

Trunks shook his head. "Goten, this is why we can't control Gotenks anymore. You keep your turmoil bottled up, then Gotenks is too lazy to care about holding it in. You need to vent, or Gotenks might have seen his last battle."

I ground my teeth, then slammed my fist into my hand. "Fine! Yes, I'm pissed about this! I'm confused about why the girl I spent a freaking year trying to impress went for a guy she knew for a few weeks! I'm jealous that a few months later, they're completely in love! I'm freaking crushed that she just agreed to marry him, with the happiest smile I'd ever seen on her gorgeous face!" My fist clenched unconsciously, drawing blood to seep between my fingers, and I raised it to cover my face. "I hate that I can't bring myself to forgive my friend when the only wrong thing he did actually made things better." I slammed both fists into my head. "Aaaugh! What is wrong with me?! Everyone's happy! Why am I not?!"

Trunks put his hand on my shoulder and lightly pushed so I'd get the message and sit down. I did so, and Pan gently hugged me, though didn't say anything. "Goten," Trunks said carefully, "we both know Locke. Just imagine how happy he'll make her, how happy he'll be with her. They were practically made for each other; I could see it from day two, when he helped her carry her stuff. They're a great pair." He patted my back. "But I get it. It's a lot at once. Remember, though: time heals all wounds."

I nodded. "I guess..." I purposely didn't sound like it, but after that, my heart felt a little lighter. "But if he goes too far before they're married, I'll kill him."

"Too far?" Trunks asked.

"Stuff I can't talk about around Pan."

Trunks sighed in exasperation. "And you're back," he half-laughed, half-groaned. "Come on; someone'll notice we're gone."

Cell

Everyone sat down to a very large dinner in the back yard, prepared by Rachel, Videl, Gohan, and myself. I was quickly finding that I actually enjoyed cullinary arts; I could show my creativity in ways other than battle.

As we were eating, Locke pulled me aside. "Can I ask you for a favor?" he requested.

"Anything sensible."

"I want a gi." I was silent, waiting for him to elaborate. "I've never gone into battle properly-dressed. Now that I know the fight's coming, I want to be as prepared as I can be."

It was true; none of his big fights had been expected. Hell, he wore half a tuxedo for his last one. I nodded and prepared the Clothes Beam.

Locke

We walked back to the group, everyone falling silent at the sight of my new attire. It was a standard gi: the top like a black robe with a gray, long-sleeved shirt underneath, and a purple obi holding it shut; plain gray pants tucked into my boots, identical to Vegeta's. On the back of the gi was the kanji symbol for "fake" in bright red.

Meadow grinned at the sight. "That's awesome," she commented. "You'll be kicking Android butt with style."

I grinned back and sat back down beside her. "That's the idea." The rest of the meal was filled with peaceful chatter. I was a bit surprised to learn that Trunks' girlfriend, Mai, who I'd rarely heard of, had just recently returned home from the school's foreign exchange program, and Trunks and Goten helped her and the others get back home through the Androids.

Sunset was quickly approaching, and as it got lower in the sky, everyone's talking and eating slowed until we all just sat there, watching it go down.

Meadow slipped her hand into mine as the sun become nothing more than a sliver. "I love you, Locke," she whispered. "Be careful."

I nodded. "I'll smash that bucket of bolts and live to see our wedding."

Just a note before I end this one: for Locke's gi, just imagine Black's, but with the colors I specified and the symbol. And the thing with the ages for marriage are from Japanese laws, Dragon Ball being primarily Japanese.