Val slept hard, not saying anything, dreams jumping around nonsensically. She kept thinking she heard the wind buffeting just behind her, but she never found anything after half glances behind her. It took awhile before any dreams could make any sense. The first one settled on Aviary, in her old home. She would recognize the open balcony over looking the desert anywhere. She walked around the home, going to her bedroom, but saw a stranger, a young blonde boy playing with a few simple toys.
"Hello?" she said to the child. He did not look up as she spoke. She walked over to him and knelt down before him. "Hello," she repeated, waving her hand by his face. He made no reaction, but kept playing with the toys. She studied him curiously, finding his round face and exact shade of blonde hair so familiar.
"Takashi, come here, please," she heard an eerily familiar voice call out.
She stood up, recognizing her father's voice. She ran to the door, hearing and feeling the wind wavering around her. She went through the door only to fall to the ground, feeling disoriented. She saw both of her parents, younger than she remembered, arguing. Her mother was noticeably pregnant and laying in bed in a similar way Bulma had been last Val saw her. Her father stood over the bed, fuming. "You can't have this child," he complained. "She's too active. She's already hurting you. She's..." he ended the thought with a growl.
Her mother returned a sharp look with him. "She's strong and I can handle it," she ruled so determinedly and calmly that he seemed to quell at her answer. Her hands came around her stomach protectively. "She's not going to be lost like the others. She's a fighter through and through."
He knelt down next to her bed. He seemed furious, but subdued. "I thought there would not be another one after Takashi... It's not safe for you... she's not..."
She sighed and then winced, hand gripping the front of her shirt. "She can be my last," she ruled with such authority and longing in her tone Val could hardly believe she was seeing her father give in on the argument. She watched him bend his head down and heard him muttering. "You ought to pray for her as well to the Great Hawk Spirit," she requested. He seemed to go quiet and then muttered a bit quieter in a sharper tone. She reached her hand down to stroke the side of his face affectionately. "She will live, so I will live," she promised him.
"What if she inherits the cursing ability? You cannot pass that on," he insisted. He leaned into her hand.
Her hand gripped her shirt tighter. "She won't. She mustn't," she said, sounding nervous. "It's too dangerous."
"Especially with how it can backfire," he added, tone sounding oddly jealous. "I should never have asked you to curse me, nor let you curse yourself."
Val looked down at her hands, seeing her bracelets on. She tightened her hands into fists. She moved to step over to them, wanting to ask what curses he was talking about, only to feel a strong gust of wind hit her front on. She felt herself thrown backwards, landing on the ground.
She looked up, seeing herself in her childhood room. She saw herself laying on her bed, breathing laboredly in the dark. She saw her father leaning over the bed in a chair next to it. She could hear him half demanding, half praying tiredly, voice raspy. "Great Mother, please...You cannot take her... You will not take her..." he panted. "Minha cannot lose her... She's your child... Anthromorph or... no- she's still Aviarian... She needs her... If you let her live, I'll train her to fight... just like her brother..." He sat up, looking at her. "Val... Kiri, you live, damn it. You live for your mother. You... you live for me," he demanded down at her sleeping form.
She blinked at watching that, half remembering all his mumbling from when she was so sick he stayed up with her all night, but not remembering exactly what all he said. She did survive though, and she remember how exhaustedly relieved he was when she woke up properly that morning.
She stepped forward towards him, only to be blown back so forcefully she needed to raise her hands and arms up over her face. When she next looked around, she saw a lot of old people around. She saw an old man, white hair that was once blonde, thick, and beautiful. She recognized her paternal grandfather sitting in a chair, seeing his eyes partially glazed over with cataracts. She stepped over to him, seeing him sense someone and stand up and move slowly towards the door. She saw a small version of childhood self. She watched herself jump up to hug him. Her father stepped up right behind her, smirking at the two of them.
"Oh, Val, you survived your first fight with that little bug, yes?" her grandfather said. "You know it tried to take me, too, yes?" His hand ran over hair and face, checking her over since he could not see as well as he used to. "Can't take us true warriors, can it?"
"Did someone stay with you all night, too? Like Father did with me?" her child form asked.
Her grandfather looked up in her father's direction. "Oh, did he now?" he said, voice sounding so relieved. "I did, but you know, I pay that nurse. And she's expensive." He scooped her up.
"Careful of your back, Father," her father bid, but he did not stop him from picking Val up. She saw herself go still and relaxed in his arms, compliantly not squirming in anyway.
"Oh, she's small, but feisty, just like her mother," her grandfather commented. "I hear she's just as beautiful. A blessing there."
Her father shook his head. "And a curse," he said.
Her grandfather hummed down at her. "You know, before your father met your mother, he complained about being betrothed to a priestess, not wanting the honor because she was an Anthromorph and not an Aviarian. Complained the whole way there. Then the minute he saw her and how gorgeous she was, he shut up and counted his blessings. Loved her from the second he saw her. Now she can do no wrong in his eyes."
Her child self looked up at him. "Will I be a priestess like Mother?" she asked, tone overly serious.
Her father started to speak, but her grandfather cut in. "Oh, my dear, if the Great Hawk Spirit calls you to it, yes." He brushed her hair out of her face, missing a bit as as he stroke over part of her face. "You must do your duty, whatever it is the Great Mother calls you to," he advised just as solemnly. He hummed, straightening up. "My granddaughter, perhaps a future high priestess? Or an honor even greater than that," He looked between her and her father. "What do you want for your daughter?"
Both Vals looked over at her father. He clicked his teeth, looking down at her beaming and saying, "so long as I get to train her to fight when she comes of age."
There seemed to a weight lifted between the three of them at those words. Her grandfather passed her over to her father. Her father took her awkwardly, letting her lead in settling in his arms. Her grandfather clasped his arm on her father's shoulder. "Of course you should. You're a good father and that's what you do. Teach your daughter to fight, even if she isn't Aviarian. I taught you to fight, but hard as I tried, I could not get that stubbornness out of you," he wheezed, laughing at his weak joke.
Val smiled at that, feeling a slight breeze come from behind her. She turned to face it, disoriented at the sudden change of scenery that accompanied her movements. She looked around at the new surroundings. She was on an Imperial Ship. Her ears drew back. She looked around, seeing the blackness of space outside the windows. She shuttered, not wanting to be there more than anywhere else. She felt the wind blow around her, which was not normal for a spaceship. She rose up and moved away from the wind, running down the hallway in hopes to get away the wind. She saw her and Asa's old room, shoving the door open and going into it in hopes to find Asa in there.
She went into the room, only to find herself on Old Namek, shoving her way into a Namekian style house. She looked at the middle of the main room, seeing Nail of all people, standing there with a brown skinned, black haired infant asleep in his arms. She stared at him, gapping as he faced her. "Do you regret this?"
"Did I pass on the curse?" she asked, feeling the answers would match. "I can't pass that on," she insisted, shaking her head. She looked down at her hands and wrists, terrified yet relieved to see the bracelets still there.
Before he could have a chance to answer, she abruptly turned away and ran through the open door, feeling the wind at her back. She stumbled, falling to the ground, find it solid earth and green, springy grass beneath her. She felt an overwhelming sense of relief at the sight and feel of it. She gripped the grass gently before she rose up, brushing herself off and looking around. She was in the mountain village in front of her capsule house. She looked around the area, sensing movement on her left. She saw a pale skinned, stocky, black haired girl stumbling towards her. "Mother!" the girl called out, voice sounding younger than the true size of her. It was mismatched. Val knelt down and the child jumped up into her arms, hitting her hard in the chest.
Val jumped awake, kicking off the sheets around her. She looked around the room she was in, looking around the room, needing a minute to remember it was her room in Capsule Corps, which she had been living in for quite some time. "Where is she?" she asked hoarsely, throat feeling dry. She saw a water bottle by her bed on the nightstand. She snatched it up, drinking greedily from it. She drank so fast, she sputtered, the floral flavor of it burning her nose a little.
Daiki was suddenly there, standing in front of her. "Where's who?" he asked, looking around the room. He was adjusting his mask as he spoke.
She shook her head. "It was a fever dream?" she asked out loud. She looked to her left for a few seconds and then turned back. She drank more water, this time slowly. The floral flavor was more noticeable with it.
"What did you dream about?" he pressed, leaning over the bed. He passed her a packet of antiviral medicine and a packet of crackers.
"A lot of things..." she answered vaguely, trying to hold onto the dreams, confusing though they were. "Aviary. The Imperial Ship. Old Namek. Earth," she ticked off. She popped the next dose out of the packet and took the medicine with the water and crackers. "What is this stuff? It tastes familiar," she asked, ending her sentence with a yawn. She had barely woken up when she felt a wave of sleepiness wash over her. She laid back down, but turned to her side to look at him. She pulled the blanket up to her chest.
"I'm not exactly sure, but the powder has hydrangea tea in it, from what I could smell. And taste. I tried some after you fell asleep after I made you drink it with a dose of medicine... That name I called you... I was told to say exactly what I said, but I'm sorry... I shouldn't have given it to you without knowing what it was, but..."
She blinked up at him sleepily. "But what?" she asked, pushing her head up to look at him better.
"He insisted I try it, said the virus was overwhelming your system. Mr. Vegeta asked why I didn't just give you some kind of bean, but he said it wouldn't work," he rushed out, sounding a mix flustered and embarrassed. He had his fists up in front of his face when he finished talking. "This worked. I can't believe it, but it really worked."
"Who was he?" she pressed, brain still feeling foggy and sleepy. From the taste of the water, she felt like she already knew the answer.
He shook his head. "I don't think I ever knew his name. He's one of the green men, the ones that came here with you and Mr. Vegeta from that other planet, but he's different from them. Just different enough, but I can't put my finger on it as to why," he rambled. "Kind of like how you and Mr. Vegeta are just different enough from humans, even though you both pass for ones."
She was sitting up now, tired though she was, leaning heavily on her arm and side. "Piccolo," she named, feeling a thrill of longing cut through her.
"He said if I didn't give you that and you died... I'd die with you," he gulped.
She frowned at that, not like Daiki being threatened and coerced, even if the last ditch effort might have helped her fend off the virus, at least for now. "I'll talk to him next time I see him about that," she promised protectively.
"While you were sleeping, I looked into some research on the possiblity of adding hydrangea extract into the antiviral meds since you seemed to get better as you slept as well, even though you're still ill. It might help get rid of the virus faster. It's got detox and anti-inflammatory properties," he explained.
"Let me see it," she rushed out, fighting against how groggy she felt.
"Shouldn't you sleep more, first?" he hesitated.
She pouted up at him and pushed herself to a sitting position. She moved to grab her laptop that was sitting on a blanketed futon near her bed. He blocked her. She felt too weak to move passed him. She stared at the laptop intently. "Just let me see that one thing," she whined out. She looked up at him and met his eyes. "Please," she added.
He sighed, picked up the laptop, and sat down next to her on the bed with it. She watched him click away at it eagerly. Her vision went a little blurry. She rubbed her eyes so vigorously she felt herself scratch one eye lid by accident. He turned the laptop towards her to look at rather than handing it to her. She bent down, looking over the possible new formula and wishing her brain would just make sense of it already. She sat up straighter, meeting his eyes intently. "It could work," she said eagerly. "It could help, possibly, even just a little bit. That little bit might make a difference for someone where the old formula is lacking." She felt an overwhelming rush of excitement chased by a wave of insistent fatigue. Her fingers itched to grab the laptop from him anyway and get to work.
He closed the laptop. "I'll keep working on it, but for now you need to rest and recover," he reminded her. He stood up and stepped away from the bed.
She groaned and laid back down. "I want to see it when I wake up," she warned him, eyeing the laptop. He nodded, looking down at her curiously. "What?" she asked, drawing the covers around her.
"When you were in space, you studied medicine, right?" he asked.
She rolled on her side and shrugged best she could. "More or less. I was like a slave. Had to earn my keep, so I got plopped in the med bay," she answered. "Spent a lot of time in there do a bunch of stuff."
"But you know a lot of about it, and used that antiviral medicine off that spaceship as a starting point for making those antivirals," he said, nodding at the medicine near her.
She yawned and nodded. "Yeah. What's your point?"
"Well, you're really smart. Smarter than I am. Almost as smart as Ms. Briefs. When you recover, why don't you become a virologist or pharmacist on this planet or something like that?" he asked curiously. "You'd be great at it, at the research part especially. You seem to understand this new heart virus in a way I never could."
She blinked up heavily at him, humming to herself. It did sound more appealing than guardianship, more challenging in a different way. Yet she was not sure who Kami would chose then if she turned him down for good. She nuzzled against her pillow, thinking it over as sleep claimed her.