Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ A Shadow in the Twilight ❯ Chapter 22 ( Chapter 22 )

Chapter 22

The Saiya-jin and the dancer arrived at the infirmary to find the rest of the troupe already congregated in a happy, boisterous group around the proud, but exhausted, parents and their newborn child. By now, the attendant med techs had given up trying to maintain any semblance of order with that bunch. The entertainers had dug in their collective heels and were not going to budge an inch until their leader arrived to officially meet the baby.

"Hey, everybody!" chirped Lluvia as she entered the infirmary. Her group happily greeted their leader and her Saiya-jin escort. Bardock was about to exit and take up a station outside the infirmary, when she took his hand in both of hers and gently pulled him back into the room. All there noted the affectionately inclusive gesture, each interpreting it in his/her own way.

Soledad couldn't resist teasing Lluvia about her outfit. "Uh-oh! Don't look now, everyone, but she's wearing the dress," giggled Soledad, flashing an approving wink towards the handsome Saiya-jin. "Yu-vee's going to get lucky tonight!"

This time, Bardock didn't bother to hide his amused grin, as Lluvia audibly gasped and blushed in embarrassment. "Good grief, Soley! Does everything in your life have to revolve around sex?"

Soledad shrugged her shoulders and replied innocently, "Gee, boss, what else is there?"

An exultant Tristan stepped up and gathered his best friend in a tight, spinning bear hug, causing both of them to burst out in a spate of teary laughter. Bardock stood a ways back from the clustered group, silently noting the deep abiding affection that she shared with her friend. However, the Saiya-jin warrior did find it rather curious that they were making such a fuss over the arrival of a mere brat.

Jenika was propped up in a sitting position with several pillows behind her and looking remarkably none the worse for wear, considering the ungodly racket she'd made while in labor. She'd combed back her blond hair into a ponytail and had salvaged a clean gown prior to the troupe's arrival. She handed off the bathed and bundled baby to her mate. Tristan, in turn, tenderly placed the swaddled newborn into Lluvia's waiting arms.

The baby girl had inherited Tristan's light blue eyes and the fuzz on her tiny head would become the pale spun gold of her mother. Her skin color was a translucently light pink.

"Tris, Jen, she's a little cherub," Lluvia whispered in awe, her heart gripped tightly by the love she felt for her friends. "What did you name her?"

Jen slyly smiled. "What a silly question, Yu-vee! We're naming her after you, of course! If it hadn't been for you, we would never have gotten together! Let alone have had a baby!"

Lluvia laughed and nuzzled into the baby's scrunched-up face. The baby's hands reached out to touch her smooth lilac cheeks. "You poor little creature! Getting stuck with a cumbersome moniker like Lluvia!"

"Umm, well…we didn't name her Lluvia, not exactly." Puzzled by that comment, Lluvia glanced back and forth from Tristan to Jenika. Bardock also cocked an eyebrow in curiosity. "Tris told me that your full name translates into `rain of heaven', so we're going to call her Rayne, which is 'rain' with a slight spelling variation. Do you mind?"

"'Rayne'. I love it! It's absolutely perfect!" As if in acknowledgement, the baby mewled and gurgled.

Addy crowed with delight, "Ladies and gentlemen, I do believe we have a winner!" The others laughed heartily in agreement.

Lluvia moved to sit down on a nearby stool and began to croon softly to the baby in her arms:

I'm gonna love you like nobody's loved you,

Come rain or come shine.

High as a mountain and deep as a river,

Come rain or come shine…

Bardock closed his eyes as he listened to the gentle ballad. The sound of her voice and the sung words triggered a truncated vision of the future, flashing like a short projected film inside his eyelids.

I guess when you met me

It was just one of those things,

But don't ever bet me,

`Cause I'm gonna be true if you let me…

In his mind's eye, Bardock saw Lluvia singing a lullaby to another baby lovingly cradled in her arms. An infant with different coloring… but with the tail of a Saiya-jin! A child of mixed blood? His and hers?

(There is a future for you beyond Vegeta-sei…you must search it out for yourself, Bardock…trust your heart and it will lead you there).

The ominous voice that had always tormented him before with its warnings of Vegeta-sei's destruction rang through his head again, for the first time sounding surprisingly calm and kind. (A new future...if you choose to claim it…)

The trancelike spell actually lasted only half a second, but to the warrior, it seemed to play out for much longer.

((I will remember you!))

Morgana and Soledad had added their voices in matching harmonies to the main melody. The med techs paused in their duties to listen to the lilting feminine voices. Any crying babies currently residing in the adjacent incubator ward abruptly ceased their collective wailing, soothed into silence by the lovely serenade.

Lluvia looked up to meet Bardock's re-focused gaze. She was wearing her heart in her dark blue eyes as she sang aloud. The next words were no longer directed to the baby. They were meant for him alone:

You're gonna love me like nobody's loved me,

Come rain or come shine.

Happy together, unhappy together,

And won't it be fine.

Days may be cloudy or sunny,

We're in or we're out of the money,

But I'm with you always,

I'm with you rain or shine!

A short while later, the visitation with Tris and Jen ended when baby Rayne decided loudly and in no uncertain terms that she wanted to be fed. Her wails nearly matched in volume her mother's howls during labor, which was pretty impressive for a brand-new baby.

Raoul and the others laughed at the demanding sound. "Now I know she's really your daughter, Jen! She's definitely got your lungs!"

Lluvia thought it was as good a time as any to make her exit with Bardock. Before she left, she turned to address her friends with pride and affection radiating from her face. "Everyone, I want to let you all know that you did one hell of a show tonight! I can't begin to tell you just how truly awesome you all were! You've all made me so very proud of you!" Her voice cracked with emotion as she took a short breath before continuing. "No one can take away what you have accomplished together. Never, ever, forget that!"

Adarath was the first to hug Lluvia tightly and the others followed suit until all of them were in a massive group hug, laughing through their tears. "Yu-vee, honey, you are the best! We would have never made it this far without you, kid!"

"Bullshit! You are all superstars in your own right! You have always had the talent within you to be beyond great!"

More teary hugs and kisses made the rounds until Lluvia and Bardock broke away to depart the infirmary. As they strode down the walkway in silence, she gently reached out to take hold of his hand. When their fingers intertwined, he understood her power to affect people, not just in the way that she could command the attention of an audience of literally thousands, but how a simple touch from her could change just one life at a time. His life…

vCome Rain or Come Shine - Johnny Mercer