Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Whatever It Takes ❯ Chapter 10

Updated 12/25/09

 

AN: I don't really have anything to say about this chapter other than it's a little angsty in parts, something major happens, and it turns out happy in the end. If I say anything else you might as well not read it. So just read it and let me know what you think.

 

Many thanks to everyone who has left a review. It doesn't take long and it's very encouraging to get them. So c'mon, people! Just click the button and drop me a line. Give me your opinion on what you think.

 

Thanks to my hubby for reading this for me.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Disclaimer: Dragonball Z was created by Akira Toriyama. It is owned/licensed by Toei, Bird Studios, Shonen Jump, Funimation, and Viz, not me. However, you will see some characters that weren't created by Toriyama-san, and those are my brainchildren. No money was made in the production of this work, more's the pity.

 

 

Chapter Ten

 

"Good morning, Father." Geta glanced up from the morning paper spread out in front of him on the kitchen table.

 

"Mm-hmm." Vegeta shuffled over to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug of the dark liquid, grimacing at it. "I don't know why I drink this foul concoction," he commented. "The blonde woman made me try it. Most of what she prepares for consumption is acceptable, but this..." He indicated the steaming mug. "This... stuff, for lack of a better word, is terrible." He opened the fridge and pulled out a container of creamer, dumping a rather generous amount into his coffee before following suit with sugar. "Stupid flighty woman," he grumbled into his mug, taking a large gulp.

 

Geta ignored the comment about his grandmother. Although he loved her dearly, he had to admit that his father did have a point. On the other hand, she could be quite perceptive and sharp as a tack when the situation required it. His father would soon find that out if he hadn't already. "Addicted, are we?" he commented, one eyebrow raised in amusement. "Well, there are much worse vices to have. Don't you agree, Stinky?"

 

"Stinky?" Vegeta turned to look at his son and noticed for the first time that the young man was holding his infant counterpart in the crook of one arm and a bottle in the other hand, feeding the greedily guzzling baby. "Oh. I wondered what the hell you were talking about."

 

"Yeah, well, you know babies. They excel at dumping a load as soon as you've changed their diapers, don't they? Of course you do!"

 

Vegeta watched the behavior of his adult son with curiosity. "So you know all about babies, huh? I'm curious," he admitted, "as to the extreme fascination you have with caring for your younger self in particular when you know that your mother would take perfectly acceptable care of him."

 

Geta removed the bottle from the baby's mouth and put him up to his shoulder to pat the little back gently. "I guess I just like babies," he confessed, looking over at the dark haired head resting against his shoulder. "Besides, this little guy reminds me-" He stopped short. ~Of my own son.~ "Did you want something for breakfast? I'm just having this," he wrinkled up his nose at the bowl of hot cereal sitting nearby on the table, "but if you want something I'll get it for you," he offered a little awkwardly. He had almost mentioned his own son and didn't feel up to explaining things about his wife and child at the moment. Offering breakfast was the first thought that had popped into his mind.

 

"Can't you attempt to eat something more substantial than that mush you have?"

 

Geta sighed mentally, partly from relief for the swing of the topic of conversation and partly out of sheer frustration. "Well, sure I'd like something different Father, but I don't think I could digest it properly yet," he responded seriously. "I'd probably throw it all back up."

 

"Right... Never mind." His mouth twisted into a grimace. "Still, if I were you, I'd be eating steak and eggs instead of that stuff."

 

"Don't torture me, please," Geta grumbled, his stomach following suit. "Kami knows I'd love that, but I've had so little real food to eat in so long that I doubt I could handle it. Just that handful of chips I ate yesterday almost tore my insides to shreds. I'm completely drained. In fact, I doubt I could even manage a simple ki blast right now. It's going to take me a while to get back on par." He stopped rubbing the little back of the baby in his arms and wrinkled his nose in displeasure. "Speaking as we were about stinky babies, this guy definitely fits the bill. Phew!" He paused. "You know, if you want to take him, I'll still-"

 

"Oh no, not a chance in hell," Vegeta flatly refused. "I'm not changing any crap filled diapers." His arms crossed over his chest in distaste.

 

"Well, I can't lay him down right now since I haven't finished burping him yet, so I guess we'll have to wait for Mother." Geta leaned over and took a bite of his cereal, his eyes locked firmly onto his father. "You know, as I recall this stuff isn't half bad when you add some brown sugar, raisins and a bit of milk. There's more on the stove if you'd like some. Is Mother working today? If so, she shouldn't be too much longer coming downsta-"

 

Vegeta growled. ~The boy is as bad as his grandmother, only without the insane giggling.~ "Quit the chattering and hand me the brat," he interrupted impatiently, holding out his hands.

 

"Okay, sure." Geta rose from his chair and handed the baby to his father, a perfect self-satisfied Bulma expression on his face, all the way down to the laughing blue eyes. "Here you go. Let's see what I can find." He began to poke around in the fridge. "Oh, these sausages look so good."

 

Vegeta could see the little twitch of his son's lips as he held back his amusement. "Jackass."

 

That having been said, Geta made no effort to hide the twinkle in his eyes as he looked over at his father before turning to the stove. "You might want to get a good one out of him before he throws up all over," he suggested. "Mother told me I was pretty bad about that until I was a few months old."

 

Growling, Vegeta left the kitchen for the bathroom nearby. The things he did for a hot meal! That woman had better make it up to him today. "Where the hell does she keep the Kami damned diapers in here?"

 

***

 

The smell of sizzling sausages and blueberry pancakes made Vegeta hurriedly finish his task and he rushed back into the kitchen. "Fine, I changed him," he muttered, dropping down into the chair Geta had vacated. "Now give me my breakfast, Susie Homemaker!" he demanded.

 

"It's not done cooking yet," his son responded, breaking eggs into another frying pan on the stove.

 

"Well, hurry it up."

 

"Tsk, tsk… don't you know that perfection takes time?" Geta grinned. "Perfection. Yeah, right…"

 

"Can't be any worse than your mother's cooking," Vegeta grumbled, watching his son pour juice and milk and set them down in front of him.

 

"Actually, I'm not bad at fixing breakfast," he admitted. "I'm pretty quick at it, too. I love breakfast. It's my favorite thing." The toaster popped and he reached over to add the new slices to the ever growing stack before slathering butter all over them. "Here's the syrup… and the butter…" He began taking plates of food over to the table, watching his father eye the blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, eggs, bacon, sausages, fried potatoes, toast and fruit being set before him hungrily.

 

Vegeta's stomach growled. "Is this it?" he demanded. "This is little more than a snack."

 

"Ungrateful." Geta grabbed his bowl of cereal and sank down onto another chair next to his father. "Be glad you get anything at all. Here, give him to me and I'll put him in his carrier thingy over here."

 

Vegeta passed the baby over to Geta, who put him in the baby carrier and set it on top of the table. Snagging his newspaper back, Geta ate with one hand and rocked the carrier with the other as he read. There was quiet in the kitchen while the two ate until Vegeta finished, his plates neatly stacked, and got up from the table. "I'm going to train," he informed his son.

 

Geta looked up from his newspaper, opened his mouth, then closed it again. "Sure."

 

"What?"

 

"What, what?"

 

"You looked like you were going to say something to me but stopped," Vegeta commented.

 

Geta sighed. He was actually getting along with his father; should he speak his mind and ruin it? "Why?"

 

"Why what?"

 

"Mother was deeply distraught last night," Geta mumbled quietly. "How could you-"

 

~I knew this was coming.~ "I don't owe you any explanations, Boy. What I do is my own personal business and therefore none of your concern." He crossed his arms and scowled down at his son.

 

Geta scowled back up at his father. "I'm making Mother's health and happiness my concern," he retorted, "and since your so-called 'personal business' often tends to involve her, it's my business too how she's treated, especially by you."

 

"Don't presume to tell me what I should and should not do," Vegeta snarled. "If I allowed others to order me around, you would not be here right now. Your mother is an adult and able to make her own decisions. Not that it is any business of yours, but she could have dismissed me after we spoke and given the circumstances I would have accepted and respected her decision. She chose not to. She did not want to be alone and asked me to stay."

 

"So you thought that gave you free reign to-"

 

"This conversation is over, Brat," Vegeta interrupted angrily. "I am your father and your better. Do not make the mistake of forgetting your place."

 

The two glared at each other in silence, neither willing to be the one to drop their gaze. Their staring match was interrupted when Bulma breezed through the kitchen door.

 

"Good morning, little angel!" she cooed into the carrier on the table, kissing her son's tiny nose. "I see you've been fed and changed. How nice!" She turned to Geta. "Good morning, big angel!" she sang, giggling as he blushed slightly when she gave his cheek a kiss under the watchful eye of his father. Her eyes averted to Vegeta. "As for you, you're almost as much of an angel as I am." Walking over to him, she giggled again and wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing his ear close. "I'd say good morning to you too tiger, but unfortunately I have a breakfast meeting and there's just no time for that," she purred seductively, nipping at his ear as she pressed her body close against his. She was wearing a silk robe that, while it covered her decently enough, did not help in the slightest to block the feeling of her soft, warm curves against his chest. "Mmmm… I thought it smelled yummy in here. Whatever it was you were eating smells pretty good, too."

 

Vegeta felt his cheeks grow hot and his pulse begin to race. He could plainly see over Bulma's shoulder that their son was watching them intently. Even if he and Geta hadn't had the conversation they did, Vegeta was not one who was big on open displays of affection. He cleared his throat. "Woman, we're not-" He jumped as she nuzzled her way down his neck, her tongue flicking out to lick his bare shoulder as he fought back the strong urge to take her right then and there in the kitchen. "We're not alone, you know."

 

Bulma lifted her head and gave him a pouty look. "Oh, Vegeta, you're being a prude," she pouted, running her fingers through his hair. "We're his parents, for heaven's sake. And Geta's an adult, so give him a little credit. I think he knows how the mommy and daddy thing works." Her fingertips left his hair to tickle their way down his chest, making him shiver. "Besides, if you didn't want me pawing all over you this morning, you should have put on something with a little more coverage than a pair of spandex shorts."

 

He grabbed her wrists before they reached their intended destination. "Woman, please, I-"

 

"Oh sweetie, you don't need to beg. It's demeaning." She gave him a heated look. "I do hope you'll be easier to seduce tonight than you were last night," she murmured breathily. "Would it help if I went lingerie shopping on my lunch hour?"

 

Vegeta inhaled and closed his eyes, not wanting to see his son watching or the unhidden desire in her eyes. It was all he could do to stay in control at the moment as it was. He held back a groan when she nuzzled against him. "Wha-whatever you want… just… not right now, Bulma. Didn't you say you have a meeting?"

 

Bulma pouted again. "Hmph. Yes… so I need to hurry up and get ready for it." He was unable to keep himself from responding to her when she wound her arms around his neck and planted a long, hot wet kiss on his mouth. "Since I'm working early today, maybe I'll play hooky this afternoon," she contemplated. "That would be nice." She gave Vegeta's backside a swat before turning around to see their son sitting there, looking intently at his newspaper. "Geta, be honest. Did hearing your mother talking about jumping your father last night bother you?"

 

Geta blushed. "It's, uhm, really none of my business, I guess," he mumbled. "I, uhm, it doesn't bother me that you two... I mean, you are my parents and I'm not repulsed by, uhm, displays of affection, but…"

 

"But you don't need to know the details. I'm sorry… I should have been more discreet." She kissed his cheek again. "Try to rest some more. You look so tired." She headed for the door. "I'll catch you later." She winked at Vegeta and left.

 

There was silence in the kitchen again for a moment. "I… apologize for misjudging you Father, but what I said about concern for Mother stands." Geta rose from the table but kept his distance, politely giving his father, who had turned his back to him and was leaning heavily against the counter, some space. "Are you still going to train?" he asked in an attempt to change the subject again.

 

"Yes," Vegeta responded, also silently grateful for the change of subject. "Little temptress..." He turned to face his son. "You have used the room, haven't you? I mean, actual gravity training?"

 

"Not since I was three, but yes. You trained me in gravity a few times. My face became quite well acquainted with the floor, actually." The baby began to fuss and Geta picked him up. "I never made the same mistake twice, though."

 

"Hmph." Vegeta eyed the crying child. "Do you think you can get the brat to go to sleep?"

 

"I suppose so," Geta contemplated. His eyebrow rose. "Why?"

 

"Don't you want to come train also?" Vegeta asked.

 

Geta hadn't expected this. He'd expected to be watching his younger self while his father trained. "I... I suppose. But I told you, I'm weaker than a kitten right now." He shrugged helplessly.

 

"Leave that to me," Vegeta instructed, strolling over to the phone. "All of these stupid buttons," he grumbled. "I know your mother programmed one but don't remember which it is."

 

Geta frowned, confused. "Who are you calling, Father? I thought you wanted to train."

 

"We will." He glared at the list on the wall next to the phone, unwilling to admit that he couldn't read it. "One of these is Harpy's number..."

 

"Harpy? Oh, you're talking about Chi-Chi." Geta grinned. "Why do you want to talk to her?"

 

"I don't," he responded. "I want to see if her idiot mate is home." He paused. "Do you see the number on this list?" Vegeta shoved it in his son's hand.

 

Geta perused the list. "It's speed dial number three." He paused, watching his father. "Aren't you going to call?"

 

"I don't know how this confounded contraption works," he complained. "I've never used it before."

 

Geta peeked over his father's shoulder, unsure as to what was so difficult. "There's the speed dial button-"

 

"Just call the fool, would you?" Vegeta growled. "If he is home, get him on the phone and tell him I wish to spar."

 

"All right." He took the phone in his free hand and dialed. "Good morning, Gohan. Yes, this is Geta." He shot his father an amused look. "Just fine, thank you. Say, is Goku home? Could I speak with him, please? Thank you." He rolled his eyes. "You weren't kidding, Father. Chi-Chi was already on the poor kid about his studies- yes, hello, Goku." He paused. "Oh, much better today, thanks. Listen, Father asked me to see if you'd like to spar." Another pause. "When and where, Father?"

 

"Tell him to come now, and that... Never mind, I will speak to him." He took the phone from his son. "Kakarrot? Get your sorry ass over here. No, I don't have any, so bring yours. That's the reason I'm calling. Yes, for him. And I don't give a rat's ass what she has you doing. I'm out, and I know you have a stash. Just bring them over." He dropped the phone back onto its base, likely causing a loud clatter in Goku's ear.. "Moron."

 

"Why did you want Goku to come over?" Geta inquired, gently bouncing the now sleeping baby.

 

Vegeta snorted. "It's certainly not for the pleasure of his company," he retorted. "He has something I want."

 

Almost as if on cue, Goku appeared in the kitchen, startling the other two Saiyans. "Hey guys!"

 

"I hate it when you do that, you idiot," Vegeta growled. "And quiet your trap before you wake up the brat."

 

Goku looked up at the sleeping baby on Geta's shoulder. "Awww... he's such a cutie!" he cooed, poking a finger at the baby.

 

Vegeta was quickly losing patience. "Don't touch my brat, third class. If you wake him up I'll pound your head up your ass. Did you bring the bag with you?"

 

"Yup. Right here." Goku wasn't fazed in the least by the prince's behavior. "You're certainly fond of the word 'ass' today, aren't you- hey!" he objected as Vegeta snatched the little bag he held from his hand.

 

"Go put the brat down and quit wasting time," Vegeta growled.

 

"I'll be right back," Geta responded, heading for the nursery. He laid the sleeping child in its crib and smiled down at him. He knocked on his parents' bedroom door and, receiving no response, entered. Water was running in the adjoining bathroom so he knocked on the door. "Mother?"

 

"Yes?" came the watery voice.

 

"I'm putting the baby in his crib, then we're going out to spar. Don't worry, I'll check on him frequently," he called through the door.

 

"Okay." The water turned off. "Have fun! I should be home for lunch or shortly after," Bulma responded.

 

"Okay." His father and Goku were no longer in the kitchen so he headed outside, not needing to feel out for their ki but instead following the sounds of punches being thrown and a body hitting a nearby tree with a grunt.

 

"Here he is, Vegeta," Goku commented, wiping the blood from his split lip as Vegeta hauled himself up off of the twisted, splintery remnants of the tree upon which he was laying. "I can't stay very long, and I'd like to see a little of what you're capable of, Geta."

 

"Fine," Vegeta growled, angry that his rival had landed such a hard hit on him not only so soon into their sparring session but also in front of his son. "Here. Eat this," he commanded, taking a senzu from the pouch and handing it to Geta.

 

Geta accepted the little legume and examined it. "Is this a senzu bean?" he inquired. "Mother told me about them."

 

Goku nodded. "Go ahead and eat it. They taste pretty nasty but they'll fix you up great." He laughed at the expression on the younger man's face as he chewed the bean.

 

"Yecch! You're not kidding about..." His eyes widened as he almost immediately began to feel the effects of the bean. "This is amazing! I could have used these a couple times when... Never mind. Did you still want to spar, Goku?" He stretched, letting out a small groan when something popped.

 

"Are you sure you're up to it?" Goku looked worried. "You look so tired and hungry-oof!"

 

"I am, but I'll make it for a while." Geta leaned over to look down at his prone victim and smiled. "Shall we?" He offered Goku a hand up.

 

Vegeta snickered. ~What a dumbass!~

 

"Yes, let's," Goku responded, ignoring Vegeta and accepting the outstretched hand Geta offered. Although it had been a cheap shot of sorts, he had asked for it, and found the young man's ability to move that quickly and undetectably impressive. During the half second it had taken him to utter the word 'hungry', Geta had managed to ring his bell pretty loudly, although it was more of an issue of bruised pride than body. "That was pretty impressive," Goku informed him. "I'm very curious to see your maximum power level. Do you know what it is? Do you always mask it? Why would you mask it at all while you're here?"

 

"Whoa, hold up with the twenty questions! Sorry, the masking's just force of habit. I never give the enemy any information about myself if I can help it, which includes my power level. And I don't wait for powering up too often, either." He sneered. "It may make me seem like a gutless coward or even honorless, but why stand there and stupidly watch the other guy get stronger so he can kick the garbage out of me when he's done?"

 

"Better question is, why stand around talking about doing something instead of actually doing it?" Vegeta complained. "Hurry up and kick his ass already, would you Boy?"

 

Geta shrugged uncomfortably. "I'll do the best with what I've got, but it isn't much at the moment," he confessed, hoping that his mother had been right about his father's attitude toward him and wouldn't think too poorly of a performance which he would probably see as a completely pathetic effort, if his childhood training sessions had been any indication. ~I'm just ever so slightly malnourished and scrawny at the moment is all,~ he thought bitterly.

 

"Aww, don't worry about it," Goku assured him. "Tell you what. No energy attacks this time. Hand-to-hand only today."

 

Geta frowned; he had no other alternative than to concede. "No kid gloves, got it?" He looked the older man in the eyes.

 

~Just as proud and stubborn as his dad.~ "Okay, then," Goku agreed, taking a fighting stance.

 

The two men squared off and soon an ever quickening flurry of fists erupted. The two seemed evenly matched until Goku managed to get in a nice right hook, followed by a series of several kicks and punches, sending the younger man plummeting to the ground.

 

Geta picked himself up and batted the dirt from his clothes, growling angrily as he did so. "I told you not to take it easy on me!" he shouted, irritated at himself for letting a punch he should have easily blocked take him off guard. Until he learned Goku's fighting style and got his strength back, he would be mostly on the defensive. "I don't appreciate not being taken seriously, so don't patronize me." He wiped the blood oozing from his split lip away with the back of one hand.

 

"Hey, you're sick," Goku began in his overly cheerful voice. "You need some time to recover before you try to honest-to-goodness spar."

 

"Whatever." Geta crossed his arms in annoyance and rolled his eyes. "Oh, I almost forgot to ask. Before we continue, did you want to power up, or shall I power down?"

 

Goku just stared at him blankly. "Power down?" Taken by surprise by the seemingly odd question, Goku just managed to avoid a roundhouse to his face by mere fractions of an inch. "What do you mean, should you power down? You haven't even powered up yet."

 

"You just missed your window of opportunity," Geta replied, effortlessly letting the dark-haired façade down in the blink of an eye to reveal spiky blonde hair and bright teal eyes. He heard his father's exclamation of surprise behind him.

 

Goku blinked. Not only had he not noticed Geta even attempt to power up, but his power level hadn't suddenly risen, either. "How...?"

 

Geta interrupted him with a kick to the gut followed by a rapid fire of fists and elbows that knocked Goku's body around as easily as shaking a rag doll. "You let your guard down, Goku, and you're letting a half starved demi who's been on the defensive and studying your moves get his licks in."

 

Taking this as the challenge it was, Goku immediately transformed and took on a fighting stance.

 

Geta smiled. "Now you're speaking my language, Mr. Son." He bowed respectfully to his opponent before taking on his own stance. Pleasantly surprised by the gesture, Goku returned it before they took to the air.

 

For a few minutes more, the two again appeared evenly matched as they continued to exchange blows. One good block by Goku shoved the two men apart.

 

Geta took in a deep breath and leaned over to place his hands on his thighs. ~Man am I tired.~ "Hey, as much as I hate to admit it, I've got to get some food in my belly before I pass out," he admitted sheepishly, backing off from the fight. "As for my lack of powering up just now, I'm always like this. It became a habit, second nature really. I had to be ready to react in a heartbeat should the androids happen attack at that moment." His feet touched the grass and he sat down, leaning against a tree. "That's one of the worst things about them. Their lack of discernable ki makes them almost impossible to detect unless you've managed to stay alive long enough to figure out their next move. Not an easy thing to do, and believe me when I say that there is no quarter given by these monsters to ready yourself." He paused, searching for the right analogy for his next words. "It's kind of like learning to fly. At first it's hard and takes a lot of effort and concentration, but before you know it you're blasting through the air without even thinking about it." He picked at the grass absently. "A guy my height, build and hairstyle was conspicuous enough, so I learned to hide the outside Super Saiyan appearance in order not to stand out any more than necessary."

 

Goku looked impressed. "Wow, I'll have to try that," he remarked. "That's a good idea."

 

Geta just shrugged. "Just common sense, really. The longer you stay this way the easier it'll become to maintain it and less effort means less energy." He noted his father standing away from them sullenly and hauled himself to his feet. "I promised Mother that I would check on little me every so often, and I'm famished." As if on cue, his stomach growled loudly. "Thanks for coming by, Goku. I'd like another round sometime."

 

"Hmph." ~Stupid third-class idiot thinks he can show me up.~ Vegeta turned on his heel and strode into the GR to train.

 

"Do you think we hurt his feelings?" Goku asked, watching the GR door shut behind Vegeta.

 

Geta sighed. "Unfortunately, we probably did," he agreed. "He'll have to get over it somehow, because I have no intention of walking on eggshells around him when it comes to my power level. He of all people should be pleased that his own son ascended, because obviously I got the ability to do so from him." He sighed again. "I think he's absolutely able to do it, and should have done it quite a while ago. He's just trying to do it the wrong way and for the wrong reasons. But how do I tell that to the man who is not only my father, but also happens to be royalty and therefore doesn't need anyone else's unsolicited advice? I'm just a boy to him. What do I know about how and why a Saiyan ascends, even though it happened five years ago for me?" He shook his head. "I never felt good enough when I was little and I still don't now."

 

Goku laid a hand on Geta's arm. "Aww, c'mon. You only just showed up here yesterday. Think about it- here all of a sudden the proud Prince of all Saiyans finds out that he has an adult son from the future who tells him that he's going to die at the hands of robots and seems to do better than he does at every thing he's struggled with that bothers him the most. Just give him some time. You're his son. He'll come around."

 

Geta almost gaped at the older man. He'd had no idea that Goku could be so astute. "Yeah... you're right."

 

"I'm also a dad myself. I know it's not easy to always live up to what my family expects, and everyone else too." He smiled. "And I know how you feel about not being good enough to please your dad. I doubt I'll ever be good enough, either, especially the more I can do. You can't let it bring you down like he brings himself down. You know how they say, misery loves company."

 

"Yeah," Geta responded again, wearily. He didn't have much else to say.

 

"Listen, I've got to get back home to help Chi-Chi, but we'll spar again soon, okay?" Goku smiled and lifted two fingers to his forehead.

 

"Wait!" Geta exclaimed. "I almost forgot. I wanted to ask you how difficult it is to learn that trick you used to get here. Maybe you can teach it to me next time I see you."

 

"Oh, it's simple as pie. I can show you right now if you like, but then I've really got to go."

 

***

 

Geta stroked the baby's downy little head and smiled down at the sleeping infant. "It'll be different for you, little one. I promise." Turning to the window, he could see random flashes of red-tinged light against the windows of the GR where his father was training. "I promise you both."

 

He brought his index and middle fingers together and lifted them up to his forehead, reappearing in the kitchen in an instant of time. His stomach growled noisily. "Yes, yes, I'm finally gonna eat! But I don't feel like fixing breakfast again," he muttered to himself, opening the fridge and peering inside with disappointment. There was practically nothing to eat, just a few leftovers from a couple of previous meals. ~Maybe I'll just fix sandwiches for now and see how it goes. It should hold me over until lunch.~ He grabbed the bread and whatever else he could find that could work for a sandwich and went to work.

 

One ham and cheddar, two roast beef with Swiss, one turkey club, one tuna, and two grilled cheese sandwiches later- as well as the remainder of the previous day's Doritos, half a jar of pickle spears and a couple cans of root beer- he hauled himself up from the kitchen table and groaned, stretching. "Man, did that hit the spot!" He checked on the baby one more time before heading downstairs to the den to watch some television. Although he wouldn't have minded training with Vegeta, he figured that his father wasn't in the best frame of mind for his company at the moment. Feeling himself growing drowsy after his nice big snack as he lay on the couch channel surfing, he turned the television off and took the opportunity to catch a short nap.

 

***

 

Bulma smiled as she drove home. It was a cheerful, sunshiny day, and she was going home to spend the rest of it with the three Vegetas in her life. She giggled at the thought of three Vegetas. Just not too long ago, she'd had her hands full with keeping the original in check. Now, hopefully she'd have her hands full of the original and...

 

"Down, girl!" she chastised herself, not at all meaning it. "Don't get all worked up over that right now." She pulled up in front of the house and encapsulated the car before heading inside.

 

~It's quiet in the house. Too quiet. Oh, Bulma, they're probably out in the GR training.~ She paused. ~What was that?~ She headed for the source of the sound she'd heard. ~It came from in here, I think...~ She peeked into the den. It was empty.

 

Shrugging, Bulma turned to go get herself and the baby changed for lunch when she heard the sound again. It was a growl; she had no doubt of that. She had heard Vegeta growl like that before when he'd been having an unpleasant dream. He never told her about his dreams and she didn't push about it. She wasn't sure he was aware that she knew how often he had them.

 

She walked forward quietly, not wanting to wake him if he didn't seem too agitated. Just like a cornered animal, even in his dreams Vegeta could get violent when provoked. Touching him could unconsciously be interpreted as part of the dream. Once, after he'd almost unconsciously taken her head off when she'd attempted to wake him while he was having one of those dreams, she decided it would be best not to touch him if she didn't want to lose any appendages. She never thought he'd ever deliberately hurt her, but didn't want it to happen accidentally either.

 

Peering around the arm of the couch, she discovered that it was not the father of her son but her son himself who was doing the growling. Her brows furrowed. ~It's probably those horrible androids he's dreaming about,~ she mused. His teeth were clenched, sharp fangs bared.

 

"No... no... it's me you want... Leave them out of this..."

 

Now she was torn. On the one hand, she could try to wake him now before he really became agitated, or she could back off and let him sleep through it. She wondered if he would have the same bad reaction as Vegeta did. Considering Geta's not insignificant size, Bulma determined it to be a compelling reason to let him sleep.

 

"Leave them alone!"

 

Bulma felt a twinge of pain deep within at the obvious suffering reflected in her son's voice. ~He must be dreaming about one of us being hurt or attacked. Poor guy. I guess I will wake him up.~ She approached the couch and leaned over, reaching out to touch his arm. "Geta?" she ventured, her voice just a little more than a whisper. She jumped back in surprise, however, when he shuddered and began to twitch.

 

"No!" His voice had risen to almost a shout. "Not my son!"

 

Bulma felt goose bumps rise over her body when he let out an agonized cry, his face contorted in pain. Tears welled up in her eyes. ~His son? Oh, Kami! Did he have a son who got hurt, or even...~

 

"Please... she's no threat to you..." His head shook back and forth against the seat cushion, his fists clenched. "Stop! Don't hurt... no... no!" He tensed up on the couch, mouth open and eyes squeezed tightly shut, a look of complete and utter agony on his face.

 

Bulma went completely white as a second scream even worse than the first one tore from Geta's throat. It was blood curding and terrible, and sounded to her as if he'd been stabbed in the chest. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he shook with silent sobs. His hand slid off of the couch wearily, dropping the remote he'd been clutching hard enough to destroy onto the floor. "Anya... oh, Anya..." His sobbing was audible now. "Curse you... blood thirsty machines... Damn you!"

 

Bulma fled the room as a golden burst of ki erupted out of her son's body to envelop him. As much as she didn't want to leave her son alone, she was not going to stick around long enough to become part of the devastation that the random ki he was putting out could cause. Sobbing, she exited the house through the kitchen and raced for the GR, and the only person who could help.

 

***

 

Vegeta opened one eye. He'd been deep in meditation when he felt a sudden spike of ki which had just as quickly fallen again. He recognized it as his son's and frowned when it happened a second time. "What the hell is going on?" He left the GR and headed for the house, shooting for it like a rocket when it rose to an alarmingly dangerous level and remained that way.

 

"Vegeta!" Bulma was running toward him, crying. She threw herself into his arms when he reached her. "Oh Vegeta, you have to come quickly! It's Geta..."

 

He didn't wait for an explanation as he scooped her up and flew into the house and down the hallway to the den. He looked on in shocked surprise at his son writhing on the couch in his sleep and glowing like a cinder. He was just about to speak when Bulma beat him to it.

 

"He was dreaming," she began, her face buried in Vegeta's shoulder. "He said something about leaving some people alone, and his son." She looked up at him. "Vegeta, he was screaming so terribly. He cursed some machines... I think he may have lost a child or somebody else he cared about to the androids."

 

He set her down gently. "Go get the infant," he instructed. "Leave the house."

 

"But, Vegeta-"

 

"Now!" he shouted, feeling a little guilty when she jumped at the intensity of his voice. "Do as I say, Woman!" He advanced toward the couch, defenses ready, as Bulma fled down the hallway. He knew better than to try to rouse his son by touching him. The young man was in a bad enough state as it was, and would react negatively to contact. He swallowed his pride to do what he knew needed to be done. :Vegeta, my son… wake up,: he spoke gently, directly into Geta's mind. The ki surrounding him blazed stronger for a moment before receding slightly. :That's it… wake now.: He sighed in relief as the ki dissipated completely, leaving his son lying trembling on the couch. :Geta, come now… open your eyes, Son.:

 

Geta sat upright on the couch. "No! No!" he shouted, opening his eyes. He looked around, suddenly realizing where he was and what had actually happened. "Oh… Kami," he whispered, resting his face in his hands. "Why must I see this over and over again in my dreams?"

 

"Son?" Vegeta's voice had the same tone he'd used when Bulma had needed comforting.

 

Geta jumped, startled. "Father?" He hurriedly wiped his tearstained face with the back of one hand and turned away, embarrassed. "I, uhm…"

 

"Dreamed about something you'd rather forget?"

 

The room was silent for a moment. "Yes," he whispered. "And no." When Vegeta said nothing, he continued. "Yes, because I had to watch the only people left that I cared about die. But no, I cannot forget about them because… because they were my wife and son."

 

Vegeta's eyebrow rose. ~So Bulma was right.~ "I see," he said quietly.

 

Geta's shoulders drooped in despair. "I… I never thought anything could hurt as badly as when you and Mother and the others died." He gulped in a breath of air, fighting back tears. "I was wrong." Unable to hold back any longer, he dropped his face into his hands, shoulders shaking as he sobbed silently.

 

Vegeta was uncomfortable at witnessing his son's grief but somehow knew that while he did not need an audience to his pain, he did not want to be left alone again. He walked up to the couch and placed his hand awkwardly on Geta's shoulder.

 

"I-I'm sorry, Father," Geta managed, wiping his face with the back of his arm. "I-"

 

"No. Don't be," Vegeta interrupted. He was not one for tears but if anyone could relate to a situation where tears would not be shameful, it was him. "I too lost everyone I had ever known in the blink of an eye when that bastard Frieza destroyed planet Vegeta," he murmured. "I cannot think any less of you for your anguish now."

 

Geta finally lifted his head, straightening up somewhat. "Thank you, Father."

 

"Vegeta?" He looked over to see Bulma standing in the doorway, holding the baby in one arm and a glass of water in the other hand.

 

Vegeta left his son's side and went over to her. "Woman, I thought I told you…" He sighed at the sight of her teary-eyed face and took the water.

 

"Is he all right?" she asked silently. Vegeta shrugged in response, but nodded. "Can I… if I can do anything to help…" Her eyes pleaded with him.

 

"Mother?" They both turned to look at their son, who was sitting up on the couch. "Come in, please. You both should hear about this. I'd rather you hear about it before everyone else does." He sighed despondently.

 

"Can I get you anything first?" Bulma offered gently. "A cool wash cloth, perhaps?"

 

He managed a grateful smile. "You always think of everything, Mother."

 

"Hmph." Vegeta crossed his arms. "Yes, and forgets nothing."

 

"Smart ass," she commented, slapping his backside playfully on her way out.

 

They were both silent until she returned a minute later with the wash cloth. "Goku just popped over here, having felt your ki rise," she explained, handing Geta the cloth. "I told him you'd had a bad dream, and everything was okay. He said he hopes you feel better soon."

 

"Thank you," Geta murmured, accepting the wash cloth from her and wiping his face. As he did so, Bulma maneuvered Vegeta into sitting down on the loveseat nearby, then proceeded to perch herself on his lap and snuggle close against his shoulder, ignoring the disgruntled look he gave her. She cradled VJ in her arms, bouncing him gently.

 

Geta stared straight ahead, and sighed. "We met when we both showed up at the same android resistance gathering. I knew the instant I saw her that she was the one, the one I was going to marry." He took a sip of water. "She was just breathtaking. Porcelain skin, strawberry blonde hair, sea green eyes a man would be more than happy to drown in…" His face had softened and he was gazing absently at nothing, a dreamy expression on his face. "She had a body to die for. Fabulous legs. Sometimes I wanted to just, I dunno, sink my teeth into her, hear her scream my name…" He blushed, realizing his description was getting just a little too intimate, and coughed. "Heh… I think I'd better quit while I'm ahead."

 

Oddly enough- or so he thought- his father was sitting there looking quite smug and his mother had dropped her gaze and was playing with a lock of her hair, twisting it with her fingers, the tiniest of smiles on her lips and a faint blush coloring her cheeks. He couldn't determine a reason for their odd behavior, but pushed the thought to the back of his mind for the moment.

 

"But all of that paled next to her inner beauty," he continued. "She was the sweetest, gentlest little thing I'd ever met. I'd try to talk to her, ask her to dinner, for a walk, whatever. But she'd act standoffish around me, like she didn't want anything to do with me for some odd reason I couldn't fathom. I mean, I got rugged good looks from my father and baby blues from my mother, heck, I even bathed regularly," he grinned at them before continuing, "so it's not like I was repellent or anything. But I'm nothing if not persistent.

 

"She got particularly exasperated one time when I asked her out and said, 'Okay, fine. If I go to dinner with you will you quit hassling me?' I pretended to think about it and said, 'Well, maybe… not.' She rolled her eyes and started blushing, but finally agreed to go out with me. I could've jumped for joy. I must've done something right, because six months later I made her my wife." The smile returned.

 

"That's so sweet. How old were you?" Bulma wanted to know.

 

"Let's see… she was eight months younger than me. I was seventeen when I met her, eighteen when we got married. She'd just turned eighteen."

 

"That's so young," Bulma exclaimed. "But you were obviously smitten with her."

 

"Yeah…" The stupid grin returned. "She was something else." He paused, momentarily lost in thought. "The way things were, we couldn't technically get married. No suit, no dress, no flowers, no civil ceremony. We pledged our lives to each other instead, for better or for worse, forsaking all others. I made her my wife here, in my heart." Geta placed his hand over his heart and gave his parents a shaky little smile. "I know that isn't exactly right, but seeing as I was a prime target of the androids at the moment it was the best we could do. That alone could have scared her away but it didn't. She stuck with me despite the danger she knew it would bring to her.

 

"I'm sure she would have loved a big wedding with lots of guests and all of the extras, but she never once complained about anything, Kami bless her, not even when I didn't have a ring for her. That was the one thing I really wished I could have given her, but she told me that not having a ring wouldn't make our union any less important and special to her, and that I could have wrapped a piece of string around her finger and she would have been content." He stared down at the cloth in his hands and shook his head sadly. "She was really something special to me, something to be cherished. I vowed to protect her with my life, and I... I failed."

 

The room was quiet for a moment before Vegeta spoke. "Well, according to what you told us happened in your time, I was one of the first to go. Your mother didn't survive the androids either, and you went through the childhood from hell. That makes me a failure before this whole thing even happens. What's more, I couldn't do anything to even try to help save our race. What does that make me? I know, Son. I've beaten myself up about it since I was only six."

 

Geta opened his mouth to contradict his father and stopped, sitting back against the sofa again. He inhaled deeply and lifted his gaze to meet Vegeta's. "I know you're right, Father. I just... I lost everyone I ever loved, and Anya's and our son's deaths cut the deepest of them all." He forced a weak smile. "That's why I came here. If I had a chance, just a tiny one, to make things different, I was determined to do it."

 

He took another drink of water, ready to change the subject. "When Anya told me she was pregnant, I was both ecstatic and terrified at the same time. She would've been the perfect bait if the androids had gotten hold of her, or the baby for that matter."

 

"How old were you when the baby was born?" Bulma interjected excitedly. "How about Anya? What name did you pick?"

 

"Hold on, slow down!" Geta gave his mother a time-out sign with his hands. She giggled. "In the order you asked, I was nineteen, Anya eighteen. We continued on with tradition and named him Vegeta." He grinned wearily. "Now, there are four of us to differentiate. Yikes!"

 

Bulma chuckled. "Why do you think you ended up with a nickname? Your father detests being called anything less than 'His Royal Highness Prince Vegeta', don't you Highness?"

 

Vegeta smirked at her. "You're finally learning, Woman."

 

"Yeah, yeah, sure. Get over yourself." Bulma paused, contemplating something. "Hold on a minute here. If Anya had only just turned eighteen when you married and she was still eighteen when your son was born…" She trailed off, grinning, as Geta's face turned bright pink.

 

Vegeta laughed. "Didn't waste any time, did you Boy?"

 

"Uhm, no…" He gave them a helpless little smile. "Uhm, anyway, it was around that time that things started getting bad. I mean, they'd always been bad, but this was worse than anything I ever imagined we could go through. The androids weren't just harassing and randomly killing people; it was an extermination. I knew what they were trying to do. They were trying to flush Anya and me out of hiding. I did fight them, but it just wasn't enough and I was the only one left who could even attempt to fight them. I could hold my own for a little while against one of them, but both? I'd be mincemeat in five, maybe ten minutes if they decided to play with me first."

 

He wrung the cloth in his hands, visibly struggling to finish what he was about to say. "The only thing I could do was turn tail and run, try to keep one step ahead of them while I was still alive to do it," he admitted, obviously embarrassed. "I cursed myself for being a coward, but at the same time, if I could keep my wife and son alive and unharmed for just one more day, then hey, call me a coward. I was at least doing some good." His head hung down in shame.

 

"Couldn't you have defeated them if you'd become a Super Saiyan by then?" Vegeta suggested.

 

Geta lifted his head, his eyes quickly flicking up as he looked at his father in anger. "I was a Super Saiyan!" he retorted bitterly. "And I was no rookie, either. I'd ascended when I was almost fifteen years old, and up until that point I had Gohan training me. Don't think for one instant that he went easy on me, either. Under his tutelage, I came so close so many times, but it just wouldn't happen."

 

"What did?" Bulma asked softly.

 

Geta looked at her, his eyes filled with sadness. "I was out scouting for the androids one afternoon. I came home but no one was there, and I couldn't pick up anyone's ki.

 

"I went outside and searched for Kami knows how long when finally I spotted something. It was a shirt belonging to the friend of mine I told you about earlier. We were best friends, really, like this." He held up the index and middle fingers of one hand, pressing them closely together for emphasis. "He lived with us because he didn't have anyone else left, either." A smile crept across his face. "I swear, to this day I still have no idea how you weren't completely gray haired by the time you were forty, Mother." The smile became a grin. "We were wicked children, I realize that now. We didn't mean to be, but just some of the things that super-powered children can do would freak out any parent, I'd wager."

 

"Wait a minute!" Bulma interjected. "Super-powered children? You're saying that the guys were right?"

 

"I'm saying, yes, his father was one of the group of friends turned fighters who lost their lives to the androids." Geta finished his water and leaned over to put the glass on the end table nearby. "I cannot, however, reveal who that is, because I've changed enough as it is by coming here and telling you what I already have."

 

His parents shrugged and nodded in agreement.

 

"Anyway," Geta continued, "I saw the shirt and flew down to take a look. That's when I found him, Gohan, and... and you, Mother. Dead, obviously killed by the androids." He let his head hang low again, not bothering to fight back his tears any longer.

 

"Oh Geta, how terrible," Bulma soothed.

 

Geta sniffed, wiping his face with the cloth again. "I-I just... lost it, I guess you could say. The three of you were the only family I had left. I dropped to my knees in the mud and started screaming in anguish and fury, in abject hatred of the machines which had done this thing. The next thing I knew, it was as if my mind, my insides were on fire, fighting to gain release... and then they did."

 

"That's when you ascended?" Vegeta asked, astonished.

 

"Yes," Geta responded. "I didn't know what was happening to me, just that I had all of this pain welling up inside me, and let it loose. It felt good even though it hurt like nothing else I'd ever experienced, and that only served to fuel my rage." He shrugged. "I realized what had happened to me, and at some level I felt triumphant, but the rest of me grieved for my loss and held me in fear because I didn't know how to control this fantastic power yet. After a few months, I learned to manipulate and control it, all the while hiding from those cursed machines." He stared at the floor, having nothing left to say. "And that's how it happened."

 

"Even with all of that power, it still wasn't enough?" Vegeta didn't seem to want to let go of the almightiness of the legendary Super Saiyan yet.

 

Geta shook his head. "No, unfortunately not. Kami knows I wish it would have been. If it was, I wouldn't have lost my wife and son the way I did. Gohan wouldn't have died the way he did. Neither would you have, Father." He smiled sadly. "But I guess that's a story for another day."

 

"But, Anya and little Vegeta... what happened to them?" Bulma asked tearfully, already afraid of the answer.

 

Geta sat quietly for a moment before responding. "As much as I wished it otherwise, I couldn't be with my wife and son on a constant basis. I had to keep track of where the androids were and what they were doing in order to keep that one step ahead of them. Also, if they did kill or capture me, or if she was in a situation where if she stayed it could mean being caught, she could take our son and run. I even made her swear that she would not come back for me should anything happen to me.

 

"My greatest fear became reality one day when I returned home to find the place a shambles and Anya and Vegeta missing. I knew then that I should have listened to my gut and responded to a nagging little feeling I'd had. I could have fled with them during the cover of night, but instead I ended up leading the androids right to my family." His voice had reduced itself to little more than a whisper.

 

"The androids made no effort whatsoever to hide the fact that they'd been there, where they were headed and that they meant business. I found a long lock of my wife's hair that they'd clearly torn right from her head, and one of my son's little socks with it. There was even blood splattered on the wall." He stopped, his head in his hands and breathing heavily.

 

"Sweetie," Bulma began quietly, her shaky voice breaking the silence, "you don't need to tell us the rest of this if-"

 

"No," Geta broke in. "I need to get this out." The room was quiet for another long moment.

 

"I almost broke down right then and there. In my rage, I flew out of the house and followed their tracks back to this house, of all places. The bastards were rubbing it in my face that I once lived here, that I watched you die here-" his eyes flicked over to his father- "that this was a place of fond memories for me during the most impressionable years of my life.

 

"They were in the yard near where the GR is now. One of them was holding back Anya, and the other had our son. Anya's head was bleeding where they'd torn out her hair, and she had cuts and bruises all over her. She'd obviously put up a good fight when they were discovered. The baby was screaming, and Anya was trying to get to him. They were just laughing at her.

 

"When they saw me, they told me to give myself up, or they'd kill Anya and Vegeta. I had no choice. There was no doubt in my mind that they'd follow through with their threat." He stared down at the floor, a sad, dull-eyed expression on his face. "They beat the hell out of me, mercilessly. In all honesty I have no idea how I survived. I must have zoned out during it because I remember not even feeling the blows anymore, just hearing Anya screaming. When I came out of it, I was groggy and in the worst pain I had never even imagined, and they were standing there with smug expressions on their faces.

 

"Anya was sobbing hysterically and started screaming again when she realized that I was still alive. The female android was holding her and hit her hard, and told her to shut up. I managed to get out a plea to leave them alone, that they weren't a threat." He drew in a breath, trying to compose himself enough to finish.

 

"As a side note, Vegeta had just recently started talking. You would think that his first word would be 'Mama', but it wasn't. It was 'Dada'. Kami, my heart would melt every time he'd call to me, his little arms reaching out to me. I'd scoop him up, and those arms would go around my neck. He'd rest his head on my shoulder and let out a contented sigh, his little tail waving happily. Kami, how I loved that boy!" Tears began to roll down his cheeks and splash onto the floor.

 

Unable to stand it any longer, Bulma got up from Vegeta's lap and handed him their baby. She sat down on the sofa next to her grief stricken son and wrapped her arms around him consolingly, her own tears wetting his shoulder.

 

Geta wiped at his face with the back of his hand. His voice wavered as he continued the story. "When Vegeta wouldn't stop crying, they got even angrier. The male android had him, and shouted at him to shut up, and shook him hard. He started crying out for me. He couldn't understand why I wasn't helping him and his mother. It just shattered my heart, Mother, to hear the pain in his voice.

 

"I tried to yell at the android to leave my son alone. He only sneered at me, and when Vegeta didn't stop crying, he put his hands around my boy's neck and..." He couldn't bring himself to say it. "I can still hear his cries stop suddenly, the sickening sound of... of his neck breaking..." He covered his face with his hands again. "Then, they started to rough up my wife... I pleaded with them to let her go, to do what they wanted to with me, but not to hurt my wife. I can't get her screams of agony out of my head. Then they stopped... her eyes were staring my way, but weren't seeing. It started to rain... they stood over me and laughed, such a cruel, terrible sound. And all I could do was lay there in the mud and sob like a baby. All I wanted was to die, but they wanted me to live. Death was too kind, and they wanted to be able to harass me later, to completely break me." He sobbed into his hands, loud, heart wrenching cries of inconsolable grief.

 

Bulma cried along with him, holding him close. He threw his arms around her, his face buried in her shoulder, and clung to her like a lifeline. "Oh, Geta..."

 

Vegeta felt extremely uncomfortable as he watched them cling to each other and cry. Not only did the display of emotions put him on edge, but the young man's story had disturbed him more than he imagined it could. He sighed mentally. He'd already swallowed his pride once today when it came to showing concern for his son. It was obvious how painful it had been for his son to relate such a horrific event in his life, and how much it would mean to Geta to have his father's unbidden support. Silently, Vegeta rose from the loveseat and walked over behind his son, patting his shoulder awkwardly as he had before.

 

Sitting up from his mother's embrace, Geta stood to face his father. He had calmed somewhat at his father's touch and did not resist the urge to thank him for his support by throwing his arms around him, startling him.

 

Despite Geta's current state of mind, Vegeta had not expected this from his son. Hesitantly, he patted the distraught young man on the back.

 

Geta eventually quieted down and let go of his father, collapsing back onto the couch. Exhausted both mentally and physically, he fell asleep in almost no time at all, his worried parents looking on.

 

"Oh, Vegeta," Bulma whispered, turning to him with large, tear-filled eyes, those eyes which Vegeta had earlier discovered turned him soft in the head, completely unable to resist. "How terrible! I feel so... so helpless. I wish I knew what to do for him." She moved over beside him and wrapped her arms around his waist, holding him close.

 

Vegeta gave up attempting to keep his pride in check and drew her tighter with his free arm against himself, stroking her back gently. "I would say give him some space so he can recover. My impression of him is that he doesn't want to be alone, but wait until he comes to you," he directed, releasing her and guiding her from the room. "I know that I don't appreciate attempts to be coddled and pitied when I have dreams about times I'd rather forget."

 

Bulma eyed him warily. "You sure didn't complain about being coddled the night Natsue said we could make love again. I was four months pregnant at the time and you were complaining about my belly starting to get in the way, remember?"

 

Vegeta scowled. "That's different," he objected. "I meant being pawed all over with obvious attempts of pity when it is clear I would rather be left alone."

 

"Yes, all right, Dearest." Bulma grinned as the scowl got bigger. "Why don't you put VJ down while I get a blanket to cover Geta? That's not coddling, it's being considerate."

 

"Why do you always want me to put the brat down?" Vegeta complained. "I'm not his nanny."

 

"No, you're not," Bulma agreed, "but neither am I. Besides, look at him. It would have taken me ten minutes of walking around bouncing him and humming lullabies to get him to go to sleep."

 

Vegeta looked down at the infant he was holding. Sure enough, the baby had fallen fast asleep in his father's arms, his little tail curled securely around one forearm. "Oh."

 

"That baby just loves you, Veggie," she responded tenderly, ignoring the look he gave her. "Babies tend to prefer men's voices and they feel secure. Add the fact that you sired him, and it's not that difficult to explain."

 

"Hmph. Babies don't like me and I don't like them. Smelly, whiny brats."

 

Bulma smiled knowingly. "You like this one though, don't you?" she purred softly in his ear. "While I carried him, I'd feel him move inside of me, and get all hot and bothered thinking about just how he got there, and how enjoyable it was putting him there." She leaned in even closer, her lips almost touching his earlobe. "You did enjoy making our son, didn't you?" She ran her tongue along the bottom edge of his earlobe, making him shudder. "Go put the baby down, Prince Vegeta," she breathed huskily, "while I get a blanket for Geta." She detached herself from him and headed for the staircase. "Will you be coming with me today, lover?"

 

Vegeta stared at her backside as she ascended the stairs. "Count on it, Woman," he growled softly, following her up.

 

***

 

"Mmmm..." Bulma sighed contentedly, curling her body closer against his. Getting Vegeta all worked up and then making him wait definitely had its advantages. She stretched from head to toe, yawning sleepily. "Kami, you completely wore me out, Vegeta."

 

Vegeta preened visibly. "You expected anything less from the Prince of Saiyans, Woman?"

 

Bulma giggled. "You know you're setting quite a high standard for yourself, Veggie."

 

He growled at the continual usage of the nickname but pulled her off of the mattress beside him to rest her along the length of his body, his arms curled around her securely. "You don't need to worry about that, I assure you." He let out a huff of breath very close to an aborted sneeze, resumed growling, and unwrapped one arm from around her to smooth down her hair and tuck it as best as he could beneath his chin, muttering something about a 'friggin' blue puffball' as he did so.

 

Bulma giggled again. "Okay, all right. I'll make an appointment with my stylist. My perm is growing out, anyway."

 

"Is your stylist able to return your hair to how it was before you did this to it?" He pulled back a curl with his finger watching it spring back when he let it go.

 

She nodded. "I could get it straightened again."

 

"Good. Straighten it," Vegeta commanded, trying to ignore the one disobedient curl that insisted upon poking out and tickling his nose. It was just short enough that it refused to stay tucked down with the rest of her hair. "It is far less hideous straight."

 

Bulma shoved his arm off and propped herself up on his chest, scowling darkly at him. "Less hideous? I thought you said I was exotic," she demanded, hitting him on the chest in irritation.

 

He continued to growl and slid her back onto the mattress. She had him there. "Damn harpy," he muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

 

She noted his cheeks had gone a little pink and grinned, irritation suddenly gone. "Ahhhh... I see. You're saying you think my hair is prettier straight, right?"

 

"Hmph." He turned his face away as the blush deepened. There was no way he was going to tell her that her hair was striking, or that she was easily the most beautiful woman he'd ever acquainted. It would surely go to her head. Besides, only weak males prattled on in such a ridiculous manner, hoping to gain favor from the females who dominated them. No woman would ever dominate him!

 

She reached over and turned his face toward hers. "That's sweet, Vegeta. Thank you."

 

Vegeta's scowl deepened. "I'm not sweet-" His objection was silenced when she kissed him. His irritation at how easily she was able to manipulate him this way, how effortlessly she made him into one of the weak males he so despised, gradually dissipated under her gentle caresses and kisses.

 

"Mmm... that was nice," Bulma purred when they parted, resting back down against his chest. She sighed. "What now?"

 

Vegeta's lips curled up. "Ready when you are," he responded suggestively, running a hand along her side and making her shiver.

 

Bulma giggled again. "That's a nice idea, but I meant what happens now with Geta? I already felt so horrible about everything that he's been through, and now this," she said sadly. "He obviously loved his wife and son a great deal."

 

Vegeta realized he'd been stroking her hair and sighed. "I don't know," he admitted. "But it does explain a lot about his behavior."

 

She nodded. "I feel so badly for him."

 

He too nodded in acknowledgement. "But as I told you earlier, just give him some space. He doesn't want to be pitied. He said so in the den right after he arrived here, remember?"

 

They lay in silence for a moment until Bulma sat up. "I'll go see about lunch," she murmured, giving him one more quick kiss before scooting out of the bed and going into the bathroom.

 

"Make enough for Geta," Vegeta called after her. "Kakarrot gave him a senzu bean, so he's probably hungry now."

 

"Will do," she called back.

 

~What now, indeed.~ So much had happened in his life in the past two days, so many things thrown at him. Returning to Earth to find his son had been born, Frieza showing up, his son showing up as an adult and defeating Frieza, Kakarrot returning, the revelations that Geta had told them of their impending deaths. The only thing that Vegeta knew for sure was that he had to train harder than he ever had before. There was no way he was going to die the way Geta had shown him, nor would he allow the baby sleeping just down the hall to experience what Geta had.

 

He got out of the bed and pulled on a pair of shorts before exiting the bedroom. Quietly he crept into the sleeping child's room and peered down into the crib. It had all only become real to him the day prior, when he'd actually seen the child for the first time. This was his offspring, his heir. He really was a father. He wasn't ready for this. Yet, there was something different, strange even, that he felt when he looked at the child, even more so the times he'd held the boy. He couldn't explain it.

 

Again as he had when Vegeta had taken a good look at his son for the first time, the baby opened its eyes and saw his father watching over him. When Vegeta started in surprise and moved away, his little face fell and he began to wail.

 

Vegeta looked at the nursery door then back at his son, hesitating before going back to the child and picking him up. <Hush, Brat,> he murmured gruffly. <Stop crying. I picked you up, didn't I?> The baby continued to cry until he adjusted him in the crook of one arm and held him against his chest. <You're just like your mother,> he accused the child, who now rested contentedly in his father's arm and immediately coiled his tail around his wrist. <Always crying until you get what you want.>

 

VJ suddenly smiled broadly at his father.

 

Vegeta snorted. Anyone else would say it was just gas in the boy's tummy, but he knew better. "Little manipulator," he murmured softly, running a hand over the child's hair.

 

It was soft and silky, just like his mother's.

 

***

 

"Hi, Geta!"

 

Geta turned his eyes skyward to see Goku approaching, closely followed by Gohan. "Hey Goku, Gohan. How's it going?"

 

"We're both doing fine. How are you?" Goku responded as they landed next to him. He tilted his head a little to the side. "Are you okay?"

 

Geta suppressed a sigh. There was no purpose in hiding the truth about Anya and Vegeta any longer. "Yes, as good as can be expected, anyway. I... I had a dream yesterday about something bad from my past."

 

"Yes, I heard that." Goku nodded.

 

"What did you dream about, Geta?" Gohan asked. "Was it about the androids?"

 

Geta managed a weak smile. "Yes, in part. You see, I..." He bit his lip. "They beat me up badly before... before killing my wife and son, right in front of me, right where they first killed my father," he managed.

 

Goku's heart felt heavy for the young man whose bright blue eyes were unsuccessfully blinking back tears. "I'm very sorry for your loss," he told Geta sincerely.

 

Geta nodded, his face a portrait of anguish. "Thanks," he whispered from between trembling lips. He sniffled and mopped at his face with the back of his hand. "F-father's training right now. I think he might actually enjoy some company," he managed. "Excuse me. I'm going to check on VJ." He paused, averting his eyes away from the other two Saiyans. "In answer to Gohan's question, it was 'Da'."

 

"What?" Goku asked in confusion.

 

"My son liked to call me 'Da', or 'Dada'," Geta clarified. It was obvious he was doing all he could to hold back his tears.

 

"Geta..." Gohan watched as the grieving man turned away before placing two fingers to his forehead and disappearing. "Dad, that's just awful! If I knew it was something that bad, I wouldn't have asked about his dream."

 

"Me either, Son." Goku sighed and stared at the house. "Poor guy. I wish there was something I could say or do to help him feel better."

 

Almost as if on cue, the GR's door opened and Vegeta came out, a frown on his face. "Kakarrot, what are you doing here? Where did my son go?" He had invited Geta to spar with him, but had felt the young man's ki abruptly leave the vicinity shortly after Goku and Gohan had arrived.

 

"Geta said he was going to check on VJ," Goku responded in a quiet voice.

 

"But, I thought he wanted to spar- oh..." Suddenly the saddened expressions on Goku and Gohan's faces made sense. "You asked him about his dream yesterday, didn't you?"

 

Goku nodded. "I just wanted to make sure he was okay, that's all. I never meant to hurt his feelings," he lamented.

 

Vegeta sighed. He wanted to chew the younger man out for being such an idiotic sissy boy, but somehow he just couldn't bring himself to do it. "You didn't. This is something that he must learn to deal with. I lost my father along with our entire race, but still I have no idea what to say to him," he admitted. "I imagine losing one's mate and offspring of whom one is quite fond must be infinitely more difficult to come to terms with."

 

Goku looked Vegeta squarely in the eyes and frowned. How could the man be so nonchalant about his own son's loss? Couldn't he even try to show a little emotion for once? "Try imagining Bulma and your baby killed right in front of you, and tell me how easily you would come to terms with it."

 

Vegeta's fists balled up tightly. "Go home, Kakarrot," he ground out between clenched teeth. "I have no intention of merely sparring with you if you stay here."

 

"Sure, Vegeta. No problem. Oh, and give Bulma my love, would you?" Goku responded emotionlessly, further testing the prince's patience. "Come on, Gohan. We'll go home and help your mother with the housework. She'll appreciate that." Before either of the other Saiyans could respond, he had placed a hand upon his son's shoulder and two fingers to his forehead, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

 

"Damn you, Kakarrot!" Vegeta growled angrily. He powered up and let loose a Galic Gun into the sky with a shout, watching it grow smaller and smaller as it sped through the atmosphere. It wasn't what Goku had said that bothered him. It was what he had meant by it- that Vegeta didn't show enough care and concern for either Geta or Bulma, and the insinuation that he would be unaffected by her death.

 

The fact that Goku had just proven the falsehood of the accusation to him was even more infuriating. He knew it would hurt him to lose his mate and, yes, even the child he had only known for a matter of days, especially if they were brutally taken from him the way Geta's family had been.

 

He jumped in startlement when Geta appeared beside him. "Damn it, Boy! What the hell?"

 

"Sorry," Geta responded a little sheepishly. "I guess I sort of forgot to tell you that Goku taught me how to do it." He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "You okay?"

 

~He must have felt that Galic Gun.~ "Yes, fine. That idiot Kakarrot can be completely infuriating sometimes."

 

"He didn't do anything wrong, Father," Geta said softly. "And there's nothing wrong with caring about other people."

 

A low growl issued from his father. Obviously Geta meant that Goku hadn't meant to upset him, but he knew Goku hadn't been out of line by what he'd said to him personally either, and that bothered him. "Don't you start too."

 

~Goku must have had a conversation with Father too, one that he didn't like. I'm sure he doesn't want to tell me about it.~ "I won't." Geta stared away into the distance. "I..."

 

As much as Vegeta hated to admit it, Goku was right. "What is it, Son?"

 

Geta never remembered his father speaking in such a mild tone of voice. "I don't even have a picture of either of them," he whispered. "But I see them every day, in my mind. In my dreams. I feel them in my heart. At least the androids couldn't take that away from me."

 

Vegeta felt a little uncomfortable, not knowing how he should respond to such a statement. "That's true," he began slowly. "Son, I know it is not the same as your loss, but I am the only one left who knows anything about our people. So, if you ever have any questions..."

 

Geta looked down to his father, who had a solemn expression on his face, and realized how much it must have taken for him to offer such personal and private- not to mention painful- information. He smiled. "Thank you, Father. I think I'll take you up on that sometime."

 

Vegeta grunted his acknowledgement. "Good." A slow smirk slid onto his face. "You looked a little confused when we were talking in the den yesterday about your mate," he ventured. "When you were describing her, remember?"

 

"Confused? About what- Oh, yeah. Right..." A blush spread its way across the younger man's cheeks. "Why would I feel such a compulsion? I never wanted to hurt Anya. I loved her to a fault!"

 

Vegeta shrugged. "It's nothing you should feel ashamed of. It's in your nature."

 

Geta's brow furrowed. "In my nature?"

 

Vegeta indicated the scar Bulma had left when she'd bitten him. "Your mother has one just like it. Hadn't you noticed?"

 

"You mean..." Geta had seen his mother's scar many times but had always attributed it to an accident in the lab or something along those lines. Any scar his father had he never questioned since his father had many of them from all of the fights and battles he'd been in. "You deliberately scarred each other?"

 

Vegeta nodded. "It is a Saiyan custom. Saiyans bite their mates and leave a scar in order to indicate that they are mated. No man would dare touch a female belonging to another male. It would mean his rightful death at the hands of the female's mate."

 

"I see," Geta said slowly, digesting what his father had just revealed to him. "So my instincts were telling me that I should mark Anya as my mate?"

 

Vegeta nodded again. "Yes. Although, if she knew nothing of Saiyan culture she may not have been very receptive."

 

"I don't know how she would have reacted," Geta contemplated. "Maybe if I had been able to explain to her what I was feeling and why, she might have allowed it. As it was, I never told her. I didn't want to freak her out." He gave Vegeta a lopsided smile. "I would think that biting someone hard enough to leave a scar would hurt. How did Mother react when you did it?" His eyebrow rose when his father actually blushed slightly.

 

"She..." Vegeta sighed. "I had thought about marking her before it happened, but she actually bit me first," he admitted. "It was done in her passion, only she had attempted to quiet herself so as not to alarm the old people, not actually bite me." He found himself grinning when his son went from slightly embarrassed to openly laughing at his description of Bulma's parents. "But when done during mating, as was customary amongst the Saiyan race, it is actually quite pleasurable, rather than painful."

 

Geta contemplated his words before speaking; the questions he had rushing through his brain were becoming personal. "So, basically when two Saiyans decided they wanted to be mates, they marked each other with a bite?"

 

"Something like that," Vegeta agreed. It was close enough to how it worked that he would understand. "More accurately, the two are compelled to mark each other during their mating. It is a lasting thing. Some mates even developed a bond with each other, allowing for a sense of awareness and communication between them, although that was rare."

 

"Oh. Do you and Mother have such a bond?" It occurred to him that this must be the case, since his mother had spoken of the 'empty' feeling she got when his father had died.

 

Vegeta frowned as he contemplated the question. Even though he would never admit to it, he did care about Bulma, but he didn't believe that such a thing could be possible between the two of them. "How to explain this? I don't know the answer to your question, Son. Your mother is not a Saiyan and she does not have the abilities that we do. She can hear me speak telepathically to her but she had to be taught how to respond. She cannot do it on her own. She is unable to sense me the way I am able to search for and detect her ki. She cannot sense what I am experiencing without witnessing it."

 

"Like emotions?" Geta clarified. "If you were angry or upset, or pleased about something?" he added in an effort to keep his father from cringing at the thought that he just might have an emotional attachment to his mother.

 

Vegeta didn't seem to notice. "Yes, unless I projected that feeling to her," he agreed. "So if there was a bond between us, most likely it would be one-sided, as she would be unable to reciprocate. She may say she feels like she has a bond with me, but what she is feeling is a human emotion, this 'love' as she calls it."

 

Geta wanted to ask his father if he loved his mother in return but refrained. Vegeta was being very forthcoming and he didn't want to ruin his chances at asking more questions later. "I see."

 

Vegeta easily picked up on his son's hesitation and scowled. "I am not human, Boy. Unlike you, I am not plagued by these ridiculous emotions-"

 

"Love is far from a ridiculous emotion, Father," Geta interrupted tersely. "I loved my wife and son deeply. In a different way, I loved Mother, Gram and Gramps, and my friends. Even as a three-year-old, I loved you, despite the times when you were harsh and mean. Love made me strong, made me endure the heartache of all that I'd lost long enough to be able to come here and warn all of you because I didn't want you all to die." He crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly. "Love isn't ridiculous, stupid, weak, or wrong. It's the strongest thing in the world, the thing that can either bind us together or tear us apart. I only hope that someday you will understand what I mean." His last statement came out in a calm, quiet tone. So much for not annoying his father.

 

"Hmph." Vegeta crossed his arms stubbornly. "Such foolishness, this love. Caring about others only gets a man hurt. That person he cares about will be used against him. You have experienced that firsthand. How can you feel otherwise?"

 

"Loving Anya and our son was the greatest experience of my life," Geta responded. "They made my life worthwhile, gave me a reason to keep fighting instead of just giving up. Their deaths were the most painful thing I have ever experienced, but they fueled my need to be strong enough to make something better of this world, of my life. I would have given my life for them in a heartbeat. That made me strong so I would be able to keep them safe." He sighed sadly. "I... I failed, but now I'm determined to make things right this time for the people I love, just as you have."

 

"I am training to fight the androids for my own purposes, not for anyone else's benefit," Vegeta contradicted him rather snidely.

 

"I see," Geta said quietly. "So you're saying if someone attempted to harm Mother or VJ, you wouldn't intervene?"

 

Vegeta gave his son a scathing look; he was trapped no matter what response he gave, and so he fell back on his only choice- anger. "You are testing my patience, Boy. Be careful of where you tread with me."

 

~At the very least, maybe that'll make him think a little about it.~ "Of course, Father." He nodded to Vegeta and took a fighting stance. "The baby is still asleep, so shall we?"

 

"About time," Vegeta growled, taking to the air. "You're not going to cheat and do that teleportation trick Kakarrot showed you, are you?"

 

"Hmmm, maybe," Geta teased, glad that the tension between them was lessening. "But it wouldn't be cheating if you could do it, too." He paused for dramatic effect. "Right?"

 

Vegeta eyed his son skeptically. "What are you saying, Boy?"

 

"I'm saying that I'd like to show you how to do it, if you'd like to know," Geta told him, a slow smirk gracing his features.

 

Vegeta snorted. "Hmph." ~If that fool Kakarrot could learn it, how hard can it be?~ "Sure, why not?" he agreed with a shrug.

 

"Cool. All you have to do is determine where you are going by training your ki on..."

 

***

 

Bulma set her purse and keys on the counter and peered through the window of the kitchen door at her mate and adult son, who were discussing something in depth. She had no idea what it was from the gestures they were making, but it didn't appear to have anything to do with sparring, especially when Geta cracked a huge smile. She shrugged and turned away from the window only to gasp in surprise when he suddenly appeared beside her.

 

"Hello Mother," Geta greeted her with a smile and a wave. He grabbed two bottles of water from the refrigerator. "Bye!" Without another word, he placed two fingers to his forehead and disappeared.

 

Bulma blinked and shook her head. How had he gotten from outside to in the kitchen in the blink of an eye? "Okay... I'm assuming that must have been that instant transmission thing that Goku learned in space," she murmured to herself.

 

"Indeed," a deep voice murmured back in her ear, making her gasp in surprise a second time. Without warning, a pair of hands reached around her from behind her and grabbed her breasts.

 

Bulma yelped and jumped. "Vegeta!" Embarrassed, she slapped his hands away. "What if Geta comes back and sees you groping me?"

 

"Aww, what's the matter?" Vegeta asked in a silky smooth voice. "You didn't seem to mind yesterday morning when it was your idea to grope me in front of him." He wrapped his arms around her and dropped hot kisses down her neck.

 

"I wa... I wasn't... groping... oh, dear Kami..." she moaned as he got in a really good nibble.

 

Vegeta's chuckle rumbled in her ear as she jerked reflexively in his arms. "Not for lack of trying, Woman." His hands resumed their explorations. "Let's go upstairs," he whispered suggestively.

 

"Bu... but what about..."

 

"Geta is using the GR and the infant is sleeping," Vegeta purred, nipping at her earlobe and making her suck in her breath. "Come on, I'll show you a few of my tricks."

 

Neither of them noticed Geta's pleased smile of satisfaction, his glance having landed on his parents through the kitchen window when his father hadn't returned.

 

The GR beckoned. Dinner could wait.

 

***

 

"Bulma dear!" Mrs. Briefs called as she and Dr. Briefs entered the house. "We're home!"

 

Geta, who had been perusing the contents of the refrigerator when his grandparents came in, froze behind the open refrigerator door. ~Why didn't I sense them coming in?~ he panicked. ~Gram and Gramps are going to freak out when they see me!~ "Uhm, she's in the lab," he told them in as normal of a tone of voice as possible.

 

Mrs. Briefs could see what she assumed to be the top of Vegeta's hair poking up from behind the open refrigerator door and giggled. "Thank you, Vegeta," she said cheerfully. "You poor man, you must be hungry! Were you training hard today?"

 

Geta suppressed a sigh. ~Might as well get this over with.~ He stood up straight and shut the door.

 

Mrs. Briefs blinked, her surprise matching that of her husband's, who let out a startled little noise from behind her. Her eyes suddenly grew wide, and her hand rose up to cover her mouth as she stood staring in shock at the man towering above her. He had bright blue eyes. "Oh... oh, my. You... you're not..."

 

"You scared them, Boy."

 

All three turned to see Vegeta holding the kitchen door open, the baby in one arm.

 

"Vegeta?" Dr. Briefs looked from his daughter's boyfriend (as he viewed him) to the tall man who looked very much like him, then back to Vegeta. "What's going on here?" he asked weakly.

 

"Bulma will meet us in the den," Vegeta informed the two elder Briefs after a short pause. "We have much to discuss."

 

"Yes, I see," the doctor agreed, grasping his wife's hand and following Vegeta from the kitchen. "Come along, Bunny."

 

Although he couldn't blame them for being afraid of him, Geta couldn't help but feel disappointed as he brought up the rear of the small family procession. But he loved his grandparents dearly and had no doubt that things would be fine once they discovered who he was.

 

Vegeta stood in the back of the den with VJ by himself while Geta sat in the recliner, his grandparents opting to take the couch. They eyed the tall young man warily but neither made an attempt to say anything.

 

VJ wriggled in his father's grasp and reached up, trying to touch his face. When it became apparent that his efforts were in vain, he began to fuss.

 

"What's the matter with you, Brat?" Vegeta grumbled, shaking his head when the boy's whimpers stopped and he cooed happily instead. "You're an odd child," he noted dryly as VJ grasped his shirt and hauled himself upwards to cling to his father's burly bicep like a little koala bear clinging to a tree.

 

"No, just one of exquisite taste," Geta piped up, looking smugly at his father. His eyebrow arched when he saw the position his younger self had cheerfully adopted. "You know you're going to hear it when a certain someone sees that."

 

Vegeta shrugged and waved Geta's statement off, the motion of his arm making the child clinging to it coo with glee. "Bah, he's fine. She'll get over it." He couldn't contain a grin at the boy's exuberance.

 

Dr. and Mrs. Briefs exchanged a 'don't ask me' look. From this mysterious young man to Vegeta playing with the baby- and not seeming to mind too much- they were stumped.

 

"Here I am!" Bulma sang cheerfully as she joined them in the den going over to the couch to kiss her parents. "How was your... trip…" She paused when she saw Vegeta and hurried over to him. "What the hell are you doing to my baby?" she screeched. "If you didn't have him right now I'd slap you silly!"

 

"Look Ma! No hands," Vegeta teased, breaking into a huge grin when her small hands clenched into fists and her face darkened. He raised his arm up again and VJ burbled excitedly, his wide blue eyes shining with delight.

 

"Give him to me, you... you negligent child abuser," Bulma accused irritably.

 

"Negligent child abuser, hmph." Vegeta snorted in response; the woman truly had no concept of negligence or abuse if she thought his behavior warranted either accusation. "Do you want to go see your mother, Vegeta?" Vegeta asked the boy. He held his arm out to Bulma so she could take him.

 

Bulma's attempts to remove her son from his father's arm were met by screams of protest and even tears from the child, who was unabashedly making it clear that he had no intention of going to his mother. "Damn it, Vegeta!" Bulma growled, embarrassed.

 

"No foul language in front of the brat, remember?" Vegeta was enjoying this immensely. He had taken to picking up his son when he cried and Bulma wasn't present simply because it was a more tolerable option than listening to him scream. It had quickly become evident that Bulma was right- the boy was fond of him for some reason Vegeta couldn't explain. As a result, there were times when the child didn't always want to go to his mother, which irritated her and amused his father.

 

This was one of those times.

 

Bulma sighed. "At least come sit with me," she requested, figuring that if Vegeta was sitting with the baby, the chances of VJ falling or otherwise getting hurt would be reduced.

 

"Oh, I'm fine right here, Woman," Vegeta informed her in a mock pleasant tone of voice that failed to cover up his amusement.

 

"Fine," she pouted, stuffing the bottle and a burping cloth she held into his hand. "Feed VJ."

 

Vegeta growled something about baby puke and smelly diapers but repositioned his energetic son in his arms and stuck the bottle's nipple into the boy's mouth.

 

"So..." Dr. Briefs began. What he had just witnessed had been odd to say the least, and they still had the issue of this man who looked a lot like a taller version of Vegeta to address.

 

Bulma sat down on the loveseat. "Daddy, Mom, this is Geta."

 

They looked from Geta then at Bulma. "But, Dear..." Mrs. Briefs didn't really know what to say.

 

"My time machine works, Daddy. It needs a lot of modifications, but it actually works," Bulma announced excitedly. "Geta is from twenty years in the future. He's VJ, all grown up."

 

They looked at each other in disbelief, then back at Geta. "You're my darling little grandson?" Mrs. Briefs squeaked.

 

Geta let a smile escape. "Yes, Gram. Only I'm not so little anymore." He rose from his chair and looked at them expectantly, his hands clasped behind his back.

 

Bulma found herself grateful that two weeks of training with Vegeta and satisfying a good, healthy appetite had helped her son to fill out nicely. He wasn't 100 percent yet, but he was a far cry from the skinny, sickly young man who had originally shown up. "Nope, quite the opposite," she added with a smile.

 

Her parents rose from the sofa. "Oh! Oh my," Mrs. Briefs whispered. She approached her grandson, a smile forming on her face. "What a handsome young man you are, just like your father."

 

Geta blushed a little. "Thanks, Gram," he murmured, surprised to find himself feeling a little shy.

 

Dr. Briefs nodded in agreement. "I knew that Bulma was working on a time machine, so I should have realized who you were. Goodness, but he favors you, Vegeta." He turned to his daughter. "So it actually works, hmm? How did you figure out what was wrong with it?" he asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

 

"Geta took a look at my blueprints and-"

 

"Oh, never mind about that now!" Mrs. Briefs exclaimed excitedly. "Just look at my handsome grandson! I can't believe it!" She gave the startled young man a hug.

 

Geta chuckled and gently returned the hug. He had been looking forward to doing it for quite a while. Grandmas always gave the best hugs. He let her go and turned to his grandfather. "Hey, Gramps."

 

Dr. Briefs too stepped up and received a handshake from his adult grandson, not quite as ready to get a hug from a man who was still a stranger to him as his excitable wife was. "This surely is a wonderful surprise," he exclaimed when they'd all settled down. "When did you get here, Geta?"

 

"Right before you and Gram left for vacation. In fact, she came very close to catching me in the kitchen," Geta admitted sheepishly.

 

"She did? When did that happen?" Bulma asked curiously.

 

"Well..."

 

***

 

Mrs. Briefs dabbed at her eyes with her fifth tissue. Her grandson's story was simply unbelievable, such a tragedy. "Oh, you poor, dear boy," she sniffled. "How terrible. But don't you worry. Your father and Goku will take care of those horrible androids." She smiled at Vegeta. "I have complete faith that now that you know, you'll be ready, Dear."

 

Vegeta's chin lifted. "Of course," he assured her, his pride allowing for nothing less. "I have already increased my training. No machine will be the cause of my death."

 

Dr. Briefs eyed his daughter. "Well, I suppose we should work on upgrades to the GR, then," he suggested.

 

"Trust me, I'm already being badgered about it," Bulma informed him, shooting an irritated look her mate's way.

 

"Well Dear," Mrs. Briefs spoke up, staving off the ensuing argument, "is there something I can do for you?" She looked to her grandson expectantly.

 

"Well... I don't want to be a bother, but would you mind baking a batch of cookies?" Geta asked bashfully. "You used to make these wonderful chocolate chunk and butterscotch chip cookies that I absolutely loved when I was little."

 

"They had walnuts in them too, didn't they?" Mrs. Briefs laughed and clasped her hands together when he nodded. "I know just the cookies you're talking about," she told him. "Of course I can. What a nice request, and not a burden in the least." She got up from her seat. "What a sweet, delightful boy you are. Come along," she cooed, dragging her surprised grandson from the room. "We'll go make them right now. You three stay put, and we'll bring some in when they're ready."

 

Bulma smiled as she watched them go. "That went well," she noted.

 

"He seems to be an agreeable young man," Dr. Briefs added. "Of course, there aren't many people that your mother doesn't like."

 

Bulma sighed. "He's..." She paused, trying to think of how to phrase her thoughts. "He's been through a lot, but the longer he's been here, the more he seems to be relaxing, little by little." She frowned sadly. "I wish I knew what to do for him."

 

"Just be there for him, Pumpkin," Dr. Briefs advised. "That's the best any of us can do."

 

Suddenly a thought struck Vegeta. "How long ago did he say his mate and brat were killed?"

 

"I thought he said it's been not quite seven months," Dr. Briefs said thoughtfully. "Poor lad. I can't imagine how I would have been able to deal with that, and being so young too."

 

Bulma nodded in agreement, but Vegeta's mind was elsewhere.

 

Just be there for him... That's the best any of us can do...

 

Vegeta hid his smirk.

 

~Not so, old man. Why didn't I think of this sooner?~

 

***

 

Geta closed his eyes and smiled as he bit into the freshly baked cookie his grandmother handed to him. "Oh, Gram... it's so good," he almost moaned. "Just like I remember them."

 

Mrs. Briefs giggled. "That's wonderful, Dear. I'm so happy I can do something to make a nice young man like you happy." She contemplated this. "I'm sure your father would like to have some. He has a huge sweet tooth, you know," she told him confidentially, her giggle returning.

 

Geta paused and sighed. "So that's why she stopped making them," he murmured.

 

"What was that?" Mrs. Briefs asked, not having heard what he'd said.

 

"That's got to be it. I'll bet Father liked them." Geta turned to his concerned grandmother. "I remember both you and Mother making these cookies when I was very little," he told her softly. "Mother used to make them especially for Father, but after the androids arrived she never made them again."

 

Mrs. Briefs got teary-eyed. "Do you think that was because they reminded her of your father?" she asked sadly.

 

Geta nodded. "I'll bet that was it, all right. I remember now. She would be making cookies, and had to practically slap his hands away, or threaten to put him out on the couch if he didn't stop eating them all." He gave her a sad little smile.

 

"Oh, you poor boy." Mrs. Briefs grabbed a tissue and dabbed at her eyes. "Well, we'll just have to make sure that there'll always be plenty of cookies for everyone, if you get my meaning."

 

Geta smiled at his grandmother affectionately. She had always known just what to say. "I do, Gram. Thank you."

 

Mrs. Briefs washed her hands and handed him another cookie. "Good. No more of this sniffling then, right? This is a happy time for us." The oven timer sounded, and she pulled the cookie covered sheets from the oven. "That's all of them."

 

"Already?" Geta asked, disappointed. The entire cookie-baking process hadn't taken long, since Mrs. Briefs had two large ovens.

 

She laughed again when he practically inhaled the cookie. "I can always make more, Dear. I have a plate of them here for your father and another for us." She finished removing the cookies from the sheets and picked up the two plates. "Shall we?"

 

He took one of the plates and held the kitchen door open for her. "Let's."

 

"Cookie time," Mrs. Briefs sang as they re-entered the den. "Here you are, Vegeta. I have a plate of cookies just for you!"

 

Vegeta accepted the offering without hesitation, as the smells coming from the kitchen were absolutely wonderful. "They look good," he grunted.

 

"Hmph. Not even a 'thank you' from the man," Bulma grumbled sourly.

 

"Oh, seeing him enjoying them is enough for me," Mrs. Briefs decided, pleased as she watched the Saiyan prince devouring what was already his third cookie. She figured that was his way of saying that he liked them.

 

The baby in Vegeta's lap let out a loud noise of grievance and began to squirm.

 

"What's your problem, hmm?" Vegeta demanded. He picked up a crumb from the plate with the tip of one finger and offered it to his son. "Is this what you want? Some cookie?"

 

"Vegeta, no! He's not old enough for that," Bulma objected nervously. "You'll make him sick, or he could choke!"

 

Vegeta snorted. "It's just a crumb, Bulma," he objected dryly. "It wouldn't hurt him even if he wasn't Saiyan. If he was back on Vegeta, we'd be feeding him meat by now." He stuck the crumb in his son's mouth. "See? The brat likes it. Leave him be, unless you want to be the one to listen to his shrieking."

 

Bulma frowned. "And I suppose you were eating seven-course meals by his age, weren't you?" she asked sarcastically. "You probably even went out hunting the poor animals too." She crossed her arms, her chin tilted up haughtily and a pout on her lips.

 

And what luscious lips they were.

 

Vegeta eyed his blue-haired mate. With her indignant little nose stuck up so high in the air, the ideal situation to rile her up and get a good roll in the hay out of her clearly presented itself to him. "Woman, you have been irritable since you entered this room, and there is no reason for it, save one," he informed her. "If you require a good screwing, just say so." He smiled smugly when her mouth dropped open and she turned bright pink.

 

"You... you pig!" Bulma hollered, embarrassed beyond belief.

 

"That's not what you said last night," he countered slyly. "Besides, I wasn't the one making high-pitched squealing noises. That was you."

 

Bulma growled and sat back down on the couch. "Stupid ass. Thinks he's all that and a bag of chips. The greatest thing since sliced bread, in fact," she muttered darkly. "As if I need him to..."

 

The Briefs watched, spellbound by what was going on, as their daughter continued to mutter and Vegeta got up from the beanbag he'd been sitting on. He handed VJ to Geta and, without pause, grabbed Bulma about the waist.

 

"Wha- what the hell are you doing, you crazy ape?" Bulma exclaimed as Vegeta slung her over his shoulder. "Put me down this instant!"

 

"You want a good screwing right here in front of everyone?" Vegeta asked, amused when she gasped and began struggling to get out of his grasp. "I knew you were into kinky stuff, but I didn't figure you to be that big of an exhibitionist."

 

"I'll give you a good something all right, you jerk!" Bulma shouted, her face reddening. "In fact, when I'm done with you-"

 

"Promises, promises," Vegeta interrupted, swatting her backside lightly and making her jump with a little exclamation of 'oh!'. The den door closed behind them.

 

The room was quiet for a moment before Mrs. Briefs' startled voice broke the silence. "Oh my."

 

"I think that about sums it up," her husband agreed. "Were they always like this, Geta?"

 

"Hmm?" Geta was busily working his way through the rest of his father's cookies and looked up. "Oh. No, this is pretty tame, actually," he admitted. "Hey, want some more cookie, big guy?" He broke off a piece, nibbled off a nut, and handed it to the baby in his lap who'd been staring up at him with wide blue eyes. "Here you go." He laughed when the child promptly dropped it and gave him another crumb the way Vegeta had.

 

"Oh." The doctor thought about this. "Did they pretty much get along?"

 

Geta looked a little crestfallen. "Actually..." He sighed. "They usually didn't. They fought a lot. I already told them I don't want them behaving that way around VJ. It was traumatic for a little kid to watch that. But don't get me wrong, they're a good match," he added hastily. "They're both just very proud people." He sighed again, looking a little sad as he did so. "Anyway. Maybe we should start dinner, Gram."

 

"What would you like me to cook, Dear?" Mrs. Briefs inquired.

 

"Oh, I can do it," Geta told her. "You made the cookies, I'll get dinner."

 

"You cook, Geta?" Dr. Briefs asked in surprise.

 

"Sure!" He handed VJ to the doctor and headed for the door. "You two just relax. I'll take care of it."

 

Mrs. Briefs waited until he was gone and gave her husband a sad sigh. "That's so sad, don't you think, Dear? They're both such sweet young people. Why would they fight, especially in front of poor Geta?"

 

"I don't know, Bunny," Dr. Briefs responded quietly. "I wish I knew."

 

***

 

Vegeta crept into Bulma's lab and flipped on the lights. She and her father were both at their offices and the blonde woman was shopping. He glanced at his son, who was taking a nap in the crib next to the desk. As long as the boy didn't wake up and Geta kept training, he should be able to accomplish what he'd come to do relatively easily.

 

He opened the cabinet he'd seen her place the object he came for in; sure enough, there it sat rather conspicuously on the shelf. "Tsk, tsk, silly female. You never know what kind of unscrupulous individuals such as myself might sneak in here and take things you haven't locked up," he murmured, picking the object up, "especially since you know I've been wanting what this can find for quite a while now." He turned the small device on and found himself surprised at the results.

 

There was only one blip on the screen, at the very spot where he was standing.

 

"They're all right here?" he murmured. "She must have gathered them already." He leaned down; the signal grew stronger, and he smirked at the fact that she hadn't thought to hide the seven mystical orbs in a different location than the radar which had so easily located them. "Such a very silly female you are." He didn't see either the balls themselves or a capsule on any of the shelves or in any of the boxes in the cabinet. Doubtful that the woman would want to make the effort to hide the dragonballs behind the heavy metal cabinet, the only direction left to go was down. This made sense anyway, since she'd obviously tweaked the radar to indicate not just the general vicinity of a dragonball but also whether or not the user was getting closer or moving away, and the signal had grown stronger the lower in the cabinet he'd looked.

 

On a whim, Vegeta removed the bottom shelf. There, in a hole in the floor, he found the box he was looking for and removed it. "That was too easy," he crowed in satisfaction as he took out the capsule inside and put it into his pocket. He paused; perhaps it would be best to double-check the contents before leaving. He pushed the capsule's little plunger and let it fall to the floor.

 

What happened next was not quite what he had expected.

 

"Son of a bitch!" Vegeta exclaimed, gaping in surprise at the pile of several hundred other capsules which had appeared on the floor beside his feet. Despite himself, his initial irritation at the situation- including the fact that he couldn't read the Western Standard labels on the capsules- quickly dissolved as he realized that perhaps his mate was not quite as silly of a female as he'd thought. No doubt she had another radar unit hidden elsewhere, so even if the capsule containing the dragonballs had been stolen, by the time the perpetrator figured out which of these hundreds of capsules were the seven he wanted, she'd easily be able to track them down. He couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration at his woman's craftiness.

 

Good thing there were still a few more hours until dinner.

 

***

 

In Vegeta's pocket was a single capsule containing all seven dragonballs, which had taken him until just before she'd returned for dinner to find. He'd stashed the empty capsules back in the box where he'd found them the day before. Bulma would never be the wiser, that is, until he summoned the dragon.

 

No one was in any of the rooms he had to pass through to leave. All the better. "I'm going to train, Woman, so don't interrupt me," Vegeta called out as he left the house.

 

"Attitude." Bulma sat down on the couch next to Geta, VJ in her lap. "But so what else is new, I guess. Your father is very serious about his training."

 

"Yeah, I gathered that," Geta responded dryly. "So, what did you want to watch?"

 

***

 

Vegeta landed in the desert and pulled the capsule out of his pocket. ~Too bad that instant transmission thing requires a ki to lock onto. It would have been faster getting here using it than flying. I'm really starting to like it, though. Not that I'll ever tell that idiot Kakarrot that.~ He brushed the thought off in favor of one about the wish he was about to make.

 

He opened his hand and looked at the capsule on his palm. "Bulma's going to be pissed when she realizes that I made a wish without even telling her. Selfish, selfish Vegeta, hogging the dragonballs all for myself. Too bad." He grinned and popped the capsule open. "Won't they all be surprised."

 

He opened the bag that appeared and arranged the dragonballs on the ground. ~Here goes.~ He stood back from them and raised his face to the sky. "Eternal Dragon, grant my wish!" he shouted.

 

The sky became dark and lightning struck. A wicked smile spread across Vegeta's face as Shenlon appeared before him.

 

"What is your wish?" the fearsome dragon demanded.

 

***

 

"Mother, come see this! A storm's moving in, and fast!" Geta exclaimed, fascinated. "It was sunny not even ten seconds ago. I've never seen a storm break so quickly!"

 

Bulma came into the kitchen, the baby in her arms. "A storm?"

 

"Yeah, the sky went dark just like that-" Geta snapped his fingers. "Did you see that lightning?"

 

Bulma looked out the window, then her face grew as dark as the sky outside. "That's no storm," she informed her son. "The dragon has just been summoned."

 

"Dragon?" Geta repeated. "You mean someone found and used the dragonballs?"

 

"Oh, I'll wager your father didn't have to look too hard to find them, considering I gathered them up and hid them away in case we needed them later," Bulma said peevishly, "and he saw where I put the dragon radar." She scowled. Not even the satisfaction of knowing what Vegeta had gone through to find the correct capsules was enough to relieve her irritation at him. "He's probably out there wishing for immortality. He tried to get the ones on Namek so he could."

 

"He wants immortality?" Geta asked. "Well, I guess I can't blame him. If someone told me that a couple of androids were going to show up and kill me in three years I just might do the same thing."

 

***

 

Vegeta watched as the seven orbs rose up into the sky before shooting away into different directions. It would be another year before he could be selfish. ~Oh, well. Such is life. If I die again, I die again. And what's one more year without my tail?~

 

He looked around, and not seeing anyone, began searching for an unfamiliar ki. He felt one- no, two- behind a large piece of rock at the base of a nearby cliff and flew over to investigate.

 

***

 

She gasped, opening her eyes. She was about to scream when she realized that she was not at Capsule Corp any longer. Her hands flew up to her head. No lacerations, no blood. Her jaw wasn't broken. She could see clearly; her eye wasn't puffy and swollen. Her arm and leg weren't broken, all her ribs were intact. "What... h-how?" she whispered, examining herself. There was not even a scratch or a bruise that she could see. The oddest thing about her was that all of her clothes had disappeared. Not that it mattered; they'd been torn almost to shreds anyway.

 

A loud cry startled her from her thoughts. "Mama! Da!" The owner of the little voice began to sob.

 

Her eyes grew wide. Was that truly... "My baby!" she screamed, racing over to the crying little boy a few yards away and scooping him up into her arms. "Oh, my sweet baby," she sobbed, holding him tightly against her body and rocking on her knees. She looked him over. Nothing wrong, the same as herself. And his neck... his little neck was fine. "Thank Kami." She clutched the baby back against her chest again. Her eyes opened wide. What about-

 

"Woman, come on out," a deep voice called, interrupting her thoughts.

 

She scooted back against the rock, clutching her son close. ~Just keep calm, girl... You can handle this.~

 

"Woman, I would not wish you and the boy back from death only to harm you," the voice continued. "Why waste a chance to get my tail back?" ~If that doesn't catch her interest, nothing will.~

 

"Tail?" She turned and slowly peered over the top of the rock. She gasped, wide-eyed, at who she saw advancing toward her hiding place. "That's impossible," she whispered. But, there was absolutely no disputing it; he couldn't be anyone else. "Vegeta?" she asked incredulously.

 

"Yes." He stopped and crossed his arms. "Anya."

 

She gaped at him. "How?" she asked simply. "I... they killed my son and he's right here with me. And the last thing I remember is-"

 

"Trust me, I know exactly how you feel," Vegeta interrupted, trying to keep his voice softer so as not to frighten the young woman further. "There is no need to think about that now. You need only know that I have wished you back to life with the dragonballs. You are in what you consider to be the past."

 

"Dragonballs," she whispered. "So they are real."

 

"You're alive, aren't you? Come out here and I'll take you home with me. There's someone there who I'm sure would very much like to see you again."

 

"Geta!" she gasped. "He's alive? He made it!"

 

"Yes."

 

She gave him a million-zeni smile. "Yes, take me please!" She paused. "There's just one little problem." At his inquisitive raise of one eyebrow, she continued. "For some reason, I'm butt naked." She let out a nervous little laugh.

 

Vegeta blinked. "Oh." It wasn't exactly what he thought she'd say. "Well, you can wear this, I guess." He unbuttoned his shirt and slipped it off, then turned around and held it behind himself. "I won't turn until you say."

 

She drew in a deep inhalation, then darted out from behind the rock and took the shirt. "Stay put, Vegeta. Mama needs both hands right now," she murmured. She sat the energetic little boy down, hoping he would stay still for just a moment. "Thank you," she told Vegeta gratefully, buttoning it up around herself. "This helps a lot."

 

"Sure." He paused, realizing that since he wasn't the tallest man around that the shirt probably didn't leave much to the imagination. "You need some pants, don't you?"

 

"Well, uhm, I hate to inconvenience you, but..." Anya winced. She really didn't want to embarrass this proud man who had already gone to great lengths for her. He had done something so selfless that she was sure no one would ever have thought he'd do, based on what she'd been told by Geta about his volatile behavior.

 

Suppressing a sigh, he removed his pants and held them out as well, leaving him standing in his boxers and a tank tee. "Here."

 

She could see his ears and the back of his neck flush red for a moment as she slipped on the much too big slacks. "Thanks again. I'm sure this isn't exactly what you expected when you- Vegeta! Stop! Mama told you to stay put!" she yelped as her young son toddled off, his little tail straight out behind him. She tried to run after him, but the oversized clothes she wore prevented it and she tripped. "Oof!"

 

Without looking back, Vegeta took a few strides to scoop up the boy. " I am assuming that it's safe now?"

 

"Yes. Thank you again. You naughty boy. You know what 'stay put' means, don't you?" Anya's eyebrow rose at her son.

 

The little boy sulked for a moment, then uttered something that Vegeta couldn't make out.

 

"Yes, Mama loves you, too. That's why I didn't want you to get hurt." She sighed, holding up her oversized pants with both hands, then took a good look at her father-in-law for the first time. "Kami... Geta's practically a copy of you, except for his coloring," she whispered wide eyed. She bit her lip. "You said he's at Capsule Corp?" Her eyes began to tear up when he nodded. "Let's go, please!"

 

"Take hold of my arm," he directed, shifting the boy in his grasp. Raising an eyebrow at her puzzled expression, he lifted his free hand to touch his forehead.

 

She jumped in surprise when she saw that they were suddenly in a room with metal walls. "You teleported us? Geta never mentioned you doing that," she exclaimed. She grinned. "That's really cool."

 

"I just learned how to do it," Vegeta admitted. "Maybe in your time I didn't know how." He shrugged. "You have probably been told about the gravity room where I trained. This is it. It's shielded, so no one will be able to sense your ki." His eyebrow rose again, a scheming look on his face. He handed her the baby. "I will go find something for you and the boy to wear. There is a bathroom in the back that you can use to freshen up while I'm gone." He turned to leave.

 

"Vegeta?" she called after him timidly.

 

"Hm?" He turned to face her again.

 

"Why? Why did you do this for me and Vegeta?"

 

He shrugged again. "Hmph. Who knows? Something useful to do, I guess."

 

She couldn't help but smile as he left the chamber. ~He's so different than what I expected, yet some of what Geta described is unmistakably there.~ "Well, baby boy, let's get cleaned up."

 

***

 

Vegeta came back to the house, expecting the Woman's lips to be flapping at him full force. He wasn't disappointed.

 

"Training, my ass!" Bulma yelled, entering the kitchen as he'd come in through the back door. "I'm not an idiot... Vegeta, why the hell are you wearing only-"

 

He placed a hand over her mouth. :Shh! I need some of your clothes,: he told her, removing his hand.

 

:Oh, Kami. And you were getting after Geta earlier about-:

 

He couldn't help but grin. It wasn't difficult to see how she could have thought that. :Not for me, you foolish woman. For the wish I made just now. She's about your size, but the brat is older than ours is.: He nodded at their son in her arms.

 

:For your wish?: She gave him an odd look, then gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth, eyes wide in excitement. :You actually brought them back? Anya and their baby?: The emotion shining from her eyes almost made him feel uncomfortable. :Vegeta, that is the kindest, most compassionate thing I have ever seen you do. I'm proud of you.: She wrapped her free arm around him, cuddling close.

 

:Knock it off, Woman,: Vegeta complained, shifting a little in a half-hearted attempt to free himself. :I could have wished for a lot of things. Maybe I should-:

 

:Maybe you should keep on being a good boy so I'll have reason to reward you more often.: She looked up at him suggestively, drawing little circles on his chest with her finger, pleased when he tensed up under her touch. She smiled and straightened up. :So where is she? Is she all right?:

 

:Yeah, yeah. Just fine. She's using the bathroom in the GR right now. She's probably about your size or a little smaller. They're both pretty skinny. You need to get her and the brat something to wear while I get dressed. Stay in the room and I'll transport us back to the GR,: Vegeta instructed.

 

Bulma turned back to him. "You really are a sweetie," she murmured.

 

"I am not a sweetie! Warriors aren't-"

 

Bulma cut him off with a kiss. "Let's hurry up and do this," she whispered covertly.

 

"You two are so quiet. Is everything okay in there?" Geta called from the den.

 

"Just fine. I've mentally whipped your father back into shape," she responded, winking at Vegeta, who snorted and rolled his eyes.

 

"Quit fooling around and let's just do this," he grumbled, taking hold of her and transporting them to their bedroom.

 

***

 

"Ready when you are." Bulma put their son in his crib and picked up a bag of clothes she'd selected.

 

Wordlessly, Vegeta again took hold of his mate and transported them into the GR.

 

"See if she's ready," Vegeta suggested. "I'm not going back there if she's not clothed."

 

"This is so exciting!" Bulma beamed like the sun and headed back toward the small bathroom. "Hello? Anya? Don't worry, it's Bulma," she called ahead of herself. "I have some clothes for you and your little one to wear."

 

The door creaked open and a blonde haired young woman wrapped in a towel emerged. "Bulma?" She smiled. "I always did wish that I could have met you, and now I am."

 

Bulma returned the smile, then drew her daughter-in-law up in a hug. "I'm so glad. You're every inch the beauty Geta described, too."

 

Anya blushed. "Oh, he always did exaggerate that."

 

"As a man in love is often known to do," Bulma replied, watching the girl blush even more deeply. "Don't sell yourself short, dear. You're nothing to turn up one's nose at. Anyway, take a look in this bag- oh! Aren't you just adorable! Yes, you are!" Bulma cooed, noticing and scooping up the naked little boy hiding behind his mother's legs.

 

"We say 'thank you', when someone is nice, Vegeta," Anya instructed gently.

 

Vegeta only looked up at his grandmother with huge blue eyes. "Hi," the little voice finally said shyly.

 

Bulma let out a little squeal of delight. "Oh, I could just eat you up, you're so sweet!" she exclaimed, giggling. "Not that I want my little boy to grow up too quickly, but I do look forward to when he reaches the age that he's talking. Sometimes, even though he's barely four months old, I'd swear that when he looks at me he gets frustrated because he has so much to say."

 

"I'll bet he does," Anya agreed. "Get Geta in the right situation with the right crowd and he'll never quiet down." She giggled. "What do you think of this one?" she asked, holding up a shirt.

 

Bulma nodded in agreement. "Oh, definitely. Blue is your color."

 

***

 

Vegeta leaned back against one of the GR's walls, bored out of his mind but trying to be patient while he waited for the two women to finish. He heard non-stop chatter, giggling and everything else in between. ~Females. Hmph.~ He crossed his arms and scowled.

 

"I think our ride is getting restless," Bulma said, obviously picking up vibes from Vegeta. "Are you ready?"

 

Anya nodded. "It's not fair to keep Geta in the dark. I know you said he's okay, but..." She smiled weakly.

 

Bulma put a hand on Anya's arm and guided her back to the main chamber. "Let's go, then."

 

"About time, Woman," Vegeta grumbled sourly as they approached.

 

"I'm glad you're being such a good boy," Bulma whispered in his ear, latching onto his arm. She looked up at him through her lashes and smiled.

 

Vegeta inhaled and let the breath out slowly. "Let's go. I'll shield yours and the brat's ki." He turned to Bulma, not noticing Anya's insulted look.

 

Bulma sighed and shot him a displeased look. "By the way, Anya, don't take it personally. All children are 'brats'." She rolled her eyes.

 

***

 

They reappeared in the kitchen. "Stay here for now," Vegeta told them, smirking as he took his grandson from Anya and left the kitchen. "You must be quiet now, Boy. We're going to surprise your father, and we cannot do that if you say anything, got it?" He held in a chuckle when the child nodded solemnly. It seemed that since he looked enough like Geta, the child had decided to trust him.

 

Geta was glued to the soccer game being broadcasted on the television. "We're down by a goal," he informed his father, having sensed him come in.

 

"Hmph." Vegeta watched his son shove popcorn into his mouth with gusto. "Bunch of losers, if you ask me." He put a finger over his lips to remind his grandson not to make any noise.

 

Geta swallowed lest he spray popcorn across the room. "No, actually their record is fantastic this year. The other team is putting up a good fight." He paused. "So, what did you wish for?"

 

"Extended life," Vegeta told him, phrasing his response carefully.

 

"I guess I can't blame you after what I told you about the androids." Geta leaned over and picked up his glass from the coffee table. "Darn. Empty."

 

Vegeta figured this was just as good of an opportunity as any. "I'll bring you another soda," he offered. "I'm going to get myself a beer, anyway."

 

"Thanks! Why don't you make it two? Beer sounds good right now." Geta went back to his popcorn, pleasantly surprised by his father's offer.

 

"Fine. Hold the brat," Vegeta demanded, plopping the little boy down onto his unsuspecting father's lap and stepping out of the room.

 

Bulma had been watching and gave Anya a thumbs up. Anya smiled and nodded, more nervous than she thought she'd be. She crept closer, wanting to be able to step in at the right time.

 

Geta shifted the child on his lap. "Well, looks like it's just you and me, kid. How'd you get so... heavy?"

 

"Dada!" the little boy screeched excitedly, bouncing on his father's lap.

 

Geta stared blankly at the wall. ~Is this some sort of joke?~ He looked down slowly at the child he held and let out a startled cry when he saw that it was not his younger self but his own son on his lap.

 

"Dada?" The little boy sounded confused. "Hi Da!"

 

"B-but how? You're real," he whispered, pinching his arm and feeling the sting it made. "Kami, this is real! M-my boy!" He examined the child much the way its mother had before clutching him to his chest, tears of joy streaming down his cheeks. He kissed the top of the little boy's head. "Oh, my son!"

 

"No boo-hoo, Da," little Vegeta told his father. "Ha ha!"

 

Geta laughed. "You're right, big guy. Ha ha is much more appropriate right now." He wiped at his face and hugged the boy again, then paused. ~But, how did Father-~ His eyes widened. "Extended life," he breathed, realizing what it really was that his father had wished for. "But, if he brought my son back, what about..." He swallowed hard and closed his eyes. His heart began to race. ~Could it really be-~

 

"Mama!" Vegeta giggled and clapped his hands excitedly. "Da! Lookit Mama!" He tugged at Geta's shirt, trying to get his attention as Anya waved and blew little kisses her son's way to keep him excited.

 

Geta was trembling despite his best effort. Another ki he hadn't felt in the room before was suddenly there, and it was unmistakable who it belonged to. He stood with the child in his arms and slowly opened his eyes. He'd begun breathing faster and was feeling light headed. ~Kami, I'm hyperventilating-~

 

Vegeta's chubby little arm pointed the direction of the doorway. "Mama!"

 

"Hello, lover," a soft voice murmured, making him jerk reflexively.

 

Geta turned and choked when he saw her, nearly losing his grip on his squirming son. He tried to speak, but his voice failed him and he stood gaping at her.

 

"Don't you drop that brat and make me waste a wish, Boy. I could have gotten my tail back, you know," Vegeta growled good-naturedly as he came over and took the boy from his disbelieving son's arms. "Come on, Brat."

 

"Bwat!" the little boy crowed. "Bwat bwat bwat, ha ha..." The little voice trailed off.

 

"A-An..." Geta stared wide eyed at the young woman he'd called his wife as she approached him slowly. She stopped a couple of paces away, smiling in an almost shy manner.

 

He reached a trembling hand out to touch her cheek. Her smile widened and she tilted her head, nuzzling her face against his large hand, kissing the palm softly. "Geta," she whispered, turning her face up to look at him.

 

He fell to his knees before her, his face in his hands as he sobbed. "Anyakita!" he cried, throwing his arms around her waist. "Oh, Anya..." He buried his face against her belly.

 

She knelt down beside him, holding him tightly, her tears falling freely with his. "I love you, Geta," she murmured in his ear before burying her face against his neck.

 

"I love you, Anya. So very much," he whispered, kissing her hair. He cupped her face in his trembling hands. "I know it sounds clichéd, but when you died, my heart died, too." He smiled weakly at her. "I'll never be able to get over you." He drew her close and kissed her.

 

"Mmm..." Her fingers tangled themselves in his hair. He pulled her onto his lap and deepened the kiss, making her go limp in his arms. He broke the kiss to nuzzle and kiss her neck, unable to keep his hands from roaming as things became more and more heated. She moaned his name, which made him even more excited, and he slid his hands under her shirt.

 

Anya regained her senses and grasped his hands in her much smaller ones. "Not here, Romeo," she managed. "If you think no one will notice, you're mistaken." She shivered, shaking her head. "You haven't lost your touch, Your Highness."

 

"Neither have you, Your Majesty," Geta responded in kind, his eyes heavy with lust.

 

"Don't you forget it, either!" Anya giggled when he went for her neck again. "Why don't you show me your room, hmm?" she asked suggestively, tracing a finger down the side of his neck. "Or should I say our room?"

 

He complied before she could even finish her sentence.