The magnificent coils of the mighty dragon dominated the midnight sky as the young man whispered his heart's desire to the silent world.

"So be it!"

The three simple words released the tension that had stiffened the youth's frame, and for an instant there was calm.  Then the far-seeing eyes glowed with the fire of rubies - and the youth felt his body tingle with the sensation of magic being wrought.  The moment passed, and the curtain that had veiled the stars was drawn once more as seven stone globes scattered to the ends of the earth.

The youth sighed, sliding delicate fingers around shapely curves, laughing in an ecstasy of delight.

Far above in the heavens, a young god also laughed.

/Maybe I should have spoken to him about this first.../

She stood before the full-length mirror in consideration of her body.  /I look pretty good - if I wasn't me, I'd proposition myself!/  She held yet another T-shirt against her ample breasts, turning this way and that before her reflection.

/But is he going to like me this way?/  She abandoned her posturing, dropping the T-shirt onto a large pile of laundry and leaning against the firmness of the wall.  /I hope he doesn't freak out.../

There was only one way to find out.  She gave up on the idea of clothing, wrapped herself in a sheet instead, and made her way towards the bedroom.

Her lover was snoring in his sleep.

/And he complains about me!/  She muffled her laughter with the ends of the sheet until she was able to regain her composure.  /I can do this./  Softly, stealthily, she exchanged the sheet twined around her own body for the sheets between which her lover lay.

He didn't stir.

/So far, so good.../  Except that he wouldn't sleep forever...  /But then, I don't want him to./

She slid her hands down his torso, pulling him back against her breasts.  /Now, if he realizes.../

He rolled over.  Away from her.

/Damn it!/

Gently, she attempted to coax him into facing her once more, and after some effort succeeded in getting him flat on his back.  It would have to do.  Squirming down the bed, she took most of the sheets with her, causing him to grope blindly with one hand.  She caught it, pressing it against her cheek, his fingers curving comfortably to frame her face.  She smiled, burrowing her head into his hold before lowering it to an even more fascinating part of his anatomy.

He reacted most predictably to the warm wetness between them, clutching at her hair.  Painfully.

/Baka!/  She pried his hands away from her hair, pinning them beside him on the bed.  He thrashed lightly under her continued ministrations, unable to deny her relentless attack on his rapidly dismantled defenses.

She paused contemplatively as she listened to his low moans.

/Do I really want to do this?/  She'd been so certain when she'd asked for her wish, but now...  She bit her lip.  /He did say he wanted children.../

It was now or never.

As the pain shot up from her groin, she had to wonder if 'never' might not have been the better option...

It was morning.  That was what the irritating buzz was trying to tell him.  He didn't care.  The crashing noise created as the alarm clock hit the wall was a much more pleasant sound in his ears.

There was something else, though.  He was cold.  /Baka...  Stole the blankets again.../  Irritated, he reached behind himself to snag a corner of the pile of cloth covering his lover.  And tugged.  Hard.  There was a yelping noise - just preceding the sound of a solid body hitting the floor.

/Serves him right./

"What was that for?!"

He ignored the sleepy complaint, settling instead into the comfort of the warm blankets.  He couldn't slip back into slumber, however - there was another thing bothering him, something on the edges of his mind...  It took the unmistakable sensation of well-rounded breasts pressing up against his back to pinpoint the cause.

He pried open his eyelids to find himself staring into eyes that were the wrong colour -

/Oh , wait - that's the mirror./

Slowly, cautiously, he turned.  Or tried to.  He was caught in the death grip from hell.  A decidedly female death grip.  Uncertainty took hold, freezing his body as his caffeine-deprived mind attempted to process the information.

/Oh gods...  Who is she?  What the hell is she doing in my bed?!/  A sudden horrid thought made him pause, but a quick glance around the room proved that it was indeed his bedroom.  /So.../

He wrenched himself out of her arms and off of the bed quicksmart - so fast, in fact, that she was invited on a personal inspection of the carpet again, courtesy of the trailing bed linen.

"Hey!"  She glared up at him in annoyance.

"Who are you?!" he demanded, holding the sheet in a strategic position.  It was his room, after all - not a place where naked women usually ended up.  Naked men on the other hand...

/Not now!/ he told himself firmly.  But where was -

"I didn't think I looked that different!" the girl protested, her tone suggesting hurt feelings.

He blinked, eyes widening in stunned amazement as he took in the lines of her face, her body - well, maybe not her body - but the rest -

"Goten?" he whispered in disbelief.

"See, you still know me, right?"

Trunks considered the situation carefully, coming to the conclusion that there was only one course of action really suited to the circumstances.  He performed it flawlessly, collapsing to the floor in a dead faint in a manner that would have made an aspiring actress in a B-grade movie proud.

The baka had fainted on her.

/Oh well,/ she sighed.  /It could have been worse./

Of course, she hadn't told him about the rest of it yet...

She dragged him into the bathroom and dumped him in the shower cubicle, standing well clear as she turned on the tap.

"Aaah!"

She laughed as he tried to beat the water back with his hands, relenting at last as he turned murderous blue eyes towards her.

"Awake, now?" she grinned.

"Are you completely insane?!"

"I don't think so," she blinked innocently.

"I do!  Why the hell are you..." he trailed off, his face twisting into a grimace of mingled horror and disbelief.

"'Female'?" she supplied with a grin.  He glared.  /But that's nothing new.../  "I was thinking..."

"'Thinking'?!"  His scowl told her just what his opinion was of her cerebral exertions.

"I was thinking that maybe it was time we had a family, you know?"  /Now we'll see.../

Trunks had frozen at the first mention of the 'f' word.

"F-fa-"

"Family.  You know, like kids.  With us as parents."

For an instant the blue eyes were as glassy as a lake on a still summer's day - then the lake was smothered in fog, and Goten was talking to herself once more.

/This is gonna be a long day.../

It had to have been a dream.  There was no way even Goten could be so brainless as to -

"Morning!  Are you going to stay awake this time?"

/That voice.../  It was even higher-pitched than he was used to hearing first thing in the morning...  /Female.../  He whimpered, curling up in a foetal position on the bed.

Okay, so maybe he could be so brainless...

"Trunks!  I'm trying to have a serious conversation with you!"

He peeled open one incredulous eye.  "You want me to take you seriously when you look like that?!"

"What's wrong with the way I look?" Goten wriggled her hips and other... things.

/Ugh!/  He swallowed back the bile that rose in his throat.  "Nothing at all, if I were straight - but I happen to be gay, Goten - or had you forgotten that insignificant little fact?!"

Goten pouted, her now-feminine features reminding Trunks frighteningly of her mother, Chichi.  "You mean to say you were only ever after me for my body?"

"Yes!"

"Trunks!" she drawled, laughingly.

/Oh, I'm so glad you find this amusing - just wait until you've been without sex for a week.../  A week...  Without...  He blinked, slowly sitting up to face his erstwhile lover.

"Goten," he pronounced slowly, deliberately.  "Just how long are you going to stay a girl?"

"Um," she bit her lip, black eyes peering across at him from below dark bangs. "I was kinda serious about wanting kids..."  Trunks groaned, letting his eyelids slam shut as his body bounced back on the bed.

"There are other ways..."

"I know, but I wanted them to be our kids..."

"I don't even know if I can... 'function'..."

"You can."

"Nani?!"

"Well, you did last night."

/Oh great.  My first real time with a girl and I don't even remember it.  But then, Goten's not a real girl...  Argh! I need a drink, preferably one with a whole lot of caffeine - or better yet, a whole lot of alcohol.../

"So, do you think Kaasan will like the idea of another grandchild?"

He blinked.  "So...  You haven't talked to her."

"Nah.  I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Goten.  Just who have you talked to about this?"

"No one, really...  Well, Shenlong, of course..."

"Goten.  Go talk to your mother.  Go talk to mine.  Go talk to any female who's had a child.  Then come back when you're a guy again."  With that, he pulled the covers over his head, refusing to listen to another word.

/He'll be male again before they've spoken two sentences./

At least her mother didn't faint on her.  /Of course, she doesn't really believe it's me.../

Chichi's skepticism was thankfully short-lived, however, as Goten's father merrily greeted her without blinking an eyelid.  /But then, he probably hasn't noticed my change.../

She sighed.  Family could be a real pain at times.  /So why do I want one of my own so badly?/   Well, she already knew the answer to that, even if no one else did...

"Hai, Kaasan, it's really me," she stated for the third or fourth time that morning.

"Eh?" Goku puzzled at the interaction between mother and child.  "Of course it's you, Goten.  Who else would you be?" he laughed.

"Goku!" Chichi snapped.  "In case you hadn't noticed, our son is now a girl!"

"Mm?" Wide black eyes blinked curiously at his youngest child, who bowed her head resignedly, waiting for the inquisition to start.  With her eyes closed, the subsequent patting caught her completely by surprise.

"TOUSAN!"

"GOKU!"

The twin cries were immediately followed by the sound of a Saiyajin being knocked through the roof, head-first.

Chichi examined her offspring from head to toe one last time amidst the fall of debris, her hands placed square on her hips, before putting her broom down.  "Lesson number one in being a woman: never close your eyes on a hentai."

/Eh... I'll have to remember that around Kamesennin - although I never thought of Tousan as a hentai!/  The mental image that accompanied that thought almost made her laugh aloud.  She quickly smothered her expression beneath her mother's disapproving gaze, however.  /Not quite fast enough, though.../

"Kaasan?  Daijoubu?" Gohan's voice was a welcome distraction as far as Goten was concerned.

"Everything's just fine!" Chichi answered as Gohan entered the kitchen, an anxious Videl and curious Pan accompanying him.

"What happened to Ojiisan?" Pan wanted to know - then blinked as she caught sight of her sometime uncle.  "Jisan?  What happened to you?!" she laughed as she reached out one hand to poke -

"Knock it off!" Goten glowered, batting Pan's hand out of the way.  /Like grandfather, like granddaughter.../

"Pan!" Videl chastened as she drew her daughter away, despite her own obvious curiosity.

"Uh, Goten?"  Her brother's eyes weren't quite as glazed as Trunks' had been, but still...  "What did happen to you?"

She sighed.  /Nothing like the direct approach.../  "I used the Dragonballs to wish myself female so Trunks and I could have kids of our own.  Okay?"  She faced her family squarely, waiting for their reactions.

"I'm going to have a cousin?" Pan cried.  "Cool!"

/At least someone approves!/

Gohan still looked rather bewildered, while Videl managed to appear to be both worried and glad at the same time.  Her mother... stood absolutely emotionless.  She bit her lip, head bowed once more as she fought back the disappointment she had half-expected.

/I guess I might as well go.../  She'd barely stood up from the table before she found herself half-choking in a painfully tight embrace.

"Oh, Goten," Chichi cried in her ear.  "You don't know how happy this makes me!"

/Ano.../  She fought desperately to breathe, casting a grateful glance in Videl's direction as her sister-in-law came to her rescue.  "Kaasan?" she looked up tentatively to her mother.  Chichi truly did seem to be happy - happier than she had been with Goten since she'd first heard about his relationship with Trunks...  /Maybe that's why she didn't like me being with him - she wanted more grandkids.../

"Goten."  She blinked as Chichi's tone turned serious.  "I think it's time we had a little mother-daughter talk..."

/Eh?  If it's anything like the 'talk' Niisan gave me.../  One look at her mother convinced her that she wouldn't be getting off so lightly with this one.  /Why do I get the feeling I should have started running already?/

'...an insult to the Maker, contaminating his pure and wondrous works with the selfish and evil manipulations of man...'

Trunks scrunched up the letter without bothering to read any further.  /How the hell did that kind of trash get past my secretary?/  He made a mental note to inquire about the letter, determined not to have to face such a repulsive argument again.  /At least, not before breakfast./  He stared down at his plate, appetite lost.  Sighing, he shoved it out of the way, abandoning both it and the rest of his paperwork in favour of his revitalising mug of coffee.  With a bit of luck, his day could only improve...

"Bra!  Did you seen Goten this morning!" Pan practically bounced into the Briefs' lounge room.

So much for that idea...

/Oh great.  Here it comes./  Trunks studied his coffee in earnest, pretending to ignore the newcomer.

"No, what about him?" Bra inquired absently from where she was curled up next to her mother on the lounge.

"You mean, what about her!" Pan giggled.

"'Her'?!" Bulma looked up from her latest issue of 'Today's Genius'.  "What are you talking about, Pan?"  Bra's attention had also been piqued.

/Women./

"Apparently he used the Dragonballs to turn himself into a girl so he and Trunks could have kids!" Pan burst out breathlessly.  "Isn't that just so - " she waved her hands around, groping for a suitable word.

"'Stupid'?" Trunks supplied from his gloom-ridden corner of the room.

"Trunks!" His mother chastised him, her eyes flashing suspiciously bright.

"Goten's really a girl now?" Bra queried her brother, not really waiting for an answer.  "Wow!  That's so weird!"

Pan nodded emphatically, plunking herself down on the armrest of the lounge next to Bra.  "Obaasan was giving him - I mean her -  'the talk' when I left - the look on her face was so funny!  It looked like she was going to throw up!"

"Hah! Men can be such wimps," Bulma declared, shaking her head.  "But Chichi and I'll see him through - I'm going to be a grandmother!"  She tossed her journal into the air with a triumphant shout.

Trunks blinked in surprise at his mother's cheer.  That was one possibility he hadn't thought of.  /Oh no.../  The answering gleam in his mother's eye as she turned to pin him with her gaze, however, clearly read 'Oh, yes!'

"You are going to give me a grandchild, aren't you, Trunks."  He swallowed, visibly - it wasn't really a question, and he knew it.  "Maybe Goten should go see a gynaecologist, or perhaps try that new fertility centre..."

Trunks covered his face with his hands.  /I'm not hearing this...  Please, Dende, tell me I'm not hearing this...  Please?/

"Are you going to have trouble because he's a girl now, Trunks?" Bulma continued, his prayers going rather obviously unanswered.  "If so, we should probably start looking at in vitro fertilisation options..."

Trunks gave up on God, and simply buried his head in his arms, desperately trying to smother out the sounds of two girls giggling and one prospective grandmother plotting...

/I hate my life.../

/Dende save me - I can't take any more of this.../

Gohan had fled as soon as those ominous words 'mother-daughter talk' had left their mother's mouth.  Goten desperately wished she could have done the same - but there was no escaping Son Chichi when she was on a mission.  After living with her for more than twenty years, Goten knew better than to even try.

The female reproductive system had just taken over from the vision of a fused Chichi and Vegeta on a rampage as her worst nightmare.

/I guess now I know why Trunks was so sure I'd give up on this.../  Under other circumstances she might well have done just that - but...  She sighed.  It was too late now...

"Goten?  Are you listening to me?!"

She started slightly at the sharp tone of her mother's voice.  "Um, gomen nasai, Kaasan..."

"Chichi, it is a lot for her to take in," Videl interposed, the embodiment of the voice of reason.  "Perhaps we should take a break, now."

/Thankyou, Dende!/

"Uh, Chichi?" Goku poked his head into the room rather tentatively, his relief clearly evident when he found them no longer discussing childbirth so intensively.  "Bulma's on the phone for you..."

Goten sank down in her seat, thankful for the unexpected reprieve.  /Just as long as I don't have to go through this with Bulma, too./  She shuddered at the thought.  Once was more than enough - at least it was when it was her mother giving the lecture...  A light hand on her shoulder caused her to look up into Videl's light blue eyes.

"Having second thoughts?" Videl asked with a small smile as she moved into the seat next to Goten's.

"Uhn," Goten flushed pink, rubbing at her neck with one hand.  "Maybe a little...  I'm still gonna do this, though."

"Are you sure?" Videl sounded truly concerned for her, and interested in her view rather than just the expected outcome.

/Thank goodness for level-headed sisters-in-law!/  She nodded firmly, even if her smile was somewhat shaky.  "I'm sure."

"Goku!  Goten!  We're going to Bulma's right now!" Chichi called loudly from next to the phone.  "There are some things we have to set straight with her!"

"Are you gonna be talking about more of that... uh... stuff?" Goku asked with trepidation in his eyes and tone as he and Goten reluctantly acknowledged the inevitable and dragged themselves over to Chichi. Chichi didn't bother to reply; Goten winced.

"Take us to Capsule Corp., Goku," Chichi ordered.  "Now."

/I should have had Goten talk to Videl,/ Trunks sighed, wincing as his mother yelled something unintelligible.  She was three rooms away - and Capsule Corp had pretty well soundproofed walls - but the volume was still enough to make his head hurt.  /I hope any brats we have don't inherit her lungs.../

"Chichi can be so stubborn!" Bulma cried as she strode back into the room.

"Kaasan," Trunks pleaded.  "I have a headache."

She glared at him.  "Don't think you're getting out of anything with that pathetic excuse!"

He blinked at her vehemence - and it took Bra and Pan's barely smothered laughter for him to grasp the connotations of what he'd said.

/Argh.  This is not my day./  He let his head slump to the desk in defeat.

"Hi Bulma!  Hi Trunks!"  Goku's voice was a welcome change from the women who had been plaguing him for the entire day.  "So, you and Goten gonna have a baby?"

Or maybe not so welcome.

"Yes, they are!"  The reply came in stereo from the mouths of two would-be-grandmothers - who then launched into a debate over the superiority of natural versus assisted pregnancies.

Trunks groaned, his head a pounding, leaden weight on his arms.  /Why me?/

"Papa!" he heard Bra greet their father above the commotion of the maternal squabble as Vegeta's unmistakable presence intruded on his senses.

/Oh great - that's all I need right now./

"Guess what!  Goten's a girl and she's going to make me an aunt!"

Trunks couldn't help it - he cracked one eye open to see his father's reaction.  Vegeta was frowning at Bra as she hung from one of his arms.  Trunks glanced to one side as that frown passed over him, but looked back anxiously as the scowl settled on Goten.  Crossing the distance between them in a few easy paces, Vegeta placed one palm on Goten's abdomen, as though already caressing a child lying there...

/Oh, God, no...  Not now!/

His father's black eyes looked up, making contact with his.  Was that a smile on his lips?

/No...  It can't be.../

It was.  A definite smirk.  He closed his eyes and opened them again, but it was still there.  In fact, weren't Vegeta's shoulders shaking?

"Tousan?"  They must have been - Bra was looking concerned, and their father was -

"Shut up, Tousan," he growled.

"Trunks!" his mother protested, her attention diverted from Chichi for a moment.  Then she noticed it too, as did all the others in the room.

Vegeta was laughing.

"Shut up, Tousan!" he tried again, a touch more desperately.  /If he tells them.../

Vegeta didn't pay any attention, collapsing onto the lounge doubled over in the strange, silent laughter that had consumed him, watched by half a dozen bemused spectators.

"Vegeta?" Bulma queried her husband's extraordinary mirth.  "What's the matter?"

"Ano," Goten sheepishly answered for him. "If Shenlong was right, I'm kinda already pregnant."

"You are?!"  Bulma and Chichi exchanges swift glances - and their topic of debate immediately swapped to obstetricians and hospitals.

Goten sighed, while Vegeta simply continued to laugh.  Goku scratched his head as his eyes wandered between them.

Ignoring Chichi and Bulma's continuing battle, Trunks pushed himself up from his chair at the desk, glaring at his father.  "This doesn't change anything," he snapped, then stalked out of the room followed by Bra and Pan's curious stares - and Goten's anxious eyes.

Her cloud castle had just evaporated in the heat of an angry sky-blue.

/How could I have been so stupid.../

"Ji - um, Basan?" Pan's young voice interrupted her thoughts softly, low enough to prevent Chichi and Bulma from overhearing.  "Daijoubu?"

"Aa," she forced a smile to her lips as she nodded at her niece and sister-in-law.  "I'm fine, Pan."

The girls' expressions plainly stated that they were not convinced.  Goten sighed, her smile starting to crumble.

"Come on," Bra urged, beckoning them both out of the room.  Goten took a single glance behind her as they sneaked out - her mother and Bulma were still at it...

/Never thought they'd be like this.../  Yet she could cope with this kind of reaction from their mothers.  What she couldn't cope with -

"Niichan was acting like a complete bastard!  It's like he doesn't want to be a father!"

- was that.

"Bra!" Pan hissed, glancing back at Goten's downcast expression.

"Gomen, Nii - Neesan," the lavender haired girl apologised.  "But I can't believe he just ignored you like that!  And that business with Tousan...  This simply reeks of conspiracy."

"Oh, come on - what could they possibly be hiding?" Pan wanted to know.  "Although I have to admit, seeing your father like that was weirder than finding out - uh..."

"That I'm now a girl?" Goten supplied with a sigh.

"Um, yeah," Pan blushed.  "Sorry, but - "

"It was a really stupid idea, I know."  She leaned against the wall of the corridor, sliding down it as her legs slowly gave way.  "A really stupid idea," she whispered to herself, eyes closed to the world.  Comforting hands on her shoulders brought her to open them once more - to see blue and brown eyes gazing seriously at her in compassion.

"It's not stupid, Neesan!  I think you're really brave!" Bra hugged her swiftly.

"That's right!  We're all behind you, Goten-basan!" Pan squirmed her way into the hug.

Goten had to smile, returning their embrace with rather awkward pats.  "Thanks, Bra-chan, Pan-chan."

"Think you're ready to face the world, now?" Bra queried.

She blinked.  "I guess..."

"Good.  Let's go, then!"

"Uh, just where are we going?" Goten wanted to know.  /I have a bad feeling about this.../

"Shopping, of course!" Bra stood expectantly with her hands on her hips.  "You're going to need some new clothes, Neesan."

"And then there's the baby as well," Pan grinned, catching a firm hold of one of Goten's hands, obviously not intending to permit her an easy escape.

Her eyes widened.  "Um, yeah, but not so soon!"

"It doesn't hurt to be prepared," Bra informed her, before the two of them dragged her out the door.

/They're as bad as Kaasan and Bulma.../

He stared, incapable of producing a single coherent thought.

There were some things in this world that you just couldn't adequately prepare yourself for.  For Trunks, this included the sight of Goten in a dress.  Even if 'he' was currently a 'she'.

/Actually, that just makes it worse.../

Blood-red silk hugged tightly to curves he really didn't want to know about, before flaring out into waves of crimson fire.  Goten's fair skin seemed paler than usual in contrast with the vibrant colours, but her eyes as were dark as ever, peering out at him from beneath spikey black bangs.

"Niichan," Bra growled from her strategic position clinging onto his arm with painful pressure, managing to sound as dangerous as both their parents combined.  "We're waiting..."

"Uh...  nice..." he muttered, blue eyes dazedly unblinking.  His sister's fingernails dug deeper into his forearm.  "Really nice," he added desperately, as he realised the female contingent were not looking terribly pleased with his contribution...

Bra rolled her eyes at him.  "We'll be right back," she told the others sweetly, before pushing him out of the room and closing the door firmly behind them.

He didn't even have time to take a breath.

"I did not spend eight hours shopping to have you ruin it all by telling her she looks 'nice' in that oh-so-convincing tone of voice!!!" Bra hissed furiously at him, her eyes flashing warnings of imminent pain to be inflicted upon him if he didn't answer correctly.

"What am I supposed to say?!" he demanded angrily, losing what little control of his temper he still retained.  "Yesterday I had Goten - a nice, normal, male Goten.  Today there's that - thing - "

The little dancing lights obscuring his vision were ample evidence of his unprepared state, let alone his aching jaw.  /Tousan would be pissed at me if he'd seen that./  He pushed himself up onto one elbow and touched his fingers to his lips, blinking in surprise as they came away bloody.  /On the other hand, he'd probably be too proud of Bra to even notice me.../

"I don't care what your problem is, Niichan," she loomed over him indignantly, "but you're making Goten miserable!  If you really loved Goten, you'd want her to be happy, no matter what!  Either be nicer, or I'll tell Mama about your little pet project that's taking up so much of Capsule Corp.'s resources!"  She spun around in a swirl of lavender hair, leaving a dumbfounded Trunks gaping on the floor in her wake.

/How did she - ?!/  He shook his head.  No, she hadn't known, not really.

He sighed, sitting up, preparing to stand, when he caught sight of the familiar legs of the sweat-pants his father wore for light training.  On their own, they would not have posed any particular problem.  The presence of Vegeta standing in them, however, did.  He raised his eyes slowly, noting the smirk formed by his father's lips.  Fortunately for him, it was the 'vindicated' smirk, as opposed to the 'vindictive' smirk.

/He seems to be in a good mood.../  Nervously licking his own lips left a metallic taste in his mouth.  /Obviously more pleased with her than angry at me.../

"You said this wouldn't change anything," Vegeta reminded him, an edge to his tone.

"It's not my fault some things have already been changed!" he snapped in reply, pulling himself to his feet at last.

Vegeta's smirk grew infinitesimally harsher.

"But it doesn't change our plan," Trunks agreed, secrets weighing heavily upon his mind.

"Of course not," Vegeta informed him.  "It's too late now."

/I know, Tousan - believe me, I know./

"But Basan - "

"No more," she stated firmly, if quietly.  "Not tonight, anyway, Pan," her tone softened a little.  The girls were just trying to help, after all...  /Although their idea of 'helping' is exhausting!  How on earth does Bra manage to turn 'shopping' into an expedition?!/

She eyed the piles of assorted clothing that were draped around the room.  It seemed like Bra had bought more clothes for this new body than her male body had ever worn!  And then there were the little doll-like clothes and toys that had been Pan's contribution...  The size of those clothes was actually rather scary.

/If I survive all this attention long enough to actually have this baby, I'll probably lose her amongst her blankets or something!/  Of course, that assumed that the females in her family would actually let the child be taken from their loving grasps...

That assumed that she was actually going to have a baby...

/I am pregnant... aren't I?/

The uncertainty made her stomach feel queasy.  What if she was wrong?  What if she couldn't get pregnant, despite what Shenlong had promised?

"Neesan?  Daijoubu?"

She shifted her focus to see Bra entering the room once more - minus her brother, and rubbing the knuckles of her right hand.  "Ah, I'm fine," Goten responded hastily, hoping to avoid a more thorough interrogation.  "What happened to your hand?"

"Oh," she shrugged, her cheeks flushing slightly pink.  "Nothing, really."  Their eyes met for a single moment, which was all it took for the subjects to be dropped - by them, at least.  Pan was another matter.

"That's blood!" she exclaimed, scandalized.  "Did you hit Trunks or something?"

"Well..."

"Bra!"

"He deserved it!"

Goten looked on bemused, caught between amusement and anxiety.  /My lover got beaten up by his little sister because he doesn't like the fact that I'm a girl and... pregnant.../  She shook her head slowly in an attempt to rid herself of the thousand and one little voices clamoring to be heard, each one eager to point out a mistake she had made - or two or three..

She sighed, barely keeping herself from wincing as it drew the attention of the two younger girls.  She opened her mouth to bid them goodnight - only to freeze as her mother's voice drifted down the corridor. Bulma's voice was also audible, and it seemed as though they had reached some sort of agreement...

/I'm not sticking around to find out what!/  She was at the open window before she even remembered that she hadn't been alone.  She glanced back fearfully, only to see Pan grinning at her as she wriggled her fingers to wave goodbye, while Bra made shooing motions with her hands.

/Thank goodness!  Today's been long enough as it is!/  She ducked out of the window, diving into the cool night air without further thought.

/So./  She gazed up at the pinpricks of light that adorned the blanket of darkness above her.  Not even a full day had passed since she'd made her wish.  /Right now, there's another wish I would make if I could.../

A hand on her waist caused her to inhale sharply, then slowly release her breath as she was drawn back against firm muscles.

Perhaps she wouldn't need wishes after all, this night...

She was still wearing the dress.

He had to admit, though, it did improve upon familiarity...  /Or else Bra knocked a few brain cells loose.../

Wrapped in contemplation as she was, she didn't notice him as he approached from behind, sliding one arm around her slender waist.  He felt her start in surprise, then gradually relax against him.  He waited until the tension had fully eased from her frame before leaning close to whisper in her ear.

"Blue boxers, hmmm?"

"Trunks!"

He laughed, releasing her and darting away as she whirled and lunged for him.  "Why do you think Pan doesn't wear dresses or skirts very often, baka?"

She crossed her arms angrily over her red-shrouded breasts, determinedly ignoring the breeze that stirred the fabric swathed around her legs.  "How was I supposed to know?!  It was Bra's idea!"

"And how often do you see Bra flying without an aircar?" Trunks smirked.  Goten glared at him darkly, before her dark eyes lit with mischief as she sidled through the air, halting just in front of him.

"How often," she drawled, eyes glinting as she lifted one hand to his lips, "does she split your lip?"

/Damn it!/  He scowled as her fingers brushed swollen flesh, pulling his head away as she snickered.

"She really decked you, didn't she?" Goten grinned - then lowered her voice seductively.  "I could make it better..."  She moved in slowly, soft lips gentle as they caught his in a lingering kiss, her dark eyes watching closely for his reaction.  After a moment, she drew back, gazing solemnly at him.  "You really don't like this body, do you?"

"It doesn't really do much for me," Trunks admitted.  /I guess I'm getting used to it, though...  It's still Goten, after all.../  At least the thought of touching her wasn't quite so nauseating anymore.

"It did enough for you to get me pregnant!" she snapped, turning away.  He almost missed her last words, overwhelmed by the slight wind - and the wistfully vexed tone they were spoken in.  "At least, I think I am..."

He floated behind her once more, sliding his hands over her abdomen.  This time her muscles remained tight beneath his touch, showing no signs of relenting...

"You are pregnant," he breathed into her neck.  "Tousan said so."

"And what would he know?!"

Trunks exhaled heavily.  "He knew when Kaasan was pregnant with Bra, remember?  He told us nine months before she was born..."

She turned her head slightly, her lips twitching.  "You sure that wasn't for... other reasons?"

Trunks snorted.  /It probably was, come to think of it.../

"Trunks."  She twisted in his arms until she was facing him once more, her visage serious under the patchwork glow of the stars.  "If you don't want us to have kids - "

Two fingers touched her mouth, urging silence.

"I do want us to have a family," he assured her quietly.  "This... just wasn't something I was prepared for."

A sheepish smile graced her face.  "I, uh, wanted to surprise you."

"Consider me suitably surprised," Trunks informed her wryly.

"You didn't mind so much last night..."

"I was mostly asleep last night, baka.  That's not exactly conducive to thinking about this situation."

She laughed brightly.  "So don't think about it!"

He glanced down at her breasts.  /Don't think about it, she says.../

"Baka!" she chastised, lifting his chin.  "Pretend they're not there!"

"It's what isn't there that's bothering me!"  His hands pointed out quite clearly just what he meant, sliding between her thighs and delving deep into the newly-sunken valley.

"Hentai," she accused, capturing his mouth once more with her own as she pressed her body close to his.

"Mm."

"Think I could make you forget?"  Fingers skillfully slid buttons undone, with a minimum of fuss.

"You can try..."

There was a red dress on the roof of Capsule Corp. the next day.  For the gossiping public it was a delightful scandal that was carried for weeks in various columns and forums.  The people who lived there knew better than to comment on the matter in public.  Of course, that didn't stop them from commenting in private...

/If I hear one more wisecrack about dresses or being dressed, I'm going to hit someone,/ she ground her teeth as she rummaged through the fridge for the third time since lunch.  /It's been a whole three months already!/  Yet it seemed that three months simply weren't enough, especially as she was still a she, and indeed bearing a child - a fact which had been confirmed by as many varied tests and doctors as two very strong-willed women could lay their hands on.  Goten almost felt sorrier for the medical consultants than she did for herself.  Almost.

/Some of them were as ecchi as Kamesennin.../  It was as though they were trying in some way to compensate the lack of interest her lover was showing - a compensation she could definitely do without.  /I can understand Trunks not liking me as much like this - but he could at least try!/  It seemed however that Capsule Corp.'s management was taking up more and more of Trunks' time...

She poked her way around the rather diminished contents of the fridge until she came up with a carton of orange juice.

/Yeah, right.  Like Bulma hasn't offered to help lighten his load./  She'd done so at least a dozen times in her presence, yet Trunks had steadfastly refused on each and every occasion.

If Trunks was paying her too little attention, however, Vegeta was more than making up for it.  Goten shuddered at the memory of the strange sidelong smirks and glances that the Saiyan Prince had been casting in her direction since that very first day.  /At least he hasn't touched me again...  I suppose it makes sense, though - he was always annoying Bulma when she was pregnant with Bra, by trailing after her all day long./

Being shadowed twenty-four hours a day by the man who beat her up on a regular basis when she was a guy was not something that eased her already strained nerves.  Chichi and Bulma were bad enough, but at least Videl could talk them into leaving her alone every so often.  Vegeta wouldn't listen to anyone, not even Bra!

/It's like he's just waiting for me to mess this up, somehow - and I get the feeling he wants me to have this baby as much as Kaasan and Bulma do.  Maybe he wants another little girl like Bra./  She grinned, taking a healthy swig from the carton.  Little did he know -

She frowned, carton forgotten in hand.  /Maybe he does know.../

She yelped in surprise at the flare of ki behind her, dropping the carton and spilling juice all over the floor.  By the time she turned around, Vegeta was long gone.

Where on earth could he be going in such a hurry?!

/I thought I felt Trunks, too, but he wouldn't be training or sparring with anyone at this time of day... would he?/

Her mind paused on the brink of postulating an answer for the mystery - and was rapidly overwhelmed by her stomach's desire for food.  She glanced regretfully down at the spilt juice, before focusing her attention once more upon the gutted innards of the fridge.

Vegeta could wait.

"I don't have time for this," Trunks informed his sister stonily, pretending for all he was worth to concentrate on the papers piled in front of him.

"You're going to start making time from now on, Niisan!" she snapped, hands on her hips as she glared daggers through him.  To one side, Pan stood in a similarly determined stance, her arms folded across her cheat as she nodded her support of Bra.

"You're just making excuses, Trunks, and everyone knows it!"

/Damnit, they're worse than Kaasan and Chichi!/

"Aren't you two supposed to be in school right now?" he tried desperately.  Bra rolled her eyes, while Pan jabbed an accusatory finger at the clock on his desk.

"School finished ages ago, baka!"

"And so did Capsule Corp.'s normal working hours," Bra added sternly.  Twin sets of blue eyes locked with a thunderous clash.

/How the hell am I going to get out of this?/ Trunks wondered, mentally sweating.  He had obligations that the girls didn't know about - and he had no intention of telling them anything at all regarding the matter.  /They just don't know when to let it drop!/

"Niisan - " Bra began again, only to be interrupted by a sharp beeping coming from the intercom on his desk.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw which department was flashing the emergency code.

"Sir, the tan- "

The rest of the words were lost as he threw open the window and covered the distance between his office and the small outbuilding which housed his special project in record time.  Upon arriving he was greeted with the astonishingly horrifying sight of his secretary wielding a bazooka-like weapon with potentially fatal inaccuracy.  Before her, the once-round-and-shiny building was now pitted with gaping holes through which thick smoke arose into the air.

"Abomination!" the woman screamed, her eyes wild, and made to pull the trigger once more -

/No - no - NO!!!/

Trunks screamed in a combination of fear and fury, his aura flaring around him as he took one step towards the woman.  The edge of his anger caught her like a feather in a gale, knocking her against the side of the building she had been so intent on destroying.

She didn't move.

/She... she tried.../

His mind a blank, he lifted one hand - only to halt mid-motion as he felt a firm grip on his shoulder.  Glancing back, he met his father's intense black gaze momentarily, before Vegeta turned his eyes to the building -

He sped through the doorway, so focused was he on his goal, that he completely ignored everything else in the area...

/No,/ his mind whispered in agonized denial as he saw the ruins of the equipment he had spent so much effort in creating and putting together.  Broken glass and spilt fluids littered the floor with glittering signs of destruction under what lighting remained.  /No.../

"Sir?  Sir?"

Someone was shaking his shoulder.  He blinked down at the white-coated man who was looking rather the worse for wear.

"It's alright, sir," the man smiled benignly.  "Only the new prototypes were wrecked.  They can be rebuilt easily enough, now that we've had the practice.  We moved the operational units into Lab 3 for additional testing earlier today.  They're undamaged."

Trunks raced around to the designated location, searching once more - and this time finding what he sought.  He closed his eyes, sinking to his knees with a heartfelt sigh.

/It's okay,/ he chanted in his mind.  /It's okay.../

A soft gasp caused him to open them again.  Bra and Pan were standing in the doorway he had just come through, staring past him at the fruit of his special project...

/So much for keeping this a secret.../

"Goten!" Bulma exclaimed as Goten entered the living room with yet another plate of food.  "I just talked to Dr. Lee!  You were right - she's a girl!"

"Told ya so," she replied, settling down on the lounge in front of the TV.

"Did you ask Shenlong for a girl?" Bulma queried as she sat down beside her.

"No, but I knew she would be a she," Goten replied, lifting a spoonful of yogurt to her mouth.

"You know, you don't really need to eat so much more than you usually do.  You're not sparring so often these days - "

"Vegeta's not beating me up so often, you mean," she grimaced.  "I'm not really eating a lot more, though - I'm just spacing it out a bit."

"Why's all the food been disappearing so fast, then?" Bulma frowned.  Goten could only shrug.

/Whoever it is, it's not me!/

"Ah well," Bulma sighed.  "I guess I'll just have to increase the groceries order."  It was fortunate that the Briefs had the money to spare.  Goten didn't want to think about the alternative.

/I'll never work out how Kaasan managed to feed all of us.../

"The gravity room will probably need repairs, too," Bulma continued morosely.

"Hm?"

"Didn't you hear the explosions?"

She blinked.  /Oh yeah./  "Couldn't have been Vegeta this time," she frowned.  "He was with me.  Trunks?"

"If it was him, he's going to -"

"Kaasan!" Bra's voice penetrated easily through the walls.

"In here!"  It wasn't long before Bra and Pan tracked them down through the maze of Capsule Corp.'s corridors, a testimony to Bra's memory skills.  Goten still got lost on a regular basis - and not always intentionally.

"Um, Kaasan?" Bra was extraordinarily tentative in her approach.

/I wonder what she wants,/ was Goten's initial thoughts - very likely the same as Bulma's, judging by her skeptical expression.  /Don't tell me she and Pan were responsible for the explosions.../

"You know how you keep offering to help Niichan with his work?"

"Ye-es," her mother acknowledged grudgingly.  Where was the catch?

"Well, he kinda just fired his secretary..."

"Mm.  Do I need to compensate her or something?"

"No way!" Pan burst out.  "She tried to total one of the buildings!"

"Oh."  It wasn't often a non-Saiyan caused severe structural damage in their area.

"I don't think he's going to be willing to trust another one any time soon..."

"All right, I get the picture," she sighed.  "I hate paperwork, but I'll take over until after the baby's born, at least."

"Um..."  The girls exchanged a quick, curious look.  "You should leave him something to do, though," Bra suggested.  "He'll get all moody if you take everything away from him."

"Yeah, maybe let him work on a little project or something," Pan chimed in, and Bulma nodded in agreement.  Goten, however, glanced suspiciously between the girls.

/They're up to something, but what?/

"Where the hell is he?!"

She was frustrated.

She was also sore.  And angry; and tired, and hurt, confused, hungry, in pain, desperately wishing that this entire affair was over -

Oh yeah.  She was also in labour.

"Damn it!  Trunks!  Where are you?!!!"

The worst part had been not being able to squeeze the living daylights out of something whenever the contractions hit.  She'd always used Vegeta when practicing, since he was so often lurking nearby.  Today of all days, though, he was absent.

As was his son.

/Men!/ she snarled mentally, temporarily forgetting the fact that she was technically supposed to be one.  Her brother winced as her hand clamped down on his.  He was doing somewhat better than their father, however.  Goku had nearly choked her to death as a nurse had passed by with a needle in hand.  Chichi had ordered him out of the hospital, and Goten had never seen her father obey her so quickly, not even when mealtimes were called.

"Calm down, Goten dear," her mother ordered.  "I'm sure he won't be much longer."

/Yeah, right./  Being in labour did not render her blind to the meaningful looks which Chichi exchanged with Bulma, who ducked her head out the door momentarily.  A few seconds later, she sensed Bra and Pan leaving the waiting area.  /Fat lot of good they'll do,/ she thought uncharitably.  The girls had spent the past six months making all sorts of excuses for Trunks, covering for him as best they could when he disappeared for hours on end.  /They used to be on my side!/

She dug her fingers into Gohan's wrist once more.  After a moment's consideration of his pale face, she realised that her level of comfort was directly proportional to the whiteness of his skin.  She continued along this line of investigation for some time before finally getting serious about the whole business.

/Sorry, kiddo.  Looks like we can't wait for your other daddy.../

/Damn it!  I knew this was going to happen!  I just knew it!/ Trunks fumed as he paced a tight circle before the entrance to the laboratory with quick, anxious steps.  A short distance away, his father leaned against a wall, arms folded across his chest as his black eyes tracked his son's movements.  /What the hell is holding them up?!/

He snapped to attention as the door opened, doing his best to peer around the figure that stood in it, and glaring at her as she closed it behind her.

"Well?" he demanded, his entire body fraught with tension.

"I'm sorry sir, but there have been several unforeseen circumstances - "

"I know that!"  He had been in there with them, after all, helping to deal with the complications - until Vegeta had dragged him out by the collar, that was...  His glare flickered briefly over to his father.  /I was helping, not 'getting in the way'./

"We're almost finished, but due to an unexpected difficulty in coping with the transition phase, we want to take things as slowly as possible.  It's for the best, sir."

Trunks exhaled steadily, as Vegeta snorted derisively.  /They should know what they're talking about, I suppose./  They were the best scientists in their various fields, after all.  He wouldn't have hired them if they had been anything less.

"Very well," he nodded sharply, and turned his back as she reentered the laboratory, waiting for the 'snick' of the door closing before shutting his eyes.  "I knew we should have adjusted the timetable," he muttered under his breath.  He was supposed to be with Goten right now.

"Niichan!"

"I know!" He spat the words out as the two girls flung themselves along the corridor to where he and Vegeta were waiting.  /I know I should be with Goten, I want to be with Goten, I sure as hell didn't plan on getting stuck here for so long!/

"What's taking them so long," Pan wanted to know.

"They don't want to screw up," Vegeta answered her, a threatening smile barely gracing his face.  "Because if they do, they're dead."

"Tousan," Bra's tone was filled with warnings.  Trunks, however, was inclined to agree with their father on this occasion.

/Damn it to hell, I can't take any more of this waiting!/

With one smooth movement, he opened the door to Laboratory 3.

Goten squinted at the bundle in her arms.  "Is her face supposed to look that squished?" she asked.  "And is she supposed to be this noisy?!"

"Goten!" her mother scolded gently as she leaned over to stroke the baby's cheek.  Bulma simply laughed as she observed her squalling granddaughter.  "Normally babies will settle down after they get used to breathing air..."

"I don't think she wants to be 'normal'," Goten sighed, as her daughter kept on wailing.

"Let me try!"

Goten snickered as the two grandmothers glared at each other, but soon lost her amusement as they turned to her with expectation in their eyes.  "Uh..."

/Haven't they finished bandaging Niichan up yet?!/ she thought, desperate for either him or Videl to come back and save her from having to make a decision.

"Goten."  A new arrival diverted her attention from the two women.

/Finally!/  She had to bite her tongue at first, to keep from snarling at him for being so late - but after one look at his expression on seeing their daughter, she found herself relenting a little.

"Say hello to your daddy," Goten told the screaming bundle as she held her carefully out for Trunks to take.  He took her awkwardly, but carefully -

She stopped crying.

Goten rolled her eyes.  /Oh great.  I do all the work, and she stops crying for him./

"She's beautiful," Trunks said softly, staring intently at the blanket-wrapped baby.

"I think you need your eyes checked, Trunks."

"Goten!"

She laughed, then cocked her head to one side, enjoying the relative quiet.  There was yet another baby crying nearby.  "At least she isn't crying anymore, like whoever it is out there."

"Maybe you can get him to shut up," Trunks spoke absently, tracing the curves of their daughter's face as he sat down on the bed next to Goten.  "He just won't stop."

"Hm?" Goten blinked.  "Who is he?"

"Our son."

"Nani?!!!"

A grinning Pan poked her head around the door at the outcry, then held it open for Bra as Trunks nodded at her.  There, cradled in Bra's arms, was a similarly wrapped and squawking bundle...

"Surprise," Trunks murmured softly.

"Oh!"  The two grandmothers sprinted across to Bra to focus on their latest acquisition.

Her brain dissolved into mush as she caught sight of the not-squished-but-very-red little face, her arms automatically reaching out for him...

"Just wonderful," she heard Trunks grumble under his breath.  "Now he stops the caterwauling..."

"Shut up, Trunks.  Chima quit the wailing for you, didn't she?"  She glanced up just in time to see Trunks' shocked expression before it narrowed into a glare.  /Oops.../

"You knew!" he accused, easily recognising the name, and the consequences.

"Well, yeah, sort of," she grinned.  "Jita told me that Chima was the eldest, but I didn't know that they were twins!"

"They are kind of twins, aren't they," Pan smiled as she leaned over to look at Chima, Bra right beside her.  "In a way, at least."

"Wait a minute!" Chichi interjected.  "Just where did he come from?!"

"A bit of genetic engineering, in vitro fertilization, and a reconstructed Saiyan baby-tank," Trunks shrugged.

"Saiyan - " Bulma stared.  "You mean Vegeta was in on this?!  And you didn't tell me?!!"

"It was meant to be a surprise."

Goten laughed, reaching up with one hand to pull Trunks down to her for a swift kiss.  "Consider me suitably surprised," she murmured in his ear as they cuddled against one another, each with a baby in one arm.  "Next time, we do this your way."

"Next time?!"

Goten grinned.  /He'd freak if he knew about the rest.../

"This is so much better being a guy," Goten grinned as he relaxed on the sofa, balancing a gurgling Jita against his chest

"Mm," Trunks grunted from his desk, which was mercifully not stacked three feet high with papers as it was occasionally wont to be.  His pace was much reduced by having to nurse Chima on his lap.  She was not shy of demonstrating her lung capacity whenever he left her line of sight.

/She just had to inherit that particular trait, didn't she?/  Not that Jita was any happier when Goten left him behind, but at least he wasn't quite so loud as his sister...

He shifted positions so he was facing Goten.  There was something he was quite curious about, but had never had the time to ask...

"What was it like, being a woman?"

"Hm?" Goten craned his neck around to look at him.

"Like, did you feel any different, apart from the obvious?"

"I dunno," Goten shrugged, his expression rather baffled.  Jita found it highly amusing, so Goten continued pulling faces for him as he spoke, a slyly suggestive tone entering his voice.  "If you really want to know, you'll just have to try it..."

Trunks snorted, directing a mild glare at him.  "No thanks, I think I'll pass."  Goten showed him the latest face he'd pulled for Jita - a distorted grin. Trunks rolled his eyes, looking down to see Chima staring soberly at Goten's 'face'.

/At least she doesn't think it's funny, either./

"Hey, is Bra home?" an unfamiliar voice queried, interrupting his thoughts.   Trunks stared at the newcomer, a teenage boy with dark hair and eyes, who looked oh-so-familiar...

/Does Bra have a new boyfriend?/ he wondered.  If so, Vegeta probably wouldn't be too happy...

"Do I know you?" he stood up, Chima in his arms, ready to start the standard inquisition.  He frowned at the boy, certain there was something he was missing...

From the couch, Goten made rather curious strangled noises.  Trunks' eyes widened.

"Pan?!"

The boy grinned sheepishly. "Uh, yeah."

/Oh great./

Pan shifted his stance uncomfortably in the lengthening silence as they stared at him.  "Just how do you guys cope with all the...  you know..." he gestured vaguely towards his groin.

Trunks blinked once, then crossed the room to pick up a surprised Jita, balancing him against one hip, and headed towards the door.

"Trunks - " Goten protested.

"I do believe this is your department."

"What?!"

"Consider it practice for Jita."  He grinned as he kicked the door shut on Goten's complaints.  /Pity I can't shut out Jita's so easily.../

A single thought made him pause.  /If Goten gives Jita 'the talk', then that means.../  He eyed Chima in growing horror.

/Don't you ever grow up!/

Golden eyes stared up at him solemnly.