Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The building was crumbling to pieces, a few walls had collapsed, windows smashed, doors broken in, there was mildew and moss everywhere, gardens where overgrown and invading the house. Despite all of this you could tell that it had once been a beautiful building. Despite the appearance of the building, it was still lived in. The owner of this crumbling mansion was fifteen year old Videl Satan who had become head of the now crumbling household four years earlier.

The two people that were responsible for the position that she was in now were 17 and 18, or as people now commonly called them, The Androids. These twin humanoids had popped out of nowhere, they had destroyed cities and killing many people in the process. When no one could stop them, the people called for her Campion father and ask for his assistance. The World Martial Artists Champ Hercules went and did what was asked of him.

Videl was so naive and believed that her father would beat the pair with ease and would be home in time for dinner. She sat glued to the TV as soon as her dad left. The reporter already waiting for her father and talking about how everyone would be saved. She was excited when she saw her dad get to the arranged battle site half an hour later. His big smile, loud laugh, and over-exaggerated poses as he spoke to the cameraman and wished her well at home put her at ease that everything would go well that day.

"Go dad, beat those twin terrors." She cheered.

She saw the twins. They didn't look all that deadly in person, standing looking bored out of their mind. She watched her dad as he approached the monsters. She was certain that it would be over soon, but the first attack missed. Her father laughed it off but then the second one missed as well and then several more attempts to attack the twin monsters. She could see that her father was getting nervous as he kept missing the twins she got more nervous herself. He couldn't even touch them.

"Come on dad, stop playing with them." Videl was starting to get fearful as she continued watching a long drawn out attempt of her father trying and failing to just touch the androids.

The female known as 18 started talking to her brother. Her voice was not picked up by the cameras at all. She looked bored.

A smirk appeared on 17's face the still haunted Videl to this day. She watched in horror as the android karate chopped the top of her father's afro hair, going through her father's hair and not stopping as it hit his head. Videl was horrified as she watched two halves of her father fall either side of the ground. She remembered clearly a hearing a loud pitched scream that she would remember for the rest of her life. Videl was told later by her nursemaid that the horrible screaming came from the young heiresses own mouth.

From the time of her father's death, Videl had vowed that she would one day kill those monsters and trained every day. Night and day until she was thirteen. It had started like any other day. She had been on a break from her training for a meal so that she could keep up her strength. In the reflection of the microwave, she saw the two beasts that were responsible for her father's death. Without a word, Videl turned and attacked. Like her father, she was not able to touch the two.

"Miss Videl, get out of there?" her old nursemaid yelled. Throwing anything she could find at the androids, trying to distract them from her young charge.

"I don't want interference," 17 said. A powerful blast came from his hand, which blasted through the wall behind the maid, and continued on through several other walls before exiting through the back wall into the garden. Videl watched at the maid screamed and ran towards the newly created hole in the wall, only to have a section of the second story floor fall on top of her.

"You could have at least waited till I asked where she got her clothes before killing her," the blond android said to her brother.

"I didn't kill her, I simply blasted the wall and then the roof fell on her. Not my fault that she was to slow to get out the way. Or so weak that she cannot handle a bit of rubble."

Wanting revenge more than ever Videl rushed the androids while they were distracted. She impacted 17 head-on, almost breaking her neck, but causing no injury to the androids whatsoever.

She looked into the blue eyes of 17, thinking that if looks alone could kill, she would be dead already. On the floor, she accepted her death and knew that nothing she could do could stop the android from killing her. Videl fell to her knees, counting down the seconds till she would see her dad, who had died two years earlier and her mother who died when she was still young. Just as she thought her life was going to end, a battle scared boy who could be no older then herself flew through the house. He destroyed a few windows and knocked down another wall. He ploughed into 17 and 18, actually knocking the cyborg through the kitchen bench and into the sitting room.

Videl had heard rumours of the boy only known as Gohan who often attempted to rescue people from the androids. She watched as he engaged in battle with the two machines. She stood knowing that she had to get into hiding, or there would be no purpose of him coming to rescue her. She wanted to stay and watch the outcome, but knew that she could not afford to.

She turned back for one last glimpse and watched as the androids slashed his face, blood spraying over the white carpet. She wanted to help but knew that she would not stand a chance and ran to her hiding place.

Videl followed secret passages in the mansion that only her father, herself and a few of her father's most trusted employees knew about. The passage lead to an underground bunker that was the size of a three bedroom house. She looked at the possessions in the safe room. Her father had saved most of her mother's belongings and some of Videls old toys and so many photos. Items she had wrongly believed he had gotten rid of years beforehand. Videl picked up her old Teddy and the photo album and a blanket and sat in the darkest corner of the room, watching the door in case the androids found her.

It felt like hours had passed when she saw the silhouette of a person in the doorway and almost screamed out in fear. She noticed that the person was too short to be the androids and watched as the person took a couple of steps into the room before collapsing on the floor.

Knowing that he was most likely the teenager that saved her, Videl ventured closer to see if he was, in fact, the boy Gohan that rescued people. Using all her strength, Videl turned her rescuer's body over, not recognizing his face through all the blood from his wound.

Videl immediately went to work in cleaning the stranger responsible for saving her life. The safe room contained many medical supplies. While she complained at the time, she was now glad that her father made her learn first aid and help with his injuries from martial arts training.

Videl looked at her handy work that she had performed on the face of her rescuer. She had attempted stitches satisfied with the job that she did and hoping that the young man would not hate her for the scar that he would have later on.

Sitting on the table of the underground shelter was a small meal that Videl had prepared from the emergency rations. She was quite pleased with herself and glad that she had learned how to cook after her father had died. She noticed her guest stirring and was pleased that she was able to finish preparing the meal in time.

Videl and the young stranger stared at each other for a few minutes. "Thank you for rescuing me," Videl said in a quiet and shy voice. She was surprised by how shy she sounded. She had not been shy before. It had been a long time since she last spoke to someone her age.

"You're welcome," the young boy replied, sitting up and looking at his feet. "Thank you for patching up my wound."

"I am sorry that I was not able to do as good job on your face as a doctor or a nurse," Videl said quietly.

"That's fine. I am sure that you did an excellent job." The teenager replied, smiling for the first time, which made Videl doubt that he was actually older than her like she first thought. "My name is Gohan by the way."

"I'm Videl," the daughter of Hercules answered, excited that her life had been saved by the boy who challenged the androids and still managed to live. "I made you some dinner, I am sorry that it is not much, but I am not sure how long I need to make the food last for."

"No one knows how long their food needs to last for, thank you for sharing some with me," he answered.

"You're welcome," Videl said, showing Gohan to the dinner table.

The pair started there dinner eating in silence for a few minutes till Gohan spoke, "have you ever considered becoming a doctor?"

"A doctor! I don't really have that option anymore. There are no schools, so I would never be able to get my degree."

"No I mean like now, you did a great job patching me back to health."

"But I am only thirteen I can't be a doctor" Videl shouted.

"This society is different from the one that we were born into Videl. Most of the doctors and nurses have been targeted by the androids, so survivors and people that have been sick are not able to get help. So untrained people and underage people are now stepping into the roles."

"So who normally patches you up after you fight with the androids?"

"My mum or Bulma Briefs. They both get anxious when I go out, that I will never come home again."

"The Briefs family used to be one of the richest families on the planet before the android attacks, much like my own family," Videl said. Many of the items in their house had the Capsule Corporation logo on it.

"What did your parents do?" Gohan asked.

"My dad was a martial artist and the last world champion, he was asked to fight the androids when this all began and died without even getting to touch them. My mum died when I was seven she was a florist, even though we where rich she still liked working and talking to all of the people that would come in. What about your parents?"

"My dad was also a martial artist and former champion and most likely the champion before your dad. He was really sick the year of the last world tournament and was unable to attend. My dad died the day after the tournament finished. My mum was the princess of the Ox kingdom and also a martial artist. I think that she still holds the title of Women's World Martial artist because no other women made it to the finals the year that your dad won."

"I guess that makes your dad Goku Son and your mother Princess Chi Chi," Videl said.

Gohan nodded "And your father Hercules Satan, but I am not sure who your mum is because I don't know what a florist is."

"Florists sells flowers silly," Videl answered, laughing at the Son boy, something she had not done since before her dad died.

"Why would someone sell flowers when you could pick them from fields or gardens before the androids attacked?" Gohan asked.

"For people that can't go out and pick flowers because they lived in the city, or don't have time to pick flowers or want different flowers then what they can pick," Videl answered, wishing that she could see flowers again that her mum used to bring home after work if they had not sold in time.

"I have to be getting home now, my mum will be worried about what is taking me so long, and I will properly have a hard time trying to rescue people for the next week because mum will not want to let me out of her sight when she sees this," Gohan said pointing to his face. "It has been fun talking to someone my own age again."

"How old are you? You know my age."

"Like you, I am also thirteen," Gohan said. "And you should really consider becoming a doctor, I could bring over some books for you on the subject and help you study if you like. My mum has me studying to become a doctor as well in case the fighting ever ends."

"So I will get to see you again?" Videl said really hoping that she would get to spend time with someone around her own age again.

"I can't promise anything, but I will try to come again," Gohan said, walking out the door. "Oh, and I am sorry to give you bad news, but I was unable to save the lady that was crushed. I buried her in your backyard before I came down here."

"Thank you," Videl said, feeling like it was her that was crushed.

Chapter Text

Videl had, in fact, got to see Gohan again on a fairly regular basis. It was not uncommon for him to come to her for treatment for his wounds. Gohan had bought over many people to the crumbling Satan mansion whom he had rescued and were in need of medical attention. As was expected in the medical profession, not all of the people that Gohan rescued survived. One of those people being an old school friend Sharpener. Videl was sad to watch her friend slowly die but was glad that she had the chance to say goodbye to someone that she cared about properly. She never got to find out what he'd been up to since they last saw one another or if anyone else they'd gone to school with still survived. She missed Erasa, her best friend when she was a child. It was always herself, Sharpener and Erasa before the androids showed up. She'd never got a chance to say goodbye to her father and so many other people that were gone. She still had regrets that she didn't hug her father one last time on the day that he left to face the androids.

She and Gohan had grown close over those years. It felt like a lifetime when in reality it had only been a couple of years. Probably to close. Her father would be scolding her if he could see exactly how close she and Gohan had become.

Videl sat on the edge of the old fountain, familiar arms wrapped themselves around Videl's rounded stomach. Her father would probably kill her if he could see his teenaged daughter was heavily pregnant.

"You know that it is not safe to be outside for too long?" Gohan said. He always worried about her when they were apart. In reality nowhere was safe from the androids. She could be in an underground bunker, and they would still find her. She understood what he meant. She'd be easier pickings for the androids then she normally was. If they knew that Gohan was the father - she hated thinking about the extra danger her child was in because of who their father was. She wouldn't change it for a thing, despite how scared she was.

Videl looked at the scarred face teenager that had his arms wrapped around her, finding it hard to believe that it had only been two years since they had met. "I know. I needed fresh air. Felt like I was going to suffocate if I spent another minute underground." She replied, "I was not the only one. The baby needed fresh air as well. I will be safe as long as you are here with me."

She knew that wasn't actually true. The androids wanted to kill Gohan more than anyone else. She felt safer when she was with him. She wished that she could be with him all the time.

Gohan smiled at his pregnant girlfriend. "Do you think that it was a wise idea to bring a child into this type of world?"

They'd both had that discussion as soon as they'd realised she was pregnant. They thought they'd taken every precaution to prevent pregnancy and still failed. The best precaution would have been no sex at all. She wanted to be as close to Gohan as possible. When they were together, they were both able to forget the bleak world that they lived in. Even if it was a few moments.

"No," Videl answered bluntly. "Do you think that we would be having a child now if the androids had never happened?"

"Probably not. We are living in this world we were forced to grow up and be adults before we even hit puberty. We don't even know if we will live to adulthood, so we make rash decisions in some of the things that we have done. If the androids had never happened, I would properly still be getting homeschooled by mum and her insisting that I don't do martial arts. She'd probably be trying to arrange a marriage for me with a respectable girl right around now. My mum would like you."

"But if the androids did not happen, I guess I would be at school just trying to pass," Videl said, wondering what her life would have been like. If she still would have been friends with Sharpener and Erasa. She wondered who her friends would have dated. Erasa was already interested in boys before the androids. Sharpener stayed away from girls because he didn't want girl germs. "I think my dad would be turning in his grave if he knew that I was going to be a mother at fifteen. I am scared."

"I'm scared to. I don't know how to tell my mum, I think that she would be over here in a second if she knew, she has always wanted grandchildren" Gohan said.

"Why don't you tell her?" Another conversation that they had before. She kept asking in case he changed his mind.

"I guess because I am scared of her reaction and think that you would be safer away from mum, Bulma and Trunks. I have started training Trunks in Martial arts. He is our only hope if something were to happen to me."

"What about our baby, it will be another hope won't it?"

"Yes, another reason to keep the baby and Trunks separate. If something happens to one of them, there is always the other to emerge and help. I wish they could grow up together and help one another. The androids already know about Trunks. He's already being targeted because of Bulma."

"I guess we should go back in," Videl said, looking at the now darkening sky. It felt like the days were getting shorter. That the androids had somehow managed to change the speed that the sun travelled around the moon. No one was able to launch anything into space anymore to check or to escape. The androids had destroyed all the spacecraft.

Videl and Gohan returned to the shelter and settled in for the night. She was always able to sleep better when Gohan was at her side. She didn't feel so lonely while he was at her side.

Videl woke up the next morning not knowing when the next time that she would see the father of her child or in fact if she would see him again at all. Picking up of the books Gohan had given her years before, Videl turned to a section about 'Pregnancy and childbirth preparing for the delivery of a baby. It was only a matter of days. As much as she was scared to go into labour, a part of her wished that she would have gone into labour the previous night, while Gohan was around. Living by herself, she knew that it was most probable she would be doing this alone as much as she wished that Gohan would be there with her. She hoped that they would get to raise their child together.

Sometimes the thought of attempting to survive was hopeless, and sometimes she wished that she could curl up and die. She had long ago accepted that she would not be able to get revenge for her father like she had trained herself for. She was terrified that this was the world that she was bringing a child into. A world that she didn't even want to exist in. Her hope was that Gohan would be the one to stop the mechanical beasts, preferably before the baby was born so they could live as a family without death hanging over everyone's heads. So her baby could have a normal life. If he failed there only hope would be Trunks, the five-year-old son of Bulma Briefs who she had never meet. And their soon to be born baby.