286Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z. Period, dot, end of story.
Chapter 15: Dear Diary
Excerpts from Videl Satan's diary, 776 to 778
7 November 776
I know haven't written in this diary in such a long time, but today I feel like I'm going to burst if I don't tell someone! Dad is definitely out of the question. I might talk to Erasa later, but heaven knows that the whole school will find out within a day, and this is something I kind of want to keep to myself for a little bit. Anyway…
I went on a date with Gohan today! A real one, dinner and a movie and everything!
It wasn't the normal kind of date, of course. We'd just finished training for the day and he asked if I wanted to go get some food. I don't know what exactly I was expecting, but we went to Satan City down the street from his work and he took me to this hole in the wall. Literally, it was a hole in the wall. I had no clue, but there was a small restaurant in business there. Gohan said that they served the best hamburgers he'd ever eaten and I would like them too. He was right too.
I have never seen someone eat like him. I don't know where he puts all that food; he'd eaten three burgers by the time I'd eaten half of mine! All I can think is that he must have called ahead and warned them that he was coming or else they would have had to close down shop until they got more hamburger meat in.
Anyway, he took me to the movie theater and told me to pick whatever I wanted to see. I really thought about picking a really sappy chick flick just to see what he'd do, but I wouldn't be able to sit through it, not even to see how he reacted. There was some action movie that I'd heard some people at school rave about, so I just picked it. We spent the whole time laughing and pointing out the obviously fake stunts and how we could do them so much better.
He walked me to an alleyway close to the theater so we could go back to my house before he went home, but of course there were some criminals hanging out there. I guess they were waiting on unsuspecting couples to find a place to make out or have dirty alleyway sex or something. It's too bad that we were the ones who showed up. They threatened Gohan first, but then they threatened me. I've never seen Gohan so angry.
I almost felt sorry for them by the time Gohan was done with them. He roughed them up pretty good, probably so they would be scared to do it again. I know that one of them pissed his pants. They ran away as soon as they were able to. It was probably a good thing too, because the second they were gone I may or may not have jumped my boyfriend. Gohan has some amazing restraint when it comes to… physical situations. I don't know where mine went, but in my defense he is spectacularly good at kissing. I can only imagine how good he'll be at other things!
Love, Videl
13 May 777
I'm in complete shock right now. I don't even know where to begin.
Gohan is an alien. An ALIEN. Can you believe it? Or half an alien. His dad really IS an alien. So is his mentor, Piccolo. So is Bulma's husband Vegeta. And little Goten is half alien too! What kind of crazy did I stumble into when I decided I wanted to date this man?
AND HE HAS A TAIL. A TAIL! A FURRY, BROWN, MONKEY TAIL.
Okay, calm down. Start from the beginning.
We went to the zoo this morning. Gohan was acting odd, but not incredibly so, so I thought that he might be preoccupied with something at work. There are days that he'll be sunk so deep in his thoughts that I could do a strip dance in front of him and he might not notice it. But as the day went on, he became more and more preoccupied. Honestly, I was worried that he was going to break up with me. We'd just told Dad a week ago that we were dating. Let's just say that Dad is still coming around to the idea. I think that HE thinks that we've been sneaking around since we met, which is obviously not true. We've only been sneaking around for 6 months, thank you.
Anyway, we went back to his house like we always do. We go there for privacy, but not because we want to have sex or anything. I can't get Gohan to do anything beyond kissing, for one thing. At first, it was because Dad didn't know yet. Now, it's that the paparazzi officially got wind of our relationship the day after we told Dad, and they've been following us around ever since. They have no clue who Gohan is, and even though we know that they'll find out eventually, we'd like to keep it that way for as long a possible.
I got tired of him acting so nervous and agitated that I might have snapped at him to just say what he was going to say already. I didn't mean to snap, but…
I wasn't expecting him to blurt out that he was an alien.
At first I thought he was joking, of course. But then I started thinking about it. It explained his supernatural strength and his abilities. I'd seen his eyes lighten up to nearly green one time and his hair get bleach blonde highlights when we'd gotten a little too carried away one time. He'd laughed it away, saying that he must be really good at kissing for me to be hallucinating, but I remember the fear and self-reproach in his eyes and the way his fist clenched on his knee.
So I listened to him tell me about his life and how it all went to hell when he was four. I remember when he told me about Recoome that one night; I didn't know that he had several different events he could have picked from to tell me. He's been to other planets, did you know? And he spent seven years living in an alternate version of the past. I still can't get over that, but he promised to introduce me to his grandfather and uncle sometime soon. I wonder if they were the two voices that I heard the day that Gohan first asked me on a date.
Don't get me started on the Dragonballs. Seven little golden balls that can grant two wishes? The Dragon can even bring someone back from the dead! Apparently they've used them to do just that more than once, including the Cell Games. I remember when all those who were killed by Cell suddenly came back to life again. I don't know what people believed had caused it, but I bet none of them thought about a huge green Dragon. Gohan's dad has died twice and been brought back to life both times. It's a crazy thought.
When he was finished, all I could do was stare at him. It sounded more fantastic than any book I'd ever read before, but Gohan has only ever lied to me once. He sucks at it. I don't even remember why he'd even done it. Probably something about staring at my ass. He always gets so flustered when I catch him doing it.
That's when I noticed that the belt that he always wore was twitching. I didn't even give him a chance to tell me what it was before I grabbed it. It was so soft and so of course I started petting it. All I know is that he gasped and went very still before he asked me very politely and very firmly to let go of his tail before something bad happened.
Let's just say that I recognized the look on his face. It didn't happen often, mostly because whenever I saw it, it was because I'd managed to pin him down during a sparring match. Somehow those matches never get finished – I can't imagine why. Anyway, I knew that if I didn't let go, I was going to get jumped and we might never finish this conversation.
I really, really thought about holding onto it. But I could see how scared he was about it. Not sex, but how much trust it took to let someone else hurt it. If I could turn him on just by petting it, I'm sure that if I squeezed it really hard or something, it would hurt really badly.
So I did let go of it, as much as I hated to. But I figure that I have that knowledge now and he can't take it away from me. Joke's on you, Gohan!
I think he expected me to leave and never contact him again. His whole life has been one disappointment (if not outright tragedy) after another, and I could see that he was resigned to this being the next one. I don't think I've ever seen him so confused when I told him very firmly that I wasn't going anywhere. I think that he genuinely didn't think that I might want to stay anyway. I was able to kiss those thoughts out of his head pretty quickly. I can only hope that they'll stay away for good, though I don't think that will happen. He's too used to having good things taken away from him almost as soon as he's got them. It's going to take a lot of positive reinforcement to get him to understand that I'm NOT going to leave just because he's an alien.
Guess I'd better get to work.
Love, Videl
5 June 777
Today was an interesting day. I met Gohan's grandfather and uncle this morning and after lunch he took me up to the Lookout to meet Piccolo and Dende.
At first I was really confused, because Gohan took me over to that gaudy mirror that sits on the table in the corner. I'd noticed it before, but I didn't realize what it did. Somehow the Supreme Kai was able to link it to another mirror in the other timeline, and Gohan uses it to see and talk to his family there.
There were several people I met while we were talking. I talked to both Kakarotto (who's actually Goku at age nine – I think Goten might have actually been a clone of Goku!) and Lunch (she's pregnant for the second time and she looks like she's about to pop!) for a few minutes, but most of the time I talked with Bardock and Raditz.
I've never seen a family who resembles each other as much as Gohan's family does. Goku and Bardock look almost exactly alike, minus a few minor differences, and I've already talked about Goku and Goten. But it seems to me that beyond their looks and their love of fighting, Bardock and Goku don't actually have much in common, other than Gohan, of course. Bardock is less carefree and definitely less naïve. I don't think that Goku is really that naïve – I think a lot of it is just a front – but Bardock doesn't bother trying to be like that. But I can tell how much he loves Gohan by the way he acts with him. He's really just a big softy on the inside.
Raditz is more like Gohan. He's not as solemn as Bardock, but he's not like Kakarotto either. (I really hope that if Gohan and I ever have children they won't have as much energy as that kid does!) He's more of a scholar than Bardock too – from what I understand, he got a job at Capsule Corp somehow, doing the same kind of thing that Gohan does. At some point, Gohan and Raditz got into a discussion that had a lot of big words and technical terms and Bardock and I just looked at each other and rolled our eyes. Somehow I think that we're going to get along just fine.
Meeting Piccolo was actually more intimidating than meeting Dende. I know that Dende is the Kami of Earth and that he's technically the most important person on the planet and all, but he acts like Gohan and I. I think he's the same age as us, but his job has made him mature faster, just as the things that happened to us did the same thing. He was very polite, but he has a snarky, sarcastic side to him that I liked a lot. That might have been because he was using it on Gohan, but I'm not admitting anything.
Piccolo is… very tall. I know I'm short next to Gohan, but Gohan is short next to Piccolo. (That might have been another reason Dende is less of a presence. He's about the same height as me.) His presence alone was overwhelming, and that was when he wasn't even looking at me. I remember seeing him at the WMAT, but I never stood that close to him.
There was something about being in the presence of the person who Gohan looks to as his second father that made me nervous, especially when I was suddenly the focus of his attention. I was never worried about Goku's approval or disapproval of me. Chi-Chi was a little more worrisome. She definitely has the potential to be a monster-in-law rather than a mother-in-law. Luckily, we bonded rather easily. She was very flattered that I knew that she'd been a fighter in the 23rd WMAT. She's even agreed to show me her fighting style, saying that I need to learn it because strength isn't everything.
Anyway, I was more worried about getting Piccolo's approval than anyone else. I know that however our life goes, Gohan will want Piccolo to be part of it, and it will be easier on everyone if we all like each other. I don't know what I did or he did, but it felt like he looked into my very soul for a few seconds before he smirked and said, "You'll do."
I was relieved, and I could tell that Gohan was too. He didn't say anything about it, though, and was very sarcastic instead, saying, "I'm so glad you approve of my choices, Piccolo." Piccolo just looked at him and said, "Tomorrow morning, brat. The waterfall." I could almost hear Gohan thinking that he'd made a mistake.
I'm so glad that Piccolo approves of me, and I know Gohan is too.
Love, Videl
8 July 777
GOHAN PROPOSED!
GOHAN PROPOSED!
GOHAN PROPOSED!
I'm so excited! I wondered if he might be thinking about it after he took me to see Piccolo, but the days passed and he didn't say or do anything else, so I thought I was wrong. I was disappointed, truth be told, but I tried not to let anything show.
It wasn't the most romantic of settings, but we're not the most romantic of people either. I've been bugging him for a while to take me to the different places on Earth that he's fought at, so he finally gave in today and took me pretty much around the world. I saw where his dad, Piccolo, and Raditz fought, and not far away from there was where Vegeta and Nappa showed up. He couldn't take me to Namek (for obvious reasons, the biggest one being that Frieza had completely blown it up), but he did show me where Frieza and his dad landed. There was still some debris left over from their spaceship, even years later. He even took me to the site of the Cell Games. There was a big, gaudy statue of my dad there now to commemorate his victory, but Gohan just showed me the huge hole in the ground (a canyon, really) where he and Cell used their Kamehaha attacks to try to kill the other. I couldn't believe how big it was. Now that I know so much more about energy, I could understand the significance of the power that was used.
The last place we went to was the site of the WMAT. I was really confused then, because as far as I understood, Gohan was still in Babidi's ship waiting to fight his dad during the tournament. He did fight there for a few minutes, he explained. It was right before Majin Buu was released. He'd been a second away from killing Goku when he felt its power and decided that killing it was more important at that point.
There are times when a hug will work to draw him out of his thoughts and times that won't. This was a time that it wasn't going to work, so I moved away from him a little bit and gave him space. When I turned around again, Gohan was suddenly behind me, and as I watched he got down on one knee. I brought one hand up to my mouth to cover my gasp.
He was so nervous, I could tell. It was absolutely adorable. He stuttered and stumbled through a few parts of his speech, and it was obvious that he'd rehearsed because it was a little too controlled (minus the stutters), but it doesn't mean I'm not going to treasure for the rest of my life. He always wants everything that he does for me to be perfect. I'm going to make sure that I write down every single word that he said, so when I'm old and have no memory left, I can still read this and know how much he loved me. It was completely perfect.
"Videl, you are the strongest person that I have ever known, not in strength, but in willpower. You fought one of the hardest things that you could ever fight against – your own mind – and you won. You're strong and determined and you never give up, no matter what. You're kind and sweet and intelligent and you've got an amazing right hook, as I've found out on multiple occasions. Your beauty on the inside is only matched by your beauty on the outside. I'm the luckiest man in the world to be with you, and I want to make it forever. Videl, will you marry me?"
How could anyone say no to something like that?
Love, Videl
31 October 777
Today has been a very crazy day. I finally met the rest of the people that Gohan collectively calls the "Z Fighters" and their families. (No one knows why they call themselves that, but for some reason it stuck.) We went to Capsule Corp because Bulma wanted to throw a big Halloween party and she invited absolutely everyone. Gohan said that no costumes were necessary, mostly because no one but Bulma and the kids would wear one.
Gohan warned me that it would probably be pretty crazy, but it really wasn't that bad. Later, he told me he was surprised that it went so smoothly. Usually there would be at least one fight between Vegeta and Goku, since Vegeta could only stand so much of Goku's… personality before he started getting homicidal. I'm pretty sure that Bulma threatened everyone within an inch of their life to be on their best behavior since it was the first time I was going to one of their parties. Chi-Chi probably put in her two cents as well.
We got there probably thirty minutes before the party actually started. We teleported (Gohan calls it Instantaneous Movement, but teleporting works for me) into the living room and the first thing we heard was Bulma and Vegeta screaming at each other. From what I could gather, Vegeta didn't want to go to the party and Bulma was threatening to make him sleep on the couch if he didn't. We waited until they'd stopped yelling before we went looking for them. Vegeta was glowering, but Bulma greeted us just as happily as she always does. Trunks was trying to act like his father, but he was too excited to see Gohan. It was really cute, seeing him try to act all serious and brooding while he tried to fight his excitement.
The first people to arrive were Krillin and his wife, Eighteen, and daughter, Marron. That little girl is absolutely adorable! She looks like Krillin if he was a girl and had blonde pigtails. Eighteen is… different. Gohan says that she was one of the androids that Cell absorbed and then spat back out again. She's the walking definition of "icy blonde," that's for sure. I didn't realize it at first, but Krillin participated in the WMAT at the same time that Goku and Chi-Chi did. His face when I told him I recognized him was priceless. I think he's grown used to being in the background, so being recognized for that was important to him. Later that night, Eighteen actually came up and thanked me for it.
Master Roshi and Oolong came with them. Even without all the stories Gohan's told me, they still screamed "pervert." That was proven not two minutes later when Roshi tried to grab my ass. The look on his face when Gohan caught his hand and glared at him was hilarious. Neither of them got too near me for the rest of the night.
Yamcha, Puar, Tien, and Chiaotzu came in next. I knew that all of them except for Puar had been in the WMAT too. Tien actually won against Goku the first year he competed. Yamcha never did great, but to be fair, Tien had broken his leg that same year, so he wouldn't have done well anyway. I knew he was on a baseball team as well. Somehow I think that could be considered cheating, considering his abilities. His team didn't lose very often, that's for sure. Chiaotzu was sweet, but he didn't talk much. Puar spent more time with Oolong, so I didn't get the chance to talk to her.
Piccolo came later. He immediately went to a corner and stayed there pretty much all night. I figured that he was anti-social, considering that he spends all his time up at the Lookout. Dende didn't come, but I guess that's because he would be neglecting his Kami duties or something. Mr. Popo didn't come either, but I wasn't too broken up about that. There was something about him that was just creepy.
Goku, Chi-Chi, and Goten came last. Chi-Chi was frothing at the mouth, probably because they were late. Gohan whispered to me that they were never on time if his dad had anything to do with it. Goten was even worse. He never failed to get into something that made it so Chi-Chi had to toss him into the bathtub five minutes before they were supposed to leave. Quite frankly, I don't know why she bothered. He and Trunks were whispering in a corner (far away from Piccolo so he theoretically couldn't overhear) and I knew that something was going to happen, and not a good something either.
Once everyone was there, Bulma made Gohan come up and introduce me. It was really, really embarrassing. Krillin and Yamcha were immediately on either side of him after his announcement so they could tease the life out of him. He told me later that he'd never been so thankful for his trip to the past – growing up with Raditz as a brother (basically) meant that he could deal much better with teasing now. Still, I could tell when it was getting to be too much, so I excused myself to Chi-Chi and Bulma and went over to rescue him.
Krillin thought about teasing me too, but a look from Gohan made him stop. Instead, he started asking about my family and what they thought about Gohan. When I mentioned Dad, he looked completely shocked. I think that even though Gohan mentioned my last name, no one put two and two together. Krillin was tactful about Dad, at least, if by tactful you mean ignoring the elephant in the room.
Yamcha wasn't so kind. He was laughing pretty hard. It was when he started doing impressions that I may or may not have lost my temper. One minute he was standing next to Gohan, the next minute there was a Yamcha-shaped hole in the wall and my fist was extended.
Everyone was staring at me. I was really embarrassed (again), but Vegeta suddenly started laughing. "I like this one," he said, and left. I apologized to Bulma for the hole, but she just sighed and shook her head. She was used to it, between Goten and Trunks. Later she admitted that she always got a thrill out of seeing Yamcha get taken down a peg or three – he was still upset that she was with Vegeta and he wasn't always the nicest person when he was angry.
When Yamcha finally came back in, I didn't apologize until he did. Maybe it was petty of me, but it was his fault in the first place. Krillin laughed at him. "Didn't you know that Gohan's been training her for over two years?" he asked. Yamcha just grumbled that he did now, mumbled an apology and then "suddenly" remembered that he had practice that he'd totally forgotten about. He left soon after. No one seemed too upset about it.
All in all, I think it went rather well. I didn't embarrass Gohan at all – he told me later how proud he was of me and that I'd actually gained some respect after what I'd done. That I'd gained a little bit of respect from Vegeta was almost unheard of. To be honest, I think he was just happy that someone else joined in on the "beat Yamcha to death" campaign.
Usually when someone tells me that they're proud of me, I just roll my eyes and move on. But when Gohan does it, he means it. It always gives me a thrill when he says something like that. I can't wait to marry this man!
Love, Videl
7 July 778
Well, tomorrow is the big day! I can't wait for Gohan to see me in my dress. I just know that he's going to be blown away. I wear dresses about once every blue moon, so it's always a special treat for him. But me in a wedding dress is completely different. I can't wait to see him either. He cleans up so nice and I don't get to see him in a suit very often, let alone a tuxedo.
In movies, you always see the bride asking herself if she's doing the right thing. If she's marrying the right guy, if she's doing it at the right time, if she should even be getting married at all. I thought that at some point I would be feeling those kinds of pre-wedding jitters. I haven't. Like, at all. Nothing. I've always been nothing less than totally confident that I am doing the right thing, marrying the right guy, getting married at the right time. I guess that means that we're meant to be or some such drivel. It's just going to be us up there, no maid of honor or best man or anything. Neither of us are that close to anyone – Gohan would have Raditz up there if he could, but since he can't, it wasn't that big of a deal to just do away with the whole idea. I might have asked Erasa at one point, but even since Gohan and I started dating, I spent less and less time with her. Maybe if Gohan had gone to high school with us, it would be different, but it isn't. She's going to be at the wedding, of course, but just as a guest.
We picked July 8th because a year ago tomorrow Gohan asked me to marry him. I didn't think I was that much of a romantic, but when he suggested the date, I thought it was perfect. He later told me that it was actually Raditz's idea. Bardock still complains about how much of a sap Raditz is. It's kind of funny.
I'm heading to bed. It's really early, but I want to make sure that I've got plenty of rest. According to every married woman who thinks it's her business to stick her nose into my wedding (Chi-Chi and Bulma don't count), I'm going to be exhausted by the end of the day. Well, I'll show them!
Love, Videl
8 July 778
Chi-Chi had volunteered to help Videl the morning of the wedding, but the younger woman made her stay with her son. Videl and Bulma had grown close during the time they had known each other, not in a mother-daughter sort of way (even though their ages could have made it that way), but a close friend way. So while Chi-Chi stayed with Gohan, Bulma stayed with Videl. The blue-haired woman fussed with her veil for a moment before declaring it perfect and stepping back. A knock on the door drew Bulma away, and she peeked through it before opening it wider to let Mr. Satan in the room. His eyes filled with tears immediately, and Videl sighed in her mind. He was such a big softy.
"I can't believe that my little girl is getting married!" he blubbered. Videl mutely held out a handkerchief to him, glaring at Bulma as she snickered. The older woman waved cheerfully and left, probably to go find Vegeta and make sure he was behaving. "You look so beautiful, Videl, just like your mother when we got married." He fumbled with something in his pocket for a few seconds before finally drawing it out.
"I know that you don't have your something blue," he explained, "so I got this out of the safe. Your mother wore it at our wedding." It was a delicate necklace, a single sapphire drop dangling from the chain.
Videl thought about telling him that she actually did have something blue on, but decided not to. Although she amused herself with his reaction to her explanation that she had light blue underwear on underneath her wedding dress, that was for Gohan's knowledge and viewing pleasure alone. Instead, she took off the necklace that she had gotten and said, "Thanks, Dad. Can you put it on for me?" He did so, thought he fumbled with the tiny clasp a few times. When he finally got it hooked, he kissed her temple.
Her bottom lip trembled briefly and she threw her arms around her father. "I love you, Daddy," she whispered.
"I love you too, Sweetpea," he replied. "Are you ready to go knock that boy's socks off?"
Videl grinned up at him. "You bet!" she said, and took his proffered arm and let him lead her out of the room.
Gohan fidgeted nervously at the front of the church Videl had chosen to be married in. He didn't care one way or the other about most of the stuff pertaining to the wedding, so he pretty much just agreed with everything she said. Most everyone was seated at this point, including his grandfather and uncle. The mirror had been brought here specifically so Bardock and Raditz could watch Gohan "get the old ball and chain," as Raditz had teased. Lunch knock him one over the head for that, but winked at Gohan while her husband complained about spousal abuse. Bardock just rolled his eyes at them.
Erasa waved furiously at him from one of the seats before her date – Sharpener, he thought – grabbed her hand and held it. She pouted at him, but did not do it again. On the other side, Vegeta plucked at the tie of the suit that Bulma had forced him to wear and scowled. At least he was behaving. Goku was perfectly at ease, even in a tuxedo, and teased the Saiyan Prince mercilessly. Seeing the man's darkening look, Gohan just prayed that they could all make it through the wedding in one piece. Hell, even just the ceremony would be nice. Heaven knew that he and Videl both loved a good fight, but he wanted some peace and quiet for the ceremony.
Music started playing, the Bridal March if he remembered correctly. Videl had been surprisingly traditional in some ways, and the music was one of them. Knowing what would happen next, he straightened up and looked down the aisle expectantly. He saw Mr. Satan first. Then his jaw dropped.
Videl had eyes only for him, and he for her, as she slowly walked toward him. Her slim figure was encased in white, her face covered with a short veil. He could tell that she was glowing with happiness, even through the sheer fabric. As she reached his side, he mutely held out a hand. She took it, pausing to give her father a kiss on the cheek.
In later years, he would admit that he didn't remember much of anything during the ceremony. He had vague memories of repeating what the minister told him to repeat and putting the second ring on her finger. The one thing that did stick out in his mind, as with most people who get married, was the moment that the minister said, "You may now kiss the bride."
As he lifted up her veil and her sparkling eyes met his, he knew that he would never regret marrying this woman. As he cupped her face with one hand and brought her smiling lips to his, he had never been more at peace.
The End
And... there you have it. The end of De Profundis and the end of Sic Veta Est. Maybe a little bit cheesy, but hey, Gohan deserves his own cheesy happily ever after too!
Thank you so much to everyone who has stuck with this story through thick and thin: through a wedding, graduating college, two kids, and a dog who gets into the trash and spreads it all over the back yard. I appreciate your feedback and your time and your thoughts so much. If you leave a review for this last chapter, I'll appreciate it, but if you don't, my hit counter will tell me the story.
See you later,
~tp