this is what it takes to get a visit from dad apparently

[keepshispride]

[It's kind of convenient how mysterious portals connecting different timelines started opening up just as Trunks' timeline came under attack from some bizarre, stupidly powerful, alien dragons. Convenient that Vegeta happened to jump through one at the right moment to help his alternate timeline son out, for sure.

Inset generic DBZ movie battle sequence here- oh wait, Goku and Gohan didn't make it. Well, Vegeta and Trunks still manage to finish the fight somehow, without Son "Kill Steal" Goku there to save the day.]

FINAL FLASH!

[Vegeta fires his most powerful attack at the last, most powerful enemy, hopeful that will finally bring the battle to a close. There's the kind of horrendous explosion you'd expect, at least. As the dust starts to clear, Vegeta floats down from the sky, short on breath and reaching out with all his senses to detect any remaining enemies- and to keep track of his son.]

Comments

[futuretrunks]

[ He loves you, too, Vegeta.

But his being happy seeing his father from another timeline is short-lived as he reaches around to his back pocket and pulls out a device that his mother, no doubt, put together. It looks similar to a dragon ball radar (not that that's any good for him with Piccolo dead and all) but a little on the smaller side. A few pushes of the buttons at the top of the device, he turns his attention off towards that other portal he had been looking at, only to see it close. ]

Man, it's difficult to really get a reading on them or figure out how they're appearing like this. The fact that they're so infrequent and their longevity varies isn't helping much either.

[ ...Well, he is Bulma's son, ok? There's more to him than the whole turning Super Saiyan thing. Who else is going to help his mother repair things when they end up broken? ]

Mom thought it might be something to do with my going back in time. [ His face falls for a moment at that. Repercussions were also a risk he knew he had to take back then. ] Maybe it tore a rift in one of the timelines somewhere and now things are spilling through. It would make sense if they're appearing in your timeline as well since that's where I traveled to...

[ A sigh, he pockets the device and looks over to his father then. ]

How many of these have appeared in your timeline? Just the one? Or have there been more?

[keepshispride]

Several. Your mother was running some tests to see what they were.

[And then her husband fucking jumped through one. Vegeta's eye twitches slightly at the mention of Future Bulma.]

If those creatures arrived here the same way I did, the rifts likely aren't restricted to Earth. What a mess.

[futuretrunks]

Just as I thought.

[ If the rifts were open to beings from other planets, let alone other universes, it would be a bit of a problem if they happened to be on the 'let's destroy this world and take it over for ourselves' side such as Frieza or Cell.

Brows furrowed, he looks to his father when they've more or less assessed the situation concerning these portals, something else on his mind. ]

Getting you back to your time might require the time machine since we can't really be sure with where these portals lead to and I'm not about to have you end up in some other universe or timeline.

[ Because he's always fought to ensure that the younger version of himself had his father in his life, something he would give anything for in his timeline. ]

[keepshispride]

It can wait until we're certain nothing is about to attack that you can't handle yourself. [Because as much as he has no intention of leaving his version of Trunks to grow up fatherless, he also doesn't intend to just ditch this Trunks when he might need him.] ... Do you have it with you now?

[Or are they going to have to talk to Bulma. He's not sure he wants to do that.]

[futuretrunks]

[ Talk about stubborn. Then again, it's really no surprise with Vegeta and he can't help but feel... what's the word... touched, maybe? That Vegeta wishes to hang around for a bit rather than get back to his own timeline as quickly as he can.

Their relationship is forever a complicated one, even if it's more on the tamer side now. He can't even begin to understand the possible conflict of emotions Vegeta must feel between his own son back in his timeline and him in this one. To have two versions of ones son... sort of like when he was around his mother back in the other timeline.

It's... just complicated.

At the question, he glances up, a bit of a smile tugging at his lips. Well, this is about to get a little more complicated. ]

No, I don't. I didn't exactly expect to see you and have to get you back to your timeline.

[ So yeah, seeing his mother might have to happen. Sorry, Vegeta. ]

I don't even know what mom's going to think about all of this.

[keepshispride]

How shortsighted of you.

[Vegeta makes things complicated for everyone around him just by existing, it's great. It's actually all pretty simple for him though- there's Trunks and then there's Trunks and they're both his sons but the younger one probably needs him around a bit more. Simple. And because it's simple, Vegeta has no desire to think about it any further than that and make it complicated.

Bringing Bulma into it though... That does make things a little more complicated.]

... You can deal with her yourself. [VEGETA.]

[futuretrunks]

[ As expected, in all honesty. Not to mention he's not even sure how his mother will react to seeing his father from another timeline alive and well in their timeline... it's just probably for the better that he tell her afterwards about Vegeta's little visit. ]

Alright then. Guess that means you don't want a tour of the place, huh?

[ Teasing, maybe a little in an attempt to lighten the situation some, he smiles over to Vegeta. ]

How's everyone else doing, anyways?

[ Because he can't say that he's not curious given how much time has passed since he last visited their timeline. ]

[keepshispride]

[Bulma is going to cross space and time to murder them both. Look, Vegeta doesn't know if Future Bulma would be happy or furious to see him and honestly he's not sure which option is worse- best to just avoid the whole thing, that's an advanced Feelings problem and he's still at the beginners level.]

I've seen the Earth before, I'm sure I can live without a tour now. [Crosses his arms and looks away.] ... They're fine. Everyone's still alive.

[Informative.]

[futuretrunks]

[ So informative and so very Vegeta at the same time. Really, he should have expected that. Still, never hurts to ask, right?

With Vegeta not wanting to come back to Capsule Corp here in his timeline, he slowly begins to drift away from the ground and up into the sky, glancing off in the direction of home. ]

Listen, I can go and grab the time machine from back home if you want. That way, you don't have to see mom and I don't have to explain how and why you're here.

[ Although, somehow he gets the feeling that she'll berate him either way for all of this, even though it's not as if he personally invited his father to his timeline. But, you know, Bulma.

A pause, he looks back to the prince of saiyans. ]

Unless you want to check the area out for a bit and see if anything else comes through one of those.