Record
Disclaimer: I threw a wish in the well, don't ask me I'll never own DBZ…
A/n: One of the many Pan-centered little pieces I have lying around that I thought I would finally post. This is part 1 of a 2 part series. But the second part is not written yet, so don't be too anxious for it to show up quickly. Enjoy!
"Papa!" Pan was all smiles as she ran to her father and wrapped her arms around him.
He smiled back and gathered her closer.
"Welcome home, Pan. I feel like we never see you anymore. How are you doing with school? Gohan reluctantly let his daughter go as he began his familial interrogation.
Laughing, Pan eagerly answered her father's good-natured questions. "Everything's going fine, Papa. I make sure to study as hard as you trained me to."
"That's my girl!" cheered Gohan with a smile. His laughter echoed as he turned and headed through the door and back inside, Pan following behind.
"Is Mama home?" the young woman asked, heading into her mountain home.
Gohan shook his head.
"How about we make some tea and head out back to talk while we wait for your mother to come home?"
"Sounds good, Papa."
Pan and her father had easily slipped into conversation, sitting on the back porch as the sun began to set before them. The mood was calm and words flew smoothly through the air.
Pan updated her father on the current progress of her college courses. She told him all about the professors she liked, and about the ones she didn't. Her face glowed as she discussed friends and classmates; she had a few funny stories about each one of them that made Gohan laugh as well. Pan wanted her father to know how her life was going. Having her family involved was important to her, even if they were miles away from one another.
In turn, Gohan replied with a summary of his work. Experiments he was in the middle of. Classes he was teaching. A theorem he had just broken through. Whether or not Pan understood it all, she paid close attention, enjoying the way her father's eyes lit up with each new topic concerning his passions. She was happy because he was happy. He appreciated that she was willing to listen.
When the conversation died out into a peaceful silence, father and daughter sat back to finish their tea. (Even if said tea had cooled considerably by then.)
After finishing hers, the young woman set her empty mug down and stood up to stretch. She walked to the edge of the cliff, perched above the water and observing the sky's transformation.
Pan felt the wind lift, carrying her long, black hair with it. She reveled in the feeling of the small breeze and the freedom it gave to her locks. It made her smile again.
But suddenly the wind shifted, now less soft and more cutting.
Her dad had gone Super Saiyan behind her.
"Papa?" the female Sayain cautiously turned around with slow movements. She regarded her father with anxious and apprehensive eyes. "What's wrong, Papa?"
Gohan had his arms crossed as energy flowed around him. His hard, blue eyes glared at his daughter. His fury was palpable in the currents of the air.
"Pan," her name was a growl from his lips. "What is on the back of your neck?"
The ebony-haired girl swiftly brought a hand up to rub at the spot in question. She immediately knew what he was referring to. Pan turned sheepish in front of her father's anger.
"A tattoo?" she tried to take an innocent tone. It was an effort to placate herself before the older man.
"I can see that, Pan." His tone was still short and clipped. "But why is it there?"
"I promise it's not as bad as it seems, Papa. And I promise I'll explain, but only if you return to normal. You're scaring me, Papa."
Gohan did not instantly reply; his Saiyan form continued to glow for a few brief moments. But, eventually nodding, he dropped the transformation. His arms, however, remained crossed. Pan sighed in relief and realized she was now expected to continue.
"I promise it's not as bad as you think, Papa."
"Not as bad as I think?" He raised an eyebrow, as if curiosity slightly won over fury for the moment. Pan could not know what he was thinking; he was not thinking anything, just feeling.
"Umm,…I mean, it's not like I got drunk and woke up the next morning in the middle of nowhere with fresh ink on the back of my neck…" That obviously was not the right thing to say. Pan backed up a few steps.
"Pan…" Gohan's lips growled beneath cyan eyes.
The young woman in question backed away a few more steps.
"Papa, please…"
Her 'please' could always perfectly manipulate this particular Saiyan. It was hardwired to, between their bond as father and daughter. Gohan powered down from Super Saiyan 2.
"Explain Pan." He was still in a state of extreme anger, but he possessed more control over it now.
Pan sighed, unconsciously rubbed the back of her neck, and took one step forward.
"I was thinking about Grandpa," she started. "I just miss him so much, Papa. And sometimes, I think, no, I feel as if I can sense him with us. I wanted something that brought me closer to him, made me feel as if he's with me always."
She could almost hear her father thinking, 'Oh Pan…'
She took two steps closer and brought her arms up in a personal hug, hoping to comfort herself enough to get the rest of her words out.
"He was so powerful, Papa. So amazing. And you come from that power. You're amazing, Papa. I am so proud to have your for a father. I need to have people know where I came from. I need them to know who I am. A Son."
Her voice, it quivered just in the slightest, but could not mask latent power. Gohan could sense both the fear and the pride in her voice.
Pan had grown up as an insecure young girl. Treated only as a child by the family she desired to see her as the fighter that was in her blood. This wound had changed by the time she came back from space. It had shifted even more as they fought Baby. It turned when she battled with the various Shadow Dragons. And this distress transformed when her hero left everything behind. There was nothing left. It seemed as if her doubts and fears had flown away on the tail of that dragon that day.
Pan Son may always be her father's daughter, but from that time on, she became stronger than just his little girl.
Now she stood before Gohan as a young woman with both a powerful body, and a powerful heart. And the strength of his mind.
"I gave up being the granddaughter of the Champ, but I will never give up the ones who have made be what I am today. So I chose to honor all this by placing something permanent, for all the world to see, near me. And, I thought, what better than a tattoo? I immediately knew what I wanted to get after that."
Pan turned, throwing her hair away from her neck, and revealed the markings that had so upset her father. There, on the back of her neck, was the image of a golden, orange ball, four red stars peering from within the orb. Underneath the four-star dragon ball, written in solid black ink, was the word "SON" in all capital letters.
"Gone, but not forgotten." Gohan smiled.
The young woman watched as her father's entire countenance changed, his body language relaxing and his anger fading.
"Of course, Papa," replied Pan, tears threatening to shed. But she chose to laugh instead. "I believe it would be impossible to forget all that has happened."
"I doubt anyone would disagree with you there," his gentle laugh was agreeing with her.
"You know me, Papa, always trying to prove a point."
Smiling, but with a sigh, Gohan returned, "I know, Pan. Sometimes I just wish you wouldn't do is so forcefully."
Pan had to laugh at that; her father would always be protective of his only child.
She ran into Gohan's arms once again.
And she would not have it any other way.
"Gohan? Are you out there? Is Pan with you?" Videl's call from inside the house interrupted the hug.
"We're coming, Momma!" replied Pan.
Gohan threw his arm around his daughter's shoulder, guiding her inside. As they began walking through the door, Gohan finished their conversation.
"Please try not to cause so much trouble next time you come for a visit, Pan. Oh, and I'll let you tell your mother about this."
Laughing all the way into the kitchen, Pan had one last thought before she greeted her mother.
'If Papa got this upset about the tattoo on my neck, I'll make sure I never mention the one on my lower back that simply says, "TRUNKS".'
END
(for now)
A/n: Hope you enjoyed it. If so, leave a review or fav the piece. I put this under DBZ instead of DBGT, even though it totally follows the DBGT timeline, because I always put my pieces under DBZ because I am more accustomed to. Plus, it is easier to find stuff in that category, I think. Also, this is not edited much (spelling and grammar-wise it is hopefully not bad), but I left it mostly as I found it. Well, someday part 2 will appear. Til, then, see ya! -ROMS