Silhouette

Part 1 - Control

Chapter 9 - Tensions

As he flew away from his father, Gohan released a tight breath in one single rush. Feeling his shoulders relax, he tried to make everything else unclench as well. It was hard to do.

His mind was still a whirl with everything he had just witnessed. With what his own father had done. Oh, sure, he had no issues saving Goten, but once he'd moved his brother to safety the realization had clicked. That blast had come from his father. A blast that could have killed Goten if he hadn't stepped in so quickly. Thankfully, he had those fast reflexes, especially when it came to protecting his little brother.

On top of all that, those things Goku had said… things that didn't sound like him at all. Vegeta had said something about his father regressing to his Saiyan roots and while Gohan could believe that, he didn't want to believe it, regardless of the evidence in front of his face.

The odd mannerisms of his mother. Goten's comment the other day about Dad starting a fight. Bulma claiming Goku had been the one to push Vegeta into a fight today.

And then there was the city…

But…

But watching his father fight Vegeta, he'd noticed something. With Vegeta constantly bringing up Chi-Chi and the third class insult, Goku's reactions had switched. Sometimes it was a subtle change. Sometimes it was a stark difference.

Gohan couldn't explain it. Watching his dad snap back and forth like that… like watching two people having a tug of war of control.

His thoughts drifted on until he felt a familiar splash of energy, a reminder of his current goal out here in the first place. He needed to check on Goten and Trunks. And that was Goten's energy.

Smiling to himself, Gohan floated down to where the boys were sitting in the rubble of a mountain crag. Rocks and dust littered in their hair and clothes, a few scratches on their skin from the harsh landing, but otherwise they seemed fine. A little shaken maybe, but so was he.

"Hey, guys," he said, landing close to the two of them. "You both look like you're okay. Rough landing?"

Purple eyes rolled as Trunks muttered. "Yeah. You could say that."

At least Goten was more enthusiastic, grinning wide as he looked up from his seated position. "Hey, Gohan! Do you know what happened? Trunks and I can't really remember. And where are our dads?"

Wincing, Gohan pointed over his shoulder. "Back that way. It's okay now. Dad seems like he's back to normal thanks to Vegeta."

"Yes!" Trunks grinned and jumped to his feet. "I knew my dad would win! Isn't that awesome, Goten?"

Looking to his brother, Gohan frowned. Things didn't look good. Apparently, Goten was shaken up by what had happened, his bright demeanor dimming as he followed Trunks to his feet. Gohan sighed. He couldn't really blame him, either. Back to normal now or not, something was definitely wrong with their dad. Something he couldn't understand or explain.

"Yeah, great..." Goten mumbled before looking up to him. "Gohan, has Dad ever been like that before?"

"No, this is new," Gohan said. "And I'm not sure it's over."

There was so much to think about, so much to worry over. What had happened? Why was Dad acting so out of character? Having to be snapped out of it. Like a raging Super Saiyan, except not really. He had seemed perfectly lucid. What did that mean?

He glanced down to his little brother and grimaced again. Goten was too young to be dealing with this. How old was he? Ten? Eleven? Gosh, Gohan had beaten Cell around that age. But he'd had Dad around during the tumultuous fighting, or most of it at least. Dealing with Mom after the battle had been one of the toughest things, too, but in a way necessary for both of them to work through the issues of losing Goku for good.

Except now his dad was back and something was wrong with him . It wasn't some villain they had to fight. Not some lookalike pretending to be their father. No, it was Dad and he was the strongest being on the planet. With the new volatile personality that could spell bad things for his mom in the future if this problem wasn't remedied, if his dad snapped again.

But what could he do about it? He couldn't hover around looking for a problem. What if his dad was fine now? Then there wouldn't be an issue and he'd be waiting for days for nothing. Days he didn't have time to waste. His wife and daughter needed him, too.

Biting his lip, Gohan knelt down in front of his brother, setting hands on Goten's shoulders. "I need you to watch over Mom for me, okay?"

Wide, dark eyes lifted to face him. "H-huh?"

"Even if he snaps again, I don't think Dad will do anything to her," he reassured quickly. "It was because of Vegeta constantly bringing her up that he came back to normal. But, just...just watch them closely for me over the next couple days, okay?"

Tears shined in Goten's eyes even as he gave a shaky nod and reached up to push at the forming tears with the flat bottom of his palm. Gohan's heart wrenched a little to see the emotion from his normally happy and upbeat little brother. He almost took back his request, took back the weighty responsibility.

Almost.

"He really was gonna blast me, wasn't he?" Goten sniffed. "All of that was real, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Gohan whispered. "Yeah, I think so."

Taking a breath, he pulled his brother into a hug. Squeezing tightly and then releasing to rub his back. Much like he had when he was still living at home, when Goten was younger. All those times he'd had to comfort him because Mom wasn't available and Dad wasn't there at all to fill in the gap like he'd been for Gohan at those younger ages.

"Look," he said. "We have to be strong. Both of us. For Mom. We'll figure out what's wrong and do whatever we need to do to fix it. This isn't Dad . Remember that."

His little brother hugged back fiercely. "I'm scared, Gohan. I can't fight Dad alone. He's too strong."

"I know, I know, I'm not expecting you to fight him," Gohan said, taking a breath before continuing. "Just keep an eye out. I don't think he'd do anything to Mom even if he's like that and he shouldn't do anything to us either. Just listen to him if he does snap again and come get me as soon as you can, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," Goten nodded as he pulled away from the hug, wiping his eyes free of the tears. "I'll do my best, Gohan."

With a smile, Gohan nodded and then got to his feet, glancing over at Trunks. The other boy had stood there watching them in polite silence and when he met his gaze now, the lilac eyes turned away.

Groaning, Gohan rubbed at the back of his head. He was too busy dealing with his own conflicted emotions. He'd done his best to reassure Goten without giving false hope, but...what was Trunks thinking about the whole ordeal? Trunks had the power to influence Goten in ways Gohan couldn't.

"Hey, Trunks," Goten said, turning to his friend as if on cue. "I bet you wanna see your dad, don't you?"

"Yeah!" Hovering above the ground, Trunks pointed back toward West City. "Let's go and see if we can meet up with them before they get home."

Goten nodded, lifting into the sky as well, sending a quick glance to his brother. "I'll only go if Gohan comes. I don't wanna run into my dad alone."

Of everything Goten had done and said so far, that one hit Gohan the hardest. His brother didn't feel safe around their own father anymore. The knowledge made him freeze in place for a moment, shaking his head before joining the boys in the air. They took off in silence, leaving each other to their own thoughts as the wind rushed through their hair and the smell of sulfur and ash slowly dropped away from their senses. And when Gohan searched his own feelings on the matter, he realized he had a bitter pill to swallow. Because deep down, he didn't trust his dad, either.

~!~

Now that Pan had calmed down, Videl smiled down at her wide-eyed but quiet daughter. The girl was usually so well behaved. The sudden outburst had come as quite a shock.

Not to mention the strange power the others had sensed. Gohan and the boys running off at the first sign of trouble. Krillin showing up later with Marron unconscious or asleep, no doubt shaken by whatever she had witnessed, and then he'd gone rushing out with Bulma. Goku and Vegeta had come in even later, wounded from some fight but otherwise fine, nothing to worry about too much, though they did hold very little information about the others.

Goku had gone off to Chi-Chi almost instantly, seeming worried about something, barely giving her any thought as he ran off to his wife. Vegeta, on the other hand, had found a wall to lean against. They met eyes once or twice, but the silence between them was certainly deafening in its own right. A silence that made her glad to have Pan still making some noise, even if it was only baby babbling.

At least until Goten slammed the door open on their otherwise peaceful quiet. "Where's mom? Is she okay?"

"Quiet," Videl hushed in reaction to the boy's panicked shouting, but then she blinked and realized Goten was the only one walking through the door. "Wait, is Gohan with you?"

Instead of giving her an answer, the miniature Goku walked around as if ignoring her. And then Trunks walked in shortly behind, but still no Gohan. Videl pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, even as Trunks flew three feet to stand in front of his dad.

"Dad!" Trunks exclaimed, close to the same panic as his friend. "Hey, where'd Mom go?"

For his answer, Vegeta grunted and shrugged. Oh, right. They had come in after Krillin so none of them would know where Bulma was, but before Videl could barely open her mouth to give them the information they were desiring, Gohan showed up, a hand on her shoulder as he smirked at her.

"Hey," Gohan said, his voice much calmer than the little boys. "You weren't worried, were you?"

At first, Videl smiled back, but then narrowed her eyes and spat back at his too-calm demeanor. "Yeah, I was! You idiot! Why was it taking you so long? Krillin came in here talking about his city being destroyed and he hadn't seen any of you."

She mumbled on about being worried, but Goten sprang towards her at the knowledge. "Krillin's here?"

Videl shook her head. "He was but he left with Bulma. Apparently Eighteen was hurt or having some issues with her cybernetic parts and they needed Bulma's help."

Gohan squeezed her shoulder. "Krillin was in that city?"

Videl nodded. "Yeah. Why? Is that important?"

"Oh man, Dad's gonna be..." Gohan drifted off, then cleared his throat, not even bothering to answer or explain. "Speaking of Dad, he's here, isn't he? With my mom, I guess?"

Vegeta grunted and decided the information spilled was all he needed to make his exit. Meanwhile, Trunks kicked back with his hands behind his head. "Whoa. That's a lot to take in."

Before Videl could process the reactions and ask Gohan to explain, her little brother-in-law walked up, looking uncharacteristically nervous now. "Videl, you might want to get Pan out of here. Dad's here, right?"

"Huh?" Videl blinked. "How come?"

"Goten," Gohan jumped in. "It's fine. Why don't you go check on Mom for me?"

Goten pouted up at him, tiny child eyes glancing at the baby in the room. "But..."

Gohan shook his head, then turned attention to Videl, his hand never leaving her shoulder. "Videl, I'll explain later, but it might actually be best to just go home at this point."

"Yeah," Trunks said into the confused startled silence. "You might want to get as far away from that guy as you can. There's no telling when he's gonna snap again."

"What?" Videl whispered, turning from Trunks to Goten to Gohan. "You guys can't be talking about Goku, can you?"

The tension and squeezing of her shoulder was all the answer she needed, but Gohan whispered the affirmation into the air anyway. "Yeah, actually, we are..."

"He went crazy," Trunks said, the only one acting casual about the information drop. "Good thing my dad was there to stop him, though."

"Shut up, Trunks!" Goten snapped. "You can't say that sort of stuff about my dad!"

"What? But it's the truth. He went crazy! You were there, Goten. You saw what he did."

"I said shut up !" Goten shouted, energy building around him. "I don't care if it's true. You don't get to talk about him like that."

Holding his hands up defensively, Trunks took a step or two back away from his friend. "Whoa. Okay. Chill. Sorry."

Bouncing her eyes between the boys, Videl glanced up to her tense husband with a frown, still looking for answers. "What's going on? What am I missing?"

Instead of answering like she wanted, Gohan sighed and focused on his brother, which she supposed was fair. "Goten, this isn't going to help."

With a breath, Goten appeared to relax only to turn around and head for the door, speaking over his shoulder. "I'm gonna go fly around for a bit. Sorry, Gohan, I'm not gonna help right now."

Videl tried to get a grasp on the situation, wondering what all the fuss was about, why were the boys fighting, why was Goten so upset…. The questions and concerns flooded her mind and still no explanation seemed forthcoming. A glance to Trunks to see the boy staring off at where Goten had disappeared, staring down the hallway with a frown. A glance to the window, seeing a flash of black and bright orange, a sign of Goten flying off.

Then with a sigh, her gaze turned back to Gohan. Looking to her husband for answers, found herself lost and longing once more. His eyes seemed distant, thoughtful, like his brain was working through possibilities and outcomes of some difficult problem. His forehead crinkled, he frowned, one of his cheeks sucked inward in a sign that he was chewing on the soft skin in his mouth. Clearly, Gohan was still trying to figure everything out for himself so any kind of answer would take its time.

Only, once the point of contention, Goku, walked into the room, everything around her tensed. The very air seemed to grow thick as the Saiyan warrior walked in from the other side of the room. Having come from another direction, Goku blinked and glanced around, as if searching for the cause of tension, unknowing of the fact that his entrance had brought the sense of hovering doom into the air, no idea that his presence was the issue at hand here.

"Hey, is Goten all right?" Goku asked, wild hair bouncing slightly as he turned his head back and forth. "I thought I felt his energy around here."

Videl opened her mouth to respond, but Gohan beat her to it, an arm around her protectively. "Yeah, he's fine. Well, no, he's not, but he will be fine eventually. He's just letting off steam right now. Anyway, how's Mom doing?"

Goku sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "She's fine. She's just keeping an eye on Marron right now."

From the corner of her eye, Videl noticed Trunks take a quick step away from Goku. Of all the people to be scared of… she found the missing information to be driving her insane. Goku was their sweet protector, the somewhat silly father of Gohan to complete his strange little country alien family. Whereas Vegeta and Piccolo created an atmosphere that made it understandable if a child wanted to back away, Goku was the opposite. Open, warm, friendly, nothing to fear.

So why did Trunks back away when Goku stepped closer? Why did Gohan tense up like a spring when his father walked over? Goku was all smiles as he leaned down to get a good look at the quiet but observant baby in Videl's arms. Well, of course he would smile at his granddaughter. What was everyone worried for?

"How is Pan doing?" Goku asked into the thickness. "It's been a while since I've gotten to see her."

Videl blinked and tried to smile back like everything was normal, since she still had no real reason to believe otherwise except for the strange reactions of those around her. "Oh, uhm, she's fine. What about you?"

She kept an eye on him, observing every little twitch in his shoulders, in his smile. His gaze lifted to Gohan, who remained unmoving beside her, but then quickly shifted back to the baby girl. For her part, Pan giggled and reached out as soon as her eyes found her grandfather.

"Hey, Pan! You wanna be held by Grandpa?" A quick look to Videl as if to ask permission, and a nod allowing him to take her baby girl out of her arms, much to the delight of both the grandfather and granddaughter in question. "Look at you! You're gonna be super strong one day, aren't ya?"

Although Videl kept her eye on those two, she did notice Trunks creeping up closer. The lavender-haired child walked up to Gohan, arms crossed casually but keeping a certain distance from Goku all the same. With a hand at her chest, Videl frowned at Gohan, still searching for some direction because besides the thick air, everything felt perfectly fine and normal to her.

"Uhm, Dad?"

Actually hearing Gohan's voice was a bit of a surprise, but a tired sigh escaped from Goku at the sound. "Hm? What is it, son?"

The two locked eyes. Goku was holding Pan in the air, but he slowly brought the girl down. As if the two had made some silent communication, a conversation through the wavelengths of their gazes. An issue of trust brought to the table. The slump in Goku's shoulder was apparent.

But then the tension faded slightly when Gohan let out a long breath. "Just. Be careful, okay?"

"I will," Goku said, his smile brightening a little as he turned back to Pan, lifting her up in the air to make her squeal and giggle as a happy baby should. "You like to be held up like this, don't you, Pan?"

Seeing how Pan was enjoying herself, Videl almost forgot there was a tension issue hovering around the room. At least until Gohan's hand slid down to snatch hers, fingers entwining in her own, softly. And yet…

Trunks was at their feet, glaring up at Gohan. "Really? Really, Gohan? You're going to trust him with your baby?"

Videl's eyes widened at the accusation. "What?"

The squealing of her baby brought her attention back to Goku, who was lightly tossing a laughing Pan into the air. "Hah – you still can't fly right? That's all right. I can keep doing this until you do learn."

Meanwhile, Trunks' lowered whispering was practically a hiss now. "Goku's the one who blew up the city. He's fine now, but who knows when he'll snap again. Goten was right to tell you guys to leave."

"He what? " Videl exclaimed, feeling like ice had been dropped down the back of her shirt. Shaking her head, she pulled away from Gohan and walked up to Goku, setting her hands on her hips. "Goku, could I have my child back please? I don't want you tossing her like that."

A darkness flashed across the Saiyan's eyes, sending a chill down Videl's spine for sure. Although Goku did stop tossing Pan, he didn't hand her over. Instead, the man seemed determined to hold his ground, an action that both confused and shook Videl to her core.

"What? Why?" Goku asked. "She likes it."

Keeping her stance, swallowing her sudden fear, Videl glared up at him. "Because I don't want you to."

"She's having fun. It's no big deal." Goku's eyes rolled and a strange smile settled on his face as he looked at Pan. "Isn't that right?"

Behind her, Videl could hear the murmurs of Trunks and Gohan. A discussion or argument centered around trusting Goku. Of all people, Goku . Yet she could see why now. Something was definitely not right here and Gohan hadn't denied a single accusation from Trunks. Which meant the thing about the city was true. For whatever reason. Somehow. Either way, whatever excuse, she couldn't trust Goku right now. Not with her baby girl.

Taking a breath, she calmly changed her tactic and offered a tired sigh instead of a glare. "Goku, can I please have Pan back? It's about time for her to be fed."

At the lighter tone, Goku seemed to freeze and blink several times before looking around the area, eyes finally landing on her. "Oh. Yeah, sure thing."

Receiving Pan back into her arms released a lot of pent up tension in her body, as well as seeing that brighter look in Goku's eyes. Confused or not, that innocent spark was something she was used to seeing in all of the Son boys. Something that felt right. Whatever oddity had surfaced was gone now and when Videl turned back to Gohan, she couldn't help the smug smirk.

At least she knew she could handle things when the tension got too high. Gohan, on the other hand, still looked like a spring wired up about to snap or like a deer caught in the headlights on a dark road. Though, to be fair, he'd probably seen more than she had in order to cause such a severe reaction. Videl was pretty certain at this point that she'd rather not hear the details, either.

Not just yet anyway. Let her stay in the dark for a little while longer. If anything, she was now sure that Gohan was keeping her out of the information loop for a reason, and he'd explain when he figured it all out for himself. She could trust in him to make the right call.

Author's Note: Once again thank you all so very very much for your comments and love toward this fic as we go through this ride. I really cannot tell you how much I appreciate you all. It may be a while for the next update. I'll still try to keep the fast Monday and Friday schedule but I'm out of pre-written material (at least for quite a few chapters to come) so things may slow down. I'll be trying to keep it quick though! I like having a consistent schedule like this!