Setting the pan to the side, ChiChi cursed lightly to herself and barely caught the pie tins as her fresh pans jostled them to the counter edge. Luckily, martial arts' reflexes did not fade with time and raising two boys only sharpened them.

As she set the tins back atop the stove, ChiChi paused, listened. It was still early in the morning, with only a little hint of light painting the horizon. Her boys, despite being two of the strongest beings in the universe, were heavy sleepers. After a moment's hesitation, she resumed her separation of the dishes, setting them into distinct piles.

Autumn had announced its arrival with the changing of the leaves and the cooling of the wind. A welcomed reprieve from the hot of summer always brought with it the favorite activities of the Son Family—late night picnics, candlelight displays, leave pile jumpings and perhaps the most revered, the autumn harvest.

During the cooler months, much as her family could likely have survived on fish for the rest of their lives, they would switch it out for more hearty meats—deer, dinosaur (Gohan had a preference for Tyrannosaurs), crab and duck. The orchards would hang heavy with fruit and the ground birthed vegetables and gourds galore.

Hence, her dilemma.

Leaning against the stove, she looked from her collection of spices on the right and compared it to the one on the left. While she'd certainly use cinnamon in them both, they had very different paths and while one might think that making both would solve the problem, she found herself unable to commit to it.

Odd thing, really. She had never pulled away from a cooking challenge and after cooking for two half-Saiyans the past seven years—including at least one growth spurt per year—she was not one to withdraw from a large order. Cooking a collection of pies would definitely be easy to do. A fire pit outside and the stove inside would handle all that she could conjure for their upcoming Autumn moon meal.

Mooncakes. Gohan would not stop bugging her about mooncakes and she had a little helper in Goten for preparing them.

Her face lit up.

"And this year my Goku is home!"

Spinning about on her toes, she relished the thought of being able to serve mooncakes to her husband again, the first time in seven years. Perhaps that was why she was so divided on what type of pie to make. Pumpkin or apple. It seemed such a simple predicament but the type of pie carried more emotional weight for her than most.

Seven Years Ago

"Mom! How about this?"

Turning, ChiChi put one hand on her widening belly to steady herself then took a deep inhale. The crisp smell of fresh apples flooded her senses, carrying with it the sharp scent of autumn. Gohan set the large wooden basket on the ground and she surveyed the collection of large red fruits.

"Wow, you must have stripped a tree bare for these, Gohan!"

Rather proudly, Gohan lifted his chin. "Didn't have to. Our ol' apple tree had a huge crop this year!"

ChiChi's face fell. "That ol' tree still has apples?"

"Lots of them! When Daddy and I got them before…" Gohan paused and reframed "—earlier this year, the tree had so many! I was hoping it still had them and I was right."

Picking up the apple on top, ChiChi stared at it. The old apple tree had been a factor and marker in her life ever since she and Goku married. They used to take picnics underneath it and Goku would jump up and toss down the biggest ones for her to taste. Or after Gohan had been born, they would take him to explore the area around the old tree. When he was old enough to sit up, he used to find flowers and bring them over to her. Then he began to carry his own little basket around and 'help' his father gather fruits.

After Goku came home from Yardrat, it was their way of relaxing every few days. Sometimes it was a picnic, sometimes it was a simple walk through the trees. They'd fall into family games more often than not.

Her favorite time though was when it had begun to storm, just lightly, and Goku had made them a traditional umbrella from the giant ferns that grew around the mountain and they'd cradled together, tight and close, as the rain came down.

"Mom?"

Pulling herself from her memory, ChiChi realized abruptly that tears were streaming down her face. The hand that clutched the apple trembled and her nails cut into its skin. While their scent was still intoxicating, it came with floods of memories. Memories of time with Goku, times where he would give his private, slow kisses. Times where things were simple, safe, secure.

Times she would never have again.

"S-sorry, Gohan, I—"

Eyes wet himself, Gohan took her hand. "It's okay, Mom. I'll take these to the market and bring you back something else. The farmers past the river had a lot of huge pumpkins last year. Why don't we do that?"

"Yes. Yes, pumpkins for apples." She hugged her son tightly. "Pumpkins for apples is best."

Present

Thus, they had made pumpkin pies for the past seven years. She knew it hurt Gohan, in a way, just like it hurt her. Apple pies and tarts and cider had been such a staple of their lives for so long but she couldn't bear the taste. She thought for a time it might have been influenced by her pregnancy so the next year, she'd headed out before Goten or Gohan had woken up.

She'd gotten as far as the glen of trees overlooking the faithful fruit field before tears had overwhelemed her. Crumbling to her knees, she'd leaned against the forest floor and sobbed. Grief was a terrible thing—it was inconsistent but carried fierce toxin. The past year had tried her but keeping up with a baby and a teenager kept it at a distance. But when she finally set out to face it, to confront the tangible proof of her husband's absence, she'd cracked.

Now, she looked outward into the yard and saw the remains of her husband's training and squealed to herself. The pain, while not a memory she would soon forget, drifted away into the past, leaving behind a sense of relief, wholeness, completeness.

Perhaps it was time to revisit that tree.

OOO

"Ripe and full for the season, aren't you?"

The tree's branches hung heavy and the glistening red fruits were tempting. And for the first time in a long time, she found her appetite whetted it. Instead of feeling emptiness, her heart raced with the anticipation of serving a pipping hot pie to her husband. His first one in seven years.

Setting her basket on the ground, she grasped hold of the branch and climbed. Her shoes dug into the old bark and she settled for a moment in the old hole before pushing herself upward again, straddling the thickest of the branches. Reaching out, she plucked one fruit and bit into it.

Immediately, a rush of memories washed over her and it took all her strength not to squeal like a school girl. Her husband was back and all these memories…she could build new ones again. She was no longer just bound to what had come before. She could do more, they had no limits!

Apple after apple fell and gathered in her basket.

Reaching upward, she grasped hold of the largest one.

The branch cracked at the same time as the apple came loose.

Giving a yelp, she fell but not very far.

"Hey, ChiChi!"

Blinking a moment, still clutching the apple, she locked eyes with her husband, who'd caught her in his arms midway down. She wrapped her arms tight around him. "Goku, what are you doin' out here? Thought you were trainin'?"

"I was." He settled to the ground, set her down. "But your ki went up so I rushed on over. Whatcha doing?"

Smiling, she held up her basket from the ground. "Gathering ingredients. If you haven't lost your taste of apple pies, that is."

Grinning, he nuzzled her nose. "Never! 'Specially your pies. Bet you and Gohan and Goten had some great ones that I missed."

Shaking her head, ChiChi confessed. "Not since you died."

Blinking, Goku rocked back. "What? Why?"

"I couldn't." Waving her towards the tree, she said, "I tried. But all I could think about was all the memories we had here and how we wouldn't have any more. I couldn't."

Face fallen, Goku rested his head on hers. "I'm sorry, Chi. I never meant to do that to you. I thought I was protectin' you."

"I know you did, you oaf." Shaking her head, she clung to him tight. "But you're here now. And we can make all kinds of memories again. We can have the picnics like we used to. Play games. Get caught in the rain."

Taking a bite of the large apple she held out to him, Goku gave her a kiss, still dripping with juice. "And do more of that?"

"Lots more of that."