Hello, friends. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Yes, it isn't the same title as I said last week, but I didn't really like the old one. This suits a little better.

Chapter 18: Hope is All We Have

Wednesday 2nd December Age 795

Pan felt awful. She woke up and sat up in her bed, but there was nothing she wanted to do. The only thing that ran through her head was the whole scenario that she had been through with Noca the previous night. No matter how badly she wanted to talk with him and find out more about how he had felt… she knew that chance was gone, for now. Noca had gone to space, and he wouldn't return until he had found whatever it was he went looking for.

Pan knew she couldn't mope around though. She had things to do. She needed to study, and finish off her assignments. Reluctantly, she got up out of bed and readied herself for the day.

She met with Bra and Dom at Capsule Corp. and they all went into college together. In their lunch break Pan explained the entire situation to her friends. They were surprised, but didn't really know how they should react. Pan didn't appear to be too angry with Noca, in fact she seemed rather calm about the whole thing. She just wanted to get on with her day and worry about things once she got some time alone, but there was something on her mind that she knew Bra would maybe understand.

Pan had plenty of time during the day to think about this so she was ready to have that conversation with Bra after College. They were just walking down the street when Pan finally decided to drum up that conversation.

"Where do you get your hair cut?" Pan asked her best-friend. Bra was surprised and chuckled a little.

"I just get it cut at home, one of the bots does it, why?" Bra asked, a little shocked that Pan was asking this. It had been a very long time since Pan had her hair cut and she had let her mother do it then.

"I just like changing things a little," Pan answered, smirking a little, "I've been thinking about it for a little bit."

"That's cool, you can get it done today if you want?" Bra suggested. Pan nodded.

"That's what I was planning," Pan replied, smiling back at her friend, "But I want more than just a little bit. I was thinking of going kinda short with it…"

"Short, how short?" Bra asked. Pan shrugged.

"I'm not really sure, I have some ideas, but nothing concrete," She explained, "Maybe I'll have more of an idea by the time we get back to yours."

The trio made it to Capsule Corp. and they were meeting without their other friends today. It was only meant to be a smaller study session anyway. As soon as they got there, Bra was pulling up pictures of what kind of hairstyle Pan should go with and the girl was finding it difficult to decide, but managed to come to some sort of conclusion.

It took some time, but Pan's hair was soon cut and she was very happy with it. Once Bra had helped her style it Pan was feeling quite confident with herself. She had her fringe cut and styled diagonally, to the right. The length at the back came to about midway down her neck. At the sides it was cut around her ears. And finally the top had been styled with hairspray to stick up and go over to the right side. Pan looked completely different with hair this short, but it was something new and she wanted to try it for a while.

"This is great, I like it," Pan said to her friend once it was done. She wore a determined expression and clenched a fist when it was done. "It's perfect for fighting."

"What?" Bra asked, not fully understanding what Pan meant.

"You know, shorter hair is better for sparring and training. Doesn't get in the way," Pan explained, but Bra still wasn't sure what she was talking about. "I'm gonna start training with my Dad, I wanna be stronger when Noca gets back. I want to be able to fend for myself better."

"But…" Bra started, wanting to protest, but not really having a reason to. She didn't even have a point to make.

"I'm sorry, but I can't study tonight. My Dad's home early and I'd rather try and get some training in…" Pan said before saying goodbye and rushing off home.

Once home, Pan would be faced with the inevitable obstacle of trying to convince her Dad to train her again. It had been a while and she wasn't sure he was big on letting her fight, but since she had managed to prove herself in previous conflicts she was confident.

She arrived home and gingerly entered the kitchen, wanting to show her Mother and Father her haircut, but also being wary about what they might think about it. She slowly entered and although they could sense her entrance, neither of them turned around, but both greeted her. The only reason they turned around was because Rei pointed at her and… well…

"Pan! Pan hair short!" Rei called out. Both parents looked at each other, slightly confused and smiled at Rei. They then turned around and noticed Pan's hair was, in fact, short.

"What did you do to your hair?" Videl asked, not seeming angry in anyway. Her daughter was 16 after all. She was just shocked.

"I had one of the Capsule-Bots cut it for me, Bra helped choose the style," Pan explained, smiling. She was very happy with her new hair. Videl smiled back at her daughter. She was just happy that her daughter could smile after what had happened the previous night. "What do you think, Dad?"

"It's nice, reminds me of when your Mother cut her hair after meeting me," Gohan explained, smirking at his wife. Videl chuckled at the memory. "Short hair is definitely better for fighters as well, that's why your Mother did it."

"Well, since you mentioned it…" Pan said, easing into the conversation. Gohan set down his Capsule-Tablet and turned around. "I was wondering if you would train me again?"

Gohan turned back and looked at Videl. He wasn't entirely sure of what to say to Pan. Videl just shrugged her shoulders to show that the decision was entirely his.

He cleared his throat before saying anything, "Well, I'm not sure… Noca and Vegeta are at such a level where I'm not sure you'll reach it…" Gohan tried explaining, but that's not something Pan wanted to hear.

"What?" She asked, feeling pretty annoyed with that statement. "I don't care if they're too out of reach right now, I want to strive to reach that level. I want to do my best. I want to show that I am very well capable of fending for myself!"

Pan was certainly determined and Gohan could tell. She was serious about doing this, but he wasn't sure she should.

"You've been so into your studies recently and I don't want to see that falter because of training," Gohan explained. Pan growled in anger and slammed her hand on the table.

"Being so engrossed in my studies is what drove me and Noca apart… it's what made him go off to space… it's what made him… go to her…" Pan drifted off as she started to upset herself, "I can't let that happen again. I want to be by Noca's side all the way. I can focus on my studies just fine and whenever we're both available I want to train. I'm not taking no for an answer."

Gohan looked at her and then turned away. He wasn't sure on this.

"I don't ever want to see you getting hurt. Noca is strong… Vegeta is strong. When does it ever seem like they need our help?" Gohan questioned. Pan scoffed at that and took a step back.

"You do realise that if I'm trained then I won't get hurt. I'll be able to fend for myself… I'll be able to fight off any enemies and I won't have to be constantly protected." Pan's rant ended and she walked over to the window. She was fed up with people constantly trying to protect her from any sort of dangers. She was perfectly capable of fighting.

Gohan stood up and walked over to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder and sighed.

"If it's really what you want… I guess I can't refuse you," Gohan said, "Find. I'll train you."

Pan turned around and looked up into her Father's caring eyes. He wasn't smiling, he wore a very serious expression and Pan knew this meant he wasn't going to mess her around. He was prepared to help her out. Pan hugged him.

"Thanks, Dad."

After that conversation with her Father, Pan rushed off up to her room and decided to call Bra. She found herself in a rather good mood now. Her hair had been cut and styled in a new and interesting way, and Gohan had agreed to train her. It was only when she spotted Noca's letter that she was finally brought back to reality. She hadn't even started calling Bra and now she didn't feel like she could. Her arms dropped to her sides and her phone fell to the floor.

The girl just stood there staring blankly at the letter before slowly walking over to it and picking it up. She scanned it with her eyes, but found that she couldn't see through her tears. She fell to her knees and punched the floor, creating quite a loud bang. She started crying and couldn't stop herself.

Luckily, Pan started to feel the comfort of someone's arms wrapping her in a hug. Videl had heard Pan's punch and came up to check on her.

"Please don't cry. You don't understand how difficult it is for a Mother to see her only daughter in pain," Videl said, getting slightly choked up. Pan lifted her arms up to hold her Mother's. She embraced the contact and the care that Videl was showing. "I saw the letter earlier… I don't know exactly what happened with the two of you, but I know you can sort things out."

"It's hard, Mom… he hurt me. I don't know if I can trust him," Pan said quietly, trying to stop herself from crying anymore.

"He told you the truth. Sure, he did something possible unforgivable, but his mind was always on you. You know that, Pan." Videl pulled out of the hug and turned Pan around to face her. She looked into her daughter's eyes. "You know how much her loves you. You know he would do anything for you. You've hit a rocky patch… but you will definitely get through it, Pan."

Pan wiped her eyes and looked down.

"Thanks, Mom…" Pan wiped her eyes again and then looked back at Videl. "I really needed to hear that."

Videl smiled and placed a hand on her daughter's cheek. She gave Pan a quick kiss on the forehead and then left. Pan picked up her phone and put the letter back on her table. She lay on her bed and finally started to call Bra, but right now there was only one person she desperately needed to speak to. Noca. She wanted to hear his voice again… she wanted everything to be ok.

Somewhere in Space – Same Day

Space was empty. Noca should have expected as much. Looking out of the windows, all he could see was the deep black void that was space. It was hard to consider how much was actually out there, but for someone who was already a quarter of an alien species himself, you'd think it easy to deal with. You would, however, be wrong, in Noca's case that is.

He lay awake in his room wondering what was happening on the Earth in that moment. Also, he was thinking about how far from the Earth he probably was. This spaceship was super advanced and stuff, he didn't really listen to everything Bulma told him, but he knew that science was most certainly involved. The room Noca occupied had pretty much everything he needed. A bed… a bathroom. All of his food was kept in Capsules, as were his clothes. So there wasn't much needed in the room.

Bulma had installed a television with the capabilities to play almost every film released on Earth and Noca could even play video games, but still, all he did was lay on his bed. Wide-awake. Staring at the ceiling. It all felt so peaceful out here, but Noca's mind was not peaceful. His thoughts were plagued by memories of the previous night. The guilt that Noca felt within his heart was terrible. Just seeing the way she had reacted to the information had crushed him. He knows it was all his fault, but he also didn't understand why Pan acted the way she had.

He tried not to think on it, but that proved to be a task of some difficulty. Noca reached over to the bedside table and pulled out a photograph of he and Pan. He held it in his left hand and slowly sat up. The happiness in the photograph was completely opposite of how he felt right now. Noca started to clench his right hand into a fist. His anger boiling up inside.

Noca stood up and walked to the bathroom, leaving the photo behind on the bed. He stepped up to the sink and placed his hands around the edges and bent down. His breathing had increased and his rage was starting to get the better of him. He turned on the tap and splashed water on his face, hoping that could cool him off, but it didn't work. With the tap still running Noca looked up to the mirror and took a deep breath. He looked back at his reflection and really hated what he was looking at.

He glared at himself and clenched his fist again.

"What are you looking at?" He asked himself. Noca rapidly punched the glass and felt a pain in his wrist. That's right, Bulma had installed the new glass and had used it for the mirror. Noca didn't care. He punched the glass again, harder, but this time he could feel his knuckles crack. He still didn't care. The Saiyan really wanted to hit that guy in the mirror. The guy that Noca truly wished he had never become. He deserved to be beaten.

Noca punched again and the skin on his knuckled started to open up, and some blood started rising to the surface. Nothing had yet happened to the world's strongest glass. Noca punched again and this time he flashed Super Saiyan as well. When he retracted his fist there was some blood left on the mirror, and it was starting to drip from his hand. Noca's aura started to flare up around him and now Noca started to punch the mirror continuously. Not planning to stop. There were scuffs on the mirror now and plenty of blood sliding down both the mirror and his hand.

Blood had fallen into the sink and even with the tap running it wasn't quite being washed away. Noca's punching was getting faster and harder. He started to scream out as the pain was a lot worse now and he was sure that his hand would be messed up come the end of this, but it still didn't matter to him. With a flash to Super Saiyan 2 and continued punching, Noca finally managed to crack the glass and was making progress…

Until Vegeta came in the pulled him away from the mirror. He threw Noca back into his bedroom and followed in.

"You're acting like an idiot," Vegeta stated. Not sounding annoyed, but there is certainly a disappointment in his tone. Noca looked away and down to his hand, seeing the blood and finally realising what had happened. Vegeta bent down in front of Noca and placed a hand on his shoulder. The Prince still wore that same expression he always did, but this was Vegeta's attempt at comforting Noca. The teen took a couple of breaths and finally dropped to his base form. That was when the stinging pain in his hand started.

Noca winced and held his right hand in his left. He really had been stupid, but there was something that made him feel like he had to do it. He needed to feel that pain and he knew that he had to inflict it on himself. Just like he had hurt Pan.

"I don't know what happened, and frankly, I don't intend to find out," Vegeta said as he stood up again, "But I can see that you're hurt."

Noca looked up at Vegeta and saw that the Prince sent a quick glance to the photo on the bed. He knew it had something to do with Pan. Vegeta knew that it was emotional pain and that obviously wasn't his favourite area to discuss.

"Come with me," Vegeta said as he walked to the door.

"It's not for training, I hope?" Noca mumbled.

"Just follow me."

Vegeta exited the room and Noca gingerly stood up to follow him. He followed Vegeta to the little command room at the front of the ship and Vegeta sat down in one of the two seats. Noca sat in the other one and looked over to the Prince. He wondered why they were here. Vegeta took his gloves off and pressed a couple of things on the controls before standing up and going to get something.

The Prince returned with a bottle, two small glasses and an ice bucket. He set the bottle and glasses down on the desk next to his chair and threw the bucket at Noca.

"That's for your hand," Vegeta said as he proceeded to pour the liquid in the bottle into the glasses. It a light brownish, yellow colour. Like Whiskey. Vegeta sat in his seat and then handed a glass to Noca.

"What's this?" Noca asked, not wanting to accept the drink until he was sure what it was.

"Saimizu," Vegeta answered, hoping that would be enough. It wasn't. Noca's brow furrowed and Vegeta rolled his eyes. "It's Saiyan alcohol. Similar to Earth's Whiskey, but vastly stronger."

"Wouldn't you say that it's a delicacy then… like, you probably don't have a great supply," Noca said, getting too technical about a simple drink.

"You'd think, but let's say that Bulma wanted to give me something for Christmas so I told her, and she used the Dragon Balls."

Noca was satisfied enough with that answer. He took the glass and looked at the liquid. He could already smell it and it was definitely strong.

"I shared some with Trunks on his 18th birthday," Vegeta said as he sniffed at the liquid and a satisfied expression crossed his face. "I was planning to do the same with you, but now is as good a time as any."

"I'm honoured…" Noca said, feeling genuinely proud that Vegeta wanted to share this with him. Noca slowly lifted the glass to his mouth and took a small sip of the liquid. Vegeta was right. Definitely stronger than Earth's alcohol. This was definitely the first time that Noca had ever felt the effects of alcohol. He winced and even gagged a little, but the taste clicked with him. Noca liked it and he soon found himself starting to drink more. He glanced over to Vegeta who wore an impressed expression.

"Even Trunks couldn't handle the stuff," The Prince said with a slight chuckle. Noca smiled at Vegeta and continued to drink. "You do realise that our training is going to get rough. I'm sure it will help keep your mind off of whatever it is you're thinking about." Noca glanced back at the Prince and then at his hand.

"You're right, we need to have complete focus over what we do," Noca put the glass down on the table and picked up the ice bucket. He put his hand inside and winced at the stinging pain, but quickly dealt with it.

"We also need to remember that we aren't out here just to train, we're looking for something," Vegeta turned and faced out of the window, still sipping at his drink. "Something important."

Noca could almost see a glimmer of hope in Vegeta's eyes. He really wanted to find Sadala. His planet. It meant a lot to him. Far more than it did to Noca. As much as this would give Noca answers to questions he's had almost his whole life, Vegeta would finally find where his true ancestry lies and the truths behind so many Saiyan legends, he hoped.

"Right now, we can relax, and drink." Vegeta sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. Noca finished the last of the Saimizu he had in his glass and then stood up.

"I think I'm going to try and get myself some sleep now, be up early for a session," Noca said with a smirk. "Thanks for the drink, Vegeta."

"Here," Vegeta said as he held up the bottle, "Take the rest of this one, I have plenty more."

Noca took the bottle and smirked. He gave a nod of thanks and headed back to his quarters. He set the bottle on the table and dropped onto the bed. He took a last glance at the photograph of he and Pan and this time a smile came across his face. Hopefully things would be so much better once he returned to Earth.

That's all Noca had right now… hope. Not just for his relationship with Pan, but also for this quest that he and Vegeta had embarked upon.

Thanks for reading. Hope you all enjoyed. This was a chapter I was wary about writing because not a lot happens, but the things happening to Pan and Noca here are both like awakenings, so it felt right to keep it short.

Leave a review, please. See ya next week.

Next Time... Chapter 19: On the Right Track