Counting the Stars
by: Bura-sama
Part II
Chapter II
I couldn't believe it. There was Trunks, my best friend, no - my brother-in-law, standing at my door, about to punch me again. Next to him was my father, now a teenager, and my niece, whom I barely recognized. I pushed myself to my feet and stepped closer to Bra.
"You're dead," I said with mixed emotions.
Trunks' look of anger fell, and was replaced with melancholy.
"You thought we were dead?" Pan asked. I barely recognized her voice, so soft and mature.
Bra came up beside me, and rested her hand on my shoulder. She nodded solemnly in response to Pan's question, and went forward to embrace her brother.
I didn't know what to say or do. I thought I would never see them again, and here they were.
****
I didn't care that I was crying. They thought that I was dead. Wouldn't they know? I always thought that they would know when I died. I always thought I would know when they died. The tears were rolling from my eyes by the time I stepped in the house. My uncle was standing there, not knowing what to do. I didn't know what I was supposed to do, either. Bra came up to me and hugged me, tears falling from her eyes as well.
It didn't seem worth it. We had been gone out in space all those years, trying desperately to save Earth, and I'd lost my childhood. And for what? We failed in our mission, but Earth hadn't been destroyed. We were lost, trapped out in that black void for ten years, and everyone had carried on their lives the same. Of all the possible things I had been expecting on her return to Earth, this hadn't been one of them.
I looked over to my grandpa, who looked exactly Goten had in those old family albums I'd cared so little about when I was a little girl. He was staring blankly ahead. Maybe he was looking at how much Goten had changed. I don't know. At that moment, the thing I wanted most in the whole universe was to see my mom and dad. I looked back at Grandpa, and finally noticed what he was staring at. That necklace around Bra's throat. It was my grandmother's.
****
I didn't know why they were all staring at me like that. Well, I didn't at first. It took a few moments for me to figure out they were wondering about my necklace. The one ChiChi-san had given me on her sickbed. I didn't want to talk about that, though. Those days were the saddest moments I ever had. ChiChi lying there on her deathbed, struggling just to breath. It was about the time that it had finally settled in on us that they weren't coming back. She had given me her locket, the one that Goku-san had given her, and made me promise to always treasure it. The doctors didn't think she was going to live. They had her time left on Earth down to hours. But, surprisingly, she pulled through until she was her normal self, sans some of the joy. After we knew she was going to make it, I tried to return to her the necklace, but she insisted I keep it, and so here it was. A heart shaped locket with a picture of the Son family in one side and everyone else on the other.
Pan was staring at the necklace like it was the Hope Diamond. I wrapped my fingers around it, and stepped closer to Goten.
"What happened?" Pan asked slowly. She jumped forward and ripped the locket from my neck. "Where is my grandmother?!" I stepped back and stuttered, never expecting Pan to react like that. She looked at me hysterically and held the locket in the air. "What happened to my Grandma!"
"Nothing," I blurted, trying to calm her down.
"Stop lying!" Pan tried to throw me against the wall, but Goten pulled her away. "Where is she?! She never took this locket off! NEVER!"
"Calm down, Pan!" Goten and Trunks yelled together. Pan stopped screaming and waited for Goten to continue, her whole body shaking as she sobbed. "Your grandma's fine, Pan." Pan started to say something, but Goten shook his head. "She moved in with Gohan just last year. I talked to her this morning, and in fact, Bra and I were just talking about going to see her later today."
Pan stopped and let go of the necklace. It fell to the floor where Goten picked it up. "I'm sorry, it's just that - "
"What's going on in here?"
****
I stopped and stared. He was back. My son was home at last. "Trunks," I said, the words not more than a whisper. He smiled slightly and threw his arms around me. I knew it. I always knew that he hadn't left me. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I held him at arm's length and made sure that my baby was okay.
As I hugged him again, my gaze fell on Goku. The carbon-copy of a teen-aged Goten smiled that Son grin and winked. "Son-kun," I breathed and started laughing and crying at the same time. I looked back at the door where Vegeta was watching with a smile, much more preferable than that usual smirk of his. Then I saw Pan. Tears streaked her face, and she was wearing some sort of battle armor. I hugged her tightly and was grateful beyond no limits that my family was together again.
****
I woke up from the saddest dream I had had in a long time. I dreamed that Pan had come back to Earth, and she was laughing and living with us again. It filled me with the brightest joy, then I would wake up and discover it was all a horrible dream that always left me with an empty, hollow ache inside.
I looked over to my husband and found him with his eyes wide and staring at something. I shook his shoulder, and he turned to look at me. "Gohan?" I asked.
He sat up in bed and kissed me fiercely. It was something he always did when he knew something I didn't.
"Gohan." I repeated again. This time my tone was firmer.
He smiled, his eyes starting to tear up, and kissed me again. "Videl,"
There was a loud knock on the door. The tears started to fall from his eyes. "She's home." He rolled out of bed and took my hand. "Our daughter's back,"
****
I almost couldn't believe it. The house I had lived in for so long. Abandoned, boarded up, forgotten. I felt an instant pang of guilt for leaving ChiChi all alone, but now wasn't the time to feel that.
I felt my son's ki first. Then I identified the others'. The door flew open, and there they were. My family. ChiChi started sobbing when she saw us standing there. Me and Pan, looking like a pair of drowned rats standing in the rain. I didn't even remember when the rain started, but we were thoroughly soaked.
I threw my arms around them. My son, my granddaughter, her mother, and my wife. They were my family, and I was home again.
**************************************
Well, I probably should have mentioned this in the last part, but I thought people could figure it out. This story not only jumps from speaker, but also time. Bra did not marry Goten when she was twenty. She was twenty-five. And no, this is not the end. I don't know how much longer I'm going to write on this, but just so you know, I'm going to keep one time per chapter. The first was way too confusing, but think of it like this chapter. No more jumping through the years.
by: Bura-sama
Part II
Chapter II
I couldn't believe it. There was Trunks, my best friend, no - my brother-in-law, standing at my door, about to punch me again. Next to him was my father, now a teenager, and my niece, whom I barely recognized. I pushed myself to my feet and stepped closer to Bra.
"You're dead," I said with mixed emotions.
Trunks' look of anger fell, and was replaced with melancholy.
"You thought we were dead?" Pan asked. I barely recognized her voice, so soft and mature.
Bra came up beside me, and rested her hand on my shoulder. She nodded solemnly in response to Pan's question, and went forward to embrace her brother.
I didn't know what to say or do. I thought I would never see them again, and here they were.
****
I didn't care that I was crying. They thought that I was dead. Wouldn't they know? I always thought that they would know when I died. I always thought I would know when they died. The tears were rolling from my eyes by the time I stepped in the house. My uncle was standing there, not knowing what to do. I didn't know what I was supposed to do, either. Bra came up to me and hugged me, tears falling from her eyes as well.
It didn't seem worth it. We had been gone out in space all those years, trying desperately to save Earth, and I'd lost my childhood. And for what? We failed in our mission, but Earth hadn't been destroyed. We were lost, trapped out in that black void for ten years, and everyone had carried on their lives the same. Of all the possible things I had been expecting on her return to Earth, this hadn't been one of them.
I looked over to my grandpa, who looked exactly Goten had in those old family albums I'd cared so little about when I was a little girl. He was staring blankly ahead. Maybe he was looking at how much Goten had changed. I don't know. At that moment, the thing I wanted most in the whole universe was to see my mom and dad. I looked back at Grandpa, and finally noticed what he was staring at. That necklace around Bra's throat. It was my grandmother's.
****
I didn't know why they were all staring at me like that. Well, I didn't at first. It took a few moments for me to figure out they were wondering about my necklace. The one ChiChi-san had given me on her sickbed. I didn't want to talk about that, though. Those days were the saddest moments I ever had. ChiChi lying there on her deathbed, struggling just to breath. It was about the time that it had finally settled in on us that they weren't coming back. She had given me her locket, the one that Goku-san had given her, and made me promise to always treasure it. The doctors didn't think she was going to live. They had her time left on Earth down to hours. But, surprisingly, she pulled through until she was her normal self, sans some of the joy. After we knew she was going to make it, I tried to return to her the necklace, but she insisted I keep it, and so here it was. A heart shaped locket with a picture of the Son family in one side and everyone else on the other.
Pan was staring at the necklace like it was the Hope Diamond. I wrapped my fingers around it, and stepped closer to Goten.
"What happened?" Pan asked slowly. She jumped forward and ripped the locket from my neck. "Where is my grandmother?!" I stepped back and stuttered, never expecting Pan to react like that. She looked at me hysterically and held the locket in the air. "What happened to my Grandma!"
"Nothing," I blurted, trying to calm her down.
"Stop lying!" Pan tried to throw me against the wall, but Goten pulled her away. "Where is she?! She never took this locket off! NEVER!"
"Calm down, Pan!" Goten and Trunks yelled together. Pan stopped screaming and waited for Goten to continue, her whole body shaking as she sobbed. "Your grandma's fine, Pan." Pan started to say something, but Goten shook his head. "She moved in with Gohan just last year. I talked to her this morning, and in fact, Bra and I were just talking about going to see her later today."
Pan stopped and let go of the necklace. It fell to the floor where Goten picked it up. "I'm sorry, it's just that - "
"What's going on in here?"
****
I stopped and stared. He was back. My son was home at last. "Trunks," I said, the words not more than a whisper. He smiled slightly and threw his arms around me. I knew it. I always knew that he hadn't left me. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I held him at arm's length and made sure that my baby was okay.
As I hugged him again, my gaze fell on Goku. The carbon-copy of a teen-aged Goten smiled that Son grin and winked. "Son-kun," I breathed and started laughing and crying at the same time. I looked back at the door where Vegeta was watching with a smile, much more preferable than that usual smirk of his. Then I saw Pan. Tears streaked her face, and she was wearing some sort of battle armor. I hugged her tightly and was grateful beyond no limits that my family was together again.
****
I woke up from the saddest dream I had had in a long time. I dreamed that Pan had come back to Earth, and she was laughing and living with us again. It filled me with the brightest joy, then I would wake up and discover it was all a horrible dream that always left me with an empty, hollow ache inside.
I looked over to my husband and found him with his eyes wide and staring at something. I shook his shoulder, and he turned to look at me. "Gohan?" I asked.
He sat up in bed and kissed me fiercely. It was something he always did when he knew something I didn't.
"Gohan." I repeated again. This time my tone was firmer.
He smiled, his eyes starting to tear up, and kissed me again. "Videl,"
There was a loud knock on the door. The tears started to fall from his eyes. "She's home." He rolled out of bed and took my hand. "Our daughter's back,"
****
I almost couldn't believe it. The house I had lived in for so long. Abandoned, boarded up, forgotten. I felt an instant pang of guilt for leaving ChiChi all alone, but now wasn't the time to feel that.
I felt my son's ki first. Then I identified the others'. The door flew open, and there they were. My family. ChiChi started sobbing when she saw us standing there. Me and Pan, looking like a pair of drowned rats standing in the rain. I didn't even remember when the rain started, but we were thoroughly soaked.
I threw my arms around them. My son, my granddaughter, her mother, and my wife. They were my family, and I was home again.
**************************************
Well, I probably should have mentioned this in the last part, but I thought people could figure it out. This story not only jumps from speaker, but also time. Bra did not marry Goten when she was twenty. She was twenty-five. And no, this is not the end. I don't know how much longer I'm going to write on this, but just so you know, I'm going to keep one time per chapter. The first was way too confusing, but think of it like this chapter. No more jumping through the years.