Disclaimer: Dragon Ball Z is property of Akira Toriyama, Funimation, and associates of which I am not one.

Thanks/Authors Note/Etc.: Go read "Thumbelina", by Andrea Koenig!

~C

***WARNING: Nuthin' much.

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Speak!
~A Dragonball Z Alternate Reality Fanfiction
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Part Two - The Call
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~Bra Breifs:

I watched as Mother made the phone call, hands shaking. I just stared at her, and Goten rubbed his hands up and down my arms and shoulders. I got up and ran into the next home, grabbing the phone just in time to hear Marron's mother answer the phone.

"Marron?" she answered, probably thinking it was only her daughter calling to say that she would be running late coming home, or that her and us had gotten caught up, and would be home soon. I should've left then, but I couldn't.

The choked voice of my Mother on the other end managed to sob out a "hello".

"Bulma?" Juuhachi asked, and I could hear the sheets adjusting.

"Juuhachi?" Mom sniffled. I almost screamed.

"Bulma, what happened?" Juuhachi demanded, sounding cold, but at least slightly concerned.

"Juuhachi. I'm...so sorry. It's, it's Marron..."

***


I hung up the phone after Juuhachi stopped speaking. She didn't cry, or scream, when mom told her. And I applauded her for that, I couldn't stop sputtering and crying, my face red and blotchy like a fool. What could I do? Maybe Juuhachi had the right idea. Just shut up, keep it zipped, can it.

Then things couldn't get out,...or in.

***

~{Bulma}~

Trunks and Goten had busted through the doors of our house that night, scaring me out of my sleep. I thought it was a burglar, before I heard the frantic scream for help. It didn't even sound like Trunks, I just knew it was.

~{Goten}~

I was still in shock. From everything, the events of that night, what Trunks had said, I was numb. I thought I was crying, but who knows. It was too cold. I only noticed her when Bulma told me to set her down on the bed. My niece, she was dying. I looked at her for probably the first time since I picked her up off that ice. Her skin was blue, and it almost hurt to touch her. It hurt to look at her.

~{Juunana}~

I stayed back that night, at the ice. I was the only one who's arm wouldn't fall off if they went searching beneath the ice for the letter.

***

The chilly February breeze lifted dead leaves and peoples discarded trash off the ground, lifting them up in dance. Forgetting their woeful existances, the forgotten pieces of the world jumped and danced and swirled around each other, finally falling to the ground in exhaust, until the next day, where they would dance again.

***

He'd fallen asleep on the big blue armchair in the foyer again, waiting for his baby girl to arrive home, as he always did nights she was out late. Glasses half off his face, and newspaper tipped against his nose, he snored quietly, much lighter than his father before him.

Upstairs, his wife slept soundly, and messily. A pillow was between her legs, one under her head, and the other four were somewhere on the ground, along with the discarded comforter.

He awoke with a start, his stomach doing flip flops and his heart beating in his chest like a rabbit's foot. Somethng was wrong with his daughter.

***

~{Gohan}~

As soon as I felt it, I nearly jumped out of my skin. Pan's ki had dropped dangerously low. I jumped up, and ran upstairs to Videl, who was sitting straight up in bed, skin white as milk.

"Something's wrong with Pan." she whispered, trembling ever so slightly.

"I know."

"Where is she?"

"Capsule Corp."

My wife crept across the bed, arms still trembling, and latched on to my neck, too frightened to fly. I carried her out the door, and flew up into the sky, heading towards Capsule Corp.

***

The night was cool and calm when Gohan and Videl creaked open the heavy steel door of the Medical Lab, located inside Capsule Corporation.

The looks of the youths in the room were of absolute terror when they saw him, and Bra looked as though she would cry. He went to her first, resting both hands on her shoulders, looking at her at eye level.

"What happened?" he asked, expecting her to cry and rattle off this excruatingly long and inaudible tale. Instead, she looked down, played with her hands, and began to stutter.

"T...th...they...fe...fell." she whispered, sputterng out each word so the two word sentence seemed to stretch on forever. She swallowed hard- Gohan could almost feel it- and stood abruptly, shrugging his hands from her shoulders. She rushed out of the room, to the annexed stockrooms that led into the main building, where they lived in the top apartments.

"What's wrong with her?" Videl asked quietly. Goten stood jerkily to his feet, and went after his girlfriend, calling after a faint, "she's fine."

***

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