A/N: I meant to thank my reviewers last update. This fic may not get the largest amount of reviews but what it lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality. Some of you really took the time to tell me what you thought and I wanted you to know that it's appreciated immensely. (especially SkyBlankets, Li-Chan & Jumper Prime)
Juunanagou lounged back in the couch and stifled a yawn. God, he was bored. Amazingly bored and there was very little he hated more than being that. He had originally counted on spending the day with Pan for her birthday but the woman apparently had other ideas.
" I'm sorry Juunana, really. I had these plans made a long time ago and they're from out of town. We can celebrate tonight though; I don't care what we do as long as it's after sunset," she had said before leaving him earlier that morning.
A glance at the clock told him it was only 2:15 p.m. Ugh, already he was regretting having asked for the day off. Of course how was he to know he'd be spending the day alone? There were no books to be read, he'd finished the last of them weeks ago and TV at this time of day wasn't an option unless you were a stay at home mom or a seven year old.
Juunana leaned his head back and rested an arm over his face while trying to think. Should he call to make sure the reservations were in order? No, he'd already done that twice today. They were made at Pan's favorite Italian restaurant downtown right alongside the river. In an effort to ease family relations, he had invited her parents along. These days Gohan was fairly civil now, sometimes bordering on friendly. Naturally when " Daddy" was first told that Pan was having him move in with her, he wasn't exactly thrilled with the whole idea. An argument here, a few ki blasts there and an understanding was eventually reached.
He wasn't quite sure but Juunana figured that Pan telling her parents of his condition had helped smooth things over. Gohan's once stern expression had softened to one of surprise and commiseration. Acceptance through pity? Juunanagou didn't really care as long as it made things easier for Pan. Their sympathy mattered little to him when for the first time he felt like a whole man by being loved by their daughter.
Meanwhile, Vegeta's brat was anything but pleasant. Of course that was to be expected, he had known that by the look on the demi-saiyan's face on that dark night all those months ago. At work Trunks kept things professional but never more than that. Could he really blame him? Juunana didn't think anyone, including himself, had seen this relationship coming. He had actually thought that Pan was interested in Trunks to begin with. Trunks had probably believed that as well, made plain by his outrage and shock. The funny thing was that Pan was blind to all of it. It amused Juunana to no end that she remained oblivious to the whole situation considering how intuitive she could be regarding others. In any case, he was a big boy and could more than handle a jealous rival. He had what he wanted and cared about…her and that was what was most important.
The shrill ring of the telephone jolted him out of his contemplation, bringing him back to the present. Grumbling in irritation he reached over and picked up the phone to answer.
" Hello?"
" Juunana, it's Gohan. Is Pan there by chance?"
" 'Fraid not, she ditched me hours ago for some kind of get together with a friend from out of town," Juunanagou answered, standing up.
There was a pause of silence on the other end of the line for a few moments before Gohan spoke again.
" I'd forgotten all about that…I didn't know she was still doing that," came his voice with a slight chuckle.
Juunana's brows creased as he suddenly felt like he had not been told something important. Pan usually told him everything; they shared a deep trust regarding most things. It wasn't something one demanded of the other, it simply was like that between them. He had once told her that there would be things he knew she wouldn't be able to share with him but when she did choose too, he asked for honesty. He preferred a brutal and simple truth to the gentlest lie.
" You're still coming tonight I hope?" he inquired politely, trying to change the subject.
" We'll be there, you said 7:30, am I right?" Gohan asked.
" That would be it. Did you want to leave a message for Pan or is it something that can wait till dinner?"
" Well just let her know that I got that list of the University department chairs from where I work. She's been after me to get their names and contacts for a few weeks now," Gohan answered, with the sound of papers being shuffled in the background.
" The department chairs of what? I wonder what Pan wants with them," Juunana murmured aloud absentmindedly.
" I was hoping you could tell me actually, she was rather tight lipped about it. It's rather an interesting mix: Geologists, Astronomers, Theoretical Physicists, Architects…"
" Sorry this is all news to me," he replied, rubbing the back of his neck.
" Anyway, just tell her I'll bring the list with me tonight. That should make her happy to know at least," said Gohan.
" Will do, see you in a few hours then?"
" A few hours it is, Videl and I will meet you two out front."
" All right, bye."
" Bye."
Juunana hung up the phone and walked out of the room, heading for the back porch doorway. Easing the creaky screen door open slowly, he closed his eyes and breathed in the fresh outdoor air. There was no doubt about it; he was definitely a country boy at heart. Moving out here had reminded him of the old cabin he had lived in after being resurrected at the end of the whole Cell ordeal. Pan had shared with him her passion for nature and all living things in this place. Funnily enough he found himself interested and absorbing everything she had to say on the matter. The damn woman would probably have him dancing naked in the woods eventually to be "one with the trees" or some crazy kind of nonsense like that.
He felt his body grow agitated as he pondered on the conversation that had just transpired moments ago with her father. Instinct or something akin to it urged him not to forget the small details that he had just learned. More than likely this was something to do with Capsule Preserve although last he had heard paleobotanists had little use for Superstring Theory and the like.
Suddenly his body seized up and he lurched forward, falling into a coughing fit. Juunana's lungs strained for air as he continued to hack while feeling like he was about to throw up. Bracing one hand on his knee, he unconsciously brought the other up to his mouth as he coughed violently. Within a few minutes the attack began to ease and dissipate. Lowering his hand away from his mouth, Juunana stared in horror at his palm; afraid at the sight of something that had never disturbed him until now. His own blood.
" Cold late night so long ago,
When I was not so strong you know.
A pretty man came to me
Never seen eyes so blue…
Oh I could not run away
It seemed we'd seen each other in a dream
It seemed like he knew me
He looked right through me
Yeah…" Pan sang with feeling, playing her little air guitar while walking along the bank of the lake of her childhood. In her opinion there were only two safe places to sing all out: out in the middle of nowhere or in the shower.
She halted suddenly as she heard the harsh cawing of a raven that was nestled on a branch above her. Pan shot it a dirty look and frowned when she realized it was cawing directly at her.
" It wasn't that bad!" she argued.
The raven beat its wings and cawed back at her.
" Everyone's a critic," she grumbled, settling her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. She continued down the shore and glanced back to see that the raven had departed. Pan shook her head when she realized that she been made uneasy from the raven's appearance. She had always tried to rid herself of superstitious thoughts but sometimes they just stuck no matter what. Ravens usually tended to be ill omens for her.
She could imagine Juunana rolling his eyes at her right now for having such ideas. Pan grinned at the mental image, knowing full well how silly he would think her. Of course it would be his duty to show her just how wrong she was. The first thing to be unleashed would be simple, rational logic.
" Pan, the crow is a very common bird. They're all over the place, so the likelihood of seeing one is quite high."
This would then be followed by dripping, unmerciful sarcasm.
" If ravens really were bad luck then we'd really be in trouble because look how many there are. The world would really be an awful- oh wait, the world really is a shitty place isn't it? Well then it looks like we have no choice have we? We're going to have to kill every single one; these cursed, loud, annoying birds of ill luck should be wiped off the face of the planet. Honey, fetch me my shotgun."
Pan chuckled to herself lightly, thinking of the man she loved. She leaned down to pick up a stray stick and dragged it along beside her absently. Fortunately she was not the only one in love these days. That particular full moon had brought together more than one new couple that evening. It was in fact the very next morning that she had been sought out by a very distressed Bra Briefs…
" Pan! I was hoping I'd catch you here!" Bra said with a sigh of relief, coming towards her from her parents' kitchen.
Pan raised her head to look up at her, her concentration on the small plant in front of her now broken by her old best friend's sudden intrusion. She smiled and wiped her sweaty brow, still recovering from the beating she had received from Vegeta only fifteen minutes beforehand.
" Hey Bra, you're in luck. Normally I'd be gone by now but I was noticing the sorry state of your Mother's plants and had to do something about it. She needs to take better care of these guys," she observed, gently fingering the ficus's brown leaves.
Bra nodded and folded her arms. " She's terrible with this stuff. Mom is better with nuts and bolts, not living things. I'm amazed she was able to remember to feed Trunks and I," she commented, letting her eyes sweep the room. She finally let her eyes come to rest on Pan and then promptly bit her lip.
Pan raised an inquiring eyebrow at her.
" Do you have a few minutes Hon?" asked Bra.
" Sure, just let me finish here," Pan said warmly and closed her eyes. She set her fingertips back to the edges of the leaves of the ficus plant. Uttering a few strange words softly she became enveloped in a soft yellow glow and let it expand to the plant as well.
Bra watched her friend in fascination, having never seen her actually use her other alien powers firsthand. She saw the plant slightly reach towards Pan and then begin to grow full and green. Then the light dimmed down and faded from view as Pan opened her eyes again.
" Amazing. Tell me, does it ever make your colleagues uncomfortable?" Bra asked curiously.
Pan shook her head. " They don't see the energy. Only beings that can see auras are capable of seeing the actual process. The end results however, continue to stupefy them. Of course it needn't be so confusing if they'd actually be more open minded," she answered with a shrug. " So what did you need to talk about?" she asked, turning to her friend.
Bra tugged and twirled her index finger around a lock of blue hair nervously as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
" Um, well…you see…" she began weakly as her eyes tried to strain to get a look at something on Pan.
" Is there something in my hair?" Pan asked, running her fingers through the black mass away from her bare neck. She looked back to Bra who suddenly wore a very confused expression on her face.
" No, there's nothing in your hair. I was…mistaken. I guess I had thought I'd seen something but I was wrong," she answered softly in a cryptic kind of way.
" What is it then?"
Bra huffed and puffed a little, looking like she was trying to make up her mind about something. Her mouth grew taught in what seemed to be a mixture of impatience and admitting defeat before swiftly pulling down the collar of her shirt to reveal a healing bite mark. She averted her eyes, awaiting a reaction from Pan.
" I take it that you got that last night?"
" How…"
" It was a full moon. So how did my uncle hunt you?"
Bra's eyes flashed back to her, her mouth dropping a bit at Pan's clever guess. She blinked a few times and then attempted to regain her composure.
" How did you know it was him?" she asked, trying not to sound overly surprised.
" Well, it had to be him unless it happened to be my happily married Father or the worst case of incest this side of the galaxy," Pan explained while trying to keep a straight face.
Bra let out a heavy sigh and collapsed into a nearby chair.
" We ended up together but he didn't hunt me," she assured Pan, rubbing her temples gently with her fingers.
" You're both half saiyan, he must have."
" No, he didn't. At least not like the way Daddy explained to me," Bra contested, unsure of whether she was trying to convince Pan or herself.
" I'm sure it was a modified version suited for Earth life. Think back Bra, what did you do yesterday? He would've had to get you to accept an offering of food somehow whether he was aware of it or not," Pan prodded.
Bra made no effort to reply but slowly her complexion began to turn a lovely shade of beet red.
" Oh he did feed you, eh?" Pan asked wickedly.
" He, um…bought me a hot dog on Osaka Ave," Bra answered in a tiny voice.
Pan laughed out loud and felt the tears starting to come down her face. The Princess of the Saiyans had been tamed by the lure of a street vendor's hotdog…this was simply too good. She suddenly felt the force of Bra's deadly glare and quickly made an effort to get a hold of herself.
" Wow," she admitted, wiping a tear from her eye. " Who knew you'd be such a cheap date-I mean mate!"
Bra started to growl as she watched her friend try to give her an apologetic smile while still laughing. She knew how ridiculous this all sounded and didn't need to be reminded. Thankfully she had Pan to talk to and help her make sense of things, even if that meant having to endure some playful ribbing. Whenever she was bothered about something Pan had a way of making it seem not so intimidating or frightening. It would be shrunk to the small deal of whatever it was when compared to the larger picture of life and then be made manageable. Of course Bra had to remind herself of all this to keep her from wringing Pan's lovely white neck. Fortunately after a minute or two, Pan grew serious again and cleared her throat.
" Did you tell Vegeta yet?" she asked quietly.
" Hell no! He'd kill us both!" Bra whispered harshly to her, horrified by the idea.
" Not his little princess," Pan argued.
The blue haired demi Saiyan gripped the armrests of her chair as she leaned forward, her eyes wide with panic.
" Especially me for being such easy prey!" she insisted. She wearily brought her face to her hands and began to rock from side to side in her chair.
" Oh he's going to kill Goten…my poor baby Goten," she wailed.
Once again Pan was able to see some kind of humor in this unfolding drama but mustered a bit of self-control this time around for her friend's sake. Drawing her lips tightly together to keep them from curling upwards, she kneeled down and rested her hands on Bra's knees.
" Don't get upset sweetie, he'll do no such thing. While I cannot promise that he won't bring the house down when he finds out about this, your father won't kill Goten," Pan assured her confidently.
Two teary blue eyes lifted up from behind finely manicured fingertips and gazed at her questioningly.
Pan smiled at her reassuringly. " By Saiyan standards he is now your mate and the two of you are bonded. If he killed Goten, he would be killing you as well. You're both linked although it's rather weak at this point because it's so new," she explained.
Bra sniffled and rubbed her nose gently.
" I guess that's comforting to know. It's bad enough trying to guess how my Father will react when I'm trying to sort out my own feelings regarding the situation," she admitted miserably while running a hand through her hair.
" You think you made a mistake?"
" No but it happened so fast! When I woke up from my killer hangover you have no idea how surprised I was to find someone else in my bed…"
" But…" Pan urged her with a small smile.
" But after I calmed down and assessed the matter at hand, I found myself realizing how adorable Goten looked while he slept," Bra confessed with a dopey, lovey- dovey grin plastered across her face.
Pan nodded knowingly, thinking back to last night and Juunanagou's resting form. There would be time later to share with Bra her own good fortune but right now she had to help her friend make sense of things.
" When I left my apartment he was still asleep. Who knows what will happen when he wakes up and realizes what happened?" Bra asked, leaning back in her chair and gazing up at the ceiling anxiously.
He will probably cheer and thank Dende, Pan thought amusingly. But she kept that notion to herself as she sat up and rose slowly to her feet.
" Well there's only one way I can think of to find out what he thinks Bra. It's a very traditional, tried and true method…it's been used for thousands of years," she advised gravely.
" And what's that?"
" Talking to him," Pan answered, giving her a wink.
Bra laughed lightly, got up from her chair and gave Pan a big hug.
Pan squeezed her back and stroked her back reassuringly.
" Believe me honey, you have nothing to worry about. Just go to him," Pan told her. Bra hugged her even more tightly in response and then released her reluctantly a few moments later.
Pan gathered her bags and gave Bra a kiss on the cheek goodbye before telling her that everything would work out fine.
And it did, Pan thought with satisfaction as she gazed out onto the lake. It was only a few weeks afterwards that Bra and Goten held their wedding reception at Capsule Corp. Bra was also in for a shock after finding out that newly mated Saiyan couples always produced offspring from the first coupling. The grandmothers-to-be were ecstatic and couldn't wait for another addition to the two families. Pan was wonderfully happy that she had been asked to be the child's godmother and felt it was quite an honor. Already she could feel strong ki of the unborn child within Bra, who was only a month and a half into her term.
He'll definitely be a tough one, she mused thoughtfully. Of course she would have to make an extra effort to be sure to refer to the child as an "it" until the parents themselves wanted to know the sex of their child. Pan had no such luxury, as she had been aware of the child's sex as soon as a new soul had taken root in Bra's womb.
" I wonder what lessons you are coming to learn this time around little one," she asked softly, lifting her eyes up to the clouds. Again and again we return to learn, the cycle of spirit and life eternal so that we may one day perhaps touch the divine. It is that, which is our most earnest wish and greatest desire. If only learning the universal mysteries of love were so simple…
" What use is love to me?! It would end up making a slave of me; I would lose and be taken away from everything that I ever cared about!"
Pan blinked suddenly and felt a chill travel up her spine. It was happening again, she thought fearfully.
She closed her eyes and concentrated her energies, trying to force a state of peaceful balance. She could not afford to let this carelessness continue if she did not want to end up losing her mind.
" Your noble is coming along quite well Janta, he's exceeded any expectations we had for him."
" Most likely they were as much as you once had for me, Captain."
A chuckle. " A sharp tongue but with words that never rang more true. I look forward to be being grossly proven wrong once again. You certainly never cease to amaze us."
" Thank you sir."
STOP, Pan thought as beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she cradled her head with her hands. The haunting voices faded away with the sound of the breeze until the only thing she could hear was the sound of her own labored breathing.
She allowed herself to crumble to the soft green earth beneath her, feeling too weak to support her legs any longer. Pan cursed herself for being so weak and letting this happen again. It was happening more frequently and each time the effect it had on her worsened.
" It appears I have arrived just in time," a gentle voice floated with the breeze.
Pan's head snapped up in the direction it came from, her eyes growing wide in wonder.
" Where is Goku?" she gasped.
" It is good to see you too, Sa-bu."
A/N: I wonder if anyone can guess what song Pan was singing?