AN: This is more of a prequel to "Laid to Rest" than a sequel. It makes sense if you've read the original story. This just kinda came to me while I was sitting in Western Civ, trying desperately not to die laughing at how stupid some of those older movies can be…but that's another story. I don't own DBZ, just the premise of this story.

Goten's Dream

Two suns shone brightly overhead, warming the air around him. He strolled along, calmly, confidently, greeting passing acquaintances with a small wave of the hand or a slight nod of the head.

Suddenly, the idyllic day in front of him spasmed and vanished in a blinding flash of white light. He wasn't afraid, though; he knew what was coming. On the heels of the light came images…many, many images…terrible images…

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The blast was coming straight at him. He knew instinctively, after years of experience with these kinds of things, that a ki attack that strong would not only destroy him but annihilate the planet behind him as well. And he was powerless to stop it.

As he was swept away by the force of the blast, the scene disappeared in that same white light, this time replaced by the face of a child. This child was young with a round, determined face, wide, dark eyes, and what appeared to be a severe case of bedhead. Then, before his eyes, the child changed into a man with the same hair and eyes, and the same look of utter determination.

His eyes widened. "Ka…ka…rott?"

Then the image changed again, spinning outwards, and the man in the vision was standing on a grassy plain in front of a river, facing off against a hideous purple and white creature with a long tail sitting in an odd floating chair-like device.

My…son…lives…on… That was the last thought to make it through his pain-ridded mind. As the vision faded, he smiled.

"Kakarott!" he yelled as the agony became too much and the darkness took him. He fell…fell…

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With a scream, Goten sat straight up in his bed. Pillows and blankets went flying as the child panicked and attempted to jump out of bed. But he was quite unsuccessful; his legs became tangled in the bedclothes due to his efforts, and he made a rather quick and clumsy—and painful—descent to the floor.

Groaning and rubbing his now-aching head, Goten sat up as his dream came rushing back to him. It wasn't the first time he'd had dreams like this, but this had been the most vivid yet—and it was definitely the first time he'd ever experienced that last part, with the death. It confused him to no end. Who was that guy, and why did he look so much like me and Dad? And what happened to him exactly?

Remembrance of the man's thoughts hit him then, and the visions as well. Why did that guy see Dad? A sudden thought seized him—what if something had happened to his father?

Panicked once again, Goten pulled free of the tangled blankets and climbed to his feet so he could run down the hall to his parents' bedroom, where he flung open the door and paused while he peered into the darkness. He could barely make out the form of his father lying on the bed, and he could easily hear his father's slow, steady breathing. But that wasn't enough for the chibi; he had to be absolutely certain that his Dad was okay.

"Daddy!" a tiny voice squealed as something landed on Goku's stomach.

"Wha' Wha' happened?" Goku sat up and blinked owlishly, having been rudely dragged from a particularly pleasant sleep. In the faint light from the stars shining in through the window, he could barely make out the outline of a small figure sitting on his stomach. "Goten? What's wrong?"

"I had a bad dream," the seven-year-old tugged on the front of Goku's shirt to accent his words. "Gohan has a really big test tomorrow and said nobody'd better wake him up. I think he said something about torture. Can I sleep with you?"

Goku sighed. "All right, climb in. Just don't wake me up again, okay?"

"Yeah!" Goten chirped happily as he clambered over his father and into the bed. There was plenty of space, too. When Bulma had to go out of town on business, ChiChi had decided to accompany her, so the three Saiyan guys were on their own for five days. It had been nothing less than interesting, especially when it came to food. "Goodnight, Daddy!"

"G'night," Goku answered, dropping right back into slumber.

Goten sighed happily. His dad was okay, and now he could get back to sleep. It was just a dream after all. Everything was all right.

But it had felt so real. He could still feel the warmth of the sun on his arms and the burn of the ki blast hitting him. And the whole thing had a hazy sort of realism to it, like a long-forgotten memory that he had just pulled out of the back of his mind.

Oh well, the chibi finally decided to just shrug it off. He yawned and went back to sleep.

AN: Make sense?