Thanks everyone who answered my questions, you helped a lot. I decided that when I end the fic, it's not going to be with when they finally get together, but I'm going to incorporate the idea I had for a sequel, so it's going to be a very long fic, I'm assuming. Hey, guess what people? I got a flame! Yep, but it's from my brother though, so it doesn't count because he didn't even read it, he just reviewed and called me a stupid bitch and said my fic was bullshit, and that was the inspiration for my pen name change. See, I'm no longer Cornbread Me, but I'm Leather Face now. Where I came up with that, I have no idea, but I'm not one to question stupidity.

Special Thanks To Reviews From:
Netty
dolphinskickbutt
(A/N: Whoever this is who's name didn't show up, thanks.)
Matt
Aerowhynne- Thanks for the idea. You'll see what I mean...
EternalDreams
blue-angel1204
zighawk- By the way, I answered your request in an email, but I don't think it got to you. So, if not, include an AIM or AOL screen name in your review, if you have one. Or, MSN, and we can discuss the matter at hand.
pan86
marla
pan-chan16k
Mii-chan
kin
ills
Pan-Chan
pan loves trunks- Haha, review enough?
Brandon B- Yes, I do know how to throw a curveball in a story, and don't worry about them getting together. They'll get together soon, I promise.
DragonUk

Disclaimer: "You 'bout to journey into the mind of a psychopath killa, blood spilla, mentality much illa. If you could ever imagine in your wildest dreams, to feel the pain and the silent screams. You 'bout to...(D12 song. Very nice, you should find it and listen to it. Track number 7!)" Oh, the disclaimer! Hehe, in a way, you have been in the mind of a psychopath killer by reading this story, because I'm a psychopath killer.... a CEREAL killer. Hehehe... anyway, all I own is the plot, the pimp (Xavier), and the bitch (Pyra).


Chapter 7

Pan sat on her roof, staring off into the starry, night sky as she let her thoughts drift off. More often than not, this was how she spent her nights for the past month since Trunks had his little outburst. All she did was sit in her room during the day, occasionally blasting a few odds and ends to keep her sanity. But that was all she did. She even had to get literally dragged out of her room in order to actually get dressed everyday or to even eat some days. She just didn't see a reason to, she felt like her whole world came crashing down on her, but in a way, it had.

She didn't know how to survive without Trunks. He was always there. He was literally her everything. He was her protector from the physically harmful, he was her shoulder to cry on, the person she could confide in, her sparring partner, and the only one who believed in her when it mattered the most. And to add to all of that, he was her first love. That made the blow of losing him more hurtful just thinking about it, knowing that he could've been her boyfriend and they could've been living happily ever after if she hadn't pulled that stupid stunt.

And that was the bitch of it all. If she hadn't went around scaring little redheaded bitches who thought they were better than her then she'd have Trunks right now, maybe not as a boyfriend, but at least as a friend. But she knew this was bound to happen anyway, she knew she wouldn't have let that bitch get away with what she'd done. And life never worked the way you wanted it to anyway. Everyone gets their share of heartache every once and awhile, and as she thought of that, she wondered why it seemed like she'd been getting a lot more of that in her 18 years than she should have.

She was about to elaborate on the thought when she heard a voice from below her, "Hey, Pan! Come down here!"

She was surprised to see that in a month's worth of neglect in her training that her senses dulled so much. She hadn't even sensed her dark-haired friend, Xavier, approach.

"Hey, X-kun," She said somberly as she descended to the front of the yard where he was.

"What's up with you, girl?" He replied, putting an arm around her shoulder. It was obvious by the look on her face that she wasn't doing too good. Her eyes seemed darker, if that was possible, and she didn't even bother to wear her bandanna, something he'd never seen her without. She seemed to be wearing black a lot more from what he'd heard, like she was in mourning or something. But in a way, she was mourning a death. The death of her inner hope. "You haven't spoken to me all month except for a few occasional 'hellos'. You're doing that bad, huh?"

She nodded grimly, trying to hold back the tears that wanted to come out by just thinking of him.

"You look like you've been walking around here like a zombie," He continued and patted her shoulder to try and perk her up. "Come on, Pan, you got to do something. You can't just sit around here and wait to die. You've got to move on with your life."

"It's not that easy," Pan said softly as she moved away from him to sit on the front steps. "He's my everything, X-kun. He's my friend, protector... and among other things... the only man I've ever loved. It's not exactly easy to just move on with my life."

Xavier nodded and sat down next to her on the steps. "I understand that. But at least do little things like... I don't know... like coming out of your room during the day. You've got your mom so worried she's even called me." Pan looked startled by that statement, but it was perfectly logical. She was really worried about her, and it was only natural for her to want help, especially from someone Pan trusts. "C'mon Pan. Do it for me. We can take baby steps. How about you.... go to a bar with me tonight?"

"You want me to go to a bar that's full of a bunch of Village People rejects?" She replied jokingly, although her face held no emotion. "No, thanks."

Xavier chuckled. "Well, you must be feeling better if you're cracking jokes."

She shrugged and looked back up at the sky, just as a shooting star was making it's way across it. She smiled sadly at that and turned to look at Xavier again. "You know, there was a time when I'd actually come out here to see if I could catch a shooting star, just so I could wish for something. And it would always be the same things. I'd wish for the Androids to go away, or for all of Bulma's friends that I never met before to come back from the dead.... because it always made her so sad to think of them.... or I'd wish for my daddy to come back... and make my mom happy again.... I always felt she was never truly happy because he died and left me with her alone.... I just wanted everyone to be happy so I could be happy too," She smiled as tears rolled down her cheeks. "It's funny what you believe in so strongly when you're a kid.... I wish I still believed in that.... and more importantly that it was really true. Maybe then I wouldn't feel as though I'm a caged animal for Kami's general amusement."

"Why do you feel that way?" Xavier asked, carefully analyzing everything she'd just said, particularly the last statement. He'd never heard anything like that from her. He always heard cheerfulness and worth-while things from her. Certainly nothing like this.

"Well," Pan started. "I feel like Kami has me caged up, or like his slave. He gives me what I want only occasionally, but then without warning he takes it away from me and watches me suffer from losing it.... like he enjoys seeing me in pain... and then he'll give the object... or person... back to me, and the process starts all over again...." She sighed and looked away from her friend again. "I know people have had much worse lives than me... but it still isn't fair that Kami takes these things away from me, you know?" She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and she looked up at the sky again. She could tell he was a little troubled by her depressed statement, but she didn't care. She had to get it off her chest. "I just hope Kami lets me out of my cage soon..."

~*~

Trunks continued to fire ki blasts at his imaginary opponent with all of the intensity and strength he could collect. He was training a lot more these days, as a way to escape the haunting guilt that consumed him whenever he had a moment's time to think. He hated to admit it, but not only did he miss Pan a lot, he felt guilty about telling her he never wanted to see her again. He didn't mean it of course, and he only said it because he was angry, but his pride, that he must have inherited from his father, wouldn't let him go crawling back and apologize.

As he thrust his leg out into a ferocious kick, he wondered why the hell he was so mad at her in the first place. Sure, it was a rotten thing to do to Pyra, but she had deserved it for all the insults she threw at Pan. And now that he thought about it, it was actually quite funny. Surprisingly, he didn't feel a thing for Pyra. He wasn't sorry that she ended up incapacitated, or angry on her behalf, but more like disappointed because he got involved with her in the first place. If he hadn't, then he and Pan wouldn't be at each other's throats right now. Hell, he might've confessed his feelings by now and they would be making wedding preparations.

He laughed at the thought as he decided to call his training off for the night, walking over to the control console and pushing a few buttons. Immediately he felt his muscles lighten a hell of a lot as the gravity returned to normal and he slumped down to the ground, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.

He'd never used the Gravity Room his mother had built so long ago for his father until the night he and Pan had their fight. He always felt like it was a sort of shrine to his father, like his spirit was still lurking there and he didn't want to disturb it. His father's beloved GR was always something he had forbade himself to enter until that night when he became so angry that training in the GR for a few hours, or rather a few days, sounded like the only way to dissolve that anger. And that's exactly what he did. He trained for about 2 days before he gave in to his mother's protests and came inside to shower and eat, but then he went back in there, and he'd been spending days on end in there ever since. He just didn't want a moment to think about anything else... especially not Pan.

He slowly picked himself up from the GR and walked in the house and down the hall to his room. He was so exhausted that he didn't even bother to take a shower or give in to his stomach's demands as he collapsed onto his bed and immediately fell asleep in his white and gold armor and blue spandex suit he'd found in the GR, which he assumed was once his father's.

But his last thought, before he drifted off into dreamland, was not of his father, but of the woman he loved so much... and whom he'd driven away.

The Next Day...
When Trunks woke up, he went through his normal morning rituals, or what they'd become in the last month. He'd wake up, take a shower, put on his armor, then go out to the GR to train. Food seemed to only cross his mind in the evening, and after that, he'd go right back out to training. But as he walked toward the front door, he sensed something was going to interrupt his morning routine, although he didn't know what.

"Trunks?" There it was. Or rather, she was. Bulma walked from the kitchen just as he was passing it, with a spatula in her hand and a big smile on her face. "Are you hungry?"

Trunks tried to ignore the delicious smells that were magnified by his Saiyan half, but he lost the battle. He nodded appreciatively at his mom and replied, "I'm starving."

Bulma smiled triumphantly and beckoned him to the table. She usually never caught him before he went out sparring or he would always decline an offer of food, which she assumed was because he was so depressed. But she saw his agreement now as a good sign, and an even better sign was that as soon as she placed the mountains of food onto the table, he immediately got his grub on.

"Well," She smiled as she sat down across from him. "Looks like your in better spirits."

Trunks stopped momentarily and nodded absentmindedly, a broad, goofy grin on his face before returning to the mad man he became while eating. In a way, that goofy grin reminded her of Goku... or Gohan... but instead of getting sad, she smiled at the comparison and just waited for her son to finish eating before she brought up the subject she knew would be a sensitive one, but she just had to bring it up.

It bothered her that two of the people that were closest to her weren't on good terms, and she wanted more than anything to get to the bottom of this little dispute. She didn't really understand what caused it, only that Pan had done something to Pyra, which she assumed wasn't anything knew, but apparently it was much more severe because Trunks was so mad at her. It seemed like a mystery to her. One she was desperate to solve.

Trunks looked even more like a Son man as he leaned back in his chair, patting his stomach with satisfaction. He grinned and said, "That was great. Thanks, Mom."

"Your welcome," She replied, smiling back at him. "I'm glad to see you're doing something besides training."

He frowned and looked away. "Well, I haven't exactly been myself... obviously."

Bulma nodded. "What exactly... What exactly happened that day?" She didn't want to ask him, but she felt she had to know. It was driving her crazy.

Trunks sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "She made me angry... that's all. She did something horrible to Pyra and it really pissed me off."

"Pan has done plenty of things that piss you off, Trunks," Bulma replied. "And yet you two always seem to make up. Why is this time so different?"

Trunks lowered his head and stared at Bulma with wide eyes. He didn't expect that kind of reply from her. And now that he thought about it, why was this time so different? It wasn't like he actually cared about Pyra or anything... "I don't know... It's the principle of the thing. It was wrong and she shouldn't have done it."

"I understand that," Bulma said as she took Trunks' hand in her own. "But do you realize that it's eating you up inside? You can't even do anything besides train because you're so mad at yourself."

Trunks narrowed his eyes at her. "How the hell do you know that's the reason why I train?"

Bulma smiled and let go of his hand, staring off into space. "Because that's what your father used to do..." Trunks looked surprised that she'd even mentioned him. She rarely did that, it was too painful for her to remember, but he was glad she did now, and just sat patiently, waiting for her to continue. "When I was pregnant with you... I guess I was pretty unbearable." She laughed. "He used to call me the devil woman all the time and end up screaming at me until I was in tears... then of course he'd lock himself up in the GR, because he'd feel so guilty... but he was too stubborn to come back and apologize."

"Dad actually told you that he felt guilty?" Trunks asked. That seemed highly unlikely from what he'd seen of the past version of his father.

She shook her head. "No, but I always knew what he was feeling anyway." She pulled the collar of her shirt and revealed a bite mark on her neck. "It was part of our bond."

Trunks nodded. He'd heard about a bond before, from Gohan, but he never understood it until he brought it up with his father when he went to the past. And even then, it sounded far-fetched, but somehow, a mother's word always confirmed everything. And the bite mark was evidence enough. "So you felt his feelings and all that?"

She nodded, grateful she could share this information with him. She'd never felt like it was the right time, or she felt too sad to talk about his father. "Yes, and he could feel mine. We could also talk telepathically."

"Really?" Trunks asked. He'd never heard of that before, not even from his father. Maybe it was something he wanted him to discover for himself. - So that must be why my parents from the past always looked at each other weird, like they were sharing some kind of conversation... well I guess they were, inside their heads.- He remembered one particular look they exchanged, which was followed by them making an excuse to leave the room. He shuddered at the thought.

Bulma nodded in answer to his question, ignoring the visible shiver from him, and smiled. "Gohan's never told you about this?"

He shook his head. "Not in so many words... but Dad told me some of it... the one from the past I mean."

"I know what you meant," She smiled, then asked curiously, "Was he still arrogant in that time?"

Trunks smiled. "I don't think my presence could've changed a trait like that. Although he did avenge my death... or so I heard.... did I tell you that?"

"Yeah..." She trailed off, wishing Vegeta could still be here with her and Trunks.

The conversation suddenly ended as mother and son exchanged a few smiles, and although Trunks actually enjoyed talking to his mother for a change, he decided that the conversation had gotten too awkward. He got up and proceeded to walk out to the GR, but before he did, he flashed his mother another smile and said, "You know, if Dad were here today, I think I know what he would say."

"Oh yeah?" Bulma asked, leaning forward in her chair. She was intrigued by this. "What would he say?"

"Well," Trunks replied as he leaned against the wall. "To me, he'd probably say," He put on his best Vegeta voice, "'Boy, stop your incessant babbling and go out and train!'" Bulma grinned as he continued. "And to you, it would be, 'Woman! How dare you subject my son to your senseless Earth chatter? My son is not one of your idiotic human friends! He should train to be a great warrior, not like that third class weakling Kakorott! I will not have my son acting like Kakorott or his worthless spawn! I am the Prince of all Saiyans and you will listen to me!'"

Bulma was laughing so hard it hurt as he finished. "You sounded so much like Vegeta it was almost like having him here."

Trunks smiled victoriously, and turned to leave again, but he stopped and turned his head back to his mom, saying, "But I bet through your bond... he'd tell he loves you anyway," before disappearing to the GR.

Bulma smiled as a tear slid down her cheek. "Yeah... I'm sure he would."

~*~

It was later in the day, Trunks still not emerging from his "second home" and Pan still moping around in her room. At least she ate without being forced, that was a good start, but not good enough for Videl, who was explaining her fears to Bulma.

"I just don't know what to do about it, Bulma," She said. You could tell by her eyes that she was worried and defeated. "She doesn't do anything."

"Trunks is the same way," Bulma replied. "All he does is train... but today he actually ate this morning... and we had a nice little conversation. Have you tried food to get her to come out? You know those Saiyans..."

Videl smiled weakly. "Yeah, I tried already. She eats sometimes... but she never talks to me. It scares me a little bit. She would always talk to me if it involved Trunks. She told me about how she feels about him and everything."

Bulma narrowed her eyes, a little more intrigued than surprised. "How she feels about him?"

Videl covered her mouth. "Oops... I said too much."

"I promise I won't tell anybody," Bulma said. "C'mon... spill it!" She looked like a gossipy teenager as she leaned forward in her chair, and Videl laughed.

"Ok, but I'm not supposed to tell you," Videl paused as she groped for the right words. "You remember that night we all had dinner here, with Pyra?" Bulma nodded and waited for her to continue. "Well, when I was scolding her for what she did, she kind of blurted out her real reason why she was so mad at Pyra."

"Which is?" Bulma said impatiently.

"Pan's..." She paused and Bulma looked as if she was going to die from the suspense. "Pan's... in love with Trunks."

Bulma's blue eyes widened as she threw her hands up and shrieked so loud Videl was sure glass could crack in that room. "She's in love with him? Oh my Kami! I can't believe it! They would make such a cute couple! And you know, I think Trunks has a little thing for Pan too."

"What makes you so sure?" Videl was the one curious now.

"It's a motherly instinct I guess," Bulma replied as she smiled. "There's just something about the way he avoided Pan all that time since Pyra came into the picture," The way Bulma said Pyra's name, as though it was the most revolting thing in the world, made Videl smile. "And he always acts weird around her before they had their fight. He must be scared or confused about his feelings..." Bulma trailed off as she thought about it and Videl agreed with her.

"But the question is," Videl started. "How do you we get them together?"

Bulma cracked an evil smirk that would've made Vegeta proud. "I thought you'd never ask..."

~*~

Pan sighed as she paced the kitchen. She'd finally mustered up enough courage to get out of her room before nightfall, and after she took a much needed shower she changed her clothes, looking a lot like herself with a blue bandanna tied around her head to match her blue jeans and blue shirt. Now she was in the kitchen, debating on what she wanted to eat.

Xavier had influenced her to live again, which shocked her, but she found that it didn't seem to hurt that much anymore. She still missed Trunks, but she decided that she could handle it in the world outside her room, where she could get the support of the people who still loved her.

She heard a slamming sound and she snapped her head around just in time to see her mother walking into the kitchen with a smile on her face. She was obviously pleased to see her daughter outside her room without being forced.

Videl put her hands on her hips and said, "Well, well, well. Look who's come out of her cocoon."

Pan smiled and sat down in a chair. "Xavier came by to see me last night, and I think that's what motivated me."

"I'm glad to here it," Videl replied as she walked over to the refrigerator. "Are you hungry?"

Pan nodded her head violently and Videl smiled. As she put various things on the stove and started to cook, Pan debated on whether or not to ask her mom something she'd been wanting to know all day, or rather most of her life. She tapped her fingers on the table as she did so, and Videl recognized the nervous gesture almost immediately.

"Alright," Videl sighed as she turned around to face her daughter. "What do you have to ask me?"

Pan half-smiled and lowered her head slightly. "You know me too well."

"A good mother should," Videl crossed her arms over her chest. "Now, spit it out."

Pan let out a shaky sigh and looked her mother straight in the eye. "I've been thinking... I know I've asked you before but..." Videl held her breath, she knew what was coming. "You never tell me much... and I am 18 years old... I just want to know something about him... about my father."

Videl sighed and sat at the table, across from Pan. "I was afraid of that."

"I know it's painful," Pan put a gentle hand on Videl's shoulder. "But I just want to know anything... even the smallest detail... like what he smelled like... or how he laughed... what characteristics I got from him."

Videl smiled. "Well, there's that rubbing your head thing that you do."

Pan narrowed her eyes and scratched the back of her head. "What rubbing my head thing?"

Videl laughed. "The thing you're doing right now."

Pan brought her hand in front of her face and looked at it as if it was what confused her, and then she blushed and laughed along with her mom. "So what else do I get from my dad?"

Videl leaned back in her chair and tapped her mouth with her finger. "Well, from what Gohan told me, I would say that you get your temper from his mother," She smiled. "Or either me or my mother... maybe it's a combination... And you get your eyes from him-"

"Trunks told me that," Pan blurted out, then the smile that seemed to be plastered on her face forever faded as she thought of him. "I miss him so much, Mom."

"I know," Videl replied sympathetically. "That's how I feel about your father when I think of him... He was my everything until he died... then you came later that day so I didn't have much time to mourn."

Pan nodded. "I wish I could've met him."

"So do I. You know, he adored you as soon as I told him I was pregnant. And he just knew you were going to be a girl too, and he insisted that you were named Pan Chichi Son."

Pan looked pleased and astonished. "You mean he never wanted a son? To carry on the bloodline and to be a fighter and everything?"

Videl shook her head. "No. I guess he figured you'd be a fighter anyway with both of our genes in you." She deliberately left out the part about her nervous feelings of the prospect of having a girl.

"He sounds so wonderful..." Pan smiled as she envisioned what he looked like... what he smelled like... how he talked...

"Wait a minute," Videl said as she snapped her fingers, having got an idea suddenly. The sudden movement broke Pan's fantasies and she immediately transfixed her eyes to the older, raven-haired woman across from her. "Hold on one second." Videl practically flew out of the kitchen and down the hall as Pan blinked a few times, wondering what on Earth her mother was going to do.

It seemed like hours before Videl came back, a box that looked like it had a million years of dust on it in her hands. It was about as big as a shoebox (one of those big ass size 12 in Men's shoeboxes), and as she opened it and sat it on the table, Pan looked at her with questionable eyes, wondering what the hell she was going to pull out of there. She lowered her glance once Videl sat down in her chair, and noticed what was in it.

The box contained old, worn, possibly sentimental items. She saw various pictures of her mother with Bulma, Trunks, and some other dark-haired man. She also saw Bulma with some other people, including a man with unruly, spiky black hair dressed in a gi, a man with three eyes, and some weird looking green guy with antennas and a turban. She looked up at her mother with confusion, and Videl answered the question her eyes were asking.

"This is some of my 'treasured' items," She replied. "Some of them are your father's old trinkets I got... after he died."

Pan nodded as she pulled the box closer to her and looked through the dusty things, fascinated by her mother's beauty in her younger days, and of Bulma's. They were impressive, as were the men that appeared beside them. She had her eyes fixed on the picture with Bulma, Trunks, her mother, and someone else, not being able to keep her eyes off of that someone else. It was like she knew him somewhere before, but couldn't quite put her finger on it. His black eyes were a clue to what she didn't know yet, and Videl grabbed the picture from her, curious as to what she found so damn interesting.

"Oh," Videl said as she smiled once again. "I remember this picture." She sighed. "This was taken before I got pregnant... before my figure went to hell."

Pan grinned as Videl handed the picture back to her, and she pointed to the black-haired man as if Videl could see him and said, "Who's this guy in the orange and blue gi?"

Videl seemed to be smiling a lot that night. "That's your father, Pan."

Pan's mouth dropped and her eyes widened slightly as the realization hit her, and suddenly, she started to cry. "He... He's just like I imagined." She frowned when she noticed something else. "What happened to his arm?"

Videl lowered her blue eyes. "Androids," She said simply.

Pan nodded and wiped away her tears as she put the picture away and looked at the other things in there. She stared at their wedding picture, amazed at how her mother and father's simplicity made them look so godly, and she also caught a glimpse of Bulma and who she assumed was Trunks' father in some weird armor and spandex body suit. She also saw Gohan's parents, unknowingly, and Videl pointed out her parents, and she had to stifle a giggle when she got a load of her grandfather's hair.

Another picture caught her eye more than any of them, and she almost cried all over again at the sight. Videl was smiling her ass off, her hair back in a high ponytail, her blue eyes gleaming with joy. Gohan was behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist, a look of equal happiness on his face as he rested his head on top of hers. She noticed then where she got her wide grin she tended to use, and more clearly her thick hair and onyx eyes. She assumed the picture was taken way before they got married, since he had both arms and Videl looked a lot younger and innocent than she did in their wedding picture, and they both looked so blissfully happy that it almost made her sad all over again, thinking about Trunks and wishing they could be like that some day.

She pushed her thoughts aside and showed the picture to Videl. "Can I have this, Mom?"

Videl thought about it for awhile, a little hesitant, but she nodded anyway and Pan let out a squeal of delight and ran to her room to find a place for it. But before she got there, she skidded to a halt and went back into the kitchen, saying, "Thanks, Mom... for the picture and for talking to me..."

"No problem," Videl smiled, then noticed that her attempt at dinner was just that, an attempt. An attempt gone wrong as she noticed the faint smell of something burning fill the house.

Pan turned around again, but turned back around and added, "And Mom... I love you."

Videl turned momentarily and smiled at her daughter's retreating figure before fighting with the charred remains of what used to be edible that burned on the stove.

~*~

Trunks growled as he powered up into a Super Saiyan, dropping into a fighting stance on his imaginary opponent. Today was the hardest he'd trained in the GR, and he knew exactly why. He was angry at himself. His mother had awakened a new question and a new reason to be guilty for shutting Pan out of his life. The truth was, his mother was right, there was nothing different from any other time Pan pissed him off, and he had no reason to punish her that way.

So she played a practical joke on his girlfriend that drove her to insanity. Big deal. It wasn't like he was in love with her, she was just a casual fling, and even though he knew he meant a lot more to Pyra than she did to him (or at least he suspected), he didn't feel anything for her except maybe for lust and hatred. Lust for obvious reasons, and hatred for what she'd driven Pan to and what that led to. Now she was out of his life forever, and she probably hated his guts.

He was so angry, confused, hurt, and distracted, that he forgot the two ki blasts he'd sent flying minutes before. They came so fast that he didn't have time to block them, and they went straight for the two golden straps that held up his armor. The impact sent him to the ground, and his armor flew off of him as he did so. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his head, glancing at the now useless armor that lay on the ground. With some difficulty, he headed over to the control console of the GR and punched in a few buttons, the gravity returning to normal. He sighed as his muscles relaxed and walked across the GR to a hidden room in the back.

Inside the room was where he had found the body suit and armor in the first place, along with other dusty things that he didn't dare to touch. He rummaged through the cabinets in the room, looking for some armor to replace his, and his whole body went numb and his face drained of color when his hands fell upon something he never wanted to see again.

There it was. A faded blue and white shirt with Capsule Corp. written across it, a huge, pungent, red stain on it. He also saw his faded, matching pants, also smeared with the same red stain.

He remembered throwing them there after Gohan's death, thinking that if he put them there he was bound to never see them ever again. He never thought he'd get around to ever venturing the GR in his life, and now he suddenly remembered that he could've just thrown them away to avoid the pain that was consuming him. But he didn't, and now it was like they were there to mock him, like a ghost sent to scare the shit out of him. They were a painful reminder of an event he wanted to forget, a sharp knife sent to tear at the already healing scar in his heart.

He sank to his knees, gripping them in his gloved hands as tears ran down his face like the same uncontrollable rivers that ran down his face that fateful day. He'd never felt this way... not in a long time... and suddenly, everything was coming back to haunt him. Visions of what he and Gohan had flashed through his mind... then his bloody, disgusting body as he died in his arms... his last words... Videl's face when she heard the news... then Pan's childhood... they're growing friendship... and the horrible way it ended. It all came crashing down on him in one blow, and it was so overwhelming he couldn't breathe. He just cried, and he felt his ki rise rapidly as that sadness turned into fury. His hair flashed from lavender to gold and his eyes were now green as a blinding gold light engulfed his body. The items in the open cabinet came crashing to the floor as his power forced a small earthquake-like feeling, and he felt his hair tingle, like it wanted to grow or something. His eyebrows blinked in and out of view and he clenched his fists together so hard that he actually drew blood. He bolted upright and let out an agonizing scream. And just as he felt so powerful and fulfilled, he couldn't take it, and he changed back to his normal state as he collapsed, backwards, to the ground, panting. He had hit something sharp on the way down, and he could feel the blood rush out of his arm as the violent pain ran through him, accompanying the sharp pain in his soul.

~*~

Pan gasped and immediately turned her head in the direction of the GR through her window. She'd felt ki surges all day, and small "earthquakes", but just dismissed them, but this one came and went so quickly that she was worried. But it was so strong though, it couldn't be Trunks, but she knew that was the only person that could be in the GR and it was so undeniably Saiyan... without thinking she jumped off her bed, threw on some shoes, and flew out of her window and over to the GR.

She was there less than a minute later, and after trying to open the door twice without success, she just blew a hole straight threw it.

"Trunks?" She called out desperately, but she saw him nowhere. Then she felt his faint ki and barely heard a moan coming from another room, and quickly ran there and gasped at what she saw.

Clothes and various other items were sprawled all over the place and Trunks was lying in the middle of the floor, moaning in pain in a blue spandex suit. She ran over to him and called out his name, but all she got was another painful moan and he started to thrash around aggressively. She looked down and noticed his left arm had a large gash on it that was bleeding profusely. She looked away from it almost instantly, and said his name again, softer, as she ran her hand through his hair, and he seemed to calm down then.

His eyes fluttered open and immediately came in contact with her dark ones, full of worry and concern as she smiled weakly at him.

"Are you ok?" She asked.

Trunks groaned again, and tried to sit up, but felt too drained to do it himself. Pan helped him, and he turned his head to her and nodded slightly. "I think so. I feel like shit though."

"I can see that," She said, glancing at his injured arm again.

He followed her eyes and made a sickening face as he saw the blood gushing out of his arm. They both turned their heads to see his sword sitting inches behind them, blood dripping from it. Well, they had their culprit.

"I guess I brushed against it when I fell," Trunks said weakly.

Pan stood up and walked over to one of the cabinets. She looked at some of the contents that weren't on the floor, and found an old shirt. She grabbed it and knelt beside Trunks again, asking, "What happened, Trunks?"

Trunks winced as she ripped part of the spandex on his arm and replied, "Just got carried away."

She frowned and wrapped the shirt tightly around the wound to stop the bleeding. "Looks like you were trying to kill yourself. And the power I felt a little while ago felt awfully large for you to 'just get carried away'."

He winced again at the pressure on his arm. "Well..." But he didn't have time to finish his sentence when she spotted the articles of clothing next to him, the same ones that had driven him to insanity.

"What's this?" She asked as she held up the blood soaked garments. And with her Saiyan senses, she could still smell the blood faintly, and scrunched her nose up at the smell.

Trunks lowered his eyes as he answered, "Those were... those were the clothes I wore... when... when your father died." His voice cracked as he said the last few words, and it was obvious now to her that he'd been crying, and that he might start again any minute.

Pan muttered an, "oh", before dropping the clothes back to the floor. Trunks looked at her suddenly, and she could see the more detailed explanation in his eyes. She knew him so well that just one look could tell a whole story, and she put a hand on his shoulder that told him she understood. It was then that she noticed what he was wearing, and she fought to ignore his muscles as she focused on his crystal blue eyes again.

Trunks looked down at his arm, the once white shirt now blood red. "Where'd you learn how to do that?"

She smiled. "You don't remember?" He narrowed his eyes, convincing her that he didn't, and she lifted up the left leg of her pants, revealing a faint scar on her calf. "You taught me that... when the Androids attacked me that one time..."

He nodded. He remembered now. And it was that moment, and other memories, that gave him the fuel to kill them once and for all. He also remembered the panic he felt wondering if she was hurt badly, and he now realized how much she really meant to him, and how much of a fool he was to hurt her like he did.

He turned away from her in shame. "Pan..."

"Hmm?" Pan murmured as she wrapped another shirt tightly around his arm.

"Pan...," He said again, so softly that she barely heard him. "I'm... sorry."

"For what?" She asked.

"You know," He said. "About... getting so mad at you... for what you did to Pyra... and shutting you out of my life... it was crazy.... I was just so mad, I blurted out whatever came to mind... I'm sorry Panny... I never meant to hurt you.... I never meant to make you cry..." (A/N: Hehe, did you see where that was going? Haha, I'm such an idiot.)

"How'd you know I cried?" Pan asked. - I know I did that after he left...-

"Uh.. a guess... I uh guess."

Pan nodded. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have done that to Pyra. It was stupid... I'm so sorry Trunks." She laughed then. "I can't believe I almost forgot what happened. I guess I was so worried about you, you were all I could think of."

Trunks smiled. "Thanks... for helping me and everything."

"No problem," She smiled. "Anything for Trunks-kun." And then, more worriedly, "We are friends again, right?"

"Right," Trunks said with a smile as he extended his hand. She happily accepted, but as they looked into each other's eyes, it was evident that there was more to it than just friendship, and they barely even noticed their faces inch closer and closer together, until their lips were touching. Pan's eyes flew open when she noticed, but she closed her eyes again and just kept thinking of what a dream this was. But when their lips parted, and he smiled at her, his eyes told her again that it wasn't a dream. It was as real as reality gets.

She didn't have time to think about it again, or to be excited about what had just happened, when he kissed her again, but they were cut short when they heard an annoying, familiar, female voice say, "Oh... my... Kami."

They both pulled away and looked up in the direction of the voice and Trunks went pale while Pan's eyes fixed themselves into an intimidating glare. Because not only was there a person standing there, interrupting their tender moment, but that person was the main reason for their dispute in the first place. Yep, you guessed it. In front of them, with her arms crossed over her chest, was an angry Pyra Flame.

*~*~*~*~*
Yay!!!! They finally kissed! I never expected that... and I'm the damn author! Well, what do you think will happen next... or what do you want to happen next? As you can see, I did kind of take an idea from someone in order for this last scene to work (Aerowhynne, thanks again), so if you have some ideas, I might work with them a little bit and adjust them to my liking. And thank you again for all the reviews. This is the most successful fic I've ever written. I guess I know where the success is at now... in T/P's! And you can definitely expect another one after this, or after I finish another one of my fics. Well, you know the drill. Review, and if you want, I'll email you when the next chapter's out.

Next Chapter: More Pan vs. Pyra action... although whether it's verbal, physical, or otherwise, I don't know yet, so this chapter is pretty much undetermined. I went in a totally opposite direction than I was originally planning to, so yeah... you'll have to be genuinely surprised next time. But, suspect either the final get-together, another fight (between who, I'll leave out), or a postponement of the get-together until the Pyra bitch is finally out of the way. Ok? Ok.