Long overdue, but here it is!
Tsuki's head shot up from organizing her threads as she felt a heavy influx of dark magic bear down almost oppressively.
"The Darkness..." Shin breathed.
"Come, East. We must meet with them, pull them away, even for just a moment," Tsuki said quickly, grabbing his hand tightly. "Take us to an open realm. Any of them," she ordered, her voice uncharacteristically wavering.
"Yes, my lady," Shin replied.
She looked to Old Kai then and gestured to the threads. "Protect them, please."
"Of course, my dear," Old Kai reassured.
She nodded in thanks and then turned her gaze to East. "Please," she requested softly. He met her gaze, his worry reflected in her eyes. He nodded then, closed his eyes, and whisked them away.
When he opened his eyes, they stood in a barren realm, the only life their beating hearts. Tsuki's hand left his, and he felt a pang of emptiness. He looked up at her, but her gaze was focused on the nothingness before her. She lifted her hand in front of her, and he followed her lead.
"Just enough to pull their attention," she said softly. She then unleashed a steady wave of her ki and magic, Shin following suit, hoping they could direct the attention to them.
It was enough.
The oppressive flow of dark magic ceased, and then bounced straight before them. Amat and a small being appeared before them, and Shin's breath caught in his throat.
Bibidi...
"Yes, dear sister?" Amat greeted lightly. He turned his attention to Shin, and he bristled. "East," he acknowledged tersely. He followed the Kai's gaze and smirked. "Tell them who you are, wizard."
"I am the Great Wizard Babidi," the little being said with flourish. "Now if you don't mind, I was in the middle of something important," he said, annoyed, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You've found Majin Buu," Shin gasped.
"Of course I did," Babidi said arrogantly.
"Amat," Tsuki said, drawing the attention back to her. "We don't have to do this."
Amat scowled darkly. "It's too late for that. It was too late the moment West was murdered."
"The monster you plan to unleash was the one who did it!" Shin exclaimed indignantly.
Amat's eyes cut to him sharply. "Watch yourself, Kai," he snarled.
"Then what do you propose we do? I know you have an army, you know I have my own. What do you plan to do with them?" Tsuki asked, again diverting the attention to her.
"To keep yours from interfering. The boy will die, Tsuki. You bringing this army will not stop the inevitable. You will not be able to do anything. And neither will the Namekian," he growled.
Tsuki's stance stiffened. "You will leave him out of this," she snapped.
"Why? He protects the boy. He's every bit as much in my way as you are. Not that you are anymore anyway..."
"He's your son!" she tried at last. "Yours and West's! She wouldn't want you to do this."
Amat's face hardened. "He's not my son. You said so yourself."
She visibly deflated. "Then what? What do we do?" she asked wearily.
"Tomorrow. You and I. Your army and mine. Your boy and my monster."
She met his eyes, gold and blue staring deeply into each other. It was unbearably tense for several long moments.
"Tomorrow," she affirmed.
And with that, Amat and Babidi disappeared in a flurry of dark magic. Tsuki let out a deep sigh and Shin released the breath he hadn't been aware he was holding.
"Come, my friend. We must prepare our warriors. You felt it as I did; he's ready. Now, we must lighten ourselves. We cannot convey our worry, for they are already burdened down with their own."
Gohan and Vegeta finally broke apart. Vegeta was breathing heavily, sweat pouring down his face. Gohan, however, was barely sweating, let alone breathing hard. Vegeta descended quickly, his hair returning to black as he leaned over, hands on his knees. Gohan followed his lead, dropping back down to Super Saiyan II, his hair becoming blonde once more.
"Holy...shit..." Vegeta breathed, pulling himself to stand straight.
Piccolo looked the boy over. "Are you even warmed up yet?" he asked him in slight amazement.
Gohan smiled sheepishly. "Um..."
"Are you kidding me?" Vegeta practically snarled, now highly annoyed.
"Sorry Vegeta. You are strong! Really!" Gohan tried to encourage.
"Oh, shut up," he snapped. When Piccolo snorted, he cut his glare to him. "Do you want to go up against him, Namekian? See how you do?"
Piccolo smirked. "No. My ego isn't the one that needs to be knocked down a peg," he goaded.
Vegeta growled and opened his mouth to retort when the air shimmered before him and Tsuki appeared, Shin at her side. The Saiyan took a staggered step back, caught off guard.
"Do you two ever stop?" Shin asked in amusement.
"Nope!" Gohan answered for them chipperly, dropping back down to base.
Piccolo cheeks flushed slightly in embarrassment of his immaturity. "Why are you here?" he asked.
Tsuki's eyes met his coolly. "The time has come, my friend," she answered.
Piccolo's breath caught in his throat. He became aware of a tiny influx of ki and cut his gaze over to Gohan. The boy was now stiff as a board, barely breathing.
Gohan, don't panic...
"B-but... we just... I just... we're not ready!" Gohan stammered, his voice becoming shrill.
Tsuki smiled softly and she lay her hand gently on his shoulder. "You are ready, my little Saiyan," she affirmed.
"But we just-"
"There isn't anything that can be done, Gohan," Shin interrupted. "Lord Amat's army is complete. It is only a matter of time before he has Buu."
"So what do we do?" Vegeta asked.
"Tomorrow, we fight," Tsuki answered. "My army is ready. Are you ready to meet them?" she then asked. Gohan's eyes widened considerably, curiosity getting the better of him as he nodded enthusiastically. Vegeta and Piccolo glanced at one another before nodding as well, both skeptical that this army would make any difference, no matter who arrived.
"Excellent. East, please help Elder Kai release the threads," she requested, turning her attention to Shin.
"Of course," he replied before disappearing.
For several long moments, there was nothing; and then suddenly, three orbs of light appeared before them, beginning to grow and take shape.
What?
Yamcha, Tien, and Chaoutzu stood before them, no different than they had been the day they died, yet their ki read stronger. Before the three warriors could fully process the familiar faces before them, another two orbs appeared, forming...
Piccolo heard Vegeta sharply inhale, practically felt his body stiffen beside him.
Jeice and Krillin.
"Hi guys!" Krillin said happily.
"KRILLIN!" Gohan cried, launching himself at his friend, nearly tackling him to the ground. Krillin enveloped him in a hug. Piccolo could hear the muffled sobs coming from Gohan, could see his shaking form. "I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!"
"Hey, kid, it's okay!" Krillin said reassuringly, patting him on the back. "Ease up, would you? I may be dead, but you're still crushing the life out of me!" he added jokingly.
Gohan gave a weak chuckle, pulling away and wiping the tears from his eyes. He then turned his attention to the orange being beside him, who was paying him no mind, his eyes pinned on Vegeta. And then, he was walking quickly to the Saiyan, a smile breaking out the nearer he drew.
"Hey, Lieutenant Asshole!" he greeted jovially.
Vegeta's body stiffened even more, if at all possible, before he relaxed, a genuine smile breaking out for the first time in a long time. "Hey, Private Dumbass!"
The two grasped forearms tightly, comrades in arms once more.
Krillin made his way over to Vegeta then, and for a moment, Vegeta's smile wavered.
"Hey dude! Long time, no see!" Krillin said happily. He held his hand out and Vegeta took it almost tentatively. Krillin tightened his grasp and pulled the Saiyan in, quickly wrapping one arm to slap him on the back before drawing away quickly. "I missed ya, man."
Vegeta said nothing, his eyes sliding over to Gohan briefly, who had returned to Piccolo's side, smiling happily as he leaned against the Namekian's legs.
"Hey man," Krillin said, putting his hand on Vegeta's shoulder, drawing his attention back to him. "You gotta stop blaming Gohan, Vegeta. It wasn't his fault. I don't blame him. Not in the slightest. The god coming? He truly did it. Turn your anger to him!"
"Thank you," Piccolo blurted before he could stop himself.
Tsuki chuckled beside him, and then focused on the space in front of her, eyebrows knitted in what seemed to be slight confusion. Then, she smiled.
"Ah, there he is," he heard her mumble softly. "Fashionably late, as usual..."
A final bright light made itself known. Piccolo felt Gohan's body go rigid against him, and his own breath caught in his throat.
Goku.
"Daddy?" the boy breathed.
"There's my son!" Goku exclaimed excitedly. "Come here, kiddo!"
Gohan drew in a shaky breath and hesitated, suddenly very shy. He looked up at Piccolo uncertainly. The Namekian's hand rested on his shoulder, and then drifted to his back, giving him a gentle push forward.
"Go on," he urged.
Gohan took a few timid steps towards Goku, and then, at his father's bright smile, remembrance of love and family took over, and the boy practically sprinted into his father's waiting arms. Goku scooped him up as his son's arms wrapped tightly around his neck, fervently returning the embrace.
"I love you, Daddy. I've missed you and Mommy so much..."
"We love you too, son. So, so much. And we're so proud of you."
Gohan drew away then and smiled brilliantly at his father, and then looked over his shoulder at Piccolo. Goku set him down and Gohan grabbed his hand, beginning to take him over to the waiting group.
"Come on, Daddy. You need to meet Mr. Piccolo!" Gohan chirped. Piccolo's ears pinned back slightly at that and he sucked in a deep breath.
"Uh, Gohan, we already know each other..." Goku said uncertainly.
"No, you don't. You knew old Mr. Piccolo. This is my Mr. Piccolo!" he explained simply.
Goku chuckled. "Alright, kiddo." Gohan bounded back to Piccolo's side and looked up at the Namekian expectantly. Goku noticed Piccolo's demeanor shift almost instantly: he relaxed his stance and his features softened. He had known Piccolo had taken his son; had been watching over him all this time. But now, to see the love and devotion in his eyes as he looked upon his little mirror image, Goku felt his chest swell with pride.
While the boy looked like him, his demeanor made him Piccolo's son through and through.
"Hey," he said friendlily, holding his hand out. Piccolo's attention turned back to him, and he stared at his outstretched hand. Almost hesitantly, the Namekian grasped the Saiyan's hand. Goku gripped his hand firmly and shook it once. "Thank you, for raising my son. For doing what I couldn't."
Piccolo pulled his hand away, unable to think of a response. Gohan leaned against him, and he let his guard down, his hand drifting to the boy's head and ruffling his hair. He looked back up at Goku, who had a contented smile on his face as he looked at the pair.
"You're welcome," he softly responded at last.
Gohan looked between the two, smiling brightly. Both fathers, together.
"Hey Goku!" Krillin called, interrupting the quiet exchange. "Come here! You gotta meet Vegeta!"
Piccolo rolled his eyes.
Great. This is just going to go so well...
Goku went to Krillin and looked at Vegeta, his head slightly cocked. The two Saiyans regarded one another silently for a few moments, before Goku broke out into his goofy trademark grin, extending his hand.
"Hi, I'm Goku!"
Vegeta stared at his hand, not uncrossing his arms from his chest. "Kakarott," he corrected arrogantly.
"You know, I really don't like that name," Goku said. "Nothing but a bad memory associated with it."
"You're a Saiyan. I will call you by your Saiyan name."
Piccolo was suddenly very glad the two Saiyans had never met before now. Beside him, he heard Gohan give a little groan. Apparently, the boy shared his sentiments.
"It's Goku," Goku said a little more forcefully.
"Kakarott."
"Goku!"
"Kakarott," Vegeta practically snarled, drawing out the word slowly, as if speaking to a small child.
"Whoa. Okay, okay, my bad. Should've figured this was going to happen..." Krillin bemoaned.
"I told you so," Jeice said flippantly.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah..."
Vegeta broke off the glare he shared with Goku to turn his head at the two friends before him. It seemed to finally strike him that his friends were both there. And they knew one another.
"You know each other?" he asked stupidly.
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Jeice actually met me on Snake Way right after I died. You know, he told me some pretty embarrassing stories about you, Vegeta!"
Vegeta shot a dark look at Jeice, who simply smirked at him. "Of course he did. Well, aren't you two just a match made in Hell," he said sarcastically.
"Actually, kinda, yeah..." Jeice mused. "The rest of the team...they ended up in Hell. And I was there too, until Krillin died. The Lady brought us together, I believe. I guess this whole...mess... is the reason why."
"So, are we just going to be ignored the rest of the day? We got here first, ya know!" Yamcha's voice cut in, seemingly annoyed.
Goku and Krillin scratched the back of their heads, grinning sheepishly. "Sorry guys," Goku apologized. "Just...got caught up in everything..."
"It's fine," Tien said simply. "Not really itching to get to know that Saiyan," he added brusquely.
"Yeah, I'm good with that," Chaoutzu chimed in, agreeing with Tien.
"How did you guys get stronger?" Piccolo asked abruptly. "Your ki was not this high when you died."
"For your information, we trained!" Yamcha said defensively.
"The Lady helped," Chaoutzu provided. "We trained, but she did a lot too."
All eyes shot to Tsuki. "It wasn't much," she explained. "I couldn't do much at all. I was only able to tweak just a little bit. Much as I did for Vegeta."
"I BEG YOUR FUCKING PARDON?" Vegeta asked, aghast.
"Did you never question how you were suddenly strong enough to kill Cui and Dodoria?" Tsuki asked simply.
Krillin burst into laughter and Piccolo let out a very undignified snort.
Gohan ignored them. "Can you do the same for us?" he questioned hopefully.
"I'm sorry, but I cannot," she apologized.
"But why?" Gohan pressed, voice beginning to rise in desperation. Piccolo laid his hand upon his shoulder heavily, trying to ground the boy.
"You are all too strong now for it to make any difference," she said calmly. "Do not despair, little Saiyan. This is a good thing," she added.
"Okay, so where are we at then?" Piccolo asked.
"I am unsure of who my brother has brought back. Yamcha, Tien, and Chaoutzu are as strong as Gohan is in his base form now. The other three have trained hard enough that I was unable to bring out anymore in them."
"We're as strong as a Super Saiyan!" Krillin said proudly, gesturing to himself and Jeice. "Well, about as strong as Gohan was when he first ascended. But still! Improvement!"
"And what about Goku?" Piccolo asked. The Saiyan had always been strong, always was pushing himself. Hopefully he had continued to push himself with as much fervor.
"He is a Super Saiyan II. He ascended a year after Gohan did."
"Yeah, you really raised the bar, kiddo!" Goku said happily.
"Okay, but how strong?" Piccolo pushed.
"He is slightly stronger than Vegeta at this point," she answered.
"WHAT?" Vegeta snarled. Beside him, Krillin gave a quiet chuckle. "You think this is funny, dwarf?" he growled, rounding on his friend.
"It's nothing," Krillin answered with a silly grin upon his face. "I just had a feeling you two would have been at each other's throats all the time if Goku was still alive. I think I was right," he said, pointing to Goku's smug smile.
Vegeta's face darkened and he opened his mouth to retort-
"I am afraid I must send them on their way now," Tsuki cut him off.
"Why?" Gohan asked sadly, looking at his father. "They can't stay until tomorrow?"
Tsuki shook her head. "I am sorry, Gohan. I must keep their threads strong, and having them stay any longer will begin to fray them. I will bring them back to you tomorrow, before we fight. I promise you that."
Gohan nodded weakly. "Okay," he whispered.
Yamcha, Tien, and Chaoutzu were the first to leave. Jeice and Krillin were next, and they smiled brightly and waved as their forms dimmed and ultimately disappeared. Goku was last, and he made his way over to Gohan. The boy looked up at him with tears in his eyes, and then flung himself at him, arms wrapped tightly around his middle.
"I'll see you tomorrow, kiddo. I'll tell your mother what I've seen in you. She'll be so proud," Goku promised. He bent down to press a kiss on Gohan's head as his body finally faded away, leaving Gohan's outstretched arms empty.
Tsuki looked to the three and smiled softly. "I will see you tomorrow. Rest, sleep, spend time with your loved ones, and meet me here at dawn," she said before she faded away as well.
The trio of warriors were alone once more.
It was silent for several long moments.
"I'm going home," Vegeta said at last, his voice surprisingly quiet.
"Can we come?" Gohan asked softly, desperately.
"We should stay together," Piccolo said. "Just in case."
Vegeta stared at them for a while, his face a hard mask. "Give me some time first..." he said softly at last.
...to say goodbye.
The unspoken words hung heavy in the air.
"We'll go get Gohan's cat," Piccolo said at last. Vegeta nodded and then took to the sky. Piccolo and Gohan watched him until he was out of sight.
"Come on kid. Let's go get your cat."
Piccolo stayed outside the house as Gohan went in to pick up Jade and the bag Bulma had brought him. The boy radiated numbness, and the Namekian found that he didn't know what to say. Didn't have the words to encourage him, to tell him that it would all be alright.
Because he knew it wouldn't be.
They lifted off and flew to Capsule Corp. slowly, in silence. They took their time, giving Vegeta a long while to be alone with his family. They landed in the yard and went to the door, Gohan knocking gently. Trunks opened the door, his eyes misty.
"Hi guys," he said dully, his voice nowhere near as bright as usual. He stepped out of the way to allow them to pass, closed the door, and followed them into the living room.
Bulma sat on the couch, her eyes red and puffy. Vegeta leaned against the arm of it, Bulma's hand resting lightly on his crossed arms. His face was sullen in a way Piccolo had never seen in him before, not even when Krillin had died.
Bulma let out a heavy sigh before smiling weakly at the pair. "Hey guys. Mom and Dad are home; Mom's making dinner."
"I brought my coloring books you gave me," Gohan said, setting Jade down and then holding up the bag. "You want to go color with me, Trunks?" he asked the boy.
Trunks gave a small smile, his eyes brightening. "Okay!" he said lightly.
"Thank you, Gohan," Bulma whispered as the two headed up the stairs to Trunks' room. She turned her attention to Piccolo. "Piccolo..."
"I'll leave you be," he said, turning to follow the boys. As he walked up the stairs, he heard a quiet sob and glanced back to see Bulma throw herself onto Vegeta, her arms tight around his neck. He slid down the arm onto the cushions, allowing her to rest against him, his hand coming up to rest on her hip. He turned away from the painful sight and trudged up the stairs.
Gohan and Trunks lay on the floor on their stomachs, both intently coloring their pages bright colors. Both had their tongues slightly out in concentration, kicking their legs idly in the air. Jade was curled up on the small of Gohan's back. Piccolo leaned against the doorway heavily. Gohan glanced up for a brief moment at the sound, made eye contact, and then looked back down, forcing himself to focus on his picture.
It was quiet in the house for a long time, the only sound the bustling on Bunny Briefs in the kitchen, preparing dinner. The smell of baked goods and roasted meat began to fill the air, and both boys' heads lifted.
"Food's done!" Bunny's voice called shrilly. At that, the boys pushed themselves off the ground, heading down the stairs. Trunks began to talk surprisingly rather animatedly and Gohan allowed himself a small smile as they walked down the stairs together. Piccolo followed, Jade at his heels.
When they arrived into the kitchen, Bulma and Vegeta had already joined the boys at the table. Bunny set out the huge serving platters before grabbing two prepared plates and walking out. Piccolo stood behind Gohan's chair as usual, Jade laying under his chair.
It was an awkwardly quiet dinner. Trunks was talking softly to Gohan and his parents, Bulma and Gohan adding small words here and there. Vegeta was silent, eating his food with far less gusto than usual.
At long last, the meal was over and they all stood. It was silent for a few moments until Bulma cleared her throat.
"It's later than I thought. We should probably go to bed, seeing how early we need to wake up," she said at last. They all walked up the stairs together in silence. They stopped at Trunks' room and bid him goodnight. The four then walked down the hall, stopping at Bulma and Vegeta's room.
"Goodnight," Bulma croaked, pushing her way into the room quickly, tears beginning to dot her eyes.
"Goodnight," Gohan echoed, walking to the guest room. Piccolo met Vegeta's hollow eyes and hurriedly broke the gaze. He looked to Jade and patted his leg as he had often seen Gohan do, bidding the cat to follow him. He heard Vegeta close the door quietly behind him.
When he entered the room, he saw Gohan already curled up under the blankets. Jade hopped up to snuggle against Gohan's side, and he took up residence at the foot of the bed as usual.
It was silent in the bedroom for a long time, but Piccolo knew Gohan wasn't asleep. Tomorrow's events, the what if, hung heavy in the air between them. And Piccolo found he didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to do. Gohan honestly believed he was going to die the next day, believed it with his whole heart. And that hurt Piccolo on a level he had never felt before.
There was nothing he could say that was going to make this better. Nothing he could do to change it.
"Mr. Piccolo?" Gohan's voice finally came softly.
"Yeah kid?"
"Will you tell me a story?" he asked quietly.
"A story?"
"Yeah."
Piccolo hesitated. "I-I don't know any stories, kid."
"Oh, okay," Gohan said. "That's okay. Never mind."
It was silent again and Piccolo felt his heart sink heavily in his chest. Gohan so rarely asked for anything. Who was he, no how dare he, deny this boy, his boy something, on what could very well be their last night together?
"I...know of one..." Piccolo said at last.
Gohan sat up. "You do?" he asked, hope in his voice.
Piccolo stood from his perch on the end of the bed and moved to head where Gohan lay. He moved Gohan's pillow and sat in his customary lotus position. Without prompt, Gohan settled his head on Piccolo's legs, and Piccolo's hand began to stoke through his hair.
"How do stories usually start?" he asked, unsure of himself.
"The books always started with once upon a time..."Gohan supplied.
Piccolo grunted. "Once... once upon a time... there was... a... man. A bad man. He had a cold, black heart. And he wanted nothing more than peace and quiet, blissful solitude. He was happy being alone. And then one day, this boy... this little, loud, annoying boy, fell into his life. And the man was angry. He hated the boy at first, or at least, told himself he did. He hated he had no choice in this turn in his life, for he had always been in control.
"It seemed no matter how mean he was to the boy, no matter how rude he was, the boy kept coming back. He kept trying to talk to him. Kept telling him these weird things he insisted upon calling jokes. Kept trying to be close to him. And the harder the man pushed him away, the more persistent the boy became.
"And slowly, the man's heart began to thaw. He found himself actually looking forward to the boy's chatter. He began to want the boy's attentions, his affections. And one night, while the boy was fast asleep and actually quiet for once, the man realized just what the boy meant to him.
"And so, under the stars and the moon's watchful gaze, the man made a promise to the boy to always protect him. He told him he'd never let anything..." a soft snore cut him off and he looked down to actually look at Gohan, finally asleep on his lap. He lowered his voice then. "He told him he'd never let anything happen to him." He was silent for some time after that, the only sound Gohan's soft snore and Jade's quiet purr. "I won't let anything happen to you, Gohan. I promise," he whispered into the darkness.