Disclaimer: The characters portrayed within are not mine, but the
property of Akira Toriyama and a whole lot of other people who are not

me, and who actually have money (which I don't), so please don't sue
me!



What Friends Are For - Part 4
By Rhionae

Goten watched as his father stared at their abandoned house.  It had
been empty for only two years... <But it seems so much longer...>

"Why did you leave?" Goku rested one hand against the dirty window,
peering into the past...

"Being here every day, it just kept on reminding us about Kaasan.
Niichan took her death pretty hard."

His father turned to face him.  "And you didn't?"

He shrugged, shifting his gaze towards Trunks.  Who was standing
stiffly, with both arms folded across his chest, doing his best to
ignore Vegeta.

There had been a minor argument after Goku had agreed to help them:
everyone else had wanted to come along, too.  Fortunately, the fact
that they had only brought four of the dimensional transporters with
them forestalled a mass migration into this world.  Trunks had
wordlessly given Goku his own spare, initiating a rather intense
debate as to who should get to use Goten's.  In the end, Trunks had
grabbed it off him and shoved it into the hands of a surprised Vegeta,
before exiting the house.

"Is he... always like that?"  Bulma had asked hesitantly.

"Only around people."

"Oh."

He had stood up and was getting ready to leave when the other Goten
called out "Ganbatte!"

"Yeah, and take care of yourself," the other Trunks had added.  The
others had also given him words of support...

"Arigato,"  he thanked them.  <I have a bad feeling that we're going
to need it.>

He had instructed Goku and Vegeta as to how to work the watch-like
devices that were to transport them to *his* world, and Trunks had
insisted that both Saiyajin take a ki-shield.  <After all, we didn't
want our Vegeta to attack the minute we showed up...  Although, given
that there's four of us here, he probably wouldn't have.  Coward.>

Goku had been surprised to see that his home had been left to the
elements.  It had withstood them fairly well, but the mere presence of
dirt on the windowpane was a reminder of Chichi's absence in this
world.  <And don't I know it.>

Behind them Vegeta snorted.  "We're wasting time," he declared, before
flying off towards Capsule Corp, the ki-shield concealing his
movement.  Goku was still staring at the house.

"Gohan's going to think that he's *him*," Trunks commented, keeping
his eyes on Goku.

<Shit.>  Goten glared in disgust at the tiny speck that was all that
could be seen of Vegeta.  "I'll see you back home."  He leapt into the
air in pursuit of the moving dot.  Which was getting further away from
him with every passing moment. <Damn him!>

He slipped his hand into his pocket, fingers curling around his own
ki-shield, before powering up.  It was for moments like these that he
lived, being able to revel in the sensations of power flowing through
his body, and that of the world around him.  Free to live as he
chose... among the stars that glittered down on him during the dark
nights, his comfort, his joy...

He caught up to Vegeta all too soon.  <He must have slowed down.  But
why?>  They flew silently, side by side for several long moments.

"How bad was it?"

"Huh?" Goten was startled by Vegeta's sudden question.  "How bad was
what?"

A pause.

"You said he was bleeding to death," Vegeta clarified.

"Uhn," he acknowledged.  "He was.  Severe bruising, several dozen
broken bones, internal damage, and he lost about a quarter of his
blood."

More silence.

"Was that the only time?"

He sighed.  "No.  I think just about all of their 'sparring' sessions
ended up with Trunks getting beaten up beyond the level that
'sparring' should have limited them to."

"You 'think'?"

"He didn't like me hanging around Trunks much.  Something about my
'contaminating' him."  <And I think that a fair number of those
beatings that Trunks received were about that... He's my friend!  I
never wanted him to get hurt!  Maybe he would have been better off if
I had stayed away...>  He eyed the Saiyajin flying next to him, a
living reminder of the cause of his friend's pain.  <Then again, maybe
not.>

They  were nearing Capsule Corp, now.

"You'd better let me explain to Gohan and Videl before they see you."

"Hmph."  Vegeta folded his arms across his chest, his posture
reminiscent of Trunks as he watched Goku... <Except that Trunks'
posture was defensive; Vegeta's on the other hand, is definitely
*offensive*...>  "What are you waiting for, brat?  I'm not going to
stand out here all night!"

Goten controlled his bristling temper, and entered the building.
Sensing Gohan's ki in the kitchen, he headed in that direction,
lowering his ki, and returning the ki-shield to his pocket.

Gohan was sitting at the table with his head in his hands once more.
<It's like he hasn't moved since lunch...>  Goten frowned.

"Niichan?"

The single word caused Gohan to snap his head up, dark eyes blinking
in confusion at his younger brother.

"Goten?  You're all right? I thought - !"  He exclaimed in relief.

"You though what, niichan?"  Goten stared at him in concern.

Gohan handed him a scrap of paper.  <Oh yeah, Trunks left him a
note.>  He scanned it quickly.  And blinked.  <If he wasn't already so
messed up, I just might have killed him for that one!>

The note was simple, direct, and to the point.  'Gone to see Goku -
don't wait up.  T & G'

<And I *know* what Gohan was thinking.>

"Niichan," he asked mildly, "do I really seem the type to commit
suicide to go and see a father who died before I was born?"

Gohan flushed. "No - "

"Of course not."  <Trunks, on the other hand...>

"Gomen," Gohan apologized.  "But the way things have been..." He
slumped back down in the chair.

"I know.  That's why we went to see Tousan."

Gohan froze, before turning very slowly to face his brother.  "Excuse
me?"

"In another dimension.  And I *don't* mean the afterlife."  Goten
watched carefully as his brother absorbed this fact.

"Another dimension? Like Mirai Trunks' world?"

"Uhn, something like that.  Goten grinned wryly at him.  "Maybe you
shouldn't have told us so many bedtime stories when we were younger.
They've given Trunks some pretty far out ideas."

Gohan eyed him closely.  "Why do I get the feeling that you're talking
about more than just crossing dimensions?"

"You make it sound like we were crossing the road!" Goten laughed
softly.  "But you're right.  Tousan's here."

"*What?*"  His jaw dropped.

<He took that pretty well.>

"Did you think we went there just to say hello?"

"Don't be silly, Goten.  But bringing someone here from another
dimension...  How can you know what effects it will have?"

"We can't."  He shrugged.  "But he should be able to handle Vegeta for
the time it takes for the rest of us to get to him."

"'Handle Vegeta?'  We can't even find him!" Gohan exclaimed
incredulously.

"That's the point.  You *did* say that Vegeta was almost desperate to
defeat our father when you were younger."

"Desperate to *kill* him, Goten..."

"Of course.  The victory is not complete until one warrior lies
dead."  Gohan froze in horror at the familiar voice.

"*Vegeta!*"  In an instant the air was vibrating with power - and the
gentle Son Gohan was ready to do battle in order to protect his
younger brother, his wife, his daughter...

"Niichan, wait!"

Black eyes narrowed in contempt.

"Wrong Vegeta, baka."

Goten blinked.  <Like father, like son...>

Gohan's ki level didn't alter.

"That's right! He's from my world!"  Son Goku's cheerful voice broke
the tension in the room.

<Well, most of it, anyway.>  He watched in relief as his father
entered the kitchen, Trunks hovering in the background.  <Someone
*else* can give the explanations this time!>

"Tousan?"  Gohan stared wide-eyed, at the man whose appearance was so
like his own...

"Hai!  We came to visit!"

Gohan soon caught his father's infectious grin, and recovered to greet
him warmly.

"What's all the noise about?" Videl's voice reached the kitchen before
her.  "I just got Pan to sleep, and I don't want..." she trailed off
at the sight of the two 'extra' men standing in her kitchen.

"Oh, so you married Videl, too?"  Goku inquired.

"What do you mean, 'too'"? Videl demanded, her gaze flickering between
him and Vegeta.  "Who are you?"

"I'm Son Goku, Gohan's father," the person in question introduced
himself.

"*Nani?* I thought you were dead!"  she exclaimed, staring wide eyed
at Goku in shock.

"I'm not dead," Goku informed her.  "Well, I was... but now I'm alive
again... But *his* father really *is* dead..."

"He's from an alternate dimension," her husband hastily informed her,
interrupting Goku's confused attempt at explaining.

"An alternate dimension?" She repeated weakly.  "I think I need to
hear this one sitting down."

A few minutes - and several cups of strong coffee - later, they were
all seated around the kitchen table.  Goten, after a single look at
Trunk's taciturn face, had explained himself yet again, this time
aided by his older brother.  Videl had been rather startled to
discover the identity of their other 'guest' - for she had never met
her own world's Vegeta, only ever hearing of him.  <Lucky her.>

"So Pan was born in this world, too?"  Goku was pleased to discover
that his granddaughter still existed in this world.  "What about the
others?  Kurilin and Yamucha and the rest?"

"Kurilin's living out with Kamesennin.  He married Juuhachigou, and
they have twins - a boy and a girl."  Gohan's smile was touched with
sadness.  "We don't really see them much.  Not since Juunanagou was
killed."

"Eh?  What happened to him?"

"Let me guess," Vegeta's voice dripped with irony as he spoke before
Gohan could say anything.  "Vegeta, right?"

"However did you guess?"  Goten muttered sarcastically.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes at the remark, his ki starting to rise -

- when Trunks rose out of his chair and leaned across the table
towards his 'father', bared teeth and blue eyes hard as ice set in a
mask of pure fury.  Everyone froze.

Vegeta blinked, then slowly released the ki he had gathered, Trunks
subsiding with it.

"Umm, so, what about Yamucha?"  They all turned to stare at Goku.

Gohan took a deep breath, sighing heavily before answering his
father.  "We haven't seen him in several years.  I don't know where he
is now."

"Under the big tree in the backyard."

For the second time in as many minutes everyone in the room turned to
stare at Trunks.

"Nani?" Goten finally choked out.

"At least, I'm pretty sure it was Yamucha," Trunks continued calmly.

"*Trunks!* What *are* you talking about?"  <Although I've got a bad
feeling that I *really* don't want to know...>

"He'd been dead quite a while - the body was barely recognizable, it
had degraded that much."

Videl started to look green.  Goku and Gohan weren't much better.

<Okay.  I can deal with this.>  Goten took a deep breath before taking
Trunks chin, forcing him to meet his gaze.

"When did you find Yamucha?"  He kept his steady dark gaze focused on
the flickering blue eyes before him.  And waited.

"Two years ago."

"And you buried him in the backyard."

"Uhn."

"And you didn't tell anyone about it."

"Uhn."

"*Why not?*"  Silence.  Then -

"It was just after Chichi died."

Goten sighed, dropping his hands to the table.  "I don't suppose
there's anything else you'd care to tell us?  No-one else dead?"

Trunks shook his head once, his pale curtain of hair once again
concealing his face, before slipping from his chair and escaping the
room.

Goten folded his arms on the desk, resting his head on them.  The
others glanced amongst themselves in anxious confusion.

<I think that Trunks and I need to have a *nice long talk*...>

***************

Rhionae
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Island/3226/fanfics.htm