Chapter 38

"…And so, the prince beat the bug and saved the world from its terror," Bardock swayed with Pan in his arms. "Unfortunately, he lost his father, and his father didn't want to be brought back because he thought the bad guys always went after him."

"And den what?" The 2 year old Pan asked tentatively, scared for the boy.

Bardock smiled, tapping her nose, "Have no fear. The Queen had another child, giving the prince a sense of purpose. He also met a brave young girl who became his best friend over the years. Then the prince and his friend grew older and went to school with all the other kids their age. There he met a princess with beautiful blue eyes. He grew fond of her and she him. But then…"

"Whas next?" Pan asked, her brow furrowing together impatiently.

Bardock grinned when he remembered all the times his sister made those faces. He shook his head, "Sorry, Panny. You're gonna have to wait for another night. It's way past your bed time and I don't want Mama and Papa to get mad."

"They won't," Pan pleaded, tugging on his arm when he set her down on her bed. "I pwomise. Pwease, Bawdock."

"Hey, impatient," Bardock teased, running his large hands over her head. "Just wait a bit, okay? The story's not going anywhere." He turned off the light as he walked towards the door, "Night, Panny." He grinned when all he heard was a huff come from her; she really was just like his sister from his timeline.

He walked to the living room of the quiet house; he was being babysitter while his mother and father were on a date. He didn't mind, he loved spending time with Pan. He paused when he stopped by the pictures on the table in the living room. He smiled when he looked at the pictures of his parents in high school when they had first started dating.

He then spotted a picture of everyone during the tournament, before everything went downhill. He saw Pan's face beaming brightly as she got to spend time with their family once more since she left with him to the present timeline. He sighed nostalgically. He wondered how much timed had passed during his timeline. He furrowed his brow, contemplating. He shook his head, heading to his room. He'd just sleep on it.

Bardock yawned, patting Pan's back lightly as he walked to his parents' room. He narrowed his eyes at the closed door and debated on whether he should open it or not. He never knew what was on the other side.

Pan lifted her head from his shoulder, glancing at the door, "Awe Mommy and Daddy in dere?"

Bardock nodded, "Yeah. I'm just waiting a bit." He then hesitantly lifted his hand and knocked on the door.

"Come in." He heard. Knowing that the coast was clear, he opened the door to see his father getting dressed for work and his mother ready for the day.

"Hello, Bardock," Videl smiled. "And hello, sweetie," She said, grabbing Pan from the time traveler's arms.

"Hey, Mama, Papa," Bardock greeted. "I see you guys are ready to start the day."

"Always, son," Gohan grinned. "Did you need something before I left?"

"Uh," Bardock scratched the back of his head nervously. "I don't really need anything, per se. I just need to tell you something…" He inhaled anxiously, "I've come to a decision. I'm going back to my timeline."

Gohan's glasses suddenly fell from his hands and Videl stared wide eyed at her son. Pan glanced at them all confusedly, "Wha?"

After making the announcement of going back to his timeline, Bardock, Bulma, Gohan, Videl, and Dr. Briefs worked day and night for weeks to make another time machine. Luckily, since they had already had the designs from his previous one, it was much easier to make another.

When Bardock finally made it home after weeks of staying at Capsule Corp, he was met with a very indignant Pan who glared up at him when he went into her room. He blinked in surprise, "What? Did I destroy Mr. Happy without knowing it again?"

Pan shook her head, pouting greatly, "You neva ended da stowy."

Bardock chuckled, rubbing his eyes tiredly, "Sorry, Panny. I've been really busy these past few days." He sat down on her bed, "Where did we leave off?"

"When da pwince and his fwend wen' to school," Pan answered, climbing into his lap and staring at him intently, ready to finish the story.

Her brother kissed her head lightly, "The prince and his friends went to a tournament that the princess invited him to. The prince's younger brother and the prince's young friend, another prince, fought the first battle against each other. The other young prince won, but they were still the best of friends.

"Soon, the adults fought their battles but the princess was severely beaten by her opponent. The prince was angry and was ready to fight the man who did it, but they got him and took away his power. The prince's friends went after them while the distraught princess went to the prince's aid.

"When the prince was healed, he went with his friends to fight the evil being they were told about. The being was too strong for them and the prince was thought dead."

Pan whimpered, burying her face in her brother's shoulder, "No."

Bardock soothed her, "Shh, it's okay. He was only thought dead. It turns out that his magical friends found him and took him to their planet to heal and train him. The evil being got stronger and was taken to the planet to fight the prince who he defeated with the help of his friends. He and the princess then got together and had a beautiful baby girl, years later."

"And dey lived happiwy eva aftew?" Pan asked.

Bardock smiled widely, tapping her nose, "Their story isn't finished yet but yes, they are living happily ever after." He laid her down on her bed, kissing her forehead, "Goodnight, Pan."

"Awe you weally weaving?" Pan pouted, her eyes shining brightly.

Bardock smiled sadly, "Yeah, sorry, Pan. I have to go. This may be my family, but I have another family that I left years ago. I promise I'll be back, okay?" He held out his pinky, "Pinky promise."

"Pinky pwomise," Pan linked her pinky with his.

Bardock swallowed thickly as he tried to hold his tears back. He hugged his grandmother tightly, "Bye, Grandma. I promise I'll come back as soon as I can, okay?"

Chi-Chi squeezed him tightly, sobbing into his shoulder, "Okay. Please, come back soon."

Bardock nodded before turning to his grandfather. He hugged him briefly, "Bye, Grandpa."

Goku hugged him back, "Bye, B. I hope to see you around."

"You will," He replied before going to Goten. "See ya, buddy."

The 15 year old half saiyan nodded, "See ya, Bardock. It was awesome having you around."

Bardock ruffled his long hair, "Stay golden, lady killer." The younger boy blushed as the time traveler moved to Trunks. He fist bumped the other boy, "Stay smart, genius."

Trunks laughed, nodding, "You got it, Bardock."

Bardock laughed as well, nodding his farewell to Vegeta who nodded back solemnly then moved on to Bulma. He smiled widely, "Bye, Bulma."

"Bye, kid," Bulma whispered before gathering into a hug. "Say hi to Pan for me when you get there, okay?"

"I will," He replied, pulling away. He walked up to the Namekian and nodded his farewell, "Goodbye, Mr. Piccolo."

Piccolo grunted with a ghost of a smile on his lips, "See ya, kid."

Bardock smiled slightly before moving to Hercule. He grinned, engulfing the man in a bear hug, "Bye, G-pa. I'll see you when I see you."

Hercule cleared his throat, roughly patting his grandson on the back, "Goodbye, Bardock."

Bardock released him and went to his father. He was taken by surprise when Gohan pulled him into a tight hug, "O-kay, Papa. I'm gonna miss you too." He laughed and pulled away.

Gohan laughed as well, "I'm just gonna miss you, son."

"I'll miss you too, Papa," He smiled. "Take care of Mama and Pan, okay?"

"With my life," Gohan replied in all seriousness.

Bardock nodded before moving to his mother. He hugged her tightly, feeling his eyes sting. He sighed shakily, "Bye, Mama. Take care of Papa and Pan, okay?"

Videl sobbed lightly, "I will. Goodbye, baby boy."

Bardock clenched his quivering jaw and pulled away. He waved to everyone else, kissing Pan's head goodbye, and went into the time machine. He put in the right settings and everyone vanished from his eyes.

Bardock jumped out of the time machine, gazing around Capsule Corp which looked the same way it did when he left when he was 11. He walked out of the room, carrying his stuff with him. He wondered how much time had passed. He glanced down at himself and noticed he looked like a teenager again. He only hoped he was older than 15.

He grinned widely when he heard familiar voices down the hall. He quickly walked towards the end of the hall and knocked on the wall, gaining the Briefs' attention. He chuckled, "I'm back."

Bulma, Trunks, Vegeta, and who he assumed to be Bra all watched wide eyed. It was Bulma who broke out of her daze first and threw herself into his ready arms, "Oh, Bardock. We've missed you so much."

Bardock laughed, feeling tears stream down his face finally, "I missed you guys too." He glanced up at Trunks who smiled at him, "Hey, I haven't seen you in forever."

"7 years," Trunks replied, giving him a hug when Bulma moved away. "I come home 2 years later and I find out you and Pan left. I was a little hurt."

5 years had passed. So he was 16. That was good. He grinned apologetically at the older half saiyan, "Sorry, Trunks. I had something to do, and it couldn't wait."

"Did you get anything done over there, brat?" Vegeta questioned with a small smirk on his lips.

Bardock nodded, "Yeah. I'll tell you when everyone else gets here."

Bulma clapped excitedly, "Oh, I can't wait to your stories. You must have way more than Pan had."

"Speaking of," Bardock smiled. "I'm gonna go visit my parents. I promise I'll be back and we can talk about my adventures in the other timeline."

Bardock walked up to his house, noticing many differences from when he was 11. They had more time on their hands. He knocked on the door. He reared back, startled when the door opened only seconds after he knocked. Pan stared up at him, and he was surprised to see she looked the same as she did when she had left the other timeline.

Pan squealed, throwing her arms around his neck, "Bardock! You're back!"

Bardock hugged her back tightly, feeling a grin stretch his lips, "Yeah, I'm back."

Pan pulled away with a smirk, "And look at that. You're not a kid anymore."

"Hey now," Bardock warned teasingly. He then looked up and stared at his parents. He smiled softly, "Hey, Mama, Papa."

"Bardock," Videl breathed, rushing forward and gathering him in her arms. It was much harder for her to wrap her arms around him since he was so much taller than she was now.

Pan hugged him again with a laugh, and Gohan ruffled his hair, "Welcome back, son."

Bardock exhaled deeply, "It's good to be back."