Author's Notes: Timeline A refers to the proper timeline in which the Z fighters are well and alive. Timeline B refers to Future Trunks' time.

Prologue

Timeline B

Pan got up carefully from bed so that she wouldn't wake her husband. She went to the window where a shaft of moonlight illuminated their small room. Looking outside, she was never more aware of the stillness that didn't belong in a city as big as the one they lived in. Slowly, people were coming back to live there, especially with the knowledge that 'The Great Protector' was in the vicinity, but it would take time before things would pick up. A long time.

A small sound from the bed drew her attention and she looked behind her. Trunks had turned and had one hand where she had been lying down. A small smile creased her face. Only in sleep did he truly look peaceful and even then, not all the time. His dreams were still filled with the memories of the death of their families and friends, but ever since they'd gotten married, his nightmares had lessened. Thinking that she brought him a sense of serenity was comforting because he did the same for her.

Yet...

"How long are you going to stand there?" he murmured, not opening his eyes.

On silent feet, she returned to bed, and he put his arms around her.

"What's bothering you, Pan?" he asked. "You've been quiet lately."

"I've been thinking about your trips to the past and how you met the others."

His eyes flew open and he sat up so that he could look into her face. She averted her eyes and he felt a vise tighten in his chest.

"Oh, no, Pan...we can't..."

"Why not?" she demanded, slamming her fist into the bed emphatically. "I have as much a right as you to meet my father, and the rest of the warriors."

"I didn't go back there for a vacation!" he exclaimed, throwing the sheets back and getting up.

Shirtless, he began to pace the length of the room, and Pan could see that every muscle in his body was tense. She chewed on her lip, wondering if she'd stepped too far. She'd been thinking about going back for months, ever since she'd found the old time machine hidden in the back of Bulma's workshop. The temptation was too great, and she knew that even though Trunks was upset, he would come to see why she needed to go back. After all, they had both lost everyone they loved.

"We can't disrupt their timeline anymore than I already have," Trunks argued.

"We're not going to go back there to change anything," she retorted. "That's what you did. I just want to meet my father!"

"What if he's not your father yet?"

"You can pick your destination date, right? Well, let's pick a time when I'm already born."

"How do you know that you are even born back then? After I left for the last time, their timeline was irrevocably changed and their future is not this one."

That caused her to pause. Trunks stopped his pacing and looked at her. One hand covered her mouth to hide the trembling of her lips. Sighing, he went to her and enveloped her in his arms.

"I'm sorry, Love," he said. "I know how much you want to go back."

"Ever since grandma died, I started to feel so alone. She was my last link to my family, Trunks, and now she's gone. I love you, and I love our baby, but something is still missing. How can I look to the future when I barely know my past? Can't we go back sometime before Frieza and King Cold landed on Earth?" she asked desperately. "Sometime before the Cell games?"

Trunks buried his face in her long dark hair. "Pan..."

"Please," she said brokenly.

He couldn't resist her. The million arguments he had dissolved at the sound of her voice.

"I'll talk to Mother in the morning," he said, lying down and drawing her down with him. "Rest now, Pan."

She yawned and snuggled against his side. Her breathing evened out within minutes, but Trunks' sky blue eyes were wide open. He glanced at her, his eyes falling on the soft swell of her belly. Gently, he put a hand on it, a soft smile growing on his face, but then it faded when he thought about what could happen to his growing family if something should go wrong. However, at the rate Pan was going...

So many factors...