Finding Hope

Christmas Special: Christmas at Mount Paozu (2)

Tsubaki's pov

When the first snow started falling on Mount Paozu early in the morning, it was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. I leaned against the railing of the cabin's porch, watching the sunrise, and sipped on my hot chocolate. It was very quiet, but the silence was relaxing this time. I was never one for silence. Especially because Trunks and I often experienced this in our original timeline, I had grown to hate the silence that we dealt with. I wished Future Bulma could have been alive to enjoy this trip, she would have loved it here. There was a particular year when Gohan was still alive, and we all took a Christmas trip to the mountains. The androids for some reason had taken a break which was very uncharacteristic of them, Gohan didn't want us to leave but Mom convinced him that we needed a break. That was the last Christmas we had with Gohan, I took another sip of my hot chocolate and just listened to the noises of the mountain and the animals living there. "I'm surprised you're up so early... From what Chi-Chi has told me, you aren't much of a morning person. What are you doing out here?" I smiled, turning my head to see Dad walking out the door. He closed the cabin door behind him, his hair looking slightly disheveled and he was wrapped in a thick jacket and pants. "I guess I wanted to catch the sunrise before it was gone," I replied, glancing back at the vibrant colors painting the sky. "It feels different up here. Like... everything is quieter, you know?" I smiled lightly, my smile faltered as I thought about Gohan. Present Gohan was amazing but he was so different from my timeline's Gohan, he was so much darker because of all the things we had to go through. Dad leaned against the railing beside me, joining in my view of the breathtaking landscape. "Yeah, it really is something special. You know, Tsubaki," he started, his voice softening, "sometimes you need moments like this to remind you how beautiful life can be, even when it feels heavy." He said, the wind blew softly past us and Dad shivered. I took a deep breath, letting the crisp mountain air fill my lungs. "I miss Gohan a lot, Dad. It's hard to enjoy things without him. Sure I've grown closer to Gohan but he's not the same Gohan I trained under and grew up with." 

"I know, sweetheart," he said, the warmth in his tone comforting. "Grief can be like a heavy blanket. It wraps around you and makes it hard to see the light. But it's okay to feel that way. It's part of loving someone."

I turned to him, searching his eyes for understanding. "But how do I move on? How do I find joy again? Especially now?"

Goku smiled gently, looking out at the horizon. "You have to remember the good times you had with him. He wouldn't want you to be sad forever. It's okay to feel joy alongside the sadness. Embrace both, and let them coexist. He's a part of you, Tsubaki, and he always will be. And our Gohan may not be the same as yours but he still cares and loves you just as your Gohan did. Don't forget that."

"Thanks, Dad." I smiled, hugging him. He shivered as another cold wind blew past, "Can we please go inside and enjoy the warmth?" He asked, "Sure, we can." I chuckled at my Dad's behavior as he rushed inside. "Oh, there you two are. I was wondering where you had gone. I woke up to find your bed empty." I was surprised that my mom was awake now, "We watched the sunrise, it was absolutely breathtaking from this view." Dad smiled, pulling me into a hug. "It smells amazing in here. What is that?" Dad looked at Mom, who just smiled warmly at him. I knew that Mom wanted nothing more than to have a moment with Dad but she didn't want to disrespect the Chi-Chi of this timeline. It was going to be hard on her for sure, especially now that we were living here permanently. "Here," Mom handed Dad and me fresh cups of hot chocolate, placing plates of food in front of us. Dad gaped at the amount of food, "You made all of this?" He asked, "Yeah, I had to do something with these hands. And I thought I'd give your Chi-Chi and Bulma a break from cooking breakfast, we do have a large group here. Besides, Tsu always eats a lot more than I can so I always make a ton of food for her." Mom smiled softly, Dad stared at her for a moment before a smile graced his lips and he pulled Mom into a hug. I gasped, feeling warm inside watching Dad hug Mom. I could see the tears building in her eyes but she didn't let them fall, she hugged him back and smiled.

"Thank you, Chi-chi." 

"It was no problem," She whispered, Dad let Mom go and the both of us sat down at the table to eat. Both of us wasted no time in eating, all the food she prepared was so good. "Oh my god, Chi-Chi! This is amazing!" Dad praised, smiling at Mom. She blushed at his praise, "Thank you," She smiled, "Mom, sit down and eat." Mom tried to argue with me but I didn't take no for an answer. "There's no way, I'm not going to let you stand there and not eat when you worked so hard to make all of this food. Mom, you promised you would take care of yourself." I sat Mom in a chair beside me, fixed her a plate of food, and placed it in front of her. "I am taking care of myself, sweetheart. I get full watching you eat," I gave her a look and she sighed, knowing that I was not going to take no for an answer. "Wow, look at all this food!" I looked to my right, spotting Kid Trunks and Goten. Behind them were Gohan, Trunks, and the others. They were surprised at the amount of food set up on the table, where we were sitting. "Who made all of this food?" Present Chi-Chi stepped forward, "Mom did," I looked at my mom, everyone's eyes landing on Future Chi-Chi who just sheepishly smiled at the group. "Wow, this looks amazing." Bulma smiled. "It smells amazing too!" Goten rushed over to the table, took a bread roll from the basket, and was popped by Present Chi-Chi on the hand. I chuckled as she scolded him, helping the rest of the group get settled in for breakfast. 

Everyone was currently standing outside in the front of the cabin, Dad decided that we all needed to do a group activity which both Vegeta and Piccolo weren't all that enthusiastic about. "Can someone tell me why exactly I had to participate in this stupidity?" Vegeta questioned, crossing his arms. The "stupidity" in question was a snowman-building contest, there first set of contestants were Krillen, Yamcha, Piccolo, and Future Chi-Chi. Yamcha and my mother were paired together while Krillen and Piccolo were on the opposite team. I couldn't help but laugh as Piccolo and Krillen were arguing over where to put certain things on the snowman, "Because it's Christmas. And it's not stupid, Vegeta. You're going to build a snowman with Trunks and me, you're not getting out of it." Bulma glared at Vegeta pointedly, I know that he probably knew not to argue with Bulma. "Great," Vegeta muttered curse words under his breath, making Bulma smack him and scold him for his harsh language which made me chuckle as I stood next to Trunks. "Oh come on, Vegeta. It's not that bad, besides you're going to go against Dad." I spoke up. "A chance to beat Kakarot?" He raised an eyebrow, looking over at me and Trunks. "Yeah, your team is going up against Chi-Chi and Goku in the next round." Trunks put his arms around my waist, pulling me close to him as Vegeta smirked and turned to look at Dad. "A competition in which requires more brain than strength. I think we'll win this." Vegeta stated. "I don't think so. I may not be that smart but I know how to make a snowman. I've made them plenty of times with Tsu and Goten. It won't be easy to beat my team." Dad crossed his arms, looking confident. 

"We'll see about that," Vegeta stated. 

"Oh boy," Bulma muttered.