Two new lives come into the world

And as we celebrate

Two travelers arrive

To take the wayfarer home.

Several months had passed and Lidal was still stranded in the past. But to the puzzlement of the others, she did not seem too worried about that fact. Presently she was sitting on a thick branch, high in a tree, watching the festivities below. Chichi was hosting a barbecue at her place so Kya and Piccolo could show off the newborn twins. Goku was there as well, using his yearly twenty-four visit that the Grand Kai had granted him.

In all her life, Lidal had never expected to witness her own birth and had found the whole experience fascinating and frightening at the same time. It had been amusing to see her past father frantic over his wife’s health. Although she had told him that Kya had lived through the labor, he still couldn’t help worrying. Eventually, Vegeta lost his patience with the Namek and took him out to the gravity room for a good long spar that left them both exhausted and unable to feel too much concern over the birth. True to Lidal’s word, a boy had been born first, with a little girl arriving eight minutes later. And of course they were named Pendril and Lidal. The birth had been difficult for Kya and the labor had lasted for several hours. Both Bulma and Dende had recommended that she not have any more children.

Lidal was suddenly drawn out of her thoughts by a trill from Kindle, who was perched on a branch above her. Looking up, she saw what had caught her attention. There was a strange aircraft in the sky. And it looked like it was going to land near Chichi’s house. Quickly, she flew to the ground and strode towards Piccolo. By the time she reached him, everyone had spotted the ship.

They all stared up in wonder at the strange ship as it approached them. Bulma turned to Lidal. "Do you know what that is?"

Lidal glanced over at her. Bulma was getting pretty big now but she wouldn't have the baby for another four months. That’s just the way Saiyan pregnancies went. In response to her question, Lidal shook her head. "No. But I have an idea."

Gently the ship landed several feet away from them and Bulma was able to get a better look at it. It looked slightly familiar. With a hiss, the door opened and a ramp slid out. Two men stepped out of the ship. The first was a Namek who was dressed exactly like Piccolo in a purple gi and white cape and who looked a lot like him too, except for the Shizen mark on his forehead and the long, thick forest green ponytail tied back at the nape of his neck. Behind him came a figure that most of them were pretty familiar with: a grown up version of Trunks.

"Hello," said the Namek, his voice deep and authoritative, like Piccolo’s. "Have any of you seen a tall green girl that looks like me? Goes by the name of Lidal?" His black eyes glittered with some deeply held amusement. On his shoulder, a gray-white dragon with matching ivory horns chirped inquisitively.

Piccolo glanced at Lidal and was startled to see she had gone pale. Or as pale as a Namek can get. She stepped forward, her hands trembling as she stammered her response. "P-P-Pendril. You’re . . . you’re alive."

And then suddenly Lidal was running. She leaped at the newcomer, nearly knocking him down as she hugged him fiercely. The man next to them, who couldn’t possibly be anyone else but Trunks, smirked his amusement. Abruptly Lidal pulled away, a question burning in her mind. "Is Father all right?"

The man whom she had called Pendril smiled. "He’s fine. It turns out Muuri is also a healer."

Lidal sighed in relief and turned to Trunks. She held out a hand for him to shake. Trunks glanced at the hand she offered, his eyes unreadable. He took the hand and instead of shaking it, he pulled her into a brief hug. "We were all worried about you, Green Braid," he said as he pulled away, using a nickname from childhood days.

Piccolo frowned. There was something about Mirai Trunks manner that made him suspicious. Suddenly Kya’s voice sounded in his mind. Let it go Piccolo. He glanced at her. She was resting in a rocking chair, cradling Baby Lidal in her arms, with Embyr perched on the back of the chair, watching over her. Eighteen was standing by her, holding Baby Pendril. He raised his eyeridges at his wife, who was looking back at him innocently. They’ll figure it out on their own.

Knowing his wife was right, Piccolo turned his head in time to see his future son approaching them. By now, Lidal had the same glitter of amusement in her black eyes as Pendril. "Piccolo, this is your future son Pendril. Pendril, this is our past father, Piccolo. And this is Pendril’s yuudragon, Smoak."

The white-gray dragon with black eyes who was sitting on Pendril’s shoulder chirped a greeting as Piccolo shook his future son’s hand and was pleased to find that he had a strong grip. Byrn, who was on Piccolo’s shoulder, chirped back. Scrutinizing the young man before him, Piccolo found that Lidal’s description of him was pretty accurate. Pendril in turn was surprised to see that besides a few wrinkles, his father hadn’t changed much over the years. "Huh. So this is what our father was like before we drove him insane."

Several of the fighters snickered as Piccolo raised his eyeridges in astonishment at the young man before him. He met the eyes of Lidal who was struggling not to grin. She was quick to reassure him. "Don’t listen to what he says. I told you he had sense of humor. Usually he’s more subtle with it but lately he’s been hanging around Goten and Trunks too much."

"Hey! What are you trying to say?" exclaimed Trunks, indignant. He turned to Pendril. "Are you going to take that from your sister?"

Pendril just grinned. Then he noticed Kya sitting in the rocking chair with a small bundle in her arms. He blinked, not quite registering the fact that the woman before him was his mother. In the future, Kya had several wrinkles as well as a few gray hairs. Most of them had appeared after she had discovered her son had died and her daughter was lost in time.

Crouching by the rocking chair, Pendril peered at the bundle in her arms. A little green face stared back at him. After a moment she blinked and then yawned sleepily. Then he saw that Eighteen was holding a bundle as well. Standing, he took his first look at his baby self. "Is that me?"

Eighteen nodded and then got a wicked gleam in her eyes. "Want to hold him?"

Startled, Pendril backed right into Trunks, who had been checking out Baby Lidal. Smoak squawked a protest. Smiling, Lidal shoved Pendril back towards Eighteen. "Go on. I’ve already held both babies several times. They won’t hurt you."

Gulping, Pendril gingerly took the baby into his arms. The baby stared curiously up at his older self as his older self stared back. Baby Pendril gurgled and began swinging his fists, successfully boinking the nervous Mirai Pendril on noise. At the look on his face, everyone began laughing and the party resumed its normalcy. Chichi went on grilling and Goku went on scarfing food and everyone else went back to fighting for his or her share. Smoak and Kindle, who were very close to each other like their partners, flew off to exchange the news.

Lidal turned to Trunks. "How did you guys find me anyway? And what is that thing you came in? And how come Pendril is alive?"

Trunks, who was now holding Baby Lidal, laughed. "One question at a time! Well, since we weren’t on Earth, we had to wish Pendril back with the Namek Dragonballs or he would have been stuck in limbo for eternity. The Elder felt it was the least he could. We used the second wish to ask where you were and then on the third wish we returned home. That ‘thing’ over there is a time machine Bulma built so we could travel to the past and fetch you."

Lidal smiled. "Amazing. All that to fetch a wayward traveler home. Why did both of you come? Couldn’t just one you of come?"

Trunks shrugged as he handed Baby Lidal back to Kya. "Pendril volunteered to go but you know technology and your brother don’t mix very well. So I came along in case anything went wrong." Trunks tilted his head at her. "Now I have a question for you. What happened to Xahra?"

Lidal blushed. "I, um, lost control."

Trunks raised an eyebrow. From somewhere nearby, they heard Piccolo mutter, "That’s an understatement." Lidal was starting to turn downright purple. Luckily, Kya answered for her. "Let’s just say that Xahra won’t be breathing again anytime soon."

Trunks raised his other eyebrow. Piccolo decided it was time to ask a question of his own. Hefting Baby Pendril in his arms, he came forward. "Did you know these two were coming to get you?"

Lidal shook her head. "I had a vague dream of a ship coming and then me leaving in the ship, but other than that, I had no clue."

Piccolo nodded and then turned his attention back to the baby in his arms, who had begun wailing for his supper. The barbecue quickly turned from a celebration of the birth of the twins to a farewell party for Lidal. The party finally ended three hours later when they ran out of food. Reluctantly, Trunks began prepping the ship for their departure. Lidal was looking forward to returning home but during the months of her stay she had become friends with everyone. It was confusing, since technically she was returning to the same people, just older.

As soon as Trunks said the time machine was ready, Kya and Piccolo and the others said their good-byes to the three young adults and two mini-dragons. They disappeared in the time machine and that was the last the fighters saw of them. At least until their own children grew up.

Later that night, in a cottage at the edge of a meadow, a newly made mother was finally able to get her infant twins to fall asleep with the help of the newly made father. As quiet as possible, they left the nursery to return to their own bedroom and try to get some sleep before the infants awoke again because of some new complaint. As the new couple laid in each others’ arms, the father whispered a quiet remark before drifting off to sleep.

"I told you that the worst sin our children will ever commit is keep us up all night with their crying."

The mother sighed sleepily and kissed the father’s cheek. "You were right. Our children could never possibly be evil. I’ll never worry again."

"Yes you will. That’s the way you are. But I love you anyway."

And so the couple had a good laugh before falling into a deep slumber.

*End of the Lidal Saga*