Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Gundam Wing and Endless Waltz, nor do I own any characters from Dragon Ball Z. Wish I did, but I don't, so there's no point in suing me.
Here's chapter two, a day later than I intended, but that couldn't be helped. Chapter three should hopefully be polished off in time for my next self-set deadline, but no guarantees. - PPF
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Chapter 2
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Shin awoke to see morning rays of light filtering through a window. It took him a moment to comprehend where he was. He was so used to waking up in the lab that the scenery change threw him off.
Shin was startled when his soft and warm pillow moved. He shot upright and stared down at what he was sleeping on.
It was Gohan.
Shin realised that at some point in the night he must have rolled onto the other boy without realising until now. His head had been resting on Gohan's chest and his all of his appendages were wrapped around him.
Very carefully, Shin uncoiled himself and climbed out of bed to go over to the window. He looked out at the sun's position and predicted that it must have been around 9'oclock in the morning.
Wow, I slept in…I'm used to being up at 6.00am. Those sleepless nights must have caught up with me.
He blinked in amazement as he realised something important.
…I slept the whole night through… I didn't have a nightmare! That's the first time ever!
Shin felt like jumping around the room for joy but he restrained himself for his sleeping friend's sake. Instead he grinned like an idiot.
He quietly padded over to the bedroom door, opened it, and stepped out into the hallway. He could hear noises in the kitchen signifying that Chi-Chi was up and about, which made him relax slightly because he didn't like the feeling that he was sneaking around the house when its occupants were still asleep.
Shin entered the bathroom and stood on a stool in front of the sink so he could see into the large mirror.
A person stared back from the shiny surface that he didn't recognise.
This person looked happy and healthy.
He realised that he looked much better than the other night, and he certainly felt it. The food and good nights sleep had worked wonders on him. He actually looked alive again.
Feeling pleased, he turned on the water taps and put the plug in the sink so he could have a nice soapy wash.
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Gohan groggily awoke with the feeling as if something was missing. The warm and comfortable weight that was previously wrapped around him had vanished.
Sitting up in bed and rubbing his eyes clear, he looked around his room in confusion, wondering what the lost object was and where it had gone.
He remembered as his gaze landed on a pair of white sneakers on the floor by his desk.
Shin. So it wasn't a dream, it really happened…
"Gohan! Shin! Breakfast will be ready soon! You have fifteen minutes to get washed and dressed before you have to come down!" His mother shouted loudly from what sounded like the kitchen.
Where is Shin? Gohan frowned, noticing that his friend was not in the room.
Feeling panicked over the idea that his new friend might have run away again, he jumped out of bed and dashed for the bedroom door so he could search the rest of the house.
But someone beat him to it and the door swung open to smack him in the face.
"Gohan! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were there, I'm sorry…" Shin apologised profusely with a horrified expression on his face as he rushed to Gohan's side to see if he was all right.
"S' OK," Gohan mumbles thickly as he pinched the bridge of his nose to make sure it was straight. "I'm the one who ran into the door. It's my fault, there's no need to apologise,"
"I'm still sorry," Shin said sincerely, the meek side of him presenting itself again. It looked like he expected to be punished.
"It's really all right," Gohan insisted and Shin relaxed.
As soon as his eyes stopped watering, Gohan took a closer look at Shin and noted the differences from yesterday.
The chestnut-haired boy seemed much healthier. The colour had come back to his cheeks and he gave off the vibe of renewed energy, but he still had a slightly sickly appearance that would take more time to erase.
"Um, where are my clothes?" Shin asked as he looked around the room for his missing pile of grey clothing that he had folded neatly and placed on Gohan's desk chair.
Gohan glanced around as well. "Hm, my Mom must have been in here and picked them up for cleaning. Oh well, you can wear some of my clothes. We look about the same height, but you're a bit thinner so I'll have to rummage around for something that might fit you."
Gohan delved deep into the back of his draws and pulled out a white t-shirt, which he knew was tight across his own lean muscles but would fit Shin's thin frame perfectly, and he also found a pair of orange shorts.
"Will these do?" He asked as he showed Shin the clothes.
"Anything will do so long as I don't have to parade around in this for the rest of the day," Shin said indicating with a nervous grin at the huge adult sized t-shirt he was wearing.
"Well someone's been hiding his sense of humour," Gohan teased with a grin of his own. He handed the outfit over to Shin who accepted it eagerly.
Gohan expected the chestnut-haired boy to change into the clothes on the spot, but the boy gave Gohan a nervous glance and quickly disappeared out of the door to run into the bathroom where he closed the door with a snap behind him.
Perhaps he's shy. Gohan figured.
He was actually glad that Shin had left the room because it gave him the privacy to change without Shin seeing his tail and asking unwanted questions.
Gohan pulled out a pair of light blue shorts and a dark blue t-shirt since it was a hot day, and he quickly pulled off his pyjama top to change.
With his clean top on, next came the secretive part. He pulled back the waistband of his pyjama bottoms and twisted his head to peer down at his underwear clad bottom.
He blinked in surprise.
What he expected to see was his furry tail. What he didn't expect to see was nothing at all.
His tail was not there.
Feeling dizzy with confusion he quickly took off his pyjama bottoms and shook them out, wondering if his tail had fallen off in the night.
Carelessly tossing his empty pyjama bottoms to the floor he ran over to his bed and yanked the sheets off in search of his missing tail.
He scrambled around above and below the bed but found nothing.
What's going on? I know I didn't imagine what I saw last night. I had a brown furry tail again. I know I did! … I think I'm going crazy…
"Gohan, what are you doing?" An unsure voice asked slowly from the doorway.
Gohan was currently half under the bed with his bare legs sticking out in the open. He was suddenly aware of how stupid he must look.
In his haste to get out from under the bed he cracked his skull off the hard wood and ended up making a bigger idiot out of himself. He sat up rubbing his head.
Shin stood still in the doorway wearing his new clothes and holding the nightshirt in his arms. He was staring at Gohan peculiarly, for obvious reasons.
"Um…I'm just searching for…something." Gohan explained pathetically.
"Need any help?"
"No, no, no. I'm fine…" His eyes darted around the room in search of an object, any object. "Um…Oh look, there they are!" He said with a fake laugh as he picked up his light blue shorts off the floor next to him. "That was stupid of me. They were right in front of me the whole time!"
Shin stared at him strangely for a few more seconds but then let the topic slide and he shrugged his shoulders. "Um, Gohan? Can I borrow a pair of socks if you don't mind me asking?"
"Oh no, it's not a problem. Choose any pair out of the top draw," Gohan said as he got to his feet.
"Thanks," Shin breathed in relief. Gohan could see that it would take a lot of effort to get Shin to trust him enough to not act skittish anymore.
"See you in a minute," Gohan said as he headed out of the door to the bathroom where he was planning on having a cold wash to clear his head.
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After a great breakfast, Gohan dragged Shin back to his room to put their shoes on in preparation of going to Capsule Corporation to see Bulma.
Gohan had been amazed once again by the quantity of food Shin could consume. It was almost as much as him, and that was saying something.
All throughout breakfast, Shin talked more freely about anything that came to mind and Gohan noticed that he was not so nearly as timid and quiet as he was when found yesterday. Shin was finally coming out of his shell and was quickly learning that he could trust them.
Gohan hoped that Shin could learn to trust Bulma just as much or else there were going to be problems later.
"Where are we going?" Shin asked from where he sat on Gohan's desk chair as he laced up his white sneakers.
"I'm taking you to see my Aunt Bulma. She's not really my Aunt but she's a close friend of my Mom and Daddy, and she's really nice. She gives me sweets when my Mom isn't looking."
"Do I have to meet her?" Shin asked, his face betraying his nervousness.
"You'll like her, trust me." Gohan grinned at his friend.
Shin nodded in agreement, albeit a little reluctantly.
"We have to travel a long way so that's why we're leaving now. Come on, I'll show you how we're going to travel."
"Flying?" Shin asked hopefully with his eyes sparkling.
"Yup, but not the way that we did yesterday. You're still going to love it though."
Gohan grabbed Shin's hand and they ran out of the bedroom, past Chi-Chi who was washing dishes at the kitchen sink, and out of the house onto the lawn.
Gohan took a deep breath and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Flying Nimbus!"
He waited expectantly as Shin gave him a confused sideways glance.
A familiar golden cloud appeared in the sky and flew down to the ground speedily to stop just in front of Gohan, floating on the spot just above the ground.
Shin's mouth formed a 'o' shape as he stared at the cloud.
"Hop on Shin."
Shin snapped his mouth shut and turned to stare ludicrously at Gohan. "What? It's a cloud! I'll fall right through!"
"No you won't, go on."
Shin edged closer to the cloud and touched it cautiously as if expecting his hand to go through, but his face lit up when it didn't.
The boy smiled as he stroked the cloud. "Wow, its soft and warm…"
He jumped back slightly as Nimbus gave off a sound like a contented purr.
"That is no normal cloud." Shin stated.
"Nope, it's one of a kind. It used to belong to my Father, but he gave it to me. Its name is Flying Nimbus, but I just shorten it to Nimbus. I think it likes you."
Shin smiled as he stuck his hand out again to stroke the cloud and he didn't move when the cloud started to purr again. "Well I like it as well."
"See if it'll let you get on." Gohan prompted.
Shin bit his tongue in concentration as he jumped up to sit on the soft cloud.
He didn't fall through. He sat on top of it comfortably.
Gohan let go of a breath that he didn't know that he had been holding. If Nimbus had let Shin ride on it, then that meant that he was pure of heart. Not that Gohan had doubted it.
"Nimbus, how about you take Shin for a quick test fly?"
Nimbus puffed up in agreement and let out a squeak.
"Hey, wait!" Shin said in a state of panic. "What do I hold on t-oooOO!" He yelled as Nimbus shot up into the sky and did a few speedy circles around the house.
Nimbus then shot back down to the ground and screeched to a halt. Shin tumbled off with a dazed expression.
"Fun?" Gohan asked with a smile as he leaned over the boy in the grass.
Shin's eyes focused on Gohan and then his face split into a grin. "Oh yes! Can I do it again?"
"Let me just tell Mom that we're leaving and then we can look forward to the ride to Bulma's house."
"Right," Shin got to his feet.
"Mom!" Gohan called out towards the house. "We're about to leave!"
Chi-Chi came out of the house to join them on the lawn, drying her soapy wet hands on her apron.
"I'll see you two later then. Take care on the way there, don't speak to strangers and don't get into any trouble. Could you also say hello to Bulma for me? I haven't seen her in a while, but I've got to go grocery shopping today or else I would have come with you."
"Sure Mom,"
Chi-Chi then bent down to kiss Gohan and Shin on the cheek.
Shin touched his cheek in stunned amazement as if he had never experienced a loving gesture like that before now.
Gohan steered the frozen boy over to Nimbus and pushed him on, and then jumped on after him.
"Bye boys!" Chi-Chi waved to them as Nimbus zoomed off into the sky.
Gohan and Shin waved back until she disappeared from sight.
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After a thrilling hour of death-defying stunts on Nimbus, the two windswept boys hopped off the cloud in front of Capsule Corporation.
Nimbus flew away into the clouds where it wouldn't return until it was called.
Gohan pulled a very nervous Shin up to the front door of the looming mansion sized building.
The black-haired boy stood on tiptoe to press the buzzer on the front door's code pad. Shin once again hid behind Gohan as Gohan stood waiting for Bulma to open the door.
When the door finally opened it was not Bulma standing there. It was Vegeta.
Gohan gulped nervously. He still had a deep-rooted fear of the Saiyan warrior. He would never forget that Vegeta had an evil streak and that he was a cold-blooded killer. And even though the mighty Saiyan Prince had been reduced to wearing a hot pink shirt and bright yellow pants, he was still intimidating. Gohan hadn't seen him for quite a while actually, and the full-blooded Saiyan had missed the entire Garlic. Jr fiasco completely. Straight after the return from the planet Namek, he had blasted off into space again to do who knows what, and Gohan presumed that he had been training because he was even more powerful than ever now that he had returned.
But he wouldn't tell Shin about Vegeta's history, because the boy was already nervous enough as it was.
"Hello, I'm here to see Bulma. Is she around?"
"How would I know brat? I don't follow her every move." Vegeta sneered down at Gohan, then noticed Shin hiding behind him. "Who is the other brat you're hiding?"
"This is Shin," Gohan said shortly, keeping himself firmly positioned in front of his friend because he didn't like the malicious glint in Vegeta's eyes.
Shin peeked out at Vegeta but then quickly ducked out of sight again.
"Gohan, is that you?" Bulma's voice called from within the house.
She appeared behind Vegeta and looked over his shoulder down at Gohan. She gave a warm smile but then noticed that Vegeta was blocking the doorway and frowned. "Move." She ordered at the scowling man fearlessly. She even poked him in the ribs for good measure.
"Why should I listen to you woman?" Vegeta snarled at her.
"Because I am letting you stay under my roof, I'm letting you eatmy food, and I'm letting you use my gravity chamber. So kindly move now, or all of your rights will be revoked and you can find another place to live."
Vegeta grumbled to himself as he stomped out of the house and in the direction of the gravity chamber to let off some steam.
Bulma turned back to Gohan smiling. "Ignore him. He's just a grumpy, stubborn man that's all talk and no action."
Gohan looked up at Bulma in awe. If she could boss Vegeta around then she had his respect.
"Hi Bulma. I've brought my new friend Shin to visit you." Gohan pulled Shin out from behind him and presented the boy to the blue-haired woman.
Bulma's warm smile increased tenfold. "Oh hello there. It's nice to meet you. Chi-Chi called me last night and said that you would be coming around so I've been expecting you."
"H- Hi," Shin said back with a small uncertain smile.
"Come inside, there's no point chatting out here," She waved them into the house and Gohan had to practically drag Shin after him.
Bulma led them into the living room and Gohan and Shin perched themselves on the large couch in the middle of the room. Bulma sat on an armchair opposite them.
"My Mom says hi," Gohan smiled at her.
"That's nice of her. I haven't had a face to face conversation with her for some time now. Could you please say hello to her back?"
Gohan nodded and then her attention turned to Shin. "I've heard a lot of things about you Shin," Bulma grinned but hastily amended herself as she saw Shin's stricken expression. "Good things, don't worry. Would you like a drink of anything boys? And I'm sure I've got a few sweets hidden away somewhere round here."
"Can I have some water please, Bulma?" Gohan asked politely. He then nudged Shin in the side to get an answer out of him.
"Can I have some water too please?" Shin asked in a small voice.
"Of course you can. You sure are a shy one aren't you?" Bulma stood up and made a move to ruffle Shin's hair, but Shin shrank back fearfully and threw his arms over his head with a shout of, "No! Don't hurt me!"
At the same time, Bulma's hand was forcefully held back from coming any closer. But Shin didn't use his arms to grip her wrist. Oooh no.
He used his tail.
His brown, furry tail, which was uncurled from around his waist, previously hidden under the baggy shorts and shirt, now out in the open for all to see.
Gohan and Bulma froze, staring with wide eyes at the abnormal appendage.
It wasn't my tail that I saw last night…it was Shin's! Gohan thought dazedly.
"Oh. My. God." Bulma said slowly as she looked down at the tail wrapped tightly around her wrist.
Shin looked up at them to gauge their reactions and he obviously didn't like what he saw because he sharply withdrew his tail, burst into tears and tried to bury himself into the back of the couch, hiding his face under one of the squishy pillows.
"Oh Sweetie," Bulma cooed as she finally fell out of her shock. "It's OK, there's nothing to cry about…"
"I told you I was a freak!" Shin wailed loudly, though it was muffled by pillow.
"No! No, you're not!" Gohan quickly protested and moved closer to Shin's side to give comfort.
"But you saw my tail and now you think I'm abnormal!"
"No, we were just…surprised." Bulma said honestly as she carefully placed herself on the couch next to Shin.
Shin's head emerged from beneath the pillow and he stared up at Bulma with pitiful watery eyes. "So you're not scared of me?"
"No of course not!" Bulma smiled.
Shin wiped his tears away looking relieved. He then pulled his furry tail into his lap and stroked it tenderly. "I didn't want anyone to know about what I am." He said quietly.
"And just what are you?" Bulma prompted.
"A monster…" Shin whispered fearfully.
"No you are not. You're just Shin to me. Why do you think that?" Gohan asked in surprise. "You're not a freak and you're not a monster."
"I don't belong. I'm not all human."
"Let me guess, you're part Saiyan?" Bulma said helpfully.
Shin's mouth fell open. "Y-Yes…How did you know?"
Bulma rolled her eyes. "I think the tail gave you away."
"But how do you know about Saiyans?" Shin asked in a wavering voice.
"Let's just say that I've had first hand experience with them," Bulma smiled at Gohan widely. "Hey Shin, would you mind if I do a few blood tests on you in the medical lab? I want to check your heritage."
Gohan felt Shin stiffen at the words 'blood tests', but when the word 'lab' came up he practically had a seizure.
"No! No labs! Please!" The boy quivered.
"It's just a blood test, I'm not going to hurt you. There will only be a slight prick from the needle-"
As if she had flipped a switch, Shin lost all self-control and leapt off his seat whimpering in pure terror as he fled as far away from her as possible to the other side of the room where he huddled into a corner, trembling from head to toe.
"Shin, it's OK…" Gohan's heart ached to his friend so afraid so he tried to go over to him.
"Leave me alone!" Shin screamed at the top of his lungs in a state of panic.
Gohan had never tried to sense Shin's ki before, but now it was pretty hard to ignore as it was rising rapidly.
His breath caught in his throat as he felt something he hadn't felt for a long time.
His father's ki.
But the odd thing was that it was originating from Shin.
Vegeta burst through the front door with a livid expression on his face.
His rage turned to shock as he saw that the ki source was coming from Shin, but he hid it well. "What is going on here?" He shouted. "I thought that I sensed Kakkarot and all I find is the weakling brat!"
He snapped his mouth shut as he saw the furry brown tail clutched closely to Shin's chest. "He's a Saiyan!" Vegeta burst out ludicrously. "Why did no one inform me of this!"
"Calm down Vegeta! We only just found out and you're scaring him even more by shouting your head off!" Bulma fumed at him.
"V- Vegeta?" Shin repeated. His face paled and his eyes increased in size. "As in, Prince Vegeta of the Saiyans?"
"The one and only." Vegeta said proudly as he stood regally.
"Dr. Gero said that you were dangerous and that you might try and kill me," Shin squeaked fearfully as tears poured down his face.
Vegeta stalked over to stand towering over him. "And why would I try and kill one of the last surviving Saiyans left?" He asked impatiently.
"Because of my mission," Shin said as he tried to merge with the wall.
Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "What mission?"
Shin didn't say anything.
With a growl, Vegeta reached down and grabbed Shin by the front of his t-shirt and lifted him clean off the ground so they were face to face.
"I repeat. What mission?"
"T- To kill another Saiyan, a half Saiyan called Gohan Son."
The room fell into a stoney silence and Gohan felt as if his stomach had turned to lead.
"Why haven't you killed him then? He's standing right there." Vegeta used his free hand to point at Gohan.
Shin's tears stopped out of pure shock. His face paled so much that he went chalk white and he stared at Gohan in horrified disbelief.
"Y- You're Gohan Son? You're father is…Goku Son?"
Gohan nodded numbly.
"I can't believe it…" Shin trailed off, shamefully averting his eyes from Gohan's.
"You'd better believe it brat," Vegeta snarled. "Now who sent you?"
"I- I- but- I don't want to kill Gohan…he's my friend…" Shin talked feverishly to himself.
Vegeta shook him forcefully to gain his attention. "Who sent you!"
"N- No one sent me, I ran away!" The frightened boy cried out.
"Vegeta! Let him go!" Bulma shouted angrily.
Vegeta ignored her, snatched up Shin's tail and squeezed hard.
Shin's face tightened in immense pain, but then his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he went as limp as a rag doll.
"Vegeta!" Bulma screamed at the man in outrage, and Gohan could only stare in disbelief.
"Here," The Saiyan Prince let Shin crumple to the floor. "Do what you want with him." He then walked out of the room taking long quick, angry strides.
"Shin!" Gohan quickly ran over to the boy to make sure he was all right. He was only unconscious, but even while he was sleeping he looked emotionally troubled and ill.
Bulma bent down at Gohan's side, scooped up Shin into her arms protectively, and stood again.
"I'm taking him down to the medical lab," She said sadly down to Gohan. "You can follow if you want to stay with him. I'm afraid that I'm going to have to carry out a few health checks on him. He hardly weighs a thing and he feels too thin. Perhaps I can also do the blood test while he's not aware of it. Judging by his earlier reaction I would say that he doesn't like labs or needles, so it would be kinder to him if he's not awake to see his surroundings."
Gohan nodded, feeling as if his throat had constricted tightly.
"I can hardly believe that this boy would hurt a fly, never mind you," Bulma spoke to Gohan quietly and she bit her lip in confused distress.
"H- He said that he didn't want to kill anyone…" Gohan trailed off as he looked at his new friend's face… or was it new enemy? He wasn't sure about anything anymore.
Bulma turned her pity filled eyes back to Shin and then began walking in the direction of the medical lab.
Gohan followed closely behind her.
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