Chapter 3: Recovery

Gohan dressed quickly. Mr Lao had brought him a navy blue gi from his shop, which fit his muscular frame perfectly. He pulled the top on and tied the red sash around his waist. He considered for a moment that he would have to return to Mr. Lao for his Gi's more often. He started pulling his old shoes back on and looked up to see Lime watching him curiously, "Hey Gohan… Why is your hair black? Your eyes too, they were green before weren't they?"

Gohan paused for a moment, considering how best to answer Lime. He wasn't sure he should tell her everything about himself yet, but she had learned a lot already. Silently making up his mind, he nodded at her, "Yea Lime they were, but this is my normal look. I was born with black hair and eyes." He further hesitated a moment before continuing. "Can you keep a secret? Even from your parents?" Lime cocked an eyebrow at him, but nodded. He continued, "Well, my dad wasn't human Lime. He was born on a planet called Vegeta, and got sent here when he was a baby. He's from a race called the Saiyans, which makes me a half, or demi-Saiyan. The form you met me in; with the blonde hair and teal eyes, is called super Saiyan. We get stronger and faster when we are in that form."

Lime's eyes shot open as far as they could as soon as he mentioned a completely different planet, and her mouth moved to say something, but nothing came out. She stumbled a second before collapsing in a chair by the door as he finished his explanation, causing him to nervously jump as if to catch her. Of course, he should have expected it in the first place, but she seemed to have recovered some train of thought. She furrowed her brow, considering what he had said. Gohan waited with his breath held, wondering how she would take this information. Eventually, she said, "Well… I guess that explains the weird powers and why you've healed so quickly then huh? You're really an alien?"

Gohan sighed and nodded, relieved that Lime hadn't freaked out any more than she had. He pulled his other shoe on and stood when something occurred to him, "Hey Lime, how bad is my face? I know it got cut, I just don't want my mother freaking out. Well, freaking out more than she is already going to."

Lime looked at him worried a bit before walking past him to a dresser and pulling a mirror out of the top drawer. She held it to her chest, out of his sight, eyeing him with a nervous smile, "Mom tried to do everything she could, but the cut on your face is going to scar. It's not too big of a scar, but I don't think it'll ever go away completely."

She held out the mirror for him, and he took it hesitantly. He raised it to his face, inspecting himself in the small circular looking glass. His hair was still short, just like the day he had fought Cell. He was surprised to see his own expression, a slight frown and his brow furrowed. It occurred to him that he wasn't consciously making the decision to frown. Is this how people are going to see me? No wonder everyone has been talking to me carefully, I look like Vegeta…

He shook his head to rid himself of the thought, and went back to inspecting his face. The scar he was looking for was still fresh, with the skin pulled tight by multiple stitches. He poked it gingerly, watching the skin pull apart slightly to reveal that the cut itself had almost healed. This isn't that bad, in fact I think that Dende could remove it for me… No, this one stays, I earned it. Just like my shoulder, this scar was caused by my stupidity. This one stays to remind me.

Lime stood next to him observing his expression as he looked into the mirror. She sent him a hopeful smile and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You know, on the bright side, that scar makes you look pretty awesome!"

Gohan felt the corners of his mouth twitch slightly and looked at the girl next to him. The hopeful smile she had on for him tugged at his heart, and before he realized it, he had given in and smiled at her, the first genuine smile that he'd given in two weeks. It felt strange to him, like it didn't belong, "Thank's Lime. Listen, I've got to go, thank your family for watching me alright? I promise I'll be back around sometime soon. There's more I want to tell you, but it's a long story, and I need to take care of my family first."

Lime nodded and pulled him into a hug. He paused a second before returning the hug gently. He stepped back and held her out at arm's length, "Bye Lime, I'll see you around alright?"

He walked past her and out into the hallway, he turned and walked out the back door of the house before jumping into the sky, a white aura exploding around him. He could hear Lime yelling good-byes to him in the distance. Locking onto his mother's Ki, he sped off towards the Lookout.

*ON THE LOOKOUT*

Piccolo's eyes snapped open as he felt Gohan's weakened ki coming back towards the lookout. He looked off in the direction his student was coming from before dropping from his meditative stance to the spotless white tile. He looked over his shoulder to find Mr. Popo watering the plants with Dende, "Guys, Gohan is coming back. He woke up a little while ago, and he's on his way here now. You might want to get Chi Chi out here."

Dende's eyes widened and he dropped the water bucket that he was holding and sprinted for the lookout building. Mr. Popo walked over to stand next to Piccolo and looked in the direction of Gohan's Ki, "Something feels wrong Piccolo, he's weak. What happened to him? Why did he disappear like that?"

Piccolo furrowed his brow and stared at the faint light he could now see on the horizon. He had known the whole time where Gohan was, even if many of the others couldn't find his ki in his unconscious state. He didn't care to point it out though, and just let them believe he was just as lost as them, "We should ask him when he gets here Popo. I'm sure that Chi Chi is going to want to know as well."

Almost in response, the panicked wail of Chi Chi rang through the air behind them, "Gohan! Where is my baby?!"

Piccolo and Popo turned to see Chi Chi sprinting out onto the lookout, frantically looking around to spot her son. Dende walked out looking a bit flustered, rubbing the back of his head tenderly. Piccolo was the one to respond to her, "He's not here yet Chi Chi, just wait a moment."

She glared at Piccolo a moment before walking over to join him and Popo. Dende joined the group, standing on the opposite end from Chi Chi, sending nervous glances her direction. Piccolo noticed a slight bump on the back of his head, and guessed that the young guardian had been knocked over by Chi Chi as she tried to get past him in her search for Gohan. He smirked at the thought before turning his attention back to the now visible Gohan.

Gohan saw the group gathered on the lookout, and gulped. Well… Time to get this over with… Kami, I hope that they aren't too upset.

He landed and was barely able to stand fully before he was picked up and hugged tightly by his mother, who was frantically yelling, "Gohan! Sweety I was so worried about you when you didn't come back, and Piccolo said that your ki had disappeared! Don't ever leave me like that again alright?! And… Oh my Kami Gohan what happened to your face?!"

She held him out at arm's length and fussed over the new scar. He winced as she poked it and grabbed her wrists gently. He took a deep breath, trying to control the emotions that were raging within him. He looked at his mother's worried face and then to Piccolo, who was wearing his trademark scowl, "You guy's, I'm sorry. I panicked when you told me that you were pregnant." He looked back at his mother, whose lips were quivering as she struggled not to break out in tears, "I just had to get away and think, and I realized that… I realized that I can't abandon you all… Especially you mother. I know I will never be able to make up for my mistake, but-"

His mother cut him off by pulling him into a bone-crushing hug, "You listen to me now Gohan, you have nothing to be ashamed of here. Your father is gone, but it's not your fault! I don't blame you, and you shouldn't blame yourself! I don't ever want to hear you say that it was your fault, do you understand?"

Gohan hesitated. But it is my fault… He stared past her, looking at nothing in particular while he decided how he would want to handle it. Fine, for your sake mother, you won't ever hear it from me, he concluded in his mind, but nodded and said, "I understand mom."

It was silent on the lookout for a moment before a horrendously loud growl echoed across the lookout. Chi Chi started, and looked around for the source before looking at her son in surprise, "Gohan... When was the last time you ate?!"

Gohan laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head and the tension broke. Dende and Popo laughed at the young Saiyan, and Piccolo smirked and shook his head.

*ORANGE STAR CITY HALL*

The crowd was going wild as their "Savior" strode across the stage to shake hands with the mayor. Hercule Satan smiled his toothy grin at the crowd, raising his hand to the sky in his signature victory sign. At the edge of the stage, a young girl with long raven hair and brilliant blue eyes was bouncing in her seat and clapping, cheering for her hero.

Hercule stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest, and waited with his eyes closed as the mayor took the stand in front of the podium, "People of Orange star city! Welcome to the ceremony celebrating Mr. Satan's victory over the monster Cell! I would like to announce that in honor of our savior, and by unanimous vote, that our city shall be renamed: Satan City! Additionally, the Satan Dojo will be paid for by the city from this day forward, and the Satan family shall be given a home in the heart of the city! Please, Mr. Satan, would you like to say a word to your people before we make it official?"

He turned to look at Mr. Satan, who appeared to be nervous. He glanced around at all the cheering faces looking up at him expectantly. He anxiously thought, Damn, how am I going to do this? What if they're out there watching? Waiting to upstage me with their light tricks and mirrors. It's not like I couldn't beat them all, but what if they reveal that I lied? My reputation would be ruined!

"Go on daddy! You can do it!" yelled his daughter behind him. Hercule looked to the young raven-haired girl and smiled at her. She was his reason for doing this. He nodded and stepped up to the podium next to the Mayor, "People of Orange Star City! Thank you for your support, I just have a few words to give. First, I need to thank the one person who makes everything I do worth it, and is the reason that I get up every morning. My daughter Videl!"

He turned and smiled at his daughter, who was blushing furiously and trying to hide her face from the cheering crowd. He waited a moment for dramatic effect before continuing, "Second, I would like to thank all of you for your faith in me. Know that your faith is not misplaced!"

The crowd cheered at his comment. Mr. Satan silently cursed, hoping that nobody in the crowd was one of the guys from the Cell games. He contemplated for a second how he should word his next comment and waited for the roar of the crowd to die down. "And last, I would like to extend my condolences to the families of the men who were at the Cell games! They fought hard against Cell, but in the end only one could be victorious. With the mayor's permission, I would like to make this day the first Cell games memorial day!"

The crowd erupted in cheers of approval. The mayor turned to his assistant, speaking quickly and nodding his head before joining the crowd in clapping for Mr. Satan. There, hopefully that will keep them away from me. I just hope that this doesn't come back to haunt me in the future. His thoughts were interrupted by Videl running over and hugging her father around the middle. He smiled and picked up his daughter, seating her on his broad shoulders before flashing the crowd his peace sign and booming laugh. The mayor took the stand again, and waved his hands to quiet the crowd, "Now! I would like to be the first to officially announce: Welcome one and all, to Satan City!"

Everything else was drowned out by the deafening roar of the crowd as they cheered for the world savior.

*WEST CITY – CAPSULE CORPERATION*

"Remind me why we let that oaf take the credit for killing Cell?" asked Bulma irritably. She frowned at the television before switching it off and turning to the Z-fighters that were gathered in the room. Tien, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha were all seated on a couch across from her, Roshi was seated on the floor and Vegeta was leaning against the wall in the background with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. Oolong and Puar were seated next to Bulma on the other couch in the room and Bulma was cradling her infant son in her arms. They sat in silence for a moment before surprisingly, Vegeta broke the silence, "Does it honestly matter to any of you? We get enough attention as it is, and I for one don't want any more of those pathetic humans crawling onto my turf. The brat especially doesn't need that sort of publicity barging in on his fragile little life anymore. That oaf is doing us a favor by stealing the spotlight."

Without a backwards glance, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving the other occupants in a stunned state. Bulma was the first to recover, shaking her head and returning her eyes to the television, staring at the black screen reflecting the room before her. Wow, he must really be effected by Goku's death. I expected him to be furious that someone was stealing Gohan's credit. His pride normally wouldn't have allowed for even a half-saiyan's accomplishments to be swept under the rug.

Yamcha broke through her thoughts as he addressed the rest of the gang, "Speaking of Gohan, has anyone heard from Chi Chi recently? Or from Dende? I mean, Gohan disappeared a couple days ago, and I'm sure that Chi Chi is frantic. Maybe we should head up there to check on them?"

He looked around eagerly at their faces. Roshi nodded and made to stand up, "Bulma, I think that we should. Do you have a jet that can get us there?"

*SOMEWHERE OVER THE OCEAN BY ROSHI'S ISLAND*

Krillin hovered for a moment, his hands cupped by his side and his stance low in a deep crouch. A light blue ball hovered in his hand and his white aura was flaring around him. "Kameeeeee… Hameeeee… HAAAAAAAA!"

The blue ball of ki expanded in his hands as he thrust it forward, palm to palm towards the ocean below. The ball shot forward and clashed with the water, causing it to part from the sheer force emitted by the energy wave. It wasn't anywhere near as powerful as what Gohan or Goku was capable of, but Krillin was proud of his abilities regardless. Now that his best friend was gone, he had to step up his game if he hoped to defend his planet.

"You know, for a human you are rather remarkable." came a surprisingly soft feminine voice from behind him. Krillin started and cut the flow of energy to his Kamehameha wave and looked around for the person that had spoken. Whoever it was had snuck up on him without him sensing her, which could only mean that she was an Android. He spun around and came face to face with Android 18. She had her arms crossed as she observed Krillin with a slight frown on her face.

Krillin dropped his guard and looked nervously at the young woman. Just like before, he was completely disarmed by her. He couldn't help his feelings towards her, even if she had been a terror to the planet only a short while ago. He nervously asked, "18, what are you doing here? I thought you were going to go into hiding with your brother?"

But she appeared to not have heard his question, and asked, "Why did you do it?" He cocked his head to the side, puzzled. What was she talking about? But she pressed further, "The wish you made? Of everything you could have wished for, you asked the dragon to remove the bomb that was embedded in mine and my brother's chest. Why?"

Krillin paused for a moment, wondering how he should explain what had led him to that decision. 18 waited patiently for his answer. When he spoke again, he was anxiously twiddling his thumbs. "Well, I figured that if you had freed yourself from your ties to Dr. Gero, that you and your brother would try to live here on this planet. So I thought you deserved a second chance to live a normal life, you know, make a fresh start? The dragon already said that you were human and he couldn't make you something that you already were, so I thought that it would be easier for you without having to worry about a small thermonuclear device sitting in your chest. It seemed like the proper thing to do." In the back of his mind, he couldn't help but add, And I would feel horrible if something happened to you.

Krillin blushed at that thought and looked up nervously at 18. She was still frowning slightly, and looking down towards the water. She seemed to be struggling with something before she looked back up at Krillin, her frown unwavering, "To answer your question, yes I went and found 17. He is still seething that he was so outclassed by both Cell and the Piccolo. And you are right, we are still mostly human, and I do want to live a normal life. Well… As normal as mine can get." Her expression softened and she floated closer to Krillin, who was frozen in place by her icy gaze, "And I want you to know, I do appreciate everything you've done. Even after everything that we did, you still went out of your way to help my brother and I. You defended me when you knew that you were outmatched against Cell, and again when your friends wanted to have me destroyed. You're remarkable to me Krillin, and I thank you."

She floated closer to him, and cupped his cheeks in her hands before pulling him closer and firmly pressing her lips with his. Krillin was stunned, his eyes as wide as saucers. He panicked for a second before his expression relaxed and he settled into the kiss. They held it for a moment before 18 broke away and held Krillin out and away from her to look at his content expression. She blushed lightly and a small smile cracked on her face. So that's what that feels like.

Krillin cleared his throat nervously and fanned himself with his gi while trying to fight the heat in his face, "I-I-It's was nothing 18, I only did what I felt was right."

18 crossed her arms and cocked an eyebrow at him. She put on her best glare and stared him down. She knew there was more to it than that, but she wanted to hear it from him herself, "Is that so? Just hoping that a girl would track you down and give you a kiss then, huh?"

Krillin gulped and stammered out an incoherent response for a moment before he gathered his wits about him. He nervously rubbed the back of his head and looked down abashedly, "Okay, It wasn't nothing, really… I was afraid of what would happen if you were taken away and I didn't get the chance to tell you. I can't explain it, you just have this effect on me, and I can't help but… You know… want to be with you."

18's expression softened a bit and her smile returned with her blush. She didn't properly understand what she was feeling towards the bald monk. She had an attachment to her brother, but that was something that she had had even when she was still a normal human. Krillin was different. His mannerisms confused her, as did the things he said to her, and yet she found herself reciprocating his feelings. If she was honest, it scared her, "I need to go for a while Krillin. I'll be back-… eh, sometime… I think. But I need to keep 17 out of trouble, and I need time to think and come to terms with what I've got to look forward to now."

Krillin couldn't help but feel a bit upset at her words. He was elated that they had talked finally since she disappeared from the lookout two weeks ago, and ecstatic that she had kissed him. But he was disappointed she had to go so soon. Nevertheless, he nodded his understanding and mumbled out an "Okay". 18 smirked at him and leaned forward to give him a peck on the cheek before turning and flying off into the distance.

Krillin stared after her, rubbing his cheek, lost in thought. His musings were interrupted as he felt a familiar Ki flare up in the direction of the lookout.

"Gohan! He's back!" Krillin smiled and took off towards his friend as quickly as he could manage. He could feel the others making their way to the lookout as well. I hope the kid is alright now. He gave us all a scare when he disappeared like that.

*AT THE LOOKOUT*

"Hold still Gohan! Kami, you'd think that after everything you'd been through, pulling stitches would be nothing to you!" said Chi Chi flatly.

Gohan flinched as his mother pulled another stitch out of his cheek. He had been fed and now his mother was fussing over him. Dende was keeping his distance, not wanting to come between the crazy woman and her son. He cleared his throat to get their attention, "Excuse me Chi Chi, I can fix him up now, if you want? I'll have that scar healed before you know it! Besides that, I need to perform some more work on his shoulder."

Before Chi Chi could say anything, Gohan held his finger up towards Dende, motioning for him to stop. His eyes hardened and he frowned slightly, "No Dende, don't heal the scar. You can work on my shoulder if you want, but I want the one on my face to stay where it is."

He looked towards his mother, who was wearing a hard glare towards her son. She huffed, "Gohan, how do you expect to become a respectable scholar if you look like a roughed-up hooligan?!"

Gohan sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, thinking about what he would do. When he opened his eyes again, Chi Chi was surprised to see them full of sorrow, and a plea for understanding. She knew she was going to have a hard time denying anything he asked for before he even opened his mouth to speak, "Mother, this scar is more than just a mark on my face, just like the one on my shoulder. I need it, to remind me of what I failed to do. I will keep my studies for you, but please understand that now, my priority is not school. I must be able to fill in my father's shoes. Please, understand?"

Chi Chi's heart melted at the softness and sincerity of his voice. She couldn't tell him no. She just nodded and stepped away from her son to allow Dende in to work on his shoulder. She left the room and began wandering the halls, lost in thought. She held a hand over her womb, deep in thought about her child and what the future would hold.

"Hey Chi Chi! Are you alright? Gohan is here, I felt it, is he okay?" A rough and raspy voice startled her out of her inner musings, and she jumped in shock. Chi Chi was surprised to discover that she had made her way outside onto the lookout, and Krillin had just landed next to her and was looking up at her anxiously. She smiled softly at the monk, trying to put him at ease, "Yes Krillin, we're both alright. Well I am anyways. Gohan took Goku's death much worse than I had initially feared. He's convinced himself that he killed Goku, and I told him something that sent him over the edge. He ran away and nearly killed himself apparently, and only just came back. Dende is looking over him right now, and he's going to be fine."

Krillin tilted his head to the side in confusion, wondering what she could have said that would cause that sort of reaction from his young friend. But before he could voice his question, a large yellow jet roared up over the edge of the lookout and set down before them. The ramp dropped onto the white tile of the lookout, revealing the Z-gang that had been at capsule corp, minus Vegetta and Mirai Trunks, who had returned to his own time several days before. Bulma burst out of the jet followed quickly by the other z-fighters, and rushed over to her friend, Trunks cradled in her arm and giggling madly.

"Chi Chi! Are you alright? The guys said that they felt Gohan come back! What happened?" yelled the Blue haired woman. Chi Chi took a deep breath and retold the story as best she could. She knew that Gohan had not told her everything about his time away from her, but she didn't want to press it and upset his already fragile temper. And beyond that, she wasn't sure she really wanted to know. The Z-gang were all shocked by Gohan's reaction to Goku's death. None of them believed it was his fault that Goku was dead, and none of them could have predicted that sort of personality change in either of the Son boys. Krillin stood there, eyes downcast as he realized that he could have also prevented the whole situation by destroying the androids before cell could become complete. He was pulled out of his thoughts when Tien voiced what he had been wondering earlier, "But Chi Chi, what happened to actually make him lose it like that? He was here for two weeks with these feelings, something must have happened to set it all off."

Chi Chi sighed again before looking directly at Bulma. Her expression was remorseful and anxious, "I'm pregnant again. Goku left me with a child on the way, and Gohan lost it when I told him. He nearly beat Piccolo to death and then ran off and nearly killed himself. Like I said before, someone out there helped him but he was pretty roughed up. You'll just have to see him when Dende is finished doing his thing."

The gang was quiet as she spoke, each lost in their own thoughts before Bulma broke the silence by squealing and pulling Chi Chi into a strong one-armed hug, "Chi Chi that's fantastic! I mean, not the bit with Gohan, but the new baby! Gohan is gonna have a little sibling! Oh my how far along are you?! Do you know?"

The tension broke as Chi Chi chuckled at her friend's antics, "I don't know for certain Bulma, I'm guessing around one month though."

Bulma grinned at her and looked to the others before bouncing up and down on the spot, making Trunks squeal in delight, "Oh, we have GOT to celebrate this! The rest of the world is celebrating that goofball 'defeating cell', so we have to have something to celebrate, right? I say we go back to my place, crack a few bottles of bubbly, and party like we used to!" Though she realized as soon as she said it, that the Son matron would not be able to consume any alcohol. "Eh, we'll think of something for you."

Chi Chi nodded and chuckled lightly, the tension visibly falling away from her as the plans for the party were being made. It would be good for her and Gohan to take their minds off of Goku for a while.