Sorry that it took me 2 weeks to post this. I was on a camping trip. But my updates should be back to normal. :)

Review if you want! It makes me happy when people review, favorite, or follow! :)

Monday came around. As usual, Gohan arrived early to class. During which, she had been thoroughly interrogated by her two friends on what happened during the study session with Sharpener, though she still refused to mention the drugging. She watched worriedly as a fuming Videl cracked her knuckles after hearing what Sharpener tried to do to her. Erasa even seemed angry.

Gohan's head was currently being held in a protective hug by Erasa. "I say get a few hits for me

Videl! How dare he try to force himself on poor innocent Gohan!"

Gohan blushed. "Really guys… I'm fine! I don't think he will bother me after I punched him."

Videl was still fuming. "Oh, he won't be bothering you anymore. After I put his ass in a hospital! Wait till I see his face!" She cracked her knuckles once more. "He'll learn a lesson he won't soon forget!"

Gohan was really beginning to regret telling her friends most of what had happened. Videl was surely to get in trouble. Luckily though, the class bell rang and Sharpener had yet to arrive.

In fact, the whole first period finished and he didn't show up.

Nor did he showed up for second period. Or third (PE) from what Erasa and Videl told her as they sat at the dining hall.

Gohan was beginning to seriously worry as she ate her sandwich during lunch period. 'Did I hit him too hard?'

Her attentioned traveled to the table on the left as a group of girls spoke when she heard one of them say his name.

"Have you heard about Sharpener?"

"No. Did something happen?"

"Yeah."

"What?"

The next thing she heard sent a chill up her spine. "Sharpener's in the hospital. He almost died"

Gohan froze, mouth ajar and dropping the sandwich she held in her hands.

Videl noticed the changed demeanor in her friend. "Gohan, you okay?"

'Kami, I punched him too hard! I thought I held back, but now he's in the hospital because of me!' The words *Almost died* repeated in her mind. 'Kami almighty… what did I do…'

Getting more worried, she looked at Erasa who also seemed worried about the her. Videl then leaned in as she tried to catch the attention of the spaced out demi. "Gohan. Gohan."

Still frozen, Gohan responded in monotone. "Sharpener's in the hospital."

Videl and Erasa both let out a startled gasp at her comment. Erasa was the next to speak. "W-What makes you say that?"

"I heard them say it…" Gohan said as she pointed to the table next to them.

Videl raised her voice to catch the attention of one of the girls. "Hey Beth, is it true that Sharpener's in the hospital?"

Said girl responded. "Yes. He's in very bad shape too. Don't know the details yet though."

"This is all my fault…" Gohan said in a low voice.

Erasa's eyebrows shot up. "What! Gohan, how could it have possibly been your fault?"

Looking down ashamed, she answered. "I punched him in the face on Saturday…"

There was silence for a brief moment. Then, both Erasa and Videl nearly fell off out of their seats in laughter.

Gohan ignored their laughter and thought about what she could do to make this right. 'I could see if Korrin has any senzu beans. That's it!'

Once Videl caught her breath she noted the serious look Gohan had. She frowned. 'That girl is always blaming herself herself for things that aren't her fault.' "Gohan. It's not your fault. There is no way a punch from you can do much of any harm. No offense. Being a martial artist, Sharpener has been hit in the face countless times by people far stronger than you, Gohan."

Unconvinced Gohan rose from her seat. "I've gotta go." And she half ran out of the dining hall. Videl attempted to follow, but lost her.

…

Her mind was filled with guilt as she walked the hospital halls on her way to visit Sharpener. Unfortunately, Korin did not have any senzu beans that were ripe, so she came empty handed.

Once she arrived at the door to the room she stopped. Taking a deep breath, she entered slowly, careful not to disturb the patient within.

She heard a woman crying, and it broke her heart. 'This is my fault…' Her eyes watered.

Walking in the room she saw an older man that looked a lot like Sharpener, most likely his dad. Beside the patient bed was a woman who was crying, holding the hand of the full body bandaged patient who was hooked up to a couple of machines.

Something didn't make sense. Why was he fully bandaged up?

Looking facing the couple, she bowed. "I-Im so sorry for what happened to Sharpener…"

The man resembling an older Sharpener spoke. "Thank you miss. We just hope we find the men who cowardly attacked my son."

She looked up at the man. "He was attacked?"

"After his car got into a crash, he was attacked and left barely alive in the street Saturday night. There were no witnesses" He balled his hands into fists as they shook. "I swear, once we catch the culprits they would have wished that they had never been born!"

She looked back down. 'I didn't do it!' She couldn't help but feel relieved that she hadn't been the one who put Sharpener in the hospital. She still felt bad for him, of course, but she hadn't slipped up with her strength.

"I wish him a speedy recovery." She bowed once more and left the family to each other.

As she walked the halls of the hospital she pondered. 'Who would want to hurt Sharpener so badly? I will have to do some investigating to see if I can apprehend the culprits. After all, that's what a superhero does.'

On her way out of the building, she heard a female reporter from the TV in the registration room.

"We are live here at Mitro Max corp where hostages are being held by three-"

'Speaking of superhero duties.' She ran out the door and headed to a secluded spot to transform.

…..

Thursday rolled around, yet the authorities still had no leads on the culprits who injured Sharpener so severely, and Gohan wasn't any closer either. Things weren't quite adding up on the case. Sharpener's car had gotten into a crash, but there was no indication of what the car actually ran into. He was driving it in the city at night when it happened. The car had damage on the hood from the impact, but there was nothing nearby that was damaged to indicate what he had crashed into. Also, the news reported that Sharpener's injuries were from physical assault without weapons. Regardless of what one might say about Sharpener, there weren't many humans who could take him on in hand to hand combat.

'It's possible he had a gun pointed at him and he had to let himself get beaten up, but that seems unlikely…'

She was frustrated. Still having no clue as to who would do this to him, she decided that she would have to investigate further at a different time. There was too much to do to prepare for this weekend and next week. This Saturday Vegeta's surprise was set to happen. Though nearly everything was in place, there was still a few things to do beforehand. She moved her weekly training with Vegeta from their usual Saturdays to Thursday, which was later today, so they wouldn't miss a session.

Next week was Satan Celebration Week (a holiday which meant a whole week off of school in honor of the 'man' who defeated Cell). Her birthday was also that week and her mom always threw a big get together party of the Z fighters for the occasion.

She really wanted Videl and Erasa to come too, but that would mean she would have to tell them her Saiyagirl secret. There would be no way Videl and Erasa wouldn't recognise Piccolo from the Cell Games footage. Then, they would be more aware and recognise Yamcha, Tien, and Krillin (even with his hair grown out). It would be hard to come up with an excuse as to how she knew so many of the Cell Game fighters without spinning a huge web of lies that Videl was sure not to buy. And to be honest, she didn't want to lie anymore to her two friends.

She had decided that today right after class she would tell Videl and Erasa that she was Saiyagirl. She really wanted them to come to her birthday party and be able to meet her mom, Goten, and the other important people in her life.

She was of course worried on how they would react. Especially Videl. Her friend had confronted 'Saiyagirl' once and asked her about the Cell Games, which she had avoided discussing by flying off. Considering the superhuman strength she displayed as Saiyagirl, it's not a wonder that her smart friend was beginning to suspect that her dad had not really been the one to defeat Cell.

She chuckled to herself. 'Not even a week as a superhero and I am going to reveal my identity.'

Also, not only was her birthday that week, but the Starry Night Dance was the night right after her birthday. This would be the first ever dance that she had ever participated in. She chose to go with Videl, who also decided to go alone instead of with a guy. Gohan had received a few invitations by some boys, but the politely declined them. To be honest, she didn't really want to go with a boy to this first dance. If she felt like dancing, Videl and Erasa had assured her that there would be plenty of solo guys who would want to dance there.

She was really looking forward to this weekend and next week. Especially if things went well later today with Videl and Erasa.

…..

After class the three girls walked out of the school building. Videl and Erasa noticed that Gohan was silently looking at the floor as they walked.

Videl placed her hand on her quiet friend's shoulder. "Are you alright Gohan?"

Gohan sighed. She had to do this. Gathering her courage, she lifted her head, onyx eyes meeting blue ones. "Actually, there is something very important I need to tell both of you…" She glanced at Erasa as well. "Could we go somewhere private and talk?"

Videl answered. "Sure, let's head to the park."

"Actually, could we talk at your place. It has to be really private…"

Videl and Erasa exchanged worried glances. Videl looked back at Gohan and nodded. "Of course Gohan. Let's take my car."

The three friends walked to Videl's car. They got in and they drove to Videl's place.

On the car ride there, she hesitated, looking at her two human friends. This was an important reveal. This secret she was about to tell them could change her life.

It wasn't about being Saiyagirl. No. It was about revealing half of her true self. A half that she was constantly taught to hide from humans. Humans tended to fear what they could not control or understand.

Her mother always told her to act like a normal human when in public. To blend in, never show strength, and above all, never tell anyone about what she really was.

As a child, her mother would tell her horror stories about government experiments done on aliens from other planets. Of the few movies they went out to see, her mother made a point to show her movies that ended badly for revealed aliens.

Of course, these were stories her mom told her as a child. She was grown now, and she knew that these were stories without proof. She herself had never found evidence for such government facilities in her researches.

But the governments or power hierarchies did do cruel things to fellow humans behind general knowledge that eventually comes to light. There were torture facilities, illegal human experimentation, and so forth. Not to mention groups of people who took it upon themselves to harm others.

And all this was done to their own species. One could only imagine the cruelty they are capable of to a species or a hybrid that come from other planets.

She was always taught that her family, Bulma's family, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, Yayirobe, and Master Roshi were the only humans who would understand. Others would, at best, make you an

outcast. At worst, they would fear and hate you, seeking your destruction and the destruction of your family.

At a large scale, this secret that could get out, could not only endanger her life, but her younger brother's as well. And even if they didn't have the means to capture them, the'd be on the run. They would most likely have to move to another planet. Their future would be ruined…

At a smaller scale, if they chose to tell other students about her secret she'd have to leave school. She'd grown quite accustomed and comfortable with this school, its students, and its teachers. It was convenient that it was a close flight from here to Capsule Corp.

Above all, she cared greatly about the two friends she made at this school. Even with the fear of danger that had been ingrained in her by her mother as a child, she believed in her friends. They wouldn't reveal her secret to others.

But, even if they didn't reveal her secrets to others, how would that secret change their interactions? Would they even still be friends? Would Erasa fear her and Videl hate her? Would they think her a freak and stop hanging out with her and avoid her?

She didn't want to lose them.

But she had to trust in the friendship they've built. She had to trust that they were good people and they cared about her, regardless of the fact she wasn't completely human.

Videl parked and they headed in the house. Gohan was silent the entire time and the two girls were beginning to worry about her.

Arriving at Videl's room, the girl closed the door to her room after Erasa and Gohan entered. She sat next to Erasa on her bed as they watched the nervous Gohan in silence.

Gohan had to take a deep breath. Once she told them, there was no going back.

She straightened her shoulders and gathered her resolve. "I… I haven't been completely honest about myself…"

Videl's brows furrowed in a frown. "What do you mean Gohan."

Looking to the floor, she replied barely a whisper. "I-I am not fully human…"

Videl and Erasa leaned in further to try to catch the softly spoken words.

Gohan looked up and saw two pairs of blue eyes looking worriedly at her, with a hint of confusion.

She sighed heavily. Nervously she unwrapped the jacket that was tied around her waist to reveal her black tail. She uncoiled from her waist and wiggled it around.

She saw her friends gasp in shock. Her tail instinctively retreated back to her waist for protection.

Erasa was the first to speak in a shocked tone. "G-G-Gohan! Y-You have… a TAIL!"

Gohan nodded slowly, looking sadly at the floor. She was waiting, dreading their possible reactions, especially Videl's.

"W-Why? H-How?" Erasa asked, confused. How could someone have a tail?

She held her arms protectively as she revealed a hidden part about herself. "I am part… alien. From my father's side. I am part Saiyan."

Erasa's blue eyes bulged. "Part alien! Aliens are real?!"

Gohan nodded. Her nervousness rising as Videl had yet to say a word.

Glancing in the direction of her black haired friend, she saw a heavy thoughtful frown. Videl was staring at her intensely, and it worried her. But she decided to continue.

"I, I also have something else I need to tell the both of you…" Slowly, she lifted her arm that had her watch. She clicked the buttons twice, and the gold and dark green Saiyagirl outfit covered her. Then, she transformed into super saiyan.

Erasa screamed at his point. "YOU ARE SAIYAGIRL?!"

She nodded weakly and looked at the floor again.

Videl finally spoke. "How could you lie to us?!"

Gohan flinched at her friends' harsh tone, ashamed of the lies she had told her close friends.

Videl gritted her teeth and closed her fists tightly. Saiyagirl… The vigilante she had been trying to track since the first incident about a month ago, was right in front of her the whole time!

She had been right when she had accused Gohan the first day they met. And she had been played like a fool.

Then, an even more disturbing thought came back to mind. Gohan's golden appearance resembled that of the gold fighters during the Cell games 6 years ago, she suspected, now more than ever, that they were connected. If what Gohan said about aliens was true, than they might

be the same species. Gohan was inhumanly powerful. Hell, she had witnessed 'Saiyagirl' stop a falling plane, by herself, and gently place it on the ground. If aliens, or half aliens, with that kind of strength were present during the Cell games, and had trouble with Cell, how would it be possible that her father defeated Cell?

Looking to the floor, Videl asked the question with a low voice. "My father didn't defeat Cell, did he?"

Gohan was silent for a brief moment. The first time Videl had asked her (as Saiyagirl) about the Cell games, she feared she would one day have to tell her friend the truth. The fact that her very own father was a fraud.

She replied in a tired low voice, looking down. "No."

The room was eerie silent. Erasa looked at Gohan, then back at Videl. All this overwhelming the blonde. She saw that her best friend began to shake, close to tears.

Videl stormed out of the bedroom, slamming the door on the way out. Erasa gave one more glance to Gohan, then ran after her.

Gohan was left in the room, standing alone. Tears filled her eyes as she flew out the window and into the sky.

The soft breeze as she flew the air did nothing to ease her pain. She felt a hole in her heart. She was afraid she had lost two of her closest friends.

…..

Vegeta paced the gravity room. A deep frown etched his features as he moved back and forth. He looked up and glanced at the digital clock on the wall once more. '6:45'

He gritted his teeth. It was not like Gohan to be late to one of their sparring sessions. In fact, she mostly came by earlier than usual. She had asked him if they could move this week's training session to today, instead of their usual Saturdays. He agreed, the specific date of their weekly spar did not matter to him.

Had she forgotten the change in date?

He looked at the clock yet again. '6:47'

He would not wait any longer. Of the things he hated the most, being made to wait was high on the list. Walking towards the door, he planned on finding Gohan and demand an explanation as to her absence. But he suddenly stopped. He felt Gohan's ki approaching the vicinity.

Glaring at the door, he folded his arms and leaned against the wall, waiting for Gohan to enter the GR.

As the door opened, he was about to remark on her tardiness when he noticed that something was gravely bothering her.

Her tail was wrapped very loosely around her waist, almost as if it was barely being held there. If the tail were to fall, it looked as if it would droop. Signs that the girl was miserable.

Looking at her beautiful face, he saw her eyes were a bit puffy and slightly red, though there were no dry tears on her face. Her face was clean, he figured most likely she had tried to hide her state from him.

He saw her give a false smile his way as she apologized in a falsely cheerful manner. "I'm so sorry I am late! I got caught up in some things." She walked toward the controls of the gravity room. "So ready to spar, Vegeta?"

He watched her in silence as she walked towards the controls. Sparring was not what she really needed at this moment. Many emotional states can be avoided by sparing, but the type of sorrow she seemed to be experiencing will not.

He sighed and walked up to her, grabbing her arm to keep her from accessing the control panel.

She glanced at him in surprise and inquiry at his actions.

He looked straight into those deep onyx eyes of hers. "Sit with me."

Letting go of her arm, he proceeded to walk towards the bench located inside the gravity room. He sat to the left and watched her sit to his right. She kept her gaze downcast. Her tail gave the occasional twitch indicating curiosity.

He sighed. He was never even decent when it came to providing emotional support to others, he himself having difficulty with his. But he had to try. This was his future mate and he had to be there for her. Regardless of how uncomfortable it was.

He looked at her downcast eyes, ready hold her gaze should she choose to look up at him. "What is bothering you?"

Her eyes widened and she looked at him in surprise. She hadn't expected him to ask such a question. Taking a few moments of silence, she searched his coal black eyes. He seemed genuinely interested in what was troubling her. Why? Why would he care?

Movement from behind him caught her eye. She saw his tail was uncoiled from his waist and

was swaying slowly side by side. Back and forth, in a lazy yet consistent manner. She didn't understand why, but that motion made her feel safe and for some reason, a little better.

She looked back into his eyes. He was still looking at her. Patiently waiting for her answer.

Before she could stop herself or worry about how petty he may think her troubles were, she found herself telling him what was wrong.

"Today I told my 2 human friends that I was part saiyan and they didn't take it very well…" An involuntary tear ran down her cheek as she spoke.

He remained silent as he watched her intently.

She lifted her legs on the bench and hugged her legs to her chest, burying her head on her knees. "I-I'm afraid that I will lose them. They are the first friends I made on my own and they are great people. I care about them so much. I wanted them to come to my birthday party so much, so I told them the truth about me." She was having difficulty holding her tears back as she spoke.

Her eyes widened in surprise when she felt Vegeta's tail wrap around her waist. She felt him slide closer to her on the bench as well.

She slowly lifted her head to look at him, her eyes moist with unshed tears.

She felt his gentle hand on the side of her head and she allowed him to guide her to lean against him.

She rested her head against his broad chest. It felt incredibly nice. His slow and steady breath was helping to calm hers. She felt his ki rise slowly and envelop her in its warmth, and it felt relaxing. She felt as if he cared deeply for her and her heart swelled.

She began to purr in contentment. His hand stroking her hair. His free arm wrapped around her waist. She felt leagues better. It felt right to be in his arms. So right.

Slowly her eyes began to close, and her breathing slowed. A smile graced her lips. She was safe.

The tiredness from today's events caught up with her.

…..

She was laying on a very soft mattress. It was familiar, yet it wasn't the mattress from her house.

She stretched lazily. Opening her eyes and regaining focus from her slumber. She was in her second room in Capsule Corp. She yawned and turned her gaze to the clock on the nightstand.

"AAAAH!"

The clock read 9:35am. School started an hour and a half ago!

She scrambled out of her bed, gathered her clothes, and showered in record time. Grabbing her bookbag, she was grateful that she had brought it before coming here to train with Vegeta.

She flew out of the house at top speed. Even though she was worried about being late to school, she couldn't help but think back to yesterday.

Vegeta had been so kind to her. He had comforted and listened to her.

Her cheeks reddened at the memory. He had held her so gently and warmly. She had never been held like that before. By anyone.

But why? She knew he wasn't the type to comfort others, yet he went way out of his way to comfort her. Even missing out on their weekly training session!

Embarrassment filled her when she realized she had fallen asleep in his arms. She covered her face in shame.

Her thoughts had to be cut short because she arrived at school.

Making sure there was no one to see her, she landed on the roof and ran down the stairs.

Sadly, she heard the bell ring, signaling the end of second period and the start of recess. 'Danm! I missed two classes…'

She stopped in the hallway. No use in heading to the classroom at this point. She turned to walk outside the building when she heard a familiar voice call her name.

"Gohan!"

She turned around hesitantly to Erasa, who was half jogging towards her. She noticed that Videl was heading her way as well.

"H-Hi Erasa… Videl" She couldn't get herself to look them in the eyes. She had lied to them for so long and felt ashamed.

"Gohan, we need to talk." Videl said in a serious tone.

Gohan only nodded and followed the two girls to a secluded bench on school grounds.

There was a few moments of silence. One could hear different sounds in the distance, different discussions by students, cars passing by the street, ruffling of leaves from the trees on school ground…

Videl was the one to break the silence. "Why didn't you tell us sooner…" Her voice was full of hurt.

Gohan's heart ached at the sadness in her voice. "I-I was afraid you both would hate me…"

Videl was startled by her words. How could she think that Erasa or herself would hate her? She was angry, yes, but not hate.

Her blue eyes scanned the downcast black one's of her friend. Gohan looked miserable. She could tell her black haired friend felt horrible for having lied to them. The more she thought about it, could she really blame Gohan for keeping the secret for as long as she did?

No one really knew that aliens exist, and if you were one, or part one as Gohan claimed, you would be hesitant to tell anyone such a personal secret. Perhaps she should be honored that gohan told her at all.

Videl suddenly felt ashamed. She had reacted poorly. To be honest, it wasn't the part that her friend was part alien, it was the confirmation that her father was a fraud. He did not defeat Cell as he claimed. He had lied to her and everyone. And that hurt her a lot.

She placed a comforting hand on her sad friend's shoulder. "Erasa and I don't hate you Gohan. I'm sorry that I reacted the way I did. I just…" She looked down to the floor sadly. "It was hard to hear the truth about my father…"

"I'm sorry…"

Videl shook her head. "Don't be. It's not your fault."

Gohan looked up at her two friends. "A-Are we still… friends?"

Erasa, who had been silent so Videl could explain, piped up at the question. "Of course Gohan!" She hugged her half alien friend. "You're stuck with us and can't get rid of us that easily!"

Gohan hugged her back excitedly. Videl, though not a person that hugs others often, decided to hug both her friends.

The bell rang, signaling the end of recess. The girls ended their group hug.

Erasa looked at Gohan. "See you at lunch!"

Gohan nodded and gave a big Son smile. "Yep! Bye!"

…

The last bell rang, signaling the end of another day of class. Gohan, erasa, and Videl walked out of the building.

"Hey Gohan, want to go shopping today?" Erasa asked with a large grin.

Videl looked at Erasa in horror. "No! Anything but that…."

"Oh, come on Videl! I swear, you need to get better clothes than you have. More feminine clothes! Gohan and I will help you find the right style."

Gohan laughed at the expression of misery Videl sported. "As fun as that might be, I can't today. I've got important things to do today."

Erasa frowned and put her hands on her hips in disappointment.

"Sorry! But we could hang out on Sunday, if that's ok with you guys."

Videl nodded. "Alright." Then turned to her blonde friend. "But no shopping!"

They laughed and Gohan waved goodbye to her friends. She was in very high spirits.

Her friendship with the two girls seemed as strong as ever. Also, tomorrow was Vegeta's surprise and she still had a few things to get ready.

She couldn't wait.