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Last time on A half-breed's Life 2
Gohan kept walking but he did not reply so Turles tried for a response once more. "We noticed your change too, you know." He said.
"Then why didn't you say anything?" Gohan snarled back as he turned back to him. "Apparently, everyone noticed something was going on with me but nobody bothered to tell me!"
"Whelp, we didn't…"
"Did you have fun laughing at me and my silly attempts to be accepted by my own race? Did you enjoy my misery like you always do? Haha. Look at that silly half-breed trying to fit in. Why is he even trying? He will never fit in anywhere! He's so stupid."
Turles crossed his arms over each other and waited for Gohan to finish his rant. "Are you done?" He asked when Gohan stopped to take a breath.
In response, Gohan huffed and turned away from the man. Turles followed Gohan once more. "First of all, we would never laugh at you." When Gohan only laughed in response, Turles corrected himself: "Not when it's important or serious."
Gohan did not stop walking but Turles was not giving up either. "We figured that you would come to us." He said. "We decided to let you figure everything out on your own. You're a smart kid, whelp. We knew you would get out of this by yourself."
"Well see where that got me!" Gohan snarled back. "I didn't fit in. I'll never fit in. I'll always be an outcast."
"Half-breed, look at you." Turles replied in a loud voice. "You're a saiyan. You fit in with us."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"For now," Piccolo sat down on the ground. Gohan sent him a curious glance. "I want to get to know you a little bit better before we start fighting each other."
Piccolo shook his head. "No talking. Close your eyes. Meditate."
The two sat in silence for a while until Gohan got a gentle headache. The half-saiyan shook his head and placed a hand on his forehead, massaging his temples. Why did he get a headache? Granted it had been a while since he meditated but that didn't mean his mind was rusty.
The headache increased in power and Gohan gasped when his head gave painful stings. What the hell was going on? The half-saiyan tried to open his eyes but it was like something was gluing them shut.
A young boy, lying on the ground, his eyes unseeing. A group of children screaming in pain as their flesh burned. A woman begging for her life but a hand appeared in her vision and she widened her eyes as a blast appeared in the hand and destroyed her.
Gohan shook his head and leaned on the ground with his hands. He could hear the screams in his brain, growing louder and more hysterical.
"No!" Gohan screamed at Piccolo. "STOP!"
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Piccolo stood in front of the half-saiyan. "Do you still want to train with me, Saiyan?"
A smirk appeared on Gohan's face as he shook his head. "No. Not anymore. Right now all I want is to show you what happens when you mess with a saiyan." The half-saiyan changed back to a saiyan uniform before he came to the Look Out.
"You think can you can defeat me?" Piccolo asked, narrowing his eyes.
"I know I can." Gohan clenched his fists and powered up. "I will show you exactly how hesitant I feel about murdering people when I rip off your head!"
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
The half-saiyan leaned down to grab Piccolo's arm. As he straightened, he looked up over his shoulder to the group of warriors that was floating in the air.
"Hey guys!" Gohan called over to them. "I'm just fetching our supper!" Gohan looked back down to Piccolo and started pulling on his arm. The man screamed while Gohan put just enough pressure on the man's arm to make it hurt badly, but not rip it off.
His comrades responded with laughs and chuckles and the group made their way closer to the former battlefield.
"I don't know." Vegeta said as he landed on the ground. "Namek meat doesn't sound very appealing." The man noticed Piccolo was charging a blast in his free hand so Vegeta placed his foot on the man's hand.
*** DBZ *** DBZ ***
"Hiya Gohan! Vegeta." Goku greeted as he stepped inside. "Oh, Gohan. It's good to see you're up. Are you feeling better?"
Gohan showed a polite smile. "I'm doing fine."
"Good! Hey, I thought we could take a walk. You know, get you some fresh air."
"Actually." Gohan started. "I was just suggesting the same thing but Vegeta told me it's probably best to stay inside since I'm still feeling a bit…"
"Actually." Vegeta interrupted as he got up. "I changed my mind. Some fresh air would probably do you good." The man approached the half-saiyan. "A walk would be a great idea, Kakarot."
Let's move on!
Chapter 29. Never Insult The Saiyan Race
Gohan's eyes were focused on the ground as they walked. He didn't really feel like talking to his father.
"Raditz told me you wanted to talk to me." Goku said as he glanced sideways.
"Did he now…" Gohan noted to talk to Raditz about that later.
"Gohan… I know what you did back in the army." Goku stated. Gohan met his gaze. "I've always known."
"So tell me, what did I do in the army?"
Goku hesitated. He lowered his gaze for a moment as he tried to figure out how to say his next sentence. "You killed." He stated bluntly. "You tortured. You did everything the others or Frieza ordered you to do, no questions asked." Goku looked sideways again but Gohan was not looking at him. "And once you got over the guilt, you did it without feeling guilty. You even experienced the thrill of the kill."
"I didn't know how to tell you." Gohan said softly.
"You can." Goku stopped walking. He placed a hand on Gohan's shoulder, turning the half-saiyan towards him. Goku placed his other hand on Gohan's unoccupied shoulder. "You can tell me anything. It doesn't matter what you did. Your past doesn't define you. "
"I did some terrible things." Gohan said slowly. "I can never live up to your version of me."
"All I wanted," Goku stated as his hands gently squeezed Gohan's shoulders, "was to get my son back. And I got you back. I don't care what you've done. I don't care how bad of a person you think you are. It will never change my perspective of you."
Gohan looked down. "I killed children and women. I tortured men just because I wanted them to say something random. I enjoyed it. I chose random aliens and decided that they were going to be my next victim. And I did all of that because I was bored."
Goku pulled the half-saiyan into a hug. Gohan's mouth was wide open as he stared over Goku's shoulder. "I don't care." Goku said, his voice sounding strangely hoarse. "I'm just as selfish as you are because I don't care about all those aliens. All I care about is that I can hug my son. My oldest child. I've been searching for you for so long."
Tears appeared in Gohan's eyes but he blinked them away. The half-saiyan did not hug his father back yet. "This doesn't fix anything."
"But it feels good." Goku didn't release him. "Try it."
Gohan hesitantly wrapped his arms around his father. The boy could feel the warmth of his father's body. He unconsciously tightened his grip. Gohan closed his eyes because he feared he wouldn't be able to hold back his tears this time. He'd wanted to hug his father like this for a long time. He'd hugged the full-blooded saiyan before but now he hugged a man who knew what he'd done. No more secrets. Goku accepted him and his past.
The two pulled away. Gohan sent his father a genuine smile. "Thank you."
"I won't tell you to come live with us again, but I will tell you that you're always welcome to return home." Goku said.
Gohan nodded. "That's good to know."
The two continued to walk for about an hour before they returned to Capsule Corporation. There Vegeta was sitting on the couch, reading a book.
"Had a nice chat?" Vegeta asked, not even looking up from his book.
Gohan placed his hands on his hips and turned to his father. "You know what? I want to go back home." Gohan had his back turned to Vegeta so he did not see how the older warrior looked up. "Am I still welcome?"
Goku grinned. "Always."
"Good." Gohan sent his father a smile. Vegeta slowly looked back down to his book. Gohan turned back to his comrade. "I'm off. Can you tell the others where I am?"
"Sure." Vegeta's eyes were focused on the book again.
Gohan was somewhat taken aback by this lack of proper response. "Fine. I'll see you when I see you." He turned back to his father.
"Tomorrow. Training session at four. Don't be late."
The half-saiyan looked over his shoulder. "I'll be there." He said before walking over to his father.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"Where's half-breed?" Turles looked around in Gohan's small bedroom. The man turned to Vegeta. "Where did he go?"
"Home."
"To his parents?" Raditz asked. Vegeta nodded so Raditz sat down on the couch. "Oh…"
Nappa sat down too. "Well, that's good, right? He needed to go home again." He stated, trying, but failing, to sound cheerful.
"Right." Raditz muttered in response.
Turles lowered his gaze for a moment before looking up. "Well, good riddance. I was getting sick and tired of looking out for him. Who wants a beer?"
"Me." Vegeta placed his book on the glass table and got up. "I need a drink."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"Hit me up!" Gohan placed his glass on the bar. He was sitting on a high stool at the bar, leaning on the bar with his elbows.
Justin raised an eyebrow. "I think you've had enough. I'm cutting you off." He responded as he grabbed Gohan's glass and put it in the sink.
"You can't do that!" Gohan complained. "You're working. You have to give me a drink as long as I pay for it." The half-saiyan reached in his pocket and placed some paper money on the counter.
"Gohan. You're drunk. I'm not giving you any alcoholic beverages anymore." Justin wiped the counter before he moved to help another costumer.
The half-saiyan frowned and leaned over the counter in order to grab something to drink. "Hey!" Another barkeeper frowned as he stepped closer. "You can't do that!"
"Get lost!" Gohan snarled back.
Justin appeared near them. "I'll take care of it." He said to his colleague. "Don't worry. I've got it covered."
The barkeeper frowned at the young saiyan. "Make sure he doesn't destroy anything." He said as Gohan glared back at him.
"I will." Justin waited for the other to leave before he sent Gohan an annoyed glance.
"What?" Gohan complained in response to the look he was receiving from his friend. He'd seen it before, every time he'd done something questionable.
"You're going to get me fired."
"I just want something to drink." Gohan said as he reached out again. Justin smacked his hand away.
"No. You're my friend. I'm not going to let you drink yourself into a coma." Justin smacked on Gohan's hand again. "Get back."
"Come on." Gohan complained. "You're my friend. Cut me some slack."
"Gohan." Justin pushed the half-saiyan's hand away once more. "I have no family. You are my one and only friend and if you leave me I'll be all alone. Therefore, in my own selfish way, I have to make sure that you stay alive and healthy." He leaned on the counter with his hands. "So I can't let you drink yourself to death, now can I?"
"You're such a spoilsport." Gohan complained. The half-saiyan noticed that Justin was looking at something behind him and his senses picked up on something that he should have noticed a lot earlier. "What are they doing here..?" Gohan muttered without looking over his shoulder.
"I called them." Justin admitted before he reached up and waved to catch their attention.
"You called them?" Gohan asked. "You traitor!"
Justin sent the half-saiyan a smirk. "Apparently, that's the only part I can play in your life, huh?" Even in his dazed drunk state, Gohan saw the sadness in his friend's green eyes at the mention of Justin's betrayal.
"You do know you're supposed to call my parents on a time like this, right?"
"This is pretty much the same." Justin said before he looked up at the two warriors. "Hey guys. Glad that you could come so quickly."
"Sure." Raditz sat down next to Gohan. "I'm not going to pass up a chance to have a drink with my nephew. Though I think you've done plenty of drinking without us." He tousled Gohan's hair as he said this. Gohan rolled his eyes in response.
"What do you guys want?" Justin yelled over the music as he glanced at them.
Gohan sat up. "Ah finally!" He said. "Some service in this place! I'd like a beer."
"Good idea." Turles responded as he leaned on the bar with his arm. "One beer for me. What about you, Raditz?"
"A beer for me too and a glass of milk for this one." Raditz pointed to Gohan with his thumb.
"I don't even like milk."
"I could have sworn you did." Raditz said thoughtfully. The man accepted his beer from Justin.
The green-tinted warrior placed a coke in front of Gohan and the half-saiyan pointed at it. "I will be very disappointed if there's just coke in here." He complained. Justin only sent him another smirk before he moved on to another costumer.
"Nice job he's got." Raditz said as he studied the young non-saiyan warrior. "He can flirt with women all night."
"This is just a coke." Gohan complained, glaring at his glass.
Turles sipped from his beer. "What did you decide to drink away?" He asked curiously. "This cannot have something to do with that whole guilt thing."
"Maybe I just wanted to spend a night in oblivion." Gohan responded, looking from one to the other.
"That usually means that the person in question is unhappy." Raditz stated.
"Good. It was once your job to make me unhappy." Gohan snarled back. He was about to move away from them but Turles placed a hand on Gohan's shoulder.
"Hey. Come on. We've moved passed this."
Gohan let out a sigh. "Nothing's wrong." He stated. "Nothing is wrong." He repeated. "I get up in the morning. My mom makes breakfast for me. I kiss my beautiful girlfriend goodbye. I go to Capsule Corporation to train with you. I go to school to practice with the basketball team. I eat a delicious dinner at home and I spend the rest of the evening with my wonderful family until I go to bed." The boy stared at the dirty bar. "I have a perfect life."
"You have a boring life." Turles muttered as he leaned on the bar with his lower arm.
Raditz sent his younger brother a glare and only earned a "Well, it's true!"
The older saiyan shook his head before turning to his nephew. "Half-breed, this is what you always wanted, right? A normal human life."
"Yes…" Gohan showed a rather sad face as he pushed his now empty plastic cup around. Raditz and Turles exchanged worried glances.
Raditz looked back at Gohan. "Okay. So what do we have to do in order to cheer you up?"
"Buy me an alcoholic drink."
"We'll take you home." Turles got off the barstool and gave a pull on Gohan's arm.
After some bickering and arguing, Turles and Raditz managed to get Gohan out of the bar and in the air. Despite Gohan's complaints, Turles kept a constant grip on the half-saiyan's arm in order to keep him in the air.
"I thought you said you were going to take me home?" Gohan said as he looked up at Capsule Corporation.
"Oh, you did notice that." Turles responded, shaking his head.
The older warriors helped Gohan upstairs and into his room. Vegeta leaned against the doorpost and watched as the two brothers carefully placed the young warrior in bed and took off Gohan's shoes. After this they gently placed the sheets over his body.
"What's wrong?" Vegeta asked when Turles approached him.
"He's happy." Turles responded. The man turned so he could look at his nephew. "He's happy and he doesn't know how to handle it."
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"WAKE UP!" Raditz roared into Gohan's ear. The half-saiyan groaned and shifted in his bed, placing his head under his pillow in order to hide his eyes and ears from the thunderstorm that was his uncle.
"Let's go. It's morning. The sun is up." Turles pulled the sheets off Gohan's body. The half-saiyan curled into a small ball to keep the warmth near his body.
"Guys…" Gohan whimpered when Raditz managed to free the pillow from the half-saiyan's hands.
The young warrior yawned and tried to hide his body in the mattress but this wouldn't work. Turles and Raditz managed to turn Gohan on his back and they both grabbed an arm before carrying his entire body into the air. Gohan nearly sank through his knees when they placed him on the ground, but he managed to stay on his feet.
The boy's eyes were still closed as he walked into the main room, followed closely by his uncles. Gohan was ushered all the way to the kitchen. Vegeta placed a cup of coffee and a plate with pancakes in front of him.
The half-saiyan leaned on the table with his elbow, resting his cheek on his palm. His eyes closed again. Nappa placed both his hands on his shoulders, startling the half-saiyan. "Stay awake."
Gohan hid his face behind his hands. "Please lower your voice." He whispered.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" Turles roared, earning a whimper from the young warrior.
"Evil." Gohan muttered.
"Eat something." Vegeta stated. "We'll go to the training room right after this."
Gohan looked up from the beautiful darkness behind his hands. "What? Are you crazy?"
"Nope. Just very eager to spar with our youngest comrade." Turles added in cheerfully.
The half-saiyan grabbed his cup of coffee and took a sip from it. "I'm going to need something stronger than this." He complained as he got up. The half-saiyan approached the refrigerator but Raditz was already holding up in a beer for him.
"Thanks." Gohan said as he accepted.
"Just one. It will take care of your dizziness."
"I know." Gohan leaned against the counter as he zipped from the beer. The young warrior absentmindedly stared at the breakfast table for a while until Raditz snatched a pancake from Gohan's plate. The young warrior immediately pushed away from the counter. "Hey! That's mine!" He quickly assumed his seat. He wasn't planning on letting the others eat his breakfast.
After breakfast Vegeta and Nappa teamed up to chase Gohan all the way to the training room. The young warrior sent a glare to Vegeta.
"I'm in no state to train." Gohan complained. "It won't be a fair match."
Vegeta smirked in response. "Just like the good old days."
Gohan rolled his eyes. "I walked right into that one." He muttered before turned away from his comrade. The young warrior gasped audibly when a force pushed against his back. Gohan tripped over his own feet and landed on all fours.
Vegeta chuckled as he moved his foot up and pushed against Gohan's backside with his white boot, forcing the young warrior to fall to the ground entirely.
Gohan could feel his cheeks heat up in embarrassment. He was not going to let them mess with him like that. The young warrior jumped up, ignoring the sting of pain in his head, and turned back to the man.
"Alright. Let's do this." Gohan got in a fighting stance.
"Finally." Vegeta showed a smirk as he copied Gohan's action and assumed a defensive stance as well.
The two stared at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. The first mistake. This was going to be an intense battle in which Gohan was going to show just how well he could defeat Vegeta even if he was experiencing a hangover.
Vegeta and Gohan could both feel the tension in the air. It was like the whole world held her breath and waited…
Gohan widened his eyes when he felt something move in his body. He placed his hands in front of his mouth, pressing his lips together to push down the wave of nausea that was threatening to come up. He made a run for the bathroom but he realized he was going to be too late. Luckily, Raditz was already waiting with a bucket. Gohan snatched it out of his hands and threw up in it.
Vegeta blew out some air and slowly shook his head. What was he going to do with these people?
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Vegeta, Raditz, Nappa, and Turles looked around curiously as they walked around in the arena. There were humans everywhere. Most of them seemed to be either teenagers or middle-aged adults.
"Hey guys!" Gohan ran closer to them. He was all smiles as he approached them. "You came."
Vegeta shrugged. "Sure." He responded. "This ridiculous event seems to matter to you."
Gohan grinned. "Thank you." He stated. The boy was wearing a traditional uniform in the orange and black colours of the school. His short-sleeved shirt was white with one orange stripe travelling from his right shoulder, across his torso and down to his left hip. The Orange Star High school badge was seen on the left side of his chest.
"Gohan!" One of his team members called for the half-saiyan's attention. "We have to meet in the locker room!"
"I'll be right there!" Gohan called over before he turned back to his comrades. "Take a seat. The game will start soon." The boy turned away from them and ran to the doorway to the dressing room.
The squad chose not to take a seat but to stand near the entrance of the gym. This meant that they would be able to get out as soon as the game was over. Katy approached them to say hi before she moved back to her friends.
The game itself was relatively uneventful. With Gohan as their new team mate, they won easily. The half-saiyan was kept his powerlevel somewhere between 5 and 10 as he ran around the field, caught the basketball, dodged a couple of other players and passed the ball to one of his teammates.
The young warrior ignored some of the whispers from his comrades, complaining about the length of the game and the slowness of the human players. Despite these disappointing factors, the adult saiyans seemed to enjoy the game. Turles, Raditz, and Nappa cheered Gohan's team on, albeit by calling things like: "Go humans!", "You can do better than that, human!", and "Dodge, human, dodge!"
After the game, Gohan found his comrades outside.
"Congratulations!" Raditz said cheerfully. "It was interesting to watch this basket game."
"Basketball." Gohan corrected. "And thanks. It was all to entertain you." The boy's grin showed them that he was joking.
Katy approached them. "Gohan. It's time to go home." She stated.
Gohan nodded before turning back to his comrades. "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Training at ten." Vegeta responded. Gohan said goodbye to them and left with his girlfriend. The four saiyans figured they did not have anything to do here and they went on their way, back to Capsule Corporation.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"Get ready to drink water." Gohan threatened as he smirked at his older comrade.
Nappa laughed. "I was about to say the same about you." He responded. The man raised his arms upwards so he would look large and dangerous.
"ATTACK!" Gohan charged at the man. Water splashed as their bodies met and they tried to push each other underwater. Turles was leaning on the edge of the swimming pool with his arm.
The man watched them for a bit. "I thought we were going to swim laps." He said, frowning thoughtfully.
"That was the intention." Vegeta muttered. "Then again, we forgot that we have a child in our team."
Raditz watched as Nappa carried Gohan in the air and threw him right back in the water. "Two of them." He added.
Meanwhile, Katy walked over to Bulma, who was making herself comfortable on one of the chairs near the pool.
"Hey Bulma." She greeted, smiling. "Are you going to join us?"
"Oh no." Bulma showed her a bright smile. "I'm very fine over here." She turned her vision back to the half-naked men in the swimming pool. "Very fine." She sighed dreamily.
Katy raised an eyebrow as a smile crawled onto her face. "Okay then." She walked over to the pool. There she untied the towel that was hanging around her hips and dropped it on the ground before sitting down on the edge of the pool.
The young woman looked over at Vegeta. "I thought we were going to swim laps?" She asked. "Gohan said something about a new way of training."
Turles snickered when Vegeta uttered an annoyed sound. The saiyan prince turned to the young woman. "Well then, why don't you go get your boyfriend and make him take this seriously?"
Katy let her body slip into the cold water, shivering slightly. "I'm not going to make him do anything. That's your job."
Vegeta sent the young woman a glare before he turned to his playing comrades. The man took a deep breath. "Alright!" He yelled. Nappa and Gohan froze and looked at him. "Stop behaving like idiots. We have work to do."
"Relax, Vegeta." Gohan responded, waving his comment away. "I don't feel like training right now."
"That's too bad. I am telling you that you are going to train now." Vegeta snarled in response.
Gohan turned to the man fully. The half-saiyan tilted his head sideways for a moment. "Someone's in a bad mood." He stated. A mischievous glint appeared in his eyes. "I'd say you need to have some fun. Be wild. For once."
"Torturing hybrids to death is my kind of fun." Vegeta said darkly.
Gohan seemed to expect this kind of response because he sent the older saiyan a grin. "You'll have to catch me first." He answered lightly.
Vegeta rolled his eyes. He recognized a playful saiyan when he saw one, and he was not in a patient mood. "Half-breed, either train with us or leave."
Gohan pouted. "I don't want to leave." He said in a sad voice.
"Then train with us."
"I don't want to train." This was said in an equally sad voice.
The saiyan prince took a deep breath to keep calm. Katy smiled as she leaned on the edge of the pool with her arm. Gohan was the only person who could push Vegeta this far without eliciting an outburst from the saiyan prince.
"I have an idea." Gohan continued cheerfully. "I'd say we train your ability to hold your breath for a long period." He stated. The young warrior swam a little closer. "Do you remember how you used to hold me under water in order to train me to hold my breath for a long period of time?"
Katy made a disapproving sound, and Gohan sent her a reassuring smile. No harm done. Vegeta crossed his arms. "Where are you going with this?"
"I'll do the same thing to you. Let's see how long you can hold your breath under water." Gohan was still carrying his mischievous expression as he slowly approached the saiyan prince.
"That might be fun." Turles said thoughtfully.
"Wha-?" Vegeta shook his head. "Don't you dare!"
"I don't think we've ever done anything like that to Vegeta." Raditz muttered. Vegeta had always been some sort of leader to them. Even the idea to mess with the saiyan prince was scary.
"And you never will!" Vegeta snarled.
"There's a first time for everything." Gohan cracked his knuckles. "What do you say guys?"
"I'm staying out of this." Katy announced. She placed her hands on the edge of the pool and lifted her body out of the water, sitting down on the edge.
Vegeta looked around with wide eyes. Suddenly, everyone was moving.
Vegeta called "fuck this" and tried to fly away, but Gohan and Turles were already moving towards him. Turles, who was close, grabbed Vegeta's ankle and pulled him back in the water.
Vegeta fought back, trying harder to fly upwards, but he failed when Gohan grabbed his wrist and started pulling him down into the water again. Ignoring Vegeta's curses, Gohan placed his hands on Vegeta's shoulders and grinned at the man. "Take a deep breath."
Katy watched as the four saiyans teamed up on Vegeta, pushing the man down until he was entirely underwater. Vegeta elbowed Raditz underwater and pushed the man aside, managing to swim away and get up for air. However, Gohan was right there to push the man down again. Vegeta grabbed onto Gohan's torso and pulled the young warrior underwater too. There the two started to struggle, pushing and pulling on each other in the weightless world.
The others joined in and soon they were all fooling around. Katy smiled as she shook her head. "Boys will be boys." She muttered to herself. The young woman lowered her body until she was lying on her back. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the sun on her skin while her legs slowly moved in the nice cold water.
A hand curled around her wrist. She opened her pink eyes, and gasped as she was pulled up. Turles pulled her right into the water. "What are you doing here? Join us!"
"Me?" Katy asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You're our comrade, right?" Turles released her and swam back to the others.
"Yeah…" A smile appeared on Katy's face. "I guess I am." She brushed some of her pink hair out of her face before swimming closer to the others and joining in on the game.
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
"I don't think this is such a good idea." Katy muttered to Gohan.
Goten was walking in front of them. He was joined by a black dog. The dog was medium sized and had a white patch on his nose and chest and belly.
"There's no harm in trying." Gohan responded, shrugging
"They're going to eat him." Katy muttered.
"No, they're not." Gohan shook his head. Katy raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay, maybe they will. At least the dog served a purpose, right?"
"You can explain that to your little brother."
The group of three reached the common room that belonged to the saiyans. They all looked up when the trio arrived. The dog ran in the room, eagerly sniffing everything and everyone new.
Vegeta kicked at the poor animal when it tried to sniff his legs. "What is that?" Vegeta demanded.
"A dog." Gohan said.
"He's a stray." Katy responded. "We found him. Well, Goten did. He's not wearing a collar or anything like that so we decided to keep him."
"Why are you bringing it here?" Vegeta asked.
"We need a place for it to stay." Gohan responded.
Vegeta stared at them for a moment. "I repeat, why did you bring it here?"
Katy glanced at the dog. "We think he's a hybrid. He has the colour scheme and size of a border collie but he is shorthaired." She smiled at them. "It will be just for a while."
Nappa was curious. He walked closer to the dog. Vegeta growled. "Get that dirty thing out of here."
Nappa smirked as he knelt down and petted the dog's head. "Reconsider, Vegeta." He stated before he looked over at his comrade. "Won't it be refreshing to have a bastard who will actually listen to our orders?"
Vegeta laughed. "You've got a point there." He responded before he fell down on the couch.
Gohan scoffed. He wondered, not for the first time, why he was still spending so much time with these guys. "Let him stay here for a little bit. We'll go home to ask our parents if we can keep it."
Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Fine." He responded. "Hurry though."
"We will." Gohan grinned. "Thanks!" He waved and hurriedly ushered his girlfriend and little brother out the room.
Nappa studied the dog that was still sitting in front of him. The man grabbed the furry coat of the dog and gently pulled on the rather loose skin. He raised an eyebrow as he looked up at Vegeta. "They say black dogs taste the best."
Vegeta returned his smirk. "Let's find out, shall we?"
**** DBZ **** DBZ ****
Katy twirled around and gave the others a hesitant look. "So… How do I look?" She gestured to the light-blue dress she was wearing. The fabric fluttered around her knees. Her coral hair was put up in a high ponytail.
"Extremely fuckable." Turles deadpanned.
"I disagree," Raditz cut in, "I'd say you cut out some more fabric in the front, give half-breed something to look at when you're dancing with him."
"And make the skirt a little shorter." Nappa added cheerfully. His grin broadened when Katy lowered her arms and glared at them. "You work for those legs, why not show them off?"
Katy placed a hand on her forehead. "I asked one simple question…" She muttered to herself.
Vegeta showed a small smirk. "You look adequate. Half-breed will appreciate it." He stated. High praise from a man like Vegeta.
Katy sent him a thankful smile. "Thanks." She looked down at her dress and plucked an invisible piece of dust from her skirt. "Where is Gohan?"
"Hiding." Turles got up. "I heard the dance you're going to is coat and tie." The man walked over to Gohan's room. The door was closed. "That's why we…"
They all looked up when the door opened and a rather disgruntled looking Gohan appeared in the doorway. "You locked the window." He complained. The young warrior was dressed in a black suit, with a white blouse and even a black tie.
Nappa snickered. "We've known you longer than today."
Katy stepped closer. "Why didn't you blast the window?" She whispered once she was close enough.
"Bulma will kill me." Gohan muttered in response. "I did consider it."
"Well then." Raditz grabbed the camera they already had lying around and got up. He held the camera in front of his eyes and came closer so he could take a picture of the half-saiyan. "Smile." He cooed.
Gohan crossed his arms over each other, and sent his uncle a poisonous glare. Raditz did not let this bother him. "This is fine too. That's how we know you best." He teased playfully.
The stray dog placed his head on Turles's lap, and the bulky man absentmindedly patted the dog's head.
Gohan turned to his girlfriend. "Let's get out of here." He stated. Katy nodded in response.
"Wait." Nappa placed his hands on Katy's shoulders. She looked over her shoulder at him. "Take a picture. Quickly!"
"Wha-? Why?" Katy asked.
"Because something on this planet makes you dress like a real woman. I'd say we keep a reminder. It will come in handy the next time you think you can be masculine." Nappa responded.
"Good idea." Turles put in. "Women need to be reminded of their physical inferiority once in a while."
Katy sent him a glare. "I'll show you just how inferior I am by bashing in your head." She threatened, ignoring how Raditz was making pictures of her.
Turles studied the young woman for a moment. "No. I can't consider you intimidating when you're dressed like that." He dismissed.
"Fine." Katy turned back to Gohan's room, pushing Nappa aside in the process. "I'll change into a training suit and I'll give you a good smacking around." She stopped when Gohan placed a hand on her shoulder.
"We have a dance to get to." Gohan stated.
"But I-.." Katy stopped talking when Gohan shook his head.
"There's no time for this. Let it go." Gohan responded. Katy considered it, frowning at Turles, who only sent her an innocent grin back.
"Fine." Katy took a deep breath. "Let's go."
"I'll go get our coats." Gohan offered, but Katy was already shaking her head.
"I'm not staying here alone while dressed like this." Katy sent a glance to the full-blooded saiyans. "That's just asking for trouble. I'll go get them." She smiled sweetly at her boyfriend. "Besides, that will give you some time to ask your comrades what you've wanted to ask them for a while now."
"Shush!" Gohan tried to stop her from finishing that sentence but it was already too late. Katy leaned in and pressed a kiss on his cheek.
"Good luck." She whispered before she turned away from him and left the room.
Gohan placed a hand on his forehead. The warrior could already feel the curious looks thrown in his direction. "She's lying." He stated.
"Right." Raditz sounded unconvinced. He placed the camera on the table.
"If you have something to say, say it." Vegeta stated.
Gohan lowered his gaze to the ground. "It's just…" He hesitated, but then continued; "I noticed that Dr. Briefs finished the space ship. I spoke to him about it, and he said…" Gohan stopped for a moment. "He said you were loading your property in the ship." Gohan noticed the glances that passed between the full-blooded saiyans. "Are you planning on leaving?"
Raditz, Turles and Nappa all looked in Vegeta's direction. The full-blooded prince noticed these glances and he took a deep breath. "We have been here for a couple of months now. We're getting restless."
"We haven't been here for that long." Gohan responded. "I'm not ready to leave yet."
"This decision is not up to you." Vegeta said calmly. "You're a part of this squad, and when your squad leader decides it's time to leave, you go with them."
"Who says you're the squad leader?" Gohan frowned. "You're not the strongest anymore, remember?"
"Being a squad leader requires more than just strength." Vegeta had the guts to send the half-saiyan a denigrating glance. "You're not up to the task just yet. You're still a baby."
Gohan clenched his fists as his anger flared, but he knew that if he got angry now he would only prove Vegeta right. The saiyan prince continued. "I might have let your leash off for a while because you wanted to get to know your family, and we didn't have anywhere else to go, but I can hook your collar back onto the leash anytime I want, and no matter how much you strain against my force, I will be the one who decides how far you can go."
"So, that's what you think of me?" Gohan asked. "A kid that has been let off his leash and has to be hauled in again? Is that how you all think of me?" He was met with silence. "Oh, don't hold back on my account. It's not like you've ever done that before. Why start now?"
Nappa shrugged lightly. "Planet earth is a distraction from your real life. It's fine."
"But to every distraction comes an end." Turles added. "You might want to stay on planet earth, but you belong with us."
"We've always been very clear that if we decided to leave planet earth, you would have to join us." Raditz said, nodding. "Whether you want it or not."
Gohan crossed his arms over each other. "I don't care what you want. I'm not going anywhere."
"You belong with us." Nappa snarled back. "We trained you. We have a claim on you."
"If you think the people who trained me the longest have a claim on me then I should go back to the camp. The specialists are the people who taught me everything I know." Gohan responded.
"They may have taught you the basics, but we are the ones who shaped you into the soldier you are now." Vegeta stood up. "And we're not about to let all our hard work run off into the sunset."
"All your hard work?" Gohan repeated. "Throughout all those years you were only thinking about yourself. You didn't do all that in my best interest."
"Right and you were training for the greater good, right?" Vegeta shot back. "All the time you were training with us, learning our attacks, and listening to our tips and tricks, you were always thinking about everyone but yourself, right?" The man raised an eyebrow. "You never trained in order to defeat us and Frieza?"
Gohan's silence was the real answer to his question. "Exactly." Vegeta stated.
The young warrior lowered his gaze for a moment. "I owe you nothing." He stated slowly.
No response.
Gohan felt the familiar sensation in his stomach. The feeling of dejavu. The strange realization that he'd been here before. He thought they'd moved passed this. Threats. Difficulties. Arguments. He thought they considered him their equal. Apparently not.
"You can go. I can't stop you," Gohan stated, "but I'm not coming with you."
"That's not your decision…" Vegeta started.
"YES IT IS!" Gohan yelled back at him. Vegeta widened his eyes briefly but Gohan was not done yet. "This is my decision! I can decide where I go and when I go there!" He screamed.
"Half-breed." Raditz started.
"Stop calling me that!" Gohan barked at the man.
Turles stepped closer to him. "Whelp, listen…"
"No, you listen." Gohan snarled in response. "You have pushed me around for too long. I've been patient while on earth but I draw the line here. I'm done."
Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "That's sounds an awful lot like treason." He said dangerously calmly.
"Treason?" Gohan laughed. "You guys take yourself way too seriously."
"You are turning your back on the prince of all saiyans." Vegeta said, but Gohan cut him off once more.
"The prince of all four-and-a-half saiyans?" Gohan chuckled. "I don't understand why you're so proud of the saiyan race. Frieza only had to lift one finger and he annihilated all of them. No sweat. Why would you be proud of such a pathetic heritage? The saiyans were nothing but a bunch of mindless beasts."
"You take that back!" Nappa thundered as he stepped closer, clenching his fists.
"You have no idea what you're talking about!" Turles added in.
Vegeta was the only person who remained calm. "You're stepping on very dangerous territory, boy." He stated. "We might decide to get back to it once we're on the ship."
"I'm not coming with you." Gohan responded. "Or you'll have to drag me in kicking and screaming."
"It will bring back memories of the good old days." Vegeta countered.
"What's going on here?" Katy was standing in the doorway. She was holding Gohan's coat, and her eyes were wide as she looked from one saiyan to the other.
"Nothing." Gohan stated. He walked over to his girlfriend, and accepted his coat from her. "This conversation is over."
"Half-breed, this is not over. Not even close." Vegeta responded. "We know how to get to you. We know your exact weaknesses." The man let his gaze wander off to Katy.
Katy looked up at Gohan. "What's going on?"
"We've leaving." Gohan urged, pushing against her shoulder.
"If you walk out that door, it is war, boy." Vegeta warned. Gohan stopped pushing Katy, so she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "You do not want us as your enemy, brat."
Gohan fully turned in their direction. His gaze was harsh as he eyed them all. "Go to hell." He stated, before he turned away from them and left the room.
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;)
Next time on a Half-breed's Life 2:
"Gohan, I don't need a bodyguard." Katy complained as she turned to her boyfriend.
"You're not going anywhere without me." Gohan responded stubbornly. "I want you under my direct supervision until it all blows over."
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Katy shrugged. "Fine." She turned away from Turles and started walking towards the entrance. There, she paused, and looked over her shoulder. "You do know that we have a class taught by you this afternoon, right?"
"Yup!" Turles responded cheerfully. He waited until she was out of earshot before adding: "I know that all too well."
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"Good morning, whelp." Turles said cheerfully, locking his arm around Gohan's shoulders. He ignored Gohan's surprised expression and turned them sideways so they were looking at the school. "We've got a surprise for you."
Gohan looked up at the sky. He heard Katy's gasp, but he could hardly believe his eyes.
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"Vegeta! Stop this!" Katy yelled. "This isn't you!"
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"You're wrong. This is exactly how I am."
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The young warrior sat up in a determined manner. "I'm not giving up this time." He whispered. "This time… I win."
Until next time!
