Year 660

Piccolo was suspicious. The brat, it was different. Way too different since he had thrown it at the rock. Instead of the sniveling, bawling creature it had been when the demon had first taken it, it seemed to be a happy, adventurous creature. That contrast was like night and day.

Piccolo wasn't buying it.

It had to be an act. There was no way an infant could change its behavior within a week's time. In fact, the child was always looking to him, as if he were its parent. It was disturbing, especially since the brat wasn't from his own loins.

It had to be a ploy to lower his defenses.

"What is the matter with you, brat?" the green man demanded, causing the half-pint to flinch. Aha! So he was right; the brat was up to something.

"I don't know what you mean," the child responded, looking to him with innocent eyes.

"You know what I speak of. Do you have some 'clever' plan to escape from me? Is that it?"

The brat frowned. "What does ezcape mean?"

Oh really, was it trying to play dumb? It didn't have to try very hard in Piccolo's book but in order to figure out what was going on in its head, he would just have to play along. "It means to run away. So, are you?"

The brat shook its head quickly—maybe a little too fast?—before replying "No, I'm not. Why would I want to run away?"

Come now, what did it take him for? Some peasant that was born in a barn the day before? "I am the one who took you from your parents and I know you wish to be reunited with them. So quit this innocent babe act and come clean. You know any attempt will just meet in failure."

"But didn't my mommy and daddy give me to you?"

"Just tell me al—" Wait, what?

Piccolo stared at the child in disbelief. Did this brat truly believe its parents had given it to him? For what, safe keeping? Something wasn't quite right with this whole thing and Piccolo meant to get to the bottom of it. Narrowing his eyes, he then asked "Tell me, what do you know of your parents?"

The boy shrugged. "I don't really know anything. When I think of them, all I see are blurs." Pausing, the boy focused its attention on him more intensely. "Does that mean I've been with you a long time?"

The boy didn't remember? But how? How was that possible? One day he did nothing but cry for them no matter how much he threatened it, and now he, the Demon Lord Piccolo, was its guardian with the blessing of those parents? None of this was adding up, it was almost as if the brat had completely forgotten it even had parents to cry for. If he didn't know any better, he would have said the brat had amnesia, but that was ridiculous. It would have to take a blow to the…

Oh…right. The brat hitting its head on that rock must have been the catalyst for this development. It had been unconscious for two days after all, so perhaps the trauma had wiped its memory clean; well, not completely clean. The brat had acknowledged it remembered having parents, but who they were and what they looked like was beyond it. Hmm…perhaps he could use this to his advantage.

Turning his attention to the brat, Piccolo was almost surprised to find it still looking at him expectantly, still waiting for an answer to its question. Well, might as well not disappoint it. "Yes, we have been together for awhile."

The brat smiled. "So that means we're friends, right?"

Uh, no. No it did not. Where the heck did this thing get it into its head that he was its friend? The mysterious mind of a child. "Do not get your hopes up. Now let us keep moving. I grow weary of this place."

As if it never noticed his rejection, the brat took off down the path they were on, never looking back at him. Piccolo wasn't sure if this amnesia was a good thing or a bad thing, but he was sure about one thing: at least this was better than having his eardrums burst.

The day had flown by without much commotion. The sun had traveled across the sky and setted without a whisper. The familiar songs of birds grew quiet as the sky turned from blue to red, orange, and purple and then finally black. Now the familiar chirpings of the crickets could be heard. A quiet and uneventful day, such a rarity in their lives.

And since it was nightfall, Gohan and Videl had stopped to camp out. With a roaring fire burning wood, causing it to snap and pop every so often, the two sat around it, watching the flames dance. It was almost surreal how the day had gone.

Though they seemed content in their leisure, Videl's mind was anything but. Throughout the day she had been considering and reconsidering everything that had gone on since she had blacked out—thankfully—at Kai Village. Naturally, her every thought centered on her travel companion and his telling of the events since. And so far, she could only come up with one thing.

Had she misjudged Gohan?

Ever since she had woken up from a very lovely nap to finding the guy kissing her, she had labeled him a pervert and hadn't given a second thought to it since. The bathhouse had just confirmed her suspicions, despite his every attempt to prove the contrary. Yet, when she was utterly helpless, instead of taking advantage of her he had done everything he could to help her out. That wasn't the reaction she had expected, especially considering the perverts she had encountered on this journey of theirs. Looking to the young man, she studied him for the umpteenth time that day and still, she found herself back at square one—she really had no idea who this Gohan guy was. Well, when one couldn't advance one way, perhaps it was best to try something new.

"Gohan?" she spoke up, drawing his attention to her from across the fire. "I remember you said you've been traveling all your life. Could you tell me more about it?"

The young man stared at her for a moment before replying "There's not much to it, really." One of his hands moved to the back of his head, scratching it as was his habit. "Everyday was pretty much the same."

"But why were you traveling? And why not with your parents?" Videl pressed.

This time Gohan shrugged his shoulders. "My parents gave me to Mr. Piccolo for protection. I don't really know why, I just remember one day being with Mr. Piccolo and it's always been that way."

Protection? Why would Gohan need protection and why would his parents feel that way? Was it possible that Gohan wasn't merely a peasant boy as he always claimed? "Then what of your parents? Surely this danger has passed so you could go back to them."

This time a frown covered his face. "I…don't really remember my parents," he admitted. "I know I have some but I don't know their faces. Every time I've tried to think of them, all I see are these dark blurs. I always figured something bad had happened and my mind didn't want to remember it. There's really not much I remember before I was with Mr. Piccolo."

Videl stared at the lad for a few moments. For every answer she received, she also got several more questions she wanted to ask. How could a simple guy have such a mysterious past? It didn't make sense, yet this trauma involving his parents seemed to hold all the answers. Just looking at him, she couldn't help but feel he had made his peace with the subject, rather than worry about it. Could it be this was part of this "Mr. Piccolo's" child-rearing? "How old were you when you started traveling with this 'Mr. Piccolo'?"

A goofy grin appeared on Gohan's face then. "It was before I was four. I remember that because I remember turning five around Mr. Piccolo."

"You remember your birthday but you don't remember your parents?" Videl asked skeptically.

Another shrug. "There are some things I can't help or change and that is one of them. Life's hard enough as it is without wondering why I remember some things and not others. I don't even know if my parents are alive and if they are, I figured they would've found me and Mr. Piccolo by now to take me back."

A valid point the princess admitted begrudgingly. "Then who is this Mr. Piccolo guy? What's he like?"

The grin came back. "He's a tall guy. And green. He was always grumpy at the beginning. At first he kept me at arm's distance but later he began teaching me stuff, like I've said before. He was like a second father to me."

"And that's why you want to get him out of jail. Cause you care for him."

"Yeah. He would do the same for me." Gohan then chuckled. "Then he would berate me for being dumb enough to be arrested. Probably make me build someone's barn or something."

Videl cocked an eyebrow. "He made you do labor?"

"Yep. Said it would put hair on my chest and make me less of a crybaby."

"What kind of stuff did he make you do?"

"Chores mostly, like getting water from the well or chopping firewood. Sometimes when we would go to a store, he would bargain with the shopkeeper. I would then have to fix up a shed or clean up the store or fix holes in the roof. Once I had to dig a well thirty five feet into the ground before I hit water. I almost drowned too."

Videl was just about to comment on that when Gohan continued his 12 trials. "There was another time I had to climb into a very tall tree in order to get to this beehive and collect some honey. Man, those bees were mad when I did that. I got stung a hundred times and fell out of the tree. And then there was a time Mr. Piccolo used me as a decoy for these really creepy kids that followed us around. I had to hide in a latrine to lose them. Then there were those weird mushrooms Mr. Piccolo wanted me to try. He wasn't sure if they were poisonous and he wanted to make sure."

Videl stared at the lad incredulous. Because of that, she couldn't help but say "And you want to get him out of prison why?"

Gohan laughed at that. "I know, he doesn't seem like the best guy to raise a kid, but he meant well. I think."

The princess couldn't help but chuckle at that. "How does a guy like that earn such loyalty?" she asked with a grin.

"He was there when he didn't have to be. Raised me when it probably would've been easier to dump me in some village or even on the side of the road somewhere. I don't know why he decided to keep me around, or what he even gave up to stay with me, but it's something I don't think I'll ever forget. And Mr. Piccolo isn't someone who would hold it over my head either. He would have been just fine if I had decided to leave one day and never come back." Gohan paused for a moment. "I think that's why I want to help him when he's in trouble."

Videl studied the young man as he mulled around in his thoughts. Perhaps there was some merit in not rushing to judgment. Already, this talk had improved her opinion of this guy, this humble, sweet guy. Allowing her first impression to cloud her bias had caused her to treat him no better than Sharpner and the blond actually deserved the scorn directed at him. One of these days, she needed to apologize. "You know, when I first met you, I never would have thought you were capable of such depth."

With another head scratch, Gohan replied "I don't know about that."

"No really. I thought you were just some pervert trying to get frisky with me," Videl tried to explain. "Then meeting Sharpner didn't improve my opinion of you—or him for that matter. So I lumped you two together and didn't change my mind for awhile. But I can see now that you're not Sharpner—thank Kami—just a guy who really wants to help someone in need." Pausing to swallow, the princess mentally prepared herself for what would come next. "I think I owe you an apo…an apo…"

"An apron?

"No, not that, an—"

"An apothecary jar?"

"Huh? What the heck is that?"

"It's a…well, I don't really know. It was just something that popped in my head."

"Gohan, shush." Trying her best to forget that tangent had happened, Videl tried to proceed with what she tried to say before it. "I was trying to say an apology."

"Huh? What do you need to apologize for?

"Well, I wasn't the friendliest person then and I'm pretty sure I caused you some trouble so I just wanted to apologize for it."

"Oh. Okay. Uhh, apology accepted?"

Videl had the sneaky suspicion that Gohan had no idea why she was apologizing, but decided that she'd let that go. There really wasn't any reason to start a debate over it. Instead, she chose to look up into the sky and stare at the billions of stars twinkling in the black backdrop of the night. She had never been a person to admire stars, but at that moment she really had to admit that the people who did indulge in the act were treated to a beautiful sight tonight. Or perhaps every night, she didn't know.

"So, what was it like for you growing up?" Gohan suddenly asked, catching her off guard. From the day they had met, Gohan had rarely asked about her past, something she had been glad about at the time. She hadn't been in the mood to share her personal memories with commoners after all.

"I lived with my parents for a few years," the princess began, digging into her memory. "It had been nice from what I can remember. My mother would brush my hair and play dress up with me some times, and my father would bounce me around on his lap when he wasn't busy. They used to have servants that would teach me how to be a proper lady, but that all changed." Pausing for a moment, she collected her thoughts before continuing. "We were a minor house—still are a minor house, I suppose—but it was a happy life. That was until news reached us of one of the Higher Houses losing a child of their own. My father went crazy when he heard about it and put me in that castle you found me in. It was only to be for a short while, but the older I got, the more paranoid my father became. Suitors had been arriving at his castle, asking for my hand in marriage when I came of age and in order to make sure I wasn't taken without his consent, he kept me at my castle."

"It sounds like you were alone a lot."

This time, it was Videl's turn to shrug. "I had grown used to it by then. I had lived by myself for so long, I began thinking it was normal for people to start living in their own castles. In fact, when I first moved it, I did want to live in the highest tower there." This time a small smile appeared on her face. "If you had stopped by then, you would've been correct to check there first." Seeing a similar grin on the young man's face, Videl continued on. "But I changed my mind very quickly when I got tired of climbing all of those stairs every day. That's why you found me in that room close to the dinning hall.

"Then one day, Erasa showed up. At the time, she had been looking for a castle of her own and I helped her out. Well…tried to help. I hadn't really explored the lands surrounding my castle and I just pointed in a random direction. Apparently I got lucky that Erasa found that tower of hers there. But then, she wouldn't stop visiting. She always wanted me to teach her how to be a lady, what proper etiquette was, and what ever else I knew on how to be a princess. It was alright in the beginning, but she stared to annoy me after awhile. So I tried to put more traps out in that field but no matter what I did, she found a way around them."

Videl stopped for a moment before looking curiously towards Gohan. "That reminds me, how the heck did you get through all of those traps?"

"I have good eyes; I just looked for signs of dugged-up dirt and avoided those spots. And I stayed away from the grass. Though Sharpner did trigger that last trap of yours at the bridge."

Videl waved that one off. "That one was Daddy's. He figured someone wouldn't expect one last trap like that at the end. Apparently it only works on idiots since you and Erasa avoided it easily."

"I don't know, that was a good last trap," Gohan admitted readily. "But then, I don't know if I would've started posing like Sharpner did."

Videl giggled at that. "Idiot," she murmured good-naturedly, following that with a yawn. "I think it's time we went to bed."

Gohan nodded his head in affirmation, standing up to retrieve their blankets. Deciding to meet him halfway, Videl stood up and walked towards the lad, sitting back down where the heat from the fire was at a comfortable level. As she removed her bodice and boots, Gohan appeared next to her, dropping down next to her as he handed her a blanket.

As soon as the young lad had situated himself on the ground, Videl closed the space between them as she shifted her blanket on top of her. This earned her a curious look from Gohan, to which she replied "We end up next to each other anyways, I figured why not cut to the chase?" Nodding his head in understanding, Gohan relaxed soon after. Laying down herself, the princess had to admit she enjoyed the extra warmth she received from the young man. It was sad to say, but she was becoming addicted to it. It would be one of the things she would miss when this journey ended.

Now there was a sobering thought. When this whole thing ended, she would have to go back to her castle and wait for what fate would be brought upon her. It saddened her to think that she probably wouldn't see Gohan after this, especially now that she was beginning to enjoy this young man's company. Sure he would probably see her back to her home, but then they would part and that would be it. The only thing she would have to look forward to would be when her father came to inform her that he had arranged a marriage for her and she would then spend her final days being the lady of what ever house she ended up in.

And it was these thoughts that made her wish that she weren't the princess she was. That she was a commoner and had an actual choice. Never mind that arranged marriages did happen amongst the common folk, at least she stood a chance at having her own ending rather than someone else's.

Wait a second, who the hell said she couldn't have her own ending? She was a person wasn't she? She could do what ever bloody hell she wanted to and there was no one that could stop her. If she wanted to travel across the kingdom, she could and would. If she wanted to get down and dirty, she would do it with glee. If she wanted to bed a man, there wasn't a soul that could tell her no. That wasn't to say she wanted to do that last part, but you get the gist of it.

Yet, she had done all of these things and each one involved the man lying next to her. That had been a stroke of luck now that she thought about it. The one guy she could absolutely trust to not take advantage of her, even when she had been intoxicated and had her way with him. All of these things she had once thought she would never do in her lifetime were happening now. But now, she wanted to do them, not because she had been dragged off by someone else's will. Somewhere along the way from her castle, this journey had gone from one she had begrudgingly joined to one she was fully invested in. And she had gotten dirty thanks to that crazy Launch woman. And she had—

Hmm…no, she hadn't done that last thing on her own. That was because of that creepy cup. Well, she could do that some other time. No sense in rushing something like that—again—just to prove a point.

Letting out a small sigh, she snuggled into her bedmate. Tomorrow would be a brand new day for her, she would make sure of that. Gone would be the moody princess and in her stead someone that would actually be pleasant to be around. At least that's what she told herself. She would just have to put a smile on her face, a skip in her step, and try and see the world optimistically.

Why did she get the feeling that was easier said than done?

To Anonymous Void: Use your imagination on that one. The possibilities are endless.

To I'm a person: Sharpner was just dropped, repeatedly, on his head lol. It takes more hits to get that idiotic.

To bvprincess23 for Chapter 34: Just a running joke lol. The Kais aren't as peaceful as you would think/You think Average Joes know about shoe fashion?

To bvprincess23 for Chapter 35: Or get thrown at something. There isn't a Gohan/Piccolo friendship without Piccolo throwing Gohan at something lol/Once again, that's up to your imagination. Have fun with that!/Not too sure about Beaver names. Beavery maybe?

RyRy tested; MaMa approved.