Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ

...

Hercule sat in his recliner, whiskey in hand as the news played in front of him. It wasn't an uncommon scenario and even more common was the fact that his daughter managed to feature on the bulletin at least twice a week. While many parents would likely be proud of such an accomplishment, Hercule feared that the next time he heard his daughter's name mentioned it would be that she had been killed.

Hercule knew that all it would take was a single bullet to hit it's target and she could be badly injured or worse. Despite this knowledge the police force regularly required her assistance in taking down criminal organizations and common street thugs. They were trained professionals equipped in protective gear and they sent for a school girl with nothing to protect herself to go against armed individuals.

Had it been the child of anybody else, there would be riots in the streets. There would be no such reprieve for her, all because she was the daughter of the champ. The daughter of the man who had defeated Cell. Were she to die, it would all be because he took that title as his own and said title would become a curse.

Even now, he had no real idea where his daughter was and for all he knew she could be entangled with another police matter. Every time this happened, he just had to pray that he wouldn't wake up to find a ransom note pinned to his door.

It was terrifying.

It also didn't help that he had no real idea of just how strong she was. Where before he would be able to get some sort of gauge on just how strong she was, she hadn't trained at home for quite some time now. At least not the same kind of training that she had done in the past.

All because of that Gohan brat.

Hercule did have to admit that the kid did have some manner of knowledge and his skill could not be denied. That did not make him suitable though to teach Videl. How could someone the same age as his daughter be mentally prepared to teach her something that she would use in the real world? If she tried some technique of his and it blew up in her face, she could die! All because she followed his training!

Hercule took a deep breath as he realized he was very close to shattering the drink in his hand and piercing his skin with the shards of glass. Placing his whiskey down, Hercule switched off the television before the news changed to his encounter with Gohan and, his surprising business partner, Bulma Briefs. For the first time in a long time it had most definitely felt as if he was not the most important person in the room.

The kid had connections, powerful connections. There was no denying that. If he was rubbing shoulders with Bulma Briefs then there was no telling just who else the kid might know. It had been for that reason that he had changed the course of the interview when he had gotten the chance. Had Kotachi proceeded to try and remove Bulma from the premises, there was no telling what the fall out would have been.

The ultimatum that he had given Gohan in exchange would hopefully break the brat. All of his experienced instructors flat out refused to do what he had asked this teenager. It had the sheer ability to break their spirits and that was exactly what he hoped would happen. He had humiliated his men, and in turn him, on live television. Now he would ensure that he suffered some retribution.

...

The ride with Mister Popo had been...interesting to say the least. Videl had found herself wanting to question so many things but no matter how much she wished it, she just couldn't find the words. It may have been the fact that she had nearly died or perhaps it was because she was currently riding on a magic carpet. Maybe it had the fact she had met the guardian of the planet.

It really was hard to tell at this point.

"You are troubled," stated Mister Popo, Videl hating the fact that it didn't sound anything like a question. "You are not to blame. The majority of the population is unaware of the dangers that threaten this planet on a regular basis. Beings capable of destroying the planet itself have made themselves known on multiple occasions and each time people have stepped up to confront them. The world itself shakes when behemoths collide and the people think of it as nothing more than a natural occurrence. The human race is none the wiser that were the wrong party to win that they would be wiped from existence."

Videl found herself shivering as she recollected the Cell Games. When the broadcast had been cut, multiple cities had reported simultaneous earthquakes that had sent the populace into a frenzy. Despite the amount of research that had been conducted into figuring out what had happened, nobody could make heads or tails of it. Of course they couldn't, not when the truth was that these tremors had been caused by two beings fighting one another.

Videl also couldn't help but shake the lump that had suddenly caught in her throat at the way Mister Popo had so casually mentioned that such things had happened multiple times. Part of her wished to believe that he was lying but she knew that he had no reason to do so. He gained nothing by feeding her false information so she had to take it as truth.

Had there truly been so many times where the planet itself had been in danger and she, as well as the rest of the world, been none the wiser? At first she wondered why the people who saved the planet didn't step forward for the deeds of heroism but she could instantly tell the answer. If nobody knew that the world was in trouble, people stepping forward and declaring that they were only safe due to their actions would be called liars and frauds. Any proof they brought forth would be scrutinized and dissected and even if a small group of people believed them, they'd still be called fakes by the majority of humanity.

"We're here," declared Mister Popo as the magic carpet they were riding began to descend before stopping in front of Erasa's bedroom window. A brief moment of fear flashed through Videl's mind before she turned and looked at Mister Popo.

"Could you drop me off at the front door?" she asked. She had no idea how to explain to her friend the situation she would find. There was far too much to explain and the less she had to deal with, the better.

"Of course," said Mister Popo as the carpet circled the building and stopped at the front door.

Videl leapt off of the object but by the time she turned to thank her flying companion he had already taken off, gliding across the sky without so much as a goodbye. He did have a duty to return to so she could forgive him. Turning to the door, she knocked on it three times before waiting patiently before it opened in front of her.

"Videl!" exclaimed Erasa in a panic. "Where have you been? I've been trying to call you all day!"

"Well...my phone...was kinda in my Jet Copter when it...crashed," said Videl slowly. She honestly hadn't even thought about her phone given absolutely everything else that had happened.

"Crashed!" shouted Erasa before she grabbed hold of Videl's face and started looking for injuries. "Oh my gosh, are you okay? You're not hurt too badly are you?"

"I'm fine Erasa, I'm fine," reassured Videl as she pried Erasa's fingers off of her face. "Could I use your phone to let my Dad know that I'm okay."

"Yeah, of course but before that," said Erasa as she led Videl inside, closing the door behind her. "If you've been without your phone you have no idea what's happened today and trust me, a lot has happened."

Videl's eyes sharpened. "Like what exactly?"

...

Gohan didn't need extra sensory abilities to be able to tell that the whispers amongst the school students were all centred around him and what he was being subjected to. He honestly didn't blame them, a lot of them probably didn't have the confidence to tackle the challenge he had been given.

Still though, given what he had been subjected to over the years he figured that he would be able to sort something out. If he could keep Goten in check a majority of the time then this should be easy.

It had also been weird not having Videl at school for the day. Erasa had informed him that while she had been adamant that she was fine after her accident, Erasa's mother would not have a bar of it, taking her straight to the hospital to get checked up. Hearing that Videl had crashed her jet copter, Gohan could understand the older woman's worry. There may not have been anything wrong with Videl but Erasa's mother simply did what she felt was right.

According to Erasa, that had also meant that the weight bands on both her wrists and ankles had been taken off. Gohan figured though that Videl hadn't done so of her own accord so he wouldn't reprimand her this time round.

As the bell signalled the end of the day, Gohan packed away his belongings as those around him began to shuffle out. He never felt the need to rush for the exit as soon as the end of the day was signalled like so many other students. It was for that reason he found an unfamiliar person waiting for him as he finally made his way down.

"Can I help you Sharpener?" he asked of the blond teenager.

"I just want to make my case when none of the girls are here," stated Sharpener, taking a quick glance out the room to make sure that Erasa wasn't eavesdropping.

"Your case?" repeated Gohan.

"You may not know this but, when you were training Videl in the gym, I was the one to call Hercule," said Sharpener slowly. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for that. If I hadn't done that, none of this would have even happened."

"You don't need to apologize Sharpener," said Gohan as he placed a reassuring hand on his peer's shoulder. "You did what you thought was right and you should never feel bad about that. And honestly, the fights, the press talk, all of that, if it hadn't happened then, then there was a good chance that it would have happened down the track if anybody else saw me and Videl together."

"Yeah well...don't expect me to treat you any differently okay," said Sharpener as he turned his nose away, trying desperately to maintain his tough guy persona.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," said Gohan as he walked past Sharpener and into the hallway.

"You're not going through with this though, are you?" asked Sharpener from behind him.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," stated Gohan as he walked away, giving a short sharp wave as he went on his way.

...

Videl tapped away at her arm as she waited for her ride to get her safely to her father's dojo. Erasa had informed her the previous night about what Gohan was expected to do today and frankly it was terrifying. She had seen experienced men and women brought to their knees because they were completely unable to handle the situation they found themselves in.

Now Gohan was meant to do it?

Silently she was also seething for having taken so long to get out of the hospital. The questions that had been sent her way had been difficult to answer and as a result, everything she had said after far too much time pausing sounded like a lie. Because of this supposed denial, the hospital staff had been quite careful because they didn't know if she was deliberately hiding information away from them.

To be fair, it was what they were trained to do.

And it had infuriated Videl.

It wasn't exactly as if she could say that she had been saved from her plummeting vehicle by a former World Martial Arts champion who took her to see Kami, or as his friends knew him, Dende. Unfortunately lying was not her forte and only after a number of annoying tests was she permitted to leave the hospital.

Now she just hoped that she could make it in time to prevent Gohan from making a terrible mistake.

As they pulled up to the dojo, Videl handed the driver more than enough money before jumping out the door and rushing towards the entrance. Straight away she could tell that without her limbs weighed down, her movements were sleek and she was running at a speed she was unused to.

Seems there was most definitely merit to Gohan's training.

Entering the dojo, she looked left and right as if expecting him to be standing right there. While Gohan wasn't, there was somebody else who was more than happy to see her.

"Videl, thank goodness you're okay!" cooed Hercule, wrapping his daughter up in a brutal hug. "You're not hurt are you?"

"Stop it Dad, I've already been asked that enough today," complained Videl as she wriggled her way out of Hercule's grip. "Where's Gohan?"

"That runt is right where he's supposed to be," declared Hercule triumphantly. "He's already been in there for the last fifteen minutes. I expect the boy will crack any second now. Say, why don't we see how he's going together?"

Videl's lips tightened as Hercule began to walk towards the training room that she knew Gohan was located in. She could only pray in silence that it wasn't too late.

Before they reached the room however they encountered a woman walking towards them. "Mister Satan," they said sternly as they planted themselves in front of the World Champion. "A word if I may."

"But of course," said Hercule cheerfully. "Is this about your child's new instructor? If he has failed to teach them anything I will be sure to..."

"He's wonderful!" exclaimed the woman, clapping her hands together. "I've never seen my son so quiet and concentrated before. Be sure to pay him properly you hear."

"He...umm...what?" responded Hercule in confusion before he made his way past the woman, Videl following suit. It took only a dozen seconds before they barged their way through the door where Gohan was located.

Both Hercule and Videl had expected to find Gohan's twenty students, each aged between four and six, running amok or clinging to their parent. Instead, there was nothing but silence as all of them sat on the floor in four rows of five, their hands in their laps as they focused on their breathing. In front of them, Gohan was doing the same as he guided them through the simple exercise.

The parents were watching on in astonishment, none of them daring to so much as make the slightest of sounds in fear of setting the children off. Hercule and Videl meanwhile stood there flabbergasted, having expected pandemonium only to find nirvana.

Hercule, however, couldn't handle this.

"What the hell is going on in here!" he boomed.

Despite his noise, the children remained focused in their task, not so much as looking in his direction. Hercule then found himself in the most awkward of situations as both he and Videl were violently pushed out of the room by the parents present, none of them wanting anything to disrupt their kids.

So Hercule and Videl found themselves kicked out of the training room, the door closed behind them leaving the two of them standing in the corridor in confusion. "Do you understand what just happened Videl?" asked Hercule.

"Honestly, no. No I do not."

...

Hope you enjoyed.