Satan City, Orange Star High School, Classroom – 2C; Monday
"And this is how the unknown is solved in this type of equation." A teen said showing the resolution of an exercise to his partner.
These two teenagers were Gohan and Shānhú, who had stayed after school to finish their homework together, as well as to do another tutoring session. They had been in the classroom for an hour.
"Ok…" Shānhú muttered trying to do the exercise on her own.
The black-haired teen smiled as he waited to see that Shānhú managed to do it, but he noticed that she was having more difficulties than usual, something rare for her. Gohan couldn't help but worry. "Are you alright?"
"Yes. Why do you ask?" Shānhú didn't take her eyes off the notebook, not wanting to see Gohan.
Gohan gave her a light pat on the back, scaring the girl and making her stand straight and upright. "You're being weird, I can tell. Do you need to talk about something? I want you to feel good."
"I'm fine." She lied, frowning and refocusing on her notebook, struggling to finish her math exercise.
Gohan was silent looking at her. After a few minutes, the young man decided to break the silence by correcting each of the errors in the redhead's equation. Worried, he placed his hand on the girl's shoulder. "You need to rest?"
"I don't need to rest!" Shānhú slapped the boy's hand away.
Gohan was surprised by that gesture. Emitting a long sigh, he stood still without taking his gaze from Shānhú's. "Tell me what is wrong with you."
"It's not important, I'm having a bad day." Shānhú muttered without looking at Gohan.
"Do you want it to leave it for today?" Gohan proposed with kindness and calmness, although you could tell that little by little he was losing his patience. When the redhead shook her head and continued to ignore him that's when Gohan lost his composure, speaking in a serious and severe tone. "Calm down and tell me what you need."
"I'm sorry." Shānhú whispered.
Thanks to his saiyan nature, Gohan had heard the girl's words perfectly. "Did you get into a fight with Fenn? Is that what happened?"
"I haven't fought with him." Shānhú corrected, the she lowered her gaze with some embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I was a bit nosy and… On Saturday I spied with our friends on the date that you and Erasa had."
Gohan chuckled. "Is that what you're worried about? It's okay, it doesn't bother me!"
"It does bother me." Shānhú said.
Gohan looked at her in surprise. "Did it bother you that I had a date with Erasa?"
"No… Well, yes… I have no idea! What bothers me the most is that I've been meddling in something that shouldn't matter to me. I couldn't stop looking at you and feeling weird. I think..." Shānhú was silent for a few seconds. "It doesn't matter, don't listen to me."
Gohan took the pencil of the girl and gently poked her hand. "Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"
Shānhú shook her head. "No, leave it. It's not a problem."
At that moment they both heard a loud sound and screaming. They both leaned out the window and saw Videl making a judo key to Fenn in the courtyard; next to both of them were notebooks thrown everywhere. Luckily there was no one around the two teenagers or they would look at them strangely for what they were doing.
"You promised to me that you would teach me how to do that!" Videl exclaimed. "If you don't, I'll tell everyone!"
"Ugh… Damn witch… Okay, I'll do it." Fenn complained from the ground.
Gohan and Shānhú watched that exchange from the classroom window. They were both holding back the urge to laugh, until at the end they laughed out loud, not being able to hold back the urge anymore.
"I don't know what happened, but surely Fenn provoked her." Shānhú guessed as she clutched her stomach, aching from how much she was laughing.
"Videl knows how to be intense, that movement looks painful."
"She's very strong, she'll surely participate in the next Martial Arts Tournament." Shānhú said as she watched as Videl and Fenn left the school, surely heading home.
That surprised Gohan, but his amazement turned to joy at the second. "The Tenkaichi Budōkai? My father used to tell me about that tournament when I was a child!"
Shānhú laughed innocently at seeing Gohan so happy.
Gohan, after saying more things about the tournament, leaned his arms over the window frame and looked up at the sky. The redhead looked at him for a few seconds until he noticed her gaze. "You know? The date with Erasa was fun, but I feel a little bad."
"Seriously? Why?" Shanhu asked curious and confused.
"I think I would have preferred to be with you that day. When I saw the fireworks I thought of you." Gohan smiled widely at the girl.
Shānhú felt her face turn the same color as her hair and eyes. Not only that, her heart seemed to pump faster and faster. "W-Were you really thinking of me?"
"Yes, it's the truth. Especially when I saw the red fireworks, they reminded me of your eyes and hair. It's something that I can't easily forget." Shānhú felt her ears heat up from Gohan's words. "Are you okay? Your face is very red."
Shānhú vehemently shook her head. "I-I'm fine. Seriously, n-nothing's wrong with me."
"If you say so I will believe you." Gohan looked at his wristwatch. "Hey, how about we quit now? I think we have already studied enough."
"Seems right. I already wanted to get out of here."
The two of them grabbed all the useful supplies and placed them in their backpacks. Once they had collected everything, they both went to the classroom door. Shānhú was about to leave first, but before she could go out of the door, Gohan grabbed her by the wrist, causing the girl to return her gaze to the young man.
Gohan scratched his head with his free hand. "Would you like to walk with me? I would like to spend more time with you before you go home."
"Why not? I agree." Shānhú smiled.
Gohan smirked happily. Releasing Shānhú's wrist, the boy unconsciously intertwined his fingers with hers, making her blush heavily. The girl couldn't understand why her friend had done that, but a part of her didn't want to say anything, enjoying this closeness between the two.
The two left the classroom promptly.
"Then you will teach me to fly, right?" Videl asked.
The two had left Orange Star High School a few minutes before Gohan and Shanhu, and right now they were heading at a leisurely pace to Mr. Satan's mansion. More specifically, Fenn was accompanying Videl to her home, not because he wanted to, but because the girl had forced him to talk about the pertinent topic.
"Yes. I'll teach you how to fly." Fenn winced from the annoyance he felt. "I still don't believe you discovered me that way."
"That happens to you for being so naïve." The girl in pigtails laughed 'innocently'.
Fenn still couldn't believe that his identity as the Golden Warrior had been rediscovered – and in such a despicable way! – and this time for Videl. He remembered it clearly, as it happened yesterday in an alley in Satan City.
Satan City, Sunday
"There is nothing fun to do… Lately there aren't so many crimes in Satan City anymore. It maybe because Gohan does his job well as the New Golden Warrior. Ugh… How I wish something happened to distract me right now." Fenn said to himself in a low voice with his hands in his trousers pockets.
His wish was son fulfilled, as the boy heard some screams not far from where he was.
"Wow, you want something and it will be fulfilled." Fenn looked around him, glad that there was no one near him who could see him. "I guess it's time for the real Golden Warrior to save someone."
Grabbing his greenish-blue neck warmer, he slipped it on and quickly transformed into the Super Saiyan Dai ni Dankai, rushing over to where he heard the screams. Fenn soon came to a dark, narrow alley. Although it was quite opaque he could see a girl's back, apparently his age, screaming as if her life depended on it. The saiyan approached where the girl was, closely he could notice something familiar about her, but he didn't pay attention, which would cost him dearly.
"Are you alright? Has someone stolen something from you?" Fenn placed his hand on the girl's shoulder, who slowly turned around. "Wait a moment… You are…!"
The girl, who had twin pigtails, in a quick movement tore the neck warmer from the saiyan's face – who was so surprised that he couldn't act in time – with a satisficed expression on her face.
"I knew it! I knew you were the Golden Warrior!" The girl put her hands on her hips with joy, she had Fenn's neck warmer in her left hand.
"Dammit! Did you have to deceive me like this Videl!?" Fenn yelled without patience.
The girl, now identified as Videl, unmoved by Fenn's scream began to play with the neck warmer, twisting it between one of her fingers.
"I had suspicions that you were one of the Golden Warriors, but I never came to believe, that I would be right…" Videl smiled superiorly at Fenn's glare of fury. "And now that I know you secret identity… You must teach me one of your tricks if you don't want me to tell everyone who you are."
Fenn laughed cheekily. "As if someone were to believe that a teenager is the Golden Warrior. Nobody will believe you."
Fenn's laugh was immediately silenced when he saw a photo from Videl's phone, where he could clearly be seen with blonde hair and being unmasked. "What did you say that no one was going to believe me?"
Fenn grunted. "Okay… I'll teach you one of my tricks if you promise you won't tell anyone my secret." Videl smiled slyly, since she knew that she won the battle. "What do you want me to teach you?"
"Teach me how to fly! Since I saw you fly for the first time I have wanted to do it to!" Videl said, her eyes shining with the excitement of being able to fly.
"Okay… I'll teach you how to fly." Fenn sighed wearily as Videl did a little victory dance.
He had gotten into a lot of trouble.
"I try to be a good person and this is what I get, great." Fenn muttered in a low voice so that Videl wouldn't hear him.
"And when will you teach me to fly? I want to learn as soon as possible."
"I suppose I could start teaching you from the weekend." Fenn though seriously, he would have to explain this to his father somehow, but how? Sighing, he scrutinized the girl "Why do you want to learn to fly so soon? If you want me to teach you, you must tell me the truth."
Videl looked shyly at the ground, kicking a stone near her. "In a few months the Tenkaichi Budōkai will be held, and I would like to become stronger so that I can be the winner. That's why I must learn to fly. I sure would get stronger that way."
Fenn considered Videl's words carefully, searching for any flaws in them, but he found none. "Your reasons seem good to me, so as I have promised I will teach you to fly." Videl smiled widely, throwing her fists in the air in victory. "Come this Saturday to Jingle Village and we will begin your training. Bring a jacket, its cold there."
"Yes, yes, I know how cold it's there, there is always snow. Don't worry, I won't forget it." Videl noticed where they were. "We're already at my house. It seems that we have been so absorbed in our conversation that time has flown by."
"I guess I can say goodbye then."
"I hope you don't forget our deal. You teach me how to fly and I don't tell anyone your secret." Videl held up her cell phone as she moved it from side to side, much to Fenn's annoyance, since he knew there was no way he could escape from her.
Without even saying goodbye, Fenn lifted his feet off the ground and immediately flew away, leaving Videl alone, who smiled at the flying form of her friend.
"Soon, I'll be able to do that too… I'm looking forward to the weekend." Videl entered her home, thinking excitedly how she would finally learn to fly and how she could show it to everyone at the Tenkaichi Budōkai.
Meanwhile, Gohan and Shānhú had been walking around Satan City with their hands clasped, much to the shame of the girl, since it was the first time that she did something so intimate with a boy. Gohan on the other part was happy, not feeling embarrassed or shy around her. There was something about Shānhú that calmed him. He didn't know what was, but he was glad to be able to spend time with her like this.
Suddenly Shānhú cleared her throat, she was somewhat flushed, but not as much as before. "I didn't think that after your date with Erasa you wanted another date so soon."
Gohan was flabbergasted, thinking at breakneck speeds. "Is this a date? We have only been walking, we have not done anything that qualifies as a date… Right?"
The two of them were silent, continuing their walk through Satan City. Both had gone to an area where there were not many people, a park that around this time used to be empty. During the walk the redhead couldn't stop thinking, pondering if it would be a good idea to tell one of her secrets to Gohan, until in the end she couldn't take it anymore. The two were still silent, but soon that changed when Shānhú opened her mouth.
"I never told you this, but… I was the one who cheated when you were playing Beer Pong with Fenn so that you would lose!" The girl's face was crimson, as if she had a hard time saying those words, which was true; it was something she wanted to get of her chest.
Gohan was shocked, trying to process the words his friend has just told him. Was it really because of her that he lost that day? Instead of getting angry he just laughed, surprising the girl. Taking her hand, he began to levitate. "If you know how to use your ki that way, you must also know how to fly, right?" He knew that he would get a positive response; but it was better to ask than not. Just as he thought, Shānhú shyly nodded her head, floating gently of the ground. "Why better not continue our walk flying?"
The two of them flew into the sky, observing Satan City from above for a few seconds and then flying out of the city. Passing through Ringo Town, Gohan turned to Shānhú; she had a happy smile on her face, causing him to feel happy at seeing like this.
"Shānhú, look at this." Gohan at that moment was happy to be a saiyan, and of course, he decided to show it off, transforming into a Super Saiyan. The moment he did so he grabbed Shānhú in his arms in the princess style, who let out a groan of surprise. The girl – once the amazement had passed – wrapped her arms around Gohan's neck as he flew out at full speed.
Kígyó Mountain
A beautiful mountain range of forests was seen, in the middle of which was a mount. This mountain was known to be the habitat of a large number of snakes; that's why the mountain was named that way. Flying through the forest to take flight towards the mount, Gohan headed towards the top. Once he had reached the top and stepped on the ground, Shānhú jumped out of his arms, observing the landscape.
"You didn't have to go so fast." Shānhú gently tapped Gohan on the shoulder. "I'm all disheveled, you could have been more considerate." Using her fingers, she began to comb her hair, or at least to try to.
"Sorry." Gohan scratched behind his head. "Doesn't this transformation surprise you?" He pointed to himself, his hair still yellowish white.
"I've seen Fenn transform since I've known him." Shānhú smiled widely. "Not only can he transform like you, he also has a more muscular form. He looks weird that way, but he gets stronger."
"That's amazing."
"Don't pretend you don't know, I could feel your ki a few days ago, you were fighting." Shānhú intercepted, placing her index finger on the boy's chest. "Were you both angry about something?"
Gohan would rather not have to tell everything from the beginning so he went for the simplest explanation. "He discovered that I was a saiyan, and he wanted to fight me. In the end I couldn't refuse."
Shānhú lowered her gaze, biting her lip for a second. She knew that saiyans were very proud and hated to lose, but she wanted to know. "And who won?"
"I won, but Fenn made it difficult for me. He was a very powerful rival, he forced me to use all my power." Gohan said, then he inhaled softly and gave a yell; a golden aura and electrical sparks surrounded him, and his expression became more serious. "He provoked me to use this transformation."
Shānhú recoiled in surprise at the power she was feeling. It was the first time that she saw this transformation and felt so much power so close to her; her eyes couldn't help but sparkle at the image in front of her. "I knew it was you who beat Cell! This is the power Fenn described to me. The one he felt during that battle! You really are powerful!"
"This is nothing, when I was younger I had even more power." Gohan returned to his base state and sat at the edge of the summit, patting a spot next to him, motioning for the girl to sit with him. Shānhú did as Gohan asked. "So Fenn described it to you… You didn't know of to feel ki at the time?"
"I did know how to feel ki, but I couldn't feel your power." Shānhú said uneasily. "After all I wasn't even here during that fight…"
"Couldn't you feel it? I'm sure the power we had could be felt from space. You must have been on another planet to not feel us." Gohan joked, getting a nervous laugh from the redhead. "By the way, was it Fenn who taught you to use ki?"
Somewhat calmer, Shānhú replied. "Actually my father and… Let's say his friends taught me when I was younger. In case you don't remember, I meet Fenn when I was thirteen."
"Oh. And how have you learned?" Gohan asked.
Shānhú lowered her gaze. "It's not important." She muttered with a tone of annoyance and sadness. Gohan, noticing that Shānhú didn't prefer to talk about it, decided to fill the gasps of the conversation.
"My teacher threw me against a rock to show part of my power at that time, after that he left me for half a year abandoned in a wild area. I was only four years old, but it was a very effective experience." Gohan laughed at that memory. Although at that time Piccolo game him extreme fear, it was easy to become attached to him over time, especially when he sacrificed his life for him.
Shanhu smiled fondly towards Gohan, but her expression changed when she saw something in the cloudy sky. "Look at that." She pointed to a remote area of the mountain, drawing the hybrid's attention.
Miles away a storm shook a part of the forest, even lightning struck.
Gohan, knowing how dangerous storms could be in a forest, raised his hand and sent out a wave of ki that dispersed the storm clouds and replaced the previous danger with an incessant rain without electric shocks.
"Wow! You have dispersed the storm in an instant!" Shānhú exclaimed in admiration. "You're really cool! You're not only intelligent, but you're also very strong… You make me very envious."
"You don't have to envy me, there are people who are stronger and smarter than me. But you have something that I don't have…" Gohan shook Shānhú's hair, catching her off guard. "And that's how cute you are!"
Shānhú puffed out her cheeks. "You've already ruffled my hair for the second time!" She started to hit Gohan's chest lazily, who just laughed.
The redhead continued punching him for a few seconds, until finally she started laughing too; Gohan's laugh had stuck to her. Once the two had stopped laughing they fell silent, observing the landscape. Gohan placed one of his hands on top of Shānhú's, squeezing it a little, but the girl emitted a small moan of pain, surprising him and causing him to remove his hand from hers.
"What a pain…" She whispered, stepping back and stroking her wrist.
"I'm sorry! I have hurt you?" Gohan asked concerned and annoyed with himself. Everything was going so well and he had to screw it up somehow. Had he used more force than necessary?
"No, no, calm down. It has nothing to do with it." Shānhú replied, still stroking her wrists as she tried to smile, failing miserably, causing only more groans of pain to emerge from between her lips. "Damn it… Why did my wrists have to hurt right now?"
Gohan looked at the redhead's wrists, they were read and when he looked better he could see that they were turning purple. "Your wrist are sore, you should loosen your bracelets." Bringing his hands to Shānhú's wrists, he gave a gently tug to move the bracelets, but mistakenly removed them.
"NO!" Shānhú shouted getting up from the ground with an expression of horror on her face.
"I-Is it because of the bracelets!? You can put them back on!" Gohan exclaimed somewhat scared for having further spoiled the situation.
"Don't look at me Gohan!" The girl yelled covering her increasingly pale face.
"Shānhú, what's wrong with you?" Gohan asked, getting up from the ground and slowly approaching the girl, who looked at her body in horror. To the surprise of the saiyan, Shānhú's body began to change its appearance little by little.
Shānhú's skin – which was already turning pale – turned a very pale light gray, almost white; from her hair appeared four horns, two on each side of the head, the same color as her skin. Her hair and her eyes were still red, but her pupil had stretched, reminiscent of a snake's eyes; her sclera had turned black. From her biceps to her hands her skin had turned completely dark gray. Part of her cheeks and ears had turned a lighter red than her hair; they were also covered in scales. A few marks had appeared on her neck, forehead and shoulders. Last but not least, her skin was covered in scales.
Shānhú got a couple of tear from her eyes, but instantly she began to cry with more intensity and frustration. "I didn't want you to see me like this… I know what you must be thinking." She murmured between sobs as she desperately tried to hide her face and body from him.
"Shānhú, you look…" The girl silenced Gohan by removing from his hands her bracelets.
"I know! I look weird to you, you don't have to say it!" Shānhú shouted as she flew off at a speed that surprised the boy.
"…beautiful." Gohan concluded, somewhat confused by the situation.
After coming out of shock, Gohan flew off in an attempt to follow Shānhú, but after fifteen minutes he couldn't find her anywhere, even though he was trying to detect her ki.
"Not only can she fly so fast but she also knows how to hide her ki?" He asked to himself surprised not only by that, but also by the fact that he had discovered the secret of his friend. Seeing that he couldn't do anything else, he sighed heavily and then headed straight to his home.
Shānhú cried desperately as she flew towards Jingle Village. She never wanted Gohan to see her true aspect, surely now he must think that she was a freak and will never want to see her again.
The landscape changed to a snowy one that the girl clearly knew, it was her home, Jingle Village. Although her eyes were clouted with tears she managed to make out her house and quickly descended to the snowy ground. Searching in her pockets, Shanhu took out her keys, and with trembling hands she inserted them into the lock, opening the door and closing it once she had entered.
She carelessly threw her backpack into the living room to quickly go to the bathroom. Once inside she stood in front of the sink, looking at herself in the mirror above it. Her eyes were swollen from crying, making her look worse.
[They will marginalize you because of your appearance. You will be alone.]
"He's right! My looks are weird compared to others! My eyes, my skin! How am I going to fit in on Earth looking like this!?" Shānhú exclaimed as she furiously wiped away her tears. Throwing an angry look at the mirror, with a cry she punched it, breaking it and causing her knuckles to bleed. "Why?"
The girl sat on the bathroom floor, hugging herself as she let the blood drip from her knuckles.
Autor Note: And here is it! Yes, Shānhú isn't human, but an alien from outer space! I tried to make her form look somewhat snakish, even if I didn't succeed with that. I hope you liked this chapter.
By the way, in her human form, Shānhú's eyes are the same as Videl, Bulma, Chi-Chi, etc. In her true form, her eyes are like that of Android 18.
Until next chapter!