Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z. I don't know what to do with it if I did. Oh, I only own Shinji.
And the number one reason why this is…delayed is…SCHOOL! And trust me, I have to do good too.
Warning: some mature themes run in this and Videl has a bit of a potty mouth too. Enjoy.
Oh, and there might be some random spelling errors/grammatical mistakes. I got too impatient with my beta reader – my own sister – and decided to just get this out on the page. If I find any, I'll be sure to fix them. Enjoy.
* * *
That Warm and Fuzzy Feeling From the Back of a Saiyan
A fanfic from ShaggyDiz
Chapter Five
* * *
"Hello. Son residence."
"Hi…Mrs. Son. This is Videl."
"Good day Videl! How are you today?" asked the chipper Chichi.
"Um…I was wondering if Gohan was home." Videl was still worried about Gohan, and what just happened to him only an hour before. She got home shortly after finding Erasa. Chichi was sounding a bit happy at the moment.
"Why yes, he is. He only got home about twenty minutes ago, looking slightly disheveled. He told me what happened today and I sent him right to bed to rest up his weary body."
"Didn't he get any help from the Gold Fighter?"
"He did. Still, mother knows best." Videl laughed a bit. She wasn't done yet though.
"I have a question for you."
"Yes?"
"I was wondering…what was Gohan wearing when he got home?" Videl was desperate to know. She left the scene with what she believed was Gohan's blue vest and white long sleeve shirt. She was looking at those articles of clothing at this current moment.
"Um…he had on what he left for school with today. It was a blue vest and long sleeve shirt. White, if I remember correctly."
Impossible! Videl thought. How did he get another one?! It's not like he packed another in his bag. There's not even enough space to place a spare shirt and vest.
"Those clothes were torn a lot though. I couldn't possibly repair them. I tossed them right out, and told him to get a shower. Did I mention that he is in bed right now?"
"Yes, yes you did. Can you do me a favor and tell Gohan to call me either tonight or tomorrow? If not, I'm coming over to check on him."
"Sure dear. I'll tell him that. What about school though?"
"Oh…they're closing it for two weeks for repairs. They expect it to be completed by the end of next week."
"Ah, okay. I'll tell him that as well."
"Thank you. You have a good day."
"You too Videl," she said, hanging up the phone. She paused a couple of seconds. "You could have answered the phone yourself," she said.
Gohan had appeared behind her well before the phone rang. He knew, in the back of his head, that Videl, of all people, would be calling on him, to check on him. "Mom, you know that she would have interrogated me in someway. I can't believe I made that mistake in the first place." He had informed her of nearly everything that happened earlier, including the loss of the vest and shirt. Gohan had Piccolo create new clothing for him, but tattered. He still wore them at this time.
"Why don't you just tell her?" Chichi asked her worried son.
"I don't know what she'll think of me then. I've worked so hard to get a good friend like her, and if she finds out that I'm the one that was out there today, then I really don't think she would want to be friends with me. Heck, I think she suspects me as him now!" Gohan went and sat down at a kitchen chair. Chichi went and stood behind him. She started to rub his shoulders, attempting to calm him down. "Mom…I nearly lost three people today. I don't know what I'll do if they do die. I've already lost Dad before –"
"Gohan!" Chichi said, cutting him off. She spun him around in his seat, looking straight into his eyes. They were red around them. "Gohan…don't say that, ever. You told me yourself that Goku was happy where he was." She pulled him into a hug. Gohan was reluctant at first, but slowly returned the hug. He could hear his mom sob softly. "You've saved us before…and you saved others today. I've always known what has been the best for you…and this is one of those times."
"Mom?" Gohan asked, slightly confused.
"Take Goten and go to Bulma's. You won't have any homework for the next two weeks."
"What about school?"
"Videl said it's closed. Now I want you to get better. This…Videl sounds like a good person. She was one of them there today, right?" Gohan nodded. "Okay. Then this is what I want you to do. You are going to protect Videl, and anyone else that is in need. But for you to do that, you need to train."
Gohan couldn't believe his ears. Mom is letting me train?! Holy shit…crap! He hugged his mom even tighter than before, picking her off of the ground. He set her down and looked at her, happiness shown in his face. "Thank you, Mom."
"Don't sweat it. Like I said, I know what's best." She started to smirk. "This Videl girl sounds to me like she'll make a great wife," she said, nudging Gohan with her elbow a couple of times.
"Mom," Gohan said, blushing. "We're only friends. Though…I might as well tell you now, before you find out from someone else."
"What's that?"
"Well…we kind of promised to take things slow." That was all Chichi needed to hear. She started running around, yelling incoherent things and rambling on about, most obvious, grandchildren. Goten joined the scene shortly after the first scream.
"What's up with her?" he asked.
"Oh…something about grandchildren." He looked back at his mom, who was continuing her jabber. He looked back down at Goten, confusion written all over his face. Gohan suddenly got an idea. "Hey Goten," he said, kneeling down in front of him.
"Yeah Gohan?"
"I need your help with something." Goten beamed a huge smile when he heard this. "Earlier today, I did one of Dad's techniques out of desperation. It's called 'Instant Transmission', and I need your help with it."
"Okay!" the small boy chirped, nodding his head in excitement.
"Good. Now, this is what I want you to do. Remember that trick I taught you about disguising your power level?" Goten nodded. "Okay. I want you to run a hundred feet, in any direction you want, and disguise your power level. I'm going to try and lock onto it and transport there."
"Okay!" Goten sprinted out of the house, off to find a place to hide. Chichi had finally finished her tirade, and was looking at Gohan.
"Gohan…where did Goten go to?" she asked.
"He's hiding," he simply responded.
"Hiding? What for?"
"I did Dad's 'Instant Transmission' earlier. I'm going to practice it, and Goten is my practice partner. Hopefully I can master it, so I can be in certain hotspots in seconds."
"That's great!"
"Yeah." He remained silent for a few moments before perking his head up. "Goten is hiding. He's gotten good, Mom. He's nearly undetectable." He raised his fingers to his head. "Let's try this. Instant transmission." Just like that, he disappeared from his mother's view, and soon reappeared by Goten, about five feet away from him.
"Wow Gohan! You did it!" The little kid was jumping up and down repeatedly, ecstatic about Gohan and his new move.
"Thanks, squirt. Though that was the easy one. If I want to perfect this, then we'll have to do bigger distances."
"Okay. So what do you want me to do?"
"Hmm…fly anywhere within, say, three miles of here, and mask your power."
"Okay!" With that, he blasted off, going somewhere off into the vast forest landscape of the Son home. Gohan leaned up against a tree, relaxing for a couple of minutes, enjoying the surrounding scenery. He kept a lock on Goten the entire time, though his senses were still rusty after seven years of almost nonexistent use. With his recent training with Vegeta, however, some of those lost senses came back. He was still a long way from becoming the fighter he once was against Cell.
Focusing back on the task at hand, he searched for Goten's energy, and found that he had masked it well. He still had a bit of it showing, but that was more than enough for Gohan to get a lock on. "All right. Let's do this," Gohan thought out loud. He placed two fingers on his forehead. "Instant transmission," he spoke out loud.
He didn't move anywhere. "Instant transmission!" he shouted. Still nothing. "Darn. I guess it still needs work. So far, my range is only a hundred or so feet. This better not take me too long to learn." He turned back to the house, and stopped after about ten feet. "Goten…darn." He blasted off, going in search of his younger brother.
He met up with him, in midair, about two minutes later.
"Gohan, what took you?"
"The technique didn't work. You were too far away for me to use it. Hopefully, by the end of the week, I will be able to get some control over it."
"So what now?"
"Now, we go home. I'm hungry, and then I'm going to get some sleep."
"Food…" Goten said, dragging it out some and drooling from his lower lip. Gohan chuckled out loud.
"Race you home squirt!" Gohan shouted, blasted off towards home. The quick jump knocked Goten out of his food dream, and he was quickly in second place.
"No fair!" he shouted, blasting off in the same direction as Gohan – to home and dinner.
* * *
"How in the hell does he have his clothes when they are at the damn high school?!"
Videl was pissed. Well, über-pissed would be the better way to describe her at the moment. She just got off the phone with Mrs. Son, and learned about Gohan coming home, wearing the same blue vest and white shirt that he wore earlier in the day. Still, she struggled on.
She grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and set to work. Videl began drawing a rough sketch of Gohan in what he normally wore to school. She finished the drawing in about five minutes, doing a rather impressive job on something that she did from memory. Looking it over, she felt that she was missing something. Spiky hair…blue vest…baggy clothes…what am I missing? She studied it for a while before giving up. She had no idea what she forgot.
Videl grabbed another piece of paper. She set to work on the Gold Fighter next. Using her Gohan sketch as back up, she drew another impressive drawing. She then pulled out a third piece of paper, and started listing comparisons.
"Okay," she thought out loud. "The Gold Fighter has golden hair…which is really spiky. Gohan is the same, but his is black, and his spikes are shorter. Gohan has those strange black eyes. No pupils, nothing. I'm not terribly sure of the Gold Fighter's eye color though." She placed herself in a quick thought, jotting down the remainder of the facial features. She moved down to the torso.
"I have seen both Gohan and the Gold Fighter without their shirts on. Hmm…" She went and erased the Gold Fighter's shirt, a simple white one, and sketched in chest and stomach features. "Boy, I made him look hot," she said, blushing to herself. Videl suddenly remembered something that Gohan said back at the party.
"What did he say…oh right! Gohan said he works out to keep in shape. But there's no way he could look so good just by simply working out. He must do something more…" Videl studied the pictures for a while longer. She was determined to find a connection.
She stumbled upon it in the weirdest way possible.
"What is missing? I know something is missing, but…wait a minute. The Gold Fighter had something on his lower back." She went back to the sketch of the Gold Fighter and looked at it. She drew in a tail, curving to the side of the body, going as high as the head.
"He has a tail?! Holy shit! The Gold Fighter has a fucking tail!" she practically screamed.
"Videl! Was that you cursing?" yelled a deep voice from the hallway.
"No Dad! One of the maids probably broke something!"
"Okay dear!" The stomping of footsteps was heard moving away from Videl's door towards the stairs. She went back to work on the drawings in front of her.
"That was close. Okay…so the Gold Fighter has a tail. It's brown and fuzzy. It's brown…and…holy shit! He has a brown and fuzzy fucking tail."
"Videl!"
"Shut up Dad! I'm working!"
"Okay dear!"
"Damn interruptions," she mumbled. Once again, Videl diverted her attention to the drawings. Instead of talking though, she started to draw in a 'belt' for Gohan. One that was fuzzy. She looked back again at the Gold Fighter sketch and erased its tail. She redrew it in the same fashion.
Videl looked on, speechless.
* * *
"Gohan! Mom wants you to wake up!" Goten yelled, trying to knock down the door into Gohan's room. The teenage Saiyan wasn't having any of it.
"Go away Goten! I don't have school, so I'm sleeping in!" He paused for a second. "What time is it?"
"Hold on." There were shuffled footsteps heard moving away from the door, and about a minute later, the footsteps were heard coming back. "Um…it's eleven thirty!"
"Darn. Okay, I'm getting up!" Gohan got out of bed. He tossed on a pair of shorts over his boxers and a muscle shirt before making his way to the kitchen. His mom and Goten were there. Goten was happily eating lunch.
"Good morning son."
"Morning mom. What's for breakfast?" he asked.
"I got several stacks of pancakes waiting for you. Everything is set, so you just have to serve yourself."
"Okay." He went over and got his food. He returned to the table and finished his breakfast in about three minutes. Gohan got up and started back to his room.
"What are you doing today Gohan?" Chichi asked.
"I was thinking Bulma's. I'm going to ask her to make me a costume."
"That's nice. You taking Goten with you?"
"I was planning on it. I still got to work on the Instant Transmission technique, and I'll be needing his help."
"Well what about Vegeta?" she asked, started to wash Gohan's dishes. Goten was still on lunch. "Or Trunks? Either one of them could be helpful."
"It'll be good for Goten. Besides, he needs the training, if he wants to keep up with Trunks. Vegeta said himself that he's training him to beat me someday."
"Well we can't have that now, can we?" she said, laughing.
"No Mom. We can't."
"Good. Now go take a shower." Gohan simply nodded and turned towards the shower. "Oh Gohan, one more thing." He stopped for a moment and looked over his shoulder.
"Yeah."
"Videl called. She's coming over."
"Darn! When?" Chichi put herself in mock thought.
"Um…two hours I think. That's the reason I got you up. She sounded ticked off you know, since you didn't call her yesterday."
"Darn again. Well, at least it'll take her the full two hours to get here. I guess I'll talk to her."
"You going to wait for her?"
"Nope. Just send her to Bulma's, and I'll talk to her there."
"She won't like that, you know. Women have a tendency to hate when men lead them around everywhere."
"Okay, okay." He put his hand to his chin. "Tell her that Bulma will pay for her gas cost then." He rushed off to the bathroom, leaving his mother shocked.
"Gohan! Jeez…what has that boy gotten into?"
* * *
"What do you mean, he's not here?!" Videl had just arrived at the Son house and was happily greeted by Chichi.
That lasted all of fifteen seconds.
"I told you…Gohan went to Bulma's! I really don't know what's gotten into him."
"Well, what do you mean?" Chichi scratched her chin for a moment before responding.
"Um…he said something about having Bulma paying for your gas."
"What?!" Videl yelled, tossing her hands in the air.
I knew she would do that. I got to talk with Gohan when he gets back. "Yeah, I know how you feel. I give you full permission to smack him upside the head when you see him." Videl, by then, was already heading back to her jet copter.
"I'm going to do worse than that to that boy!" she yelled back. She hopped into her copter and blasted off towards West City. All the while, evil thoughts entered her angry mind. Dismemberment…no. Maybe I'll quarter him and send a bunch of vultures after him…yeah. That sounds nice.
* * *
"Hey Gohan! I finished with your watch!" Bulma said through the gravity room intercom. The workout session between Gohan and Vegeta went pretty intense for nearly two hours, both going as normal Saiyans in one hundred times gravity. The lighter than normal gravity allowed the both of them to push their regular forms more without transforming into Super Saiyans. Trunks and Goten, who were in the room with them, train as Super Saiyans to negate the effects of the gravity.
Gohan stopped his spar and went over to the console. "Thanks Bulma. I'll be there in a few moments." He turned back to Vegeta. "I'll be back on Friday. I have a couple things to take care off between then."
"Very well Gohan. That was a decent spar, by the way. Pretty soon you'll be back to where you were when you fought Cell. Then we'll see who will win." He turned towards the two younger half-Saiyans. "All right brats. Time to dance." Gohan exited the room before the mayhem started.
He made his way down the hallway before ending up in the kitchen, where Bulma was busy preparing a snack. "Hey Bulma."
"Gohan…here. Put this on." She tossed him a wristwatch. He caught it and placed it on his left wrist. "All you have to do is press the red button and the costume activates. The blue one turns it off."
"Red one turns on…blue one turns off," he said to himself. He looked up at Bulma. "You follow my idea?"
"Yes I did. I made a couple of adjustments, but I'll think you'll like them overall." Gohan clicked on the red button, watching a wire field form around his body. The complex three-dimensional network of white lines and sound soon formed into clothing. Gohan was overwhelmed with the results.
"Wow Bulma! You got it right, down to the weighted cape and slip shoes!" Bulma had created an exact replica of Gohan's costume from the Cell Games. The gi itself was the same purple color and complimented with a wide black belt. A brown pair of lightweight shoes covered his feet. Lastly, the costume was completed with a weighted white cape. His head was left uncovered.
"I took the liberty of adding some Saiyan technology to it. The gi is flexible, completely bullet proof, and has some resistance to energy attacks." She paused, and watched Gohan nod to the information. "The cape can be removed if necessary, and if you transform without it, it will automatically reform at the next transformation." A pause, and a nod. Before she could begin again, Gohan spoke.
"The watch is totally exposed, Bulma. If anyone gets a hold of it, they might break it or accidentally revert my clothes." Bulma thought silently for a moment.
"You got a point kid. Give me the watch and I'll make the necessary adjustments, though gloves don't look good in sleeveless disguises."
"How about adding a full length body suit underneath the gi? You can use the Saiyan tech for creating that."
"That's a good idea Gohan. I'm not sure how long it'll take to finish though. I might have to get a slightly bigger watch to hold every detail inside of it."
"Take all the time you need. I'm going to have company soon anyway," he said, turning his gave to the front of the house.
"What is it?" Bulma asked.
"Videl's on her way. I'm guessing that she'll be on the front step in about five minutes. I'm going to take a quick shower to get rid of the stench from fighting." He went off upstairs, tossing a hand back and disappearing from view. Bulma was shaking her head, puzzled.
"Something is up with that boy."
* * *
"Hi Videl! So good to see you again."
"Hi Bulma," Videl said, smile etched on her face. That smile turned into a frown. "Where's Gohan?"
"He's in the shower." She stepped back to allow Videl in. "Do you want a snack, or something to drink while you're waiting for him?"
"So he's in the shower, huh?" Videl questioned to herself, completely oblivious to what Bulma just said. "Where is this shower at, if you don't mind me asking?"
Gohan is going to hate me for doing this. She absentmindedly pointed upstairs, towards the right. At the same time, she began rubbing her temples very, very slowly. "Up there, to the right. Three doors down, on the left, that's where the main guest room is." A pause. "And make sure you keep it down. My head is throbbing now."
"I'll be sure to keep quiet, but I'm not really sure how quiet Gohan will be in the next ten minutes."
"You that pissed?"
"Oh yeah." She made her way upstairs, leaving Bulma with a bigger headache at the bottom.
"Damn teenagers. They will be the death of me." She sat down in a chair in the lobby, leaning back in it and using both her hands to rub her temples. "At least they're not mine."
After a few minutes of rubbing, her headache started to recede. I wonder what Gohan did to make Videl mad. It'd be bad to get on her bad side…much like Chichi. She paused her thoughts for a moment, contemplating that last statement. I wouldn't be surprised if those two got married.
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud, hoarse screech emanating from the second floor. Bulma's headache returned as she suddenly realized who had screamed.
"Gohan…" she sighed, and began her search for some aspirin.
* * *
Gohan stood in the shower, taking the hot, soaking water, washing his body clean of his recent activities. He was completely aware of his surroundings, up until Videl got to the front door. After that, he completely immersed himself into the shower. So immersed, that he didn't hear the bedroom door open, nor the bathroom door.
He only heard the toilet to his left flush.
"AH! AH! Hot! Freaking hot! ARGH!" Gohan skipped away from the scalding water. He looked through the shower doors to see the blurry image of a small, petite figure. He opened the door slightly and peeked his head out, only to see the enormous smirk planted on Videl's face.
"Videl?" he asked, confused. Gohan quickly got angry. "What the hell was that for?"
The girl was equally angry. "That's what you get for ignoring me these past three days. And I'm not even done yet." She reached over to the sink and turned on the hot water full blast.
The water turned arctic cold.
"AHH! Videl!" he yelled, practically jumping up to the ceiling before falling back into the tub. Braving the extremely icy water, he stretched out and turned off the shower before Videl could strike again. Gohan peeked through the door again. "What do you want?"
"We need to talk. Now get dressed." She turned abruptly and exited the bathroom. Gohan just stared at the door dumbfounded.
"I wonder what's wrong with her…"
* * *
Videl waited patiently in the bedroom, relaxing on the queen-sized bed. She had her legs crossed at the ankles in front of her and her hands loosely tangled behind her head. She wore a self-satisfied grin on her face, knowing how easy it was to get Gohan to obey her. Child's play, she though.
The bathroom door opened a few minutes later to reveal a fully dressed Gohan. He went to the foot of the bed and stared at Videl, arms crossed over his chest. She patted to her left, commanding Gohan to sit next to her. She scooted over to make room.
"Gohan…I'm going to tell you a story, and I want you to listen. Once I'm done, you will understand why I'm so pissed off at you. Hopefully when I'm done, that will no longer be the case." Gohan only nodded.
"Okay." She paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts. "There's something you should know. Maybe this will help you understand my reasoning. Three years ago, my mother was attacked by an ordinary man with a psychological problem. He beat her and sexually assaulted her. Repeatedly. We found out that she was raped and beaten for nearly thirty minutes." She paused, looking down at her hands on her lap. A single tear dropped from her eye that was visible to Gohan. He reached over and covered her hands lightly.
"Videl, I…"
"Gohan…I'm not finished." She paused again, letting another tear streak down her face. She refused to look up, and Gohan just stared on. "When I saw her, she was barely conscious. The doctors hadn't performed any surgery yet. They just placed in on life support and cleared all the visible wounds.
"My dad talked to her first. I remember him saying that he was sorry for everything, and that he still loved her. I went up to her and started talking to her. She pulled me in close and cradled my face with her good hand. I'll never forget what she told me that day." She paused. Gohan was visibly shaken, to say the least. By now, tears were visible in his eyes.
Thirty seconds had passed and Videl still remained silent. Gohan did the only thing he could think of at the moment. He switched his hands, placing his left over Videl's hands and placed his right over her shoulders. He moved closer to her while drawing her to him at the same time. Upon impacting his chest, Videl let the floodgates open. Gohan effectively became a wet sponge to her with this outburst. He used his left arm to encircle her lover back, keeping her safe in his arms.
"Videl," he whispered. "I understand."
She remained stubborn. "No…you don't get it." She pushed off him slightly. They met with their eyes.
They're filled with pain, Gohan though, looking at her reddened eyes.
"Gohan…I don't want to lose you like I lost my mom. This is why I'm angry. I'm mad and I'm pissed off that I couldn't do anything to save you or her." She threw herself back into Gohan's chest, sobbing.
"Videl," he whispered again. "I'm sorry. Nothing will ever happen to me. I promise." He lifted up her chin and looked into her eyes. "I promise," he repeated.
"Don't promise, Gohan," she said softly. "Just do it."
"I will." He flashed a soothing smile, calming Videl and some of her worries. "Tell me. What was the last thing your mom said?"
Videl looked away for a moment. She looked back at him, directly in his eyes. "She told me to make her proud."
"My dad said the same thing before he died."
"Really?"
"Yeah. And, although I been telling myself that I'm not, I know deep down inside that he is proud of me."
"Gohan…"
"Yeah?"
"That's good to know."
"It is. Maybe someday you'll meet him." Videl giggled.
"I bet I will. In the meantime, you can meet my mother. She's been laying in a coma these last three years unfortunately. Life is so different without her there to help me."
"Same here Videl." He paused for a moment, thinking of the right words to say. "Promise me that we'll be there…for each other."
Videl looked up at him, thinking over his last sentence. "I will, Gohan. I will."
* * *
Europe. A continent of many wonders. From the rolling hills and flowing rivers, to the Middle Age structures and the energetic nightlife, it is a place where anything – and everything – can happen. That doesn't matter now. For at this very moment, a young demi-Saiyan sits upon one of Southern Germany's many mountains. From there, small specks of light can be seen many miles away.
The young Saiyan sat in deep thought, contemplating various items. Of course, he needed a place to get into thought. A primary reason for this was the costume he was currently donning. He had stopped by Bulma's in the morning after spending the rest of the day before making modifications to the costume. She added the bulletproof body suit and white gloves. She also made a change in the transformation out of the costume. As the watch initiated the costume, the belt-like cloth tied around his waist had a button, which made the change back into Gohan's normal clothes. The button was also thumbprint activated, a precaution from accidental changes. The slip shoes were replaced with white boots, matching the color of the gloves. The gi pants covered the top part of the boots, down to the ankles.
Gohan went on this trip not just to test out the costume. He decided that a vacation was sorely needed. He told his mom that he wanted to get out and try his new suit. That was half of the truth. Gohan decided against telling his mom the real reason.
He needed to think about a great many things, which brings the time up till now. The sun was slowly rising over the mountainside, bringing a new day to this part of the world. The light from the sun was soothing, albeit a little bright. Gohan paid no heed to it. He only found the heat, which helped him in his thinking.
He had been there for less than a minute – his cape flowing softly in the wind, his black hair waving smoothly like the ocean – when a lone black sparrow landed a few feet to Gohan's right. He looked at the sparrow passively, watching it hop around a few inches, leaving subtle foot indentations in the snow. The black bird looked around a bit before setting its gaze upon Gohan. It turned its body towards the teenage Saiyan and hopped forward a couple of inches. It moved its head around – almost mechanical like – studying the enormous form before it.
"You come here often?" Gohan asked. The sparrow bobbed its head around momentarily before chirping. Gohan's eyes opened widely. "Wow…I didn't expect you to understand me." He paused for a second. The sparrow chirped again.
It does not understand me. I guess it is just looking for pauses in my voice to give an appropriate response. "Well, at least my thoughts won't fall on deaf ears." A pause. No chirp this time. Gohan looked to the bird, confused and in awe. I guess it does understand me. Rather strange.
Gohan leaned back into the snow, placing his hands behind his head. He let out a semi-loud sigh. The sparrow chirped in response. Gohan turned his head to look at the bird. "I guess you've been in this situation before, contemplating life's strange wonders. These wonders confuse me to a great extent though." A chirp was the response given.
"I wonder if you ever given this task…this task of defending people. Well, in your case, fellow sparrow." A head bob, but this time, no responding chirp. "I guess not. Though you might have, but not even know you have.
"I guess what I'm trying to say is, why am I forced into this situation? I never wanted this, but I was forced to accept this. Well…I was born into this. I have warrior's blood in me. At times…at times, it drives my very being. Its pride…caused me to lose my father." The sparrow, after an extended pause, chirped several times.
"Have you lost someone you loved?" A chirp. "It happens to the best of us. You know, I've lost my father twice. I bet that hasn't happened to you."
No response this time. "I guess that was the wrong thing to say." He sat up and hunched forward slightly. He wrapped his arms around his knees. "Ah well. I wonder what my dad would say to me at a time like this." As if on coincidence, a stiff, chilly wind blew through for a few seconds. It was enough to illustrates Gohan's point in his statement. He sighed.
"I believe his father would say that he's gone insane talking to a bird," a familiar voice said from behind. Gohan jumped and turned to face the voice. His eyes opened wide and his jaw became dislodged, if only for a few seconds. He recomposed himself, only to let out one simple word:
"Dad?"
"Hello, son." That's all it took to set Gohan off. He ran forward, arms extended, ecstatic to see his father. Goku was overjoyed too, his arms out, ready to receive his son. That was until something clicked in his head. By then, it was too late.
Gohan fell right through Goku and into a heap on the other side of the mountain peak. He untangled himself and looked down at his hands confused. He looked to his father, who had "oops" written on the expression on his face.
"I forgot to tell you Gohan. I'm not really here."
"What? But how?"
"Come sit down." Gohan slowly moved back up to the peak of the mountain. The sparrow, which jumped in fear when it saw Gohan move, had settled down, and sat down again next to him. Both watched as Goku shook his hand violently in the air.
"I know King Kai! I was about to get to that…well, excuse me for forgetting." He looked down at his son. "Sorry about that."
"It's all right. Now, explain this 'I'm not really here' thing."
"Oh, that." He assumed a sitting position in midair in front of Gohan. "Well, with all these years we've been dead, we decided to try new stuff out. How long have we been dead anyway?"
"Um…it's been over six years."
"Seven years, wow. Well…these past years, King Kai has been developing a new variety of techniques. This is one of them. It allows the person currently linked to him – that's me – to transmit a visible 'ghost' to a person such as yourself."
"That's great, Dad!"
"Yeah. Now answer me: why were you talking to a bird?" Goku asked, pointing towards the black bird.
"I flew here to do some thinking, and this sparrow landed next to me. I decided to start a conversation, and I swore that it understood me." To prove his point, the sparrow bobbed his head momentarily before chirping. "See?"
"Strange." They paused for a few seconds, collecting their thoughts. Goku was the first to speak up. "So what's the problem, son?"
"What do you mean?" Gohan asked, trying to hide the fact that his troubles were already in the air.
"King Kai felt a strange spike on Earth surrounding you a few days ago. He has followed it since and has just told me about it. He said he felt a depressing energy flowing through you."
"I guess you would call it that," he said, somewhat sarcastic and serious. "Three days ago, a super powered human attacked the high school I go to now. Several of my friends were nearly killed. I almost felt like…like I was going to lose you again.
"Mom's tried to help me, saying that I can go out and train for a while. That wasn't too much help though. I tried avoiding the situation altogether, but it…rather, she, caught up with me yesterday."
"She?"
"Her name's Videl. She was one of the people there Monday. She's Hercule's daughter, you know."
"Hercule…as in the World Champ Hercule?" Gohan nodded. Goku stifled a laugh.
"I did the same thing when Videl told me that."
"Really?"
"Yeah," Gohan said, nodding.
"Has she said anything?"
"She still hasn't confronted me about it," he said laughing. Goku had to snicker at that.
"How is she?" he asked, turning serious again.
"She's cool. She's a lot like mom."
"Oh boy."
"Tell me about it. She also fights for the Satan City Police Department…oh, that was Orange Star City." Goku nodded. "She's a very nice girl though…and we're alike in more ways that I though before."
"How so?"
"She…lost someone close in her life. Her mom…she's in a coma."
"Oh."
"Videl told me what I just told you. She doesn't want to lose me like she lost her mom."
An uneasy silence fell between the two. Gohan wasn't planning on speaking after his last statement, and shifted his eyes down to prove so. Goku, meanwhile, was in though over those last words. He kept his gaze on his son for a few seconds. He then closed his eyes. A few moments later, he opened them, and reached out towards his son.
The young teen opened his eyes when he felt a strong hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see his father smile, his hand resting on Gohan's shoulder.
"Remember when I said you made me proud?" Gohan nodded. "You still do. Everyday for these past seven years, you have made me proud.
"I trust in your abilities in the fullest Gohan. Don't you ever say otherwise, cause I mean it. I remember telling you that you've saved all of us so many times. Do it for me son. Do it for your mom. But most importantly, do it for the friends that you hold close to you. They will be the ones who will get you through this life."
"Thanks…Dad."
"No problem son." He paused for a second before making a smile for himself. "Now tell me…when are you and Videl going to tie the knot?"
"DAD!" Gohan yelled, standing up and waving his arms about. Goku laughed a little bit at his son's predicament.
"You know, your mom told me once that she loved me the first time she set her eyes on me. Of course, I didn't know that at the time, but…"
"Dad! I've only known her for a month and a half! We're just friends!"
"Tell me that three or four years from now."
"What do you mean by that, Dad?" This caused Goku to turn over. He got back up and laughed, throwing one of his hands behind his head.
"I'll give you a hint: it's not food." Gohan looked at his slightly confused. He shrugged his shoulders after several moments. Goku turned his head skyward and closed his eyes. He reopened them a moment later.
"Well, I have to get going Gohan. King Kai is straining his powers a bit much now." He stood up, and Gohan followed a few seconds later. "You feeling any better?"
"Yeah Dad. Thanks for listening."
"Hey, that is what dads do…including dead ones." Goku chuckled out loud while Gohan only snickered. "King Kai told me to say that. He's a master of bad jokes you know."
"I know Dad."
"Oh, I almost forgot. Don't tell anyone about this conversation. I don't want anyone to get his or her hopes up."
"I won't. I might tell Shinji though."
"Who's he?"
"A friend of mine from school. He was taught by Master Roshi and Krillin."
"That's cool. Well, I'm off. If you need anything else Gohan, just come back here and we'll talk again."
"Okay Dad. See you later! Have fun in Other World!"
"Thanks. Good-bye Gohan!" And with that, he faded away. Gohan was a bit saddened by this, now that his father left. That sadness was soon replaced by happiness and hope, which shown through on his face. He lifted off and flew towards his home.
His mom would never guess why he was so happy that day.
And the sparrow, after all of that, found a worm near that mountain peak. He hopped to the side of the slope, where he met his female sparrow mate and their three lovely sparrow-lings.
* * *
It was now Tuesday, five days after Gohan's conversation with Goku. Nothing has happened in the four days before today that would have warranted the help of the Gold Fighter, much less Videl. A couple of robberies were quickly stopped by a couple of passing cops, and several homicides occurred, all requiring detective work.
That wasn't the point for today. Today was a new phase in Shinji's training. He didn't know that though. He was informed by Krillin the day before that Gohan wanted to "hang out". Of course, Shinji figured that the kid needed it, seeing as the teenage Saiyan spent most of his life behind the watchful eye of his mother. I should get Videl, he thought. I really should tell her soon. She deserves to know where I've been all these years.
The first thing he noticed wrong that day was where Gohan was. He knew his energy sensing ability was good, as he knew exactly where Gohan lived. Yet Gohan wasn't there. He was at least thirty miles away. And he wasn't alone, as a smaller power – and almost as strong as himself – was "bouncing" around Gohan. Must be Goten. Boundless amount of energy that kid possesses. He diverted his course away from the house towards the area where Gohan occupied at the moment.
The second thing he noticed wrong that day was when he arrived at his destination. As he landed, he noticed Gohan, sitting in the grass, in some sort of meditation. He also saw Goten happily jumping and flying around his older brother. The thing he noticed wrong though was Gohan's current state of dress. He sat in his blue training gi. Goten was also dressed for a fight, wearing an orange gi with a long sleeve blue undershirt.
The third and final thing Shinji noticed wrong that day was the one simple sentence that left Gohan's mouth:
"Ready to spar?"
"Spar?" Shinji questioned. "I thought we were going to hang out in a city or something."
"Well, I guess Krillin lied to you."
"That…or you told him not to tell me."
"Could be…" Gohan grinned.
"I'll be surprised if you can still ride the nimbus cloud after this." Gohan chuckled.
"My mind may be slightly evil, but my heart will always be pure. Never forget who my dad was."
"I hear you." Shinji reached into his pocket and pulled out a capsule. "It's always good to pack a back pocket uniform [1]. You'll never know when it's needed." He clicked it and tossed it on the ground. A puff of smoke appeared, and soon dissipated to show a black gi with a red sash and red trim on a hanger. He picked it up and exited to a bush. He reemerged a couple of minutes later in his gi.
Gohan removed a bag from his belt and handed it to Goten. "I need you to hold the beans, squirt."
"How come I can't play with him Gohan?" The Saiyan teen laughed.
"It's because I'm training him. There's a difference between that and playing." He started off towards Shinji. "Maybe after I dig him out of the ground a couple of times you can play with him."
"That's comforting to know," Shinji mumbled.
"It won't be too bad," Gohan replied. "I have some senzu's here, so all I have to do is not kill you. Beating you within an inch of your life is as far as I go."
"Like I said, 'That's comforting to know.'"
The two faced each other on an empty field about ten feet apart. Neither was in a fighting stance, but they were situated in a type of ready stance. Gohan had his eyes closed, clearing his mind for the upcoming spar. Shinji hadn't learned any type of meditation technique, so he had no way of focusing his mind. Gohan picked up on this.
"Remind me after our spar to take you to Piccolo. He can teach you how to meditate."
"Why would I need to meditate?"
"Well, it'll help you focus your power. I think, at your highest, most raw level, you are slightly stronger than Eighteen, which means I might need to go super to beat you. That power is unfocused though, so you're only slightly stronger than Krillin."
"You think that, if I focus my power, that I'll be able to fight someone like Gendo?"
"That, I do not know. He was able to keep up with me, although I was only at half of my level one power. That's no excuse though, especially when there are lives at stake."
"I understand. Still, I want to be at the best shape that I can be in for the next one."
"That's good. I don't think you'll get that much stronger though. From what I've learned about humans, their potential power can only go so far. Still, once you gain complete focus, you should be the strongest human alive."
"That's good to hear."
"Good. You have the first move," Gohan said, dropping himself into a perfect defensive stance.
"Thanks. I'll try and make the best of it." With that, Shinji flung himself forward, arm cocked back, ready to strike. He knew that getting through Gohan's defenses would be though. All I hope to do is chip away and spot a hole or two in there.
Shinji covered the short distance quickly, and using most of his raw energy, threw his fist forward. Gohan met it with his own fist, and the result was an electric light show flowing from their arms and fists. The ground beneath Gohan slowly gave way with the release of energy. He flipped backward off the punch, neatly dodging Shinji's jab. The human teen flew forward again and nearly landed a punch in Gohan's face. The demi-Saiyan was quicker, as he nimbly moved down and away from the near blow. They both met each other's eyes, easting off a grin, before Gohan rocketed to the sky, shortly followed by Shinji.
The fight took to the air now, as Shinji quickly caught up with Gohan. They flew higher up, facing each other. Shinji made a sudden hat, watching Gohan continue his flight. Let's see how he likes this. He brought his hands to his hips, and then thrust them forward.
What is he doing? Gohan thought, coming to a stop. He felt a sudden power increase coming from below, meaning only one thing.
"HYPER BALL…HA!" The attack scream sent a massive ball of energy towards Gohan. The Saiyan braced himself for the blast, crossing his arms and erecting a shield in front of him. He was so focused on the energy ball that he didn't notice Shinji come up from behind him until it was too late. He received a double fisted attack for his pain, and, for his pleasure, met the energy ball full force shortly thereafter. It sent him cascading from the sky into the field below, creating a new crater for scientists to baffle over.
Goten, watching the whole battle, ran over to his older brother, checking his condition. "Gohan! Are you all right?"
"Goten!" The young boy looked up, hearing his name being called by Shinji. "Leave him be. I just bruised his ego a bit. He'll be coming back for more shortly," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.
It was then that Gohan started moving. He pushed up on his hands and settled back on his knees. He looked in front of him to see Goten, head titled to a side, with a curious frown on his face.
"Where is he?" Gohan asked.
"Up there," Goten replied, pointing a finger skyward in Shinji's direction. Gohan followed the finger up to see Shinji with a self-satisfied smirk on his face.
"He sure is cocky," he said. The Saiyan teen raised himself to his feet. "Goten, have a senzu bean ready. Shinji is going to need it shortly." He felt Shinji's energy and locked onto it.
What's he doing down there? Shinji thought. He kept a careful eye on Gohan, watching him raise his hand to his forehead. Suddenly, he disappeared. "Where'd he go?!" Shinji yelled, shocked. He was frantically looking around, searching for Gohan.
"Looking for me?" a familiar voice asked from behind. Shinji was scared to look. The voice was almost sinister like, which clearly meant one thing, and one thing only, to Shinji.
I am royally screwed.
* * *
Two hours later, the "training" was completed. Of course, said "training" involved three literal ground diggings and the removal of nearly five hundred feet of a mountain peak. Said "training" also involved a lecture, from Gohan, on how not to bruise Saiyan's egos. Of course, if this were Vegeta, Shinji would be dead and revived in the same day – at least twice – despite the Saiyan Prince's recent changes in his attitude. Subtle, yes, but not enough to prevent death by Big Bang Attack.
The trio was now in flight towards the Lookout in search of Piccolo for two reasons. One: to get Shinji some new clothes. Currently, he was down to the remains of his training pants. His other clothes were mysteriously vaporized during the course of the day. The second reason was to begin the other half of his training, an intense meditation course, with Piccolo. The primary goal would be to help focus Shinji's power to a finite point. That finite point would be slightly higher than Eighteen's. The power would be raised slightly after today's "training" with Gohan, as the Saiyan teen noticed that Shinji's body gained power after four near death experiences. Those power increases were marginal, but they were there. It was the one thing on Piccolo's mind, and as he, Shinji and Gohan sat in a circle, it became the main topic of discussion.
"Well, I originally started training in one of Hercules' schools, thinking I can be like him someday. I asked one of his students one day if we would ever learn how to fly, like you guys did at the Cell Games. He laughed in my face, saying that it was all cleverly concealed tricks and that Hercule wouldn't teach such 'hypocrisy'. He ended up with a face plant and a bloody nose.
"I left the school a few months later after learning about Master Roshi. I told Gohan this story a little while ago, but I left something out. When I began my training, Roshi and Krillin discovered that I had a massive amount of potential energy, and as my raw energy grew, my potential power increased further beyond that."
"Just like Gohan," Piccolo said.
"How so?"
"Gohan has a lot of hidden power. He displayed a good amount of it back against Cell, but since then, it has receded back inside. He still is the strongest out of all of us, but he also needs to get that power out and focused for it to work."
"I see. Can I start this meditation now?"
"Sure kid. Don't get to cocky though; I saw what happened today." Shinji could only gulp and close his eyes. His new training had begun [2].
* * *
"All right you robbers! The bank is completely surrounded, now come out with your hands up!"
The damage to Orange Star High School was completely repaired by Thursday. The principal found it right to let the student complete the weekend free of school work in hopes of getting them to cooperate in classes on Monday.
This applied to everyone except Videl. She was currently suffering during what she will later dub "National Bank Robbery Day". This was the third bank she was at today, and she was quickly becoming tired. She only received help from the police department, as neither Shinji nor the Gold Fighter arrived yet. That was about to change.
As she prepared to enter the bank, she heard a police officer yell out something. Videl turned around to see several officers looking skyward. She joined them and saw the Gold Fighter descend from the sky. Relief at last! Yes!
Videl ran out to him just as he landed. "Gold Fighter, thank Kami you're here!"
"No problem Videl. Tough day?"
"Very. We could use a break for a little bit. It's been real busy today crime wise."
"I see. I'll hand this one. You just keep –" A quick flash of light stopped Gohan. From the corner of his eye, he saw a sniper on a building across the street. It took a quick second to see that he was aiming for…Videl?! Damn! Got no time!
Just as he thought that, the sniper fired. Gohan quickly jumped forward, grabbing Videl and turning her away from the sniper. The bullet hit his back and harmlessly bounced off.
"What was that?" Videl yelled. She watched Gohan's movements, as he reached his arm out and fired an energy ball into a building…rather, a sniper standing on the roof. It hit him square in the chest and knocked him out cold. Oh…my…he saved me…again? She looked up in his face, showing now the full anger that he felt. He's mad…maybe I should get away from him before he does something.
That was easier said than done. Gohan's other arm continued to encircle her with its safety. I saved her, that's all that matters. This is what Dad wants. I'm making him proud.
This is a nice feeling. Videl thoughts had done a complete turnaround. She saw the anger slowly filter out of him. She became at ease now being close to the hero. I've felt something like this before. Maybe it's the new costume. I like it a lot.
"I like your costume." Gohan, in his Super Saiyan form, managed to blush.
"Um…thanks. A friend made it."
"Looks good on you. Much better than running around bare-chested, though I didn't mind that at all."
If Gohan could of, he would have blushed more. He didn't get the chance to, as a couple of gunmen opened fire from inside the bank. Gohan turned Videl again, protecting her from the streaking bullets. Several pinged off his back, causing Videl to scream slightly.
"Don't worry. The body suit is bullet proof. How many inside?"
"Just three," she said.
"Okay. I hear two of them. I feel the third person trying to sneak out onto the roof." He paused for a second. "They're both empty. Hold on." Keeping his hold on Videl, he moved quickly behind the closest gunmen. Gohan, with one hand, disarmed the robber and threw him back with a simple exertion of his energy. He landed in the side of one of the police cruisers. Gohan turned towards the second gunman, who was fumbling with a new cartridge. He released his hold of Videl and pointed her to the gunman.
An evil smirk appeared on her face, and the gunman was out faster than what Gohan could have done sometimes. Amazing!
"Hey gold boy!" Videl shouted, snapping Gohan from his thoughts.
"Yes?"
"Go get the last guy. We'll celebrate afterwards."
"Right." He turned towards the bank and looked around. Gohan felt the third and final robber ascending the stairs to the roof. He quickly shot up to the roof and landed about ten feet away from the roof door. Several seconds later, the door slammed open, and the robber stepped out. He slid to a halt after three steps, when he caught sight of Gohan.
"Hi," he said.
"Shit!" the robber cried out. He went to his sides and, from his belt, pulled out a pair of black pistols. He unloaded both clips into Gohan, who just stood there, yawning. Several "clicks" were heard, signaling the end of the firing.
"You done?" Gohan asked a bewildered robber. He dropped his guns and bolted to the left, intent on escaping from Gohan. Before reaching the ledge, however, he was met by Gohan, who looked like he just appeared there out of thin air. The robber slammed right into him and knocked himself out. Gohan picked him up and flew back down to the ground, where he dropped off the criminal and met up with Videl.
"I got worried there for a second after hearing twenty or so gunshots," she said.
"I told you, the suit is bulletproof. Besides, it wasn't like he was going to escape or anything," Gohan replied, matter-of-factly. Videl looked over to the cops, some of which were pulling away, probably to get back on patrol. She turned back to Gohan and motioned for him to follow. They went inside the bank, where most of the tellers were making statements or returning the money the robbers nearly stole. The two walked to a secluded corner of the bank, where Videl started speaking in a lower than normal voice.
"Thanks for showing up today. I don't think I mentioned it before in all that commotion."
"It was no problem Videl. I'm here to serve and protect, just like you."
"Good. I'm glad I can rely on you. One question: where's Shinji?"
"Shinji…ah, Shinji is getting some new training. He's with my teacher as we speak."
"That's good. I guess he doesn't want to get beat up like he did at the school nearly two weeks ago." She paused for a second, collecting her thoughts. "He needs a hero name, so I don't call him Shinji by accident while on the job."
"I see. I'll inform him when I see him next."
"Good. Now for you."
"Me?" he questioned, confused. "What about me?" Videl giggled.
"A name for you, duh. I mean, you got a spiffy new costume, so you need something else besides that moniker I call you now. 'Gold Fighter' doesn't sound right in distress," she said, that last remark more to herself than to Gohan.
"Hmm…a superhero name…"
"Any ideas?" she asked.
"I believe I do," Gohan replied, nodding. "How bout…Saiyaman? [3]"
* * *
"Country boy is late again. He seriously needs an alarm clock."
"That isn't nice, Sharpener."
"What?"
"Calling him a country boy."
"Well," the blonde hair boy started, raising his hands in defense, "he does live in the country. I already told him that I mean well. He's a cool kid, despite what my football followers say. Besides," he leaned in close to Erasa, lowering his voice, "rumor has it that he's tamed Videl."
"Tamed Videl?" she screeched lightly. "I doubt it…though that smile says otherwise."
"Yeah, she's never smiled like that before. Must be my new cologne."
"Sharpener, sweetie. It stinks."
"Erasa!"
"It's the truth. I know you're trying to impress the poor girl."
"To tell you the truth, I'm trying to impress someone else."
"Really? Do tell."
"Can't babe. It's a secret."
"Can I have a hint?"
"…Sure, why not…she's cute…has blonde hair, looks incredibly sexy in a blue tube top…and is honest about my cologne." Erasa took a few seconds to think that over. She came to her conclusion by looking at Sharpener, pointing to herself and without speaking, lipped the world "me" in the form of a question. Sharpener nodded. Erasa turned beat red and giggle for a second.
"Um…sorry bout the cologne comment."
"No big deal. Just remind me after this class to go to the locker room to take a quick shower. Tell the teacher I went to the nurse or something."
"Sure thing…oh, look. Gohan showed up."
"Finally. Not too bad though. He's getting better with showing up for first period in just under five minutes after the bell rings."
"Sharpener!"
"It's the truth babe." They watched Gohan get reprimanded for being late, then being sent to his seat. He sat down next to Videl, where Sharpener and Erasa noticed Gohan's shock in the raven-haired girl's mood.
"Gohan must know something we don't know," Erasa said.
"Why do you think that?"
"Because he nearly jumped out of his pants when he saw her. Something's up."
"I see." They looked on for a couple of seconds, trying to pick up on Gohan and Videl's conversation. They heard nothing but a few mumbled words being passed between them.
"Anything Erasa?"
"Nothing Sharpener."
"Mr. Pencil and Ms. Gummi! Do you two have anything to say in front of the class?" the teacher asked, highly irritated.
"Not a thing sir," Sharpener said, answering for both of them.
"Good. Now keep quiet!"
"Yes sir!" They both picked up their books and looked in it, pretending to read. They looked at each other for a few seconds, giggled and blushed, then returned to the lecture, this time actually listening.
* * *
Lunchtime came rather quickly that day for Videl. She figured it would go slow since she had an objective to do then, but was surprised at how fast the time went. The opposite was true for Gohan, who failed to eat anything for breakfast. Time went excruciatingly slow for him, so he was more than excited once lunch came around. Earlier, he had gotten Videl, Erasa, Sharpener and Shinji – through telepathy – to buy him something extra for lunch today to help him out. Erasa and Sharpener already knew of Gohan's huge appetite, and were glad to help out. Gohan split his funds up amongst his friends, telling them each what he wanted. They got their food and quickly found their seats. Shinji joined them shortly thereafter.
The conversation was simple at this lunch, which was about the Gold Fighter, now known as Saiyaman. Videl told him that it was a great name, and while it really didn't strike fear into criminals' eyes, his calm and cool demeanor and quick action more than made up for it. Gohan attempted to act interested, which he was, listening to Videl's riveting voice. Shinji, of course, knew everything as well, but he also was successful in remaining interested.
Before lunch ended though, Videl looked at Shinji and motioned him to follow her. They excused themselves from the table and made their way outside, down towards Videl's locker.
"So…" she started, "found a name yet?"
"I have some in mind. I'll let you know soon enough when I finally get one." He stared at her for a couple of moments, noting her uneasiness. "That isn't what you wanted to tell me, wasn't it?" A pause. Then:
"No."
"Well then…what is it?"
"Promise you won't tell?"
"I promise," he said, holding his hand up.
"Okay. Well, first off, if you haven't noticed, I'm starting to like Gohan a lot more."
"I know."
"You know?"
"It's obvious. Of course, those three back there are too naïve to notice, including Gohan."
"I figured as much. I didn't get to see him much over the past two weeks, but I found out more about him than I could realize. I'll tell you about it later." They took another few steps in silence.
"That's not all, is it?" Shinji asked, breaking the silence.
"No. It's Saiyaman." She took a deep breath before stopping and looking Shinji straight in his eyes.
"What about him?"
"I think…I think I'm falling for him."
* * *
[1] Time to let you people in on an inside job between my sister and me. To those who watch X-Men: Evolution, there are a lot of times where the X-Geeks would be out on the streets, talking to random people, and at the next moment, have their battle uniforms on. We, in turn, have come up with a theory know as the "Back Pocket Mutation". This "second mutation" of theirs allowed them to magically pull a uniform out of their back pocket, hence the "Back Pocket Mutation". This allows them to change on the fly without returning to the mansion or hopping back to the Blackbird parked three miles away. That is where that joke comes from. Anyone who has noticed that on the show will probably think about it for a few moments before shrugging it off, then laugh a bit before going to their tape collections to watch the first two seasons to find these instances of "Back Pocket Mutation".
[2] Power levels. Power levels. Power levels. I wonder how I'm going to do this. Actually, I have figured out some levels, and using those that I found from a web page I found. If you want to know how powerful these guys are, just ask or e-mail me, and I'll let you know. If enough people ask, I'll just post them next chapter.
[3] So I lied when I said no Saiyaman. I can hear everyone groaning now. Don't worry though. This isn't your normal Saiyaman. First off, I'm just keeping it as Saiyaman. He won't be the Great Saiyaman at all, or Saiyadork for that matter. It'll work; trust me. You'll like this Saiyaman…I hope.
Responses to reviews:
Lady of Ice: Thank you. I don't know why I'm not getting as much reviews as I thought, since I originally came in with the intent of Huge Chapters = Many More Reviews. Oh well. I do like the reviews I am getting though. More would be welcomed though.
DemonDancing: Thanks for the reviews…all four of them. You brought up an interesting point with Shinji (don't worry, I know what you meant, I'm not that crazy in the head to think of that), and I came up with a topic for the next chapter. I looked back through the chapters, and I don't think I mentioned his features that much. I know I said he was a year younger than Gohan and four inches shorter than him. I think I said spiky blonde hair somewhere (he's not Saiyan, don't worry), but I'll get to more of it soon enough.
RDBRaptor: I must see this "Consuming Madness" story that you have mentioned. Is it a fan fiction or a real novel? Oh, and I am going that path, if I'm thinking what you're thinking what I'm thinking about the story. Don't worry though; things get real interesting the next two chapters.
To everyone else: Thank you for your reviews.
I'm going to say one thing before I wrap this up. When you review, leave your name. I don't care if its initials or the Gettysburg Address, just leave something. I won't say anything to anyone who doesn't leave his or her name. For that reason, the person who left the review saying 'hey let gohan help heal videls mother with a senzu bean', won't get a proper response from me. If anyone else would like to ask that question, then leave your name, and I might get to you on that one.
Bah, and you really think I was going to give a critical future plot point away. On to important things…
Next Chapter: In the first part of a two-part adventure, Shinji decides that it's finally time to tell Videl the question she's been dying to ask. And just when the identity of Saiyaman is about to get revealed, a pair of villains shows up, and things go from bad to worse for Shinji and Videl. It's history and mayhem next time!