Disclaimer: see Part One.

And incase anyone hasn't seen it yet; here is the link to the teaser image created by Psycho Ann and I.  Figuring by the amount of hits I've received in the last two weeks or so, many people have seen it.  Still, here it is.  ()

One final note: the next six weeks for me is going to be filled with schoolwork and the like.  Updates will be limited, though I will try to find time to write whenever I can.  Also, 'That Warm and Fuzzy Feeling' won't get updated at the end of March.  I haven't worked on it in a while, but I do hope to get some of it done.  Once May comes around, updates for both my stories should come at a more regulated pace.

And yes, this part is shorter than the others.  I guess it's just how it came out.  Not that many parallels this time.

Oh, and special thanks to my sister for pre-reading this.  She picked out a lot of mistakes in there.

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Parallel and Perpendicular

A romance fiction/story by ShaggyDiz

Chapter Zero: Parallel

Part Three: Dreams of a Different Kind

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                He woke up in a cold sweat; his eyes wide open in the darkness, his breath short and quick.  He wiped his hand across his forehead, clearing away some of the offending beads of water quickly forming along his brow.  He glanced left, seeing if his younger brother was still sleeping.  Listening quickly, he heard a soft snore emanating from the bundle of pillows and blankets that surrounded Goten.  He smiled contently before turning to his right to look at the clock.  It read twelve thirty.

                "Shit," he mumbled softly.  "This is the third night this has happened.  I sleep for close to two hours before this… dream wakes me up."  He rolled out of bed, now a bit pissed that this dream is causing him to lose some night's sleep.  He bent down to pick up a pair of shorts, pulling them on and covering the boxers that served as his only covering in bed, minus the covers.  Slowly, he tracked his way to the bathroom, relieving himself, before heading downstairs to the kitchen for a drink and some mental reflection.

                What he didn't know was that his mom was sitting downstairs in the kitchen already, sitting over a cup of hot chocolate.  "Mom?" he questioned, entering the light of the kitchen.

                "Hey Gohan.  What are you doing up?" Chichi asked him.  He sat down at the table, his tired body telling him to get off of his legs and relax.

                "This dream… I've been having this strange dream for the past three nights now.  Only tonight has it woken me up at this time.  I've been getting a good night's sleep with that dream, and I've remembered it vividly.  But tonight… it's strange Mom."  Chichi mulled over his words for a moment, taking a sip of her hot chocolate to take time.

                "What were you dreaming about?" she asked, to which he promptly blushed.  He tried to hide his face, but rather unsuccessfully, earning a curious look from Chichi.  "Well?"

                "It's sort of embarrassing to think about," he said, his voice slightly above a whisper.

                "Gohan," she started, her motherly attitude springing forward, "you're almost eighteen now.  You shouldn't be embarrassed about this stuff, at least… well; you can be embarrassed in front of me.  I am your mother after all."  She stood up and walked over to the cupboard.  "Care for some hot chocolate?"

                "Please," he responded.  She set to work on getting him some hot chocolate.  Meanwhile, he leaned forward, placing his head in his hands, and propping himself up on the table with his elbows.  "This dream… I find myself in front of this enormous… castle of sorts.  I remember it clearly: it has this large stone build to it, and the front was littered with stain glass windows.  It was Gothic, in a sense.

                "I'm standing there, awaiting the gate to open.  A storm starts… first slowly, with a soft rain coming down.  But soon, it turns violent.  The rain picks up, coming down in torrents, and the wind becomes almost unbearable.  I shout out to someone to open up the gate and let me in.  Someone does hear me though, luckily.  The gate comes down, and I rush inside, going under the cover of an archway.  In the distance, I see a wooden door open.  I rush over to it and enter it.

                "Inside, there is this massive spiral staircase going up close to ten stories.  Half way up, I see someone.  It's hard to see from where I'm at, so I decide to chase after.  I try to fly, wanting to reach this person fast, but find that I can't fly.  So I run up the stairs.  I run up all ten stories of it.  I reach the top, out of breath, and there is another door, same as the one outside.  And slowly, that one opens up."  He paused for a second as Chichi hands him his hot chocolate.

                "This is sounding strange Gohan," she said, matter-of-factly.  He nodded.  He drank a bit from the cup, letting the warmth of the drink wake him up slightly.  His eyes widened a bit more, and his muscles were warming up, coming to life as he sat there, telling his story.

                "So… I enter the door.  The room is pitch black, save for a window to the left side of the room.  I close the door behind me and start to look around.  In far side of the room I see a bed, a rather elegant bed, I might add.  To the left of the bed, I see that person… a girl.  It's hard to tell what she looks like… her body I could see, but not her face.  It was hidden well because of the shadows.  She wore this nightgown that…" He looked up at Chichi.

                "Say it," she said, smirking slightly.  He gulped and nodded.

                "It showed her perfectly.  Her frame was simple, and she wasn't big… up there," he said, pointing to his own self for reference.  "She was pleasing to the eye," he continued.  "I stepped forward slightly, coming closer to the window.  The storm outside, I noticed, was becoming much like a hurricane.  I'm surprised that the window didn't break because of the winds.

                "I ask her for her name, seeing as how I was going to be stuck with her for the time being.  I watched her mouth move… it was the only part of her face not in the dark.  It was a nice looking mouth, I might add.  But… she didn't say anything.  Or rather, I didn't hear anything.  I watched her mouth move: two syllables, but I was unable to understand what she was saying.  I asked her again for her name.  Again, two syllables, but there was no sound.

                "I heard her giggle.  It was a cute giggle… an innocent giggle.  She moved over to the bed and sat down on it.  She motioned me over with her hand.  I take of my jacket and place it by the window, since it is still sopping wet.  I go to the bed and sit down on it.

                "What she did next took me by surprise.  As I sat down, she giggled again, and then proceeded to pull me down on top of her.  I'm half on top of her at this moment, and I look down at her face.  The only thing I still see is her mouth.  She has this large, beautiful smile on her face.  And she says something, but this time, she has a voice."  He paused, taking another drink and collecting his thoughts once more.  He took longer than expected, and Chichi picked up on it.

                "What did she say?" she asked him.  Again, embarrassment showed through on his face.

                "She said to make love to her," he whispered.  He took another drink, and his mom mimicked his movement.

                "What did you do?" she asked.  By now, his embarrassment was gone, relieved that he got out the first part.  His courage had gone up since then, so he didn't hesitate with an answer for the last questioned asked.

                "I made love to her.  And then I woke up."  He paused.  "That is the dream I've been having for the last three nights.  And that last… scene, it always gets more intense each time."  He stopped, finished with his story.  A deafening silence settled between the two.  Chichi was quietly mulling over her son's dream, while he just sat there, wondering what his mom was thinking of at this moment.  Slowly, he got up, preparing to make his way back to his room.

                "Gohan," Chichi said, catching his attention.

                "Yeah?"

                She sighed.  "I don't know what to make of it.  I mean; this is a strange dream, like you said.  I'm no expert, but I think that a recurring dream like this has some sort of hidden meaning.  If you have this one for a couple more nights, or if you get another one similar to this, let me know.  Now go to bed."

                "Okay Mom."  He walked out of the kitchen to the stairway.  He paused for a moment, and looked back at the kitchen.  He walked back to the entrance of it.  "Mom?" he asked.

                "Yeah?"

                "What are you doing up this late anyway?"  Chichi got wide eyed for a moment, before casting her face down slightly and putting a small smile on her face.

                "It's a secret, Gohan.  I'll tell you what it is someday."

                "Okay Mom.  Goodnight."  With that, he left the kitchen.  Moving quietly, he made his way to his room and into his bed without causing a stir from Goten.

                Gohan closed his eyes, and let a smile set on his face as he faded back into slumber.

* * *

                She woke up in a cold sweat; her eyes wide open in the darkness, her breath short and quick.  She wiped her hand across her forehead, clearing away some of the offending beads of water quickly forming along her brow.  She glanced left, seeing if her younger sister was still sleeping.  Listening quickly, she heard a soft snore emanating from the bundle of pillows and blankets that surrounded Kagero.  She smiled contently before turning to her right to look at the clock.  It read twelve thirty.

                "Shit," she mumbled softly.  "This is the third night this has happened.  I sleep for close to two hours before this… dream wakes me up."  She rolled out of bed, now a bit pissed that this dream is causing her to lose some night's sleep. She bent down to pick up her nightgown, pulling them on and covering the undergarments that served as her only covering in bed, minus the covers.  Slowly, she tracked her way to the bathroom, relieving herself, before heading downstairs to the kitchen for a drink and some mental reflection.

                What she didn't know was that the maid was sitting downstairs in the kitchen already, sitting over a cup of hot chocolate.  "Faye?" she questioned, entering the light of the kitchen.

                "Hey Videl.  What are you doing up?" Faye asked her.  She sat down at the table, her tired body telling her to get off of her legs and relax.

                "This dream… I've been having this strange dream for the past three nights now, but tonight was the first time that it's fully roused me from sleeping.  I've been getting a good night's sleep with that dream, and I've remembered it vividly.  But tonight… it's strange Faye."  The maid mulled over her words for a moment, taking a sip of her hot chocolate to take time.

                "What were you dreaming about?" she asked, to which she promptly blushed.  She tried to hide her face, but rather unsuccessfully, earning a curious look from Faye.  "Well?"

                "It's sort of embarrassing to think about," she said, her voice slightly above a whisper.

                "Videl," she started, her motherly attitude springing forward, "you're almost eighteen now.  You shouldn't be embarrassed about this stuff, at least… well… yeah; there is no need to be embarrassed in front of me.  I'm the maid, remember?"  She stood up and walked over to the cupboard.  "Care for some hot chocolate?"

                "Please," she responded.  Faye set to work on getting her some hot chocolate.  Meanwhile, she leaned forward, placing her head in her hands, and propping herself up on the table with her elbows.  "This dream… I find myself in an enormous room.  It was in a castle, if I remember correctly.  The walls were set with large stone bricks, and the window to my right was clear, but set up like a stain glass window.  It was Gothic, in a sense.

                "From my vantage point, I see a rain storm begin.  It starts off slowly, with just a light rain and soft breeze.  But soon it turned violent.  The rain picks up, and it's coming down in sheets.  The wind was howling off of the window.  Suddenly, in the rain, I hear a voice.  I look out the window, and at the entrance, I see a person trying to take cover.  I find the door and run to it, pulling it open and running down the stairs.  It was a long stairwell, and I damn near tripped a few times.  I get to the bottom and see a lever next to the door.  Conveniently, it says 'Gate' about it.  I pull it, and then I leave the door there open, to see if this person comes in.

                "Halfway up the stair, I hear the door at the bottom close.  I look down to see that person at the bottom of the stairs looking up at me.  They start off after me, so I decide to wait back in the room upstairs.  I reach the room and leave it open slightly for the person to come in.  I stand by the bed, waiting for this person."  She paused for a second as Faye hands her the hot chocolate.

                "This is sounding strange Videl," she said, matter-of-factly.  She nodded.  She drank a bit from the cup, letting the warmth of the drink wake her up slightly.  Her eyes widened a bit more, and her muscles were warming up, coming to life as she sat there, telling her story.

                "So… the door opens.  From behind it, the person comes.  And now, I can clearly see that it is a man.  He wore a hooded jacket drenched from the rain, and a pair of black pants and brown boots.  He took a step forward, coming a bit more into the light.  He took off his jacket and placed it on the window.  He wore just one shirt, and that was drenched as well.  It clung to him rather provocatively."  She looked up to Faye.

                "Sounds like a dream man," she said, smirking slightly.

                She giggled and nodded.  "It showed him off perfectly.  His frame was simple, and he wasn't overly muscular… a perfect mix of lean muscle and incredibly low body fat," she said. 

                "He was pleasing to the eye," she continued.  "I looked up to his face and asked him for his name.  All I could see of his face was his mouth.  It was a nice looking mouth as well.  It was strange though… his face was shrouded in darkness.

                "Anyway, I asked his name, but he didn't say anything.  Or rather, I didn't hear anything.  I was his mouth move: two syllables, but I was unable to understand what was being said.  I asked his name again.  Again, I got two syllables, but there was no sound.

                "I heard him chuckled.  It was a nice chuckle… one without malice.  I motioned him to come forward, so I could try and get a better look at his face.  Yet as he stepped closer, his face just got darker.  I couldn't see anything there.

                "What he did next took me by surprise.  As we stood there, he chuckled again, and suddenly swooped forward and picked me up, placing me gently onto the bed.  He came over top of me and looked into my eyes.  Again, all I saw was his mouth.  He has this large, gentle smile on his face.  And he says something, but this time, he has a voice."  She paused, taking another drink and collecting her thoughts once more.  She took longer than expected, and Faye picked up on it.

                "What did he say?" she asked him.  Again, embarrassment showed through on his face.

                "He said to make love to him," she whispered.  She took another drink, and the maid mimicked her movement.

                "What did you do?" she asked.  By now, her embarrassment was gone, relieved that she got out the first part.  Her courage had gone up since then, so she didn't hesitate with an answer for the last questioned asked.

                "I made love to him.  And then I woke up."  She paused.  "That is the dream I've been having for the last three nights.  And that last… scene, it always gets more intense each time."  She stopped, finished with his story.  A deafening silence settled between the two.  Faye was quietly mulling over the teen's dream, while she just sat there, wondering what the maid was thinking of at this moment.  Slowly, she got up, preparing to make her way back to her room.

                "Videl," Faye said, catching her attention.

                "Yeah?"

                She sighed.  "I don't know what to make of it.  I mean; this is a strange dream, like you said.  I'm no expert, but I think that a recurring dream like this has some sort of hidden meaning.  If you have this one for a couple more nights, or if you get another one similar to this, let me know.  Now go to bed."

                "Okay Faye."  She walked out of the kitchen to the stairway.  She paused for a moment, and looked back at the kitchen.  She walked back to the entrance of it.  "Faye?" she asked.

                "Yeah?"

                "What are you doing up this late anyway?"  Faye put on a small smile before responding.

                "I'm just preparing tomorrow's food, Videl.  It's how I've been doing this for years.  Now get.  I have work to do."

                "Okay Faye.  Goodnight."  With that, she left the kitchen.  Moving quietly, she made her way to her room and into her bed without causing a stir from Kagero.

                Videl closed her eyes, and let a smile set on her face as she faded back into slumber.

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End Part Three

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