Disclaimer: see Part's one and five.

Author's note: This one was a bit of a struggle.  It really isn't my best that I've written, though I tried to get things in there that I needed.  Once this chapter is complete though, I'll be doing some revisions and posting the whole thing as one complete chapter.

Pre-reader credit goes to PsYChO, who told me that I could get cloned in Taiwan.  I declined, telling him that I didn't want my clones assisting him in taking over the world.

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Parallel and Perpendicular

A romance/fiction story by ShaggyDiz

Chapter Zero: Parallel

Part Six: A Sign of Dislike

* * *

                "Well, Gohan… how did it go today?" Chichi asked her son.  The tests were done today for the half-Saiyan, and it was now shortly after three.  They were sitting on the Nimbus Cloud currently, flying back towards the mountain area they called home.

                "It went pretty well.  It was quite simple actually.  Then again, I had you as my teacher, so I guess anything they threw at me would be simple," he said from in front of his mom.  The seating was the same as before: Chichi behind her son, who was acting as her wind guard.  "What did you do while I was testing?"

                "Nothing too much really.  I walked around the city for a bit and had some lunch.  There are a few bad neighborhoods though, that I'll say.  I happened to come across three crimes actually."

                "Really now?" he asked surprised.

                "Yeah.  And at two of them, this girl came in and did the job that the police couldn't do."

                "Did you catch her name?"

                She shook her head behind him.  "Nope.  People were busy cheering for her.  In all of that, I'm surprised that not one of them said her name.  It's like they all know her personally or something, and that they don't need any introductions."

                "I see," he muttered.  He remained quiet for some time, contemplating this little bit of information.

                "Gohan… there was one thing that you might find a bit interesting."  He turned his head sideways to look behind him.

                "What was it?"

                "Well, you remember that dream you had?"  He blushed.  In all of the testing today, he had completely forgotten about it.

                "Yeah.  What about it?"

                "The girl that stopped the crimes… she looked oddly reminiscent of what you described in your dream."

                Gohan said nothing.  He simply turned back around and remained quiet for the rest of the trip.

* * *

                "Damn fucking robbery.  That's the third one today!"

                It was quite a long day for the black haired girl, as in the two hours since she had left school, she had stopped two bank robberies and an attempted murder.  She crawled her way back to the ice cream parlor, where her freshly made sundae had melted for the third time today.  Erasa and Sharpener were there keeping watch over the sundae but could do nothing to the phenomena known as room temperature.

                "I'm turning this stupid thing off.  Can't those idiots do anything without me?" she cried out.  By now, the shop owner had taken the melted sundae to produce a new one.  He wasn't mad about having to do this, but rather just slightly peeved for the same reasons that she had: the ineptitude of the Satan City Police Department.

                "Here you go, Miss Videl.  I know this is the fourth one you will – or are going to try to have – today, but just remember that you only have to pay for one.  This, like the past two, is on the house."

                "You sure about that Mr. Gatou?  I know it costs money to keep on having to do this," she said, trying to have the shop owner change his mind.

                "I know, but still.  I'm in league with you on having some kind of new training officer over at the department.  There are a few good cops there, but most of them seem like rookies."  He took a seat next to her in the bench, seeing as the blondes were occupying the other one in the booth.  "Maybe you can whip them into shape," Mr. Gatou said jokingly.

                "If it weren't for school and my home life, then I might.  As it stands, I'm forced to deal with this.  In fact," she started, doing what she mentioned earlier, "there will be no more crimes for me today.  Selfish… yeah.  They have to start turning that crime rate around themselves though."

                "I know Videl," Erasa said, coming into the conversation.  "You're seventeen!  There is no need to continue with this."

                "I know.  I want to do the stuff that my dad doesn't do though.  All he is nowadays is 'Fame! Fame! Fame!'"  She paused, and then flashed a mildly evil smirk.  "I wonder what it would be like to drop my last name."

                "I take it being the daughter of Mr. Satan really sucks, huh?" Mr. Gatou said.  She nodded, and then proceeded to start into her sundae.  The shop owner left, satisfied that she could finally eat, and went to help other costumers.

                They had finally left at quarter of four – the conversation and savoring of the sundae taking a full fifteen minutes – when the friends decided to part ways for the day.  Sharpener and Erasa decided to go back to one of their places and make out for a while.

                Videl went home, happy that she could finally get the chance to relax and then spar with Kagero.

* * *

                "We're home Goten!" came the cry from the door.  At first, there was no sound.  Soon though, a quick and heavy scamper came from upstairs.  Goten came into view a few seconds later, his arms outstretched like a plane while he made some flying sounds.  His brother bent down and stuck out his arms, catching the youngster and turning in circles with him, making him fly around like a real plane.  Chichi smiled at the sight.

                "Now boys, you know there is no flying in the house," she reprimanded playfully.  They stopped their little activity, with Goten jumping out of his brother's hands right onto his chest before climbing around to latch on his back.  His head peered over the teen's shoulder.

                "But Mom!" he whined.  "I don't know how to fly!"

                "Well, why don't you get your brother to teach you?" she asked.

                "Yeah Gohan.  Why don't you teach me?"  He shrugged.

                "I'll teach you tomorrow during the day, okay?  We won't have much time tonight since we just got back from the city and you and I still have a bit of sparring to do."  He reached around to pull Goten off his back.  "Besides, I'm really hungry right now.  How about we go and eat dinner?"

                "All right!" he shouted, nodded his head quickly.

                "What do you boys want?" Chichi asked them.

                They both shrugged.  "I don't know, Mom."

                "Well how bout this: I'll make a big pot of rice since you two are sparring.  That way, you'll have more than enough energy to last an hour."

                "Sounds good Mom," they both said in unison.

                "Very good.  Now, I want both of you to wash up.  I'll try and have the first servings done in five minutes."  And they were off, both running upstairs to wash their faces and hands.

                "You ready to spar tonight squirt?" he asked his younger brother.

                "Yeah!  It was so boring without you here today!  I can't wait!"  He laughed at Goten's happiness.

                "What did you end up doing today then that made you so bored?"  For a moment, Goten looked thoughtful.

                "Well, Mom told me to read a book, and I did that.  After that, I went out and played catch with the butterflies and frogs."

                "Really now?  How so?"  It raised his interest somewhat to know how he did such a thing with small creatures.

                "It was pretty one-sided, now that I remember.  I chased after them with one of those fishing nets, but they ended up winning," Goten said, pouting some.

                "Hey, don't worry about that.  Next time, you'll just have to be more stealthy, okay?"

                "Stealthy… you mean that I should be more quiet next time, right?"

                "Exactly," he said, smiling.  He turned to go back to the kitchen, already smelling the first servings of rice coming out of the pot.  As he got to the door though, he felt a tug on his pants from Goten.  He turned his head and looked down.  "What is it squirt?"

                "I got a surprise tonight when we go sparring.  You'll like it a lot."

                "Oh really?  You want to show me now?"

                Goten shook his head.  "I can't.  Mom would yell at me for doing it inside."  He ran off ahead of his older brother.

                "Something that he can't show inside?  I wonder what that would be…" Gohan left it at that, going down the stairs to have many, many servings of his mother's white rice.

* * *

                "I'm home!" came the cry from the door.  At first there was no sound.  Soon though, two pairs of footsteps had started.  One pair originated from the kitchen, while the other pair came from upstairs.  The pair upstairs was the much heavier pair, as the person owning them seemed highly ecstatic for the teen at the door, hence the heavy running.  Kagero came flying down the stairs moments before Faye came in, both moving towards the front door.

                "Videl!" cried Kagero.  She leapt a good five feet into her older sister's hands.  She spun the youngster around twice before placing her on her shoulders.

                "Good afternoon Videl.  How was your day?" Faye asked, taking the more mellow approach to greeting the girl.

                "Give me a foot massage and I might say it was okay," she said sarcastically.

                "That bad, huh?"

                "Three!  Count them: three police calls!  And then I stopped a fourth one that I saw coming home!  These idiots can't do sh-"

                "Videl!  Not with Kagero on your shoulders!" Faye reprimanded.  Kagero stifled a giggle while the teen just continued to look angry.

                "Fine.  These idiots can't do anything in the city!  Better?"

                "Much."

                "Good.  What's for dinner?" she asked, walking towards the stairs with Kagero still on top.

                "Nothing too much tonight.  Just some rice and chicken… should help you two with your sparring tonight."  She moved to the bottom of the stairs, making sure the girls heard her.

                "Ah, right.  Thanks Faye!"

                "Yeah!  Thanks Faye-Faye!"  With that, the girls made their way to the bedroom.  Once inside, she sat on the edge of her bed, falling backwards and letting Kagero land on the pillows.  She pulled herself up and sat in the middle of the bed, with the younger girl moving up in front of her.

                "So what did you do today?" she asked Kagero.

                "Well, Faye-Faye needed to go get some food, and she asked me to come along.  So I went with her."

                "That's cool."

                "Yeah!  We went down to the southern part of the city, since she said something about the better produce and grains coming into the city from there."

                "I take it that's where she got most of the dinner from?"

                Kagero nodded.  "We stayed there for a while too.  We went sight seeing for a while, and we even saw you stop a robbery today!"

                "Really now?"

                She nodded again.  "Yeah.  We would have said 'hi', but you looked like you were in a rush."  She slightly, remembering the "fun" she had today.

                "Kagero, do me a favor and don't volunteer for the police department."

                "Why?" she asked confused.

                She thought for a moment, trying to figure out how to say this.  "I might tell you when you're older, but you might as well know now, since you are a pretty perceptive for someone your age.

                "The reason that I don't want you to volunteer is because the cops will expect you to do everything.  Sure, you might enjoy it the first few weeks when you get the thrill of beating the snot out of crooks.  Eventually though, they'll end up relying on you so much that you won't have anytime to yourself."

                "Is that what happened today?" Kagero asked.

                "Yeah."  She quickly replayed for her the day's events.  "So you see, being a volunteer police officer really isn't the greatest thing to do."

                "Videl, why do you still do it then if you don't like it?"

                She got caught there.  She had been expecting the question for a while, mostly from someone older, like her dad or Faye, but never from her younger sister.  "I don't know really."  She paused.  "Actually, if you want a better answer, I guess I would say that I want to make a name for myself.  Most of the people still know me as the daughter of Mr. Satan.  Wouldn't you rather be known as 'Kagero Satan: Civil Servant' instead of 'The Youngest Daughter of the Greatest of all Men: Mr. Satan'?"  She shook her head.  "Well, that's what most people know be by.  They're too incompetent to know the real truth about anything."

                "And you want to find out the real truth?"

                "Exactly."  She paused again, and then smiled.  "You know, it's pretty dangerous to be that young and be so knowledgeable," she said.

                "I get it from you.  Remember that."

                "I will.  Now, anything else happen today?" she asked Kagero.

                "I think so.  We were out till about three thirty today.  There was something that Faye-Faye noticed though.  I asked her what it was though, and she said something about recognizing some guy."

                "Did you ask her about this guy?"

                She nodded.  "She said that he looked eerily reminiscent of somebody that you dreamt about."

                Videl said nothing.  She was too shocked to say anything, and she wouldn't speak again for another ten minutes, when dinner was ready.

* * *

                "You ready Goten?" he asked his younger brother.

                "Yeah!  I want to spar now!"

                He laughed.  "All right."  He walked into the kitchen, looking for his mom.  He found her at the sink, washing the mountain-sized pile of dishes.  "Hey Mom.  We're heading out now."

                "Okay Gohan.  Try and be back in before it gets dark," Chichi said, turning her head briefly to address her son.

                "We will.  Bye Mom!"  He went back into the living room, picking up Goten along the way before exiting the house.

                "So Goten, what training ground will we do today?"

                "Um…" he put his finger to his chin, looking thoughtful for a moment.  "Let's go to the usual one."

                "Why that one?" he asked.

                "I like that one.  It's just so big, and there's so much to do over there.  Come on!  I'll race you!"  Goten didn't bother waiting for his brother, for he was already off, running full speed towards the training ground.  He soon disappeared into the forest, leaving the teenager standing just yards away from his house.

                He closed his eyes, sensing where his brother was at this time.  "You're getting faster Goten… nearly halfway there now.  Hmm… might have to go Super Saiyan to catch up this time.  Let's see."  He transformed, not bothering with the golden aura.  There was no need for it, and he didn't want to face his mom about transforming into a Super Saiyan so close to the house and destroying most of the windows in the front of it.

                "Five… four… three… two… one… GO!"  And he was off, racing through the forest as quick as he could manage, dodging the trees and the thick bush.  He soon emerged at the far side of the forest – several kilometers wide – in under a minute.  He got out of Super Saiyan form just as Goten came out: he had a huge smile on his face, thinking for once that he might have beaten his brother.  That was, until he turned his head to the clearing from the forest that his smile dropped.

                "No fair!" Goten cried out.

                He laughed.  "Hey, you got a head start.  I wouldn't call that fair now, would I?" he asked, knowing the answer.

                "Well… you're faster than me!"

                "You're getting faster though.  I had to transform this time.  Eventually you'll beat me with those head starts."  He moved out into the field some.  "Now… attack!"

                He turned, and met Goten's first punch with a forearm block.  They went like that for nearly twenty minutes, exchanging punches, kicks and the like.  In those twenty minutes though, the boys used the majority of the field.  The fight took place mostly on the ground, due to Goten's inability to fly.  It wasn't boring to them though.  Most of their movements were rapid, as one would go for a strike, and at the last moment, one would dodge, only to counter and miss.  Whether it was Goten's growing instincts in battle, or his older brother's lessened instincts due to the lack of training that he had done in the last seven years didn't matter to them, as it was pure fun.

                They paused for a moment, taking a quick breather and gauging each other's next move.  The teenage Saiyan smirked, something that Goten returned equally.  It wasn't until his smirk turned into a frown that the younger boy got worried.

                "Time to turn this up now," he said, clenching his fists and turning into a Super Saiyan.  Goten stepped back, worry on his face.  He didn't have time to think, as his brother leapt forward, preparing to strike.  He did the only thing he could do: step back once more, cross his arms… and turn into a Super Saiyan.  The teen stopped mere inches from Goten, looking down at him in awe and amazement.

                "So this is the surprise you had for me, huh?" he asked, now looking on in approval.

                He nodded.  "It's so cool!  I like it when I fight this way!"

                "Ah… so you've been doing this for a while now?"

                "About a month I think… I really haven't kept track of it.  I only know that I turned into it in front of Mom, and she sort of freaked out."

                He laughed.  "I half expected her to… at least, when you did eventually transform.  Wow… this is amazing… turning Super Saiyan at such a young age.  I mean, I was young when I transformed, but this… I'm speechless."  He sat down, scratching the back of his head with one hand.  Goten mimicked his moment, but placed both his hands behind his head, grinning wildly.

                "Hey Gohan!  I want to see how good I am against you now.  Can we spar again?" he asked.

                "Sure," Gohan said, standing up and getting into a stance.  "Let's see what you got."  With that, they fought for nearly an hour, fighting in the field until sunset.

* * *

                "Are you ready, Kagero?" she asked from the bottom of the stairs, patiently waiting for her sister to come down for their sparring session.  She got her answer a few moments later, as Kagero came racing around the corner and slid down the railing, right into her big sister's arms.

                "I'm ready!" she cried out.

                She set her down on the ground.  "Good.  Shall we?"  Kagero nodded, and the two went off through the house towards the back door.  They passed by Faye along the way.

                "Are you two going out now?" she asked.

                "Yeah.  We're going to use the outdoor floor.  We should be done in about an hour."

                She nodded.  "Have fun you two!" she yelled out after them before resuming the work she had before her.

                The girls reached the outdoor mat within a few minutes.  They took a few laps around the floor, getting themselves warmed up before sitting down and stretching.  They remained silent the whole time, letting their minds get into focus.  Kagero had been recently taught by her big sister the finite points of relaxing and focusing.  She learned well, as her recent training went together with her increasing perceptiveness.  The teen thought it would be good for her to focus now instead of later, since it would develop a lot of her skills now.  She herself didn't learn meditative skills until six or seven months after her mother's death, when she had found the one thing – besides Kagero – that brought her back into reality and focus.

                They finished at the same time, standing up and moving to opposite sides of the square mat.  It wasn't very big – at most, it can hold and train twelve people – but it was the perfect size for both of them to move around freely.  They stepped back into their stances and prepared for round one.

                "Are you ready Kagero?" she asked.

                "Bring it on Videl.  I'm ready."

                She smirked.  "Good."  Without warning, she sprang forward, intent on getting the first blow.  Kagero, while still young, was fast, and she saw the opening attack.  She quickly dodged to the side, planted herself, and then shot out for her own attack.  The teen recovered from her first attack to avoid Kagero's counter.

                The fight went from there: punch, kick, elbow, and dodge, counter, counter and counter.  The older girl was able to land more of her strikes due to her overwhelming experience, but it didn't deter Kagero.  She had found a way to stay in the fight and score a few hits of her own.  After several minutes of this, they paused for a minute or so for a break, getting some water and catching their breath.

                It was round two in which she noticed something odd about the younger girl's behavior.  At first, she figured it was just some sort of fighting spirit coming from within that allowed the girl to fight as she was.  But then she noticed that Kagero's strikes were getting harder, albeit less focused.  She looked into her eyes during a brief lull in the fighting and saw something she didn't like: pure anger.  It explained the reason for this change of fighting, and she knew that it had to end fast.  She had to do it without getting herself hurt and her sister hurt.  Taking advantage of another brief lull, she quickly swooped in low and came under Kagero's arms, wrapping her up and tackling her to the mat.  She took a hold of her wrists and pushed them down, now having control of the girl.  Kagero's anger slowly went away, leaving her rather tired.

                "Now… tell me what's wrong?" she asked the girl.

                "Just… everything with Dad… it shouldn't get to me, I know… but I'm his daughter.  He doesn't acknowledge me as his daughter anymore… he hasn't in a while."  She paused, collecting her breath.  "I guess fighting you was the only way to get it out."  She looked down at the arms holding her, seeing that small, yet noticeable bruises were forming.  "Sorry."

                She looked down herself, seeing why Kagero was apologizing.  "Don't worry.  I've had worse.  I was more worried about you anyway.  Fighting like that can get you injured."

                "I know."

                She lifted herself off of Kagero, moving back to sit on the mat.  "I have to talk with Faye about this," she said, a brief look of anger appearing on her face.

                "Videl!  Please, don't!  I don't want her in this."  The girl was desperate now for some odd reason.  That was what the teenager deduced

                "Kagero… Faye knows, and you told her to keep it away from me.  Whether or not this is because I watch over you too much doesn't matter.  I am your sister, and therefore, I have the sole obligation of making sure everything with you is all right.  You got me?"  She nodded.  "I wish there was an easier way to do things, but there isn't.  Please don't try and hide anything else from me that involves Dad, okay?"

                Another nod.  "I'll try."

                "Good.  I have to find Faye now.  I really must know what is going on."  Videl got up, making her way back through the door into the mansion, looking to confront Faye.

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End Part Six

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I hope you enjoyed.  Please review.