Later that night…
Usagi looked out her window as she sat in her room. Bulma had given her some aspirin right before she had left so she was feeling a little better, but the pain was still there and still quite unbearable. She had to hold herself very still. Whenever she would make the slightest move, she could feel it all over her body. She sighed as she watched her parents outside in the dark. It was quite obvious. They stood outside, in the near dark lighting, talking about everything that was happening. She knew why they were doing it away from her too. They didn't want her to get upset. But maybe that wasn't it. Maybe they or her mother anyways, didn't want her to get in the way. But that wouldn't explain why they were outside. Maybe they were talking about her. She didn't think that she had done anything all that bad. She just stood up for herself. But then again, if she hadn't gone into the city, then she wouldn't have gotten into the fight. Then she wouldn't have distracted her father from his tests. But there was always the chance that she was just being paranoid about them trying to hide anything from her. That she was just blowing everything totally out of proportion. It was too confusing for Usagi and it hurt her head to just think about it.
She leaned the unwounded part of her face on the window seal as she began to think about what DID take place earlier in the day. Who was Mamoru really? Why DID he want to fight her? Obviously it wasn't just to get back at her for what she had done to Haruka and Michiru. There had to be more. If he could use his own energy to fight, maybe he could sense power levels too. Maybe that's why he was so confident. But there was the fact that he was hanging out with Haruka and Michiru. They didn't need a reason to pick on her. Maybe this boy really was telling the truth about just wanting to get back. It didn't really matter. He had done a good job of beating on her and she now knew to stay away from him until she got stronger so she could at least defend herself.
She looked back out the window at her parents. They looked to be fighting again. They seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Usually about her. This she knew this for a fact. 'If only I had been born earlier. Gohan says that there was a time when mamma only got mad if we didn't get good grades. She gets mad at me for everything I do.'
There was a reason for that though. Chi-Chi, being the over protective mother that she is, wanted only what was best for her daughter. Even if that meant getting it done by force. Her children had a tendency of just doing what ever they pleased. Chi-Chi wasn't going to have that again. Not this time. No, this time around she would raise her child right. Little did she know that by doing this, it was pushing Usagi further away from her. Oh well, what ever floats your boat, ne
Usagi snapped out of her thinking and focused back down at her parents, who seemed to be starring up at her. "Yikes." She pulled back so they couldn't see her anymore.
~*~*~
Chi-Chi hit her husband in the chest. "See what I mean? That's all your influence you know?!"
Goku looked down at his wife. "What are you talking about? She wasn't doing anything wrong. She was just watching. Any kid would do that." Chi-Chi didn't say anything. She just frowned at him. "Are you saying that I'm not a good influence on Usagi?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying."
Now Goku was frowning. He had been listening to this kind of crap from his wife for over a year now and was quite frankly was getting fed up with it. "Chi-Chi, I don't think this is the right time to talk about something like this."
Chi-Chi sarcastically smiled and let out a small laugh. "I should have known you would do this. You always run away from your responsibility."
"I'm running away from responsibility? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Chi-Chi began to tap her foot on the ground out of anger. "You know exactly what I mean."
Goku hated it when Chi-Chi did this to him. She could never just come right out and say anything. She always had to make things difficult. "No Chi-Chi, I don't. How the HELL am I running away from responsibility. What I said was entirely true. With everyone sick, you think you would be more worried about you two sons who are sick from a disease that no one can detect, and here you are worried about how good of a father I am to Usagi. Well I've got news for you Chi-Chi, Usagi is fine."
"Usagi is fine? Your daughter just got her ass beat by some guy hella stronger than her and you think she is FINE!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"
This was not helping Goku's self esteem as a father. She was only adding to his doubt. "Usagi will be fine. So, I repeat, how am I running away from responsibility?"
"Well, it's fairly obvious. You fight. That's how you run away. You don't have to be a real father when you are fighting. That's why it's so easy for you to run away and fight. That's why you are training Usagi. So you don't have to take care of her. That's your philosophy isn't it? Just train them to fight, and they practically raise themselves."
Goku was a little hurt that Chi-Chi would say something like that about him. That's not the way he felt at all. He trained them so they could defend themselves if he wasn't there to do it. Goku hated the fact that he couldn't be there for his kids when they needed him. But since he trained them to be strong, they made do without him. "So that's what you think is it? I knew this would come up one of these days."
"Yes that's what I think. It's true."
Goku shook his head. "Honestly Chi-Chi, I would have thought that you would know me a little bit better by now. I mean how many years has it been already. If I really wanted to just run away from responsibility, do you think I would be standing here talking to you about this trying to defend myself? No, I think not. I would probably be somewhere in the Bahamas getting drunk and pimpin women."
Chi-Chi couldn't believe her ears. She raised her hand and punched Goku Square in the face. "You son of a…"
Goku raised his hand to his face where Chi-Chi just hit him. He deserved that. He was way out of line on that last comment. "Chi-Chi, I'm sorry, but it's true. I love you, Gohan, Goten, and Usagi with all my heart."
Chi-Chi turned away. "You sure don't act like it."
Goku put his hand on her shoulder. "If I hated you guys so much, I wouldn't have fought for the earth so much. I wouldn't have risked my life for you guys."
Chi-Chi turned around. "What?"
"Do you know what my motivation was whenever I was fighting?" Chi-Chi shook her head. He had never told her. "It was you. You and the kids. If I had failed, it would have been the end of all of you. That's why I fight. Not because I'm running away from responsibility. I fight because of my responsibilities. I love you Chi-Chi."
Chi-Chi smiled. "I love you too Goku." She threw herself into his arms. Awwww… Yuck! Romance in my story? LOL! "I'm sorry."
Goku rubbed his hand on her back. "I'm sorry I wasn't there. But that's all over now. I'm here to stay. Unless someone comes and threatens the planet. But you'll understand." He picked her up in his arms and began to carry her back to the house. He always loved it when they made up. It always left him feeling so warm and fuzzy inside.
Chi-Chi giggled a bit. "Yes I will, a wise man told me your intentions."
Goku smiled. "Is that so? Well kudos to him."
~*~*~
Usagi was dealing with a bit of her own problem. After she had ducked so her parents could not see her it was all over. She found herself stuck to the floor in pain. As if that wasn't bad enough, a nice, long legged, hair spider decided that she was something to sit on. Usagi couldn't really do anything about it either. She could barely move. "Shoo, go away." Spiders had to be one of the things that she was afraid of the most. Them and their stupid long fuzzy legs. She especially hated it when they moved those legs. It was to gross for her. "Come on you stupid spider, get off. Please?" She tried to flick it off with her good hand, but she was lying on it and she couldn't get I out from underneath her. She would have used her tail, but when she tried that before, the spider just climbed onto her tail instead. "GET OFF YOU STUPID SPIDER!"
Goku sat his wife down on the bed as he heard Usagi in her room. He shook his head and laughed. "Her and her fear of spiders. Gees, I swear, if she had her way, she would rid the world of spiders. I'll be back." Goku left Chi-Chi in her room. If he had things his way, he would have just stayed and left Usagi to fin for herself. But he knew he couldn't do that.
~*~*~
Goku opened the door to his daughter's room to see her lying by her bed with a rather large spider sitting on her waist. "Hey there kiddo."
Usagi looked up at her father. "Boy, am I glad to see you. Get this stupid spider off of me!"
Goku laughed. She always cracked him up. "Ok. Don't worry. I got it under control." He walked over to her swatted the spider off of her leg with his hand. "There you go. Now why don't we get you in to bed?"
Usagi looked at the clock. "But it's only 7:00. I still have an hour."
Goku didn't want anymore disruptions that night. He wanted to spend some alone time with Chi-Chi. He wanted to make her realize that he meant it when he said that he loved her. "I know, but you have had a long day and you need your rest." As carefully and slowly as he could, Goku picked Usagi up off of the floor and gently placed her in her bed.
Usagi wasn't even really tired. She just hurt. He was acting strange all of a sudden though. Like he was extra happy about something. Usagi found this a bit strange. She could have sworn that they had been yelling outside. "What were you and mamma yelling about? Was it about me?"
Goku knew that she would ask that. In a way it was, but she didn't have to know that. It was only about her because of him. "No. It was about me." Another thing that their many fights had been about. "Don't worry Usagi. Mommy isn't mad at me anymore. I made her happy again. So you just close your eyes and go to sleep. And try not to move too much."
That wasn't something that Usagi would have to worry about doing. Usagi forced herself not to move. "Goodnight daddy."
"Goodnight Usagi."
~*~*~
4 days later (Wednesday)…
Usagi hadn't really been all that active since Saturday. She hadn't really had that much a reason to. She did everything that she was supposed to, just not to her full extent. While she was normally, a chipper little girl, the past few days she had somewhat withdrawn from everything that was around her. She didn't fight as well as she could. She didn't really talk to anybody either. There was a reason for this withdrawal too. Her brothers were getting sicker by the day, Bra had gotten sick on Monday, and on Tuesday her health started to deteriorate at a horribly fast pace. Usagi didn't know what to do with herself anymore. Pan and Trunks seemed to be stable, her father and Vejita didn't seem to be getting sick again, but who knows how long that would hold up. After sparring, she was to go with Capsule Corp. to check on the others. She couldn't wait. She hadn't seen them since her visit on Sunday.
She sighed as she rested her head on the table in front of her. At the time, she was meant to be listening to a guest speaker talk about how drugs affect people's bodies and how you should never do them. She didn't care about that though. There were too many other things to worry about.
Makoto turned her head back to look at Usagi. She looked so sad and there was really nothing that she could do to help her. Usagi refused to talk to them about what was going on. She knew not to force it out of her either. It was probably about her family and was most likely too painful to talk about. She couldn't remember seeing Usagi so upset before and it made her want to cry whenever she looked at her. She knew that there was something wrong when Usagi wasn't aggressive in their daily spar sessions. She held back most of what she had. 'Gees, if this goes on, she won't be able to participate very well in the tournament. But she will have to. Goku will make her.' She looked up to the clock that sat by the door. 'Ten minutes till we get to leave. Thank god.'
Usagi looked up at the D.A.R.E. officer who stood and talked in front of the class. She wasn't listening to a word that he had to say. She couldn't wait until she could just get out of there. She didn't care anymore. Nothing was more important that her friends right at the moment.
"So, what do you do if someone offers you drugs?"
"Just say 'No.'" The class said all at the same time.
The officer seemed happy with the response he got. "Good." He smiled. "Well, I will see you all later. I've got to run. Thanks for having me." He turned to the door and left.
Mr. Koch walked to the front of the class. "It looks like we only have a few minutes left of class. I'm going to give you a treat. Since you all did so well with listening, I'm going to just let you talk these last few minutes."
Everyone turned to each other and smiled as they began to talk with each other. Minako turned to look at Usagi. She knew that it was probably not worth trying to talk to her. She would just barely say anything. She turned to Makoto. "So, did you learn anything new?"
"Are you kidding? My parents have been filling my head about how bad drugs are since I was old enough to say 'mamma'. I know not to do them." Makoto put her bag on the table.
"Yeah, mine too. Weren't some of these boys rude though? I mean really, you don't just sit here and talk while a police officer is talking to you. Can't you get arrested for that?"
"I think so. If you disobey and officer I think you can."
Usagi kept her head pressed against her chest as she looked down at her arm and then to her leg. She wasn't in pain from it anymore. The only things left were scabs. She looked up at her friends. "I'm sorry you guys."
Minako and Makoto looked over to Usagi. "Huh? What are you talking about?"
Usagi put her arms up on the table. "I haven't really talked to you at all the past couple of days. I haven't really been myself though."
Minako leaned back in her chair. "Don't worry about it Usagi. We know you are going through a hard time."
Mr. Koch pushed her chair forward from behind. "All legs of the chair stay on the floor Minako."
Usagi made sure Mr. Koch was gone out of hearing distance before she continued. "Well, I'm really confused right now. I mean, on Monday, Bra got sick. Then, yesterday, she started to get worse. Like Goten and Gohan. They are getting worse too. Bulma told mamma that. I'm really worried about them. But not only about that. I'm worried that me and daddy will get sick too."
"But Usagi, you haven't gotten sick yet." Minako made sure Mr. Koch wasn't watching and began to lean back in her chair again.
"I know, but everyone says that I can still get sick. But it's weird. Only Saiyans are getting sick." Usagi looked up at the clock and realized that there were only two minutes left of class. She grabbed her book bag and put it on her back. "I just want it to end."
"So, are you still going to do the Tournament next week?" That was all Makoto could think about at the moment. She also wanted to change the subject for Usagi's sake.
Usagi smiled. "Of course I am. I wouldn't pass that up for anything. Unless I was sick, but that's not the point. The point is that I am going to go to the tournament and beat Mamoru. I'll show him what happens when you mess with Son Usagi. Hehe, I can't wait. Come on you guys, let's get out of this stuffy class room." Usagi felt better already. Just talking about it made her happy. Minako and Makoto always had a way of cheering her up, even if it seemed impossible for her to do so. "I'm getting better and my teleportation."
Makoto smiled. "Not as good as me." She opened the door and walked outside with Usagi and Minako. "I'm the best and you all know it."
"Yeah, whatever. You know that no one can be any better then me, Minako the great."
Makoto laughed. "You're just jealous of my great power."
Usagi put her arm around Makoto's neck. "Quite denying the truth."
"And the truth would be…"
Usagi turned when she heard her father's voice and smiled. "Hi daddy. The truth is that I'm better at teleporting then both of these guys here."
Goku chuckled. They were always competing with each other for the best fighter. "You are all very good." He turned around. "We should go. We only have a week until the tournament."
Usagi couldn't wait. "Yeah, I have one week to get stronger then Mamoru."
"I thought he was entered into a higher level of fighting then us though." Minako jumped into the air.
Usagi followed. "So, that doesn't mean I can't challenge him to a friendly fight."
Usagi looked over at his daughter after he jumped into the air too. "Promise me you won't do anything too stupid." Usagi giggled as she took off without answering to her father. "There she goes again. She's in one of her moods."
"At least she's not sad anymore." Makoto gave herself a burst of speed so she could catch up to Usagi.
Minako looked to Goku before joining her friends. "Yeah. She has a point, Goku."
~*~*~
Although he was the last to leave, Goku was the first to arrive at their destination. Halfway to the field, Usagi had begun a race. He laughed as he landed. He watched the three girls land in front of him. "You guys lost."
Usagi half-frowned. "That wasn't fair. You go faster then us."
"Well, who was it that said that they could go faster then me? Hmm…I think it was a little girl named Usagi. Well, I think I just proved her wrong."
Usagi laughed sarcastically. "Hahaha…ha…ha. Very funny. So what? You've been doing this longer then me. Just you wait. When I get older, I'm going to beat you. You just wait and see." She adjusted the belt of her GI to fit around her waist more comfortably.
"You keep thinking that Usagi. But I think that I just beat you." Minako could see the embarrassment in her friend's face.
Usagi had to think of an excuse, quickly. "Well…that's because you…uh…pushed me down. Yeah that's it. I would have beaten you if it wasn't for that." Usagi knew that she would buy it, but it was worth a try.
"Get over yourself. Just admit it. I'm the best." Minako began posing for an imaginary audience like she had seen the women doing on TV. "I'm just so beautiful. Everybody wants me." Minako didn't have a clue what she was saying but she heard it from a movie that her mother was watching one day and thought it sounded pretty cool.
Makoto rolled her eyes. "You get over YOURself Minako. Can we just fight now? I've got a lot of energy that I need to get rid of." Makoto started to jump from leg to leg.
Goku rubbed his hands. "I'm good with that. But let's make this a little fun today. Let's say you all fight me. I want some action today. We haven't done this in a LONG time."
Usagi smiled. "K!" Before anyone else was able to say anything, Usagi's foot found it's way into her father's leg.
Goku, who was not ready for that, stumbled backwards. "Usagi!? What are you doing?" He quickly regained his composure just in time to dodge a Ki blast.
Usagi giggled. "You should be ready for anything daddy." Usagi ran away from her spot. She was going to play difficult this time. She wouldn't hold still any longer then it took to attack.
Goku grinned. "So you want to play that way do you?" Goku could tell that she was definitely in a playful mood now. "I can do that." Minako and Makoto looked at each other and nodded. They jumped in the air, both producing energy balls in each of their hands. Goku looked up to the duo. 'They will have to do better then that if they want to get me.' He waited until they shot at him to move out of the way.
They watched him carefully making sure they followed every single one of his movements with their eyes. Right when they were about to fire at him, they say Usagi come out and hit him in the head with her elbow. She came out of no where. They took their chance to attack while he was on the ground and unable to see it. They watched as their attacks spiraled down to Goku. Halfway down, they merged together into one giant, powerful ball of a energy.
Goku was hit in the back with one big blast. He looked up to the girls. 'What the hell was that? How did they combine their attack like that?' He grabbed his back with his hands as he stood up and looked behind him, expecting to see Usagi. He felt some rips in his GI. 'Where did she go?'
He looked over his shoulder. He could sense her standing behind him. He grinned. 'Let's see how she likes this.' He bolted around as fast as he could with his fist out in front of him ready to attack. Usagi knew her father all too well though. At the first sight of movement from him, she ducked and pushed herself onto his leg. Goku looked down at her. "What are you doing? I can still attack like this." He lifted his leg in the air and began to swing it as fast as possible.
Usagi snickered. 'I'm not trying to do anything but be a decoy.'
Makoto smirked. "I can't believe he's falling for this Minako." She landed behind Goku, who was still furiously shaking his leg around. Usagi didn't know how much more she could take. She was getting quiet dizzy. "Just hold on a little bit longer." She whispered to herself. "Minako, are you ready?" She looked to Minako, who nodded. "Good." She put her hands out in front of her again to make another Ki blast. "This was too easy."
Goku knew exactly what was going on behind him. He could feel Makoto building up for another attack. He grinned as he put his leg down and pulled Usagi up and held her in front of himself just in time for her to receive a kick from Minako. "Oww!"
By the time Makoto figured out what was going on it was too late. As soon as she saw Minako attack, she released her energy onto Usagi. Luckily her aim was a bit off and it only hit her legs. She put her hand to her mouth. "Usagi, I'm so sorry."
Goku dropped Usagi to the ground. "You should have more discipline when you're fighting. Then your friends won't get hurt."
Usagi slowly stood to her feet. He legs were a bit wobbly beneath her though. She looked to her father and then to Makoto. She could have attacked her, she wanted to attack her, but she knew who was really at fault here. Her father. He just stood by and let her attack. She playfully frowned. 'Someone is going to get it now.' She ran as fast as she good and jumped up onto her father's back. She wrapped her arms around his neck and strung then down to his chest while digging her nails in as hard and as deep as she could. Then she wrapped her lags around his stomach/waist area and dug the heals of her feet in.
Goku stopped walking and tried to grab Usagi from the back. She was positioned just in the right position for him to not be able to reach her and grab her off of him without hurting her. "Usagi, you and your girl way of fighting."
Usagi smiled. "But I am a girl." She turned her head to look at Minako and Makoto who seemed to know exactly what she was thinking. They flew in front of him.
Minako took his body, while Makoto took his face. They both began to wildly punch at him as fast and as hard as possible.
Goku smiled. 'They are finally working as a team instead of coming for me all at once.' Usagi knew that he wasn't taking much damage so she decided it was time for her attack to come. She looked down at her hands as they began to glow a soft yellow. Goku also looked at her hands. "Usagi…" He wasn't sure what she was planning on doing.
Usagi giggled. "I've got you know."
Goku could feel her energy being contributed all around his body. It felt like little pins being pulled in and out of his skin over and over again. For once, his daughter was actually able to cause him some discomfort. If she were to try this on anyone but a Super Saiyan, it might actually do some damage. He could feel his muscles becoming numb as she continued. "Usagi…that's enough." Usagi didn't stop. She just continued with her 'attack.' "Usagi, I said that's ENOUGH!" He pulled her hands off of his chest and flipped her over onto her back, leaving her on the ground. He looked down at her.
Minako and Makoto watched in amazement. They had never seen Usagi use that attack before. They didn't even know that she had the power to do that.
Usagi grabbed her back in slight pain. She knew that he would try to pull her off, she just wasn't ready for him to do it like THAT. She looked up at him and smirked. "I finally got you."
Goku smiled. He had to give her credit for that one. "Yes, you did. But, I need to ask you something." He bent down, picked Usagi up, and put her on her feet.
"What?" She brushed the dirt off of her GI.
"Where did you learn that attack? It was amazing." Goku couldn't imagine where she came up with it.
Usagi shrugged. "Just something I came up with when I was playing around on Monday. I was practicing on a tree."
Goku shook his head in astonishment. 'Already teaching herself her own attacks. Truly amazing.' "Well, you did a good job."
"I'll say. Hey Usagi, can you teach me that?" Makoto was always interested in learning new things. Though she wasn't very good at making her own attacks, or so she thought.
Usagi nodded. "Yeah, it's really easy too."
"Well, it will have to wait for another day. We have to get to Bulma's to check on your brothers, kiddo."
"Right, I nearly forgot about that. I guess I was having too much fun." She turned to Minako and Makoto. "I'll teach you how to do it tomorrow. I'll have to show you what else I can do too."
(K! that's it for this part. Tell me what you think. Thanks.)
Usagi looked out her window as she sat in her room. Bulma had given her some aspirin right before she had left so she was feeling a little better, but the pain was still there and still quite unbearable. She had to hold herself very still. Whenever she would make the slightest move, she could feel it all over her body. She sighed as she watched her parents outside in the dark. It was quite obvious. They stood outside, in the near dark lighting, talking about everything that was happening. She knew why they were doing it away from her too. They didn't want her to get upset. But maybe that wasn't it. Maybe they or her mother anyways, didn't want her to get in the way. But that wouldn't explain why they were outside. Maybe they were talking about her. She didn't think that she had done anything all that bad. She just stood up for herself. But then again, if she hadn't gone into the city, then she wouldn't have gotten into the fight. Then she wouldn't have distracted her father from his tests. But there was always the chance that she was just being paranoid about them trying to hide anything from her. That she was just blowing everything totally out of proportion. It was too confusing for Usagi and it hurt her head to just think about it.
She leaned the unwounded part of her face on the window seal as she began to think about what DID take place earlier in the day. Who was Mamoru really? Why DID he want to fight her? Obviously it wasn't just to get back at her for what she had done to Haruka and Michiru. There had to be more. If he could use his own energy to fight, maybe he could sense power levels too. Maybe that's why he was so confident. But there was the fact that he was hanging out with Haruka and Michiru. They didn't need a reason to pick on her. Maybe this boy really was telling the truth about just wanting to get back. It didn't really matter. He had done a good job of beating on her and she now knew to stay away from him until she got stronger so she could at least defend herself.
She looked back out the window at her parents. They looked to be fighting again. They seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Usually about her. This she knew this for a fact. 'If only I had been born earlier. Gohan says that there was a time when mamma only got mad if we didn't get good grades. She gets mad at me for everything I do.'
There was a reason for that though. Chi-Chi, being the over protective mother that she is, wanted only what was best for her daughter. Even if that meant getting it done by force. Her children had a tendency of just doing what ever they pleased. Chi-Chi wasn't going to have that again. Not this time. No, this time around she would raise her child right. Little did she know that by doing this, it was pushing Usagi further away from her. Oh well, what ever floats your boat, ne
Usagi snapped out of her thinking and focused back down at her parents, who seemed to be starring up at her. "Yikes." She pulled back so they couldn't see her anymore.
~*~*~
Chi-Chi hit her husband in the chest. "See what I mean? That's all your influence you know?!"
Goku looked down at his wife. "What are you talking about? She wasn't doing anything wrong. She was just watching. Any kid would do that." Chi-Chi didn't say anything. She just frowned at him. "Are you saying that I'm not a good influence on Usagi?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying."
Now Goku was frowning. He had been listening to this kind of crap from his wife for over a year now and was quite frankly was getting fed up with it. "Chi-Chi, I don't think this is the right time to talk about something like this."
Chi-Chi sarcastically smiled and let out a small laugh. "I should have known you would do this. You always run away from your responsibility."
"I'm running away from responsibility? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Chi-Chi began to tap her foot on the ground out of anger. "You know exactly what I mean."
Goku hated it when Chi-Chi did this to him. She could never just come right out and say anything. She always had to make things difficult. "No Chi-Chi, I don't. How the HELL am I running away from responsibility. What I said was entirely true. With everyone sick, you think you would be more worried about you two sons who are sick from a disease that no one can detect, and here you are worried about how good of a father I am to Usagi. Well I've got news for you Chi-Chi, Usagi is fine."
"Usagi is fine? Your daughter just got her ass beat by some guy hella stronger than her and you think she is FINE!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"
This was not helping Goku's self esteem as a father. She was only adding to his doubt. "Usagi will be fine. So, I repeat, how am I running away from responsibility?"
"Well, it's fairly obvious. You fight. That's how you run away. You don't have to be a real father when you are fighting. That's why it's so easy for you to run away and fight. That's why you are training Usagi. So you don't have to take care of her. That's your philosophy isn't it? Just train them to fight, and they practically raise themselves."
Goku was a little hurt that Chi-Chi would say something like that about him. That's not the way he felt at all. He trained them so they could defend themselves if he wasn't there to do it. Goku hated the fact that he couldn't be there for his kids when they needed him. But since he trained them to be strong, they made do without him. "So that's what you think is it? I knew this would come up one of these days."
"Yes that's what I think. It's true."
Goku shook his head. "Honestly Chi-Chi, I would have thought that you would know me a little bit better by now. I mean how many years has it been already. If I really wanted to just run away from responsibility, do you think I would be standing here talking to you about this trying to defend myself? No, I think not. I would probably be somewhere in the Bahamas getting drunk and pimpin women."
Chi-Chi couldn't believe her ears. She raised her hand and punched Goku Square in the face. "You son of a…"
Goku raised his hand to his face where Chi-Chi just hit him. He deserved that. He was way out of line on that last comment. "Chi-Chi, I'm sorry, but it's true. I love you, Gohan, Goten, and Usagi with all my heart."
Chi-Chi turned away. "You sure don't act like it."
Goku put his hand on her shoulder. "If I hated you guys so much, I wouldn't have fought for the earth so much. I wouldn't have risked my life for you guys."
Chi-Chi turned around. "What?"
"Do you know what my motivation was whenever I was fighting?" Chi-Chi shook her head. He had never told her. "It was you. You and the kids. If I had failed, it would have been the end of all of you. That's why I fight. Not because I'm running away from responsibility. I fight because of my responsibilities. I love you Chi-Chi."
Chi-Chi smiled. "I love you too Goku." She threw herself into his arms. Awwww… Yuck! Romance in my story? LOL! "I'm sorry."
Goku rubbed his hand on her back. "I'm sorry I wasn't there. But that's all over now. I'm here to stay. Unless someone comes and threatens the planet. But you'll understand." He picked her up in his arms and began to carry her back to the house. He always loved it when they made up. It always left him feeling so warm and fuzzy inside.
Chi-Chi giggled a bit. "Yes I will, a wise man told me your intentions."
Goku smiled. "Is that so? Well kudos to him."
~*~*~
Usagi was dealing with a bit of her own problem. After she had ducked so her parents could not see her it was all over. She found herself stuck to the floor in pain. As if that wasn't bad enough, a nice, long legged, hair spider decided that she was something to sit on. Usagi couldn't really do anything about it either. She could barely move. "Shoo, go away." Spiders had to be one of the things that she was afraid of the most. Them and their stupid long fuzzy legs. She especially hated it when they moved those legs. It was to gross for her. "Come on you stupid spider, get off. Please?" She tried to flick it off with her good hand, but she was lying on it and she couldn't get I out from underneath her. She would have used her tail, but when she tried that before, the spider just climbed onto her tail instead. "GET OFF YOU STUPID SPIDER!"
Goku sat his wife down on the bed as he heard Usagi in her room. He shook his head and laughed. "Her and her fear of spiders. Gees, I swear, if she had her way, she would rid the world of spiders. I'll be back." Goku left Chi-Chi in her room. If he had things his way, he would have just stayed and left Usagi to fin for herself. But he knew he couldn't do that.
~*~*~
Goku opened the door to his daughter's room to see her lying by her bed with a rather large spider sitting on her waist. "Hey there kiddo."
Usagi looked up at her father. "Boy, am I glad to see you. Get this stupid spider off of me!"
Goku laughed. She always cracked him up. "Ok. Don't worry. I got it under control." He walked over to her swatted the spider off of her leg with his hand. "There you go. Now why don't we get you in to bed?"
Usagi looked at the clock. "But it's only 7:00. I still have an hour."
Goku didn't want anymore disruptions that night. He wanted to spend some alone time with Chi-Chi. He wanted to make her realize that he meant it when he said that he loved her. "I know, but you have had a long day and you need your rest." As carefully and slowly as he could, Goku picked Usagi up off of the floor and gently placed her in her bed.
Usagi wasn't even really tired. She just hurt. He was acting strange all of a sudden though. Like he was extra happy about something. Usagi found this a bit strange. She could have sworn that they had been yelling outside. "What were you and mamma yelling about? Was it about me?"
Goku knew that she would ask that. In a way it was, but she didn't have to know that. It was only about her because of him. "No. It was about me." Another thing that their many fights had been about. "Don't worry Usagi. Mommy isn't mad at me anymore. I made her happy again. So you just close your eyes and go to sleep. And try not to move too much."
That wasn't something that Usagi would have to worry about doing. Usagi forced herself not to move. "Goodnight daddy."
"Goodnight Usagi."
~*~*~
4 days later (Wednesday)…
Usagi hadn't really been all that active since Saturday. She hadn't really had that much a reason to. She did everything that she was supposed to, just not to her full extent. While she was normally, a chipper little girl, the past few days she had somewhat withdrawn from everything that was around her. She didn't fight as well as she could. She didn't really talk to anybody either. There was a reason for this withdrawal too. Her brothers were getting sicker by the day, Bra had gotten sick on Monday, and on Tuesday her health started to deteriorate at a horribly fast pace. Usagi didn't know what to do with herself anymore. Pan and Trunks seemed to be stable, her father and Vejita didn't seem to be getting sick again, but who knows how long that would hold up. After sparring, she was to go with Capsule Corp. to check on the others. She couldn't wait. She hadn't seen them since her visit on Sunday.
She sighed as she rested her head on the table in front of her. At the time, she was meant to be listening to a guest speaker talk about how drugs affect people's bodies and how you should never do them. She didn't care about that though. There were too many other things to worry about.
Makoto turned her head back to look at Usagi. She looked so sad and there was really nothing that she could do to help her. Usagi refused to talk to them about what was going on. She knew not to force it out of her either. It was probably about her family and was most likely too painful to talk about. She couldn't remember seeing Usagi so upset before and it made her want to cry whenever she looked at her. She knew that there was something wrong when Usagi wasn't aggressive in their daily spar sessions. She held back most of what she had. 'Gees, if this goes on, she won't be able to participate very well in the tournament. But she will have to. Goku will make her.' She looked up to the clock that sat by the door. 'Ten minutes till we get to leave. Thank god.'
Usagi looked up at the D.A.R.E. officer who stood and talked in front of the class. She wasn't listening to a word that he had to say. She couldn't wait until she could just get out of there. She didn't care anymore. Nothing was more important that her friends right at the moment.
"So, what do you do if someone offers you drugs?"
"Just say 'No.'" The class said all at the same time.
The officer seemed happy with the response he got. "Good." He smiled. "Well, I will see you all later. I've got to run. Thanks for having me." He turned to the door and left.
Mr. Koch walked to the front of the class. "It looks like we only have a few minutes left of class. I'm going to give you a treat. Since you all did so well with listening, I'm going to just let you talk these last few minutes."
Everyone turned to each other and smiled as they began to talk with each other. Minako turned to look at Usagi. She knew that it was probably not worth trying to talk to her. She would just barely say anything. She turned to Makoto. "So, did you learn anything new?"
"Are you kidding? My parents have been filling my head about how bad drugs are since I was old enough to say 'mamma'. I know not to do them." Makoto put her bag on the table.
"Yeah, mine too. Weren't some of these boys rude though? I mean really, you don't just sit here and talk while a police officer is talking to you. Can't you get arrested for that?"
"I think so. If you disobey and officer I think you can."
Usagi kept her head pressed against her chest as she looked down at her arm and then to her leg. She wasn't in pain from it anymore. The only things left were scabs. She looked up at her friends. "I'm sorry you guys."
Minako and Makoto looked over to Usagi. "Huh? What are you talking about?"
Usagi put her arms up on the table. "I haven't really talked to you at all the past couple of days. I haven't really been myself though."
Minako leaned back in her chair. "Don't worry about it Usagi. We know you are going through a hard time."
Mr. Koch pushed her chair forward from behind. "All legs of the chair stay on the floor Minako."
Usagi made sure Mr. Koch was gone out of hearing distance before she continued. "Well, I'm really confused right now. I mean, on Monday, Bra got sick. Then, yesterday, she started to get worse. Like Goten and Gohan. They are getting worse too. Bulma told mamma that. I'm really worried about them. But not only about that. I'm worried that me and daddy will get sick too."
"But Usagi, you haven't gotten sick yet." Minako made sure Mr. Koch wasn't watching and began to lean back in her chair again.
"I know, but everyone says that I can still get sick. But it's weird. Only Saiyans are getting sick." Usagi looked up at the clock and realized that there were only two minutes left of class. She grabbed her book bag and put it on her back. "I just want it to end."
"So, are you still going to do the Tournament next week?" That was all Makoto could think about at the moment. She also wanted to change the subject for Usagi's sake.
Usagi smiled. "Of course I am. I wouldn't pass that up for anything. Unless I was sick, but that's not the point. The point is that I am going to go to the tournament and beat Mamoru. I'll show him what happens when you mess with Son Usagi. Hehe, I can't wait. Come on you guys, let's get out of this stuffy class room." Usagi felt better already. Just talking about it made her happy. Minako and Makoto always had a way of cheering her up, even if it seemed impossible for her to do so. "I'm getting better and my teleportation."
Makoto smiled. "Not as good as me." She opened the door and walked outside with Usagi and Minako. "I'm the best and you all know it."
"Yeah, whatever. You know that no one can be any better then me, Minako the great."
Makoto laughed. "You're just jealous of my great power."
Usagi put her arm around Makoto's neck. "Quite denying the truth."
"And the truth would be…"
Usagi turned when she heard her father's voice and smiled. "Hi daddy. The truth is that I'm better at teleporting then both of these guys here."
Goku chuckled. They were always competing with each other for the best fighter. "You are all very good." He turned around. "We should go. We only have a week until the tournament."
Usagi couldn't wait. "Yeah, I have one week to get stronger then Mamoru."
"I thought he was entered into a higher level of fighting then us though." Minako jumped into the air.
Usagi followed. "So, that doesn't mean I can't challenge him to a friendly fight."
Usagi looked over at his daughter after he jumped into the air too. "Promise me you won't do anything too stupid." Usagi giggled as she took off without answering to her father. "There she goes again. She's in one of her moods."
"At least she's not sad anymore." Makoto gave herself a burst of speed so she could catch up to Usagi.
Minako looked to Goku before joining her friends. "Yeah. She has a point, Goku."
~*~*~
Although he was the last to leave, Goku was the first to arrive at their destination. Halfway to the field, Usagi had begun a race. He laughed as he landed. He watched the three girls land in front of him. "You guys lost."
Usagi half-frowned. "That wasn't fair. You go faster then us."
"Well, who was it that said that they could go faster then me? Hmm…I think it was a little girl named Usagi. Well, I think I just proved her wrong."
Usagi laughed sarcastically. "Hahaha…ha…ha. Very funny. So what? You've been doing this longer then me. Just you wait. When I get older, I'm going to beat you. You just wait and see." She adjusted the belt of her GI to fit around her waist more comfortably.
"You keep thinking that Usagi. But I think that I just beat you." Minako could see the embarrassment in her friend's face.
Usagi had to think of an excuse, quickly. "Well…that's because you…uh…pushed me down. Yeah that's it. I would have beaten you if it wasn't for that." Usagi knew that she would buy it, but it was worth a try.
"Get over yourself. Just admit it. I'm the best." Minako began posing for an imaginary audience like she had seen the women doing on TV. "I'm just so beautiful. Everybody wants me." Minako didn't have a clue what she was saying but she heard it from a movie that her mother was watching one day and thought it sounded pretty cool.
Makoto rolled her eyes. "You get over YOURself Minako. Can we just fight now? I've got a lot of energy that I need to get rid of." Makoto started to jump from leg to leg.
Goku rubbed his hands. "I'm good with that. But let's make this a little fun today. Let's say you all fight me. I want some action today. We haven't done this in a LONG time."
Usagi smiled. "K!" Before anyone else was able to say anything, Usagi's foot found it's way into her father's leg.
Goku, who was not ready for that, stumbled backwards. "Usagi!? What are you doing?" He quickly regained his composure just in time to dodge a Ki blast.
Usagi giggled. "You should be ready for anything daddy." Usagi ran away from her spot. She was going to play difficult this time. She wouldn't hold still any longer then it took to attack.
Goku grinned. "So you want to play that way do you?" Goku could tell that she was definitely in a playful mood now. "I can do that." Minako and Makoto looked at each other and nodded. They jumped in the air, both producing energy balls in each of their hands. Goku looked up to the duo. 'They will have to do better then that if they want to get me.' He waited until they shot at him to move out of the way.
They watched him carefully making sure they followed every single one of his movements with their eyes. Right when they were about to fire at him, they say Usagi come out and hit him in the head with her elbow. She came out of no where. They took their chance to attack while he was on the ground and unable to see it. They watched as their attacks spiraled down to Goku. Halfway down, they merged together into one giant, powerful ball of a energy.
Goku was hit in the back with one big blast. He looked up to the girls. 'What the hell was that? How did they combine their attack like that?' He grabbed his back with his hands as he stood up and looked behind him, expecting to see Usagi. He felt some rips in his GI. 'Where did she go?'
He looked over his shoulder. He could sense her standing behind him. He grinned. 'Let's see how she likes this.' He bolted around as fast as he could with his fist out in front of him ready to attack. Usagi knew her father all too well though. At the first sight of movement from him, she ducked and pushed herself onto his leg. Goku looked down at her. "What are you doing? I can still attack like this." He lifted his leg in the air and began to swing it as fast as possible.
Usagi snickered. 'I'm not trying to do anything but be a decoy.'
Makoto smirked. "I can't believe he's falling for this Minako." She landed behind Goku, who was still furiously shaking his leg around. Usagi didn't know how much more she could take. She was getting quiet dizzy. "Just hold on a little bit longer." She whispered to herself. "Minako, are you ready?" She looked to Minako, who nodded. "Good." She put her hands out in front of her again to make another Ki blast. "This was too easy."
Goku knew exactly what was going on behind him. He could feel Makoto building up for another attack. He grinned as he put his leg down and pulled Usagi up and held her in front of himself just in time for her to receive a kick from Minako. "Oww!"
By the time Makoto figured out what was going on it was too late. As soon as she saw Minako attack, she released her energy onto Usagi. Luckily her aim was a bit off and it only hit her legs. She put her hand to her mouth. "Usagi, I'm so sorry."
Goku dropped Usagi to the ground. "You should have more discipline when you're fighting. Then your friends won't get hurt."
Usagi slowly stood to her feet. He legs were a bit wobbly beneath her though. She looked to her father and then to Makoto. She could have attacked her, she wanted to attack her, but she knew who was really at fault here. Her father. He just stood by and let her attack. She playfully frowned. 'Someone is going to get it now.' She ran as fast as she good and jumped up onto her father's back. She wrapped her arms around his neck and strung then down to his chest while digging her nails in as hard and as deep as she could. Then she wrapped her lags around his stomach/waist area and dug the heals of her feet in.
Goku stopped walking and tried to grab Usagi from the back. She was positioned just in the right position for him to not be able to reach her and grab her off of him without hurting her. "Usagi, you and your girl way of fighting."
Usagi smiled. "But I am a girl." She turned her head to look at Minako and Makoto who seemed to know exactly what she was thinking. They flew in front of him.
Minako took his body, while Makoto took his face. They both began to wildly punch at him as fast and as hard as possible.
Goku smiled. 'They are finally working as a team instead of coming for me all at once.' Usagi knew that he wasn't taking much damage so she decided it was time for her attack to come. She looked down at her hands as they began to glow a soft yellow. Goku also looked at her hands. "Usagi…" He wasn't sure what she was planning on doing.
Usagi giggled. "I've got you know."
Goku could feel her energy being contributed all around his body. It felt like little pins being pulled in and out of his skin over and over again. For once, his daughter was actually able to cause him some discomfort. If she were to try this on anyone but a Super Saiyan, it might actually do some damage. He could feel his muscles becoming numb as she continued. "Usagi…that's enough." Usagi didn't stop. She just continued with her 'attack.' "Usagi, I said that's ENOUGH!" He pulled her hands off of his chest and flipped her over onto her back, leaving her on the ground. He looked down at her.
Minako and Makoto watched in amazement. They had never seen Usagi use that attack before. They didn't even know that she had the power to do that.
Usagi grabbed her back in slight pain. She knew that he would try to pull her off, she just wasn't ready for him to do it like THAT. She looked up at him and smirked. "I finally got you."
Goku smiled. He had to give her credit for that one. "Yes, you did. But, I need to ask you something." He bent down, picked Usagi up, and put her on her feet.
"What?" She brushed the dirt off of her GI.
"Where did you learn that attack? It was amazing." Goku couldn't imagine where she came up with it.
Usagi shrugged. "Just something I came up with when I was playing around on Monday. I was practicing on a tree."
Goku shook his head in astonishment. 'Already teaching herself her own attacks. Truly amazing.' "Well, you did a good job."
"I'll say. Hey Usagi, can you teach me that?" Makoto was always interested in learning new things. Though she wasn't very good at making her own attacks, or so she thought.
Usagi nodded. "Yeah, it's really easy too."
"Well, it will have to wait for another day. We have to get to Bulma's to check on your brothers, kiddo."
"Right, I nearly forgot about that. I guess I was having too much fun." She turned to Minako and Makoto. "I'll teach you how to do it tomorrow. I'll have to show you what else I can do too."
(K! that's it for this part. Tell me what you think. Thanks.)