-New Week. New Chapter. New Events.-

-Same Author. Same Style. Same Humor.-

-Deserved Gratitude-: Wow. I can't even begin to express my gratitude for the following reviewers: SAIYANWIZARD, Goten's fan, Thomas Drovin, TorankusuGohan, leanne, Orinos, Navka, SonChan, SouthernRebelGal, Tellemicus Sundance, LucreziaNoin86, GothicBlacre, sexy-jess, InuSaiyan007, Garowyn, Goten, Godzilla2, and Bra. Please continue reading this story. I promise that I will not leave you hanging at any moment, especially in the later chapters, where it gets even more dramatic and romantic. (Grins)

-Poll-: As the poll stands:

Bra first: SAIYANWIZARD, Goten's fan, leanne, Orinos, LucreziaNoin86, Garowyn, and Godzilla2.

Goten first: Goten's fan, Thomas Drovin, Navka, sexy-jess, InuSaiyan007 and Goten.

At the same time: Tellemicus Sundance.

Seemingly Undecided – No vote: TorankusuGohan, SonChan, SouthernRebelGal, GothicBlacre, and Bra.

This was really, really close. Each side had very good points, although I think I particularly agreed with what Tellemicus Sundance said.

If you see your name twice, that's because you were probably a bit indecisive, or you didn't say who you wanted clearly enough. If you didn't see your name, that's because you didn't say what you wanted in your review. But that's okay!

-Note-: The first part of this chapter is Bra's dream, so please don't get confused when you see people talking in ancient forms of English, or different DBZ characters acting in entirely different roles. This is Bra's own little world, remember, and she does as she pleases.

-Second Note-: Wow. This chapter is really long. I know I say that a lot – but this chapter is extremely long.

-Third Note-: Sorry for all of those Goku, Vegeta, Videl, Bulma, Gohan, Pan, Krillin, Eighteen, and Marron fans – but none of these characters will make an appearance in this chapter. Trunks and Chi-Chi make a slight appearance, though, but it isn't a lot. This chapter's strictly Goten and Bra!

-Fourth Note-: Inspiration for this chapter? We Belong Together by Mariah Carey. I just love that song! Also, Love is Stronger than Pride by Sade – that song provided much inspiration for thinking up this and the next few chapters. Hmm… have I ever had a fourth note before?

-Disclaimer-: I'm pretty annoyed at right now. If you honestly don't have the slightest clue as to what exactly they did to fuel my anger, go check out my bio. But, to be on the safe side, I don't own DBZ or anything related to it.

-In this Chapter-: Bra gets a rather unpleasant surprise at 6:30 in the morning; Goten steers his new student away from many of her former indulgences - much to her displeasure; Bra, going against her agreement, develops somewhat of a grudging attitude towards Goten's strict regiment; training soon commences; Bra suddenly asks Goten a very personal question, but he answers truthfully.

-Chapter 19-: And the Training Begins

-Subtitle-: I'm Curious - What Do You Really Think of Me?

The very next morning...

For the very first time in history, no single human being loitered the streets of West City. Each street seemed to be exactly the same no matter where one looked - each were lacking cars, buses, people, dogs - nothing was present at all within the desolate, barren roads. A light but cold wind blew strongly through the barren roadways, evoking no response - hence creating some sort of eerie feeling all around.

Well, almost nothing could be seen. A young girl of about the age of sixteen, dressed in a typical 17th-century peasant dress, was strolling the streets, a random whistle at the tip of her tongue. A slight skip within her steps, she continued to go wherever it was she intended to venture, apparently without a worry in the world. She played absentmindedly with a strand of her lime-green hair as she proceeded down the eerily vacant Central Street, usually the most crowded street of all.

However, it wasn't long before...

"Hail, sweet thing," a familiar-looking punk had seemingly popped out of nowhere, smiling cheesily. His left arm instinctively found its way on the girl's lower waist, evoking a very uncomfortable experience already for her. "What's a pretty little thing like you doing in the streets all by your lonesome? Art thou waiting for thy knight in shining armor... me?"

The girl, already presumably traumatized, froze in her steps. Who was this guy, and just why was he speaking incorrectly? And who was 'Sweet Thing?' She immediately decided that he must be a thug, or worse - a convict. Sweating slightly, she moved her eyes slowly to glance from her corny offender's sly face to his already-lowered arm, which seemed to be lowering even more with each passing second. Was it possible... that she was being attacked? But... wasn't that illegal in their town? "Do I... Do I even know thou?" Wait a second - she was using incorrect grammar, too! Oh, forsake the day she'd ever met this strange man - there was no doubt that she had contracted some invisible disease that restricted proper Elizabethan Age vocabulary from him.

"You don't need to know my name," the guy argued back smoothly, using his arm to bring her even closer to him. This would be simple, he thought to himself, a snide smirk grazing his facial features. This chick was either too scared, too innocent, or just too stupid to realize where she was going to end up in a few hours. With only mere inches separating the two, he proceeded to lean over and whisper raspily into her ear, "Just as I don't need to know your name."

"...H-Huh?" his perturbed companion stammered, a tiny blush already reddening her face. 'Oh, where art Public Announcer when I needeth him the most...' Her light green eyes darted aimlessly around the streets in vain, hoping for divine intervention perhaps, when a familiar voice alerted her, and simultaneously, evoked a relieved response from her.

"Excuse me!" a voice bellowed. The girl turned around to see a very handsome lavender-haired man waltz up to her wrongdoer. He was dressed in magnificent royal clothing, a red cape draped over his shoulders, and a menacing-looking sword within his grip. Having seen her savior, the girl hid deftly behind a tree, watching the scene with bated breath. "Halt, rebellious felon! Have you not listened to the Princess's new law? If any more of you men hit on poor, defenseless girls again, in turn making them feel like packaged meat; I'm afraid that you shall suffer a most unpleasurable death under the hands of the ill-famed executioner, Vegeta. Thou hath been warned, villain. Follow me, damsel." Public Announcer Trunks walked off immediately after his declaration, and the girl quickly trailed behind his grand footsteps.

The man seemed sincerely baffled for a prolonged moment of time. In a split second, however, he shrugged the lavender-haired man's abrupt appearance away, heading towards the most appropriate location that another victim, er, woman could be designated at. 'That babe was too easy for me, anyway... And just who does that Public Announcer guy think he is?' A blue-haired beauty sitting on a nearby stoop, gazing pointedly at him, immediately caught his eye. She was definitely unlike the other girl he had met earlier - for one thing, the way she carried herself so much better than he, Public Announcer Trunks, and the other girl combined seemed to make her stand out. "Hey, foxy, I guess you were the one checking me out before I got to scope you out! Want to do something?"

The very easily annoyed maiden scowled lightly as she rose to her feet slowly, dusting her elegant, velvet red gown off. She could see through losers like him effortlessly; he was probably thinking that she was as easy as the other girl she had witnessed him hit on earlier. Well, he couldn't have picked a worse female to place such incorrect assumptions upon. "Doth thou even know who I am, accursed scum?" she finally shot back coldly. When he made no immediate response, she sighed resignedly. It was just as well; he hadn't seemed like a particularly bright person when she'd first encountered him. "It is I, the amazingly radiant Princess Bra! Do you realize your errors in not addressing me properly as soon as you came across my presence?"

The man actually did seem to realize his fatal slip-ups after the damsel's identity had been distinguished. His eyes widened noticeably - what would the almighty princess do to him? He'd heard many a frightening story about what had happened to men who broke the law and flirted with girls disrespectfully, and immediately decided to do anything within his power to withstand his foreboding punishment. "I-I do! But don't kill me, Princess! I beseech thee!" he squealed pathetically, landing on his knees and begging pitifully for her to spare his life.

"I thinketh not! Now, the most fitting punishment for your disrespect... How about..." Princess Bra grinned evilly, pearly white teeth gleaming in the sun. Subjecting stupid men such as him to cruel punishment was quickly becoming to be a fascinating hobby. Revealing a cell phone from the breast pocket of her dress, she deftly speed-dialed a certain number. "Hello? Come at once. What? You're already here? You saw what hath transpired betwixt the transgressor and I? Then what in the world art thou doing just standing wherever it is thou art? I want you to arrest him at once, Lady Son!"

A raven-haired police officer appeared promptly, resembling Chi-Chi, if not for the interesting selection in clothes. After bowing numerous times to the princess in small apology, she declared, "Thy will is my command, Princess Bra. Halt, villainous culprit, thy fate is in my hands now! Fear my frying pan from the deepest abyss!" Without another word, the fearsome cooking object connected sharply with its object's head, rendering him unconscious almost immediately. Bowing once more to her monarch, Lady Son proceeded to drag the senseless wrongdoer away from the scene by his hair.

Princess Bra, now alone again, threw her head back enthusiastically to deliver a snide laugh. It felt so good to be the monarch of the city - or rather, a dictator... that sounded much better. She got to control the media, the transportation, even her subjects' curfew times. And now, no one could insult her, steal her outfits, or undermine her without risking immediate death on the spot. 'Power feels so good sometimes,' she told herself. After disposing of the mayor a few days back, she'd cleared the way for the role of dictator very easily. She owned West City now, and had renamed it after herself, of course - but that in itself paled in comparison to all the shopping malls she now possessed. "Since I own a thriving city such as West City now, I refuse to be called a princess from this point onwards – 'Queen Bra' sounds so much more fitting! I've conquered the city first, and the universe shall soon come next-"

But she never got to finish her happy ending in her twisted Shakespearean Era/Modern World alternate reality. As soon as she turned on her cell phone again to inform Lady Briefs, her chauffeur, to get her flying vehicle ready to dominate the entire world; someone was shaking her ever-so-gently in the real world, yet at the same time making her wrench her eyes open in slight annoyance. "...What?" It'd better not be Tanith, because her mother was going to be informed of this as soon as possible-

She suddenly blinked up at Goten, who was standing patiently beside her bed. Still surrounded in the comfort of her blankets, pillows, and just a wisp of her pleasant dream, she stirred a little, glaring at the digital clock on her nightstand momentarily before directing her scowl back to him. 'What the heck is he doing in my bedroom?' Stifling a small yawn and stretching slightly, she demanded fiercely, her voice still strained with sleep, "Just what do you want?"

Goten nodded in subtle understanding before responding, recalling what Trunks had told him years ago - Bra had never been too fond of waking up early, and probably would never be fond of it for as long as she lived. Well, she'd have to get used to it as quickly as possible, because if she was thinking that he'd go relatively easier on her than her father or Pan, well, she had another thing coming. "Please don't tell me that you already forgot." He strode over to her balcony and adjusted the window blinds, immediately bathing the room with the sun.

Bra groaned loudly and turned over to her other side, shielding her face from both the blinding sunlight and her soon-to-be trainer. "Well, I guess I must have," she mumbled wryly into her pillow, allowing her oodles of blue hair cascade down her bare shoulders and cover the majority of her face. "Because I sure don't remember asking you to be in my room at about six in the morning. Please remind me now, or I'll be forced to tell my dad-"

"Does training you count?" he reminded helpfully, heading back to where she was situated.

Bra finally opened her eyes, staring into her soft downy pillow, shaking the last remnants of sleep away. There was simply no use trying to get back to sleep, she resolved, especially when insensible oafs like Goten were so set on waking her up so early. "...Oh. I thought we agreed that we'd start whenever I had time."

"But when are you going to have time?" he asked nicely, still standing beside her spacious mattress in a patient manner. "Come on, you'll never have time with that attitude."

No response. Goten was considering more drastic matters (such as snatching her blanket away from on top of her) when suddenly, Bra rose out of bed in a begrudging manner. She stretched her stiff limbs carelessly, not noticing Goten's sudden blush towards what she was wearing - a simple plum camisole with matching pajama bottoms. She then began to amble towards the nearest bathroom, muttering a few words about how she was desperately hoping that for his own good, he wasn't going to act like this throughout her entire training lessons. When she finally disappeared behind the closed bathroom door, Goten headed back downstairs to a living room, hoping that she'd be able to pinpoint his ki in order to locate him. After all, that was one of the most essential things in training, he reminded himself, and although Bra had some of the background essentials already, she was far too inexperienced and irresponsible to begin anything else without proper guidance.

Many minutes later...

Bra sat down at the fourth kitchen of the second floor's table, crossing her legs elegantly (although she was simply dressed in a red tank top and gray sweatpants) as she waited for Goten to find her. Upon leaving the bathroom after her shower, she'd noticed that he'd gone downstairs, but she wasn't about to go find him. 'Humph – that's what he deserves for waking me up so rudely.' She glanced around the pleasant settings of the kitchen curiously. Just where was Tanith? She had expected a nice heaping amount of pancakes, toast, and milk to meet her at the table, only to find out that the incompetent housekeeper probably wasn't even near any kitchen in the house in the first place. Glancing at a small calendar across from where she sat, she rolled her eyes. Today was one of Tanith's days off, which only meant one thing - Bra was left to cook and provide for herself for the next twenty-four hours, as Bulma refused to prepare food now. Not that that was a bad thing, of course...

Goten finally wandered into the Briefs' kitchen a couple of minutes later, groaning slightly. He took a seat on the countertop beside Bra, looking slightly disapproving of his new student's behavior. "That was supposed to be a test, you know."

"Somehow, I don't really care," Bra revealed, taking a small bite out of a peach. She stared blankly at the wall across from her, not paying any mind to her trainer's annoyed expression. "Where's my family?"

"My mom invited them over earlier," he explained to her shortly, glaring down at her bored countenance. "I told them that you were planning to go shopping by yourself later today, and that I wanted to spend time by myself, so I doubt they'll know that we're here." A small pause, and then, "You know, if you're not going to take any of this seriously, you shouldn't have asked me..."

"Fine," she sighed and leaned back against her chair, finishing off the rest of her peach. "I'll train. Just let me get something more substantial to eat." Rising up from her seat, she went towards the refrigerator, extracting a huge chocolate cake that Tanith had made just the day before from its hiding spot behind a plate of lima beans. Her overindulgent father and brother always made sure to never come by that particular shelf, she told herself, smiling wickedly. She went back to her seat and cut herself a moderately huge slice, taking a bite out of it. Mmm. It was simply heavenly, just as Tanith had claimed it to be. Should she dare try another?

But as she tried to reach towards the rest of the cake, Goten moved it away. "What gives?"

"Hey," he reprimanded lightly, handing her another peach instead, "you know just as well as I do that cake's not very healthy. You want to eat properly when you train."

"Sure," she snorted contemptuously, slipping another forkful from the slice in front of her into her mouth, "this is coming from the boy who eats about twenty square meals a day, not counting breakfast." She threw the fruit back towards him, and he caught it smoothly.

"Um," he started, blushing eminently, "I have a very fast metabolism."

"And I don't? I'm just as much a Saiyan as you are, you know."

"Okay, Bra, you are. But I just don't know," he persisted, but he was eyeing the chocolate cake hungrily nonetheless. "We may have the same amount of Saiyan blood running through our veins, but we're pretty different. You don't want to become too unhealthy."

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she finished off her breakfast. Was he hinting that he was afraid that she'd quit the training sessions before they even started? "Okay, okay. Let me eat just one more tiny slice, okay?" When he consented to her request, she cut herself another hefty hunk of the chocolatey goodness, smirking as his eyes widened in protest. "Oh, by the way, would you like a piece before we begin training? It's a seven-layer cake..."

Goten's pleads were cut short at the mention of how many layers the dessert contained. "With hot fudge on top?" When Bra nodded, handing him a fork and sliding the rest of the cake the whole way in front of him, he sighed reluctantly and dug into it. "I'm only eating this because you probably couldn't finish it, just remember that."

"Sure... By the way, what're we going to start working on when we finally begin training?" she questioned curiously, looking on as he continued to devour the cake in slight amusement. "I'd really like to learn how to fly better, but I don't mind if you want to start on hand-to-hand combat first. I already know how to summon energy beams, so I don't think you need to teach me that. And I was wondering, are you going to teach me how to use that fancy-looking attack you and your dad always use, or are you going to let me learn my father's Final Flash attack by making me observe him? And ooh, when am I going to be a Super Saiyan? I can't wait for that… although blonde hair might make me look weird-"

He didn't answer her for a few seconds, chewing thoughtfully and staring into space. How to put it to her… First of all, how could she even think of performing the Kamehameha Wave yet, let alone become a Super Saiyan? He swallowed. Could girls even become Super Saiyans? Finally, "I think you need to understand everything about martial arts before we get into the physical part. Then, I guess we could start on hand-to-hand combat, and after that, flying."

"What are you saying? Are you suggesting that there's a mental part to training?" she asked incredulously. He nodded, and she smiled widely. "Well, at least I know one part in which I'll excel in."

'Little do you know,' he thought flatly. "Okay, let's go to the biggest living room you have. That's where we're going to train today. Training in the GR might just be too strenuous for you." He rose to his feet and, after dumping the dirty utensils into the dishwasher, left the room. Bra trailed behind him sullenly, already beginning to doubt her decision for selecting him as her trainer in the first place.

At the living room...

Upon first entering the living room, Goten had Bra move all of the important furniture to one side all by herself. She did so unwillingly, and quite a few choice-words were mumbled throughout her seemingly difficult task. "Come on, Bra. It's not that hard," he finally told her, wincing at a few of her grumbles. "You'll never be a serious fighter if you don't stop complaining."

"I don't think I care what you think anymore," she muttered blatantly, pushing the coffee table strongly to the side of the room, where it collided with the sofa rather violently. "I hope that didn't just break..."

Goten ignored the huge split that could be seen in the table and turned towards his trainee, who had taken a seat by the couch in order to catch a slight breather. "Okay. I think we're ready now. So, the first thing I want to know from you is... what form of martial arts do you want to learn?"

"Oh, so now there're different forms?"

"Bra," he sighed, joining her at her place at the couch, "if you don't know what type of martial arts you want to do, then I can't help you. But yes, there are different types. Everyone that visited yesterday afternoon has a slightly different, almost unique style of fighting. Before she ever met us, Videl learned how to fight mostly from her father, who had taught her a showier form of fighting than most. My mom studied under my grandfather, the Ox-King, who, in turn, studied under Master Roshi. Her style of fighting was based mostly on brute strength and speed, rather than other key elements. Actually, her style of fighting kind of resembles Vegeta's and Pan's, who both only seem to do whatever it takes to win a battle, as you've probably seen. And then there's Trunks, who always thinks out every battle and matches up each and every opponent; and my dad, who's been under practically everyone's wing in training - Master Roshi, King Kai... the list is endless. Don't forget Gohan, who's been under Piccolo's and Supreme Kai's influences... So, what do you think?"

Staring emptily into his eyes, Bra seemed a bit dazed. Now placing a soft hand to her head, she responded, "I think I'm confused… But I do understand a little about what you're getting to. I guess I'd think everything out like my brother, but I wouldn't want to prolong my battles either. I'd want them short and sweet, because I have much better things to do in my spare time than to waste my life fighting the guys who hit on me-"

"Okay!" Goten interrupted triumphantly, much to her aversion. "You've got the second part down already – your purpose! Although it sounds a bit selfish if you compare it to Gohan's or my father's motives, you have a reason for fighting, and that's what matters most!" He grinned enthusiastically at Bra, and for some strange reason, she smiled hesitantly back, almost infected with his sudden alacrity. "Now, another thing you should know is that, no matter serious it looks, martial arts should be fun and enjoyable to you. But you should be serious, too, in times of danger." He rose from the couch and cracked his knuckles. "Don't ever underestimate an opponent based on physical looks alone; that's a big one. And what I meant by martial arts being mostly mental… I'm just trying to say that if you have no strategy and merely attack blindly, there's a great chance that you'll lose. Trust me, I've had many a match with Trunks to realize this."

She nodded, gazing at him with the utmost seriousness. "So, I shouldn't just attack without thinking most of my moves out beforehand, you're saying…"

Goten smiled in relief – it actually looked like Bra had some hope after all. "Also, Bra – this is a serious one… please don't get too angry if I say this, but it's moral to oppose fighters that truly challenge you and encourage you to push past your limits. There really isn't any honor in always defeating guys that are weaker than you… So, you'll have to find other ways to get back at the guy at the mall."

She scowled, her light countenance quickly dissolving into an aggravated one as she moved away from him. Her blue eyes flashed meanly as she proclaimed, "Who says I'm going to listen to you on that one? I don't care if it's moral or not… What they're doing to me isn't moral at all! I deserve to have the right to beat them up!"

He shrugged in slight resignation, and she quickly calmed down again. "I guess you have a point. Just don't kill them, or you'll land yourself in a lot of trouble." Noticing her mouth open slightly in protest, he quickly added, "We're almost done with the mental part. After this last one, we can get to teaching you the basics of the physical part. Now, do you fear anything, Bra? Because, sometimes, things that you're afraid of can determine the outcome of a fight."

She was silent for a few seconds, her eyes dulling softly as she moved her gaze to the floor in contemplation of the question. "I'm afraid of rejection, I guess," she finally confessed in a mere whisper, averting his glance. Fiddling with her thumbs anxiously, she asked, "But what does that have to do with anything?"

"It has a lot to do with fighting, even though you might not see it at first," he told her softly. 'But I think I have faith in you, Bra, although it may be pretty small at first…' "It's important to be completely focused when you fight. You should clear your mind of everything except for what's in front of you. If you allow yourself to think of your fears, your distraction will cause you to lose the mental battle before the physical one even begins. So, if you're sparring against your father, for instance, you don't want your fear of rejection to get in the way of things, or else, when you lose, he'll reject you even more than you first expected him to."

An awkward silence ensued as Bra continued to fiddle absently with her thumbs. She couldn't believe it. How was Goten so experienced in all of this, especially when he usually acted like he didn't have a clue about anything all the time? Perhaps she had been underestimating him, she thought, and if that was the case, then she'd already broken one of Goten's mental training rules. She closed her eyes softly, hoping he wouldn't say anything. But after a few moments of continued silence, she was left alone to think for a few seconds to let all of the valuable information she had just heard soak in. Not to mention second doubts… Was she really sure that she wanted to train? After all, she'd seen how gruesome Pan looked after particular battles. She must've been completely crazy to have asked Goten to be her teacher yesterday, she resolved. Was the result of all of this really worth all of the humiliation she would receive once her father found out?

'Too bad,' she told herself. 'I'm the daughter of Bulma and Vegeta, and I'm never going to give up in the face of adversity.' All throughout her short life, she had heard about reaching her potential from her brother, and, very subtly, from her father. She always had the potential to become greater, stronger, and most importantly, to feel even more confident about herself. And there couldn't possibly be a more appropriate time to start reaching it than now. Opening her eyes, she whispered, "I'm ready. Teach me how to fight now."

He nodded briefly, still not sure if she'd fully understood everything he had just told her, and motioned for her to get up from the couch. When she had done so (although it was still as unwillingly and lazily as everything else that she had done so far that required physical energy), he rose to his feet as well, moving a few feet away from her so that a reasonable amount of space was between them. "Okay, first," he started hesitantly, "you want to get in a fighting stance. And no, crossing your arms with a bad attitude is definitely no way to start."

She frowned slightly and moved her arms from across her chest to limply fall near her sides. Tapping her foot impatiently against the carpet, she awaited his approval. "How about this?"

Goten mentally fought himself not to complain aloud – it was becoming increasingly obvious that Bra didn't like to get corrected. He blinked twice and told her, "Nope. Try moving your body at a slanted angle. That way, if someone attacks you from any side, you'll be ready for them." He moved slightly to show her an example, clenching his fists tightly. "Now, you try."

Scowling darkly, she mimicked his movements. Her scowl only seemed to increase in size when she noticed his exasperated expression. "What am I doing wrong now?" Goodness, he was acting like he was the world's renowned expert on training-

"You're not clenching your fists tightly enough. Don't you want to be able to deliver the first punch?"

"I'm doing the best I can. Leave me alone," she insisted sharply. Nevertheless, she mirrored his movements perfectly, but in a few seconds cried out suddenly in shock.

"What now?" Goten asked her in frustration, moving closer to examine her carefully. 'She'd better not be complaining about breaking a nail…'

She unclenched her soft fists slowly, showing him the full extent of what had happened. "I'm bleeding! I must've clenched my fists a little too tight… This is so gross – and it's all your fault!" She quickly stalked out of the room, cradling her wounded palms angrily and mumbling a few well-chosen words under her breath.

'Oh, boy.' "Um, I guess we'll finish up in the next few days…" he called to her out loud, but wasn't entirely positive whether she'd heard him or not. This was going to take much longer than he had originally thought – especially if Bra didn't improve that attitude of hers. So, just what was that whole thing that she said about promising not to be rude or lazy yesterday? Sheesh – it wasn't as if she was in any sort of pain; it was a relatively small wound, and the fact that she seemed grossed out by a little blood puzzled him. "We'll do flying the next time I see you, which'll be in about three days." Again, no response. He sighed in defeat and headed towards the living room's window, where he proceeded to open it slightly and exit silently.

But little did he know that Bra had heard every single thing he had said. Instead of washing her hands out at the kitchen sink, she'd leaned against the wall in the very next room, holding her breath sharply in hopes of hearing what he really thought about her. Now that he was completely out of eyeshot, she sighed softly, placing a hand to her head in light reflection. Oh, why had she gotten so excited over such a simple cut? He probably had little faith in her untapped potential now. She glanced down at it, only to notice that her bloody palms had long ceased bleeding. She let out another sigh, deeply disappointed in herself. He'd probably think of her as a delicate little creature now, someone like his Valese had been.

Hey, it wasn't good to just brood over every simple mistake she made today, she reminded herself optimistically, although her current emotions were the complete opposite. She'd just have to have a better attitude than before the next time they met, even if it was a feigned one.

Three days later…

Bra found her training instructor a few days later in the exact same living room they had 'trained' in earlier. She fought to resist the scowl that naturally appeared whenever she saw him, and instead came out with a very pleasant (no matter how forced it sounded at first), "Hey. Are you ready to start teaching me how to fly better?"

Goten stared at her strangely for a complete minute before responding. In a complete second, however, his solemn appearance gave way for his usual carefree Son countenance. "Okay," he told her somewhat reluctantly. He rose to his feet and motioned lightly for her to do the same. "You already have the foundations for flying set; I've seen you hover off the floor before. Now, stand facing me." Once she had followed his commands, he added, "Close your eyes."

Bra blushed almost immediately and blinked several times, the very thought sounding very absurd to her. "But what for?"

He stepped the rest of the way towards her and took her hands into his, evoking yet another blush from the female half-Saiyan. "Just do it, and trust me. That's another thing you need to learn – trust."

She nodded a bit resentfully, closing her eyes. They shouldn't be touching each other at this phrase of the training, she reminded herself, and sought to inform him later. "What do you want me to do now?"

"Concentrate your ki into one central area of your body. Now, imagine traveling the skies on my dad's Nimbus cloud," came a soft voice at the back of her head, comforting her slightly. "Imagine being as free as a bird in the skies… Imagine feeling nothing but the warm spring wind touching your face. Now, push up off the ground slightly – more than you've done before, and you'll see that it's not as hard as you thought it was."

Whoa. What was happening here? Bra felt her face heat up again, almost swearing that she could feel Goten's hand gently brushing a few strands of hair from her reddened face for a few seconds. Either that, or he must've taken advantage of her eyes being closed and opened a window to let in a small breeze circulate around the room. She couldn't concentrate on that, however, as she felt her weight slowly becoming lighter and noticed that her feet were no longer touching the ground, and that Goten had released his hands from her own.

Her eyes snapped open at this precise moment, and she realized that she had indeed gone into flight. Still rising until her head gently grazed the ceiling; she stared down at Goten, who was smiling proudly from the floor. "…Good work. Flying wasn't so hard for you as it was for Videl, but then again, you're a half-Saiyan. Good job."

She sniffed bitterly, fighting not to flash a proud smile down at him all the same. Her eyes shining in delight, she told him, "Good job? I think I did a fantastic job on my first try! Speaking of fantastic…" she paused, an awestruck appearance changing her attitude drastically, "that's exactly how all of this feels. Simply fantastic."

He grinned up at her enthusiastic form, nodding twice in agreement. "I know. Flying is always the most fun for me."

She hadn't heard this last statement, as she was now zooming around the room in an excited manner, very unlike her usual disposition. The spacious living room now seemed suddenly cramped and tight, she noticed, as she flew from one wall to the other. "Wow," she breathed ardently, her blue eyes shining brightly; "I can fly." As if the statement hadn't hit her fully before, she declared loudly, "I can fly!" She giggled girlishly as she flew around and around Goten's head, presently in a state of never-before-seen euphoria. "Bra is a birdy, a birdy, a birdy! Bra is a birdy!"

He stiffened noticeably and reddened as she circled once more around his head. "Who told you that?"

She smirked mischievously, halting her flight momentarily and perfectly to taunt him. "Vi-del," she stretched out the perpetrator's voice in a singsong voice. "What're you going to do about it? Huh? Huh?" She flew away from his reach, and, viewing this as a challenge, he rose into the air himself, glad that for once, she had such an amiable attitude. Although it was a little strange how fast she had changed…

He caught her easily (as he had been far more experienced than her in flying), trapping her within a small corner. "I was little," he whined childishly. "Cut me some slack - Hey!" He quickly moved his wrist to strongly block her sudden fist. "Just what are you doing?"

"What?" she smirked again, placing her hands on her hips. "Always think out every single thing, you told me. I'll have you know that I'm a very good listener at times."

"At times," he repeated, matching her smirk precisely.

"And just what does that mean?" 'Of all the rude things to say to someone…!" Slowly descending back to the ground, she inconspicuously glanced towards the window of the living room while Goten was still wrapped up in explaining how she had so much left to go in the subject of listening. It was open… but had it been open before the training had started, or had he opened it when her eyes were closed? "Look, when are we going to start fighting for real?"

"Tomorrow," he promised her, descending back to the floor as well. Heading over to the open window, he nodded once in appraisal. "By the way, you did well for a beginner. Everyone would be proud if they knew how fast you learned." When he received a tiny smile of gratitude from his trainee, he disappeared into the skies and was soon gone.

A few weeks later…

Having kept his promise (as a Son always did), Goten slowly but surely continued to teach Bra how to spar. At first, she showed unequivocal resistance to his always cheery and encouraging attitude, but for once, she tried to overcome her easy anger. With each passing day, Goten seemed awed; not to mention pleased, at how quickly Bra came across difficult obstacles in her training. She tackled each attack he threw at her with much ease, and it was becoming increasingly apparent that in the past, whenever she had stayed in the GR just for staying there's sake, she'd inconspicuously observed each and every attack done by the various Saiyans, hoping to put them to her own use one day. Luckily for her, that day seemed to be coming closer and closer. And as Bra gradually increased in speed, strength, defense, and endurance, Goten grew discreetly prouder of his pupil, although she usually failed to see it.

As the Saiyan Princess, this was no simple cakewalk, she soon realized. Goten was extremely strict (which was extremely unlike his personality), and there were countless times when she had blown up at him for stressing her too much, or meeting up with her out in the city to stop her from whatever she was currently involved in to pursue her training education more. He stopped her from many of her past indulgences (she hesitantly agreed to no late-night partying, but drew the line at shopping), and it wasn't surprising to see her become discouraged slightly whenever she slipped up on a new attack. If anything, the fact that Goten had faith in her seemed to boost her spirits up remarkably and keep that yearning for strength of hers going. The fact that he always seemed to be holding back on her, however, both enraged and confused her to no end. He always made sure to never ascend whenever they trained, which proved to infuriate the desperate Saiyan girl, who was dying for a new challenge each and every passing day.

As the weeks progressed into a month, their sparring matches grew more challenging, and Goten was taken aback by her quick learning. At present, the two sat at the couch at around eight at night, when Bra asked Goten a question. "Hey, I'm curious. What do you think of me?"

His eyes widened considerably as his mind swirled with one emotion - he was completely and utterly confused. Just why was she asking this out of the blue? "Bra… What brought this on?"

He could see her shrug carelessly beside him. "I'm just curious…"

Goten stared down at her, still perplexed. Nevertheless, he responded honestly, "Well, you're very proud, for one." Hey, it was the truth, even if she didn't exactly appreciate it.

"…Is that all?" Surely she was worth more than 'proud'…

"You're also beautiful," he added lightly, never seeing a huge blush creep quickly onto Bra's face. He thought carefully for a second, trying to decide just how to phrase the last comment. "But everyone knows that… And also, although you're very pretty, you're very insulting at the same time."

She didn't even pay too much attention to the last comment. No male had ever called her 'beautiful' before. All the guys that she had ever encountered seemed to find less attractive and disrespectful synonyms for her. But never before had anyone called her 'beautiful,' except for her mother, Chi-Chi, and Videl. "…Thank you. Um, you can continue with what you were saying."

"Okay, you already have the basics down for fighting. But we haven't really fought yet – you need to know how to defend yourself more."

Bra shrugged carelessly, kicking her feet lightly against the sofa. She avoided his curious gaze. "I guess you have a point… But why don't you want to teach me how to fight the extreme way? You're teaching me how to fight like Hercule – the martial arts for humans. I want to know how to fight the Saiyan way. That's why I asked you to teach me, you know. If I wanted to learn how to fight like that arrogant loser, I would've asked him to train me instead of you." Okay, maybe that was a bit of a fib… if she had thought that being trained under Goten was humiliating, training under Hercule would be three hundred times worse… No, strike that. Three hundred thousand times worse…

Goten went quiet for a while before a smile appeared on his face. "Well, if you really want to learn how to fight the 'Saiyan way,' you're going to have to cut down on all of your complaining."

Bra's eyes narrowed in resentment of the abovementioned comment. "Hey… I don't complain that much anymore."

"But you still complain, nevertheless. Don't think I can't hear those tiny mumbles you make whenever you lose a match."

He was right, no matter how much she wanted to deny it. She couldn't believe that Goten (whose knowledge she had once been certain she exceeded remarkably) always seemed to anticipate the exact attack she had been thinking to use against him. She just couldn't hold a candle to his fighting skills – after all, how could she, when the boy had trained his entire life?

He wasn't finished, though. "Well, even though you aren't into sweating and bleeding and stuff, I guess I can teach you some 'Saiyan' self-defense moves you might enjoy."

Bra laughed lightly, eyeing him weirdly. "Look, you. Being the daughter of the president of Capsule Corp, I know that I'm a fast learner in most areas. But I hardly think going fully Saiyan on me is the best of ideas."

"And that's why they're called 'defensive' moves," he told her smoothly. He rose to his feet and lightly grabbed at her hand, pulling her up from the couch as well. "C'mon, you never know until you try it out."

"Um-" She wasn't entirely sure if she still wanted to do this. 'He probably wants to make a fool out of me,' she convinced herself, her brows furrowing a bit in irritation. 'He knows I can't possibly learn any true Saiyan moves yet, and that's why he wants me to do this. He thinks he's so smart, but Bra Briefs is always one step ahead. I'll show him.' "Actually, as a matter of fact, I can do it. This'll be easy."

"Okay," he started, and in a flash, wrapped his hands around her neck gently, still giving her room to breathe. "Say I'm choking you. What would you do then?"

She blinked a couple of times, caught deeply in surprise. "Just what are you doing?"

"Tell me," he repeated slowly, not understanding the reason for her sudden confusion, "what you would do if I was choking you." She didn't respond immediately, so he added plainly, "'I'd lightly punch at your stomach, which is your vulnerable spot right now,' Bra told Goten, and she was absolutely correct."

"Oh…" Bra reddened even more and delivered the strongest shove she could possibly muster to his chest. Of course, she was nowhere near his power level and strength, and, instead of him falling back and releasing his hold on her neck, she found herself almost falling backwards. And because she was desperately hoping not to fall, she arched her back dangerously, which made her land on the floor with a resounding "Oomph!" on her back. She shut her eyes as she lay on the deep red carpet, deeply embarrassed.

"Didn't I tell you to punch at my stomach lightly, as in pretend?" he reminded her lightly, helping her up all the same.

Bra opened her eyes and directed yet another scowl towards him. "You really need to close that mouth of yours sometimes. I'm not stupid."

"That's not very nice," he stated sternly, placing his hands around her neck again. "But let's start over. Do you remember what I told you to do?"

She stared blankly into his eyes, having forgotten what he already told her. Pausing for a moment, she tried to frantically figure out what to do next. 'He's not going to embarrass me again, I won't stand for it…'

"Surprise me for once," Goten told her, just as a smile lit up her facial features – she remembered, all right.

She directed a tight fist lightly towards his stomach, making him reel back slowly. She knew that the punch hadn't actually harmed him (she probably would never be able to move him on her own), but she also understood that she was doing well all the same. He began to fall backwards, and because he hadn't let go of her neck, she flew forward with his weight, falling along with him. Instead of the attack having him remove his grip around her neck, she found herself sprawled on top of him.

'This has got to take the award for the most embarrassing and awkward moment ever,' she told herself bleakly, turning a magnificent crimson. She averted his gaze, biting her lip softly and taking a profound interest in the carpet below them.

Goten, however, seemed all too cheerful that she had almost mastered the move; and by the way it looked, Bra doubted that he even knew what position they were in. "See, Bra? That was great! You just need to think of something else to get my hands off of your neck, and you're set!"

She couldn't believe his enthusiasm. 'Is he that wrapped up in training that he can't even notice… Forget it – I'm not even going to mention it if he won't.' Quickly moving off from on top of him, she slowly rose to her feet again, still avoiding his innocent Son grin. Stifling a small yawn, she awaited his next set of instructions.

Goten was more than fired up to start a more challenging version of the abovementioned self-defense tactic. He hopped to his feet excitedly and sat at the couch, staring at her slowly tiring form eagerly. "Okay, how about this – I've grabbed your throat so you can hardly breathe, but this time, I'm coming from behind. And, also, your... your right hand is disabled. You're a righty, I think, so this should be a bit harder than last time. So, how would you solve this problem?"

She thought for a second, happy that the uncomfortable situation was now probably forgotten (hey, it probably wasn't even thought of by Goten). Her eyes, however, began drooping at an alarming rate, hindering her thought processes. "I'd... I'd solve this... by..."

"Take your time," he encouraged lightly from the sofa. 'Boy, Bra really is learning quickly.' He was genuinely proud of her.

Bra stifled yet another deep yawn, feeling her limbs grow weaker and weaker by the second. She teetered and tottered steadily towards him, until she was standing before his position at the couch. "I'd solve this by... relaxing, for once," she decided in a drowsy manner, collapsing dazedly onto the sofa beside him. She was silent for a few more seconds, which led Goten to believe that she had fallen sound asleep almost immediately.

"Well," he spoke silently to no one in particular, "I guess she deserves it. She's been training harder than I've ever seen her train before." And she sure was determined, too. Although the majority of her statements regarding training were often negative or snappy, she still seemed determined and slightly optimistic about her future in sparring. She was incredibly intelligent, too, which seemed to make everything much easier, in his humble opinion.

But there was something wrong with her, Goten noticed. If she was so tired, why hadn't she said so in the first place? Was she afraid that he would get angry at her? He recalled something Bra had told him a few weeks back – she was secretly afraid of rejection. Maybe, just maybe, that was the reason – she didn't want him to reject her as a training partner.

'But I won't,' he resolved, getting off of the sofa proceeding to the window, staring out into the dimming skies with a reflective expression. It would be entirely wrong to subject someone to their worst fears, even for someone as cold as Bra. Besides, she had some hope. All she needed to do now was to concentrate more on her defense and stop complaining about blood, sweat, and not having any time to herself. After all, he had warned her that this would a series of rigorous training sessions.

'Mom's going to kill me if I'm not home by now.' Without another word, he left through the window and was soon gone.

And, with that last statement, the room fell quiet. As the Saiyan Princess slipped off into well-deserved slumber, she didn't dream about conquering the world as the next Napoleon or Alexander the Great. And Goten was positive, as he flew through the darkened skies, that he wasn't going to dream about a certain ex-girlfriend haunting his mind that night.

For once, the former slept dreaming absolutely nothing, finally comforted within her inner self. Although she had made many errors throughout her training sessions with Goten, she was proud of herself; and that was what really counted. Smiling absently, she imagined how surprised her brother, Pan, and even her father would be to see her fight. Who knew what could happen in the next few months? Maybe she'd be able to participate in the next World Martial Arts Tournament…

-Ending Note-: Hey, guys. I hope you liked this chapter. I don't think I'm too good at describing Bra and Goten's training scenes, but I tried my best, and that's what counts, right? I hope you enjoyed this particular chapter nonetheless. So, please review. Those who have me on their favorites and author alert lists and haven't reviewed yet, please respond to the chapter. It gives me a general idea of how the majority of my readers feel about the story so far. Stay tuned for Chapter 20!

-Ladii-Chocolate-