AN. And so we return again! We're aaaaaalmost at the Tenkaichi Budokai but not quite. They're super close though :D

Massive shout out again to Ryu no Ohi who has agreed to beta for me. Wonderful, you're a superstar. Millions of hugs/complementary gift baskets for you!

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chiaotzu felt his stomach heave as the boat hit a particularly large wave. He swallowed hard and lifted off the bed by an inch, hoping that by remaining motionless in mid-air his motion sickness would settle. Tien was sitting opposite him on his own cot, his arms folded, and raised one eyebrow at the slight upward movement. Chiaotzu tried to smile reassuringly, but before he could the boat lurched again, and as he remained stationary the wall loomed behind him and struck him hard in the back of the head.

He gasped in pain and fell back onto the bed. The ship hit another big wave, and he covered his mouth and clenched his eyes shut as his stomach flipped over. He heard Tien move and then he was lifted into the air. He opened his eyes and looked up into the triclops' concerned face, unable to hide his surprise.

"Master, I'm taking Chiaotzu outside for a minute."

Shen, who was lying flat on the third cot on the back wall, raised one hand and made a dismissive gesture. Since coming back without InoShikaCho their master had resolutely ignored them, taking the spoils of their con and then disappearing into his cabin. They didn't think it was because he was actually upset about the loss of his long-term pet; more likely he was angry that they had failed so completely. Since then Tien had been slightly more open to Chiaotzu as well. The telepath had appreciated the small acts of kindness, the rare smiles, the gentle words, but thought that they were a temporary thing. If Tien won this tournament, which he likely would, that arrogant, smirking young man would be back — he could almost guarantee it.

Tien carried Chiaotzu from the room and out of the depths of the ship. They were in the middle of the ocean. The ship they were on usually didn't take passengers, but Shen had somehow managed to convince the crew to not only take them Papaya Island but also to give up their bunks. When the men running the ship wanted to sleep, they had to do so in the cramped dining area.

As soon as Tien opened the door to the deck, cold fresh air rushed in, the smell of salt overwhelming Chiaotzu's senses.

"Are you going to be sick?" Tien asked gently.

Chiaotzu managed to nod once before shooting out of Tien's arms and clinging to the rail of the boat, gagging down at the waves below. He didn't actually vomit, though he did dry retch. The fresh air was clearly helping a little bit. Tien's hand rested gently on his back, rubbing up and down soothingly.

"Look at the horizon, that might help. And you can fly out here; no walls to hit you."

There's still the rail, Chiaotzu sent telepathically, not trusting his voice. He lifted his gaze away from the swirling water below him and fixed it on the horizon. It was flat line, the sea almost black and the sky almost white at such a distance. Looking at that stable line seemed to settle his stomach somewhat, his nausea subsiding slightly. Tien, you need to distract me. Tell me a story or something.

"Uh…" There was a long silence where Chiaotzu retched over the rail again and Tien continued to gently rub the boy's back. "I don't know any stories."

A dream, a memory, anything! Chiaotzu's mental voice was tinged with desperation now as the nausea swirled again, a strong acid taste in the back of his throat.

There was another pause. When he started speaking Tien's voice was soft and hesitant. He didn't have a great imagination for stories; most of his mental energies were dedicated to fighting strategies. "I guess I did have a dream the other day. It was a bad dream to start with, but then it was good. You were in it."

Chiaotzu's eyes were fixed solidly on the horizon and he didn't risk looking at the triclops. He was intrigued though, and his stomach was settling a little. What happened?

"Well…I was in the middle of a field. I think. The ground was really hard under my feet. I was meditating, or practicing ki control, or practicing attacks, I'm not sure, but I was only little. A kid. Maybe five? Then a tall monster came out of the mist like a ghost. It had no face and long thin fingers with no joints. It was trying to get into my mind to eat my thoughts. It hurt so much...like it was tearing open my skull and digging at my brain."

Chiaotzu's eyes had been slowly widening, his mouth dropping open slightly. His motion sickness was all but forgotten at this story, a dream that just might have been a memory.

"I called for you," Tien continued, his voice less hesitant now. "I screamed for your help and then you were there. You cut off the monster's arms with your mind and it ran away. You saved me."

That was not what had happened. Chiaotzu had been slapped away for his insolence and Tien had made him promise to never interfere again. The entire exchange had lasted less than 10 minutes.

"Then I woke up…" Tien's voice trailed off and they stood in silence for a long moment. Chiaotzu found himself rendered speechless by the matter-of-fact tone in Tien's voice. The triclops clearly didn't realise the story he'd just told was in fact a memory of his first training session with Shen. And the monster he had dreamt was the very same Master who he idolised and yearned to impress. "Do you feel a bit better?"

"Yes. Thank you, Tien." Chiaotzu turned and offered a shaky smile. Tien returned it, his hand resting gently on the boy's back. "That...sounds like a scary dream."

Tien's smile widened. "No. I'm too old for nightmares, Chiaotzu."

The telepath didn't believe this was true, didn't think that nightmares had an age limit, but he didn't say anything. He leaned against the rail instead, looking back out at the horizon. There was a companionable silence for a moment. Eventually Tien asked, "What do you think the Turtle Hermit will be like?"

"Probably old," Chiaotzu said thoughtfully. "I mean, I've been at the Crane School for a pretty long time and I've never heard of him. So he must be a rival of Master Shen's from a really, really long time ago."

"Do you think he'll be like Master Shen? Or that his students will be like us?"

Chiaotzu bit his lip as he thought. Master Shen had said that the Kame School training was a joke, which meant it probably wasn't as brutal or intense as the training they had gone through. Which meant his students were probably less intense, less vicious, less arrogant. He shrugged. "They're probably more merciful than us."

Tien stiffened slightly, almost imperceptibly, and Chiaotzu regretted his choice of words. "Mercy is weakness, Chiaotzu. You know that."

Chiaotzu bit his lower lip and lowered his head slightly, keeping his eyes fixed on the horizon. Just like that, in a few short words, he felt like his brother was further away again, the arrogant martial artist once again taking the forefront. He tried not to be upset by this switch as someone from the bridge called out the first sighting of their destination.

AN. So next time we're in canon proper (i.e. anime and manga) so please leave a review (it calms my nerves) and I'll see you then :)