Gohan's Moving Castle

Swept off her feet

East City…

Orange Star High School…

Sometimes, days like these weren't as fun and ongoing. If anyone was looking for fun to escape the work of the day, they would go to the parade being hosted in the center of the city. Schools across town were closed, except for Orange Star High school. Even though students were asked to come, they had more of a choice on this particular day. They could either go to the celebrations or come to school and do some extended study time. For most, the parade was looking better then being stuck at school doing work all day. But for one, it was a time to catch up on stuff she had missed.

Sitting quietly and alone in her homeroom class, a raven haired girl with pigtails, a white, over-sized T-shirt, black bicycle shorts, boots and fingerless fighting gloves, was hard at work. With a blue, ball point pen in her right hand and a graph book laid out in front of her, the girl known as Videl Satan was busy practicing her math. Calculus was the last thing on her 'list of work to do' today, giving reason to why she was taking so long. She was raking the back of her mind to find the answers she was looking for.

Tapping her pen against her desk, the young teenager had her head propped up on her hand and elbow. She stared blankly down at her nearly complete work, wondering how to end the last equation. It was taking all her brain power to solve it.

Just as she was on her last limb, she heard a knock on the classroom door and looked up. There, she saw her teacher Miss Schafer standing there with a smile on her face, looking very cheerful. The teacher was dressed casually, wearing a pink dress with a yellow, wooly jumper worn on top. She had brown hair tied back into a pony tail and she also wore a straw hat. She looked very young for her age.

Miss Schafer was looking up at Videl, seeing her staring back with that ever surprised yet exhausted expression on her face.

"Videl, you've done enough work for today. The school is closing up. Maybe its time for you to head on home now," she exclaimed quietly. "All the teachers are taking the rest of the day off to go and watch the parade. It will be fun. Why don't you tag along?"

Videl just smiled kindly in return and shook her head. "No thanks ma'am, I'm nearly done. You can go ahead, I'll lock the front door on my way out," Videl replied. The teacher nodded with a slight shrug.

"Alright then Videl. Make sure the doors are secure when you leave. See you later," Miss Schafer replied with a curt nod. Videl waved to her before she was out of sight. After seeing her teacher left, she went back to work. Just as she was hitting her graph page, she suddenly noticed something out of the corner of her eye and glanced to her left out the window.

Because the school was built on a high vantage point within the hill regions of the city, and for a fact that she was on the third floor, she was able to get a good view of the landscapes beyond the city. What she saw, several miles out of the city's perimeter were a lot of hills. Behind the hills a dense fog of cloud cover slowly drifted over the land, blocking out view of the high mountains further beyond her sight. It was against the white clouds did she spot something out of place, which was quite hard to spot considering how far away it was.

Walking slowly over the hill, clearly imprinted against the white cloud was what Videl saw a walking, machine like building. Several small pillars of burning smoke rose into the air from the distant structure, and judging by its movements and design, Videl immediately recognized it to be Gohan's Castle. But just as her eyes were beginning to stretch further out toward the wastes, the castle suddenly disappeared behind the fog and out of sight. She was surprised at how quickly it had vanished.

She tilted her head in puzzlement and curiosity. "How can such a thing exist…a walking castle? Man, whatever it is out there, I'd like to know. I don't think it's that dangerous. Maybe people are over exaggerating," Videl thought. She shook her head, tearing her eyes away from the hillsides of the wastes. It was pretty clear that the castle won't be showing itself around here again for a while. Videl sighed. "And the stories about Gohan, please…there is no way anyone is cannibalistic enough to eat another person's heart. Steal it, yes, but eat it, I don't think so."

With frustration and exhaustion overwhelming her, the raven haired girl decided that maybe she should get going. Closing her book and packing away her stuff, Videl collected her backpack and headed down the isle. Leaving the classroom as it was, she locked the door behind her before proceeding for the stairway. Easily tracking it, she trotted down to the ground floor and headed outside. Just like she promised to her teacher, Videl locked the double doors behind her.

Taking her leave, Videl left the school grounds altogether and came to stand on the footpath beside the road that ran round the school. Looking around, the raven haired girl then looked down at her watch. It was 3:26 PM, early in the afternoon. Figuring she had some time, Videl turned and headed down the road leading off to the East side of the city. It was in that direction the parade was taking place, in the same area her friend Eraser lived. It was a mighty risk, but she may as well go kill some time and check up on her friend.

"I wonder if Eraser ever went to the parade. Nah, she probably went home. She probably has better things to do then watch some guys dressed in uniforms marching along the highway. A quick trip across town would do me some good anyway," Videl thought to herself.

Videl only had to walk a few blocks down for several minutes before coming across the bus stop and the bus that would take her the rest of the way. While she was clambering onto the double-decker vehicle, a squadron of planes soared overhead. The bi-planes let out a roar as their engines were pushed into full on drive, making one hell of a noise. Looking up, Videl saw them pass by, dragging behind them the flag banners of their country. From that one glance, she couldn't help but think how patriotic the Royal military was. She ignored them now and hopped onto the bus.

Paying the fair Videl stood by the entrance to the crowded vehicle. With a jerk and a rev of the engine, they were off. The raven haired girl soon found herself hurried across town on the local transport. Making sure she held onto the railing bar to keep herself from falling off, the teenage crime fighter watched the buildings and streets pass her by. It was certainly well packed today. People walking around either on their own or in groups, with many others standing around and talking. It was a very free day she had to admit.

Blocks passed her with more and more people making their appearances. The parade was a great deal to the people as it allowed them to turn away from the rising conflicts going on around them. Speaking of which, as Videl drew closer to the East side of town, she could hear the loud, booming music of the military bands playing in the distance, amplified by the speakers set up all around the area in which the parade was being hosted. To accompany the racket of the band, loud cheering echoed all around, making Videl cringe. She knew it was going to be packed. Judging by the screams, cheers and out roars of songs, it was going to be tough getting around.

When the bus pulled across the bridge crossing the railroad, Videl knew they had entered the parade area. As they crossed the bridge, Videl saw long stretches of train moving around below. The bridge was loaded with people as well as other buses, and it made her feel even more uncomfortable. She hated large crowds.

The train that was passing by was no ordinary train. It belonged to the Royal military, which used it to transport supplies and weapons from near and far. The reputedly spoken armored train was passing by. It was completely fitted with heavy guns, machine guns, anti-aircraft guns and artillery cannons. To add to it, it looked like a railroad tank. There were Royal army soldiers cramped out on top of it. They were dressed in Khaki, WWI British uniforms with the dish shaped, Brodie helmets and Lee Enfield rifles. Their outfits represented their mechanized, train division, a unique design of uniform to the rest of the military forces.

After watching the bridge pass by Videl turned back to look ahead of the bus. Leaning out a bit, Videl could see where she was going. The depot wasn't too far away and already Videl could see hundreds of heads of the hundreds of people coming to see the parade. Flags waved and emblems flew high. It was the most decorated bus depot Videl had ever seen.

Within seconds, she arrived at her stop and the raven haired girl was forced from her place. With thanks to the bus driver, Videl took her leave and began departing from the bus depot. Staying away from the crowds, Videl headed in the direction of Eraser's house. Since it was just across the central East quad, she would get there in no time. But there was a problem. The quad also served as the main restaurant sector for the people who lived in the area and it was packed now. Royal Army Officers and high ranking enlisted personnel were in the quad, hanging out with their girlfriends and/or wives, and enjoying a nice afternoon celebration lunch. To make matters worse, more crowds were packed into the area to cheer on their countries defenders.

Videl would have to find another way around.

Meanwhile, ways down the highway and into to main road weaving through the city streets, the parade was going on. The music was even louder from where she stood, but at the actual parade, the music was booming. The cheering and shouting was deafening, not to mention the crowds were amassing by the roadside even more by the minute. Nobody could get through the hordes of people.

Marching down the main road, an entire 2 regiments worth of soldiers was on the march. Dressed smartly in blue battle dresses, brown utility belts, black combat boots, red epaulettes on their shoulders, blue kepi hats and armed with the standard Kar98K bolt-action rifles, they distinguished themselves proudly. The leading Sergeant's of the parade were more noticeable. They had the golden stripes on their arms, had more badges on them, had Colt .45 side arms, sabers and blue garrison caps. The higher ranking Sergeant's led the marches.

After the first division of infantry went by, a cavalry company followed. These guys looked stunning. Not only did they wear the blue military uniform, instead of the buttoned up jacket coats and kepi hats, they wore golden armor with a golden, roman like helmet. They were armed with spears (with the country flags tied to them), sabers and Mauser Infanteriegewehr 98 bolt-action rifles. After the cavalry went by, a column of tanks followed. Mostly consisting of M3 Stuart's, M3 'General Grants' and M2 A4's, they didn't look that strong. They made up for their light build with their speed and numbers. After the column of tanks passed with their support infantry marching beside them, halftracks and another infantry division came. This parade would continue on for the entire day until the entire army had walked through the town and would head toward the next one.

Videl didn't take much notice. As soon as she left the depot, she took a small detour down a wide alleyway. The alleyway was filled with small shops that were open and small motels. There were several people here but nothing for her to be concerned about.

When she entered the alley of shops, the sounds of cheering and music was immediately tuned down. Though relieved that almost all the noise was turned down, she still had a long way to go. So, continuing on, she made her way through the alley. Looking at the numbers nailed up onto every shop door or wall, she began calculating how long it would take her to get to Eraser's apartment.

It was still some distance away, so Videl figured she had better stop wasting timer and pick up the pace. Turning left down another alley, Videl passed through a stone archway. It entered some sort of small, alley garden. It had a few benches and a tree growing in the centre of the setup, but it was nothing much to look at. It was peaceful here, a more humid then normal. She saw vines crawling up the nearby walls, covering what she saw were posters to join the army. Well, that was beyond her mind now. But then she also spotted something else. Glancing to her right, she saw rows upon rows of army backpacks with Kar98K rifles stacked together in triangle pyramids. She gasped in surprise when she saw a lone soldier standing guard over the gear, his eyes glued on her.

Not wanting to be caught out here, Videl kept on walking like she didn't see anything. She kicked into stride and moved off before she could be questioned. The next time she came across a cross road in the alleyway between several buildings, she was sure to check where she was going. She stopped and took a moment to think and find out where she was.

Looking to her left she saw the crowds of hundreds of people down in that direction, all of them cheering on the parade. She was closer then she thought, even though most sound was blocked off. The people were too caught up in their celebrations to notice her. Looking ahead, she aw the alley continue down a block of apartments. That was definitely not the way she wanted to go. When she looked right, she found a much better track. It wasn't dark, and the alley was wide enough for a car to slip through. The numbers she was following also took her in the direction of Eraser's house. If she took that way, then she would be able to bypass the restaurant quad and avoid the eyes of the public.

Turning on her heel she headed off again. Along the way, she began checking out the apartments and buildings she was passing. It was definitely a long strip and certainly didn't look like a cluster of houses. If it wasn't for the height of the buildings she would have felt a little bit more comfortable. She also wondered why it had gotten so cold.

Minutes after checking the buildings, she turned back to the path, only to run into someone. A bit taken aback, Videl took a step backwards and looked up. It came as somewhat of a surprise when she came face to face with a rather tall soldier. He wore the same uniform as those soldiers on the march back at the parade.

The auburn haired soldiers smiled in a very friendly way, too friendly for her taste. "Hey there, if it isn't Miss Satan. How are you today?" the soldier asked with a grin. Videl scowled, looking tough. Even though he looked intimidating from his height, she knew she was the stronger.

"I'm fine. Would you mind moving, I need to get through," Videl stated. Seeing that the guy wasn't going to move she tried stepping around him. She was blocked off when the soldier stood further out from the wall so that he blocked her way. Videl stepped back again, not wanting to get too close. She looked up at him with distaste.

"You look a little thirsty Miss Satan. Perhaps you could come with us for a little drink," the soldier continued, pressing his luck. Videl raised an eyebrow, wondering what he meant by 'us'. She was soon answered by a second soldier stepping out from the shadows, his Kar98K rifle flung over his shoulder and hanging from the straps. This guy was dressed similarly but had black hair and a big mustache.

Videl hardened her glare. This guy was really getting on her nerves. "No thanks. Could you please move, I don't want to ask you again," Videl said loudly. Her voice bounced off the walls, but she didn't shake the soldier's standing in her way. The auburn haired infantryman chuckled and glanced at his friend who bent over to take a closer look at the raven haired girl. Videl stepped back further, even more surprised at the nerve of the two men.

"Hey, she's pretty cute don't you reckon? Those clothes aren't much to look at, but she's alright," the mustached soldier exclaimed to his friend. The first soldier nodded in agreement and took a step closer to Videl, making her step back.

"Yeah. So, how old are you anyway? Do you live around here?" the auburn haired soldier asked. Videl was kind of disgusted by his…THEIR slick attitudes. How could they…two of their country's soldiers trying to hit on her? She balled her fists, her arms shaking and her eyes narrowing down on them. Her eyes flashed a dangerous blue.

"Leave me alone okay. I'm in a hurry so I'll ask you again, step away please," Videl said even louder then before. Her voice threatened to crack the glass of a nearby window. The auburn haired soldier hunched both eyebrows up, impressed by her steamy reaction. He chuckled again and turned to his friend.

"Hey, she's even cuter when she's angry. What do you think?" the soldier asked.

The other guy nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and I thought I've seen everything."

Before the two of them could comment any further, they were suddenly interrupted by another voice making its way into the conversation. It didn't come from behind them, it actually came from behind Videl. It was rather surprising since they didn't hear or see anyone else approaching.

"There you are sweetheart, sorry I'm late," the cool, deep and husky voice said. "I was looking everywhere for you", he continued.

Looking up, the two soldiers saw a blonde, spiky haired man appear out of nowhere and stood behind Videl. He had a rather cheerful smile on his face.

Videl tensed and gasped in surprise when she suddenly felt an arm wrap itself around her with the person's hand coming to rest on her right shoulder. The auburn haired soldier was rather frustrated at having his moves blown off by this weirdo.

"Hey, hey, we're busy here," he said in a threatening voice. The blonde haired man chuckled, pulling Videl closer to him.

"Are you really? It looked to me like the two of you were just leaving…" Then something really out of the ordinary happened.

Swishing his right finger upwards, the young man began performing a little trick beyond Videl's or the soldiers' eyes. With that one movement, the two soldiers suddenly snapped to attention, letting out yells of surprise. After that, they snapped to their left. Then, leading them with his hand, the blonde haired man finished off his little 'trick'. The two soldiers began shouting protests and shocked grunts when they began marching away beyond their own will. Turning, they marched down in the direction of the alleyway crossroad Videl just came from. Videl watched them with a rather surprised look, seeing the two complaining soldiers disappear down the alley and out of sight. Now that was weird.

She looked up at the man who had saved, her, hearing him begin to talk. "Don't hold it against them. They're actually not all that bad," the young man said with a grin across his lips. When Videl saw his face, she immediately began taking notes of his features.

The young man had blonde, spiky hair that stood on end, as if defying gravity. It was remarkably stiffened as well. He also had a really defined, mature face, with teal shaded eyes. He also had two bangs of hair hanging down in front of his forehead. Her observations continued over his outfit and form. The young man wore a white, long sleeved, Japanese styled shirt with black laces instead of buttons. It was a traditional wear by the looks of it and it was tucked in. Around his waste he wore a black obi or sash, and for pants, he wore a type of black, gi trousers. He also wore red ankle weights, martial arts shoes and over his shoulders he had a black, long sleeved jumper that was made of a very fine material (note leather).

He chuckled at Videl's surprised look. "So…where too? I'll be your escort this evening," he continued on, being more gentlemanly then anyone Videl had met. She was even more taken aback, not just by his tone of voice but how handsome he was.

"Oh…I was just heading over to my friend's apartment," Videl replied, a light blush appearing on her cheeks. The young man nodded in understanding.

"Okay then, I'll take you there," he said, taking her arm so that they were linked together. Videl didn't hesitate but was still a little shaken. "Don't be alarmed but I'm being followed. Act normal," he continued. This caught the raven haired girl's attention, but before she could say another word they were off.

Together, the two of them began making the rest of the way down the alley. Passing by more buildings and keeping in step with each other, it appeared they would get where they were going in no time. It was quiet, very quiet. The music and cheering of the parade had been left way behind, leaving the two in a very peaceful environment. Neither of them was worked.

Looking up at the blonde haired man, Videl saw that ever kind smile on his face and his eyes staring ahead of them. She began wondering where he had come from. She didn't sense anyone following her, nor did she see anyone in the alleyway that looked like him. If she was being followed she would have known about it before he had a chance to sneak up on her. While these thoughts were passing through her mind, the question of how he was able to ward off those two soldiers dwarfed her other thoughts. She had never seen anything like it. Was he a wizard or something? Or was it some sort of trick. Either way, it definitely gave her something to think about during their stride down the alley.

When the pair of them passed by one of the military poster's, a sudden dark shadow suddenly emerged from the wall. Oozing out of the wall, a black, blob like creature with a bowler cap suddenly appeared. It's very liquid face and body slid out and onto the path of the alley, its eyeless face following the couple walking away from it. At first you would think there was only one. But it wasn't alone. Seconds after it appeared, a dozen more suddenly liquefied out of the walls and slid onto the path. Legs and arms formed on them as they stood up and slowly, very sluggishly, began walking after them.

The stench of the creatures reached the couple's nostrils and Videl became more aware that they were being pursued. She thought it was the two soldiers, but unfortunately for her, it was something much worse. The blonde haired man wasn't concerned. He calmly continued walking on with his arm still linked with Videl's.

"Sorry…it looks like you're involved. Guess they found me," the young man said. Videl looked up at him in surprise but then looked ahead of her again. Just beyond a turning corner of the alley, Videl was horrified to see several, black blob creatures ooze out of the walls in front of her. The creatures made strangled groaning sounds as they appeared, stepping out onto the path and forming limbs. OK, now she was scared.

She wrapped both her arms around the young man's. She could feel muscles underneath the baggy sleeve of his shirt, but didn't take much time to marvel over it. Right now they were stuck in the middle of a very sticky situation. But where there's a will, there's a way, and the blonde haired man had a way out of this.

"This way," he whispered, turning left and heading down the route he planned on taking. Videl gasped and followed quickly. She had to walk a little bit faster because of her size. This man was really quick, but that may be because he had wider footsteps.

After turning the corner, the two of them picked up the pace. They began trotting down the alley, passing doorways and other buildings. They even passed a drunken man who was asleep in a corner but didn't even glance at him. The blob like creatures was still in hot pursuit. They rushed after them, not inclined on stopping. One of the creatures though stopped and glared down at the sleeping man. Finding out that he wasn't the one he was searching for, the blob creature continued on.

Now beginning to run down the alley, Videl and the young man began heading towards the exit of the alley. Beyond them was the quad, with crowds of people massed in the East central. Videl was hoping that they would make it. Not wanting to get caught by the things that were chasing them, she continued on. The alley around them turned to a blur as they began sprinting, both of them keeping several meters ahead of their chasers. It seemed as though they were going to make it. But they were not out of this neck of the woods yet.

Suddenly just as they were closing in on the exit more blob creature suddenly appeared in front of them. Seeping up and out of the path, the mass of creatures formed a high, thick wall of slime that reached right up to the second floor. It became black with shadow, and Videl began to panic. The blonde haired man smiled down at her and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close.

"Hold on…" he said. Videl didn't need telling twice. She quickly latched onto him, wrapped her arms around his chest and keeping him close. Just as the creatures were almost upon them, Videl found herself shooting up into the air. She let out a cry of shock when the two of them exited the alleyway and shot up into the sky.

Looking down, Videl saw the blob creatures collide with one another. They meshed together like mud, forming a giant block, corking the alley where they were. Though she was relieved they managed to evade the creatures, Videl was still shocked that she was floating in mid-air.

The young man stopped so that the two of them came to float several stories above the buildings and East central quad below. They were way out of sight of the public, which was good. Kami knows what would happen if the pair were caught floating high above the ground. It was abnormal. Videl was still shocked by the fact that she was actually floating. Still holding onto the young man, the raven haired girl hugged him tighter and closer, hoping that she wouldn't fall. The blonde haired man had no intention of letting her fall to her death.

Looking down at the girl, he smiled and shook her slightly, just so to get her attention. Videl looked up at him while still keeping her arms wrapped around him tightly. She still looked scared. The blonde haired man smiled. "So…it was your friend's apartment right?" Videl nodded in response. He smiled more kindly back. "Alright then…it will only take a minute…just sit tight…"

They were on the move again, but this time they weren't on foot. Videl stared in amazement as they began drifting through the air gently. Picking up a bit of speed, they suddenly became slightly horizontal to the ground, the wind now rushing by like a fierce breeze. Videl took this opportunity to look around and admire the scenery. She rarely saw the city like this. Since last year personalized aircraft were ground to make way for other military air traffic. This was quite apparent. After seeing three more planes fly by on the horizon, Videl didn't want to question the authority's motives.

Far below, Videl saw the quad pass by underneath. She could see army officers and hundreds of other people indulged in a thick celebration of dancing and dining. Cheers and happy exclamation of speech rang out, with all of them completely unaware of the pair floating high above them. So far, nobody noticed them.

Looking in the direction they were going, Videl could see the familiar white apartment building coming in. Seated behind the restaurant quad, she knew this was definitely the place. Videl had visited her friend many times before in the past. Within seconds, the pair of them reached the seventh floor balcony two apartments down from the left. Videl easily recognized the design and, touching down on the railings, she was slowly lowered to her feet. Gazing up at the blonde haired man, Videl saw him smile, her hand still intertwined with his.

The young man nodded to her with a smile. "There you go. I'll make sure to draw off those fiends, but wait a bit before you head back outside," he whispered. Videl smiled back up at him and nodded, her hand slowly sliding out of his as he pulled away.

"OK…"

He smiled more kindly. "That's my girl…" And, with a final nod, the young man suddenly leaned back and fell over the edge of the balcony. Videl let out a gasp of surprise and rushed over to the railings, looking over the side of the balcony to see what had happened to her spiky haired savior. When she looked down, she only saw the roof of the restaurant far below, along with the crowded streets and quad. She blinked in shock, unable to find a body of the young man on the street below or find any trace of him.

He was gone…

Videl heard a cry of surprise behind her and wheeled around. Standing by the opened up sliding door to the balcony was Eraser. The blonde haired girl was dressed in blue jeans, a green tube top and indoor slippers, not to mention was holding one of her Woman's Day magazine's. She had her right hand on her chest and was breathing in rapidly, her heart rate off the charts. She was no less then startled at seeing her friend here…on her balcony!

"Videl?! What…how…?" Videl smiled and gave a slight wave.

"Hey there Eraser," Videl exclaimed. Her friend dropped her magazine and rushed over to her friend, taking her hands and looking directly at her. With wide eyes and a gob smacked mouth hanging open, she began asking her friend questions and shaking her to get the information out.

"Videl, how did you get up here? Did you float down onto my balcony or something? What happened?" Eraser shouted, bombarding Videl with questions. The raven haired girl had yet recovered from her shocking experience. She wasn't even able to keep up with her friend's ranting.

Once Eraser had calmed down the two of them took a seat on the table and chairs set up on the balcony and began talking. This time Eraser allowed Videl to explain to her what had happened. She was given the full story: starting from school, to the alleyway encounter with the blonde haired stranger, the abnormal tricks he used, the attack by the blob creatures and the sudden flight the rest of the way here. She made sure she didn't leave anything out. Videl even described what the young man looked like to Eraser. Though her friend found the guy quite attractive from Videl's explanations, she was still very concerned. As Videl talked, the parade and celebrations continued. They could hear the music and cheering distant, most of it coming from below in the quad. But as the hour passed people began to head on home as the day came to a close. It was a long, grueling yet joyous day.

When Videl finally finished her story, Eraser was now able to comment on her friend's experiences and explanations. The two of them were in a very deep conversation. "Wow…that guy must have been a wizard, no doubt. He must have been Gohan! Yeah! There is no one else in the world that could have done what he did."

Videl looked at her friend, contemplating what she had said. She looked away, deeply caught up in her thoughts and still caught up in the memory of the young man's face. "But he was so kind to me." Videl looked back, thinking how he had helped her. Those few moments, they were glued to her mind. "He rescued me Eraser…from those soldiers and those blob things…"

Eraser was a bit taken aback by Videl dream like tone. She had never seen her friend act like this before. "Of course he did…he was trying to steal your heart. You've heard the stories Videl!" Her friend was barely listening, still lost in the cloudy world of her mind. "You are so lucky…any longer and Gohan surely would have eaten it. I don't want to lose my best friend to a monster of a man…"

Videl glanced up at her friend. She may have been surprised by Eraser's harshness towards her savior, but she understood her worries. She also had good reason not to be concerned herself. "He wouldn't have Eraser. I knew I could trust him. Besides, he wouldn't eat the heart of a girl like me. I'm not as beautiful as anyone else…" Eraser waved her words away.

"Don't give me that Videl, you've been in denial about this since we started high school," Eraser stated. She turned to Videl and leaned in closer, making sure she got this through to her. Videl only glanced up at her briefly before turning away again. "You need to be more careful, it's getting more dangerous around here by the day, despite the increase in military defense. I've heard that the Witch of the Waste and Babidi are back on the prowl…" She saw that Videl wasn't looking at her and she tapped her on the shoulder. "Are you even listening?"

Videl looked at her, blinking once. She looked confused, especially since she had drifted out of reality. "Huh…?"

Eraser groaned in annoyance and just shook her head. "Never mind…"

Sighing, Videl got to her feet and picked up her backpack from the ground. She flung it back onto her shoulders and smiled down at her best friend. "Well, I'd better be going then, I just wanted to make sure you were doing OK…" Eraser stood up and nodded. The blonde haired girl then escorted Videl through her apartment and to the front door. When they reached the door, Eraser suddenly stopped her friend. She took Videl's hands into hers and looked into her eyes intently.

"Listen Videl, promise me you will watch yourself from now on, alright," Eraser said loudly so that it got to Videl's ears. Videl smiled and nodded.

"Sure. Come on Eraser, I can take care of myself. And besides, you're not my mother…" Eraser shook her head and jerked her friend's arms to get her next point through.

"I don't think you understand. Who you have just dealt with isn't normal. Gohan and blob like creatures are odds you will easily get tangled in. Oh…" the girl pulled away and placed her hands on her hips. "I just wish you would see reason. Why not settle down from crime work for a while, go out on a date. Sharpener and I have plans for the next weekend, why don't you bring someone you like along with us, it will do you some good." Videl made a spitting sound of disgust to Eraser's words.

"Ugh…no way, the guys are jerks. I don't even like anyone. Well…not until just recently…" Eraser growled and leered at Videl, her expression threatening.

"Videl, don't even think about it. That Gohan is no good," Eraser stated. Videl sighed.

"That's only what you're saying. I know he's alright…"

Eraser rubbed her forehead. She didn't know what else she could say. There was no talking Videl out of this. Until she sets her priorities straight again, there will be more of these episodes to come. She looked up at her friend again and crossed her arms.

"You have a long life ahead of you Videl, but only one. Do something for yourself for once, will you…?"

Videl chuckled and opened the door. "Bye Eraser. See you tomorrow," she replied. With that, she left the apartment. Closing the door behind her, Videl headed down the hall toward the stairwell.

The trip downstairs didn't take long, and soon enough she expelled herself out onto the streets once again. Taking the safest route she could think of, she decided to stay out on the street and not take any detours down any cold, dark alleys. It was getting dark anyhow.

Unbeknownst to her, as Videl walked toward the bus depot, around the corner and down one of the dark alleyways, a mysterious presence lurked. Standing in front and behind a carrier compartment, two blob, black men solidified in shape of human's were standing at attention while a bright, green eye peered out of the window to the compartment in between them. When the eye saw the raven haired girl walk away, the curtains fell and the door opened. Dropping to the floor, a cane lowered a small, golden jar. Tapping it open, black liquid suddenly began flowing towards it via the cracks in the footpath's brickwork. The black slime leapt into the jar in the forms of miniature blob men, the same one's that attacked Videl and her golden haired companion.

When the jar was filled, the cane picked it up and took it back into the compartment. After the door slammed itself shut, the two, purple tuxedo wearing goons picked up the transport box by the two bars, lifting it off the ground. Holding it at waist height, they began marching back down the alley and out of sight.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Author's note: Well, my second chapter. I had a bit of a problem selecting the characters to use, whether to use Videl or Sophie, but I chose Videl. I'm very passionate about Gohan and Videl, and I'd like to keep it that way. Please review