Whew, finished this chapter on time. I don't know why this section was so hard to write, with all my other highly planned chapters they were done in a couple days regardless of how long they were

But we're finally done with this section so we can move on to the rest of the story. I might take a short break to get all my ducks in a row, I might not. idk

OnTheTidesOfEvermore: Thanks ^.^ I'm glad you like the fic so much

MiharuTousaka: Oh thats fun. I had to post pone my GT rewatch because I had to prioitize actually watching Super for this fic. I don't know super as well as I do Z so planning future arcs is difficult lol.
I'd already had one specific thing planned before even watching Super and let's just say it lines up wonderfully with the canon order of things :)

Boosted Knees: I honestly don't thinkn Vegeta would even care enough to have a problem with it lol

With four collected we were over halfway done, and in only one day too.

Granted we only actually had to find one of them, but still.

Though by the time we were nearing the fifth, the sun was starting to dip. And that was when Seventeen's brilliant plan of sleeping arrangements: he didn't have one.

Rather, his plan was just, to sleep out in the open. Because why not.

With the flattest face possible, I opened a capsule to release an already set-up tent.

"Well if you want to be boring about it."

"You cannot be willingly choosing to sleep outside."

"Sure, why not?" He said as he'd begun to set up a pit for a fire.

"What sort of quality of sleep could you possibly get with just, nothing?"

"Hm? Oh, well the concept of a good night's sleep is a bit more loose for me. I don't need to sleep every night, though I do like to keep the habit. And I do get more irritable if I go more than a few days without, but I don't technically need to if I didn't want to." He shrugged.

Huh. Well, that was neat. Wish I didn't have to sleep.

"That still doesn't justify sleeping outside."

"It sounds neat."

And there was simply no arguing with such a plain statement.

And it's not like I had a spare tent anyway so-

"Well, you can just stay out here then," I stated as I retreated into my tent.

"That was the plan!" He called after me.

Still, I couldn't help but feel guilty as I sat inside.

I went through my capsules and I didn't have any spare tent or sleeping bags or anything, but I did have a couple extra blankets because redundancy.

So, I opened the tent again and chucked one at him.

"You are interfering with my plans!"

"That's nice." I closed the tent again.

Sleep itself was whatever. It wasn't particularly bad, but there was only so good it could be sleeping out in the middle of nowhere.

Getting to sleep however, was harder. There was something- well I knew what was preventing it. The situation. Everything. It was weird. It's not like I was feeling bad about it, it was a good thing, I knew that. But I wasn't feeling that excited about it either. I just felt, antsy.

It was a change. A sudden change. I don't like change. But things were going to change either way, so, better it be a change for the better than the worse.

I just wanted to get it over with.

But eventually doing nothing and laying with my eyes closed drifted my brain off enough to get a few hours of sleep.

When I woke up, and went through the usual phases of waking up and falling back asleep a few times, I eventually managed to get myself up.

Opening my tent, I found the blanket folded by the entrance. Whether or not it was used was a mystery. I sealed it back away regardless.

Seventeen, however, was nowhere to be seen.

I fiddled with one of the dragon balls in front of me as I sat. I mean, Seventeen had the radar and there wasn't much I could do to find him without being able to sense him.

It was kinda unnerving actually. I'd gotten so used to being able to sense anyone nearby that it being able to sense someone throws me off.

A lot about him threw me off actually. Especially recently. I didn't really know how to describe it.

I still didn't know why he was doing this.

I heard something behind me and turned to see it was Seventeen landing.

"I got food," he stated, "figured breakfast was a pretty safe bet."

I blinked, for some reason the thought of food hadn't really crossed my mind. I mean, I had one of my calorie supplements, but it's not really good to take those without food so I probably should have brought snacks too. "Oh, uh, thanks."

It was pretty standard stuff. Safe foods that just about anyone would like.

He almost looked insulted when I offered to pay him back.

As we ate I scanned over some past interactions, trying to deduce what could have prompted going out of his way like this- because it couldn't have just been learning about the reincarnation thing- there had to have been something-

"Oh, I get it."

Seventeen looked at me in question.

"This is your silly little "owe you one" thing from after the Cell Games isn't it?" I pointed my fork at him accusingly.

His hesitation was all the answer I needed.

"I just don't like owing people," he defended himself.

"I told you you didn't owe me!"

"Well I felt like I did. Though technically since I'm doing this myself, it might not totally count. So if you wanted something else…"

"I don't want anything!"

"Except for a wish I assume."

"…"

I squinted at him and did not quite enjoy his smug look as I had no retort.

"That doesn't change the fact that your premise is silly, S-" I hesitated at the name. Darn it, I should have asked earlier, it just never came up and now it's weird.

Seventeen obviously noticed and raised an eyebrow. Eventually, he tilted his head towards me, "I do still prefer Seventeen under most circumstances," he clarified. Again technically, since I'm pretty sure that was what he said before too.

But while I felt awkward about it, he carried on as if nothing had happened, shifting right back into the petty argument without a missed beat.

It made it easy to move on as if it hadn't happened.

But eventually breakfast was over and it was time to move on.

Seventeen traced the next one as being in some desert and didn't even bother suggesting a car again.

Surprisingly, it didn't take several hours to get there this time. Flying is, in fact, faster. Imagine that.

Also, the desert was awful. I'll probably be picking sand out of my hair for the next week.

Still, as we closed in on its location, it became apparent that there were people there. Not many, just three if I were to guess. But it'd be pretty inconvenient if they already had the dragon ball.

Which seemed all the more likely as we got closer and the radar zeroed in on a small group of people. A woman, a dog man, and-

"Pilaf?"

The group turned on their heels, startled.

And I had to tap down my amusement at just the absurdity of the situation.

The short man with blue skin and pointed ears squinted at me. "Do I, know you…?" He asked cautiously.

"It seems your reputation precedes you, sir!" The dog man said, excitement in his voice.

"Yeah, no. You just crossed paths with my dad a few times."

My tail already wasn't wrapped but I allowed it to sway more than it normally would.

The woman was the one who noticed.

"Who…is your father…?"

"Do you want an answer?" I coiled the tail behind me before letting it fall back to a normal position.

"…no."

"Right so anyway, I'm gonna need that Dragon Ball you definitely have hidden."

I mean, I still kinda felt bad about the inevitability of having to take it, but not nearly as much as I would have if it were just, a normal group of people.

"No way! We found it fair and square- I mean what Dragon Ball I've never heard of such a thing." Pilaf changed his story too quickly to believe even if I didn't already know otherwise.

He was also very obviously hiding something behind his back.

"…Right, so anyway. I need all seven. And you'd need all seven for whatever scheme you have planned, so unless you think you can take this from me, wouldn't it be easier to just wait til next year?" I pulled out one of the dragon balls we'd collected, twisting it so that it caught a glare in the sunlight.

The group stared before turning on their heels and started to mutter amongst themselves.

And, I didn't really want to just take it. That seemed rude. I guess if they attacked first it'd be fine.

And that was probably inevitable? I'm pretty sure that's what they usually did when wanting to get the dragon balls. But they'd probably run away first and come up with some scheme and-

Seventeen appeared in the middle of their huddle.

"Yeah, no. Got bored. Sorry." The apology sounded more like it was for getting Bored than it was for anything else.

A moment later he was standing back beside me, yet another dragon ball in hand, tossing it in the air once to show it off.

Well. That works too.

Seventeen nodded his head off to the side to indicate leaving, before taking off.

I glanced back before shrugging and following along, ignoring the group's shouts of protest.

Well. That was mildly amusing I guess.

The next one was tracked close to an ocean. Upon closing in it was determined that it was under the water, just over the edge of the cliff we were standing on.

Seventeen pushed the button on the radar until it showed the depth of where it was supposed to be.

"Well, go get it." He indicated over the edge with his hand.

I looked at him, unimpressed at his tone. I mean, I was obviously already going to but still. "What? Afraid you'll sort circuit?"

Seventeen snorted. "Please. Now my hair on the other hand…" he let the statement drift off.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes but stepped to the edge of the cliff anyway. Like I said, I was already gonna be the one grabbing it anyway.

I used the watch to switch to my Gi. Come to think of it, I still needed to get a replacement suit from Bulma. She'd said she'd have it done with the sheath she'd been developing for the Kai's sword.

"How deep was it?"

"About a hundred feet or so." He shrugged.

I frowned. The metric honestly didn't help much- I was no good at judging distance.

I sighed and jumped into the water regardless. I'd figure it out.

Except I didn't. I doubled back multiple times and still couldn't seem to find it.

I rose back to the surface.

"Did you mean a hundred feet with or without the cliff?"

"Without," he said, tone sounding as if it was obvious.

"That's where I was looking-" I muttered as I descended once again, with similar results.

This time when I rose back to the surface I didn't even bother asking, I just swiped the radar from his hands and used that to lead me to the dragon ball properly.

It wasn't as deep as I'd been looking and covered by plant life.

Well. At least I had it now.

Upon getting back to dry land I immediately went Super Sayain in order to get rid of most of the water.

"Hey!" Seventeen protested, shielding himself from drops of water sent scattering.

I let my energy dip back to the default and was left vaguely damp but almost dry.

Also vaguely salty from sea water but whatever.

I tossed the radar back over to Seventeen, which distracted him enough from the prior protests that he moved on from it.

The next one was tracked in a mountain range, nestled awkwardly between some cliffs.

I reached in only to shriek and pull back several feet away.

Seventeen's eyebrows raised further than I thought possible as he stared back at me. "What was that?" He asked, a laugh in his voice.

Instead of answering, I glared at the offending crack in the cliffs, of which a freaking giant spider crawled out.

"You're joking." He commented as he realized what my reaction was for.

And I was fine with spiders. Really. As long as they stayed in their little corners and didn't intrude, I don't care where they stay. It's when they decide to get too close and crawl around or on my hand, that there's a problem.

I'd probably be fine if it was like, a pet tarantula or something cute and fuzzy looking and I was expecting it, but that thing was not any of those things.

I could still feel the little crawly feeling where it touched my hand no matter how much I tried to shake it away.

"You are literally the strongest person on this planet."

"That doesn't make me bug-proof!"

"Yes it does," he laughed. "If that thing can break your skin I will personally sign it up for the next World Martial Arts Tournament."

As he spoke he let the stupid thing crawl on his hand and lifted it away. He held it up as if bragging about how not a big deal it was, before waving me back towards the Dragon Ball.

"It's a burrower, there are no webs," he commented at my remaining resistance.

I half glared and was tempted to comment about that not being an issue even as the thought of the spiderweb texture wigged me out.

Cautiously, I went to grab it again, pulling back when I thought something touched me, but determined it was nothing and grabbed it anyway.

And then immediately pulled away, checked to make sure nothing was on me or the dragon ball and pulled far away from any rock that could house more spiders.

"K. Great. Got it. Let's go."

Seventeen huffed a partial laugh as he returned the spider to its evil, evil hole. He followed me until I landed on top of the mountains where I determined no spiders could sneak up on me.

"Alright, where's the next one?" I asked, trying to shake off the entire event.

Seventeen tilted his head towards me, not responding for a moment. He only stared at me for a moment. His eyes were very blue.

Until eventually, he just said, "That's seven."

I blinked.

That was, Seven?

I replayed over the dragon balls we'd collected and-

Oh. I guess it was.

That was, good?

It was.

It was.

I knew it was.

But I felt weird, not bad but- I just felt fuzzy. Weird. I just wanted it over with but it was also going too fast and I-

I don't know.

"Let's find some flatter land," Seventeen said. And I, only nodded.

I followed his lead, only really paying enough attention to keep pace. Eventually, he settled on an area that was flat, and grassy, and far away from anywhere I could imagine people being.

I laid out the Dragon Balls. The Seven of them glowed in each other's presence.

A thought suddenly occurred to me.

"I don't think, I've ever seen Shenron before. I'm pretty sure I've only ever seen Porunga."

Seventeen raised an eyebrow, "what about after the Cell Games? Your friends used the dragon balls then."

"I was asleep."

Seventeen thought it over, "Oh yeah, I guess you were. You do still know how to summon him though, right?"

I nodded. Well, I knew what you were supposed to do, but only because of the show. I'm pretty sure it was pretty vague overall, but what if my memory was wrong? It's already proven itself to be less than reliable at times.

But that was something so fundamental, so basic for the show surely I'd remember it right. But what if-

I shook my head. This was pointless. I just had to- had to, say the words.

So I did. And nothing happened.

Seventeen leaned over. "I think you have to say it louder." He said.

I felt my cheeks heat. Both from being called out and the prospect of having to repeat it again.

It just felt, kinda silly. Cliche. I knew that was how it worked but still.

But still, I swallowed my pride and did the ritual properly.

There was a moment of silence…

And then the orbs glowed brighter than ever before.

And that had confirmed that I'd never seen Shenron summoned because I have never seen such a sight.

Porunga was impressive and intimidating and all, and Shenron was too, but he was also pretty. Pretty in a way that I just could not say Porunga was.

I was shaken back to reality when he spoke:

Speak Your Wish.

For a second I had to remind myself to breathe as I stared up at him.

Then I shook myself from it and stated my already well-prepared wish.

"I wish this body was female."

Short, simple, no room for error. Shenron wasn't known for screwing with wishes but I didn't want to take any chances.

Shenron's eyes glowed before-

It Has Been Done.

I blinked.

That, was it?

Did, I feel any different?

Maybe? I couldn't tell. I just felt, fuzzy. Why did I still feel so fuzzy?

I should have felt something. I'm sure of it.

I should have felt something.

Not just physically. But, emotionally too.

I should have felt something. I'm sure that I was.

I couldn't tell what though.

I-

"Hey."

I looked back. Seventeen's face was impassive as he held something out to me. A, tissue? Or, no. Some kind of handkerchief or something.

I blinked and was surprised when my eyelids felt, colder than usual. I reached up, and immediately pulled back when my hand came back moist.

At the sudden realization I quickly, frustratingly, swiped at my eyes with my sleeves. Then I realized that that was probably what Seventeen was holding out the cloth for.

Stupid.

Whatever. It'd be way more embarrassing if I'd taken it.

It's not like the Dragon had the patience to allow that moment to be lingered on.

Speak Your Second Wish.

I blinked. I hadn't planned anything past the main- the main thing.

I half glanced back as I wiped away any remaining residue from my eyes.

"Uh, do you, have any wish..?"

Seventeen paused, and considered.

He looked up, and I couldn't have deciphered his expression if I tried.

"Can you give Sixteen a proper soul?" He asked.

And I said nothing. How could I? What was there to say?

Shenron's eyes glowed and then-

It Is Beyond My Power To Grant A Soul Where One Does Not Exist.

My shoulders tensed, feeling bad. I wish there was something I could do- but there wasn't, not really. Should I say something? I mean, I probably could, but I wouldn't know what. I'd probably just make it worse, or awkward.

I glanced back to see Seventeen's eyes were closed. He blinked them open, once, twice, and then his expression was as if nothing had happened.

"Well, it was a long shot anyway. That's all I had, go ahead." He indicated his hand towards me.

"Oh, um-" That brought me back to not really having a second wish. I scanned through vague things I wanted or annoyances I wanted to avoid.

Most things I wanted I could get otherwise so that'd be a waste.

Annoyances? There were a few I could avoid. I considered making everyone think I was physically a girl the whole time again, before dismissing it again for the same reason.

"Uh- no periods?" It was more of a question than a request. But that seemed like a wish that'd be hard enough to achieve without magical dragon interference.

Seventeen snorted behind me and I turned to glare.

"Oh what are you? 14?"

"No. I'm Seventeen."

I turned back and ducked my head, desperately stifling my laughter because darn it, he was not going to get me with the same joke again.

I looked up to see Shenron's eyes briefly glow before returning to normal once again.

Simply Ceasing The Menstrual Cycle Will Make You Incapable Of Natural Reproduction. Are You Certain This Is Your Wish?

I inhaled, "That's fine. Perfect," I said, probably too quickly.

Wishing away the risk of pregnancy probably would have been a better wish now that I think of it. Guess I lucked into that one.

If Seventeen questioned that response, he didn't mention it.

Very Well.

The dragon said, and a moment later:

Your Wish Has Been Granted.

And once again, the Dragon Balls glowed bright enough that I had to shield my eyes from them. And when I looked back up, they were gone. Scattered across the earth once again.

I, can't say I entirely remember what happened next. It all felt burry. I don't quite remember how I got home, only that it was well past dark once I did. I vaguely remembered sneaking back to my room quietly, as to not wake anyone up, but I don't remember ever hitting the bed. I just know that's where I woke up the next morning.

And for a brief moment, I thought it might have all been a dream.

That was proven false, however, as soon as I moved.

Oh.

I guess.

It worked.

Looking in the mirror both as I got changed, and after, there were a few physical changes, but most wouldn't be visible under any clothing yet. The puberty blockers probably still needed a bit of time to wear off. That'd probably be better to avoid sudden changes anyway. A more gradual adjustment.

That being said, there were definitely some visible changes too. Features that looked, softer, almost. My muscle mass remained the same, yet somehow that felt more natural than it had before too.

I shifted awkwardly before opening my door, but it's not like I could avoid interactions forever.

I hovered at the end of the hall as I saw Chichi in the kitchen.

Eventually, she noticed and turned. "You're back."

It was more of a statement than anything else. She glanced over me, as if trying to determine any obvious changes.

"Gohan! That was quicker than I expected," Goku walked up behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder with a smile, "how'd it go?"

"Oh, it went, fine. Well. I made the wish."

"Not much seems to have changed." Chichi's tone was shorter than I was used to.

"It'll probably take a few weeks for the blockers to wear off completely." In response, my tone was probably more defensive than necessary.

Any further conversation was cut by another door opening.

Goten walked out, rubbing his eye from sleep, "Hey mom, what's for bre- Gohan's back!" I was suddenly tackled in a hug from a child who could probably destroy the planet if he really tried.

"Where'd you go? Mom and Dad would only say you went on a trip."

I glanced up in question. Goku was the one who responded, "It's not polite to talk about people without their permission."

He looked proud of himself at the statement, and I could quite fault him for it since he wasn't technically wrong.

"Oh, well, I was looking for the Dragon Balls."

Goten gasped. "You should have taken me with you! That sounds like it was fun! What'd you wish for?"

I shifted.

"Well, let's sit down."

Goten looked confused but did as he was told. I expected the explanation to have some issue or complications but Goten's response was, well-

"Oh. Ok then."

Simple.

"That's all?" I asked, surprised and, frankly, unsure.

"Hm? Well yeah. I mean, I guess Trunks will be mad about it."

My brows furrowed, "why would, Trunks be mad about it..?"

"Oh, because that means that Clover was right and he was wrong."

I could only blink as Goten explained that it was apparently a common argument between the two of whether I was a girl or, not even a boy but nonbinary.

To me, it kinda sounded like Trunks learned a new term and wanted to apply it to someone he knew in real life. I didn't say that out loud though.

"Why didn't you just ask?" I asked him.

"Cause Trunks said you'd probably just lie about it and it wouldn't solve anything. I didn't really like the argument though. I just kinda avoided he or she words about you."

I frowned, "why didn't you just default to he then?"

"Cause- cause Clover said she'd be super upset if something be called her a boy! and I didn't want to make you upset if she was right! Which she was!"

"Oh, well. You didn't have to worry about that. That's how it's always been. But, thank you anyway."

Goten smiled. And then he asked about breakfast again.

That seemed to at least somewhat ease the tension in the room as things shifted back to a relative norm.

The rest of the day was spent with somewhat awkward adjustments.

I overheard Chichi muttering about having to buy new clothes, and I was torn between being glad that she seemed at least somewhat responsive, awkward about the extra attention, and dread at the concern about her perhaps trying to push me into more feminine clothing.

My fashion sense, or lack thereof, had not changed in the slightest through any of this after all. I'd much take my somewhat baggy comfortable clothes over anything traditionally feminine any day.

But, as the day wound down, I found myself in my room again.

And somehow, my mind drifted back to Seventeen.

It was kinda a shame I didn't see him around more often. I mean, it's not like he has much reason to be around here, but still.

It was fun, overall, to hang out with him.

It was nice of him to have done this. Even if it was just for his silly owe you one thing. He didn't have to. Honestly, I thought he'd forgotten about that by now. I certainly did.

Yeah. It was nice.

Hopefully, I'd run into him again soon. At least to chat. And- and Uh-

Uh-

Oh.

Oh no.