The Horse with No Name

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Goten Son

As living grows easier, it also becomes more challenging in a normal, boring sort of fashion for Goten Son. Grandpa's passing opened doors he'd never once thought about, presenting a pathway he'd felt (and hoped) wouldn't be an option for him since Gohan's return. A king? Him? Gohan had originally been first in line, but it allegedly goes without saying that the title has fallen to Goten, whether he wants it or not.

A couple of difficult, mournful months come to pass, the idea on pause but never forgotten by his mother or the people of Fire Mountain. Today, he lets the expectations drift from his mind once more. He's not even at Fire Mountain. 439 Mountain Area is his reprieve.

He rubs his shoulders, suffering as the brittleness seeps wetly into his bones. It's a particularly cold October, with naked trees that shiver in the crunch of the wind. No scarf or hooded jacket can do the trick. This season is the cruellest since the blizzard last year, back when everything had been terrible. Most especially Goten feels the cold now, after being caught out in the freak storm that'd just swept the twenty mile radius, and with the eye of said storm standing a stone's throw away, Goten struggles to keep his teeth from chattering.

Dad powers down first, the blue of his aura dissolving into forest green. And Vegeta follows suit, his Super Saiyan God bastardization far less impressive.

"Just ask him," Dad says, "He'll do it."

Vegeta sneers.

"You've pushed that form as far as it can go. Sure, it's impressive but you've gotta' do the ritual in order to master it, you know that."

"My parameters have been tested. That's all I came for, Kakarot, not advice."

Dad shrugs, applying his snow jacket. There isn't even a bruise on his chin, not a scratch nor a broken sweat, just his usual happy-go-lucky grin that Vegeta could only dream of wiping off.

"Wow, looks like your age is catching up to you, Vegeta," Dad goads, "Do you really want Trunks to overpower you? He's on your tail."

"I'm not asking for his help And I'm not old! I'll have you know—"

Trunks blows out a whistle from within the depths of his ski jacket. "My dad's so stubborn."

"And in denial," Goten adds.

"Yup."

"Are you really catching up to him?"

Trunks, who isn't humble at all, turns incredibly humble, twitching his shoulders and staring into the far distance of the forest. "I dunno'…"

It'd kill Vegeta to be knocked back yet again in the pecking order, though it seems inevitable with how quickly Trunks is attaining power. He trains with Rixas whenever he's on Earth and he spars with Dad every other weekend (when he's not being kept prisoner by Vegeta in the gravity room of course). The power growth has been monitored in the bid to prepare him for a greater role, with Rixas bullying him to constantly self-improve even though Trunks works his ass off already.

Goten's fingers twitch in his gloves. "It'll be time for you to go soon enough."

Again, Trunks is uncomfortable. It's a topic he's been avoiding over the last few months even though he used to brag about it, but now with the date fast approaching, the nerves are starting to show.

"You're already seventeen. Just a couple more years at most."

"Yeah, I can count."

"Don't be an asshole."

Trunks flips him the finger and disrobes his coat. "It's me next, right, Goku?"

"Sure is! Just let me warm up a sec'."

"I hope my dad kicks your ass," Goten says, pretending to be spiteful.

"Wouldn't be the first time."

Goten laughs, watching his best friend slowly descend down the hill towards Dad. They really don't hang out as much as they used to, which is a shame. Goten's had to branch out in school and make new friends. It's been bittersweet. The accumulation of like-minded classmates in his printmaking club has Goten nestle himself quite nicely into a group of art dorks. They visit museums on the weekends sometimes, galleries too. It never used to be Goten's thing but experiencing it through fresh eyes has been exciting, liberating even. They're fun people who laugh when Goten does something stupid, and they watch ridiculous TV shows and frequent the Internet like normal teenagers. They don't talk about ki or fighting or obsessive dads all the time. But that's not to say that Goten doesn't miss Trunks at school, even now, especially now, with the future haunting with uncertainty. It would have been nice to be doing their final years together, to be cramming for exams and researching universities over milk tea like he does his classmates.

Though, is there point in Goten applying to university? Mum says there is, even if he's going to one day be King. That's the one certainty, apparently. It bears not thinking about, it's still too painful to consider replacing Grandpa.

Casting the thought aside, he decides to trudge back home, to where he can stoke the fire instead of freeze his ass off. Hot chocolate sounds perfect. Maybe he can call Palace (a pretty girl in his club class) and tell her about getting his art piece published.

Yes, published. After slaving away for the better part of a month, his work has been chosen to be featured in Crazed and Diffused magazine for the student shout-out section, where there's no doubt it'll be seen by professionals worldwide. His stuff had been praised at school, sure, but to have it published? This is wild. This will boost his commissions for sure. He's practically been discovered.

Too bad kings can't moonlight as graphic designers.

"Just tell your mum you don't want the job," Rixas had said on one of his visits. They're getting even rarer and rarer these days, what with his ridiculous schedule. "Eh? Don't look at me like that. That's the truth, right?"

"It's not that easy. I thought out of everyone you'd get that."

"Touché."

Goten wonders what the lug is up to these days. It must've been at least two months since Goten last saw him prowling around the house, stealing Dad's protein drinks, messing with Gohan and causing general havoc. Alas, with no Rixas there's been little excitement, no divine matters to contend with; no drama. The stagnation of life over these last few months has settled into what's to be expected. Normalcy, with its dragging heels, comes with no surprises; it's just school and home – for once, Goten feels like an ordinary teenager living an ordinary life.

Even Gohan has the decency to pretend he's a regular twenty-something year-old these days. He's always out and about, on his phone about as much as Goten is, and finally dressing someone his age instead of an old man.

Funnily enough, when Goten arrives at the house, he finds the fire already blazing and Gohan lazing in front of it with one of his many books. It's a hardback about animal anatomy; Gohan's latest interest. Despite knowing Goten is there, he doesn't pay him any mind; yes, a declawed tiger, tamed but not domesticated, and playing the role of an ignorant housecat. Recently, there's been a remarkable shift in Gohan's personality. He's comparably quiet to what he once was, aloof sometimes, not necessarily in a hateful way, but in a manner that exudes a soft, forceful confidence which oddly suits him. Goten can tell he's happier now than he has been in a long time.

Gohan looks up at him when Goten comes to stand above him, the gold crackling in his eyes. No longer are they dim. They flicker as though flirting with life.

"Good afternoon, what are you reading?" Goten says in Celestiance. At least, that's what he thinks he says, but isn't too sure when Gohan's stoicism cracks in half.

"Wrong tone," Gohan laughs, suddenly looking years younger. Mischievous actually, and extraordinarily like Rixas (though Goten will never say that to him).

"Why do you look like the cat that ate the cranberry?"

"The cat that ate the canary," Gohan corrects, "And I'm in a good mood. What can I say?"

The last time Gohan had this sort of expression had been when he'd taken an enormous amount of satisfaction in rejecting Trunks' latest plea to be bestowed with Lanit Tongue. Much like Rixas, Gohan is abnormally strict with Trunks, and expects Trunks' language level in Celestianese to be beyond that of conversational before the bestowment is even considered. As opposed to good cop, bad cop, it feels like bad cop, bad cop. Whatever sparkle had been present in Trunks' eyes for Gohan is long gone.

"He's a slave driver," Trunks always complains.

So basically, he's a Mum. Goten can see that, principally now with how much time they spend together. Gohan's nearly always staying at Fire Mountain these days so it's actually a surprise to cross paths with him here at the family home. Mum's ecstatic, of course. Gohan is her darling. When not doing other boring things like reading or cooking together, she's usually teaching him how to better play the piano, or to sing. Goten hadn't even known that Mum could sing.

Since Grandpa died, Gohan's been making sure she's never alone longer than a day, quickly sliding back into the role of family glue. He encourages them all (including Dad) to have dinner together at least twice a week, and whereas before he'd been nicer about it, now Gohan simply does not take prisoners.

"I'll smash that phone if I don't see you sat at the dining room table within the next five minutes," Gohan had said just last week with a sunshine smile.

Rixas had met Mum at one of these dinners and it had gone as disastrously as could be expected. She'd called him a Yakuza and threw some of Grandpa's expensive silverware at him, Rixas laughing and professing his admiration for her. She'd calmed down when he'd called her pretty, Gohan meanwhile pretending none of it was happening as he stacked more steak onto Goten's plate.

"When do you think Rixas'll next be here?"

Gohan looks up from his book, deadpan. "Don't tell me you miss him."

"I know you do so stop being a jerk."

"Rixas had the Universal Summit Meeting last week. By all accounts, it'd gone pretty poorly despite my spoon feeding of the material to him. I imagine he's off feeling sorry for himself on a planet full of beautiful women."

"Hah? What happened? Is it bad?"

"The Supreme Kai had needed to step in," Gohan replies, venomous, turning the page of his book pointedly. "Rixas had somehow managed to offend the Omni-King."

"Who?"

Gohan waves his hand. "Don't worry about it. It was fixed. It's fine now."

"Okay… What d'you th—? Wait, how do you know about this? Did the Supreme Kai drop by? I haven't sensed his—" Goten looks at his brother, properly so. The look of innocence is convincing, but in due to having no visitors from the Realm of the Kai in nearly two months, it's clear something's fishy here. "Gohan…"

"Don't worry about it."

"Gohan."

Gohan leans back, book now completely abandoned by the fire. The orange streak warming his skin makes him look ominous.

"I said, don't worry about it."

"You're not supposed to be contacting anyone from up there."

"He won't be bothering me again."

"Are you lying?"

The tension pops like a balloon when Gohan laughs through a lopsided grin. "Like I'd tell you that."

The whiplash of this guy, honestly. Goten purses his lip, sighing as he stretches out on the sofa, wiggling each of his toes in a bid for them to come back to life. "Let me guess, don't tell Dad?"

"I don't care. Tell who you want. The situation is over."

"But—"

"Goten," Gohan says, leaning against the sofa, hovering above him, still with that stupid smile, "You're fifteen, you go to school and study art and message girls when you think no-one is looking. You've got your whole life ahead of you, and none of it involves any divine intervention. Be happy, and clever enough to keep your neck wound in this time."

It's such a reassuring smile too, but Goten knows what Gohan is capable of now. Trust doesn't come easy.

"It won't be like Revelation," Gohan says gently, "Mostly because there is nothing going on."

"Really?"

"Really. And don't be dry with me. Now go away, don't you have something better to do than bother me when I'm reading? Oh look, Palace replied."

"What?" Goten looks down at his phone to find himself disappointed when only the homepage stares back, devoid. Gohan laughs, ruffles his hair and takes his seat back in front of the fire, the gold of his eyes more dazzling than ever.

Each day, they grow brighter, and each day, Goten feels Gohan recover into who he's supposed to be.

One way or another, he'll leave them one day.

Goten mourns the fact. Gohan's right that Goten has nothing to do with divinity, and even if Gohan's dabbling where he shouldn't be that's nothing to do with him.

Slowly, Goten's finding specks of happiness in his life, in people and milestones and an existence beyond that of his family. Goten understands why Gohan values Videl so much now – why their connection remains strong even to this day – and it's because she's his. She is his escape from them.

And now, Goten has found his escape.

He looks at his phone and at all the contacts he's accumulated over the last year. New friends.

New opportunities.

"Be careful," Goten finds himself saying to Gohan, looking to dig no deeper and unwilling to part ways with his boring ordinariness, "With whatever it is."

Gohan hums, flipping a page and appearing pleased with Goten's answer.

Goten, too, is pleased by his answer.

He lounges as Gohan reads, thinking nothing of divinity, and entirely of how he plans to ask out Palace on Monday, and how he'll put in for a second publication for his artwork. The school festival is coming up soon and he thinks he'll apply to run it because it'll look good on his university application. More and more, completely usual, typical high-school centred thoughts come to mind, and he becomes excited about how to tackle it all. Instead of fighting his regularity like he'd once done, Goten embraces it. He'd wanted to be more but he'd been unwilling to put the effort in.

Now, he's taking responsibility for his own pathway.

The darkness that had once consumed him has since revealed itself to be the shadows of tall people Goten'd trailed after, and now that he's veered a different route, the world is bright. There are no shadows. Just an open road of possibilities.

In the end, what happens isn't really important. Dwelling will not make today any better.

In the end, it all returns to Nothing, but until then, Goten's world will be as bright as he allows it to be.

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I believe that leaves us with one more. I'd planned on getting it out along with this bulk of chapters (Four in a week!), but I need more time to make sure the final chapter(s?) ticks all the boxes I need it to. I've been writing on and off for the last few days but the magic isn't happening so I'm going to write after I return from my trip. Thanks so much for all the feedback so far! I can't believe everything is wrapping up. Rip.

Stay tuned for the next chapter: "Gohan Son".