Kera:

"What are you doing here?"

Perplexed, Kakarrot looked at Kera, who had landed right in front of him. He had just shouldered a large sack of vegetables he had just harvested and was carrying it to the house. He had obviously spent the day in the fields and wanted to bring his harvest home in the light of the setting sun.

"Take me to King Kai."

Kakarrot blinked excitedly. "Has something happened?"

Kera shook her head vigorously, then nodded. "No. Yes." She looked down sadly. "I don't know either."

With a loud rustle, Kakarrot put the bag down, took a step towards Kera and lifted her chin slightly so she would look at him.

"What's wrong?" he asked calmly.

Against her will, tears came to her eyes and she took a deep breath. "I'll explain it to you later, okay? Just take me to King Kai now." She looked at her half-brother. "Please," she added, having completely forgotten to say it earlier.

Kakarrot looked at her for a moment. Then he finally nodded. "I'll just let Chi-Chi know."

He shouldered his huge bag of vegetables again and rose into the air.

"Shall I help you with that?" Kera flew next to him and looked at the unwieldy thing on his back.

"No, thank you. It helps me stay fit."

Silently, they flew the short distance to Kakarrot's house and landed. Chi-Chi was waiting in the doorway. Goten stood next to her.

"Kera, I wasn't expecting you. I can just do more ..."

"It's all right, Chi-Chi, thank you. I asked Kakarrot to take me to King Kai just now," Kera immediately nipped her efforts to invite her to dinner in the bud.

Chi-Chi opened her eyes in alarm. "What happened?"

Kera swallowed. She didn't want to talk about it yet. "I'll tell you later, okay?"

Kera prayed that Chi-Chi would accept this excuse and let her go with Kakarrot. Chi-Chi visibly struggled with herself and then nodded. "Alright." She looked to Kakarrot. "Are you just taking Kera away or will it take longer?"

"Er..." He looked questioningly at Kera.

"It's enough if you take me to King Kai. Then you can go home again."

"Can I come with you?" Goten, who had been listening curiously, jumped forward.

Kera bent down to him. "Another time, okay?"

The boy nodded sadly and went into the house. Kakarrot gave his wife a quick kiss on the cheek and then held out his hand to Kera. Kera waved to her sister-in-law and shortly afterwards felt the familiar tingling sensation that signalled the Instant Teleportation.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw the small hut in front of her where King Kai lived.

"Hello, King Kai!" cried Kakarrot loudly, letting go of Kera's hand.

King Kai came round his hut and stopped again in surprise when he saw the two of them.

"Goku, what are you doing here? And you brought Kera with you. What happened?"

Kera wanted to roll her eyes. She couldn't go anywhere now without someone immediately suspecting that something bad had happened.

"Kera wanted to talk to you. I'm off then." He raised his hand in greeting and was gone the next moment.

King Kai looked at her questioningly. "What's going on?"

"I asked Kakarrot to bring me here. I want to speak to the Supreme Kai and I don't know how else to contact him."

"With the Supreme Kai? But wasn't he just on Earth? When Black was there?"

"Yes, he was. But something came up afterwards that I'd like to talk to him about."

"And I assume you don't want to tell me exactly what it is."

Kera fumbled, then finally nodded. "I'm sorry. I'd like to talk to the Supreme Kai about it first."

King Kai looked at her sternly. The mirrored lenses of his glasses didn't allow his eyes to show, which made Kera feel like he could see inside her. That he could register her every feeling, perceive her every emotion. Kera became nervous and started to feel uncomfortable.

When she wanted to say something, King Kai finally nodded. "All right, then. I'll call him."

He turned slightly away from her as he mentally contacted the Supreme Kai. Endless seconds passed before King Kai turned to her again.

"He'll be right there."

Kera smiled gratefully and felt one of the large stones weighing on her heart drop.

"Just wait here. I'll prepare some food in the meantime." With those words, King Kai disappeared into his small house. Kera clasped her hands together and bobbed up and down impatiently. Patience was not a Saiyan virtue, she thought.

But she didn't have to wait long. Less than a minute later, the air shimmered two steps in front of her and the Supreme Kai appeared.

He smiled. "Kera, King Kai has informed me that you wish to speak with me." He tilted his head. "What happened?"

Kera took a deep breath and, glancing at King Kai's cottage, said, "Can I speak to you privately?"

The Supreme Kai hesitated, then nodded and offered her his hand. The surroundings around her blurred again and when she opened her eyes again, she saw an endless grassy plain in front of her, interrupted from time to time by individual trees. To her left was a tree that stretched far out. To her right was the Supreme Kai.

"Are we... in the world of the Kais?"

He nodded. "This is an exception, me bringing you here. Normally, no one is allowed to enter the world of the Kais. But you have already done so much to save the Earth and the entire Universe that I am happy to make this exception. I also realise that you are not feeling well and that you urgently need to talk to me." He gestured to the tree. "Come and sit down."

As if by magic, a garden table and two matching chairs had appeared under the tree. A white blanket lay on the table, fluttering gently in the wind. A steaming pot of tea and two mugs invited them to linger.

Kera took a seat and poured herself and the Supreme Kai a cup of tea each. He gratefully accepted the cup from her when Kera noticed a movement. She frowned.

"What is it?" The Supreme Kai turned around and realised what she had already discovered. The Old Supreme Kai and Kibito were not hiding very well behind one of the nearest trees. Obviously curiosity drove them nearby. The Supreme Kai made a shooing gesture and shook his head. The two hesitantly moved away.

"Sorry," the Supreme Kai said, looking at Kera again. "What's on your mind?"

"I would like to..." She faltered. She had thought about what she wanted to say so many times, but now the words wouldn't come out. Would the Supreme Kai perhaps even laugh at her? Was her idea completely absurd? Kera took a deep breath while the Supreme Kai waited patiently. Then she looked him firmly in the eye. "Please take me as your student."

She looked at the Supreme Kai as he struggled to control his facial features. He seemed to have expected many things, but not this. Now it was up to her to wait and see what he would say.

"Okay, I wasn't expecting that," he admitted after a while. "Why do you want to be my student?"

"Trunks, who came to us from the future, could heal. I want to acquire this ability too. The fight against Black showed me that we only train to become stronger. But stronger than what or who? And still it's not enough. Vegeta and Kakarrot couldn't defeat Black. The King of Everything intervened."

A tugging in her abdomen distracted her briefly and reminded her painfully of what else she had lost. Not only had she failed to win against Black, she had lost something even more valuable. The Supreme Kai followed the movement of her hand across her stomach and studied her closely. His gaze felt like that of King Kai As if he could see deeper. As if he could see inside her and understand what was going on in her body.

"You've lost something," he said softly and sympathetically.

Kera didn't look at him so he wouldn't see the tears in her eyes and nodded slightly.

"I don't know if this is a good idea." The Supreme Kai was still looking at her, waiting to see how she would react.

Kera stood up, knelt in front of the Supreme Kai and bowed deeply. "I beg you to reconsider your decision. Take me as your student. I will only use this power for good and to protect the Earth and all the planets in the universe. If you have a choice for a disciple, Vegeta, Kakarrot or I are the best choices, for we know what it means to defend."

She waited in a bowed posture for the Supreme Kai's answer. He touched her gently on the head. "Please stand up."

Kera stood up and looked at the Kaioshin expectantly.

"I can't make a decision right away. What happened with Black and Zamasu is still very fresh. Please give me some time to think about it."

Kera tried not to let her disappointment show, but she was only partially successful. She clung to the hope that he had not yet said no.

The Supreme Kai now stood up as well. "I'll get back to you when I've made a decision. All right?"

She nodded and forced a smile.

"Do you want me to take you home?"

"Yes, please take me to my mate."

She waved to Kibito and the Old Supreme Kai, who she was sure had been listening despite the Supreme Kai's admonition. In the next moment, her vision blurred before her eyes.