Chapter 64
It was a smooth entry into Earth's atmosphere that brought our heroes home again. The Namekian ship transitioned seamlessly from faster than light speed to a more moderate pace, floating through the sky toward mount Paozu.
Zangya stretched as she looked out the window to see the green vegetation of her adopted home. "I'm grateful to the Namekians for letting us borrow this ship and all, but if I never have to see the inside of a space craft again, it will be too soon."
"If I never have to hear Zangya sing '99 bottles of milk' ever again, it will be too soon." 18 muttered as she took out a pair of makeshift earplugs, a somewhat traumatized look on her face."
"It wasn't that bad." Gohan shrugged, earning a kiss from his girlfriend. "Besides, we made pretty good time. We made it in just over a week. That was way faster than the last Namekain ship I flew in."
"I will admit, this ship was much faster than I expected." Broly said. "But wouldn't it have been faster if you and Zangya ferried us back?"
"And miss the best game of constellation bingo I've ever played?" Gohan asked incredulously. "Not a chance. Besides, we had to think about 18, and I needed time to come up with a way to break the whole story to-"
"Hey look, it's Chichi." Zangya pointed out the window, stopping Gohan mid-sentence.
Sure enough, the ship was already within sight of the Son home, and Chichi was outside hanging some laundry. Upon hearing the incoming spacecraft, Chichi looked up, and seeing Gohan and Zangya's faces through the window as it descended for landing, her face adopted a most terrifying expression.
Goten and Trunks turned pale at the mention of the Son matron, and 18 shifted uncomfortably, knowing how upset the woman would be once she learned the whole story.
"Ahem." The cyborg coughed nervously. "Maybe we should land at Bulma's place instead."
The others were inclined to agree with her, but to everyone's surprise, Gohan just laughed. "Oh, come on guys. What are you so scared of?"
Everyone looked at Gohan as if he'd gone insane. Zangya pulled a thermometer out of nowhere and stuffed it in her boyfriend's mouth, while putting a hand on his forehead. "Did you catch something on Namek?" She asked worriedly. "Maybe that monkey form's having some residual effect on your mind."
Gohan spit out the thermometer and frowned. "I don't have a fever, Zangya."
"Well, then I can only assume you have amnesia." She said calmly, then her tone became very frantic. "This is your mother we're talking about, you fool!"
"I don't want a spanking, Gohan!" Goten was starting to cry.
"You!?" Trunks yelled in a panic. "This whole thing was my idea, so what do you think she's gonna do to me!? You gotta help me dad!" He pleaded with his father.
Vegeta suddenly looked very uncomfortable. "I, uh…" he looked around, trying to think of some excuse. A lightbulb went off in his head and he smiled. "Sorry son, but standard Saiyan practice is to let the females handle discipline. You wouldn't want me to interfere and sully our proud heritage, would you? It's either this one or your mother."
Trunks looked terrified, as there was little to choose between the two, while Zangya looked at Vegeta with great interest. "Is that really true?"
"Of course it's true!" Vegeta insisted.
"Then we really are doomed!" Goten wailed
"Everyone just calm down." Gohan placed his hands out in a placating gesture. "Did you guys forget that I just ended an intergalactic war. I took down two of the most powerful villains the universe has ever known, subjugated a band of Saiyans, and I strongarmed a tyrant into signing a contract. I think I can handle my own mother."
Zangya shook her head and sighed. "Oh, Gohan. It's a good thing you're pretty."
"Oh, come on, Zangya. Mom can be reasonable." Gohan defended his point.
"Name one example." 18 challenged.
Gohan thought for a moment, but before he came to an answer, the egress platform in the center of the ship's floor started to lower. "Alright, follow me. I can handle this."
Determined to show the others how wrong they were, Gohan jumped through the exit hatch, and the others reluctantly followed. Marching toward the group like a tiger stalking its prey, was Chichi. Any small degree of comfort that Gohan's words instilled in the party were swept away when the group saw the woman's deadly gaze.
"Trunks," Vegeta said hastily. "I think you'll have better luck with your mother after all." Trunks nodded and the two blasted away at full speed.
"Oh yeah!" Broly feigned to remember something. "I forgot that one of the Namekians gave me a message to give to Lord Dende. I'd love to stay, but a promise is a promise." The Saiyan giant peeled off from the group even faster than Vegeta.
"Ring, ring!" Zangya pretended to take out a cellphone and held it to her ear. "What's that!? The bakery caught fire!? Sorry Gohan, it's an emergency."
"Sound's pretty serious." 18 said. "I better come too in case you need help."
The two females zoomed away, leaving an exasperated Gohan to stand between his younger brother, who was hiding behind his legs, and his mother, who was now right in front of him, hands on hips, and fire in her eyes.
"Now mom, I know you must be mad, but you need to take it easy." The Teen tried to calm his mother. He tried to come up with the words to keep her from being too angry with Goten "Everyone makes mistakes, after all, and isn't when you're a kid the time to make them?"
Even as he said it, he knew his words sounded incredibly lame.
"A mistake?" Chichi said with icy calmness. "Is that what you call this?" She slapped an opened envelope to her eldest son's chest, and he became very confused. He pulled a letter from the envelop and read aloud. "Notice of truancy… Oh Shoot!" Gohan yelled. "I missed the start of term!? I thought for sure I had a few more days before-
"SAVE IT!" Chichi snapped, and Gohan fell quiet.
"Is this all your education means to you!? It's bad enough that you took Goten and Trunks on a trip to Namek without asking me! It's bad enough that you spent weeks in space without bringing your school books, or even giving your mother a STINKING PHONE CALL! But now I find out that my son IS THROWING AWAY HIS FUTURE TO BECOME A DELINQUENT KARATE BUM!"
"Mom, listen, I'm not becoming a… Wait a minute." Gohan paused. " I took Goten and Trunks to Namek?" He asked incredulously.
"DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH ME!" Chichi yelled even louder, if possible. "You thought Bulma wouldn't tell me!? She told me all about how you borrowed her ship so you could take them on a little adventure! DID YOU SERIOUSLY THINK YOU COULD GET AWAY WITH IT!?"
Gohan had no idea why Bulma would tell such a blatant lie, but he knew he had to correct it quickly. "Mom, you got it all wrong, I-YEOW!"
Chichi snatched Gohan by the ear and twisted hard, making the boy bend over as she dragged him to their house.
"I didn't even mind that you took the boys!" Chichi continued her rant. "I thought it would do them some good! After all, I thought it would be great for them to spend time with a responsible role model for a change! 'Responsible', HA! What a joke! Not only did you not tell your own mother what you were doing, you left Piccolo to make some cock and bull excuse about some vague emergency involving Zangya's brother! Were the 'homework demons' your idea too!? How many lies are you going to tell me just so you can throw YOUR ENTIRE FUTURE AWAY!"
By this time the family was in the house, Goten having trailed after them with the underlying thought to 'keep the threat close' so as not to be caught by surprise at some other time. The little boy, terrified though he was, decided to speak up on behalf of his big brother.
"But mommy, Gohan didn't lie!" He insisted.
"Oh, and now you're having your little brother lie for you too?" Chichi fumed. "Where does it end Gohan!? Where does it end!?"
It just so happened to end, at least for the moment, with a loud knocking at the door. Chichi looked at the door, then at Gohan. Annoyed that her rant had been interrupted, yet not wanting to exhibit poor manners, or to risk shaming the family by airing their dirty laundry to a stranger, she ordered her children to stay put as she went to answer the door.
Chichi's eyebrows raised in surprise when she saw a blue girl with pointy ears and white, straight hair, wearing glasses and dressed in knee length skirt suit.
The blue girl inclined her head slightly, while extending a hand in greeting. "Mrs. Son, Hello, I'm-"
"I remember you." Chichi cut her off. "You're that girl I gave directions to that lookalike contest. Is this another outfit?" She asked, gesturing to her scholastic appearance. "Because if it is, I'd love to help you out again, but I'm in the middle of something."
"Mrs. Son, I assure you, we won't take up much of your time." Mr. Azure, the portly head of admissions at Orange star prep, made his presence known. "Miss Towa is a representative from West City College, and we have some news that I think you'll want to hear."
Chichi went pale. "W-West City College?" She stammered out. " The West City College? Oh, come in, come in! Where are my manners. Can I offer you a tea of cup? Er I mean a tup of Cea? Oh, dear, I'm so sorry, I just-"
"A cup of tea would be fine." Towa nodded politely, entering the house followed by Azure. They made their way to the living room, where Chichi zoomed past them and into the kitchen. Many crashes and clattering sounds were heard from the room. Gohan peered into the Kitchen, confused by his mother's panic, then turned to see, to his immense shock, Towa.
"You?"
"It's a pleasure to see you again, Mr. Son." Towa extended her hand. 'Please don't cause a scene. I will explain momentarily.'
The thought entered Gohan's mind, and he gave the demon a quizzical stare before he grabbed her hand and shook it. "Likewise."
"Here's the tea!" Chichi nearly fell into the room, laid a tea tray with full cups and a pile of cookies on the coffee table, then turned to Goten and handed him a cookie. "Goten, why don't you go play in your room?"
Goten left without a word, staring at his cookie and wondering just how Gohan had orchestrated this distraction.
"Please, please, both of you, have a seat." The two visitors did as they were bidden, and Chichi sat herself down very restlessly in her chair, and signaled for Gohan to do likewise.
Towa and Azure brought their tea cups to their lips and sipped with dignified attitudes. Chichi watched their every move with the utmost anxiety, not daring to interrupt them.
"It's quite lovely." Towa complimented, then reached for a gingersnap. "Did you make these yourself?"
"Oh, um. Yes." She answered nervously.
"Well, they are very good." Mr. Azure said, brushing the crumbs from his mustache. "But as much as I'd like to stay and eat cookies, we did promise not to take up too much time. Let's move on to business." His expression became very serious. "Mrs. Son, we are here to discuss the future of Gohan's education."
Chichi could no longer contain herself. "Please don't expel my son!" She burst out with tears forming in her eyes.
The guests reeled back at the suddenness and violence of this outburst.
"Expel?" Azure asked in befuddlement. "Mrs. Son, I don't think-"
"I know he made a mistake! But please, he really is a good boy, he just sometimes has his priorities mixed up!" The mother tried her best to advocate for her son. "He gets that from his father, and from Piccolo, not that you would know Piccolo of course, but that's a long story, but I know if you just give him some extra work to make up for it, Gohan I mean, not Piccolo, maybe a few months of detention, or even a year's worth, he'll learn his lesson and buckle down."
"Mrs. Son, just wait a moment." Towa tried to interject this time, but it only served to increase the woman's feverish rant.
"I know West City college is very prestigious, and you wouldn't want some delinquent anywhere near your school, but Gohan will get his act together, I promise. It's always been his dream to be a great scholar, believe me. Just don't let this one black spot ruin my baby's entire future!" She ended her plea with a bowed head and all the desperation a loving parent could show. With her speech finished, an uncomfortable silence pervaded the Son's living room.
After a few moments of waiting, once they were sure that the mother had finished, the visiting pair exchanged a confused look with each other, then an inquiring one with Gohan, and Mr. Azure being eager to get to the bottom of this matter, decided to ask Chichi point blank what the devil she was on about.
"Mrs. Son. I don't know why you think we are here." He began. "But whatever you think your son may have done to deserve detention, let alone expulsion, I confess am wholly ignorant of the matter. What makes you think we came all this way to expel him?"
Chichi looked up, not daring to let an ounce of relief enter her countenance. "I-ignorant? Th-then you don't know… About the letter?"
"What letter?" Mr. Azure asked.
"This one." Gohan held up his truancy notice, having never let go of it, and handed it to his school's representative.
The educator took it, unfolded and read it, and hummed with a furrowed brow. "I say, this is rather a serious matter." He stated.
"It is?" Gohan asked worriedly. He thought his mom might have been overreacting, but now he wasn't so sure.
"Yes. It seems there's been a miscommunication with our attendance department. This letter never should have been sent out."
"But…" Chichi started, daring to hope for a miracle. "Didn't he miss the start of term? He's been gone for almost the entire first week according to the calendar."
"Well, our term did indeed start, but what has that to do with your son?"
For once, Chichi was at a loss for words. Seeing the confusion on both her and Gohan's faces, Mr. Azure scratched his head and turned to Towa. "Perhaps you could explain, miss Towa?"
"Of course." The woman nodded graciously. "Mrs. Son, West City College has been very impressed with Gohan, and has agreed to offer him a full ride scholarship if he comes to study at our university."
"I… I don't understand." Chichi stated in shock. "Gohan won't even graduate from high school for a few more years. How can he be accepted already?"
Mr. Azure gave Gohan a questioning look. "Young man, did you not tell your mother what we had discussed?"
"Well…" Gohan replied, giving his mother a nervous glance. "I didn't want to say anything until it was final."
"Gohan, what are you talking about?" Chichi demanded.
"Young Gohan is quite the extraordinary student, Mrs. Son." Azure answered for him. "So extraordinary, that it became clear to the staff that he is beyond even our advanced high school curriculum. I approached young Gohan at the end of last term about submitting for early graduation. I must say, I didn't expect him to finish all the work required so quickly, and without lacking in the quality we have grown accustomed to seeing from him. Not to mention he even included his college applications."
Once again, this news caused an unusual silence to fall upon the Son matron. She was not the only stunned party, as Gohan himself was looking quite perplexed. "Thank you for the compliment, sir. But I never mailed the packet in."
"To the proper address." Towa added quickly, and before Gohan could correct her, she pressed on. "My colleagues and I were quite surprised to see your paper work fall across our desks, but aside from the fact that you clearly put the wrong address on the package, we were all most impressed with its contents. There is no doubt that you have a brilliant mind, and we are most excited to have you in any one of our science or engineering programs."
Gohan was rendered speechless, then as he stared at Towa, his suspicions started to develop as to the demon's hand in these developments, not to mention her motives.
"Lucky for you, young man," Azure said with a grin. "Ms. Towa brought the packet to its proper place, and after our faculty reviewed its contents, it was unanimously agreed that you be granted your diploma immediately. Congratulations my young friend."
He stood up and shook the dazed Saiyan's hand, then moved on to shake his mother's.
"Wait." Chichi let him grasp her limp hand. "So Gohan's… Not expelled?"
Mr. Azure chuckled. "I don't see how he could be. What's the point of punishing a student who's already graduated for missing a few classes?"
The man continued to chuckle until the air was crushed from his lungs as Chichi shot out of her seat and hugged the educator with tears in her eyes.
"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She swung the poor man from side to side with each expression of gratitude.
"Mom, let him down!" Gohan urged. "He can't breathe!"
She did so, doing her best to collect herself, but was unable to fully suppress a wide, watery smile. She bowed to the man repeatedly. "Thank you so much sir! How can we ever repay you?"
The man having got his breath back, said a bit shakily "No need to thank me for what your son has clearly earned. But if you do feel the need to repay Orange Star prep, young man," he turned to Gohan. "Then promise me that you'll continue the fine work you've done until now while you're at the university."
"Which brings us to why I am here." Towa said with a smile. "While it is clear that the young man has astounding aptitude in a number of subjects, his greatest potential is in my fields of expertise, that being physics and engineering. Because of his gifted mind, and in light of him being so young at the start of his college experience, I have been assigned as a sort of advisor and mentor for him."
"A mentor? Isn't that wonderful Gohan!?" Chichi was beyond pleased that her son would warrant such special attention.
Meanwhile, Gohan narrowed his eyes at the demon king's sister. "Yeah, almost too good to be true."
'Alright, spill it. What's your game here?' Gohan transmitted his thoughts to Towa, demanding an answer from her.
'Who says it's a game, my lord?' She responded, a coy smile gracing her delicate features. "I do wish to inform you of the general course that I see Gohan's education taking." She stated. "I believe we can work through his undergraduate degree in 1 year."
"That fast!?" Chichi bellowed. "Are you serious!?"
"Of course." Towa replied casually. "Such a course load will be nothing for someone like your son, and we'll need to work through that as fast as possible before we can get to his doctorates."
"Doctorates!?" Chichi's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "As in more than one!?"
"At least three to start with." Towa smiled. "I estimate that we can finish them all within four years. Of course, that's making allowances for any original research he might come up with in the meantime, along with his dissertations."
"Oh, my brilliant boy!" Chichi pulled Gohan into a smothering hug. "A doctor! No, a triple doctor! I've never been so proud!"
Chuckling at this display of parental pride, Mr. Azure prepared to leave. "Well, Mrs. Son, it's been a pleasure knowing your boy. I'm sure your family will be wanting to celebrate this good news, so I will leave you to it. Ms. Towa, give my best to the university."
Once the man was out of the door, Towa made to leave as well. Seeing the girl make her way to the door, Gohan finally pried himself from his mother's grasp. "Mom, I actually have some things I'd like to discuss with Ms. Towa. I'm just curious if my degree path will allow for a minor in entomology."
"Oh, of course son!" Chichi nodded profusely. "I've got a thousand things I need to do to prepare for the celebration! I have to call your grandpa and tell him the news! Oh, and where's Zangya? I'll need her help on the cake. A doctor! Three times a doctor!" Repeating this happy last phrase, the woman practically skipped out of the room, while Gohan followed Towa outside.
"Alright, I'm only going to ask this once." He said with a threatening edge to his words. "What the hell are you planning?"
"I'm planning your education, My lord." She replied with a bow. "It's a dreadful thing to allow talented minds go to waste."
"You really expect me to believe that?" Gohan scoffed. "You know, I didn't think you were so bad when we last met, but now I'm starting to see a pretty unflattering family resemblance to your brother. Did he put you up to this to mess with me?"
"Nobody put me up to anything to mess with you." She replied calmly. "If you must know the truth, you have become a prominent figure in the demon world. I have been assigned to you as your attendant and guide, and I was told that to do this properly, I must be in your good graces."
"So let me get this straight." Gohan said with a humorless laugh. "You've been assigned to get in my good graces, and you think tricking my mom into thinking I'm going to a prestigious university to get three doctorates in five years is going to make me happy?"
"I didn't trick her at all." She defended calmly, taking out a laminated card from her breast pocket. Gohan took it, and saw that it was an employee I.D. for West Valley College. "As you can see, I am a representative of the university, and they recently hired me as a department head."
"Right." Gohan rolled his eyes. "And how many people did you have to brainwash to get that position? How many spells did you cast to get me accepted?"
For the first time since she got to the Son home, Towa lost her cool. "For your information, I got that job on my merits alone!" She growled, clearly insulted. "I happen to be the foremost scientist in the entire demon realm. Your planet's primitive understanding of the sciences doesn't hold a candle to the knowledge I possess. The idea that I would need a spell to convince those troglodytes at the university of my credentials, let alone my genius, is outrageous! And as for how you got accepted, I don't mind telling you that it was all above board. Your own mind got you in, not magic." She finished with a huff.
"If it was all above board, then how did they get my application to begin with, let alone my early graduation packet? I distinctly remember leaving that on my desk." Gohan countered with folded arms.
The fire that Towa was bursting with moments ago extinguished in an instant, and she nervously started pressing her fingers together.
"Well… About that." She avoided the hybrid's gaze. "Don't be mad, but I may have… Borrowed it from your room." She looked at Gohan to see if he was upset. Signs seemed to indicate that he might be, so she quickly continued. "Nothing was done maliciously, I assure you. I was trying to find out how to ingratiate myself to you and I saw your essays, and the packet. You truly do have a gifted mind, and I was only trying to help." This still didn't seem to assuage Gohan's irritation, so she kept going. "I'm a scholar, like you. I'm sorry I didn't gain your assent first, but think of what you could learn from me. Think of how pleased your mother was when I presented this news. All that I promised in there about your education was true, and we can even make sure you get that entomology minor if you really want it. Are you really going to squander this chance all because I made one minor transgression against you?"
When she finally stopped, she looked at the young man with hopeful eyes. Gohan gave her a long hard look, trying to determine if all that she had said was true, and most importantly if she was holding something back. "How do I know you won't use this as a chance to hurt me, or the people I care about? How can I trust you?"
"Whatever ill will you have for my brother has nothing to do with me." She replied firmly. "You are a demon, just the same as me, and a scholar besides. Even if I were not your attendant, I would seek to teach what I know to any kindred soul worthy of my knowledge. If that declaration is not enough for you to trust me, then I ask you this. "Have I ever acted in bad faith toward you? Did I not fulfill my promise to make you whole? Did I not save you from majin Buu, and afterwards successfully lead you back to this realm so you could defeat him? Even with all this, I do not ask that you trust me. Only that you let me help you attain whatever goals are within my power to assist with."
Gohan stared at the woman, conflicted between his own natural suspicions, and the truth and evident sincerity of her words.
"I know you must have a lot to think about, and you probably want to take this chance to celebrate with your family." She bowed before turning to leave. "I have a lab at the college, and you can come see me anytime if you decide to accept this offer. Term starts in one week. If I don't see you by then, I will assume my words fell on deaf ears, and I will no longer seek to disturb you. Good day, my lord."
The woman teleported away before Gohan could even think of a response. He stood outside his home for some time, pondering the situation he now found himself in. Towa's sudden appearance had put him on his guard at first, but aside from the initial dishonesty involved in stealing his homework, he was struggling to find a reason to turn this offer down. He was already planning to graduate early, and West City College was his first choice of universities. So what if one of the professors there happened to be a demon. If anything, that could prove to be an advantage. It may not be a normal education, but he wasn't exactly a normal student. Besides, if there really was some plot against him, wouldn't it be better to keep at least one of the conspirators in his sight?
This line of thought brought him significant peace of mind, and Gohan found himself to be in a much better mood when Chichi opened the door.
"Oh, is Ms. Towa gone already?" The mother looked around. "I was going to ask her if she wanted to attend your graduation party."
"She had to get back to her lab." Gohan replied. "She's got a lot to do to prepare for classes."
"Oh, that's a shame." Chichi said with genuine sadness. "I hope you were both at least able to discuss your class schedule. Did you find out if you can study bugs too? I know you were seriously considering that as a major. I hope everything will work out with your classes." She offered with a not of optimism.
"Thanks mom." Gohan replied, before turning to her with a smile. "You don't need to worry. Everything's going to work out just fine."
Break
While Gohan was dealing with scholastic matters, Zangya and 18 arrived at her bakery, which did not happen to be on fire.
"Man, I love him, but sometimes Gohan gets these crazy ideas in his head." Zangya shook her head as she opened the shop door.
"All men are like that, Z." 18 said with a smile. She missed having these conversations with her friend. "They think that just because they do some impressive and 'manly' feat, they can get away with anything."
"Yeah, but standing up to Chichi?" Zangya asked, still in disbelief at the audacity of her boyfriend. "That's not just hubris, 18. That's insanity."
"Hey boss, where you been?" Chico came out from behind the counter with an irate expression directed at her employer. "You know, you can't just keep disappearing on me like this. You didn't even leave Mr. Broly to help out like last time."
"Oh, sorry about that Chico." Zangya apologized with a cringe. "I had a family emergency and I was off planet."
"Oh no! Is Koti ok?" Chico quickly lost any ire and replaced it with genuine concern.
"Yeah, he's ok now." Zangya nodded, appreciating her younger friend's concern. "It just took a while to sort everything out. But I'm back now, so what did I miss?"
"Well, I had to hire a couple new girls about a week ago to keep up with business. I hope that's ok. I mean, they're kind of weird, and they suck in the kitchen, but man are they fast with the deliveries. I swear, I even saw one waiting six tables at once. And when some creep tried to get my number, one of them beat the tar out of him."
"Wow, sounds like my kind of girls." Zangya said with excitement. "I can't wait to meet them."
"Then you're in luck." Chico stated. "Their shift is starting in a few minutes. They should be here soon."
The shop bell rang. "Oh, here they are." Chifo said when she saw the girls. "Boss, meet our newest dragon maids. Chokly and Nazz."
Hearing these names, Zangya spun around so fast her hair whipped 18 in the face. In unison, three fierce voices cried the same word.
"""YOU!?"""
Break
Broly landed on the lookout and greeted Dende and Mr. Popo. "Hello, lord Dende. Mr. Popo. I apologize for being gone so long. I hope my absence didn't cause any distress."
"That's ok Broly." Dende replied. "I kind of got some flashes of what happened. Looks like Gohan saved the day again, huh?"
"Yes. It's starting to become a trend, isn't it." Broly replied with a smile.
"Well, if it is, I hope it continues." Dende laughed, and Broly and Popo joined in. The laughter died down, and Broly excused himself to rest in his quarters.
"Oh, Broly, before you go, you have a visitor." Dende said.
"A visitor?" Broly raised an eyebrow. All his closest associates who would visit him were the people that he just left. Aside from Piccolo of course, but he doubted that Dende would describe him as a visitor, since he basically lived there too. His contemplation was interrupted when two slender arms slithered over his shoulders and clasped around his neck.
"Well, hello again, handsome."
A chill ran down the Saiyan's spine, and he turned his head slowly. His eyes widened in horror when they met with the wild, grinning face, of Sesamy.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
Break
"Isn't that amazing papa!? Three doctorates in four years! And a full ride to boot!" Chichi was on the phone with her father, informing him of the good news about Gohan.
Ding dong*
"Gohan, could you get that please?" Chichi called to her son. "Gohan!?" She called again in annoyance. "Oh, that's right, he went go to tell Piccolo. Sorry papa, I'll call you later." She hung up the phone and started walking to the door. "Two visitors in one day? We're lucky to get that in a month."
Whatever visitors Chichi might have reasonably guessed were at the door, the reality was far beyond any such predictions. She opened it to see an old man with long spikey hair wearing a kimono, a younger man with long straight hair in a dark suit, a dark-skinned woman about her own age wearing a sundress, and two teenaged boys, one dark skinned with long hair, the other light skinned with a mohawk, both wearing collared shirts and ties. The teens both looked uncomfortable, tugging at their collars and fidgeting with their neck ties.
"Hello." The old man said with a bow. "Am I right to assume this is the Son residence?"
"Yes." Chichi said politely. "I'm sorry, but we don't get many visitors up here. Who are you exactly?"
"Pardon me." The old man apologized. "My name is Lomen."
"I'm Rhubub."
"Call me Nira." The woman smiled. "This is my son Kress, and his friend Soga."
The teens mumbled, earning a smack on the head from Nira. "Greet her properly!"
"Hello ma'am." They bowed.
"Nice to meet you." Chichi replied before pausing awkwardly. "Um, why are you here?"
"Why, to share a cup of tea with our new neighbor." Lomen smiled. "We moved in on the other side of the mountain, you see."
"Mrs. Son, I've been dying to meet you." Nira gave her a genuine smile. "I made my famous meat cookies just for the occasion. I'm dying to know how you raised such a powerful son." She leaned in and lowered her voice to a mock whisper. "Between you and me, mine's becoming a bit of a slacker."
"You… Know Gohan?" Chichi asked. Suddenly, her eye caught something brown and furry waving around behind the woman.
Realization dawned on Chichi, and before she could decide to be shocked, angry, or frightened, Gohan dropped from the sky, smashing into the ground behind the Saiyans.
"Mom! Are you ok!? I sensed…" Gohan paused when he saw the stern gaze of his mother.
"So, Gohan" Chichi folded her arms and tapped her foot. "I'm ready to hear exactly what happened on your little space trip?"
Break
At the far end of the universe, beyond the reach of any mortal, the god of destruction's snores reverberated loudly throughout his planet. His angel attendant, a tall, slender male with pale blue skin, tall white hair, purple eyes and effeminate features, stood by the bed of his master.
"Rise and shine lord Beerus. We've got work to do." The angel said, but his words landed on deaf ears. The catlike god continued to snuggle into his pillow, blissfully ignorant of anything but his own sweet dreams.
"Oh well." Whis held out his hands and blowhorn materialized in it.
HOOOOOOOOOOOOONK!*
"GYEAAAAH!" Beerus jumped up before crashing to the floor, wrapped in his blanket. He swore loudly as he tried to untangle himself from his sheets.
"Such amusing little inventions these mortals create, don't you think lord Beerus?"
The purple cat just glared at his attendant. "I hope you have a better reason for waking me than playing with some toy, Whis." He growled.
"Of course, lord Beerus." Whis smiled. "The toy was just a bonus."
"Grrr." Beerus started to lose his patience.
"But more to the point, my lord." Whis said with a smile, deciding he'd had enough fun. "Recent developments have occurred that necessitate your early awakening."
"Really?" Beerus sneered. "What mess have the Kais gotten into this time?"
"Actually, this has to do with a mortal. I think you'll be quite impressed with him."
"A mortal?" Beerus gave an incredulous look. "What's the dead man's name? Not Frieza is it?"
"Oh, no. Son Gohan is far worse than the likes of Frieza." Whis replied casually, but he didn't miss the sudden interest spark in the god's eyes. "Actually, mortal might not be an entirely appropriate term for him."
"And why is that?" Beerus asked.
"Because while Son Gohan is half Saiyan, it appears that he has awakened the powers of a demon god."
The spark of interest ignited into a raging fire.
"The powers of a demon god?" Beerus asked hungrily. "In a Saiyan?" A feral grin spread across his muzzle. "How entertaining."
End chapter
Well, the Saiyan's are back, and Beerus is coming. Look out Gohan, college isn't the only trial in your future!
By the way, if anyone lost track, Gohan is around 15 at this point. He was 12 when the jade empire invaded, there was a year before they left the planet, another year before the WMAT and Buu, and a short gap in time between Buu and the Turles/Slug/Cooler arc, where he was in space for a couple of weeks (Mostly travel time).
