Time In

by januarytala

It's been two years since Videl's father, Hercule Satan, was exposed as a fraud. Down on her luck and with very few prospects, Videl seeks out a position at the palace of the restored Ox Kingdom in Mount Paozu. There, she finds herself as a servant under the management of the Ox Prince, Son Gohan, who seems to be hiding a few secrets of his own. AU Post-Cell divergence.

3. The Diplomacy Project

AN: Hey folks, sorry it took a while for me to update. Life was so busy in August and most of September. Thanks for waiting patiently for this chapter!

---

Chapter 3: The Diplomacy Project

At night, the Ox Palace exuded a coziness more often found in fairy tales than in real life. Small lamps emitted a warm golden glow in the hallways, contrasting with the cool mountain air wafting from the open windows. Outside, a crowd of fireflies floated like orange mist from one tree to another while crickets chirped among the dark blue shadows.

None of those eased Videl's hammering heart as she trekked across the palace towards the royal wing. Towards Son Gohan's apartments.

There was a 90% chance she was being let go, she felt it in her bones. What other explanation could there be? Gohan had sought her out directly after that rumour-mongering writer had insinuated that Videl's employment would endanger the Ox Princess' restaurant business. What need would they have for another stalk gatherer if not enough people frequented the Stalk in the Frypan because of her?

Videl reached a set of double oaken doors twice her height and three times as wide. She was certain she'd read the map of the palace grounds correctly, but even if she hadn't, this attention-grabbing entrance at least announced that the room behind was reserved for someone important, someone like a prince. She raised her hand, surprised it wasn't shaking. She took a deep breath, then knocked.

A moment later, she received a surprise when Gohan himself opened the door for her. She'd been expecting a servant. But there was the prince, still in his green and gold silken tunic and pants, ushering her through the door.

"Thanks so much for coming, even if it's late. I know you and the other stalk gatherers wake up early in the morning." Gohan scratched the back of his neck.

Videl wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that. It wasn't like she could refuse an order from a prince, no matter how politely it was delivered.

The room she entered was not as luxurious as she thought it would be. It was large, sure, but it was divided neatly into sections. The receiving area was the closest, marked by a plush sofa set surrounding a glass table. Beyond that was some kind of workspace with two large desks piled with papers and books, and crowded bookshelves teetering against the walls. Off to the right, sequestered by glass panels, was the sleeping area. A bed with blue sheets and a quilt waited patiently for its occupant to retire for the night.

"Here, have a seat. Would you like some tea?" Gohan waved to the glass table. A pot and a few tiny cups sat on a tray in the middle. "It's herbal so it shouldn't keep you up late."

He wouldn't offer her tea if all he'd do was fire her, would he?

Videl dismissed the hope. Gohan had been the image of politeness so far, and she couldn't imagine this situation would inspire him to act any differently. But while she had appreciated his pristine manners the previous day, this time around it was almost unbearable. She wished he'd just cut to the chase.

"Thank you." Videl sat on the nearest chair. She avoided tapping her foot impatiently, but was unable to stop herself from blurting, "Is this about Ed Torr?"

"Who?"

Videl was about to take a sip of her tea, but her hands stopped midway. "Ed Torr. The last man during the court hearing earlier this afternoon."

"Him? Not at all!" Gohan stared at her with eyebrows raised. "Why would I talk about him with you?"

"Well, he did say that my presence here would threaten your mother's business."

Gohan sipped his tea. "To be fair to him, that wasn't an angle I predicted when I took you on. It's true that perhaps hiring you might affect some people's opinion, but so far you haven't done anything that would put me or my mother in a precarious situation. As of right now, you aren't the biggest thorn in my side. In fact, depending on how this conversation turns out, you might not even be a thorn at all."

"Oh?" It was as if the ground had tilted beneath her. Videl had been bracing herself to be plunged into disappointment. Instead, Gohan's answer elicited a rush of relief and curiosity, and it left her a bit disoriented. "Not a thorn, how?"

Gohan settled his teacup back on the table and approached one of the desks in the workspace behind them. The messier one, with books and journals and loose sheets tossed haphazardly on the surface without regard to whether they might fall to the floor or not. The spines of the books bore intimidating titles like Historical Policies of Mountain Clans and Intricacies of Taxation: The Fifth Edition.

Next to it, the other table was starkly neat in comparison. Textbooks on space, geography, biodiversity, and geology stood in a row like sentinels. A globe performed the role of a paper weight, pinning what looked to be atlases and topographical maps. An open notebook showed a prim handwriting with well-labelled diagrams.

Videl's gaze scanned the shelves, and now that she had the eye for it, she found the same pattern repeated there. Books and other materials related to governing were battered and worn, some shelved upside down or slumped over like tired guards on overtime duty. But the books on sciences were laminated with care, reverently standing in alphabetical order.

Huh, that was interesting, though she wasn't sure if the section on sciences were so clean because they were more loved or less.

The prince sat back on the couch, bearing several sheets of paper. "Have you heard of Scar Town?"

Videl combed through her memory. "Can't say I have."

"It's a small settlement south of Mount Frypan. The Ox Kingdom had a history of rivalry with it some decades ago, which piped down after Grandpa stopped being so menacing and reformed from his treasure-looting.

"However, the old resentment has rekindled recently when we've been unable to put out the fire on Mount Frypan. The smoke from the mountain rides the southerly winds and chokes the town. The people there are especially angry that we've relocated to Mount Paozu, which they interpret as our way of giving up solving the problem. In recent months, thugs from Scar Town have snuck up on Mount Paozu and vandalized our village. Some even went as far as raiding our food stores. There was an attempt to set mother's restaurant on fire."

"You want help stopping the thugs?" Videl wasn't sure how she felt about returning to crime-fighting. The officer from Orange City had made a pretty good point about it being hypocritical for someone like her. And while she still experienced the itch to knock down a bad guy or two, she wasn't sure if she wanted to return to that in an official capacity.

"No, we're able to take care of that just fine," Gohan answered. "They're just being a nuisance, trying to get our attention so we don't forget that they're still suffering from Mount Frypan's fire. The thing is, if this was just about showing force, I would have gotten them off our backs a long time ago. But I don't want to be seen as a tyrant, and Grandpa gave this project to me as my first training in solving disputes diplomatically."

Gohan had delivered all of this in a soft, matter-of-fact tone, which made his statement all the more hair-raising. He seemed so certain that if he used force, he could subdue the terrorists of Scar Town. Perhaps he was simply that skilled in martial arts? And yet the possibility that he could be a tyrant at all indicated that something more menacing was lurking beneath his innocent demeanor. Videl remembered the touch of cold, ominous energy that permeated the court room earlier that afternoon. What kind of power was Gohan keeping at bay?

"I've been mulling over the situation for a while, and the only true solution I see is to put out the fire in Mount Frypan for good. And that's where I need your help."

Videl blinked. "You… want me to put out a fire? Made by a fire spirit?"

"I need help investigating how to even do that," he said. "I've tried many different ways to extinguish the fire, but nothing seems to work. I even tried—" he cut himself short, eyes flashing briefly to the side. But all Videl saw in that direction was a child's hat with a shiny orange ball on top resting upon a velvet pillow. "Look, I've tried everything I can think of. The only thing that seems to keep the fires at bay is the Bansho Fan."

Gohan pushed a picture towards her of something that looked like a banana leaf outlined in red. "We have this in our armoury, and it puts out the fire for a while. But the fire keeps coming back. It's returning at a faster rate too. There was a gap of a few years between the first time Mount Frypan was set ablaze and the second. Nowadays, we have to visit Mount Frypan every month or so to wave this fan and keep Scar Town from being too unhappy with us."

Videl inspected the picture of the Bansho Fan for a moment, buying herself time to think. But in the end, she was still puzzled. "I'm still not sure how I can help you with this, Ox Prince."

"I looked up some of the cases you helped with as a crime-fighting volunteer." Gohan placed the rest of the sheets on the table. They turned out to be newspaper clippings of takedowns that Videl had participated in, the ones with bigger scale and higher stakes. There was the operation to extract hostages from a terrorist group in a mining town; the foiling of the jewellery heist in West City; the busting of the Hibiscus Casino gambling scam.

"You don't just throw punches, Videl. According to these news articles, you were also deeply involved in the research, scouting, and deployment of these operations. And those are the skills I need in someone who can help me with this. Someone who can investigate and execute, and maybe block an attack or two if things turn ugly with Scar Town."

But there was a big jump from apprehending criminals, no matter how savvy, to stopping fire spirits from… well, producing fire. "I don't know about this," Videl admitted. "I had a lot of privileges while working on those cases you've read. I was close with the police and had access to files and records and databases. I could ask people questions and they were willing to answer. I don't know if you've seen how people interact with me lately, but most would think twice if I ask just for their name."

Back then, Videl even had some clearance and protection to navigate the dark recesses of the cyber network, an advantage she had used for personal projects from time to time. That, of course, was gone too. If she accessed those shadowy spaces now, she would be arrested if caught.

"The resources we have here at Mount Paozu would be at your disposal," Gohan offered. "And speaking of your new reputation, well, wouldn't this be a good chance to shift that a bit? The rivalry between Scar Town and the Ox Kingdom has spanned decades, so easing any tension caused by the fire in Mount Frypan would be a monumental improvement."

The fact that Gohan had been assigned to lead this diplomatic project only underscored that. He was a young prince who needed to prove his political mettle for the first time. And as her employer, Gohan's reputation was just as important as hers now. What good would it do her if Gohan became known as a poor successor? Or if a full-out skirmish between the Ox Kingdom and Scar Town broke out? Very likely, the restaurant would suffer, they would no longer need stalk gatherers, and Videl would be out of a job once again.

"I can see you've been learning a lot of rhetoric and persuasion techniques," Videl said. He was clever to have tied his own goals to hers.

"Is that an agreement, then?"

"What about stalk gathering?"

"You'll still perform that job, and you can help with this project during your downtimes. I'll inform Steban not to assign you too much other work. And of course, I will be increasing your compensation to address this new scope."

Videl bit her lip. "I'll try. While I'm aware that there are inexplicable things in this world, I've never had direct experience working with magical phenomenon." Like fire spirits and mystical fans. "So I can't promise anything."

"I'm in the same position, that's why I'm hoping that this can stay between us for now. I haven't announced my intention of solving the fire to Scar Town precisely because I don't want to make promises I can't keep."

She nodded. "All right."

A pleased smile stretched over the prince's face. Erasa was correct; objectively speaking, he was quite a looker.

"Thank you, Videl." A sigh loosened the tension in his shoulders and he cupped his tea between his palms. "Your help would mean a lot. I haven't been in this role for long, and the expectations are very different from the ones I had when I was younger. In a lot of ways, being a student and a martial artist seem much simpler."

"Well, Ox Prince, at least people expect something of you. It's a lot worse when they don't."

He glanced up at her then, his black eyes boring into hers like he was seeing her for the first time. Pink spots bloomed on his cheeks, and he scratched the back of his neck.

"I'm sorry!" Gohan said. "You must think me petty, being a prince and all, but still complaining."

Videl cleared her throat. "No, pardon me. I didn't mean to dismiss your hardships. You're right, navigating expectations can be quite delicate. I was once in a similar situation, and it's not easy when there are so many eyes on you, so many people hoping you can make their problems go away with a wave of a hand. But it's never that simple."

"No, it isn't." His gaze softened, but remained on her face. She tried not to fidget under his stare, but she couldn't remember the last time somebody looked at her that way, as if they were trying to pick her apart and put her back together. Not even when she was still someone worth admiring. "Videl, I'm sorry about what happened to you and your family. No matter what the truth may be, the method used to expose it was unkind."

She shrugged. "Can't do anything about it now."

"Did… the person want something? Was it blackmail, or…"

Goosebumps crawled on Videl's skin, and she wanted nothing more than to be out that door and in her own room in silence. "What do you mean?"

"The person who exposed the truth. Did they want anything from your family?"

She shrugged again. Nobody had ever followed up on sunsetbeluga36, the username of the hacker that had released the incriminating footage of Hercule. What would have been the point? With enough pressure, the employees of the media company who colluded with her father to hide that footage had confessed, and if her father had continued to lie, he would have been charged with perjury. So he'd confessed too. And after all of that came to light, there'd been no further activity from sunsetbeluga36.

"I'll see if I can start on some research tomorrow," Videl said, standing up and giving Gohan a neat little bow. "Maybe something on the history of Mount Frypan."

Gohan stood up too. "Feel free to use our library. It's in the north wing. Thank you again for deciding to help me."

Videl left the prince's apartments stewing in a mix of emotions. She thought she would have been elated at not having been fired, but the new challenge in front of her seemed like a fool's errand. And Gohan's questions about the hacker that had revealed her father's fraud unnerved her. Not to mention, all the subtle implications he'd dropped about how powerful he really was. This all felt so far from the simple job she thought she'd landed yesterday.

Soft footsteps echoed from the intersecting hallway ahead, and Videl pulled herself from her thoughts just in time to avoid crashing into a man who seemed just as absorbed in his own thoughts. Or rather, a large piece of paper.

He blinked up at her, and she recognized him as the fancy young man from the afternoon's court hearing who was sent to help the Ox Princess with some canning ventures. Merches was the surname, wasn't it? He was in loungewear with a towel over his neck and a toothbrush poking out of his pocket.

"Do you know where the sauna is? Whoever drew this map needs a visit to an optometrist," he said.

"I'm sorry, I'm not sure," Videl answered. The sauna had been the last place on her mind to check on the map.

Merches grumbled. "Where are we now? Is that the entrance to the pool?"

"No, that's Prince Gohan's apartments."

He flapped the map with annoyance. "The Ox Prince's apartments! What in the…? Wait, hold on." He lowered the map, squinted at Videl, then at the door several steps behind her. Then he looked at her again, up and down, up and down. A sleazy smile split his face.

"Oh, I see. I understand now why he defended you so strongly during court. I would have thought he preferred something more refined, but you never know with this mountain folks, do you?" He laughed as he continued down the hall.

Videl crossed her arms, suddenly beset by a sticky discomfort. She had no illusions what Merches must be thinking. It wasn't the first time she'd been on the receiving end of that type of look. She'd encountered it a handful of times from men who believed that just because a young woman was desperate for a job, that they didn't need to treat her with dignity.

Blast it. It was just her first day and already someone believed she was sleeping with the prince.

-o-

Gathering stalk the next day felt like a much simpler mission than it did the first time around. The practicality of it, the tactile nature of the work, appealed to Videl now that something more daunting and uncertain had been added to her plate. She was getting a hang of the sky-scooter's navigation; her muscles were adjusting to balancing the scythe during the ride; even the dinosaurs seemed less fearsome. There were no barbs today from her teammates, including Sharpner, surprisingly. And while hacking away at the enormous stalks, she found some time to think.

The first thing for her to do would be to look up Scar Town. Who was its leader? Who were the audacious folks who attacked Mount Paozu? How weak were they exactly that Gohan felt he could be branded a tyrant for retaliating?

The next thing was to figure out what a fire spirit was. If it was falling onto Mount Frypan, where was it falling from? And how was its fire different from a normal fire? She needed to compile a dossier, like those she'd been handed whenever she'd worked on criminal cases.

When she and the rest of the Stalk Gathering team made it back to Mount Paozu, Videl was itching to find the library that the Ox Prince had mentioned. But when they landed back in the garage, an official was waiting for them.

"Videl?" the official said, approaching her. She was an older woman, with shiny gray hair pulled up in a stately bun. Wrinkles adorned the sides of her eyes and mouth, though she stood with her back straight and chin up. "You're required to attend an audience with the Ox Princess."

"The Ox Princess?" Videl echoed dumbly. The intensity of the stares that shot her way more than made up for her team's bland disinterest that morning. Even Steban's lips pursed.

"Yes, I'm to lead you to her," the official answered.

"Now?"

"Yes."

Videl glanced around her, but her uncertainty was reflected in every other face. "Should I clean up first, or—"

"No, you must come along now."

Lin reached out to Videl's sky-scooter, taking the handles away from her grip. Too rattled to bid her team farewell — and unsure whether she needed to in the first place — Videl followed after the official without a word and glance at anyone else.

"Do you know why she wants to see me?" Videl asked as they traipsed through the interlacing hallways of the palace.

"I do not," the official replied, though Videl had the feeling that she wouldn't say even if she did.

There could be several reasons, especially after what Gohan had shared with her the previous night. Maybe the princess wanted to talk to her about Scar Town and Mount Frypan too. But as far as Videl was told, the Ox Princess kept away from matters of state to focus solely on her cooking ventures.

More likely it would be about Ed Torr. The Ox Princess must have heard of what the tabloid writer had said during court yesterday, and now she intended to set things straight with Videl the way Videl had thought Gohan would do last night. Only he'd wanted to talk about something entirely different.

Or perhaps it could be that again: something entirely different. Something that would blindside Videl once more.

The official ushered her not into the princess' apartments like Videl had expected, but into a meeting room similar to the one in which she'd had her interview. This one was smaller, about half the size, which made the oaken desk and chair at the other end appear way too bulky. No one was there.

"Wait here," the official said and shut the door on her way out.

Videl didn't have to wait long. A moment later, a door on the far wall opened and a striking woman strode into the room. She had the kind of pretty face that would have marked her as delicate if not for a physique that spoke of someone who didn't shy away from physical labour. Her jet black hair fell straight to her waist, which contrasted with the cream-coloured traditional dress she wore.

But what caught Videl's eye the most was the giant axe the woman had slung over one shoulder. Its blade glinted in the morning light, lending an even more ominous atmosphere to the meeting.

"Don't mind this," the princess said, obviously noticing Videl's attention on the weapon. "What, you think I use a kitchen knife to chop up those stalks you and your team bring to the kitchen? I'll go bankrupt just replacing all those knives."

Videl had never actually put too much thought into how the restaurant cooked the Paozu Stalk, but the Ox Princess using an axe meant for battle wouldn't be one of her top guesses.

The Ox Princess settled the axe down against the table, before sitting down. She pulled her hair up into a bun, squinting at Videl the entire time.

"So, you're the new girl, huh. Videl." The princess studied her for several seconds. Then she propped her chin on her hands. "Well, Videl, I heard rumours of you visiting my son's bedroom late last night."

Oh goodness, this meeting was about that? But only Cant Merches had seen her. Did he already spread the word? What a malicious little twit. He had absolutely no reason to do so.

"Your son summoned me, ma'am." Videl tried not to let exasperation seep into her voice. Trouble just seemed to find her, and not the kind she could punch in the face like she used to before.

"That doesn't sound like him. He's very shy, you know."

"He talked to me about Scar Town," she explained. Hopefully the Ox Princess wasn't so distant with politics that she didn't know what was happening to her previous home mountain. "He didn't want to discuss it in the open."

The Ox Princess frowned. "And what does he hope to gain by bringing you into the loop?"

"He wants help investigating how to put out the fire on Mount Frypan, which will hopefully end the conflict with Scar Town."

"You don't strike me as an expert on fire extinguishers, but I won't do my son any favours by undermining his decisions. I suppose I should be glad he's learning how to delegate some tasks." The princess crossed her arms. "But I expect you to maintain a respectable distance from him, you hear. Sure, exchange notes, have discussions, whatever. But always remember that he's the grandson of a king, and you're the daughter of a fraud. Don't ingratiate yourself too much with him, lest you bring down his reputation by being associated with you too frequently."

Well, at least this woman was blunt. Videl could at lease appreciate frankness, and it wasn't like the princess had said something she hadn't heard before.

"Understood, your Highness. And you have nothing to worry about."

"Good, you're dismissed."

Videl turned to the door, but the princess called her back.

"Wait, you're off duty now, correct? Be a dear and wait at the front gates. We have a family friend visiting for the day, and I want him escorted to the Wildflower Courtyard. That section hadn't been built yet when he last came, and I don't want him to get lost."

"How would I recognize your friend, ma'am?"

"He's got a scar across one eye, and another on his cheek in the shape of an 'x.' You won't miss him."

"Yes, ma'am."

At this rate, Videl would only be able to start her research after lunch. Already she could feel the early grumble of her stomach. Not that she hadn't learned how to deal with hunger before, but the extrenous task of gathering stalk in the mornings meant her body used up so much energy so quickly.

When Videl arrived at the front gates, she found it surprisingly unguarded. She wondered what happened to the guard that she'd seen two days ago when she'd first climbed the mountain. Was he on his day off? Did Gohan forget to assign a guard this morning? She recalled the jumbled assortment of papers and notebooks on one of his desks the previous night. Or the way he'd forgotten to fix the windows in the apartments he was supposed to assign Cant Merches. Perhaps the Ox Prince should hire an assistant next.

There was a little stool by the gates, and Videl sat on it. She wished she'd made a detour to the kitchen first to get some snack and a drink. The morning sun was enthusiastic today. But at least it gave her a wonderful view of the landscape. Lush greenery carpeted the mountain face, and far below, farms and rice paddies made a quilt of the flatlands.

The buzz of an engine interrupted the serene moment, and a skycycle landed on the mountain ledge not too far from the gates. It was emblazoned with the Capsule Corps logo, a newer version of the Cloud Threader model that Videl had wanted to buy for herself back when she could afford it.

The man sitting astride it shut off the engine and took off his helmet. The scars on his face told Videl this was the man that the princess was expecting. He looked to be around the princess' age, perhaps several years older. There was a blue cat perching on his shoulder, and as soon as he got off the cycle, the cat floated up in the air.

Videl was almost surprised, except the last couple of days had been so chock full of surprises that a flying blue cat almost felt tame.

"Nice weather we have today," the man said. Videl had always thought that scars made one look jaded and haggard, but not so with this man. He had a bright smile and an energetic vibe. It would have been easy for him to appear roguish, but Videl felt quite at ease.

"Good morning," she greeted. "I'm to lead you to the Wildflower Courtyard."

"You're a bit young to be a guard," the man remarked. The blue cat settled once again on his shoulder and peeped at her with curious eyes.

"I'm not a guard," Videl said. "I'm a stalk gatherer. I just finished my shift and I was asked to help you."

The man rounded his skycycle and untied some packages crouching on its back seat. There were boxes of pies and cakes, a thin pile of comic books, and a handful of gift boxes. He scooped all of these up before walking towards the entrance.

As they passed through the gate, the man squinted at her face. "Do I know you? I feel like I've seen you before."

"We've never met. I'm Videl Satan, Hercule Satan's daughter," she said, injecting as little emotion into her answer as she could.

"Videl Satan?" His eyes widened in recognition and his smile stretched a tad more. "Videl, the crime-fighting teen of Orange City?"

She was taken aback that that was the second thing he'd thought of. It had been a while since that was the immediate association people made about her.

"Videl, the person who cracked the fraud ring operating at Hibiscus Casino?" The next thing Videl knew, the packages the man was holding were all on the ground, and her hands were clasped between his. His eyes shone with fervour. "I must thank you! I lost so much money to those awful scammers."

"2 million sens," the cat added, because apparently not only could it fly, it could also talk.

"Hey, no need to discuss numbers here, Puar." The man released her hands and picked up his packages again. "I don't want Videl here to think I'm careless."

"Sorry, Yamcha," the cat replied.

Yamcha? Wasn't that one of the names that Gohan had mentioned at court? One of the men who could build a bridge in two weeks? He looked fit and healthy, sure, but could he really do something like that?

She filed the information away for now and focused on their conversation instead.

"Don't be sorry," Videl said, a small little joy blooming in her chest at getting the opportunity to talk about something she was proud of for a change. "Those fraudsters were savvy, and someone from the casino's security team was in cahoots with them. Many smart, and otherwise responsible, folks got caught in their snare. 2 million was on the lower end of what some of the victims lost."

"Hah, good to know! So, Videl. What are you doing here? This is the last place I expected you to be."

"Like I said, I'm a stalk gatherer."

"Why?"

Videl wasn't sure how she was going to explain something to someone who seemed to not have paid attention to the news the last two years. For a moment, she wanted to bask in the surreal feeling of being respected again.

But her silence must have jogged his memory, because his eyes widened again, though in a different manner this time. "Oh." Then a more elaborate, "Oohhh. Yes, the whole Hercule is a fraud thing."

"Yes, that whole thing."

"Well, you're in a good place, at least. Lay low for a bit, get your feet back under you, and in a few years, I'm sure you'll be fine again."

Videl smiled. This was the second person after Erasa to have treated her like her current circumstance was only temporary. Like she would wake up one day and all of a sudden her father wasn't going to be the man who'd lied to everybody for five years. She admired their easy confidence in the power of time to erase misfortune, but she wasn't sure she had the same faith.

"Don't believe me?" Yamcha gave her a good-natured smirk. "You should. I know a thing or two about being life's punching bag. The trick is to just keep going and stay true to your values."

Staying true to her values was exactly what got her here, but she wasn't about to admit that to a person she just met.

From the map she'd been given of the palace, the Wildflower Courtyard was part of the extended east wing reserved for the royals. Videl hoped she wouldn't get lost — and get this poor man lost with her — but the path there was rather well-tended, probably by virtue of being newer. A wooden gate bordered by blue and lavender hydrangeas led to the courtyard.

Videl opened it and waved Yamcha and Puar through. Beyond, she found the Ox King, the Ox Princess, and the two princes gathered around a table heaped with platters of food.

"Yamcha!" Goten ran from his high-seat and sprinted towards them. "You made it!"

"Sure did, squirt!" Yamcha pushed all of the things he was carrying into one arm and reached down to ruffle Goten's hair. "And I got those comics you wanted."

"And Puar's here too!"

Videl didn't linger, as she knew it wasn't her place to watch the Ox family spend time with whom appeared to be very close friends. She shut the gates and started back towards the servants' entrance to the palace. She tried to focus on the pinch of her stomach and the urgent need to fill her belly before it started cramping.

But a part of her recognized the stab of envy she'd felt, not at the plentiful meal, but at seeing the Ox Family greet their friends and eat together with carefree smiles on their faces. When was the last time Videl had experienced something like that? Even before her father's fall, they hadn't eaten that way as a family. Their dining room had been spacious but devoid of laughter, and oftentimes, Videl had dined alone.

If she worked hard, maybe Yamcha was right; maybe someday in the future she could build a reality for herself and her father that was meaningful and happy. Even if they would never be as rich as they'd been, she could still prove to her father that it was better to live a humble and honest life, than to live an ostentatious one mired in lies.

-o-

Maybe it was because Videl was hungry, but when she found Cant Merches cornering Erasa in a sparsely used hallway leading to the dining area, her mood immediately soured. It didn't help that even though she was still at a distance, the leer on his face was obvious, and so was Erasa's displeased scowl.

"Erasa," she called, perhaps a little sharply than she'd intended. "I'm heading off to lunch. Want to come?" She didn't know if Erasa had already gotten off her shift, but right now it didn't matter why she was here and not in the kitchens. What mattered was getting her away.

Merches leaned away from Erasa and flashed Videl a cocky smile. "Oh, hello there. Funny running into you again. You seem to be popping up in interesting hallways."

The stare that Videl shot him was straight and hard and full of warning, the type of stare that used to halt criminals in their tracks, the type that once sent shivers down the backs of even those much bigger and older than her. It was rare that Videl had the gall to do this now — with her much reduced social standing, she felt she didn't have the right — but with Merches, it seemed justified.

She didn't break eye contact until she'd looped her arm with Erasa's and they turned down the hall towards the dining room. She hoped it would send the message that she'd seen him, that she'd remember. Oftentimes that was all it was needed to curb any kind of tomfoolery.

"What a creep," Erasa mumbled.

"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Videl asked.

"Just my ears with his lame pick-up lines."

"Let me know if he bothers you again."

"Ooh, are you going to kick his ass like you used to do?"

"I doubt I can without getting fired, but… I don't know. Maybe I still have a few more tricks up my sleeve."

It was a relief to get some food in her stomach, and Videl's mood improved considerably after spending lunchtime with Erasa and Maisy. By the time she found herself in the library, she was once again energized and ready to get down to the task at hand.

Books about Mount Frypan and Scar Town were easier to find than fire spirits. In Famous Reformed Warlords of the World, Videl found a short chapter on the Ox King and some of his previous nemeses.

Counted among those who harboured enmity towards the Ox King were the various quarrelling gangs of Scar Town. Since Scar Town is devoid of an official governing body, the gang leaders often used encounters with the Ox King as showdowns to prove their strength and compete with one another. Primary among these gang leaders was a man named Endy Vora. When he succumbed to a lung illness due to fumes from the burning Mount Frypan, his son, Endy Vora Jr., succeeded him.

All right, it seemed there was at least one person of significance from Scar Town with a personal axe to grind against the Ox royal family. That was something of note. There was a picture of Endy Vora Jr. beneath the text. He was a youth not much older than Videl. Hard to believe someone that young was a leader of a gang vying for rule over a town.

Oddest Places To Live In Vol. 5 gave a short description of Scar Town: the settlement got its name from the crack in the valley south of Mount Frypan that resembles a scar. Inside this fissure in the land, twenty thousand people have made their homes. There are few natural resources in the area, and most of the population subsists on the wild plants growing around the fissure.

Videl rounded the corner of the aisle, tilting her head to read the titles of the books. She was starting to grow a picture of what kind of people she might encounter if she got more involved in this assignment. Scar Town seemed like a bleak place to build a life, and any kind of inconvenience might spur the residents into desperate measures.

"Hi!" a loud voide pierced the silence in the library.

Videl startled and dropped Oddest Places. Right in front of her, smiling like a little imp, was the younger Ox Prince. Had she been so absorbed in her task she hadn't even heard a child walk up to her?

"Oh, hello." Videl looked around but there didn't appear to be anyone with him, not even Yamcha whom Goten had been so excited to see earlier. Perhaps Gohan should hire a babysitter next.

He flashed a book up at her. "Can you sign my slam book?"

"Um… sure, why not?" She sat cross-legged on the floor and pulled a pen from her pocket. Goten sidled up to her and gave her the book.

"Why do you have a slam book anyway?" Videl flipped to the first empty section. "These went out of trend about a decade before you were born."

"What I really wanted is an account on FriendyPals like my friend, Trunks. He collects so many friends there! But Mommy says the cyber network is dangerous and she wouldn't let me. So she told me to make a slam book instead."

"Your mother isn't wrong, you know." Videl thought of all the horrible comments and videos and articles she'd read about herself and her father. "The cyber network can be a scary place."

She wrote her name and birthday and began answering the listed questions one by one.

What is your favourite colour? The golden orange of sunset.

What is your favourite food? Anything in black bean sauce.

What is your favourite animal? Definitely not dinosaurs. She supposed she liked cute animals like most people. Pandas, elephants, belugas, cats, those types.

Videl filled in the entire questionnaire, and once she was done, she handed the book back to Goten. "There you go."

"Thank you, piranha!"

"Piranha? Why would you call me that? Do you think I chomp on people?" she chuckled.

"No, silly. I mean you're always alone and nobody likes you."

Videl burst out laughing, unable to find it in herself to be offended. "Ohh, you mean a pariah."

"Exactly! Like, Mr. Piccolo. At least that's what Mommy calls him."

This was the second time Goten had mentioned this man. "Who's Mr. Piccolo?"

"He's this really strong green guy that's kind of a slug but shaped like a human. He's awesome! Gohan likes him a lot and so do I!"

Getting compared to a slug-like green man was a new low for Videl, but perhaps Goten had meant it as a compliment because he seemed to adore this person so much.

"I'm sort of flattered, Ox Prince. But I have to get back to reading now," she said, standing up and dusting off her pants.

"Okie dokie, guess I'll see you later!" the young Ox Prince zipped down the aisle and disappeared around the corner.

Videl stooped to pick up the books she'd left on the floor, and she noticed a slip of folded paper that hadn't been there before. She opened it and found a colourful drawing of the Ox Family. It must have been tucked into Goten's slam book and fell out while she was writing in it.

"Goten, you dropped something," she called, but the boy didn't come back. "Sir Mr. Goten?" Videl walked down the aisles, but she'd made it back to the entrance and couldn't find a sign of him. He must have gone out very quickly.

She glanced at the picture again and paused. She had thought it was a drawing of the Ox Family, but now she wasn't so sure. The Ox King was obvious with his bushy beard and horned helmet, and the Ox Princess was also clearly depicted with her dark eyes, black hair, and large axe. But there were three people on there that could have been Gohan, Goten, and possibly Goku (he had a halo on top), except their hair were not coloured in black. They were coloured in yellow. And their eyes were a bright turquoise.

Strange. Videl folded the drawing again and tucked it into her pocket.