A Special Training V

 

Disclaimer: DBZ and Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon do not belong to me. I make no money from this, at all.

 

            “So, where are we going to be training?” Usagi asked Piccolo, as she flew beside him.

            It was one of her first acts of ki manipulation, so she was flying rather slowly, and Piccolo was letting her set the pace.

            “We are going to the Black Forest. The warriors I am training with are there.”

            “Yeah? Are they cute?” Usagi couldn’t help but ask. It was more to see Piccolo’s reaction than actual interest.

            No one had ever asked him that question before, so he sweat dropped. He sweat dropped rather well, by any standards.

            “Uh, one was my other student, and his father.”

            “Oh, wrong ages then.”

            This was fun! She thought. This guy takes himself way, way too seriously.

            She grinned, catlike, at what she could do to this guy…

            “So, who is the enemy?” she asked, knowing that getting to business would be important. “And by the way, what are you?”

            “I am a Namek,” he explained.

            “Okay- that doesn’t tell me much,” she suggested, not the least intimidated.

            He went on to tell her about his past, and what he was doing on earth. This story took a while, and they arrived at the Sons before they were finished.

            “So, this is where your student lives?” Usagi asked, and took in the modest house. It was cozy, she thought.

            “HEY! It’s Mr. Piccolo!” a voice from inside shouted, and a little boy, younger than Chibi-Usa ran out to glomp Piccolo on the leg.

            “Hey, Piccolo,” said another voice, belonging to an older man. The owner of the voice came outside, a little more restrained than his son about welcomes.

            Then a lady came out. Her hair was in a bun, and she had a warm, mother’s smile.

            “You must be Usagi,” said the boy, and he put out his hand. “I’m Son Gohan, this is my dad, Goku, and my mom, Chi-Chi.”

            “Gracious,” Chi-Chi said immediately after she had been introduced, as Gohan shook her hand up and down. “You look like you could use a bath.” She glared at Piccolo. “You mean you left another child to fend for themselves in the wilderness? Why, you mean, wicked-“

            “Ma’am? I volunteered for it!” Usagi interrupted, putting her hands up. “The food inside smells awesome, and I haven’t had a home cooked meal in forever. Can I eat with you?”

            Chi-Chi went from raging mother to collected hostess in a heartbeat.

            “Why, certainly, dear. I am so happy to have another girl around for a while, even if you are a fighter. The boys can get the table set while I get you a bath and some fresh clothes,” she said last, giving her ragged, smelly clothes a disapproving look.

            Usagi smiled, and nodded gratefully. She had missed hot water so much!

            “Goku?” Chi-Chi said crisply.

            “Yes, dear?” Goku said resignedly.

            “Go get the bathing barrel, Gohan, you start setting the table, and Piccolo, fetch water and fire wood.”

            Piccolo looked rather surprised that he was being ordered as well. He was about to protest, when Chi-Chi glared at him.

            He wondered at that moment what would have happened had she fought Frieza.

            He went to get the water and wood.

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            Usagi sighed in bliss as she sank into the steaming water. It soothed the aches of six months in the wilderness; an assortment of scrapes, slight sprains, bruises and general soreness.

            Someone came up from behind her and started washing her hair.

            “You know, you must have had beautiful hair before this happened,” Chi-Chi told her, sounding motherly.

            Usagi didn’t answer, just enjoyed having someone’s hands massaging her scalp.

            “I’ll cut it this evening, to make it even.”

            “Thank you, Chi-Chi-san,” Usagi answered, and grinned.

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            The boys were sitting around the table, waiting on the ladies.

            “How long does it take to get a bath, anyway?” whined Goku, who was really, really hungry.

            No one answered him, and Piccolo wondered what was the major difference between males and females: clothing, or how much they ate.

            They heard footsteps, and turned.

            Chi-Chi was grinning madly, happy at her handiwork.

            Usagi was standing in front of her, her hair neatly trimmed around her ears, wearing one of Chi-Chi’s dresses, looking very, very nice.

             The boys just stared.

            “Okay, I’ll go get the food,” Chi-Chi said, pleased with their response.

            “I’ll help,” Usagi told her, but Chi-Chi shook her head.

            “Dear, you are a guest. Gohan, would you mind helping me?”

            “Okay Mom,” Gohan muttered, and followed his mother into the kitchen.

            Usagi giggled; she couldn’t help it. Gohan sounded just like she did when asked to help.

            Turning back to her hosts, she found Goku staring at her. She found herself grinning back. He reminded her of a favorite brother.

            “So, Usagi, where are you from? Are you really here to help us fight the Androids? That’s great! I can sense great power in you. You seem really nice; do you have any family? Are you from the future too? Are you part Saiya-jin? Are you-“

            “Goku,” interrupted Piccolo, sternly, eyes narrowed.

            Usagi’s eyebrows nearly hit her hairline at all the questions from the open-faced man.

            “I’m from Tokyo, Juuban district, and yeah, I am here to help you fight your enemy, but I didn’t know they were Androids. What’s a Saiya-jin?” she asked.

            “Oh, you don’t know what a Saiya-jin is? That’s what Vegeta and I are. We’re the only two left; at least we think so. My son is half-Saiya-jin. There is another from the future-“

            Piccolo stopped this line of thought by a cuff to the head.

            “Really, from the future?” Usagi asked, intrigued. This sounded really familiar.

            Goku was about to go on, when Piccolo gave him a death glare.

            “There are things about the future we are allowed to tell,” Piccolo said, keeping his gaze on the chagrined Goku. He lowered his eyes with a muttered, “I’m sorry.”

            “Oh, I know all about not letting people know about the future,” Usagi said brightly, trying to cheer him back up.

            It did. The large warrior’s eyes lit up like at Christmas.

            “Really? Wow! How?”

            “I guess I need to tell you about where I come from…” Usagi started, and her eyes became lost in memory.

            “I don’t think this is the same world I came from. Oh, well, um,” this received startled looked from Piccolo and Goku.

            “See, a thousand years ago, in my world, there was a magnificent kingdom on the moon…”

            There had lots of banging of pots and pans in the kitchen when she started her story, but after a while there was dead silence.

            By the time she had finished up with her mother’s defeat of Beryl, she turned to see both Chi-Chi and Gohan staring at her in awe, wonder in their eyes.

            “So, was the Moon Princess and her Prince reborn?” Gohan asked, and Chi-Chi said at the same time,” That is so romantic.”

            Usagi nodded, to both statements.

            Chi-Chi then remembered to serve dinner, and Usagi started eating as fast as she usually did.

            Everyone stared, except for Goku, who was trying to beat Usagi at eating.

            “Are you sure you aren’t a saiya-jin?” Piccolo asked, bemused.

            “Yeah. Why?” Usagi asked, her mouth full.

            “Why aren’t you eating?” she asked Piccolo, noting that he didn’t even have a plate.

            “Nameks don’t need to eat like humans. All we need is water.”

            Swallowing, she asked,” Don’t you have a sense of taste?”

            “Yes, but we don’t use it much.”

            “Um, Usagi?” Gohan asked, after cleaning his plate. “What did that story you told have to do with you? I mean, it was a nice tale, but you never said what you have to do with it.”

            Usagi smiled sadly.

            “I am the Moon Princess reborn.”

            Everyone around the table face vaulted.

            “So, why aren’t you with your Prince?” asked Chi-Chi, hearts in her eyes.

            Usagi blushed with shame, but everyone else thought it was because she was thinking of Mamoru.

            “Because they don’t need me right now. I heard Kami ask for help, and decided to come. My future daughter can take care of things there while I’m away.”

Goku and Gohan missed the bitterness in her voice, but Piccolo heard it.

She always seemed like such a happy person, almost like Goku, he mused. Could the Princess maybe not having such a happy ending?

“Future daughter?” Goku gaped.

Usagi again nodded, and proceeded to tell them about how Chibi-Usa came into their lives, and how she had gone to the future to fight the Black Moon Family, and Wiseman.

“So, my future husband won’t have any trouble protecting his daughter,” she said with false brightness.

Piccolo was wondering what they had done to make such a kind person, who had crossed over from another world to help people she didn’t know, so sad.

“Okay, now you guys tell me your story.”

Goku began with how he had met Bulma, a friend who wasn’t there, and their search for the seven dragon balls. This led into the tournament where Piccolo’s father was killed, and him creating the current Piccolo. The story then went into how Chi-Chi had married him, and then how, on a day where they were supposed to be having a reunion, Goku found out about his alien heritage.

This then went into how he had died- (Usagi jumped at that. She had enough experience with friends dying.) and his training, how Piccolo had kidnapped Gohan to train him (with a glare from Chi-Chi) and their battle with the Saiya-jins.

Gohan told about how the fight went before his father arrived, with his friends getting killed, and Piccolo sacrificing himself- (I knew he was a nice guy! Usagi thought, hiding a triumphant smirk.) The battle with Vegeta, his defeat, and leaving for Namek.

The battle with Frieza took the rest of the evening, and Usagi held her breath when Goku described how he went Super Saiya-jin. Her eye were wide with amazement as they told about Frieza’s return, and how a mysterious boy from the future, with the ability to go SSJ appeared, and defeated him, telling them of the future they were trying so hard to avoid.

“So, that was why Kami asked for help?” Usagi asked. The telling of first her story, then theirs, had taken them long into the night. Gohan had already gone to bed, and Chi-Chi was yawning as she served them tea. Piccolo still sat at the table, in his usual glare at everything look, but he also looked tired.

“We think so, and we still have two years to prepare,” Goku started, when Usagi gasped, “TWO YEARS?”

“And even that might not be enough,” Piccolo added, so she got the hint, and settled down.

“Do you still want to help us?” asked, surprisingly, Chi-Chi.

Usagi closed her eyes for a moment, thinking. It would be a very, very long time until she saw her friends again, and that was only if she survived, which was questionable. There was also that something that was scaring Kami, which might not be the Androids.

But that had been what she was asking for, right? People who truly needed her?

There was no real question, was there?

“I’m staying, and I hope I can be of some help,” she said softly, and Goku patted her on the back. In fact, he patted her on the back so hard, she nearly hit the table.

“SO! We start tomorrow morning!” Goku shouted gleefully, a fist pumping in the air like he was announcing a party.

Great Horned Moon, what have I gotten myself into now?

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            She couldn’t sleep.

            Maybe it was because of sleeping in a real bed for the first time in months, or that really, really loud concert of crickets, or probably because Goku’s thunderous snores, she decided to go for a walk.

            Usagi had never really been a warrior. If there was ever a person suited to being normal, it was her. She had always wanted to live a normal life, have a normal family, and grow old, normally.

            Yet, a part of her had been the Moon Princess her entire life, hadn’t it?

            The night was quiet, outside of the house, and her bare feet were getting soaked with dew. She really wasn’t all that sure how far she had gotten.

            It was a new and wondrous, but terrifying feeling, having to depend on herself, with no Senshi to ask for help. She would be a member of a team here, and no title was going to impress any Android. She smiled coldly to herself.

            She would have to impress them some other way.

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            Piccolo sat under a large, fragrant pine, mediating.

            He had been staying much closer to the Son house recently, to be more easily found.

            His mediations had been odd as of late. Ever since he had taken that overly pretty broach from Usagi, he had been seeing it in his visions.

            It was now after one such vision, and he decided to bring it out to look at it, hoping that might settle his thoughts.

            The baby pink broach opened as he pulled from his sash, and the thought crossed his mind that he needed to give it back to its owner. He decided he would do it in the morning.

            Inside was a perfect crystal, and he stared at it, as it seemed to glow from within, mesmerized.

            It was warm, a part of his mind said. It was as warm as a person’s hands. His black eyes locked into its crystalline depths, and its warmth sank into him, giving him a feeling of peace that he hadn’t had in a long time…

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            Usagi felt a familiar tingle along her nerves. She had gotten so used to the feeling of the crystal that she could always tell where it was. It wasn’t all that far away, she decided. Just a short walk from where she was.

            There was Piccolo, sitting beneath a tree, entranced by something in his cupped hands. The light coming from it cast his face into relief, showing the sharp edges and planes of his face. The expression was a strange one, one of calm, almost happiness, and one that Usagi had never seen. She wondered what a genuine smile would look like on him.

            The moment was broken, and Piccolo looked up, and their eyes met. For one precious instant, their eyes met, and there was- something- between them. An understanding? Connection?

            Usagi didn’t know, but it was gone, as soon as it was there.

            From Piccolo’s viewpoint, he had suddenly been confronted with an angel. Usagi had that type of effect on people. She was wearing an old white night gown of Chi-Chi’s, and the moonlight made it glow, her now short hair gleamed.

            Beautiful, his mind supplied.

            Then, it was over, and they were just staring at each other.

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            “What are you doing out here this late?” Piccolo asked her, his voice harsh.

            Usagi jumped, but she wasn’t the little girl that would cry at a severe tone anymore.

            “I couldn’t sleep,” she told him. “Goku snored loud enough to shake down the house.”

            Piccolo, whose hearing was good enough to make out the snores from across the forest, snorted.

            “That is a good reason, but you need to get back to sleep. You are going to be having a rough time from now on.”

            “Oh? How do you suggest I get to sleep then? I don’t think his snoring is going to stop any time soon!”

            “I guess you can wait out here,” he said grudgingly, and to his surprise, Usagi sat down next to him, and looked up at the stars.

            “One thing I miss about that island you left me on,” she whispered faintly, “was being alone to look at the stars. They were so peaceful.”

            “The people who live among them aren’t always peaceful,” Piccolo told her. “I came from those stars; I look at them differently.”

            “I’m sorry,” she said softly, and leaned into his shoulder, falling asleep.

            Piccolo didn’t say a word, afraid to disturb her.

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