The Bond

Makoto chased Trunks across the garden, his tail streaming behind him. His older friend was still faster than him, but Makoto was determined to catch him. The grass tore up underfoot as he pelted faster, his wavy black hair streaming out behind him, he pounced forward and with was flash of satisfaction, he caught Trunks' ankle as he landed. Trunks fell flat on his face, tripped, and Makoto laughed in victiory.

"Tag!" he declared, "You're it!"

Trunks pushed himself up, spitting out grass, "You TRIPPED me!" he said.

Makoto put his hands on his hips and nodded proudly, smirking, "Sure! You gotta be ready for anything Trunks, like a real warrior!"

Trunks threw a punch and it hit Makoto in the nose. He wailed, falling back on his butt, "OW! That hurt!"

Trunks laughed, "Be ready for anything, Makoto!"

Makoto pouted, standing and rubbing his nose, "You didn't have to hit so hard…" he muttered.

Trunks sighed, lacing his fingers behind his head, "Well I'm bored of tag anyway. Why don't we go to the city?"

"Will your mom wanna take us right now?" asked Makoto.

"No, I mean, by ourselves!" Trunks grinned wickedly.

Makoto looked at him, "But I can't fly yet," he said, "How will we get there?"

Trunks waved him off, "The Capsule pods are easy to use, you just type in where you wanna go and it takes you there!"

"But shouldn't we ask?" said Makoto.

Trunks laughed, "They would never let us go! We should just go and come back before they see we've gone."

"I dunno, Trunks," said Makoto, frowning, "My parents would be awfully mad…"

"They'll never know!" said Trunks, with a winning smile, "Come on! I know where the Capsules are for the pods."

Makoto followed his friend inside. As worried as the young boy was, going out into the city with no parental eyes sounded like fun! They could do whatever they wanted, and there wouldn't be anyone to tell them to be careful. He wished Goten could be here for this!

Trunks grabbed a capsule from the lab and they tiptoes back outside. They went out back to the gardens, and Trunks popped the capsule. It produced a small shuttle with four seats in it. Trunks bounced excitedly, "Ready?" he asked.

"Where do you boys think you're going?"

Trunks turned bright red and turned to see his father, Rilan, striding toward them.

"M-mister Rilan!" Makoto turned red too.

"Dad- uh- we were just…" Trunks stammered.

Rilan laughed. His blue hair was a short now, and well groomed. He smiled down at them, "I understand. You want to go and explore without an adult telling you what to do or where to go, but boys, you're still too young to go off to the city by yourselves."

"Why?" Trunks pouted, "It's not like anything is gonna hurt us."

"No, but you could accidently hurt someone else," said Rilan, placing a hand on his son's head, "You two boys have a lot of strength, and you still have trouble controlling it."

Makoto sighed. They had been so close.

"Makoto."

He flinched and turned to see his own father walking toward him. His eyes narrowed, "Come. We have training to do."

Makoto felt slight relief because his father wasn't scolding him about the shuttle behind him. He bounced over.

"Trunks and I will train out here today, I can tell he's stir crazy," Rilan ruffled Trunks' hair, making the boy groan and push him away.

"Whatever," scoffed Vegeta, walking back around the house, "Come on, Makoto."

Makoto ran after his father, "I'm coming!"

*scene change*

Vegeta was glad to have the gravity room to himself and his son. He cranked the machine up to 100 times gravity this time, and stepped in easily. Makoto stumbled inside, shaking a little under the new weight, staggering each step. Vegeta faced him, powering up to Super Saiyan and spoke, "You won't become a warrior like that, son, perhaps this is too much for you."

"No!" Makoto gasped, "I can do it!"

Vegeta crossed his arms, "Prove it. Come to me."

Makoto stumbled over to him, each step was taking him effort.

"Let me see your tail," Vegeta ordered.

Makoto looked stricken, "Under a hundred times gravity, Dad?" he asked.

"Yes!" Vegeta snapped, "If you don't get this down soon, it will be what makes you lose battles!"

Makoto sighed and turned, offering his tail. Vegeta grabbed it, and Makoto fell flat on his stomach.

Vegeta scoffed, "I expected more! Are you beaten so easily?"

"N-no!" Makoto stammered, pushing himself to all fours, "I'm not!"

"Then get up and walk!" Vegeta snarled.

Makoto gritted his teeth. Vegeta took a sharp intake of breath when he felt a sharp increase of power come from his son. Suddenly, Makoto was enlaced in gold, and his hair leapt to a golden blond, spiking upwards. He jumped to his feet in the process, letting out a cry of power. Vegeta was so shocked, he dropped his son's tail.

His son- Makoto had become a Super Saiyan! He watched in awe as his child stood easily now in the room, looking at his small hands with wonder. He looked over at his father, eyes wide, "I did it!" he whispered.

Vegeta shook his head in shock. Five years old, his son was five years old and he had just become a Super Saiyan! Since when was this possible at such a young age?

"I can do it just like Goten now!" Makoto grinned widely, "Now I can play with him and Trunks when they transform!"

"Are you kidding?" hissed Vegeta, "Son, Kakarot's youngest can do this too?"

"Sure," said Makoto, frowning, "And Trunks can ascend. They would never let me play with them when they were like that."

Vegeta gritted his teeth. Of course, because it seemed like it was a Super Saiyan sale going on! How were these kids able to transform at such young ages?

"Makoto," said Vegeta harshly, "I want to see what you can do, I want you to try and hit me."

Makoto looked alarmed, "Why would I do that, Dad, you know I'm not strong enough."

Vegeta sighed, "You want to play it like that fine, if you can land a single punch on my face I'll take you to the park for an hour."

Makoto brightened considerably, "Really?" he gasped.

Vegeta nodded, "Now show me what you can do."

"Here it comes!" Makoto lunged at Vegeta, punching furiously.

Vegeta was caught off guard. The child was swinging punches so fast that he had to actually concentrate to avoid them, dodging back and forth wildly. Makoto kept on, the flow of his blows actually keeping him hovering in the air, despite his lack of knowledge of how to fly yet. Vegeta felt knuckles scrape his cheek, and his reaction was instinctive. He swung out a fist and landed a hard punch right in Makoto's face, sending his son flying back and landing heavily on the ground.

Gasping in horror at his own actions, he saw Makoto sit up, his face red from where he was hit, "Y-you didn't say you w-were gonna hit back!" he cried.

Vegeta felt his concern melt away to anger. Tears? He wasn't going to let his son cry about a single punch! "Well I didn't say I wasn't now did I, Makoto?" he snapped.

Makoto sniffled, "N-no, but…"

"Dry your tears," snarled Vegeta, "We're going to the park."

Makoto perked up, jumping to his feet, grinning widely.

"Before we go, tell me something," said Vegeta, "Who is the strongest out of you three boys?"

"Trunks," said Makoto, "He's the oldest and he can fly. I'm a little weaker than Goten, but it's only 'cause he's a year older."

Hmm, Vegeta thought, so Makoto was the weakest? He would have to do something about that.

*scene change*

"… so I'm going to need a new head piece."

Katima heard Gohan's voice and headed into the garage. Bulma was working on a motorbike, her hands greasy from oil. She spotted Gohan in his "Saiyaman" outfit, the lower half of his face troubled beneath the helm.

"New head piece?" Katima asked, "Don't like the helmet?"

"It's such a shame, you don't see super heroes in helmets, it's a nice touch," said Bulma, sitting up and wiping her hands on her stained pants.

"If you wanna look like a geek…" Trunks was in the room, his eyes playful as he looked up at Gohan.

Gohan pouted, "Videl DID call it a trash can."

"Videl?" Katima repeated, perking a brow, "Are you changing your head piece for a GIRL, Gohan?" she smirked playfully.

"No!" Gohan cried, then thought for a moment, "Well, yes."

Katima laughed.

"It's not what you think!" Gohan pressed, "This girl, Videl, ever since I showed up as Saiyaman, she's been hounding me to find out my secret identity! I go to school with her, and well, she found out. Now, she's making me enter the world championship so that she can fight me."

"Videl, why does that sound familiar?" Bulma frowned, then, perked up, "Wait! She's Hercule Satan's daughter!"

Gohan nodded grimly.

"Hercule?" Katima remembered the man that had taken the credit for killing Cell, "So of course she was raised to fight. But if her father was her trainer, I'd hate to see how she fights!" she laughed.

"She's a really nice girl, she goes out and helps the city like I do, but I've never met someone as pushy as she is! Except maybe my mom," Gohan sighed, "She making me enter the tournament or she's gonna tell the whole school my secret."

"Pushy, huh?" Bulma frowned, "Is she this way to everyone, or just you?"

"It's just been me since I began being Saiyaman," said Gohan.

Bulma chuckled, "Well, Gohan, if you ask me, this girl likes you. Sometimes that's just how girls show it. I bet if you asked her out on a date, it'll get you out of it."

"I already tried that," said Gohan, "I really think she's just dead set on beating me in battle! Not only am I having to enter, but she's making me teach her how to fly too."

Makoto came sprinting in at that moment, "Can you teach me, too, Gohan?" he begged, looking up at Gohan with wide eyes.

"That may not be a bad idea," said Katima, "If you don't mind, Gohan. Makoto's been needing to train how to fly for a while now."

"Goten too," said Gohan, nodding, "I don't mind. Might as well do all of them."

"I'll come to help you," said Katima.

Gohan sighed heavily, "I still can't believe I'm going to have to enter…"

"At least if you win, you can use the prize money to live on the next year," said Bulma cheerfully.

"He's not going to win," said a new voice, and Vegeta stepped into the room.

He looked nice today, a muscle tank top and sweat pants, his shirt tucked in, his muscular arms crossed.

"Who can beat Gohan?" asked Bulma.

Vegeta glared at her, "Yours truly," he snapped, then looked at Gohan, "You may have been stronger than me when we faced Cell, and I may not be able to use the Bond's power, but while you've had your face stuffed in books, I've been going through intensive training the entire time! If you enter, I enter."

"I'll fight too!"

They all flinched and looked up. Katima felt shock going through her. She knew that voice!

"Goku?" Bulma blinked.

"Dad?" Gohan cried, "Dad is that really you?"

"Hi, son," said Goku's voice, reverberating around the room, "It's good to hear your voice again!"

"Dad!" Gohan grinned widely, "Is it true? Are you going to enter the tournament?"

"Yeah!" said Goku cheerfully, "Apparently I have credit! I can come back for one day! I got it set up with Baba."

"This is great!" Gohan cheered.

"Kakarot," said Vegeta slowly, narrowing his eyes, but smirking.

"I'm excited!" Goku said happily.

"I am too," said Vegeta, still smirking, "It'll be good to defeat you in battle finally."

Goku laughed, "We'll see, I suppose miracles do happen!"

"Miracles, huh?" Vegeta scoffed, "Yes, we'll see."

"Well I'm not missing out on this," said Katima, "I'll enter too. It'll be fun to fight again."

"I want to!" Trunks cried.

"Me too!" Makoto jumped wildly.

"Tell Chichi I'll be coming back!" said Goku happily, "I'll see you then!"

His voice faded, and Gohan punched the air, "This is great! I get to see my Dad again!"

"You should go by Kame house," said Bulma, "I know Krillin will be really excited!"

Gohan nodded, "Definitely. But, about that head piece? Since Helmets aren't allowed in the tournament."

"I've got just the thing," Bulma grinned.

A few moments later, Gohan was sporting a white bandana around his head and black sunglasses. He grinned in the mirror, "This is great! Hey, you guys might want disguises too, maybe like something I'm wearing."

"Are you crazy?" Vegeta snapped, "I wouldn't be caught dead wearing that!"

"I think we can manage without," Katima laughed.

Gohan shrugged, "Suit yourself! I'm going to head to Kame House."

"Tell them I said hi," said Katima.

Gohan nodded, "And go ahead and come by with Makoto tomorrow, we'll start training!"

He ran from the room, still beaming. Katima couldn't help but smile too. It had been seven years since she saw Goku. It would be nice to see him again. But… She glanced at Vegeta. A small part of her worried. Though Vegeta had gotten past the brunt of his thirst for power when they faced Dengen, the fact that his old rival was returning made Katima think it could come up again. She wanted to believe Vegeta was completely past it… but…

"Katima, I need to speak to you," Vegeta strode to her, a glint of excitement in his eyes.

Katima tilted her head, "Oh?"

Vegeta nodded. Looking at the boys, he said, "Go play in the yard for a while," he nodded to Bulma as he led the way from the garage.

"What's this about?" Katima asked as they headed down the hall.

"Earlier today, I was training Makoto," said Vegeta, turning to face her and leaning on the wall, "I had the gravity up higher than usual. He was having trouble even getting to all fours when I had his tail, and then… He went Super Saiyan."

Katima blinked.

"What?"

Vegeta nodded, smiling a bit.

"But…" Katima's mind spun, "So early? He's only five!"

"Yes well, I was surprised too," said Vegeta, "Once he transformed, he could easily stand while I held his tail. I tasked him to try and hit me, and he managed to scrape me."

Katima beamed, pride welling in her. This was amazing! Makoto becoming a Super Saiyan at such a young age?

"Which means now that his resistance training is over, I will begin to train him to control his ape form," Vegeta continued, looking more serious now, "It will be dangerous. And I will have to take him out to the mountains so he doesn't hurt anyone. Once you and Gohan teach him to fly, I will take him out there and we will train for the tournament."

"You're not going without me," scoffed Katima.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes, "Katima, training him to control his ape form is going to take a lot of dedication. He can't be distracted by you."

Katima crossed her arms, "I can help just as well, you can tell me what to do."

Vegeta sighed, closing his eyes, "It isn't that easy," he said flatly, "With you around, he won't concentrate as much on his training. You're too soft with him. When it's just him and me, we make better progress."

Katima opened her mouth to argue but Vegeta cut her off.

"I know you think I'm too rough, but it was how all the Saiyan children were taught to control their weakness over their tail, and how to control their ape forms. I HAVE to be rough, or it won't work, he's a pure blood Saiyan boy. He needs to be raised like one in order to master himself."

Katima sighed heavily, "Fine. I suppose training with you wouldn't matter, we can't fight together at the tournament," her eyes sparkled, "We may even have to fight each other."

Vegeta smirked, "I do hope you're ready for that, my love," he said darkly.

"Ha! You're talking like I should be scared!" Katima crowed, kissing him softly.

"Vegeta returned it and shrugged off the wall, "Yes, well," he smirked, "I did promise I would take Makoto to the park since he managed to hit me."

"Let's go then," said Katima, taking her husband's hand, "We can take Trunks, and I'm sure Bulma will come."

*scene change*

The next day, Gohan was training. He wore a blue tunic and pants, his bare arms getting bulky even as he powered up. It had been a long time since he really trained, but all the old techniques and moves came back to him like rushing water as he moved. The wasteland near his house made for perfect training, and he quickly punched and kicked rock spire, destroying them with a single hit. His hair was golden blonde in his super Saiyan form, and he kicked and punched at light speed.

"Hi, Gohan!"

Goten, his little six year old brother, came running from the direction of the house, grinning widely, "I'm ready to train!"

"Alright!" Gohan beamed at his brother. Goten looked so much like their father it was astounding, the same wild hair and everything.

He handed Goten an armful of good size rocks, "I want you to throw these at me and try to hit me. This way, you're practicing your aim, and I'm practicing how to dodge. But you gotta stay behind this line," he took a stick and drew a line in the dirt about ten feet away from the cliff face he would be pressed against.

"Isn't that a little close?" asked Goten, tilting his head.

Gohan laughed, "Well, I am In Super Saiyan form, it might be hard to hit me!"

Goten nodded, getting a steel look in his eyes. Gohan went back to the cliff face, readying himself, "Okay, Goten, let 'em fly!"

With a small grunt of effort, Goten threw the first rock. It was so fast that Gohan could barely see it and barely managed to dodge it. He felt it move his hair as it zipped by.

"Whoa!" Gohan yelped, holding up his hands and coming forward, "Maybe we will move the line back! That's quite an arm you got there, kid!"

He shifted the line back about ten feet and returned to his position, "Okay!" he said.

Goten stuck out his tongue and began to throw the rocks like crazy. They pelted at Gohan, who was quickly dancing around to avoid them. To his surprise he was moving nearly as fast as he could to avoid them without actually shooting them out of the air. Within moments, Goten was out of rocks. He beamed, "That was really good, Gohan! I threw those pretty fast!"

Gohan laughed, "You did well too, sport, I had no clue you could throw so hard!"

"Um, Gohan?" Goten tilted his head, "Well, since mom isn't here, can I be like you now?"

Gohan frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you know, the blond hair, the super strength. I wanna be a Super Saiyan."

Gohan laughed heartedly, He grinned at how adorable his brother was, "Well, you've got a while before then, bud, it takes years of training to become a Super Saiyan! I was almost twice your age before I did it. Although I was the youngest Super Saiyan, you may have to do a bit more than- what-?"

He cut off when Goten suddenly clenched his little fists and his power spiked. His black hair stood up on end, and leaped to a golden blond. Gohan gaped. Since when could Goten go Super Saiyan? What did he miss!

"Hey, Goten, I can do it now too!"

Five year old Makoto came sprinting toward them, waving. Katima was following behind slower, smiling. Makoto powered up, his hair turning gold. Gohan nearly fell over. Since when were children becoming Super Saiyans all over the place?

Katima was already in her Super Saiyan form. She smiled at the look of shock on his face.

"Since when did this happen?" he asked wildly, gesturing to the kids.

"Makoto happened yesterday. I don't know about your brother, though," Katima smiled at the boys as they jumped around excitedly.

"Now we can REALLY play!" Goten said.

"No playing today, you two have to learn how to fly, and you have to concentrate for that," scolded Katima.

"He only learned to transform yesterday and he can access it that easily?" Gohan cried, still in shock.

Katima laughed and strode toward him, "You're surprised? He's been raised by Super Saiyans and training with Tygrians since he could walk."

Gohan rubbed his forehead, "This is insane… And they don't know how to fly! That's like learning how to run before you can walk!"

They were interrupted further by the sound of an engine. Looking up, he spotted a familiar helicopter heading for them.

"That's Videl!" he yelped, "Quick, power down! She doesn't know I'm part Saiyan!"

"All she knows is that you're 'Saiyaman? Not that it was you and NOT her dad that killed Cell?" Katima smirked as she powered down.

"She can't know that," said Gohan, "No one can, remember? We do NOT need those reporters coming around…"

Makoto and Goten pouted a little as they powered down, hair lying down and going black, "That's boring," Goten whined.

Katima laughed and looked at them, "Remember boys, we don't need everyone knowing about us! We want her to think we're human, so Makoto, wrap your tail around your waist like your father taught you."

Makoto frowned, "I have to act like a weakling human?" he whined.

Katima narrowed her eyes, "Yes, and don't go talking like that Makoto! Humans can be strong too."

Makoto sighed and his tail wrapped around his waist, tucking in the tip by the base. It looked like a fur belt like that. Gohan looked up as the helicopter landed out by his home. He looked back, "Come on, she knows we can fly, so…"

Katima nodded and picked up Makoto. Gohan patted his back and his brother let out a squeal and hopped on his back. They flew over to the home and landed, depositing the boys on the ground. The helicopter's engine shut off. The door opened, and Videl stepped out, and despite everything, Gohan felt a slight tingle go up his spine at the sight of her.

*scene change*

Katima looked over the girl as she stepped out. She didn't look anything like her father. Her thick black hair was held in pigtails that came down her front. Her eyes were a bright blue and she had a very pretty face and build. She looked toned, and Katima guessed she had been training her whole life.

"Gohan. You didn't say there were going to be others," Videl said, looking her and the boys over suspiciously.

"This is my aunt, Katima," said Gohan, smiling at her, "She's here to help train you! And that's my little brother, Goten, and that's Makoto, Katima's son and my cousin. They need to learn too."

Videl's eyes widened a bit, "Does your entire family know how to fly?"

Gohan turned red a little, "Well- uh- no, not all of us- my Mom doesn't know…"

"Gohan?"

Speaking of Chichi. Katima turned and grinned at her sister-in-law. She had called to let her know she and Makoto were coming, but spotted Gohan before going to the house.

"Oh, Katima! And little Makoto, hi!" she smiled as she came out of the home.

Makoto smiled and went to Chichi, "Auntie Chichi! I can go Super-"

"Makoto!" Gohan snapped.

Makoto flinched and blushed, "Oh, yeah, sorry."

Videl perked a brow, looking at Gohan suspiciously.

"Who's this, Gohan?" Chichi looked at her with narrowed eyes, looking her over thoroughly.

"This is Videl, Mom," said Gohan, "She's the one that convinced me to do the Tournament. She's here to train with me."

"Train huh?" Chichi looked at her son, "Gohan, you're supposed to be preparing, not fooling around with some hussy!"

Videl looked at her in shock, "I'm not a hussy!" she yelled, "I'm not here to 'fool' around either, I'm here to learn to fly!"

Katima giggled, crossing her arms, "It's alright, Chichi, I'll keep an eye on them," she winked.

Gohan turned red, "It isn't like that!" he said, waving his hands.

"Yeah, since when did fighting and getting married mix?" asked Videl hotly.

Katima and Chichi looked at each other, and Goten piped up, "Well Mom, you competed in the tournament with dad, didn't you? And Auntie Katima and Uncle Vegeta got married and they ALWAYS fight!"

Katima laughed, but Chichi got a far away look on her face, her eyes shimmering, "In our cases, yes. Ah, I remember that day, fighting Goku in the tournament and getting married all in the same day! It was so romantic!" she turned to Videl, eyes turning to fire again, "But for you, it's not the same! Gohan is entering that tournament to win the prize money to live on!"

Videl clenched her fists, "I'm not here to marry your son!" she shouted.

"Enough, enough," said Katima, walking forward, "I'll keep an eye on things Chichi, Gohan will still be training at his best, I promise. And we have to teach Goten and Makoto anyway, why not have a third?"

Chichi sighed, "Oh, very well," she said, turning and heading for the house, "I'll have lunch ready in an hour!"

"Thanks Auntie Chichi!" Makoto called, grinning big. Despite the kid thinking humans were weaklings, he did adore those that were close to him, like Chichi, Bulma, her parents, and even Yamcha when he came to visit.

"There's an open field not far from here," said Katima, picking Makoto up again, "Easiest to fly there. We can carry you. Goten, come get on my back so Gohan can carry Videl."

Gohan blushed a bit as his little brother came over and hopped onto Katima's back. Videl went to him and held up her arms.

"Well?" she snapped.

Katima nearly laughed and Gohan winced and lifted her, pressing her waist to his and taking off. She was an interesting one, this. Very pushy, just like Gohan had said.

They flew over to an open grassy field and landed, depositing their loads and looking at each other.

"Where do we start?" asked Gohan.

"Well, Videl, do you know how to use your energy?" Katima looked at her.

Videl frowned, "What do you mean, like do I have good stamina?"

"No," said Gohan, "It's the power that lies within you that you can release-"

"Like this!" Goten said, holding out a hand and blasting into a nearby boulder, making it fly into a thousand pieces.

Katima covered her face with her hand. So much for acting human. Looking up she saw Videl had a look of pure shock on her face.

"Oh." She said flatly, "I see."

Gohan laughed nervously, "Well, if you don't call that energy, what do you call it?"

"Well, it's a trick," said Videl, looking up at him.

"No, we're not trying to trick you!" said Gohan, "That's as real as you or I!"

"Well, whatever it is, I've never seen it before!" Videl snapped.

Gohan sighed, "Okay, well, in order to fly, you need to know how to control your energy like we can."

"We?" Videl looked at each of them, "All of you can do that?"

"Sure," said Makoto, crossing his arms, "Why can't you?"

"Makoto," Katima barked at him, "Where's your manners? Some people have never heard of energy like we have before."

Makoto bowed his head, "Sorry," he mumbled.

"He's definitely Vegeta's son," said Gohan, making Katima laugh.

"But yes," continued Katima, nodding at her and holding out her hand and making a small orb of power hover there, "Everyone has it inside them, you just have to know how to bring it out."

Videl frowned, "Well… okay, how do I do it?"

Katima looked at the boys, "You two go play while we teach Videl how to use her energy okay? And remember not to overdo it," she said the last words sternly, looking at each of them.

"Yes, Mom," said Makoto, though he looked rather put out. She knew he wanted to try out his new Super Saiyan strength out on Goten.

The boys took off, yelling happily at each other as they headed over the hill and out of sight.

"Go ahead and sit down," said Katima.

Videl sat on her knees and Gohan sat down in front of her. Katima sat close by, nodding at Gohan for him to start.

"So," said Gohan, "Your energy is the core of you. You can feel it, right? The power that's deep in your stomach! That's not just your center of balance, but that's where your energy comes from! Concentrate on that."

"Hold out your hands, like this," said Katima, making her hands like cups and holding them six inches apart, "And try to bring that power up through you and out." A small orb appeared in her hands and she held it out to show Videl, "Just like that, it's easy."

Videl nodded and held her hands like Katima had shown her. They sat there for about an hour in mostly silence, only broken to offer advice or encouragement. Finally, Katima felt a spark of power inflate from Videl. A small orb appeared in her hands.

"There!" Gohan exclaimed, "You did it!"

The orb faded and Videl fell forward. Gohan caught her, "Whoa! Are you okay?"

Videl slowly sat up, "Yes, sorry," she said and looked at them, "That's amazing, all this time, my Dad thought that stuff was tricks, but it's real!"

Katima nodded, standing, "I bet Chichi has lunch ready. Let's go eat and then we can get to the flight training."

While Gohan led Videl back to the house, Katima went to get the boys. They were in the forest playing. She landed and picked them up to fly them back to the house. As she suspected, Chichi had a grand table set out in the front yard, full of the most delicious looking of foods.

They all sat down and began to eat, the two boys going through their bowls like sharks. A Saiyan appetite was like no other. Katima was careful to retrain herself.

"So, Videl, that's a nice vehicle you have there," said Chichi, "It must have cost a lot!"

"Oh, not really," said Videl, digging into her food, "Oh wow, this is delicious! I'll have to get the recipe for our cook!"

"Cook?" Chichi repeated, "What does your family own a restaurant or something?"

"Oh, no," said Videl, "I mean our cook at home."

"You have your own cook? Your family must be pretty loaded! How many bedrooms does your house have? Ten? Twenty?"

"Oh, that's a good question," Videl pondered for a moment, "Maybe fifty?"

"FIFTY?" Chichi wailed. Looking at Gohan she demanded, "And you plan to marry this girl?"

"Does this mean Videl's my sister now?" Goten asked.

Gohan turned bright red, standing up from the table, "I have no idea what you guys are talking about!" he cried.

Katima chuckled. She wondered what it would have been like to meet Vegeta under normal circumstances, like at a high school. But of course it was the fact that there wasn't anything normal about Vegeta that had drawn her to him.

"So, Goten said something about how you and your husband fight all the time?" asked Videl, looking toward her, seeming unfazed by Gohan.

Katima nodded, "We like to keep our training going, even when things aren't very exciting."

"Yeah, it looks like you've seen some fair share of excitement, that's a wicked scar!" Videl nodded to her cheek.

Katima touched the V shape scar on her face, a nasty flash back of being helpless to stop it from happening flashing in her mind.

"Wait a second…" Videl's eyes widened, "You're the girl from seven years ago, the one Cell scarred on TV!"

Katima turned red. Woops, she forgot that the daughter of Hercule Satan may very well watch those old videos a lot just to see her father defeat Cell.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up, it must have been really painful," said Videl, "But you showed up at the Cell games and everything, you weren't scared off!"

Katima smiled wearily, "Yes well, at the time, what choice did any decent fighter have?"

Videl nodded, "It must have been something. I wish those videos weren't so banged up, I really wish I could have seen it!"

Katima continued eating. If the girl saw what really happened… that her father wasn't the one to kill Cell and that it had been an eleven year old boy, she wasn't sure how that would affect Videl. Once they finished eating, they headed back out to the field. They had the three of them line up and Gohan began to instruct.

"So, that energy, you need to bring it out again, but push it beneath you, and let it hold you up," said Gohan.

Videl clenched her fists and had a deep look of concentration on her face. Meanwhile, the boys began jumping wildly.

"No, no," said Gohan, "Goten, Makoto, flying and hopping and two different things! Use your energy!"

They stopped and looked at each other. They sighed and both concentrated.

Shakily and slowly, Makoto began to hover upward, Goten began just after him.

"L-like this?" asked Goten, bobbing up and down through the air.

"Yeah! You guys got it!" Gohan cheered.

"Look it me, I'mma birdy!" Gohan laughed, slowly bobbing higher.

"It's hard to balance!" said Makoto, shakily going around the air, "Hey! Goten! I bet I can go higher than you!"

"Nuh uh!" Goten began going up.

"Not so high, you two!" said Katima as her son headed upward.

"We're fine- wh- whoa!" Goten fell, landing on his head.

"Goten!" Gohan ran toward his brother.

"Ha!" Makoto cried, "I win- whoa!" he scrambled in the air, as if trying to catch hold of something then he too fell.

"Makoto!" Katima jumped forward and caught her son, luckily he had been close enough for her to do so. She sat him on the ground then went to check on her little nephew.

Goten had tears, but Gohan was helping him up, "You just got to practice, kiddo, and take things slow!"

"Gohan!" Videl's voice snapped, "Have you forgotten about me?"

"Wha- no!" Gohan rushed back toward her, "Just- er- keep concentrating!"

"You two, come over here and practice. Now do it again, but try to pinpoint where you need your energy to keep you up," said Katima.

They both began to hover shakily again.

"See, now that bobbing, that's bad, you want it to be smooth. And don't go any higher until you know how to fly well enough down low. Try staying in the air, but staying still."

They obeyed. She was surprised that Makoto got it first. Goten was always one step ahead of him in training. But she supposed that Makoto wasn't quite as scattered brained as Goten was. Goten slowly got it afterward, and just when Katima glanced over to check on Videl's progress she gasped to see she was hovering in the air a little ways.

"You're doing it Videl!" Gohan cheered, "Look, you're flying!"

"Gohan, I'm trying to concentrate!" Videl snapped.

Gohan covered his mouth, looking sheepish.

Slowly, Videl came down. She smiled a bit in satisfaction. Looking at Gohan she said, "I'm coming back tomorrow."

"Wh-what? But I did as you asked, now all you need is some private practice!" Gohan said.

"I don't want my dad knowing about this until the tournament. Unless my presence is a hindrance on you, Gohan."

Gohan turned red again, "No, of course not!"

"Good," said Videl, She pulled out the capsule her helicopter was in and popped it, making it appear within the cloud of smoke before them, "See you tomorrow," she said.

"Oh, Videl, wait," said Gohan, making her turn, "I- I was just thinking, about your hair."

"My hair?" Videl raised a brow.

"Yeah, maybe it would be better… shorter?" Gohan suggested, smiling.

Videl looked at her pigtails then back up at Gohan, a little red and smiling, "Are you saying you like girl's with shorter hair?"

"What-? No! I mean- what I meant was since you're going to be flying, you don't want it getting in your face or enemies to pull on it-" Gohan stammered.

Videl cut him off, "Why don't you stay out of my hair, you big jerk!" she shouted and jumped into her vehicle, flying off.

"What's wrong with her?" asked Goten.

"I don't… know!" Gohan cried.

Katima laughed, looking at him with a smirk, "I'm not an expert by any means, but I'm guessing she likes you, Gohan."

Gohan turned red, "No- no, she just wants to fight me! That's it!"

"That's how it started with Vegeta and me," Katima winked.

Gohan shook his head wildly, "That's isn't even CLOSE to the same situation!"

"What about your parents?"

"Videl doesn't like me like that!"

Katima laughed, picking up Makoto, "Well I'm going to head home. I'll come back tomorrow and we'll continue, yes?"

Gohan sighed, "Yeah, I suppose, but try to get here before Videl, and maybe the boys can play in Super Saiyan form."

"Yeah!" Makoto untucked his tail, letting it stretch, "And guess what Goten, I'll even let you grab my tail, cause it doesn't hurt anymore!"

"Nuh uh!" Goten grinned, "You mean you can walk with someone holding on to it now?"

"I sure can!" Makoto gloated, "Just you wait and see!"

"Say hi to Trunks for me!" Goten called as Katima began to fly.

As they flew, Makoto clinging to his mother, he looked at her, "Do you really think that human likes Gohan?"

Katima smiled a little, "I wouldn't be surprised."

Makoto frowned, "She may have been a human, but I think she was cool, is that okay?"

"Of course it is, Makoto," said Katima, looking at him and wondering what on Earth Vegeta was feeding into this kid, "Humans are people just like us, no matter their strength."

Makoto looked thoughtful, "Hm, I guess so, they don't act very different, but she sure looked surprised when Goten blew up that rock!"

"Yes, but she has energy too, just like us. She may not be able to go Super Saiyan, but she can be strong if she trains enough."

Makoto looked ahead at the clouds, "I wanna become the strongest one day, Mom! I wanna be a warrior that no one messes with!"

Katima chuckled and kissed his cheek which he wailed at and rubbed his cheek furiously, "You are your father's son, Makoto, there's no room for doubt there."