Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Time's Folly; A Bittersweet Symphony ❯ Prepare For... ( Chapter 3 )

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~Chap 3 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 

“What a pain in the ass! I hate school!” Asia declared exasperatedly as she dropped her bag on the blanket that lay on top of the grass. She then sat down, spreading her legs into a modified straddle position, and began to stretch next to Autumn and Azure who were already doing so. The three of them all wore loose mesh pants; Autumn's and Asia's were grey, while Azure's was black. They also wore black, long sleeved shirts; but Azure, who always liked to be just a little different from the other two, had cut the sleeves off of hers. The three girls had their hair tucked up into ponytails.

 

“Yep, I'd have to agree with you on that one, `A'” Autumn replied, and continued: but would help if you at least tried to pay some attention to the teachers while you're in class, instead of daydreaming or checking out guys.”

 

Asia gave a little smile. “Now, how can I possibly do that when there are so many out there to distract me?” Both of them laughed aloud at this observation. In their shared opinions, there weren't all that many really cute guys attending their school.

 

Often times, after school let out for the day, the three of them would change and head for the outskirts of a large spacious park, located near the high school, to spar with each other. This arrangement worked well enough, as long as it wasn't water polo season, the sport which Autumn and Asia played for their school. Since that season had passed, the two of them were free to return to their afternoon sparring routine with Azure.

 

Asia paused in her stretching to look up at the sky. “Azure, do we really need to do this now? Look at the weather. It's been so cloudy and cool lately, I'm gonna, like, get sick stayin' out here and stuff.”

 

“And where do you suppose we go instead?” Autumn asked.

 

“Well, we could use your den; just move all the furniture and stuff around.”

 

Autumn shook her head. “Can't. My mom wants us out of the house for a little while; she's having some things fixed and thinks it's easier for stuff to get done when we aren't there. Besides, it's not too bad out.”

 

“It looks like the clouds can't decide if they want to either form and turn gray and rain or just puff up and decorate the blue sky. I'd wish they would make up their mind, cuz it's affecting the temperature, too!”

 

“Stop whining, Asia,” Azure suddenly said as she stood up. Autumn shrugged and got to her feet and Asia also stood up. “Now,” she started to instruct, “both of you, at me, at the same time.”

 

“Right off the bat?” Asia asked a little astonished. Autumn also looked a little amazed herself. “Are we trying to show off early today, Azure?” Asia teased, causing Azure to raise an eyebrow.

 

“If I really wanted to show off, I wouldn't be using someone as unskilled as you to do it with.”

 

Asia huffed, slightly offended. Autumn looked at the other two and sighed. “Oh, come on, Azure. That was a little harsh, don't you think?”

 

“You are mean!” Asia protested.

 

“Aren't you observant?” Azure remarked sarcastically.

 

“Azure, stop it!” Autumn said, exasperated by their behavior. “You, too, Asia! We two could use a faster-paced spar today, since we are a little behind and haven't sparred in a while.”

 

“Why else do you think I was suggesting that we all start a little bit slower today? You know, keep it simple?” Asia replied back.

 

The three of them simultaneously turned around when they heard snickering coming from a few feet behind them. The taunting sound came from a girl whose build almost matched the toned and athletic body of Azure's. Long and lightly curled, marronish-tinted brown hair fell down her back and she was dressed in a v-neck, blue-and-white, long-sleeved shirt, with light blue faded low-rise jeans. She approached the three friends, followed closely by five other girls, all wearing similar “trendy skater” style of clothes with long-sleeved shirts. The five of them all had light brown or dark brown curly hair, worn ear- or shoulder-length hair and trailed silently behind their “leader”.

 

“Beautiful! As if my day wasn't already bad enough, we have to run into this retard of a girl,” Asia commented under her breath, grimacing with annoyance.

 

Please, let this not be a continuation of P.E. class, Autumn prayed silently to herself. She looked over at Azure, who appeared to be indifferent to the arrival of the other girls. “Hey, can you at least try to control yourself?” she hissed at Azure, who just rolled her eyes in response.

 

Being the polite, “nice-to-everyone” type of person that she was, Asia stepped forward. “Hey, Venus!” she said in greeting, but without much enthusiasm.

 

“Ah, I can always count on you to be the polite one, my dear,” Venus replied, her own tone flat with sarcasm. “Hello, Asia, Autumn…Azure.” Azure stood with arms crossed over her chest and a bored expression etched on her face.

 

“So, did you want something?” Autumn asked, hoping Venus and her group would leave so that she and her friends could just get on with their sparring.

 

“Ah, just observing really. And noticing how below me in ability you guys really are. Are we scared of fighting, girls?” she taunted, directing her comment to Asia. “I mean, I wouldn't want a nice-ass girl like you to be getting hurt by fighting. I only want to look out for your best interests, especially with what happened in P.E. today.”

 

An irritated Autumn cut in. “Look, that was really low of you! How dare you come strolling over here with your robot cronies and mentioning P.E. class, as if what happened wasn't your fault?”

 

“Ah, so you want to do something about it? Why can't she,” Venus said, motioning towards Asia, “fight her own battles?”

 

“I can fight just fine, thank you!” Asia declared with some annoyance.

 

“Oh, can you? Well, then, why don't we see about that or…” she smirked mockingly, “would you like to `keep it simple' first?”

 

“Pathetic bitch!” Everyone turned around and stared at Azure. “It is you who is the weak one, challenging one that is `below you', as you stated.”

 

“So?” Venus narrowed her eyes at Azure. “Do you wish to challenge me?”

 

Azure snorted in disdain. “What for? You are no challenge. I would win, easily. Like I said, you, are pathetic; especially with this `pretending to be a bully' act!”

 

Venus took a couple steps closer to Azure. “Are you not even more pathetic? You're almost twenty years old and you are still a senior in high school. Most people in school are eighteen, and some are nineteen, but I know that you will be twenty. What does that say for your intelligence?”

 

Azure stared at her hard and she stared right back. Then Azure cracked a smirk and said calmly, “You're stalling. You are afraid to challenge me, aren't you? As I said before: You...Are...Pathetic! Now, get out of my face!”

 

Clearly, that was not the response that Venus expected from her. She was starting to get agitated and the other girls that were with her began look as though they were preparing for a fight to break out. Autumn and Asia exchanged uncertain looks.

 

“You just don't know when to stop,” Venus hissed in a low tone. “You are an idiot to challenge me!” Azure's only response to her was a grunt. Venus continued,” You may be good, but you stand no chance with me in a fight this time around!”

 

“Have you learned any new tricks? That is a relief. This damn thing would be quite boring otherwise.”

 

“Boring?!” Venus said with growing infuriation.

 

“That's what I said,” Azure repeated with another smirk.

 

“Alright, bitch!” Venus snapped. “You're on!”

 

“Finally!” was the smirked reply. But before they could begin, one of the girls who had come with Venus interrupted them.

 

“No, wait!”

 

“What?” Venus replied a little annoyed, without taking her glare off of her hated rival.

 

“Police,” Asia filled in.

 

”Of course, an interruption. How expected!” Azure sneered at Venus with an evil smirk. Angered, Venus began advancing on her again.

 

“Venus,” one of her girls warned.

 

“Alright, tomorrow, 8:00P.M. sharp! Old abandoned warehouse on Clancy.”

 

“Near the oil pumps by the beach?” Asia inquired. Venus confirmed that through a nod, still looking dead straight at Azure, who smirked with excitement.

 

“Of course, that was such a good idea, pulling that maneuver,” Venus suddenly said in a slightly raised voice. It was obvious that she had done that purposely for the ears of the two cops who were walking up to the group of teens, probably suspicious of what was going on. .

 

“Are we all doing okay over here?” asked the tall one with a buzzed cut style hair, looking at the group.

 

“Yeah, we were just talking about a basketball game we had during P.E. It was pretty heated, but all in good fun. It's just P.E., you know?” Asia explained, smiling.

 

“Right.” There was some doubt that came through that word from the second cop, who stood little shorter than his partner, but with the same style of hair. His niece attended the same school as these girls and she'd made him very aware of the rivalry between Azure and Venus.

 

“We'll be on our way now! And…thanks for the compliment!” Venus flashed a glint of triumph at Azure. “'Bye, girls, see you tomorrow!” She turned to face the officers, giving them both a falsely cheery smile. “Bye-bye!” With that, and Asia's and Autumn's mumbled goodbyes, Venus and her “robots” turned and walked away.

 

The two cops then turned their attentions to Azure, who stood there with a blank-but-bored expression as she stared into the distance. She caught the two men studying her from the corner of her eye and she noted that the shorter one was giving her a skeptical look.

 

“Asia was telling the truth,” she said, not bothering to turn around. “If she wasn't, you would most definitely know. You would be able to see it.”

 

Oh, my! Autumn groaned inwardly. The taller one was taken back by the bluntness of the girl. The shorter one was not.

 

“I know all about you two, missy,” he warned her, “and I'd rather not have to deal with breaking up any kind of fight if you and that one happen to come to blows.”

 

“And I don't want anyone bleeding on me,” Azure replied, turning to fully face the officer, “so you have nothing to worry about. I have tests coming up soon. I need to study.” There was a mocking tone in her voice, barely caught by the two policemen, as she turned her head away from them and back to its original direction.

 

“Um…she is right about the `test' stuff?” Asia stated meekly. The two policemen both looked at her. The second one had also been informed by his niece about Asia's likable character, so that somehow reassured him.

 

“Okay, then. You girls have a good afternoon…and stay out of trouble.” Autumn and Asia nodded, and the cops turned around and left.

 

“Good way to talk to a cop, Azure.” Autumn scowled, rolling her eyes in agitation when the officers were finally out of earshot.

 

“The shorter one is accustomed to us. He knows we spar here; he's seen it. And he saw what happened. That's partly why Venus and I didn't get into it right here and now.”

 

“What? How do you know that?”

 

“He always rolls by this park. I saw him sitting in his squad car when I arrived earlier.”

 

“I don't remember seeing him,” Autumn stated curiously.

 

“He was here,” Azure affirmed, but Autumn just looked at her skeptically.

 

Asia looked at her watch. “So, um...do we spar then? We still have a couple hours.”

 

“I though that you didn't want to in the first place,” Autumn rebuked.

 

“Well, after all that excitement, I do now!” she exaggerated. “Besides, I want to know that I still have some skills.”

 

“You do, you know that?” Autumn again pointed out.

 

“It's like you said, we haven't sparred in a while, so let's sharpen up our skills,” Asia stated as Autumn nodded in agreement.

 

Both looked at Azure, who huffed in amusement, and then said, “Let's begin.”

 

<><><><><><><><>& lt;><><><><><><><><>< ><><><><><><><><><> ;<><><>

 

“Well, Son, it's all finished!” Bulma declared with melancholy flowing through her words.

 

“You still have it, Mom!” Trunks smiled, softly kissing her cheek, which made her smile. Trunks knew that smile was filled with a mixture of emotions: fear and worry, but also a sense of pride.

 

For Bulma, she had detected noticeable changes in her son after he had returned from the second trip to the past during that horrible android terror. It was more than just a physical change; there was a change in his personality. During his travels back in time, he was able to spend time with his father, with Gohan (albeit a younger, more innocent version), and with people of his own kind, who he could call friends; people who were not around in his time. In a way, she could tell that he was terribly lonely, despite the people that he knew in his time. He truly and utterly missed being in the other timeline with the others, especially being around his difficult father.

 

He tried to suppress that fact, to hide it away from her, but eventually, she found out. She couldn't blame him. She, too, missed her old friends, but she would never think to go back to the past; it would be too hard for her. And she had to keep up with everything in her present, since the Earth was in good condition again, growing stronger and stronger with each coming day. So, as hard as it was to have him leave her again, she knew it would be more painful to make him stay, especially if he could prevent another catastrophe from happening in the past that this time didn't need in its present state. That's when she remembered she had something important to tell him.

 

Before Trunks could say anything, Bulma spoke, “On the day that battle had taken place, I noticed something about the invaders, but I didn't want to mention it until I was absolutely certain.”

 

Trunks looked a little astonished, but interested. This must be the other reason why she's so worried for me.

 

”Mom?” he asked softly, waiting for her to continue.

 

“This species, at least the ones that showed up here, are bio-genetically enhanced. That means that they can have the capability to push themselves into limitless powers, limitless strengths, and limitless capabilities, some of which you've already seen. Given that, I also suspect that they have psychic powers, which would allow them to peer into your mind and play with it.”

 

She paused and took a deep breath. “Trunks, if they are able to travel back in time and discover that `Legendary Super Saiya-jin' they are so fearful of, then who knows what they will do when they go back into the past - when the come back here?”

 

“They won't come back to this time! I guarantee it! I know that I'm a lot stronger now, and I have no doubt that the others are, too!”

 

“Strength may not be enough. They are a highly intelligent race,” she said with a sigh.

 

Trunks gave her a small reassuring smile. “So am I. I get that from you.”

 

She sighed and looked at him with concerned eyes. “There's more.”

 

It was that look that made Trunks a little unsettled. “What?”

 

 

*~*~*~*

 

 

You came this far, so I'm assuming that means your giving this a chance. You won't be disappointed; it's not quite the regular fair common with these types of stories.

 

Enjoy the ride.

 

And just to dispel the thought, it's not at all a self insert; I'm aware that it could look like such for some. All characters not pre-established by the manga/anime came from my own creation.