The Book of Shin

I must say, I was rather pleased with the results of the draw. I wasn\'t terribly excited at the prospect of Videl going up against Spopovich, but I knew it would end up okay, and I try to spare bending luck. It was imperative that Kibito and I get paired up with Gohan and Piccolo, that Goku and Vegeta be matched up, and that Trunks and Goten get paired with a total non-threat. Yes, I knew that the real Mighty Mask was mostly naked under a bush, but considering the hell they\'d catch from their respective parents I figured the last thing they needed was me interrupting their fun. At least this way, the imps were staying out of further trouble. Mind you, I say \"imp\" with only the greatest affection.

When the drawing was complete, we still had about ten minutes before Krillin started the tournament off. I put those minutes to use, reaching out to reconnect with Goku, and through him, to his friends. Let me start by clarifying what Goku felt like. Yes, sweet, clear, sparkling, but just as wine has that unmistakable bite of alcohol, so too did Goku have a definite . . . sharpness. That would be his \"inner Saiyan\". I took note of this facet of him and then I reached through to his companions.

18 was smooth as silicon, and just as warm, needing only a spark to animate her heart. Krillin was that spark, and what a little firecracker! He may have been shorter than even I, but his heart was full of spitfire and affection. In short, he was a typical human, if only stronger. The two imps were concerned with two things-having fun and not getting caught, though it was mostly Goten who was even considering the possibility of the latter. Vegeta was an inverted hurricaine, calm on the outside, a tempest inside, torrents of guilt swept about by fear howling through his heart. Curious as to the cause of this, I pushed a little deeper, and caught glimpses of his past-Fa, da, destroying planets, watching the end of his people, destroying more planets. . . it seemed that Vegeta was feeling remorse for the first time in his life and was battling with it. And it looked like he\'d been battling a while. I retreated from him, content to let the process continue without my meddling.

I then turned my focus to Gohan, who was still struggling to find his own balance. The Scholar and the Warrior were still battling within him, and on top of that he couldn\'t seem to figure his way through his adoration for Piccolo, his affection for Videl, and. . . oh, that\'s promising. . .but of course that only confused him even more. Basically, Gohan was your typical teenager-confused. Of course, his mother wasn\'t exactly helping, understanding only his human nature, and Vegeta certainly hadn\'t helped the boy either. The only person who\'d tried to help had been Piccolo, but since he was part of the problem. . .

Chuckling inwardly, I turned my attention to the Namek. He felt like a strong, intelligent cross between a rose and a venus flytrap. Which wasn\'t surprising, considering that his kind photosynthesized . His attention was focused primarily on myself, which I found flattering, but he was also watching Gohan. Beneath this attention was some confusion too. . . which I found to be the result of a misunderstanding. True, some flowers can self-pollinate, but it always helps to have a bee or butterfly help the process along. . .

I had to use all my powers of self control to keep from dancing around in wicked glee. This excursion might prove even more fruitful than anticipated.

It wasn\'t long before Piccolo and I took our places before the crowd, Krillin having won all too easily. I tried some small talk as we made our way into the arena, but he declined to answer. I think he was nervous.

Then we were there, and the minutes began to pass as we ignored the yelling of the crowd. He was very confused, finding that he couldn\'t fight me, while I grinned, happy right where I was. And you would have too, if you had been there. Deny that you\'ve never seen a pic of a good lookin\' alien and just spent a few minutes grinning over it. I decided to have some fun, and caught a passing thought.

Who is this guy anyway? And what is it about him?

I turned my head and gave a coy look. \"You\'ll know soon enough,\" I said, winking. \"But let\'s just have fun for now.\"

Was I flirting? Well, let me put it this way-I\'ve got 199 ti, al, all of them along the lines of \"Supreme such-and-such.\" Like, Supreme Kai, Supreme Mercy, Supreme Flirt, Supreme Lord of All Things Virtuous, Supreme Voyeur, Supreme Compassion, Supreme Seduction, Supreme Your Mom, you get the point. . . in a word, yes, I was flirting.

Something seemed to rush through his brain at that point, though I didn\'t pry. But all of a sudden, he relaxed, stood up straight, and withdrew. I was a little surprised that he caved that quickly, and a little disappointed.

Oh, that\'s right. He used to be Kami over this planet. Maybe he\'s started to figure out who I am. Well, I\'ll see what I can do about that. . .

I followed him off the platform, passing between Videl and Spopovich. She, on my left, bright as a spring dawn, he on my right, more twisted than a disease ridden sequoia. It\'s one thing when people are possessed against their will, another when they seek it out and invite it in, as he and Yamu had done. I really wasn\'t fond of either of them.

I re-entered the shade of the waiting room, and turned to watch the reactions of the others to the upcoming event.

Videl acquitted herself quite well, considering that she was fully human and the only training beyond basic that she\'d ever had was learning to fly. But then Spopovich decided to get involved in the whole thing, and from that point on, the girl never stood a chance.

It was hard watching the beating she was going through and not interfere. Very hard. But it was heartening to see G\'s \'s concern, even though he still wasn\'t sure exactly what he felt for her. His heart had just gotten the better of his brain when Yamu stepped in, and the fight was over.

We knew it would be a while before Gohan consented to allow the tournament to continue, so Piccolo took the opportunity to confront me in the archway leading to the courtyard. His immense frame blocked the light coming in, torn between looming with menace and fidgeting with nerves.

\"I think I know who you are,\" he said, trying to scowl.

I merely lifted an eyebrow, noticing Kibito listening behind him.

He continued. \"Are you the Grand Kai?\"

I suppressed a giggle. \"No, I am not the Grand Kai.\" I replied, giving another one of my Coy-Kai glances. He looked shocked, which Kibito found quite amusing.

\"He is the Supreme Kai,\" Kibito said, and we both watched as Piccolo went from that emerald shade of green to a paler, minty shade.

I shot a glance behind the Namek to Kibito, who nodded and walked past the two of us to continue observing, leaving us alone. I walked past Piccolo into the sunlight, catching his cape in my hand as I passed, pretty much dragging him with me.

I stopped beside a trellis covered in night-blooming jasmine, the delicate white flowers closed against the sun waiting for the moon, and turned to look at him. The confusion had cleared some, but the nervousness had taken its place. There were better ways for him to be using that energy. I decided to pick up where I\'d left off earlier, floating up so our eyes were even and mimicked his pose, though I didn\'t mask the merriment that I could feel sparkling in my eyes.

We stared at each other for several long moments. A slow smirk found its way across my face as I thought of confusing him further, leaning in until our foreheads met. His eyes got even wider, wondering what the hell was going on. It looked like I would have to make the first move, yet again. Hopefully, he\'d have the guts to take it from there.

I pulled back slightly, then leaned back in at a somewhat different angle, pressing my lips to his. I felt him stiffen in surprise. I lessened the pressure for an instant, then increased it again, applying a little suction to his lower lip, tasting his skin, registering impressions of honeydew and a faint hint of lime. I then pulled back, ever so slowly. I felt more than saw him blink as his brain temporarily overloaded, and then shut down. I didn\'t have to do much more before his mouth was back on mine, our tongues caressing as he trapped me against the trellis, crushing the flowers behind me, causing them to release their heady perfume all around us.

I felt his brain start to re-load, but being his usual observant self, he noticed that I didn\'t seem too upset with his actions and \"that big guy\" wasn\'t interfering, so why stop now? Sure, there was still the underlying confusion, but it was quickly being buried beneath long repressed need. A merry little tune sailed through my head as I thanked the Fates for the dependability of Nameks. I\'d wanted someone to take the reins in something for so long.

It was about damn time.