"I have to say, that helmet of yours certainly doesn't make things any easier for my nose," said Videl as the pair snuggled on the grassy floor of the secluded spot they had been meeting at for weeks now.

"I don't really think Bulma designed it for kissing," said Saiyaman with a grin. "I think it was more for stopping bullets and all that."

"You're bulletproof anyway," whined Videl. "You just like trying to be Mr. Mysterious, don't you?"

"I never said it wasn't fun," said Saiyaman. "And besides, bullets are still pretty annoying y'know? They might not be able to break through my skin but they're still travelling at incredible velocities."

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger," shrugged Videl as she playfully tried to worm her hands around Saiyaman's helmet in order to finally lift the damn thing off.

He swatted them away. "That's not true. Or well I suppose it is, but at a certain point what doesn't kill you offers you such a little increase in strength that it's best to just not get hurt in the first place at all."

She rolled her eyes. "You're such a dork, y'know that?"

Saiyaman blinked momentarily. "That's probably my mum's fault. As a kid, when I wasn't running away from dinosaurs, I was knee deep in textbooks."

"Christ, you're already super strong and now you're telling me you're really intelligent too?" asked Videl, her eyes wide. She wasn't sure she could have chosen a weirder person to be her pretend boyfriend if she tried.

"Well, I'm not sure I'd say I'm anywhere near as smart as I am strong but I did pretty well in high school," shrugged Saiyaman.

"Uh-huh! I knew you were at least eighteen," said Videl with a grin. "Now at least I won't have to 'cuff myself once this is all over."

"Once this is over?" he asked in confusion. "That's a little pessimistic, don't you think?"

"You're right… my dad always used to say that all good things have to come to an end or something," said Videl, fumbling to try and cover her slip. "Err… anyway, which school did you go to? I'd really get irritated if I found out you were in my year at Orange Star."

He chuckled a little deeper than usual. "You're going to have to try a little harder than that."

"Oh really?" asked Videl with a grin on her face as she pounced upon him. She pinned him down to the grass with ease, the superhero not resisting in the slightest. With enough vigour to kill an elephant, the black-haired girl's red lips came crashing down upon her partner's own.

She paused, before wincing slightly. "That helmet really is a pain in the ass, y'know that? Why don't you try covering your face with something a little softer?"

"I was toying around with a white bandana but I decided against it," he shrugged. "This helmet is as much Saiyaman as I am."

There was some truth to his words. As desperate as she still was to see what lurked underneath, she knew that once he was unmasked he would never be the same person to her.

However, as she tried to manoeuvre her way around his mouth without coming into contact with said orange helmet, she reasoned that might not be such a bad thing.

…

"So you're pretty serious about that whole martial arts tournament thing, aren't you?" asked Saiyaman, suddenly sitting up.

Videl snorted. "Serious? There isn't much in the world that would mean more to me than knocking my father out in the final. Fighting is the one thing that I have lived and breathed for the last fifteen years of my life. I used to watch my dad in exhibition matches when I was little and he had me learning how to throw a punch before I could even count to twenty."

"The competition's a little different these days," said Saiyaman. "I've never really thought about entering but I am a fan of the competition. Or at least of what it used to be. King Choppa… Jackie Chun… they all had some pretty cultured and interesting fighting styles."

"I get what you're saying," said Videl, a little surprised to find herself agreeing with someone for once. "There were all kinds of fancy things that went down in those days. Dinosaurs, beams of energy, aliens and hell… the last two finals from that era took place in the air."

"I suppose it's only logical that the officials changed up the entry requirements and tightened down on the rules," said Saiyaman, nodding to himself. "The floor kept getting blown up. Still, though, I think if you took any of the champions from the days before the tournament was discontinued and placed them in a ring with the modern champions… well, there wouldn't even be much of a contest."

"So I suppose that's where the roots of all your so called tricks come from," said Videl. "You're a student of the old school martial arts. Hmmm, I knew I wasn't crazy when I was reminded of the Crane School when I first saw you fly."

"You know what the Crane School is?" asked Saiyaman in surprise. "I thought you said your dad taught you how to fight."

"He did but what little girl doesn't enjoy going through her dad's old tape collection? Especially when that collection is full of old martial arts tournaments?" said Videl with a shrug.

"Heh, my mum never let me watch…" The rest of the sentence died on Saiyaman's tongue, prompting Videl to realise that he must have said something he shouldn't have. But what?

An awkward silence enveloped the two for a minute or two before Videl decided to do something about it.

"So are you going to teach me to fly or what?"

…

Tonight was the big night. Her father's fiftieth birthday.

Videl had spared no expense in organising the party. Initially, she had thought of holding it at another venue but her mind soon settled on hosting an extravagant night in their very own mansion. Tempting as it was to arrange the event to be a surprise party, she doubted that she'd be able to sneak in the necessary food and decor to feed and impress over a hundred people.

The catering for the event had been pawned off to Erasa. Sharpener had offered to lend her a hand with organising and setting up the mansion earlier in the day and her father - at her own behest - had spent the day in his private jet, eating niche food, as he visited exotic beaches with his girlfriend. However, that was only the cherry plateaued on the cake: the real event was the dinner party that had taken up the better part of Videl's last week to arrange. If she hadn't set aside the time to train by herself and meet up once or twice with Saiyaman, she might have gone mad.

He was also supposed to be in attendance tonight. Videl hadn't really brought up the topic much since inviting him but she hoped that the caped crusader would at least show his face. It was an idea that had been as rash as it was spontaneous. Saiyaman simultaneously both longed for and disliked attention so there was no real telling whether he'd fancy catching the eye of every guest with his fancy cape and ridiculous helmet.

She regretted not bringing up the topic again but her recent encounters with her boyfriend had been spent discussing her quest for flight or lack thereof. He had explained that she wasn't ready yet but that he was more than happy to teach her if it was what she truly wanted.

The hours ticked by and guests poured in by the dozen. Her father's business partners, rivals, former opponents and many more fair weather friends all trickled through the grand double doors which marked the entrance to their biggest dining hall but there was no helmet wearing goofball anywhere in sight.

"Forget about making small talk," Erasa advised. "You have to go find him. Him making an appearance here would definitely seal the deal in everybody else's eyes and can you imagine how Azel would react to seeing you in Saiyaman's arms?"

Videl agreed reluctantly. By her count, she still had a little less than an hour before her father was due to make his appearance and Erasa was more than capable of making sure the entire mansion didn't turn upside down given that all the preparations were already in place.

So she began her search.

"Ah, there she is. All grown up and as pretty as her mother in her heydey!"

Videl hadn't taken more than twenty steps before she attracted the attention of an old family friend. She politely greeted the woman before excusing herself in a hurry.

The entire mansion was open for perusal so Videl reasoned that Saiyaman could be anywhere. He could fly after all, so it wasn't entirely ridiculous to imagine that he had snuck in through one of the numerous back doors and was currently showing off new poses to some mildly amused guests.

After a few more encounters, Videl resorted to simply weaving her way through the crowd in a hurry - ducking and dodging all kinds of people looking to chit chat without a second thought - as she scoured the entire mansion for her fellow crimefighter. But for all her efforts, he was nowhere to be seen.

Eventually, she settled for a glass of champagne and stepped outside by the pools to take a breather. As she sipped on her flute, a figure approached and her heart might as well have lurched from her body. Finally, after hours of waiting, he was here!

"You look awfully happy to see me," said Azel as he brushed at the shoulder of the elegant black suit he was wearing. Videl privately admitted to herself that for such an asshat, he did look pretty good in a suit. Or maybe that was just the champagne talking.

"I wouldn't get my hopes too high if I were you," retorted Videl as her face fell. "I was just scratching at an itch."

"If you say so," he teased. "I'd have thought it's a little early into the night to crack open the champagne. Aren't you meant to be the hostess or something?"

"I'm not some pansy who can't handle half a glass of champagne," said Videl. "Although I wouldn't expect you to understand that. You'd probably be too scared of upsetting daddy to go anywhere near a glass of alcohol until you're thirty-five."

"Some people take pleasure in indulging their vices. Others are more sensible," said Azel. "Unlike you, I do actually care about the perceptions other people have of me."

"Oh really?" asked Videl as she rolled her eyes. "Do tell. In which ways am I careless about my social image? Was it that one time where I helped evacuate a kindergarten during a fire or the other where I arrested some old lady's purse-snatcher?"

"Your whole crime fighting agenda might impress the masses but believe me, making out with some nutcase in a green tunic on national television does you no favours," said Azel. "Your obsession with playing the hero isn't going to be an asset when it backfires on you and suddenly you're left wishing that you had left the tangling with criminals to the professionals."

"Right, and don't you just have the greatest rep in the world? Anyone that isn't hoping to stick your father's hundred dollar bills up their rear knows that you're just a snobby rich boy."

"You live your life in the media. To the public, you're an open book but I'm an unknown entity," said Azel. "With you, they see the good and the bad. With me, they just see a young man destined for greatness."

"You can keep telling yourself that but it won't make it true," said Videl as she rolled her eyes. "Now, if you're done rubbing your nose in my fac-"

"You've got somewhere to be? Someone to meet?" asked Azel rhetorically. "You didn't answer my first question anyway. What are you doing all the way out here? I'm sure that even you understand that you don't host a party by running into a corner and hiding from all the guests."

"I was taking a break from looking for my boyfriend," said Videl, deciding that if Saiyaman wasn't going to show up, she could at least ruin Azel's mood.

The look of utter incomprehension that crossed the young heir's face as Videl finished her sentence was to die for but it didn't take him long to recover. "Well, what did you expect? The guy wears an action-figure helmet to conceal his identity; obviously, he's not that trustworthy. I wouldn't bet on him showing up at all. In fact, he would probably feel very out of place if he did."

"Some people care more about the simple things in life - like helping other people - than climbing the social ladder," said Videl, trying to avoid getting too carried way. The verbal dance that ensued every time they came face to face with each other was almost tradition at this stage. "I wouldn't expect you to really understand that with all the nonsense Old Man Mackenzie's been spoonfeeding you since you were in diapers."

"That's a little rich coming from someone who lives in an expensive mansion with her own selection of maids waiting on her," said Azel. "You love to ride your little moral high horse but in reality - when all the cameras go away - you're no better than the rest of us."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," shrugged Videl before deciding to walk away. She'd stepped outside to relax and take a deep breath. Talking to Azel was the very antithesis of that.

It was quite nice out. The sun had set hours ago and there was a light breeze but it wasn't so chilly that Videl regretted her choice of attire. She glanced at her phone to check the time and was pleased to discover that her dad still wasn't due to rock up for at least another twenty minutes.

Videl decided that the best spot to head would be the garden. The inside of the mansion felt like a claustrophobic nightmare and there were still too many people lingering outside in the courtyard. So she lifted her dress with both hands - one still tightly clasped on her glass of champagne - and began to frantically walk towards their almost deserted garden, Saiyaman all but forgotten. There were still a few people here and there, at a party this big that was simply inevitable, but none that Videl knew personally so she remained undisturbed during her journey.

Pleased to finally get a little bit of space to herself, Videl was understandably vexed when she bumped into a gigantic hulk of a man. Perhaps she was exaggerating; the man dwarfed her so it was only natural that it hurt but his bones felt as though they were made of stone. Miraculously, she managed to avoid spilling the rest of her champagne although she chalked that down to the fact that her step wasn't quite as steady as it normally was.

"Sorry about that," said the culprit. Well, maybe that was unfair, she was the one who had walked into him.

"It's fine," said Videl, taking a moment to fix her dishevelled hair. The last thing she needed was to hear Erasa shriek about how she had ruined hours of her good work. "What are you doing all the way out here? Everyone's back in the house."

"I don't really know any of the people in there," shrugged the stranger. He was rather tall - well, on second thought, most people were tall to Videl - and was wearing a suit that didn't really fit. Nothing really stuck out to Videl but it was easy to recognise that something was amiss because most of the men she was unfortunate enough to spend time with tended to wear custom suits that were tailor made to their individual bodies.

"Heh neither do I and I'm the one throwing the party," said Videl. "So what's your name? I'm sorry if I'm meant to know it; I'm horrible with names."

"Gohan," said the man in the suit that didn't quite fit. "Son Gohan."

Noting with interest that the mysterious man shared the same name as a famous, old martial artist, Videl smiled a little. "That's a nice name. Traditional."

"Yeah, my family doesn't exactly come from a big city," said Gohan. "So what about you? What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be trying to be the life of the party or something?"

"I've been looking all over the place for my boyfriend. He's meant to be here tonight but I've not seen heads or tails of him so I decided to come out here and take a little break from all of that." Videl gestured back towards the brightly lit mansion. Next, she pointed towards a nearby bench. "I've got about twenty minutes so why don't you help me nurse the bump on my head and tell me a bit more about you."

He shrugged before taking her invitation and sitting down. She joined him.

"So how do your parents know my dad? Business associates or something?" asked Videl.

"They don't," said Gohan before explaining upon seeing Videl's look of confusion. "My mum's a housewife and my dad passed eight years ago."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," said Videl sympathetically. That probably explained why the suit didn't fit him. "So how'd you wind up here then… if you don't mind me asking? Sorry, I'm not really one for social etiquette."

"You invited me," replied Gohan. "I was a little sceptical at first: the biggest party I've ever been to was thrown by one of my dad's friends, but I decided to try something new."

"Huh, well my friend Eras…" Suddenly it dawned on Videl. "You're Saiyaman, aren't you?"

"What I ditch the mask and the cape and you don't recognise me?" he teased, wearing the grin that she'd had to imagine behind a ridiculous orange helmet for weeks.

"I wasn't expecting you to be so… different," said Videl. "I was expecting a goofball in a green tunic, not a guy in a suit."

"Disappointed?" he asked with a frown.

"Not yet," she responded. "Thanks for coming, though. I really appreciate it. I honestly wasn't even sure if you'd show."

"Neither was I but I figured that eventually the helmet would have to come off," said Gohan. "If we're going to keep on going and everything after this, that is."

"Oh… uhh, of course we are," said Videl, a little ashamed to have given him reason to doubt that. "We should probably be careful not to get too chummy with each other when you're in plain clothes. Since I'm dating 'Saiyaman', we wouldn't want me to be caught cheating on him with you." It worked to her advantage too. It meant that she didn't have to keep up the romance thing with the guy the whole time. As long as 'Gohan' didn't suspect anything, she wouldn't have to put the moves on him while they were both in plain clothes or anything else Erasa would inevitably suggest.

"Oh… um… yeah, I didn't really think about that," said Gohan. "Those tabloids that you hate so much would have a field day."

"So what's say I take you to the main event and get you something to drink?" asked Videl. "Your cover story is that you're an old classmate of mine from Orange Star High."

"What if we bump into any of your classmates?"

"This is my dad's party, not mine silly," said Videl. "I'm sorry to have to disappoint you but all you're going to find in there is a bunch of celebrities who will be too up themselves to spare you a second glance and some old guys."

"Lead the way Ms. Satan," he said almost patronisingly in his 'Saiyaman voice'.

For his troubles, she handed him her empty flute so she could again lift up her dress as they trudged their way back to the house. "So I've got to ask. Why the superhero getup?"

"I already told you before. I'm not really one for all the fame and attention that comes with the cape so it's important to me that I can turn all that off," said Gohan. He waved his arms around, gesturing down the well-lit path and to the mansion. "All this isn't really me. I'm not sure I've ever seen so many people in one place before."

"I can see what you mean," said Videl, looking back over her shoulder to meet his eyes. "You should know that it's not all bad, though. I mean sure, people love to make up rumours, and sometimes the press can get on your back, but with a mask on I don't think I'd get to hear the stories of the people I've helped… those I've inspired and all of that. It's helpful sometimes to know that you're really making a difference out there."

"I guess I never thought about it like that," said Gohan. "I've always just helped out because it was the right thing to do. It's just how my dad raised me."

"He sounds like he was a good man," said Videl. "Sometimes I wish I could say the same thing about my dad with certainty but I'll never be able to fault his love for me. He can be a little overprotective at times but he always means well."

"Sounds a little like my mum," said Gohan. "Although I know for a fact that she doesn't approve of that afro."

"Ugh, he's had that thing since I was five," said Videl, screwing her face as they approached the rest of the party again.

The rest of the night seemed to fly by. After her father made his grand appearance, she snuck out of the mansion at every opportunity to go and speak to Gohan who had decided to take refuge in the courtyard. She figured that he didn't exactly want to spend the evening cooped up inside with a bunch of people he didn't know.

Azel had shown up again to taunt her once or twice about her 'caped saviour' not showing but with her having gotten the chance to finally meet the man under the helmet, he didn't succeed in his attempts to rile her up. From the sceptical look Erasa had shot her upon departure as the party was starting to wind down, she had figured something was up. With a nod that promised she'd explain later, Videl bid her farewell and turned her attention back to her now unmasked crime fighting partner only to discover that he too had vanished into the night.

Deciding that it was probably a good thing - she didn't want to arouse suspicion and since there were only a few people left around the grounds that was inevitable now - Videl stifled a yawn before figuring it was probably a good idea to retire for the night too.

With one final look up to the skyline, she pondered what the future held for her and 'Gohan' before heading up to her bedroom.

...