Discovery

Perhaps the sacred divine water is nothing but poison rumored to make one strong, because the moment the liquid went down Durian's throat she was overcome with an indescribable pain starting from her throat and spreading throughout her entire body. She hadn't expected this type of pain, nor had she expected any sort of pain that rivaled what Roshi had put her through, but the divine water has successfully shattered those assumptions. It seems so unassuming, held in a simple vase and appearing as well as tasting like nothing but tap water. Durian couldn't understand how something like that could have rendered her to her knees, she doesn't understand how a simple mouthful already had her feeling as if death was truly the better option. Her chest burned hotter and hotter with each passing moment, feeling as if the blood within rose to a boiling point and she struggled to keep herself quiet as to not alert the others. She hadn't told them what she planned on doing and she definitely did not tell them that she could die on this day if she's unfortunate enough. Everyone who had ingested this water couldn't survive, but she still attempted it in hopes she would be a special case. If she turns out to not be worthy, well then, her backup is simply to be brought back within a few weeks' time. Be that as it may, she does not plan on losing the battle of life and death simply because she could be brought back. She would rather not put the others through such a thing because of her own stupidity. Chichi and Bulma would be beyond furious if that happens, she imagines she's in for a beating when she gets out of this - no matter how she gets out of this.

She's not sure how long it has been but the pain has stopped peaking and remained painfully constant throughout her body, burning as if she dared approach the heat of the sun.

Korin stood a few feet away, the cat deity silently watching with furrowed brows. He had warned her many times, asked her if she was certain that this is what she wanted to do. She's quite the stubborn child, he realizes. Like many others who had ingested the water, she is not immune to the toxic effects of the water, not immune to the excruciating pain she must be suffering through. She keeps herself quiet as best she can and Korin sees blood run down her chin and onto the floor in her attempts to remain quiet. The many before her all perished in their attempts and Korin doesn't believe there to be any other outcome for Durian, but he gives her the benefit of a doubt. The others were finished within a minute after drinking the water and so far it has already been ten minutes.

Perhaps she'll be the first.

Half an hour ticks away and Korin spares a last glance before retreating to the others who had already begun to question Durian's disappearance.

"Hey, where's Durian?"

"That child is quite impulsive for someone who knows so much," Korin says as he pours himself some tea. He's calm and very much unbothered as he goes about his day.

"What did she do this time?" Chichi wonders with a small laugh, because the cat is right. Durian is impulsive despite her calm nature.

Korin refreins from answering the question for a moment, disguising his silence behind his cup of tea, the warmth of it soothing to the creature. He wonders what Kami might think of this development. If she survives, he might wish to see her, which has been her goal for some time now. However, Kami is surely aware of her reasons for seeing him and Korin's not sure how that has Kami feeling about her and her friend.

"I need you to listen carefully" The seriousness with which the little creature speaks has them all sitting straight in attention. "I have something in my possession that once someone drinks it their potential would be brought out, however, so far no one has managed to survive the poisonous effects of the water"

It takes only moments for them all to understand what the cat is trying to tell them and in that small moment, there is only one thing both Bulma and Chichi could think. And that is that Durian can also be incredibly stupid sometimes and this is one of the dumbest things she has ever done.

"Durian drank this deadly water, didn't she?" Chichi asks blankly, face lacking any clear expression.

"Yes"

"I can still sense her, so she's fine" Kakarot mumbles to himself with small nods to his words.

"That idiot" Bulma scoffs with a glare to the floor. Leave it to Durian to go drink literal poison in attempts to gain something out of it. Is the gravity machine not enough? She's gotten stronger, hasn't she? Why does she see the need to risk her life to gain power she likely could have claimed through training?

Krillin remains quiet as he has nothing he can say about the situation. One thing he does know for certain is that he would not have been brave enough to drink that water - knowing the chances of him dying were practically a hundred percent.

"So far she has survived far longer than any of the others" Korin reveals. "Let's hope she's truly strong enough to escape death"

"Wouldn't be the first time"

~~~~~~~~~

There came a shout from the backroom that alerted everyone outside, the entire group immediately rushing to Durian's side only to find her lying on the floor with wide eyes. She's on her feet in an instant, stretching quite casually without uttering so much as a word to her friends. She seems surprised about something, surprised as much as she is curious. The others stared at her in amazement, Kakarot, Chichi, and Krillin sensing her new power and completely stunned by the amount that was rolling off her in waves. And then just like that, it's gone, all the power they felt from her dwindled to what it formerly was as Durian stood straight once more.

And then she sighs and slumps to the floor

"I really thought I would see my parents for a second there" She mumbles in relief. She can't even begin to explain the pain she was in and she can't even imagine how she had endured it all for hours. She's not even sure how long she had been fighting but she's very sure it was a very long time. "Thank the gods"

"It's been twelve hours" Chichi remarks calmly before following up with a slap that resounds through the space of the room they have crowded themselves into and Durian is quiet.

"Ow" Is all she says as she rests a hand against her cheek only to be hit on the head by an enraged Bulma. "Ow"

"What the hell is wrong with you!?"

Durian sits in silence as Bulma yells at - and berates her for doing something so outlandishly stupid that she couldn't even comprehend. Through it all she remains silent, simply watching Bulma as she moves this way and that in her rant. She had expected Bulma to be mad, as well as she had anticipated the slaps she had gotten from her as well as Chichi. She's not bothered and understands that she had worried them and Bulma tends to get angry when she's worried about her. She always likes to assume this anger is only there because she sometimes doesn't like to admit that she cares for her, so in that sense, it's not something that has Durian feeling anything but content.

Perhaps a bit guilty on top of that.

"I'm sorry" She finally apologizes when Bulma goes quiet in front of her. All that earns her is a deadly glare that sends a shiver up her back.

"You should be, I was worried sick!"

For a moment, Durian was sure she would hit her again, but she doesn't, which is a relief.

"Sorry"

"Geez you're really something else," Says a baffled Krillin. "Everyone before you died because of this, and yet you once again manage not to die"

"Are you sure you're human, Durian?" Yamcha has to ask because he's sure no human would still be alive after the things she has gone through.

During shrugs to his question, standing once more and stretching almost like a cat.

"Gotta say, this was well worth it" She smiles. "I've learned something I've been attempting for some time"

"You learned to suppress your power, didn't you?" Kakarot is in front of her, inspecting her like he did the first day they met. "One moment your power is overpowering, the next it's back to what it was before this entire thing"

Durian grins when Kakarot says this because he hit the nail right on the head. She finally grasped it after nearly being killed by some normal-looking water.

"And that wasn't even my full power, Kakarot, I was holding it back even then" She reveals almost excitedly. "I feel amazing"

"You're a surprise" A staff taps the side of her foot as Korin approaches, gazing up at her with furrowed brows. "The first person to survive, congratulations"

"Show me your true power" Kakarot urges before Durian could address Korin. The boy tugs her outside the room towards the outside where he stands expectantly watching her. He looks like a child about to play with his newest toy and it's amusing. Outside is dark as night had fallen and Durian realizes how long she had been under the effects of the water. It could have been over ten hours and that seems like such a long time to endure the torture of that cursed water.

As this is her first successful attempt at restricting her power she is very much aware of the restraint and releasing it feels almost like a relief as her buried ki climbs to the surface. Feels almost as if she was releasing it in a burst, something she comes close to doing until she stops herself and slowly removes the restriction set upon herself. Her power climbs and climbs and climbs, surprising all who can sense it as the pressure is almost tangible. With the power she's exuding it would be impossible to ignore her. Her power seems to have almost doubled in intensity.

Korin is for the first time, utterly surprised by the development, as where Durian stands right now, she is undoubtedly stronger than Kami himself, successfully claiming the title of strongest on the planet without even realizing it.

"Holy crap" Krillin pales in his place, and for a moment he's sure his senses are deceiving him. "Holy crap"

"Amazing"

"I know, it feels incredible, almost unreal" Durian practically gushes in her joy, moving and appearing at Bulma's side in the blink of an eye, far faster than she has ever moved before. And she's gone as soon as she had appeared, flickering in and out of existence between them, seeming overjoyed with the new development. "Kami will have to see me now"

Especially considering she's very much stronger than the god of earth, Korin muses.

~~~~~~~

Fighting for my life has left me without food for over ten hours and the minute a plate is placed in front of me the hunger makes itself known. I should stop ignoring my hunger until the last minute as it is a bad habit that could get me in some trouble. I'll worry about it when my stomach is filled and strength returned. There's a whole table full for me and I have chased Kakarot off multiple times for his attempts to steal my food. I'm sure he has eaten an entire village already, I'm not giving him my food when I feel as if I'd starve to death if I don't eat. Korin had offered me a senzu which would fill me for ten days, however, I would much rather prefer some actual food at the moment. Nothing beats some good food, after all.

Although I had apologized sincerely to Bulma she seems adamant about being mad at me as she hasn't said a word to me yet. Never had her be mad at me before, at least not to this extent so this is new territory and I'm not entirely sure how to proceed here. This is another issue I'll seek the solution for after I've eaten all I can. As I eat I look ahead, enjoying the sight of the night sky and the glimmering stars. Dominating the sky is the moon I had been ignoring in favor of gazing down on the world. It's huge today, and full too. I guess today must be the day it's closest to the earth.

It's even more mesmerizing tonight for some reason, utterly beautiful as it always has been. Too bad Kakarot can't enjoy the sight, he's missing out on a lot.

After today it's safe to say I'll think twice before drinking or eating something that could kill me because I can almost still feel the pain echoing in my body. Even now it still feels as if my body's pulsating, a feeling so pronounced I can vividly feel it through every part of me. I've been feeling a tad bit odd after recovering from the water and now the pulsing has returned. Sighing I munch down on the piece of chicken so nicely on my plate. My hand shakes, I notice, the pulsing growing in intensity to the point it almost feels as if it is shaking me entirely. I put the piece of meat down in favor of gazing at my hands and my vision blurs for a few moments. Oh, well, this didn't happen when I drank the water and the pulsing isn't as painful as it is odd.

"Durian!"

And why has my heart slowed? It's beating in time with the strong pulse and that's very worrying. That's not supposed to happen at all, even as an after-effect of that bloody water.

"What the hell?!"

Then again, it could be exactly that, it's not like I would know anyway. Still, this feels entirely wrong for some reason and the pulsing is beyond odd. No matter how many times I blink to try and clear it away, my vision remains blurred and now it feels as if something is trying to fo-

"I'm fee-"

"Durian!" I'm pulled harshly by the shoulder, falling onto my back and hitting my head against the table. Kakarot is standing over me, gazing at me with wide eyes before he's pulling me away from the edge of the tower.

Why is he dragging me? Next to that, why did he pull me like that? My head hurts now, and the pulsing just makes it that much worse.

"Look at me" He's shaking me until I do meet his eyes and he actually curses and goes pale.

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?!" Krillin exclaims as if I'm asking some stupid question. "What's wrong is that you have a freaking tail!"

Okay, he must be joking because how in the hell can I have a tail? I think I would notice something like that, wouldn't I? That's ridiculous, how could I just grow a tail?

"That's not very funny Krillin"

"It's not a joke" The boy insists.

"You really do have a tail," Says Yamcha, and Chichi nods

"Yeah," Kakarot says this in a more awkward manner and doesn't let go of me. "How do you feel?"

I have a tail? I reach behind myself to where I estimate such an appendage would be, only to grasp something furry and I might have grabbed it too hard because there's a sudden spike of pain that immediately paralyzes me. I was likely to fall on my face if Kakarot hadn't been holding me by the shoulder.

"What in the world?" The thing moves almost on its own, but I can feel it, and small attempts do result in it moving on my command. "Since when was I a Saiyan?"

Kakarot is watching me as if I'm the weirdest thing to him and finally steps away from me.

"How are you feeling?" He asks once more, this time a bit more cautiously. "Because you have been staring at the moon for a while"

Oh, I have been and then the pulsing started, so then, could it be because of this new development?

"There's this pulsing that has been growing in intensity" I admit. "I thought I was just an after effect of the water since there had been some sort of pulsing when I drank it"

Other than that I'm completely fine, though my explanation doesn't seem to make Kakarot feel any better. He seems even more confused.

"How did you not transform?" It's a question more to himself than to me. "That pulsing is something I have experienced before the transformation"

"Shouldn't the main concern be the fact that Durian has been a Saiyan this whole time?" Chichi says, bringing us all back to the important matter. "I mean, I always joked about her being something other than human, but I didn't think there would be some truth in it"

"I guess this explains a lot," Yamcha says.

"Yeah, it does"

"There's that, but can someone explain to me how she just grew a tail out of nowhere?" It is Bulma who speaks, the girl just as confused about the tail as me, because it makes no sense. Saiyan or not, I'm sure I never had a tail and all my baby pictures prove this.

"Maybe because of the moon?" Kakarot suggests uncertainly. "She was looking at it for a long time and she didn't have the tail before then. Plus it's closer to the earth today so it could be?"

Seeing as the moon causes a transformation and a Saiyan would need a tail to transformation it would make some sort of sense. But I have looked at the full moon many times before this and nothing ever happened. I like looking at the moon and never stopped myself from enjoying the sight of it. The only other reason Kakarot's assumption would be correct is if it had more to do with the fact that the moon is closer to the earth today. I can't dispute this assumption because this is the first I have watched a full moon this close to earth. Kakarot'a assumption could hold some ground. Either that or that water must have unlocked something within me.

"I guess your Saiyan-like behavior was warranted" Kakarot jests. "But you're more human than Saiyan"

He must be referring to how I was raised, but I can't help but wonder if he has a point there. It could be that I'm more human than Saiyan genetically, which would explain why I never had a tail. Wouldn't explain how I suddenly grew a tail, however.

"It could be the water" Chichi suggests the same thing that I had considered. "It brings out potential and Saiyans are a warrior race, so it could make some sense"

"Humans have far more potential than Saiyans," Kakarot says in turn with this thoughtful look.

"So that's debunked," Yamcha says a bit hesitantly.

"Hybrids have even greater potential," Kakarot says after another moment of silence and watches me intently. "You never had a tail?"

"Never"

"And from the few glimpses, I have gotten of you when you changed there is no sign of there ever being a tail" The boy mumbles. "So it's safe to assume that you're a hybrid with more human in you than Saiyan"

"We're not any closer to understanding why I've grown a tail" I huff and the appendage is wrapping around my leg without much of my control. "And I still feel this terrible pulsing"

Which is concerning if it is indeed an occurrence before an ape transformation.

"I'm getting rid of the tail" Because I'm not risking a transformation and losing all control of myself.

"Don't do that!" Kakarot grabs me before I can do anything. "Our tails are our strength, you can't just pull it out"

"If I have a tail I transform and hurt everyone" I point out. "And according to you, this thing I'm feeling is a sign of such a thing happening"

"But it's not happening. It would have happened already, so we're safe"

"But I still feel it"

"Durian" He's pleading with me now, as if me losing the tail would be a great sorrow.

Why is this such a big issue with him? It's not like he can teach me very much seeing as he has no control of his transformation. Before this I was just a normal person, who lacked a tail, so going without it won't be a problem on my end.

But I digress.

"Fine"

He's hesitant - even with my compliance - and slowly releases me from his hold as if he expects me to remove my tail the minute I am free from his hold. A moment of silence passes between us as his eyes dart from me to the tail clinging around my legs and he steps back with a sigh of relief.

"Okay"

"This has gotten a bit weird"