The afternoon sun hung high over Mount Paozu, casting long golden rays over the rolling fields and dense forests that stretched beyond the Son family home. The sound of birds chirping and the occasional rustling of the wind through the trees provided a peaceful contrast to the muffled sounds of books flipping and pencils scratching against paper inside the house.

Gohan sighed, leaning his chin into his palm as he stared down at the math problems in front of him. Studying was important, of course—his mother made sure he never forgot that—but it was hard to focus when the world outside seemed so inviting. Across from him, his younger sister, Y/N, was supposed to be working on her own studies, but she had been squirming in her seat for the past twenty minutes, a sure sign that she had something on her mind.

Finally, she nudged him under the table with her foot. "Gohan," she whispered, eyes glimmering with mischief. "Let's go explore."

Gohan frowned. "Mom told us to finish our work."

"But we've been studying all morning," she insisted, her voice taking on a wheedling tone. "Come on! Just for a little while? Please? I bet we could find something cool!"

Gohan hesitated, glancing toward the closed door leading to the kitchen. He knew Chi-Chi was busy cooking and wouldn't check on them for a while. He also knew that if they got caught, they'd both be in big trouble. Still, when he looked at Y/N's hopeful face, he found it hard to say no.

"...Alright," he relented with a sigh. "But just for a little bit."

Y/N beamed, hopping out of her chair with excitement. "Yes! Let's go before Mom checks on us!"

The two siblings slipped out of the house, their feet barely making a sound as they dashed past the side of the house and into the trees. The moment they hit the forest line, Y/N took the lead, her small form darting over rocks and through bushes like she was made for it. Gohan followed behind, smiling at her enthusiasm. 

She loved adventure—probably because their parents were so overprotective of her. While Gohan had been allowed to train growing up, Y/N was often coddled, with Chi-Chi insisting that she needed to focus on school and "proper" things. Exploring the wild felt like freedom to her.

Y/N, was crouched low behind the rocks, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She had been planning this for weeks now, and finally, the time had come.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Gohan whispered, his voice tinged with concern. At fourteen, he was old enough to know the dangers of sneaking off like this, but he couldn't say no to his little sister's pleading. Besides, it was hard to resist her enthusiasm.

"Of course it is!" Y/N said, her voice filled with a mix of mischief and eagerness. "We're just going on an adventure, Gohan. We'll be fine!" She flashed a bright grin, showing off a set of teeth that still had that youthful innocence to them. Her long, dark hair swayed in the breeze, and her bright eyes shone with curiosity. She was the very picture of excitement.

Gohan hesitated for a moment, glancing back toward their home, where their parents were probably still busy with their usual routine. Chi-Chi would certainly notice if they were gone too long—especially Y/N. She had a tendency to get herself into trouble, even when she meant well.

"Just... try to be careful, alright? If Dad finds out..." Gohan trailed off, already knowing the reaction he would get from Goku.

"We'll be back before they even know we're gone," Y/N promised, taking a step forward. Her small feet were sure on the soft ground, her eyes scanning the dense trees before them. There was a glint of adventure in her gaze.

Gohan sighed, but he followed her, the older brother reluctantly agreeing to the mischief. They snuck through the trees, leaving the safe confines of their home behind. 

They wandered for a while, following small animal tracks, examining odd-shaped rocks, and laughing whenever Y/N would attempt to climb a tree and nearly fall off. She was determined, though, and that same stubborn streak made her fearless.

Eventually, they reached a small clearing near a stream, where the afternoon sun filtered through the canopy in speckled patterns. That was when they saw it—a massive feline creature, its fur golden like the setting sun, muscles rippling beneath its sleek coat. It had the appearance of a mountain lion but was far larger, its fangs protruding slightly from its mouth as it drank from the stream.

Y/N gasped softly. "Whoa..."

Gohan instinctively tensed. "Y/N, stay back. That thing could be dangerous."

But Y/N, entranced by the sight of the majestic beast, took a slow step forward. "It's beautiful," she whispered. "I've never seen a cat this big before."

The mountain lion's ears twitched. Its eyes flicked toward them, pupils narrowing. It was watching them now, assessing whether they were a threat... or prey.

Gohan reached out and grabbed Y/N's wrist. "Y/N, we need to go. Now."

Before she could respond, the beast let out a low growl, muscles coiling as it prepared to lunge.

Everything happened in a blur. The mountain lion pounced, and Gohan yanked Y/N back, shoving her behind him as the massive cat swiped at them. He barely managed to dodge, but Y/N wasn't as lucky. One of the creature's claws raked across her shoulder, slicing through her shirt and leaving a deep gash.

Y/N cried out, stumbling back. The sight of her blood on the beast's claws made Gohan's stomach twist in anger.

Without hesitation, he powered up, his ki flaring as he stepped between the mountain lion and his wounded sister. "Get back!" he shouted, his voice ringing through the trees.

The mountain lion hesitated, sensing the power radiating from him. After a tense moment, it let out a huff and slinked back into the trees, disappearing into the shadows.

Gohan immediately turned to Y/N, who was clutching her shoulder, her face scrunched up in pain. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, though tears pricked the corners of her eyes. "I think so."

Gohan inspected the wound. It wasn't deep, but it would definitely leave a scar. He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. "We have to tell Mom and Dad."

Y/N's eyes widened. "No! They'll never let me leave the house again if they find out!"

"Y/N, you got hurt—"

"It's just a scratch!" she insisted. "Please, Gohan! We can just say I tripped or something."

Gohan sighed. He knew she had a point—if their parents found out she had been attacked by a wild animal, they would never let her out again. Still, he didn't like the idea of lying.

"...Fine," he relented. "But we have to tell them something."

Y/N smiled weakly. "Deal."

They made their way back home, Y/N wincing every now and then but doing her best to hide her injury. As they neared the house, however, they found Chi-Chi standing on the porch, arms crossed, eyes narrowed.

"I knew it!" she scolded, stomping down the steps. "I went to check on you two, and when I didn't find you, I knew you had snuck off! Do you have any idea how worried your father and I were?!"

Y/N shrunk under her mother's glare. "We were just exploring..."

Goku appeared beside Chi-Chi, his expression far less angry but still serious. "You guys know better than to run off like that."

Gohan forced a sheepish smile. "Sorry, Dad. We just got carried away."

Goku studied them both, and immediately, his expression changed. His sharp eyes locked onto Gohan first, then flickered to Y/N. Something in his gaze softened, but then his brow furrowed.

"Wait a sec..." Goku stepped forward and crouched, sniffing the air slightly before his eyes locked onto the blood staining Y/N's shoulder. His expression darkened. "What happened?"

Gohan cursed internally. He should have known better—Goku could always sense when something was off.

Y/N tried to play it off. "It's nothing, just a—"

But Goku gently pulled her sleeve aside, revealing the deep scratch. His face hardened, and his grip on her tiny arm tightened slightly. "This isn't nothing, Y/N."

Chi-Chi gasped, hands flying to her mouth. "Oh my goodness! You're hurt! What happened?!"

Gohan quickly jumped in. "It was just an accident. We ran into a big cat, but I scared it off. Y/N got scratched in the process."

Chi-Chi looked horrified, but Goku's expression was unreadable. Then, slowly, he pulled Y/N into a hug, his large hand resting protectively over her head.

"You scared me, kiddo," he murmured, his voice unusually soft. "Don't do that again."

Y/N hesitated before hugging him back. "Okay, Daddy."

Goku held her for a long moment before pulling away. "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up. And no more sneaking off, got it?"

Y/N sighed but nodded. Gohan glanced at her, knowing she was disappointed but relieved they had avoided the worst of their parents' wrath.

One thing was certain—she wasn't going to stop adventuring.

~~~~~~

13 Years Later

The steady scratching of a pencil against paper was the only sound in the Son household's kitchen. Y/N hunched over her notebook, lips pursed as she flipped through her textbook. Her head ached from a full week of relentless studying, but she had no choice. Zoology wasn't exactly an easy field, and with a test coming up and a final project looming over her, she couldn't afford to slack off.

Unfortunately, focusing in this house was a near-impossible feat.

"Goten, give it back!" Trunks' voice rang through the kitchen as he lunged at Goten, who held a video game cartridge just out of his reach, grinning ear to ear.

"You gotta say I'm stronger than you first!" Goten taunted, dodging Trunks' grab effortlessly.

"As if! I could take you down in two seconds!" Trunks shot back, lunging at his best friend again.

Y/N groaned, rubbing her temples. "Do you guys ever shut up?" she mumbled, half to herself.

Goten heard her anyway. "C'mon, Y/N! You've been sitting there forever," he whined, plopping down on the chair next to her. "You should play with us!"

Trunks leaned against the table, flashing her a cocky grin. "Yeah! What's the point of all that studying? You're already smart. Besides, you're missing out on the chance to hang out with us. That's gotta be tragic."

Y/N shot him a flat look. Trunks had been acting weird around her lately. She wasn't dumb—she could tell he had a bit of a crush, but the fact that he was literally eleven years old made it easy to ignore. He'd get over it eventually.

"I have a test in a week," she said, tapping her book for emphasis. "And a final project I need to prepare for."

"You don't even know what the project is yet," Goten pointed out.

"Exactly. Which is why I need to be ready for anything."

Trunks rolled his eyes. "Gohan always studied like crazy too. It's like some kind of weird Son curse."

Y/N smirked. "Oh, trust me, I used to be just like you guys, bugging Gohan while he was trying to study." She leaned back, stretching. "Now I get why he wanted to kill me half the time."

Goten grinned. "So that means you should be nice to us and take a break, right?"

"Wrong."

"Aw, come on," he whined, puffing out his cheeks.

Trunks huffed but smirked again. "Fine. We'll leave you alone."

For about an hour, she actually managed to get some work done. The words blurred together slightly from exhaustion, but she pushed through, determined to make progress. That was until the boys returned, grinning like they were up to no good.

Goten leaned on the table, staring at her with big, hopeful eyes. "Hey, Y/N?"

"No."

"You didn't even let me ask!"

"Because I already know the answer."

Goten crossed his arms. "I bet you don't."

She sighed. "Fine. What is it?"

"I challenge you to a fight!"

Y/N blinked. "Excuse me?"

Trunks snickered. "He thinks he's stronger than you."

"I am stronger than her!" Goten insisted.

Y/N scoffed, shutting her book. "Yeah, sure, bud."

Goten grinned. He knew exactly how to get to her. "Oh, what's wrong? You scared? You haven't been training much, have you?"

That made her eye twitch. He wasn't wrong—she barely got to train, thanks to Chi-Chi's strict study regimen. But she had trained enough to hold her own. Maybe even enough to put Goten in his place.

She was about to agree when a sharp voice cut in.

"Goten, Trunks, leave your sister alone."

Chi-Chi walked into the kitchen, hands on her hips, giving them a stern glare.

Goten groaned. "But—"

"No buts," Chi-Chi said firmly. "Y/N needs to focus on her studies, and you two need to stop distracting her." She turned to Y/N. "You've been working hard all week, sweetheart. But don't forget, we have dinner at Bulma's tonight."

Y/N groaned, slumping over her book. "Do I have to go?"

"Yes."

"But—"

"No buts," Chi-Chi repeated, giving her a pointed look. "Everyone's going to be there. You can't miss it."

Y/N opened her mouth to argue, but before she could, a familiar voice joined the conversation.

"You'll have fun," Goku said as he stepped inside, dusting off his hands from working in the fields. "C'mon, kiddo, everyone's gonna be there."

Y/N sighed, leaning on her elbow. "I dunno, Dad..."

Goku chuckled and walked over, pressing a kiss to her forehead before doing the same to Chi-Chi's. "It'll be good for you to take a break. You've been working hard."

Chi-Chi smiled, pleased that Goku was backing her up. "Exactly. You can't spend all your time with your nose in a book."

Y/N huffed, crossing her arms. It wasn't like she didn't want to go—she loved spending time with everyone—but it felt unfair. Goten got to train as much as he wanted. Gohan had trained plenty when he was younger, even if he was more focused on studying now. But her? She wasn't even allowed out half the time. Her parents were too overprotective, always worried she'd get into a fight she couldn't handle. And Goku... He babied her so much it made her skin crawl. He meant well, but she wasn't a kid anymore.

Still, she knew better than to argue. Not when both her parents were standing over her with expectant expressions.

"...Fine," she muttered.

"Great!" Goku beamed. "Better get ready soon, then. We're heading out in an hour."

As he walked off, Chi-Chi patted Y/N's shoulder. "It'll be nice to see everyone. Maybe you'll even have time to catch up with Gohan and Videl."

Y/N forced a small smile. "Yeah... maybe."

Chi-Chi gave her one last look before heading off to start prepping for the evening. Goten and Trunks exchanged victorious grins before running off to cause more trouble elsewhere.

Y/N sighed, rubbing her temples. So much for studying.

As much as she loved her family, sometimes she just wanted to breathe. To be free.

But in a house full of Saiyans?

That wasn't likely to happen anytime soon.

A/n- Ahhh I hope you guys like it so far! Thanks for reading!