"Antiseptic"
You knew it was coming. A Piccolo and Chichi fic, no romance though. THIS TIME! XD Sorry I love them together… Anyway please enjoy this little cute fiction that I've been dabbling with for too long!
Sunlight filtered through the open window, reflecting off the bubbles in the sink in a rainbow of colors. Chichi glanced out the window to where her three-year-old granddaughter sat on the lawn. Pan was happily tearing out handfuls of the soft grass and tossing it up in the air. Chichi smiled, how precious. Returning to the dishes, the woman hurriedly scrubbed at plates and silverware left over from breakfast. Videl and Gohan had just left two hours ago to go house hunting; their apartment was just too small now. Finishing with one stack, Chichi reached for another.
An ear-splitting shriek rent the calm air. Chichi dropped the bowl in her hands. It shattered into a thousand pieces on the counter.
"Pan?!" She wasn't visible out the window, but Chichi heard a panicked cry of "Grandma!" and a horrible growling noise.
"Oh no, oh no, oh no!" Chichi rushed from the kitchen, down the hall and to the front door. Her hand reached out, grasping the handle and –
An explosion rocked the tiny cottage. Chichi lost her balance and fell back on her bottom, dazed. "Oh God," her heart leapt up into her throat, gagging her. There was utter silence outside. The taste of fear sour in her mouth, Chichi scrambled to her feet, gripping the door handle in one hand and her frying pan in the other. Twist. Creak. As the door swung open, a cloud of smoke and debris rushed inside to the new, clear air. Coughing on the thick cloud, Chichi squinted through the floating dirt and dust.
"Pan?" She choked, seeing a large, dark shadow through all of the floating crap. "Pan, sweetie, answer me!" Panic rose in her chest.
"Grandma!" Pan's little voice was quite possibly the most beautiful thing she had ever heard. The too-big shadow moved towards her through the fog. It began to take on a shape that she recognized. Tall, broad shoulders – made wider by a set of heavy pads – with a flowing cape trailing behind. The shadow made a subtle movement, and with a whoosh of air, the debris and smoke dissipated, clearing her vision.
"Piccolo!" Chichi gasped, confused and unnerved by the alien warrior's presence. Her gaze was drawn, however, not to his scowling face, but to the bundle in his arms. "Pan!" She rushed forward, holding out her hands to girl. "Give her to me," it wasn't a question. Piccolo pried Pan from the front of his gi, handing her to Chichi, who immediately began checking her for injuries.
"Grandma, grandma, there was a bear!" Pan babbled tearfully, holding out a bleeding arm. Chichi's eyes widened.
"A, a bear?"
"Yu-huh!" Pan pointed with her uninjured arm to a massive, smoking carcass. It was then that the rank stench of burning hair and flesh hit her nose like a freight train.
"Picc'lo save me!" Pan pulled on Chichi's hair, gesturing frantically to the silent Namekian. "Picc'lo blew it up. BOOM! No more bear," the child illustrated the rescue through exaggerated hand gestures.
"Tha-thank you," Chichi stammered, looking up at Piccolo's statuesque face. The Namekian shrugged.
"Don't Mention it." He cocked his head in the direction of the deep-fried bear carcass. "I'll move it for you," He turned to go but Pan called his name.
"Picc'lo, wait!" He paused, large ears twitching. "Come here," Pan demanded, squirming in Chichi's arms. Piccolo turned around slowly, bemusement settling across his features as he walked purposefully back to Chichi and Pan. Pan held out her arms to him. Piccolo raised an eyebrow, shaking his head. Pan pouted, tilting her head to the side and looking at him pleadingly.
Chichi felt a smile tug at her lips as she watched Piccolo's face. He never could say "no" to children, not after Gohan had broken him.
"Fine," he grunted, taking the child back from Chichi. It was then that she noticed a thin gash running along his cheek, oozing purple blood down his vibrant green skin. Apparently Pan had noticed it too.
"Bear got Picc'lo too, huh?" the toddler asked, gently touching his cheek. Piccolo's face colored ever so slightly and he nodded. "Pan kiss it better?"
Piccolo's eyebrows shot up his forehead, crinkling the perfectly smooth skin. He looked at Chichi, who barely suppressed a smile.
"It's just something we mothers do with 'boo-boos'," she explained quietly, lips twitching in an attempt to keep a straight face. "It's um…magic."
Piccolo rolled his eyes.
"That's okay, Pan," he started, but the little girl ignored him. She grabbed his face in her pudgy little hands and planted a kiss on Piccolo's bleeding cheek. Piccolo's eyes bugged out of his head and a violent magenta blush discolored the majority of his face, even up to the tips of his ears. It took all of Chichi's will power not to laugh at him. He almost looked…cute…like that.
"All better!" Pan announced, beaming. She held her arm out to the Namekian, "now you."
Piccolo swallowed visibly.
"I saved your life you little leech," he grumbled, "that should be more than enough." Pan frowned up at him. "Oh fine." Piccolo relented, "but it's our little secret." His eyes flicked to Chichi, who acknowledged his warning glare with a nod. She mouthed "my lips are sealed."
Pan's face lit up and she offered the warrior her arm again. Piccolo took her tiny hand in his, raising it to his lips for a lightning fast peck. "Happy now?" he asked, and Pan nodded, hugging him around the neck.
Chichi smiled, the corners of her eyes crinkling. It was hard to believe that the man in front of her had once called himself the Demon King. Piccolo, while she would never think of him as "harmless," certainly wasn't the threatening presence he had once been.
"Why don't you bring her inside," she said gently, "magic kisses aside; I want to get you two cleaned up."
Piccolo grunted, attempting to hand Pan off to her, but Chichi shook her head. "No, you're coming too…unless you're afraid of a little antiseptic." It was a challenge, and one she knew the Namekian couldn't back down from. Sure enough, he glowered at her but followed her inside, Pan still held in his arms. Chichi led them over to the kitchen, indicating for Piccolo to sit in one of the chairs. "Pan can sit on the table," she called over her shoulder, looking for antiseptic and bandages. She heard Piccolo huff in annoyance, pulling a chair out and sit down. Pan giggled, and Chichi snuck a glance in their direction.
"Your father would have been bawling," Piccolo muttered, setting the girl on the table top. "Nothing stopped that Kid once he got going."
"Oh, stop," Chichi chastised him jokingly, "he always brightened up when you came around." She found the bottle.
"Feh, or his father. Where is Goku, anyway?"
Chichi stuck her tongue out at Piccolo
"Like you really have to ask? He's out training! Like always." She grumbled the last bit without meaning to.
"Hm," Piccolo frowned, "he never could tell when someone wanted – or didn't want – him around."
"Hah!" Chichi rolled her eyes at him, walking over with the medical supplies. Pan saw what was held in her hands and shrieked, launching herself off of the table and back at Piccolo. The Namek grunted as she squeezed his neck. "Oh, Pan! It barely hurts!" Chichi moved to help him remove the girl.
"No! I don't want it!" Pan shook her head adamantly, "No, no, NO!"
"Paaannnn," Chichi growled, drawing out her granddaughter's name for emphasis, "be a good girl and let go of Piccolo so I can see your arm."
Pan wailed, burying her face in Piccolo's neck. "Nooo!"
Exasperated, Piccolo pried the girl off of him. He tried to avoid the claw marks on her tiny arm, but accidentally touched one of them as she squirmed. "OW!"
"That's what you get," Piccolo's eyes narrowed at the little girl, but there wasn't much of a threat held in them.
"You first!" Pan yelped, "Picc'lo first, Grandma!" Chichi looked imploringly at Piccolo. He grunted.
"Fine."
"Then it's your turn, got it Pan? No more arguing." Pan nodded earnestly.
"Yes. Okay."
Chichi gave her granddaughter an imperious stare. There would be no more nonsense after this.
Piccolo plopped Pan back on the table, then crossed his arms and looked at Chichi.
"This will sting a bit," she warned him, splashing some of the antiseptic on a cotton swab.
"Just hurry it up," he bit out from behind his fangs. Chichi rolled her eyes, pressing the sopping cotton swab to his lightly bleeding cheek. Piccolo hissed quietly but held still. Chichi smirked, patting the uninjured side of his face.
"See Pan, if Piccolo can do it, so can you. Because he's nothing but a big baby, aren't you?" She tweaked his ear playfully, ignoring Piccolo's bared fangs. He wasn't going to do anything. "Now," she chimed, pulling out a box of brightly colored bandages, "what color do you want? Purple?"
"I can fix it myself," he ground out between gritted teeth, still glaring at her. Chichi promptly ignored him, slapping a bright purple bandage onto his cheek. She turned to Pan.
"Your turn," she said sweetly. Pan pouted, but reluctantly held out her arm. As she cleaned and dressed the wounds, Chichi silently thanked her lucky stars that Piccolo had been around. The bear had barely touched Pan; although there would be severe bruising, and maybe some scarring, the little girl was going to fine. As if reading her thoughts, Piccolo spoke up.
"I was on the way to my Waterfall when I heard her scream."
"Oh?" Chichi lifted the three-year-old off of the table, kissing her cheek before setting her on the ground. "You can get a cookie, Pan." The toddler clapped her hands, pain forgotten as she bolted for the cookie jar. "From the Lookout?"
"Yeah."
"Aren't there faster routes to get there?"
"Are you complaining?"
Chichi flushed, "n-no, of course not."
Piccolo sighed, standing up and pushing the chair back in.
"I should get going. Gotta move that carcass."
"Why don't you stay? Gohan will be back in a few hours, I'm sure he'd love to see you." She saw a flash of sadness blink across his green face. Piccolo shook his head.
"Kid can come find me."
Chichi frowned, putting her hands on her hips.
"Maybe that's the problem, Pic," she snapped. "You always want him to find you. Why don't you ever get off of your butt and visit Gohan?"
Piccolo stared at her, slightly taken aback.
"Sit." It was not a suggestion. There was no mistaking the command in the little woman's tone. Piccolo sat. "He's not a little boy anymore," Chichi said, exasperated. "He's a grown man with a family and a job. He can't just zip up to the Lookout like he used to. Why don't you ever fly over to his apartment?"
"Because," Piccolo snapped, narrowing his dark eyes at her, "he lives in the city, with normal people, and I'm green in case you haven't noticed." Chichi pulled out a chair, sitting down next to him.
"Okay," she said slowly, "well, I see your point. But," she poked his bicep with one delicate finger, "you've been on TV, people know who you are now." Chichi smiled at the look on his face, "and besides, he and Videl are out looking for a house. In the country."
Piccolo perked up slightly, meeting her gaze with a raised brow.
"Yeah?"
She nodded, "so why don't you stick around?" He was still for a moment, before nodding slowly.
"Alright."
Chichi beamed at him. He just stared at her. "Can I get you something to drink?" she asked, breaking the eye contact. "Juice, seltzer, pop?" It occurred to her that he might not know what a "seltzer" or a "pop" was, but before she could explain, he shook his head.
"Uh, water's fine," he replied as she stood to move for the cupboard.
"You sure?" she rolled up onto her toes to pull two glasses down. Piccolo made a quiet noise of affirmation. "Well, alright then." Chichi filled the glasses with water and ice, returning to the table - but not before shooing Pan away from her fifth cookie. "Go play with your toys, but stay inside, baby."
"Fiiiiine," Pan groaned, stuffing another cookie in her mouth and bolting from the kitchen. Chichi shook her head slowly, sitting back down at the table.
"Ugh, I do not miss those days. Especially not with Goten."
Piccolo chuckled in agreement. It was a deep throaty sound, one she had rarely heard before.
"That boy was a terror." He frowned, "Gohan wasn't too bad."
"No," Chichi murmured, a faraway feeling settling on her heart as she remembered her sweet little firstborn. "He was good for the most part."
"Hmm." The two sat in silence for a while, watching Pan set up various scenarios for her dolls. The girl occasionally ran over to them, climbing up onto Piccolo's lap, demanding one thing or another. Finally, the sugar worked its way out of her system, and she fell asleep, snuggled up on Piccolo. Chichi felt a smile warm her face as Piccolo slowly adjusted the child on his lap. He shifted Pan so that her head rested more comfortably on his bicep, cradling her carefully.
"I'm sure you were never this gentle with Gohan," she said quietly. He looked up at her sharply.
"I was," the Namek muttered, "after he was...asleep... And after Namek, and Cell."
"Even in training?"
"Like I said," he growled, "after he was asleep."
Chichi cocked an eyebrow teasingly.
"And by 'asleep', I assume you mean 'unconscious?'"
Piccolo smirked, nodding. Pan made a small noise in her slumber, rolling as much as Piccolo allowed. Her tiny fingers curled around a fold in his shirt.
Chichi saw the usually stoic warrior's face light up - so subtly that no one but those close to him would have noticed. She opened her mouth to say something, but thought better of it, taking a sip of water instead.
It was a long, comfortable silence that passed between them. It was odd, Chichi mused, thinking about her past interactions with Piccolo. This was, after all, the maniac who had killed her husband and kidnapped her son. The one who had died to save her baby's life. Then, somewhere in that time spent training for the Androids, Piccolo had ceased to be a hated and feared entity, becoming a quiet, uncomfortable... Friend. Yes, she nodded in response to her silent thoughts. He was a friend. "You're more than welcome to stop by," she murmured, "anytime you want."
He said nothing for a long time. Slowly Piccolo inclined his head in her direction.
"Goku's not around much, eh?"
Chichi blinked; no, Goku still disappeared randomly for days at a time, training and what not. But he wasn't constantly gone.
"What makes you say that?"
Piccolo shrugged with one shoulder so as to not disturb Pan.
"You must be lonely if you want me around," he smirked, "what with me being a chatterbox and all that."
Chichi snorted into her water, covering her mouth to stifle a giggle.
"You talk my ears off, that's for sure." She wiped her mouth, still smiling, "and I mean it, Piccolo, come by anytime you want. You're right, Goku still hasn't settled down." She frowned slightly; saying the words aloud made her realize just how lonely she was. Gohan, and more recently, Goten, had both moved out, and her husband was - as always - AWOL.
"Sure thing Chich," Piccolo's voice was quiet, and she sensed it was not just because of the snoring toddler on his lap.
Several hours of on and off conversation passed between the two of them before Gohan and Videl arrived. Their shocked exclamations could be heard through the walls.
"Hey Mom!" Gohan called, noisily turning the doorknob and barging into the house; his face was pale and he looked more than mildly panicked. "Mom what happened -?"
The newly awakened Pan shot off of Piccolo's lap with a shriek, dashing from the kitchen and flying into her father's arms.
"Dadeeeee!"
Piccolo winced at the pitch. Chichi cast a sympathetic look his way before standing to greet her son and daughter-in-law.
"Pan, your arm -?" Gohan hugged the girl tightly, Videl by his side.
"Yes, we had quite the adventure today," Chichi said dryly, motioning to the lawn. She started to say more but Gohan interrupted.
"An adventure? Mom, that bear - how did - what - you -" he swallowed, "how did you kill it?"
"Dadeeeee!" Pan yanked on Gohan's tie, "Daddy N'uncle Picc'lo flied in and bear go BOOM cuz it was tryin' to eat me. Bad, bad bear."
Gohan started, staring down at his daughter. Videl looked to Chichi in confusion.
"Wha - P-Piccolo?" Gohan gaped at his mother, "My Piccolo?"
"Yes, our Piccolo," Chichi replied, hands on hips. "He's in the kitchen." Gohan handed Pan to Videl, who began checking her frantically for injuries. The young man walked as if in a trance to the kitchen. Chichi watched him for a moment before turning to Videl. "The only wound is on her arm, and I took care of it," she said in hopes of assuaging the young mother's fears. "Piccolo got here just in time." Chichi pivoted to follow her son into the kitchen. She paused in the doorway, watching the scene in front of her.
Piccolo and Gohan stood facing each other, but saying nothing. Gohan's shoulders were tense, and Piccolo wore an odd expression on his face. Very suddenly, Gohan lurched forward, throwing his arms around Piccolo to envelop him in a bone-crushing embrace. Piccolo grunted as the air was forced from his lungs. He reached one hand up to ruffle Gohan's short, barely tamed hair. They remained that way for a long moment, warming her heart.
"Alright, get off," Piccolo pushed on the Saiyan's shoulders, "I mean it, Kid. Everyone's jumping on me today and I can only take so much. So off." Gohan gave him one last squeeze despite Piccolo's small noise of protest.
"Thanks," he sniffed, "for saving Pan."
"Yeah, well," Piccolo was trying to sound off-hand but Chichi heard the smugness thinly veiled behind the nonchalance. "Guess you just owe me, huh Kid?"
"Oh boy," Gohan laughed, taking a step back from his former mentor and turning to face his mother, wife and daughter, all of whom now stood in the doorway. "How many is that now? I've lost track."
"Piccolo, your memory is better than all of ours," Chichi said, "how many favors does this family owe you?" The Namekian shrugged and crossed his arms.
"Eleventy-zillion?" Pan suggested innocently. Her words caused a ripple of laughter to roll around the kitchen. Children… Chichi shook her head in amusement, walking around the Namek and her son. A smile flitted across her lips as she busied herself making tea for everyone present. She saw Piccolo sit back down, Pan crawling into his lap once again. Gohan and Videl had pulled out chairs next to one another, leaving the seat closest to Piccolo empty. For a long moment, she stared at the vacant chair, thoughts dancing across her mind. As if hearing some of her secret fancies, Piccolo turned his head to look at her. Chichi met his dark gaze and offered him a smile. Much to her private delight, Piccolo smiled back.
The End
Well, I suppose there was no...active…Chiccolo in there. But they were definitely flirting on occasion. XD So anyway; I had a field day with this. It was a lot of fun! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did