Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or DBGT.
A/N: I would like to point out, for present and future reference, that Piccolo is only four years older than Konna.
Thanks you lovely reviewers:
Chapter 2
Konna jumped up and attempted to land a punch on Mr. Piccolo's jaw, but that failed miserably. He just slammed her into the ground and smirked as she wobbled while trying to get back up. These first few weeks of real training were seriously tough, she wondered if she'd liked it better alone in that damp cave.
"Your open!" He yelled, and kicked her stomach. She was sent flying backwards until she hit the cliff behind her, making a child-shaped crater.
"Never let your guard down during a fight." Piccolo yelled. "Now get over here and finish this."
"I'm tired Mr. Piccolo." She said, and the older warrior cringed at the name.
"I've told you before. Do not call me "Mr. Piccolo", it's revolting. My name is Piccolo, nothing more."
"Hai, sensei." She said. "But really M-- I mean, Piccolo-san, I'm tired. And I'm so sore I can't move."
"Tough it up." He said, walking toward her. She didn't flinch though, and no fear was present in her unwavering gaze. Disappointment, perhaps, but definitely not fear. Piccolo growled and towered over his young pupil, who sighed and rubbed a quickly bruising shoulder.
"No breaks, not at this camp." He said, grabbing her arm and throwing her high into the air.
Fear seized her and she screamed with all her might, for she had yet to learn to fly, and she called out to her teacher.
"Piccolo-san!" She yelled, beginning her descent toward the hard ground. "Piccolo please catch me…I can't fly yet!"
He scoffed at her, and mentally swore to smirk as she hit the ground. She'd live, maybe a bit more bruised and sore than before, but she'd pull through. He crossed his arms and waited for her to hit, and hit she did. A minute passed and she didn't get up, so he began walking toward the small crater she'd made.
"Girl, you'd better be dead if I have to come over here." He said, but still she didn't stir.
He snorted and stood beside her form, waiting for the hybrid to lean up and mutter to herself about being neglected…or better yet, saying she'd rather be at that cave alone. Well, of course she would. Who would willingly want to be near him anyway? No one, that's who.
"Brat, get you're a--" He stopped, just as some anger provoked curses were to come from his mouth, and for the first time noticed a small stream of some…liquid trickle away from her turned head. It was red, and it took Piccolo half a second to recognize it.
It was blood.
He was suddenly overcome with the strangest of sensations: a mix between fear, nausea and complete numbness…how such a combination was possibility (or why he'd felt it in the first place) was beyond his reasoning. But he found himself knelt next to her before he realized what he'd done.
He gently (yes, he seemed capable of being gentle at the moment) moved her from on her side to her back. And there it was, a large rock lodged deep in the dessert sand had broken her fall. And perhaps had broken her as well.
"Girl, can you hear me?" He asked, none to nicely.
She didn't answer, nor did she even flinch at his voice. The sensation of fear/nausea/numbness heightened, and he wished he could get rid of the blasted feeling. It was making him hostile and anxious, and he couldn't think clearly under those conditions.
He picked her up, making sure her head was supported, and looked for the wound that was creating the blood. He found it on her head, to the left side. That was normal though, to bleed profusely when one's head is cut. Even if the wound wasn't mortal the blood would still come in great supply.
But for the strangest reason, Piccolo couldn't fathom, he didn't like it that the girl was bleeding like this. He'd made her bleed before during a spar, so why would this time be any different? He didn't know, nor did he want to find out. Any emotion or impulse he had towards the girl, aside from choking the life out of her, was seriously out of place. Wasn't it? Yes, he was the Demon King, what did a child matter to him?
Nothing. She meant nothing.
At least, that's what Piccolo repeated to himself as he carried her to the cave they used to sleep in or by. He laid her down on the softer dirt inside the cavern, and sat cross legged toward the entrance. Kami forbid the girl died, right now anyway. She could die later, after she played her part in the battle against the Saiyans. But for now she was, unfortunately, needed.
Piccolo closed his eyes and began to meditate. If the girl survived the night she'd be fine, if she didn't…. Piccolo involuntarily shuddered at the thought. He grunted in irritation at his inability to explain his actions this day. He shouldn't care about any of this, the girl's injuries shouldn't bother him. So why did they?
Piccolo shook his head free of the unwanted thoughts, and slipped slowly into meditation. Albeit an uneasy meditation, but at least it took his mind of the unsettling events of the day.
X-x-X-x-X
Konna opened her eyes and peered into the darkness, then she shivered.
"Piccolo-san?" She asked meekly.
There was a grunt somewhere nearby, and she knew he was close to her. So she felt better then, though she wasn't sure where she was or how she'd gotten there. She last remembered falling from the sky, then hitting the ground hard enough to knock her out.
A fire was started moments later, as Piccolo blasted a pile of sticks placed near the center of the cave. She looked at him and smiled, but as she tried to sit up her head suddenly hurt, making her dizzy. She put her hand on her head, near the place that was so sore, and laid back down with a groan. Piccolo stood and walked to her, and roughly turned her head to look at the spot.
"Ouch!" She yelped and grabbed his intrusive hand. "Don't touch it!"
"Stop your whining." Piccolo snapped. "It's barely even swollen…you'll be fine."
"Yeah, well, it still hurts." She said, rubbing her little lump tenderly.
Piccolo just snorted and sat cross legged several feet away from her.
"How did I get in here?" She asked. "I don't remember coming up here."
"How do you think?" He said irritatedly. "Weakling, you were out cold after hitting the ground."
She cringed at the memory. "Why didn't you catch me? You know I can't fly yet."
"So, you won't learn anything if I always have to do things for you." He closed his eyes again.
"Well, I guess that makes sense. Mommy always made me practice math by myself and she wouldn't help me." She smiled. "That's kind of the same thing."
Piccolo just rolled his eyes and tried again to meditate.
"Well, thanks for bringing me in here all the same. That was real nice of you. I bet-"
"Shut up brat! I am not nice." He said, spitting out the last word as though it were a curse.
Konna looked a little shocked, but soon enough recovered. She'd gotten used to Piccolo over the weeks, he was just grumpy most of the time. He wouldn't really hurt her or anything. In fact, she had a very good idea about their relationship.
"Piccolo-san?"
"What?" He snapped. It never failed, the girl had to talk herself to sleep.
She never finished, so he sighed in relief and kept his eyes closed. He heard some noises and tried earnestly to block them out, she was more trouble than she was worth. He wondered sometimes if it would have been better to have just drowned her in that lake rather than train her. It certainly would have been a lot quieter that way.
Suddenly, he was brought full force to his senses as some fleshy weight was dropped into his lap. He looked down to find her sitting contently on his knee and leaning against his chest. Holy Kami, what was this? What was she doing? And Why? But Piccolo couldn't voice his inquiries, he just stared wide eyed at the wad of spiking and waving black hair against him.
He uncrossed his arms to push her away, or hit her, or anything to make her get off. He didn't like being touched, and he didn't like being so close to anyone. It made him uncomfortable, he wasn't used to it. And there was no point in getting used to being close to anyone, they never stayed around anyway.
Yet when he moved she looked up at him, and big chocolate brown eyes met cold onyx ones. Then she smiled up at him and leaned against his chest more firmly, as if he were her security. Maybe, as if he were her guardian. He felt odd at the thought of that, he felt different. Suddenly, he was a little warmer…but just on the inside. Craziness, why would he feel warm? And, well, good. He didn't usually feel good, he never felt good…at least never on the inside. What in the name of all the Kai's was going on?
"You shouldn't do that." He said, toneless.
"Do what?" She asked.
"That…getting so close to me." He said, pushing her off his knee and onto the ground. Then, as suddenly as the good/warm feeling had came, it was gone again.
"Why not?" She asked, frowning and looking generally curious.
"Because I'm dangerous, that's why." He said meanly. "If you knew what was good for you, you'd stay away."
"But I like you Piccolo-san. You're my friend." She said, propping her elbows on his upper leg.
"Stop that brat, we are not friends." He said. "We're temporary allies at best."
She frowned again. "Oh, but…I thought-"
"Well, you thought wrong didn't you?" He said, again shoving her away from him. Shoving away the odd feeling of warmth and, crazy enough, well-being she seemed to radiate.
"You really mean that?" She asked, both sadly and more than a little disappointed.
"Of course, I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it." He said. "Now go to sleep before I knock you out…again."
She sighed. "Yes sir."
She slid only a mere foot and a half away from his large form, for she honestly felt safer and more secure being close to him. Perhaps it was that he was her only means of companionship, and only alternative to solitude. She wasn't sure what she felt, and she didn't understand him in the least. She liked him well enough, she guessed; even if he seemed to hate her guts.
Well, she considered him her friend whether he did the same or not. He was her first friend, and so far her only one.
XxXx
A few more weeks passed and it seemed Konna was on the verge of becoming a talented warrior, if she could ever get control of her power. More than two months had passed since Piccolo took her under his wing, and over eight since she'd first began her training. She had surprised her sensei on more than one occasion, her resilience and fighting spirit were almost contagious. As was her crooked smile.
At the moment, she was lying under the shade Piccolo provided when he levitated to meditate. During the hottest part of the day she would do that, to keep from getting sun burned like she had at the beginning. If fact, she believed for at least the first full week of her training she resembled the color of a lobster.
"Piccolo-san?" She asked.
"Hm?" He returned, for he'd almost become completely accustomed to her games of 'twenty questions'.
"I was thinking, could we go fishing today?"
Piccolo opened his eyes and looked down, far down, at her. "What for?"
She shrugged. "Because it's fun."
He scoffed. "Fun indeed. Well, we're not here to have fun. We're here to train." He turned and levitated a little closer to her.
"If you want, we could just resume training right now." He said, and smirked as she made a very disgusted face.
"No sir!" She said. "It's just, I don't really get to do much of…well, anything other than training now."
"So."
"Oh, Piccolo-san, I'm five now and I haven't been fishing in…well, forever. Not since daddy took me a long time ago."
Piccolo didn't respond, but he did close his eyes again.
"Piccolo-san?"
"Hm."
"Do you still hate my daddy?"
Piccolo opened his eyes at that, and found himself searching for something to say. Konna stood and walked in front of him, so to see him better when he answered.
"Why?" He asked gruffly.
She frowned. "Because when daddy gets wished back, I don't want you and him to keep fighting each other."
Piccolo had an expression cross his face for just a split second, but then it was gone. Konna didn't recognize it.
"I wouldn't worry about that too much if I were you." He finally said.
"Does that mean you and daddy won't fight?"
"It means you shouldn't keep bugging me about it." He growled. "Now drop it."
"Okay, okay." She said sitting only a foot or two in front of him. "Hey Piccolo-san."
He grunted. "What now?"
"I was just thinking, could you give me another training gi?" She asked, frowning at her very torn and dirty orange gi. It was one that looked just like her father's, but she wasn't sure she really wanted those colors anymore.
"Fine, but keep quiet after that." He said, blinking an eye and forming a new outfit for her.
"Wait, um, I was thinking maybe you'd give me a gi that looks like yours." She said, taking off the newly formed gi shirt.
"Why?"
She was about to take off the darker shirt underneath the orange fabric, but then looked up at him. She looked a little oddly at him, then smiled.
"Because I like you Piccolo-san. You're my friend."
He was a little taken aback, but would die before showing it. "I told you before, we're not friends. We're-"
"I know, I know. 'Temporary allies at best.'" She scowled a little and, out of sheer annoyance at her teacher, raised her voice. "Well, you may hate me Piccolo-san, and think I'm just your…problem. But you're my friend, you're the first friend I've ever had. So that makes you special to me."
Piccolo sat very still for a few seconds, then blinked an eye so another gi uniform (one that was a miniature version of his own) could appear on her tiny body. She looked down and laughed at the sight of herself. She looked like a littler version of Piccolo-san! It was fun, and kind of funny too.
"Thank you sir!" She yelled, turning around for him to see the outfit on her. "How do I look? Do I look like you?"
Piccolo, overwhelmed by yet another unfamiliar emotion, just nodded.
"Oh, good." She said, sitting again in the shade his large shadow created underneath him.
"Konna." Piccolo started, minutes later.
"Yes sir?"
"I'm not going to fight your father anymore." He said, and his tone assured her it would not be wise to question him on it.
She grinned to herself and rolled over, this little break would be over soon enough and they would resume training again. But for now, it was nice just relaxing in Piccolo's shade. And she was glad he didn't want to fight her father anymore, that way he could come over to visit her sometime when the battle with the Saiyans was over.
That is, if Earth won.
X-x-X-x-X
It was much later that night, while the girl slept near the campfire, that Piccolo allowed himself to rehash the interactions he'd had with the girl. She was a problem, a big problem. He should never have taken her to train, then none of these…feelings would be plaguing him otherwise. She evoked such strange and foreign emotions that he found himself, more often than not, simply dumbstruck.
Never in his life had he had a relationship with anyone, or anything. But now, he had this little creature following him around and wearing his clothes. Why? She knew him, knew what he was capable of, knew he was evil; but still she liked him, befriended him, even tried to get closer to him.
He needed to get rid of her, before he got in over his head. Before the feelings overtook him, and he no longer had mental control over himself. He'd sworn long ago to never let himself become soft like Son was, it would ultimately get him killed. She was the root of his sentimental problems, once she was gone he'd go back to normal.
Wouldn't he? Yes, or course he would.
He moved closer to the girl's sleeping form and took her head in his large hands. It wouldn't take much, not like this. She wouldn't even know what happened, she wouldn't feel any pain. Just a flick of the wrist and her neck would snap, quick and painless. No yelling, or crying, or bleeding. He could handle her dying like that, it would be better than what the Saiyans would do to her should the Earth lose the battle.
Speaking of the Saiyans, could they afford to lose her? Surely they could fight without her, Son would be back soon enough. And he'd been training with a Kai, so he'd probably be strong enough to beat the two on the way without help from anyone else. Plus, if Piccolo could get rid of the distractions she caused, he could focus more on his own training. He double or even triple his own strength in the next four months, instead of training the girl.
"It's nothing against you really." He whispered. "I just have to get rid of these feelings. I can't handle them, they're too strong. It's not that you're trying to be a problem, you just happen to come by it naturally." He took his index finger and thumb, tightened them around the child's neck, and prepared to end her existence.
"You understand. You're a good kid, you'll go to heaven or somewhere nice like that." His hand began to shake a little, and he tried to clam himself down. He'd killed hundreds of innocent people before, so why was this so difficult?
But he had to do this, she was becoming a danger to his entire existence. Everything he thought he knew about himself was becoming muddy and unclear, he was starting to question his motives in life. He simply couldn't afford to let that happen. He would take over the world someday, he'd kill Son, he'd avenge his sire. That's what he wanted!
But he didn't calm himself quickly enough, and his slight jerking had woken her.
She smiled at him, and he adverted his eyes quickly to look at the fire. He found he couldn't face her.
"Oi." she said groggily, reaching and touching the hand that had encircled her neck curiously.
"Go back to sleep." He said, letting her go.
She nodded and crawled the few inches distance between them and laid in his lap. "Thanks (yawn) Piccolo-san." And within a few seconds she was out cold again.
Piccolo looked down at her for several minutes, and let whatever resolve he'd had about killing her dissipate. He couldn't do it now, not that he believed he could have done it earlier either. Seemed he was going to have to just deal with these changes she brought on.
He put his hand on her head and moved away some of the dark bangs that nearly covered her face. She shifted slightly and he jerked his hand away, afraid that she might wake up. But no, she was still sleeping; so he again to put his hand atop her head again. He let a very, very tiny smile tug at his lips as he realized he felt better. He felt better now than he had in a long time…maybe ever. Perhaps this friendship idea wasn't too bad. There were worse alternatives to being admired.
"No matter what happens kid, I'll always protect you." He said, and smoothed her hair. "I promise."
