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Threnody = Verse03: Instrumental
Author = Gabriyel Crowwe [gabriyel@planetnamek.org]
Website = http://gabriyel.artshost.com/dbz


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I awoke in the middle of the night to a voice. A low-pitched,
baritone voice. I yawned and turned over, opening my eyes to darkness.
A black sheen fell over the room, shadows, none moving. Outside, I
heard rain pour down onto the little house in bucketful's of the stuff.
I sat up slowly, rubbing my tired eyes free of sleep, and looked about.

One of the darkest shadows moved and I squinted, thinking to
be seeing things. Just then, a pale white flash of light filled the
room, and my mystery visitor was revealed with a sudden burst of
lightning.

"P-piccoro-sama?" I half-stuttered, half-whispered, reaching
over to my dresser to grab my glasses, only to have them pushed into my
trembling hands roughly by the black shadow. I slid them on and looked
up, running nervous fingers through my dishevelled dark brown hair.
Thunder roared.

The black shadow moved in silence, sitting down on the bed and
making the old wood and mattress groan under his weight, most of which
being muscle. I moved my legs up out of his way, getting into an
Indian-style position identical to his own.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed, a chills creeping along my
spine, feeling immense excitement and fear from the Namekjin creature
sitting in my bedroom.

"It's something Gohan explained to me," Piccolo voiced.

"Being?"

"Crushes."

I hesitated. Oh boy ... what had Gohan told him? To think, I
had once nearly had a crush on the rugrat. He hated me though, I knew
it, and the feeling was quite mutual.

I flicked on the lamp on the bedside bureau, the black lamp-
shade keeping the light low. I cringed as my eyes burnt behind half-
shut lids, and then opened them to look at Piccolo.

"You've changed," he stated, rather flatly.

"It's been two years," I spoke, brows furrowed. "You have too."

Piccolo's thick brows knit together, darkening his eyes. "It's
been ten years."

I gave him a contemplative expression, setting my elbows on my
knees and lacing my fingers together, setting my chin on them to stare
at the dark-coloured comforter below me. "Time must travel differently
there."

"Yes. We were gone nearly three days during our twelve-hour
visit, in our world."

"Aren't you worried you'll end up human again?"

"Somewhat. But I plan on leaving before then."

I looked up to him, remembering his transformation to humanity
from Namekjin, and how different he had been. Personality-wise, as
well as physically. He had been so quiet as a human. Non-verbal.
Keeping to himself. Of course, it had been but twelve hours, and he
was always very monosyllabic.

"Why are you here?"

"I chose to be."

"That explains a whole lot."

"It was upon Gohan's explanation of a human crush and your
apparent 'crush' on me, that I grew fascinated. So. What makes you
like me so much?"

"Well, er, um, I ... it's just you. It's kind of hard to
explain," I felt my cheeks burn red, and I looked to my hands,
picking at my nail polish.

I was rather confused at this point of time. Was this a dream
or not? The first time I had come in contact with Piccolo I had thought
it was a dream, but it turned out it wasn't. I bit my lower lip to the
point to drawing blood.

I looked up to see Piccolo examining me, a brow raised. "I
sincerely don't understand you, Gabriyel."

I tilted my head. I had never heard Piccolo actually call me
by my name before. It was weird. Of course, I hadn't exactly talked to
Piccolo a lot in the twelve hours he had spent at Mrianna's home.

"I don't really understand you either, Piccolo," I replied. "I
know your entire past, and possibly everything about you. I even know
everything about your father, and even Kami and Neil. And yet, I still
don't understand you."

Piccolo eyed me warily. "Everything?"

"Anything your creators ever said about you. Everything
explained in the series. Of course, I have no idea about Dragonball
GT...." I trailed off. "Test me."

"Hmph. Fine. How was I born?"

"Gokuu killed your father, and rather last minute, before his
death, he spit an egg out through his chest. It's how all Namekjin
reproduce. Then you were supposed to destroy Gokuu."

"Never did."

"Too bad. It was tragic. Your dad was cute, y'know?"

"How could a human find a Namekjin attractive?"

"Is this a trick question?"

"No ... I'm merely asking you. Not the trivia you have stored
in your head."

"As in, why I'm infatuated with them? I have no idea, really.
All I know is that it started with you and kind of blossomed to Dende
and Neil."

Piccolo let out a low growl. "You aren't seriously infatuated
with me, are you?"

I shrugged. "Yeah, kind of. I mean, we're a lot alike. At
least, we were. Before you went soft."

"I never went soft," Piccolo growled in protest.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," I waved a hand absentmindedly in the air.
"You don't like killing as much as before, that's for sure."

"I'd like to see you try to kill someone," Piccolo grumbled.

"You haven't seen me threaten Erin with the butcher knives ..."
I said. As an afterthought, I added, "Erin's my little sister. Big pain
in the ass."

"Gohan has the same problem with Goten. The pain in the ass
part. He would never threaten his brother."

"I don't think Gohan likes me much."

"You're right, he doesn't."

"Hmm. Thought as much. I don't like him much either. He's
too ... nice. I'm more used to the people who I can beat up. As you've
seen with Mrianna."

"I remember that. I recollect our little stay very vividly."

"I've pretty much forgotten a lot of it. Except when I arrived
at Mrianna's. I swear, I probably would have fainted. It's not everyday
you meet the cartoon characters you've fawned over for the previous
year or so."

"Gabriyel! Turn off the television and get to sleep! I have
school tomorrow!" came the voice of my fourteen-year old sister, Erin.

"Screw off!" I shouted in reply, glaring to the door, desper-
ately hoping Erin wouldn't come in. Two years ago we had shared rooms.
Luckily, our parents built a room onto the back of the house, so I got
my own room, their old one, and Erin kept our old one. Unfortunately,
Erin's was right next to mine. Luckily, my parents' was in the back, so
they couldn't hear our heated arguments.

I heard Erin stomp off to her room and, rather loudly, shut her
door. I folded my arms over my chest.

"I hate my family," I turned to Piccolo. "You have no idea how
lucky you are. You get to actually be alone. My family never leaves the
house, it seems."

"You could always kill them," Piccolo joked, giving a rather
sideways grin, showing off his incredible teeth.

"I always wanted fangs. Funky. I didn't know Namekjin used
toothpaste."

"How did this discussion go from infatuation to toothpaste?"
Piccolo inquired, a brow raised.

"You're talking with Gabriyel Adria Crowwe, here. If you were
expecting a conversation that made sense, you should have tried talking
to Lilith. She's the only sane one I know. Sane-est. Heh."

Piccolo smirked a bit, still looking rather evil even when he
attempted not to be. "Perhaps I should go now, and allow you to mass-
murder your family."

"Or attempt to."

Piccolo fiddled with the watch on his wrist. I tilted my head.
It was silvery and looked just like any Timex watch. I hadn't noticed
it earlier, I suppose I was too busy to actually look at his wrists.

"Seventy seconds," Piccolo announced, gazing down to the watch
in anticipation for his leave.

I shrugged to myself, leaning over and kissing his cheek.
Piccolo looked up at me, a brow raised.

"You know what a kiss is right?" I asked.

"Yes, I do," Piccolo replied. "I've seen Gokuu kiss Chi-Chi
many times ..."

I smiled smugly. "Never been kissed before?"

"Not really," Piccolo admitted. He looked back to his watch.

I tilted my head again in a very birdlike fashion. Odd ... was
his face taking on a purple hue? Wasn't his blood purple ... ?

"Bye, Piccoro-sama."

"Sayonara, Gabriyel."

There was a flash of white light that filled the entire room,
and then Piccolo was gone. Silence filled the room.

I smiled to myself, and shut off the light, squirming back
under the covers and turning onto my side.

"Little do you know ... I haven't smiled in a very long time."


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