Disclaimer: I don't own DB, DBZ, DBGT, I don't even own the house I live
in, so leave me alone. I do own, however, any people coming out of my
deranged head.
A/N: Hi there. Sorry it took me such a long time to get this chapter out. As stated on my bio, I kinda got myself kicked off the computer for a while. It's resolved now, but I only get 1 hour of computer time a day, IF I get up well in the morning. My first thought after my mother told me this was, 'Oh crap, I'm never going on the computer again!' I'm not a morning person. My friends will tell you. At sleep-overs I'm known to nip at people's hands if they try to wake me. But, here I am. Hopefully an hour will be enough to get this thing done. All right, rambling over now.
### = dream sequence All dream sequence is in first person.
= time warp
~*~* = scene change ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was cold. Nope, it was *freaking* cold! It was only about a month until World Martial Arts Tournament. Piccolo had decided that it'd be better to train in harsher environments to build both his, and Colleen's strength. At first, Colleen thought it was a good idea. Then they got to their destination. They were in a secluded mountain range uninhabited by people. It was cold, snowing, and Colleen hated it.
"Special Beam Cannon!" Colleen yelled and aimed her two fingers at Piccolo. Nothing came out but a small spark of energy and light.
"What the hell was that?" Piccolo asked.
"H-hey, you t-t-try f-fighting in th-this k-k-kind of whe-whether." Colleen said shivering violently.
"I am fighting in this kind of whether."
"Y-yea, w-well you'r-re n-not hu-hu-human!" Colleen's face was red and she swore there was an icicle forming on her nose.
"Colleen, this harsh whether will help you become more focused. It will help you in the long run." Piccolo said, flying up to her meeting her eyes.
"Help m-me?! This is bull sh-sh-sh-"
"*sigh* You'll have to become immune to the cold, heat, and anything else Mother Nature can throw at you. An opponent will use your weaknesses against you. Suck it up, or are you a little wimp?" Piccolo said.
"By all means, b-bring on the w-wimpiness!! I'm c-c-cold and I'm-m going b- back in th-the c-cave where they're is h-heat!" She was shaking even more now, and started to descend to the ground when Piccolo's hand grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"You haven't done your 500 sit-ups and push-ups for the day." He said smiling sweetly.
"I h-hate you." Colleen said frowning.
They went to the ground and Colleen shakily started doing sit-ups. Once all 500 had been completed, she started on the push-ups. She didn't get so far on those, only about 50 and she dropped to the ground, not even caring about the cold snow underneath, for she couldn't really feel it anyway.
"Get up. You aren't finished." Piccolo said.
"I c-can't feel my arms. Can I p-please go back in the c-cave now?" Colleen asked looking up at Piccolo, almost crying.
Piccolo looked at her red face, and her watery eyes. 'I guess we should stop. She'll probably get frostbite, if she hasn't gotten it already.'
"Ok."
"Th-thank you P-p-pic-c-col-lo." She got up and ran to the cave they had set up their new camp in. It only consisted of rocks, a fur bed for Colleen, and a fire pit. It was dark and none to welcoming, but to Colleen, it looked like heaven. It was dreary, but warm. Well, warmer than outside.
Colleen sat down on her fur bed and covered herself with a bear skin. Don't ask how she got it, it wasn't pretty. She pulled the skin up to her chin and scooted closer to the fire warming her numb hands.
"The fire's getting low," Piccolo said. "I get some firewood. Stay here."
Colleen chuckled, shaking. "I'm n-not going anywh-where."
Piccolo went outside and started to fly away from the cave. The nearest tree was miles away, a drawback he only realized after they had come, remembering Colleen was human, and affected by cold. At the time, he'd forgotten she couldn't go barefoot in the snow like he could. He rarely got cold, and when he did, he just used his ki to warm himself. Colleen had tried it, but couldn't sustain it for as long as she needed to stay warm, and spar with him.
The wind started to pick up, so much so Piccolo had a hard time fighting it. 'Blizzard.' He thought. 'The wind's to strong. Flying is out.' He slowly descended to the ground. 'I'll have to travel the rest of the way on foot. I hope the fire back in the cave lasts.'
He moved over rock formations and cliffs, and finally came upon a lone pine. He cut it down with his laser eyes and chopped it into kindling. He took a fair sized bundle with him and headed back to the cave and Colleen. The wind let up a little after an hour or so, so he flew the rest of the way back. When he landed outside the fire had indeed died, how long ago, he hoped wasn't very long. If it died soon after he left, that would mean Colleen was sitting in the cold for two hours now. He walked inside to see Colleen still huddled under her skin, but she was shivering even harder and her cheeks were much redder than when he left. Her breathing was heavy also.
"Colleen, you ok?" He asked as he set the pile of wood in the fire pit and lit it with his ki. A nice little blaze started immediately.
"No." she answered weekly. Piccolo went up to her and put his hand on her forehead.
'She's burning up. It's got to be over 100('.
"Colleen, when did the fire go out."
"Uh, about, ah, a few minutes after you left." She said and coughed.
"Oh, man. You're definitely sick. You need to try and get some sleep." Piccolo said concern in his voice.
"I can't, I'm so cold, and my head hurts, and I'm dizzy. It hurts so bad." A small tear ran down her cheek and she coughed again. Her head was spinning and throbbing and felt as large as a watermelon. She couldn't feel her finger or toe tips anymore. Her vision was blurry and it was very hard to breath. Her mind was so out of it she didn't even feel Piccolo pick her up and place her closer to the fire. She only registered there was heat in front of her.
Piccolo placed Colleen down in front of the fire and sat behind her holding her up. She was too weak to sit on her own. She was still shivering and breathing heavily.
"This is all my fault." He said.
"I t-told you I wasn't m-made for this." Colleen wheezed.
"Forgot how fragile you are." Piccolo said smiling.
"Fragile? Who you c-calling fragile? I'm not fragile, just freezing my ass off!" She chuckled then coughed some more.
"I don't think I've met anyone who swears as much as you besides me." Piccolo said. He started to rub her arms so she could feel them again.
"Hehe, you sound like my father." She replied tiredness in her voice.
"You miss him?"
"Yea, sometimes. Hm, if I ever get home and you two have a chance to meet, I'll have to hide his gun." She started to giggle.
"Because I'm a giant green monster." He said flatly.
"No, because you're a teenage boy who's spending too much time with his little girl. Don't feel special, he'd do that to any teenage boy who he doesn't know who spends time with me. Even guys he does know." Colleen was slowly nodding off. Her head would droop and her eyes felt very heavy.
It wasn't long before Colleen fell asleep. Piccolo just stayed with her in his lap. She needed the sleep, he told himself. So he just closed his eyes to meditate. But, he hadn't slept in a while either. Meditation soon gave way to slumber.
#################
It was dark and cold. I can actually feel the cold. Looking around, I'm in the middle of a forest. My forest. No moon, no stars, nothing to light the night. Wait, where's Colleen?
"Colleen? Where are you?" I yell.
"Shhhh!!" Colleen comes out from behind a giant tree root and grabs my arm. I must have jumped five feet in the air. She scared the crap out of me!
"Get down!" She whispered harshly and pulled me down to the ground level. "Don't you know they'll hear you?"
"Who'll hear me?" What's going on? Colleen looks so nervous.
"You know...them." Ok, getting creeped out now.
"Them?" This is so puzzling. What's after us? Goku can't scare her like this, she knows she's stronger than that.
A stick breaks somewhere in the distance, and Colleen grabs the collar of my shirt and pulls my face into the dirt. I look over to her and she's covering her head with her hands and breathing hard. Footsteps. The sound of footsteps looms right over us. My heart starts to pound. I have no freaking' clue what we're so scared of, but whatever it is, it can't be too nice.
Whatever is after us seems to be on top of us. I can hear Colleen's heart beat faster and harder and I know she's trying not to breath for fear of us getting caught by, whatever the heck this thing is. The footsteps start to sound farther and farther away. Thank Kami, and I use that term loosely. Colleen and I both stick out our heads just enough so I eyes can be seen, and nothing but black is out there. Whatever was there is gone now.
"Thank Kami." Colleen whispers. She gets up and turns around. I start to get up when I see something flicker out in the woods. Like a mirage. Then I hear Colleen scream like bloody murder. I don't have much time to contemplate what she's shrilling towards, because she grabs my hand and we start to run like the Devil.
We run, and run, and run some more. From what, got me. But if Colleen screams like that, I don't think I want to know. But do I ever get any say in my life? No.
Colleen and I are knocked down by some powerful force. I look up only to see some sort of shadow in front of me. It jumps me, and I feel pain when it grabs me in a choke hold. How the heck can a shadow cause pain?! I forces my head to look in the direction of Colleen and another, more powerful shadow. Colleen is fighting her hardest, but it isn't enough. She punches it in the face, but it just blows her into a boulder with it's ki. It grabs a silver dagger with a ruby handle out of it's dark sleeve. Colleen gets up and charges it.
"Colleen, look out!!" I try to break free of the shadow monster, but I can't. I'm not strong enough. This isn't supposed to happen to me, damnit!
I look up to see Colleen run up to the shadow; she doesn't see the dagger! The shadow stands up abruptly as she comes within striking distance and plunges the dagger in her stomach. Colleen's eyes widen and her mouth opens to scream, but nothing comes out. The shadow roughly jerks the blade out of her and she slumps to the ground. Both of the shadow creatures disappear in thin air.
"Colleen, no!" I run up to her and pick her up in my arms. There's blood everywhere; on her clothes, her body, my clothes, my hands...everywhere. She looks up at me with clouded eyes.
"Pi-ic-c-co-l-lo." She can barely speak. She coughs up more blood. 'This can't be happening!'
"Shh. I'm here. You're going to be ok." I feel something in my eyes. Tears? I'm crying?
She smiles weakly and reaches up a shaky hands to my face."I-I'm s-sor-ry." She whispered. Then her eyes cloud over completely and her hand drops from my face to the ground. I can't feel her ki. No, no, she can't be...
"Colleen. Colleen! Don't die, damnit!!" But I know it's too late. They killed her. THEY KILLED HER!!
"RrrrrrAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"
######################
Piccolo's eyes open quickly and he takes in a sharp breath. A sheen of sweat covered his face. That had to be a dream, right? He looks down in his lap to see Colleen sleeping facing the fire, using his knee as a pillow.
'She's safe.' He sighs. 'Just a dream. Or could it be a vision? I'm not one to have nightmares for no reason. Something's either coming or it's here. I bet it has something to do with that presence I've been feeling.' He scowls and stares at the fire.
Colleen shifts position in his lap to where she is lying on her back. Her eyebrows come together in a frown and she mumbles non-coherently. Piccolo looks down to her. Her cheeks are still red with fever, and she's still breathing hard. What is he supposed to do? He's no doctor. He doesn't get sick!
"I guess I have no choice but to take you to Goku's. Kami, I hate this!" He picks her up with the bear-skin blanket wrapped around her and steps out of the cave. He powers up to keep them both warm and shoots into the sky.
Unfortunately, the wind hadn't let up from when he came back. In fact, it was worse. Snow was falling hard, and Piccolo couldn't see two feet in front of his face. Luckily his ki was melting the snow before it could touch either him or Colleen. Still, it was no walk, or in this case, flight through the park. The wind was picking up speed and Piccolo had trouble fighting it. Soon he was going backwards, so he had no choice but to drop to the ground. He descended into the trees and started to walk in the direction of Son Goku's home.
Surprisingly enough, it only took about fifteen minutes to get to the little hut Goku was staying in. Piccolo walked up to the door and knocked with his right shoulder because both of his hands were busy carrying Colleen. He got no answer. He knocked again, harder this time. Still, nothing. He took his right hand out from under Colleen's knees and knocked forcefully on the door. All he got in response was a loud snore from Goku.
"Goku, open this door, NOW!!" Piccolo was getting annoyed and angry. Colleen coughed and started to moan louder. "GOKU!!!"
Still only a loud snore and a light whistling sound flowed from the small one room hut.
"Fine! I'll come in MYSELF!!!" Piccolo raised his hand and blasted down the door. He went into the hut and saw Goku, still sound asleep. His patience had given up and decided to take a vacation.
He put Colleen down in a chair and walked over to Goku's bed where he was happily snoring away. He put his face up to Goku's ear and .....
"WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!"
"AHHH!!" Goku jumped out of his bed and landed on the opposite side.
"They're here!! Everyone, baton down the hatches, hide the women and children, save the cheeseburgers!!!" He looked up and saw a none to happy giant green man staring at him. "Oh hi Piccolo! What's up?"
"What's up? What's up?! I'll tell you WHAT'S UP!! Colleen's sick and dying and I have no frickin' clue how to help her since DEMONS DON'T GET SICK!!!! HOW ARE YOU???!!!!" Piccolo's eyes were glowing red and anyone in the room would swear they saw a vain pop in his head.
Goku had shrunk in the corner next to his bed looking a little blue. "I-it was only a q-question." He said squeakily.
Piccolo said through clenched teeth, "Goku...Help. Me. Help. Colleen. Now!"
"Ok, ok, sheesh. You don't have to be so grouchy. Now let's see what's wrong with her." He went over to Colleen on the chair and put a hand on her head. His face went very serious.
"She has a very, very high fever. We need to get her to the hospital quickly before her temperature goes too high and kills her."
"Where's a hospital around here? If you haven't noticed, we're out in the middle of nowhere." Piccolo said.
Goku picked Colleen up. "The nearest hospital is too far away. But Bulma should have some pretty good medical supplies at her place."
"That loud-mouthed blue-haired harpy?"
"Yep."
"Fine."
They both went out the hole in the wall and flew off towards Capsule Corp. They were still against the wind, but flying was the only way they'd get to the giant building within the time Colleen had. They landed on the front porch and didn't even bother knocking.
"Bulma!!" Goku yelled. They went in and Bulma came down the steps in a pink night gown, her hair a little ruffled from sleeping.
"Goku, it's 4:00 a.m. in the morning. You had better have a really good-" Then her eyes landed on Piccolo. "Goku...are you aware of the fact that Piccolo is in my living room?"
"Yes, Bulma. Listen, this girl is really REALLY sick. She might die, you have to help her. You do have a medical room here, right?"
"Of course. Follow me." she turned around and led them down the hall to a large room filled with machines with a table in the middle of the room. Piccolo and Goku automatically didn't like the room with the machines, alcohol smell, all the white, and needles. Goku was not a big fan of needles.
"Lay her down on the table." Bulma ordered. Goku complied and laid her on the medical table. "Al right then, let's see what's wrong."
She put both the boys out of the room to run some tests. They both waited anxiously in the hall, both pacing back and forth until they bumped into each other. Piccolo growled and Goku went back to pacing. Bulma opened the door to the medical lab and both men lined up in front of her.
"Well?" they both said at once.
"Well, she's got pneumonia. Not life threatening, but it's a good thing you got her here when you did. Another couple of hours and she'd be as good as a door nail. Goku, I need your help putting an IV in her. Her ki is preventing my needles from penetrating the skin."
"NEEDLES??!! NO WAY!!!!" Goku yelled. He ran and hid behind a lamp. He looked as though he'd pee his pants.
"Goku, you are such a baby! Ok, Piccolo, come on." She grabbed his arm and led him into the med. lab.
All of the white in the room was a little blinding. Bulma led Piccolo to the bed Colleen was on and went over to a drawer and got out an IV kit. Piccolo looked at Colleen who looked white except for the feverish red tint to her cheeks. She was breathing better, but still not normally.
"Here." Bulma said handing Piccolo a needle with a small plastic tube attached. "All you have to do is stick the needle in that vein in her arm where her elbow joint is. I'll do the rest." And she went back to the counter and started to rummage through some more medical junk.
Piccolo looked at the needle. If she woke up, she wouldn't be a happy camper. And if he stuck the wrong vein, she might bleed to death. AND what if he put it in too hard? Shooting people, cakewalk. This...not so cakie.
'It can't be that hard.' He thought. He took the needle and put it too Colleen's skin. Carefully, and slowly, he started to put the needle in. He met a little resistance from her ki, but just used his to push the needle through the skin.
'That wasn't hard.' He smirked. Then the tube slowly started to fill with blood. This is when he freaked out. And when I say 'freaked out', I mean he went into full-scale-panic mode.
"Bulma! What's happening?!" He yelled at her. He thought about taking the needle out, but that might cause more damage than good with the kind of luck he had.
"What?" Bulma turned around and saw what was the cause of the panic. "That? Please, nothing's wrong, just hold her arm up. I'll attach the bag."
"You're sure?"
"Am I not the smartest woman on Earth? Of course I'm sure! Here, step aside. Men." She went to Colleen and attached the other end of the tube to a longer tube connected to a bag with clear liquid in it. She hung the bag on a little hook above the bed. The liquid started to drip-drop from the bag into the tube.
"All right, out. Not that I don't love you or anything Piccolo, but this is MY lab so, vamoose." She went behind him and pushed him out the door.
"Is it over?" Goku asked behind the lamp.
"Yes Goku, it's over. You two can stay on the couches in the living room if you want. Goku, there's plenty of food in the frige. You're welcome to it, just don't eat me out of house and home." She headed for the stairs. She yawned and waved her hand over her mouth. After she had disappeared from sight, Goku and Piccolo stared at each other and got a very familiar glint in their eyes.
Bulma's head suddenly came up on the intercom/screen behind Goku in the wall. "And if either of you even _attempt_ to fight, I'll make sure neither of you can move anything on your body for a very long, painful time. GOT IT??!!"
"Got it." They both said. Goku did *not* want to upset Bulma. Piccolo didn't really fear her, she had helped Colleen so he'd behave. Though he won't tell, you know he's scared. Any man in his right mind would be.
"Well," Goku said. "I'm going to the kitchen. Take any couch you want." And the happy-go-lucky man hummed happily as he went to binge.
"Baka." Piccolo said. He went around the corner and into the living room. It was pinkish with two pink couches, a pink lazy-boy, a pink shaded lamp on a white table by each couch, a mega-screen TV, and a wooden coffee table with a small pink table cloth on it with the remote resting there. It was all so pink, he almost threw up.
'Oh well, beats being outside. I guess.'
He went over to the larger of the couches in front of the TV and laid down. It was soft, squishy, and very comfortable. He hated it. He grabbed one of the overly soft pillows and a blanked and laid down on the hard wood floor.
'Much better.' He thought. He couldn't wait to go back to the dark, dank, slimy, hard floored, cold, gloomy little cave in the secluded, lonely, freezing cold mountains. As soon as Colleen was better, they'd go back to that little heck hole they called home-sweet-home.
Goku came back into the living room a few minutes later yawning and rubbing his eyes. He flopped down on the smaller couch by the window, put his hands in a praying position under is head, and started snoring. Very loudly. You couldn't hear a buzz saw over that man's nose. Piccolo covered his face with his hand.
"It's going to be a loooooong night." He rolled onto his side and covered his ears with the pillow and fitfully fell asleep.
Time warp to the next morning
Colleen slowly opened her eyes and looked around the room. It was white and cold with beeping machines around the bed she was in. She bolted upright sending her hair forward around her face.
'I'm in a hospital.' She thought. 'I HATE HOSPITALS!'
She began to freak, pulling all and any needles and wires out and off of her body. All of the machine's beeping stopped. She jumped out of the bed pulling all the sheets off. She was in different clothes. Not her red gi, but a hospital gown. She didn't really want to rip the gown off and be in just her tidy whities.
'Where is Piccolo?' she thought frantically. "Piccolo?" No answer. "Piccolo?!" Still nodda. "PICCOLO!!!!"
The whole house herd the earth-shattering scream. Goku nearly choked on the pillow he was dreaming was a giant brownie. Bulma screamed and fell out of bed. Piccolo bumped his head on the bottom of the coffee table he mysteriously got under when he tried to bolt up. He rolled over, jumped up and ran to the med. Lab door. He threw it open expecting to see Colleen hurt or covered in blood or something, but she was just trying to keep the gown closed.
"You screeched?" He asked.
"Oh Piccolo!" She went up and hugged his waist. She then retracted and took the collar of his gi in both hands and pulled his head down to her level. "Help me find my clothes and get me out of here!"
She let go and started searching the room for her gi, preferably her pants. Piccolo quirked an eyeridge. "Ok. What's got you so worked up?" He was extremely relieved to see her up and about, and spouting orders. She was back.
"I hate, I mean really, _really_ hate hospitals and everything to do with them! I have to get out of here." She opened cupboards and drawers and threw everything out of them. "Where are my clothes??!!"
"Calm down onna, we are not at a hospital."
She looked up from the pile of stuff she was sifting through. "What do you mean, 'we are not at a hospital'? Where else would we be with me dressed like this?"
"Bulma's. We are in the medical lab. Do you know who Bulma is?"
Colleen walked back to the bed and sat down. "The smartest and richest woman in the world. That still doesn't explain where my clothes are."
Piccolo leaned against the door frame. "She took them to be washed. If you want something more....suitable I suggest you ask her."
Colleen blushed. Getting caught in a hospital gown sure pushed your pride level down. Especially if you're a girl and the person you're caught by is a guy. She slid off the bed, taking a sheet with her, and walked past Piccolo out the door to find Bulma and get some decent clothes on. She ran into Bulma as soon as she got out the door.
"Oh good, you're awake! Hi, I'm Bulma. You've probably heard of me and my father's company."
"Yes of course." Colleen said. "It's so nice to meet you. I don't know if Piccolo told you or not, but my name's Colleen. Um, could I have some clothes?" Colleen smiled and put her hand behind her head.
Bulma put her hands over her mouth. "Oh, I'm so sorry! Of course you can have some clothes. How rude of me. I bet you're around my size. Come on, I have tons of clothes you could try on!" With that she grabbed Colleen's arm and pulled her up the stairs.
When they got into Bulma's room, Bulma set Colleen on the bed and went into her HUGE closet. Colleen looked around the room. It was beautiful. The walls were blue with white lilies painted on randomly. She was on a queen sized bed with a white comforter and light blue silk pillows. By the bed was a large dark colored wood dresser with little angel figurines and a red music box. Across from the bed was the closet, private bathroom door, and a full body mirror. In the mirror she saw her own reflection for the first time in months. She looked awful! Her hair was messy and greasy, her face was dirty and bruised, as were her arms and legs.
"Here we are." Said Bulma walking out of the closet. She was holding a bundle of clothes. She dropped them on the bed next to Colleen. "You can pick anything out of here."
"Bulma?"
"Yes Colleen?"
"I could really use a shower, so...." Colleen said with a hopeful look on her face.
"Be my guest."
"Bulma, if I were a man, I'd kiss you."
"Well you're not a man, so please don't." She said teasingly. She turned and walked into the bathroom to get a towel.
'A shower.' Colleen thought. 'I'm going to take a real shower again!'
Bulma came out of the bathroom, handed Colleen a blue towel and waved her goodbye. Colleen stepped out of the sheet and gown and went into the bathroom. She turned the shower on and stepped in.
"Oh Kami, hot water." She looked up and saw all the different shampoos, conditioners and body washes. "I think I've died and gone to heaven!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Piccolo, Bulma and Goku were in the kitchen. Piccolo and Goku were at the table, Bulma was at the stove cooking up something.
"Oh boy, that smells great Bulma!" Goku said almost drooling.
"Thanks Goku." She loaded some food onto a plate and put it in front Goku. He immediately dove into it forgetting his fork.
Piccolo grimaced at the other end of the table. 'That's disgusting.'
"Didn't miss breakfast, did I?" came Colleen's voice from in the kitchen doorway. Piccolo turned and nearly fell out of his seat. She was wearing a black tank top and blue jean shorts, and her hair was let down and was wet.
'Wow. She looks good in black.' Piccolo thought.
"Nope. But Goku ate all the food I just cooked up. If you want to help me make more food, you're welcome to it." Bulma said leaning one hand on the stove.
"Ok." Colleen went to the stove and cracked a few eggs in a skillet. She and Bulma set to work on a new batch of food.
"What's with the clothes Colleen? Where's your gi?" Piccolo asked.
"I threw that old disgusting thing out." Bulma said.
"You what?!" Piccolo's brows pulled together in a frown. Well, more of a frown than usual.
"Calm down Pic." Colleen said not turning around. "You can just make me a new one later. Bulma, where's the salt?"
"Over there." She pointed to a cupboard next to Colleen.
Colleen grabbed the salt and sprinkled some on her omelet. She grabbed a piece of toast on the table untouched by Goku and sat down next to Piccolo. She grabbed a fork and dug in. At her first bite she made a moaning sound. Piccolo looked at her funny.
"Real food." She explained. Piccolo quirked an eyeridge and continued to stare at her eating her meal.
"What did you eat out in the wilderness?" Bulma asked.
"Fruit, birds, nuts, the occasional fish......that's about it." She said taking another bite.
"That's all? Wow, I could never do that. There's no variety." Bulma said taking a sip of coffee from a mug.
Colleen licked her fork and placed it on the now empty plate. She took her orange juice already on the table and drank it all in one gulp. She stood up and took the dishes to the sink and placed them in. She rinsed them and hopped up on the counter swinging her legs back and forth crossed at the ankle.
"I guess we can leave now." Piccolo said and stood up. He couldn't wait to get out of there. It was too cheery.
"Why? I don't want to go back to the cave." Colleen said.
"It's essential for out training. Come on." He crossed his arms in front of his chest waiting for Colleen to fallow him.
"No. I don't like the cave. I don't care if it's essential. I want to go back to the clearing." Colleen crossed her arms in front of her chest signaling she wasn't about to move.
"Oh, I know!" Bulma suddenly shouted. "You guys could stay here until the tournament. I have a huge backyard you guys could train in. It'll be perfect! I could always use another girl around here to talk to."
Piccolo didn't like the idea one bit. "Bulma-"
"That's a great idea Bulma! Of course we'll stay!" Colleen interrupted.
"Now listed here!" Piccolo tried.
"Great!" said Bulma. "I'll get both your rooms ready. Or if you'd rather sleep outside I could set up some tents."
"Hello, are you listening to me?" Piccolo tried again.
"I know Piccolo will want to stay outside, but I'd really appreciate a bed." Colleen said putting her hand on her chest.
"I don't want to stay here!" Piccolo said. Still the girls babbled on.
"It's futile, my friend." Goku said after finishing all the food on his plate. "Once girls get to something, they won't let go and not you nor I can make them."
"Oh really? You just watch." Piccolo walked up to the girls, still gabbing away.
"Colleen, we are NOT staying here. That is final." And he started to walk away smirking knowing she wouldn't contradict him. So little he knows of women.
"Oh no it's not! We're staying here, and THAT is final!" She said putting her hands on her hips.
He turned around with anger clearly evident on his face. "Colleen, can we talk in private?"
"Sure." She hopped down from the kitchen counter and followed him into the living room.
"Who do you think you are talking to me like that?!" Piccolo yelled.
"I can talk to you anyway I want!" she snapped back.
"Oh really? Fine then. But we are not staying here!"
"You are not my father, my brother, or my boyfriend! You have no right ordering me around. It's always been what you want, not what I want. You say where we live, how we train, when we train, when I can rest, when I can eat, and everything about my life since I got dropped in this dimension! It's my turn to make some of the decisions! And I decide we stay here until the Martial Arts Tournament!!" Her face was red with anger by the time she finished. Piccolo's was purple with it.
"I give you a choice, it's you who chooses to go with what I tell you to do. I think you forget you're place. I am Piccolo The-"
"Demon King. Yes I know, I've heard it a million times before! And I have no place with you, I am your equal whether you like it or not! Why don't you want to stay here? Goku won't be here."
"Why do you want to stay?!"
"Oh I don't know." She took her hands off her hip and started counting with her fingers. "More than semi-edible food, a warm bed, heat, fresh clean running water, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, a place to come into after the rain that's DRY! I could go on."
Piccolo just stared at her. Was she really that miserable with him? His brows came down more from a frown to a scowl. "Fine." He said spitefully. He walked past her and went out the kitchen door to the backyard.
Bulma took the chance to peek in the living room without getting her head bitten off. "Soo...are you guys staying?"
Colleen smiled. "Yep. Piccolo will just have to get used to it for a month."
Bulma smiled. "Good. Come on, let's get your room ready."
"A real bed. Bulma, you have no idea how happy this makes me!" And they both went up the stairs leaving a still hungry Goku, and an infuriated demon.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ok peoples, this is where I need your help. In the next chapter the World Martial Arts Tournament will finally take place. Only problem is, I never saw the episode(s) where Goku and Piccolo fight. I know, I'm bad! I need you to tell me what happens, how many people were there (fighters), and who were the last 8 finalists. Tell me the weakest one so I can replace them. Tell me who Goku beats and who Piccolo beats. And be as detailed as humanly possible for the final fight between our muscle heads. And, if possible, tell me any key lines they might have said that is essential to the story. Either tell me in a review or e-mail me. On the e-mail title it WMAT PvsG details. Thank you soooooooooooooo much!!!!!!!!!!
Wow, I had a long chapter! Yay me! REVIEW!!!! And again, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!!!!!!
A/N: Hi there. Sorry it took me such a long time to get this chapter out. As stated on my bio, I kinda got myself kicked off the computer for a while. It's resolved now, but I only get 1 hour of computer time a day, IF I get up well in the morning. My first thought after my mother told me this was, 'Oh crap, I'm never going on the computer again!' I'm not a morning person. My friends will tell you. At sleep-overs I'm known to nip at people's hands if they try to wake me. But, here I am. Hopefully an hour will be enough to get this thing done. All right, rambling over now.
### = dream sequence All dream sequence is in first person.
= time warp
~*~* = scene change ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was cold. Nope, it was *freaking* cold! It was only about a month until World Martial Arts Tournament. Piccolo had decided that it'd be better to train in harsher environments to build both his, and Colleen's strength. At first, Colleen thought it was a good idea. Then they got to their destination. They were in a secluded mountain range uninhabited by people. It was cold, snowing, and Colleen hated it.
"Special Beam Cannon!" Colleen yelled and aimed her two fingers at Piccolo. Nothing came out but a small spark of energy and light.
"What the hell was that?" Piccolo asked.
"H-hey, you t-t-try f-fighting in th-this k-k-kind of whe-whether." Colleen said shivering violently.
"I am fighting in this kind of whether."
"Y-yea, w-well you'r-re n-not hu-hu-human!" Colleen's face was red and she swore there was an icicle forming on her nose.
"Colleen, this harsh whether will help you become more focused. It will help you in the long run." Piccolo said, flying up to her meeting her eyes.
"Help m-me?! This is bull sh-sh-sh-"
"*sigh* You'll have to become immune to the cold, heat, and anything else Mother Nature can throw at you. An opponent will use your weaknesses against you. Suck it up, or are you a little wimp?" Piccolo said.
"By all means, b-bring on the w-wimpiness!! I'm c-c-cold and I'm-m going b- back in th-the c-cave where they're is h-heat!" She was shaking even more now, and started to descend to the ground when Piccolo's hand grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"You haven't done your 500 sit-ups and push-ups for the day." He said smiling sweetly.
"I h-hate you." Colleen said frowning.
They went to the ground and Colleen shakily started doing sit-ups. Once all 500 had been completed, she started on the push-ups. She didn't get so far on those, only about 50 and she dropped to the ground, not even caring about the cold snow underneath, for she couldn't really feel it anyway.
"Get up. You aren't finished." Piccolo said.
"I c-can't feel my arms. Can I p-please go back in the c-cave now?" Colleen asked looking up at Piccolo, almost crying.
Piccolo looked at her red face, and her watery eyes. 'I guess we should stop. She'll probably get frostbite, if she hasn't gotten it already.'
"Ok."
"Th-thank you P-p-pic-c-col-lo." She got up and ran to the cave they had set up their new camp in. It only consisted of rocks, a fur bed for Colleen, and a fire pit. It was dark and none to welcoming, but to Colleen, it looked like heaven. It was dreary, but warm. Well, warmer than outside.
Colleen sat down on her fur bed and covered herself with a bear skin. Don't ask how she got it, it wasn't pretty. She pulled the skin up to her chin and scooted closer to the fire warming her numb hands.
"The fire's getting low," Piccolo said. "I get some firewood. Stay here."
Colleen chuckled, shaking. "I'm n-not going anywh-where."
Piccolo went outside and started to fly away from the cave. The nearest tree was miles away, a drawback he only realized after they had come, remembering Colleen was human, and affected by cold. At the time, he'd forgotten she couldn't go barefoot in the snow like he could. He rarely got cold, and when he did, he just used his ki to warm himself. Colleen had tried it, but couldn't sustain it for as long as she needed to stay warm, and spar with him.
The wind started to pick up, so much so Piccolo had a hard time fighting it. 'Blizzard.' He thought. 'The wind's to strong. Flying is out.' He slowly descended to the ground. 'I'll have to travel the rest of the way on foot. I hope the fire back in the cave lasts.'
He moved over rock formations and cliffs, and finally came upon a lone pine. He cut it down with his laser eyes and chopped it into kindling. He took a fair sized bundle with him and headed back to the cave and Colleen. The wind let up a little after an hour or so, so he flew the rest of the way back. When he landed outside the fire had indeed died, how long ago, he hoped wasn't very long. If it died soon after he left, that would mean Colleen was sitting in the cold for two hours now. He walked inside to see Colleen still huddled under her skin, but she was shivering even harder and her cheeks were much redder than when he left. Her breathing was heavy also.
"Colleen, you ok?" He asked as he set the pile of wood in the fire pit and lit it with his ki. A nice little blaze started immediately.
"No." she answered weekly. Piccolo went up to her and put his hand on her forehead.
'She's burning up. It's got to be over 100('.
"Colleen, when did the fire go out."
"Uh, about, ah, a few minutes after you left." She said and coughed.
"Oh, man. You're definitely sick. You need to try and get some sleep." Piccolo said concern in his voice.
"I can't, I'm so cold, and my head hurts, and I'm dizzy. It hurts so bad." A small tear ran down her cheek and she coughed again. Her head was spinning and throbbing and felt as large as a watermelon. She couldn't feel her finger or toe tips anymore. Her vision was blurry and it was very hard to breath. Her mind was so out of it she didn't even feel Piccolo pick her up and place her closer to the fire. She only registered there was heat in front of her.
Piccolo placed Colleen down in front of the fire and sat behind her holding her up. She was too weak to sit on her own. She was still shivering and breathing heavily.
"This is all my fault." He said.
"I t-told you I wasn't m-made for this." Colleen wheezed.
"Forgot how fragile you are." Piccolo said smiling.
"Fragile? Who you c-calling fragile? I'm not fragile, just freezing my ass off!" She chuckled then coughed some more.
"I don't think I've met anyone who swears as much as you besides me." Piccolo said. He started to rub her arms so she could feel them again.
"Hehe, you sound like my father." She replied tiredness in her voice.
"You miss him?"
"Yea, sometimes. Hm, if I ever get home and you two have a chance to meet, I'll have to hide his gun." She started to giggle.
"Because I'm a giant green monster." He said flatly.
"No, because you're a teenage boy who's spending too much time with his little girl. Don't feel special, he'd do that to any teenage boy who he doesn't know who spends time with me. Even guys he does know." Colleen was slowly nodding off. Her head would droop and her eyes felt very heavy.
It wasn't long before Colleen fell asleep. Piccolo just stayed with her in his lap. She needed the sleep, he told himself. So he just closed his eyes to meditate. But, he hadn't slept in a while either. Meditation soon gave way to slumber.
#################
It was dark and cold. I can actually feel the cold. Looking around, I'm in the middle of a forest. My forest. No moon, no stars, nothing to light the night. Wait, where's Colleen?
"Colleen? Where are you?" I yell.
"Shhhh!!" Colleen comes out from behind a giant tree root and grabs my arm. I must have jumped five feet in the air. She scared the crap out of me!
"Get down!" She whispered harshly and pulled me down to the ground level. "Don't you know they'll hear you?"
"Who'll hear me?" What's going on? Colleen looks so nervous.
"You know...them." Ok, getting creeped out now.
"Them?" This is so puzzling. What's after us? Goku can't scare her like this, she knows she's stronger than that.
A stick breaks somewhere in the distance, and Colleen grabs the collar of my shirt and pulls my face into the dirt. I look over to her and she's covering her head with her hands and breathing hard. Footsteps. The sound of footsteps looms right over us. My heart starts to pound. I have no freaking' clue what we're so scared of, but whatever it is, it can't be too nice.
Whatever is after us seems to be on top of us. I can hear Colleen's heart beat faster and harder and I know she's trying not to breath for fear of us getting caught by, whatever the heck this thing is. The footsteps start to sound farther and farther away. Thank Kami, and I use that term loosely. Colleen and I both stick out our heads just enough so I eyes can be seen, and nothing but black is out there. Whatever was there is gone now.
"Thank Kami." Colleen whispers. She gets up and turns around. I start to get up when I see something flicker out in the woods. Like a mirage. Then I hear Colleen scream like bloody murder. I don't have much time to contemplate what she's shrilling towards, because she grabs my hand and we start to run like the Devil.
We run, and run, and run some more. From what, got me. But if Colleen screams like that, I don't think I want to know. But do I ever get any say in my life? No.
Colleen and I are knocked down by some powerful force. I look up only to see some sort of shadow in front of me. It jumps me, and I feel pain when it grabs me in a choke hold. How the heck can a shadow cause pain?! I forces my head to look in the direction of Colleen and another, more powerful shadow. Colleen is fighting her hardest, but it isn't enough. She punches it in the face, but it just blows her into a boulder with it's ki. It grabs a silver dagger with a ruby handle out of it's dark sleeve. Colleen gets up and charges it.
"Colleen, look out!!" I try to break free of the shadow monster, but I can't. I'm not strong enough. This isn't supposed to happen to me, damnit!
I look up to see Colleen run up to the shadow; she doesn't see the dagger! The shadow stands up abruptly as she comes within striking distance and plunges the dagger in her stomach. Colleen's eyes widen and her mouth opens to scream, but nothing comes out. The shadow roughly jerks the blade out of her and she slumps to the ground. Both of the shadow creatures disappear in thin air.
"Colleen, no!" I run up to her and pick her up in my arms. There's blood everywhere; on her clothes, her body, my clothes, my hands...everywhere. She looks up at me with clouded eyes.
"Pi-ic-c-co-l-lo." She can barely speak. She coughs up more blood. 'This can't be happening!'
"Shh. I'm here. You're going to be ok." I feel something in my eyes. Tears? I'm crying?
She smiles weakly and reaches up a shaky hands to my face."I-I'm s-sor-ry." She whispered. Then her eyes cloud over completely and her hand drops from my face to the ground. I can't feel her ki. No, no, she can't be...
"Colleen. Colleen! Don't die, damnit!!" But I know it's too late. They killed her. THEY KILLED HER!!
"RrrrrrAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"
######################
Piccolo's eyes open quickly and he takes in a sharp breath. A sheen of sweat covered his face. That had to be a dream, right? He looks down in his lap to see Colleen sleeping facing the fire, using his knee as a pillow.
'She's safe.' He sighs. 'Just a dream. Or could it be a vision? I'm not one to have nightmares for no reason. Something's either coming or it's here. I bet it has something to do with that presence I've been feeling.' He scowls and stares at the fire.
Colleen shifts position in his lap to where she is lying on her back. Her eyebrows come together in a frown and she mumbles non-coherently. Piccolo looks down to her. Her cheeks are still red with fever, and she's still breathing hard. What is he supposed to do? He's no doctor. He doesn't get sick!
"I guess I have no choice but to take you to Goku's. Kami, I hate this!" He picks her up with the bear-skin blanket wrapped around her and steps out of the cave. He powers up to keep them both warm and shoots into the sky.
Unfortunately, the wind hadn't let up from when he came back. In fact, it was worse. Snow was falling hard, and Piccolo couldn't see two feet in front of his face. Luckily his ki was melting the snow before it could touch either him or Colleen. Still, it was no walk, or in this case, flight through the park. The wind was picking up speed and Piccolo had trouble fighting it. Soon he was going backwards, so he had no choice but to drop to the ground. He descended into the trees and started to walk in the direction of Son Goku's home.
Surprisingly enough, it only took about fifteen minutes to get to the little hut Goku was staying in. Piccolo walked up to the door and knocked with his right shoulder because both of his hands were busy carrying Colleen. He got no answer. He knocked again, harder this time. Still, nothing. He took his right hand out from under Colleen's knees and knocked forcefully on the door. All he got in response was a loud snore from Goku.
"Goku, open this door, NOW!!" Piccolo was getting annoyed and angry. Colleen coughed and started to moan louder. "GOKU!!!"
Still only a loud snore and a light whistling sound flowed from the small one room hut.
"Fine! I'll come in MYSELF!!!" Piccolo raised his hand and blasted down the door. He went into the hut and saw Goku, still sound asleep. His patience had given up and decided to take a vacation.
He put Colleen down in a chair and walked over to Goku's bed where he was happily snoring away. He put his face up to Goku's ear and .....
"WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!"
"AHHH!!" Goku jumped out of his bed and landed on the opposite side.
"They're here!! Everyone, baton down the hatches, hide the women and children, save the cheeseburgers!!!" He looked up and saw a none to happy giant green man staring at him. "Oh hi Piccolo! What's up?"
"What's up? What's up?! I'll tell you WHAT'S UP!! Colleen's sick and dying and I have no frickin' clue how to help her since DEMONS DON'T GET SICK!!!! HOW ARE YOU???!!!!" Piccolo's eyes were glowing red and anyone in the room would swear they saw a vain pop in his head.
Goku had shrunk in the corner next to his bed looking a little blue. "I-it was only a q-question." He said squeakily.
Piccolo said through clenched teeth, "Goku...Help. Me. Help. Colleen. Now!"
"Ok, ok, sheesh. You don't have to be so grouchy. Now let's see what's wrong with her." He went over to Colleen on the chair and put a hand on her head. His face went very serious.
"She has a very, very high fever. We need to get her to the hospital quickly before her temperature goes too high and kills her."
"Where's a hospital around here? If you haven't noticed, we're out in the middle of nowhere." Piccolo said.
Goku picked Colleen up. "The nearest hospital is too far away. But Bulma should have some pretty good medical supplies at her place."
"That loud-mouthed blue-haired harpy?"
"Yep."
"Fine."
They both went out the hole in the wall and flew off towards Capsule Corp. They were still against the wind, but flying was the only way they'd get to the giant building within the time Colleen had. They landed on the front porch and didn't even bother knocking.
"Bulma!!" Goku yelled. They went in and Bulma came down the steps in a pink night gown, her hair a little ruffled from sleeping.
"Goku, it's 4:00 a.m. in the morning. You had better have a really good-" Then her eyes landed on Piccolo. "Goku...are you aware of the fact that Piccolo is in my living room?"
"Yes, Bulma. Listen, this girl is really REALLY sick. She might die, you have to help her. You do have a medical room here, right?"
"Of course. Follow me." she turned around and led them down the hall to a large room filled with machines with a table in the middle of the room. Piccolo and Goku automatically didn't like the room with the machines, alcohol smell, all the white, and needles. Goku was not a big fan of needles.
"Lay her down on the table." Bulma ordered. Goku complied and laid her on the medical table. "Al right then, let's see what's wrong."
She put both the boys out of the room to run some tests. They both waited anxiously in the hall, both pacing back and forth until they bumped into each other. Piccolo growled and Goku went back to pacing. Bulma opened the door to the medical lab and both men lined up in front of her.
"Well?" they both said at once.
"Well, she's got pneumonia. Not life threatening, but it's a good thing you got her here when you did. Another couple of hours and she'd be as good as a door nail. Goku, I need your help putting an IV in her. Her ki is preventing my needles from penetrating the skin."
"NEEDLES??!! NO WAY!!!!" Goku yelled. He ran and hid behind a lamp. He looked as though he'd pee his pants.
"Goku, you are such a baby! Ok, Piccolo, come on." She grabbed his arm and led him into the med. lab.
All of the white in the room was a little blinding. Bulma led Piccolo to the bed Colleen was on and went over to a drawer and got out an IV kit. Piccolo looked at Colleen who looked white except for the feverish red tint to her cheeks. She was breathing better, but still not normally.
"Here." Bulma said handing Piccolo a needle with a small plastic tube attached. "All you have to do is stick the needle in that vein in her arm where her elbow joint is. I'll do the rest." And she went back to the counter and started to rummage through some more medical junk.
Piccolo looked at the needle. If she woke up, she wouldn't be a happy camper. And if he stuck the wrong vein, she might bleed to death. AND what if he put it in too hard? Shooting people, cakewalk. This...not so cakie.
'It can't be that hard.' He thought. He took the needle and put it too Colleen's skin. Carefully, and slowly, he started to put the needle in. He met a little resistance from her ki, but just used his to push the needle through the skin.
'That wasn't hard.' He smirked. Then the tube slowly started to fill with blood. This is when he freaked out. And when I say 'freaked out', I mean he went into full-scale-panic mode.
"Bulma! What's happening?!" He yelled at her. He thought about taking the needle out, but that might cause more damage than good with the kind of luck he had.
"What?" Bulma turned around and saw what was the cause of the panic. "That? Please, nothing's wrong, just hold her arm up. I'll attach the bag."
"You're sure?"
"Am I not the smartest woman on Earth? Of course I'm sure! Here, step aside. Men." She went to Colleen and attached the other end of the tube to a longer tube connected to a bag with clear liquid in it. She hung the bag on a little hook above the bed. The liquid started to drip-drop from the bag into the tube.
"All right, out. Not that I don't love you or anything Piccolo, but this is MY lab so, vamoose." She went behind him and pushed him out the door.
"Is it over?" Goku asked behind the lamp.
"Yes Goku, it's over. You two can stay on the couches in the living room if you want. Goku, there's plenty of food in the frige. You're welcome to it, just don't eat me out of house and home." She headed for the stairs. She yawned and waved her hand over her mouth. After she had disappeared from sight, Goku and Piccolo stared at each other and got a very familiar glint in their eyes.
Bulma's head suddenly came up on the intercom/screen behind Goku in the wall. "And if either of you even _attempt_ to fight, I'll make sure neither of you can move anything on your body for a very long, painful time. GOT IT??!!"
"Got it." They both said. Goku did *not* want to upset Bulma. Piccolo didn't really fear her, she had helped Colleen so he'd behave. Though he won't tell, you know he's scared. Any man in his right mind would be.
"Well," Goku said. "I'm going to the kitchen. Take any couch you want." And the happy-go-lucky man hummed happily as he went to binge.
"Baka." Piccolo said. He went around the corner and into the living room. It was pinkish with two pink couches, a pink lazy-boy, a pink shaded lamp on a white table by each couch, a mega-screen TV, and a wooden coffee table with a small pink table cloth on it with the remote resting there. It was all so pink, he almost threw up.
'Oh well, beats being outside. I guess.'
He went over to the larger of the couches in front of the TV and laid down. It was soft, squishy, and very comfortable. He hated it. He grabbed one of the overly soft pillows and a blanked and laid down on the hard wood floor.
'Much better.' He thought. He couldn't wait to go back to the dark, dank, slimy, hard floored, cold, gloomy little cave in the secluded, lonely, freezing cold mountains. As soon as Colleen was better, they'd go back to that little heck hole they called home-sweet-home.
Goku came back into the living room a few minutes later yawning and rubbing his eyes. He flopped down on the smaller couch by the window, put his hands in a praying position under is head, and started snoring. Very loudly. You couldn't hear a buzz saw over that man's nose. Piccolo covered his face with his hand.
"It's going to be a loooooong night." He rolled onto his side and covered his ears with the pillow and fitfully fell asleep.
Time warp to the next morning
Colleen slowly opened her eyes and looked around the room. It was white and cold with beeping machines around the bed she was in. She bolted upright sending her hair forward around her face.
'I'm in a hospital.' She thought. 'I HATE HOSPITALS!'
She began to freak, pulling all and any needles and wires out and off of her body. All of the machine's beeping stopped. She jumped out of the bed pulling all the sheets off. She was in different clothes. Not her red gi, but a hospital gown. She didn't really want to rip the gown off and be in just her tidy whities.
'Where is Piccolo?' she thought frantically. "Piccolo?" No answer. "Piccolo?!" Still nodda. "PICCOLO!!!!"
The whole house herd the earth-shattering scream. Goku nearly choked on the pillow he was dreaming was a giant brownie. Bulma screamed and fell out of bed. Piccolo bumped his head on the bottom of the coffee table he mysteriously got under when he tried to bolt up. He rolled over, jumped up and ran to the med. Lab door. He threw it open expecting to see Colleen hurt or covered in blood or something, but she was just trying to keep the gown closed.
"You screeched?" He asked.
"Oh Piccolo!" She went up and hugged his waist. She then retracted and took the collar of his gi in both hands and pulled his head down to her level. "Help me find my clothes and get me out of here!"
She let go and started searching the room for her gi, preferably her pants. Piccolo quirked an eyeridge. "Ok. What's got you so worked up?" He was extremely relieved to see her up and about, and spouting orders. She was back.
"I hate, I mean really, _really_ hate hospitals and everything to do with them! I have to get out of here." She opened cupboards and drawers and threw everything out of them. "Where are my clothes??!!"
"Calm down onna, we are not at a hospital."
She looked up from the pile of stuff she was sifting through. "What do you mean, 'we are not at a hospital'? Where else would we be with me dressed like this?"
"Bulma's. We are in the medical lab. Do you know who Bulma is?"
Colleen walked back to the bed and sat down. "The smartest and richest woman in the world. That still doesn't explain where my clothes are."
Piccolo leaned against the door frame. "She took them to be washed. If you want something more....suitable I suggest you ask her."
Colleen blushed. Getting caught in a hospital gown sure pushed your pride level down. Especially if you're a girl and the person you're caught by is a guy. She slid off the bed, taking a sheet with her, and walked past Piccolo out the door to find Bulma and get some decent clothes on. She ran into Bulma as soon as she got out the door.
"Oh good, you're awake! Hi, I'm Bulma. You've probably heard of me and my father's company."
"Yes of course." Colleen said. "It's so nice to meet you. I don't know if Piccolo told you or not, but my name's Colleen. Um, could I have some clothes?" Colleen smiled and put her hand behind her head.
Bulma put her hands over her mouth. "Oh, I'm so sorry! Of course you can have some clothes. How rude of me. I bet you're around my size. Come on, I have tons of clothes you could try on!" With that she grabbed Colleen's arm and pulled her up the stairs.
When they got into Bulma's room, Bulma set Colleen on the bed and went into her HUGE closet. Colleen looked around the room. It was beautiful. The walls were blue with white lilies painted on randomly. She was on a queen sized bed with a white comforter and light blue silk pillows. By the bed was a large dark colored wood dresser with little angel figurines and a red music box. Across from the bed was the closet, private bathroom door, and a full body mirror. In the mirror she saw her own reflection for the first time in months. She looked awful! Her hair was messy and greasy, her face was dirty and bruised, as were her arms and legs.
"Here we are." Said Bulma walking out of the closet. She was holding a bundle of clothes. She dropped them on the bed next to Colleen. "You can pick anything out of here."
"Bulma?"
"Yes Colleen?"
"I could really use a shower, so...." Colleen said with a hopeful look on her face.
"Be my guest."
"Bulma, if I were a man, I'd kiss you."
"Well you're not a man, so please don't." She said teasingly. She turned and walked into the bathroom to get a towel.
'A shower.' Colleen thought. 'I'm going to take a real shower again!'
Bulma came out of the bathroom, handed Colleen a blue towel and waved her goodbye. Colleen stepped out of the sheet and gown and went into the bathroom. She turned the shower on and stepped in.
"Oh Kami, hot water." She looked up and saw all the different shampoos, conditioners and body washes. "I think I've died and gone to heaven!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Piccolo, Bulma and Goku were in the kitchen. Piccolo and Goku were at the table, Bulma was at the stove cooking up something.
"Oh boy, that smells great Bulma!" Goku said almost drooling.
"Thanks Goku." She loaded some food onto a plate and put it in front Goku. He immediately dove into it forgetting his fork.
Piccolo grimaced at the other end of the table. 'That's disgusting.'
"Didn't miss breakfast, did I?" came Colleen's voice from in the kitchen doorway. Piccolo turned and nearly fell out of his seat. She was wearing a black tank top and blue jean shorts, and her hair was let down and was wet.
'Wow. She looks good in black.' Piccolo thought.
"Nope. But Goku ate all the food I just cooked up. If you want to help me make more food, you're welcome to it." Bulma said leaning one hand on the stove.
"Ok." Colleen went to the stove and cracked a few eggs in a skillet. She and Bulma set to work on a new batch of food.
"What's with the clothes Colleen? Where's your gi?" Piccolo asked.
"I threw that old disgusting thing out." Bulma said.
"You what?!" Piccolo's brows pulled together in a frown. Well, more of a frown than usual.
"Calm down Pic." Colleen said not turning around. "You can just make me a new one later. Bulma, where's the salt?"
"Over there." She pointed to a cupboard next to Colleen.
Colleen grabbed the salt and sprinkled some on her omelet. She grabbed a piece of toast on the table untouched by Goku and sat down next to Piccolo. She grabbed a fork and dug in. At her first bite she made a moaning sound. Piccolo looked at her funny.
"Real food." She explained. Piccolo quirked an eyeridge and continued to stare at her eating her meal.
"What did you eat out in the wilderness?" Bulma asked.
"Fruit, birds, nuts, the occasional fish......that's about it." She said taking another bite.
"That's all? Wow, I could never do that. There's no variety." Bulma said taking a sip of coffee from a mug.
Colleen licked her fork and placed it on the now empty plate. She took her orange juice already on the table and drank it all in one gulp. She stood up and took the dishes to the sink and placed them in. She rinsed them and hopped up on the counter swinging her legs back and forth crossed at the ankle.
"I guess we can leave now." Piccolo said and stood up. He couldn't wait to get out of there. It was too cheery.
"Why? I don't want to go back to the cave." Colleen said.
"It's essential for out training. Come on." He crossed his arms in front of his chest waiting for Colleen to fallow him.
"No. I don't like the cave. I don't care if it's essential. I want to go back to the clearing." Colleen crossed her arms in front of her chest signaling she wasn't about to move.
"Oh, I know!" Bulma suddenly shouted. "You guys could stay here until the tournament. I have a huge backyard you guys could train in. It'll be perfect! I could always use another girl around here to talk to."
Piccolo didn't like the idea one bit. "Bulma-"
"That's a great idea Bulma! Of course we'll stay!" Colleen interrupted.
"Now listed here!" Piccolo tried.
"Great!" said Bulma. "I'll get both your rooms ready. Or if you'd rather sleep outside I could set up some tents."
"Hello, are you listening to me?" Piccolo tried again.
"I know Piccolo will want to stay outside, but I'd really appreciate a bed." Colleen said putting her hand on her chest.
"I don't want to stay here!" Piccolo said. Still the girls babbled on.
"It's futile, my friend." Goku said after finishing all the food on his plate. "Once girls get to something, they won't let go and not you nor I can make them."
"Oh really? You just watch." Piccolo walked up to the girls, still gabbing away.
"Colleen, we are NOT staying here. That is final." And he started to walk away smirking knowing she wouldn't contradict him. So little he knows of women.
"Oh no it's not! We're staying here, and THAT is final!" She said putting her hands on her hips.
He turned around with anger clearly evident on his face. "Colleen, can we talk in private?"
"Sure." She hopped down from the kitchen counter and followed him into the living room.
"Who do you think you are talking to me like that?!" Piccolo yelled.
"I can talk to you anyway I want!" she snapped back.
"Oh really? Fine then. But we are not staying here!"
"You are not my father, my brother, or my boyfriend! You have no right ordering me around. It's always been what you want, not what I want. You say where we live, how we train, when we train, when I can rest, when I can eat, and everything about my life since I got dropped in this dimension! It's my turn to make some of the decisions! And I decide we stay here until the Martial Arts Tournament!!" Her face was red with anger by the time she finished. Piccolo's was purple with it.
"I give you a choice, it's you who chooses to go with what I tell you to do. I think you forget you're place. I am Piccolo The-"
"Demon King. Yes I know, I've heard it a million times before! And I have no place with you, I am your equal whether you like it or not! Why don't you want to stay here? Goku won't be here."
"Why do you want to stay?!"
"Oh I don't know." She took her hands off her hip and started counting with her fingers. "More than semi-edible food, a warm bed, heat, fresh clean running water, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, a place to come into after the rain that's DRY! I could go on."
Piccolo just stared at her. Was she really that miserable with him? His brows came down more from a frown to a scowl. "Fine." He said spitefully. He walked past her and went out the kitchen door to the backyard.
Bulma took the chance to peek in the living room without getting her head bitten off. "Soo...are you guys staying?"
Colleen smiled. "Yep. Piccolo will just have to get used to it for a month."
Bulma smiled. "Good. Come on, let's get your room ready."
"A real bed. Bulma, you have no idea how happy this makes me!" And they both went up the stairs leaving a still hungry Goku, and an infuriated demon.
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Ok peoples, this is where I need your help. In the next chapter the World Martial Arts Tournament will finally take place. Only problem is, I never saw the episode(s) where Goku and Piccolo fight. I know, I'm bad! I need you to tell me what happens, how many people were there (fighters), and who were the last 8 finalists. Tell me the weakest one so I can replace them. Tell me who Goku beats and who Piccolo beats. And be as detailed as humanly possible for the final fight between our muscle heads. And, if possible, tell me any key lines they might have said that is essential to the story. Either tell me in a review or e-mail me. On the e-mail title it WMAT PvsG details. Thank you soooooooooooooo much!!!!!!!!!!
Wow, I had a long chapter! Yay me! REVIEW!!!! And again, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!!!!!!