Disclaimer: I locked it up in chapter two.
It seems that I've gotten a few inconsistencies… particularly… between the Pasuko-jin and the Puroeriun. I keep forgetting which is which. Damn. Future reference (for myself), Komugiko and Arufuredo are Pasuko-jin; Atsarute and Jakkaru are Puroeriun.
I only have 3 suggestions right now, and they're all from the same person. You guys have until I post the next chapter to give me scenes that you want to see drawn.
Mollosuki took the shock well, and by take well would be that she grappled her son's chest and clasped tight. "I have a child now! And he grew up to be so handsome; I bet he won't have any problems finding a woman and having my grandchildren! What did you obtain as a name, son of mine?"
"Piccolo," he said, eyes closed and brow tight, keeping a stern face.
"It figures that he would name you after himself, conceited!" She shot a glance to her first husband.
"It's not like that!" He began, "I told you that I lost my memory and—"
She interrupted him by taking him into the same strong hug. "Oh, shush. I don't care. It would just be a little confusing if I call for one of you and you both answer, and, though I've just met him, my dear son doesn't seem the type to react to 'Junior' well."
"Unless it proceeded 'Ma'," The older one snickered.
"And who is this?" she said, pointing to Piccolo's near twin.
"My name is Neil," he tried to say as politely as possible, "I was raised on Namekku-sei after the disaster by the highest elder as a warrior. I was the best on the planet at the time."
"Oh? Do you know who your parents are or if they're still alive?"
Neil bowed his head. "Apparently my father perished in the weather while protecting my egg, and I was hatched many, many years afterwards. Saichourou told me that his name was Batido."
Suddenly Neil found himself the third victim of her glomp. "No wonder the two of you look so much alike: you both take from me! Now, you both took the height and the muscle from your fathers, and that's good…" She stepped back and examined their faces a moment. "And both of you have a little more of your fathers in you, so you're not exactly alike." She giggled. "Now, instead of having no family, I get a very difficult one!"
Piccolo Sr. seemed to have a lot to absorb himself. "Batido died, eh?" He sat down, and thought a bit before speaking, as if trying to pick the most appropriate words. "I might have competed with him a lot, and, since the marriage was political, we had to compete for you as well, but damned if the guy wasn't a good fighter." Then he laughed a little.
"Wait…" Nail blinked, "If… I'm your son from a different father, and he's your first husband… and you remarried because you thought he was dead…"
"Oh, you see, it was a while after Piccolo left that the disaster actually happened and I had to leave. I married another man after that, your father. was my second husband, since he was most suited for me besides Piccolo. He wished to take care of the egg, so I gave it to him, but I was taken to leave Namekku-sei suddenly by the rest of my family, and he had been left behind."
After a pause, "That's a bit fucked up," Piccolo (Jr.) said.
"Hmm?" The woman cocked her head slightly to the phrase. "Why would that be?"
"Neil was conceived after me, but he's 10 years older than me. It's just a bit… weird…"
"I don't see how that's all that strange," she said, "It's quite common in our culture, hon. Oh, I guess Earthlings can't control when their eggs hatch, do they?"
"No, Mother. They don't lay eggs."
"You mean that they have live birth? How horrible it must be for their women!"
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
The rest of the visit with Mollosuki took about an hour or two. Atsarute's business with her took not much more than a quarter an hour, so it was mostly her giving her "new" family motherly affection. She eventually had to leave to prepare teaching a class, and Piccolo Sr. went ahead to the castle himself (able to tell his father's ki from a distance, so he needed no guide), whereas Neil and the younger Piccolo refused to leave the room until they were sure that every girl was back in the class before Atsarute lead them out and towards the castle.
Now that they were walking the road down towards the castle, the two men went silent again. Neil now had a lot to ponder, and Piccolo just seemed to reach his limit of social interaction for the day. Atsarute seemed to be chuckling inside herself about the situations that they were in, but a crashing bell ringing through the street struck off the grin and made her come to a full stop.
Piccolo looked around him after he rubbed his ears, trying to discern where the sound came from. "Was that another one of those lunch bells? Did this one have to be so fucking loud?"
"Shit," Atsarute muttered, "Stuck out in the road again, and every time I try to run it just gets worse."
"Excuse me?" Neil raised a brow just before he heard another approach of several people, this time in a group ten times the size of what they saw at the school.
Sweating, both men internally panicked and spun around, expecting to see another hoard of teenage girls, but… this time, it was guys. Several teen boys were coming out of their school, talking casually to one another and spreading out, with several inquiries amongst them about where the other was going to eat.
Neil and Piccolo blinked, then looked at each other, and then heaved sighs of relief. "Well, let's continue to the cast—" Piccolo stopped when he realized that Atsarute was actually hiding behind the pair, making sure that she was out of sight from the teenagers.
"Is there something wrong?" Neil asked, confused on why this woman, who acted so threatening to this point, was suddenly cowering behind him.
"Just shut up and move backwards very slowly," she whispered in a voice so soft that even their Namekku-sei-jin ears could barely pick it up.
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Atsarute," Piccolo scoffed lightly, "They're going to be after Namek girls, not—"
"Imbecile!" She yelled, "Don't say my name!"
Several of the teenagers turned their heads at that moment, recognizing the voice. "Atsarute-sama?" One said. A few began to gather together in curiosity.
"Atsarute-sama? Are you hiding?" Another said, grinning himself, "Come on, since when does a strong women act so scared around a bunch of young men?"
Knowing that the jig was up, she shot up and quickly considered her possibilities. "Err… I just thought… She spun around herself and put her arms around Piccolo and Neil, "…that you boys would be disappointed when you saw my two lovers."
The brothers were dumbstruck, and probably would have been blushing had she not dug her nails into their shoulders. "Play along with it," she hissed in a soft yet threatening voice, "or I'll skin you both alive, have a healer restore you, then skin you again."
The two were confused as Hell, anyways, so they nodded in agreement.
Continuing, she donned an unusual smile for her. "Yeah, there's nothing in Puroeriun law that forbids having more than one lover. At times, it's discouraged: after all, it's confusing and makes inheritance difficult. But, when it comes to Namekku-sei-jin men, if there exist two examples of the same aesthetic sense, it seems logical to go ahead and get both of them."
Most of the teenage Nameks gave sad and frustrated reactions to this. Sure, they figured that Atsarute was out of their league, anyway, but if there are two guys strong enough to be with her, then it's probably not best to ask any more questions.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
The three came into the castle in this position. As soon as the gate closed behind them and they were out of view from the remaining guys who didn't let the "news" of the lovers upset them, she finally gave a sigh of relief.
"Now, that we're on the grounds…" Piccolo said, "…Could you retract your nails from my shoulder?"
"Those aren't nails! They're talons!" Neil moaned.
"Oh." She immediately withdrew her arms and set them free from her grasp. "Sorry about that. They make me so damn nervous. I normally have to fight them off, and I keep having to buy new clothes afterwards…It's a fucking hassle…"
Piccolo rubbed his shoulder, noticing blood coming out and slipping from the punctures under his hand. "I see. Was it absolutely necessary to grab my shoulder instead of my cape?"
"Seemed like the best course of action at the time." She was already walking in front of them towards the throne room. "Come on. Katatsu is waiting."
The throne room was something one might expect from a high Chinese emperor from Earth, gold all over the place, reflecting the natural light that poured from the windows all over the room in a warm glow. Rich colors and designs could be seen in the carpets, tapestries, and furniture, and before the throne, many people sat, looking rather important in their dress.
Upon the throne was an old Namekku-sei-jin man, whose age looked similar to how Kami once looked in value of being decrepit. Despite his obvious age, his ki still radiated to show that he was indeed a strong being. Standing right in front of him was Piccolo Sr.
Piccolo Sr. noticed their entrance. "Ah, here they are, father. The one with the large mantle and turban is my son."
"Indeed," Katatsu said in an intrigued voice, looking over his grandson, "He appears strong. You didn't tell me; does he have a family yet?"
Christ, Piccolo Jr. thought, Is that all these people think about?
"No, not yet. He's still unmarried."
"Hmm…" The old man was about to go into thought before a brow cocked as he glanced to Atsarute, who was now licking her fingers, then a growl came from him. "Damnit, I thought that I heard the boy's lunch bell. That's Namek blood that you're licking off those claws of yours, isn't it? How many did you wound?"
She looked confused for a moment. "What? Oh, wait, yeah, this is Namek blood, but this is theirs."
"And how did you get their blood on you?"
"Well… it did have to do with that lunch bell…"
"Ugh… never mind," He addressed his grandson instead, "Piccolo, do you realize that, because your father is my oldest child, you're now in direct line to inherit the kingdom?"
"It passed my mind," Piccolo said half-heartedly.
"We'll worry about a wife for you later; you're still young yet. On more important matters, I want to test your strength in combat after I test your father. Our family is primarily warrior, so, you can imagine, such a measure is important."
"Very well," he answered.
"Good. Atsarute, my son explained that you've known him beforehand. What can you say about his strength and strategy?"
"It has been many years," she said, "but from what I remember, and by how much I imagine that he's improved, he's certainly much stronger than the average warrior. He was able to best Suraku in combat, who I trained personally. As soon as he gets back into training routines, it probably won't take long for him to reach the level of a general."
Katatsu nodded. "Good. A general is just what I need. The army keeps gaining too much girth and I am running out of trustworthy people to appoint."
"Have you given a position to Toniko, yet?" She asked.
"No, and I have no intent on giving my highest-ranking granddaughter a military position. We've already had this discussion, Atsarute. Although I certainly approve of her pursuing a warrior's life, I will not allow a woman in my family to get killed before she is married."
"At least allow her to enter an army under a pseudonym. She would do well in my ranks if you so wish."
"With as many of my family is in your army, I am surprised that you didn't attempt to recruit the sons that you helped bring before me."
"Give me some credit, Katatsu."
"I thought I was. It seemed like the appropriate kind of credit for you."
Batido – Spanish for "Slug". Condolences for the John Paul. All I can really offer my Catholic readers is that they might someday be Freakin' Popes themselves. Hey, come on, you know that it'd be cool to be Pope Joan II.