Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.
Authors note: I'm sorry if you think I ended this too soon. I just got to this place where I thought an ending would be perfect. Now I have more plains for Piccolo, Justine, Rose and even Dende. So if you want notification of when I start those just put me on your Author alerts list.
Thanks for reading.
Love, Raven.
Chapter three
Dawn in all it's soft pink glory peeked through the widow of Justine and Piccolo's bedroom.
Piccolo was somewhere in that pre-waking state that feels the most delicious, when he opened his eye's and found one blond haired girl watching him sleep.
"You awake Poe Poe?" Rose asked with her brown eyes wide and full of energy.
"Yeah I'm awake." He answered as he untangled himself from Justine's arms.
Justine stirred then yawned. "Hey Rosy you want me to make breakfast?"
"No I want Poe Poe to do it." The girl announced.
"Ok, Piccolo are you up to the task?" Justine questioned.
"I know how to fry an egg." He grumbled.
"Really I wouldn't have guessed. Since you can't eat, I just assumed you couldn't cook." She stated.
"Well you have underestimated me then." He said with a mischievous grin that most would have thought frightening.
With that said Piccolo left the room holding Rose's tiny hand in his.
A little later Justine entered the kitchen to find Rose setting on the counter giggling and Piccolo frowning at a pan he had placed on the wood stove.
"Poe Poe don't know how to make pannie cakes." Rose told Justine as she peeked around Piccolo's arm.
"Are you trying to make pan cakes?" Justine asked because she had no clue what lay in the frypan he held.
"Yes." He growled.
"Well for one thing you have to wait for the stove to warm up." She pointed out.
Piccolo moved the pan to one side and pressed his finger to the hot spot on the stove. Justine felt herself cringe even though she knew the stove's heat would not burn him. "It's warm enough." He told her and replaced the pan.
"Ok did you wait until the cake was ready to flip?" She asked.
"What, you have to turn it at a certain time?" He questioned.
"Yes, just like with eggs. Here just dump this out and start over." She directed him.
Piccolo hated to admit it but he was glad Justine knew what to do. While he was scraping out the pan into the trash he heard Rose saying something from behind him. "See if stove is hot enough." She was saying. Fear raced through Piccolo making him drop the pan just before he spun around.
Rose was about to press her hand against the hot burner!
"No!" Justine shouted even as Piccolo moved to grab Rose's tiny hand.
It was a near miss that shocked everyone. Piccolo held Rose's cubby delicate hand in his, as his mind ran away with what could have happened.
"What were you thinking! You would have been burned. Don't you know how hot that is!" He shouted at her, his emotions causing him to yell.
Rose burst into tears which agitated Piccolo all the more. "Why are you crying? You're not hurt." He thundered.
"Piccolo stop!" Justine said and placed one calming hand on his arm.
"I sorry. I sorry!" Rose cried over and over.
Piccolo released Rose's hand as her forced himself to relax, he wasn't really angry at Rose, he was upset at himself for almost allowing her to get hurt.
Justine had a way of reading people that she was close to, and even if it hurt his pride he trusted her judgment in all things. If he was wrong about something, in his mind Justine was the only one who had the right to point it out.
"Ok Pipsqueak, everything's fine now. Your not hurt and I'm not mad at you." He told the girl.
Rose sobbed a little then nodded, she wanted so badly to show Poe Poe what a big girl she could be.
Justine flashed Piccolo a smile then went to retrieve the frypan. "Ok Rosy, How about we show Piccolo how to make pan cakes?" She asked and twirled the cast-iron pan as if it weighed no more then a feather.
Rose giggled and clapped. "Yes cause Poe Poe don't know how."
"Yeah good thing he has us here to show him huh?" Justine asked.
"Yup cause he would mess it up. But he's good at eve'rf'ing else." Rose added as if worried about hurting Piccolo's feelings.
"Yes he is and we love him don't we?" Justine stated.
"Even when he make me cry, I loves him." Rose said.
Piccolo couldn't help but smile as he watched the two most important women in his life work on breakfast. Suddenly he realized that being Rose's father would not be as simple as never making mistakes, or never letting Rose down. No it would be much more then that. Because Rose understood something he hadn't, true love between a child and a parent is unconditional.