Nira was outside, warming up for her mentor when he arrived. It was raining but she didn't mind, she actually kind of liked the rain. She sneezed into her arm the same time thunder crackled across the sky.

"Did I do that?" she chuckled to herself.

She heard a car pull up the long driveway and she turned her head to watch a familiar purple Nissan pull over in the small lot next to Bulma's house.

She jogged to the car with a smile on her face, "Hey, Piccolo!" she chirped when he emerged from the driver side door. Piccolo closed his door before locking it and walking past Nira, "No practice today."

Nira's jaw dropped, "What?" she gasped at her mentor. This certainly wasn't like him. He usually didn't cancel training for anything. A little rain never stopped him before. "Why?"

"Because," he responded in his deep voice, "Bulma told me you were sick."

Nira felt betrayed, she loved to train! Rain, snow, or shine! How could Bulma go behind her back and tattle on her to Piccolo. "So?" she pouted before coughing into her shoulder, "I can still train. And if you weren't going to train be why did you come anyway?"

Piccolo turned around to watch Nira cough a lung out into her hand, "Because she and I both know that you would go ahead and train yourself if you knew I wasn't coming. Now, come." He beckoned her to the house, "Inside." He half – commanded.

After Nira was finished coughing she sniffled. "What if I don't want to?" she asked, getting a devious thought in her head. "What if I were to just sit down and not move?" she smirked, moving to put her butt in the wet asphalt.

Before she could though, Piccolo had grabbed her around the middle and swung her over his shoulder.

"I have no time for games." He growled.

"Let me down you green creep!" Nira laughed, playfully hitting the man's back.

"I don't think I will." He smirked, carrying her inside.

Nira sighed as the warmth of the house hit her wet skin. Piccolo put her down and told her to dry herself up.

As Nira ran upstairs to the bathroom Piccolo walked into the living room where Bulma, Vegeta, and their year old son were relaxing on a couch.

"Hey, thanks for doing that Piccolo." Bulma thanked, "I couldn't get her to change her mind when I told her she was too sick to go training in the rain, that stubborn girl." She scolded, smiling.

Piccolo nodded, "Its nothing." He answered.

"Hey, since you're here can you tell me if you've heard anything from Goku?"

Nearly Two and a Half Years Ago

"Goku, whats your family like?" asked Nira as they stood side – by – side in the airport.

"Well," Goku thought, scratching his head, "ChiChi, my wife, she's kind of a hot head and really protective of me and Gohan, that's my son. But she's tough and not to mention a really good cook." He chuckled, "She wasn't so keen on letting Gohan train with me when he was little."

"He was three years old." Bulma chided.

"So? I was trained since I could walk!" Goku laughed, "But I guess she came around to that eventually if she let him into a martial arts class." He looked over at Piccolo and beamed.

Piccolo grunted, "He was a fine student. A big crybaby in the beginning but he toughened up eventually."

Goku grinned, "Gohan was just barely four when I had to leave. It really hurt to see him cry when they took me away. I wonder how much he's grown since the last I've seen him. It's been so long."

Goku's family is poor and they live far out in the country. They never were able to get enough money for plain tickets so they could go see him, but they were able to send presents to him almost every holiday. His favorite is a leather bound picture album he got for Christmas one year.

Bulma, Krillin, and Piccolo had put in their money for two tickets to Satan City and three tickets back for the family. They're waiting for ChiChi and Gohan to arrive now.

"Why, he's bound be grown man by now." Bulma said brightly, "I bet he looks just like you, Goku!"

Goku smiled at the thought, "You really think so?"

"Goku? Goku?!" a female voice called through the crowd.

"ChiChi?!" Goku shouted.

"Dad?" a male's voice yelled.

Goku beamed, "Gohan?!"

Finally two people, a young man and a woman who looked like his mother appeared out of the crowd.

"Where can he be?" ChiChi growled, "Goku, where are y-" her eyes became big when she finally saw her husband. Tears started falling down her cheeks as she ran to her husband with open arms.

Goku caught his wife and spun her around, "Hey, ChiChi." He grinned, nuzzling his wife's hair.

"Goku! Goku!" she sobbed into his chest.

The young man watched his parent's reunion with a gigantic smile. After Goku put parted from his wife he turned to look at his son with a friendly smile. "Hey there Gohan." He said, "Remember me?"

Gohan felt a tear fall down his face as he charged his dad, nearly knocking the two over!

Nira, Bulma, Piccolo, and Krillin watched with smiles as the family cried and laughed together in a little huddle.

Goku introduced his family to the four. Gohan immediately recognized Piccolo and his smile became even larger! ChiChi wasn't sure what to make of Nira, the ex-patient, but after Goku told her of all the stuff she's done and showed her the painting she made for him one Christmas ChiChi found herself kind of liking the young woman.

At last, it was time for their good byes. He shook Krillin's hand and Bulma made him promise to come visit or she would hunt him down, he and Piccolo nodded at each other with respect and Nira could help but hug the big oaf.

"I'll miss you." She told him.

"I'll miss you too." He said, smiling kindly as he pulled away from her, "Just remember to kick those nightmares butt's for me, yeah?"

Nira nodded, smiling goofily at their running joke.

And the three Sons were gone.

DBZ

"I've heard they're having another kid." Piccolo answered. He and Gohan sometimes sent letters to each other since Goku was horrible with long distance communication.

Vegeta grunted, "Another brat?"

Piccolo didn't respond.

Nira walked into the lounge and was slightly surprised that Piccolo hadn't left yet, not that she was complaining. She took a seat on the couch opposite of Bulma and Vegeta's. She ruffled her hair with the towel that she brought with her. "So, whats this with another Goku?" she asked.

"There's another one on its way. Three months in, they're thinking about calling it Goten."

Nira chuckled, "Goku, Gohan, and Goten. That's going to be confusing."

Piccolo grunted in agreement.

Nira looked up at her mentor and patted the seat beside her, "Come one, stay a while. You don't have to go anywhere yet do you?"

Piccolo stared at Nira and the seat before relenting to her wishes and taking a seat on the couch.

"Even black belts have their weaknesses." Vegeta smirked.

Nira chuckled into her hand, Piccolo had said a very similar thing when Vegeta hid a broken piece of furniture from Bulma and Piccolo and Nira caught him in the act.

Piccolo glared at Nira for laughing after he glaring at Vegeta but he didn't move, knowing Vegeta wouldn't let him live it down if he did.

Nira sat forward in her seat, "How's squirt?"

"He's fine." Bulma answered, still rocking the child.

About a Year and a Half Ago

Nira stared at the "baby pictures" with confusion. She couldn't see a baby; all there was is grey blurries. She put it so close to her face that her nose was nearly touching it, trying to see the baby that had Bulma so excited and Vegeta just a little nervous.

"I don't see it."

"How can you not? He's right there!" Bulma shouted, pointing at the picture.

Ah, yes, that's right. The baby is a boy. Nira reminded herself. She felt just a little jealous of the unborn child that was consuming Bulma and, to an extent, Vegeta's lives.

Nira sighed and put the picture down, "What are you going to call him?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Hmm. I'm not sure." Bulma said, putting a finger to lips in thought, "I tried to ask Vegeta about name's he would like but he started listing off names of food."

Nira snickered, Oh, Vegeta Vegeta Vegeta.

The blue haired woman shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe we'll wait until he's born to figure out a name for him."

"You say 'we'll' but you mean 'you'."

"Now, I know Vegeta isn't all that great with names-"

"Do you want your son to be named after a vegetable?"

Bulma put her hands on her hips, "Alright. Spit it out. What's got you?"

Nira recoiled, "Nothings bothering me, Bulma!"

Bulma narrowed her eyes.

Oh, God. Nira thought, She's already got the Look down!

"Honest!" Nira lied.

"Don't try to lie to me, young lady. I know when you are." She growled.

Nira sighed and knew she'd been caught. "I – I guess I'm just a little jealous, okay. I'm jealous of the baby."

Bulma cocked her head to the side, "Why on earth would you be jealous of the baby?"

"Because I... because…" she tried to think of a way to put into words, "Because, I think of you and Vegeta as my parents." She confessed softly, "And when the baby comes, maybe you'll forget about me."

Bulma let her hands fall from her hips, "You think of me as a mom?"

"And Vegeta as a dad, yes." She admitted, kicking the ground nervously.

Bulma pulled the girl into an embrace, "Oh, Nira. We wouldn't forget about you. We live together after all!"

Nira chuckled, seeing how foolish she was but her anxiety wasn't fully quenched, and hugged her back.

Bulma pulled away but kept her hands on Nira's shoulders, "So, if Vegeta and I are your mom and dad, who's Goku?"

"The crazy uncle."

Bulma threw her head back and laughed, making Nira laugh as well.

Little did they know a certain short, ill - tempered man was outside the room and had been listening to the whole conversation. And who would've guessed that he was smiling just a little tiny bit.

DBZ

Nira smiled at the purple haired baby in Bulma's arms. She loved the boy like she loved a brother and wanted to be there for him whenever he needed it. No doubt there were times she wanted to just shut him up when he threw his tantrums but that was what babies do and she learned to live with it.

Nira yawned, "Damn, I'm tired."

"The cold can do that to you." Bulma chided.

"You haven't sleeping well again, have you?" Piccolo asked, raising a non - existent eyebrow.

Nira nodded, "Yeah, must be the cold. I never sleep well when I'm sick."

"Then just take a nap." Vegeta told her.

Nira leaned over on the couch, "Right now?" she yawned again.

"You still sleep better with another person." Vegeta stated, "That much hasn't changed."

One of the First Months Living with Bulma and Vegeta

Nira tossed and turned in her sleep. "No. No, don't." she mumbled. "Don't go." She thrashed a little, accidently knocking her pillows to the floor.

Suddenly something prodded her in the back making her shout awake! She clutched her sheets but didn't attack which this was a recent improvement. She was breathing very fast as if she ran a mile but just as she started to calm down she was picked up and thrown over someone's shoulders like a sack of potatoes.

"Wha – Vegeta?"

He grunted, but other than that didn't respond.

Nira was about to make him drop her when he kicked a door open to his and Bulma's bedroom. Bulma sitting up in her bed, bleary eyed but she sighed when Vegeta put the girl on Bulma's side and he crawling on the other side.

Nira was absolutely flabbergasted by her adoptive parents behavior. "What is going on?" she whispered.

"You were shouting in your sleep and making all kinds of noise." Bulma answered, yawning, "I told Vegeta to go and wake you up so you could come here and sleep with us. You sleep better with other people."

"I'm a grown woman." Nira stated.

"Sleep." Grunted Vegeta who had already gotten comfortable and was spooning Bulma.

Nira sighed in submission and got herself comfortable as well. Bulma threw a protective arm over her and soon enough Nira was being spooned. She shook her head and the whole weirdness of the situation before closing her eyes.

Must've been because they're half asleep, she thought, falling into peaceful slumber.

DBZ

Nira felt her eyes getting heavy and she leaned back into the couch and was out like a light. For a while she stayed like that while Bulma made conversation with Piccolo, getting each other caught up with things, when Nira leaned over in her sleep and her head fell into Piccolo's lap!

"How she still asleep!?" he growled, trying to move the young woman but she had hooked an arm around one of Piccolo's legs like a vice and didn't look like she was going to let go anytime soon.

Bulma laughed, "I guess she's taken you in as her new human pillow!"

Piccolo blush deepened at the thought and turned his head away at the blue haired woman and his brown - eyed ward.

Nira, her face buried into Piccolo's thigh, smiled in her sleep for the first time.

Authors Note: It's done and way ahead of schedule! * throws streamers and cookies * I hope you enjoyed this story (I just realized now that it has enough words to be counted as a novel 0_0 what am I doing with my life.) Thanks for reading my story, leave any constructive criticisms in the comments and please have a great day! Bye!