Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Innocence Reborn ❯ So, when's the party, ma? ( Chapter 6 )

Innocence Reborn

Standard Disclaimer: We don't own Dragon Ball Z or anything related to it. If we did, do you really think that we'd be writing this fic? [If I did, Kibito and 'Shin would have never fused in the first place or would have found a way to be unfused---Kaeli-Chan the Great] We just own this fic, that is all. A perhaps a piece of Piccolo-chan (kidding....we don't own even a piece of his cape.....we wish we did, though.......)

YAY! My turn!!!! I get to torture Piccolo-San now!! Woohoo! *sees all the weird looks she is getting* Um, yea. ON WITH DA CHAPTER!

Chapter Six: So, when's the party, Ma?

Images flashed in his mind. Cruel images. Nice images. Strong images. Images of things that he had never seen before or couldn't remember that had happened. It was so hard to get rid of them all at once. So easy to succumb to the torture he was receiving. So easy to let this consume him as a whole. He couldn't fight it because it was so hard to know what was real and what was false. Remember the past that he had. Remember who he once was. Why did the Fates make him go through this? Why couldn't they just leave him alone?

NO! He couldn't let his overcome him! He was stronger then this! He had to win! He had to remember! He had to get his memories back, even if it killed him so. He couldn't give up. He was Piccolo. Someone that had so much history with the people that took him in that he couldn't remember who they were. So much of his life wasted on something he didn't even know he did.

"....Piccolo...." A faint voice called out to him. The voice was so faint that he could barely hear it. So distant. So quiet. Even with his excellent hearing, he couldn't understand any other words besides his own name. What were they saying about him? Why couldn't he hear those whispers? What was going on?

"....Piccolo....Piccolo....Piccolo....." He heard his name repeat three more times, but by another voice that came from somewhere. The words between this name were lost in a sea of swirling colors and images that he just wanted to go away and leave him alone. What had he done to deserve this treatment? NOTHING! He wanted everything and everyone to leave him alone and not come back.

Not come back for a long time.

****

"He's not waking up, Gohan," Chi-Chi said as she placed a hand on her son's left shoulder. She watched as her husband knelt by the bed in which the Namek was sleeping in, a hand moving over top of his chest as if he was trying to sense what was going on inside of the shell of a body that now laid perfectly still. The only thing that changed was the expression that Piccolo had on his face as it scrunched up every so often as if he was trying to wake up or fighting something inside of him.

"He has to get better," The boy whispered, looking down at the ground. "I wish this hadn't happened."

"It's too late for wishes, Gohan," Goku replied, looking slightly up towards his son. "We can only make sure that he gets better in due time. Otherwise, he can never be wished back to his normal self."

"Do you think that he would remember anything that happened?" Chi-Chi asked, a hopeful hint floating in her voice.

"I don't know. If the wish made Piccolo lose his memory of the last few years, it might make him lose the memories of the year that has yet to come.

"Even though I dislike having Piccolo around, I pity him at this stage. He looks so helpless now."

"He'll be better, hopefully. Just keep giving him medicine every so often so that he can get better. We can each take turns looking after him so that we know that he will get better," Goku told them, standing up fully as he placed both of his hands at his side. "Gohan, since you were the one that got him into this mess, you take the first few hours of watch. Chi-Chi, you will be next followed by me."

Goku then moved around and towards his family. He then moved past them, a light smile coming onto his lips. Chi-Chi saw the look in her husband's eyes, taking that as an indication that he was going to go do something instead of staying around to help the two with the sick Namek. And she was going to have nothing to do with that.

"And where do you think you're going?" Chi-Chi roared as Goku left the room. A moment later, the Saiyan poked his head around the corner, a sheepish look on his face as Chi-Chi turned around to face him.

"Oops, sorry. I'm going to Korin's to get some senzu beans. Don't you think that it would help him?" Goku asked, half hoping that his wife would allow him to go through with this. Chi-Chi put her hands on her hips as she stared down her husband, her icy stare penetrating him slightly.

"Don't you think that you should let nature do it's course?"

"Yea, well, then you wouldn't be giving him medicine, would you? Besides, Korin grows these beans himself, so it might help Piccolo."

"I....I...." Chi-Chi stammered, defeated at her own game. Goku was right, after all. Most of the medicine that the family had wasn't completely nature-made, so that defeated the purpose of trying to sway the Saiyan's thoughts anyway. Chi-Chi sighed, her defeat setting in. "You can get these so-called beans on one condition."

"And what is that?" Goku asked, his face lighting up with happiness.

"You let this fever run through for a couple of days and when it doesn't break at some point, then you can get them."

"But, Chi-Chi...."

"Don't 'But Chi-Chi' me!" She hissed, waving a finger at him. "You are not going to get out of this one. It is, after all, half of your fault that Piccolo is the way he is. You shouldn't have let your son make that wish."

Goku opened his mouth to say something then closed it again. What could he do? What could he say? He couldn't very well argue with his wife, knowing full well that he would just anger her even more then she was at this moment. It was, he knew, a losing war with his wife even if some of the battles were won on his part. He would just have to go with this one even if he didn't like it one bit.

For Piccolo's sake, at least.

****

Two Days Later

Gohan sighed as he sat at his desk, his eyes scanning over the problems he had to do for his homework. He had already done at least three pages of this work but still had several more to finish in the short time he had left to complete them. It was the punishment he had to endure for what he had done even though his mother insisted that he wouldn't receive extra. She sure does forget things easily, He thought tiredly as he glanced towards the small Namek.

Piccolo hadn't stirred from his slumber since he had been brought back to the Son home a couple of days prior and it was beginning to scare him. Very little if any change had occurred and it looked like he was not going to wake any time soon even though appearances could be deceiving in this house. Chi-Chi insisted that he was going to get better even if she was going to make him get better herself. Just the thought of having his mother attempt to wake this Namek didn't sit will on his mind.

A noise from the bed made the boy glance back over towards Piccolo once again. Gohan squinted his eyes, pushing himself away from the desk as he slid off the wooden chair he had been sitting on. He then tiptoed to the right side of the bed, moving silenty and swiftly so that he wouldn't actually wake the Namek although it was a good idea anyways. It took several moments of staring at the green skinned alien to notice that he was sweating yet again. The crystal beads rolled down his perfect skin, dripping off of him and onto the pillow in which his head rested. His eyes and nose scrunched up a tiny bit, telling Gohan that the Namek must be having a nightmare about something. I wonder what he is dreaming about, The boy pondered, a smile creeping onto his lips.

Not long after that thought passed through his mind did Piccolo suddenly bolt upright into bed, his eyes snapping open as he looked around in pure horror. His chest heaved up and down like he had been running from something, the look on his face suggested that something that he couldn't shake from his body. His round, wide eyes finally found their way onto Gohan, who had backed up some from the bed.

"Whe...where am I?" The chibi Namek asked, his body slightly calming down.

"You are in my room, Piccolo," Gohan said gently, straightening his back. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes, silly. You are Gohan." Piccolo looked around, in awe that he was once at one place and now was at another. "How did I get back here?"

"My father found me sleeping and you had wandered off somewhere. You were caught in the river. You could have..."

"I know what happened to me, yet it seems like a blur anyways. Like it really didn't happen." The Namek shook his head as if he didn't want to think or talk about it. "How long was I asleep?"

"T to three days at the least. Not long."

"Three days, huh? Gives me three less days to enjoy this," He replied as he laid his head back down onto the sweat-soaked pillow. Gohan looked at his now young mentor confusingly as he took several steps towards him.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I had this strange dream that I was being chased by this oversized dragon and he kept telling me that I had to go back. I asked him over and over again if he meant that I had to go back to you but he said that I had to go back to who I once was. But, I don't remember who I was before and I don't know if I want to go back."

"I don't want you to go back to your old self either, but you have to."

"Why? Because your mommy and daddy want me to? Hmpf. Grown ups. They don't know what it is like to be a kid."

"I know, but they want what is best for me even if I don't like it," Gohan told his friend, hating to admit those words to himself as well. "Besides, you would have to grow up sometime anyways, right?"

"No. I would wish to be little FOREVER!" Piccolo shouted out, a smile coming onto his lips even though he was still panting for breath a little. He would be fully better for another day or so, but at least he is awake now, The Saiyan thought.

"So, when do you want your birthday party?"

"Birthday party?"

"Yea. Remember? I explained it to you when we sneaked out."

"Oh yea....now I remember. I don't know. How about.....today?"

"You aren't well enough to have a party right now. Besides, it takes a while to play and such, so how about two weeks from today?"

"Sounds good to me!!!" Piccolo laughed, the look of horror that once was in his eyes had faded and pure joy had taken it's place. Perhaps whatever had scared him in the first place had gone and was now hiding in the deepest reaches of his mind.

****

Chi-Chin pressed her ear to her son's door, listening to what was going on inside. A sandwich on a plate and a soda sat on a tray which, in turn, rested on the ground next to the door yet the woman ignored it for the time being. She was too busy trying to figure out what was being said on the other side of the door. She could make out some of the words as she pieced them together as best as she could but the rest was just garbled together.

Although she didn't want to admit that she would do this on occasion, Chi-Chi regularly checked up on Gohan and Goku n the same fashion. She took extra care in order to make sure that her boys were happy, well fed, and safe as that made her feel so much better. With the threats that had been happening since Goku was a little child, it wasn't hard to understand that both of her Saiyans were special. Indeed both of them were strong, perhaps the strongest in the universe, but that didn't stop her from worrying about them. And who wouldn't? Things around this homestead didn't happen on accident and she knew at least three Saiyans, a Namek, and a bald monk would be responsible for anything that would happen.

"Now, Chi-Chi. It isn't nice to spy on Gohan," A voice scolded from behind her, causing the woman to jump from her listening position. She spun around to see Goku and Krillin standing a few feet from her, their hands on their hips and serious, mocking expressions on their faces.

"You really shouldn't be listening in on your son," Krillin informed her.

"Yes. What would he think if he knew his own mother was doing this to him?" Goku added, a sly grin moving onto his lips which lost all traces of seriousness in him.

"Well, I...I...." Chi-Chi sputtered out, not knowing what to say to this whole matter.

"Well?" The two chimed in together.

"I was just....." She sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat.

"Uh-huh?"

"Wanted to know what Piccolo wanted for his birthday."

"Birthday?" Krillin inquired, giving Chi-Chi a wondering look. "I didn't even know he had one."

"Well, it's too weeks from today," The woman said, picking up the tray that she had set next to the door a little while before. She proceeded to open the door before she said to them, "That information is what you get when you listen in on your son."

The two men watched her open the door, their eyebrow's raised as she entered the room, tray in hand. It closed with a swift foot to the bottom, leaving them with half worried looks on their faces.

To Be Continued.....

Alright, alright. My chapter is done, so don't bug me. *yawns* I gotta get more sleep. *yawns again* Anyways, go bug Aura now. *pushes everyone towards her co-author* Happy Birthday, Aura! *runs away before she could be seen*