Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ The Mystery Within ❯ Weakness ( Chapter 9 )

The Mystery Within

Part I - Prelude to Terror

Written by Namek Kaia

Disclaimer: Yes!! I own Dragonball! Finally, it's mine! Muhahahahahaha!! <wakes up> Damnit!!

**Author's Note** Yep, it's me again, interrupting the flow of the story. Oh well, get over it. Just wanted to warn you that this is somewhat of a boring chapter, but it was necessary to bring other characters into the story. And I'm talking about Gohan! Yeah! Oh come on, you knew he had to come into the story sometime. You can't have Piccolo without Gohan. And to make the story work a little better, Gohan is a bit older. Call it an A/U or whatever. Just thought I'd let you know so you weren't confused or anything. So without further adieu... on with the story!!

Chapter Nine

Weakness

That afternoon, Piccolo hovered alone near the fire, meditating. Niko stood in the kitchen, cooking a small lunch for herself. Food was scarce because of winter, the only food source available to her being harvested from her garden in the fall. The journey to the next city was long…too long to make in the winter for items she didn't necessarily need. Besides that, a trip caused her to risk other human confrontation, which she wanted to avoid at all costs. She made sure that they had enough essentials stocked to last throughout the winter season.

Their source of water was the stream that ran through the nearby woods. Niko and her father had built a plumbing system that pumped the water from the stream to their home to give them running water. However, this winter was so harsh that the temperature had frozen the pipes. Winters of this area weren't usually this brutally cold, but this winter season was a definite exception. She was lucky to have bought plenty of bottled water on her last trip into town. She couldn't shower often, but at least she wouldn't die of thirst.

Piccolo's eyes slowly opened as he came to an unsure thought. His thoughts had been surrounding his conversation with Niko earlier that morning. He was sure she hadn't lied to him. At least she had that much respect for him. He replayed the words in his head, trying to gather some additional information through her words, as if they held an encrypted message. This unsure thought, he thought it stupid, but it filled him with curiosity. He wasn't even sure if it was appropriate. But it couldn't hurt to ask, could it? After a few more moments of thought, he finally broke the stiff silence of the room.

"Niko?"

"Yes?" she asked in return, continuing to stir the soup she was preparing. She hadn't completely heard the question, still engulfed in her own thoughts.

"You don't have to answer… but I was thinking about what you had told me," he explained, causing Niko to interrupt her stirring. "When those men... did that to you... you didn't become with child? I mean, you don't have a ten year old child that I don't know about walking around somewhere, do you?" he finished, feeling incredibly stupid after asking such a thing.

"He would only be eight years old, thank you very much. And no, I didn't get pregnant. I made sure of that," she answered, slightly insulted at his misjudgment of her age, but it was quickly forgotten. It was a common mistake. She couldn't deny that she did look a bit older than she actually was.

"You made sure?" he asked, more confused and curious than before.

`I have mental abilities like you wouldn't believe,' she replied mentally, a large smirk gracing her face. Piccolo was almost thrown off balance at the sudden invasion of his mind. He stood and faced Niko with a greatly surprised expression.

"You're telepathic?!?" he shouted in confusion rather than anger.

"And telekinetic," she added with pride, releasing the wooden spoon from her hand and proceeding to move it with her mind. Soon after, her pride was replaced with anger. 'Damnit, Niko! There you go being idiotic again. Sure… tell him about your powers, why don't you? And while you're at it, why not write him a friggin' book telling him everything!!' she mentally berated herself. She knew that she did these things sometimes, but also knew that it couldn't be helped. She had to admit to herself that she was very proud of her abilities, and most of the time her pride clouded her better judgment. "Um, heh. I was born with the ability. It took me quite a while to learn how to use it and improve on it," she explained quickly, stretching the truth only a little.

Piccolo easily saw this and grunted in disapproval. `So much for respect,' he retorted to himself. "Whatever. But I don't see what that has to do with what happened. Or rather, what didn't happen."

"Well I just mentally moved their sperm in the wrong direction, so there was no possible way I could get pregnant. Thank God, too," she stated with a disgusted shiver, thinking of what the child might have looked like judging by the father. Piccolo was amazed, both at the fact that she had this ability and that she didn't seem to mind speaking on the subject of her abuse. It was possible that she simply enjoyed explaining the capabilities she had, no matter the subject of discussion.

"I see…"

After a long awkward pause, Piccolo shifted and returned to his meditation. Niko continued her cooking, stirring this time with her hand. Though, it wasn't long before their peace was interrupted by an unexpected visitor.

*****

Outside, not too far away, Gohan had taken his little brother Goten out to play in what little snow had fallen the night before. He gasped as he was caught off guard by a flying snowball, and cringed as he felt the cold and wetness of snow crawling down the back of his neck. Seeking revenge, he bent down and picked up a handful of snow with his glove-covered hands. "Take this you little punk!" he called to his three-year-old brother and launched his ready snowball at his target.

As the war continued, they wondered further and further away from home, taking their snowball fight into a large clearing on the outskirts of the woods. Just as they were about to launch another barrage of snowballs at each other, Gohan stopped. In the distance, he could see smoke escaping from the chimney of a small house. But this was irrelevant to him. He could feel Piccolo's ki, which excited him to no end. He hadn't seen Piccolo in over a year. Gohan neither bothered to wonder what he was doing in this house instead of out in the woods... alone, nor did he feel Goten's snowball that had hit him in the side of his face. Quickly he grabbed his little brother and flew in the direction of the house and pounded on the door upon arrival, trying hard not to break it down from his anxiousness.

Upon hearing the unexpected knock on the door, both Piccolo and Niko tensed. They quickly stopped their activites and warily approached the door. Both vaguely recognized the ki they felt, but knowing their enemies, anything was possible. Niko reached for the door handle and quickly opened it, assuming a fighting stance. She relaxed as she saw their intruder gasp with surprise and stumble backward into the snow.

"G... Gohan!?!" came Piccolo's words of surprise to see his former student.

"Yeah… heh, sorry. I didn't mean to alarm you or anything. I just felt your ki and came to see you. It's been a long time hasn't it?" he said, getting up and brushing the snow off his clothes. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you, really," he continued, turning to Niko. However, she only halfway heard his apology, more concerned with Gohan's shy accomplice. She knelt down so that they were at eye level with each other.

"And who might you be?" she asked happily, showing a smile.

Sensing her gentleness, Goten stepped out from behind his brother's leg. "I'm Goten," he stated in his high-pitched childish voice, bowing slightly.

"And I am Niko. Very nice to meet you, young sir," she said, returning his bow jokingly.

He giggled and replied, "You're silly."

"I'll show you silly," she remarked with false offense and began to tickle his sides. He laughed uncontrollably while struggling to break free from her torture. She was amazed at the amount of strength he exerted for a child of his age. 'Must be his Saiyan blood,' she thought. After bringing him to tears, she released him, allowing him to stumble back out into the snow.

"You're not silly, you're mean!" he shouted and playfully threw a snowball in her direction. She looked away, allowing it to hit her on the shoulder. "Alright Goten," she shouted back, standing, "you asked for it!!" Once again Goten had engaged himself in a snowball fight, Niko willfully playing along. Piccolo and Gohan watched in amazement at the sight before them. That is, Piccolo watched in amazement. Gohan was more confused than anything else.

Gohan had never seen someone take so quickly to a child that wasn't his or her own. But then again, he could understand this in Goten's case. Goten was so laid back and carefree. He was always laughing and having fun with everyone and everything he managed to find. Gohan could remember seeing him sad only once or twice. His mother had said that Goku had been the same way when he was young. So innocent, so fun loving, and very adventurous. His heart clenched a bit at the thought of his father. He missed his presence more than anyone could imagine, and he tried his best to keep it hidden. Gohan longed more and more everyday to see him… to hear his voice again. It had been so long since he had left. It seemed to him like an eternity.

As Gohan became captured by thoughts of his father, Piccolo still stood with a stunned expression, gazing at the scene before him. Niko had amazed him yet again. She was altogether a different person. She was... happy. He had never seen such an emotion from her. Not much different from he, the only expression she wished to express was seriousness and scorn. Occasionally, sadness and depression bled through, but never happiness. Never once. Now, she was actually smiling, making her even more beautiful than before. And she laughed... creating such a sweet melody for his ears. It was then that his brain started to race with thoughts.

Could it be that having contact someone other than him caused her enjoyment with Goten? That all she needed to be truly happy was to forget about him and be around others? Or was it that perhaps children were her weakness? And maybe she yearned more than anything to have children of her own. It was so obvious now. Would she be complete if only she could have children? But was it even possible? She loved her life of near solitude… didn't she? Niko wouldn't go out and find someone she loved enough to start a family with. Then, of course, there was himself. The thought rolled over and over in his mind. They didn't exactly love each other, but couldn't he help her bring a child into this world?

With a mental grunt, he pushed the thought away. He knew wouldn't be able to bring himself to do such a thing. He would feel responsible for the child, and would need to play a major part in its life. He couldn't just abandon something like that, no matter how capable Niko was of raising a child on her own. And he wasn't ready for such a commitment in his life… not yet. Trying to forget the subject matter, he returned to his conversation with Gohan.

"You've grown a great deal, both body and soul, since I have seen you last. You must be what? Fifteen now?" he asked.

"Sixteen," Gohan corrected, fixing his gaze back onto Niko and Goten.

"You have molded into quite the father for the child, haven't you? You've barely taken you eyes off of him since you've been here," he commented.

"It's not him that I'm looking at," he stated with a slight smile. Then suddenly realizing his mistake, he tried to re-word his statement. "I mean, not that I was looking at her. I just…" he stammered.

Piccolo held up a clawed hand to stop him from going any further. "Don't worry, you said nothing wrong. She isn't my mate… not really, though I would protect her with my life, as I would you," he spoke, serious as always. Both their gazes lingered on the two figures playing in the snow. After a few moments, the silence was once again broken by Piccolo. "You know, I wouldn't mind testing your improved fighting skills. What would you say to a spar?" he questioned, raising one brow.

Gohan hesitated with a sigh, keeping his eye on Goten. "Don't worry," Piccolo assured. "I'm sure he'll be fine with her. She's not dangerous." 'At least I hope not,' he thought. "Besides, I don't think you could possibly separate those two."

A smile growing on his face, Gohan finally responded. "You're probably right. Alright then… I accept," he stated happily, glad to finally get a chance to spar with his mentor once again. "But I have to warn you, you might not be able to keep up with an accomplished fighter such as myself," he finished, proudly projecting his chest outward.

"I think puberty has destroyed your mind, kid. But we shall see who is keeping up with who once it begins," he replied, leaping into the air, followed closely by Gohan. As they flew off, Niko and Goten paused in their fun.

"Where is brother going?" Goten asked desperately. Niko, unable to answer the toddler's question, watched in confusion as they flew away. Piccolo glanced back at her, mentally sending her the message reassuring her that they would be back soon.

"Don't worry, Goten. They'll be back soon enough. You can stay with me in the meantime. Would you like to go inside? I'll make us some nice, warm cocoa? Okay?"

"Yea, cocoa!!" he exclaimed, patting his tiny gloved hands together before jumping into her arms so she would carry him inside.




UH OH!! Do I sense a little... love triangle going on? Piccolo has some competition? Maybe… maybe not. And I intentionally created a slip of words in this chapter. Did you catch it? Oh well, it's not the end of the world if you didn't.

Yeah, okay. The ending is kinda, well... bleh. I don't like the whole chapter really. But I don't know how I would fix it. Suggestions are welcome!! Well, the final chapters of part one are finally approaching! Both the identity of the mysterious stranger and Niko's secret are revealed!! Review and tell me what you think. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long. Luv y'all lots! ~ NaK ~