Some warnings for you:

Daddy Issues

Everyone Has Issues

Polyamory

Violence

Child Abuse

Past Abuse

Emotional/Psychological Abuse

Implied/Referenced Drug Use

Misogyny

Alien Racism

Alien Culture

Alien Biology

Human Experimentation

Background Character Death

Junior shrugged his shoulders, attempting to get the ill-fitting suit to fit just a little bit better. But nothing was about to make the shoulders stop looking like they were about to burst or the bottoms of the pants reach his ankles. It might not be perfect but it would have to pass for his interview. A thrift store suit was about all that he could afford right now unless he wanted to get into it with his family. He had gone two years without doing that, as much as he could while he was locked up and he was going to keep up that trend for as long as he could.

Desperate not to think about his family or his recent release, he looked around the room that he was stuck in. Compared to his father's house the richness was nothing knew, but it was decorated less in a ridiculous parody of human royalty (never Namekian) and more in a modern style.

The Ox King preferred darker woods and leathers, making the choices towards a masculine style. And everything was huge, big enough that it was dwarfing a man of his size. Not something that often happened when you towered over seven feet tall. The chair he was sitting in, it's back rose at least a few inches above his head a swirling pattern of ox's and other symbols.

Out of desire to keep himself from losing it, he started to look around. The desk in front of him with massive, made out of something wood that might have been mahogany. Just like every other piece of wood in the room there was that same pattern of oxes and other things that he couldn't identify all swirled together. The chair behind it was a large soft looking leather chair, and he could only imagine the man that would sit in it.

Junior pulled at his collar, it was almost choking him at this point. If it was the nerves or the fact his shirt was too small, he couldn't have said but he really wished that the Ox King would hurry up and get in here. Either he was good enough to interview or he wasn't, if he wasn't good enough to interview then he shouldn't have been called in the first place. Thinking like that was starting to give him a headache too, clearly he was just thinking too damn much lately. That's the reason he wanted this job, it was supposed to be stressful but stressful meant he didn't have to think about himself.

And it wasn't gardening. Fuck he hated gardening, but that was all his family wanted him to do. Or all family but his father wanted him to do. His father wanted to do what had gotten him sent to prison in the first place. This job wouldn't have met either of those criteria, if anyone found out what he was interviewing for he would have gotten shit from both sides. It was bad enough that he was choosing to live away from home, bad enough that he had gone to prison in the first place, but now he was taking on a job that just made Namekians look worse? Guru would have had a field day he if knew.

Fuck Guru. Kami wouldn't be totally happy, but Kami would give him some bullshit about working on his own path. Just because their spiritual leader was non-judgemental didn't mean the rest of them were. He couldn't stand the compound either way, he needed to be alone.

And away from one person in particular. But he wasn't thinking about home right now because home was that shitty little apartment that he had rented with what savings he had left.

Finally behind the chair the bright red curtain that he had assumed covered a window moved, revealing a large man who seemed to be some kind of combination of a Viking and a lumberjack, with his large horned helmet and suspenders. Though his beard was short and well-trimmed, Junior got the feeling that this was a man who knew his way around a fight. The Ox King had earned his name, the man was the size of an ox.

Junior jumped to his feet, pulling his shirt down as he did, "Sir", even if he was a former criminal he did know how to treat someone with respect, when they deserved his respect.

"Piccolo Daimao Jr I assume?" the king's voice fit his body, a large booming almost growl. He seemed to be angry as he came around the desk, looking up and down Junior.

"It's just Junior, Sir. I'd rather not be associated with my father if you wouldn't mind", he clasped his hands behind his back to resist the urge to fiddle with his clothes any longer.

The Ox King laughed, his belly shaking with the force of his breath. He clapped his hand on Junior's shoulder with enough force that Junior almost fell over, "Junior it is my boy! Sit, sit", he waved his hands at the chair Junior had previously be sitting in before moving around his desk again. Ox took his own seat, with a slight oof as he manoeuvred his bulk.

It took a few moments before Junior allowed the breath he hadn't known he was holding to be released. He took his own seat, holding in his hands in a lap still trying not to fiddle. He was starting to think that he had no idea who he was dealing with. He had been expecting a hard man like his father, instead he was sitting in front of a man who laughed and despite his size seemed…friendly.

"I understand that you've only recently been released? Two years for assault?" Ox flipped through a few papers on his desk, "And an incredible amount of arrests before that"

"I assure you I have been rehabilited, I'm not a criminal any longer—"

"I want you because you are a criminal", Ox sighed, leaning back in his chair, crossing his fingers over his belly, "I know that's not something that you would expect to hear from a prospective employer, but that's the truth of it"

Junior raised his eye ridge, wiggling his nose a little bit, he was finding it rather hard to believe that anyone would want him for his past for anything but illegal activities. Which he wasn't about to even consider doing, he would be going home and willing to fucking pick flowers before he went back to prison.

"My daughter is…a difficult woman to handle. She's…trying to prove herself to the world and apparently part of that means running off her bodyguards. I don't believe she's been able to keep one for more than a few weeks since she turned eighteen. I've hired everyone I could think of, army, fighters, so many different sorts of aliens, I've come to the conclusion that there might be no one who can handle her"

There was no way that there was a twenty one year old girl who could run off her handlers like that, the Ox King must not have been hiring as good of people as he thought he was, "Is there that much of a threat to her? I apologize sir I do know you're rather wealthy but I don't think I've heard anything about enemies of yours", it seemed most people were too scared to go against the Ox King. If he was your friend, he would do anything for you. If he was your enemy, you would die.

Ox twirled one of the buttons on his shirt, considering what he would say before he replied, "Chichi is the problem. Not my enemies. That…might be the issue, she's…my daughter and I have tried to raise her well but I'm not sure that what I attempted to do got through to her. I love Chichi but she is…a difficult woman. I understand you haven't seen any of the papers, but if you did you might understand a little bit more"

"Are you attempting to convince me not to take the job sir?", he was getting mixed signals here, was he supposed to want the job or was he supposed to be terrified and leave, "If you don't want me I can leave"

"I just want you to know what you're getting into Junior. You'll be paid well of course, but if you don't want to take the job or if you want to quit….I'll allow it", Ox pressed his lips together as his hand up came up to his beard, tugging on the short hairs, "It this point I am at the end of my rope. I just want Her to be safe and if I have to pay or if I have to give you all the days off you want, I will do anything"

Ox picked up pile of papers off his desk, "This is the contract. It's only for a month, so if after that month you decide you want to leave, or you want to be paid more….anything, we can renogationate. I just ask you try for the month before you make your final decision", he slid the stack towards Junior, "Read over it before you sign…", as he was speaking the phone rang, a shrill noise that cut through the office.

Ox sighed, grabbing the phone, "Yes…I…yes I'll come see what's going on", he pressed a finger to his temple, squinting as he did so He hung up his phone, pushing away from the desk, "I apologize, take your time. There's…an issue in the house and I need to see to it. If I can't get away my assistant will come for you"

Junior nodded, already being to look over the contract, most of it was pretty standard stuff. If he got hurt he couldn't sue but they would pay for his medical costs, he got a lot more than he would have thought in salary, and if he needed it he could stay at the mansion. Flipping through he was starting to think it was more perks than anything else, he was allowed to use the car for his own person use, a clothing budget… vacation time. All for looking after one kid who was a little bit rowdy sometimes. It was almost too good to be true, but if it was he would be out in a month. Just a month, that's all he had to do.

He picked up a pen from the table, black and gold, probably more expensive than the suit he was wearing and signed his name. Piccolo Daimao Junior, in thick black strokes. He hated to write his own name, but legally that was what he was called. Even if his father didn't really care all that much about legal.

It felt like a knot had been released from his stomach, all of the nerves that he had been holding in over the idea that he wouldn't get this job. That he would have to go back home and face his father to say I failed again. Even if he didn't verbalize the words that's how his father would read it, that his son couldn't hack it without him so he had to come running back to daddy.

Whatever this girl was like there was no way that she could be any worse then his family. No matter what the Ox king thought, he might think his daughter was difficult case, but he hadn't meant Demon King Piccolo when he was at his worst.

He had to be lead out by an assistant, who explained that the situation had become worse than what the Ox King had originally thought and had to be dealt with. But he would be very pleased to see that Junior had agreed to the job and would inform him with a start date soon. Though the clothing budget would go in effect immediately. The assistant pulled a black card from their pocket, holding it between their fingers because Junior grabbed it.

"You can use that to buy yourself new clothes before your start date, suits will do. If Miss Chichi thinks you need anything else, she'll let you know. She's very vocal about her needs…" the assistant's nose wiggled, disgusted with something that Chichi had done.

"Was Chichi the problem?" that was the only thing that he could assume, he hadn't been informed that there was anyone else living in the house.

the assistant shook their head, crossing their arms over their chest, "It was the z-fighters, some sort of issue there. I try not to get too involved in that side of the King's business, I'm not a fighter. But what I heard was that a wall of a neighbouring business was destroyed…and the police were called…"

Junior shrugged his shoulders, but on the inside his mind was racing. He was aware of the z-fighters, everyone was. If only because he was aware of Son Goku, the man his father hated more than anything else. He hadn't been aware that Ox was involved with them though, and maybe it was pretty he didn't. He would rather stay in the dark. Take care of the kid, don't worry about what the dad does.

"What do you want Nail?" He had barely gotten in the door of his apartment, still a little bit dazed from the interview when his phone rang. And he knew who it was because there were two people who knew his number and he had just left one of their houses.

"I wanted to make sure my favourite cousin isn't dead. I know you got out, and I know you know I know so I want to know why you didn't call me?" he could hear the general noise and chatter of the Namekian household in the background of Nail's call.

Piccolo wedged the phone between his shoulder and his ear as he filled a glass of water up, "My father isn't around right? I don't have the energy for him right now. Or you. But I don't think that's going to work to get rid of you as easily as I would like"

Nail snorted, and Junior could almost see him, rolling his eyes over the phone. As much as he would hate to admit it, he did miss Nail, he missed his family. Some of them less than others, but he did miss them. It was hard to go from a house full of annoying aliens to being completely alone in a shitty apartment. But he would deal with it, and he wasn't going to tell Nail that he was lonely.

"Your father fucked off to some fight or something, Russia? I dunno I haven't been paying attention they won't let him fight here anymore so he has to fly around like an ass to find new people to beat the shit out of. Sooo, what are you doing?"

Junior clicked his nails against the glass as he considered, "I got a job. And an apartment. So you know I'm doing better than the 24-year-old stoner who won't leave home"

"Look, I look after the stoners. You know I don't touch that stuff, I'm not that religious. And what's the job? Are you a stripper? What the hell kind of jobs do they even give felons? And not even just a human felon, you're a Namekian Felon too. Half the people around here won't hire us even if we haven't assaulted a man in a bar. SO are you a stripper?"

Now he was remembering why he didn't miss Nail, the man talked too damn much for his own good. Kami and Dende stank of weed but at least they were mellow enough not to talk for hours on end about nothing, "Thanks Nail. No I'm not a stripper, fuck you. I'm a bodyguard"

He could tell that the wheels were spinning in Nail's head, as fast as those wheels could spin. It wasn't that Nail was wrong, people didn't like Namekians, and he was only proving them right when he went to jail. It seemed to be that if you were larger than them, and looked dangerous, it didn't mean anything that 90% of Namekians couldn't care less about violence and just wanted to be left alone. If you were a Namekian, you were a violent asshole and clearly unhireable from the start.

"This isn't anything weird or illegal right? I mean it's a legit job? Dende would be upset if you went to jail again because you know he couldn't handle going to visit you. He said it literally hurt and you were only in min security"

"Thanks for the guilt trip Nail", he did feel bad about Dende, but he also had the same issue, if on a smaller scale. Being a telepathic race and being around so many people broadcasting how angry or sad they were in such a small space did a number on his brain. For Dende, someone in training to be a religious leader whose mind was that much more open, he couldn't have imagined the pain.

"It's not illegal", he said finally, though he wasn't totally sure of that, "And my boss has promised that any legal trouble I get into he'll supply a lawyer. It's just looking after some rich girl while she drinks. You know make sure she doesn't lose her shirt or anything"

The water was terrible, the first thing he was going to have to do once he got paid was get a filter, and he couldn't survive on this shit. And bottled water was bullshit, "It's a job Nail. A job off the Compound"

Nail made a noise in his throat, not totally convinced of Junior's sincerity, "Would you even tell me if you were in trouble? I mean who got arrested with you that time when we were sixteen and you hotwired that car?"

"Nail. I love you. But I. Am. Fine.", he stressed out each word, hoping that it would get through Nail's thick skull that he really was alright. There was nothing wrong with him or this job, it was just him trying to get his own life under his own control for the first time in what felt like his life. He was trying to prove that he wasn't just a fucking clone of his father.

That was something every Namekian born of one parent dealt with, if you technically only had their DNA were you just a smaller version of them? It was that much worse for him, when his father had created him for that reason only. His father wanted someone to take on his legacy, to be the next Demon King. And he had assumed that he would just get a perfect clone of himself. That was the first disappoint of Junior's life, the first time he hadn't lived up to his father's ridiculous expectations of him.

Sure he would be a violent ass, he would beat up people, he would be Ma Junior, but every chance he was fucking up his father's idea of him. Junior wore punk clothes and enough leather to make a cow jealous, covered himself in fake tattoos and piercings all to upset his father. When all that he had to do was smoke a little bit a weed and live like his Uncle. But that wouldn't have been him any more than the punk style really was.

Junior wasn't totally sure who he was, and that have been why he was here, taking a job to protect a woman he didn't know or care about, just because he knew that his father would have ever considered it.

"…but are you happy Junior?" Nail asked, his nails clicking against the phone, "I know you're fine, you're always fine. You went to jail you were fine, you almost killed a man you were fine, you ended up in a coma you were fine. Your father-"

"Nail. Please", he didn't want to talk about his dad anymore just confirming that the man wasn't anywhere near Nail was enough, "It's been a long day. I…I'll call you later"

"Is that a promise or are you just saying that to get me off the phone?"

"No this is to just get you off the phone. I'm happy", or as happy as I can be, he thought. It was hard to think about being happy when he just wanted to be…fine. As Nail said, he was always fine. That's always how he was, there was never anything wrong with Junior.

Nail sighed, "…we both know that I can tell that's not true"

He did know that for sure, he and Nail might as well have been as close and Kami and Demon King Piccolo. Even as far apart as they were, Junior could feel Nail's excitement, and his nervousness. And he knew that Nail could feel all of the inner turmoil that he was going through.

"Can we pretend that it is for the moment? It's too early in all of this to assume that this is going to go to shit"

"Does that mean I always have to pretend that when we hang up you're going to say I love you back instead of grunting like a dick?"

"I love you Nail. Goodbye", thankfully he hadn't picked up one those stupid ass smartphones because he couldn't make the screens work with his nail and then he wouldn't have been able to snap his phone shut on Nail.

Just barely inside his head he heard the echo of Nail's voice in his head, 'I love you too dumbass'. It might have been a memory or wishfully thinking, but he knew that it was Nail, speaking to him from back home. The words squeezed around his heart, making him wonder for a moment if he was doing the right thing. Maybe he should go back to the compound and just be like every other Namekian.

this whole thing was making his head hurt. Again. He was beginning to wonder if whatever was in the water might be the actual cause of his headaches and not all of his over thinking. He was going to have to ask Nail if Dende or Kami could send him some herbs from home. Human medications did nothing for him but make him sick. That or they worked too well and he wasn't in the mood for getting high as a kite just to get rid of a headache.

Or maybe he could start growing his own encase he ran out. The idea that there might be Namekian pharmacy anywhere near him was laughable. Even if there was half of the population was terrified of him just because of who is father was. Even at home, there was always those that viewed him with fear like they thought that he would attack someone with no warning. It hurt a little bit to be viewed as a monster even but his own people. They were supposed to be a community, not divided against the humans.

When your own people looked at you like you were a monster, and the human community looked at you like you were a monster, who the hell were you suppose to turn to? You just ended up feeling alone, because everyone already had their pre-convinced ideas of who you were and what you would do.

Go to bed, he told himself, drinking the rest of the water if only because he needed it. No matter how disgusting it tasted. Filter. He reminded himself, he was really going to have to buy the fucking Filter.

Filter. Clothes…, all projects that could be dealt with tomorrow when his mind wasn't completely on his family. He should have been thinking about his new job, the one that had made him feel so much relief before. That's what his family did to him, made what previously made sense get all turned upside down until he didn't know what was going on anymore.