How to Carry On

By Catherine D. Kobasiuk

Chapter 2: 2 Months after the Cell Games

"Oh Wow, Chichi. That is such great news." Beamed Yamcha. " I was hoping it was something like that when you kept getting sick and were feeling so tired all the time."

Chichi blushed. " I was sort of hoping too, but I didn't want to jinx myself by saying it out loud too soon."

"I bet Gohan is so excited that he is going to be a big brother!" Yamcha laughed.

"Yes, he was so thrilled he wanted to be the one to tell my father, and then he ran off, so I can only guess that he went to tell Piccolo too. " The raven-haired woman grinned and shook her head.

Yamcha and Chichi were standing side by side at the kitchen counter cleaning fish. Yamcha cut off the heads and tails then Chichi would gut them, scale them and put some finishing touches on them before putting them in a large barrel.

"Thanks for picking up my stuff from the grocer for me today, Yamcha."

"It was no problem, though Ichiba-san wouldn't take any money for the stuff. What was that about?" Asked Yamcha looking at Chichi.

Chichi shrugged. "Oh, it's just that he still owes me for some stuff I sent to him a couple of months ago. Which is good because I'm tired of you running errands for me and always spending your money." Chichi placed a couple more fish in the barrel. "You've been doing that for awhile now and it has to stop."

Yamcha looked at her in surprise and then blushed and laughed nervously. " Um.well, it's just that I figured that things would be tight without Goku so .well, um.don't be mad Chichi, I didn't man to insult you or anything."

Chichi grinned. " Relax Yamcha, I'm not mad. It's just that it isn't really necessary. Not yet anyway. Now don't think badly of me but without Goku to feed our bills have gone way down. And in a way Goku is still supporting us."

They had finished cleaning the fish. Chichi pulled out a big pot from under the table and began putting the cleaned fish into the brine solution in the pot. Then she put a large heavy plate on top to keep the fish submerged.

"There, now that has to soak for an hour and while that is soaking we'll boil the pickling solution which I made up earlier." She informed Yamcha while she rinsed the salt off her hands in the sink. "I'll pack the jars if you slice the onions Yamcha."

"Sure, but can I ask now what we are doing?" Yamcha had come in from picking up Chichi's supplies and had seen her just beginning to clean a large pile of fish. So he had just started helping, not knowing what she was up to.

Chichi laughed. " Of course, I, or should I say we, are pickling fish. Gohan caught them all this morning for me. We have a little time to kill while the fish soak; all the jars are already sterilized. How about a glass of barley tea?"

"That sounds good. Cleaning fish is thirsty work."Yamcha agreed. " Not to be nosey or anything Chichi but I never did figure how Goku supported himself and his family. How is it that he still is after being gone 2 months?"

Chichi stirred the pot of pickling solution on the stove while sipping her glass of barley tea. Yamcha took a long draught of his tea.

"Well to explain it simply," began Chichi, " we are kind of like homesteaders. Goku might not have been the kind of man to hold down nine to five job but he did have skills and I figured out how we could make a living off of them." Chichi came over to the table and sat down.

"Goku could fish. Sure he ate a lot of what he caught but the truth is he couldn't eat it all and it would get boring if he did, so I started pickling, salting and smoking the extra fish so I could sell or trade it for things we needed. The same with any other animals he would catch. I got so good at planning ahead and I made enough contacts that I even sold a lot of fresh fish and meat to certain people at certain times of the year. I would just tell Goku what we needed and off he went and got it." She took another drink of her tea.

"Gee, Goku supported you all by fishing and hunting? That's incredible."

" He did more than just fish and hunt. He liked to chop wood too. He supplied us and quite a few local families and businesses with firewood for years. I would trade and barter with the wood too. And that's not all Goku did. When he trained under Master Roshi as a boy he learned about farming and construction work too. So in the spring he would help the local farmers till their fields and we would get a share of the crops. During other times of the year he would go and find construction jobs. He knew a few general contractors and municipal managers and they would contact him if anything he could do came up." Chichi paused in her bragging to take another drink. Then she got up and checked on the pot on the stove and the one on the floor.

Yamcha watched Chichi as she got out some onions and gave them to him with a cutting board and a knife. "Boy, I never imagined that Goku could be so industrious."

"You couldn't call Goku lazy, that is for sure. He always managed to get along fine when he was a kid and alone. I just had to show him how to broaden his sights a little so we could live a little more comfortably than like wild animals in the jungle."

Chichi shut off the stove and pulled the fish out of the pot so that they could drain. Then she set a new pot on the stove with cold water in it. She proceeded to pack the fish into the jars. "Could you take out about one third of the pickling solution and cut it in half with water Yamcha?"

"Sure Chichi." Yamcha did as she asked. " Now what?"

" Pour that solution into the jars I have packed with fish and I will put them in the pot to boil for twenty minutes"

When they had finished that step and the jars were boiling away they sat down again.

"Well, I'm glad that you and Gohan and the Baby aren't about to starve to death, Chichi." Remarked Yamcha as he poured more barley tea into his and Chichi's glasses.

"Yes, right now things are still going well and Gohan knows how to get the things that Goku could get. But I will not allow him to get a job." She said with emphasis." Getting some exercise fishing, hunting and chopping wood is just fine, but that is all I will allow. I'll just have to keep an eye on my finances more now." Chichi sighed. " It is the intangible things that I worry about. "

"Like what?" Asked Yamcha.

Chichi stared at the floor. "Well, I worry about Gohan growing up too fast. I worry that I won't be able to give him or the baby what they need, time wise. I worry about this new baby growing up without a father at all." Chichi looked up at Yamcha. He was listening to her every word. " I worry if I get sick who will take care of my children."

Yamcha nodded, and then he blew out a breath. " Those are all really good things to worry about Chichi. Now I don't want to make light of those things but I don't think you have to worry all that much." He took another drink. " Goku had friends, Gohan still has friends and you have friends that can help. There is nothing anyone can do about the baby not having a father but I can guarantee that that kid will have a lot of support from a lot of people. Just remember that it isn't wrong to ask for help. I know everybody would be glad to help if they knew what you needed and when."

"In other words don't let my pride sabotage my efforts as a mother." Said Chichi.

"Exactly, and I'll keep reminding you of that." Yamcha smiled at the woman across the table from him and took another drink. Chichi smiled back.

"So how much more do we have to do to finish this pickling job?"

-- --

ichiba market.Mr. Market

Barley tea is an infusion tea made from pouring boiling water over the roasted barley. It is steeped until it is a dark brown color and then chilled. It has no caffeine. It does have a rich earthy and toasted aroma and flavor. It is popular in Japan.