P.S.A. Gadget

Penelope was kneeling on the couch with her elbows on the backrest, her chin resting on her hands. She was gazing at the two photos on the cupboard. After all that quarrelling, the separate pictures of her parents seemed getting on well now side by side.

Her uncle was wearing a pink apron over his trench coat and had a duster in his hand, he was cleaning the living room quietly.

The girl turned around and looked at her uncle with an earnest look upon her face.

"Thank you, uncle Gadget!"

"You're welcome!" replied the inspector instinctively, but was puzzled. "Err, for what?"

Even though she did most of them until now, cleaning – or any other chore – was not his niece's duty explicitly; the inspector doing it didn't require any sort of acknowledgement. One of the positive attributes of his new job was, that he had more free time, and dusting high or hard-to-reach places were much easier for him, using his extending gadgets.

"Thank you for taking care of me!" she said still very seriously.

"Oh, that…" Words failed Gadget for a moment. He was deeply touched, even blushed a shade. He deemed the thing so evident, that he even less expected any expression of thanks for that. "Don't mention it, you are my niece!"

"Yes, but you were only 17, just a teenager when Mom and Dad passed away. It must've been very hard for you to look after a small child."

"That's right, bringing up a child is a very big responsibility" the inspector nodded. "And even though teenage kids are capable of conceiving a baby biologically, they are not prepared for such a huge task mentally."

"That's why one must use protection, right?"

The words stuck in Gadget's throat, he was very surprised by how well informed the young girl is. Looks like school education isn't like it used to be… But his policy was that his niece is clever enough to deserve an intelligent answer for her every question.

"Yes, to avoid unwanted pregnancy and to prevent dangerous diseases too. But the best method of prevention is to wait until one is mature enough. There are so many other fun pastimes to do."

"Like table tennis, for example?"

"Yes." Gadget let out a big sigh of relief. He felt slightly uncomfortable to discuss the topic with his niece at such tender age. "Go-go Gadget ping-pong set!"

Half dozen yellow-gloved hands appeared from his hat, each holding a table tennis racket.

"Ok, uncle" Penny giggled and took the racket from one of the hands, "but only one racket per head this time!"

The unnecessary hands returned to the hat and the inspector followed the girl to the play room. He was relieved for now, but was already afraid of the day, when his niece will ask his advice on some feminine issue.