Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Goku blocked a kick to the head while in the air and moved faster than the eye could see behind Vegeta. Vegeta anticipated the move and sent a new kick into his stomach. The force of the kick had him doubled over, and Vegeta used both fists to send him hurtling to the ground. Unable to right himself in time, he crashed into the ground, creating a large crater.

“You’re not taking this seriously are you Kakarot?” Vegeta teased, wagging his fingers.

Goku laughed, dragged himself out of the crater and went to meet Vegeta head on.

They spared for a few more hours. Only when they had both fell down from exhaustion, returning to their base forms, did they call it quits.

“That was amazing.” Goku panted.

“And here I thought you were getting soft on me.”

“Naw, we can still go all out.”

Finally, Goku sat up.

“Geta I think it’s your turn to find dinner.”

Vegeta huffed.

“Oh, are you certain now? Well I think I know what it’s your turn for.” Vegeta smiled menacingly.

Goku blushed at the implication.

Vegeta laughed wildly, throwing his head back. When he was done it almost looked like he had tears in his eyes for laughing so hard.

“Okay Kakarot, I’ll go find us something suitable for two Saiyans after a hard day’s work, why don’t you go get the kitchen ready?”

Goku nodded and Vegeta chuckled as he flew away.

As Goku flew the few miles back to where their Capsule home stood, he thought about how nice it was to see Vegeta actually smile and laugh like that. It felt good to know some of the weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Our arrangement with Bulma seems to be really working out. Goku grinned to himself.

After getting the kitchen ready and the table set, Vegeta still hadn’t returned so Goku went to the living room to try to find something to do with his time. The comment from Vegeta earlier about going soft hadn’t been too far off. Lately they spent a lot of time not doing much of anything. Goku considered picking out a movie for them to watch once dinner was done.

Goku lost all train of thought as he felt three familiar divine energy signatures enter Earth, and they were awfully close to Vegeta’s.

What are they doing here? 

Goku touched two fingers to his forehead and disappeared.

The scene he appeared into was straight from a nightmare. Vegeta was trapped inside an all too familiar looking Energy of Destruction trying desperately to hold it off, so it didn’t crush and kill him. Ro, the strangely sadistic Supreme Kai of the 9th Universe was cackling wickedly at the sight. Sidra the Destroyer was controlling it, tightening its perimeter closer and closer to Vegeta. Mojito the Angel and Attendant to the destroyer just looked uncomfortable.

“Kakarot get these barbaric morons away from me!” Vegeta sounded beyond pissed.

“Look who finally showed up!” Ro laughed.

The dark purple ball of energy disappeared and Vegeta fell to the ground. Goku was next to him instantly helping him up and supporting his weight.

“What do you guys want?” Goku asked, trying to hide how upset he was.

“We had an interesting visit from an old friend of yours, Frieza. He advised that your relationship had changed and we finally had an opportunity to get back at you for what you did.” Sidra explained condescendingly.

Goku’s mind was reeling. He was too deep in thought and didn’t notice the raised hand until it was too late.

Time moved in slow motion. There was no noise. He saw Vegeta’s desperate face. His lips seemed to be saying his Saiyan name, his eyes wide with bewildered surprise as his body disintegrated into blue and gold lights that flew up into the air. Goku reached out to catch them but his hands remained empty.

Time picked back up and he could hear the Kai’s evil laughter.

“This is your punishment for humiliating our universe and thinking out could get away with it.” He laughed again.

Goku felt his energy spike in a way it hadn’t before. He felt the familiar warmth of his ki enveloping him and the last thing he remembered was the world turning red.

When he came to, he was curled into a ball and Whis was kicking at his feet.

“Whis?”

Goku rubbed his eyes and looked around. Suddenly he remembered and jumped to his feet.

He searched with his mind for Vegeta’s energy. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew it would be useless. Since their first fusion his energy signal burned in his mind like an embodiment of their connection. He could tell where Vegeta was from anywhere in the universe, maybe even other universes. But for the first time in years it was gone. He felt hollow and empty.

Without realizing it he had started to cry. Tears fell down his face and he wiped them away and turned back to Whis. The Angel held a grave expression.

“Whis what happened?” His breath hitched at the sound of his own voice.

“I’m not sure of everything, maybe you can help me with that. I felt a disturbance here and when I went to check on it, I was just in time to see you rip the Kai of the 9th universe in half, effectively killing both him and the destroyer while taking his Attendant out of commission. I can’t find Vegeta anywhere, so I assume that has something to do with it? Still this situation is serious. The other universes are weary of you enough after the tournament. If they found out you had actually killed a Kai and a Destroyer things could get out of hand very quickly.”

At Vegeta’s name Goku fell onto his knees. His heart ached. He tried to listen to what Whis said but he couldn’t believe he had killed Ro. He didn’t relish in killing but watching Vegeta’s existence be erased had brought out a primal rage in him he hadn’t even realized he contained.

Whis noticing Goku’s lack of attention leaned down so he was eye level with him.

“Goku this is serious. We need to fix this.”

“They erased him and said it was my fault.” He claws at the grass on the ground.

Goku tried to think but couldn’t focus.

“What about your do over?”

“That won’t do any good. It’s been well over three minutes I’m afraid.”

“The Dragon Balls?” He whispered, breathing hard. For some reason everything was taking a lot of effort.

“Hmm. That might work. I’m a little worried about bringing them back to life though. I don’t want them to retaliate and you attack them again. We have to be careful as well about creating any more alternate timelines.”

Whis considered their options.

“What if we used the Dragon Balls for a do over? You go back into your body but your mind remembers what happened so you can stop it. I believe we will need the Super Dragon Balls for this though. The Earth and Namekian ones aren’t ready for use yet, and who knows if they’d be able to accomplish this.”

Whis paused. Goku barely noticed.

“I’ll have to ask Bulma for the Dragon Ball Radar.” Whis said gently.

“Oh Whis, I can’t... I can’t face her. Not after...” He couldn’t finish his sentence.

Whis nodded.

“I won’t tell her what it’s for, only that it is urgent.”

Whis clicked his staff and disappeared in a streak of light that flew upward. As soon as he was gone Goku slid all the way down to the ground.

This has to work. Don’t worry ‘Geta, I’ll save you. 

He wrapped his arms around himself and rocked his body while waiting, trying not to think about what happened. He didn’t know how long he waited. Whether it was seconds, minutes, or hours but Whis did return with the Super Dragon Radar in hand. He helped Goku up and they were off.

The whole trip searching for the planet sized Dragon Balls passed in a blur.

“Where’s Beerus?”

“My lord is napping. I figured it best not to wake him for such disturbing news. Hopefully he never has to find out.”

Goku nodded.

Once they had all seven Whis asked Goku if he knew what to do.

“Yeah. Once I’m back in my body before Vegeta... while Vegeta is okay still I stop them. Then I don’t kill them. Then I regroup with you and we figure out where to go from there.”

Whis gave a small smile at his hesitation but didn’t say anything. Goku nodded, determined for this to work.

Whis called out to the Super Dragon in the Devine language, “Emoc Htrof Enivid Nogard Dna Tnarg Ym Hsiw. Peas and Carrots!” 

The Dragon began to appear, and they were carried through what felt like to Goku time and space itself, inside the Dragon. Eventually they were greeted by a vision of the Dragon that was sized down so they could speak to it.

Whis looked over at Goku and he nodded again. He was more determined about this than anything in his life. This was for his Vegeta. He could not leave him this way.

Whis raised his hands in the air and cried out their wish.

“I hsiw rof eht eno nwowk sa Son Goku ot eb tnes kcab ot erofeb Prince Vegeta saw deyortsed!” 

There was a bright light and Goku felt like he was flying. It reminded him briefly of when he used his instant transmission. He tried to prepare himself for what was to come. He didn’t know how much time he would have. Hopefully enough to get Vegeta away and then to Whis. If they had to stay by Whis and Beerus’ side until this was fixed that’s what they would do.

When the flying sensation stopped, he opened his eyes. The sun was blinding. It had been sunset when everything happened. How far back had he gone?

When his eyes adjusted, he looked around, instantly recognizing the area. His stomach dropped.

No no no no no. 

He looked around, and then he saw him. Goku could swear he felt his heart stop in that moment. Standing on a cliff above him, dressed in old armor including a scouter, with a tail wrapped around his waist. If that wasn’t a dead enough give away the cocky grin of pure disdain and superiority that hadn’t been used in his direction for years was spotted promptly on Vegeta’s face. All this helped Goku piece it together.

“Come now Kakarot. If you will not join me, I’ll just have to defeat you.”

Oh crap. 

Chapter Text

Falling in love with Vegeta had been effortless. After so many years of kinship and fighting side by side, their friendship turned into something more and they were surprised to realize they didn’t even mind.

He knew every inch of Vegeta’s body, mind, and soul. Seeing him like this was torture. He couldn’t think of anything worse. He had to concentrate all of his energy on not showing how familiar he was with the other man. If his touches lingered even for a second he knew Vegeta would notice and think he was some kind of a weird pervert.

Their sparring matches were extremely different the last few months. Less severe, flirty even. It wasn’t uncommon for one man to lightly kiss the other or even a quick grope here or there. All was fair and more often than not it ended in their laughter as they hung over each other enjoying the freedom to be together.

Now though, there was no warmth from the other man. They were in a fight to the death and Vegeta was brutal and would not be showing Goku any mercy.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

Every hit sparked a memory.

Vegeta kicked him in the ribs.

He could see Vegeta’s sultry eyes as he told him not to bother training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber because he would defeat Cell on his own.

A punch to the face.

Vegeta’s face contorted in ecstasy above as they made love for the first time.

An exquisitely painful roundhouse kick to his back.

Vegeta driving him around in a Capsule Car with no destination.

A headbutt.

Vegeta catching him from the sky as he fell, holding onto him for dear life.

Goku wasn’t used to Vegeta being so much stronger than him anymore and his assault of memories was making it hard to concentrate.

An especially hard flying kick knocked him to the ground and the last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was blue and gold floating through the air towards the night sky.

Goku was finishing up breakfast as he set the table. Vegeta would be waking soon and he wanted everything to be perfect when he broke the news. He made sure to pay extra attention to the food so it wouldn’t burn. So of course, he tripped over himself, flew into the table breaking it in half and causing all the dishes to crash to floor, all broken. He went to pull himself up off the ground but was met with a pair of bare feet.

“Kakarot.” Vegeta growled dangerously.

Goku tried to say something but his mouth hung open and was unable to form words.

He started to flounder. He was sweating bullets and swallowed loudly.

Vegeta chuckled and helped him up.

“What’s all this?” He asked smiling.

Goku still wasn’t used to Vegeta’s carefree attitude around him. Even though their relationship had been more friendly for awhile. A few months ago he would have still gotten an earful for being clumsy.

Goku served them up plates and they went to sit on the couch in the other room.

“I’m sorry ‘Geta.” He said in between bites. “I wanted to tell you something and I wanted it to perfect.”

Vegeta ate his breakfast just as enthusiastically.

“Idiot, you didn’t have to do that for me.”

Goku grinned sheepishly.

“Now what is it you were so excited to tell me?”

“Chi and I are officially separated. I was going to ask Bulma for a bigger Capsule House for us, for when it’s my turn to have you. Plus, the boys can come visit when they want.”

Vegeta smirked than frowned.

“This ridiculous shared custody of me is absurd. I’m not a child to be passed from parent to parent over the weekends.”

“Yeah but this way we all get what we want.” Goku smiled with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Or maybe you want me to have you all to myself like you get me now?” He ran his hand over Vegeta’s thigh. The sweatpants he pulled on after waking were a temporary obstacle Goku planned on removing immediately.

This was the part where Vegeta threw himself at Goku and they went back to the bedroom. They stayed inside all day and didn’t get anything productive done. Instead Vegeta stayed frozen.

“Vegeta?”

Vegeta finally turned to him, eyes wide with shock. Vegeta burst into a swirl of gold and blue.

“Vegeta!” Goku cried as he woke up just in time to see Krillin standing over a beaten, bruised, and tailless Vegeta holding a sword. As he started to drop the sword Goku moved with all the speed he was capable. He covered his body with his own as he cried out, “No Krillin!”

Krillin was stunned and dropped his sword on the ground.

Goku was shaking and grabbed his hands into fists. He knew he was acting weird to them, but he couldn’t let anything happen to Vegeta. Not again.

His reaction confused Vegeta, if the look of bewilderment on his face meant anything.

Goku couldn’t remember what he said the first time.

“We gotta show him there’s a better way.” Goku coughed out.

Close enough?

He got up off Vegeta and picked him up, carrying him cradled close to his chest. Vegeta sputtered but was too weak to protest. He was placed on his space pod with the utmost care. Goku leaned into his ear and whispered so no one else could hear, “Be safe.”

He walked away and left Vegeta to figure out how to get himself out of here. Goku had a lot to figure out as well.

This sucks! I wanted to go back a few hours, not a few decades!

He went and picked up the very young version of his son who lay naked and passed out. He walked back over to Krillin.

“Why did you do that? I had him.”

Goku blushed.

“Trust me on this one.”

They walked past a passed out Yajirobe with his legs in the air.

Krillin looked like he was going to explode but took a breath and calmed down.”

“What are we going to do? Without the Dragon alls we can’t bring any one back to life.”

Goku looked around trying to remember what happened.

“Oh I know what to do!” Goku called excitedly.

“What, you do?” Krilled asked incredulously.

“Yeah but first I gotta take Gohan home and then I gotta make a trip to Capsule Corp.”

With Gohan in tow he flew off in the direction of his old home. Goku searched his memory and tried to come up with a plan. He needed the Dragon Balls in order to fix this, but right now they didn’t exist.

He also thought about Vegeta. He wasn’t his Vegeta, but he was in a lot of danger. It didn’t matter which Vegeta across time or space he would protect him no matter what.

The problem was his body. He wasn’t in the best shape at this time and he needed to get stronger.

So I’ll just do what I did before. I gotta convince Bulma’s old man to help me again.

He cradled the passed out Gohan closer to his his chest as he used a burst of energy to fly faster.

Chapter Text

Goku struggled to hold his body upright in the slightly elevated gravity. It was going to take a lot of work to get his body as strong as he needed it to be. He was also very distracted and got lost in his thoughts easily. What happened? How had everything gone so wrong? Did Whis phrase the wish wrong, or was something else in play? 

Goku's mind ran his thoughts in circles. He wasn't sleeping well, often having nightmares that had him screaming himself awake. Usually calling out and reaching for Vegeta who was gone. That and the brutal work of trying to train his body up to one hundred times Earth gravity was not helping him either. 
 
It had been relatively easy to convince Dr. Briefs to build him this spaceship a second time around.  He may have given away too much with all the insight and ideas he gave to the man, but hopefully if all went well he'd be wishing himself back to his own future, or whatever you want to call it, in a few days and it wouldn't matter much. He hoped. He forced himself to do a few push-ups. Don't worry Geta, I'll fix this then I'll fix what happened to you. I'll get you back good as new. He grunted then continued to exercise and train. 
 
Convincing his friends and family to let him go alone had been much more difficult. He felt strangely guilty discussing it with Chi Chi. Technically they were married and Goku wasn't sure how to act or what to say to her. Bottom line was that he was going to help protect Vegeta and make his wish on the Namekian Dragon Balls with as few witnesses as possible. 
 
Goku attempted a handstand but quickly switched back to push-ups. It was really cute to see Gohan so young again. I forgot how much of a spitfire he used to be. I practically had to attack him to convince him he couldn't come help bring Piccolo back. Goku felt a soft smile creep on his face. He was happy for his son who had found his place as a husband, father, and scholar but he couldn't feel a twinge of regret that he never really lived up to his full potential. Even with the Tournament of Power he had gone right back to having fighting go to the background.
 
{Goku what are you doing?}
 
{Oh hi King Kai! How's it going?}
 
{Horrible Goku, what are you doing going towards Namek?}
 
{Okay, I know what you are going to say, but I can definitely handle Frieza.}
 
{You what?}
 
{Yeah listen, I have everything under control. Just be ready to coordinate with Kami about the wishes. Bye now!}
 
{Wait Goku!}

 
Goku sighed, only four more days till he got to Namek. He had no idea what he would find there, or what all his time traveling had already changed. According to Trunks when he came back to the past, he created a similar but different time line. What he changed in the past didn't affect the future. But that is specifically why Whis had wanted him to have his mind from the future inside his body from the past. What he did now would change the future. That thought terrified him. There was so much he could mess up. He remembered something about a butterfly flapping his wings and effecting the world. Well he was a big ass butterfly and was very worried that he had already messed things up in a way that couldn't be fixed. But he had to try, for his Vegeta he would do anything. 
 
Progress was slow, but by the time he was approaching Namek he was able to withstand the max gravity the ship provided. Now only two important things remained unknown. Where was Vegeta, and would he be able to transform into a Super Saiyan if needed?
 
Goku manually searched for Vegeta's ki, having lost the ever presence of Vegeta's energy from the forefront of his mind the second the Destroyer's Haikai had been performed on him. Every time he searched for it and came up empty was like a splash of cold water to him. Vegeta was really gone. This was really happening. Goku shook the sad thoughts from his head, finally pinpointing this Vegeta's energy signal. He also was able to sense Frieza's. He became anxious when he realized they were on the planet together. He entered the desired coordinates into the ship and hoped he would be in time to help Vegeta before things could get out of hand. Frieza had gotten the better of him originally - but that absolutely was not going to happen this time. No one else will ever lay a hand on my Prince again. Goku's expression darkened as he approached them. He began to focus. He was ready.
 
Goku landed as close to Vegeta as he thought was safe. He could sense several large power levels around Frieza - He guessed those were Zarbon and Dodoria. He had never actually met them but had heard plenty about them from Vegeta. He also felt Frieza's power level and was a little overwhelmed at how it stacked against his own. Hopefully, he would be able to go Super Saiyan if needed. Worst case scenario we can just bail if it gets bad.

 
He honestly wasn't sure how to approach Vegeta. He didn't want to tick him off and send him running the wrong way.  He kept seeing Vegeta get killed by Frieza over and over, watching in slow motion as he did nothing. The memory warping and his lifeless body fading into blue and gold, slipping through his fingers.
 
He shook his head hoping to clear the very unhelpful thoughts as he was getting closer to Vegeta. He could tell there were still quite a few Namekian villages left and he was hoping to curb the damage as much as possible, but his main focus was Vegeta. We are making it out of this alive, no matter what I gotta do. I can not handle watching you die again.

He flew over a village where all the Namekians were dead. He paused in his search to bury every one of them. He knew in his heart that Vegeta had been the one responsible. He recognized the village from Vegeta's memories when they fused. Don't worry Geta, you'll be above all this one day. You will even fight to protect them one day. He smiled at a memory and continued his search. He knew Vegeta would be able to sense him coming by now. 
 
He found Vegeta near the village, by a river. He tried to appear indifferent, but it felt so good to see him. The few days it took to get to Namek felt like too long. He could not wait to return to his Vegeta. He was never going to let him go ever again. He would move into Capsule Corp if he had to. Vegeta however didn't look like he was struggling to appear standoffish at all. In fact, Goku could feel Vegeta's dislike for him like it was a physical entity. His ki that he could read like an open book was also letting him know he was unwelcome.
 
"Kakarot." His voice dripping with malice. "What are you doing here?" His tone rough and accusatory. 
 
"Ah well, you see..." Goku struggled to find the right response. He felt like Vegeta would see through a lie. "I'm here for the Dragon Balls." Not a lie. 
 
Vegeta scoffed. "Get in line then."
 
"C'mon Vegeta, you don't need immortality to beat Frieza."
 
Goku wanted to shove his fist in his mouth when he realized what he had said. He tried to play it cool. Don't let him know that you slipped up.

"Pray tell, how do you know about Fieza, and what I intend to wish for?"
 
"First of all, I've got friends in high places. I was actually explicitly told to stay away from Frieza."
 
{That's right, I did!} Goku ignored King Kai. 
 
Vegeta grunted. Goku wasn't sure if he should continue or not. They sat in awkward silence for a while. 
 
Vegeta looked at him annoyed with an expression that seemed to say, go on.
 
"Any who Geta, I figured I could use the Namekian Dragon Balls and you and I could defeat Frieza the old-fashioned way."
 
"What did you just call me?" The threat in his voice was tangible enough to make Goku freeze. He felt a bead of sweat fall over his face. He thought over what he just said. 'Oh no!'
 
"Uh Geta? I meant to say Vegeta?" The glare he received made him sweat even more. His hands felt so clammy that he felt the urge to wipe them on his gi. 
 
"Prince Vegeta?" He asked questioningly. The sharp gaze never lessened but he did notice subtle clues that Vegeta had calmed down. 
 
"Don't try to flatter me Third Class. I know you are just trying to butter me up. I can tell you want something."
 
"What? No, I don't want anything."
 
Vegeta raised his eyebrow.
 
"Oh wait, yes I do. I just want us to team up to go against Frieza!" He placed his hands together in a plea, with his eyes closed and a nervous giggle sneaked out. 
 
"And why would I ever willingly team up and work with someone as worthless as you?"
 
Goku did his best to let the insults roll of him. He straightened up and became serious. He decided to use his trump card.
 
"Because I know how to obtain what you have desperately been searching for your whole life."
 
Vegeta looked like he had a lot to say about that but they were interrupted when they felt a high power level quickly approaching. 
 
Dammit, we both let our power levels raise high enough to be picked up on a scouter.
 
He turned just in time to see Dodoria land in front of them. He went to place himself in front of Vegeta but froze when Vegeta spoke.
 
"What do you want Dodoria?" He sounded bored and annoyed. Goku took the time to gauge Dodoria's power level and smirked to himself. Vegeta could handle him. He instead stepped further out of the way.
 
"Just checking on what you and your boyfriend over here are up to." Goku's heart skipped a beat at the phrase but then fell when he saw the scowl on Vegeta's face. Oh right, he hates me.
 
"Come now Vegeta. Frieza knows why you are here, and he applauds you for your efforts, however futile they may be. But go ahead and give the Dragon Ball you got from the village over there, and Frieza will go easy on you."
 
"Like hell he will." He heard Vegeta mutter under his breath. 
 
Louder he called out, "Sorry, I don't have a Dragon Ball." He raised his hands innocently to show he wasn't holding anything. He looked around. "I asked them so nicely, but apparently they didn't have one."
 
Dodoria's brow furrowed at the shameless display. He rushed at Vegeta, but Vegeta was ready. Their battle was brief, Dodoria didn't even land one measly hit.  Dodoria began to panic when Vegeta had him in a hold. Goku watched in horror as he attempted to beg and barter for his life. Vegeta made quick work of blasting his body into oblivion. 
 
He dusted off his hands, then turned to Goku again. "Why is it that I would need your help again?"
 
"Well I do have the Dragon Ball radar. And also, that is not the only lackey Frieza is going to send before he himself turns up." He pulled the radar out of his pocket and waved it for Vegeta to see. 
 
"If I were you I would move away from the Dragon Ball you've hidden in the river over there, it's a little obvious where it is if they just stopped to think about it for a moment." He pressed the button so you could see it homing in on the one right next to them. Vegeta scowled. 
 
"Fine, let's move."
 
Goku remembered at the last second that Vegeta couldn't be trusted yet. He placed the radar back in his pocket and gestured for Vegeta to go first. Vegeta didn't react outwardly, but Goku felt his ki bristle. That's right, I won't let you get the drop on me Geta. Nobody knows you like I do.
 
They flew off a little way, but Goku could tell Vegeta was keeping track of where his Dragon Ball was the whole time. They landed and Goku shuffled his feet, waiting for the interrogation from Vegeta that was sure to follow. It never came. He looked over to see Vegeta scrutinizing him. 'I'm probably confusing him.'
 
"You seem different."
 
"I've been training. You would love it."
 
"Tch."
 
They both fell quiet. 
 
'What can I do to get him to trust me enough to work with me?'
 
"There's something else. I can't put my finger on it, but you're different."
 
Goku said nothing. Vegeta's eyes narrowed in suspicion. Vegeta eventually turned away and kept his attention away from Goku. Goku used this opportunity to steal glances at Vegeta every once and a while. He looked good. Although Saiyans don't age like humans Goku noticed he looked much younger. His above everything facade was hard to look at, but the worst was how worn down and jaded Goku knew he felt now. Vegeta was just starting to let everything go over twenty years after they met. Goku knew a lot of his issues were because of him, and what happened on Namek the first time. He was hoping to shield him from all of that. Vegeta turned and caught him staring. Goku quickly averted his eyes, checks quickly turning pink. Vegeta glared but went back to ignoring him.
 
Goku sensed an anomaly in his ki. 'He likes the attention, but he doesn't like me. Interesting.' He laid down, closed his eyes and pretended to relax. Knowing Frieza they wouldn't have to wait long once they realized Dodoria was dead. Goku kept track of Vegeta's ki. He desperately missed the connection they had shared from their fusion. It also physically pained him to be this close to Vegeta but not be able to touch him. 
 
He sat up abruptly as he felt an even higher power level getting close. He looked over at Vegeta who gave him a knowing look. 
 
"Maybe you should let me take this one?" Goku asked. He could feel who he assumed was Zarbon's power and he knew it was way over Vegeta's. He didn't want to see Vegeta get hurt again so soon. He shook his head. "Not a chance." Vegeta physically shoved him to the side. Damn your pride Vegeta! Goku didn't have time to argue, as soon as he regained his balance their visitor landed in front of them. Goku sighed internally and resigned himself to the sidelines. More so than ever he would not be allowed to interfere until Vegeta could no longer go on. This was going to be a tough battle to watch.

Chapter Text

Watching Vegeta fight had always been close to a religious experience for Goku. Vegeta moved gracefully, his movements fluid but precise. He was deadly accurate and no matter how beautiful the move, there was always an amazing amount of force behind each move. For Goku there was nothing more pleasurable than the sting from Vegeta’s hits.

Watching him fight Zarbon made him warm with pride, but it also made his stomach twist with anxiety. His fight with Dodoria was over before it began but now Goku could watch how Vegeta’s body moved, sweat sliding down face, his eyes set with determination.

“First Cui, then Dodoria. It will feel so great to add you to my list of men I’ve killed today.”

Goku cringed at the casual way Vegeta spoke of murder but kept reminding himself that Vegeta would learn and grow one day.

Zarbon threw his head back and laughed.

“You know Vegeta I thought teamwork was beneath you.” He looked pointedly over at Goku.

Vegeta cocked his head. “It is, I work alone.”

“I know you didn’t defeat Dodoria in your own. You must have had your little boy toy here help you.”

Vegeta spat towards Goku. “That Third Class fool? I would never accept his assistant in battle. I beat Dodoria with my own two hands.”

“I think you’re lying Vegeta.”

“Well it’s not to hard to prove, try me on yourself and see.”

“You’re a fool. You should have never disobeyed Frieza, and now I’ll show you why!”

Zarbon threw a punch that Vegeta easily caught. Zarbon shook his hand free and they each flitted out of sight trying to get close to the other.

“Soon Frieza will be bowing down to me!”

Zarbon threw a huge energy blast at Vegeta through his palms but Vegeta easily reflected it.

The previous fight was so fast, Goku felt like it was over before it began. This fight was already taking much longer. Vegeta had Zarbon on the ropes.

Zarbon was obviously pissed that Vegeta was out matching him.

“I’m surprised Vegeta.” Vegeta grunted in response.

Zarbon tried to land a punch, throwing his fists in rapid succession, but Vegeta dodged them all effortlessly. Goku could do nothing but watch in awe.

Vegeta launched a counterattack. He kicked Zarbon so hard he flew into the ground. Vegeta quickly followed and kicked him repeatedly in the ribs. Zarbon began to cough up blood and cried out in pain.

Vegeta backed up and crossed his arms.

“I think that proved my point.”

Zarbon began to laugh. His whole body shook, and his quiet laughter became louder, eventually turning into howling laughter. Zarbon began to stand up, still chuckling.

Vegeta frowned.

Zarbon dusted off his chest and shoulders. He fixed his hair then made eye contact with Vegeta.

“I do have to admit that you’ve impressed me Vegeta. I underestimated you. Your fighting skills have come a long way.”

“Tch.”

“But it won’t do you any good I’m afraid.”

“I’m sorry Zarbon, haven’t I been the one kicking your ass this whole time? Don’t tell me you’ve been holding back?”

Vegeta laughed cruelly.

“That’s right, you figured it out. Good for you, I knew you would.”

Vegeta laughed even harder. “I didn’t know you were such a comedian.”

“Go ahead laugh all you want, it’s time I show you my true power. You should feel privileged, I don’t like to this too often.”

Goku stepped back in surprise as Zarbon’s body began to grow and expand. Vegeta too looked very startled by the transformation. He was no longer laughing and looked very serious. Goku couldn’t help but notice how the frow between his eyebrows became even more prominent. If this situation wasn’t so dire, he would have been distracted by how sexy Vegeta was when he was this focused.

Zarbon immediately charged at Vegeta and gained the upper hand. He threw punches and kicked him every which direction. He threw him down by his ankle and immediately ran over to where he landed. He used his large head to give Vegeta a brutal head butt. When he drew back Goku could see a lot of blood. Zarbon continued to head butt Vegeta relentlessly using a crushing grip with both hands on Vegeta’s face. Vegeta cried out in pain with every hit. It took all of Goku’s self-control not to interfere.

Eventually Vegeta broke free, moving away enough to have to charge Zarbon. They fought again with Zarbon throwing punches quickly. This time Vegeta couldn’t dodge any of them. Goku could hear skin contacting with skin. He knew Vegeta would be very sore after this fight.

Zarbon hit Vegeta hard enough to throw him through a few rocks. Goku followed so he could help the second he was able. Vegeta landed on his hands and knees. He tried to get up but Zarbon was next to him before he could. He roughly pulled Vegeta up by his hair. Vegeta winced. Zarbon punched his face repeatedly.

“I’m through with this game Vegeta.”

Zarbon hit him with a ki blast from his fingertips on his other hand. It was so large that it flung Vegeta away again. He threw more at him in rapid succession until Vegeta finally collapsed unconscious.

That was Goku’s cue. He was in front of Zarbon before the other man had a chance to move. Sensing Vegeta’s drop in energy and finally able to work out some of pent our anxiety Goku let go. He didn’t fight the rage that was quickly taking him over. The last thing he remembered was his hair starting to flick up and down quickly before his eyesight became clouded over with red.

He came to shortly after, with no Zarbon in sight and a still unconscious Vegeta a few feet away from him.

I should really do something about me blacking out from rage. Goku thought back to the fight between Zarbon and Vegeta. His mind kept splicing in images of Vegeta being erased.

He shook his head to clear it and walked over to Vegeta. He laid him flat so he could be more comfortable. He checked over Vegeta’s injuries. He didn’t see anything too bad. Maybe some broken ribs, and he was worried about those head butts. Nothing a Senzu can’t fix though.

He was unconscious so Goku thought there’d be no harm in holding his hand. He pushed Vegeta’s hair back with his free hand and studied his face. Eyes closed and face clear of anger and resentment, Goku was surprised again that he looked so young. His eyes wandered down to his lips, that were slightly open and making a perfect pout.

Goku groaned internally. He wanted nothing more than to hold and kiss Vegeta like his life depended on it, but he was stuck here with this Vegeta who wasn’t his Vegeta - until he could get the Dragon Balls and wish himself back.

Vegeta started to stir so he set down his hand and stepped back a little to give him space. Vegeta woke up in a blind range, throwing himself at Goku. He threw a punch that Goku caught and Vegeta seemed to recognize him and slowly calm down.

“Kakarot?”

“Yeah Vegeta it’s me.”

“Where’s Zarbon?”

“Uh, hehe.” Goku giggled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck.

“What did you offer him your friendship and sent him on his merry way?”

“Uh not exactly?”

Vegeta looked around, Goku guessed he was searching for his ki. After a few minutes he turned to glare at Goku. Goku tried to not look like he had anything to hide and just let Vegeta stare at him for a while, as if he was trying to figure him out.

Finally, Vegeta huffed and looked away. Goku smiled, amused at Vegeta’s antics, but quickly hid it. After a few minutes of silence Vegeta growled.

“Seriously Kakarot what do you want?”

“I want us to defeat Frieza together.”

“I would never stoop so low as to work with a useless warrior like you.”

Goku couldn’t help a small smirk that Vegeta caught. Pissed at the knowing look that Goku accidentally gave him, Vegeta charged at him.

Goku didn’t really want to fight him, they should have been trying to come up with a plan and hiding from Frieza but Vegeta didn’t give him much of a choice.

This fight was a little more familiar. It didn’t feel like Vegeta was putting deadly force behind his attacks but still hit hard enough that it really hurt. Goku knew Vegeta was deeply offended that he had destroyed Zarbon after he bested Vegeta in battle. He was pouring all of his frustration into hitting Goku.

Vegeta flew up and bombarded him with ki blasts. Goku ran to keep out of the way. He threw a Galick Gun blast that Goku tried to deflect back with a Kamahamaha Wave. They were equally matched so Goku cried out to activate his Kioken. Vegeta’s energy blast was overwhelmed but he smacked it into the sky before he was hit.

He flew back down and punched Goku in the face. “How dare you!” Goku didn’t even know what was upsetting Vegeta the most anymore. Maybe everything was crashing down on him at once.

“I’m sorry Vegeta I didn’t mean to make you mad!” He caught his fist before another punch landed.

“Make me mad?” Vegeta cried out, Goku was getting worried. Vegeta sounded unhinged.

Vegeta chuckled his low dark laugh chilling Goku to the bone. He didn’t like that voice coming from his beloved.

Vegeta began to power up, so Goku did too, letting Vegeta go in the process. They were both about to throw themselves toward the other when Goku was crushed by Frieza’s power level coming close to them. He paused and looked to Vegeta. Vegeta was frozen in place. For the first time since Goku had returned to this time, Vegeta looked afraid.

They fell out of their fighting stances and watched as Frieza flew to them. He landed in front of them, frowning and his tail was twitching.

“Vegeta it’s so good to see you.” His voice offered no warmth. Vegeta’s eye twitched. Frieza quickly looked toward Goku and back. “And you made a friend.”

Before Vegeta could say anything in response Frieza had moved in the blink of an eye and punched him in the stomach. Vegeta coughed up blood and Frieza’s tail snaked up and wrapped itself around Vegeta’s neck. Vegeta quickly tried to pry it off with his hands.

Goku sent a ki blast at Frieza’s back.

“Whatever problems you have with Vegeta you can take them up with me now!”

“Kakarot stay out of this!” Vegeta chocked out, no doubt struggling to breath.

“Kakarot, but that’s a Saiyan name isn’t it?”

Frieza seemed to finally look at him.

“I believe you’re familiar with my father, Bardock. But I don’t care about that right now.” Goku looked meaningfully at the tail wrapped around Vegeta’s neck. He saw the surprise in Vegeta’s eyes at the casual mention of his biological parent he shouldn’t have any knowledge of but ignored it.

“Oh?” Frieza sounded amused at his concern for Vegeta. He tightened his hold slightly and Goku growled.

Frieza laughed. Goku moved so fast Frieza didn’t see him move. He yanked his tail off Vegeta and punched Frieza across the field.

He heard Vegeta gasp and then cough. Goku was next to him immediately. He placed his hand on Vegeta’s shoulder. Vegeta looked up in surprise and then awe.

“Kakarot? Are you...?” He trailed off but Goku knew exactly what he meant. He nodded.

Vegeta laughed in what sounded like relief.

“How great, this is a dream come true to see you beaten by a Saiyan Frieza!” Goku looked over to see Frieza starting to stand back up.

Vegeta laughed some more. Frieza frowned. Goku felt a warm feeling in his belly at Vegeta finally referring to him in a way that wasn’t negative.

Frieza moved faster than Goku expected, sending Vegeta flying. Goku tried to power up, desperately trying to reach his Super Saiyan transformation before any more harm could come to Vegeta. He watched in horror as Vegeta was beaten to the point that his energy felt like it would disappear completely.

For some reason the rage that once clouded his mind, causing him to attack in a blind rage seemed to be hindering him instead. Every blow to Vegeta caused him to see blue and gold. Every cry was his Saiyan name on Vegeta’s lips as he disappeared forever. Goku’s body felt like lead and with his mind lost, he could only watch. “Goodnight sweet prince.” Frieza pointed his forefinger directly at Vegeta’s chest.

Only as he watched Frieza shoot an energy beam through Vegeta’s heart could he finally move.

He flew to Vegeta’s side. Too angry at himself to speak he moved his arms so he was cradling Vegeta. Vegeta didn’t bark at him for touching him like he thought he would but instead starting crying.

This is what Goku had been desperately trying to avoid. He looked deeply into Vegeta’s eyes and watched the last of the walls he used to defend himself crumble.

“How could you?!” Goku screamed at Frieza.

“It was the only way to shut him up! He’s always going on and on like a broken record. I’m tired of hearing him talk about the great Saiyan race and the ridiculous legend of the Super Saiyan!”

Vegeta coughed up blood, bringing Goku’s attention back to the man in his arms.

“Kakarot listen to me. Don’t be soft hearted. You have to deal with him like you did Zarbon. It’s just a game to Frieza. It’s kill or be killed.”

“He’s just a corpse and he’s still blabbing. I’ll have to gag him to get him to shut up.” Frieza began to thump his tail on the ground in irritation. Goku ignored him.

“Shh Vegeta it’s okay, save your strength.”

Goku tried to reach for a Senzu bean but Vegeta distracted him. “Wait Kakarot there’s more. He is the one that destroyed our home planet. Ask him, he’ll tell you how he blew it up! He’s proud!”

Goku reached into his bag and pulled out a Senzu Bean. Vegeta refused to take it, turning his head to the side and balled his fists into the ground.

“Vegeta please!”

“No Kakarot there’s more! We worked so hard for him! We did everything he asked and more.” The tears that had pooled in Vegeta’s eyes began to spill, trailing down his dirt covered face.

Goku felt tears forming in his eyes as well.

“He took me from my father when I was just a little boy. He made me do whatever he wanted. Said he would kill my father if I didn’t. I did everything he asked but he killed him anyway, along with everyone else!”

Goku was crying freely now, holding on to Vegeta for dear life as he cried into Goku’s shoulder.

“All because he was so scared that a Super Saiyan would rise up and overthrow him.” Vegeta sobbed into his chest and Goku held him tighter.

“Oh, what a touching story.” Goku didn’t look up.

“Kakarot please destroy Frieza. He made me what I am. Stop him please, whatever it takes.”

Goku felt Vegeta let out his last shaky breath and then he died in Goku’s arms. Goku felt his heart break again. He kissed his forehead softly then lay him down again.

Frieza was talking but Goku couldn’t register the words. He felt the familiar warmth of his transformation as his vision slowly burned red. His memories were blurring together.

“We had an interesting visit from an old friend of yours, Frieza. He advised that your relationship had changed and we finally had an opportunity to get back at you for what you did.” Sidra explained condescendingly.

Vegeta being erased, Vegeta crying, Vegeta’s face as Frieza shot him.

He was shaking and felt his body tingle from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. Before everything went blank, he growled out a warning to Frieza.

“You’re going to pay for that. You’re going to pay for everything.”

Chapter Text

When Goku finally came to, the entire field was decimated and there wasn’t a trace of Frieza’s energy. Vegeta was still laying a ways away, and Goku felt his heart stop cold for a second when he remembered Vegeta was dead. Goku’s turmoil was interrupted when he realized there was a somewhat similar ki signature. He whipped his head around to see a Namkekian right in front of him.

He was puzzled. He recognized the energy, but not the face. He wore traditional Nakekian clothing and his appearance gave away no clues to his identity.

“Hello.” Goku said, waving his hand and grinning automatically.

“Hello Warrior. Is it you who defeated the tyrant who attacked my people?”

“Yeah that was me. My name’s Goku!”

“I am called Nail.”

Nail!

“It’s nice to meet you Nail.” Goku said but inside he was panicking. Piccolo was supposed to fuse with Nail. And I killed Frieza before he blew up Namek so it’s still here. What do I do? I’ve changed so much already!

“Excuse me…” Nail interrupted his frantic thoughts.

“Um Nail, listen. I really need to use the Dragon Balls to fix what Frieza did to your people and help my friends. Can you help me with that?”

Nail looked thoughtful.

“I will take you to the leader of my people. He will know how to help.”

Nail flew into the air, looking back at Goku. Goku walked over to Vegeta and picked up his body. Nail raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He flew off and Goku followed him.

They flew for a while before Nail landed down. Goku had never met Guru, but knew it was him the second he felt his energy. It was pure, seemingly full of love and understanding for his people. It reminded him more of a Kai’s ki than Namekian. He will help me. Goku thought simply, smiling to himself.

He was finally going to go home. He was going back to his own time, back to his Vegeta. A heavy weight felt like it was lifted from Goku’s shoulders. He took a deep breath before following Nail inside the large Namekian home.

Goku was awed. Guru was huge! Nail gestured for him to lay Vegeta down in the corner of the room. He bowed politely, having finally grasped the concept after years of hanging around Beerus, but could not speak.

“Lord Guru, this is the one who defeated the evil Frieza. He says his name is Goku.”

Guru looked Goku in the eyes.

“Come here child.”

Goku stepped forward and Guru placed his large hand on his head, squishing his hair down in the process. Goku felt more of his energy be unlocked as it was pulled from deep within him. He also sensed Guru shifting through his memory. After a few minutes he was released and immediately fell to his knees.

“You are a brave warrior who has traveled very far on an honorable quest. But I fear you cannot accomplish what you seek.”

Goku cocked his head in confusion. “What do you mean?” He slowly stood back up. Goku had a bad feeling.

“The Dragon cannot grant your wish. It would need to be granted by the Original Dragon, which you do not have the means to, and he would not be able to undo any of your actions or their consequences. It would create a split. You would risk the fabric of reality.”

“So, there’s nothing I can do?” Goku hung his head in defeat.

“There are options, though I do not know if they would interest you. You could return your lover to life, but his safety would not be guaranteed. Or you could return without him.”

Nail seemed confused but Guru silenced him with a wave of his hand.

“Well both of those suck.”

Guru chuckled.

“Your last choice is to stay. Protect him in this time. Stay with him and keep him safe. Embrace this new reality fully. I have to warn you that you need to minimize the changes that you make, you must always strive to keep things the same.”

Goku nodded. “Do you mind if I take a minute to think about all of this? I - it’s really unexpected.” Goku’s voice cracked on the last word.

“Of course. Nail and I will wait here for your decision.

Goku walked out the door without saying a word. Too distracted by the awful choice he was going to have to make.

Goku kicked at the grass absentmindedly. He hadn’t gone more than a few steps out the door before his thoughts made it impossible to walk further.

No longer plagued with the image of Vegeta being erased, but instead Goku kept seeing Frieza kill him all because he was too slow to stop him. All because of my stupid useless weak body I might be stuck in.

He could return to his own time, but he would never see Vegeta again. No more spars, no more chaste kisses, never again witnessing him in battle. No, I can’t do that. It’s over. Goku thought to himself glumly. He couldn’t save Vegeta’s life and be with him. And even if he did save him it was possible others would come after him because of Goku meddling with time, including Zeno himself. Vegeta would never know what happened. He would probably think Goku had abandoned him.

That thought hurt Goku more than anything else. He clutched his chest and felt his breath hitch. Goku was trapped in his thoughts, each coming faster than the last. He was getting a headache and vaguely wondered if he was going to lose his mind. He half sat on the ground and half fell he felt his head spin.

He thought of his Vegeta. Strong and proud left lonely and lost because of his own selfishness. He had never turned his back on Vegeta before and wouldn’t start now. He briefly remembered when he came out to his friends. They hadn’t been against him with another man, but some had a problem with Vegeta specially.

It had seemed like Tien especially was telling him to choose between his friends or Vegeta. Goku felt guilty at his old friend’s crushed face, but it had been a no brainer. Being with Vegeta was as natural as breathing. For the first time in his life he finally felt like he belonged somewhere. He hadn’t come out to his wife and sons just to turn his back on the man he loved. He often was referred to as the savior of the Earth, but he only felt important through Vegeta’s eyes. Vegeta might have been a Prince, but he made Goku feel like a King.

His friends got over it eventually, but Vegeta had been pleased. He didn’t show it outwardly or say anything, that was never Vegeta’s style, but Goku could tell. He had always had a way of seeing past his pretenses and cut right to his core.

He thought about when they fought Kid Buu and Goku couldn’t throw the Spirit Bomb if it meant killing Vegeta. Vegeta wouldn’t admit to him until much later but he had been shocked but touched, that he meant that much to him. Goku’s throat clinched thinking how surprised and sad it was to him that Vegeta genuinely hadn’t felt worth the effort.

His choice wasn’t easy, but it was already made. He would not pursue the Super Dragon Balls. He would stay in this time and protect this Vegeta. I will not do anything to change our history and will not approach him romantically until the time is right. I will always choose Vegeta, come hell or high water.

Patting the dirt from his butt as he stood up, Goku took a minute to collect himself before he returned to Guru and Nail. He hadn’t really had time to process everything that had been happening. He watched Vegeta get erased but fully believed he would fix it. It was all his fault and he didn’t now how to live with the guilt.

Now he would have to repeat his life with twenty or so years of Deja Vu to help a man who currently hated him. A man he was deeply and recklessly in love with and couldn’t show a shred of affection or he could lose him forever.

Sure, no problem. He grumbled to himself sarcastically.

He walked back through the door.

“Have you decided then?”

“Yes.” Goku nodded determined to follow through with his promise. He scooped Vegeta back into his arms.

“Nail, take him to the villages that are left and explain to the leaders to give him to Dragon Balls. He possesses a device that can find the ones Frieza had. When you have them all translate his wishes to the Dragon for him.”

Nail nodded and took the One Star Dragon Ball as Guru handed it to him.

“Thank you.” Goku bowed his head briefly.

“Good luck Goku.”

{Alright King Kai I need your help.}

Gathering the Dragon Balls was easy enough work. Each leader was extremely grateful to him, and Goku did his best to act like he was meeting everyone for the first time.

He forgot himself entirely when he arrived at the Village with the Six Star Ball and saw several faces that he recognized.

“Dende!” He set Vegeta down by a tree and ran over.

The small Namekian looked confused.

“Dende hi!”

“I’m sorry sir, do I know you?”

Moori and Nail walked over to see what all the commotion is about.

“Oh, sorry about that. We haven’t met, but I’ve got a feeling we’re going to be great friends.”

The two older Nameks gave him a funny look but he just laughed it off.

“Hey Nail, mind if I join you guys?” Dende asked him excitedly.

Nail looked to Goku who beamed.

“Yeah sure kid, why not?”

They found the three Dragon Balls Frieza had found before Goku had arrived abandoned and Goku realized he felt no energy from Frieza’s men.

“Frieza’s army must have jumped ship when I defeated him.

Nail nodded.

“Will you do the honor Dende?” He asked the boy. Dende nodded and summoned the great Porunga.

{Are you guys ready?}

{Yes Goku, but I have a lot of questions!}

{Sorry King Kai, there’s no time!}

{Goku, wait -}

Goku severed the mental link and turned to watch as the giant Dragon rose from the Dragon Balls.

Dende turned to him. “Alright Dende for my first wish, we need to bring back my friend Piccolo who was killed on Earth by the Saiyan Nappa.” Dende nodded and repeated the wish.

{Alright King Kai have they decided?}

{Yes, Yamcha will stay.}

{Alright, and is someone searching for the Dragon Balls on Earth?}

{Yes, Kami has Mr. Popo on it, it shouldn’t be long now.}

“Alright Dende, for the next two wishes I want my friends Tien and Chiaotzu brought back to life.”

Dende nodded and made the two wishes. When he finished Porunga disappeared and the large Dragon Balls turned white then scattered across the planet.

“And now we wait for the Earth Dragon Balls to be collected. Then we can bring back everyone Frieza killed.”

“Thank you Goku.” Nail clasped his shoulder.

“Yeah well, we just gotta wait until your guy’s recharge to bring back my other friend and the people of the village Vegeta killed.”

“Who?” Nail was enraged.

“Oh uh...” Me and my big mouth.

“Listen what he did was wrong. But he didn’t know there was another way. I’m going to teach him.” Goku smiled dispite the look of hatred he was still receiving.

Nail glared toward where he had sat down Vegeta. Goku growled when he made a move to get closer.

“I like you Nail, but don’t test me.” Goku growled low and dangerously and he knew his seriousness must have showed in his eyes because Nail backed down.

Nail raised his hands in surrender.

“How long do we have to wait?” Dende asked trying to defuse the situation.

“It shouldn’t be long now.” Goku said but was interrupted by a loud cough.

Goku looked over and saw Vegeta beginning to stand up. Vegeta looked around in wonder. Goku watched in horror as Vegeta punched himself so hard in the stomach he doubled over. Vegeta got on his hands and knees and began to laugh in innocent glee as he realized he really had been brought back to life.

Goku couldn’t hold back his steps. Vegeta looked up in awe at him.

“Kakarot you did it! You defeated Frieza!”

“I did!” Goku was so happy.

“Did you...” Vegeta trailed off.

Goku answered by turning Super Saiyan. Vegeta fell back onto his butt in surprise but quickly crawled over to examine him up close.

“I can’t believe it! I actually get to see the legend in person!”

Goku leaned down to look him directly in the eye, mere inches apart. He wanted to scoop Vegeta up in arms and twirl around in excitement. He wanted to kiss him and never let go, but he remembered his promise.

“Don’t worry Vegeta, I’ll teach you how to do it too!”

Vegeta looked speechless.

Goku turned back to Nail and Dende.

“Thank you, guys, for your help! I’ll contact you when it’s time to make the next round of wishes!”

Nail frowned at the reminder but said nothing.

Dende waved enthusiastically as they flew off.

“Come on Vegeta. I’ll take you back to Earth and we can train in the gravity chamber of my ship!”

Vegeta was still out of it and agreed without complaint by nodding.

“It’s pretty cool, it goes up to a hundred times higher than Earth’s gravity.”

Goku pulled him up from the ground by his elbow after he didn’t move or say anything for several moments. He was surprised by the lack of bite from Vegeta but secretly reveled in the small touch.

The few days it would take to get to Earth were going to be so great to Goku. Just him and his Prince. He would worry about everything else later when they got back. For now, he would soak it while he could.

Chapter Text

Much to Goku’s displeasure the honeymoon period between him and Vegeta didn’t last long at all. Goku sighed to himself again as he watched Vegeta push his body past its limits trying to force the transformation.

“Vegeta you’re pushing yourself too far.”

He was ignored. They had been at it for months. Yamcha had been wished back to life already, but Vegeta had not made any real progress to ascending. He was obviously frustrated and had been taking it out on Goku. Honestly Goku preferred the recent silent treatment to the verbal abuse he had been getting.

“Idiot.”

“Moron.”

“Dumb ass.”

“Pathetic.”

“Clown.”

“Oaf.”

“Third class.”

These were things that Vegeta called him often. It wasn’t anything new, Goku had been dealing with Vegeta’s insults for decades. Now that everything was so different that his words held more weight and cut Goku deep.

Goku sighed and left Vegeta to it. He waited for Bulma to come out and join him. Another thing about this whole situation was how he had to act around Bulma. He felt so guilty and unbelievably sad about what happened, but he couldn’t act like it. Now here he was practically having to play match maker between Bulma and Vegeta when he would rather be doing literally anything else.

“Hey Vegeta?”

Goku had been staring at the ceiling listening to Vegeta’s breathing for a while trying to pluck up the courage to ask him the question that had been weighing on his mind.

Vegeta rolled over lazily to face him.

‘Gods he is so gorgeous.’ Vegeta’s whole body was on display. Goku forgot what he had to say for a second. Vegeta kissed him chastely. Goku shook his head to focus.

“I was wondering,” he scratched his cheek. “Would you ever consider leaving Bulma? I mean like I did Chi Chi?”

Vegeta sighed as he rolled over. He looked thoughtful as he stared at the ceiling. Goku joined him.

“You know she has asked me something similar.” Goku quickly rolled over to look at Vegeta’s face again.

“She did?”

Vegeta nodded, flicking his eyes over to him before looking away again.

“It was after we got our first Capsule home.” Goku blushed, remembering that had been their first time together. Vegeta continued, ignoring his reaction. “She asked me if I would break things off with you if she ever changed her mind.”

“What did you say?” Goku sat up suddenly feeling his heart beat faster.

“I told her it would be too much to make me choose, and she should have thought of that before she gave us the go-ahead.”

Goku released a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. They each moved so they were laying down facing each other. Vegeta raised his hand and gently stroked Goku’s cheek.

“I care deeply for you both in similar ways and for similar reasons. You both understand me very well, believe in me and gave me a fresh start.” Goku leaned into his touch, nuzzling his hand.

“But my obligation is to her and my children, so do not ever try to make me choose.”

Goku nodded, holding eye contact with Vegeta until it became too much.

“I understand Vegeta.”

“Do not worry Kakarot, Bulma understands and will not force us to separate. She knows it would hurt me too much.”

Goku couldn’t control the silly smile that crept on his face. Vegeta punched him playfully and they shared gentle kissed until they both drifted to sleep awhile later.

Goku jumped slightly as Bulma’s small hand snapped her fingers an inch away from his nose.

“Finally, I’ve been trying to get your attention for like two minutes!”

“Whoops sorry Bulma, must have spaced out or something.” Goku chuckled lightly and plastered on what he hoped was a goofy grin. He felt like he should take acting classes to deal with Bulma. Luckily, she never seemed to notice anything was amiss.

He felt bad, he really did. She didn’t do anything wrong, but it was so hard to be around her. He avoided eye contact and left the room whenever she was around. He felt like every second that passed pushed them further and further apart.

He had thought about his predicament, things needed to happen the same as before, but he hadn’t been on Earth the first time around. Since he did not know exactly how things had unfolded, he wasn’t really sure what to do to get back track. Based on what he remembered hearing, Bulma just invited Vegeta to live with her unprompted and for no real reason. It was times like these he really wished he had someone to talk to about everything.

He had tried subtle hints to both of them, but nothing had stuck. Now he was attempting the only thing he could think of, but it was breaking his heart.

“So Bulma,” Goku started. “Vegeta here really could use a place to stay.”

“Really now?”

“Yeah I don’t know if you heard, but he’s chilled out. He’s gonna stay on Earth for a while and I think you two could really hit it off?”

Bulma looked back over at Vegeta who was off a little ways mumbling to himself.

“Plus, you gotta admit he is pretty cute.”

Bulma gasped.

“What? You know it’s true!”

Bulma giggled.

“Alright Goku I’ll ask him.”

Bulma winked at him as she left to walk over to Vegeta. The second Bulma was out of his eye site his face dropped.

I’m doing this for you Geta.

Goku sulked as he walked away completely unnoticed. He hoped things would work out the way they were supposed to, because he could not stick around here anymore. The only thing holding him together right now was the hope that when all was said and done, he would still get to be with Vegeta in the end.

Chapter Text

Goku had been training non-stop for a little over a year. He kept track of Vegeta’s ki but had not seen him since the day he convinced Bulma to let Vegeta move in. He tried not to think about how their relationship was progressing but had learned how to channel his frustration into training.

He managed to ascend to Super Saiyan 2. It couldn’t hold it for long under the fear of being discovered. It was while he was training alone in the woods near his house one day that he felt multiple overwhelming power levels heading toward Earth. He caught himself flying toward them without a conscious decision to do so. He could sense that his friends were doing the same.
 
Goku stared slack jawed as what appeared to be the entire Frieza force appeared outside West City. He lost count of how many ships were hovering above him. Leading the fleet was none other than King Cold, and right behind him was the Ginyu Force. Goku searched the area for his friends frantically. 
 
Geta and I can probably handle the Ginyu Force. Maybe Frieza's dad, but that would leave so many for everyone else. I don't know if we can do this without anyone getting hurt.
 
He flew towards Vegeta's energy. His feet landed with a crunch. He smiled to himself at Vegeta’s appearance but chose to say nothing.
 
"Kakarot." He nodded his head without looking at him. Goku could tell he was annoyed.
 
"How should we handle this?"
 
"Oh, you're asking for my input now?"
 
"Come on Vegeta. I took care of Frieza. How was I supposed to know this would happen?" Goku whined. 
 
Vegeta's hands gripped into fists that began to shake.
 
Goku realized his mistake a second too late. He was still so unused to having to filter himself around Vegeta. Their time apart hadn’t helped, and he had pissed the other man off beyond belief several times before.
 
He dodged the punch but not the kick and fell on his behind. Vegeta glared down at him. 
 
"Vegeta, please I can't do this without you." Goku pouted. 
 
"Of course you can't!" Vegeta barked out. He surveyed the sky. 
 
"I can easily handle Daddy Dearest but the Ginyu Force complicates things."
 
"Yeah between Guldo's and Ginyu's abilities we might have some troubles. Plus, the crazy huge number of normal soldiers is a lot!"
 
Vegeta tilted his head to the side and his eyes narrowed in suspicion.  Goku cursed himself. The other reason he needed to be careful about what he said in front of Vegeta was because he kept saying things he wasn't supposed to know about yet. Vegeta was very smart and could easily put together exactly what Goku never wanted him to find out.
 
"How did you know that?" Vegeta asked cooly.
 
Think fast...
 
"Oh, uh King Kai was telling me all about them!" Goku could have slapped himself on the back.
 
{No I didn't!} He heard King Kai snap in his mind.
 
{Oh shush King Kai, I promise I'll explain later!}

Goku had managed to dodge King Kai for this long, surely he could keep it up for as long as he needed to.
 
Vegeta continued staring at him for a moment before his attention was brought to the rest of the Z Fighters joining around them.
 
"Alright listen up you miserable worthless excuse for fighters!" Vegeta called out them. There was a lot of angry grumbling in response. He didn't get a chance to finish before the ship King Cold was in opened and he began to ascend down. 
 
Goku tried to measure his power level against him. He was less powerful than him and Vegeta but not by enough. While scanning the area a flurry of purple movement caught his eye. He flew closer.
 
"Trunks!" He called out in hoarse whisper. "Trunks!" He called again. He could see Vegeta switching between looking at him and looking over at the quickly approaching figure. He finally reached Trunks in his hiding place behind the rocks. Goku felt both relieved and a pang of jealousy that Trunks still appeared in this time.

He was exactly as he remembered him; short hair freshly cut by his mother in the future. The purple jacket sporting a Capsule Corp logo. That always bothered Vegeta. If his son was so intelligent why did he forget to hide such an obvious clue. Goku always just shook his head. He figured in some way Trunks had always wanted Vegeta to know he was his son. 
 
"Wait Goku, what?" Trunks surprised reaction pulled him out of his thoughts. 
 
"Thank goodness you're here I was worried I messed that up. Listen Trunks there's no time! I'll explain it all later, but right now I need you to get the man after Vegeta and the other five more... colorful guys that will be coming shortly. They should be really easy for you, and then Vegeta and I can take on the rest of them." He didn't think Bulma would know about the Ginyu Force and he wasn't sure how to describe them quickly, hopefully that was clear enough.
 
Trunks was obviously confused, but Goku was already heading back to Vegeta. He grabbed him by the arm, Vegeta was too startled to do anything but allow himself to be dragged away. King Cold tried to follow after them, but Trunks was in front him blocking his way. Goku didn't get a chance to watch, dragging Vegeta in tow as he watched. He felt King Cold's energy disappear. He felt Trunk's energy spike and knew he had transformed to Super. He heard Vegeta sputter.

“Hey Vegeta look over there!”

Goku pointed the opposite direction and Vegeta was so confused he just looked the way he was pointing, temporarily distracted. He looked around for a while, but there wasn’t anything to see. Vegeta kept looking at Goku and back towards Trunks. Goku grabbed Vegeta, turning him until they were facing and making direct eye contact.
 
"Vegeta that guy is going to handle the big guys, and you and I are going to make quick work of everyone else."
 
Vegeta appeared to be in a stupor, most likely caused by witnessing Trunks turn into a Super Saiyan. As far as he knows they were the last two and there should be no physical reason why a stranger would have the ability. Goku got started blasting ships. He felt the corners of his vision tinge red. He couldn't afford any of his old mistakes or habits.
 
He shouted out to the others, "Get every single last one! No survivors, you don't know what this lot is capable of!" He knew he was acting out of character, but he couldn't focus on that now. He didn't lose himself like the last few times, but then again Vegeta wasn't in immediate danger. He tried not to stare, but he did catch glimpses of Vegeta fighting. He was as beautiful as he was thorough. Precise and cruel. No matter what Vegeta would never change. That thought brought a smile to his face. 
 
Too distracted by a beautiful kick Vegeta landed simultaneously with a ki blast that took down a whole ship Goku was almost blasted himself. He was shoved out of the way by Trunks. 
 
"Goku, how? What is going on, how do you know me?"
 
Goku righted himself and then blasted a hoard of soldiers that were coming up on them with a Kamehameha.
 
"Not here Trunks, too many ears." He looked pointedly at Vegeta and Piccolo who was pretending not to listen, but Goku knew he could hear. Vegeta noticed the commotion and tried to come near them. Goku saw and grabbed Trunk's arm pulling him away just like he did for Vegeta earlier. He tried to hide his sadistic smirk at the colorful pile of the Ginyu Force but he caught Trunks giving him a weird look.
 
Goku pulled him close and whispered in his ear, "I'm from the future, kind of like you. I know who you are and why you're here. I can explain more later when we are done. Nobody else knows."
 
{WHAAAAT? Are you kidding me right now!}
 
{Oh my gosh, King Kai you were listening!}
 
{Of course I was listening! I have no idea what is even happening right now!}
 
{Yeesh, quit yelling I'm trying to focus here. Look I can tell you later or you can just listen in when I explain it to Trunks later. It's a long story.}
 
He pulled away and Trunks eyes were wide with astonishment. He nodded quickly after a minute. They flew further away from Vegeta who seemed to be gravitating towards them and combined their attacks taking out dozens of ships at a time before their occupants could even leave. 
 
It took around an hour, but there were no casualties or even injuries. He avoided Vegeta, Goku was well aware he had given away more than he wanted to. He said goodbye to the rest of the Z Fighters, avoiding eye contact with Piccolo. He too was growing very suspicious and his actions today certainly did not help anything. 
 
He looked over at Trunks and motioned for him to follow. As they flew away towards Mount Paozu he felt Vegeta's gaze on them long after they were out of site. 

“By the way Goku, what was up with my father’s shirt?”

Goku smiled despite himself.

“Your mother thinks she is very funny Trunks.”
 

Chapter Text

“Wait, Goku, hold on, what?” Trunks sputtered, clearly having a hard time grasping what he was being told.

Goku sighed. He had flown far enough away with Trunks that they couldn’t be followed easily. He kept his senses at heightened trying to sense if Vegeta were to sneak up on them. He immediately launched into his tale, summarizing everything that had happened since he had met Trunks the first time. He only left out the true nature of his and Vegeta’s relationship. He didn’t want to overwhelm and confuse the poor boy.

“Come on, Trunks, you’re supposed to be the smart one here!”

“But it’s just so crazy! I’m actually in a parallel universe meeting a version of you that’s from the future too!”

“I know, it’s a little complicated.”

“A little! Goku, this is absolutely nuts!” Trunks exploded but Goku shushed him. 

“Listen, Trunks,” Goku spoke softly trying to calm him, “No one here can know about me.”

Trunks nodded. 

“Now I’ll explain it to you again.”

Trunks was too smart for his own good. Once he had time to process what he was told, Goku could see the wheels in his mind turning. 

“Hold on, there’s one thing I don’t understand. You said they came for my father to get revenge on you, but that doesn’t make any sense. Why wouldn’t they come after your wife or your son?”

Goku blushed. 

“Well, uh, you see...”

Goku didn’t know what to say. He had been away from his Vegeta for a while now. It felt like a lot more time had passed, but he still loved Vegeta more than anything. It was probably beyond obvious. 

“Was something going on between you two?”

“Alright, Trunks, don’t freak out, but Vegeta and I had an arrangement.”

It was Trunks’ turn to blush.

“I don’t think I want to know any more.”

Goku sighed in relief. 

“Look I’m so glad you’re here. I haven’t had anyone to talk to and I’m worried I might have already messed things up too much. You’re still here, so that’s good. But Piccolo was supposed to fuse with Nail and Namek was never blown up. I don’t know what the consequences for those things will be, but the point of all of this is to fix my mistakes and make sure Vegeta never gets hurt again.”

Trunks nodded. Goku had a random thought. 

“So, everything is supposed to happen exactly as it did before, right? That means Vegeta still has plenty of hard times coming his way.”

Goku glared at that thought. Vegeta had still been hurt plenty, no thanks to him. He might still have to watch him go through so much. Goku grimaced.

“And so do you.”

Trunks tilted his head in confusion at that.


It took a while to fill Trunks in on everything. The sun went down hours before they were both satisfied. The next day he called a meeting with the Z fighters. He let Trunks do all the talking. He was supposed to stick to his original story as much as possible. He got strange looks from everyone, especially from Piccolo. Goku was worried Piccolo was onto him but tried to approach him carefully. They still needed to train together for the next three years after all.

After everyone was convinced of the impending danger, Vegeta arrived. He caused a big scene and Goku wasn’t sure of the reasons behind his behavior. He seemed distrustful of Trunks but also upset with Goku. He almost seemed... jealous. That brought a huge smile to Goku’s face which only made Vegeta madder. He left in a huff.

Goku said his goodbyes and confirmed with Piccolo that they would begin training the next day.

He said goodbye to Trunks, after he assured him he would take his medicine on time, and in return Trunks would show up a day early this time.

“Bye, Goku!” He waved from his time machine. “See you in three years.”

Goku watched as he disappeared, then sighed. Now time for the hard part.

He flew home to speak to his wife. Things had been very strained since he came back in time. In order to keep things the same he couldn’t leave her, but he was a different man now. It was a difficult balancing act and he was worried this was something that could completely ruin everything.

She agreed without much fuss to let him train with Gohan as long as he tried to get some studying in as well. The real issue came after their first day of training. She went off on him about not having a car, and how he needed to get his license. He was supposed to agree and go to driver’s school. He knew that. And yet, he never got his license the first time and really wanted to be able to focus on training so his strength was where it needed to be.

“You’re going to go get your license and that’s that, mister!” She screamed at him.

He sighed.

“Chi Chi, I’m sorry you had a bad day and had to walk so far. I’m sure you’re tired.” He sat her down and began to message her feet. She sighed in appreciation.

“I just don’t understand how me having a license would help. I can fly anywhere. Why don’t you get a license and then we can have a nice car that you can drive anywhere anytime, doesn’t that sound nice?”

Bombarded by his kind gesture and logic behind his words she just nodded dumbly.

“Okay, Goku that sounds fine.”

More aware of the same issues that bothered her, he tried to keep in mind to be a better husband to her for now. He got ready to get in the tub outside and noticed Piccolo was still there.

“Hey, Piccolo, I thought you had left.”

Piccolo stared at him intently. 

“Something’s different about you.”

Goku giggled nervously.

“What makes you say that?”

“I don’t know, but I’m going to figure out what it is.”

Goku said nothing and just got into the barrel they used as a bath tub. He sighed to himself thinking about how he’d have to ask Bulma for a car. That won’t be awkward at all.

Piccolo finally got ready to leave when Chi Chi came outside.

“You!” She pointed at Piccolo. “You are coming with me tomorrow to drivers’ school to help me and I won’t hear anything to the contrary!”

Piccolo sputtered but wasn’t able to form an argument. Chi Chi stomped back inside. “Sorry Piccolo it’s better to just listen to her. Besides, you’ll have fun.” Goku smiled as Piccolo huffed and swung his cape as he quickly turned to leave.

This chapter was beta’d by Fleuraison7

Chapter Text

The plan was simple. Don’t mess anything else up. He had an inside look on what was about to happen. He had Trunks to help. The plan was simple. Foolproof even.

So, what went wrong?

On May 12, nine miles off of South City and two hours before the androids were supposed to arrive, they had gathered. Having met up with Trunks the day before as they planned, the two had come up with the perfect plan. Three years had passed for Goku, but only a few minutes had passed for the teen. He needed another refresher. After Goku explained everything again, they began to scheme.

Last time a lot had gone wrong because they were under prepared. Trunks hadn’t been sure what he was allowed to do and they had floundered partly because of it. Goku didn’t have that problem.

“Remember, everything needs to happen as closely as possible to the first time.”

Trunks nodded.

Slowly everyone showed up. Trunks told them about the Androids they were facing today, explicitly describing Androids 19 and 20 appearances and abilities.

When Bulma showed up, she did a double take when she looked at Trunks. Due to events changing, this was her first time meeting him.

“Oh wow, who’s this?” She greeted him warmly, holding baby Trunks on her hip.

Trunks looked at her nervously. He was probably blown away at meeting her.

“Hey, Bulma, this is my friend. He’s gonna help us with the Androids,” Goku spoke up for Trunks. “What are you and baby Trunks doing here?”

“Hey, how come you know his name?”

“Oh, uh...” Goku looked from Bulma to Trunks. Trunks just blushed.

“Lucky guess. Haha,” Goku chuckled nervously.

“Hey, Bulma, who’s baby is that? Did you and Yamcha get married?” Gohan asked her enthusiastically.

“No, we split a while ago!” Yamcha pouted and stalked off.

“Oh, uh sorry about that,” Gohan apologized.

“It’s okay. Actually, Vegeta is the father,” Bulma announced as if she was waiting for everyone’s reaction.

No one reacted outwardly. Goku winced mentally but tried to keep it together. He certainly wasn’t upset. Well, not that upset at least.

“Okay...” Bulma trailed off. “Anyway, I’m not here for the fight, we’ll go after the Androids show up.”

“That sounds great, Bulma. By the way, do you know if Vegeta is supposed to show up?”

“I’m not sure. He ran off to space to train a few months ago.”

Goku nodded. That sounded about right. They were all distracted when the sound of an engine was getting louder and coming towards them. Oh right, Yajirobe was here.

“Hey, Yajirobe!” Goku waved excitedly at him. “Did you bring us some Senzu Beans?”

“Sure did, courtesy of Korin. Now if you don’t mind, I’m gonna get out of here.”

“Oh, hold on!” Goku called a little too loudly, startling everyone around him. “Uh, you should hold off until we can lead the Androids away. You don’t want them attacking you now, do you?”

Yajirobe pondered this.

“Yeah, alright, sounds like a plan.”

“Okay, now according to Trun- my friend here,” Goku corrected himself quickly. “We are looking for two male Androids. They’re with the Red Ribbon Army. Now I suggest we all stick together and Krillin, you can hold on to the Senzu Beans for now. Be careful, they can absorb energy. Don’t let them grab you, and don’t try to blast them. Let’s get them away from the city. They’re ruthless and will kill anybody and everybody.”

Goku finished his speech and flew off waiting for the others to follow. He could hear them murmuring and felt Piccolos piercing stare on his back. He cursed to himself. Dammit, I did it again.

Things were a little weird. Goku could tell most the group was weary of him and Trunks. It didn’t get any better as time stretched on and they hadn’t found the Androids. Goku was terrified that at any minute the gang would ask to split up. That wouldn’t do at all. They continued to comb the streets, looking for any signs of them.

Goku was just about to give up hope when he heard a huge explosion a couple of blocks away.

“That way!” He heard Piccolo cry.

They all flew over, finding the two Androids standing next to a flipped over and very much on fire car. They recognized Goku immediately.

“Aw, Goku there you are. We’ve been looking for you!” Android 20 spoke.

“Well, you found me, so let’s take this somewhere else.”

“Now why would we do that? We’ve spent so long looking for you already.”

Piccolo pushed forward to speak but Goku stopped him.

“I’m afraid I must insist,” He said before rising in the air to fly away. “Come on, guys.”

The group looked worried but followed suit. So did the two Androids.

Goku flew off expecting everyone to follow. He flew close enough by Bulma and Yajirobe to signal it was safe for them to leave. They nodded back to him.

All too soon he was stopped by the Androids again.

“This is plenty far enough!”

Goku landed reluctantly and everyone else followed his lead. If it wasn’t the same area as before, it looked similar enough. Goku still wasn’t used to the waves of déjà vu and nostalgia reliving these old fights gave him. Even after all this time it was surreal.

Goku slipped into his fighting stance but Piccolo interrupted him once again.

“What is it you two want?”

“You seem to know so much about us, I’m surprised you don’t already know.”

“I know what they want,” Goku growled.

“You do?” Both Piccolo and the Android asked at the same time.

“They’re with the Red Ribbon Army and they are after revenge. Your type makes me so sick,” Goku spat. “Hurting innocent people who never did anything to you, I can’t stand it.”

Goku could feel his energy spiking and spiraling. His eyesight was taking on a red tinge. The Androids didn’t really have anything to do with what happened to Vegeta, but he couldn’t help making comparisons. Plus, this was the man responsible for Cell. He wasn’t looking forward to what was about to happen after this, but he had to follow the plan to a T. He knew this.

No more talking, he was ready to get this over with. He flew at Android 19 before they were prepared and absolutely unleashed all of his fury. He saw nothing but red now. His energy skyrocketed and he did nothing to hold it back. He transformed to Super Saiyan and kept going. He surpassed Super Saiyan and ascended even higher. He could tell he was still fighting, physically he could feel it, his blood sang and his fists stung, but he couldn’t register seeing anything.

He was on the cusp of going 3, that should be more than enough to take care of the Android. He felt his rage bubble, threatening to overflow, when all the sudden his energy began to plummet. It lashed out wildly and out of control. Goku felt out of breath. His vision began to clear. He could see everyone was staring at him, surprise clearly written on their faces.

Goku had taken his medicine, so why did he feel like this? He collapsed on the floor. Someone yelled as they flew to take his place. Jumping in between him and the Android. He wasn’t able to figure out who it was before he fell unconscious.

Goku awoke groggily. His head was pounding. He felt foggy. He looked around before registering that he was home and in bed. He heard noise coming from the other room, so he got up to see if someone was making breakfast. Vegeta was in the kitchen wearing a pink apron. He kissed him on the cheek while Vegeta continued to stir the pan he was using. Goku smiled.

“I had this really messed up dream, Vegeta,” Goku chuckled to himself a little.

“Oh really, what was it about?” Vegeta glanced at him quickly.

“It doesn’t matter, as long as everything is fine now.”

Vegeta turned to him but he didn’t have a face. Goku was startled and fell back. He landed roughly on hot sand and looked around, confused how he got outside. He looked over to see Vegeta sneering down at him, as large as a Great Ape but still in human form. He was laughing wickedly. He threw what looked like a Destroyer’s Haikai at him and Goku screamed as he disintegrated into nothing.

Goku woke up to a sharp pain in his ribs. He looked up to see Vegeta glaring down at him with unfiltered hatred.

“Vegeta!” Goku gasped excitedly, but then coughed. Even having Vegeta there clearly unable to stand him was better than the alternative. Goku looked around confusedly. Android 19 was torn to pieces, but Android 20 was nowhere to be seen.

Vegeta was suddenly in his face.

“Kakarot, what the hell was that?”

Goku just stared at him dumbly.

“If anyone is going to defeat you, it’s going to be me. How dare you be beaten as easily as that,” Vegeta continued to glare at him.

Goku fell back down, smiling to himself.

“You’re a Super Saiyan, Vegeta,” Goku whispered before promptly passing out again.

This chapter was beta’d by Fleuraison7

Chapter Text

“It’s my fault, Piccolo. I’m not strong enough. I couldn’t protect my family. I couldn’t protect Pan or Videl,” Gohan’s voice broke. 

“Gohan, be quiet. It’s not your fault and the whole world isn’t your responsibility. You wanted to stop fighting, you wanted to be a scholar. That was your choice,” Piccolo scolded him.

“But I could have been strong enough, if I had kept up my training. Please train with me again. Help me get back to where I was. Help me get stronger please,” Gohan’s voice was laced with desperation. 

“Alright, but it won’t be easy. I just want to make sure you’re doing this because it’s what you want.”

“I don’t want this, Piccolo. I’ve never wanted this, but I need to protect my family. I have to do this for them.”

“Very well.”

Goku hid his energy. He stumbled into a conversation he wasn’t meant to hear. A conversation he didn’t want to hear. His son had never wanted to be a fighter. He had been encouraged and often forced to by Goku. Shame burned in his chest at how Gohan’s life had turned out. Some of it had been unavoidable, but a lot of his guilt was from the pressure Goku had put on him personally. He wished he could take it away, but there wasn’t a way to change the past. It was a burden they would both just have to carry. 

Goku was dreaming, past and present intertwining in his thoughts. It was disorienting but he tried to keep track of what was happening based on everyone’s energy. His friends still fought the Androids and Cell still appeared. He was finally able to wake when he felt a crisp slap to his cheek.

“Wake up,” a deep gruff voice sounded as his eyes finally felt light enough to open. “Wake up you bastard, you have a lot of explaining to do!” 

Piccolo went to slap him again but stopped when he noticed Goku was awake. He looked like he was still considering it though. Goku paled. Piccolo must know. 

“What happened?” Goku asked, his voice cracking from lack of use. He cleared his throat. “Why was I unconscious?”

“Why don’t you tell me?” Piccolo growled.

Oh yeah, he knew.

“Well, I took the medicine, so...” Goku trailed off. “Hold on, you fused with Kami, didn’t you? I can sense it, your energy is different now.”

“Yes, I fused with Kami and you may be well aware in knowing that means I can read minds now. And that includes yours and your little future boys’.”

Goku shrank back. This was bad.

“No kidding, this is bad! Do you have any idea what you’ve done? What chaos you’ve caused?”

Goku shook his head.

“You have changed so much already! We have no idea what the consequences are going to be! You can’t change another single thing, Goku! Nothing! Do you understand?”

Goku nodded this time.

“But Piccolo, what happened? I took the medicine.”

“Your body wasn’t ready for that transformation. You’re pushing yourself too hard too soon. You’re hopeless.”

Hmph. Goku pouted. That made sense though. When he learned three originally he was in Other World and learned it gradually over a couple years. Here he had gone from super to two to three very quickly. But he needed to be strong enough to protect -

“Vegeta, I know. We are going to talk about that later. Right now we have more pressing matters. I assume you’re familiar with Cell.”

Goku went from surprised to enraged very quickly from Piccolo’s words.

“Oh yeah, I’m familiar with Cell.”

“Okay. I need you to tell me what happened last time, because this time everything needs to happen the exact same way.”

Goku nodded.

It wasn’t hard to find Vegeta’s energy. It was wild and frantic and full of rage. It was also right next to Trunks’, so that saved time. Him and Gohan landed with a crunch near Trunks. Goku nodded at Trunks and immediately went to Vegeta. 

Seeing him in this timeline was always painful. It was a relief to have him near, but torture to not be able to embrace him, or even speak with him freely. Still, Goku would rather Vegeta be alive and them be estranged than the alternative. Always.

“Kakarot, I see you’re up from your little nap. The rest of us have been fighting while you caught up on your beauty sleep,” Vegeta sneered.

“I could tell. I know the Androids are tough but Cell is on another level. What would you say if I told you I know where to get a year's worth of training in, in a day?”

Vegeta considered this. The idea excited him, Goku knew that for a fact. 

“Sounds interesting. Show me this place.” 

“I will but you have to train with Trunks.”

Vegeta sneered.

“And why is that?”

“There’s only enough room for two and we don’t have enough time for all of us to train separately. You two can go first and then I’ll go in with Gohan once you’re done.”

Vegeta debated with himself but ultimately caved.

“Fine, now show me.”

“Follow me.”

Goku rose into the air and motioned for Trunks and Gohan to follow. They flew to the lookout in silence. There they found Mr. Popo who was mourning Kami but helped them get ready. As Vegeta and Trunks went to enter, Goku grabbed Trunks by the arm.

“Kick his ass,” Goku told him.

Trunks nodded, determined. Vegeta scoffed, entering first. Trunks followed behind him and shut the door. Their energy disappeared. 

Game time.

Gohan and Goku could do nothing other than sense what was happening around them while they waited. They knew when the Androids arrived at Kame house and Gohan freaked out when Piccolo was fighting by himself. Goku tried to restrain him but Gohan flipped out.

“Please, Gohan, this is how it has to be.”

“You don’t care that your other friends need help! You don’t care about anyone but Vegeta! Well, I’m not going to sit here and let Piccolo die again!”

It was like a punch to the gut hearing Gohan say that. It was true, Goku had been focused on Vegeta since he came back to this timeline. He didn’t even think of how that would look to someone on the outside. To his son. His son, whom he had failed so many times before. He thought of his promise to Piccolo. His promise to Vegeta that he would protect him no matter what. But for the first time in a long time, he thought about what he owed his son. He made a choice. 

“Gohan, wait!” Gohan stopped in his tracks, he had been about to fly off.

Goku went and banged on the door to the hyperbolic time chamber. He waited a minute when he knew Gohan wouldn’t leave, then knocked again. Finally after a few moments Trunks emerged and Vegeta followed shortly after. 

“What is it, clown, the year wasn’t up yet.”

“Listen, Vegeta, the Androids are attacking Piccolo and Cell is hot on their trail. You need to go now and defeat him before he absorbs either Android. If you wait too long, you will regret it. Trust me. Besides, I know you mastered the new level already, now just get out there and go!”

Vegeta didn’t like being told what to do, he bristled at Goku’s harsh command but ultimately sucked it up and left. 

“There, Gohan, now it’s our turn in case Vegeta fails.”

Gohan took a minute to process what happened, but decided it was acceptable and followed him into the chamber.

Chapter Text

Being in the chamber with Gohan, Goku tried his best to focus on his son. They had a whole year together. He still felt extremely guilty from Gohan’s outburst. He had been a terrible father since he came back. He wanted to fix that now but he wasn’t sure how.

Everything was supposed to happen the exact same. He had messed so much up already. But that meant Gohan had to go through the same hurt. How much of his actions mattered? If the result was the same, did it matter how they got it? Was there such a thing as fate? Would the universe really be in danger? Goku’s head throbbed from his constant questions.

He did his best to train Gohan and remain present with him, but it proved to be difficult. One night while taking a bath together Goku asked his son the question that had always haunted him.

“Gohan, do you like fighting?”

“Yeah I like fighting!” Goku sighed in relief.

“Well, sometimes.” Gohan admitted and Goku’s heart dropped into his stomach. “I like fighting with you and Piccolo. And Krillin, but I don’t like it when bad guys are here to hurt the earth or my friends. I didn’t like it when Piccolo died for me. I want to get stronger so I can protect the people I care about. But I wish I didn’t have to fight, I wish I could fight cause I wanted to. For fun you know?”

Goku nodded. He knew all too well. That night he dreamed of what was to come. He tossed and turned as he remembered.

“Goku stop this! Think about what you’re saying!” Piccolo desperately pleaded with him as he asks Gohan to fight Cell.

“He doesn’t thirst for battle and mayhem. He’s not a fighter like you!” Piccolo yelling at him, trying to get him to understand Gohan didn’t want to fight Cell.

Goku bolted up in his bed. A knot had formed in his stomach and he couldn’t get it to go away no matter what he did. He needed to save Vegeta, but could he really repeat the worst mistake he ever made again willingly? He loved Vegeta, yes. But he loved his son too and had a duty to him as well. He tried to go back to sleep.

Vegeta will take care of Cell early any way, so it would all be a moot point. He closed his eyes and was immediately assaulted by an image of Vegeta letting Cell absorb 18 on purpose at the promise of a challenge. Goku broke into a cold sweat. Vegeta wouldn’t… except he did! Goku bolted up. He woke Gohan quickly.

“Come on son we have to go!”

Gohan was sleepy and confused but he picked up on his father's tone enough to comply. They had only been in the chamber for a few weeks. Not a lot of time would have passed on the outside. Hopefully he wasn’t too late. Gohan hadn’t reached Super Saiyan but that didn’t matter right now. Hopefully he wouldn’t need to.

They immediately burst into flight after leaving the door and flew as quickly as possible. He could feel Trunks and Vegeta’s energy, they were at level two. Cell was still there, but he felt stronger. Did that mean 17 was already gone? What about Piccolo and Tien? Goku flew faster. It was times like this he really missed his Instant Transmission.

They finally arrived at an island not far from Kame House. Goku could see Vegeta and Trunks fighting each other and Semi-Perfect Cell inching toward 18 and 16. Without any thought, Goku flew right at Vegeta and kicked him full in the face with both feet.

“Vegeta!” Goku screamed as he powered up to Suoer Saiyan 2. “I told you to take care of him as quickly as possible!”

“Be quiet idiot! I’m strong enough to defeat him no matter how much stronger he gets!” Vegeta jumped up from the ground.

“No, Vegeta you're not. You have no idea of the consequences of your action, but I’m not going to clean up after your mess this time!”

Goku was pissed. Vegeta was thrown by the depth of his anger temporarily and Goku used that to form a Kamehameha wave to hit Cell with. Cell had stopped to watch their squabble but was frozen.

“Now hold on.” He said to Goku.

Vegeta flew in front of Goku blocking his path. Goku immediately dropped his stance. Vegeta smirked. Cell used that opportunity to throw an energy attack at Vegeta, who sensed it at the last second and turned around to deflect it. He flicked his wrist carelessly and it shot off behind him. He didn’t even look where. But Goku did. He let out a choked gasp and Vegeta followed his line of sight.

It was like all the blood drained from Vegeta’s body. The light left his eyes. The blast he had carelessly deflected, had gone straight through Trunks’ heart. You could see the hole in his chest. It looked just like when Frieza had killed Vegeta on Namek. Vegeta fell to his knees and crawled over to Trunks’ body. His energy depleted and now gone.

Cell, the underhanded snake that he was, used this opportunity to pursue 18 again. Goku wasn’t having any of that. He powered up to the cusp of three and formed another Kamahameha.

“Cell!” He screamed so hard his throat bled.

Cell turned around in terror. Goku poured decades of frustration into his attack.

“Kame-“

For Gohan.

“Hame-“

For Vegeta.

“Hame-“

For Piccolo.

“HAAAAAAAA!”

For the hundreds of people Cell killed across multiple timelines. He put everything he had into his attack.

Cell tried to flee, but he wasn’t quick enough. Goku’s attack was too large. It was probably overkill, but he couldn’t have held back if wanted to. And he hadn’t wanted to. He wasn’t over taken by rage like he had been back on Namek. He was fully aware of what he was doing.

Cell disintegrated into ash and then his ash became nothing. That monster would never hurt anyone again. Goku sighed softly in relief until he remembered Trunks.

He walked slowly over to Vegeta who had draped himself over Trunks’ body. He reached out and put a hand on Vegeta’s shoulder. Vegeta shrugged it off.

“Don’t touch me!” He growled. “This is your fault!” He bit out without even looking up.

Goku recoiled. It wasn’t a lie. Everything that had just happened was his fault. He stepped back to give Vegeta some room in case he went on a rampage. He stayed powered up just in case. He went to speak with 16 and 18.

“Do you guys know what happened to my friends? Piccolo and Tien?”

18 was shaken up and couldn’t answer. 16 just shook his head somberly. Dammit. They needed the Dragon Balls. Another thing he forgot and messed up.

{King Kai I need your help.}

Everyone had gathered at the Look Out. With King Kai’s help he had coordinated with Moori. He didn’t specify who, but he wasn’t surprised when Dende was magically transported in front of him. He was surprised when Nail joined him, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. Piccolo was going to kick his ass when they brought him back to life though.

Dende seemed to understand perfectly what was expected of him. He quickly recreated Shenron from the original model and the Dragon Balls were found quickly without Goku’s help. He had a more important job.

“Hey Krillin, you should talk to Bulma and the androids about getting the bombs removed from their bodies.”

“What?” Krillin cried out nervously. “Why me?”

“You think she’s cute right? You should talk to her. Just cause she’s an android doesn’t mean she won’t appreciate conversation.” He wiggled his eyebrows and Krillin’s entire face turned pink.

After successfully convincing Krillin to go talk to 18, he walked toward Vegeta. He was met with a growl so fierce that he backed off immediately. He didn’t know what to do about that and decided to worry about it later. For now the Dragon Balls were finally here and they had a wish to make.

“Almighty Shenron, by your name I call you forth!” Dende cried at the seven orbs. They began to glow and the sky darkened. Shenron appeared, his eyes glowing red.

“I will grant you three wishes. What is your first wish?”

“Three wishes?” Asked Yamcha.

“I was able to alter the wish amount, just like the Namekian Dragon.” Answered Dende.

“Dragon, for our first wish we wish to bring back all the lives that were taken by the android known as Cell.”

Shenron gazed back at Dende before answering.

“It has been done, what is your next wish.”

Dende looked at Goku, but he was distracted by a loud gasp to the side of him. He turned to see Trunks sitting up.

“Father!” Trunks cried to Vegeta.

“Son.” Vegeta nodded at him.

Trunks beamed.

Goku looked back to see Krillin had moved forward.

“Shenron, could you make it so these androids could be made human again?”

18 gasped.

“It cannot be done. Do you have any other wishes?”

Everyone muttered amongst themselves but no one had a solid idea for a wish.

Shenron surprised everyone by speaking to Goku directly.

“Goku, perhaps if you had a wish, you would want to speak with me privately next time?”

Goku’s eyes widened in shock. Can Shenron read minds too? He just shook his head no as subtly as possible.

“Shenron, we wish to save the other wishes for a later time.”

“Very well.” Shenron disappeared and the sky cleared up.

Everyone stared at Goku.

“What was that about buddy?” Yamcha asked him.

Goku chuckled nervously.

“I’m not sure.”

Trunks approached him.

“Thank you, Goku.”

Goku hugged him.

“I’m so sorry, Trunks.”

Trunks hugged him back.

“It’s alright. From what you told me maybe it was supposed to happen again.”

Goku frowned.

He wanted to talk more but not in front of others.

“Can I find you later?” He asked while pulling away from the hug.

“Yes, I’m not ready to leave quite yet.”

Goku nodded. He felt a presence arriving and went to greet him. Piccolo looked livid.

“Come with me.” He barked out.

Goku had no choice but to follow him. They flew off a little ways and Goku made sure they weren’t followed.

“Do you have any idea how idiotic your little stunt was? Do you have any idea how much you just changed? The innumerable amount of unforeseen consequences we are going to have to deal with.”

Goku hung his head.

“I know I’m sorry.”

Piccolo studied him.

“Well we have time to think about what to do now. Right now you have more pressing issues.”

Goku’s head snapped up.

“Like what?”

“Well for one there aren’t going to be any Cell games like you said. You managed to get Dende here, although with some extra cargo. But I think you’re forgetting something really important.”

Goku racked his brain but couldn’t figure out what Piccolo was getting at. Piccolo shook his head in disgust.

“Think Goku. Last time you died. You were gone for seven years. You left your wife and your family behind.”

Goku thought really hard. Then it hit him and the blood drained from his face.

“Goten.” He managed to choke out.

Piccolo nodded, satisfied that he had gotten his point across.

It wasn’t for another day that he got to see Trunks and go over what happened.They sat next to each other, side by side. It was just like he feared. Even though Vegeta had gotten to Cell early, Cell had easily convinced him to have Vegeta let him become perfect. Trunks fought him, but he wasn’t able to deter Vegeta. Goku patted his shoulder.

“I'm sorry again Trunks. I never meant for that to happen.

“It is done, Goku. Besides we still have the Dragon Balls so we were able to bring me back. I only wish the same was true for my timeline I’m returning to.”

They both sat there with somber thoughts. Goku stood up and patted the dirt off his butt.

“Yeah well, you think you have it bad, returning to your own timeline, I have to go home and make a baby!” Goku cried.

Trunks blanched at that and a comically large bullet of sweat appeared on his face.

“Good luck with that.” Trunks patted his shoulder before waving and flying off.

Goku waited there a little while longer before flying home at a very slow pace.

Chapter Text

Year 1

If Goku had learned anything from his long, and even longer now, life, it was that time passes. Trunks went back to his own timeline and he went home to try to be a good father and even a good husband. Gohan’s outburst had really opened his eyes that he wasn’t present in this lifetime. Because he had lived through everything already, it was easy to forget that it was not the case for everyone else. He still had a hard time wrapping his head around all this time travel stuff. He still didn’t know what the consequences of him being here would be for his future and it made him nervous. As Piccolo liked to point out, he had not been very good at sticking to the original events of what happened. Unfortunately a lot had changed. Several lives had been saved in his attempt to save Vegeta and it made them both weary of how this was all going to go down in the end. Goku had hope though, so far things had come to be just as they were supposed to, even with his interference. Like the Androids, Cell, and Trunks. The real issue was Vegeta seemed to genuinely hate him again, that is what kept him up at night tossing and turning. Not him accidentally saving Nail and Android 16.

Goku had been spending his free time meditating with Piccolo at the Look Out these days. Chi Chi was going to give birth to Goten any day now, and he would have to take a break brainstorming to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything until his son was a little older. He hadn’t been there for Goten last time, and now that he had a second chance to be there for him and help raise him. A gift he found truly priceless and would never have expected to be given in a million years. Until then, he liked to get in some time away from Chi Chi. Even though he had buckled down and tried to be more present, even starting to farm on his own and do more chores around the house. It was obvious to him that she really didn’t understand him. Piccolo warned him not to divorce her again until it was the right time, so Goku did his best. He often felt like he didn’t fit anywhere really. He was still too guilt ridden to spend any time with Bulma, Krillin and 18 unsurprisingly hit it off and were in the gross beginning stages of love that hurt for him to see. Others like Tien and Yamcha no longer knew the first thing about him, and he felt like they no longer had that much in common. 

Goku looked over the edge, surveying the Earth far down below. He closed his eyes and focused on his energy within his own body. Felt it flow. He took the time to feel each of his muscles individually and slowly. He took deep breaths, holding them until he felt his lungs burn. Inhaling through his nose and exhaling from his mouth. He opened his eyes after a while of this, and with only a moment's hesitation fell over the edge, falling face first toward the ground. He did not try to slow his fall, instead just enjoying the anxious but thrilling feeling of free falling. At the last second he took control of his flight so he didn’t hit the ground. He flew toward Mount Paozu and tried to keep his head clear of the heavy thoughts that seemed to always plague him now. 

Year 2 

Goten was amazing. Goku already loved him with all of his heart, but seeing him grow up right in front of his eyes was a whole other experience. Goku spent every second he could just watching him, playing with him, teaching him how to talk. And it was just… breathtaking, awe-inspiring, lots of big meaningful words Goku had never even used before. He loved Vegeta, and would still do anything for him, protect him no matter what- but Goku still loved his family. For now he was doing everything to be the dad that they needed, that they deserved. He still tended to the fields everyday, still got some training in - he couldn’t get weak after all, not with what was coming - but he had stopped seeing Piccolo on a regular basis to plan for the next chapter of their lives. He thought they had gone over everything they needed, and could meet again closer to the right time so he could spend the most time with his family. So when he bolted awake one night startling Chi Chi and waking Goten he was baffled to realize he had overlooked a huge detail. One that could truly cost them. He helped Goten fall back asleep and apologized to Chi Chi profusely before flying off to find Piccolo.

“Damn it, how could we have missed something so important?” Piccolo growled at him. 

“I don’t know, I’m sorry. I’m just glad I thought of it before it was too late”

“Yeah, but what are we going to do about it now?”

“Well I have an idea but I think you’re going to hate it.” Goku said sheepishly while scratching his cheek. 

Piccolo stared at him, and then sighed. 

“So that's how it is, huh?”

Goku felt ridiculous but didn’t want to complain since he was sure Piccolo felt worse. They had broken into a TV studio to send out a little message they were hoping a certain someone would respond to. If this didn’t work they would have to come up with a plan B, but Goku was pretty confident this would work. Now they were standing in the desert where the Cell games would have taken place if he hadn't stopped Cell early, with him filming Piccolo threatening the people of Earth.

“I am Piccolo Jr, Son of the Mighty King Piccolo. I am going to finish what he started unless any of you Earthlings can defeat me in a fight.” 

Piccolo stated off the script they had come up, the best they could come up with, but it sounded awkward and forced. It didn’t help that Piccolo was camera shy, and not really much of an actor. Hopefully this next part would help sell it. Goku had the camera they had borrowed set up and ready for it to run by itself. It was his que to come in.

“Halt Villain. I stopped your father before and I’ll stop you now!”

Goku ran up to him and Piccolo stiffly punched him. Goku barely felt the impact but still forced himself backwards. He cried loudly off camera. 

“Wow you are so strong. Even I cannot defeat you. We need the world's toughest and strongest to beat you.”

“You’re a terrible actor Goku.” Piccolo whispered to him under his breath. 

“Like you’re one to talk.” Goku said slowly getting up and crawling back behind the camera.

“I have avenged my father. Send your strongest or the Earth is next.” Piccolo said looking directly into the camera. 

Goku clicked the camera off.

“And now we wait.”

News crews and reporters showed up first. That was expected. Next were familiar faces that Goku had really been hoping wouldn’t come. Krillin walked up to him 

“Hey buddy what’s going on here?”

Goku looked to Piccolo for help. Piccolo pointedly looked away. Goku resisted the temptation to stick his tongue out at him. 

“Oh, um…. King Kai asked Piccolo and I to find a fighter, and this is the best way we could think of to do it.”

Phew. Goku was glad to have thought of a good believable lie. 

{Why are you always throwing me under the bus with your lies!} King Kai yelled in his head.

{I’m sorry King Kai, I couldn’t think of anything else.}

Krillin looked at him funny. Goku giggled nervously.

“Well okay, I can’t wait to meet this fighter then.”

Goku sighed with relief. That relief turned to dread when he felt a familiar ki approaching him. Goku started to panic when he saw Vegeta touch down nearby. The panic increased tenfold when Vegeta’s cold eyes turned to him. Never had Vegeta’s cold stare of hatred hurt him so bad before. Even when they first met. Even when he had turned Majin, Vegeta had never harbored such hatred for him. So much time had passed and Vegeta still loathed him. Goku honestly wasn’t sure if he would ever not hate him again. His doubts and fears kept him awake well into the night. But he hadn’t seen him for a while, so it hit him fresh now again. Like a sucker punch to his gut. Goku’s breath actually hitched. He forced his eyes away. They had a job to do. A job that was infinitely harder to focus on now, but Goku would do his best. 

Finally with a huge entourage he arrived. Cameras flashed all around him. Goku wanted to laugh with relief just seeing him. But he kept his composure. Piccolo stood looking stoic waiting for the guest of honor to meet him in the ring. 

“Now listen here, Mr. Whoever , I am the champion. The strongest man in the world. You are here threatening the Earth, challenging me directly by asking for the strongest. Well here I am. Mr. Satan is about to take you down.” 

He pointed at Piccolo dramatically. The entire crowd went wild, chanting Satan over and over again. 

“Bring it on then Champ.” Piccolo taunted him. 

It was a quick fight, it had to be. Mr. Satan went at him full force and Piccolo did his best to dodge the first few hits, but let him punch him square in the jaw after a minute and fly back similar to how Goku had earlier. The crowd went wild. Mr. Satan made a whole speech about saving the Earth from the dangerous Piccolo. Confident everything had gone smoothly, Goku finally looked around finding Vegeta again. He was staring at him in a way that made Goku’s blood run cold. Once again he had shown Vegeta more than he should have. He slowly backed away until turning quickly to find Piccolo. They left quickly so no one would try to approach them. He couldn’t help feeling like he was running away with his tail between his legs from Vegeta’s still prickling icy cold eyes watching him the whole way. 

Year 3

Goku was depressed. He felt like he had given away every piece of his soul. Being there for everyone, doing everything everyone expected of him and never doing anything for himself was being to take its toll. It was one day when Chi Chi was implying that he should hang up his fighting gi permanently that he lost it. For the first time in years he just broke. A sob escaped his throat and he just sat down on the ground right there in the middle of the kitchen. Tears pooled in his eyes but didn’t fall. He just - it was too much. He was too old, too much had happened. Yes he had made mistakes, but he had only wanted to correct them, not be punished. Not so thoroughly and not like this. He was lonely. The only one who kind of understood him was Piccolo, and he only wanted to reprehend him for his actions. He missed Vegeta dearly. He missed being his own man. He was so tired of the charade with Chi Chi. So even though Piccolo had specifically told him not to, there on the floor of the kitchen with Chi Chi looking at him with eyes wide and full of concern he broke down, and he told her absolutely everything.

It took hours, Chi Chi took awhile to convince but eventually she was persuaded and seemed to understand. The sun had gone down and came back up by the time Goku was done talking. She seemed to take it well enough. 

“Here Goku, let me make you breakfast. A nice warm meal will fix everything.”

Goku didn’t agree with that statement, but didn’t want to argue with her. 

After a few days she came out to the fields to talk with him while he was working. 

“I’ve given it a lot of thought, Goku. I think you should stay with us a little longer. Goten is still really young and Gohan is not quite grown yet. If you promise to bring money home, even if you just enter tournaments or only harvest once a year I will back off about your training. I realized I never thanked you for what you did with Gohan back with Cell when you were telling me your story. We are still a family mister. And when the boys are a little older you can get a separate place and we can split them between us like we had arranged in your time.”

Goku nodded, amazed at how civil and practical Chi Chi was being. He hugged her, careful not to hurt her. 

“Thank you Chi Chi.”

Year 4 

“Hey 16 how’s it going?” Goku greeted his friend with a wave. 

“Hello Goku, how are you today?” 16 greeted him back.

“Oh you know me.” Goku dodged the question.

“Hmm.” 16 studied him, but didn’t say anything further. “Would you like to watch the birds with me today?” 16 asked him after a few silent moments.

“Sure, big guy lets go.” Goku chuckled.

After everything with Cell had calmed down the androids had sought Goku out. They wanted to apologize for their behavior and explain that they had turned a new leaf. 

“I was built for the soul purpose of destroying you, Goku. But I choose to be more than my programming.” 16 had approached him and said shaking his hand. 

Goku was excited about having new friends, 16 hadn't survived in the original timeline after all. Goku had helped 16 and 17 set up their Capsule house somewhere 16 would be able to bird watch and 17 was easy to steer toward animal rescue, something Goku knew he would be interested in. Unfortunately, he didn’t know much about 17’s life in his timeline. He knew he had a wife and kids but he didn’t know who, and he didn’t know how they met. He could only hope that they still found each other naturally. He could never forgive himself if he was the reason any of his friends or family didn’t end up with who they were supposed to this time around. 

He took the binoculars 16 handed him and looked around, trying to spot birds that 16 would enjoy seeing. It was pretty easy, 16 liked all birds. He was a simple guy, Goku appreciated that. He put down the binoculars again and studied 16 for a while. 

“Hey 16, when Chi Chi lets me get my own place, could I stay here with you? If 17 is okay with it too I mean.”

16 lowered his binoculars and studied Goku as well. The androids didn’t know he was from the future, but they were more up to date on his life than any of his other friends besides Piccolo. 

“Yes I think that would be fun. Let us ask 17 when he arrives.”

Goku smiled up at him, glad that his mistakes had ultimately provided him with another good friend.

Chapter Text

Year 5

Goku shifted awkwardly on his feet. Chi Chi had asked him to pick up the boys from Capsule Corp, he had only agreed because he thought it would be quick to get the boys out. Instead he had gotten caught up with Mrs. Briefs and Bulma and somehow invited him to dinner and didn’t know how to get out of it without seeming rude. Bulma was guilt tripping him about never seeing him. So Guku giggled and blushed awkwardly and sat himself down at the table. Vegeta walked in and stopped dead in his tracts seeing him at the table. He turned around without a word and left. Goku shivered as if it really was cold in the room. Bulma made up an awkward excuse and Goku checked out and didn’t remember the rest of dinner or how he got home.

The next morning Goku stepped forward slowly. The energy in the air was strange and heavy. The memories of coming here with Krillin danced in and out of the forefront of his mind. He had no idea if this would even work. He tried to clear his thoughts and so he could focus. He thought over memories of him and Vegeta. It would have been their anniversary today. He thought of sweet kisses and lazy sundays. Of passionate embraces and intense spars. He was startled as he heard a voice come from behind him.

"What have you come here for?"

He turned around to see Vegeta dressed in his battle armor Bulma had made him when he originally went to train with Whis. It even had the "signature" Whis had placed on it during a training session with the both of them. There would be no reason the Vegeta of this time would be wearing that. Also he couldn't detect his energy signal. He had succeeded.

"Kakarot." He had his arms crossed and was tapping his foot impatiently. "Why have you come?"

Goku fell down onto his knees and felt like he could cry from relief.

"Vegeta.'" His voice was hoarse. "I had to see you. I thought this might work."

"You know I'm more of a figment of your imagination than anything."

Goku nodded.

"I know Vegeta, but I had to see you. I - I've messed everything up, the you of this time hates me."

"I hated you once, have you forgotten?"

"Not like this. You listened to me, we worked together, hell you even mourned my death."

Vegeta's eye twitched.

"I try not to let it get to me, it never did before but nothing I do is right. I can feel his disdain pour off of him in waves."

"It took a series of peculiar events for me to openly admit my feelings for you, has it occurred to me that he may never feel the same towards you?"

Goku sank from his knees onto the ground.

"Yes." He choked out.

"Will you abandon him then?"

"No, never!" Goku screamed out, his voice echoing and carrying off.

The embodied memory stepped closer.

"Accept him how he is, be patient. Continue to be yourself. Eventually he will warm up to you in some way."

"I will. I will watch over him always, even if he hates me until the day I die. But I've given up all hope that he will ever love me or want to be with me. That's why I'm here, I wanted to say goodbye."

Vegeta folded himself down next to him. They sat in comfortable silence. Goku thought over the decades of memories they shared together. Eventually the tears began to fall and he did nothing to stop them.

"I love you Vegeta."

"Kakarot... You know how I felt about you."

He laughed bitterly.

"I guess even in my imagination you won't say it."

Vegeta smiled tilting his head to the side.

"You do know me best."

Goku went to hug him. It was strange. There was no warmth but he was solid enough. He held on like he would never let go. Vegeta made soothing sounds, eventually his tears stopped.

"I'm so sorry for what happened, Vegeta. But it seems I won't ever be able to fix it. I'm stuck in this new reality." Vegeta nodded beside him.

“I thought we’d have together forever, but I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”

Goku focused his energy until Vegeta vanished. He stood up, wiped off his face then his pants. Feeling nostalgic he called nimbus, and got lost in his own thoughts on the way home.

Year 6

Goku was enjoying a relaxing weekend with his friends. He had brought his sons out camping with him, 16, 17 and Piccolo. He was teaching Goten how to fish with his hands when he felt some power levels enter earth's atmosphere. He was immediately on edge, a power felt vaguely familiar and all energies had an edge to them he didn’t like. He had Goten get out of the water, and everyone else had noticed the approaching energies and were standing alert waiting for him.

“Friends of yours?” Piccolo asked him.

Goku shook his head.
“I don’t think so.” Goku said, both looked thoughtful.

Finally a spaceship approached them, looking very familiar. The hair on Goku’s neck stood up and his skin began to crawl. Who was here, and why now? He didn’t recognize this from the previous timeline.

Several aliens wearing similar armour that the Freiza force did, came out and started blasting everywhere. Goku had Gohan and Goten fly off in the distance and joined in on the fight. They were tough, but nothing they couldn’t handle. Until the leader revealed himself.

“Ah you must be the one who defeated my brother.” He spoke to Goku.I am Cooler. I believe you are familiar with Frieza?’

Goku saw red for the first time in years. He shook it off. He was in control.

“I know Frieza very well. You should probably pack up and go home, you have no business on this planet.” Goku spoke calmly.

“Oh I think you’ll find I have plenty of business on this planet, after I destroy it that is.”

They lunged toward each other. Cooler hit hard, and could take a hard hit. Goku would have been impressed if everyone wasn’t in danger. After they fought for a while, Cooler stopped to transform. Goku was going to let him, he needed an opportunity to fight in his higher forms, but something Cooler said set him off.

“We are the supreme masters of this universe and I am the great destroyer, the taker of life. It is my will that this planet and everyone on it be eliminated!”

His sons, Vegeta, were all on earth. He saw red again and this time didn’t fight it.

He came to later and saw Cooler in pieces in front of him. He looked around and saw Cooler’s men all on the ground and 16 and 17 watching him apprehensively. It had happened again. He lost control. He looked over at Piccolo who was also staring at him but he looked more thoughtful.

Goku chuckled nervously. “I’m going to go check on the boys.”

They were fine, no one had had the chance to look for them. He took them home and then flew to the Look Out to find Piccolo. He knew he would want to talk about what happened earlier. As expected Piccolo was not happy.

“What was that Goku?”

“I don’t know, I had never met him before! I didn’t even know Frieza had a brother.”
“This is bad, things are happening in this time line that didn’t happen before. Reality is gonna rip apart. I just know it.”

Goku looked thoughtful.

“And all this for Vegeta. Are you sure he’s worth it? He hasn’t done anything but cause everyone grief since he came to earth to destroy it.”

“He’s worth it.” Goku said quickly, with conviction. Of course Vegeta was worth it. “Not now but later he is going to make up for all of his sins and is the reason we don’t all die several times over.”

“Make up for his sins, huh. That’s very perceptive of you.”

Goku blushed. “Actually you told me that.”

“What I never said that!”

“Not you, the other you. Ah, I hate time travel.”

Piccolo smirked, realizing what he meant.

“Alright, if you say he’s worth all this. This is bad though, I told you you needed to do everything exactly as before or there would be consequences. This is just the tip of the iceberg of what can happen. Also we need to talk about your rage. You really went off on Cooler, it was kind of scary to watch.”

Goku thought about that.

“There is one thing we’ve been holding off on, it might be time for. I think I should go to Yardrat and learn my Instant Transmission technique. Among other things, they can help me with my blacking out issues.”

Piccolo stared at him.

“That could work.”

“I’ll go tell Chi Chi, and pack.”

“Alright, but don’t be gone too long. From what you told me, it’s almost time for Babidi and Majin Buu to arrive. We have a lot to prepare for that coming battle.”

Goku smiled.

“Oh yeah, I’ve missed Buu. I can’t wait for him to get here.”
Piccolo shook his head in disgust. 

Goku frowned when he realized he would have to ask Bulma for a ship. Oh, well nothing to do about it. 

Year 7

Goku was back to meeting with Piccolo at the Look Out on a regular basis. He grilled him about every possible detail he could be missing. Piccolo was still mad that he forgot about Mr. Satan. And his own son. Although, Goku thought that was fair.

“Now you said the Supreme Kai had given Gohan mystical powers?”

“Yes, but in the end he never even got to use them.”

“And you said after Buu he gives up fighting and becomes a scholar?”

“Yeah, well he had you train him again for the Tournament of Power.”

“I still can’t wrap my head around there being multiple universes.”

“You get used to it after a while.”

They both sat in silence thinking about just how big the multiverse was.

“Hold on, you said Gohan gets married to Mr. Satan’s daughter right.”

“Yeah Videl, she’s great. They have a beautiful baby girl together.”

Piccolo smiled, then frowned.

“But wait, shouldn’t they be meeting soon? I thought you said she was at the tournament.”

“Oh crap!”

Piccolo slapped him across the back of his head.

“Oh, goddammit Goku!”

Goku rubbed the back of his head.

“Ow!”

“You deserved it.”

“I gotta go tell Chi Chi Gohan is supposed to go to public school.”

“Yeah do that.”

“Also, uh…” Goku pressed his fingers together.

Piccolo frowned.

“I might need you to create an outfit for me.”

Piccolo’s frown deepened.

“Goddammit Goku!” He screamed after scanning his mind to see what he was thinking.

“Sorry Piccolo!” He cried as he was running away. He had to talk to Chi Chi, and Gohan. There was a lot he had to do.

Chapter Text

Goku and Vegeta lay in bed, breathing hard, flush against each other and basking in the afterglow. It had been a grueling day of training and it felt great to have a release. Goku kissed Vegeta’s shoulder. Something was weighing on his mind and Vegeta tended to open up best like this. 

“What’s your biggest regret Vegeta?”

He received a grunt. Goku had been thinking about a few things a lot lately. He wished he could have handled things with his family a little better. He was curious what Vegeta would say. Ever since Moro he tried and tried to get Vegeta to see himself in a better light. 

“Come on, tell me.” Goku nudged him slightly with his body.

“That’s not exactly pillow talk, Kakarot.” Vegeta sighed and Goku knew without looking he had rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah but, you're not exactly a pillow talk kinda guy.” Goku smiled wide, proud of himself. 

They sat in silence for a while. Goku knew Vegeta was thinking about it so he tried to wait patiently. His eyelids began to droop and he let out a yawn, sleep threatening to take him until Vegeta spoke. 

“I have made many mistakes in my life, Kakarot. More than most,” Goku said nothing, gasping slightly at Vegeta’s words. “I suppose when I let Babidi possess me. Before with Freiza, it was like I didn’t know any better. But I knew what I was doing then, and I did it anyway. All because I was fearful I had gone soft.” 

Vegeta shook his head and Goku smiled at him. Opting to say nothing, he kissed him instead. Vegeta kissed him back and it turned from a chaste kiss to something sweet and lingering. Goku sighed and lay back down, finally ready for sleep to claim him. He was glad that was over, he hadn’t liked when Vegeta was possessed either one bit. Good thing it was in the past and he would never have to go through that again. 

Goku looked around with wide eyes. It had been so long since he had been to a tournament. The sounds, the smells, the excitement from everyone around him. It made his skin tingle and gave him an air of nostalgia unlike anything else he had experienced so far. He focused when he saw Piccolo arrive. This is what they had been gearing up for for years. Piccolo had drilled the plan into his head over and over and over. 

Goku had a separate plan, a good one he hoped. He just had to keep it from Piccolo and the Supreme Kai. He learned some brain teasers just for the occasion. Yes Goku knew how important it was to keep everything the same. But they couldn’t help some stuff. Like Goku had been alive and well the last seven years. Why couldn’t he keep this one tiny thing from happening? 

In the grand balance of the cosmos it wasn’t that big of a deal. But for Vegeta, it was his worst regret and Goku wanted to keep him from this just as much from meeting the same fate ultimately from his time. Some things had already changed that he couldn’t do anything about. Piccolo wasn’t happy about that, but they were hopefully ready for any new situation that might arise.

“And for the love of everything sacred Goku, please please we have to make sure everything that is supposed to happen does!”

Goku had flinched from the volume of Piccolo’s voice. 

The first order of business was to find the Supreme Kai and Kibito and fill them in on what was happening. Couldn’t risk anyone else finding out and he really should be advised of just how poorly it went last time. Between Piccolo and Goku they figured they had enough proof to convince him. It wasn’t hard to feel it when they arrived. Piccolo tilted his head to show Goku which way to go. He followed behind him and they walked through the crowd until they found him.

“Hello, are you by any chance Goku?”

“Yeah, Supreme Kai, it’s me! We have got a lot to tell you.”

“What, how do you know who I am?!”

“Impossible!” Kibito cried.

It took awhile but they were able to convince them.

“This is troubling indeed! Alternative timelines, wishes like that can break through the fabric of reality and swallow us all.”

“That’s what we are doing our best to prevent.” Piccolo explained. 

“Yes I see. Well it is interesting that Majin Buu is no longer a threat and becomes domesticated. At this point he is still dangerous and we need to contain both situations to prevent portal peril.”

Piccolo nodded. Goku raised his fist in the air. 

“Alright! Let’s do this!”

They walked together to the entrance where the contestants signed up. He lost his enthusiasm the second he felt Vegeta’s energy arrive. As much as he wanted to see him, Goku was dreading it. The past seven years had been very hard on his psyche. He was very much so glad Vegeta was alive and healthy but he had all but resigned himself to never being able to have Vegeta in his arms again. 

Vegeta had more than made his hatred for Goku clear. It broke Goku’s heart. He never meant for Trunks’ to get killed. He never meant to hurt Vegeta that way. Everyday Goku thought about how Vegeta was happy without him. He probably didn’t even think about Goku as far as he knew. Vegeta would train, be a father, a husband - all without Goku. He didn’t love or need him. Sometimes Goku thought about leaving Earth when this was all done. Once he knew Vegeta was safe for good. Once he had finally looped back around in this crazy messed up time loop and was free, he didn’t know if he could stand to be without Vegeta anymore. 

He ignored Vegeta for now. Surprised it was so easy to trick him into coming. Just a little nudge from Trunks and Goten wanting to join, and mentioning that Goku would be entering too. Goku wasn’t in denial about Vegeta wanting to see him. He knew he simply wanted to beat Goku into the ground and prove that he was stronger once and for all. Vegeta hadn’t spent the last seven years lonely or longing for Goku to return, rather hating and festering hostility toward him for what happened with Cell. 

Waiting in line for the qualifier, Goku did his best to ignore Vegeta still. He was there, somewhere behind him. Goku wondered fleetingly if Vegeta could tell how he always gravitated towards him. He would have chuckled darkly, but he didn’t want to have to explain himself. When they first got together Vegeta had expressed to him he had felt like he was always chasing Goku. He hadn't understood then, Goku had always been right there with him he had thought, but he understood now. 

Piccolo, Shin, Kibito, and himself all passed and went forward, leaving Vegeta behind temporarily but they would be reunited soon enough. The Kais and Piccolo communicated mostly telepathically so Goku would just have to be brought up to speed later. It wasn’t long at all until it was time to pick his number. He didn’t know if it was fate, or if someone had helped it along but it was him vs Spopovich in the first round. He looked to Piccolo to confirm, and he received a nod. That was the new plan. It was supposed to be Vegeta versus Shin, and he new Vegeta was going to be pissed when that didn't happen. But Goku was secretly hoping not mad enough to follow. Please Vegeta, please…

Everything seemed to be moving so quickly. Goku was a bundle of nerves. His match began and he took a minute to calm himself. He closed his eyes and just focused on his breath. In his nose, out his mouth. Without words, he opened his eyes and powered up to Super Saiyan. He watched silently as his opponent and his friend approached him and stuck the device that would steal his energy into his side. He didn’t move or cry out even though it hurt like hell, and didn’t fight when he began to lose consciousness. He was confident Piccolo wouldn’t let anything happen to him. 

When he awoke, he was outside the ring and Piccolo was carrying him in bridal style. It made him miss a certain Prince of all Saiyans even more. Piccolo realized he was conscious and set him down. Goku nodded a thanks at him. The four of them raised in the air to leave, when several things happened. Krillin walked up to ask them what they were doing and if he should come with.

“Why don’t you sit this one out buddy?” Goku called to him.

“Yes, Krillin you should join us.” Piccolo stated.

Goku and Piccolo were glaring at each other.

“Goku, I really think Krillin should join us - like last time.”

“And I think, the less people around us, the better.”

“What last time?” Krillin asked softly to himself.

Goku was slowly realizing that he and his friends were drifting further and further apart. He didn't think it was their fault but, he ended up spending all his time with the Androids or Piccolo. They seemed to understand him at least. Piccolo and 17 were vocal about not getting his love for Vegeta, 17 more so than Piccolo because he didn’t know the full picture. (Piccolo hadn’t walked in on him crying into his pillow listening to the same song on repeat for 24 hours like 17 did either.) 

But watching his friends laugh and joke like they didn’t have a care in the world was hard enough, but there was always a jab here or there that bothered Goku. Yamcha especially liked to say things that belittled him. He knew they had no way of knowing what he was constantly struggling with since he came back to this timeline, but he wondered if it had always been this way. He cared for his friends deeply, but his priorities had changed. He needed to protect his family and Vegeta. There wasn’t much room for much else. 

He would rather Krillin sit this one out, for multiple reasons, mostly so he could focus and not worry what his friend was thinking of him. Goku was going to think of a flimsy excuse when he was interrupted.

“Kakarot, what are you doing? How dare you disrespect your Saiyan heritage like that. What are you up to?”

Vegeta had arrived. Crap, Goku hadn’t had time to make sure Vegeta didn’t come with them too distracted by his thoughts of Krillin and other friends.

Piccolo frowned at Goku and he realized he had been caught. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. He looked at Shin hoping he would explain the situation. 

“I’m sorry Vegeta, I know we were supposed to have a fight later, but the universe is in great peril and I require your guys’ assistance.”

Vegeta looked down at the Supreme Kai in surprise. Unfortunately for Goku, it took almost no persuading Vegeta to join them once Shin advised he needed Vegeta to defeat a great threat. His ego stroked lightly and Goku could tell he was screwed. Maybe there was still a way to stop it? Goku tried to think but Piccolo smacked the back of his head. 

“Ow!”

“Knock it off, Goku. You know it has to happen.”

Goku frowned. He didn’t want to argue in front of Vegeta so he kept his trap shut. They flew the ways out following Spopovich and Yamu to Babidi's spaceship. Shin filled Vegeta in on the details, as he knew them even though Goku really really wished he wouldn’t. He felt Shin’s eyes on him and every once and awhile and cursed himself for forgetting he could read his thoughts. He hadn’t had time to explain all of his motives correctly. Well too late now. They arrived near the ship and landed on the mountain side nearby for cover. Babidi arrived on the scene and all was going well according to plan until Dabura exited the ship. Goku didn’t remember much about him, having only interacted with him for a few minutes, but he remembered enough to be startled at his appearance. That was because when Goku had fought him for the first time he was bright red, like he was the devil. However, looking at him now he was like a dark blue. He looked exactly the same otherwise, he was just a different color. 

That wasn’t good. 

“Goku what did you do?” Piccolo growled beside him.

Goku gulped. First Cooler, now this. What else had he messed up?

Chapter Text

Piccolo, Goku, and Shin were all in shock. 

“This is bad, this is really bad!” Shin cried.

Piccolo was fuming profusely and Goku cowered in the corner. Goku could do his best to keep his cool, but he could only stare in horror as Babidi killed Spopovich and Yamu before going back inside and Dabura was on them. Goku got into his fighting stance and felt Piccolo and Vegeta do the same. Seeing he was outnumbered Dabura switched tactics. 

“Vegeta, Watch out for his spit!” He screamed at him, throwing himself in front of Vegeta with an energy shield around him that he and Piccolo had perfected just for this occasion. 

“Get back you fool, I can protect myself.” Vegeta shoved him onto the ground. 

“Alright, just don’t let him spit on you.” Goku stood up and dusted himself off. 

“Tch.”

It was a moot point, because Debora was already flying back toward the spaceship.

“I guess we better follow them.” The Supreme Kai sighed behind them.

“Not really a choice.” Piccolo stated dryly.

Kibito grunted. Goku could feel Vegeta glaring holes into the back of his head but ignored him. Nothing was going well and Goku wasn’t sure what to do. His shreds of a plan weren’t really coming together. It was harder to deny that changing something wouldn’t have consequences when he could see them as they were thrown right in front of his face. Either way Piccolo was right, no choice. 

They flew together and landed inside the top level of the spaceship. Everyone looked around, studying the interior but Goku couldn’t keep his eyes off Vegeta. He hadn’t seen him for a while. He was extremely jacked, he had been training very hard the last several years. He had an extra air of arrogance around him. More than the extra strength Goku could sense somehow he was more self centered in this time line than the last. He still loved him, and he still wanted to protect him. That’s why he was going to everything he could to prevent it from happening, no matter the cost. 

The door opened and interrupted his thoughts. Pui Pui exited and Goku steeled his gaze. He let out a big breath and began to focus on what was about to happen. 

“Welcome weaklings to stage one. On this ship there are several more levels below me where Babidi is safely waiting to revive Majin Buu. You don’t need to worry about the next levels however, because you will not be making it past me.”

“Ha, I could defeat this loser in my sleep.” Vegeta boasted. 

“Well have at it then, Vegeta.” Goku gestured with his arm. 

Piccolo grunted an agreement beside him. Vegeta glared at him momentarily before gathering himself. 

“Fine, I will. Let me show you how a true Saiyan does it.”

Vegeta swaggered over and Goku couldn’t help but smile.

“Are you sure it is wise to fight one at a time?” Shin asked him nervously. 

Kibito looked like he had been wondering the same thing. 

“Oh yeah Vegeta can take care of this guy no problem.” Goku promised them. 

Shin was putting a lot of faith into them. Even though he believed Goku was from the future, Shin was still very nervous and scared about Buu. He hadn’t had a lot of time to absorb the news that Buu would eventually become a good guy.

He turned back to the fight. Pui Pui was nimble and did a lot of backflips but Vegeta wasn’t impressed. He dodged all of his quick attacks and got in his own punch. Pui Pui was furious. 

“That actually kind of stung a little. I’m impressed.”

“Get your kicks out now, I am going to destroy you. Welcome to the last day of your life, and I promise you it is going to hurt.”

Suddenly the room was shifting and they were transported to a different planet. 

Pui Pui bragged about his ability to stand higher gravity and Vegeta smiled so wickedly Goku could have sworn he was looking at a fallen angel, the kind of devil some people on earth believed in. He was truly beautiful, even when so cruel. 

“You’re bluffing!” Pui Pui cried when Vegeta told him it made no difference to him. 

Vegeta just began to hop up and down to prove his point. Pui Pui attacked him head on, and Vegeta barely used any energy to create a blast powerful enough to kill him. 

The Kais were amazed, Shin cried out in excitement but Goku and Piccolo stood in silence, already knowing the outcome of this match. The room returned to the spaceship and the door opened. They flew through it and landed on the next level’s floor one by one. 

“I can’t believe how weak the first guy was. I thought Babidi was supposed to be powerful, but that couldn’t even be considered a warm up for me. I’m beginning to think this Majin Buu isn’t as strong as you’re making him out to be.”

“You’re right Vegeta, why don’t you take the next guy too!” Goku called out to him. 

“Goku, what-” Piccolo blurted out. 

“What an excellent idea!” Vegeta called over him. 

Not every microscopic thing had to be the same. Kibito was here this time and no on seemed to mind, so why couldn't Goku let Vegeta show off a little? They waited awhile, Shin was pacing and Vegeta began to tap his foot impatiently. 

“Why don’t I just blast through the door?” Vegeta cried out after a while, heading toward the closed door. 

“No, Vegeta. Any sort of shock might bring Majin Buu out of his shell.” Shin answered automatically. 

Goku thought it was silly, that they actually had to go through the same steps as close as possible just so Buu was brought out in a specific way. The plan wasn’t even to stop Buu from coming at all like the first. Just follow the blueprints like last time. Well he wasn’t going to go through with all of it, just most of it. 

Vegeta powered down and crossed his arms over his chest. Goku studied him again out of the corner of his eye when he thought Vegeta wouldn’t be able to tell. He felt Piccolo glaring at him, but his gaze didn’t have the same weight as the other Saiyan, so it didn’t bother him as much. Piccolo wouldn’t dare say anything right now anyways. They’d already both said some things they shouldn’t have in front of Vegeta. He was worried they might have to implement Plan B soon after this. Maybe they could ask the Supreme Kai if he got a second alone with him soon. 

“Why don’t they hurry up and send out the next fighter! I’m getting bored here.” Vegeta yelled out after waiting in silence for a while, stomping his foot. Goku found it very cute. 

The door opening broke through his thoughts. They all turned to stare as a giant bug alien thing walked out. Ah, Goku remembered Yakon well. The first time around when Goku fought him, he had been so cocky. He had showed off a little for Vegeta. Now he would let Vegeta fight him. Hopefully letting Vegeta do all the fighting would placate him. Keep his anger for Goku at bay. 

“I am Yakon. Thank you for coming, it will be my pleasure to destroy all of you.”

Before Vegeta could make some sort of a retort, they were transported away. Goku waited for his other senses to settle enough to get used to being in the dark. 

“Welcome to the Planet of Darkness. You can’t see me, but I can still see you!” He bragged. 

Goku used his abilities to sense where Vegeta was. He felt when Yakon made his move, and he felt Vegeta move at the same time. Punching him once, hard enough for his energy to disappear completely.

They were transported back to the spaceship and he caught the Kais once again looking surprised. Mouths hanging open so far their jaws might as well be on the ground. 

“Wow, Vegeta that was awesome.”

“Don’t patronize me, moron.”

“What, I’m not! That was great, I didn’t even have to warn you not to go Super Saiyan.”

“And why would you need to warn me about that.”

“Yakon eats light energy.” Goku stated simply.

“And how do you know that?” Vegeta asked with a sharp edge to his voice.

Goku blushed. Flustered he opened his mouth to talk.

“Don’t say the Supreme Kai told you. Why wouldn’t he just tell me himself. How come you seem to know everything about what’s happening all the time, huh?”

“Vegeta calm down. Save your energy.” Piccolo warned him. 

Vegeta rolled his eyes and walked away, obviously snubbing Goku. That hurt a little, but Goku did his best to squash the hurt down. He could examine that at another time. They waited, and they waited, and waited. Even Piccolo was looking antsy after a while. Goku was doing his best to occupy his time when Vegeta broke. 

“That’s it, I'm blasting this whole time to kingdom come!”

“No, Vegeta, you must not create a shock!” Supreme Kai cried.

“You must remain calm.” Kibito spoke up for the first time, but it was to no avail. 

“This is a huge waste of my time. I could be at the tournament beating you to hell and back Kakarot.”

“Don’t worry Vegeta, we can fight when this is all over.”

“I think we should fight now.” Vegeta growled and began to stalk over.

This was bad, Goku was seeing red flags and blinking stop signs in his head. He needed to keep Vegeta calm 

“Hey, Vegeta, don't be like that!” Goku called, while backing up.

He sighed in relief when they were interrupted by Debora. His relief was short-lived when Vegeta attacked him. 

“Vegeta wait, please.” He dodged as best he could, but Vegeta was quick.

Vegeta kept attacking him, a punch, a kick. If they hit Goku he knew they would hit like a truck. 

“Fight me, you bastard!” Vegeta let out a battle cry. 

“No, Vegeta we need to fight Dabura.”

“I don’t give a damn about Dabura!” Vegeta launched his entire body at Goku. “I don’t give a damn about Majin Buu!”

“Please, Vegeta, don’t do this.”

“Don’t do what, clown? All I want is to prove I'm better than you. To leave you beaten in the dirt knowing that you are a useless third class, and I the Prince of all Saiyans are your superior in every way. I want to humiliate you the way you’ve humiliated me, and then leave you forgotten in the dust.”

“No, don’t say that!”

Vegeta caught Goku by the collar of his gi and was about to punch him square on the nose when Dabura called out and interrupted them. 

“I will be right back, I think I have found another recruit to finally take care of all of you.”

Vegeta dropped his hold on him, and Goku’s body sagged in defeat. It was too late. 

Vegeta looked over at each of them quizzically but Goku was too overwhelmed to say anything. 

“What did he mean he found a new recruit?” Shin asked, confused. Whoops they never got around to this part.

Piccolo shook his head. Shin looked unsure what he should say.

“We will have to wait and see.” He finally said softly. 

Goku tried to think of any last minute thing to try. Anything to prevent what was about to happen. His mind was grasping at straws, for any half idea that he could -

Vegeta began to scream in pain, and Goku knew it was too late, but he had to try. 

“Something’s attacking me, from inside.”

“Fight it Vegeta you must resist!” Goku called out to him.

“Goku, what are you doing?” Piccolo yelled at him, but Goku ignored him. 

He ran to Vegeta’s side. He was clutching his head, hair flickering from black to blonde and back.

“Don’t let him win, Vegeta! Don’t let him do it,” Goku grabbed onto his shoulders, trying to shake him out of it. ”Vegeta you’ve changed, you’re not that man anymore, Babidi has no control over you!”

“How dare you touch your Prince!”

Vegeta exploded with power and Goku was blasted away, landed hard on the floor. Vegeta rose in the air, body twisting with pain, screaming at the top of his lungs. 

“No!” Goku cried, but when he tried to get up, he felt Piccolo holding him down.

“Let me go, Piccolo.”

“Goku, this has to happen.” Piccolo yelled over Vegeta’s screaming. 

“Not this!” Goku felt like sobbing. Please, just not this. 

He didn’t want Vegeta to have to live with this guilt. He didn’t want him to have to ever experience the shame that would come after. As Vegeta’s screams died down and he hovered slowly until he landed on the floor, Goku could see the M on his forehead, could see how all of his muscles and veins were bulging and looked like they were threatening to burst. He knew he was far far too late and hung his head in shame. 

Vegeta smiled wide again, this time directly at him. Even now Goku couldn’t tear his eyes off him. The dust around them began to settle. Goku could feel the jagged and evil tinge to Vegeta’s energy. It was done.

“Well, well Kakarot. I believe things are just getting interesting.”

Goku gulped and couldn’t help place a hand over his heart. It was beating fast enough he thought it just might escape from his chest. There was no escaping it now.

Chapter Text

Past and present blurred together in Goku’s vision. Vegeta was a good man, he had driven him to this. Despite his best intentions in both timelines here he was again. Goku stared at Vegeta, and he knew his face looked crushed but at least Vegeta wouldn’t know the real reason why. Vegeta glared at him, Goku could hardly stand it. 

“This is the true power of a Saiyan, Kakarot. Now no more games, no more distractions. Fight me, here and now so I can claim what is rightfully mine.”

Goku looked over at Piccolo and he nodded. Goku closed his eyes and did his best to not think about what was about to happen. 

“Alright, Vegeta. You win,” Goku sighed and opened his eyes. “Babity, take us somewhere secluded and I will fight Vegeta.”

The room shifted and they were suddenly in the desert. Just like last time. Goku looked around but whipped his head back to Vegeta, startled when he began to cry out in pain again. 

“I refuse,” Vegeta snarled as he rose from the ground. The M on his forehead began to blink red. “Your business with the Kai means nothing to me!”

Babity must be asking him to kill supreme Kai. Just like last time, Vegeta was fighting him. 

“You may have invaded my mind, and my body. But there is one thing a Saiyan always keeps. His PRIDE!” 

Vegeta powered up, and the mark on his forehead remained solid black. They would be free to fight now. Piccolo gave him a warning look before flying off. Goku nodded at the Kais and they flew off after Piccolo. Goku turned back to Vegeta. For a second it was like he was seeing double before his mind had time to catch up. This was really happening. He straightened his back and his face grew serious. 

“Is this what you truly want Vegeta? Even if the fate of the Earth, of the whole Universe hangs in the balance.” He asked him, voice strained. 

He knew it was pointless but he wanted to try anyway. Is it slavery when you get what you want? Vegeta’s words from before echoed in his mind. 

“As if I care about any of that!” Vegeta snarled. “I only wish to recover what was taken from me. I wish to leave you broken and bloody on the ground, never having anything to do with a circus clown like you ever again.”

Goku could help the small cry that slipped between his lips. To hear Vegeta say that, after all this time, after everything. It hurt. Goku felt like his heart had been ripped from his chest for the umpteenth time. His reaction didn’t go unnoticed, Vegeta gave him a curious look. Goku did his best to hold back tears. 

“Well, you can try Vegeta. But I just might surprise you.” Goku finally growled out. “I’ve kept you waiting for a long time Vegeta, but no more.”

Although he didn’t catch Goku’s double meaning, that was all the challenge Vegeta needed. He dropped into his fighting stance and Goku followed suit. It was finally time. Goku would be lying if he said his Saiyan blood wasn’t crying out in joy at the thought of a no holds barred fight against Vegeta. An actual fight with stakes, and the other legitimately trying to kill him. But his heart still ached and cried out against it. 

Vegeta lunged at him, and Goku met him in the middle. They grappled and pushed against each other. It was the closest Goku had been to Vegeta in a long time. He could smell him, and it was causing his mind to fog over. He had to really focus, but the delicious feel of skin on skin with Vegeta was quickly becoming too much to bear. Goku powered up to Super Saiyan just so he wouldn't be killed. His mind kept showing him fragments of memories. Vegeta smiling at him while they ate dinner, Vegeta’s smoldering eyes after a spar, Vegeta sleeping peacefully beside him. Goku yearned for his Vegeta in a way that physically pained him. More so than then Vegeta’s heavy hits that smarted when Goku let one get through. 

Vegeta sneered and growled, letting loose even further. Goku knew he was acting weird but there was hardly anything he could do. He was doing his best to hold onto reality and just get through this part. He rose to the skies, trying to get some distance but Vegeta was quick. He was back on him in seconds. Punching and kicking him while holding on to him so he couldn’t escape. Their movements were flurried and he knew if a normal human were watching, they wouldn’t be able to see their movements. 

Vegeta got in a hit to his stomach that had him coughing up blood. When he recovered he took both fists and raised them above his head before striking Vegeta so hard he cried out. 

“That’s more like it!” Vegeta smirked as he wiped blood away from his eyes. 

They both powered up and resumed fighting. Vegeta was not messing around, each hit felt like Goku was getting hit by a tank. They both reared back, punching the other in the face at the exact same time. Goku thought he might have felt a tooth loosen with that one. Vegeta pulled away and finally put some distance between them. 

“You’re not going to win this time!” Vegeta cried out. 

He moved his arms together and Goku felt his energy rise. He met him with the same stance and shot an energy beam out at the same time Vegeta did. Their energy met together and Goku fought to keep it even, before he was slammed back at him at an alarming rate. He managed to smack it away but was surprised when Vegeta was suddenly in front of him, slamming him into a wall behind him a few dozen feet. He cried out in pain when he hit the rock forcefully with his back. It hurt, but he didn’t have anytime to focus on that, because ki cuffs were flying toward him and chained him to the wall. Well this was familiar. 

Goku did his best to keep his breathing even. He longed for the situation to be much different. He hoped Vegeta wouldn’t guess his reaction. Too caught up in the fight to notice Goku was suddenly in a very different head space. He should have prepared himself for this moment. If Piccolo was here he would be very angry with him. 

“What’s the matter, Kakarot? Not winning as easily as you thought?”

Goku not trusting his voice to speak, managed a glare.

“What is it clown? Feeling angry, humiliated?” 

Vegeta had no idea. He smacked Goku lightly a few times. 

“Imagine my humiliation then. Me, a prince, an elite from a proud warrior race. Galaxies used to tremble at my name. But not you. I was defeated by your common hands. Even worse you added to my shame by defeating Freiza. Then even more so when you defeated Cell, without even trying. Well it’s time to take back what’s mine. I will no longer be your second. Now you will be cut down by my hands, the same way you have cut down my pride.”

Prideless. Did you not think I would find out about that ridiculous transformation of yours?

Goku knew what he had to do, but he wasn’t looking forward to it. 

“I told you my biggest regret, now what’s yours?” Vegeta grumbled from beside him. 

Goku blushed. He shouldn’t have asked if he knew Vegeta would turn the tables on him. It wasn’t his biggest regret, and he had many to choose from but all this talk about Babidy reminded him of how genuinely upset Vegeta had been that he had kept Super Saiyan 3 from him. Even with all the logic on his side he knew if he was ever given the chance, he would take that back. 

Goku didn’t say anything, he just simply began to power up. Vegeta was going to regret pushing him into this, but it would be nothing compared to what would happen if he didn’t do this. Chunks of rocks and sand whipped around them, his energy causing a little sandstorm to form. Vegeta watched, baffled as Goku’s energy began to crackle in front of him. His muscles expanding, hair growing past his waist. 

“I’m impressed, Vegeta. You’ve learned some new tricks recently. But then, so have I.”

Finally powering all the way up, Goku broke free of the rock he was chained to. He used the chuck still connected to the ki cuff and punched Vegeta with it. He was on him in seconds. He didn’t hold back anything. This was the only thing he could think of to earn a shred of Vegeta’s forgiveness. He would give it his all. Vegeta was still putting up a good fight. He powered up to Super Saiyan 2 and was easily holding his own. Goku didn’t know if Vegeta was just that strong or if Goku was just that weak. Either way he dove in and did his best to over power Vegeta. 

They both fought with everything they had. Large rock formations crumbled around them, the ground littered with craters. They were going to destroy the whole planet if they kept up like this. But Goku could see the toll the fight was taking on Vegeta. He was panting, and Goku realized he was doing the same. Stalling for time, Goku began to confront Vegeta. 

“I can’t believe you allowed Babidi to possess you, Vegeta. I thought you were better than that.”

“You know nothing, clown. You know nothing of what it was like for me, a proud prince of a warrior race having to live in the shadow of a third class nothing like yourself. I purposely let Babidi enter my mind so the difference in our power levels would disappear. I wanted him to reawaken the evil in my heart. Slowly over the years I had become soft. I awoke one day to realize I had settled down and started a family. It even felt kinda nice. Watching Trunks die by my own hand that day changed something in me. Made me weak. Babidi has freed me from these petty attachments, and I have to say it feels pretty good.” Vegeta smirked.

Goku listened quietly. He understood Vegeta’s plight better than he knew. Vegeta apparently done chatting lunged at him again. They held onto each other hard, and began grappling again. Goku head butted Vegeta for all he was worth, but he barely reacted. Goku was in awe of Vegeta’s graceful but deadly way of moving. Goku was going to have to think of something soon, or he or the planet was going to be done for. 

Vegeta dropped his arm and was about to attack again when Goku felt it. 

“Wait!” he cried out holding an arm forward. “Do you feel that Vegeta? It’s Buu, he finally hatched.”

He watched Vegeta panting, wipe blood off of mouth. His clothes were torn and he assumed he wasn’t in any better shape. They had done a number on each other. They definitely would have given Buu plenty of energy. 

“Enough about your feelings, Kakarot.”

{Goku, it’s time!”} He heard Supreme Kai call into his mind. 

Vegeta punched Goku, but he caught his fist.

“Vegeta, seriously, Majin Buu is nothing to ignore”

“Majin Buu is a weakling! He’s just a sideshow.” Vegeta snarled and punched with his other hand but Goku caught that one too.

“Come on, Vegeta. If we aren’t careful everyone on Earth will be killed. Everyone you care about. Bulma, Trunks.” Me. He added quietly in his head. 

“Don’t try to persuade me with that sentimental dribble. Remember I sold my soul to Babidi. I am no longer weighed down by such attachments.”

“You’re such a liar, Vegeta! I know what kind of man you are on the inside. You are good! I know it. I’ve seen it with my own eyes! Talk all you want Vegeta, but you better convince yourself first!”

He watched Vegeta’s face and saw it the second he softened. 

“Fine you win. Our battle is postponed. I want you at your best and you’re clearly too distracted now.” He smirked at Goku. “Well go on, get your senzu beans. We want to be at our best when we fight Majin Buu don’t we?”

Goku could hear the false tone in Vegeta’s voice. This was it, the moment of truth. 

“So Vegeta tricked you, knocked you out and then went to blow up Majin Buu by himself? Ultimately sacrificing himself?” Piccolo asked him. 

They were going back over what happened for what felt like the millionth time to Goku.

“Yeah, sacrificing himself for no reason. Fat lot of good it did.” He grumbled.

“It doesn’t sound pointless to me. Vegeta was able to reach down and find some good within himself for the first time. He was willing to sacrifice himself for his family. Ultimately it was the reason he was brought back to life later, if you explained to me right. It sounds like a pivotal moment in his life.” Piccolo paused and looked thoughtful. “Listen, Goku, I know this will be difficult for you, but you absolutely cannot change that part. You tried last time with Cell and Trunks and look what happened. You could make it much worse. Vegeta needs to do this or his heart won’t be pure.”

Goku nodded and sulked. He didn’t argue even though he was already working on a back up plan. 

Goku purposefully turned his back to Vegeta, reaching for the senzu beans. He felt the wind behind him and the spike of energy from Vegeta as he raised his arm to give him a quick chop to the neck. At the last second Goku raised his energy as a shield, but crumpled and let it plummet as he was struck. He lay with his face in the ground. He didn’t stir as Vegeta took the senzu beans. 

“Farewell, Kakarot. Hopefully we can resume later. If not, perhaps we will meet one day in the afterlife to have our rematch.”

Goku’s heart broke as he listened to Vegeta’s parting words. He didn’t want this, but after witnessing everything that happened today, he began to believe Piccolo’s words that he truly needed this. This should be the last step to gaining the good man that would eventually become his Vegeta. Goku felt a spark of hope ignite his chest for the first time in years. That all being said, he wasn’t going to sit back and do nothing while Vegeta died again. Goku was hoping there was a way they could both get what they need today. 

He held back and followed Vegeta’s energy. He felt him get closer and closer to Piccolo and the Kais, and then they left him. Once they were pretty far away, he felt Vegeta begin to power up and knew it was time. Ignoring every warning Piccolo had been giving him for years, he used his Instant Transmission technique to pop up right next to Vegeta. He had his eyes closed and looked peaceful. Goku was hoping that was enough to cleanse his soul, that he was willing to sacrifice himself. Before Vegeta could open his eyes, before his power would erupt and consume him turning him to ash right in front of Goku’s eyes, he placed a firm hand on Vegeta’s shoulder and transported them to Supreme Kai.

“Take us to your homeworld, now Supreme Kai.”

It was chaos. Goku held onto Vegeta with a tighter grip. He, Piccolo and Kabito were all speaking at once and sounded very angry. Shin stared at him dumbstruck. 

“Please Supreme Kai!” Goku yelled over everyone else. 

Shin nodded and grabbed onto Piccolo and Kibito. Goku used his other hand not holding onto Vegeta and grabbed Supreme Kai. 

“Kai Kai”

Goku looked around in awe, distracted enough to allow Vegeta to shake himself free of his death grip.

“What have you done, you fool?” Vegeta spat him. 

Goku sighed. Despite Vegeta’s wrath he felt good. He had finally done it. 

What I do best, Vegeta. Saving your life. 

“I agree with Vegeta, Goku. I hope you have a plan.” Supreme Kai spoke to him. 

“I’ve got a plan. But first we are going to need the Z sword.” Goku smiled down to Shin.

Chapter Text

Goku looked around in wonder as they flew to the Z Sword. The land of Kais was always so beautiful. He could feel everyone fuming at his decision, but he wasn’t phased. Out of everything he hadn’t been able to save Vegeta from, it felt good to finally get a win. He thought it worked too, since he no longer had the Majin mark on his forehead and his energy was back to normal. He was confident Vegeta had defeated the evil in his heart, without having to die and go to hell. 

They approached a high pillar surrounded by water and he could see the hilt of the sword sticking out. Goku didn’t know how Gohan acquired the sword and felt guilty that he had never asked. He was sure he was going to get an earful from Piccolo for that too. They landed with the sword in front of them.

“This is the Z Sword,” Supreme Kai began explaining. “It is told that whoever wields it will obtain ultimate power. However, many have tried to pull it from the ground, but none have been able.”

“I bet I can do it,” Goku boasted. 

He heard Vegeta scoff.

“Nonsense! How could you, a mere mortal, achieve what countless Kais could not?” Kibito grumbled. 

“Like this!” Goku reached down and tried to grab the sword. 

Gosh it was heavy! He strained and pulled with all his might, but to no avail. His hands throbbed and burned from the friction. 

There was a cruel laugh from behind him. 

“Step aside, weakling.” He heard Vegeta spit at him. 

“No, I can do it.” 

Goku began to power up. Before he could ascend to Super Saiyan the ground below him began to crumble. He looked down in time to see Vegeta destroy the entire rock that sword was stuck in. He gathered energy and began to float. He watched Vegeta grab the sword before it fell to the earth below. Goku was a little satisfied to see him struggle staying afloat. Vegeta did ascend to Super Saiyan before he was able to stay in the air but the sword still pointed down, he was unable to lift it. 

He could hear the Kais yelling but couldn’t tell what they were saying over the commotion of the huge landmark Vegeta just destroyed, still falling and crumbling all around them. It didn’t matter, he wouldn’t have been listening anyways. He was staring at Vegeta fondly. That was just… The most Vegeta thing he could have possibly done. He couldn’t help it as his heart swelled at the display. 

Once the loud crashing and waves splashing finally died down did he look somewhere else. The Kais both still looked astounded but seemed to have calmed down a little bit. 

“Fine, Vegeta you can wield the sword. Come on, let’s get some practice in.”

He flew off towards the ground and knew he would follow. For the first time in years it felt almost normal. They landed on the ground and he tried to explain his plan telepathically to Supreme Kai. Poor guy still seemed confused and flustered at everything. It was probably a lot to take in at once, but Goku was so used to the situation he hardly noticed. 

His thoughts were interrupted when Kibito started yelling. 

“How dare you two, desecrating our home,” He began. “And look at how you two are dressed! This is a sacred place, you shouldn’t even be here!” Kibito scolded them. 

Goku felt energy surround him and looked down at himself. He was now wearing an exact copy of Supreme Kai’s outfit. Even down to the boots. He looked over at Vegeta and his brain shut off for a second. He looked so… cute! Goku blushed and turned away. He caught Piccolo snickering and Shin blushing. Oh right, everyone here could read his thoughts. Well at least Vegeta couldn’t. Goku blushed even harder and walked away from the group. He wanted some air. 

He watched as Vegeta slowly began working with the sword. It really was heavy. He fell over a lot, but always managed to catch himself before he hit the ground. He watched silently in awe for a while before Piccolo finally came over to talk to him. 

“Quite the stunt you pulled back there.”

Goku said nothing. He knew Piccolo’s opinion on everything. 

“I hope he’s worth tearing the fabric of space and time.”

He is. 

Goku knew Piccolo didn’t need to read his thoughts to know what he was thinking. He felt it with every fiber of his being. Even after all this time. He loved Vegeta, he would do anything for him. No matter the cost. Once Vegeta was able to handle the sword with no difficulty he knew it was time. He walked back over and nodded at the Supreme Kai. 

Showtime. 

“Hey Vegeta, why don’t we test this baby out?” He asked. 

Vegeta glared but nodded. Goku thought he probably liked that he was letting him show off a little. He picked up a decent sized rock, about the size of a house and lifted it over his head. 

“Okay, let’s try a little one first.”

“Just throw it, you fool.”

Goku did. Vegeta sliced through it with no difficulty. He was glorious as always. Muscles bulging through the new outfit, sweat beading down his neck. Goku had to shake himself back to the moment. Ever since their fight when he was possessed Goku was having a hard time remembering Vegeta was off limits from him. He wanted to be able to kiss and hold him, show him just how much he appreciated his strength. 

There were multiple throat clearings behind him and he blushed. Whoops. He forgot again he wasn’t alone with his thoughts. 

“Let’s try something a little denser.” Supreme Kai suggested. It came out a little stiff, and it didn’t help that he was looking at Goku questioningly, as if asking for permission. 

“Sure, that sounds great, doesn’t it Vegeta?”

A grunt was all the response he got. Supreme Kai summed a large cube of Katchin, the hardest substance in the universe and Goku chucked it at Vegeta. It was kinda funny to watch his face when the sword broke in half. Even though they knew it was coming he heard the Kais and Piccolo react surprised as well. Finally, they were getting somewhere. 

In the commotion, Goku looked around for Elder Kai. Piccolo had decided that it would be best to leave him in the dark for now, but Goku wanted a good look at the old timer who had sacrificed his life for him in his past life. He always had been grateful to him for that. He studied him and watched him collect his bearings before heading over. 

“Everybody, quiet! He yelled. 

Everyone fell silent. He explained who he was, and even with a heads up Supreme Kai still seemed flabbergasted. Once he was done, Goku finally approached him. 

“Elder Kai, sir. Would you be so gracious as to unlock me and my fellow saiyan here's potential.”

“And why would I do that? It is a Kai’s sacred duty not to interfere.”

“Oh I thought you could, I'm sorry for misunderstanding. I thought you were all powerful.” Goku pretended to pout. 

Piccolo had not been impressed when Goku explained they were going to have to find a lady for the Elder Kai to kiss, so he came up with an alternative plan that seemed to be going off without a hitch. 

“Listen here you little whipper snapper, I am the best. People used to fear me for my abilities. That’s why I was trapped in that sword for generations. Come over here, both of you! I’ll show you.” He grumbled at the end after shouting. 

Goku did his best to hide his smile. Vegeta approached with him wearily. The Elder Kai began to dance loudly and erratically. 

“Um, ancestor is this necessary?” Shin asked him wearily. 

“It’s setting the mood! Five more hours of this, and then twenty hours of the actual ceremony.”

Goku watched Vegeta blanch. It was a long time, and it was embarrassing. But Goku knew first hand the results would be worth the effort. Surprisingly Vegeta put up with it all, with minimal grumbling. Goku wondered if his recently cleansed heart was confusing him. Goku wondered a lot of things as they sat in near silence after a while. Elder Kai was reading through magazines and Goku pretty much had nothing to do, but think. 

Eventually Supreme Kai brought a crystal ball over and they watched what was happening on Earth. Majin Buu was still destroying cities and eating people. It was horrible to watch, Goku had pretty much forgotten how gruesome he was before he turned good. It was awful, but Goku knew it would all turn out alright in the end. 

It was only a matter of time before Vegeta would have enough and he reached his breaking point after a lot of time passed and nothing was happening. 

“This is nonsense! I’ve had enough!” He got up and energy angrily surrounded him.

“Sit down, sonny.” Elder Kai told him calmly, not even looking up from his magazine. 

He flipped to the next page leisurely. 

“I refuse. I am the Prince of all Saiayans. I don’t need help from you or anybody.”

“Then what was that stunt you pulled earlier? Besides all I'm doing is pulling out your own potential and bringing it past your current limits.”

Vegeta scoffed and powered up, probably to spite him, but he just kept going. He powered up and up, and still didn’t go Super Saiyan. Goku watched in awe, and Vegeta looked down at himself in confusion. 

“See, it’s working already. Now sit down and shut up.”

Vegeta did so. They were almost ready. They were going to take on Majin Buu, and they were going to win. Goku smiled wide. They finally had everything under control for once.

Chapter Text

Finally Elder Kai was done helping them unlock their potential. Goku felt amazing. He knew Vegeta must be feeling the same. They had to be lightyears ahead of where they were previously. He felt closer to how he had been when all this time travel nonsense started. Most of all, he felt confident they could win. So when Elder Kai approached him at the end with the Potara Earrings he almost wanted to laugh if the situation wasn’t so dire.

“That’s okay Elder Kai, we won’t be needing those.” Goku tried to brush it off casually.

“Actually Goku, I agree I think you should take them.” Supreme Kai spoke up behind him. 

“What’s that?” Vegeta asked with his gruff voice. 

Goku froze. He sent Shin a pleading look but it was ignored. 

“These here sonny, are what the Kais use to fuse and become one being.”

Vegeta blanched and Goku let out a sigh of relief. Even if they had them, Vegeta wouldn’t agree if Goku didn’t push him. And Goku wouldn’t be pushing fusion this time around. Goku took them, but shoved them deep into his sash where he usually keeps an emergency Senzu Bean. Everyone was feeling confident, it was time to go. Supreme Kai grabbed their arms, Piccolo held on to him separately and they were transported back to Earth. Vegeta grumbled and shook himself out of the grip. He looked down at himself and glared at the outfits they were still wearing. 

“Hey Supreme Kai, it is going to be a little difficult to fight in this, could you set us up with some fighting gear?”

“Of course, Goku. Allow me.”

He watched him point towards him and he felt the effect of the clothes beam. He looked down and saw a new gi on him, looking similar to the one he wore earlier, although it seemed to fit a little better. It reminded him of the one Whis had designed for him all those years ago. He twisted around and stretched to get a good feel for it. When he was done he looked up to see Vegeta wearing brand new armor. He was adjusting the gloves. It was a design Goku had never seen before. Goku wasn’t sure who’s creative mind designed it, but he liked it. Similar to the one Bulma had designed when the androids were attacking, but the colors were different. Instead of a bright blue it was a dark navy blue, almost black and instead of yellow it was…. Orange. The exact same orange as Goku’s gi. Goku blushed and had to turn around so Vegeta wouldn’t see. 

He took some time to calm down, and finally began to reach out with his senses. Majin Buu wasn’t on a rampage at the moment, but he could feel the destruction he had left behind. He couldn’t sense Babidi, so he might have killed him already. Well, it was time to get serious. He walked back over to the group. 

“Goku, you and Vegeta should go now while he’s taking a break and defeat him quickly. Piccolo and I will watch from a distance. The less spectators the better.”

Goku nodded and looked over at Vegeta. Vegeta simply rolled his eyes and then raised himself into the air. Goku did the same and they flew toward Majin Buu’s energy. They landed next to an interestingly shaped house, Buu must have designed it himself and peered into the window. It was a shocking sight to say the least. Buu and Satan were taking a bubble bath together. Goku looked at Vegeta and Vegeta looked back at him. They made eye contact for a while and it was like old times. It was like they could read each other’s thoughts. Goku gestured with his head and they both walked away. 

“I don’t want to fight that fat bastard while he’s naked and wet.” Vegeta seethed. 

“I agree. We can wait a few more minutes.”

Goku looked around and noticed some specs in the sky getting bigger. As they continued to move closer he realized it was the Androids. They landed on the ground next to him and Vegeta. 

“Hey guys, what are you doing here?” Goku greeted them.

“16 felt your energy disappear and reappear. He was worried about you.” 17 said in his deadpan monotone voice.

“Aww buddy, you didn’t have to worry about me. Vegeta and I just had to take a trip to Otherworld.”

“Oh is that all?” 18 said sarcastically. 

“I am glad that you are okay, Goku.” 16 ignored 18’s response. 

Goku beamed. He was glad they were all friends this time around. 

“You guys wanna watch? Vegeta and I are gonna kick this guy’s butt.”

“He has been causing quite the spectacle. I’m surprised you are so confident.” 17 studied his face.

“Oh man, I wish you guys could sense power levels.”

“I can, you and your companion are much stronger than before.” 16 spoke to Goku and Vegeta. 

Goku blushed and he thought he heard Vegeta sputter. He saw the gleam in 17 and 18’s eyes and cursed telling them about his feelings for Vegeta. They didn’t know he was from the future, but they knew he was in love with Vegeta and that Vegeta pretty much hated him. 17 really didn’t get it, but 18 had calmed down after she married Krillin. Still those twins had such mischief in their eyes Goku almost feared for his well being. Luckily they were interrupted by Mr. Satan loudly leaving. 

“I’ll be right back Majin Buu, I just need a few ingredients from the store!” He called loudly before absolutely booking it. 

“Hey, there goes the champ .” 17 mocked. 

“Listen guys, it’s showtime. If you wanna watch you gotta be quiet.” Goku scolded them. 

Unphased they just walked over a ways and turned around giving him a look like, is this good enough? Goku nodded. 

“Come on Vegeta, do you want the first crack at him?”

“Don’t patronize me, clown.” Vegeta muttered as he walked over toward the androids. “You do the honors .” Vegeta bit out sarcastically. 

Goku swallowed the wave of sadness that threatened to overwhelm him and walked toward the house again. He knocked on the door. 

“Hello? Majin Buu? My name is Goku. I’m a really strong fighter and I wanted to play with you!” Goku called out. 

“Strong fighter here to play with Buu?” He heard Buu call excitedly. 

He rushed out the door, almost knocking Goku down. 

“You play with Buu? You want to be Buu’s friend?” He asked Goku, picking him up.

Goku laughed. 

“Sure, buddy. Real quick though, you can’t hurt or kill any of my friends here with me,” Goku pointed toward Vegeta and the androids. “And we can play as long as you want.”

“Kakarot, what nonsense are you spouting?” Vegeta snarled at him.

“It’s okay, Buu no kill people anymore. Mr. Satan say killing is wrong. Mr. Satan is my friend. Now you friend too.” 

Buu dropped Goku so he could clap his hands together. Goku caught himself and laughed. Perfect. 

“Are you ready to play then Buu?”

“Buu ready. Buu play now.” 

Goku laughed again.

“Alright Buu, let’s play.”

Goku powered up and the ground shook. He kept going, never even reaching Super Saiyan but his power was now greater then it had ever been in this timeline. It was exhilarating. Finally he reached the ceiling on his base form. Goku stopped powering up and drew his excess energy back inside of him. Perfectly in control, he dropped into a fighting stance. Buu studied him before running at him full force. Goku stepped forward and met him with a block. They exchanged punches and kicks. Both were laughing and yelling when they attacked. Buu finally stepped back to form an energy attack when Goku made his move. 

Honing his energy and clearing his mind, Goku performed the defusion technique he learned on Yardrat. Buu was so surprised he landed on his rear with an umph and stared wide eyed at the second Buu sitting on the ground across from him, mirroring his position on the ground. Vegeta was by his side in seconds. 

“Kakarot, what did you just do?”

“It’s kinda hard to explain. You see one Buu is good, and one Buu is bad.”

“Alright, then let’s hurry up and kill the bad one.” Vegeta began forming energy for a Final Flash attack.

‘Wait, wait! We can’t kill him either!” Goku jumped in front of Vegeta waving his hands wildly.

“Watch me.” Vegeta growled. 

“Vegeta, wait!” Goku cried. “Inside him is something we are going to need later.”

“What does that even mean?” Vegeta bit out harshly. 

Goku signed.

“Somewhere in the universe there is a terrible villain that we won’t be able to defeat without something that Buu has inside of him. I was thinking we could trap him in an evil containment wave, and let the Kais hold on to him until it’s needed.”

“Kakarot, if that’s true why do you know that?”

“Well…” 

“And don’t tell me the Kais told you. I have seen how incompetent they are. You have been calling the shots all day. You and your precious Namekian. Tell me the truth.” Vegeta glared at him.

Uh oh. This was the moment Goku had been dreading. Vegeta didn’t like people who were dishonest with him. Just like going Super Saiyan 3, it was something Goku felt he owed Vegeta. Goku was a terrible liar, but he and Piccolo had figured out a half truth that might work. 

“The truth is,” Goku sighed. “I was visited by a version of me from the future. He told me all about Majin Buu and what happens later. I wasn’t supposed to say anything because messing with time is dangerous.”

Vegeta stared at him. Like, really looked at him for the first time in years. 

“That’s all you had to say, clown.”

Goku beamed at him. The energy around them changed, and for the first time Goku felt like they might actually kiss. He was so distracted he didn’t feel or see the Buus move until it was too late. 

In a quick flash his Buu was reabsorbed and Goku realized they might be in a little trouble here. 

{Goku, what's going on?”} Piccolo’s voice screamed in his head. 

“Uh, ran into a tiny problem.” Goku answered out loud. 

Vegeta cocked his head at him. They began to back away as Kid Buu began to appear. 

{Then fuse.}

“Naw uh, no way. I don’t wanna fuse.” 

Vegeta jerked his face to look at him. Goku covered his mouth.

{Piccolo I don’t want to fuse. He’ll see. He’ll know.}

{If you don’t we could all die! Who cares if he knows!}

The Androids ran over to them to ask what was happening. 

“Come on guys, we have to get you away. He likes to absorb people for more power, we have to get you guys out of here!” Goku yelled but it was too late. 

Kid Buu approached 16 and before he could do anything, a piece of himself stretched and surrounded 16. 

“16!” Goku, 17, and 18 all cried at once. 

As Kid Buu’s body began to shift and change Goku looked down at the ground. He had no choice. He turned to face Vegeta who was watching in horror. 

“Vegeta, will you fuse with me?”

Vegeta looked as Goku held out an earring and began to put on the other one. 

“Is it really permanent?”

“Just for Kais. For us it’ll be about an hour.”

“An hour of my life, fused to you?” Vegeta frowned, then smirked. “Hmmph I supposed I’ve done worse things for an hour.” 

Goku smiled and Vegeta took the earring. He put it on the opposite ear and their bodies began to gravitate toward each other, until then slammed into each other, becoming one. 

Being a fusion was weird. Quickly deciding on a name, Vegito. He was made of two, but the memories of one were duplicated, different. It was almost like he was made of three entities instead of two. He shook off those thoughts and focused on the task at hand. He remembered enough to know he needed to separate the three beings in front of him. He recalled the half of him that knew the defusion technique and performed it again. 

“17, 18!” He shouted at them to grab Buu and 16, which they did quickly and flew off a ways to get clear of the area. 

Vegito knew enough to know the strength it would take to defeat Kid Buu would be more than the Earth could handle. He grabbed onto him and transported him to the land of the Kais. It seemed fitting. Once there Kid Buu went crazy and attacked him with everything he had. But Vegitio was more powerful. He formed a Final Kamahamaha. Kid Buu disintegrated in front of his eyes and he felt a great weight lift off of his chest. He tried to explore the weird thoughts and feeling from before, but it was like a wall had popped up, blocking his access. He pondered that but was distracted when Supreme Kai, Piccolo, and Kibito all appeared next to him. 

“What happened?”

“It’s done, Supreme Kai.” He nodded. 

“It’s nice to meet you.” Supreme Kai spoke to him. 

Vegito remembering himself, reached out and shook his hand. 

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“What are you lunatics doing! You could have killed me! You could have destroyed this whole planet!” Elder Kai was running toward them, screaming his head off. 

A weird thought/ sudo memory came to Vegito then. 

“But I didn’t kill you. Just like we didn’t kill King Kai during Cell.”

{WHHHHAAAATTTTTT?!} He heard King Kai scream in his head. 

Before he could answer, he was enveloped in a great bright light and the two entities he was made of separated. Goku was forced away from Vegeta, and he desperately tried to cling onto him for just a little longer. After a decade of loneliness it felt so great to be close again. He didn't want to lose that. Eventually they were forced apart violently and Goku felt himself flying through the air. The light became so bright that Goku had to close his eyes, and he threw an arm over his face. Eventually the light dimmed again and he was able to lower his arm, open his eyes, and look around. He was no longer on the planet of the Kais and Vegeta was nowhere near him. He could tell, because their link was back. He could feel Vegeta’s life force burning against his mind like the brightest beacon, even though Goku became instantly aware they were no longer in the same universe together. That caused Goku to look around and try to get a sense of his surroundings. He stopped when he noticed a small person in front of him. They looked like a Kai, but it wasn’t one that he was familiar with. 

“Hello Goku, I am Chronoa, the Supreme Kai of time. We need to have a little chat.’

Chapter Text

Goku looked around and took a second to get his bearings. He could feel Vegeta’s energy signal burning bright like a beacon, what he had been missing since before all this time travel madness started. Goku felt his body sag with relief. He hadn’t realized how much he missed it after a full decade had gone by, he had almost convinced himself he was fine without it. As happy as he was he felt his body go rigid again when the Kai in front of him spoke. 

The Supreme Kai of Time? He had never heard of her. He looked around and saw rows of hour glasses. When he studied them closer he could see little versions of himself. He wondered if these were his memories - or maybe moments in time? He didn’t recognize all of them. Some seemed to be from when he was young. A bright red sky showed behind him and strange people he never knew. Down the line looked like some from after his time as well, events he hadn’t experienced yet. So many things, and Goku wanted to get a good look at all of them, but his attention was brought back to the mysterious Kai when she cleared her throat. 

“Um, hello.” Goku said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Yes, hello.” She gave him a small smile. “As I said, we need to have a little chat. Follow me.”

She turned on her high heels and walked toward a doorway. Goku followed. He couldn’t help but stare at the hour glasses as he walked. Some were weird. It was like there were two scenes overlapping over each other and a lot were black. Goku had a bad feeling about those ones. He followed her into another room, it looked more like it could be her home possibly. There was a strange looking bird sleeping in the corner, and the place was a mess. Just no organization, garbage and clothes strewn everywhere. He was offered a place on the couch and did his best not to disturb anything. 

Once he sat down he finally studied the deity in front of him. He could tell she was a Kai just from looking at her, and when studying her energy it confirmed what his eyes already told him. He was still nervous about her title, and the fact that he had never heard of her. He had had possible consequences drilled into his head ever since he was sent back, and this was never once brought up. 

“So, I’m sure you are wondering why I brought you here.” She finally spoke.

Goku’s mouth felt dry, so he just nodded. 

“There has never been a reason for me to interfere before, I have to admit this is a first for me as well.”

Goku cocked his head at that. This was bad. What did he do?

“You were first brought to my attention when so many time rings sprung from your universe, however, everything basically worked itself out and no real damage was done. The Omni King himself became involved and I let it be.”

She looked at Goku and let that sink in. She was talking about Trunks’ time traveling with the time machine. He wondered how different his method was, and why it was different enough for her to be in front of him speaking to him now. 

“Certain events have unfolded now that I simply can’t ignore. Before we get to that though, I was hoping you could answer a question for me.”

Again Goku didn’t feel like he could speak so he nodded.

“What in the multiverse is wrong with you?!” She raised her voice at him. “Why are you trying so desperately to rip the fabric of reality apart?”

Goku blanched. 

“It was an accident! I didn’t mean to.” Goku whined, not liking being yelled at so abruptly. 

“Explain.”

So he did. He told her all about the wish on the Super Dragon Balls and how he went back decades instead of hours. 

“Oh this is a mess. The Super Dragon Balls are not meant to be used in that way. But why did you in the first place? What was so important you would summon the Super Dragon?”

Goku gave her a sad smile. 

“To right a great injustice. The Supreme Kai and Destroyer of Universe 9 killed someone very important to me. In a rage, I accidentally killed them and wanted to set everything right.”

The look on her face changed.

“You did this for love?”

“Yes, Vegeta, he… I…” Goku became choked up. He hadn’t thought about all this so directly in a while, he had been so preoccupied trying to prevent him from being possessed he had almost forgotten why all this was happening in the first place. 

“Hold on.” Chronoa told him. 

Goku fought back tears as he waited for her. When she came back she held an hourglass in her hands. She sat in on the table and sat next to him so they could both watch. Goku could no longer fight the tears that streamed down his face as he watched Vegeta trapped in the Destroyer Energy and then erased right in front of him. He did look away when his energy turned blood red, embarrassed and ashamed at what he had done. He was glad he finally had gotten a handle on his blood lust but he realized it was too little much too late. 

“Wow this is awful.” Chronoa sighed sadly. 

Goku looked at the screen again and saw Whis on the screen. 

“So you simply had wanted to wish on the Super Dragon Balls to go back to fix what they had done and what you had done.”

Goku cleared his throat. 

“Whis was worried if anyone found out I had killed a Kai and Destroyer Vegeta and I would never be safe again. I just wanted him back. I didn’t mean to go back too far or for all of this to happen.” Goku covered his face with his hands and sobbed. 

He suddenly realized how tired he was. He could feel the exhaustion down into his bones. Gosh, he had been going nonstop for over ten years now. He was old. Mentally, and physically he was finally catching up to himself. He moved his hands and stared at Chronoa.

“Could you fix it? Could you send me home, right before Vegeta died? I can take us to Whis, he’ll keep us safe.” 

He couldn’t believe it, what if this could all be over? Fixed with the snap of her delicate tiny fingers?

“Oh, Goku, I’m so sorry. I probably could have before…” She trailed off looking down.

Before? Before what?

“Here you go.” She handed Goku a box of tissues. 

He took them and began wiping his eyes and blowing his nose loudly.

“I wanted to know if your reasons were honorable, and they are. I’m glad, but that doesn’t change the fact that meddling with time has consequences. You’ve been running rampant like an elephant in a glass store, and I’m sorry to say too many things have been broken.” She hung her head. 

Goku stared at her in shock. 

“Are you familiar with the time rings?” She looked back at him. 

Goku nodded. 

“When you messed with time previously, with a time machine I believe, it created rifts in the river of time. Allowing the alternate universes to be contained, and new rings were formed. When you used the Super Dragon Balls, it doesn’t work the same. You didn’t create a split, you unleashed a giant fish that swallowed the river and spat out a new one. There is no way to go backwards, to the future you knew, it no longer exists.”

Goku stared at her, surprised at her words. 

“It gets worse.” She told him solemnly. 

“How can it get worse?” Goku cried. 

“All the rings, all the adjacent time lines were combined and jumbled. You may have noticed a few details of your universe changed.”

Goku thought about Freiza suddenly having a brother and Dabura’s appearance changing. 

“That’s not all, the time ring itself has changed physically. It is corrupted and corroded. It will not be able to handle any more changes. Anything outside of an Angel’s ability to turn back the clock could cause it to explode or disintegrate.”

Goku’s eyes widened and his eyebrows shot straight up. 

“What does that mean?”

“It means, no more Time Travel. No more wishes on Dragon Balls to go back, no more Time Machines.”

Goku considered this. 

“I can fix a few things to minimize the damage, although it can only be from recent events. I can see in your heart that your journey has weighed on you. Have faith, for it will be over sooner than you know it.”

She reached out and placed something around his neck. 

“Mostly because I don’t trust you, I’m going to give you a little boost.”

“Wait, what?”

Goku had to shield his eyes. The Supreme Kai of time began to transform and he was surrounded by a bright light. He felt he was traveling suddenly, similar to his instant transmission. Goku was looking forward to going home and thinking about everything that just happened. He definitely needed to speak with Piccolo, he was gonna throw a fit over this. 

Goku blinked. The sky was dark and he wondered how long he had been gone. He looked down and realized he was in his Super Saiyan God form. That was weird. Before he could get his bearings or even start to figure out what was going on, he was punched very hard directly in the gut by an extremely powerful and impatient Beerus. 

Oh crap, not again. 

Chapter Text

Goku crumbled in pain as Beerus sucker punched him. He took in a trembling breath, lost and confused as to where he was. More accurately, when he was. He looked around desperate for a clue as to what was happening but he didn’t recognize anything. The Supreme Kai of time said she would give him a little boost, was he finally caught up to his own timeline?

“Quit slacking off Saiyan, I promised to spare your world if you could beat me. What’s the point if you aren’t even trying?”

Goku whipped back around to stare at Beerus in confusion. Was this their first fight? How did they end up in the middle of the city? Goku was overwhelmed with questions and didn’t notice Beerus coming up to him, arms raised to strike, until it was too late and he was plummeting toward the Earth at a breakneck speed. He barely caught himself in time, channeling enough energy to propel himself upward. Realizing Beerus was here made Goku think of something else: Whis would be here too. He gathered all of his strength and flew toward his faint energy signal. Goku had been out of practice, but the divine energy from his god form helped him pin point his location. 

Whis was inside of Bulma’s jet and Goku blasted through it without thinking and launched himself at his old friend. It had been so long, Goku hadn’t realized how much he had missed his trainer. Whis also symbolized so much hope for Goku. Whis would know what to do. He could hear lots of yelling and screaming from his entrance but Goku ignored it. He felt himself collapse in Whis’ arms. He began to sob uncontrollably. He tried to stop it, but decades of pent up sadness and frustration just poured out of him. 

“Oh my.” He heard Whis exclaim. 

“Whis!” Goku cried. 

He ignored everything and just had Whis hold him until he felt himself being pulled away. He looked to see who it was and saw a very confused Piccolo pulling him out of the aircraft. 

“Goku, what’s gotten into you?”

“Piccolo? I don’t know what’s going on. I was just fighting Buu and then-”

“Buu? Buu was months ago!”

Months? That couldn’t be right. And what about Vegeta? Vegeta... Vegeta! He was there. The fusion still must have happened. He could feel him in his head. Sense his energy like he was right next to him. Goku let it wash over him and wrapped himself in it like a blanket. It was comforting even if he knew the feeling wasn’t mutual. He sighed in relief, a huge weight lifted off of him, making him feel light as air. He wanted to laugh, he wanted to dance around and cheer but he restrained himself from that at least. Acutely aware of his present company he wanted to at least try to reign it in. He couldn’t help the huge smile that was glued to his face though.

“Goku, you are acting like a crazy person!” Piccolo snapped at him.

That at least got Goku’s attention. 

“Please, Piccolo, I want to talk to Whis. Something weird happened.”

Piccolo softened slightly at the urgency in his voice. 

“Alright, then talk to him privately please. You’ve already made quite the scene.”

Goku nodded. He flew back tentatively toward Whis, embarrassed at how he had behaved. Still, he hadn’t expected things to happen like this. He was almost to Whis when he felt Beerus coming at him and barely had time to dodge the swish of his tail. 

“Come on Saiyan, quit messing around and fight me!”

“Ah! Whis help me!” Goku called while flying around frantically trying to avoid Beerus’ attacks.

Whis, puzzled, flew out closer to him. 

“Goku, what’s all this about?”

“Don’t help him stall, Whis.”

“He is acting quite strangely, my lord. He just cried in my arms. I’m curious what the deal is.”

Beerus stopped in mid air, hand held back as he had been about to throw another punch. 

“That is strange indeed.” Beerus said thoughtfully. 

“Why don’t you move this somewhere a little more private.” Piccolo instructed Goku. 

Goku looked at them expectantly, and Whis and Beerus exchanged a look before nodding. 

“Very well.” Beerus said before rising into the air. 

Whis followed him. Piccolo gave Goku a stern look before flying away, probably to help curb the damage Goku had created. Goku looked around and saw Vegeta eyeing him funny, before following after Beerus. He would have time to deal with Piccolo and see Vegeta later. 

“Alright, Saiyan, what’s your deal? I was promised a fight and all you’ve done is run from me.”

Beerus glared at him and Whis looked interested but was eating an ice cream sundae. Goku realized that this was their first time on Earth, and hadn’t gotten used to the food yet. He thought that might come in handy, but right now he had more important things to deal with. 

“Well you see, it’s kinda complicated. I’m from a different timeline, and was sent back to the past accidentally too far. We actually know each other very well. We’re like best buds.”

“Oh dear, time travel. That’s a capital offense.” Whis clicked his tongue.

“Hey it was your idea!”

“What? No way.” Whis shook his head, seeming shocked and appalled by the mere idea.

“It’s true, we summoned the Super Dragon and you made the wish for me.”

“What a far fetched story. Why would we believe you? Beerus asked him, with a threatening tone. 

“How else would I know about the other universes? Or the Omni King?”

It took a lot of convincing. Eventually Whis tapped into Goku’s memories and watched some through his staff. It was baffling to say the least. Eventually they seemed to believe him.

“All this for the guy who said you were nothing but his enemy he made a truce with?”

Goku teared up and thought he might cry again.

“Whis!”

“Oops, pardon my rudeness.” Whis apologized.

“So you’ll help me?” Goku asked.

“Why would we do that?” Beerus asked incredulously. 

“Because you did before?” Goku said, unsure why Beerus would even ask that. 

“How dare you expect anything from a Destroyer,” Beerus crossed his arms angrily. “I was promised a fight, which you haven’t given me. And worse I didn’t get to try any of that delicious pudding. I should destroy the Earth right this minute to show what happens when you disappoint a Destroyer God.”

“Please, Beerus. I can help with both of those things. Just say you’ll help me keep things on track. The Supreme Kai of time said our timeline is fragile now!”

Whis looked thoughtful and Beerus raised an eyebrow.

“I suppose. If you can give me a good fight, but your Super Saiyan God power pittered out while you were prattling on a while ago. So I doubt you’ll be able to.”

“Oh, we’ll see about that.” Goku smirked as he powered up and lunged at him.

When the fight was over and everyone was celebrating with a huge feast, and Beerus got a truck load of pudding delivered, Goku looked down and finally noticed the small hourglass wrapped around his neck hanging on a thin chain. He studied it closely and saw a young woman, and a man who looked similar to him, but with a scar on his face crying and saying goodbye to a baby who looked a lot like him, being sent away in a pod. He shoved the necklace back under his gi and stood up to leave. Seeing those figures, Goku was reminded of something and went to find Gohan. He assumed some congratulations were in order.

It was strange skipping through time again. What happened while he was gone? He tried to have the androids fill in the gaps but they weren't very helpful. He tried to talk to Piccolo but all he wanted to do was scold him. He wasn’t pleased when he found out about the Supreme Kai of time. Goku felt like he was back to having no one he could talk to, but found a new ally in the strangest place. 

“Hello, Goku.”

“Hello, Nail.” Goku nodded at him as he sat with his feet hanging over the edge of the Lookout.

“Piccolo giving you a hard time again?”

“Yes. Goku sighed. 

 “You know he doesn’t mean any harm?” Nail asked him. 

“I know. I just wish he would give my ears a break sometime. I’m doing the best I can. It’s not easy for me, you know?”

“He knows. He just thinks you could use some more motivation, that's all.”

Talking to Nail, Goku learned that a lot had changed. They were able to keep everyone safe up on the Lookout while they were on the Supreme Kai homeworld, and no one died. Goku was horrified to find out that having the alternate timelines shoved together forcefully had made Nail aware of his past life, the one where he had fused with Piccolo on Namek. That worried Goku, who else experienced something like that? What other changes happened? 

One thing different that Goku approved of, was Vegeta treated him better. It was actually while speaking to him that Goku learned what else had changed. He casually offered Vegeta a piece of hard candy when Vegeta freaked out and yelled that he never wanted to see another piece of candy for the rest of his life. Apparently the Supreme Kai of time made it so that Kid Buu still turned Vegito into a piece of candy. Who knew? Vegeta had taken his half truth about knowing the future very well. Goku was happy they were on much better terms than before. 

More changes, one he was looking forward to was the birth of his grandchild. He missed Pan dearly. He was excited for the steady, healthy, happy life Gohan had been able to lead this time around. Even if he had to give them a jump start, running around pretending to be the Great Saiyaman to attract Videl’s attention. It had all worked out in the end. As Piccolo loved to point out to him, Mr. Satan had to be the hero of the story. Luckily the Supreme Kai had fixed that as well. Turns out Vegitio didn’t win against Kid Buu, but rather Mr. Satan had been needed to rally the Earth to form a Spirit Bomb. Goku felt really bad for forgetting Mr. Satan again. Even after all the trouble Piccolo and he went through to get him after Goku had forgotten when he killed Cell. Goku’s head still hurt from when Piccolo had back handed him when he found out what Goku did. 

Time passed. Whis liked to visit often, and he seemed to like the androids, 16 especially. Goku didn’t mind. He knew he would be spending less and less time with them soon. The androids had their part to play too, and Piccolo began training them. When Vegeta finally tracked down Whis and asked him to train Goku was very lonely during those months. He was grateful their link was back, so he always knew Vegeta was alive and well, he just wished he could verify with his own eyes every once and awhile. 

Finally it was time for Goku to join them as well. He was nervous and excited to have Vegeta as his roommate again. And to be able to speak with Whis. Unlike Piccolo, Whis seemed to understand. Actually Goku had always thought Whis might have a little crush on Vegeta. It was nice for once not to get the condescending reaction of really, Vegeta?  

Even though he and Vegeta were on better terms, it still took awhile for Vegeta to not be pissed that Goku had joined him and interrupted his training, but they both knew they made the other stronger. It was after an intense training session that he laid upside down, hanging off his bed when his necklace fell out and hung towards the ground that he realized what would help him get in Vegeta’s good graces. 

“Hey, Vegeta. Can you tell me about our home planet?”

Goku could have laughed at the look of surprise on Vegeta’s face. After a little coaxing, Vegeta began to open up to him about Planet Vegeta, and Saiyan Customs. Soon they fell into an easy rhythm and routine. It wasn’t the same as before, but it gave him hope things could be - or at the very least they could be friends again.

One thing did weigh heavy on Goku’s heart, he was worried Freiza would come back to life soon, like he had before. He was on constant watch, he even asked Whis to help him keep an eye out. The more time passed the more nervous he got. Goku was worried if given the opportunity would he be able to steal the spotlight from Vegeta once again? And what would happen to their fragile universe if he changed something again?

Chapter Text

Their training was going well. They were both now able to reach Super Saiyan Blue and Goku was feeling more and more comfortable around Vegeta. It felt like the ride he was on finally jumped back onto the tracks. He meditated and checked for any sign of Freiza daily. They trained with Whis and sparred together, getting stronger everyday. When Whis pulled out the fat suits Goku was excited, those were going to help them get even stronger!

It was exhausting work, but he knew he still had so far to go. He poured all of his focus into Whis’ training, he wanted to be ready for everything that was to come. When they weren’t training, Whis still had them doing chores, which was also hard work. Most days he hit the bed without having time to change into comfortable sleep clothes. 

So when Champa showed up on Beerus’ planet one day he was shocked. Had enough time really passed for this to be happening? What about Frieza? Whis seemed surprised as well, giving him a look. It was a little chaotic after that, no one quite knew what to do with themselves. Vegeta, out of the loop was mostly confused, and Beerus, although aware Champa was gonna show up eventually, still argued with him over every little thing. 

Goku was looking forward to meeting and fighting Hit again, he had been practicing his Kaio-ken in private with Whis’ help, but he thought they were going to fight Frieza first. Goku and Vegeta floated around in their fat suits as everyone introduced themselves. Goku tried to stay quiet. He didn’t want them to know, and Whis agreed it was probably for the best. If Vegeta noticed he was acting strangely he didn’t say anything. He might not have, seeing as how his mind was being blown finding out about the different universes.

Whis elbowed him and he stopped staring at Vegeta. He blushed a little. 

“Goku, Beerus asked if you were interested in this inter-universal tournament Champa mentioned?” Whis asked him stiffly. 

“Uh, yes I would be very interested.” Goku replied awkwardly. 

Whis gave him a glare, Goku really thought he should invest in some acting classes. Whis turned to Vegeta who was finally eyeing them funny. 

“And what about you, hmm?” Whis asked him. 

Vegeta seemed to consider his answer. “I would, It’s a great way to hone my new strength.”

“Excellent,” said Champa. “Now we just need to come up with the rules.”

“I think it should be set up just like the World Martial Arts Tournaments on Earth.” Goku said, genuinely excited.

“Okay, but we should make the fighters take a test. We don’t want any brain dead imbeciles dragging us down.”

Goku realized something.

“Wait Vegeta, what about Majin Buu? If we make our fighters test, he’ll probably fall asleep and won’t be able to fight.”

Vegeta looked thoughtful. Whis swooped in and saved him. 

“I agree my lords, this is supposed to be a fighting tournament, correct? Who cares if the fighters are dumb as rocks.” Whis smiled.

“Agreed.” Beerus said, lazily flicking his wrist. 

“Also if you don’t mind, I’d like to take care of the arrangements.” Whis offered slyly.

“Sure, sure.” Champa said, mimicking Beerus’ lazy wrist flick. 

“Works for me.” Vados smiled at Whis.

They left to get ready and Whis and Beerus got serious. 

“Alright if we need five fighters, and we already have you two and that pink blob- that leaves two.” Beerus counted on his fingers.

“You should invite Monaka!” Goku cried excitedly, arms raised high.

“Why would we invite that weakling nobody?” Whis asked, astonished.

Goku fell down, shocked to the point where his body couldn’t take it. 

Whis sensing something was off distracted Vegeta and Goku stood up looking over at Beerus. Goku slid in close to Beerus so he could speak softly to him. 

“You told me Monaka was the strongest being in the universe!”

“I did no such thing!” Beerus yelled back at him, pushing him away.

“Yes, you did!” Goku whined. 

“That wasn’t me! It was the other me. Although I admit, using someone like Monaka to motivate you does sound like something I would do.”

“I can’t believe this.” Goku grumbled. 

Decades of thinking Monaka was out there stronger than him. He shook his head.

“We don’t have time for this, we have five days to get ready. Find two more fighters, I don’t care who. And don’t mess this up for me. If Champa wins I will never hear the end of it, I don’t care about all your drama.” Beerus gestured to all of him. 

“Fine, I know just the two already.” Goku smirked. 

Whis and Vegeta came back, Vegeta was missing his fat suit. Goku ditched his too, joining the three of them so they could travel back to Earth. 

The journey back to Earth flew by and Goku’s excitement grew with every second. Everyone back on Earth was looking forward to traveling through space to watch their friends fight. Things happened mostly the same. Goku asked 16 and Piccolo to be their last fighters. Bulma freaked out about the Super Dragon Balls, and the very best part- Vegeta agreed to train in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with him. 

Goku couldn’t believe his luck. Three years just him and Vegeta. He knew nothing was going to happen, it was too soon. But! He was excited to have all of Vegeta’s attention. He had been worried back when Vegeta still hated him and they weren’t talking that them being stuck together for years was going to be more like torture, but now it was actually going to be so much fun. 

Being roommates on Beerus’ planet was great, but they were always so busy training or doing chores. Goku was hoping between training they’d be able to talk and get to know each other a little better. Now they finally had time to do so. He wouldn’t let Vegeta run them ragged for no reason. Rest was important too. I’m fact, Whis gave them a big speech about it right before they went in.

“Thanks Whis.”  Goku told him happily. He looked over and saw Vegeta distracted. “Whis, what about Freiza?” Goku whispered to him. 

“I will keep track, but it’s possible due to the events you changed he won’t be coming back.” Whis said quietly back to him. 

Goku considered this.

“Let’s just focus on one thing at a time. Now get in there and spend some time with Vegeta.” Whis winked at him. 

Goku blushed and made his way over to the entrance. He felt Vegeta move towards it too. They walked in, Goku tried to let Vegeta go first but he just sneered and waited until Goku went in. Goku sighed, nothing ever changed. Still, being in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber brought up a bunch of memories. The bright white light of the dimension was all consuming. The added gravity and unpredictable conditions were already weighing on them heavily. 

Now they had three whole years together, and alone. No distractions, no Piccolo yelling at him. They got right to training, going all out until neither had the strength to stand. Then they spent a day off talking strategy and divulging into less tactical subjects. 

“So, Kakarot now will you admit the transformation for Super Saiyan 3 is useless?” Vegeta smirked at him.

“Nah, you’re just jealous you were never able to achieve that level.” Goku digged back at him, half heartedly. 

He didn’t have it in him to tell Vegeta had once told him he thought 3 was an ugly and ridiculous transformation. He had never used it again in his timeline. It also reminded him of possessed Vegeta and a bunch of other things he didn’t like to think about. 

“I will surpass you, Kakarot. Never doubt that.” Vegeta turned serious all the sudden.

And so it went. Most of the time everything was super great. Goku was happy to spend time with Vegeta, but every once and awhile something would come up and make Goku sad and nostalgic. He had nowhere to run or hide so he kept bottling it down. Vegeta was mostly in good spirits but sometimes he got serious and Goku had nothing to hide behind. 

Days turned to weeks, turned to months, turned to a year and they had a solid routine. Goku was feeling pretty good, but Vegeta was getting more and more discouraged that they were reaching their absolute limits. Goku’s promise that they were nowhere near it fell on deaf ears. Vegeta didn’t seem to believe his hope from meeting his future self counted as proof so Goku began to work on a plan. 

If he could reach instinct a little early, that would show and motivate Vegeta. During a spar Goku busted out his Kaio-ken to get Vegeta riled up. It worked. Vegeta was steaming mad and wasn’t thinking though. 

“Is that the best you’ve got Geta?” Goku said, laughing. He slipped in his nickname to put it over the top. 

Vegeta, absolutely livid, began to power up a Big Bang attack while in Super Saiyan Blue. Goku laughed and waited until he let loose his attack and powered down to base form. If he could take a hit like this and get a boost from it, he would be that much closer to Ultra Instinct. 

Goku was engulfed in a bright purple light, his entire body felt like he was hit by a truck, then set on fire. Then darkness. 

Goku was laying in bed, a memory of a memory tugging at his brain. He woke up and saw Vegeta lying next to him. He tried to speak but his throat was dry. He coughed but it was like razor blades in his vocal cords. He tried to reach out to Vegeta but he was gone. The bed was cold, like he had never been there. Goku closed his eyes to take in a deep breath. He opened them and Vegeta was in a pink apron, cooking in the kitchen. Was he home? He looked around. No, he was still in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. He blinked and Vegeta was standing next to him, looking down at him angrily. 

“What’s your biggest regret, Kakarot?”

Goku suddenly couldn’t keep his eyes open. 

Goku’s eyes fluttered open. He saw Vegeta next to him scowling. He was covered in bandages and his body ached. Vegeta was irritated. Goku could tell he was yelling, but he couldn’t hear what he was saying over the ringing in his ears. He looked over and saw a different Vegeta sitting in the corner of the room. He put his finger to his lips as if to say, shh. Goku blinked and he was gone. Goku looked but the mad Vegeta was gone too. He curled up as best he could and went back to sleep. 

When he woke up he was still in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, but Vegeta was in the void in his great ape form. He blinked and he was alone. He reached out for Vegeta who he thought was lying next to him, but there was no one there. Goku cried, a deep sob. The pillow next to him disintegrated into bright yellow and blue lights, and began to float away. He turned to see Vegeta on the other side of him, Eyes wide and scared. The bed fell out from under him and he was swallowed by darkness.

Suddenly he was surrounded by giant angry Vegeta faces all demanding to know why . Goku cried. He was still falling, but soon the ground was right under him. He crashed into it violently. 

Vegeta was shaking him wildly. Goku cried out in pain and alarm. Vegeta kept leaving him. Goku pulled Vegeta against him and held him in a crushing bear hug. He didn’t mean for all this to happen. He just wanted to keep him safe, and instead he put him in the worst danger ever. Vegeta protested and wiggled against him, Goku’s body was sore and he felt weak, but his desperation to keep Vegeta close just for once, gave him the strength to hold on to him. Eventually Vegeta stopped struggling long enough for Goku to loosen his grip slightly and he struck like a snake, punching him square in the face until he lost consciousness. 

Goku’s bed was outside under the stars. Vegeta was lying next to him, staring up at them. He looked over at Goku instead, and they both beamed at each other. 

“Bulma asked me if I would leave you, if she asked.”

Goku frowned. Don’t leave me Geta. Goku couldn’t find his voice so he turned away so Vegeta wouldn’t see the tears rolling down his eyes. He blinked through them, because instead of an open field he saw a wall of hour glasses. He whipped his head around and saw two Saiyans staring at him. They looked familiar. Suddenly he was underwater and couldn’t breathe. He tried to take a deep breath but his lungs filled with water. There was a ringing in his ears, and a loud booming yell that sounded distinctly like his Saiyan name. He thrashed and struggled, but it felt like a heavy weight was on his chest. His mouth was wrenched open and he was choking on the water. 

Chapter Text

Goku’s eyes opened and he was back in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, covered in bandages. His body wasn’t sore and the loud ringing in his ears was gone. Vegeta was standing over him holding an empty glass and a Senzu Bean pouch. Goku shook his head. He felt like a lot had happened, but he could tell just by looking around that Vegeta had bandaged him up after hitting him with his energy blast and just given him a Senzu bean. No way to tell how much time had passed from the bed.

The most puzzling thing was the look on Vegeta’s face. It was completely unreadable. Was he mad that he had to take care of Goku? He did feel a little silly after his stunt, but he could tell he was a lot stronger. Maybe not close to ultra instinct but…

“Kakarot do you think I’m an idiot?” Vegeta asked him, interrupting his thoughts. He sounded dangerous. 

Goku was instantly on alert. That tone, his facial expressions… Something had happened while he was asleep. Did he say something he shouldn’t have? Oh no. The blood drained from Goku’s face and he looked at Vegeta in horror. Vegeta was so angry, it was like there was a shadow over his face. 

“You were quite the chatterbox while you were unconscious. You have been keeping secrets, haven’t you?” Vegeta growled. “What happened to cause your future self to come talk to you? How much did he tell you? What did he say? And why in the galaxies are you so obsessed with me?”

Tired, confused, and decades of holding it in, finally got to Goku. He decided to tell Vegeta the truth.

“Well,” Goku started, pressing his fingers together anxiously. “Maybe I wasn’t visited by myself in the future,” Vegeta was fuming, but Goku continued.  “Maybe, I am from the future. I got sent back too far by accident. Trying to save you.”

“Me?” Vegeta scoffed, obviously offended. “I can take care of myself, Kakarot.”

“Not like this, Vegeta. You were completely destroyed by the Destroyer of Universe 9.”

Even after all these years Goku remembered it vividly. The shock on his face, the gold and blue lights where his Vegeta used to be standing. Goku was stopped from revisiting the past too much because Vegeta was standing over him and absolutely livid. He was seething with a rage Goku hadn’t seen since they met.

“Inconceivable.” Vegeta barked.

“It’s the truth, honest. Vegeta you gotta believe me.” Goku pleaded with him. 

“Let’s say I would ever believe you. Why do you care so much?”

Vegeta was but still trying to get to the truth. His words hit Goku like a truck. The truth slipped out before he could stop himself.

“It was my fault. They killed you to get back at me.”

“And why would that be? That doesn’t make any sense,” Vegeta began to mumble to himself. “I hate you.” He looked up to stare Goku right in the eyes. “You’re still keeping something from me, aren’t you.? Don’t even think of lying to me anymore Kakarot.”

He was in for it now. Even if Vegeta did hate him now, which he didn't think he did, there was no right answer. He could continue to lie poorly when they both knew that was exactly what was happening - or he could tell him the truth and lose him forever. How many ways can I lose you before you’re finally just gone?

This was the last thing he expected to happen in here. He had been looking forward to bonding a little. Piccolo would absolutely lose it if he knew what Goku was considering. But just like during their fight while he was possessed and he knew he had to show him Super Saiyan 3, Goku knew blatantly lying to Vegeta’s face was probably the worst thing he could do. Or was it the second worst? He closed his eyes as he deliberated what to say. Vegeta’s stare could burn a hole into his very soul, he needed a minute outside of his intense gaze.

Goku felt like he was standing on the edge of the universe. One more step and he would fall into the vast darkness and never be able to come back. He opened his eyes, staring into Vegeta’s eyes. He was pissed, yes, but looking deeper he could see the desperation to just know what was going on.

Vegeta had probably figured most things out himself. To be fair, Goku hadn’t exactly been subtle. Vegeta had over a decade of slip ups to go off of. He now knew Goku was from the future, and maybe he assumed from his guilt Goku had been the cause of his destruction.

What he wanted to know from Goku now was the one thing he didn’t want to say. 

Vegeta tapped his foot impatiently. Arms crossed in his signature pose. Goku sighed. He was going to have to tell him. Vegeta would never let it go.

If I do this, there’s no going back. After everything I really will lose him for real this time.

Goku stood at the edge of the universe, and fell.

“Well Vegeta, you’re not going to believe this.”

Here goes.

“But you see the thing is-“

Break my heart Vegeta.

“It’s all my fault. We were together. They killed you to get to me.”

Vegeta glared and sputtered.

“That’s absurd.”

Goku sighed. They were going to be here for a while.

“I didn’t want to tell you, because I knew you would never believe it.”

Vegeta took some time to consider what was being said to him.

“I wasn’t trying to lie to you on purpose, it’s just Piccolo and every one told me I couldn’t change anything and -“

“Don’t,” Vegeta punched Goku in the face, hard, causing him to fall back on the bed. “Ever speak to me again, Kakarot.” Vegeta growled, powering up to Super Saiyan Blue and flying out of the chamber so fast the ground briefly caught on fire. 

Goku didn’t bother getting up for a while. They had only been in this dimension for a little over a year, so there were still two days left before the tournament. Goku decided to take another year/day to himself. He tried meditating and training diligently everyday. He would wake up, eat, train half heartedly and fail miserably at mediating and then repeat before bed. He cried often for the first few weeks, but soon his tears dried and he began to focus. It became a relief to take his mind off things with physical activity and eventually he was able to meditate without his thoughts getting in the way. 

He had always known this was a possibility. Especially back when Vegeta hated him so much after Trunks was killed. Really, his talk with the Supreme Kai of time should have been a tip off, but they had been spending so much time together and it had been going really well. Goku did his best to get his depression under wraps. He wasn’t okay, far from it, but he thought he at least had himself together enough to participate in the tournament without causing suspicion. He had a decade of practice after all.

Finally after a year had passed he left the chamber early. Crossing back over in the same dimension caused their link to flare up and Goku barely resisted bursting into tears. Alright, he still needed time to adjust. He nodded briskly at Dende and Nail before flying away from the Lookout. 

He spent the next day spending time with 16 and Goten. Goten was really excited about traveling through space. Goku did his best to muster up enthusiasm for him, but his heart just wasn’t in it. The trip through space was awful. He could feel Vegeta’s anger towards him like a physical wall, suffocating him. He did his best to hide in the corner and not draw attention to himself. Whis gave him weird looks, but thankfully didn’t say anything. 

Finally they arrived, Goku could see Whis had set everything up super nice and fancy. It almost made Goku smile, but it wasn’t enough to wipe the frown off his face. Vegeta continued to pointedly ignore Goku, and it continued to break Goku’s heart. The other universe’s fighters arrived and Goku realized with a start, that he was so sad and his heart just wasn’t in this at all. Not even the idea of fighting Hit was enough to get him excited. 

When they asked what order they should go with, Goku waived his hand and sighed. “Just let Buu go first. I’ll go last if needed.” Then he walked away. 

Whis followed after him. 

“My, Goku, are you alright?” Whis asked him. 

Goku resisted the temptation to cry and fall into Whis’ arms. Whis really hadn’t appreciated it the last time he had done that. 

“Well, Vegeta knows everything and hates me for real this time. He told me to never speak to him again.”

“Hmm, that is upsetting.”

“And now, it’s like I’ve been trying to get to this one goal for so long, I don’t even know who I am or where I belong anymore. I can’t hang around next to him knowing he can’t stand me and will never love me.” Goku looked down at the ground. 

“Yes, that would be unpleasant.” Whis looked thoughtful. “I was worried this might happen. What if you took a little trip? Everyone else is getting ready for the Tournament of Power. Maybe you could take some time to yourself in space and try to find some strong warriors? With Freiza not showing back up on Earth I am a little worried he won’t be participating this time around.”

Goku thought about that. He turned to look at Vegeta. Even without their link, or familiarity he could see how stubborn Vegeta was. He would never change his mind. What was left for him really?

“Yeah, Whis. Maybe it would be nice to get away for a while.” Goku gave him a sad smile. 

Whis returned his smile, and they walked together to watch the matches away from Vegeta. Beerus looked at them curiously, but Whis just shook his head. Finally feeling a little better Goku was actually looking forward to seeing his friends in action. 

Buu took the stage and began the fights. It took him a minute to warm up and get into it, but he was truly a sight to behold. Goku watched in genuine awe as Buu took out each and every fighter, even with Frost trying to use his dirty tricks, and even Hit. Goku wasn’t even needed. His happiness suddenly deflated and he was sad again. He wasn’t needed. Not by Vegeta, and not for the universe. That thought hit him hard. Where did he belong?

When all the fights were over, and Champa was screaming and crying about his loss, Whis got his attention, Goku looked down and saw him. The Grand Zeno. Goku looked back over at Whis, and he nodded sternly at Goku. 

It was too late, Zeno had already seen everything. He would surely be excited about another Tournament without Goku’s encouragement. So he ignored all of his doubts and ran to him with genuine enthusiasm. Zeno was a pretty cool guy, if you ignored the fact that he could wipe out all of existence with a snap of his fingers. 

“Hey, Zenny!” Goku called to him, waving wildly.

He thought Beerus might have fainted but he ignored it. Goku held out his hand for him to shake, ignoring his guard's harsh looks. He knew somewhere in the crowd Vegeta was watching and thinking he was an idiot, but he let that all go. 

Zeno shook his hand and allowed him to pick him and wave him through the air a little. They both laughed. 

“That was fun, I am looking forward to seeing another tournament with even more fighters.”

Goku waved him off and felt heavy in his steps. Well it was sealed, the Tournament of Power was still going to happen. Champa left in a huff, Hit was giving him a strange look, but followed after the rest of Universe 6. The rest of the day happened in a blur. They found the “missing” final Super Dragon Ball, and summoned the Super Dragon, which Goku purposefully did his best to pretend wasn’t happening. If anyone noticed him in the corner, with a tear in his eye, no one said anything. 

They arrived back on Earth, and Whis gave him a pointed look. Goku nodded his understanding and followed his son home. He explained his thoughts to Chi Chi, who was sad for him but understood. He just couldn’t be gone for too long. Goten still needed a father. Goku agreed and hugged them both tight. Next he went to the Lookout to say goodbye to the Namekians. Piccolo seemed ticked, but kept his thoughts to himself at least. Dende was sad to see him go, and Nail just simply patted his shoulder and told him to do what he needed to do for himself. 

Next he said goodbye to the Androids. They were understanding and 16 promised to keep his bedroom ready  for him for when he returned. They also promised to keep up their training with Piccolo to be ready for the upcoming Tournament. With nothing left to do, and enough time passed, Goku knew Whis would be waiting for him. There was only one thing he still wanted to do before he left Earth for who knows how long. 

Goku hovered outside of Vegeta’s bedroom at Capsule Corp. He foolishly was imagining he could say goodbye to him, to see him one last time. He masked his ki so he couldn’t be detected. He felt Vegeta and Bulma’s energies near each other. As jealous as he always was that Bulma still got to have him in this timeline when he never would, he was happy that Vegeta was not alone. He would be well taken care of, that he at least knew for sure. 

It broke Goku’s already well broken heart. Somehow the pieces could still be broken into smaller ones, even after all this time. With a wistful smile, a bittersweet pang in his heart, he said his silent goodbye to himself. Words so sweet, and the pain behind them holding so much depth, but they would never be heard by the one they were meant for.

Goodbye, Vegeta. I will always love you.

Goku didn’t try to hold back the tears that streamed down his face. Vegeta wouldn’t miss him. He wouldn’t mourn his absence. He didn’t even know if he would ever see Vegeta again, but he knew deep down in his heart, they would never be lovers. They would never be friends. Goku didn’t regret saving Vegeta, he never would, but he now finally understood this was the price- the consequence for meddling with time. 

He took just a selfish moment, to remember what they were, and what they could never be. Decades of memories flashed in his mind, some even from this time around. He pictured Vegeta’s perfect body, his poise and his grace. He remembered saying goodbye to the physical manifestation of his thoughts. He wished he had time to do that again, but he didn’t and it wouldn’t help. He placed his fingers to his forehead and reappeared in front of Whis.

Goku wiped the tears from his eyes. “I’m ready Whis.”

Whis nodded and Goku placed a hand on his shoulder. They disappeared in a bright rainbow of light. 

Chapter Text

Vegeta watched as this traitor, this Kakarot, calmly but viciously fought Napa. It was ridiculous. First he had been on Earth this whole time making friends and building a family having no idea what they had to go through, and now he had gotten so much stronger in just a year's time! He couldn’t even defeat Raditz and now he was walking all over Nappa like it was nothing!

Nappa was useless and he no longer had any need for him. It was him or Vegeta, and Vegeta always looked out for himself, so bye bye Nappa.

He went to fight Kakarot, but it was like he was a different person than who had just met. He was unfocused, it almost seemed like he was trying to run away instead of fight, but he had acted so cocky just 5 minutes ago. With an eloquently timed kick he knocked him to the ground unconscious. Vegeta smirked, but quickly frowned instead when he heard two voices yelling at him. Everything else was a blur, fighting Kakarot’s son and the bald earthling. Transforming, getting his tail cut off, all a humiliating montage he couldn’t really remember clearly. The sting of shame and defeat but also the looming fear of what Frieza would do now that he failed. 

One thing did stick out in his mind, and he remembered vividly. Kakarot picked him up and held him almost tenderly. Whispering in his ear so no one else could hear. It was so strange. He didn’t know why he would treat him like that. Or why Vegeta couldn’t shake the feeling that he was acting so differently. He had just met the man after all. Vegeta’s thoughts buzzed around his head violently until finally as his pod lifted into the air, he blissfully fell asleep. 

Vegeta was in hell. Every time he turned around something was going wrong. He had hightailed it to Namek trying to head Freiza off. At first everything was going great, he had even had a fun time killing Pui and murdering the entire village of Namekians to steal their Dragon Ball. But then Kakarot showed up and ruined everything. What was the fool even doing here? And why was he still acting so strangely? 

How did the other Saiyan even know about Frieza? Vegeta couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was very off about the whole situation. This third class scum interacted with him like he knew him. Like Vegeta wasn’t light years above him. It made his skin crawl. 

Luckily he was able to take it out on Dodoria. It felt so good to finally tear him a new one. He made quick work of him, before the idiot was in his way again. He agreed to follow him away mostly to get the chance to attack him when his guard was down, but he seemed to be expecting that and had Vegeta go in front of him. 

Could the fool read minds? Vegeta decided to be less obvious with his hostility, maybe lull him into a false security so he would make a mistake. The more Vegeta studied Kakarot, the more he realized he was doing the same. Why did he keep looking at Vegeta like that?

Vegeta couldn’t shake the feeling that the other man was different somehow than he expected. They hardly knew each other so he really wasn’t sure why...

He was distracted when he felt Zarbon’s power arrive. Like hell he’d let this third class idiot take another victory away from him. Zarbon was his to defeat, his to destroy. His distractedness cost him, and everything went black. When Vegeta regained consciousness he was furious. He had cockily boasted his strength. Confidently been made a fool of, by the very third class fool he was trying to prove he was better than. It was too much. He lunged at him.

It felt like the fight he had been denied previously on Earth. Like they were destined to always end up here. He shook his head and focused. He would wipe the floor with this idiot. It was ridiculous how evenly matched they were. Vegeta was about to explode with rage when he felt the crushing weight of Frieza’s power. He froze him in place. Shaking off the cowardice not befitting a warrior, he was finally able to move, Vegeta crouched into a fighting stance.

He was startled to hear Kakarot speak of his father, where would he have heard that name? Was he lying about not having his memories? Frieza hit him hard enough to send him flying before Kakarot walked over to stand in front of him.

Was he? Kakarot nodded. He was! Frieza was going to pay. It was as he was smiling and laughing at the thought of Kakarot being a Super Saiyan that he felt it, a burning pain through his chest. 

Suddenly all his pride, everything he had held onto was meaningless. He pleaded with the other Saiyan, begging him to avenge their race, avenge their planet, and avenge their Prince. Then he felt nothingness.

Being brought back to life was strange. It was like he was floating. He coughed as the air was forced back into his lungs. He punched himself in the stomach as hard as he could, just to prove he was alive. He jumped up, happy to just be breathing. 

It was then he noticed Kakarot. He really did it! He defeated Frieza! He became a Super Saiyan. He couldn’t even be mad or jealous! He was in such awe. And if some third class fool could do it, then surely the Prince of all Saiyans could accomplish it.

It was like he suddenly woke up from a dream, being on Earth and Freiza defeated by another’s hands. The idiot was supposed to show him how to reach Super Saiyan but nothing he tried worked. He must be lying or withholding information - or he was mocking Vegeta just to spite him. What a bastard. He distracted himself with the Gravity Chamber the annoying Earth woman had built for him. Kakarot didn’t come around much, and that was just fine with him. He didn’t want to see him, he’d be perfectly happy if he dropped dead. No, that wasn’t true. Vegeta would only be satisfied if the other Saiyan was defeated by his own hands. 

It had to happen on the day he let Bulma convince him to wash his armor. It was getting worn down and smelled, but that stench was proof of his hard work so he never minded. She had threatened to not fix the gravity chamber and stop feeding him before he caved. He was wearing the most ridiculous get up when he felt their power levels enter the atmosphere. He should have known they wouldn’t get off from killing Freiza scot free. 

He landed near the other idiot fighters that called themselves Earth’s defenders when he saw him. The bane of his existence. It made his skin crawl just to be near him. But the mystery of the other man always seemed to draw him in. How did he always seem to know what Vegeta was thinking? It drove him crazy. The third class always acted like they knew each other intimately even though they had barely been around each other since they met. There was also the matter of he seemed to be hiding something, and Vegeta found it infuriating. He would discover his secrets, and he would defeat him with his bare hands. 

A stranger appeared and Kakarot was whispering to him out of the way. Vegeta wanted to know who this asshole thought he was, and just what the two were conspiring about by themselves. All thoughts left Vegeta’s brain when the stranger with a bizarre appearance suddenly became a Super Saiyan. How was that possible? Kakarot and him were the only ones left. Weren’t they?

He did his best to focus and fight, there were hundreds of soldiers, but his mind was preoccupied with Kakarot knowing a strange man who could turn Super Saiyan. He defeated the entire Ginyu Force and King Cold like it was nothing, like they were flies. How could yet another, completely random nobody, achieve what he could not? It was preposterous. Vegeta was so mad he could spit. And they were being so secretive again! He tried to follow them but it was like they knew and kept just far enough distance between them. 

After obviously avoiding him, Vegeta was invited to a baffling place in the sky where they all wanted to discuss something. Vegeta was still suspicious of the newcomer. Something was definitely up. Vegeta hated him, and Kakarot. He hated everyone and the entire planet. Vegeta couldn't help but balk at the ridiculous nonsense they were spouting. Future? Androids? Vegeta dying? He scoffed at the mere idea. Maybe the others were too much of weaklings. Although he was disturbed by the idea of his fellow Saiyan being taken down by something so mundane as a heart virus. He was supposed to be defeated by his hands alone…

The plan was simple. He had to train, push his body past its limits over and over, and absolutely no distractions. The problem was the plan didn’t work. He was constantly distracted by one thing or another. Earth was full of distractions. Especially the fool he could feel training half way across the planet. And more imminent was the woman. She pestered him everyday about the most asinine things, and somehow she was able to get him to agree to things and he didn’t know why. 

Something happened, he blamed temporary insanity from working so hard but he found he had somehow bedded her and impregnated her with a child. Besides the fact that his father would roll in his non-grave for creating a half-breed, he really couldn’t afford the distraction and instead left the earth. He thought it would feel better the further away he went, but nothing helped. The same thoughts plagued his mind. 

Eventually he just gave up. He let go. He was tired, he could feel it in his bones. And it was then that he was finally able to achieve what he had been trying to do his entire life. It was amazing. It was exhilarating. He traveled back to Earth quickly, not wanting to miss the deadline. 

When he finally arrived, there was an unexpected scene in front of him. The idiot looked like he was on his deathbed. Vegeta smirked. Move out of the way Kakarot, let me show you what an elite is capable of. He absolutely destroyed the android in front of him. It felt good. Soon everything descended into chaos. The other androids were a lot tougher, the purple haired boy turned out to be his son from the future - which he felt stupid for not realizing - and of course, the androids weren’t even the real problem. This Cell character was the true issue. 

When Kakarot approached him and told him about the Hyperbolic Time Chamber he couldn't be more excited. A way to train for a whole year in the span of a day? He could surpass Super Saiyan for sure in that time. He agreed to train with the half-breed even though he knew he was being manipulated. That was fine, he could use a punching bag. 

Successful in his endeavors he went to fight Cell. He would defeat him before Kakarot even had the chance. He would remain victorious and the better of the two. After all, he was the Saiyan Prince. The mighty Super Saiyan Vegeta. He and the boy were trying to utilize the rest of their time when there was a knock on the door. It came as a huge booming earthquake, the entire dimension shook. The idiot dare speak to him in such a way? He would show him. 

Just like he thought, Cell was child's play. He strung him along, and when the opportunity arose to let him become more powerful so his defeat would be even more complete, Vegeta smirked and let him. It was then that the fool appeared out of nowhere, and kicked him square in the face with both feet. Vegeta couldn’t believe the audacity. He saw red, he lost all track of himself in his bloodlust. It was only the strange look of horror on his rival’s face that pulled him back to reality. 

He stared at his son’s dead body, hole in his chest so similar to the one Freiza had given him. Suddenly he was a young boy, his planet just destroyed. His race, his family, literally his whole world ripped away from him. He saw red again, this time his anger was directed at the person who was responsible for everything negative in his life. The third class fool, the idiot, this was all his fault. He had taken everything from him, now his son. Vegeta swore he would pay. Even after Cell was destroyed and Trunks was brought back to life, Vegeta swore he would destroy the Saiyan who had wronged him. 

With a heavy heart, and very confused mind Vegeta returned to Capsule Corp, and made a silent vow to protect his family better and never let what happened to him happen to them. 

Vegeta did nothing but train and spend time with his family. Time passed, but his anger and hatred for the other Saiyan never waivered. He used any opportunity they were near each other to make sure that the other knew it. Whatever the fool was up to, whatever secrets he kept, Vegeta would get to the bottom of them, and then he would destroy Kakarot.

Vegeta liked to think of himself as a simple man. Train, become stronger, kill Kakarot. Those were his primary goals. But after a while, that seemed to change. He looked around and didn’t recognize the man he had become. When the opportunity presented itself for him to fight Kakarot he jumped at the chance, to try to normalize his now complicated life. But once again the fool had to go and ruin everything. He was more interested in some random aliens than wanting to fight him. It pissed Vegeta off. So of course he followed them. He would prove whatever it was wasn’t as important. He was immediately set on edge by Kakarot trying to protect him. Where did the clown get off thinking Vegeta needed any sort of protection?

Things only got worse from there. For a decade Vegeta had felt like the other Saiyan was hiding something from him, and his suspicions only grew every second they were fighting Babidi’s henchmen. It was while the imbecile patronized him yet again by offering to let him do all the fighting that he came up with a plan. It was so sinister, but so perfect. It would help him with all of his problems. He would let Babidi possess him. Get rid of his sentimental attachments and help him finally get what he always wanted:

• To defeat Kakarot with his own hands. 

It went well enough. Dabura jumped at the chance when he saw him fighting Kakarot. When Babidi asked him to kill Supreme Kai he was able to resist no problem. The most curious thing was the other Saiyan himself. He thought maybe it would take some convincing but he agreed to fight Vegeta without much prompting. 

See, that wasn’t so hard now was it, Kakarot?

It was glorious to finally take out all of his frustrations on the other Saiyan. This had been 10 years in the making, and Vegeta didn’t hold anything back. He told him everything. Just how much he hated him. How much he loathed his mere existence. He used ki to hold him to the wall and smacked him around a little. Not enough to hurt, just to show who the top dog was around here. Much to his surprise Kakarot began to power up and didn’t stop when he reached Super Saiyan 2, but kept going.

Vegeta only ever wanted to prove his strength to Kakarot and to himself. How can he do that when the other refused to fight him at full power even back when they met? It felt like he was always running away. Even today, choosing to go with the Supreme Kai rather than stay and fight him like they were supposed to. 

Staring into each other’s eyes it was like something clicked. Vegeta finally understood.

Kakarot's reasons, vague and mysterious as they were, it was never his intention to humiliate or mock him. Seeing him now in his full glory at Super Saiyan 3 - a form he himself hadn’t even known existed- ready to give him his all, it made Vegeta tingle with anticipation. His Saiyan blood warmed at the thought of an all out war between them. Finally resolving the unanswered question between them of who was the best. 

Finding new found strength Vegeta met him head on. They clashed and brawled. The sting on his skin from each blow was delicious. But again, the other stopped him. Still prattling on about Buu. Vegeta’s new found revelation put a few things into perspective for him. He had to make things right, starting with Majin Buu. He agreed to stop the fight, feigning a truce. The idiot fell for it and was easily knocked out. Vegeta couldn’t help but stare down at him, a little fondly though he wouldn’t admit it out loud . 

He flew towards the new energy source he could sense. It was massive, but nothing he couldn’t handle. Vegeta knew what to do. He fought Buu with everything he had, not holding back one iota of strength but it wasn’t quite enough. Suddenly it was clear. How to cleanse his soul from the newfound evil in his heart, to make up for all the wrong he had done his whole life. He closed his eyes and pictured his family, his beautiful wife and wonderful son. He even pictured Kakarot, who he was starting to realize was more important to him then he had let himself understand before. He could feel the smile on his face as his energy began to burn through his body. It was right before his energy was about to overwhelm him when he felt a strong grip on his arm. He opened his eyes in shock and outrage. Kakarot was still ruining everything, even his death. 

In a blur they were no longer on Earth. Vegeta was having a hard time keeping up, he had just decided to sacrifice himself after all. They were in the land of the Kai’s apparently and for some reason Kakarot seemed to be calling the shots. Vegeta narrowed his eyes and metaphorically pulled up his sleeves. Something fishy was going on here. He followed everyone to the illusive Z Sword and mocked Kakarot when he said he would be the one to pull it out of the ground. Well Vegeta had other plans. He sent a quick energy attack toward the land the sword was sticking out of and watched as it crumbled around him. Feeling proud of himself, Vegeta grabbed the sword. It was a little heavy, but nothing he couldn’t handle. The large Kai put the stupid Kai outfit on him, but he did his bests to hide his embarrassment. 

Vegeta focused on the sword instead. He was quick to get a handle on it. Kakarot seemed to be avoiding him, but that worked out just fine for Vegeta. Everything that happened had been weird. He was trying to repress all of it. Especially the weird feeling of gratitude. That was nonsense… When Kakarot/ The Supreme Kai mentioned throwing Katchin at him Vegeta felt nothing but a swell of pride at his own strength. Until they threw it and the sword broke in half…. That was unexpected. 

Soon they met the Elder Supreme Kai who had been trapped in the sword, the legend about the sword apparently misconstrued over time. He did a lot of strange and embarrassing things to “pull out his potential.” Vegeta didn’t like it, but he wanted to catch up to Kakarot and that ridiculous new level he pulled out on him earlier. So Vegeta put up with it for a while. Until he noticed the old geezer was just reading a magazine. So he went off on him. Raised his power level to show how much of a waste of time this all was when he just… didn’t stop. It continued to climb and climb and he was nowhere near ascending. He sat back down and let the process continue.

When they were done, yet another weird thing happened. The Kais brought up fusion. Vegeta hated the mere idea, but even more curious was Kakarot already knew what it was and didn’t want to do it either? Vegeta couldn’t figure out what, but the fool was definitely hiding something. And Vegeta was going to find out what, even if it killed him.

They went back to Earth and thankfully the gibbering oaf asked for better fighting clothes. Vegeta was ready for this whole ordeal to be behind them. They would kill Majin Buu and then he could go home and shower and forget this wretched day ever happened. 

They located Majin Buu quickly, but the ugly bastard was taking a bath so they decided to wait. When he was done was when things got weird. The androids Kakarot insisted on hanging out with arrived, the fool once again tried to patronize him by offering to let him go first. Hell no , Vegeta was going to watch him get humiliated and defeated before swooping in and kicking his ass. 

Then instead of fighting he told the pink blob, he spoke nonsense. Goku stated they  were there to play with him? They were not here to play, they were here to decimate this atrocity! Vegeta was fuming and barely noticed when Majin Buu became two. What? One Buu was good and one was bad? Alright Vegeta would kill the bad one and go on his merry way. But Kakarot was spouting nonsense again about how they couldn’t kill either. Of course they could, that was the whole point. 

And then it was finally revealed, the big secret. The idiot had a visit from his future self, just like his son before the androids arrived. That made sense, why he was always running around acting strange, why he knew so much… Vegeta felt a huge weight lift off his chest. He finally knew what made the other Saiyan so strange.

Then… things changed. While they were distracted the “bad Buu” absorbed the good Buu and they were in trouble. Kakarot started talking out loud to himself like a crazy person about not fusing. Why was he so opposed? Vegeta sure didn’t want to, but why didn’t he? Seemed like the kind of boundary pushing thing the fool lived for. But they didn't have a choice and it was only for an hour so they fused. 

Vegeta didn’t remember the next part very well. It became blurring, almost like from a dream of a dream. They fought as one being, Vegito, he called himself. Vegeta remembered this, but nothing specific came to mind. Afterward he remembered coming up with the idea for the spirit bomb, the earth not listening until Mr. Satan rallied them and then he was defeated and everyone celebrated. 

They used the Dragon Balls to wish everyone on Earth forgot about what Buu had done to them, and everything was quiet and time passed quickly until Bulma’s birthday party.

Chapter Text

Things became weird again. Beerus the Destroyer showed up and it was chaos after that. He did his best to keep him placated, but it was like everything was against him. He even did a horribly embarrassing Bingo Dance, but it was to no avail. Everyone fought to the tooth and nail, but it was useless. Bulma’s unconscious body awakened a new rage in him, but it wasn’t enough. Even the annoying pig man lost to a game of Rock Paper Scissors. 

Luckily Kakarot showed up at the last second to save the day like he always did ( he did? ) and Shenron was summoned to explain how to bring about a Super Saiyan God. They were able to transfer their energy and Kakarot and Beerus began fighting.

Something happened in the middle, Vegeta still wasn’t sure what, but Kakarot, Beerus, and Whis spent a lot of time talking. Due to their fusion, Vegeta was able to keep extra tabs on what Kakarot was going at all times. His energy signal suddenly shone brighter in his mind, maybe it was due to the excitement of the fight? The fight was amazing, Vegeta’s blood boiled with jealousy. Next time it would be Vegeta up there. 

Afterward Vegeta noticed Kakarot spent a lot of time talking to Whis in hushed whispers. It set off that familiar feeling in his mind that the fool was hiding something. He assumed it had to do with the visit from his future self, but how much could he possibly have learned from something like that? What else was to come?

Vegeta decided to let that go, because he had something way more important to focus on. Obtaining enough power to surpass Kakarot now that he had reached yet another level higher than Vegeta. Vegeta spent days at a time, training under the most rigorous conditions he could find on Earth, but none of it was enough. One day he came home to find Whis and Bulma palling around. Suddenly furious, he demanded Whis take him to Beerus. Then he felt a familiar energy around him and he couldn’t move. Hold on, that was just like Beerus’ power. Whis was Beerus’ teacher?! Then he could teach Vegeta just the same! After some embarrassing attempts to feed Whis the most delicious dish this planet had to offer, he remembered a secret weapon. 

Soon he was off to train on Beerus’ world. The chores were embarrassing and the training was grueling but it was well worth the effort. When Kakarot finally showed up, which Vegeta knew he would eventually, he was pissed because he hadn’t achieved what he set out to and now the bane of his existence was also here to get stronger. How could he surpass him if he was here reaching new heights right alongside him? All the years of hating him and ignoring him came back to Vegeta in a flash, but the fool was even able to slip past his defenses. It pissed him off to no end, but he wasn’t able to fight the pull of the only other Saiyan finally asking him about their home planet and customs. Of course, Vegeta didn’t actually remember much, but he passed along what he could. 

After that, training wasn’t so bad. Vegeta was able to reach Super Saiyan God on his own, an impossible feat he achieved and was proud of. He did notice Whis and Kakarot were having more and more secret conversations. He had been a little worried Kakarot was getting special training or treatment but that didn’t seem to be the case. Whis was even harder on Kakarot than Vegeta, and that made him laugh. 

Their training was going well, they had both achieved a higher form - they were calling it Super Saiyan Blue for simplicity and Whis had upped their training. They were wearing these fat suits that weighed so much it was hard for even Vegeta’s brain to wrap around. Maybe Bulma would be able to comprehend just how heavy they were. Someone new arrived and Vegeta felt like his mind was even more blown. Different universes? How was that even possible? Kakarot seemed very keen for this fight, it made Vegeta suspicious. He decided to keep that to himself for now. 

They went back to Earth to find more fighters, again Kakarot seemed perfectly prepared for the situation. The hair’s on the back of Vegeta’s neck stood up, but again he ignored it. All Vegeta cared about was improving on his strength and proving he was the better fighter. Going up against fighters from a different universe seemed like a great way to do it. 

Vegeta agreed to train in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and Kakarot looked like Vegeta  just agreed to go to the prom with him. They were sitting together on the couch and Kakarot was getting cozy. That made Vegeta step back and wonder what was actually going on. Again he wondered just how much this idiot had learned from himself. What did he know? It all made Vegeta very uneasy. 

Training in the Hyperbolic Chamber was familiar, Whis had forced them to be roommates for a while, and for the most part it was easy going. Every once and a while the idiot would say something to piss him off but was getting good at giving him space when Vegeta was really frustrated. Except when it came to him mentioning they were close to their limits. He kept swearing up and down they were nowhere near it. Without proof, Vegeta just couldn’t comprehend it. 

Then the unthinkable happened. The absolute imbecile took a blast from Vegeta head on and it looked like it was on purpose. At least if the look of determination as he powered down to base form was anything to go off of. Vegeta just couldn’t fathom why though. 

He rushed quickly and caught Kakarot’s unconscious body and took him into the living quarters. He tended and wrapped his wounds the best he could, Vegeta wasn’t a patient or nice man but he tried. His thoughts were buzzing around his head wildly. 

What happened, why would he do this ? Vegeta couldn’t think of a single answer that made sense. He had known this man for a solid decade and often wondered about his motivation for most things, but this was so far from the image he held in his head of his fellow Saiyan. 

Once he was tended to, Kakarot began to mutter under his breath. His face looked like he was still in pain. That worried Vegeta a little, but it mostly pissed him off; he was going to have to do even more for the ungrateful moron. His eyes fluttered open and Vegeta’s concern drained away and was replaced with his fury.

“You absolute moron! You are an idiot, you know that? What were you even thinking taking on a blast like that? I should have left you for dead! In fact maybe I will, do you hear me?” Vegeta berated him, but his words seemed to fall on deaf ears. Kakarot wasn’t even looking at him, he was looking off into the corner like there was someone else in the room with them. 

Doubt crept into Vegeta’s mind, maybe he was injured worse than he thought. Anger quickly filled him instead. No, Kakarot was fine he was just acting stupid. Just like he always did. Vegeta left the room to get him some water, but when he came back Kakarot was asleep again. He didn’t look like he was resting well, he was shifting around in his sleep and muttering a lot. Vegeta couldn’t catch most of it, until he started screaming. 

Vegeta ran over in alarm, trying to hold him still and get him to wake up but that didn’t work. He continued to scream in Vegeta’s ear and he got fed up with that quickly. He began to try to shake him awake instead. His eyes opened finally and the screaming stopped. Relief flooded through Vegeta, but it was short lived. Kakarot pulled him on top of him and trapped Vegeta into a bear hug. Despite his injuries, he held Vegeta in an ironclad grip that he couldn’t get out of, not without further injuring him. 

“I’m sorry Vegeta.” Kakarot cried.

“It’s fine, fool, just let me go.” Vegeta grunted against him.

“I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“Kakarot, let me go!” 

“I just wanted to keep you safe.”

That made Vegeta pause. What did that have to do with the clown injuring himself on purpose?

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” Kakarot just began to repeat over and over. 

Not sure what else to do, his patience was already so thin and now gone he punched Kakarot in the face, knocking him unconscious. Unable to deal with this anymore, Vegeta went to dig out one of few Senzu Beans they brought in for emergencies only. They would just have to be more careful going forward. He brought the entire stash over, including the pouch they were in and picked up the glass of water from earlier. He placed the bean in Kakarot’s mouth and coaxed him to chew it, helping him swallow when done. His wounds began to heal, but his face was still constricted. Was he still in pain? Vegeta leaned forward and checked his forehead to see if he was warm with a fever. Kakarot leaned into his touch, Seeming to nuzzle ??!! into his hand. 

“Don’t leave me Geta. I lomph you .” Kakarot mumbled under his breath. 

“What, Kakarot?” Vegeta asked out loud ridiculously. What was he even dreaming about?

“Don’t leave me. I’m sorry about everything. Bulma promised.” Kakarot muttered some more after that, but Vegeta didn’t catch it all. 

What the fuck?

Vegeta leaned over him, trying to force the cup of water down his throat. The bean obviously hadn’t worked fully yet, maybe this would help. Kakarot struggled against him, but Vegeta held him in place, using all of his strength. Kakarot finally stopped fighting him and drank the water. Crisis averted, the gears in Vegeta’s head started to turn. Something wasn’t right. He was finally going to get to the bottom of it. 

Accusing him directly felt good, until the idiot began to speak. What he said made no sense. Why would anyone attack Vegeta to get to Kakarot? Vegeta could take care of himself also, he didn’t need the other Saiyan to protect him like some withering flower, he was a warrior dammit . Kakarot seemed very nervous and didn’t want to answer the question. Vegeta glared at him, daring him to lie to his face again. 

Then Vegeta’s world view was shattered. This asshole, this maniac, he actually thought he would ever - in any universe, any time line be intimate with him? The mighty Prince Vegeta himself? Lower his elite flawless self to be with a third class nobody like him? The very thought was ridiculous. Vegeta realized Kakarot was still talking. Still thought he was worthy of being in his presence. Like hell. 

Before Vegeta knew he was moving, he had punched Kakarot in the face. He was torn between beating the ever living crap out of him, and getting away as quickly as possible. Deciding to skip the one with more physical contact Vegeta high tailed it out of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber as fast as physically possible. Lifting into the air, and not bothering to look back. 

Vegeta was shaking uncontrollably with anger; he shot off the lookout without a word and flew aimlessly around the world several times before he calmed down enough to realize he wasn’t being productive with his fury. He landed in a desert and began letting his rage loose. The barren wasteland didn’t take too kindly to that and he figured he would destroy the earth well before he calmed down. Unsure what else he could possibly do he went home to work out his frustration in the gravity chamber. 

For the rest of the day and straight through the night, he didn’t think or focus on a single thing other than the heavy gravity and his next move to take down the robots and gadgets Bulma built for him. It wasn’t until his said wife came to check on him the next day did he realize how much time had passed. 

She assumed somewhat correctly that he had lost his patience with Kakarot and left early. He didn’t try to tell her what happened. He spent the rest of the time training until it was time to go. On the trip over he blatantly ignored Kakarot, and did his best to think of different strategies for the unknown fighters from the other universe. 

When everything started he noticed with slight satisfaction that Kakarot was miserable. Good . Everything else passed in a blur, Vegeta only registering that he desperately needed to ignore the other Saiyan for his own sanity. In his haze, he foolishly agreed that Buu could fight first. Vegeta soon regretted that decision since Buu single handedly defeated everyone, including the freak Freiza look alike. He had really been looking forward to taking his aggression out on these other universe opponents. Vegeta basically checked out after that .Kakarot was acting like a idiot in front of some strange little guy Beerus was nervous about. Summoning the Super Dragon was hard to wrap his mind around, so he didn’t really try, and then they were home. 

Everyone went their separate ways. Finally getting away from Kakarot improved his mood a little. Bulma whisked him back into their bedroom and they spent the day catching up with each other. Bulma was the perfect distraction, he finally stopped thinking about Kakarot for the first time since it happened. 

Unfortunately the peace didn’t last. Vegeta felt it the second Kakarot left Earth, of course he did. He couldn’t eat, sleep, or breathe without being acutely aware of exactly what that idiot was doing and where he was. The damn fusion was the worst decision Vegeta had ever made. Sure they saved the world, but was it worth all this trouble? Couldn’t they have found a different way? 

Out of sight, out of mind didn’t apply when the others mere existence was implanted into his head, but Vegeta did his best to ignore it. He trained, he spent time with his family. Bulma became pregnant with a little girl and Vegeta was excited. He had everything he could possibly want and still something felt like it was missing. 

His daughter was born and she was wonderful. Looking at her was like looking at a smaller version of his wife, and he was wrapped around her finger. 

Training started to lose meaning. It wasn’t as helpful without… him. Vegeta had long since allowed himself to say or think his name. He didn’t need the other man. He just needed to push himself harder. 

Eventually Bulma noticed Vegeta was acting strange. She tried to pull it out of him but Vegeta’s lips were sealed. He was happy the idiot was gone. He hoped he never came back. He asked him never to speak to him again and he meant it. He hoped he left Earth on purpose to just be able to better abide Vegeta’s request. The nerve. The audacity!

Bulma was persistent and stubborn. Eventually she wore him down. The clown had been gone over a year before she finally went off and demanded Vegeta tell her what happened. So he started from the beginning, and he told her everything. Bulma did her best to be patient but she did try to interrupt a few times in the beginning. He threatened to not tell her anything else and eventually she got the picture. 

Bulma was amazed. She told him that actually made a lot of sense. Kakarot had been so weird around her for the last ten years, ever since Vegeta came. Vegeta grunted but offered no other approval to her deduction. Going over everything brought some things to light for Vegeta as well. Especially in the beginning. Kakarot had not been subtle looking back. It irritated Vegeta to no end. 

Bulma wasn’t mad at Kakarot like he was, if anything she seemed to understand where he was coming from. That pissed Vegeta off. She didn’t know why he was so mad. Kakarot sacrificed so much blah blah blah. Vegeta left in a huff. Days passed but he couldn’t stop thinking about it. Bulma had questions he couldn’t answer, what about them in their timeline, were they married, did they have kids? Vegeta didn’t know, but they began to eat him alive. Kakarot had been gone awhile, would he even come back so Bulma could ask him? Vegeta didn’t want him to come back, and he was perfectly happy without him around. Made it easier to focus on training to get better than… To be the best period. 

More time passed and Vegeta was frustrated every second of the day. Nothing helped. Bulma complained about his bedside manner and it really began to put a strain on their relationship. When Whis showed up to go to lunch with Bulma, Vegeta finally exploded. He demanded Whis fill him in on all the details. Whis simply refused stating he didn’t want to get involved with the “insignificant” relationship drama of mortals and that made Vegeta even madder. Before he knew what he was doing he was demanding Whis take him to Kakarot so he could ask him himself. 

Bulma smiled a knowing smile, but Vegeta ignored it. He only had questions for Bulma’s sake. Once those were answered he could go back to hating him. When he expressed this, Bulma laughed and told him to use protection if anything happened. Vegeta scowled and placed a hand on Whis’ shoulder. He would ask his questions, maybe kick Kakarot’s ass, then come right back. Nothing so vulgar would ever occur between the two Saiyans, that Vegeta could guarantee. 

Chapter Text

Traveling through space trying to find strong warriors was simultaneously exciting and boring. Exciting because anything could happen, and boring because nothing had yet. Goku was alone with nothing but his thoughts, and that was dangerous. He had no idea what was going to happen next, which he appreciated but he also wished he could just go home to be with Vegeta. He knew realistically that could never happen, and he didn’t know what to do with the new complicated side of himself. Overthinking wasn’t usually his thing, it was Vegeta’s. That thought made his heart ache. Maybe that was the only piece of Vegeta he could have now. 

He tried not to be so sad all the time, but he also had no one to keep up appearances for. Whis would contact him from time to time giving him suggestions on where to go next, but in reality they both knew this was a distraction, not a real mission. Still Goku appreciated the help. It was nice to know he still had someone in his corner. 

Either by chance or design, he ran into a familiar face he wasn’t expecting to see. She was every bit as stubborn and angry as he remembered her being back when they first met. They had become good friends since then, and he hadn’t realized how much he missed her. Cheelai was on the run after stealing a vessel from what was left of Frieza’s army. Goku casually and (hopefully) subtly steered her towards Planet Vampa and Broly. Broly would make an amazing addition to the Universe 7’s Tournament of Power’s roster. It was perfect and he wondered why he hadn’t thought of it before. His job technically done, but still not ready to go home, Goku decided to stay out in space a little longer. He hadn’t been gone long enough for either him or Vegeta to have enough time from the other. 

In his travels he had already been surprised by one familiar face, he wasn’t expecting for it to happen again for a second or third time, but life had a way of surprising you. He entered a strange place, suddenly feeling like he instant transmission to somewhere new instead of flying into it, Goku began to investigate. The spacecraft Whis had given him let him the atmosphere was breathable without having to power up to Super Saiyan God or beyond. He got out and his breath hitched when he saw The Supreme Kai of time standing there waiting for him. 

“Hello Goku.” She greeted him.

“Hey.” Goku replied nervously. 

He was worried why she would be talking to him again. Did he do something bad? How bad was it? He already lost Vegeta forever, what else could it possibly be?

“I wanted to apologize to you. I wasn’t completely honest with you the last time we spoke.” She said solemnly. 

What had she lied about?

“Kais are not supposed to get involved, me so even less. I wanted to cover my tracks, but after meeting you and realizing you had done it all for love I struggled telling you the truth. I told you your time ring was fragile, but really it’s the opposite. The ring is as hard as Katchin, I just didn’t want you meddling with time anymore.”

Goku considered this. “Why are you telling me this now?”

“Well two things. Here in this pocket dimension there is another Grand Zeno waiting for you to take him and join his counterpart. I am not supposed to give too much away, but let’s just say that your reality is much better off with two then one.”

Goku nodded in understanding. He remembered how happy Zenny was when he brought them together. It could get lonely, Goku understood that now better than anyone. 

“The second thing is more of a gift.”

Goku cocked his head at that. 

“If you wish, I can safely remove your memories of your dual life. No one else can do this, not even the Dragon, so please consider carefully.”

“But Vegeta, I-” 

“You wouldn’t remember being together. I would alter his memories too so he would no longer be cross with you in this timeline.”

Goku really thought about it. It was kind of like a get out jail free card. A way to bury this hurt like it no longer existed. He felt a pang in his chest at the idea. 

“Thank you Supreme Kai, but if I don’t remember I’ll just be putting him in danger.” Goku paused. “Also as painful as it is, as much as I miss him, I don’t want to forget loving him.” 

She smiled at him sadly. Not to mention, Vegeta didn’t like being lied to or manipulated. Goku knew that more than ever. Maybe if he had been open and honest with him from the beginning he wouldn’t hate him now. Even if they weren't together, Goku still valued their comradeship and friendship. He missed all those things now. Just as much as he wished he could hold and kiss Vegeta, he missed talking to him, confiding in him. Just the bond of being two of the last of their species would be enough to make him happy. But he lost that chance, and he really didn’t blame Vegeta. That is why he is respecting his wish for space so literally. 

“I think I understand. You are a brave one, Goku. In that case I have a different gift for you. You may choose to do whatever you wish with this information.” She paused and Goku was listening intently. “In your original timeline you were sent to the Earth to conquer and destroy it. With realties squished together and certain events being different I wanted to let you know, the necklace I gave you was to help you see that out of tragedy can come new beginnings. Your parents loved you and sent you to Earth to save you.”

Goku nodded, tears in his eyes.

“Thank you.”

“You are welcome.” 

She smiled at him and placed a hand on his arm, not tall enough to reach his shoulders even with her boots.

“One last thing Goku, do not forget Moro is still on the horizon. Now just keep going and you’ll find what you need in that direction.”

Goku looked where she was pointing, and when he looked back she was gone. Goku walked forward until he saw the other Grand Zeno floating upside down looking like he was frozen in stasis. He touched him, and the other’s eyes came to life. Looks like he had just been there waiting for Goku to find him. Perhaps he was always meant to come into space then. He was still on a designated path. The thought comforted and upset him. Again with his newfound duality. Goku sighed and walked back to his vessel. Time to reunite two old friends. 

Goku spent some time with the Zennies and the Grand Minister. It was fun for a while, but he decided he still needed some time to himself before he made the trip back home. He had been flying for days before he saw a nice planet he could stretch his legs out on and get some fresh air. It was strange to not know exactly what was going to happen next. After a decade of having his every move planned out it was exciting. Sure the Tournament of Power was on the horizon but he didn’t know when it would happen, it could be years. And according to the Supreme Kai of time Moro was on his way, but he was a ways out still. Goku was his own man, it felt nice. He was never going to be with Vegeta, but he had finally accomplished his goal of keeping him safe. And to Goku that was the most important. He did often wonder what Vegeta was up to. Was Bulla born yet? He had been gone awhile now, she must be. 

Goku thought about his own children. He missed them dearly. He knew he’d have to go back to Earth soon, but he wasn’t ready to face Vegeta yet. Maybe he’d never be ready. His new friends too, he missed them, he hadn’t expected to make such great long lasting friendships but was glad he had so many people he cared about. He hoped they could all forgive him for his absence. His heart was heavy and he needed time to himself. He needed… space. 

Goku smiled to himself for a second before he caught it. He wasn’t better, far from it, but he finally felt like he might be able to put the pieces back together one day. He pictured Vegeta, arms crossed and a mischievous smirk on his face. 

You’re a hell of a man to try to get over Vegeta .

He reached out as if to touch him, when suddenly Goku felt a huge burst of energy surround him and the real Vegeta materialized in front of him. 

Goku cried out in shock, and jumped back, not expecting anyone let alone Vegeta to find him this far out in space.

“Vegeta!” Goku cried out in an embarrassingly shrill voice.

“Kakarot, I have some questions and you are going to answer them!” Vegeta approached him, poking him painfully in the chest with his pointer finger. 

“Yeesh, okay, anything you want.” 

Goku pushed his hand away, causing little zips of electricity to course through his body. His heart was beating a million miles an hour and felt like it would burst through his chest. When he breathed in he could smell Vegeta, his senses drowning in his unexpected appearance. 

Feeling overwhelmed Goku tried to back up and give himself some space, but Vegeta just followed him, looking serious and determined to keep Goku close. Didn’t he know all Goku wanted was to be as close to Vegeta as possible? Why was he tempting him like this? Didn’t Vegeta want space? Had he not demanded Goku never speak to him again? As confused as Goku was, he would never deny Vegeta anything ever again. 

“Kakarot,” Vegeta started then stopped. “Bulma she…” Vegeta licked his lips like his mouth was dry. 

“How is she?” Goku asked. 

Temporarily distracted, Vegeta answered him offhandedly. “She is fine, she just had a baby.”

“Bulla.” Goku smiled. 

Vegeta glared but nodded. Goku grimaced at his slip up, but Vegeta didn’t reprimand him other than a dirty look. Maybe it would be easier to be honest with the other man now then he thought. Vegeta cleared his throat.

“Bulma…” Vegeta started again. “She had questions about what you told me. It made me realize I didn’t give you the chance to tell me everything.”

Goku couldn’t tell if he should feel hopeful at his appearance or his questions. He knew they wouldn’t be together, he knew that, but maybe friendship wasn’t off the table after all. Maybe that’s what the Supreme Kai of Time meant when she mentioned Moro. Still, Goku couldn’t keep picking up the broken pieces of his heart anymore so he remained stoic. He would answer Vegeta’s questions honestly. He would tell him whatever he wanted to know, but that didn’t mean Vegeta would accept him. He might hate him worse for it afterward. 

Goku nodded at Vegeta to encourage him to go on. 

“If we were…” Vegeta paused. “What of me and Bulma? You know of our daughter, so what happened?”

Goku shuffled around awkwardly. This question didn’t bode well, but Goku promised himself he would be honest. 

“We had an… arrangement.” Goku coughed. 

“An arrangement?” Vegeta repeated, eyebrow raised. 

“You were still married to Bulma, but we were together too. You split your time between us.”

Goku’s eyes were darting wildly between the ground and Vegeta’s face. He was uncomfortable knowing Vegeta was like a ticking time bomb. Anything he said could set him off. 

Vegeta seemed to process what he said. He nodded curtly. They stood in silence for a while. Goku was awkward and uncomfortable. Was that it? He voiced his question. Vegeta honest to gods blushed, and it warmed Goku’s heart, slightly easing his anxiety. 

“I want to know why you kept up the ridiculous charade for a decade. You don’t know me, you were in love with him, whoever the other version of me was, Kakarot.”

“Hey, that’s not true.” 

Goku surprised himself by taking a step closer to Vegeta. 

“I do know you. And I do… care about you, not just one version of you. I have always seen through you Vegeta, I know you are good deep down in your core. If the Dragon had sent me back another ten years, or into an alternate reality I would always… see you for who you are.”

Goku purposefully avoided saying that he loved Vegeta. He didn’t need that kind of heartbreak right now. Not with Vegeta so close. Any amount of rejection would be too much. He felt his resolve crumbling, he tried to force the hope he was feeling down. 

He was looking at the ground so he saw Vegeta’s feet as they came closer. He braced himself for a hit, but still jumped slightly when Vegeta wound his hand into Goku’s gi , pulling him so he was forced to look at him. They did nothing but stare at each other for a few moments before Vegeta released him. 

“How do I even know if anything you say is the truth?” Angrily, Vegeta snarled at him. 

“You don’t.” Goku shrugged, unable to think of a single thing to get Vegeta to believe him. 

“What if I did? What if I had all the same memories from my other self? Then I would know for sure.”

Goku wasn’t sure if Vegeta said that on a whim, or had been considering it for awhile. Either way, his response was the same.

“Vegeta I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy, let alone you.”

“Hmm, fine I have a different idea. Let’s go find Whis.”

Goku looked around and realized Vegeta had to have gotten there somehow. Vegeta explained his idea to Whis, who seemed to agree with his logic. Goku desperately tried to get them to change their minds. 

“Kakarot do not presume to know my feelings. You chose this burden all this time, it’s my turn to choose for myself”

Goku stopped fighting, remembering his promise to himself and Vegeta, whatever he wanted. 

Similar to when he met this Whis and Beerus, Whis used his staff to tap into Goku’s memories. He showed Vegeta the highlights of their relationship from Goku’s point of view. Vegeta balked at all of them. Goku remained silent and let the wave of nostalgia wash over him. To finally have Vegeta see everything he had kept from him, it was a little overwhelming. Soon they approached the end of the beginning. The day they had spared and Goku had gone home to get dinner ready. It was hard to deny the easy going, comfortableness between the two. Whis stopped before Vegeta could see what happened next, Goku didn’t have the heart to watch it right now. 

Vegeta turned to stare at him, Goku met his gaze. As much as he wanted to look away from his intense gaze, Goku instinctively knew this was one challenge he shouldn’t back down on. Vegeta took a step toward him, slowly, purposefully. He took another. And another. He grabbed him by his chest again. Again, Goku braced again for a hit that never came. Instead lips crushed against his. Goku melted against Vegeta. Goku pulled away, looking at him with wide eyes and a confused look on his face.

“But, Bulma?”

“She already gave her blessing, in her vulgar rude way.”

Goku smiled.

“Just like old times.” He chuckled and it was Vegeta’s turn to look confused. 

Goku ignored his obvious question and pulled him into another kiss. He barely registered Whis making a snarky comment and then walking away. Finally, after all this time, after his final hope had finally died. 

“Are you sure, Vegeta?” Goku pulled back to look down at him, eyes trying to engage his reaction by studying every inch of his face. 

“I’ve told you before, clown. Don’t presume to know how I feel. You always should have let me choose for myself, instead of foolishly trying to protect me.”

Goku hummed in agreement and then went back to kissing him. He was never going to let Vegeta go again. He was so happy he felt like he could burst. He picked Vegeta up and swung him around, laughing happily. Vegeta squawked until he set him down, but allowed Goku to kiss him some more.

Once they finally calmed down enough to let go of the other Whis approached them, asking where to. Goku looked down at Vegeta and realized they could go anywhere or do anything. And they could do it together.

“I think I’d like to go somewhere new.” Goku looked thoughtful as he answered Whis’ question. 

“I think I know just the place.” Whis smiled. “You know there are a few things you need to set right in Universe 6, and if I remember correctly you never did get to see Planet Sadala.”

Goku and Vegeta stared at each other before nodding. 

“That sounds like a wonderful idea Whis!” Goku beamed. 

He and Vegeta traveled with Whis to Universe 6 hand in hand and Goku never felt happier or more complete. He was hopeful for the future again, and even more so, looking forward to the unknown, because he knew he and Vegeta would be facing it together. 

The End 

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