Chapter Text
Sparring with Vegeta was always exciting.
Goku figured it was because they were the only two full-blooded Saiyans left, at least within a close proximity of each other, and they could go all out without worrying about killing the other. Goku loved his friends, but accidentally maiming them during a spar was a very real possibility, and it didn't feel nearly as fulfilling as trading blows with Vegeta.
Vegeta, who was saying, "T'eh."
"Oh!" Goku exclaimed as he dodged one of Vegeta's blasts. "I know that one. That means 'hello'." He giggled. "Well, t'eh to you too, Vegeta!"
"Your accent is atrocious," Vegeta said in lieu of complimenting his sparring partner. He launched a volley of attacks at Goku, his white gloves a blur as he continued, his breath even, "En'l'esh."
"Uh," Goku said, leaping backwards and narrowly avoiding the small blasts. He wracked his brain for the translation. Was that "good morning" or "good night"? "Good morning?" he asked tentatively.
"Wroooong," Vegeta intoned, and the blasts stopped. If Goku got an answer wrong, the spar was over.
"Aw, come on!" Goku's arms flopped to his sides. His blood was still thrumming with adrenaline. "That's not fair."
Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "That is extremely fair, seeing as you got the answer wrong. En'l'esh means good night."
"Oh." Goku scratched his cheek. "Well, then what's Sadalan for good morning?"
"Tch." Vegeta looked like he wasn't going to tell him, Goku could see the retort on his tongue, but he sighed and said, "M'holo."
"'M'holo,'" Goku echoed, tasting the word on his tongue. It still didn't sound right, not nearly as growly as Vegeta had said it.
Vegeta gave a flat little huff of laughter. "I don't know what's worse, Kakarot, listening to you butcher our mother tongue or the fact that our spar was cut short because you couldn't remember our lesson from yesterday."
"It's a lot to remember," Goku pouted. "Sadalan is confusing."
"It's less confusing if you study," Vegeta said mildly, not for the first time.
"Now you just sound like ChiChi." Goku grinned. "And it's not like I don't want to study, but. . ."
"You lost the papers I've given you," Vegeta finished. "Figures." Then, shaking his head, he muttered, "M'ril."
"Hey!" Goku said, offended, putting his hands in his hips. "I know that one. That's not nice, Vegeta."
Vegeta smirked. He began walking away, waving a hand lazily behind him. "See you tomorrow, Kakarot. We'll be doing harder words, so be prepared."
Goku blew a raspberry at him as he flew away.
"Do you remember a whole lot about Planet Vegeta?"
Vegeta gave Goku a surprised look, pausing mid-chew. He considered the question for a moment before swallowing and asking carefully, "Why are you suddenly so interested?"
"What do you mean?" Goku took another bite of his sandwich.
"First wanting to learn Sadalan, and now this."
Goku shrugged. "Just been thinking about it a lot, is all." It wasn't a lie. Lately Goku had been thinking about his Saiyan heritage more and more, how it set him apart from his friends, his wife, even his kids sometimes, how he had a lot more in common with Vegeta. It dawned on him some months ago that when he and Vegeta die, that was the last of the Saiyans — the full-blooded ones, at least. For a reason he couldn't put his fingers on, that bothered him. A lot.
Vegeta regarded him with a wary look. He turned away, continuing on with his meal. At first, Goku didn't think he was going to answer the question, and as the silence stretched on he realized that maybe that was a sore spot for Vegeta and he shouldn't have asked. It was a dumb question, of course Vegeta remembered his — their — home planet.
Goku was shaking his head, chastising himself, when Vegeta muttered, "Yes. I do."
Goku kept silent for once, letting Vegeta continue. It was rare he got to see that vulnerable look in Vegeta's eyes, and one comment was all it would take for Vegeta to close up and never speak on the matter again. So he waited.
Vegeta seemed to mull on his own thoughts for a moment before speaking. He told Goku about his parents, King Vegeta, who was distant at best, and his mother, who died during the birth of his younger brother. He remembered very little of her.
The sky was a rusty red color, the "color of bloodlust," Vegeta mused. Most of the planet's landscape was similar to that of Earth's deserts. Cracked, dry land, densely packed soil, sun-bleached grass. It was hot. There were two moons, though one was harder to see than the other.
Saiyan society was much different from human society. Mothers and fathers shared equal responsibility with their children, though mothers tended to be much more dominant. Saiyan children attended school but in addition to their classes every child was trained.
"Did every kid grow up to be a fighter?" Goku wondered aloud.
"No," Vegeta said. "Some became doctors or scientists, but every Saiyan could fight to some degree. Not everyone had the same power level, though. That's why there were three power classes."
Goku "hmm'd" into his next bite of his food. "So that's why you're always calling me a 'third class'?" he asked, mouth full.
Vegeta wrinkled his nose at him. "Finish chewing your food before you speak, idiot," he groused. "And yes, more or less."
"But our power levels are pretty similar now," Goku pointed out. At least in our base forms. "So does that make me an 'elite warrior' like you?" He gave Vegeta a little smirk.
A scoff. "In your fucking dreams."
"Aw, but it must be so lonely being the only elite warrior."
"Not that damn lonely," Vegeta said.
Goku stuck his tongue out at him.
Vegeta continued to tell Goku more about what he remembered of their home planet. By the time they'd finished their food (the longest amount of time it's probably ever taken a Saiyan to finish a meal, Goku mused) the sun was resting right on the horizon, cicadas chirping in the distance.
Goku listened as quietly as he could, only interjecting when he had a question he couldn't stop himself from blurting out. Vegeta answered him with a patience he'd only seen him exude on rare occasions. It made him feel kind of funny in his stomach, hearing Vegeta's voice all soft like that.
Finally, Vegeta gave a heavy sigh, like he was exhausted. "And that's all I remember," he said, eyes on the grass. He sounded like that fact bothered him.
Goku fidgeted, unsure if he should ask his next question. Vegeta must have noticed his shifting, though, because he turned and gave him an expectant look. "You have another question?" he asked. Goku nodded hesitantly. Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Well, out with it."
Goku bit his lip, then murmured, "Do you ever miss your tail?"
He felt more than saw Vegeta's surprise, the minute spike of his ki like it truly caught him off guard that Goku would ask him such a thing. His reaction wasn't unexpected; after all, it was a sore subject, seeing as it had been cut off by one of Goku's friends. Leaning back on his hands and gazing at the sky, he continued, "Because sometimes I miss mine too, I think. It made me feel so different when I was a kid, but now that I know what I am, who I am, I kind of wish I still had it." He gave a self-depracating shrug and a little huff of laughter. "I dunno. We're the only two full-blooded Saiyans left. I spent a lot of time denying how different I was from my friends but I've kind of started to accept it and I guess I wish I could have convinced Kami to let me keep my tail. Ever since, I've felt like a part of me was — "
" — missing," Vegeta finished quietly.
Goku looked up. They locked eyes.
"Yeah," Goku said, suddenly feeling kind of small under Vegeta's unreadable gaze. "It's faint, but it's there." He gave another laugh. "Heh. I don't think I've ever told anyone that before. Or said it out loud, even."
Vegeta stared at him for another long moment. Then he cracked a smile. And then he chuckled, turning away and shaking his head.
"What's so funny?" Goku said, feeling a little defensive. Maybe he shouldn't have shared all that.
"You never fail to surprise me, Kakarot," Vegeta said. He turned his gaze towards the setting sun. Goku noted the way the orange glow emphasized the brown color of Vegeta's hair.
"So do you?" Goku asked. "Miss your tail."
A beat of silence, then, "Of course I do. I spent most of my life with my tail. I trained with it, centered my gravity around it. When it was cut off, it felt like losing an arm." He scowled. "I have your fat friend to thank for that."
"In his defense," Goku quipped mildly, "you did break every bone in my body."
Vegeta grumbled. "Whatever."
"All of my bones, Vegeta."
"Point is," Vegeta ignored him, "it took months to get used to not having it, and despite the fact that I knew they stopped growing back after a certain age, I. . ." He heaved a sigh. "Well, I hoped."
Goku nodded. He knew in his late teens that his tail wasn't coming back. The persistent ache in his lower back stopped at some point. Sometimes, when it rained especially, he could feel that ache, but other than the occasional sensation of a phantom limb it was like he'd never had one.
He didn't really start thinking about it too deeply until Raditz, Nappa and Vegeta had come to Earth. It was at that point Goku really hated that he wasn't human, that he was associated by blood with these people that massacred entire planets.
Then it was like something clicked. He'd been on his way to Namek when it happened, nothing else to occupy his mind during his training. His Saiyan heritage explained a lot about him, there was no doubt about that. Deep down, he knew that the revelation was satisfying at least in some way. He had answers about his strength, his instincts, why his son had been born with a tail. Something inside him relaxed, a breath he'd been holding. It made sense.
Goku realized, then, that just because he was a Saiyan it didn't mean that he was an inherently bad person. It didn't mean he'd somehow lose all of his humanity and become a cold-blooded killer, and according to Vegeta the Saiyans were under Frieza's rule anyway, so it wasn't like it was their fault. (Well, all of their fault, anway.)
Goku wondered if Vegeta ever regretted what he did in his past. Of course, that was definitely something he wouldn't be able to get him to talk about. Vegeta hardly talked about it anymore, and if he did it was with a wistful smile, as if he was remembering his past ruthless self, but Goku could see clearly that he wasn't that person anymore. His eyes didn't light up like they did back then.
Tonight, though, Goku saw a different kind of glimmer in Vegeta's eyes. His wistful smile held a different context when he talked about Saiyan society. About his tail.
Biting his lip, Goku began to think of a plan.
Goku felt like he wasn't in control of his actions. Maybe he wasn't. No one in their right mind would do what he was about to do. But here he was, standing before the seven Dragon Balls, chewing on his lip nervously.
Maybe it was that far-away look Vegeta got the other night. Maybe it was the way his voice softened, some of the roughness disappearing. Maybe it was the fact that he'd chosen to share any of that with Goku at all. Whatever it was, it beckoned Goku to borrow the dragon radar. Sure, Bulma's back was turned, and it kind of felt like stealing, but it wasn't like he wasn't going to give it back. Besides, he didn't know what he'd say if she asked what he needed it for.
When Goku summoned Shenron and wished for all Saiyans to have their tails back, he wasn't sure how Vegeta would react. Would he finally snap and kill him? It was a possibility. Would he lecture him for such a gross misuse of the Dragon Balls? Maybe.
What he didn't expect was for Vegeta to fly to him at full speed a few moments after the Dragon Balls shot into the sky and dispersed. His ki was wild, almost frenzied, and Goku prepared himself for the worst. Tensing slightly when he heard Vegeta touch down behind him, he turned around.
Vegeta fixed him with a hard, searching look. Goku couldn't get a read on his emotions, and his ki was still fluctuating like it was about to boil over and he was going to send Goku into oblivion. For a long time, neither of them said anything. Goku observed Vegeta's chestnut brown tail flicking almost irritatedly behind him. He withered a bit. I knew this was a bad idea, he thought. I shouldn't have done this without his permission.
He opened his mouth to apologize and then Vegeta was stepping forward and wrapping his arms around Goku.
He froze.
Vegeta, Prince Vegeta, Mr. I-Wouldn't-Know-Kindness-if-it-Slapped-Me-Across-the-Galaxy, was hugging him.
Goku thought he was asleep. He was still unconscious and was currently suffering from the heart virus. He had to be.
Then Vegeta said something, almost too quiet for Goku to catch. But he heard it, and it rang like a bell in his ears.
"D’in m’yo."
He knew those words.
Goku didn't have a chance to respond. Vegeta's arms abruptly disappeared, leaving him slightly cold, and then he was taking off into the sky, leaving just as quickly as he had come. If Goku didn't know any better, it was like he had never been there.
There went that funny feeling in his stomach again. Except, it was blooming in his chest too, cracking open like a soda and fizzing there. He could feel the echo of Vegeta's arms around him, his faint scent, which smelled different now that he had his tail; headier, spicier.
Goku stared in the direction that Vegeta went, frozen with disbelief.
He never thought he'd see the day when Vegeta would be telling him "thank you."
Goku's eyes popped open sometime around midnight a week later, his body covered in sweat.
Gods, he thought, wincing and attempting to wipe his face dry, it sure is hot in here. He wondered if ChiChi turned the air conditioning off or something. Or maybe it was just that hot outside. It got like that sometimes, as the AC in their home wasn't the greatest in the world. What he wouldn't give to have the same powerful, chilly air conditioning that Bulma's house had.
Another wave of heat washed over him. He couldn't sleep like this. He sat up and glanced over at ChiChi's sleeping form. At least she seems comfortable, Goku thought. She wasn't sweating at all. In fact, she was still in her sleepwear, snuggled up under the covers. Goku had completely soaked through his tank and boxers, and judging by the cloth sticking to his legs the sheets were wet, too. Gingerly, Goku peeled himself off of the bed, and was about to swing his legs over the edge when something brushed his arm.
He jumped and clamped down a scream for fear of waking ChiChi (that never ends well) and glanced down. Oh. He'd nearly forgotten about that.
Goku hadn't seen Vegeta since he wished their tails back. He figured he'd give him time, though he sure did miss sparring with him. Goku observed his tail, laying flat on the mattress. He still didn't know how to feel about it. Well, he knew he felt whole again, but something kept niggling in the back of his mind like any day now it was going to be removed again. Goten and Trunks were ecstatic, and as far as he knew Gohan felt similar to how Goku did. His eldest agreed that having a tail after not having it for so many years was. . .weird. It felt almost kind of wrong. But it had only been a week. He'd get used to it eventually.
Goku slid out of bed and quietly stepped out of their bedroom. He peeked in Goten's room. He didn't seem to be all that sweaty, either. He, too, was wrapped in blankets, snoring softly. Goku smiled and closed his door with a quiet click. Then he padded over to the thermostat, which —
Which was set to sixty-six degrees.
"Huh?" Goku said, audibly, then clamped his mouth shut. That couldn't be right. It was a million degrees in the house! He was still sweating and his tank top was sticking to his chest. Goku knew he ran hot, hotter than humans, but sixty-six degrees was still pretty comfortable for him.
Confused, he located the air vent in the hallway and stuck a hand over it. He could feel the cold air, and it felt amazing. Maybe the air just wasn't circulating throughout the house correctly? He tiptoed back into their bedroom and, cringing, slid back into his damp side of the bed. ChiChi mumbled something in her sleep and turned to face Goku.
"Chi," Goku whispered.
ChiChi frowned. Goku reached over and gently touched her arm.
"Chi," he said again.
"What," ChiChi groaned, her eyes opening to slits. "Goku, it's late, what is it?"
At least she didn't smack him. "Are you hot?"
She frowned deeper. "That's why you woke me up?" She sighed, murmuring, "No, it's actually very cold."
"Oh," Goku said, frowning. Then why was he so hot?
ChiChi's eyes opened fully this time. She sat up immediately and reached over to plant a hand underneath Goku's bangs. Her hands felt cool on his forehead.
"Kami, sweetheart, you're burning up," she exclaimed, alarmed. "You're way hotter than usual!"
"I know," Goku said miserably. "I can't sleep."
"How are you feeling? Do you feel sick? Do you have a headache? Scratchy throat?" She pressed her hands against the sides of his neck. "Your lymph nodes don't feel swollen."
Goku smiled at her barrage of questions, something in him melting at her concern for him. "Naw, I feel fine. Just really hot."
"I'll see if I can find that old box fan in Gohan's old room. Are you sure you feel okay?"
"Yup."
"I'm giving you some medicine just in case." ChiChi slid out of bed, her eyes set with determination. "Don't go anywhere."
Goku watched in admiration as ChiChi left their room. With a little laugh, he laid back against the pillows, which normally offered him some sort of cool relief but didn't this time around. Whatever was wrong with him, it didn't seem that bad. Being really hot was concerning, but he's felt much worse.
Eventually ChiChi returned with the box fan and some liquid medicine for him to swallow. Under her watchful, fretful gaze, he downed the bitter medicine with a shudder and hummed at the air coming from the fan.
"Better?" ChiChi asked.
"A little," Goku said honestly. "Still hot, but I think I could sleep now."
Satisfied, ChiChi slid back into bed. "And you'll wake me if you feel worse?"
"Of course," Goku said. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Thanks, Chi."
She playfully batted him away. "Goku! You're sweaty!"
He laughed and she smiled softly at him.
"Goodnight, Goku."
"'Night, Chi."