It has been a few weeks since Goku's return from planet Yardrat, and there has been little give in the intensity of the group's training for Frieza's inevitable return. However it might not be Frieza who will give the group their biggest surprise yet. Can this chain of events be the push Vegeta needs to become the legendary Super Saiyan? Or is there something else at work that might change him in more ways one thought possible? Maybe a thaw in the Prince's heart is the only thing stopping him from achieving his goals, but of course nothing is ever as simple as it seems. And once more, where is Frieza and what is the reason behind his delayed return?

This is set after the destruction of planet Namek by Frieza with a slight alteration of events. After many months waiting for Goku's return, he finally arrives back on Earth with no sign of Frieza. The Z fighters decide to dedicate their time to training in hopes of becoming powerful enough for when their enemy finally shows his face again. In this fic, Trunks and the respective timeline does not exist (for now at least).

I won't give much away but this is just a heads up to say the first few chapters will be setting up the scene before we jump into the main plot. Whatever happens will be a slow burn so that in the end it actually means something (because it's always more fun that way)! This will start off as a K+ rating, but may eventually move to M depending on how things go. I really hope you enjoy it and would love to know what you think. :)

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Although short, Vegeta's time on Earth so far had changed him in more ways than he would ever admit. From the moment he first stepped foot on the planet's coarse ground, it seemed as though a set of motions was put in place that would eventually remodel the Saiyan Prince into a more diverse, innovated version of himself. The initial fury that raged within his heart at the sight of any weaker being eventually began to subside, and the once violent Prince was now beginning to understand the meaning of mercy.

Vegeta arrived on Earth knowing nothing more than destruction and had little regard for anyone other than himself. Any remorse he did feel did not stretch far at all, not even far enough to shield his own companion, Nappa. Weakness, no matter your loyalty, would inevitably be rewarded with death. Vegeta did well to remember it.

However despite his hostile rampage, Kakarot and the earthlings had shown him mercy in one of his weakest moments. And that is what started the change within him; although not visible at first, the spark inside eventually began to grow. After his encounter with Frieza and Kakarot on planet Namek, he soon found himself back on Earth. With the threat of Frieza looming at any point, Vegeta had opted to stay and train with Kakarot and the others, hoping to learn all the skills he needed in order to become a Super Saiyan. Before long, the intolerable races he once couldn't stand slowly started to become more and more tolerable over time. It seemed that change within Vegeta was happening whether he wanted it to or not.

One particular bout of change decided to visit him on a seemingly average day like many before. Vegeta was sparring with Kakarot in one of their now frequently occurring training sessions, and also sharing the space was Krillin and Gohan, Yamcha and Tien, and close by were Bulma and Master Roshi watching intently.

Dust sprayed across the dry earth as shoes scrapped and knocked loose pebbles with every well-landed kick and defensive footstep the fighters dealt. Vegeta in particular was once again getting annoyed at Kakarot's ability to dodge almost all of his attacks, but in succession, the Prince was also able to dodge his partner's blows when they came back around.

Kakarot was a lot stronger than him and he knew it. He hated him for it. But at the same time, he could tolerate him a considerable amount more than anyone else in their peculiar group. Although he would never admit it, he found he was actually growing more accustomed to everyone as the days progressed on. Of course, there were times when he wanted to tear their arms off for being so absurdly annoying and stupid, but other days he actually, dare he say it, enjoyed their company. Today however, was somewhere between the two.

Kakarot had just managed to land a well-timed hit that caused Vegeta to coil forwards and grab his stomach when something caught the Prince's eye. The taller Saiyan soon wiped the smug expression off his face as he noticed he didn't have Vegeta's full attention.

"Huh? What's up?" Goku raised an eyebrow and followed his partner's gaze as it appeared to focus on something behind him. Vegeta didn't reply. Instead, he raised his body back up to full height and squinted his eyes.

Several hundreds of feet above them and far ahead on the other side of the plains, something big moved across the sky at an alarmingly fast rate. A line of white smoke trailed behind it as it surged through the clouds, and by the time it reappeared out of the second wave of clouds, Vegeta realised his attention wasn't the only one it had caught. Everyone on the training field now stared at it with intent curiosity.

"What are you all looking at? Wait, what's that?" A loud, inquisitive Bulma squeaked as she walked a few paces forwards in order to get a better view of the foreign object.

"I don't know," Krillin replied, "it looks a bit like…like a-"

…Like a pod.

Vegeta felt his heart skip a beat and soon realised Kakarot was staring intently at him. From his pale expression, it seemed he too had realised what it was.

Goku and Vegeta immediately raced forwards, not bothering to give the others an explanation. Although it seemed they didn't need one, as it was Gohan to realise next what was happening. "It's a Saiyan pod!" He yelled, before too joining in the chase.

From what Vegeta could see, it was going to land just short of the treeline a couple of miles away. Irritated, he kicked off from the ground and launched himself into the air, overtaking Kakarot with a gust of air.

He could feel his heart pounding in his chest as the wind soared past him. It was impossible. Was this really happening? Saiyan pods only meant trouble, and as of yet, there had been no evidence to suggest otherwise. Every single being that emerged from those pods had one thought on their mind: destruction. He knew it all too well.

The chances of its inhabitant being a Saiyan was next to impossible, and for that he was grateful. Once more, there appeared to be only a tremor of energy emerging from the foreign object. However, that didn't mean they were in the clear. Saiyan pods were famous for their speed and durability, and that was one of the reasons the galaxy's most violent warriors used them. So Saiyan or not, whatever emerged from that capsule meant trouble.

He doubled his speed just as the capsule crashed into the earth.

Moments later, it came into view and he landed several metres in front of the newly formed crater. Sickening nostalgia swept over him as he recalled every detail of the familiar spaceship he had spent so many years of his life in travelling across the stars. Not long ago he would have relished at the sight, but now he wanted it gone.

What was he thinking? He was a Prince. He was the Prince. Whatever stepped out from inside that pod, he could deal with it. And deal with it he would, as he had done with everything before now. If anyone should be fearful it should be the weak earthlings, not him.

So wrapped up in his own thoughts, Vegeta barely noticed Goku land beside him.

"We should destroy it," Vegeta hissed, taking a step forwards. But the taller Saiyan thrust an arm in front of him before he could make any more ground.

"No." His voice was stern. So stern that Vegeta immediately became infuriated as his natural response to orders kicked in. He should be the one giving orders, not Kakarot. Vegeta batted his hand away and grunted.

They stood there in silence for a few minutes eyeballing the spaceship below them, waiting for any indication of movement. Only the next thing to move didn't come from the pod; the rest of the group loudly skidded to a halt behind them a few minutes later. Bulma wiped her hand across her forehead whilst complaining how they 'could have given them a heads up before charging off like that' and how they should 'consider the people who don't have Saiyan eye-sight.'

"Be quiet!" Vegeta spat. The blue-haired woman opened her mouth but before she had the upmost pleasure to reply with a well-thought out Saiyan insult, a quiet, popping sound came from the pod.

The cracked, pink door slowly lowered to the ground, revealing whatever was inside. Vegeta bunched his hands into fists and a couple of the other fighters did the same. Goku however calmly began to make his way down the side of the crater to peer around the door, but before he got there, a hand grasped the opening of the pod from the inside and moments later, a human-like figure emerged.

A head clad with long, dark brown hair peered round the doorway followed closely by a tall, slender body bearing the famous Saiyan battle armour and…a tail.

No!…It couldn't be!

Vegeta instinctively spread his feet apart and resumed his fighting stance from before. The others did the same.

"It's a…a Saiyan!" Gohan's voice was on the verge of breaking.

Vegeta's head raced with thoughts. How could this be possible? To his knowledge, the only true Saiyans that survived after the fall of his planet were himself, Nappa, Raditz, and Kakarot. Were his eyes deceiving him? Was this creature stood in front of him really a Saiyan? Despite the impossible, every sense was telling him what he didn't want to hear.

He focused on the being's energy again now that is wasn't shielded by the pod's walls, and the sheer power of it merely backed up the unimaginable. But wait… As he felt for the energy in front of him, he noticed that every couple of seconds it would diminish and re-form, much like a candle's flame in the wind. Were they…injured?

The new Saiyan was now out of the capsule standing before them, but what caught Vegeta's attention was the somewhat harsh grasp they were exhibiting on the pod's door, as if they were trying to hold themselves up. Next, was the tight grip they had around their waist, much like Vegeta had done before when Kakarot landed a punch.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Goku was the first to break the silence.

The new Saiyan's pain-stricken, dark eyes focused on the bald earthling. "I-I'm looking for r…refuge." Her voice was not harsh, nor calm, but somewhere between the two. It was as if she was trying to hide the pain in her voice, but was inevitably failing.

"Yeah Right!" Krillin scoffed, and the Saiyan's face hardened, making him regret his words ever so slightly. But then he seemed to remember that on his side were in fact three other Saiyan's, so he wasn't in any immediate danger. "We know what you are, you're a Saiyan! Saiyan's don't come to planets seeking refuge, they come here for one thing…they come here to kill every last lifeform they can find!" As he spoke his confidence grew, so much so that he took a step forward, as if forgetting a Saiyan could kill him in seemingly one shot.

"I say we kill her, before she gets the chance to kill us!" Yamcha was the next to speak up.

"Enough!" Goku raised his voice and silence immediately followed. Typical, Vegeta silently grunted, always the one to take control of the situation. Admittedly, he was on Yamcha's side. There was no such thing as a friendly Saiyan, and he himself was proof of that when he and Nappa first arrived just over a year ago. They should kill her before she killed them. Not that she could, he thought absentmindedly; her power level is too low…and dropping as we speak. But maybe it was a trap. Maybe she wanted to lull them into a false sense of security…

"You're injured." Kakarot spoke again, taking a couple of steps down towards the woman. "I can tell that much just by looking at you, never mind being able to sense the drop in your power level." The female Saiyan looked at the approaching man and tightened her grip on the pod door. "Tell me, can you sense our power level?"

She stared at him for a few moments, seemingly analysing what she could, and seconds later switched her gaze over to Vegeta's direction. He was slightly taken aback by her scrutineering glare, but he shrugged it off. At least she can recognise the two that hold the most power here.

"Y-yes," she replied, returning her eye line to Goku.

"Good," he began, "then you know you are in no position to challenge us in your current condition." She hardened her gaze again, and Vegeta swore her eyes turned over a shade a black.

"I wasn't going to challenge you anyway!" She spat, but her hard demeanour didn't last long. As soon as she finished speaking, she let out a pained gasp and fell down to one of her knees. Her arm moved slightly from around her thin waist and Vegeta noticed the blood that had started to gather there. Some of it pooled over her arm and onto her knees.

"Bulma-" Goku began, as if planning a set of instructions to help the woman out.

"Wait, what?" Tien exclaimed, "we're not seriously going to help her, are we?"

"Yeah no offense, but what are we going to do, heal her so that when she's at full strength she can take us all out?" Krillin folded his arms defiantly, "you know Saiyan's aren't well-known for their kind exterior, Vegeta is proof of that…"

"Watch yourself, baldy." The Saiyan Prince spat back. "…But he does have a point, Kakarot."

Goku sighed and for a second, Vegeta actually thought he was considering their argument, but after another look at the wounded Saiyan in front of him, he hardened his gaze again. "We were just about ready to kill you when you first arrived Vegeta, but we took a chance and it all worked out for the better." Bringing up Vegeta's low point was a definite method to fuel his rage, and the Prince was just about ready lash out. Kakarot however, must have noticed the boiling rage the smaller Saiyan was exhibiting through the unprecedented stare he was wearing. "And…" he continued, "I know I'm speaking for all of us when I say it's a bloody good job we took it."

Vegeta folded his arms and could just about hear the sarcastic comments that were forming in Krillin's mind about how actually, he was not so pleased Vegeta was a part of their group now. He glanced over to him in warning. "What?!" The shorter fighter exclaimed, "I didn't say anything!"

Before anyone could say anything else, the female Saiyan let out another gasp and threw her second arm around her waist. Her knees began to buckle underneath her. "Whether you're going to help me or kill me, please…just make up your minds!" Her voice was tinged with sarcasm and pain, and Vegeta could feel her life force slowly draining.

"Bulma, fly everyone to the hospital, we'll meet you there. Vegeta, Krillin, Gohan…come with me." With that, Goku stepped forwards and knelt down in front of the wounded Saiyan. He tucked one arm underneath her knees and wrapped the other just above her waist before ascending into the sky.

Vegeta cursed under his breath as he followed. He had a bad feeling about this.