Notes: Keep in mind that this is a messed-up timeline. Therefore, instead of being six years older than Goku, Vegeta is only two years older.
Chapter Two: Family Reunion
Vegeta almost couldn't believe it. He had never expected to see his home again, but here it was, just as he remembered it. It had been so long, but his memory hadn't failed him at all. He even recognized where the time machine had landed.
They were currently in a forest, surrounded by tall trees thicker than either he or Goku could wrap their arms around. Moss hung from the branches, and all around them fuzzy little creatures scampered away in fear at their sudden appearance. Almost in a dream-like state, Vegeta lifted the hatch and took his first breath of Vegetan air. It was just as he remembered, though the smell of blood wasn't as strong.
He jumped out of the capsule, looking around fondly. Yes, he knew just where they were. Peering through the gaps in the trees, he could see the towering walls of the palace in the distance. They weren't so far from the capital city. Behind him, Goku got out of the machine and looked around.
"Wow, it's different from Earth," he said. Vegeta snorted in answer.
"Of course it's different from Earth, Kakarot! This is our home world! Let me guess. You don't remember it at all."
"Uh, no… But I was only a baby, so why would I?"
"Hmph. Right, why would someone with such low intelligence remember it at all? Let's go."
"Wait, Vegeta! What about our disguises?"
"Hm?"
"You know, what are we going to call ourselves? I guess I can still be Goku, since nobody knows me as that, but what about you?"
"Huh. Fine," Vegeta crossed his arms as he thought about it, "I suppose I could call myself…"
"How about Geta?"
"What?" Vegeta glared at his comrade, "What kind of name is that?"
"Well, it's really just half of your name, but nobody'll know, right?"
"Kakarot, that's-"
"Ah, ah! It's Goku!"
"Grr!" Vegeta stomped his foot in irritation, "Fine, GOKU! What kind of name is Geta?"
"I think it's a good name!" Goku grinned, "But if you've got something better, you can go with that, too."
"Oh, I'm getting impatient!" Vegeta stormed off through the trees, "Geta it is, then!"
"Yay!" Goku hopped after him, "Let's go, then! I'm hungry…"
XXXXX
With Frieza's wrath no longer looming above them, the Saiyans seemed to have become a bit more carefree. Vegeta noticed that the city had changed from the way he remembered it. In his own timeline, the citizens had gone about their daily chores with an air of depression. Hardly anyone walked the streets except for Frieza's minions. The few street vendors that had been brave enough to set up shop in broad daylight had mostly been cowering behind the counters and glancing nervously down the streets.
Now, the streets were positively lively. Vegeta was unprepared for the crowds that packed the streets. Even women were walking around freely, not bothering to keep their small children too close to them. Saiyans being Saiyans, there were several scuffles. However, these minor disturbances were broken up quickly and most of them seemed to be friendly debates between laughing contestants who barely put any strength at all into their punches.
Naturally, a few heads turned as Vegeta and Goku wandered down the street. A few Saiyans were naturally attuned to others' energies, and the extremely powerful newcomers were cause for some speculation. However, Vegeta was too busy taking everything in and visiting his childhood memories, comparing the two worlds and deciding that he rather liked this one better.
Goku, of course, was ogling the many food stands and restaurants.
"Mmm! That smells good!" he sighed as they passed a vendor selling freshly-grilled meat.
"It's Saiyan fare," Vegeta said proudly, "Ka- er, Goku, you cannot imagine the feasts we used to enjoy, even in those dark times… We Saiyans eat a simple diet, but it's the best food in the universe…" he couldn't help that his stomach was beginning to growl as loudly as Goku's.
"I say we eat!" Goku said excitedly, but Vegeta grabbed him by the collar as he tried to rush into the nearest restaurant.
"Wait!" the prince pulled him back, "We don't have any money! Damn it…"
"Aww…"
Now their little excursion wasn't shaping up to be as enjoyable as they had both anticipated. It seemed that there was food around every corner, and they were prohibited from eating any of it. They both wished they had eaten before coming here. Vegeta was beginning to consider stooping to hunting something in the forest when someone ran up and took hold of Goku's arm.
"Bardock!" the person, a tall burly man with short, spiky hair, slammed an arm around Goku's shoulders with a wide grin on his face. "Where ya been, huh?" he asked.
"Uh… who are you?"
"It's… wait, you're not Bardock!" Toma let go of Goku and stood back, a wary look on his face, "But you don't look like Turles… Just who are you?"
"Uhh…" Goku was at a loss for words.
"Huh… wait, I get it!" the tall man smiled again, "You must be a relative of Bardock! Right?"
"Um…"
"Thought so. How are you related to him?"
"I'm not…"
"He's a cousin," Vegeta said, nudging Goku with his foot, "Bardock's cousin Goku."
"Oh. What about you?" the man asked, pointing to Vegeta, "You a relative? You look kinda familiar…"
"No, I'm a friend of Goku's…" Vegeta scowled as he said the word 'friend', then a more pleasant look crossed his face, "More like commander. You see, Goku and I went into space years ago. We have just now come back, and he's looking for his family. I must stay with him, because he can't really be trusted on his own. He's a bit of an idiot, you see."
"Hey, I am not!" Goku protested.
"Uh… O… K… Well, do you two need any help finding Bardock?" the man asked, "I'm his friend Toma. Hey, sorry about earlier," he said to Goku, "You look just like him! I swear, his whole family look alike… It's kinda creepy."
"Take us to him," Vegeta said.
"Sure. What's your name again?"
"Geta…"
"Geta? OK, well, follow me, then."
As they followed behind Toma, Goku gave Vegeta a confused look. "Raditz mentioned a man called Bardock a few times," Vegeta whispered, "He was your father, I believe."
"Oh…" Goku was lost in thought as they passed through the streets, and hardly noticed when the crowd thinned out and they came into a more residential area of town. He was thinking about what his father would be like, and it occurred to him that he would most likely meet himself as well. He wondered what he would have been like if he'd been raised in the place of his birth.
He got his answer when Toma led them to a two-story house in what looked to be a middle-class neighborhood. It didn't look very fancy, but the place was clean and quiet. There was even a front lawn that looked well-groomed. Goku and Vegeta gawked for a moment as Toma said, "Well, here you are. I'd stop in to see Bardock, too, but I have to do something. Besides, don't wanna butt in on family time, right?" he laughed a little. "See ya later," he said, and walked back down the street with a wave of his hand.
"This is it," Goku muttered, steeling himself. For once, Vegeta didn't seem too eager to lead the way. He allowed Goku to follow the paved walkway to the curved door, and followed at a safe distance. He didn't feel too nervous, but he was surprised to feel Goku's anxiety coming off in his energy.
With another moment for preparation, Goku raised his hand to knock on the door. That was when something flew out of a second-story window and hit him on the head.
"HEY!" a shrill voice came from the open window, "That was my game system, you little twerp!"
"Lemme go, you dumb jerk!" a shriller voice answered, and then there was the sound of a scuffle.
"How dare you?" screamed the first voice.
"I wanted to play, too!" shrieked the second.
"Oh, yeah? LET'S SEE HOW YOU LIKE BEING THROWN OUT THE WINDOW?"
Seconds later, Goku and Vegeta looked up in alarm as two legs, clad in blue shorts, came kicking through the window. A torso followed, then a flailing child, probably ten years old, was thrust through. Goku and Vegeta both gasped when they saw that an older boy with long, spiky hair was holding the younger out the window. They were looking at Raditz and Kakarot. The younger, looking just like Goku, was screaming death threats as his elder brother held him aloft and obviously prepared to toss him to the ground.
"Lemme go!" Kakarot whined, "DAAAAD!"
"What the hell-?" Now Goku and Vegeta spun around to see an exact copy of Goku, wearing a black training gi, stomp angrily from the side of the house. "What are you two- wait…" he paused in mid-shout towards the window as he saw the two newcomers on the doorstep. "Uh… Who are you two?"
Before either of them could answer, there was a roar from the window. "YOU LITTLE BASTARD!" Raditz was screaming, "YOU RIPPED OUT A CHUNK OF MY HAIR! YOU'RE DEAD MEAT!"
"Hold on," Bardock muttered to the visitors as he rushed into the house. They heard his footsteps tramping up the stairs, then Raditz and Kakarot were yanked back through the window. "What in bloody hell are you DOING!" Bardock's voice carried through the open window, "Didn't you see we have company? Can't you two behave for one minute?"
"He threw my game system out the window!"
"He wouldn't let me play!"
"Dammit, boys! Kakarot, go to your room! Raditz, stay here until you cool off!" There was the sound of a door slamming, and the window slammed shut with a very pissed-off sounding growl of frustration from Raditz. Bardock finally reappeared in the doorway, looking hassled. "Who are you and what do you want?" he asked a bit irritably.
"Uh… I- I'm Goku. I'm, uh, your cousin, I think."
"You think?"
"We've been gone for quite some time," Vegeta said, "Out, er, exploring the galaxy. I'm Geta, his superior."
"I see…" Bardock gave them both an appraising look. "Well, the family resemblance is strong," Bardock said, "You look just like me… All right, come on in."
He led them into the house, which was sparsely furnished and had few decorative items. It was clean and tidy, but it was apparent that Bardock didn't care much for homemaking. There were cabinets filled with machine parts in the living room, and when he led them into the dining room he had to clear the table of mechanical debris.
"I'm in the middle of a project," he explained, "There's crap lying all over the house, so just ignore it and don't touch anything. You guys hungry?"
"Boy, are we ever!" Goku cried, and Vegeta nodded.
"All right, I've got some snacks around here somewhere…" Bardock rummaged in the pantry and then brought out a large loaf of bread and some cheese. A huge box of what looked like beef jerky accompanied this repast, and Vegeta and Goku dug in gratefully. Bardock gave them each a large glass of a sweet-smelling drink, which they downed with enjoyment.
"Sorry about earlier," Bardock said, gnawing on some jerky, "Those were my sons, Raditz and Kakarot. They're ill-behaved monkeys."
"Are they?" Goku asked, "The older one looked kinda like a bully…"
"Are you kidding? They're equally horrible! If my mate were alive, she'd have them sent to the zoo!"
"You mean m- er, your wife's dead?" Goku nearly dropped his glass.
"Yeah," Bardock said gruffly, leaning back and crossing his arms with an unreadable expression on his face, "Died while giving birth to Kakarot."
"Oh… I'm sorry…"
"Well, that's life. So where have you been all this time? Why didn't you come home sooner?"
"Um, we were kinda held back a little," Goku said, then shut his mouth when Vegeta stomped his foot beneath the table.
"We've been traveling and training," Vegeta said.
"I see… Say, you two weren't sent out to hunt down Frieza's minions, were you?" Bardock asked.
"… Yes… Yes, we were," Vegeta said cautiously, "We've killed a fair few of them."
"Nice work," Bardock said, seeming to approve, "We don't need any of that scum around here… Since the Revolution, we've been doing better than ever."
"Revolution?"
"Yeah, you didn't hear? We managed to rise up and defeat Frieza and his army! After we got the king out of the way, we-"
"What did you say?"
"We overthrew the king," Bardock said, leaning forward again, "Sounds shocking, but he wasn't doing the planet any good, making deals with back-stabbers like Frieza…"
"Wh- where is the king now?" Vegeta asked, shocked, "And the prince?"
"Oh, they survived," Bardock said, "I mean, the king wasn't really up for fighting the people's will, once Frieza took his son. He wasn't up for much of anything, really. Kinda pathetic, but it's understandable. Actually, they don't live too far from here."
"Not far at all, old man!" All three Saiyans turned their heads. Standing in the doorway was a twelve-year-old Vegeta.
TBC