Hey guys, welcome! Thank you for taking an interest in my story and for those of you who have been reading so far, thank you so much for being patient with my lagging updates and the rewriting we're going to be enjoying together! You guys are awesome and I really didn't expect this story to be read as much as it is. I want to give a special thanks to my beta, RoyalBlueRoses, who took the time to catch up on this story so she could better help me and has been dealing with my not-so-great ideas in the making and my general ups and downs as a writer. She's amazing and a wonderful writer herself. If you aren't reading her work, you're missing out.

Thank you again and happy reading!

Prologue:

Age 779, Early November

It was a beautiful crisp morning at Mt. Paozu, and Son Tsuchi looked absolutely ridiculous.

"Again, why must I do this?" the girl asked, raising her right leg in front of her. Her posture was stable, at least as far as balancing on a rock was concerned. The books stacked on her head, however, wobbled precariously.

Her older sister, Chai, couldn't decide if she thought the prospect of hopping rocks with books on your head was more insane, or that Mama was making the 12-year old do it in a dress. Specifically, an old Chinese hanfu with big billowy sleeves and a skirt threatening to trip the girl onto her face.

I don't remember having to do this.

"You will one day be the Ox Queen," Chi-Chi scolded. "You must be an image of beauty and grace."

"You must also punch boys in the face!" Chai shouted as Tsuchi hopped to her first rock. She stumbled forward but regained her balance and caught the first book that slid from her head.

Chi-Chi glared over at her oldest child, as Chai smiled and tipped her head onto the woman's shoulder. Being the same height made that incredibly easy. "Love you Mama."

"Oh I love you dearly, Chai-chan. I don't know how you turned out so mouthy, though."

Tsuchi hopped the next rock more successfully as Chai straightened back up. "Must be the Ox blood."

The girl got to her fourth rock and lowered her leg before placing her hands behind her back and carefully bowing to the other two. Her straight black hair nearly grazed her feet as she did so.

"Now go back through and recite all Twelve Kingdoms," Chai instructed.

"Sissy!" Tsuchi whined.

The demi-saiyan raised her dark eyebrows into her wild bangs and lost her smile as she stared down at her baby sister. Tsuchi and Goten were twins, seventeen years younger than Chai. Eighteen, if you counted the year in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.

"You were the one that wanted to do this, Princess," Chai calmly told her.

The girl sighed. "Yes, Your Majesty." She regained her posture and hopped to the first rock. "Sheep, Rat, Dog…" As Tsuchi rattled off the Twelve Kingdoms, Chai thought back to their conversation the week prior.

"Sister, may I talk to you?" Tsuchi asked, looking up at her.

"Of course," Chai replied

Tsuchi gave herself a moment, looking between her sister and the floor before speaking. "I.. umm… I wanna be queen…"

The woman blinked at the girl. "A teen, right? You said ya wanted to be a teen."

Tsuchi looked away. ".. queen…"

"I'm still not hearing you."

"Queen!" Tsuchi squealed, then sighed. "I want to be queen."

The end of her tail flicked as Chai eyed her sister. "Thank you, but I'm not dying."

"No, but you do go to war often. You could die. And you don't have a successor."

"Which Mama never lets me forget."

"Maybe she'd stop if you begin preparing me for rule. You started only a year younger than I am, and began ruling right after Papa died. I could start when I'm 19, and it'll be the same amount of time as you had. Seven years."

Chai had to be honest, getting Mama off of her back would be nice. Still…

"It'd be good to have a successor prepped, I'll give ya that. It's hard though, Tsuch'. It's a lot of decision making, diplomacy, thousands of people depending on you, and sometimes it's war. You think you could stomach sending hundreds to fight, possibly die?"

"I think…" the girl looked away.

Chai sighed. No way. Tsuchi was sweet and soft, like Gohan. I absolutely love her, but she doesn't have the spine.

"IthinkIwouldbebetteratdiplomacythanyouare." She said in a quick manner that was barely discernible.

"What was that, Namekian?" Chai asked

Tsuchi looked away from her."I think I'd be better at diplomacy than you…."

Chai crouched before her sister and palmed the girl's cheek so Tsuchi had no choice but to face her. "Look at me and say that."

The girl looked up, peering through bangs which were reminiscent of their mother's. Her dark eyes were glassy, and for a moment, Chai thought she was going to run away crying.

"I would be better at diplomacy than you."

The words were nearly whispered, but Tsuchi didn't look away. Chai held her gaze, frown clear on her features.

That took some fucking guts. The youngest Son girl never spoke her mind other than to Goten and Trunks. Mama could be so overbearing, and though Papa encouraged his children to speak up, he tended to let his wife dominate the household. Gohan was easy enough to talk to, and most of the twins' lives Chai was around. She played, cuddled, told stories, and taught them, sure, but Sissy was different from Queen Chai. No one told Queen Chai shit.

Except Tsuchi just did.

The woman smiled. "Maybe I can make a queen outta you."

Tsuchi landed back on the rock she started on. "...Horse, Ox, Monkey."

Two small ki's sped towards the Son women. Chai looked up and smiled as Goten-kun and Trunks-kun landed before her and Chi-Chi in a cloud of dust. She chuckled at the leaves in their hair and clothes, both chests heaving as the boys no doubt had raced to see who would arrive first. It was a much friendlier rivalry than their fathers had. At least the demis would admit they were friends.

"I see you boys took the scenic route," Chai greeted as her mother brushed dirt off of her dress, eyeing her youngest son.

"It's too easy to just fly here from West City," Trunks boasted.

"We wanted to race to see who could run here the fastest!" Goten exclaimed.

"Tsuchi-chan, that's enough for today!" Chi-Chi called over. The girl immediately got to the grass and yanked the books from her head. She picked up her skirts and rushed inside.

"And make sure you put that dress away properly!" Chi-Chi shouted after her, going into the house as well.

"So what brings you little shits out here?" Chai smirked, leading them into the house.

In the kitchen, Chi-Chi already had cups set out on the table and tea brewing in the middle. The sweet and spicy smell made Chai's mouth water as she pulled out a chair.

"Tell us more about the time travelling warrior!" the duo demanded.

Chai gestured at the remaining chairs for the boys to sit. Tsuchi appeared soon after, looking more herself in a simple green dress. The older demi-saiyajin poured tea into all of the cups as everyone settled in.

"Aren't you three getting a bit old for these stories?" Chai asked.

"What stories?" Tsuchi asked, warming her hands on her cup.

"The 'time traveller'," Chai muttered, sipping on her tea.

"Oh!?" Tsuchi startled. "He always sounded so charming."

Trunks-kun rolled his eyes at the girl and Chai almost choked from stifling laughter.

"Why wont you tell us his name?" Goten-kun cried out, swishing his tail around.

"It's really best that you don't know his name," Chai muttered.

"Where he got his saiyajin blood?" Trunks asked.

"Nah," Chai shook her head.

"Will you at least tell us what he looked like?" Tsuchi demanded.

Chai sighed. If she gave too much detail, the pieces would be too easy to put together, and that would simply be awkward.

"He was taller than me, but not as tall as Papa. Strong, and well - he was handsome," Chai blushed.

"That doesn't tell us anything!" Trunks-kun shook his fists at the older demi. "Was his hair all crazy like our dads? Did he have a tail? What did he wear? What color were his eyes?!"

"No! No! Mostly black! And as blue as yours, pipsqueak!" Chai cried back, immediately wishing she hadn't.

"I bet you fancied him, didn' you?" Tsuchi-chan grinned, her dark eyes sparkling.

"Huh, and I thought Chai-san just didn't like boys," Goten said, tapping his cheek thoughtfully.

"C'mon, you guys! These stories aren't real! Time travel isn't possible," Trunks-kun chided.

"They have to be true!" Tsuchi argued. "There's so many details and they involve things that actually happened, like the Cell Games!"

"A time-traveling saiyajin with a sword?!" the boy countered.

Chai pursed her lips to restrain her laughter and decided one more story couldn't hurt… at least they wouldn't have to know how much it hurt.

"Okay, you three - chill. I will tell you one more story, then you three train until dinner time."

"Yes!" the boys shouted in unison as Tsuchi sighed, staring down at her teacup.

Sorry, Tsu-chan. Fighting is still part of being Ox Queen.

Chai took another sip before clearing her throat. "Ok, so this is actually when everyone first met him, and I can't believe I forgot to tell this one. Do you guys remember Frieza?"