Story inspired by NinjaWhisper's Twice Upon a Time. It's a story about an elderly Vegeta going back into the body of his past self and reliving his life there. Obviously it makes changes because he does things differently. The story's incomplete, but it's just so good that it doesn't matter! The first chapter gets me bawling every time!

Ch 1 - A Time of Peace

Vegeta awoke startled, sitting up in bed and placing one hand behind him on his pillow and the other reflexively hovering over his still sleeping wife. It was just a dream. He slowed his breathing and returned himself to a lying position. His head turned to watch his gray haired wife rest. From habit, he fixed the tuft of hair out of her face which tickled her nose, then brought her closer against his body. Her warm flesh reminded him of reality.

Bulma gave a sigh in her sleep as his strong arms wrapped around her. Or at least, he thought she was still asleep. That was until her voice cut the silence, "Was it the dream again, hon?"

"Did I wake you?" was Vegeta's only answer.

She didn't answer, but that was a response enough on its own. After some silence, she broke it, "You've been having these dreams for a while now. You've been training away, but it hasn't helped. What is it that's on your mind?"

With a tired sigh, Vegeta pulled his wife closer and rested his head on her own. He answered, "I'm getting old."

Bulma snorted, "Gee thanks. I know we are, genius."

"No, I mean. Saiyans don't grow old. It's not right or in our nature. It's why I don't age at a rate like you do. I'm meant to die in battle, not grow old and stiff."

One of her hands found his and held on tightly. She whispered, "But if you leave, what if the same thing as last time happens and we need you?"

"I won't. I can't. Lettiche is strong, but who's to say the next villain will be easy. Every villain has been blowing the last out of proportion. I'm starting to think Kakarot had a point about encouraging the universe to push back."

"But you're not getting younger, and it's not making you happy…" Bulma sighed, turning in her husband's grasp to rest her face in the crook of his shoulder.

"I am happy," he grunted. "My heir has a full-blooded wife and powerful offspring. Shorts is a worthy enough successor of both your duties and mine. Reckless, but proud. Tch, a saiyan would never live long enough to watch grandchildren grow up, but I have. I couldn't regret a thing, and that pisses me off."

They lay in silence for a long while. Neither were able to fall asleep for hours as they contemplated their options. Bulma whispered just before her husband had fallen back to sleep, "I can feel it too. I'm not as young as I pretend to be…"

When Vegeta awoke, he found the bed cold as his wife was missing. Curious, he got himself out of bed, putting on some clothes, and headed in the direction of her ki. She was in her lab… Of course she was. He stood behind her with hands on his hips as he watched her work enthusiastically on fresh blueprints and notes scattered across the work surfaces.

When she noticed him, he crossed his arms and spoke, "What are you doing, woman? Didn't we just discuss we're too old for this?"

"I'm Bulma freaking Briefs. You think age will stop this mastermind?" she proudly stated.

Vegeta chuckled as he saw the fire in her eyes, "And just what is so important that you left your husband in bed?"

She grew a confident smirk, "Oh, just a new and improved spaceship for my alien highness."

His upturned smirk changed to a frown, "Bulma, I said I wasn't going to leave. That Striker bastard took advantage that I was away in space the last time. I won't have that happen again."

Bulma responded, "Well when I'm done, you won't need to worry about that. I'm going to make a ship that breaks speed records. If I use elements from the time machine, I can make it so you basically travel through space in a flash. So you can travel farther than ever before and also come home in a split second. If you want to come home, that is."

"Tch, of course I'd want to come home, Bulma. Don't be ridiculous."

The elderly woman dropped her schematics and approached her man, placing her hands on his muscular shoulders. She instantly had his full attention, despite his confusion in her words. Her eyes were soft with some emotion he couldn't really place. No, it was a mixture of emotions, that's why. And then he realized what she meant. It hit him harder than Buu.

"Are you sure?" his voice croaked.

"Hon, you need to find that adventure you long for. Challenge yourself and remember that feeling. Learn some new tricks; blow up some mountains. Go out in a blaze of glory worthy of a saiyan king. When you get to the other side, I'll either be waiting or coming to join you shortly."

"I can't…" he started, fighting that horrible pull on his chest. No, his heart. It felt like he was losing her. After all this time, he couldn't even fathom the idea.

"Vegeta, I'd rather you go off than watch me decline in health. You need this and we know this won't be forever because we've both seen what Otherworld has to offer. I've already had two scares and I'm not going to put you through that again. You'll remember me healthy and kicking. That's all I can ask for."

The older saiyan exhaled in an exhausted sigh. She did have a point, after all. It had been torturous the past few months as he watched his wife suffer two heart attacks already. Plus the numerous times he'd had to catch her from falling down stairs or struggling with lifting objects. Her ki was steadily declining, and it would falter and wake him at night far more often than he'd like to admit to her.

He'd already had a conversation with his son about Bulma's health and they had already prepared written documents which would give the Capsule Corp property and company fully over to Shorts, Trunks' first born son who was already president of said company and requested living on the property in the past. After one more scare, the elderly couple were to move in with their son and Shorts was to move into the mansion because they were getting too old to take care of the huge property.

It was only inevitable that the two would die. It was plain and simple and the idea of death wasn't foreign to them, but all the same it remained intimidating. It always had, but this was worse. Before death meant in battle fighting and screaming for survival against an enemy rival to his saiyan nature. It meant adrenaline and pure reliance on instinct. This couldn't be fought off and it certainly didn't bring adrenaline or instinctual impulses. It brought anxiety and it made him weary.

"And if I return, and you're not here…"

"Vegeta, I have no regrets in my life. You said that yourself, and you should believe in that. There's nothing I would take back, not even Majin Buu or you leaving all those times you did. It made you who you are, and I love you for it. There's nothing bad about not regretting things that went right for you, even when you made mistakes."

Bulma leaned up to kiss her husband. With age, she was now shorter than the saiyan to her disdain. She gave her hands a squeeze before releasing her husband and returning to her work. He said nothing, and refrained from moving at all before crossing his arms. Bulma knew she won as he didn't say anything to stop her. He was hurting, and she could do only as much as a genius wife could do to stop it.