One month.

It had been one month since Cabba had started training and though he enjoyed his time with his teacher, he was ready to go home, just like Caulifla and Kale.

Caulifla had already voiced her concerns about staying for too long. She passed the time by sparring with Kale, the androids or practising by herself.

While Kale and Cabba had been expecting a movie date, Vegeta's stubborn head kept them from it - either Cabba would train every day or said training would cease.

Now Caulifla sat by herself in Capsule Corp.'s large backyard, observing koi fish from her wooden seat. She had long since vacated her temporary home in the mountains, choosing instead to stay at Capsule Corp. with her companions. It was a more luxurious living than she was used to but it wasn't a bad change.

For one, there was no Son Goku around to bother her. From what she heard, he had gone off with Beerus and Whis for one of his training trips. She had not spoken to him since the incident at Herculopolis Mall. She only wondered how Chi Chi was coping with this.

The calming ripple of the water was interrupted when the grass crunched and Cabba appeared next to her, dressed in his black gi with a towel hanging around his neck.

"Can I join you?"

Caulifla shifted to the right and patted the bench. "Go ahead. It's not like I own the place."

The male saiyan sat down, the cool feel of the wood welcoming to his hot and sweaty body - he had just come out of a rough training session with Vegeta. Underneath his gi, he was sure that his chest and abdomen were speckled with bruises and lacerations but they were only superficial.

"You've been distant," Caulifla commented offhandedly. "So what's up?"

"You've been distant too," Cabba countered, wincing slightly when a bruise at the back of his thigh throbbed. "I already know that you are no longer training with Goku. Is that why?"

"Tch. That's not the only thing."

"Then what? Tell me, Caulifla."

Instead of answering, she asked, "Do you miss your old life?"

"Old life?" Cabba echoed. "Well, yes. It's been my lifelong dream to become a member of the Sadala Defence Force. Add to the fact that I'm also an elite."

Why does this sound familiar? Caulifla thought wryly, memories of Renso saluting at the dinner coming back to her. Why is it that every male I know is a righteous fool?

"Being an elite sounds lonely," she remarked. "Especially since Frost practically ruled over the Sadala Defence Force. You must spend a lot of time with his underlings. From what I hear, they're a bad lot. Not your type."

"Only the soldiers," Cabba told her. "They're all brutes one way or another. But the rest are mostly fine. Mother and father are acquainted with a few of them actually."

There was a sting that accompanied his last sentence to Caulifla. She hadn't known that both of his parents were still alive. He had mentioned that they were highborn before but she hadn't connected any dots to their status as alive or dead. Both she and Kale had been orphaned at a young age. For the longest time, she had thought that Cabba was in the same boat as them - hoped that he was just like them, however cruel that sounded.

"Oh yeah, who? Bet they must be pretty important."

Cabba gave her a wonky sort of smile. "Not really. You see, mother and father always took pity on the less fortunate. Any acquaintances they had there were all working class members of Frost's ship."

Though it was clear that Cabba's parents were only trying to be kind, Caulifla felt a wave of frustration surge through her. She wasn't sure where it came from and didn't ponder too much about it.

"They're all a bunch of strange characters," Cabba continued. "Heck, they loved me in their own way. My cousin is a saiyan on that ship as well."

"Cousin?" Caulifla's interest perked up. "And who might that be?"

"Her name's Parsley. Two months ago, she joined the Elite Tech Squad. She wrote to me a lot, telling me a lot about her team. The Head Technician is supposed to be really nice but I've never met her before." He tapped his chin. "I wonder how many letters I have from Parsley piling up in my mailbox."

"You'll find out soon enough," Caulifla told him. "Because we're going home tonight, regardless of whether you finished your training or not."

"Eh? Why now, all of a sudden?"

"This is not our home Cabba. We've out stayed our welcome." We'll, I definitely have in any case. And maybe it was selfish but she would not relent. She had already asked Whis about it and he would deliver the saiyan trio to Universe 6 himself as Vados would be too busy working with Champa on the latter' diet. The purple god had completely occupied himself with dieting and had no time for anything else. Naturally, Vados had been roped into becoming his personal trainer.

Cabba nodded slowly. "Master Vegeta - Vegeta - told me that there was more to learn but that I would learn it by exploring the universe myself. He dropped me as a student not too long ago."

"Did he teach you to become a super saiyan god?"

"No. Apparently, I'm not ready for that form yet. He's only been training me super saiyan two and I'm still getting the hang of going super saiyan three."

The rest of the afternoon passed in a swirl of drifting autumn leaves.

Trunks sat on his bed, staring at the wall in front of him. His mother had unplugged all the gaming systems previously installed in his bedroom as part of his punishment but he didn't care. He was still trying to summon up the courage and will to essentially tell Goku to cheat on his wife.

Goten had come by a few weeks ago telling him that "everything's better between mom and dad now" and he was now aware of who and what Caulifla was. The boy had mostly spent the duration of the gruesome video call hiding behind Trunks' back and covering his ears. He had not heard the most crucial parts of Future Chi Chi's message - only the end where she was caught and killed.

Trunks further sagged on his bed. The weight he carried on his shoulders was becoming too much now, even for a half-saiyan like him. He supposed that humans and saiyans could be equal in mental strength if the circumstances willed it.

He had yet to share with anyone Future Chi Chi's message. At first, he had considered going to his mother, but she had locked herself in her room. Any visitors would be unwelcome to her. His father was just unwelcoming in general.

Nobody would understand. He was all alone in this one. But still, he had to try, or else the future would be doomed.

Is this what the future me felt like? Trunks thought, grimacing. He was alone and helpless but he still tried! If I can be half the saiyan he is...!

He straightened when he realized something. There was a person he could talk to. The charging robot dog in the corner of his room was a definite reminder.

Trunks dashed out of his room to the nearest telephone in the house. He quickly dialled in Tights' number, nearly breaking the telephone with his vice grip.

When someone on the other end finally picked up, Trunks shouted into the receiver, "Aunt Tights! Aunt Tights, I need to talk to you! It's really important."

"Who is this?" an unfamiliar voice sounded. "Who are you supposed to be?"

By the sound of it, the speaker was an old man.

"I need to talk to Tights," Trunks pleaded. "It's really, really important!"

"Hold your horses," the elderly man grumbled. "Tights' coming. Kids these days..."

There was a rustling noise accompanied with a "thanks, Omori!" and Tights' voice trilled, "Yo! What's up, Trunks? Calling in to hear the lovely voice of your favorite aunt?"

"You're my only aunt," Trunks pointed out, causing a clatter on the other end that was likely caused by Tights falling backward at his insolence.

"Ahem," Tights said. "I'm giving you my time of day here. At least appreciate it, sheesh."

"Aunt Tights, something bad's going to happen if I don't stop it."

"Really? What? Did Goten get into the cake again? Hooboy, your father's going to be mad for sure."

"Ack, no! That's not it. You see..." He hesitated, pondering on how he was going to go about this. "I got grounded because I messed with this machine that allows you to call other timelines or something like that."

There was a silence before Tights broke it, sounding unnaturally serious. "Trunks. What did you see? You have to tell me what you saw, okay?"

Trunks was slightly unnerved by the solemn tone her voice had taken a turn to but answered anyway. He told her every last detail - how he had discovered it with Goten, how Future Chi Chi had pleaded with them and how those eyes had appeared.

At the end of it, Tights could only say: "Get your mother on the phone. Right now."

"Gohan, what's wrong?" Videl asked as Gohan returned to their home for afternoon tea. He had no classes to teach until a while later. "You've been acting weird lately. Have the students been stressing you out?"

"No, it's not that," Gohan replied, removing a stack of papers that had somehow fit into his briefcase.

Videl deadpanned at him. "Gohan, you will tell me what's wrong right now or I will kick your ass to the couch, got it?"

Gohan sighed. Videl never pulled threats on him anymore unless she was really serious on something. "It's my dad. I talked to him about the situation between him and mom... I don't know if I can forgive him."

Videl nodded and Gohan continued, "Maybe I sounded too accusing because the next thing you know, he's off on another training trip. Honestly, at his point, I don't blame him for wanting to run away from it all a bit."

"Son Gohan, do not ever use 'run away' to describe the actions of your father," Videl rebuked. "Yes, I know he isn't the ideal family man but that man is anything but a coward." She frowned at him. "You of all people should know that. Hell, if I know, then you should."

Videl was right, as usual. Son Goku had put his life on the line and saved the world and the universe on multiple occasions. Gohan removed his glasses and frowned at the mahogany desk all his ungraded papers were stacked upon.

Seeing Gohan so down made Videl sigh. She ran her fingers through his hair and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. "Try not to worry too much, Gohan. You've been very stressed lately. Even Pan has noticed."

Gohan looked guilty up at his wife. "Has she really? Damn it..." He pushed his hands into his face.

"I know what can help," Videl said, moving over to where Pan was sleeping in her cot. "When she wakes up, why don't you play with her a bit? Pan's been missing her daddy a lot, you know."

Gohan grinned. "Say no more, fair maiden!" he declared in his 'hero voice', making Videl burst into a fit of giggles. "The Great Saiyaman shall save the day once again!"

The yellow sky of Sadala slowly turned to a deep mix of navy blue and purple as night took over. Wind swished over purple shrubbery as lavender gradually changed to black in a change of lighting. In the woods sat a lone house - a simple kampong-like structure made of wood and supported by thick, writhing tree trunks. Ivy and other green plants were free to roam wild, twisting and turning through crevices and gaps in the building. A particularly long string of ivy caressed the top of the door frame.

Such was Renso's house. Though it had a simplicity that most craved, it came with a lonely existence. The saiyan that occupied it was alone and crippled, sitting on his couch with a warm cup of tea. A warm burned in the hearth of a metal like stove, keeping the house - and Renso - warm. A steaming kettle filled with fresh tea sat on a counter-top.

According to Cabba, who had visited Renso after the Tournament of Power, Universe 6 had been erased before being restored. The idea of non-existence was a chilling thought, and Renso found himself at a standstill. It made him question the purpose of life up until this point. He had been a proud member of the Sadala Defence Force, but he was now little more than a disabled hermit rotting away in his own house. Oh how the mighty have fallen. For the longest time, he had convinced himself that his sole purpose in life was to protect those who couldn't. And for a while, he had carried out his duties with pride and efficiency - but now he craved something more.

Companionship.

The one thing most would consider more valuable than all the riches in the universe. Of course, Cabba would pop in from time to time, but the boy had his own duties to attend to as an elite of the Sadala Defence Force. Aside from those rare times where Cabba visited, Renso would be alone all year round with hardly any interaction with his fellow saiyans. The few exceptions would be when food ran out and he had to hobble down to the market to get more.

Then there was Caulifla - his sister. Renso had many regrets but his biggest would have to be letting her go. By doing so, he had broken what she considered a sacred promise. There would be mornings where he would wake up and cry into his pillow - the guilt too overwhelming. It was not becoming of a male to cry in saiyan society, so it was always done in his own home. I sought to protect others. How can I do that if I can't even protect my family?

The tea had now cooled to the point where it would be unpleasant to drink.

Renso downed it bitterly anyway.

Very few people had come to see Caulifla, Kale and Cabba off. Their goodbye committee consisted of Androids 17 and 18 (who Caulifla had quickly become friendly with), the elder Briefs, and, surprisingly, Vegeta, who was staring stoically at the sky.

"Now, if you're hungry, don't hesitate to eat anything," Mrs Briefs was fussing over Cabba, who she found to be a 'delightful young man'. "I made these cookies especially for you! And be mindful to share with your friends as well! Sharing is caring, after all."

"R-right," Cabba said, rubbing the back of his awkwardly. Mrs Briefs was far too touchy for his taste. "I'll be sure to do that. Thank's very much, Mrs Briefs." He bowed from the waist, making Mrs Briefs laugh in her usual cheery manner.

"Oh, you really are so polite! Really, Cabba, there's no need. We're close enough to be informal, don't you think?"

"You should come back sometime," Android 18 was saying to Caulifla, the former's china blue eyes staring into dark onyx ones. "17 and I need more sparring partners like you."

"Maybe someday," Caulifla said vaguely, shaking her hand. She doubted that she would ever return to Universe 7. "We'll meet again." ... Liar.

"Mm. I'll be looking forward to that day."

Kale was standing next to Caulifla, not paying much attention to the latter's conversation. She was more focused on the night sky, where she knew a beam of light - with Whis and possibly Beerus inside it - would be descending soon. Home. The thought of it sent excited shivers down Kale's spine. Finally, everything would return to normal. Caulifla would regain control over the gang and she - Kale - would take up the role of faithful protégée once more. And Cabba... She turned around to look at him getting all flustered over Mrs Briefs' pampering, Dr Briefs' mustache twitching upward in amusement as he looked on. Suddenly, her future no longer seemed to secure. Cabba was a Sadala Defence Force elite. Caulifla was an outlaw and being associated with Caulifla made Kale one too. Would their relationship ever be the same once they returned to Sadala?

Both Kale and Cabba had yet to confess their love for each other. Vegeta hadn't help things either - throwing Cabba into the gravity room each day without fail. Despite living under the same household, Kale hardly got to see Cabba during their stay after the day trip to Herculopolis Mall (which was still in the process of being rebuilt). She had mostly spent her time with Caulifla.

Everyone had finished saying their goodbyes (even Vegeta had made a noncommittal grunt toward Cabba) when Whis appeared with another figure.

Will Champa look like Beerus after he loses weight? wondered Cabba as the light gathered from the fast-moving Whis dispersed. It'd be strange, seeing Champa as skinny as Beerus.

"Hello, everyone," Whis said. "Are you ready to go, you three?" He added to the Universe 6 saiyans.

"What are you doing?" Caulifla said snappishly, totally ignoring a slightly amused Whis and instead focusing her attention on the man standing behind the angel. Then, realizing that there were people witnessing her lose her composure, she straightened. "I wasn't expecting you back so soon, Goku."

"It's good to see you again, Caulifla," Goku replied, though he didn't sound like his normal jolly self. "To answer your question, Chi Chi doesn't like it when I'm gone for too long. And," he hesitated slightly, "I came to see you off."

'You', Caulifla noted. He said 'you'. Not 'you guys'. Just 'you'. She lifted her chin. "I guess this is goodbye then."

"Yeah."

Nearly everyone (with the exception of Mrs Briefs, who was totally oblivious) could feel the tension thick in the air.

Goku moved forward, his hand outstretched. "It was nice knowing you, Caulifla. I hope you come visit again soon."

Caulifla stared at his hand for a bit before reluctantly taking it. Goku's larger hand completely covered hers. "That depends on a lot of things, Goku." As she spoke, she did not notice that she was pressing herself exceptionally close to the saiyan male.

"Regardless, like I said, I hope you come back."

Caulifla nodded slowly, neither outwardly confirming or denying his statement. That makes one of us. There was a small part of her mind which pleaded with her not to leave him, to maybe stick around a bit. But the more dominant fraction of her had made up its mind.

"I'll ask again," Whis said. "Are you three ready to go?"

"We're ready,"Cabba affirmed, stepping close to the angel, Kale and Caulifla following suit. He waved at the small gathering. "Goodbye everyone! Goodbye, Master Vegeta."

Vegeta merely saluted him.

"I hope you enjoy my cookies!" Mrs Briefs hollered. "Just a friendly reminder dear: Share them!"

Kale and Caulifla remained silent, not having much to say in terms of goodbyes. Farewells had already been said; they didn't need to be said again. Whis slowly rose into the air.

"Everyone hold on," the angel instructed. "If you let go of me, you'll be stuck in hyperspace and suffocate."

Goku was waving at Caulifla, though she wasn't giving him much a response, just a two-finger salute. I'll see you later, Caulifla. Something tells me we're going to meet again soon.

Whis was rocketing away at over a million times of the speed of light when Bulma came running out of the house, her blue hair greasy and frazzled from days of being unwashed. Behind her, Trunks ran as well, Wally by his side.

"Wait!" cried Bulma, a bunch of crumpled papers in her hand. "Don't go!"

"It's too late," Trunks said, his eyes wide with fear.

Unable to speak, Wally simply whined.

"What on earth are you two up to?" demanded Vegeta. "Woman, you look like a greasy rat!"

"Vegeta, I really don't have time to do this with you right now!" She looked desperately at Goku, ignoring the strange looks everyone was giving her. "Can you get them back somehow?"

"They're moving too fast," Goku said, shaking his head. "They're already out of our solar system. I can't lock onto their positions."

"What's cookin', sweetie?" Dr Briefs asked his daughter. "You seemed stressed out."

"Stressed out? Stressed out?! Thanks for pointing out the obvious, dad!" The heiress rubbed her temples, her knees buckling underneath her. "Grr, I was too slow..."

Vegeta caught his mate, who had passed out. He adjusted her so that he was holding her bridal style. "Boy," he said, addressing Trunks. "Do you know when was the last time she slept?"

"Uhh, no. Sorry, dad."

"Hn. I'm taking her to bed right now. Do not interrupt her sleep."

Trunks stared at his father's retreating back with worry. "What have you done to yourself, mom?"

Renso was preparing for bed when someone rapped their knuckles smartly on the wooden door. Renso blinked in surprise. A visitor? For me? At this time? What the hell?

"I'm coming," Renso called, limping toward the door with his crutch.

Suddenly, the door was ripped off its hinges, causing Renso to startle and nearly fall over. He stared in shock. "Who goes there?!"

"Me."

A woman that seemed to be made of liquid night slinked into the house. She stared him down, her blood red eyes piercing his very soul. Kafara moved closer to Renso, undaunted by the sight of a crippled man aiming his walking stick at her.

"Get back," growled Renso, moving into a fighting stance as best as he could. He cursed his injured leg as he nearly fell over from a lack of balance. "You dare come into my house and demand answers from me? Who do you think you are?"

"I am your Empress!" Kafara exploded, quickly closing the distance between them. She grabbed Renso by the collar and held him up. His crutch fell from his grip and rolled to the side. "And you will obey me! You have information I need and I will extract it from you, whether you are willing or not."

"What do you want from me?!" spat Renso. "Identify yourself!"

Kafara's anger dissipated into amusement. "You really don't remember me... I guess you cannot be blamed. My appearance has changed over the years. Listen Captain, my sources have told me that you possess some knowledge about a powerful creature. I was originally going to go after the golden lizard but plans have changed. Tell me everything you know about your sister, Caulifla."

Renso was instantly on alert. "No. No way. You are not touching her."

"This is an order. You will obey it."

"Never!"

"You fool!" She opened her mouth, two protruding fangs glinting in the moonlight. "You could have made it easier for yourself... But you insist on bringing it up to this point, don't you?! Very well, then! I will heed to your request."

Her fangs sank into a tender spot in his neck, making him choke and spasm in her grip. "N-no," he spluttered. "St-stop!"

"Pitiful worm. Even your sister doesn't act so pathetic when I feed on her."

"L-leave C-Cauli out of this...!"

"Cauli? Oh, Caulifla?" She laughed cruelly into his neck. "Idiot. I don't mean her."

"What?! T-then what are you talking about...?" Renso's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he fought for consciousness. It was like life was being sucked out of him. "I-I have no other family..."

"That's what you think. But again, you aren't to blame, Renso." She removed herself from him and smacked her lips. "It must be terrible to have to live in ignorance your whole life." She kicked his unmoving form, which had crumpled onto the ground. "Hmm. You could still be of some use to me, even if you are a weakling." With a snap of her fingers, she summoned a black fire that enveloped the saiyan male. The flame hissed and burned for a few seconds before disappearing along with Renso.

A/N: I'm not surprised last chapter received mostly negativity. I'm glad that people feel to need to point out what they hated about it, it will only lead to me to try and change things up a bit so you won't have to suffer through the calamity of OCs. Those OCs are still going to be in the story and somewhat important but I'll try to make it so that they will not take up entire chapters like last time.

So I hope everyone can live with that.

I wonder if anyone picked up some subtle-not-so-subtle details I left in this chapter.

Also, I want to encourage people to write their own Goku/Caulifla if you feel like mine isn't up to scratch or not implementing ideas you want (the entire story is still currently in early stages). The reason why I continued after chapter one was so I could put my own ideas on paper (or digital paper anyway) since no one else was doing it at that time.

OMAKE!

I credit the inspiration of this story to a bunch of stuff: James Cameron's Avatar, Shingeki no Kyojin, Dragon Ball Super (obviously!) and the Throne of Glass series (which are really good; you should read it).

And if you're still reading, you've just made this 15 year old female ningen happy. Happy trails everyone!