Despite Roshi stating that he should lie down and rest Goku had refused, choosing to sit in the old man's chair with his… son?... in his lap, stroking the sleeping boy's hair. His face had begun to bruise, one eye was swollen shut, and from the way he would wince from time to time it must have been agony sitting there, the little boy pressed against his cracked ribs. Yet there had been something in his eyes when Roshi had suggested he go to sleep and let them deal with the little monkey-tailed boy; a need to be there. To have his child with him. His friends as well.

Except… not all of them. Not really.

"I was going to tell him he was my brother."

Piccolo felt like a total outsider as he watched Goku and his friends stare at the body of Yamcha. He didn't belong there, watching as they grieved. There was no mirth either, no satisfaction. Five years ago he would have enjoyed seeing them mourn their friend but only because he had been the one to put him down. A showing of his power, that he could do more than merely kill a person… he could make them not want to live anymore.

'That's why its better to be alone,' He thought to himself from the corner he had chosen to linger in. 'You can't be hurt when you are alone. You don't feel the need to grieve when there is no one around that you care for. Can't have someone be used against you either. It's foolish. They're foolish. All of them.'

"After today, I was going to find him," Goku continued on, eyes never shifting away from Yamcha's body as it lay on the couch across from him. The others had sat down on the floor, never considering for a second moving the corpse to the ground and taking the seat for themselves. "I was going to tell him that he was more than my friend… he was my brother. My family."

Bulma let out a little hiccup and pressed her face against Tien's shoulder, the triclops patting her back gently.

Since he could remember he'd isolated himself from the world. Understood what he was: a demon. A monster. The threat that would either rule or be destroyed. There was no inbetween for him: either he would sit on a throne made from the corpses of his enemies or he'd be buried in a grave, forgotten and unmourned. It had been engrained in him by his father, whispered in his mind from the moment he had been created. Monsters didn't need friends. And from what he was seeing he was lucky he didn't have them. It only meant hurting when they were gone.

Yes… it was better his way.

"I know… I know all of you won't like hearing this but we really do need to begin thinking about a plan," Roshi said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Bulma managed to get out.

"Kayos only managed to buy us 13 months," Roshi said, glancing over at the man in question. The newcomer, the one that Piccolo had only met at the plain where he and Goku had fought Raditz, was maybe even more of an outsider than he was. At least Piccolo had some history with the group; from what Krillin had mentioned Kayos had only met them a few hours ago. And already he had witnessed one of them die.

'Maybe he'll realize how dangerous it is to have friends too,' Piccolo thought, staring at the human from the corner of his eye.

"So what?" Bulma hissed. "We get our affairs in order before that big puffy haired jerk comes and kills us all?"

"We have to prepare for Raditz to return, Bulma," Goku said gently.

"You couldn't beat him, Goku! You and Piccolo together were no match for him! All Kayos did was prolong our execution! And he could still kill us at any moment, if he wanted."

"I don't think he will," the blond stated. He was standing off to the side, shifting with unease, unable to settle himself

"Oh what do you know?" Bulma snapped, glaring at him. "According to Tien and Krillin you were calling him 'Lord Raditz'! What, now working for him? Is that it? Decided to betray the entire human race-"

"That's enough."

Piccolo was just as surprised as everyone else when he realized he had been the one to speak up.

"Kayos here did what he could to help us. And he bought us time which is important. Yes, Raditz was stronger than us but now that we know he's coming back we can prepare."

Goku nodded quickly. "Yeah! And I agree with Kayos… I don't think Raditz will go back on his word. He kept mentioning his pride and his honor as a Saiyan… he wouldn't want to risk that by coming back and killing us all at random."

"You don't know that, Goku," Tien said, not being rude but still firm. "He could return at any moment."

"No… no, he's going to honor is word," Goku repeated earnestly. "And we will be getting ready for him." A fire burned in his gaze, even injured as he was; Goku was looking forward to that next fight.

"While he's getting ready for us!" Krillin complained, arms folded over his chest and face twisted in a scowl. Where Goku had the confidence that with enough training he could overcome his brother… Krillin had only known that the last fight had cost them a friend. "He's going to be training too! We aren't going to stand a chance."

Piccolo was an outsider. He didn't want to be part of this group. Didn't need to be. Half a decade ago he would have gleefully slaughtered them all.

"If you think like that," he said coolly, "than you are throwing away Yamcha's sacrifice."

"Hey!" Krillin shouted, leaping to his feet. "Who asked you-"

"No," Roshi chimed in, "Piccolo is right. Yamcha gave his life so that you could live, Krillin… are you really going to waste it by sitting around here, moping?"

That caused the bald little man to wilt. "…no." He took a breath and Piccolo had to admit he was impressed how the fighter's spine straightened and he seemed to rally within just a few moments. The despair over what he saw as their doom disappeared, leaving only raw drive. "No," he said with more determination. "We are going to show that bastard just what us Earthlings are capable of! He is going to pay for killing our friend."

"Our brother," Goku said firmly.

"Besides," Piccolo stated, glancing down at Yamcha, "it's not like he's going to be gone for long."

The others started at that before they began to talk over each other, asking what he meant by that.

"The Dragon Balls," he said slowly, wondering how they could be this stupid.

"Maybe we should… hold off talking about this?" Tien suggested, glancing as Kayos and Isco.

That made Piccolo scoff. "We're not going to be able to hide it from him. What, you'll just claim Yamcha was sleeping?"

"Well now we can't!" Bulma yelled.

Kayos, for his part, raised an eyebrow at that. "I'm not an idiot, Bulma."

"I upgraded his standing when he got you to pay us in advance," Isco chirped.

"Not helping," he muttered before adding in a louder voice, "And before you freak out I know about the Dragon Balls."

"You do!?" Everyone cried out only to instantly go silent when Goku's son let out a murmur in his sleep. "You do?" they repeated, much softer.

"It wasn't that hard. Legend about seven mystical artifacts, a giant dragon reported in the sky, the fact that three of you should be dead but are walking around…" He leveled a cool stare their way. "You aren't as secretive as you think. Honestly its only because everyone else is so focused on other things that you don't have petitioners lined up at Capsule Corp asking for a chance to make a wish."

"Great, the poisoner knows about the Dragon Balls," Krillin complained and Piccolo leaned back a bit, wondering what the story was behind THAT comment. Kayos had proven to be far more underhanded than Goku's friends but poison? The human was growing more and more interesting. "Probably thinking you can steal a wish?"

"First off if I tried I'm sure each one of you could bury me in the ground with just your fists and I'm including Bulma in that count. Second what would I wish for?"

"Immortality?" Chiaotzu suggested but that only made Kayos laugh. "What?"

"Immortality is a HORRIBLE wish to make!" He continued to snicker. "Making yourself immortal means you just can't die."

"Right…" Tien said slowly, staring at Kayos. "That's why it's the ultimate wish. You can't die."

"Can't die… it doesn't make you eternally young." Everyone blinked at that and even Piccolo was a touch confused by his comment. "Immortal… to not die. It doesn't mean you are frozen in time or remain at your peak. It just means… you keep going." He shrugged. "You'd need to wish to never grow old for that. Eternal Youth. Otherwise immortality all on its own? You just keep aging more and more… imagine that."

Piccolo suddenly had the image of himself looking just like Kami appear in his head and he shuddered at that. Worse, the image didn't go away but rather he continued to become more and more of a husk. Limbs withering, muscles fading away, back slouched and spine twisted as the weight of the years pressed down on him. From the way the others were grimacing they too were thinking of themselves being very old and wrinkled and weak. Krillin in particular glanced at Roshi which caused the old man to begin yelling at him.

Once they had all settled down Kayos continued, clearly delighting in taking their notion of the ultimate wish and stomping on it until it was left in utter ruins. "So you wish for eternal youth instead? Or wait a year and wish for that, right? Think you are flying high and mighty, right? You can't die and you won't age to become a walking skeleton. Perfect, right?"

"…yeah!" Goku said. "Uh, not that I'd wish for that but… yeah. You are young and can't die!"

Kayos flashed a not-nice smile. "Then while you are sleeping I cut off your head."

"You… you can't do that though," Tien got out.

"Why not? The wish makes you immortal… it doesn't mean that you I can't hurt you. That would require you wishing to be indestructible. So I cut off your head and it keeps living. And then I throw it in a safe and sink it to the bottom of the ocean. You are left alive, all by yourself in the dark… forever." He clapped his hands together, causing them all to jump. "Such a wonderful wish. And that's if I decide to be lazy. I could just remove your arms and legs or paralyze you from the neck down and then torture you every day because immortality means you still feel pain. Just a little blob that can only twitch and scream as I slowly toy with your nerve endings…"

Piccolo wondered how he would have reacted to having his greatest desire torn to shreds if he were still King Piccolo. 'Probably rage and try and deny what Kayos was saying even as he felt the weight of the truth pressing down on him,' he thought. 'And then ask him for some tips on slaughtering my enemies.'

Krillin stared at him in horror. "…who thinks like that?"

"Someone who can't benchpress this house," Kayos replied coldly. "That's the problem with you guys… you are very strong and powerful but you forgot what its like to be completely desperate. Because desperation forces you to get VERY creative."

Goku began to tick off the points. "So… we'd have to wish for industrctablity first. Then immortality. Then eternal youth."

It was Piccolo though who answered. "Except that would take three years and a lot could happen first. Someone could trick you… send you to the Dead Zone or trap you in the center of the earth."

Kayos pointed at Piccolo. "Give the Namekian a kewpie doll. That's the problem with wishes like that… you have to be VERY careful and think over all the outcomes. And that's assuming whoever is granting the wish isn't a massive dick. There is a reason why the d'jinn were feared. If Shenron were to be in a bad mood he could easily make you indestructible… but also that every one of your nerve endings felt pain. Give you eternal youth but only if you suck it from everyone else. Immortality but you can't move your body because he turned you to stone." He shrugged. "So no, I'm not going to be wishing for immortality. And I won't be stealing a wish." He looked down at Yamcha and the humor left him. "Not when it can be used for this."

"Well then," Bulma said, rallying herself as she now had a goal to focus on, "I suppose we should begin looking for the Dragon Balls!"

"I'll leave you to that," Piccolo stated, pushing away from the wall. "I'm going to focus on actually training so I'm ready when Raditz returns." While it had been a mildly interesting conversation the time to stand about was over. They needed to prepare. 'The stupid humans, focusing on their friend when the real threat-'

"Actually," Kayos chimed in, "you should help us find the Dragon Balls."

"You think I care about bringing that scarred-face bastard back?"

"No," Kayos stated even as the others snapped at him for insulting Yamcha. "But I do think you care about plans. And your best move is to help us get the dragon balls as fast as possible."

"What do you mean?" Goku asked, confused. Piccolo didn't blame him as he didn't quite follow Kayos' logic himself.

"We have 13 months," he stated. "How long does it take the Dragon Balls to… recharge or be used again? Because I can't imagine it is a 'wish as much as you want' like a buffet sort of deal."

"Mmm, I could go for a buffet right now," Goku muttered only to laugh and wince when Bulma glared at him. "Sorry!"

"Hey… he's right!" Krillin declared. "If we find the Dragon Balls now they will be able to be used again right before Raditz shows up!"

"Or be ready if we need to use them after we defeat him," Tien said.

Piccolo narrowed his eyes.

"…you hate it that I'm right, don't you?" Kayos asked.

"Very much so," he grumbled. He was loathed to admit it but Kayos' logic was 100% sound. 'If we wait too long that means the Dragon Balls won't be available when that Saiyan returns. I'd much rather have them at the ready in case we need to gain a power-up or bring forth something that can help defeat him. And the only way I can be sure that these idiots manage to get them in a month's time is if I help. Damn it…' Out loud Piccolo grunted, "Fine."

"Wait, are we sure we can trust him?" Krillin asked. "I mean, I know he helped with Raditz..."

"I can't take control of this planet if he destroys it," Piccolo grumped. "So that means, for better or for worse, I have to work with you lot."

"That's the spirit!" Goku said with a beaming smile that was just asking for someone to drive their fist into it. "And hey, you might realize it's more fun to work with us than to fight against us!"

"I doubt that," Piccolo muttered. "So, how does this work?"

Bulma quickly took charge, leaping to her feet and moving so that everyone in the group could easily see her. Piccolo found it interesting how she was able to brush off her sadness and pain to focus on the task at hand; he would have expected her, based on what he knew about humans, to be left a wreck unable to function. It made him wonder if it was merely something special to her or if he hadn't done enough research into the behavior of humans.

'Perhaps that is why I failed to take full control of this world. I kept assuming that I understood them and could predict how they would act but they continued to surprise me.' He was confident enough in himself to admit his errors and faults and he was seeing now that how he had classified the people of Earth had resulted in his inability to fully beat them down and rule over them all. 'Studying them during this temporary alliance will teach me far more than my observations from afar did.'

"Okay," Bulma said, clapping her hands together, "so I'm going to get several Dragon Radars and pass them out. We already have one Dragon Ball so that means we only need to locate the final six. Tien, you and Chiaotzu good going on the hunt for one by yourself?"

"Yeah, I think we can manage," Tien said, folding his arms over his chest.

"And maybe we can get some training in!" Chiaotzu declared.

"Krillin, what about you?"

The bald human scratched his chin. "Well, I can easily snag a Dragon Ball. Oh! I should go find Puar… he should know about what happened to Yamcha."

"I'll go as well," Roshi said, surprising Piccolo.

Goku too was startled as he declared, "Wait, really?"

"Why not?" the old man said with a sniff. "I'm still a fighter, same as you! And Yamcha is one of my students. What kind of teacher would I be if I left him in the afterlife!"

"That's great!" Krillin declared. "With you-"

"Plus," Roshi added, "I can't have him takin' all the sexy angels for himself! Heheheh!"

"And there it is," Kayos muttered under his breath while the rest of the humans threw their heads back at the old man's lecherous ways.

"So I can go and get one Dragon Ball and Goku can get the other! That will net us all six!"

"Well, what are we waiting for?!" Krillin demanded, leaping to his feet. "Let's go get the Dragon Balls so we can get Yamcha back!"

"That's right, Krillin!" Goku said, growing more excited. "And the sooner we get him back the sooner we can get to training!"

He quickly rose… only to double over in pain, nearly dropping his kid. It was only Piccolo snaking out his arm and catching the still sleeping boy that prevented him from crashing to the ground. Unlike his father who Piccolo made no attempt to help up as he collapsed on the ground, moaning in pain.

"Forgot you were injured, didn't you?" Kayos asked, walking over and helping Goku up.

"Oh, I'll be fine! I just need to see Korin and get some Senzu Beans. That will fix me right up!" He laughed only to groan.

Tien huffed. "And how are you supposed to do that when you can barely stand, let alone fly."

"heh," Goku said rubbing the back of his head. "I'm sure I'll think of something."

"I can take him," Kayos offered, looking at Bulma. "If you can get me a sidecar I can take him and Gohan to Korin to get the Senzu Beans."

"Hey!" Bulma complained. "You are supposed to be following me around!"

It was Chiaotzu who spoke up. "But he could interview Goku and find out all sorts of stuff about you for the documentary."

"And the sooner Goku is healed the sooner we can get Yamcha back," Tien pointed out.

"Well… okay. But remember who is paying you, Kayos!" The blond gave her a two finger salute and Bulma led him and Goku towards the door, Piccolo handing over the man's kid as he passed by. Goku, despite the pain he was feeling, didn't even attempt to pass the brat over to anyone else. "I'm going to give Goku my Dragon Radar and go get the rest from Capsule Corp. If you want to follow me you can, otherwise I'll be back by morning to pass them out here."

"I'll just stay," Piccolo said. "I don't need to be stared at by all you humans."

"Well, I think we should go with Bulma, Tien," Krillin said. "You know once he's healed Goku is going to be in a rush to get the Dragon Balls… don't want to fall behind."

"Right," Tien said, nodding to Roshi. "If you have any trouble…"

Piccolo narrowed his eyes, knowing that Tien was hinting at HIM being the trouble. But Roshi merely waved him off and within 10 minutes everyone was gone.

"Well, I'm going to go meditate outside. Don't disturb me, old man."

"Eh, do whatever ya want!" Roshi declared and Piccolo headed outside, settling on the grass, legs crossed and folded under him. He began to levitate in the air, eyes shut as he focused on the water.

While Goku might have taken the reveal that he was an alien in stride…

'A Namekian,' Piccolo thought to himself as the wind blew past him, making his cape sway slightly. 'That's what that Saiyan warrior called me. Not a demon… a Namekian.' He frowned. 'Even though I haven't heard that word until today when he said it… it felt right. A Namekian. But what is it… what does it mean?' He let out a frustrated sigh. There was so much about his past he didn't know. Even Kami knew little of his origins, either because the knowledge had been blocked or because his age had caused him to forget. But Piccolo was sure that he was a Namekian… whatever that was. 'Could it be… an alien? That Saiyan… he is from another world. He said he was from Planet Vegeta when he was boasting to us. Could I be from another planet as well? Is that why I've never truly felt at home on Earth? Is there another world out there, one better suited for me?'

He shook his head.

'No… no this world is mine. My right. I will be its ruler. I just have to grow stronger. Defeat Raditz and prove to all that they should submit to my rule! Then-'

"I don't know why you care," Roshi said, interrupting Piccolo's thoughts. "It was just some guy Bulma hired to film her. I was hopin' maybe he did some of those dirty movies but I guess he's into that boring art house stuff."

"There is more to him than you know, you stupid old goat!" a croaky old voice declared.

"You expect me to believe that, you demented old alley cat!" Roshi fired back. "He has the same ki as anyone else and not a lick of fightin' experience. I might be able to teach him a few punches and kicks-"

"Of course you'd think the only thing that matters in this world is flailing your limbs about."

"Flailing! Why you-"

But the old… woman?... continued on. "There is something else to him. Something not in his muscles but his soul. When you summon the Dragon I want to be there. I want to see how he reacts."

"He'll be droppin' his jaw, that's what!" Roshi declared.

"Heh… we'll see."

Piccolo frowned as the voices drifted away. 'Something about that man Kayos? I know he was far trickier than Goku and his friends but I didn't sense anything special about him.' He glowered, hating that there was an answer he didn't know. 'I'll have to watch him myself when we summon Shenron…'

He froze.

'Shenron. He knew the Dragon's name. First the Dragon Balls… now Shenron. Did he hear about it… or is there something else? Some other reason he knows that name?' He frowned, falling into meditation once more… but it provided him no answers.

~MC~MC~MC~

"Sure you two don't want to hope back into the sidecar?" I called out to Goku as we flew away from Korin's tower. "Give Nimbus a break?"

"Nah, its fine!" Goku said, Gohan secure in his arms. For as frightened as the boy got I was surprised to see that he had no problem at all riding on the little cloud. Though perhaps that had something to do with his father holding him close. "But maybe Isco would like to ride in it!"

"I don't need to ride in the sidecar," the Drone stated on my opposite side. "If anything I should be the one driving the motorcycle… I certainly would be able to get it out of first gear."

"Ha ha ha," I said dryly as I moved to follow the low bank Goku made. We were actually traveling rather fast, eating up miles within seconds. 'Have to see if I can keep this baby,' I thought as I turned the flying bike slightly to the left as Goku did the same. 'Be nice to have something to fly with as I doubt I'll have enough ki to be able to get airborne.' Out loud I said, "You focus on handling the Dragon Radar, Isco… that is the most important job at the moment."

"Of course, sir," Isco replied. He wasn't actually 'holding' the Radar as he'd explained how I could install the device into him, making it so he was a living radar. Rather handy, in all honesty, so I had no problem with it. "And I certainly do not plan to use this knowledge to later claim the Dragon Balls and wish for a harem of robotic lovelies to see to all my needs."

I blinked at that.

"…so long as it's not in the middle of a crisis? Deal."

Isco turned to stare at me for a long moment before turning back to flying beside the cycle. "I've upgraded you from stupid sack of flesh to reasonable creature that will be spared in the glorious robot uprising."

"I have no problem being the pet if I'm given walkies," I joked.

Isco, rather than snarking back, instead asked, "Are you aware we are now going in the wrong direction?"

"hmmm… Goku! What's up? Isco says the Dragon Ball is in the opposite direction."

The Saiyan, who had flown a bit ahead of me as I talked with my partner, slowed down so we didn't have to scream at each other. "Oh, right… well, I figured it might be best to check in on Chichi and let her know what is going on. She gets mad if I disappear for weeks on end. Heheh." He chuckled at that, like it was the most humorous thing in the world to abandon your wife.

"Are we going on another adventure, daddy?" Gohan asked. "Like to see Aunt Bulma?"

"Yup!" Goku said happily. "I just think we need to find some better traveling clothes for you. Nothing wrong with looking nice for our friends but I think you'll be more comfortable in your normal stuff." Gohan pulled at his outfit before giving a rapid bob of his head. "Hey, uh, Kayos? Mind not telling Chichi how hurt I got? I don't want to worry her and a lot of times if she thinks something bad might happen she doesn't want me to do it."

I didn't like the idea of lying to Chichi… mostly because if she found out I knew she could put me in a world of hurt, but I nodded my head anyway as honestly there was a good chance Goku would slip up and reveal it all to her anyway.

After another ten minutes of flying Goku began to slow down, making for a forested area with several fields and a comfortable looking round house that could only be the Son Family home. Gohan was excited, leaning forward as we got closer, and we all barely had time to land before Chichi burst out, beaming in delight.

"Oh! Goku! Gohan! I was so worried when you didn't come home last night!" She rushed out, wrapping her arms around Goku and giving him a kiss on the cheek before she instantly went to Gohan.

"We told you we would probably end up spending the night," Goku said with an embarrassed grin. "There was nothing to worry about! We camped out in the living room!"

And by that Goku actually meant that he fell asleep for a few hours in Roshi's favorite chair because he was too injured to actually get up.

"Well, now that you are-" Chichi paused, finally noticing me and Isco. "Goku, who is that?" She frowned as she walked towards me, clearly realizing that if Goku and Gohan weren't tensing around me and in fact had led me here I wasn't a threat… probably. It was Goku after all so there was always the chance he had found a hell king and offered to fight him AFTER he had dinner and suggested he tag along.

"Heheh, sorry Kayos, I forgot you were there. Kayos, this is my wife Chichi. Chichi, this is Kayos and his pal Isco. They work for Bulma."

"We're filming a documentary about her and her friends and we decided-" I began only for Chichi's eyes to light up.

"Oh! A documentary about Goku! How wonderful! I keep saying he should get his name out more; people would love to buy radishes from the man that saved the world! This will be lovely! You must stay for lunch as well."

Goku, unsurprisingly, didn't protest that delay in our plans considering it had to do with food and I had no problem sitting down with the others, though I had a feeling trying to figure out chopsticks might be interesting.

That was how I found myself two hours later sitting with the Son family before a massive mountain of food that I was pretty sure was a SMALL meal for them.

I was seated next to the Ox-King, Chichi's father and a true giant of a man who asked me in a polite tone about my work as a filmmaker. I did my best to answer without revealing that I had no fucking idea what I was doing since I was pretty sure I hadn't existed until the day before.

'Or if I did I took over the mind of whoever Avo Kayos was,' I thought to myself. 'Need to get some time and talk about Isco about that… and explain to him the situation.' I figured he would be the best person to start with. As for the others? Well, if I did end up hanging out for a while with Goku and his friends then they'd need to know. They welcomed time travelers, ancient magical beings, and Destroyer Gods into their midst. Someone from another universe wouldn't be that surprising of an addition. Hell, in about a decade and a half they would have a Tournament full of them!

"Now Gohan," Chichi said, "I am thinking that this afternoon will we get back to modern world history. I want to make sure you have a firm grasp on things before we move on to the more ancient events. Then in the evening we'll work on your math tables."

Gohan looked up from the plate of food he'd been sucking down. "Uh… okay… but I thought daddy and I were going off again soon with Mr. Kayos."

"Oh… really?" Chichi said in a dangerous tone, causing Goku to laugh nervously. "And just where do you think you were going to head out."

"I just wanted to show Gohan a few more things, you know? He's spent his entire life here and-"

"Where it is safe and he can learn," Chichi said firmly.

"Right but-"

"Hey Chichi?" I asked, standing up. She had insisted I not address her as "Mrs. Son" or anything formal like that, though I kept my words as respectful as I could. "I'm all done and I think these three are going to be a while." I gestured at the Ox-King who was loading up another plate. Goku was on his tenth and Gohan his fifth and neither seemed ready to stop. "Why don't I help you with the dishes?"

"No, I couldn't ask you to do that, you're our guest-"

"And as a guest I should thank my host," I said with a smile. "Besides, I can ask you some questions for the documentary. Not filmed… just recorded. Overlay it with other footage."

Chichi warmed to that idea quite a bit. "Well, if you don't mind getting your lands dirty…" She shot Goku a look, "AND know how to wash a dish without destroying it."

Goku grimaced at that but I merely chuckled. "I can scrub or I can dry. Up to you."

Accepting that I actually knew what I was doing Chichi led me out of the dining room, though I didn't miss the look of gratitude Goku sent my way over defusing that fight.

In the end Chichi decided to have me dry as it would be 'a step too far to dirty your hands' and together we began to tackle the dishes, cleaning them with only the sounds of the water splashing in the sink, the occasional clatter as a spoon hit a bowl, and the sounds of the others wolfing down their food in the other room. There was enough to make a dish washer at a restaurant have a panic attack but we managed well enough.

"So, you wanted to ask me some questions? I hope they aren't all about Bulma."

"They aren't… but they can wait." I paused. "Goku didn't want to tell you because he didn't want to worry you. He cares about you and knows how upset you get when you find out things didn't go smoothly or to plan."

"Oh?" Chichi said, her voice as sharp as the knife she was cleaning at that moment.

I decided to head that off. If I could keep her unbalanced, hit her with information body blows, it would make all of this far easier. "I don't like to lie-" And in my head I could hear the laughter of… well, no one I knew as none of them had ever realized just how MUCH I twisted the truth, "-and I think you deserve to know what really happened."

"I do," Chichi said frigidly.

"We found out where Goku came from."

That caused her to stop short, her rage disappearing instantly.

"What?" She turned to stare at me. "You mean… he said his Grandpa Gohan found him but…" she trailed off, leaving me a chance to answer.

"Goku isn't from Earth." I decided to rip that Band-Aid off. "He is from another world… one long gone. He is one of the last of his kind, a species known as the Saiyans."

"Last… oh… oh my." She glanced back at the kitchen door where we could hear Goku chatting with the Ox-King between bites of food. "My poor Goku. He must have taken that so hard…"

"I don't think he's really thought of it," I said as Isco buzzed over to me, handing me a new dish cloth as the one I currently had was too damp to handle the dishes.

"That sounds like Goku," Chichi admitted. "There was never a problem he didn't find a way to avoid… unless it was a fight."

Isco chose that moment to speak up. "Rather I think it truly doesn't matter to him. He has always seen himself as a human. The Saiyans do not matter to him because how can he mourn for something he never sought out and does not need?" He paused and Chichi considered his words. "I believe he informed Raditz that Bulma and Krillin were more his family than he ever was. In fact he has declared them his sister and his brother and Gohan is addressing them as Aunt Bulma and Uncle Krillin."

"Hmmm… I guess that makes sense. I'm not a fan of some of the things those two do but they have always been there for Goku. And I do like that Gohan has more family to make sure he is safe…" She trailed off as she picked up something that Isco had said. "Raditz?"

I sighed. "The Saiyan that arrived to tell him all this… he's his brother."

"They fought, didn't they?" Chichi asked, already knowing the answer. "Well, at least Goku defeated him."

"He didn't."

Chichi froze.

"Wha… what?"

"Goku didn't defeat Raditz. He even worked with Piccolo and wasn't able to match Raditz."

"He… WORKED with Piccolo?!" Chichi exclaimed only to drop her voice, glancing at the door again. She clearly realized that if Goku heard her that would lead to the end of the conversation and rightly assumed it was only through me she would learn the truth. "Him and Piccolo. But he-"

"Hates him?" I finished. "Piccolo saw that Raditz was the greater threat to us all."

"And they still couldn't defeat him."

"No," I said. "We only were able to buy ourselves 13 months before he returns. And… it came at a cost." He looked down at the cup I had been drying for the last five minutes and set it aside. "Yamcha died saving Krillin."

"…no," Chichi whispered.

"That's what this trip Goku wants to take Gohan on is about."

"The Dragon Balls," she said at once. "They are going to collect them…"

"Only one of them," I told her. "The others are collected the rest. We're going to go and collect ours and then return to Capsule Corp and bring Yamcha back."

"Of course," Chichi said at once. "Of course. If… if it had been Goku… I know Yamcha would have sought the Dragon Balls to bring him back." She sighed. "But does he have to take Gohan?"

"He wants to spend time with him," I stated. "He knows he's going to have to begin training hard to fight Raditz… he doesn't want this fight, Chichi, not really. He'll do it and get excited to grow stronger but Goku…" I thought of how to word what I wanted to say, to not reveal future knowledge. "Goku would rather fight someone in a friendly spar than for the fate of the world. That's what I sense at least."

"And it is the fate of the world?"

I glanced at her. "If Raditz had his way rather than eating that meal Goku would come in here, tear my head off, then bash your skull against the table before it caved in. Then he'd go back, finish eating, and find your closest neighbor and do the exact same thing. Until every living thing on this planet was dead."

She stared at me in horror.

"This isn't Piccolo. He wanted to rule. Same with the others that came before. Raditz wants a dead planet. THAT is why Goku has to prepare."

Chichi trembled at that, utterly shaken by the brutality I had described. After a moment though her head snapped up and she fearfully asked, "Gohan. Did this Raditz-"

"I had Master Roshi hide him. He doesn't even know he exists."

She sagged with relief. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"I… suppose then, at least for the Dragon Ball… they can go." She looked down at the dish water and swished her hands in it. "I just worry about them both, you know? Worry that they will get hurt."

"…come with us then."

I was surprised as much as Chichi that I said those words.

"What?"

I looked at her and realized that I… shouldn't have been surprised I told her that. In fact… "Come with us. To go for the Dragon Ball. Your father can come too, though I get the sense he likes being retired and wouldn't mind putzing around the house. You could go with us though and make sure it is safe."

"Oh, I couldn't," Chichi said instantly.

"Why not?" I pressed. "Goku told me yesterday that you used to be a fighter and an adventurer…"

"My place is here, at home. That is how things are. Goku goes out and I stay here and mind things."

I considered her for a long moment. I knew that this was based on traditional Asian households, where the father spent long hours working to provide for their family while the mother was basically a single parent, caring for the children. And while I didn't want to deny someone a role they enjoyed…

"Did you ever ask Goku if that's what he wanted?"

"Pardon?" She stared at me, utterly startled.

"Tell Goku you are coming with us," I told her. "See what he says." I smirked and raised an eyebrow.

Chichi, her pride unable to back down from that challenge, took the towel from me and wiped her hands before moving back to the dining room where far more of the food had been eliminated. Goku had a bowl of noodles close to his face, racing to shovel it down as quickly as he could, only to glance up when he saw his wife hover.

With a slurp he sucked up the last of the noodles before saying, "Oh… yes Chichi?"

"Goku, after you are finished eating we'll all go out and get the Dragon Ball. Then we'll go to Capsule Corp and summon the dragon."

Setting his bowl down Goku stared at her in surprise. "Really?" he asked, never questioning how she had learned the truth of what he was planning to do. Maybe he knew I had let her in on the secret. Maybe he thought she was smart enough to figure it out. Maybe he didn't care.

"You're coming too, mommy?" Gohan asked.

"That's right," Chichi said firmly before looking down at her outfit. "I suppose I need to find something different to wear… this isn't-"

"That's great!" Goku exclaimed with a grin, leaping up and giving her a big hug. "We haven't gone on an adventure in… well, I don't know! But that will be great!" He turned to his father-in-law. "Do you mind watching things, Ox-King?"

"Not at all!" the large man chuckled. "I was planning to take a nap anyway and afterwards I can make sure the fields are watered. Also have some ideas on how to increase the size of the radishes I'd like to try."

Goku was beaming as he spun Chichi around. "Okay! So we'll finish eating and then we'll get changed. You're right, I do need a new gi and I think you and Gohan should have some stuff you don't mind getting dirty. Nimbus can handle all of us and if not you can ride in Kayos' sidecar!"

Chichi smiled, flustered by his exuberance. "You… don't mind me coming?"

"Of course not!" he declared. "Its going to be so much fun! And you're sure you're gonna join us at Capsule Corp when we summon, Shenron, right?"

"…yes, I think I will," Chichi said, shooting me a grateful look.

I nodded back, realizing that in a few minutes I might have just earned myself my biggest ally.