Val stood next to Bulma with the others just outside of Capsule Corp after 130 days of them being on Earth had past, minus Vegeta. She figured he was just off watching on his own somewhere privately more than doing anything else. Especially training, he seemed obsessed with it, wanting to figure out how to be a Super Saiyan like Goku had been. She looked down at the two goldenrod colors bracelets on her wrists, thinking back to when she first got them and how long Vegeta had stared at them before commenting on them:
"Do you really need those? You're not as dangerous as your mother was, needing gloves all the time," he had said.
Val had pulled her hands up to her chest, pressing both bracelets against it. "Kami hopes I won't need them after some time spent training. To keep any accidental flames at bay," she explained.
"Just burn them off when you can't control your emotions," he snided. "Or use it..." he added, looking back down at her wrists with a gaze that made her pull them behind her back.
Val flinched back at the idea, shaking her head. "It could harm someone," she reminded him.
Bulma had been there as well, defusing the tension. "You know, on Earth, if a man is interested in a woman, one of the things he might give her is jewelry," she chimed. Both of them looked at her, not quite understanding the comment.
Val shook her head, commenting, "I don't think that was Kami's intention. He's the guardian of the Earth, has been for centuries. Been doing it a few years longer than he preferred I think." She looked down at the bracelets again, running her fingers along the smooth outside of one. "Took it over from the previous guardian," she recited part of what she had been told.
Bulma looked between the two of them in amusement, boldly suggesting to Vegeta, "well, you know the solution; go get her something nicer." She nodded up at him, looking even more amused with his reaction.
He grimaced, "seen too many of her childish outbursts to even consider it."
Val looked between the two of them, not quite following the conversation until a few seconds later. "He's Saiyan," she choked out, a grimace to match his on her face.
Bulma looked between the two of them, shaking her head, but still looking more amused than Val felt comfortable at the thought.
Val snapped out of her thoughts when the seven dragon balls were activated. The light blue sky went pitch black as the Shenlon rose out from them as Moori chanted the words. She had seen it before with Dende, but the sight of it still took her breath away anew.
"That's the Namek Shenlon?" Bulma asked.
"It's huge!" Chichi, Gohan's mother, commented. Val eyed over at both women, settling on the later, who was one of the strongest women on the planet.
"Wohoo! It's great!" Dr. Briefs cheered.
Val looked over at him, finding him as harmless as Bulma had said, far more harmless than the Master Roshi who had also come along. Val had gotten a bit of an off vibe from him, especially when Chichi had warned him off of her, saying someone that pretty would not be even remotely interested in him. She inadvertently looked down the line at the others with them, seeing Piccolo, but hardly interacting with him. She had seen him notice her bracelets as well, staring at them in a way different from how Vegeta had. He looked resentful rather than longingly.
"Fine!" the Shenlon called down, voice booming so loudly that Val thought she could feel it in her chest. "What's your first wish?"
Bulma and the others looked over at Moori hopeful. Moori nodded his head, permitting, "Make your three wishes. We'll use them next time."
"Thank you, Elder," Gohan responded.
Val looked up the Shenlon, and as did Bulma, who called out, "first off, bring the spirits of Goku and Krillin who died on Namek here." Dende nearby translated her wish into Namekian. Val listened to the words he used, understanding part of it since she had been trying to learn it herself from one of the other elders.
The Shenlon boomed down, "I've done it with the spirit of Krillin, but I cannot do it with Goku's."
"Huh, but why?!" Bulma asked.
"Because he's alive. I can't transfer the spirits of the living," the Shenlon explained.
Val felt a broad grin cut across her face at the exciting news.
"He... he's alive?" Gohan said, voice almost drowned out by the cheering of the others around him. Val smiled down at him, glad for the good news for him, even if it did make her feel a slight pang of jealousy.
"If he's alive, why hasn't he come back?" Bulma asked.
"Maybe his ship's broken," Val reckoned. "I doubt he knows how to fly one properly, even if he managed to get off Namek just in time."
Moori suggested to them, "in that case, just ask the Shenlon to bring him here."
"Oh course!" Bulma cheered, quite excited by the idea. "Fine," she paused, taking a deep breath, "here's the second wish: resurrect Krillin!"
Krillin appeared in front of them the next instant, still clothed in the Saiyan armor he had worn on Namek when he died. "Eh? Huh? What?" he muttered out amidst the cheers the others gave at the sight of him.
"His body and clothes, which were destroyed were restored on a special service," the Shenlon told them.
Unexpectedly, Bulma elbowed Val hard in the side. Val huffed, more annoyed by the move than anything else. She gave Val a side nod over at Krillin that she needed a moment to understand what was being hinted at. Val stroked at one of the bracelets absentmindedly, looking over at him. When he noticed, she looked away, bracelets feeling a little warm, yet hands staying cool.
Bulma looked back up the Shenlon. "You do a good job despite your ugly head," she said flirtatiously with a wink. "And now, bring Goku here!"
Others around them cheered at that.
The Shenlon paused, but then informed them, "he refused. He'd rather come back on his own."
"Huh?" Bulma hummed.
"He refused? Why?" Gohan asked.
"I know why! He's afraid of his wife! The strongest person in the universe isn't the Super Saiyan Goku! It's his wife!" Master Roshi exclaimed. Chichi drew a sword she happened to have, brandishing it at him with a dark scowl on his face. "A joke! It's a joke!" he added, cowering from her. Val smirked at the image, finding it amusing.
Through the amusement, Piccolo's voice cut in, "since he's coming back on his own, let's bring back one of friends at Kaio's."
Val looked over at him, drawn to his voice. "That's a great idea," Bulma stated. "Since Tien and Chaozu would be inseparable, bring back Yamcha!"
Dende translated for her, and Shenlon made the wish. Bulma squealed at the sight of her resurrected boyfriend, running over to him to hug him. Val watched the scene with the others, finding a bit of sweetness in it.
A voice by her shoulder broke her out of thoughts. "Hey, how did you end up here?" Krillin asked, looking up at her curiously.
She looked down at him shyly. "It's a long story," she responded, not sure what else to say back.
"Maybe you can fill me in sometime?" he rushed out the words so fast, she needed a second to comprehend them.
She noticed a shadow half cast over her. She turned to see Piccolo had come over to them. "Welcome back, Krillin," he said, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. Val noticed he half stood between the two of them in doing so.