Me, forget you?

By Zogeta

22 June

Summary: The follow-up to 'Stupid Statue'. Blame the first five who reviewed that story…they prompted a follow-up!

Vegeta's on his deathbed and musing about what awaits him on the other side of the infamous 'white light at the end of the tunnel'.

Warnings: One hit wonder…and no, no shonen-ai, so homophobes can read this too.

Two centuries old and still stubborn.

Vegeta frowned up at the ceiling, wondering if he could get in a last set of sit-ups before he died. But the nurses had already threatened to call his grandkids, and then he's have to listen to the whole lecture about 'prolonging his time' blah, blah, and blah.

Personally, he was ready to leave this planet. Being old and weak wasn't to his liking and he was, quite frankly, tired of living. It had been a long road and it was time to check into the gravitron in the sky.

And there's an old rival I'd like to have a word with…

He quirked the old smirk at the thought of Kakarot, his longest and fiercest rival. What had the lug been doing all this time? Training, of course, but had he done anything else? Traveled the universe, maybe? Gone on a journey of self-discovery?

The two hundred year old Vegeta rubbed an old scar on his shoulder, a jagged line that ran over his shoulder down his back. He had got it during his first fight with Kakarot, and strangely, it had never faded. And it was all he had left. Photo albums had been taken by other families and there was no one else alive that remembered him the way Vegeta did. Gohan, Goten, Bra and Trunks had all passed on recently, making Vegeta even more eager to leave Earth.

So many years of rivalry, some of the bitterness draining away after the first decade. Kakarot had been a major catalyst in Vegeta's life, the person who had really taught him what mercy and forgiveness really meant, and what true strength really was.

And then the bastard left, for the third and final time.

Oh, Vegeta had quietly waited for the first ten years, expecting him if a major crisis ever arose. To arrive in a blaze of orange, kick the enemy's ass, have lunch then stay for a little while before running off. That was his style, his modus operandi.

But there had been nothing but peace. Pleasant, mind-numbingly dull peace. He really was a trouble magnet, that Kakarot. The decades had passed, and Vegeta had slowly begun to accept that, as far as he knew, he was the last left. The last reminder and remainder of what had once been the most powerful, adaptable race that had ever existed.

It had been a hard truth to swallow, and had always sat in his stomach like a lump of concrete.

But now, there was finally an end in sight, and the humans and partial Saiyans insisted on keeping him alive. He couldn't understand why; he supposed he was some sort of interesting anomaly in his way. Trunks had joked that Vegeta was a legend, but the Saiyan prince had just scoffed and continued eating his ice cream. Legend.

Whatever.

There was a flicker of energy in his room and he turned his head to look at who it was. When his eyes settled on the figure, he blinked, then frowned, then blinked again.

"K…Kakarot?"

The Saiyan smiled and waved.

'Hey, Vegeta! Wow, it's been way too long. You're even skinnier now!"

Vegeta snorted and sat up. "And how did you get younger? You look thirty again."

Goku moved towards the bed and sat on the foot of it, grinning at Vegeta. "Well, I'm dead now, and Yemma sort of resets my body every time it happens. And you'll get the same treatment; I've come to fetch you. Thought you might like the company."

Vegeta shook his head, smiling a little. "Nearly one hundred and forty years have passed and you haven't changed. I thought you had forgotten all about me…forgotten everything we went through so long ago."

Goku's grin softened a little, falling into a thoughtful smile. "Nah, Vegeta, I could never forget all of that. Do you remember how much fun we had as Vegito?"

"And as super Saiyan fours? Gogeta was a nutcase!"

Goku tapped the side of his nose. "Yeah, and that time with you and the worms in Buu's stomach. That was funny!"

Vegeta folded his arms. "No it wasn't! Those…things were revolting! And you freak out when you see needles!"

Vegeta showed Kakarot the needles in his arm, feeling rather smug at how Kakarot's face paled.

"Alright, you win."

Vegeta smirked and fell back on his pillows. "So, what have you been doing all these years?"

Goku folded his legs and rested his elbows on them. "A lot of training…for nothing, it seems. I missed out on watching my grandkids grow up and just being with my friends. I couldn't be there for my kids when their mother died, or for you when Bulma passed on."

He frowned, looking like he had been thinking about this for a long time. Vegeta listened, knowing that Kakarot probably needed it.

"I mean, nothing happened. I trained for something that never came…feels like I wasted my time. But when Shenron asked me if I wanted to go with him, I was just so curious…"

Vegeta snaked his tail out from under the blanket and wrapped it around Kakarot's wrist.

"It's alright, Kakarot. I can't blame you for your curiosity. I'm just as bad and it's got me into trouble too. Remember when I was curious about Perfect Cell, and got my tail whipped so badly that Trunks and Krillin had to rescue me?"

Goku looked up from the blanket, staring at Vegeta. "You mean, you're not pissed at me for leaving?"

Vegeta shrugged. "I was, for a long time. But after a while, I came to terms with it, the same way I came to terms with being a homeless orphan at the age of nine. I just wished you had come to visit, at least. It was boring without you around. And lonely…especially after Bulma died."

Goku shifted, his tail moving to wrap over Vegeta's. "I'm sorry…it was a fuck-up to leave with Shenron. But I can't just reverse that decision, as much as I would like to."

Vegeta started tugging the needles out of his arms. "What'd done is done and all we can do is make up for lost time."

Goku grinned and rubbed the back of his neck. "I can't believe you thought I would forget you! I used to think about you lots when I trained. You know, things like 'it would be nice to have someone to spar with', and 'Vegeta would refuse to do this kata because he would look like a girl'. But I had to make sure the Earth would be fine if something happened, and I truly believed that you would be a great guardian."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, swinging his legs out of bed. "Oh please. All I did was train the Saiyan brats. There is so little Saiyan blood left in this latest generation I couldn't fill an eggcup with it. Hardly taxing work and nothing exciting ever happened." A shrug. "I'm just glad to die now. Everyone directly related to me is gone and I can't even go Super Saiyan anymore. Such a sad state of affairs."

Goku stood and put a hand on Vegeta's shoulder. "Any goodbyes?"

Vegeta smirked. "Nah. They'll get all clingy and I'll never get on with death. It's better this way."

Goku nodded and put two fingers to his forehead. A moment passed before they blurred out of sight and reappeared in Yemma's office. Goku moved his hand off Vegeta's shoulder and grinned.

"Doesn't youth feel good, Vegeta?"

Vegeta looked down at his body, then at his hands. Gone were the wrinkles and blemishes, the joint pain and aching bones. Everything was supple and strong again, and he grinned as he flexed his energy, the living force thrumming in his body and waiting to be wielded once again. He flashed through the levels until he got to Super Saiyan four, grinning as the red fur rippled across his body.

"Indeed it does, Kakarot. This is worth dying for."

Goku gestured towards the area where the planes were idling. "Come on; let's get a good seat on the planes! It's part of the whole experience!"

Vegeta followed him, still reveling at the return of power to his previously weak and useless body. He took a seat next to the window, Kakarot on the other side of him.

"Will I see everyone there?"

A nod. "Yeah, of course. Piccolo got moved up from Hell and he's also looking forward to seeing you. If you ask me, I think he has a fondness for Saiyans."

Vegeta looked out the window, watching stars and clouds whiz by. "Old Green Bean has always been a bit of a softie."

He turned to lean back in his chair, smiling as he considered something.

"Kakarot…after we land and after all the hellos and greetings…you and I are going to have a long overdue spar."

Goku grinned wickedly, like a child that has found the hiding place of their birthday presents. "I was just about to suggest the same thing, Vegeta. A hard, bone-crunching, blood-spilling, all-out fight fest involving many sneaky attacks and the old wit. Just the way spars are meant to be."

Vegeta felt the familiar smirk settle, and man, did it feel so good.

"Hope you're ready to bow before the Prince, Kakarot."

And just like old times, Kakarot smirked back and for the first time in a long time, all was right again in the Universe.

END

Replies to those who reviewed the first installment:

VBchickvlvr: Well, Vegeta has got his spar and youth, and now there is balance again. Thank you for taking the time to review a one-shot; most people don't bother at all. Hope to hear from you again.

Vegeta's Sis: Your wish has been granted! Your request helped to spur me onto this; it was meant to stay a one-shot…so much for that.

X The Chichi Slaughter House X: I'm really glad that you like it. Your fic on the Saiyan Hideaway was brilliant! It made me all teary in some parts. Mmmm, bondage. Please write more, you're damn good!

Lenora: Stoppit, you're making me blush! Well, Kakarot didn't forget his old rival, and I kinda like the idea of him fetching Vegeta to go to the other side…although, considering their ages, Vegeta should have died first…but you know the stubborn bastard. Won't die until he's ready.

Clarobell: See what you made me do? You made me write a sequel! Darn you and your skills of persuasion!

Just kidding. Thanks for the vote of confidence. My style has much improved, don't you think?

Thank you, dear readers. This little scribble is dedicated to you. You spawned it, and now it's yours.

With Insanity,

Zogeta