eyes. When he could really see his surroundings, he couldn't suppress a
gasp.

The landscape looked like Vejiitasei! The tall cliffs had the same rugged, desolate beauty as his homeland. His eyes
darted back and forth. There was little vegetation, and what was present looked tough and well able to survive with
little water. The rising sun glanced off the striated red and orange sandstone buttes. He heard the cry of a hunting
hawk, and it stirred memories of similar hunting calls from his youth, when he was training in the wilderness with
Nappa.

Stunned, his eyes sought his companion. Goku smiled at him, not his usual smile, but a soft, knowing expression. "You
like it, don't you?"

"How did you know?"

Goku shrugged. "I didn't really know, but I suspected. I found this place years ago, and I come here to train.
Sometimes I bring Gohan, and he agrees that something about this place pulls deep at him. It looks like Vejiitasei,
doesn't it?"

Vegeta realized that his mouth was hanging open, and he closed it with an audible snap. Quickly, he pulled himself
together. He couldn't have the fool understand how much of an impression this place had made on him. "Yes, there is a
slight resemblance."

Goku chuckled deep in his chest, and Vegeta knew he hadn't fooled the other Saiyan in the slightest. "You must be
starving."

Vegeta's stomach picked that moment to growl loudly. He scowled. "Perhaps a bit."

"There's food in the knapsack by your head."

Vegeta turned and noticed the knapsack for this first time. His sensitive nose detected the smell of food, and his
stomach growled again, more loudly this time.

"There's also a change of clothes." Goku pointed a few feet off to their right. "And there's a spring behind that rock
cleft. I thought you might appreciate a bath. Soap's in with the clothes."

"You seem to have thought of everything, Kakarott."

"Well, Bulma's the one who packed it."

Vegeta hummphed as he reached for the knapsack. As promised, there was food and plenty of it. Vegeta tore in with a
vengeance. After a moment, he heard Goku clearing his throat. "What is it, baka?"

Goku's voice was plaintive. "I've been waiting a long time for you to wake up. Some of that was supposed to be mine."

Vegeta tossed the knapsack in the direction of Goku's voice, not even glancing up from his meal. As expected, Goku
didn't let it hit the ground.

"How long did I sleep?" Vegeta asked when his stomach was approaching full.

When Goku didn't answer immediately, Vegeta looked at him in irritation. Goku hastily chewed and swallowed and then
answered. "Sorry, you slept all the way through yesterday. I was starving!"

"Why didn't you eat?"

Goku blushed. "Ahh. I didn't think of it. I just waited."

Vegeta snorted. "Typical." He was surprised to hear he had slept that long. He must have been training harder than he
had realized. Empty mind could do that, though. He stretched, the throbbing in his head receding with a full stomach.
"Where did you say that spring was?"

"Ower tere," Goku pointed and said around a mouthful of food.

"Don't speak with your mouth full," Vegeta said as he gathered up fresh clothes and the bar of soup. Undeniably
considerate of Kakarott. Suddenly he stopped. Why had Kakarott brought him here anyway?

"Since you've been training so hard, I thought you might want to spar."

Vegeta whirled. He knew he hadn't spoken out loud. How had the other Saiyan known what he'd been thinking? Goku looked
at him with guileless eyes, still eating. Vegeta shook his head. He must have spoken out loud. Mustn't he?

He spoke, keeping his voice even with an effort. "I suppose. Might as well show you what real training can do. Not
like that half-baked sparring you do with your half-breed son." There, that sounded right. Kakarott would never notice
that something was wrong.

"Sure. I can hardly wait. I'll be finished eating by the time you're clean."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. The other Saiyan seemed to think of little other than food and fighting.

He went in search of the spring. He was mentally gearing himself for the plunge into ice-cold water when he caught a
whiff of sulfur. Trust the fool to forget to mention that it was a hot spring. Turning to be sure Kakarott was out of
sight, Vegeta hastened his pace to his bath. He could use a soak before battle.

The spring was small but very hot, almost too hot even for a Saiyan. Vegeta lowered himself in with a heartfelt groan
of pleasure. He quickly soaped up, rinsed off and then settled back to relax, letting his mind go blank. The hot
water, combined with the achingly familiar surroundings put him in an unusually good mood, and he caught himself
almost drifting off. Wanting to stay alert for the upcoming battle, he kept his eyes open and glanced around at the
countryside. He remembered training sessions with Nappa. After a particularly good session, the older Saiyan would
take him hunting. Bringing down his prey with nothing but his bare hands was a cherished memory.

Suddenly though, his thoughts turned. He began to notice differences between the surrounding countryside and his
memories of home. Like everything else on this planet, even this barren landscape was lush compared to Vejiitasei.
Memories of Nappa led inevitably to thinking about how alone he was. The last of his race other than the fool Kakarott
and his half-breed son. Damn Frieza! And damn Kakarott and his son for denying him the pleasure of vengeance! He,
Vegeta, should have avenged his race, not some idiot with no memory of his proud heritage.

But even his usually litany on how he had been wronged by Kakarott couldn't dispel the other, more disturbing
thoughts. Thoughts about how he didn't have to be alone. How there was someone who had come to him in his pain and
offered only comfort, not ridicule. Vegeta colored at the thought of that night, standing alone in dark, wanting to
cry his pain to the sky but not wanting to attract the attention. Why hadn't he flown somewhere else, where he could
have been alone with his dark thoughts?

But then she had come. He had expected her to laugh at his weakness, make some sort of cutting comment. But she had
only asked what was wrong. Of course he could never have told her. A part of him had wished she would leave. But
another part was glad that she stayed, her hands on him, trying to sooth his tortured soul by soothing the tension in
his muscles.

Almost had he weakened and spoken of his pain, but he was a prince, and a prince did not speak of his troubles to a
lesser being. But, oh, how he had wanted to speak of it to someone. He sighed. And a pitifully weak part of him still
did want to speak.

Miserable again, all the good of his bath and his delight in seeing someplace so reminiscent of home banished, he
slowly began to climb out of the spring. Might as well fight Kakarott. At least in battle he could forget his
troubles.

Just as he emerged from the pool, a familiar head popped out from behind a rock. "Are you okay? I thought you'd gone
to sleep or something."

"Kakarott! Do you mind!"

Goku immediately blushed and started looking everywhere except at his naked companion. "Umm. Sorry. I'll...uhh...give
you a couple more minutes." And he vanished so quickly Vegeta wasn't certain he hadn't used Instant Transmission.

"Hmph," he grumbled to himself. "Learned modesty in addition to other earthling foolishness." For Vegeta hadn't minded
Goku seeing him naked. He just hadn't yet mentally prepared himself for Kakarott's unfailing cheerfulness.

He quickly dressed and stepped out from behind the rocks. Goku was standing several feet away, determinedly facing
away from Vegeta.

"I'm dressed. It's safe to turn around," Vegeta said in dry amusement.

Goku turned around, red still evident on his face. "I'm sorry, Vegeta. I didn't know you'd be getting out at just that
moment."

Vegeta scowled. "I don't share your modesty. I just wasn't ready for your idiocy. Now, since you brought me all this
way to spar, let's get to it. I could be training."

Goku's face brightened. "Sure Vegeta. I'm ready."

Several minutes into the sparring session, Goku knew he was going to have to revise his strategy. He didn't know what
was wrong, but Vegeta's heart obviously wasn't in it. Goku was pretty sure that Chi-Chi could have blocked some of the
prince's blows, and once Goku strained several muscles trying to pull a blow that Vegeta totally missed blocking.

Goku pulled back and levitated several feet above Vegeta. The other Saiyan let him withdraw and hung limply in the
air. Goku descended slowly. "Come on, Vegeta. What's up? This isn't like you."

Vegeta stiffened and attempted a fighting stance, but Goku shook his head. Gohan had looked more ready when he was
five than the Saiyan prince did right now. "Uh uh, Vegeta. I'd knock you into next week if I attacked you now."

The proud shoulders slumped. Goku's heart sank. It must be worse than he and Bulma had thought. He'd been sure that
last statement would goad Vegeta into action. He lowered himself to the ground. "Come on down Vegeta. Talk to me." He
settled down, cross-legged, and waited.

He didn't have to wait long. Vegeta drifted down and stood by the edge of the cliff, staring out across the valley
below. If it had been anyone else, Goku would have stood