Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Peter lay on his back, on a cot, in the small holding cell of what his young mind concluded was a spaceship. His damp eyes focused on catching his familiar Koosh ball rather than his cold metal surroundings. The action of throwing the ball up and down over his head helped him finally calm down and focus his thoughts. His throat felt sore and dry from screaming, panicking and admittedly, crying for hours. Or at least what seemed like hours since the blue man had put him here, shortly after he had been abducted.

And the blue man, was, an alien.

Peter thought of that word, ‘abducted’ and what it truly meant. The word settled in his stomach like a stone. He had been abducted. He was taken against his will. And not by some dim witted kidnapper, offering him dubious van candy. No. But by real live space aliens!

He called to memory everything his young mind knew of aliens. He thought of all the movies he’d watched with his mother.

Oh, his mother!

He suddenly remembered the horrible thing that happened just before he was abducted. His heart split in two all over again when he realized that even if he could get back to earth his mother would not be there.

He cried again.

When his eyes were all cried out, he went back to his thoughts on aliens. In the movies when they abducted you they probed you, did tests on you like a science experiment. In comic books they were usually bad, ugly, mean things with a desire for world domination and a natural hatred for humans. Then he thought of his mothers favorite movie, Star Wars.

In that movie the aliens were not much different from people, some were bad but many were good. Images of light-sabers, smugglers and space battles flickered across his mind as he hopped he’d been taken by the Star Wars type of aliens and not the mean, probing kind. Maybe one of these aliens could be reasoned with? Maybe.

Suddenly, the only door at the opposite end of the room opened with a metallic bang. Peter involuntarily drew his knees up to his chin, curling himself into a ball at the far end of the cot, his eyes wide and his body trembling. A great burly alien with a messy beard and unearthly red skin strode in holding a metal tray. Probing aliens, Peter thought in a panic, seeing the tray.

“Food,” the alien grunted, dropping the tray heavily on the round side table beside the cot, crossing the tiny room before Peter could even take another breath. As he got a closer look, Peter thought he looked more like a man from an earthy biker gang rather than an alien. He was wearing a red leather jacket with a flame shaped patch on it. Although, all the aliens he’d seen so far wore this same jacket. Even the blue one with the metal mo-hawk wore it, the one who had given the others orders to put him in here. He had come to the conclusion the blue one was probably the leader.

The alien stared back at Peter with an annoyed scowl on his face. “Food,” he repeated, pointing at the tray. “Damn it kid, does your translator not work?” Peter remembers that terrifying moment when one of the aliens grabbed him roughly and stabbed him with a needle just behind his ear. At least he doesn’t have to hear that horrible screeching sound these aliens call language anymore.

“Eat,” he added, making a gesture with his hand as if he were putting an invisible spoon to his mouth. Peter only shrunk further away shaking his head in the negative, unable to stop his trembling or find his voice.

The alien shrugged his shoulders, “Fine, starve then.” He turned to leave the room.

Peter wanted so badly to ask the alien if he would take him back home. A million questions hung on his tongue but he still couldn’t find his voice. He realized this might be his only chance at getting home or at least finding out where he was going. At least if he knew something he might feel better.

“Wait,” Peter yelped.

The alien stopped just before putting his hand to the door panel and turned half way towards Peter, listening.

“Where are we going? Will you ever take me back home? What are you going to do with me?” All this came out in a rushed tumble. Peter even surprised he was able to say so much without a single incoherent sob.

The alien groaned. “Listen kid, we’re just the delivery guys, okay. I’m not at liberty to say much more, but if we didn’t take you someone else would have. Someone who might not even be feeding you right now. Don’t worry too much, you’re just going for a ride,” he said weakly. He wouldn’t even look in Peter’s direction as he spoke. As young as he was, he sensed something of guilt in the aliens tone. None of what he said truly made sense. He had thought if he could get some kind of information he would have felt better.

But he didn’t.

He only felt worse and more confused. The aliens guilty tone had roused a sense of dread and finality within Peter and he did the only thing he could.

He curled back into a ball and sobbed softly into his knees.

Meanwhile, on the other side of his vast star-ship, the Eclector, Yondu Udonta paced nervously up and down in his private quarters. He had just received the worst news he could have gotten. His darkest suspicion confirmed. He was an accessory to the murder of dozens, no, maybe even a hundred children. The grim fact settled in the pit of his stomach like warm beer and spoiled food. He could have cried if that reaction hadn’t been beaten out of him around the time he was Peter’s age.

Instead he settled for flinging a box of junk across the room in a fit of rage. “Damn you to hell Ego, you sick bastard!” he shouted to no one.

He paced the room for the umpteenth time catching his reflection in the mirror hanging on his closet door. Abruptly, he ripped the mirror away from the door with his bare hands, shattering it in the process. He flung its remains across the room in a million pointy little pieces.

“Damn me,” he said breathlessly.

He had had his suspicions for awhile. And if he was being completely honest with himself, he never truly trusted what Ego’s intentions were with so many children. It was always the same unsettling story, the mama was dead or dying and he was contracted to deliver the kid to it’s father. For years, him and his crew had settled into the complacency of simply thinking themselves as delivery guys dropping off a package. No thought. No questions. And units talk, he had become a rich man in the process. It wasn’t until he decided to request to receive his payment in person for his previous job that he was sure something was off.

When he met up with Ego on his planet, he noticed the vast emptiness of it all. It was beautiful, yes, but not a single sign that even one child was there. Not so much as a blanket or broken toy anywhere to be found. And hell, kids are noisy, Yondu knew that. He had muted the audio on the video feed from Peter’s cell hours ago with all his blubbering! But Ego’s planet, his home, was… frighteningly quiet.

So to ease his suspicious soul, Yondu hired a bounty hunter to do a little reconnaissance work for him. A trustworthy, thick bottomed, Xandarian women by the name of Flora, that only hung around the classiest of bars and who only took jobs from the better paying, more respectable low-life.

But of course her news did not ease him.

Inspecting the bloody gash across his palm, wishing the mirror had done worse, Yondu settled into a chair. His guilty eyes roved over the wall of security cam monitors in front of him until they fell on the one that shone Peter. For a moment, he eyed his small curled up form remembering all the other small curled up forms that came before him in that very room. Something unusual gripped Yondu’s throat and burned in his eyes. Something he hadn’t felt in years. Ugh.

But, from years of practice, he quickly shoved the feeling back down his throat, averting his eyes from the monitor and gripping the arms of his chair until his knuckles hurt. The warm blood from the gash on his palm seeping between his fingers. This was bad, but he’d been through worse and he’d be damned if this would make him go soft.

After some time, he successfully reined in his traitorous emotions enough to plan his next moves carefully.

There was no way he would even consider delivering Peter to Ego now. But he really couldn’t just turn back and take Peter home either. Even if he lied; told Ego, Peter had not survived the journey. Ego would come looking. If Ego was one thing he was thorough. He would go to Terra himself just to be sure Peter was truly gone. And even if he could somehow keep Ego away from Terra, the other Ravagers – though they weren’t the smartest knives in the draw, would question why they had passed up all those units.

What’s worse is, if the Ravagers ever found out they had aided Ego in murdering all those children under Yondu’s command, there would be mutiny. He would be thrown out of his clan for sure. He’d be disgraced. The colors of Ogord would never flash over his grave. Hell, his own crew would probably boot him off the ship to meet a too soon, icy, space death.

Yondu definitely needed a plan, and he needed one fast before his ship got any closer to that psychotic Celestial.

When Yondu really thought about it, as he leaned back in his chair stretching his legs across his desk, what he needed was to somehow make Peter seem valuable to the other Ravagers. More valuable than the units Ego was offering.

With some buzzing thoughts and a few overheated, blue brain cells later, Yondu had the beginnings of a plan. It was a dumb plan that only a bunch of idiots would buy into, but he had plenty of idiots and more importantly it was a plan.

Back down in the bowels of the Eclector, Peter suspiciously poked at the sandwich the alien left on the table. He couldn’t remember the last time he ate, and despite being upset he was very hungry. After a long and careful inspection, which included poking, smelling and even talking to the sandwich, he finally came to the conclusion that it would not bite him back. With a cautious, exploratory nibble he was welcomed with an almost familiar taste. Something like spam with an almost relish-like sauce.

Peter’s hunger took him over. Momentarily forgetting where he was, he wolfed down the sandwich in a few ravenous bites, then gulped down the glass of water seconds later. Before he had a chance to set the glass back on the tray, the metal door clanged open sharply.

Snapped back to reality, Peter backed up as the blue alien with the metal mo-hawk strode in swiftly.

He moved away until his elbows and rear met the cool metal wall opposite. The alien continued to move towards him with fast purposeful steps. When he realized Blue Alien had him cornered, his hands shook with fear and his mouth suddenly went cotton dry despite his lips still being wet from the huge glass of water he just drank.

“Would ya stand still, boy! I’m tryin’ to talk to ya,” the alien said roughly. Peter froze and almost forgot how to breathe. The aliens harsh voice sounding like sandpaper in his ears. Couldn’t his stupid translator at least have made his voice sound pleasant?

“Listen up, boy and listen good cause I’m only gonna say this once. I’ve got some good news for ya, and some bad news. Bad news is, I got a whole crew of hungry Ravagers and they ain’t never tasted Terran before. They wanted to eat you, boy!” Peter’s heart rate picked up tenfold hearing this. He swayed on his feet feeling as if he actually might faint. The alien’s body language did nothing to ease Peter’s fear. He paced up and down the room like a predator. A lion stuck in a too small cage. How Peter wished there were bars separating them.

“But good news is, I’m captain and I get the final say on who gets eaten on my ship,” he continued. “I saved your life! I said to them, ‘this kid could be of some use. He’s skinny and good for thievin’. He can squeeze into places us adults can’t.’ Plus, I got a little job for you, something to prove yourself. Quill, was it?” Peter managed to nod his head, feeling only a small amount of relief having not been eaten. Hadn’t the alien that brought the sandwich said they were just, delivery guys? As upset as Peter was he hadn’t imagined these aliens as the, people eating kind! Maybe the sandwich alien was just trying to lore him into a false sense of security to keep him quiet?

“So, Quill what will it be? Do ya want to be part of my Ravager clan; the most feared and respected gang in the western quadrant, or do ya want to be my boys dinner?” What other choice was there, Peter thought?

“Yes,” Peter answered, trying to make his voice sound big but it came out as nothing more than a shaky squeak.

“Yes? Yes, you want to be eaten?” Blue Alien raised a villainous eyebrow then turned on his heel towards Peter bearing his sharp, pointed teeth, bending down to Peter’s level. His red eyes bore into Peter’s blue stealing another shiver of fear from the boy. In his rough way, Yondu was just trying to goad him to use his voice and speak up, but seeing this alien’s face so close to his shot fresh fear into Peter’s veins. For the first time he looked at this alien closely, and his frightened child’s mind didn’t doubt Yondu could really eat him if he wanted.

“NO!” Peter roared, finding his true voice for the first time. Blue Alien was a little taken back by the boys sudden strength. “I mean no, I don’t want to be eaten and yes, I would like to join your gang,” he said evenly.

“Good choice, Quill.” He clapped him on the shoulder, as if to say he had his back. Strangely, Peter almost felt comforted by the gesture. He darted a glance at the aliens’ eyes again and could have sworn he saw something aside from the evil monster that abducted him.

The alien turned and headed for the door. “Name’s Yondu, by the way. Oh, and Quill,” turning back towards Peter before he opened the door, “if ya fail to prove yourself or try any funny business, me and my crew will be tastin’ Terran for dinner!” Yondu laughed and slammed the door as he exited. The loud metallic clang sending chills down Peter’s spine. How could he ever imagined this Yondu character having his back!

Peter wasn’t sure how long it had been since his meeting with Yondu, but it felt like days had gone by. Strangely, it seemed as if years had already passed since his feet were last planted firmly on earth. Time felt as if it were running together and all wrong. In his windowless room where the harsh lighting never changed, it was impossible to determine the days from the nights.

As his eyes grew heavy with exhaustion, he realized that he had not slept since grandfather had woken him and took him to see his mother for the last time. He tried hard not to think about his mother or the fact that he was currently hurtling through space with a gang of alien outlaws. He squished his eyes shut and tried to take deep breaths but a trembling rolled through him and his breaths didn’t want to slow. The opposing mixture of panic and exhaustion where beginning to make Peter ill.

From somewhere across the ship Peter heard a faint, clang and then a slight bang. The two sounds together reminded him of a song his mother liked. He was also reminded of something else as well.

Immediately, he scrambled off the cot and made for his backpack. He frantically dug through, hoping his most important possession was still inside. When his hand reached the bottom, pushing past some Troll dolls and his Koosh ball, it thankfully came to rest on his beloved Walkman. But Peter caught a glimpse of the thing beside his Walkman. A thing that made unwanted tears blossom in his eyes. His mother’s last present to him.

Part of him wanted to open it out of curiosity, but the moment his finger brushed the colorful wrapping paper he decided against it. Opening it would be the end of her. The last thing she had done for him. Over.

As he stared down at the present he realized he liked seeing it there. It almost felt as if she had simply packed his bag and given him a present to open on his trip to space. As if she could still be waiting for him at home to return from his space adventures. Peter knew it was silly to play pretend like this, but something about the thought brought him so much comfort.

He let his comfort remain at the bottom of his backpack and returned to his cot with the Walkman. He almost smiled at the irony. At the fact he was flying among the stars thinking of what she used to call him; Star Lord. Of course, he knew he wasn’t actually a Star Lord. His grandfather even warned him that his mother might say some silly things on account of her illness, but some part of him relished in the idea of being a real Star Lord. Some part of him almost feared going back home; a place where his mother wasn’t.

As the music played Peter’s trembling subsided. When sleep finally came his dreams took him across the galaxy. He was an outlaw, a hero and an adventurer. A true Star Lord. He saw himself in his very own star-ship winning space battles, saving damsels in distress and saving the galaxy. Strangely, it was the most peaceful dream he ever had in his young life.

Peter woke up with a start an indistinguishable amount of time later. After his brief moment of shock subsiding from his unusual surroundings; his mind taking time to recall its most recent events. Peter noticed something different. Actually, it was something missing rather than different. The constant low hum of the spaceships engine was gone. Before Peter had time to consider where or why the spaceship had stopped, he heard the metallic bang of his cell door opening. A sound he dread and one he was becoming all too familiar with.

“Yo, Quill it’s proving time,” shouted Yondu’s rough voice from the doorway.

Chapter Text

Moments later, Peter found himself standing on the surface of a desolate planet with Yondu and a handful of his Ravager gang. He saw neither plant, nor animal, nor any other living thing aside from a few scrubby, bare bushes scattered here and there. There must not have been any civilized settlements nearby because the Ravagers simply put their ship down on a flat, less rocky part of the plateau. No hanger or airport of any kind to speak of.

No one to call on for help.

The uncharted planet reminded Peter of pictures he’d seen of the Arizona desert; red and rocky with great canyons and high plateaus. Except on this planet the red dirt seemed washed out, paler. Actually, as Peter looked up at the sky he discerned that the sun itself was casting everything in a red glow. His own skin was red in the suns glow as if he were outside at the peak of sunset, though given the suns height in the sky it should have been around noon.

And instead of the warm, yellow Arizona sun, this strange red sun gave no warmth. Peter was met with an unusual chill, yet there was no snow or ice anywhere to be found. Now Peter had been through cold winters before, even a blizzard once, but this cold felt entirely different. It was a chill he felt through his bones and he knew no matter how many layers he wore nothing would ease it.

The other Ravagers didn’t seem to notice the cold. They also didn’t notice Peter’s teeth chattering so loudly, echos could be heard bouncing off the rocks! Peter soon realized he would have to learn to fend for himself if he were to live among the Ravagers.

The rowdy group lead Peter down a narrow rocky path down the shallow side of an interstellar canyon. As he listened to the Ravagers talk among themselves Peter learned their names. A young man, barely more than a teenager Yondu called, Kraglin kept questioning Yondu. “We’re wasting our time,” he would say. “We’re chasing legends I’ve never even heard of before,” he added more than once to the conversation. Peter was surprised to learn that young Kraglin was already Yondu’s first mate. The other two, Scrote and Halfnut, argued about how the units would be divided. It wasn’t hard for Peter to guess that they were on some sort of treasure hunt, and units were what they called money or gold.

After their argument about the units, Halfnut bet Scrote that he couldn’t kick his own face. They both proceeded in trying, but quickly and fantastically failing. Scrote landed hard on his back several times kicking up dust. When he nearly tumbled down the narrow path, almost rolling over the side of a cliff, Yondu bit out, “You do that again and I’ll roll ya off the damn cliff myself, ya moron!”

Through his observations of the Ravagers, Peter concluded that for being the so called, intelligent life mankind was searching for in this vast universe they were none too intelligent. What kind of dumb outlaw names were Scrote and Halfnut anyhow? Peter couldn’t imagine being something so cool as a space pirate only to be called Halfnut! He could have laughed if he wasn’t terrified at what, proving himself might entail.

When they got down to the bottom of the canyon, Yondu stopped in front of a concave space in the rock of the canyon wall. The sun was past its peak and Peter had to squint into the shadows along the rocky surface of the wall to notice the small opening a few feet above the ground. It was a very small, unassuming entrance to a cave. So small in fact, Peter didn’t doubt none of the other Ravagers would have been able to fit, even thin Kraglin.

Yondu cleared his throat and made to stand in front of the group. He went to step up on a long flat rock as if he were the ringleader of a circus stepping on stage. But a piece of the rock slid out from under his foot and Yondu nearly fell on his face. The other Ravagers boomed with laughter. The moment Yondu righted himself he shot the Ravagers a truly evil, deadly look rendering them instantly silent, all except Kraglin who had his head tipped back still laughing and sorting away. Halfnut elbowed Kraglin in warning.

“Somethin’ funny Kraglin?” growled Yondu.

“Well, we weren’t expecting you would fall, and the way you fell was kinda funny too. You went down real slow and you wobbled like -” Kraglin shot his arms out to his sides posing like a drunk tight rope performer. Another evil stare from Yondu. “Sorry Cap.”

“Alright, listen up idiots. Young Quill here is gonna help us get a little richer today in so proving that he can ride with us Ravagers.”

“Whoa, wait, you want him in the gang permanently? He’s like five years old! I ain’t changing no dippers,” cried Kraglin.

“Quill!” Yondu shouted. Peter startled at the sudden address after being ignored throughout the entire hike down the canyon. “I haven’t heard a peep from you. This man thinks your a baby, aren’t you gonna correct him? If you think you’re gonna last in my gang without making a peep, being as quite as a little mouse when someone’s calling you out, we’re gonna forget you’re even in the gang. We’re gonna forget and when we get hungry we’ll be tastin’ Terran cause you made us forget!”

“I’m eight actually,” Peter said quietly.

“What was that, boy?” Yondu came down from the rock getting close to Peter’s face. Intimidating red eyes locked on Peter. “My men only respond to loud or mean. I got dirt between my toes with more spunk than you! Ya smell more like dinner than Ravager, boy.”

“I’m eight! And where I come from most five year-olds don’t wear dippers anymore. Do you still wear dippers, Kraglin?” Peter didn’t know what got in to him. He chewed at his lip trying to bite back the response. For a moment Peter thought he would surely be eaten. Kraglin took an angry step towards Peter. Yondu stepped between them, a strange look of merriment in his eyes, as if he enjoyed intimidating him and toying with his own men.

“See, you heard him, he ain’t no baby. He knows where to shit and piss and that’s good enough for me.” Yondu turned and strode back towards the rock in front of the little cave.

“But Yondu, this isn’t a guaranteed payoff,” Kraglin argued. “If we would have just took the kid to his-”

“Now we’re gonna have this discussion again, right in front of him? He ain’t even a member yet! Get back to the Eclector and wait for us. I’ve had enough of your lip Kraglin!”

But what Kraglin didn’t know was that there was no, payoff at all. In fact, Yondu was losing quite a large sum of units. This was all part of Yondu’s plan after all. The seventy-five thousand units sitting in that back of that deserted cave were his. All he had to do was get tight-lipped, fat-bottomed, bounty hunter Flora to place them there the night before, and tell Kraglin and the boys about a hot tip he’d received about some nameless, legendary gangster hiding his riches in the caves scattered about this good-for-nothing planet.

Idiots.

Idiots would believe anything when units were involved. Although, Kraglin, being the least of his idiots, would be the one to question him. Yondu was almost proud Kraglin had the smarts to question such a ridiculous plan.

“But Cap -” Kraglin protested, wanting to stick around for all the fun and excitement.

“GO!” Yondu shouted over his shoulder.

“Damn it! I never get to do anything fun!” Kraglin kicked up the dirt and stomped away like a child throwing a tantrum. A small chuckle escaped Peter at the comical scene, and also his thorough relief at having not been eaten once again. At this point, given the numerous amount of times Yondu threatened Peter that he was going to be eaten, the threat was already becoming a bit empty.

“Is that funny to you, boy?” Yondu’s face was serious. Peter was about to quietly shake his head in the negative but suddenly he remembered that being quiet and trying to stay unnoticed didn’t seem to work with these people...aliens...well whatever they were.

“Yeah, cause he acts like a big baby.” There was a long moment of silence in which Peter momentarily regretted talking so boldly about the first-mate, but suddenly Yondu howled with rough laughter and the other Ravagers quickly followed suit.

“Damn right its funny. I knew I liked this kid. Alright, Quill,” the Ravagers loud laughter abruptly stopped the moment Yondu spoke, “This is gonna be real simple. Ya see that little cave up there?” Peter nodded in reply. “All ya gotta do is climb up, shimmy in and go as far to the back as ya can. The cave’s shallow. Shouldn’t take more than a few minuets to get back there. At the back there should be a small pouch or box. You grab that up boy, cause there could be anywhere from fifty to one hundred thousand units in that thing. Then ya come back out the way ya came and hand the units over to me. Simple.

"And don’t try any funny business! If ya think you can make off with those units, I’m tellin’ ya you can’t cause there ain’t no other exit. And even if there was, this planet ain’t got nothing and nobody on it. You’d be dead in a few days, boy. And if ya ain’t dead, when me and my boys find ya I’ll be using your funny bone as my tooth pick! Got it!"

“Yes, Yondu!” Peter managed with strength he still couldn’t feel.

“See the kid catches on real quick like,” Yondu addressing the two remaining Ravagers. “Okay, Quill let’s get on with it. Get over here and I’ll give ya a leg up.”

But before Peter could make his way to Yondu, Scrote raised his hand and softly cleared his throat to get Yondu’s attention. Yondu ignored him while Peter made his way up the rock; Scrote’s throat clearing getting louder. By the time Peter made it to Yondu, Scrote’s loud mucus echoed throughout the entire canyon like a grotesque symphony.

“WHAT!” Yondu, shouted over the mucus. Turning on Scrote his angry red-eyed stare.

“Cap, don’t ya think that maybe, just maybe it would be a good idea to give the kid a weapon in case there are any wildabears in that cave. This is their known territory after all. Not that I give two snots about the little brat, but no kid equals no units. We should actually be armed considering how ferocious they are,” he said as an after thought.

“Scrote, you sunk to a whole new level of stupid! Wildabears have been extinct for decades. Ya got a better chance a goin’ to Quill’s Terra and runnin’ into a mermaid! And don’t ya think that if there were any wildabears left they’d be worth a fortune on the black market. I’d be out huntin’ them insteada’ pissin’ my time away in a cave!

“Don’t listen to that idiot, Quill,” Yondu said in Peters ear as he hoisted him up to the caves entrance. “He’s just jealous that I’m givin’ ya such an easy in to the gang.” Peters legs dangled over the inside of the caves opening. He squinted into the darkness to try and see the caverns floor but couldn’t. His heart-rate picked up as he imagined his legs could have been dangling over a fifty foot drop for all he knew. A blast of warm, putrid smelling air punched him in the nose and pulled at his hair. A tremble rolled through him he hoped Yondu couldn’t feel.

Peter glanced sidelong at Yondu and could have sworn he saw something there again. Something other than an evil, kidnapping, alien. His eyes had a look of conspiratorial merriment; like that one weird uncle that would scare the crap out of you for his own entertainment but at the end of the day he always had your back. In that moment when their eyes met he could almost feel the warm reassurance behind Yondu’s eerie red irises.

And then…

“I’m givin’ ya the opportunity of a lifetime kid, so don’t screw it up,” Yondu growled, shoving Peter unceremoniously over the side of the entrance and into the darkness.

Asshole.

Chapter Text

Tumbling through the void and into the abyss, his stomach jumping up into his throat, Peter had vague notions that he would have to work on being a better judge of character. This, Yondu was getting on his last nerve.

Peter yelped at the sudden weightlessness of falling, but thankfully he had only been a few feet off the ground. Landing unsteadily on his feet, he heard the sound of Yondu’s and the other Ravagers laughter echo through the cave. Fresh fear hit him as he squinted through the deep darkness that surrounded him.

Suddenly, something heavy hit the back of Peter’s head.

“Ouch!”

“Incoming, Quill!” Yondu warned a solid three seconds after the heavy object had already hit him. A chorus of laughter echoing through the cave again. Yondu had thrown a flashlight through the small opening. It took Peter a few moments of fumbling in the darkness to find the on switch after rubbing the pain from his head. For a moment Peter was almost afraid to turn the light on. Afraid of the horrors that might be lurking beyond the shadows.

“Come on, boy! We ain’t got all day!” Yondu’s rough voice floated down from the entrance.

Blue Bastard.

A flare of anger heated Peter’s cheeks at feeling betrayed by Yondu, being laughed at and thrown so carelessly down a hole.

“Alright, Alright.” A puppy-like growl escaping him. His anger smothering a small amount of his fear, Peter snapped on the light. He squished up this face leaving only one eye open to brace himself for any cave beasts or bears or whatever Scrote had warned about!

As Peter’s eyes adjusted to sudden brightness of the flashlight in the shadowy cave, he realized the cave, so far, was quite empty. The cavern itself was no bigger than the size of Peter’s class room back home. Thinking of school - which he certainly would not miss, he saw no, what had his teacher called them? Stalagmites or tights? Well, there were none of them anyhow. The cave simply looked like an empty dark room. Upon further inspection Peter noticed bits of dead looking vegetation scattered on the floor and the walls were marked with evenly spaced ridges as if someone or something hollowed the cave out themselves. His imagination immediately pictured some space beast with huge Wolverine-like claws ripping the walls apart. And then ripping him apart.

Peter shuttered at the thought.

As he moved the light towards the back of the cave he noticed… something.

A shadow darker than all the rest.

It was black and tall, nearly reaching the ceiling. Its’ broad, arched shoulders seemed to be hunched down preparing to lunge towards Peter. It was standing perfectly still as if daring him to make the first move. Instinctively, he knew this something was surely not friendly. Peter gasped and pointed the light in its direction, sure a pair of claws were reaching for him.

But…

He let out his breath, shaking with relief when he realized the something shadow monster was just the dark entrance to a narrow passageway. A natural archway he supposed was the one that lead to the back of the cave. Hopefully, the one that lead to Yondu’s treasure. The one that would lead him to his objective and out of this scary place.

Letting out another shaky breath, Peter made his way carefully towards the passageway. If he spread his arms out he could easily touch the other side. He pointed his flashlight inside and could not see the back of the cave or any supposed treasure. Unfortunately, the passageway seemed to curve off to the left.

“Great,” Peter muttered under his breath, his head still dizzy with adrenaline. If he had to go into a creepy ass space cave, of course it had to be one with blind twists and turns. Just his luck!

At the threshold Peter felt a warm blast of musty air. Much warmer than the air outside. The air itself smelled sour too. Almost like, for lack of a better description, like someone who had forgot to flush. As he took a few cautious steps further in he noticed his sneakers sticking to the floor, reminding him of a messy movie theater. When he looked down to see the source of all the stickiness, his flashlight dimmed suddenly.

Half panicked, Peter slapped at the light, switched it on an off again for good measure, but it would not brighten. He looked back helplessly at the small opening from which he’d come, wishing for the nerve to simply ask Yondu for a new flashlight. Or better yet, to scramble out of said opening and run away from this scary place! He stood frozen for a moment knowing there really was nowhere to run, knowing he still couldn’t truly trust Yondu. They’d probably just laugh at him again. A little baby scared of the dark. Kraglin already thought so much.

But why should he care what Kraglin thinks? Or what any of them think for that matter? They did kidnap him after all! He should run to the first person..alien he sees and demand he be taken back to Earth, not playing along with their silly space pirate games.

But somewhere deep down Peter longed to prove himself, though he couldn’t fathom why?

Peter looked back down the passageway trying to adjust his eyes to the darkness. The now even dimmer flashlight only allowed him to see a few feet in front of him. The narrow beam of dull yellow light only making the shadows around him seem deeper and darker, almost more scary than if he had no light at all. Peter tried to take a deep breath but it got caught up somewhere in his lungs. He startled when the dull beam of light began hopping unnaturally up and down the walls of the passageway but quickly realized that it was only the fault of his own trembling hands. Silent tears rained from his eyes, unable to go back but too afraid to move forward.

When Peter dropped his hands to his sides, trying to force them to stop trembling, the useless flashlight bumped up against something hard in his pocket. He reached down into his jeans pulling out his trusty Walkman. He must have left it in his pocket from the night before. Just palming it in his hands seemed to make the dark, creepy cave a lighter place. Its familiar weight melted Peter’s frozen feet, spurring him on to reach his objective.

Now, even at the tender age of eight, Peter Quill knew strategically it was probably not a good idea to walk into a dangerous, mysterious space cave half-blind and now half-deaf with music blasting in his ears, but it was the only way his fear couldn’t freeze him.

Peter hooked the Walkman around the belt loop of his jeans and hastily put on his headphones.

The moment the music began to play a new strength arose in him. He took a deep steadying breath. He saw everything he could be as a Ravager. Images of last nights dream resurfaced before his minds eye. Images of adventure and heroics. Images of him all grown up, as something even better than a Ravager, but a real Star Lord. This was just the first strep on his journey, probably the most important step, and he took it boldly with the Pina Colata Song blasting happily in his ears. He threw his foot out to take a big dramatic step forward.

Then, he tripped. Of course.

Peter would have to make sure he did a better job tying his shoes if he were going to be a great space adventurer. He dusted himself off, looking around, glad no one saw his embarrassing fall, and continued onward.

He danced through the dark and narrow passageway, music blasting, doing all kinds of dance moves. His moves, if you tried to describe them, looked something like the running man, with a sprinkler and a lot of hip thrusts thrown in, but most you couldn’t name because they were uniquely Peters. Unique being the operative word here. Lets just say, that it might be a few more years before Peter finds his rhythm.

As Peter made his way towards the blind curve of the passageway he noticed the floor was less sticky but the air felt even warmer, almost impossibly so given how cold it was outside. The strange warmth gave his more rational mind the idea of possible volcanic activity deep within this planet. But Peter couldn't help imagining some large monsters hot breath given the terrible sour smell! Its just the natural way of this planet, he thought. Volcanoes are warm and have nasty smells too. There is nothing living in here.

He hoped.

Before he rounded the curve, Peter took off his headphones momentarily just to be sure he wasn’t going to run headlong into something dangerous. He peered his head around the corner first thrusting his flashlight out ahead of him, trying to cast its light as far as possible.

“Hello,” his voice trembled, not expecting an answer. His eyes darted around the curve of the passageway, which looked, as far as he could tell, no different than the rest of the cave. He thrust his light out a little further creeping with his back against the curve of the rough wall.

“Oh!” He gasped, lunging back around the bend.

He had seen something small scurry across the ground just as he rounded the corner. He only saw it for a split second but it looked much like an earthly mouse. Whatever it was, it was far too small to truly hurt him. He was actually more startled than frightened but he knew to be cautious of any unknown creature.

Peter took a deep breath and peered carefully back around the curve, looking for the startling space rodent. It can't hurt me. It can't hurt me. He said over and over trying to calm himself. Sure enough it was scratching at the ground along the right side of the cave’s wall. He stepped back out from around the corner and approached slowly.

As he got closer he saw that the creature did, in fact, look somewhat like a mouse. It was about the same size and shape, but unlike an earthly mouse, it had longer fur, a pointier nose and three sharp, Wolverine-like claws on each paw. The claws so long they almost seemed to encumber the small creature.

“Hey there, little guy.” Peter squatting down to get a closer look at the odd creature. “Did you make this whole cave by yourself?” At first he felt silly for talking to it, but who knows, maybe rodents had the ability to talk on this planet. After all, he had just had a conversation with a blue alien, suddenly the idea of a talking rodent didn’t seem so outside the realm of possibility anymore.

Of course the space rodent didn’t respond to Peters inquiry. It looked up at him thoroughly perplexed then hurried off further down the passageway in the direction Peter was headed. He lost sight of the creature in the dark gloom and continued on his journey. Not wanting to think too much about the creepy-looking rodent, he put back on his headphones and fast forwarded to, Hooked on a Feeling.

After a few more minuets making his way – dancing his way through the cave, Peter noticed the passageway began to widen. Searching around the gloom with his meager flashlight, he realized he had entered a wider cavern. He took this headphones off and cautiously explored his new surroundings, feeling his way carefully along the walls perimeter. In the sudden silence, Peter was sure he heard his little rodent friend scurrying about the rocks. The walls seemed a little rougher here. Squinting, he tried to judge the size of this new area. It seemed much the size of the cavern at the entrance, but in the darkness it was truly difficult to discern how far it went back. Feeling safer along the wall, he decided to stick to it and see if it would lead to the back of the cave.

As Peter made his way along the wall, suddenly he realized he was back where he started. He was staring down the narrow passageway again. He had already reached the back of the cave and passed the area the treasure should have been. But where was Yondu’s treasure? A little panic crept back into his throat. What if there was no treasure? Could he really go back to Yondu and the other Ravagers empty handed and be sure they wouldn’t eat him? Maybe there was never any treasure to begin with and this was just how aliens entertained themselves on a Friday night for all he knew; kidnapping earth kids and tossing them in caves for kicks? A sarcastic snort escaped him at the thought. Peter’s head was spinning with the sudden realization that he couldn’t be sure of anything in this new world.

Turning back towards the cavern, he took a deep steadying breath resolving to focus on his objective. With a happy flutter of his heart he realized he hadn’t explored the center of the cavern. There was still hope. He crossed the cavern in a zigzag pattern so he wouldn’t miss the treasure box Yondu had described. Just when he felt he had almost reached the back of the cave again, he saw the rectangular outline of something in the shadows. With nerves buzzing in anticipation, he quickened his pace towards it.

Getting closer, Peter noticed the box looked more like a metal tool box than an actual treasure chest but what was he expecting, a wooden pirates chest? He knelt down next to the box. Weighing it delicately in his hands, Peter had the sudden urge to try and open it; curious of what a ‘unit’ might look like.

But before his hands did more than finger the fastener, Peter thought better of his curiosity. What if he opened it and the units spilled out? What if he couldn’t close the box again? What if units sprouted wings and flew away! No. Better to get out of this creepy space cave as soon as possible.

Getting up and settling the box safely under his arm, Peter busied himself fast forwarding his Walkman to find the perfect cave exiting song.

Before he even had a chance to put his headphones back on, Peter noticed something odd about his breathing. Abandoning his song search he listened closely to the echoing sounds of his own breath. It sounded so loud and raspy it almost startled him. Instinctively, he put his hand on his chest feeling for his own light rhythm. A worried thought came to him that something in the cave could be making him sick. A lack of oxygen, maybe?

Luckily, he soon found his normal, almost soundless light breaths. However, before he could breathe a sigh of relief, an alarming realization began to dawn on him. The loud rasping breaths Peter heard were still there and were right beside his! The breaths were so close he could feel their sound rumble through his spine. A cold sweat broke out over his forehead at the startling realization that he was not alone in the cave.

He turned his stiff neck to look behind him. What he saw made his impending scream die in his lungs.

A large hairy beast stood up on it’s hind legs, its pointy long nose smelling the air just above Peter’s head. It was so close he could have reached up and grabbed its nose if he were taller. The monsters lips seemed to peal back away from its teeth exposing double rows of jagged white spikes. Even more frightening were the creature’s long claws; three on each paw and each one as long and as thick as one of Peter’s arms. One lazy swipe and he would have been cut into three separate pieces! The horrible sour smell that dully permeated the air in the cave was now so strong in his nostrils he could feel the bile rise in the back of his throat.

Peter turned slowly to fully face the beast, splaying his hands out in front of him as if he could create and invisible wall between him and it. For a moment, the creature continued sniffing the air. It was not looking directly at Peter and he half wondered if perhaps it hadn’t seen him yet. He took slow measured steps backing away from the beast not even daring to breathe. Maybe the creature couldn’t see well and he could just slip away and -

Oh no.

The monsters head suddenly snapped in his direction. And Peter did the only thing he could.

He ran.

Chapter Text

Peter’s feet moved as fast as his dusty Nike’s would carry him. He sprinted back around the curve of the passageway in mere seconds as the beasts lumbering steps pounded quickly towards him. He turned his head for a split second and saw it rounded the curve on all fours and moving surprisingly fast for something so big. The horrible clicking sound of its claws on the stone floor echoed a tune Peter did not like. As the dreadful song got louder so did Peter’s heart as he tried to force his legs to run faster.

Somehow through all the confusion the treasure box, that suspiciously looked like a tool box, managed to stay locked in place, tucked under his arm. He knew he was very close to the caves entrance when his feet were sticking to the floor again. With adrenaline heightened senses, he noted the rusty red color on the floor and realized the sticky substance must have been blood!

He dropped his flashlight once he reached the cavern he first entered and saw dim light coming through the small hole he entered from. Because the hole was a few feet off the ground, he only hoped he would have enough time to scramble out before being torn to pieces. The song of clicking claws told Peter the monster was only a dozen or so feet from his destruction.

Without thought he threw the treasure box football style out through the caves entrance. An audible ‘ouch’ sounded from one of the Ravagers as Peter leapt up and pulled himself through, banging and scraping his knees in the process. Just as he went through, the quick swish of air between claws rang out the sound of death in his ears. The movement of air from the creatures brutal swipe making the hair on the back of his head stand on end. But thankfully, his skin met the eerie red glow of the alien sun despite the close call.

He tumbled out, landing hard on his rear. Peter gazed up at the confused Ravagers. Scrote was rubbing the pain from his head with one hand and holding the treasure box with the other, sporting quite a sizable lump just above his left eye. Peter could honestly say he had never been so happy to see a bunch of aliens!

“What the hell happened?” Yondu rasped. But before Peter had a chance to catch his breath, a loud explosion rocked the intergalactic canyon.

BOOM!

Instinctively, Peter covered his head and closed his eyes at the startling sound. Bits of dirt and rock pricked at his back telling him the explosion came from behind. When he opened his eyes he saw large chunks of rock scattered about. The Ravagers had been knocked off their feet probably being hit with larger pieces of debris. The shock and fear he saw in their faces as their gazes fell on something just behind him only increased Peter’s fear. He turned to the sound of falling rocks and scraping claws.

Oh.. no.

The monster had swiped straight through the caves wall and was now pulling away the larger rocks making a gaping opening! In the light of day the creature looked even more terrifying! The ends of its long claws were stained red with blood, and dead looking, beady, black eyes shined out from its matted fur. The eyes startled Peter the most; strange and unmoving, like shark eyes.

Peter sat there stunned for a moment until he heard the beasts wet snarl and saw its hungry gaze trained on him.

In a panic, Peter jumped up and ran; pure adrenaline and survival instincts pushing his exhausted body forward. He bolted further down the canyon path with little thought other than getting as far away as possible. He thought he heard Yondu shout something at him, but he couldn’t hear over his own pounding heart in his ears and the two ton beast at his heels.

As he sprinted further down the path, he realized it was narrowing. To his left was the shear wall of the canyon and to his right a shear drop. A sick dizzying feeling rolled through him but the monsters pounding steps shook away the thought of falling quickly. Priorities.

Ahead, Peter noticed the path was completely covered with rocks. He had no choice but to continue onward. He certainly couldn’t turn around and try to dodge past such a large beast on such a narrow pathway. He would just have to pray that none of the rocks were loose and the path continued past them.

When he got close to the rocks he noticed they were more like small boulders. Most of them coming up to Peter’s waist. He shimmied over each of them as fast as he could, putting one leg at a time over the lower area where one boulder would meet the next then putting his foot down on the small space between the rocks. He was able to move fairly quickly, but to his horror when Peter made his way over the third bolder or so, his foot dangled over the side of a steep cliff! The sheer height made Peter’s head spin. Sliding down was certainly not an option. He gripped the rock he was straddling so tightly it hurt. He trembled realizing he was trapped!

The monsters steps slowed, as if he too knew Peter could not escape. It’s unnaturally big body lumbered close to the rocks, sniffing them with its long wet snout. The creature stood again on its hind legs to sniff the air. It towered over the rocks looking much the king of the canyon. Peter took advantage of this moment to slide as quietly as he could down off the rock he was upon. He squished himself into a ball trying to hide in between the boulders, his knees practically touched his chin. All Peter could hope was that this creature was blind and somehow wouldn’t be able to find him. But instinct told him that its nose probably made up for any lack of sight ten fold.

Peter couldn’t help trembling in his rocky hiding place. His knees shook so violently that they banged into his jaw painfully. He listened as the beast pawed tentatively at the rocks. Its loud snorting and sniffing getting closer and closer. Its clicking claws growing louder. He knew it was only a matter of time before it would find him and surely tear him to pieces.

At this moment, Peter’s mind settled into a strange kind of numbness at the resignation that he was probably going to die. It wasn’t exactly peace, but a calmer feeling at the knowledge that all the fighting was over. If he was going to go to that, Spirit in the Sky as the great, Norman Greenbaum proclaimed it, he knew for sure his mother would be there.

And for that he was almost happy.

He was just scared for the pain. Please don’t let it hurt, mommy. Please don’t let it hurt.

Suddenly, a loud sniff sounded in his ear and he felt the dust the monsters warm breath had kicked up move passed his face.

It was all over now.

He closed his eyes tight, waiting for the death blow but instead he heard a sharp whistle followed by a great meaty thud. He half wondered if the thud was the sound of his own heart stopping.

After a moment or two he cracked one eye open wondering why death hadn’t come? To his right he saw the creatures huge mouth, teeth fully bared inches in front of his face. Instinctively, Peter jumped back hitting his head hard on the boulders that entombed him but then he noticed monsters unnatural stillness, the wide open unblinking eyes and the dark red blood dripping from the hole its’ head.

It was dead.

Peter breathed for the first time in what seemed like hours. Taking in the dead creature before him, he dimly wondered if this was perhaps the little ‘cave mouses’’ mother? Sharp grief pricked at his eyes hard and suddenly. Will he ever stop losing her?

“Boy! Boy, where you at! QUILL!” Yondu’s rough voice sounded close. If Peter wasn’t mistaken Yondu almost sounded worried.

But he was sure he was mistaken. His ears felt strange and muffled.

He poked his head up and saw Yondu standing near the edge of the boulders. The other two Ravagers jogging down the path towards him.

“Damn Boy, I was tryin’ to tell ya to get behind me and stand still! Those things can’t see worth a damn. Runnin’ is just gonna make them chase ya more. Good thing I always have my Yaka arrow. But if you aren’t a lucky son-of-a-bitch. Those wildabears were thought to be extinct for years. Its sorry carcass oughta’ fetch us a nice price on Knowhere.”

Peter stood up to make his way back to Yondu. Maybe he stood up a little too fast. Somehow Yondu’s voice didn’t sound close anymore. The scene grayed out before his eyes. Fading.

Peter promptly fainted.

Yondu trudged all the way back up the canyon with the warm, soft bundle of limbs that was Peter Quill. For a skinny kid he sure felt heavy. By the time he made it back to the Eclector with an inert Peter slung over his shoulders, he was sure he strained a muscle or two.

For some strange reason Yondu felt relieved the wildabear had not killed Quill. Certainly, this boy was going to be far more trouble than he was worth. It would have been simpler if he had died. He wouldn’t have to lie to his men. He wouldn’t have to look over his shoulder for he rest of his life should Ego come calling. The boy himself was a glaring reminder of his sins. Why on Terra should he want to keep him around?

Because you’re guilty and you think the boy can bring you redemption, said a voice Yondu had done his best to ignore over the years.

He knew saving one child could never make up for the dozens he sent to their deaths at the hands of Ego. But, something in him needed to give it a shot. He’d teach the boy to be a Ravager; a real Ravager. Not like the sorry excuse for one he’d become. He’d kick the boys ass if he had to, to teach him respect, to keep him from going soft. But he’d also teach him the Ravager code, the code he’d forgotten.

Yondu wrapped Quill up in his jacket after noticing a few shivers from the boy on their trek back to the Eclector. He almost felt guilty sending Peter into that cave without taking more precautions for his safety. Who is he kidding? He does feel guilty! He is going to have to do a better job tending to the boys needs if this is going to work. The sudden realization of just how dependent Quill will be on him sent a shot of anxiety through his body. He had never taken care of anything or anybody in his life aside from himself.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

He gently put Quill down, leaning him against a rock close by the Eclector’s ramp. He noticed some of the other Ravagers who had stayed behind look at him questioningly and with entirely nothing better to do. Yondu was pissed off and annoyed at their stares so he said to them in less than friendly tones, ‘get off your lazy asses and retrieve that wildabear carcass!’ Sensing Yondu’s bad mood, they all hurried down the canyon looking confused, still processing the unusual instructions.

Yondu tried to shake some of the anxious thoughts out of his head when Kraglin appeared at the bottom of the ships ramp looking flustered.

“Cap, we got ten messages from Ego wondering where the hell his,” lowering his voice and pointing towards Peter, “package is.”

“I don’t care what you tell that jackass, but I’m done doin’ business with him.”

“We’re really going to pass up all those units just cause the kid’s, ‘good for thievin’. Come on, Cap it’s just you and me now. What’s really going on?”

Damn it! Kraglin really was too smart for his own good, but too dumb to know when to shut up.

“You got proof Ego’s doing something weird with all those kids, didn’t ya?” guessed Kraglin correctly with a sly look on his face.

Shit.

Seeing Quill stir, Yondu grabbed Kraglin by the arm roughly and walked him around the nose of the star ship further out of ear shot.

“Listen Kraglin, I don’t got proof or confirmation of nothin’, call it captains intuition or maybe I’m just growing soft in my old age but I just got a bad feeling about the man and I’d rather end it.”

Yondu really did hate lying to Kraglin. Above all the other Ravagers he was quite fond of the young man and he usually appreciated his slightly quicker intelligence. Some of his more seasoned intelligent men had left because they didn’t like the idea of dealing in kids which left him with his current bunch of idiots and young Kraglin. But he knew what had to be done.

“Plus,” he added “that jackass stiffed me on payment last time. I had to burn tons of fuel gettin’ around an asteroid field to make the delivery and I wasn’t compensated!”

*Yondu was in fact compensated for the troublesome asteroid field.*

“So me keepin’ the kid is just my, ‘screw you’ to him. And if he really is doin’ something shady with those kids then he can go screw anyway! And it’s not cause I have a soft spot for the boy either!”

“I never said you did.”

Yondu’s blue cheeks turned a deeper shade of what could be described as a Centaurian blush. Angrily he added, “And don’t question my decisions again,” grabbing Kraglin by the scruff of his leather jacket, putting him back in his place.

“So… what should I say to Ego,” Kraglin asked hesitantly.

“Ugh. Tell him his package was lost in transit then cut off all communications!”

Kraglin sulked back up the ramp of the Eclector, while Yondu went to check on the boy. Damn kid shoulda’ come to by now. Yondu wasn’t worried about the kids well-being or anything, he was just annoyed.

Or so he told himself.

Peter woke with a start again, still unused to his new reality of living in space. Blinking his eyes he made out the ramp of Yondu’s ship. His mind was a little fuzzy. The last thing he remembered was being chased by a monster. Upon remembering this fact he looked around himself frantically, wondering if a monster wasn’t still at his heels. Then Peter felt a swift kick to his right side.

“Ouch!” Yondu’s boot making an impression.

“Snap out of it boy. You’re a real Ravager now, best you start acting like one! No more fainting like a little flower! You get any heavier and I won’t be able to carry ya back to the ship.”

“Sorry sir.” He felt a slight pang of embarrassment upon realizing he had fainted.

“But, I got to hand it to ya Quill, ya done good. Most of my men probably woulda’ lost my units, blasted the wildabear with enough holes to make it worthless on the black market and shit their pants. You got the stuff boy. Welcome to the Ravagers.” Yondu extended a hand to Peter.

Peter couldn’t help feeling a little proud at Yondu’s admiration. But he hesitated for a second. Could he really trust Yondu? This alien did kidnap him after all, for reasons Peter was still unclear about. And he did send him into that damned cave in the first place! However, he did just save his life. Yondu had his treasure, if he truly didn’t want Peter around he could have simply let that monster eat him. However, something in Yondu’s eyes told Peter he meant him no real harm.

Peter took Yondu’s hand.

After they shook, Yondu pulled Peter up to his feet and motioned for him to follow him up the ships ramp. He fell in behind Yondu on his still shaky legs. It was official, Peter was now a space pirate. Most of his fear and nervousness oddly replaced by excitement at such a prospect. His dream from last night; maybe his dream from as long as he’s had dreams literally coming true. There was just something in that nick name his mother had for him, something that rang true in his heart and made him so happy.

Star Lord.

But before he had even reached the top of the ships ramp with Yondu, Peter felt a pang of sadness. What about earth? What about home? He had other family aside from his mother; a grandfather, an aunt. His mother even mentioned she would call his father to help look after him when she was gone.

But… the thought of going back only deepened his grief. Sure, he was grateful to his grandfather for taking care of him when his mother had taken a turn for the worst. He sensed he was a good man. But he didn’t know his grandfather or aunt that well and his father was just a stranger to him. Not so long ago, Peter yearned to have a real father. He would have daydreams of playing catch with him and learning manly things. He would even tell kids at school his father was David Hasselhoff.

But the thought of a father now turned sour. He was never there for them when his mother got sick. He was never there when it counted. And he could never, ever replace her.

Part of him wanted desperately to go home but a bigger part dreaded it. Did he really have the strength to walk through his empty home, his empty life, his empty world again? His mother was his home, his life, world.

She was everything.

Peter’s fresh grief hit him hard again. His face grew hot and his eyes blurred with tears, yet he didn’t cry. He gripped his Walkman hard with one hand and furiously wiped his eyes with the other. If only he could have took his mother’s hand as easily as he took Yondu’s.

Yondu noticed Peter had stopped following him, so he doubled back. He noticed the boy trying to hide his tears, as he got closer. He knew Quill was probably in shock and home sick. He knew he was probably missing his mama and knew said mama was probably dead.

That’s just how it went with these’s kids of Ego’s.

Yondu felt red hot anger boil inside him. If Ego was simply a man, he would be on his way to kill him at this very moment. But while killing a man is easy, killing a planet is something else entirely and Yondu did not have that kind of fire power.

He knelt down to Peter’s level and clapped him on the shoulder. Unsure of how to comfort him but giving it a shot anyway.

“Listen Quill, I know ya probably miss your home. But I’m gonna be straight with ya, boy. It might be a long time before it’s safe to go back. Don’t go askin’ me why. But in a while if ya want to go back just say the word.” Yondu stroked Peter’s shoulder in an effort to encourage him but the action made him feel like some ridiculous mother hen so he let his hand drop away quickly.

“But in the meantime, perk up kid! This is the opportunity of a lifetime, especially for a kid from a backwater planet like Terra! I’ll teach ya everything bout being a Ravager. Hell, I’ll even teach ya how to fly this hunk a’ junk.”

Peter cracked a slight smile at the thought of flying a space ship and the way Yondu referred to the impressive looking ship as a, hunk a’ junk. Peter took extra comfort in the term remembering that his mother always referred to their car as a, hunk a’ junk too.

“You can be anyone ya want out here, Quill. Legendary. So my question is who do ya want to be?”

Peter thought a moment, his mother a big part of those thoughts.

“Star Lord.” he said with a smile.

The End.
:)