Chapter Text
CHAPTER ONE:
“Stealing from thieves is great!” Rocket declared as he sat down at the big table in the Quadrant’s galley. “All the fun, but no warrants for our arrest. You need to get more jobs like this one, Quill.”
Drax enthusiastically agreed. “Fighting the thieves was exhilarating!” He set a large pot of stew on the table.
“The job did go well,” Mantis added. “No one was hurt.” She set drinks on the table and sat down next to Drax.
Kraglin slid into a seat beside Nebula. “We got all the stuff those idiots stole from the Broker.”
“Which is good,” Gamora stated as she joined the others at the table. “We need those units he offered. We can finally afford to fix the Benatar.”
“Groot, time for dinner,” Quill called to the teenaged flora, who was watching something on one of the viewscreens. “And turn that off.”
“I am Groot!” he complained.
“Groot…” Quill repeated sternly.
The teenager grumbled, but obeyed as a newsbrief flashed on the screen providing details about a wedding on Xandar.
“Crap. That’s the bad thing about going back to Xandar now,” Rocket said, spooning stew into his bowl. “It’s gonna be crazy with Nova Prime’s son marrying the Grasmosian ambassador’s daughter. Big shots from all over the galaxy’ll be there. Then there’s all the press, and the gawkers… It’ll be a mess!”
Groot looked between Quill and Gamora. “I am Groot?”
“No, we’re not married,” Peter replied.
“I am Groot?”
“We are a family,” Rocket insisted adamantly. “Don’t need stupid ceremonies to be a family.”
“Rocket’s right,” Gamora agreed. “But the ceremonies can be nice. My parents fondly remembered their wedding.”
“Maybe you and Peter should get married,” Kraglin suggested.
Quill choked on his food and began coughing. Gamora pounded on his back.
“Are you drunk, Kraglin?” Nebula questioned.
“No. I was just thinkin’ they’ve been together for years now,” the former Ravager defended.
“You’re hopeless,” Nebula stated.
“Yes, ma’am,” he acknowledged.
Quill recovered from his coughing fit and shared a short but meaningful look with Gamora. She set her hand on his thigh under the table.
“I do not understand marriage,” Mantis admitted. “It is so obvious you are together… and in love. Why is a ceremony needed?”
“It is a way many cultures celebrate making a relationship legally and spiritually binding,” Gamora explained. “It’s also a way to share happiness with family and friends.”
“I love weddings!” Drax declared exuberantly. “My favourite part of the marriage ceremony is the ritual combat between the groom and the bride’s family. Then, on the second day of celebration, after the wedding night, the newlyweds describe the consummation of their marriage to the assembled guests.”
“Eww!” Quill exclaimed.
“Not in front of the kid!” Rocket admonished.
“I am Groot?”
“No, you don’t need to know what consummation means,” the raccoon replied.
“Stakar could marry you,” Kraglin suggested. “It’s legal for ship’s captains to marry folks. In most places, anyways. I bet he’d do it. You know, ‘cause Yondu woulda liked it.”
“Yondu would’ve liked it?” Quill asked incredulously. “Really?”
“Yeah. There’s lots you don’t know ‘bout him,” Kraglin defended. “Lots I didn’t know. But he wanted you to be happy.”
Quill was quiet a moment, as memories flooded his mind. Yondu had been a very flawed father, but viewing him through the lens of age and experience, he could see that Yondu had tried his best under bad circumstances. “Yeah. You’re right, Kraglin.”
“I am Groot.”
“No! Not great!” Rocket exclaimed. “It’ll be an excuse for them to do more mushy stuff.”
“Wait,” Quill interjected. “How’d this go from Nova Prime’s kid’s wedding to you guys planning ours?”
“I don’t know, I wasn’t paying attention,” Drax stated.
“Of course not,” Peter acknowledged.
“Sorry about earlier, Gamora,” Quill said as he stepped out of the bathroom in their quarters. “I hope all that talk about marriage at dinner didn’t make you uncomfortable.”
She looked at him. He had changed into loose-fitting pyjama pants, but not bothered to don a shirt. His hair was still damp from the shower and a drop of water rolled down his chest. She couldn’t deny how physically attractive he was. But she loved him because she knew that under his often brash façade, he was a kind and honourable rogue with a good heart.
“It’s fine, Peter.” Gamora picked up her brush and sat on the bed. She ran it through her hair a few times before pausing to ask, “Don’t you want to marry me?”
“What? No.” Quill thought about what he had just said. “I mean yes? I’m really screwing this up.” He sat beside Gamora, took the brush from her, and began running it through her hair in long, gentle strokes.
Gamora smiled softly. “No, you’re not,” she replied as she enjoyed his gentle care. “But Kraglin is right. We have been together for years.”
Quill stopped brushing her hair. “Are you saying you want to marry me?”
She turned to look at him. Her dark eyes were filled with the special emotion she only ever revealed to him. “Yes. The others might not understand, but there is something very appealing about officially belonging to each other.”
“Yeah, there is,” he agreed, his voice soft with tender emotion.
“Then why do I sense reluctance?”
“I’m not going to have to fight Nebula, am I? She’s always looking for an excuse to kick my ass.”
“And other body parts,” Gamora added. “But no. No ritual combat with Nebula.”
“And we won’t tell Drax about our sex life.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Then it’s settled. We’re getting married.” Quill returned to gently brushing Gamora’s hair. “Do you want me to braid this tonight?”
“That would be nice.”
Quill enjoyed the feel of her silky hair as he carefully separated strands. “What are Zen-Whoberi weddings like?”
Gamora didn’t immediately reply. She enjoyed feeling Peter’s fingers deftly weaving her hair into a braid as she cast her mind to long ago memories. “I only attended one wedding before…” her voice trailed off at the ugly memories of her years with Thanos. She pushed those aside and continued, “It was my uncle’s and I was very young. I remember flowers… lots of flowers. And there was music. Different from yours, but it also had pleasant melodies. What are some Terran marriage traditions?”
“I never went to a wedding,” Quill replied. “I did see a few on TV. Everyone dressed up.” He paused, bringing the distant memories into focus. “The bride wears white. The groom wears a black suit… no, it’s called a tuxedo. It’s some sort of special black suit. And there were flowers. Flowers are important. And cake, too.”
“Then we will definitely have flowers at our wedding,” Gamora decided. “Do you really think Stakar would officiate?”
Quill finished braiding her hair. “I can ask him. Are you sure you don’t want a judge or a priestess or an elder…?”
“With our lifestyle, I think being married by a Ravager captain is appropriate.”
Peter smiled. It did sound perfect.
Quill and Gamora stepped out of the Broker’s shop together. The door slid shut behind them as he said, “I can’t remember a time when we didn’t have to worry about how we were going to pay the next bills. We just made enough to keep going for the rest of the year. The rest of the year and then some!” he added disbelievingly.
“It is a nice change,” Gamora agreed. She frowned at the crowded walkways jammed with what seemed like ten times the normal amount of people. “Rocket was right about how busy it is. I don’t blame Nebula for not wanting to come here.”
“Where did she go this time?”
“She’s after some Thanos supporters still out there. I think she went to one of the moons of Juba.”
“Moon…” Quill repeated. He slowed his steps as they turned to walk towards the docks and scoured his brain for a distant memory. “It’s called the honeymoon,” he said cryptically.
“Honey Moon?” Gamora questioned.
“It’s a Terran tradition I just remembered,” he replied. “After a couple gets married, they take a vacation together.”
“They travel to the Honey Moon? Where is it?”
“What? No. There’s no Honey Moon. The vacation is called the honeymoon. I don’t know why.”
She didn’t comment. After six years together, she had grown accustomed to the odd Terran phrases Peter sometimes used.
Quill explained, “After a couple gets married, they take a vacation together as a time to… enjoy each other’s company.”
Gamora stopped, drawing a few grumbled complaints from people who had to detour around them on the crowded walkway. “I’ve never had a vacation. I’ve never even thought about one.”
“We could use some of the units we got from the Broker and take a short trip together.”
“Alone?”
Quill smiled with a flirtatious gleam in his eyes. “Wouldn’t that be nice? No Drax showing up at the weirdest time. No accidental fires caused by Rocket making explosives in the galley.” He could see Gamora was considering it. “So where would you like to go?”
“I don’t know. Where could we go?”
“There’s that beach resort on Cassiar. Or the Mountains of Meguma are supposed to be nice—glaciers and lakes and forests. I’ve never been there, but I’ve seen pictures.”
“We should choose a place together,” Gamora decided. “Tonight we…”
“Quill! Gamora!” Rocket and Groot shoved their way through the crowd, ignoring shouts of indignation. “I’m glad we found you!”
“What’s going on?” Gamora demanded.
Numerous people in the crowd glared at them and grumbled unhappily about them blocking the walkway.
“I am Groot!” the young plant blurted out.
“Not here!” Rocket reprimanded. “Don’t say that here! You don’t know who’s listening!”
Quill and Gamora exchanged a look of concern.
“Quadrant. Now,” Peter ordered, pointing towards the docks.