#and other Kree wouldn’t- or are at least taught not to- think of this kind of existence negatively

[daydreamerdrew]

Marvel Super-Heroes (1967) #12

[jamiedc-they-them]

Who you used to, and still can, be (Platonic)

Requested Imagine: “Agents of shield x reader where the reader went missing in earlier seasons but later in season 5 when daisy has to be in the fighting arena cause of the kree the opponent she’s facing is the reader but reader is wearing a mask and has no memory of how she got to space let along the future or the team. So when the readers mask comes off because of a blast by daisy it’s like winter soldier but eventually the reader remembers the team? I love ur writing” 

Daisy Johnson was tired; she had just beaten Sinara, and still Fitz hadn’t acted. She looked up to her friend, silently questioning that choice; he only shook his head slightly, but she still saw it. He was warning her: Not yet.

She didn’t know why, but she trusted her brother; so, she just nodded and got ready as for what was next.

She, however, did want Fitz to act soon-ish; otherwise this plan would fail, and Fitzsimmons would forever be stuck in this place with no way out.

She couldn’t let that happen to either one of the two, they had already lost each other so many times; to have this happen would probably be the last straw and they’d just give up.

Although, part of Daisy knew her siblings wouldn’t ever give you; they’d been through worse (with the others and without) and the whole reason they made it was because of their bond. Those bonds that never seemed to either waiver or break.

Still, for a while now, they were missing someone in their ranks; a void that was never going to be filled again. They never brought it up, the mere thought of it bringing them too much pain to bear with.

You were with the team since the start and were the closest with Daisy out of all of them; you both just gravitated towards each other and acted like you’d been best friends since forever, even if you had just met and were just getting used to each other.

Ward was once right in his synopsis of how he had wished whatever had happened to you had been physical; something she could hunt and hurt for taking you away from your family.

She looked at Jemma at the reminder of you; even though further away, Jemma seemed to be thinking of you two, the sad twinkle in her friend’s eye gave it away.

Still, all that could wait; she needed to get those friends that she knew the location of out of this place as soon as possible and save the world from her ability. Nothing else mattered in this moment, not even their never fully processed grief.

“Seems the Destroyer is a lot more capable than I gave her credit for,” Kasius said as he leaned forward with intrigue, “Placing our bets, yet friends?” He asked the group of people that certainly weren’t friends; if anything, In Fitz’s mind, they were just pawns in a much larger game the man was trying to play.

Still, they all eagerly nodded, placing a smile on the man’s face as he looked back down at Daisy; the woman was looking defiantly at him, seemingly drawing from the quick trip back to her missing family member.

Pain had always been a powerful motivator.

“Well, I suppose we should waste no time in moving things along, shall we?” He said; Daisy sighed, knowing what that meant, it meant another fight.

She closed her eyes, just desperate wanting to get this thing over and done with as soon as possible.

The new opponent emerged, this one wearing a mask to hide their face from view; Daisy wanted to roll her eyes but rolled her shoulders instead to try and help get them ready for what was about to come.

At least with this opponent, she wouldn’t be able to see their face; at least it made it less personal, she guessed; silver linings and all that.

She had one last look with Fitz; this time giving him the message: Whenever you’re ready.

“I present to you, Tornado!” He yelled, as if the name was impressive; Daisy did roll her eyes at the name.

Wasn’t the most original; then again, her own name was either “Quake” or “Destroyer of worlds” so it was either ominous or exactly on point. She wasn’t sure which option scared her more, really.

She took a breath and rolled her neck, trying to prepare for what was to come.

The next moment, she attacked first.

 Daisy Johnson was someone that you called a sister, and she called you her sibling. You both just got along instantly, there was something about each other that made you want to get to know each other.

Sure, she called Jemma (and now Elena) sisters and Fitz and Mack brothers; but, with you, it was a lot quicker. It was probably the way you’d come to check up on her after every mission, the way you’d be concerned for her well being when she came back and after a job well done.

She had seen it a few times before, gangs of people in the orphanage; but she’d never really experience it before. That was until she met you guys, and she almost let herself believe that she had found a place to belong in.

Of course, in your mind, she was already a part of this whole thing; granted, just not with authorisation. But she was here, putting up with your insecurities and assuring you that you too belonged here.

So, that was probably what made her declare you family to her first; the way you always went out of your way to help her when needed; when Coulson was taken by Raina, you defended her against agent Hand, then followed her out and helped her track the man down.

With Jemma, she had kind of become the doctor on sight. As much as she wasn’t really trained in that field, she had done a good job so far; you made sure to tell her. The reward for so would be seeing your friend flash you a genuine smile that did wobble a little.

Fitz was her best-best-best friend, but you and Daisy (Skye at the time) pretty quickly became two of her closest friends. It was most likely the way that you were all cramped on this plane and forced to work together, something Fitzsimmons disagreed with at first. But it had slowly started to grow on them.

Fitz too, had some esteem issues when with anyone else; so, whenever Ward would accidentally go too far, you’d defend the Scotsman, something both him and Simmons appreciated. He quickly knew you were someone in his corner whenever he needed.

Ward had been taught to be closed off; obviously, his training wouldn’t disappear magically. He did, however, start to soften to you all and see you as friends rather than just co-workers.

May showed in her own way that she cared for all of you. Mainly with you, it was by checking on you as your insomnia did it’s job of fucking your sleep schedule up. Secretly, she had asked Fitzsimmons to either try and develop something to help you, or to find you some sleeping pills. Something they did without a second thought.

Coulson had always noticed you in the background, doing your training and whatever else you needed to do to get by; but, other than that, you weren’t really noticed nor appreciated.

It hurt him a little, seeing someone of your calibre not have an opportunity to use your skills. He knew that, if he didn’t bring you on board, you’d surely be stuck in here forever. Destined to never get out and see the world for all the nihilistic darkness at is worst, and optimistic brightest at it’s best and everything in between.

“Agent Y/L/N?” He asked as he approached your one time when you were eating; as soon as you saw him and heard your name, you almost chocked on your drink. Coulson was quick to pat your back to try and save you.

“Thank – Thank you, sir.” You said once your coughing fit had calmed down; he gave you an assuring smile as he sat next to you.

“Noticed your scores today, doing good, Y/N,” You smiled at his compliment, “But, it’s not your best. Your doing this on purpose,” You looked genuinely offended at his accusation; but he also noticed the look of hesitation in your eye. The look that told him he had assumed correct.

Either way he was quick to assure you, “Don’t worry, this isn’t about that. No, rather, I wanted to propose something to you.”

 So, strength was your thing, Daisy realised as she was punched, spinning around before hitting the wall. Now she realised how you got your name, at least. All-be-it in a painful manner.

“Ok,” She said as she raised herself up from the ground, taking note of how you allowed it and didn’t continue your assault, “Alright you freaky bitch, let’s go.” She said, hyping herself up and gaining the adrenaline she needed to push through this fight.

She tried to limit the use of her powers, knowing that doing so would allow her some surprise to you when you used them.

At the same time, though, you were using restraint as well. You weren’t fully giving into your power (something she silently thanked you for) as you instead relied on your moves; moves which she could’ve sworn May used at one point. It wasn’t as kicky flippy as the two of them, but it was in the similar vein.

A punch to your mask sent you back, but also a pain in her hand that had hit the thing.

Ok, so, next time Quake punch it, got it.

 SHIELD falling to HYDRA had been a turn none of you had seen coming, if you were honest. But the thing was, they were all together; safe, alive, a family once again. They were, however, missing you in that family.

Daisy had returned with Ward to see Garret being pulled away; as she did a headcount of her friends, she asked, “Where’s Y/N?” Worry coating her tone; after the day she had, she needed someone to vent to and for someone to understand her frustrations; you would provide that need.

They all looked around for you but couldn’t find you.

However, this time, they were lucky.

“I’m here!” You called out as you ran to them, Daisy instantly hugged you tightly, the others all walking over with small smiles despite their worlds falling apart around them at the seams.

“Good to see you again, kiddo.” Coulson said in a fatherly manner, you just nodded as you placed your chin on Daisy’s shoulder; Fitzsimmons managed a smile, although not as bright as it usually was; May gave you a nod; Ward nodded with a small smile before leaving with Garret.

All that mattered to them was that you were here. That you were alive.

 Your spin kick was one Daisy not only dodged, but also recognised; now she was on edge. Who had taught her opponent to kick the same way you had. Sure, you hadn’t exactly copyrighted the thing; but the way you kicked was always different to the others, something that May had adapted to.

She spun round as another punch hit her; this time, though, she held felt the vibrations and used them in her returning punch. This punch made your mask and hood fall off.

When you looked back up, Fitzsimmons’ and her own eyes widened as they all recognised the person in front of them.

All agent Johnsons could do was say the name of the person she saw.

“Y/N….?”

 That good luck had only lasted so long, however. Sure, you survived the uprising, but Garret had plans for you; he knew how Ward cared about you deeply as a friend. So, when he asked for the man to find Skye, that went double to for you too.

“You could always use a partner, son. Hell, you both were practically partners in SHIELD anyway.” He said to try and get the man onboard with the plan.

He accepted the plan.

He got both of you on the plane;  Skye kept an extra eye out for you though, as she was the only one who knew of his betrayal.

However, the last time she ever saw you was when you walked up the spiral stairs.

 “Where are they?” Daisy asked with bated breath, she gulped as she asked it and pushed the tears away. Ward’s gazed softened a little at her worry.

“We’ll take care of them –“ He tried to promise her, but she slammed her head into the next moment.

“You son of a bitch!” She growled, forgetting about the threat on her life an acting purely on sisterly instinct which was currently hellbent on keeping you from being in HYDRA’s control.

“She’s just a puppet to you, isn’t she?” She asked, almost breathless as countless scenarios played out in her mind of what could and probably would happen to you in HYDRA’s control.

She was wrong, however; as she never saw you again after that. But neither did Ward after Garret died; you just went off the grid and it appeared as if you had never existed.

You, however, had existed to a few people that cared about you deeply.

 Daisy was frozen; she knew, easily, that so where your other brother and sister. She didn’t have time to fully process the new twist that seemed to be added to the tale (maybe Kasius knew, maybe he had someone on his side) as she dodged another punch and kick.

Now that she knew it was you, she could easily tell what your style was going to be. She had trained with you before, even though Ward too trained her; She kind of wished she had you as a SO instead of Ward, maybe it would’ve blocked out a lot of pain.

It did not, unfortunately, block out the pain of another fist to the face; still not your full power, but it still packed a punch.

She grunted at the impact but turned and threw you away with a quick Quake blast. Part of her had hoped that doing so would somehow shake your memories.

It only, however, made you hit the wall and groan in pain.

“Y/N, I don’t want to fight you,” Your opponent begged you, seemingly desperately, “I don’t want to hurt you.” Her voice was soft, despite the situation you both were in at the moment.

“You’re only saying that because I am kicking your ass.” You spat out some blood that had reached your mouth; part of her seemed to soften slightly at you words, as if they meant something to her.

 As Jemma had told her when she found her sister before they went to the Framework, she was trying to atone for Lincoln’s death mainly. But both knew there was something else as well.

“I know Y/N’s death hurt you, it hurt all of us –”

“Jemma –” She said, to try and both keep her friend quiet and not have her break down again; she hated to see any of her friends hurt or sad, but Jemma was her best-best-best friend; meaning it hurt a hell of a lot more.

“Daisy, please…I can’t lose you too.” Jemma begged her best friend, not wanting to lose another family member.

“Hey, look at me,” Jemma obliged, “I will beat them. If Y/N was here too, it’d be a hell of a lot easier; but I swear to you Simmons, I will. We will walk out of here. This is not were your story ends.” She promised Jemma.

 Your story however, seemed to of ended since the day with Ward in the BUS to Daisy. She, however, continued her search for you; you were family, and she didn’t give up on family, no matter what.

She’d found sightings of you around the place; the Inhuman crisis was taking up a lot of her time, this as something to try and alleviate some of that anxiety over it; along with to try and help ease the guilt she felt for apparently letting you go so easily.

Some Inhuman reports seemed to match up with where you were, so it made sense to her to try and look there. Coulson, however much he may have been curious of them, still denied her the mission. She was told her efforts were spent better elsewhere.

 When Lincoln was gone, she was out in her van, drinking from a vodka bottle she had stolen from a store; in one way, it was like a homecoming; in another, it was reminder that she could never fully go back to that life of being a simple hacker; she was a “hero” now; but she was a broken one, one without a sidekick at her side; maybe your disappearance was a blessing in the disguise of a curse, though. Maybe it just meant that she could spare you the fate of getting hurt because of her.

 Right now, though, she was getting hurt because of you; you were taking advantage of her not wanting to fight you; throwing punches left and right, always trying to hit her. She could tell that, now, you were putting your whole force behind each punch. Seemed your name was a trigger word for you.

For now, it was just hurt on an emotional level; having to fight one of her best friends and siblings wasn’t something she thought she’d have to do to get the rest out, but here she was. She blocked one of your punched and used her power to stop the momentum of your other arm as she punched you in the face, then kicking you away.

The next moment, the forcefield went down and Fitz jumped down in an action movie style stunt; he then shot the guard that had entered the room, but then he turned to gun on you.

“FITZ, NO!” Daisy cried out in horror and desperation as the weapon went off. You went down the next moment.

Daisy was on the floor, having finally had the days events catch up with her physically; Jemma and Fitz instantly grabbed her and allowed her to put her weight on them as they helped her move over to you.

“Y/N? Hey, come on; don’t do this to me. Not now, not when we just got you back….please.” She begged, putting a hand on your heart that had a faint beat to it; she then looked to two of her other siblings, both of whom nodded (all-be-it with some hesitation) before she used her ability one more time on your chest.

You had been injured on a mission, gravely so. It looked to almost be your end. Almost being the keyword there. 

“Lay them down!” Jemma exclaimed as Ward carried you in and did as asked with no comment. He just wanted you to survive. 

Jemma tore your jacket off, then your shirt to look at your wound. 

“Oh no,” She said in a quick breath she she started pressing her hands against your chest, “Come on, Y/N! Come on! Don’t die on us! Not now!” She begged.

You shot up; eyes wide as you looked around the room with surprise of having woken up.

You then met the eyes of Daisy, who watched you with both a teary gaze, but those tears weren’t just out of relief, they were also out of stress, fear, sisterly love; a lot of feelings all locked into two shiny eyes.

But, part of you recognised the gaze.

“Skye?” You asked, Skye let out a laugh at your use of her name as she put a hand on your knee.

“It’s us, Y/nn. It’s us. I know this is weird, but we have to go. We have to find the others.” She told you in a soft, but fragile tone.

“The others? They’re here?” You asked; a tear ran down her face as she nodded.

The next moment, Fitz entered your vision, “Hey, Y/N. Listen, you’re going to feel a little off for a while. Just let us know if you need us and we’ll help you.” He said as he offered you a hand. You took it in a cautious manner as you were lifted to your feet.

“Your Fitz, right?” He nodded, a smile on his face. You then turned to the last person in the room, “Jemma?” You asked, voice quiet and soft; the woman nodded, before embracing you herself as you felt Fitz put a hand on your shoulder.

“Now, come on. We do need to get out of here.” Jemma said as she pulled away from you.

 As you walked, you learnt that Skye’s new name was Daisy, and that Fitzsimmons had gotten together (Sky – Daisy, now owed you money if you remembered rightly; you’d ask later) which was nice for them; even if you were fine if either or happened, you were happy they were happy.

You got Daisy out of the room and into a new one to regroup yourselves and fully cement the fact that you were with them once again.

You crouched down next to her as you helped her bandage her wrist, “I’m sorry I didn’t look for you hard enough.” She said, guilt taking over her tone completely.

You paused momentarily, meeting her guilty and teary eyes; you gave her a small smile as you then resumed your activity, “I can’t remember much, only bits an pieces. I remember that you owe me money,” Daisy let out a laugh as you move onto the next one, “But, from what I remember, I wouldn’t blame you for what you did. Besides, I’m here now.” You said.

She smiled, before she looked back at the couple behind them. You were right, her siblings wasn’t missing one in the pack they had built; her family was back together.

She had found you in the most unlikely of places; but it didn’t matter, she had had found you. Her search had ended in a good place for once.

She couldn’t be happier to be back with her best-best-best friend.

[spoopyghostgirl]

Lightbringer Part 2

Pairing: Yon RoggXoc with some casual VersXoc

Rating: Teen+ (I am kind of a potty mouth)

Word Count: 3,984

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

"Let's lose our minds and go fucking crazy

Ah ya ya ya ya 

I keep on hoping we'll eat cake by the ocean"

1991,

Lazarus stretched her arms high above her head, yellow eyes moving from the wall across from her, down to her hands sitting in her lap. She was back on Hala, in the bed of the man who had wiped out an entire race of people because of what many would call a lover's spat. Looking down at his sleeping face, Lazarus sighed before swinging her legs over the side of the bed, and making her way across his bedroom. Slipping into the shower in the attached bathroom, Lazarus went to work shaving and washing her body, her thoughts wandering to the events that happened when she had returned and spoken to the Supreme One.

"You question his decision," Lazarus stood in an all white room, yellow eyes moving to meet the eyes of her mother. 'Or, at least, the face of my mother,' having become accustom to the supreme ones psychological games.

"I feel as though he killed them out of jealousy," she didnt even have to pull the memory forward, the supreme one having been able to easily pluck it from her mind. Her face shifted into one of displeasure, Lazarus finding herself rather thankful she wasnt on the receiving end of the supreme ones anger. "Even if the people themselves wouldn't have been great warriors, we could have used the planet as a staging ground and the Mavkas as our eyes and ears on the planet. But Ronan didnt think, he felt, and it cost us the loyalty of a people who-,"

"Who were desperate enough that we would never have to worry about them turning against us." The supreme one shook her head, her lips twisting into a scowl. "You're right, his actions were inexcusable and hurt us more than helped us. He will be punished accordingly," Lazarus watched as the supreme one tapped her chin with her pointer finger, her clear blue eyes moving from the ground between them to her. "But that is not something you need worry about. You have been given a new mission, a new objective. You are to join the Starforce task force and work alongside their commander, Yon-Rogg as his captain and manipulate both him and Vers. You must make sure that their loyalty is to me and me alone, and do whatever it takes to break them apart. I will not risk losing such a powerful weapon," bowing her head to the supreme one, she spoke the words that she'd been taught.

"Of course, Supreme one, you know I live to serve,"

Lazarus shook her head, yellow eyes narrowing at the sidewalk below her. She had slipped out of Ronans home without so much as a good bye to the slumbering man.

"Its not like I owe him an explanation," she spoke quietly to herself, having decided to jog to the gym instead of taking the public transport. 'He knows what he did and knows that I am not the kind of person to let that sort of thing go.' She had never been one to let the blue eyed man get away with being a piece of shit, Ronan having told her it had been something he had liked about her. Shaking her head, she decided that she needed to let it go and focus. She was set to meet her new team today and start her mission. 'I can't be distracted by any-,'

Lazarus stumbled, her right hand shooting out to steady the slightly larger body that had crashed into her. Looking up, Lazarus found a familiar face, the face of the girl the supreme one wanted her to monitor. 'How convenient,' she mused, Vers having caught the hand that had grabbed her arm to steady herself.

"I'm so sorry," they spoke at the same time, Lazarus flashing Vers a charming smile, the dark eyed girl smiling shyly in response.

"No no, it was my fault, I should have been watching where I was going. I've just got a lot on my mind and I," she paused, shaking her head as if to clear it of some thoughts that had threaten to slip out. Lazarus only arched a brow at the babbling girl, Vers looking up to meet her gaze, something she hadn't held in their brief conversation. "I'm Vers," Lazarus took the hand that was extended to her in greeting, bypassing the hand and firm grasping the blonde womans forearm.

"Lazarus," she countered, smirking lightly when Vers squeezed her forearm in return. "And it's understandable, I too, am feeling rather distracted this morning. I'm on my way to the main training facility to clear my head," Vers released her arm, her light brows cinching in confusion.

"Then why are you going this way? The training facility is-," Vers eyes narrowed at their surroundings, seemingly realizing that she had somehow managed to jog past both Yon-Rogg's home and the training facility the majority of the higher level militia used. "I ran right past it," Lazarus allowed herself to giggle, something she knew to not be very Kree like.

"It seems whatever is on your mind is rather distracting," Vers eyes were wide as she looked upon the grinning woman. "It happens to the best of us," she continued lightly, stepping forward so she stood shoulder to shoulder with the slightly taller girl. "Wanna talk about it?" Lazarus continued, Vers moving to fall into step with the fair haired girl. Picking up her pace, Vers mirrored the action, the pair falling into a casual jog, the supreme one letting her know several small but useful things about Vers. Several silent moments past, Vers seeming to be arguing with herself before she sighed. "Its alright, you dont have to tell me if you dont want to," shaking her head, Vers offered her an unsure smile.

"No, that's not it, I'm just not use to people seeming to care about the things on my mind. Well, except Yon-Rogg, but...," Lazarus squeezed her shoulder reassuringly, yellow eyes only needing to graze over her face to know that her relationship with Yon-Rogg was very... close. "A couple of years ago I lost my memory and... I've had nightmares ever since. They're intense but I dont ever remember anything. They're there and then they're gone... Yon-Rogg suggests that I don't linger on them, that they won't help me but-,"

"Everyone wants to know who they are." Vers gave a nod, her expression distant and full of a longing Lazarus was far too familiar with.

"I wish I could just remember something, anything about who I use to be but i can't and no matter how much Yon-Rogg tells me to forget something tells me not to." Lazarus squeezed her shoulder once more, the pair stepping into an elevator that would take them to the training facilities on the upper levels.

"Well, not to toot my own horn, but I am a very good listener and i am more than happy to listen to any of your problems if you need someone." Vers smiled, her cheeks flushing lightly at the grinning white haired womans offer.

"I would love to take you up on your offer but I'm not planetside very much and when I am, I feel like all I'm doing is training." Lazarus arched a brow, a playful smile on her lips.

"Let me guess, you're part of some important task force?" Vers unzipped the zip up she had been wearing, flashing Lazarus the logo on her shirt that read 'StarForce'. "You're StarForce? That's crazy, I was just reassigned to your team," recognition flashed across her face.

"You're the Executioner, Ronans second in command." Lazarus did her best not to grin at the womans surprise, offering her a rather shy nod of confirmation. "I'm guessing you're here to meet the team then...," looking down at the device on her wrist, Vers did her best not to laugh out loud. "3 hours early," Lazarus shrugged noncommittally, looking into the girls brown eyes.

"I guess that's something we have in common," Vers smiled, a small smile on her lips.

"I guess so,"

Lazarus bent at the waist, stretching down to her toes, yellow eyes moving from her toes to the young woman before her. Vers matched her stretching form, their eyes meeting briefly before they switched positions. Vers had suggested they sparred together since neither had the original partner they had planned on. Standing up straight, Lazarus stretched her arms high above her head, her fingers laced together.

"Ready?" Vers gave a nod, the pair moving to the mats that were laid out, several other pairs of bodies dancing around their respective partners around them. Taking her preferred fighting stance, she turned, ready to take Vers on. After Lazarus made no move against the blonde, Vers took the initiative, moving to quickly close the distance between them. Lazarus made no move to counter her attacks, instead opting to watch how the blonde preferred to fight. 'Shes reckless, opting to nose dive right in, and-,

"Are you going to fight?" 'Easily angered,' Lazarus caught Vers right wrist as she tried to deck the shorter girl. Using Vers momentum against her, Lazarus threw the girl over her shoulder. Vers landed on her stomach with a groan, Lazarus moving to immediately sit on Vers back, pinning both of her arms to her back. Growling, Vers arms began to glow, Lazarus arching a brow in surprise. 'This must be what the supreme one was talking about-,'

"I suggest you keep that under control, Vers. I, too, have a special power and would love to show you it but... I can tell from that nice circle on your neck that you cant control your powers where as I can mine. I would find it... unfair to use them against you."

"Powers like mine," Lazarus released the girls arms, and with a simple snap, a black fire grew in the palm of her right hand. "Holy shit," offering Vers her left hand, she pulled the young woman to her feet, her brown eyes never leaving the fire in her right hand. "Did the Supreme one give you those powers?" Lazarus' brows cinched in confusion, her mouth opening to ask if that's how she was being led to believe she had obtained her powers when the door behind Vers swished open, Lazarus finding a trio of her men strolling into the room.

"Commander," Vas-Il greeted, taking point ahead of Chek-Og and Ag-Las. "I see you've found a new training partner," grinning lightly at her captains casual prodding, she pulled Vers to her feet.

"This is Vers, shes a member of the team I will be joining. Vers, this is my captain and hand to hand expert, Vas-Il, our sharp shooter, Ag-Las, and the newest recruit to our team, Chek-Og." She pointed to each man as she spoke, Vers looking to each member as she pointed at them. "And actually, she found me, so theres no need to get jealous, Vas," Vers was surprised to find the group playfully teasing one another. 'No one on my team is like this, not even Yon-Rogg.' Vers found herself briefly wishing she would have been placed with the white haired young woman. "Its important to know how your team members fight, right Vers?"

"Uh, right?" Lazarus felt her lips twist into a playful smile, her teammates chuckling softly at the young womans confusion.

"And she knows how to just smile and agree with her superiors, which is very important to a girl in my position." She playfully elbowed Vas-Il, the taller man groaning in exasperation.

"You are such a pain," turning to offer Vers a friendly smile, Lazarus found the young woman frowning.

"You doing okay, Vers?" The blonde shook her head before offering her a small smile,

"Yes, of course. Sorry, I spaced out for a moment," Lazarus gave a nod, yellow eyes moving to her captain. Vas-Il was the only person who had been privy to the general idea of what her mission was. 'Plant seeds of doubt, reaffirm loyalty to the supreme one, kill the spare if necessary.'

"Dont worry about it, V," Lazarus reassured, turning to her counterparts. "Do you want to keep sparing? Vas-Il is top notch and I'm sure he'd be able to help you perfect your form." Looking between the pair, Vers remembered what Yon-Rogg had said to her.

"Yon-Rogg suggested said that I shouldn't fight others. He doesnt think I can control my powers well enough," Vas-Il, without missing a beat flashed Vers a smile.

"Trust me, there's nothing that you can throw at me that my commander hasnt already done." Rolling her yellow eyes, Lazarus shoved her captain lightly, childishly sticking her tongue out at him. Vers looked uncomfortable, looking to Lazarus for direction.

"I trust you, Vers. I know you won't hurt Vas-Il," 'she trusts me.' Vers felt the smallest of smiles crawl across her lips. "And I'm sure Vas trusts you too, right?" Vas-Il gave a firm nod of his head, flashing the young woman an award winning smile. "Alright then, I'll sit this round out. Chek-Og, Ag-Las, why dont you two spar?" Chek-Og looked unsure, dark eyes moving from Lazarus to the unfazed Ag-Las.

"Of course, commander," Lazarus moved to the side, watching on silently, already making mental notes of what she would say to the Supreme one once she reported in. 'It seems her team doesn't treat her well,' Vers being surprised by the way her team members treated one another. 'And, it would seem at least one of them has made their lack of faith in her well known.' Vers grunted as her back slammed against the mat, Vas-Il successfully pinning the younger woman to the ground.

"You leave yourself open too much. You need to stand with your elbows closer in, and your feet further apart. You arent grounding yourself well enough," Vers teeth were bared in anger when he began but now her face was laxed, thankful that the blue skinned man hadn't mentioned her losing her temper. Vas-Il released her, offering the blonde a hand, and pulling her to her feet. Looking past Vers, the pair shared a small smile, Vers immediately making changes to her stance.

"Again," Chek-Og caught the fist that Ag-Las threw at him, Chek-Og attempting to throw the larger man over him. Ag-Las, instead of losing his footing, allowed the younger man to pull him closer, before smashing his opposing hand into the boys face. Chek-Og groaned, stumbling back slightly, Ag-Las moving in to punch his stomach, Chek-Og landing flat on his back. Ag-Las made no move to help the younger man up, Chek-Og groaning on the floor.

"Is that the best you can do?" Ag-Las' question was rather direct, the younger man on the ground pushing himself up to his feet and glaring.

"No, I just dont specialize in this sort of thing," Chek-Og having been added to their team as a combat medic and pilot.

"Really? And do you think I'm some sort of hand to hand expert?" Stepping in between the bickering pair, Lazarus sent Ag-Las a sharp look, his lips twisting into a scowl.

"Theres no need to argue, Chek-Og is fresh out of the academy. We all had much to learn at that point, and it was thanks to our superiors who took the time to train us that we ended up turning out the way we have. Superiors like you, Ag-Las, who can help guide and mold Chek-Og into a great warrior." Ag-Las' shoulders slumped, his violet eyes pinching shut.

"You're right," turning his attention to Chek-Og, Ag-Las sighed. "I apologize for losing my temper, Chek. Why dont we go practice shooting? That's what I'm best at, afterall," Chek-Og looked to their commander before turning to Ag-Las.

"That sounds acceptable," with that, the pair slipped out of the training room, Lazarus moving back to the pair who were still sparring on the other side of the room. Vas-Il was grinning, dancing around Vers in a very similar fashion to what she had been. 'Shes following his advice to the T,' she smiled, a small snort leaving her as Vas-Il smoothly knocked the blonde onto her back.

"You're killing me," Vers groaned from her place on the floor. Bouncing in place, Vas-Il offered Lazarus a cat like grin.

"Wanna go again, Laz?" The white haired young woman nodded, moving to take her captains place. Vers pushed herself to her feet, rolling her shoulders, and taking the stance Vas-Il had told her to. Taking her original fighting stance, Lazarus allowed her yellow eyes to run over Vers. She was grinning despite having been knocked on her ass repeatedly by her captain, Lazarus finding the smile rather charming.

"Ready to go?" Vers nodded and moved first, Lazarus grinning at her confidence. Vers swung, Lazarus ducking to avoid her swing before Vers moved, immediately kicking with her right leg directed at her legs. Lazarus blocked the first and then second kick she attempted with her left leg to Lazarus head with her forearm. Stepping back, Vers followed, throwing her left fist at Lazarus' face. Leaning back, Lazarus avoided the swing before leaning forward. Deflecting the second, Lazarus allowing the swing to graze her right arm. Reaching out, Lazarus grabbed Vers upper arm with left hand and her elbow right her right. Twisting her body, Lazarus body slammed the blonde to the ground, a cat like grin spreading across her lips. Vers attempted to get up but Lazarus wouldn't allow that, planting her foot on Vers side and twisting her arm slightly. "Do you concede?" Vers flipped Lazarus off, the white haired woman laughing at her childishness. "Awh, come on V, don't be such a sore loser." Vers 'hmphed' in response, her mouth opening, likely admiting defeat when the training doors opened to reveal her commander and several members of her team.

"Yon-Rogg," Vers spoke up, his yellow eyes moving from her face to the white haired woman restraining her. Lazarus looked up to find said man staring at her, her yellow eyes slightly narrowing. 'Ah, so this is the commander I am to woe,' a soft squeak left her lips, Vers kicking her legs out from under her. Immediately releasing her grip on Vers, Lazarus tumbled forward, right over into the grinning woman. Lazarus, nose smacked squarely into Vers forehead, a pained groan leaving the young womans lips as she pushed herself up so she hovered over the blonde. "I'm so sorry! Your nose is bleeding," pinching her nose to stem the blood from dripping onto the panicked blonde, Lazarus pushed herself off the young woman. "Are you okay? I didnt mean to-," Lazarus' shoulders shook as she began to laugh, turning her yellow eyes on the now confused young woman.

"You are, so recklessly, Vers," her dark brows shot into her hair in surprise. She had expected anger from the young woman, not laughter, Vas-Il moving across the room and offering his commander a hand.

"Yeah, reckless like someone else we both know," Lazarus reached out with her left hand, lightly shoving her captain.

"Please, that was ages ago, when I was still new to being in charge." Vers was at her side immediately, having grabbed a towel, and replacing Lazarus hand with the towel. "Thank you," she added, turning to offer the blonde a kind smile.

"I'm sorry, again," Lazarus opened her mouth to repeat that it was fine, that it wasnt a big deal, only for Yon-Rogg to clear his throat. "Oh, right, Lazarus this is-,"

"Yon-Rogg, commander of starforce, and you are?" Lazarus pulled the towel from her face, casually hiding the color of her blood from those gathered.

"Lazarus, commander and executioner for the Accusers." Yon-Rogg's eyes widened a fraction, not expecting the newest member of his team to be such an attractive young woman. 'Given her position I was expecting someone much... older.' "And I'm assuming the rest of you make up Vers squadron?" Lazarus' yellow eyes moved past Yon-Rogg to the four man group that lingered behind him. 'Korath,' was the only one that she recognized, having seen him consult with Ronan on more than one occasion. 'I'll have to be careful of him, can't have Ronan knowing what I've been sent here to do.'

"It would be important to introduce her to the team," Vers joked lightly, Lazarus winking subtly at the grinning blonde. Yon-Rogg looked less impressed, looking between the grinning pair.

"I was getting to that, Vers. Lazarus, this is Minn-Erva," he gestured to a blue skinned woman with black hair and cold dark eyes. "Att-Lass," another pure Kree, Lazarus noted, though his eyes held more curiosity than distrust. "Bron-Char," 'he looks like a blue skinned Volstagg,' Lazarus forced herself not to grin at the thought of the kindhearted Asgardian. "And, my second in command,-"

"Korath," Lazarus spoke for him, the pair gripping each others forearms in greeting.

"Comander Lazarus, I look forward to fighting beside you once more." The friendliness that the young woman had been exuding when he and his team had entered had all but vanished, Lazarus taking on a much more serious approach.

"As do I, with you, Korath. Though, I'm not sure how long that will be for. I was under the impression that you may yet end up taking my previous position with the Accusers. Ronan has spoken quite highly of you." She could almost see his whole head expand at the praise, Vers grinning lightly when she caught her eye.

"Really? I was not made aware of that possibility, " Yon-Rogg interrupted, gold eyes hardening. Lazarus looked unfazed,

"It is something that has been discussed between myself, Ronan, and the Supreme One," despite wanting to argue, Yon-Rogg gave a nod. 'He acts obedient but I can see it in his eyes. He'll lie to stay in control and in this instance, his lie is cover his own hurt ego. How cute,' opening her mouth to introduce her own second in command, she found her jaw clenching as a familiar Kree entered the room. "Ronan," she greeted flatly, yellow eyes slightly narrowed.

"Lazarus, Yon-Rogg," he greeted the pair in charge of the remaining members, his blue eyes briefly moving over Korath and Vers, who had moved to stand closer to the white haired young woman. "I am here to bring the two of you before the Supreme One." Lazarus looked to Vas-Il, his violet eyes moving briefly to lock with his commander.

"Of course, Ronan, if you'd lead the way." Lazarus didnt say anything as she followed Ronan out, Vas-Il lingering briefly. Korath shared a look with the black haired man, a small nod passing between them before he followed his commander silently out of the room. Yon-Rogg looked displeased, gold eyes settling on the dark skinned man beside him.

"Is there something going on that I should be made aware of, Korath?" Korath turned to his leader, ready to bold face lie to the man when the door hissed open once more.

"Korath, with me," Ronan ordered, Korath not even looking to his commander for direction. Ronan caught Yon-Roggs eye as the door closed, his lips pressed in a tight line. Doing his best to keep himself level headed, Yon-Rogg turned to his team, gold eyes burning with something akin to anger.

"Since we're all here, mind as well train while we wait for further direction. Vers, with me, Minn-Erva-," the blue skinned woman slipped out the door silently, already knowing that Yon would pair himself up with Vers. 'No need to stay around and watch that mess,' she grimaced, though she couldn't help the smallest smirks from flickering across her lips. 'Though I'm not sure how much longer Vers will hold his favor,' she thought of the way Vers smiled at the new girl. The way they seemed to gravitate towards one another. 'Or how much longer he'll remain hers.'

[occasionalfics]

The Arrow and the Flame, v

part iv

Summary: Sometimes light can be found in the scummiest of places, with the right people.

A/N: I wanted lots of fluff to offset Contraxia so. Fluff! :D (Next chapter is NSFW but this one is still very safe)

Tags: @thewildomega @pitrymcbride @overwatchemporium (let me know if you want me to tag you!

Words: 2,922

~~~

Most of the crew visited the Iron Lotus when you visited Contraxia. Some went to the other brothels and bars in the area. There weren’t many private locations to get to know someone, which you knew, but there were some more...tasteful places in among the revelry.

When you were really young, you’d been stuck on the ship with babysitters. Contraxia’s not the best place for children, your parents knew. But when you were a teenager, your mother brought you to her favorite restaurant where they served warm noodles in soup. Ever since, that place was your favorite, too, so you figured that was a good place to take Yondu.

He stared at all the neon as you passed, looking in windows and staring at bar patrons of all sizes and species.

“I ain’t never seen so many kinds’a people in one place like this,” he said, his eyes wide as you lead him down the street, attached at the hands.

You turned to him and laughed, but not in a mocking manner. Honestly, the awe on his face was cute and endearing, even despite the gritty look of the planet. You reminded yourself that this kind of running around was new to him, and that being on a planet like this was something he would remember for a long time. So you stopped and waited for him to catch up, then smiled even as he almost tripped over you.

“Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Watch it, would ya?” you asked quietly, with a laugh at the end. You continued on your walk before saying, “I’m glad you’re enjoying this.”

“‘S all so bright,” he said, watching as lights flashed and advertisement reels turned.

Soon, you found the restaurant. It was bright red and yellow, the lights giving off comfortable heat in the Contraxian winter. It was warm inside, so you took your jacket off and found a booth by the window. Yondu took the seat across from you just as a waiter came and placed menus on the table.

You went straight into picking out what it was you wanted, but you’d already known before you’d landed. You had a regular dish picked out, one that you got every time you were here. When you put the menu down, you saw Yondu was biting his lip, tapping his nails on the table, and breathing far too heavily to be comfortable.

“Are you okay?” you asked, putting your menu at the end of the table.

Yondu glanced up at you, then back at the menu. “I, uh…” he said, nervousness dripping off every sound. “I can’t read this.” He didn’t look at you as he said it. He just stared at the paper as if the words would talk to him and tell him what he wanted.

You knew that wouldn’t happen. You hoped to a certain extent that he would ask you for help, but you had the feeling that his admission was all you’d get. You reminded yourself that that was okay - you had to take small steps. He was still getting used to being able to ask for things, even small things.

Without a second thought, you moved to his side of the booth and pushed him further in, sitting right up against him so that you could browse the menu together. “Right, well first you have to pick a soup base,” you said.

He looked at you with wide eyes, but said nothing.

“Do you like your food spicy, or tangy?” you asked.

He shrugged.

“Salty or savory?”

Another shrug.

“Hot or cold?”

“Hot. Definitely hot.”

At least that was something, you decided. You wondered if he’d ever had a meal of his own choosing, or if he’d ever even thought that, somewhere in the galaxy, he could choose his own meal before you’d rescued him. You nodded the thought away and went back to the menu.

“I like hot and spicy, with just a little bit of savory. Usually means sauces are thicker and each meal is a game,” you said.

“A game?” he asked.

You shrugged. “If something’s spicy, but you don’t know how spicy, then you could burn your tongue. Or you could get a little heat and lots of other flavors, too.”

“Right,” he said, going back to the menu. “I’ll do spicy then.”

You helped him pick out each part of the bowl, describing to him what each item was and doing your best to tell him what it might taste like. Eventually, the waiter came back, took your orders, and then left you again. You stayed on Yondu’s side of the booth, and he didn’t ask why.

“So no one ever taught you to read?” you asked, sitting at an angle to face him.

Yondu shook his head. “I think one’a the elders tried once,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. “Lessons didn’ last long. The Kree don’ really want their slaves smarter’n them, I guess.”

You nodded. “I could teach you, if you want. I’m not the best at every language or anything, but it couldn’t hurt.”

“It ain’t against no rules or nothin’?” he asked.

“I don’t think so,” you said. “And if it is, there has to be some perk to being the Captain’s kid. If that’s it, then I’m kind of okay with that.”

“Just kind of?” he asked, smirking at you.

You rolled your eyes. “Sure,” you said, sharing a laugh with him. You could’ve sworn you felt a blush running up your neck, but you tried your best to ignore it. Maybe he’d miss it if you could camouflage it well enough.

“What did ya call that white stuff all over the ground again?” he asked, turning to look out the window.

You leaned over his shoulder to see, even though you knew what it was. “Snow,” you said. “You’ve really never heard of it before?”

“Seen it, just..never knew it’s name.”

“Well have you ever played in it?” you asked, almost expecting the answer he’d give.

He turned back to you and shook his head. “Not much playtime fer slaves.”

You couldn’t help but frown a bit at that. He did, too. You looked down and saw one of his hands on the table, so you took it in yours and let his fingers between yours.

“You’re not a slave anymore,” you said. “I know it’ll take awhile to get used to being a Ravager, but you’re not a slave. And after we eat, we’re going to have a snowball fight.”

He squeezed your hand and smiled at you again, and in that moment everything felt right. He didn’t need to answer you with words. Sometimes words weren’t enough, or sometimes they were too much. At that table in your favorite restaurant with Yondu, who was quickly becoming your favorite person, words didn’t seem right. Just holding him, even a small part of him, and letting him know that he was free… that seemed enough.

The food came not long after. He watched you dig in first, you thought so he could figure it out, then savored each sip and bite individually, like he’d never had so many things happen in his head at once.

“‘S spicy stuff supposed’ta hurt?” he asked.

You giggled. “Kinda,” you said, shoveling some noodles into your mouth. “But it’s a good hurt. Means the peppers were nice and ripe.”

He followed your lead most of the meal, letting you know what he thought of each piece as he went along. It was...cute, honestly. That wasn’t a word you got to use a lot, given your lifestyle. But you liked it.

You paid for dinner and then, as you’d promised, lead him outside and down the street to a little park. It’d always been weird to you that there was a peaceful, quiet little patch of pleasantness amidst the crazy sleaziness of Contraxia, but it was there, and it was another one of your favorite places to be. Not many people knew about it, because not many people ever thought about leaving the lights, the sexbots, or the entertainment of the strip.

“Pick some snow up,” you said, letting go of Yondu’s hand once you made it within the gates of the park. You bent down to pick a handful of snow up, ignoring how cold it was, then rolled it into a ball.

“Shit’s freezin’!” you heard Yondu call.

You laughed, stood, and finished molding your ball. “That’s the point,” you said, only slightly wishing you’d brought gloves.

“I know that,” he called back.

Then a hard, round, cold rock hit your shoulder and made you stumble forward.

“But I had ta distract ya somehow!” he said, laughing all the while.

You turned around slowly, mouth hanging open, a ridiculous and incredulous look on your face. “How dare you!” you yelled, then lobbed your snowball at him.

This went back and forth for a while. You attacked one another, laughed at the other’s expense, then repeated until your fingers were nearly the same color as his were at a normal temperature. You threw the last snowball, then he lay down in the snow as if you’d hit him hard enough to knock him over.

You rolled your eyes and shook your head as you headed over to him, then lay right beside him. His body was warm, so you scooted as close as you could get before putting your head back. You shivered against him, then he shivered back, but it didn’t wipe the smile off your face.

“Sometimes I forget to have some fun,” you said when you looked at the black sky. “Being on that ship for so long without a break, things get kinda...militant. Sometimes. Papa can get antsy and serious, I guess, and that puts everyone else on edge.”

“This was fun,” he said, only a hint of a question in his words. “Cold, but fun.”

You nodded. “You wanna go get a drink or something?” you asked without looking at him.

You felt him shrug before he said, “Not really.”

That was when you looked at him again, one eyebrow raised.

“I kinda like bein’ out here with just you, (Y/N),” he said. He grabbed your hand, then shivered again at how cold you were. “I don’ really feel like bein’ with a lotta people right now.”

You nodded, but didn’t say anything and didn’t look away. You just watched as his breath filled the air, obviously hot against the cold. He pulled your hand up between you so that you were looking at how discolored your fingers were.

“Guess if I don’ get’cha inside soon, yer gonna freeze on me,” he said with a smirk.

You shrugged. “I could get us a room for the night,” you said quietly, trying not to sound like you expected anything out of him. You did want to be warm, and you didn’t mind the idea of just being with Yondu, but the thought of going back to the ship to share your tiny twin bed in the bunk really didn’t feel appealing. You just wanted to sit and talk or cuddle and be near him, just...not in the snow for too long.

“These places ain’t too grimy?” he asked.

You shrugged again. “Some of ‘em are,” you said. “Some are alright, though. Big beds, nice showers, unlimited TV.”

“TV?” he asked.

You smiled. “It’s a Terran invention. We just happen to get a lot more of it because Terrans don’t acknowledge life outside of their solar system. There’s a screen that connects to networks across the galaxy so we can watch movies and shows with all kinds of people and stories.”

He sighed. “Sounds nice.”

Without much more assurance, you got up and lead him back to the Contraxian strip. You knew of a few of the better places to stay the night, ones that weren’t Brothels but weren’t motels, either. You didn’t have to search for too long before you found one, booked a room for the night, then took the lift to your assigned floor. Yondu watched it all with wide eyes, taking in everything without letting your hand go.

You decided you liked watching him experience things for the first time, but you didn’t want to infantilize him. You would smile and watch, interact if he engaged with you, but otherwise you knew you had to let him experience things for himself. So you gave him the key to the room, let him slide it into the reader, then let him drag you into the room.

You turned a light in the corner of the room on, then found him on the single full sized bed with the screen remote in his hands.

“How do ya work this thing?” he asked, staring at the buttons.

That, you decided, you could help him with. You went to the bed, pointed to the power button, and told him what it did. Then you watched his face light up when the first image appeared on the screen. It was a show you’d seen once in awhile, whenever you’d had one of these rooms to yourself. It wasn’t your favorite, but that didn’t matter. Yondu played with the buttons on the remote, so the channel changed anyway.

“Are you having fun?” you asked, watching him switch back and forth between a movie about Terran pirates and a show about a Krylorian genius stuck on an island planet with no other intelligent life form.

“Too much,” he said with a childish laugh. He explored all he could with the remote - even every single setting on the screen itself - then settled on a documentary about Anulax batteries. It wasn’t particularly interesting, but Yondu seemed enthralled by it.

You didn’t mean to, and you hadn’t even thought to do it - because, if you had, you wouldn’t have done it at all - but you leaned in and kissed his cheek. Immediately, he froze, but seemed to force a smile.

“Sorry,” you whispered, already regretting your action.

He looked at you and his smile became genuine. “‘S alright. Yer lips’er jus’ cold is all,” he said.

You laughed with him, then moved so that you were sitting right up against him. You still didn’t expect much to happen between you so soon after meeting, but just being near him felt nice. It’d been awhile since you’d felt this kind of intimacy - you didn’t know if he ever had. You would’ve been fine if you’d both kept your clothes on and went to sleep, so long as he kept his hand in yours and that interesting, gold and white and grey smile on his face.

But he surprised you. He dropped your hand, but only to wrap his arm around you and bring you somehow closer than you already were. He put his forehead against yours, shivering again because you were still chilled.

“Yondu,” you said, putting your hands against his very warm neck. “Could I...would it be alright if I kissed you?”

He didn’t answer. He brought his lips to yours, more cold against hot, and breathed against your face. He tasted like peppers, salt, and broth, and then he was gone.

Your eyes shot open to find him smirking at you again.

“I’d say so,” he said.

You gave a breathy laugh, enjoying the lazy loop his arms had made around you. Without too much thought, you kissed him again, this time bringing your tongue into the mix. And he let you. You waited for him to freeze up, to back away and tell you that you were moving too fast or something, but he didn’t. He reciprocated every move you made, even when that was taking your jacket off and throwing it to the floor. You were still cold, but once his jacket was off, you lay on the bed with him right next to you to warm you up.

You put your hands under his shirt, not to take it off, but just to have them there. He did pause at that, but his face didn’t look scared. He looked uncomfortable, but you couldn’t blame him for that.

“Stars, girl,” he said with yet another shiver.

“Sorry,” you said through a giggle. “You’re so warm!”

“‘S ‘cause ya feel like ya stepped into a meat locker’er somethin’,” he said, laughing with you. He kissed you quickly, leaving a definite warm stop in the center of your face. “But I gotta idea ta help with that.”

He gave you a devilish grin, so of course your mind went straight to sex. “We don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” you said quietly, hoping he knew what you meant.

He laughed. Loudly. Just once, but it made its point. “Ya think gettin’ ya naked is a good idea right now?” he asked. “Yer like a walkin’ ice cube. I was jus’ talkin’ ‘bout gettin’ under the covers’n gettin’ some sleep.”

You sighed and closed your eyes. “Right,” you said with a nod. You felt him kiss you again, bringing more warmth into your face. “That sounds so nice.”

So that’s exactly what you did. You both kicked your boots off, then pulled back the thick blanket from the bed and got under it. You snuggled up to his side and Yondu put his arms back around you, then pulled the blanket up to your shoulders. The last thought you had before falling asleep was that this felt too perfect and so right. Amazingly, star-blazingly right.

[occasionalfics]

Child of Light, ii

Summary: After finding out your Papa is killing your kin, you go back home...but not for long.

Words: 1,784

----

You didn’t stay on Krylor long. Mama wouldn’t hear it when you tried to tell her of the horrors you saw. She would never believe anything so terrible of your Papa. She loved you, you knew, and she wanted to take care of you, but Papa had loved her so much and she loved him still. She couldn’t fathom the thought of Papa trying to hurt you. After a few months, you allowed her that much peace. The longer Papa stayed away, the longer Captain Udonta stayed away, the more certain you were that Papa was never coming back for you. Or Mama. He didn’t care, and suddenly, you were okay with that thought.

Half a year passed before you couldn’t stand it anymore. You hated fighting with Mama, even over stupid things. You knew you were overreacting, and that she was refusing to listen to reason. You loved her so much, but it was time for you to leave. Some small part of you missed the light, the feeling of it flowing through your body. You didn’t know if you would ever feel it again, but that was small in comparison to the need to get off Krylor and see the Universe. That you felt in the very core of your heart was necessary.

You weren’t sure how to get in contact with Captain Udonta until you heard someone mention his name in a bar down the street from your home one night. You turned on your heel and approached the stranger who’d spoken his name, only to be met with a sneer at first.

“Please,” you said. “I just need to know how to contact him.”

The stranger’s sneer didn’t fall, but he sighed and wrote down a digital identity code so you could send a signal out from your halo pad at home. Which is exactly what you did - you ran from the bar, went to your bedroom, and pulled the pad out to dial the code. It took a few minutes, but the signal picked up eventually, and then you were staring at the face of a dirty Ravager with pale skin - probably Xandarian - light eyes, and a short, cropped strip of hair that streaked across his scalp.

“Can I help ya?” he asked in a gruff tone.

“I need to speak with the Captain,” you said.

The man chuckled. “Ain’t no one speaks ta the Captain without speakin’ ta me first,” he said.

“I’m an old friend.”

“No, ya ain’t,” he said. “Ya ain’t a Kree slave, so ya ain’t an old friend.”

You didn’t know what that meant exactly, but suddenly you had suspicions about who the Captain really was. “I’m a child of Ego,” you said, hoping he would understand.

Apparently, that was the key. The man’s face fell, and then he was gone. Within seconds you were looking at the face of the Centaurian Captain.

“What tha fuck do you want?” Captain Udonta asked. His angry face suggested that you’d interrupted something, possibly something important.

“I need to get off Krylor,” you said.

“So pay someone ‘n get it over-with,” he said.

“I need you to get me off Krylor.”

“I ain’t in that business no more, Darlin’,” he said.

“This isn’t about Ego,” you said, knowing that, to some degree, it was. It just wasn’t about going back to Ego.

“Then I really ain’t concerned,” he said. The Captain started to walk away, but you stopped him with a jumble of unintelligible words. “‘Scuse me?” he asked.

“I want to join your crew,” you said, unsure of the truth of your own words. But if it got you off Krylor…

He stared at you. “Y’ain’t serious,” he said after a bit.

You shook your head. Anything to get off Krylor you thought. “I am. I want to be a Ravager.”

He laughed, startling you. You noticed that his teeth seemed sharper than you remembered, and he looked like he may have had a few extra scars since the last time you’d seen him, but you kept that all to yourself.

“No one wants ta be a Ravager, Darlin’.”

“I do,” you said, trying to sound as sure about it as possible. You certainly didn’t feel sure.

Captain Udonta studied you through the communication. “Yer that desperate ya gotta lie ‘bout wantin’ ta join my crew?” he asked.

Of course you weren’t going to sell him on wanting to be a Ravager. It wasn’t a career choice, but a lifestyle, and only one for the seediest, most lost souls in the galaxy. That’s what Mama had always said, anyway.

You sighed and nodded. “I need to know what’s out there,” you said, looking out your window, even though Captain Udonta couldn’t look with you.

“Space,” he said. “Tha’s what’s out there, Darlin’. Lotsa balls’a gas and jackasses like yer daddy.”

You turned back to him, hoping beyond hope he’d come to get you anyway. “Please,” you said quietly.

He sighed and looked away briefly. You watched as he blinked and blinked again, then turned to face you once more. “Fine,” he said. “But the second ya cause trouble, yer gone. Got it?”

You nodded.

--------------------------------------------------

You did not, in fact, cause trouble. Yes, you were...more innocent than the men of the Elector’s crew when you arrived, but you were a quick learner. And you were agile, fast, and smaller than many members of the crew. You became more of a spy than a Ravager, but that had more to do with your formal education, which most of the other crew members lacked. They were big dumb brutes; you were a tactician. That made you important.

Captain Udonta did not hover over you when you joined the crew. He did not protect you from the crew or outside forces. He left you to your own devices, and just like he promised, you were grateful for it after a few years. You allied yourself with some of the crew quickly - the ones that liked small, shiny distractions especially - and learned from them how to defend yourself.

The Captain’s second-in-command, the scraggly man who’d answered your call that night - Kraglin - was your closest friend. He was unassuming, sometimes too thoughtless, but overall a kind person. And he was obedient - at least to the Captain. Kraglin taught you how to shoot a blaster (perhaps at the Captain’s request, though that was mere suspicion on your part). Kraglin helped you plan heists and listened when you needed to talk to someone, and he was the one to introduce you to the Captain’s hostage.

Hostage was a harsh word, but it was the only one that fit. The Captain had threatened anyone who went near the child with immediate execution via air lock, but Kraglin had special access. You only got a glimpse of the child before he hid away from you and Kraglin, but the second your eyes met, you felt a sort of fond kinship with him. For a while, you didn’t know why. You thought it was just that you could understand being scared and lonely on the Elector.

And then, of course, there was the Captain himself. Normally, he kept his distance from most of the crew. If not physically, then mentally. He was just as he had been when he’d taken you to Ego, though you hardly ever saw the Captain that had saved you. Sometimes you’d catch a glimpse of him when you sparred with Kraglin and saw the Captain’s eyebrows raise, but more often than not, he was stoic, commanding, and sarcastic. After a while, you liked him all the same.

And that was becoming a problem. You liked the Captain. Captain Yondu Udonta, who never said no to a hooker or sexbot, drank too much, was far too cocky and sure of himself, and above all else, was your superior. And yet you couldn’t stop yourself from staring at him whenever he prepped crews for jobs or thinking about him at night, wishing his hand was on your ass intentionally rather than Halfnut’s on accident. You did your best not to be conspicuous about your feelings, but sometimes he made it too difficult.

When he called you into his quarters one night, your heart started to race. You let images of what you wanted him to do with you run through your head, stopping only once you were through the threshold and standing feet away from his bed.

Which was occupied.

By the small, freckled, scared child Kraglin had shown you.

Your eyes widened.

“(Y/N),” the Captain said. “Meet Peter.”

The child - Peter - glanced from you to the Captain and back, his breath quickening and cheeks turning red.

A comfortable and familiar heat spread slowly through your body. It reminded you of the night on Ego, of your Papa, but you didn’t know why. You thought for a second that it was the Captain, for he’d been on Ego with you, and perhaps your residual feelings for him had something to do with it. But then you realized that that didn’t make sense. You’d lived with the Captain for a few years now, and hadn’t felt this exact feeling since Ego.

You looked at the child, curled into a ball on the bed, and your eyes widened. “He is…” you said, slowly looking at the Captain.

He nodded. “Yes,” he said, straight and firm. He lowered his gaze, which you took to mean that the child did not know who his father was - but more importantly that you were not to say a thing.

You thought, then, that this meeting was for you. You had a brother - a half-brother.

“Peter,” the Captain said. “I’d like ya ta meet my good friend, (Y/N).”

The child looked up over his knees at you. Your brother, so pale and spotted. Green eyes, like your Papa. You thought of the caverns, the corpses, the atrocities your Papa had committed against his own children, and closed your eyes momentarily.

“Is she okay?” Peter asked.

“Yeah,” the Captain answered for you. “Seen some things, but she’s a’ight.”

You sighed, opened your eyes, and held your hand out to Peter. Your half-brother. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Peter,” you said.

Peter looked at the Captain, who nodded, and then shook your hand. “You too,” he said softly.

“I want you two ta be good friends,” the Captain said, mostly looking at you. “Yer gonna need ta take care’a one another.”

“Why?” Peter asked, pulling his hand back from yours.

“‘Cause I said so, that’s why,” the Captain said. “Now let’s go. Gotta introduce ya to the crew, I ‘spose.”