XANDAR

CAPITAL OF THE NOVA EMPIRE

On Xandar, you stand outside the Broker's shop. Peter told you to wait while he drops Bereet off at home. You try to push down the jealousy you feel at the fact she gets to be alone with Peter, even if it's only for a short while. You distract yourself by taking in the beauty of the city around you, but it's no use. Peter continues to intoxicate your mind. The thoughts in your head consist of flashbacks to the initial flirty banter you shared with Peter upon first meeting him only mere hours ago. You imagine his handsome face and gorgeous green eyes as he grins at you, probably speaking a cheesy line or a reference to something you both remember from your lives back on Terra. Then there's that gorgeous body you felt pressed up against you whenever he forced you against the wall in the Milano or had to pick you up. You wonder what he looks like shirtless. Those images dive into deeper aspects of your mind, questioning Peter's personality in the bedroom and what exactly he might desire to do to you if you'd let him. His large, strong hands caressing every inch of you as the two of you crash your lips together in a passionate kiss, feeling one another for the first time and possibly several more times after that. You're curious about him and might even consider exploring the attraction.

"No," you mumble to yourself, scrunching your face together in a frustration you're unsure to label as sexual. Peter Quill clearly has a reputation with women. Bereet is a kind, sweet woman, but Peter barely recognized her. That can only mean there are several women each week, a new girl a day even. Each sexual experience with a different person than the last. While that proves he most likely has the skills to satisfy you, that also means you would wake up with a cold, empty spot in the bed. You don't need that kind of stress right now. You need a friend.

Above you, Peter and Bereet lean over a railing. Spotting them, you observe their conversation with an envious feeling that won't seem to subside. Your horrid and unwanted feelings demand to be felt, despite the fact you know Peter's true playboy nature. The two of them stand there alone talking casually for a few minutes, Bereet doing most of the talking while Peter brushes her off. She flirtatiously uses her hand to caress his arm as she leans into him slowly but he backs away, dismissing her and walking back over to you. Now, you are practically beaming with joy as all of your jealousy fades away.

Damn, why do you have to care so much?

"All right, time to go make some units," Peter says, wiggling his eyebrows at you. He treads toward the shop and you follow by his side. He notices you heading in behind him and he stops you with his hand, letting out a whistle. "Whoa slow down there, I gotta take care of this alone." Your arms cross and you frown at the man. "Listen, that guy won't trust me if I walk in there with a stranger. I'll be right out with our units okay?"

"Ugh, fine. I'll stay out here," you groan.

"Hey, don't worry, I promise I won't just dart outta there with the units all for myself," Peter conveys, backing up toward the enormous door as it begins opening. "Even though I might not seem like it, I'm a man of my word. Besides, I owe you a ship remember?" He winks and ducks into the shop, the door slamming shut behind him.

Butterflies fill your stomach as you think about Peter during his absence. How does he manage to be so perfect? So lovable yet so cocky at the same time? You want to be enveloped in his strong arms and run your fingers through his hair. You damn yourself for feeling this way, reminding yourself of all kinds the different women Peter has been with. Yet, you can't help but feel an undeniable connection that you long to discover more about. He opened up to you so easily about his mother and his life as a child on Terra. Perhaps, you ponder, Peter could be invested in more than just sex. Would he be interested in a relationship with you? Would he be interested in a relationship at all?

Your aggressive questions and wonders are soon interrupted when a familiar figure moves toward you. "Gamora!" you exclaim, excited to see her again.

"Y/N," she replies. "Do you have the orb?"

"Yes!" you cheer.

Gamora lets out a humongous sigh of relief. "Oh, that's perfect. I was with Ronan and Nebula earlier when Korath came in, speaking of thieves who got the orb. I was hoping he meant you, but he mentioned an outlaw who calls himself Star-Lord. I was so worried about you!"

"Well, luckily, I'm fine." you gulp. "But about this Star-Lord-"

She cuts you off. "Yes, and I am glad. Now let's get out of here with the orb before the Ravager shows up." She starts to walk away hurriedly.

"No! Gamora, hold on!" you call out after her. She turns around, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "I got the orb on Morag, but I don't currently have the orb with me."

"Then where is it?"

"Peter has it," you whisper, avoiding eye contact with her.

"Who?"

You hesitate. "Um...the Ravager."

"What?" Gamora shrieks. "Is he in there?" She asks, pointing a finger at the door to the Broker's shop. "Y/N, please do not tell me there is a Ravager in there selling our orb to the Broker."

"Well, I-uh...yes," you mutter, incapable of making a complete sentence.

Gamora notices the discomfort she has caused you and calms down. "How did this happen?"

You take a deep breath, ready to explain everything. "You see, I ran into him on Morag and he helped me get the orb safely. When Korath showed up we fought off him and his men together, escaping with the orb. I thought this meant I could keep the orb, but he took it from me because he was also there to get this stupid thing everyone apparently needs so badly," you recite. "Then, of course, Korath blows up my fucking ship! My ship, Gamora, like literally my entire home: gone. So I caught a ride on his ship to meet you on Xandar."

Gamora takes in your words and thinks for a second. "Okay, so this Ravager that offered to let you come with him to Xandar, is what? Returning the orb? No, he's selling it when we need it with us. It really cannot get into the wrong hands, Y/N."

"I know that. But he...he's trustworthy okay? I swear that he's a good guy. Anyone who buys stuff from him would be trustworthy too."

"Wow, you speak so highly of him. He must be very important to you." She crosses her arms and smirks at you. "You've always been one to put love before a job.

Blushing, you roll your eyes. "It's not like that. I just met him!"

"Whatever you say, Y/N."

All of a sudden, a frustrated Peter is shoved from the Broker's shop. "Hey, we had a deal, bro!" he shouts, banging his fist on the door that had already slumped to the ground.

"Peter! What happened?" you ask agitatedly with a pang of worry in your voice.

He shows off the orb still in his hand. "This guy just backed out of a deal on me. If it's one thing I hate, it's a man without integrity-"

"Ahem," Gamora clears her throat.

Irritated, Peter points at her. "Who's this green chick?"

You softly take his arm and lower it. He instantly cools down at your touch, breathing in and out slowly. "This is my sister, Gamora. We grew up together after I was taken from Terra. She's the one I was getting the orb for."

He nods and extends his hand to her, gently this time. "Hey, Gamora. I'm Peter, Peter Quill. You can call me Star-Lord if you want, most people do."

"No one actually calls him that," you interject. "I learned that pretty quickly." He scoffs at you jokingly as Gamora shakes his hand and nods.

"All right, now that we're all introduced, let's get outta here," Peter says with a clap of his hands.

You and Gamora stay put at the storefront. "He is very good-looking for a Terran, Y/N, and he has one of those music devices on his belt. The same one you're always listening to," she says, her eyes lingering on Peter until she turns to you. "The two of you would make a good match."

Your heart fills with joy at her words because you know she is right. "Yeah...he is pretty cute, and sweet, and funny, and he has an awesome taste in music." Man, you could go on and on about Peter's attractive qualities. What the hell has gotten into you?

This makes Gamora happy, seeing you so happy for the first time in a long time. But, she has a job to do and your silly crush can't get in the way of that. "I guess it's too bad we will need to take the orb from him."

Remaining in a daze, you don't react to what she said right away. "Wait, what?" Gamora has already darted the scene, chasing after Peter at full speed. She swipes the orb from his hand and sprints ahead of him. Almost instantly, he shoots a magnetic rope around her legs, causing her to trip and fall. You jog over to Gamora and help her escape the ties from the rope. Peter has already run off with the orb. Once free, she pays no attention to you and goes after Peter again. "Hey! What are you doing?"

Her running stops as she turns to shoot a menacing look at you. "Whose side are you on?"

"Shit, fine, okay, I get it," you mumble. Unwillingly, you follow Gamora as she chases down Peter. You catch sight of him and tackle him to the ground.

"Y/N? What the hell? I thought you were with me!" he argues.

"I was," you defend. "But my sister needs that orb." Both of you go back and forth grabbing the orb from each other. Eventually, you're on top of him, straddling his waist.

He smirks up at you, orb still in your grasp. "I could get used to this," he states seductively, placing his hands on your thighs. To his fulfillment, this seems to distract you so he can roll you over and snatch the orb from your hand, now pinning you down underneath him. "But, I actually prefer to be on top."

You unintentionally blush at his words. You don't need to get all hot and bothered when you are trying to appear angry and dangerous. Gamora steps in and pushes Peter off of you, taking the orb from him. She pulls a knife from her boot and places it against his throat. "This wasn't the plan."

Sitting up, you shout "Gamora, don't!"

To your surprise, her actions are interrupted when a raccoon pounces on her head. The raccoon is dressed and seems to be muttering obscenities under his breath. What kind of raccoon is this? What the hell did it want with you? "Put him in the bag. Put him in the bag!" the raccoon hollers out to whatever the thing was behind him. It appears to be a tall, human-like tree. It extends its roots and grabs Gamora. "No! Not her, him!" The raccoon is referring to Peter. "Learn genders, man."

The raccoon and Gamora struggle for a bit while you and Peter just stand back in awe at the sight in front of you. Glancing at the orb still in Peter's possession, you snag it from him. He jumps on you, again knocking you down, back to your previous position of rustling on the ground. It becomes a battle for dominance, one that you would have let him win in any other circumstance, but you needed this orb for Gamora. You straddle him once again and grip his wrists above his head, removing the orb from them. He smiles at you flirtatiously, eyes raking over your body. Pushing down any sort of dirty thoughts, you refuse to get distracted.

"Sorry, it looks like the ladies win this one," you assert as you begin to lift yourself off of him.

"I don't think so." He grabs a rocket launcher and attaches it to your leg, sending you aside for a brief moment as you struggle to get back up. In the distance, the walking tree-man scoops Peter up in a bag, slinging it over his shoulder.

"Quit smiling you idiot," the raccoon says to the tree. "You're supposed to be professional." The raccoon tries to escape the scene but Gamora comes toward them. He rolls his eyes "You gotta be kidding me." Shoving the raccoon from her path, Gamora fights with the tree. She uses her knife to cut off his arms, the bag Peter is in falling to the ground in the process. Once she opens the bag, however, his gun is pointed to her. He pulls the trigger, electrocuting her as she sinks into the ground. You run to Gamora as fast as you can, checking to see if she is okay. She opens her eyes that are already searching for the orb. Your attention goes to Peter, who is already far away with it.

The raccoon pulls out an extremely heavy gun and aims it at Peter. "I live for the simple things," he snickers. "Like how much this is gonna hurt." The gun fires out a ball of electricity, providing Peter with an excruciatingly painful electric shock on impact. Proud of himself, the raccoon turns to the tree who has a glum look on his face, due to the fact he had just lost his arms. He whimpers. The raccoon groans. "They'll grow back, you daft idiot. Quit whining."

Abruptly, several, little spaceships float amongst you, levitating everyone involved in the brawl. You are being captured by the Nova Corp. "Subject 89P13, drop your weapon."

At the voice of the pilot, the raccoon throws his gun to the ground. "Oh, crap," he growls.

A few Nova officers go and retrieve Peter from the ground. The pilot in the ship is still rehearsing words you've heard a couple times before, so you don't pay attention. You're focused on Peter right now. "All right. Come on up," says Corpsman Dey, one of the officers. They hold his arms back and he grins at Peter. "Hey, if it isn't Star-Prince."

Peter agitatedly rolls his eyes at the man. "Star-Lord," he corrects. He is such a dork.

Dey laughs at him, and you can't help but smile too. "Oh, sorry, Lord," he corrects himself and turns to his partner. "I picked this guy up a while back for petty theft. He's got a code name."

"Come on, man. It's a...it's an outlaw name." Poor Peter, how many times would he have to give this spiel before someone calls him Star-Lord? You find it kind of adorable.

Dey pats Peter on the back with his free hand. "Just relax, pal. It's cool to have a code name. It's not that weird."

The four of you are still floating above the ground while Peter is dragged off. Now, with your distraction taken away, you listen to the pilot. "By the authority of the Nova Corp, you are under arrest."

Great.