Rocket's Toy Box
Author: So this story changed alot near the end. Was mostly supposed to be funny
but ended up with so many feels. Like everyone else I have fallen in love with the
cast of GoTG. Ty to my co-worker (you know who you are kid) for being the first to
read this story & making me laugh while you did. I own nothing, nobody, etc...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ are time jumps of more than a day or two
(translations for Groot)
It started as a drunken joke.
Peter would swear on his life that it did... but given that there are people who want him dead... he doesn't.
"Hey Rocket one day I'm gonna get you a big box of random parts and stuff so you won't tear up the Milano."
At least... that's what he tried to say.
But due to the large amounts of Kaiju Blue he had ingested it came out more like this:
"Hey... Ranger Rick.. I'ma gonna give you a box of metal stuffs so you'll leave my baby alone. Not baby... my ship... the Milano... yeah."
"Whatever Star-Dust." Rocket yawned, rolling his eyes.
"I am Groot?" Groot asked as he reached for Rocket's glass. (Can I try?)
Groot had been out of his pot for a few weeks now and was about Rocket's height.
"No... this ain't for a li'l one like you." Rocket told him, downing the last of his drink.
"I am Groot." the flora colossus protested. (I'm as big as you.)
Rocket bared his fangs at Groot in warning. He wasn't as drunk as Peter but still drunk enough to not want to deal with a defiant flora colossus.
"Come Groot, let us return to the Milano." Gamora said.
"I am Groot?" he asked, grabbing Gamora's hand. (Can we dance?)
Rocket's ears twitched and he shook his head.
"Yes," Gamora smiled, "We can dance."
"Gamora... wait for me... I wanna dance too." Peter whined, tripping over his feet trying to follow her... only to land flat on his face.
Drax and Rocket howled in laughter as Gamora walked away.
Being the A-Holes that they were, they didn't feel too bad about watching Quil drunkenly pick himself off the floor.
The next morning the boys were all extremely hung over, but that didn't stop Peter from having Greatest Hits Volume 1 blasting through the Milano.
"Star-Dust! Turn that shit off!" Rocket yowled.
"Fuck off Rocky!" Peter shouted from his bunk beneath the common room.
There were footsteps upstairs then Hooked On A Feeling was silenced, which made him sit up in surprise as Rocket and Drax whooped.
"Gamora?" Peter asked.
A vine appeared above his head with his tape dangling from it. "I am Groot." (Not Gamora.)
"Gorammit! Put that back!" Peter shouted.
Groot's vine shook in a way that could only mean: "No."
"Put it back now!" Peter bellowed.
"I AM GROOT!" Groot bellowed back. (NO!)
"SHUT YER FRACKIN'S MOUTHS OR I WILL BLOW THE BOTH OF YOU UP!" Rocket screamed from somewhere nearby.
"Peter?" Gamora called.
"What!?" he shouted.
"May I make use of one of the empty crates in the cargo hold?" she asked, peering into his room.
"Yeah whatever you want. Just take the giving tree with you." Peter growled as he snatched his tape back.
"I am Groot?" (Where are we going?)
"To find some spare parts." Gamora told him.
Groot made a sound of confusion. If the ship was in need of fixing, why did Gamora not just ask Rocket?
"You will see." she smirked.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Why is there a crate with metal pieces in it?" Drax asked no one in particular, poking through the wires and parts.
"It is a surprise for Rocket. So do not tell him about it." Gamora told him.
Drax stared down into the crate for a moment then looked sheepishly over his shoulder. "May I contribute?"
Gamora nodded with a small smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Oh Drax." Gamora sighed, picking up what appeared to be a rusted piece of a blade from inside the box.
It was not what she had intended to go into the crate but she didn't have the heart to remove it and it's companions.
She just hoped Rocket would be cautious in handling them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peter actually found out about the crate from Drax after his Walk-Man was destroyed beyond repair in a recent bar room brawl.
"I figured Rocket might wanna use it for parts.. or something." he whispered, setting the destroyed tape player on top the ever growing pile in the crate.
"I'm sure he will find something to create from it. And I hope he will enjoy this gift." Gamora told him gently.
"When are we gonna tell him about it?" Peter asked, wrapping an arm around her neck gently to steer them out of the cargo hold.
"When the crate is full. Perhaps sooner." she told him.
Neither of them noticed their furry teammate crouched in the shadows of some of the crates.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peter stared at what appeared to be his Walkman sitting in his chair at the table.
"If there's anything or anyone that can destroy it now, I don't know 'bout them." Rocket said, dipping a piece of his breakfast into a bowl of water to wash it.
"Where are the headphones?" Peter asked.
"Open the back." Rocket prompted.
Peter did as he was told and pulled out a pair of tiny ear buds. "No wires?" he asked.
"Solar powered too." Rocket added as Peter inserted one of his tapes, put in the ear buds and started dancing in his seat.
"Peter?" Gamora asked, noticing him dancing but not hearing music.
"You were right." Peter said, pointing to Rocket then showing her his new Walkman.
Gamora smiled as she sat next to Rocket and very gently rubbed one of his ears.
And for once, Rocket didn't swat the offending hand away.
Rocket managed to find a pair of Drax sized gloves and fitted small pieces of metal onto the knuckles.
They were put to good use against some species of lizard aliens the very next week.
And Rocket found out that particular species's blood made him sick if he ingested it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Gamora... we're back!" Peter called as he, Rocket and Drax stumbled into the Milano. They were drunk again but not nearly as much as they usually were.
"I am Groot." Groot called. (We are in the common room.)
Gamora was curled up into a bed of moss and flowers Groot had made for her, sobbing.
"Are you injuried?" Drax asked, kneeling beside her.
Gamora shook her head and pointed at the object in front of her that was playing a beautiful but almost haunting song that none of them seemed to understand but her.
"I am Groot." Groot whispered, stroking her hair gently. (She has been crying since she discovered it. But I don't understand why.)
"What is it? And why does it cause her so much pain? Should I destroy it?" Drax asked.
"No... please don't." Gamora whispered.
"What is it then? My translator isn't working." Peter asked, laying his jacket over Gamora as the song changed to something lighter but remained in the same exotic language.
"It's a modified holo communication device. I modified it to project 360 degrees and to just play back recorded sound files. Took me forever to finish it cuz... what we're hearin' are Zehoberi lullabies and they were almost impossible to find. The star system.. not so much." Rocket said, looking at the projection circling the room.
"I am Groot." Groot whispered, extending the flower and moss bed. (It is a beautiful language.)
"Many of the lullabies on the recording... I remember my mother singing them to me as child." Gamora whispered, holding out her hand as a projection of her home world circled close.
"I'm sorry Gamora." Peter whispered, laying down behind her to wrap an arm around her waist gently.
"We all have dead people. Remember them fondly." Drax whispered, sitting beside her.
Rocket dropped to all fours and gently touched one of his fuzzy cheeks to Gamora's. "Sorry 'Mora." he whispered.
"Do not be. I love it." she whispered, gently lifting Peter's jacket in an offer for him to settle down beside her. Rocket considered the offer for a moment before laying down on his stomach beside her.
"We are Groot." Groot whispered as he wove vines into blankets that arranged themselves over his family as they all began to drift off.
Kaiju Blue is actually from Pacific Rim. Its the Kaiju blood that is extremely toxic to everything & everyone. But in this fic Kaiju Blue is the stuff they were drinking at the bar in Knowhere in which Rocket, Drax & Groot fight.