Chapter 1

The creak of wheels filled the dusty air as the train of wagons pulled away from civilization. Oxen stomped and snuffed as they pulled their heavy cargo westward, families walking alongside their wagons. A man rode up ahead of the group, his long riding leathers blowing back behind him. They had a long ride ahead of them and Yondu had only been able to hire a few men to ride with him as he guided the latest group of migrants to Oregon.

There hadn't been enough time before they set out for him to hire the crew himself, so he'd given the job to Peter, his protégé, for lack of a better term. That boy had stuck with him off and on through the years, proving to be useful in charming people in all of the odd jobs they'd done together. Peter had assured him that each person he had hired for this run would be a good fit, but so far what Yondu had seen was a group of misfits. There was a great tree of a man who had only said a few words who was accompanied by a much smaller, feisty man who talked enough for the both of them. They appeared to get along well with each other, but the smaller man who was called Rocket, seemed ready to start a fight in a heartbeat if the chance arose. Riding nearby was another great hulk of a man whose body was covered almost completely by scars. He had a large boom of a laugh that would bark out from the quiet occasionally as he talked with Peter and the others.

Yondu turned as his ears picked up the sound of horse hooves approaching, spotting the youngest man hired to help guide this group across the country. His tall, skinny frame loomed over the ash colored horse he was riding. Yondu wondered if that scrawniness would be an asset or a hindrance to survival out on the plains

"Ya got everyone set up alright?" Yondu asked, his voice carrying over the clatter of hooves easily.

"Yessir." The young man replied eagerly, straightening up as he drew even with his new leader.

Yondu eyed him up for a minute, chewing on a bit of tobacco leaf to keep himself alert. "What's your name?"

"Kraglin sir." He pressed a fist against his chest.

"Kraglin hmm? You ever do a run like this before?"

"Not as far west as we're going. Used to run stuff north and south so I'm good for judging weather and foraging though." He tried to sit up even further in his saddle, drawing a chuckle from Yondu.

"Should come in handy out here. Weather can change in an instant and we're responsible for all those lives back there." He nodded his head back at the wagons slowly following behind them.

"Aye." Kraglin glanced over his shoulder as well before quickly returning his gaze to the solidly built man riding beside him.

"You any good at fighting?"

"Decent at least with a pistol in hand. I've had my share of action in my short years." Kraglin said, self consciously running his hand over a scar near his eye.

Yondu glanced at the other man's hip, noticing a worn holster peaking out.

"There'll be plenty more action before we reach the coast. Just keep your eyes out for anything. Out here we're on our own, gotta be ready for the worst."

Kraglin nodded again, his brow furrowing as he eyed up the horizon on both sides. Yondu gave him an approving head nod before nudging his horse ahead. .

The sun sank steadily overhead as the day grew long, heat rising from the cracked Missouri ground and mixing with the clouds of dry earth being kicked up from pack animals and travelers alike. Yondu kept his eyes sharply watching the horizon for any danger. Even though they were only a few days ride from the Gateway to the West and this trail was growing in popularity, it was still a desolate and lonely landscape to pass through. Wolves had grown to know that livestock was easy food along this path, along with raiders and Native tribes finding easy targets of the travelers. Every shadow that passed his view could be a threat, so he was constantly alert.

He'd sent Kraglin to watch the rear of the train since the boy had seemed overly eager to prove his usefulness. They were only a few days into the journey but already he could see the dynamics of the group settling in. He had assumed that Peter would be his second in command, what with their bond and all, but the boy seemed determined to undermine him at every turn. He was distracted, that was for sure. Looking over his shoulder at the group, he could see Peter riding alongside the same wagon he'd been bothering for days. Two women sat up on the front seat of their wagon, one steering while the other sat with her dark eyes staring out as if she could see straight through a man. The woman steering the wagon was tall and thin, with long black hair that she wore loose so that it blew with the wind. Flecks of red shone through the strands from the sun and glinting off of her high cheekbones. Yondu could see the appeal, but all the same it drew a frown each time he witnessed it. They were hired hands, here to guide these people across dangerous terrain. Nowhere in the deal did it say to woo ladies, especially when there were other things that needed doing.

While Peter was distracted, Kraglin had dove right into the vacant spot beside Yondu. It seemed every time he turned his head, those gangly arms would be urging his horse's reigns to catch up to him. He was the first to rise each morning to take down camp, and the last to finish at night. That kind of enthusiasm was a rare treat, especially compared to the type of men Yondu usually worked with.

With a last glance at the horizon he let out a sharp whistle, signaling everyone to circle in for the night. Once all of the wagons had been secured and the animals safely paddocked within the circle, Yondu set up a small fire nearby. He could hear laughter and chatter from the travelers as they set up camp for the night. Women in their long cotton dresses worked steadily to create some semblance of dinner for their families at the campfire, the smell wafting lazily up to his nose.

Dry grass crunched as several boots made their way up the hill to Yondu. The very tall, solidly built man Groot was accompanied by Rocket. The smaller man was talking rapidly before both threw their heads back to laugh, though the tall man made barely a sound with his. They settled onto the ground comfortably in front of the fire, pulling out some meat to roast. The scarred man who Yondu had heard be called Drax, settled in with a bowl of soup and slurped loudly. Both Peter and Kraglin were missing, though Yondu didn't have to search too hard to find either. A quick sweep of the crowd led to his eyes falling on Peter down with the travelers, regaling a large group with some story that required a lot of hand gestures. He felt a twinge of irritation when he noticed that the black haired girl was sitting within that circle, though it dissipated once he realized she had a bored expression on her face as she chewed on a piece of fruit. Her sister sat beside her looking as if she wished to be anywhere else.

Another quick sweep of his eyes across the landscape before they fell on Kraglin's thin form in the distance. His outline swayed as he carried two full buckets of water on a yoke up the hill. Something about that sight stirred an ache in Yondu, though he wasn't sure why. It drew him to his feet, though he made sure to rise slowly enough to not draw any attention. The rest of his crew was eating and joking anyway, they were unaware of their leader at the moment.

Each step produced a small swell of locusts hopping up to escape his boots as he walked towards Kraglin's still struggling form.

"Give it here, you need to rest up." Yondu said, tugging the yoke from Kraglin's thin shoulders.

"Thanks, didn't realize how far away that stream would feel in the dark." The younger man said, putting his hand on his shoulder to rub at the spot where the yoke had ben.

They walked back toward the group in a comfortable silence, the sloshing of the water in the buckets filling their ears. It wasn't until they were back settled in on the ground watching over the camp that Yondu realized what he had been feeling. There was an odd gut reaction when he pondered on Kraglin that made him feel like he ought to watch out for him, protect him, even though the other man seemed more than capable of doing everything himself. In fact he seemed to constantly be trying to prove just how much he could do. So it didn't seem to make much sense but all the same, seeing that thin body coming up the hill with that water had made him rush to help even though there wasn't a need. For his part Kraglin didn't seem to mind it one bit, he didn't hear any complaints coming in.

A particularly loud ring of laughter burst from the travelers below, and Yondu noticed that Peter had made his way around the circle to be directly next to the black haired girl. A growl rolled from his throat as he stood.

"Boy, get up here." He shouted, making everyone look up at him.

Even from this distance, Yondu could see the smirk on Peter's face as he made a big show of saying goodnight to all of the travelers before jogging up the hill.

"Git." Yondu cut in to stop Peter from sneaking out some excuse, pointing for him to get up to their small fire. "We ain't here to socialize with them. She sure didn't pay us to be harassed the whole journey out to Oregon."

"Just being friendly. We want them to feel safe right?" Peter glanced out of the corner of his eyes to gauge the reaction of his father figure.

"Make sure that's all it is. We got a code, those women are all off limits."

"No harm in getting to know Gamora a little…" Peter trailed off, snapping a cat tail with his fingers and twirling it.

Yondu watched the reed spin for a few moments in his son's hands, seemingly lost in thought. When his eyes focused back on his surroundings, he noticed a large pair of blue eyes watching him carefully. When his own amber eyes rose to meet Kraglin's, they simply stared at each other. The younger man didn't seem to mind any that he'd been caught staring. If anything, the faintest ghost of something that looked like defiance appeared on the thin face the longer they locked eyes. Finally breaking the gaze, Yondu stood up and stretched in an attempt to act casual.

"Yall finish up and put out that fire. Got a long road ahead of us." He barked out at them, startling Groot and Rocket who had been wrestling over the last bit of dinner.

He kicked at the crickets hopping away from his boots as he climbed into the back of their supply wagon. There was a weird feeling in his chest that he couldn't shake, and there was a lurking suspicion of something, but he wasn't ready to guess what it was. He wasn't willing to risk a backward glance at those eyes he was sure were still following him into the dark.