After about half an hour of trying to pry Groot from giving happy hugs to Gamora, Peter finally managed to convince him that instead of smothering their old friend, he should spend some time with Maddox and get a feeling of what was around, in case they needed to make a quick escape. Maddox had taken Groot's hand and pulled him away with a cheeky grin that made her look five years younger.

Peter let out a breath after they left. Gamora sat on a log next to a pit of ashes, watching him closely. He paced from the clothesline to the road and back again, trying to find the right words.

"Gamora," he said eventually. "It's been a while."

"Yes, it has."

"You know, for years I thought that Thanos had managed to capture you back into his custody. I lay awake at night, trying not to imagine what he was doing to you, because I knew if I started thinking about it, I'd never be able to stop. It would paralyse me and then I'd never find you." He stopped pacing and glared at her. "You couldn't give us a call, tell us you were okay? You just had that one cryptic message as a goodbye. After everything we had been together? After everything we had started?"

Gamora stared at him, impassive, and didn't say a word.

He sat on the log beside her, feeling drained. His eyes burned, but didn't water. Of that he was grateful, at least. "Why did you leave, Gamora? If you had given some explanation besides just taking off, then maybe… maybe it wouldn't have been so hard."

"Peter, I couldn't explain. I was afraid. I didn't hardly understand what was happening myself."

"What was happening?"

Gamora took a deep breath. "My circuitry was acting up. Glitches that were making me act abnormally. I thought Thanos was hacking me through these implants. I thought if I didn't leave, he'd make me kill you and the others."

"No." Peter shook his head. "Don't lie to me, Gamora. If that had been the case, you would have told us. Rocket was a whiz with all things tech, and he'd have been able to fix you up."

Gamora was silent for a long moment. "How did he die?"

"Old age."

She nodded. "And Drax?"

Peter shrugged. "After we came to the conclusion that you had indeed left on your own accord, he kind of went crazy. Decided to go after Thanos himself."

Gamora winced. "Did you find his body?"

Peter shook his head. "Are you going to tell me why you left or not?"

It was time for Gamora to stand and start pacing. One hand ran through her hair, while the other beat a pattern on the handle of the knife she had stuck into her belt. After a moment, she stopped and turned to face him. Her mouth was set in a grim line and her eyes focused on him. Peter's insides knotted and his throat went dry.

"It wasn't anything that you did, Peter. It was me. It was all me." Gamora took a deep breath. "You remember the night we were together?"

"Yeah." Peter nodded. "Did I scare y—"

"I just said it wasn't anything you had done. Peter, our protection… failed."

Peter stared at her. "What do you mean? We used an energy field—"

"Which I didn't turn on. I thought I had, but I didn't. It wasn't activated. I didn't say anything at the time, because I didn't think I could get pregnant. When I grew up, all my sisters underwent operations the moment Thanos brought them into his service. I assumed that I had gone through the same thing, to prevent me from ever bearing children."

"But you were wrong. You have a daughter," Peter said, his voice calm. He already knew where this was going, but he wanted to hear what Gamora was going to say. He didn't want to believe that she could do that to him, to hide something like this from him.

"I was wrong. When I realised I was pregnant, I panicked. I thought that you wouldn't want a child. I thought that if Thanos found out he'd hunt us even more ruthlessly. And… And I wasn't sure I was going to keep it. Even if I did, I wasn't going to commit myself to you because of a mistake."

Peter stood. His hands clenched. "Maddox is my daughter."

"Maddox is your daughter."

Peter turned and stormed away. He had only gone a few yards when he turned on his heel and came back at her. "You should have told me."

Gamora stared back at him, emotionless. "Perhaps I should have. But think back twenty years, Peter. If I had told you, you would have stuck around a little while, you would have been all bright futures and happy dreams, and then you would have gotten scared. Either I would have returned one day to find you with another woman, or I would have returned one day to find you gone. I wasn't going to tie my fate with somebody who couldn't be bothered to double check to make sure—"

"So it is my fault," Peter replied, hands shaking. "Because I thought you'd be smart enough to use basic technology?"

"I'd never used one before! I told you as much, and you were all "it's simple" and the way you said it made me so embarrassed that I wasn't sure I had done it right that I—"

"And you assumed that I would abandon you, abandon my child?"

Gamora shook her head and turned away. Peter tried to calm himself. This wasn't going to get anywhere, unless they both calmed down. He didn't want to calm down, though. Gamora had betrayed his trust. He deserved the right to know he had a daughter. She had assumed the worst of him, and didn't even give him the chance to prove her wrong.

"You didn't even give me the chance. My father abandoned me, why would you think that I would do the same?"

"Go away, Peter. I left for a reason, and I stayed away for a reason. I don't need you."

"So that's why Maddox deliberately targeted Groot and me, trying to draw us here. Trying to bring you and me back together. Her parents."

"Maddox only knows the best side of you," Gamora replied. "I told her that Thanos drove us apart, that I had to run for your protection. I didn't want her to grow up hating her father."

"Hating you, you mean."

Peter couldn't even look at her anymore. He turned on his heel and walked away without another word. Gamora didn't call after him, and he was glad of it.

#

It took several hours, but Peter eventually fond Groot and Maddox. They were in a field, throwing a ball back and forth. Groot grinned and waved when he saw Peter, and bounded over to him. Pointing at Maddox, he announced proudly, "I am Groot!"

Peter grinned back at him. "I'm glad you made a new friend. But we have to go now, Groot."

Groot's face fell. "I am Groot?"

"No, Gamora and I didn't have a good talk. We had a bad talk. We're not leaving the planet, but I need somebody to talk to."

Maddox came to stand beside Groot. "You can't talk to me?"

Peter studied her for a minute. Her gaze held his steadily, and he shook his head. "No, I can't." He couldn't tell Gamora's daughter what he was thinking about her mother at this time. Whatever had happened between the two of them didn't need to interfere Maddox's relationship with her mother. At this point, it would probably do more harm to his relationship with her, anyway.

Maddox tilted her head to one side, narrowing her eyes. She suddenly cut loose a colorful stream of swear words, and Peter's brow arched in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"She told you. I can't believe she told you! It would have been a much better idea just to keep silent for a while, ease into it, instead of just saying, 'Hi Peter, you have a daughter that I never told you about!' What is wrong with her?" Maddox threw her hands into the air and shook her head.

"I am Groot."

"Groot's right. You shouldn't talk that way about your mother," Peter said. He sighed and ran a hand over his hair. "Gamora was answering a question that I need answered, and this was the only way she could answer it. Now, Groot and I have to go back to the ship—"

"Do you still have the Milano? Can I see it?" Maddox clasped her hands together.

"Yeah. Later."

Maddox nodded. "So you can get back to your ship by yourself?"

Peter instantly saw her point. He really had no idea how to get back to the Milano without her directions. A wry smile crossed his face and he nodded. "Alright. Show us the way back to the ship and I'll give you a tour of it. But then you have to go home to Gamora before she starts worrying."

Maddox nodded her agreement. She led them through the streets, and in a few minutes Peter recognised a few of the buildings. He nodded in satisfaction when the Milano came into view.

"You promised a tour remem—" Maddox suddenly froze. She stopped dead, going rigid. Her hands started to shake, and her eyes rolled up into the back of her head. Peter caught her as she collapsed.

"Maddox!" He lowered he gently to the ground, trying to keep from jostling her too much. "Maddox, wake up. Come on."

His heart pounded, but she wasn't thrashing around, just trembling a little. Her eyes moved rapidly under her lids, like she was having a nightmare. Groot bent over, making worried noises. Peter put a hand on his shoulder to reassure him.

A laser blast whizzed over his right ear. Peter's head jerked up to see the Kree from earlier in the day walking towards him. Peter cursed and began to draw his weapon, but the next shot hit it, sending the blaster skidding away. It blew up in a shower of sparks.

"Groot, get Maddox," Peter yelled.

He rolled away, drawing the fire towards him. Groot scooped Maddox up and ran towards the Milano. Peter dodged a few blasts and ran after them. With lasers zipping by on both sides, they raced to the ship and up the gangplank. Peter closed the doors behind him, and dashed to the cockpit. Soon they were airborne, leaving the Kree, and the planet, far behind.

He set autopilot and went back to the loading bay, where Groot still cradled Maddox.

"Is she alright?" Peter asked.

"I am Groot."

"Good." Peter sighed in relief. "Come on. Put her in one of the beds. We're leaving."

Groot's eyes widened. "I am Groot?"

"What about Gamora?" Peter said roughly. "She abandoned us."

"I am Groot!"

Peter winced. "You're right. I'm sorry." He looked at Maddox and rubbed the back of his neck. "We'll go back down when she's awake and can direct us to land somewhere closer to Gamora's house."

Groot put a hand on his shoulder. "I am Groot."

"Yeah, I'm sure she's alright too. That Kree was after us, not her." He tried to ignore the voice that told him that if the Kree had a vendetta against him, he probably had a vendetta against Gamora, too.

#

"I swear I don't know!"

Gamora ignored the Kree's screams as she slowly extracted the last of his fingernails. She dabbed at the wound with a solution that made him scream again, but stopped the bleeding. "I'm going to ask you one more time. What did you do to my daughter?"

"I didn't do anything." The Kree writhed in his restraints. "That man, Star Lord, he took her!"

The sound of a ship's engine made her look up. The Milano glided over her house and landed in the nearby field. Gamora finished off the Kree, and raced towards the ship as it landed. She would kill him. Taking her daughter away from her? She would make him bleed!

The gangplank lowered, and Gamora raced inside. She met Peter soon enough. He opened his mouth, and she shut him up with her knuckles to his mouth. Her skin split from the force of meeting his teeth. Peter fell back, making a strangled yelp. She followed him down, hands grasping at his throat.

"You never take my daughter away from me again! I'll kill you, I swear I will!"

"Mom!"

Gamora scrambled to her feet. She dashed to Maddox's side, cupping her face. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Mom, I'm fine. Honestly, I'm fine. But I won't be much longer." Maddox gripped her arms, and Gamora saw the blue lines streaking the whites of her eyes that indicated she had had a vision. "Mom, Thanos is coming for us."