Me and my tree

I open my eyes and sit up in bed. Something has woken me and I'm not happy about it as I was having one of my rare sleeps when I wasn't a victim to nightmres. My anger disapears however when tiny fingers touch my paw and a high-pitched voice squeaks, "I am Groot."

I turn and look down at the small tree-child who is smiling up at me. I grin down at him and stroke his head foundly.

"Morning is it," I ask. "Time for me to get my bottom out of bed is it?"

"I am Groot," Groot replies.

I stratch, yawn then swing my legs over the side of the bed.

"Okay I'm up," I say then add, "thirsty?"

Groot nods.

I fetch I jug of water for Groot then tell him I'm off to get my own breakfast before I head out of our room.

I go stright to the dining area . The others are all there eating breakfast. I walk over to the table and clamber onto my seat.

"Morning Rocky," Starlord says cheerfully then adds, "You feel better since yesterday?"

Quill would of course be refering to the fact that I had been working hard the other day. Working hard I guess was an understatment. I had been working myself into the ground trying to keep the ship up and running and trying to get some high ranking jerk to help out a city of unluck sods who were starving after a famin. The result of my hard work was a bit of a breakdown. The others had then ganged up on me and forced me to stop working and to go to bed. Today however was a new day and I was more then well enought to get back to my work.

"I'm fine Quill," I reply then add, "what's for breakfast?"

"Here," Gamora says and gives me a plate full of pancakes.

I grunt in thanks then start to stuff the pancakes into my face.

"So what's the schedule for today?" I ask after my secound plate of pan cakes.

"Quilll, Drax and I are going to take care of a few problems in a nearby system," Gamora anwsers. "You on the other hand are staying here and will do nothing.

"What!" I demand.

"You need to rest," was the reply.

"Like hell I do," I snap.

"Gamora is right," Drax pipes up. "We do not want you to become unwell again."

"Look," I growl, "Yesterday was a one off. It won't happen again."

I look at Quill for support.

"Sorry buddy but I'm with the Destroyer and the chick on this one."

"But I..." I begin to protest but stop short when Gamora slams a fist down on the table nearly getting my paw.

"Enough," she shouts at me. "You are having a day off or I'll pull your arms off and you'll never work again."

"Fine," I snap and leave the table knowing better then to anger the most dangerous woman in the universe.

I storm to my room, pull the door open, slam it and flop down onto the floor.

"I am Groot?" Groot asks, looking up from where he is playing.

"Nothing," I huff.

"I am Groot," Groot says and comes over.

"Leave me alone Groot," I growl. "I'm in a bad mood right now."

Groot sits next to me and starts to blow leafs onto my nose. At first I try to stay angry but after a few seconds a smile breaks across my face and I laugh, "Will you stop that you idiot."

The tree child giggles.

"Come here," I say and sit Groot in my lap.

"Well Groot it seems I've been bullied into taking a day off from my work."

"I am Groot?" Groot asks, wanting to know what I plan to do with myself.

"Not sure yet but I'll find something." I tell him. "I have nothing to no. It looks like a whole day of being stuck here with..."

I trail offthen smile down at Groot.

"You know what buddy?" I say, "Let's spend the day together. Just you and me. What do you say."

"I am Groot," the tree-child squeaks joyfully and claps his hands.

I laugh and say, "Okay what do you want to do? Want to start with a game?"

"I am Groot."

"Hind and seek? Okay you hide and I'll seek," I say before operning the door then turning around I begin to count.

Groot quickly runs off leaving me to count. Once I reach one hundred I yell, "Ready or not I'm going to blam murdered you."

Having said this I begin my search.

...

The others are already gone so the ship is for the most part silent, meaning I can ues my ears and eyes to find Groot. I look in the hold first but it's empty so I make my way to the dining area,tiptoing as I do but again I find nothing. I'm just about to go to the cockpit when somethings brushes my shoulder. I turn rond just in time for Groot to jump out at me and yell "I am Groot"

I let out a girly shreak and fall backwards, making the blasted tree-child giggle his silly head off.

"Freaking hell Groot that wasn't funny." I yell.

Groot giggles again and tell me it was in fact very funny.

Oh really," I ask dryly then lunch myself at him and yell, "Come here."

Groot gasps and makes a run for it, heading out of the ship.

"Groot wait," I shout and run after the trouble making tree, "it might not be save out there."

As I run out of the ship I see Groot stading a little way off in muddy ground.

"Groot what do you think your doing!" I demand. "You can't just go running off like..."

I don't get any more out then this because at that moment I trip and land on my back in the mud.

"Oh bugger," I yell then get up, lose my footing and fall down again. This time I land face down in the mud.

Groot giggles hysterically.

I scowl up at him and say, "You think that's funny do you?"

Groot nods and giggles again.

I just smile sweetly at him and say in a soft voice, "Groot come here I have something to tell you."

Groot looks wary at first but then comes over.

"I am Groot?" he asks.

I reply by throwing a paw full of mud in his face befor saying "There see how you like it."

Groot squeaks joyfully then taggles me and so the mud battle is on.

...

I stand in the Milano's bathroom and dip a toe into the bath water to test it. It's nice and hot. I pick Groot up and place him in the water before stripping off my muddy jumpsuit and climbing in myself.

I lean back and cloes my eyes, enjoying the feeling of the warm water soaking into me. I smile to myself when I feel Groot playing with my tail and even go so far as to smack him gently with it, which only encourages him to play with it more.

After a while of soaking and having my tail played with I open my eyes and tell Groot it's time for me to clean all the mud out of him.

It takes quite some time for me to wash all the mud off his body. This is partly due to the amount of mud and partly because like all children Groot won't keep still for long.

"There, all done" I say after we have between us splashed half the bath water onto the floor and have equally messed about in the tub.

"I am Groot," Groot says happily.

I chuckle and tell him that yes baths are fun. I then get out of the bathtub, shake off a bit, wrap us both in a towel and begin to dry Groot off.

Once I'm done with that I pick him up and rub my nose with his.

"Who's a good little tree?" I say, "Who's a good little tree? You are Grooty. Yeah you'er daddy's good little tree."

I stop and sit there motionless deep in thought. I don't know what made me say what I did. I have no idea why I said daddy. I'm not Groot's daddy, noone would ever call me his daddy but still that's what I had said. I'm so lost in thought that I don't even notice Gamora standing there until she speaks.

"It seems I've caught you in a sweet moment," she says making me jump.

I turn to her, a bit embarrassed by the fact that she has indeed caught me in a sweet moment. That and the fact that I'm in nothing but a towel.

I laugh awkwardly and say "Yeah looks 't know you are back."

She nods and replies, "We've taken care of buissness and it look like you enjoyed your day off after all."

I smile then say, "Well I took it as an oppertunity to look after the baby."

"I wouldn't have thought this of you but you are surprisingly good with a child. I think you would make a good father if you ever had children."

I shake my head sady and say, "Since I started taking care of Groot I've thought the same thing but it's never going to happen. I'm never going to have kids."

"Why not?" Gamora asks rasing an eyebrow, "If you want a child one day then why turn away from that?"

I swollow hard before saying, "because I'm infertile."

Gamora looks slightly taken aback then say, "Rocket I'm sorry I didn't know."

"It's not your fault," I reply. "It's all thanks to those scum who made me."

"What do you mean," Gamora asks as does Groot.

"The scientists who made me did something to me," I explane. "Thay canged something in my DNA I've tryed to rewite it a dozen times but nothing works What they did can't be undone."

"Why would they do that?" The ex assassin demands, angry on my behalf.

"They thought it would help them break me. See when I was stuck in that lab I held onto the hope of getting out oneday and settling down someplace. You know meet a nice girl and have a few kids. If I did then maybe I wouldn't be a one of a kind anyomre. Maybe I wouldn't be as much of a freak." I look away from Gamora and whipe a paw across my dampning eyes before adding, "But that's not going to happen...ever. Those pigs took that away forever. There ain't no thing like me but me. I guess there never will be."

Gamora smiles sadly at me then takes my paw and says, "I'm sorry Rocket. Truly I am but just remember that behind every cloud there's a silver lining."

I snort then ask biterly what silver lining she can see behind my infertility.

"It makes the time you do have with a child that bit more precious." She tells me then adds, "You should sleep. We have a big mission tomorrow."

With that she kisses my cheek and walks out of the bathroom.

After sitting there for a moment thinking about all that has been said I get up and go into my room. Once there I slip on some X-man pajamas and get into bed. I'm about to drift off when I look over to Groot and say, "Groot? You want to sleep with daddy tonight?"

Groot smiles and comes over. I help him into bed where he snuggles up to me.

"Good night Grooty," I say.

Groot hums happerly and then we both drift off to sleep.