Chapter 2: Playing With Fire
On a universal scale, the whole binary idea of gender doesn't work and Peter is perfectly aware of this though he's betting Ronan isn't. 'Male-ish' would probably be the most accurate term but Kree culture, as far as Peter understands, has similar Terran concepts about what constitutes male and female in a species and what the procreating limitations about each are. It had taken Peter a while to get his head around the idea that a male of a species did not in fact always have a penis or nearest equivalent.
"A what?" Ronan freezes and goggles at Peter while the Terran uses every last shred of willpower he possesses to maintain a placid expression.
"A male lover." Peter repeats mildly then grins. "Pregnancy issue is handled. No one'll bat an eye at one more guy walking around. You get someone to keep you company and cuddle with in the downtime."
"Cuddle?" And, again, Ronan uses the same baffled tone as he had before, as if any kind of physical intimacy- innocent or not- is so foreign to him that he literally has no frame of reference for dealing with it. It's... Awful, really, and Peter can't help the rush of pity that wells up in response because as shitty as his childhood had been he knows how to still enjoy a physical connection with another being.
"Yeah, man, a cuddle. A hug? An embrace to bestow comfort when you've had a shit day?" Peter prompts, suddenly feeling incredibly sad. "What do you do for stress relief?"
Ronan seems to straighten up and practically preens. "I seek retribution for the crimes against the Kree empire."
Of course he does.
"Aaaaand we're back to killing and slaughter." Peter thunks his head against the floor and rubs at the bridge of his nose. "Look, Ronan, maybe its time you try something new...and less... murder-y to relax. Getting your rocks off, man? Best stress reliever in the universe. That or a cuddle. We could give it a try right now- you can always go back to wasting planets another day."
Peter flashes him his best smile and doesn't think he does too bad a job considering he's still sprawled on the floor at the Accuser's feet. Ronan's face is impassive but the Kree is staring at him and, by the sheer intensity he's using to look at the Terran, Peter knows that the other is interested, the idea starting to grow. But Peter needs it to grow faster- much faster- so he stretches a bit, putting a little wiggle in his hips and rolls his shoulders to emphasize the musculature as he sits up, turns and focuses on Ronan.
Peter is naive about many things but if there is one thing he's learned it is that everyone regardless of species, culture, and planet likes to feel important. To feel wanted, needed? That kind of attention is a heady thing, a power like no other and from experience, Peter knows that his ability to make someone else feel uniquely special and appreciated will get him closer to sex than any other trick. The Terran ignores everything else and pays attention to the Kree as if the larger male is the most important being in the universe.
"So, speaking from a personal stand point on stress relief, I'd recommend sex." Peter laughs and even to his ears it sounds false, brittle. The only thing keeping him upright is adrenaline and once that runs dry he's gonna drop so, really, Ronan needs to hurry the fuck up and be reasonable if he wants to get any before exhaustion claims Peter completely. "Sleeping with a guy can be just as good as sleeping with a girl- which you haven't done yet so never mind you big romantic you. Anyway! Males! If you're with someone who knows what they're doing, you'll feel like a god."
Peter nods sagely, trying to be the picture of galactic sex guru wisdom, and waits, mentally begging Ronan to please take the bait.
"And you," Ronan flushes again, tongue darting out to wet his lips as his two-handed grip on his hammer tightens to the point that the larger male's knuckles bleach out. "You are such a person?"
Peter nods solemnly. "I am. I can also help you find someone else if I'm not attractive enough. There's this place in the next quadrant over that will do anything you want. We can head over there now and I can walk you through the menu. I'll even pay for the first ride and that, sir, is not a cheap offer. What do you say?"
The down side to simply talking is that it doesn't produce a whole lot of adrenaline and Peter rubs at his face, grimacing at the feel of grit and sweat on his skin. It is distinctly a very not-sexy feeling. He needs a shower in the worst way- they probably all do come to think of it- and the Terran has to immediately suppress the burning sensation behind his eyes, has to fight not to look at Drax still sprawled on the floor somewhere to Peter's right and ignore the plaintive wail in the back of his mind asking Why isn't he moving?!
"I do not know if I could lie with a male." Ronan crouches down in right front of him, startling Peter by the abrupt closure of the distance separating them. The admission is equally as surprising and intimate considering their adversarial relationship with one another, and Peter nods in acknowledgement of that fact. Sexuality is a sensitive subject and the Terran is very aware that he is trying to steer the Kree down a path that sounds like it's pretty far afield from the other male's cultural norms.
Peter gets it; it's an issue Peter has had to deal with himself, after all.
"There's an easy way to test that, if you want." Peter offers, well aware that in the next second everything he's worked for could blow up in his face. He bites his lip, then licks over the surface to sooth the resulting discomfort, mentally frowning at the dry and chapped texture. But Ronan's eyes follow the movement hungrily, tracking it as a predator would track prey, expression screaming his unvoiced want.
Peter spares a wistful thought that this situation would be so much more arousing if the fate of a planet and its people weren't on the line.
The Accuser nods and Peter makes a point of telling Ronan exactly what he's going to do before actually pressing his lips against the Kree's. Peter is acutely aware of the fact that Ronan physically is fully capable of turning Peter into paste with no effort. The hair on the Terran's body stands on end as the Infinity Stone powered demon hammer comes to rest inches away from his fragile Terran body.
The Terran knows that he could make a grab for it, maybe even wrestle it away for a few minutes, but its not like there're anywhere Peter could go with it to escape Ronan. Even tossing the damn thing outside isn't an option since the whole point of this little suicide mission was to prevent the stone from reaching the planet! No; seducing Ronan, as ludicrous as it sounds, is Xandar's best option right now so Peter proceeds with as much caution as possible.
The kiss is a bit awkward at first because Ronan is stiff as a board and Peter's feeling a bit shy about it all now- he's dusty and dirty and really should have brushed his teeth before trying to save the galaxy, especially if sex would be the deciding factor, and God, why is he thinking about all of this right now?! The pressure that this is a make or break moment doesn't help, neither does the sound of gunfire strafing the shields in the background. But just when Peter's about to inwardly say fuck it and take his chances by going for the hammer, Ronan responds and the kiss rapidly goes from something awkward and innocent to take-me-now passionate. Ronan is making little needy sounds, sounds echoed by Peter and suddenly Ronan's large hand is pawing at Peter's clothing, digging until skin touches skin and whoa Peter needs to stop this before the Kree strips him bare!
Peter pulls away with a gasp and pins Ronan's wandering hand between his paler, smaller two. They're both panting, both flushed, and the Kree makes a noise that is perilously close to a whine as Peter fights to maintain the distance between them.
"So that's a yes." Peter says with a breathless laugh, ducking Ronan's clumsy attempt to recapture his lips. The frowning Kree makes an irritated noise, breaks Peter's hold on his hand and palms the back of the Terran's neck to drag him forward for another kiss.
"Ronan," Peter is panting when he manages to free his mouth again. The Kree begins kissing down Peter's jaw instead, occasionally licking at the Terran's skin tentatively and earning an appreciative sound. The Kree attacks the spot again, experimenting with different pressures and the smaller male's brain disconnects temporarily as his pants become noticeably tighter. Eventually though Peter does remember that there are factors that need to be dealt with before they can do the dirty. "Ronan, we have things to deal with before we get naked."
The 'naked' comment earns a shudder from the Kree leaning against him, the force of which nearly knocks the smaller male over. Peter takes hold of Ronan's hand, cradling it between his own pair near his mouth and lets his tongue dart out to trail over Ronan's fingertips anytime the desire in those purple eyes starts to flag.
"We need to get out of here, away from Xandar because getting shot during sex is not cool. Once we're safe, you and I are going to find a bedroom and have some private time together." Ronan leans in for another kiss and Peter willingly gives it to him, pulling away before it can become too heated despite Ronan getting visibly annoyed."No. Safety first, sweetie, then the clothes come off."
The Kree pulls back and side-eyes Peter silently.
"You are trying to thwart my conquest." Ronan asserts, pulling away completely from the Terran and standing up so that he can glare down. Peter can only watch as suspicion chases away the arousal he's worked so hard to build up and wants to cry in frustration. "This is a trick! You seek to stall for time!"
He sounds so outraged, so hurt, that even though he is fully intending to fuck the Kree, Peter feels genuinely guilty about his ploy. It lasts until the Terran remembers the planet and all its inhabitants facing certain death below the Dark Aster and then Peter mentally slaps himself for his own stupidity.
"No, baby, no! I just want to celebrate with you." Peter waves dismissively at the giant hole Rocket's little cannon blew in the front of the ship. It's both amazing and distressing that Ronan didn't go down after taking a direct hit, had merely grunted as the dust settled before proceeding to wipe the floor with them all. Drax had been first and Gamora had been next followed by Groot -Peter hasn't seen either since Ronan tossed them behind some rubble- and then Peter had had the pleasure of being the sole recipient of the Kree's attention until the Terran had started babbling. Peter flounders, inwardly scrambling for something to say until his eyes land on Ronan's waist and a new idea forms.
Using his mouth has always gotten Peter out of trouble before, let's see if it can do it one more time.