Thunder rolled into the distance and lightning split the sky in half. Gamora shrieks in delight and throws her doll into the air. Kraglin caught her doll before it hit the ground. She tries to take it back but Kraglin holds it out of her reach. "I know you're excited, but cha need ta settle down. You're drawing too much attention ta us." He scolds her quietly. Gamora was suddenly aware of the stray looks they got from the locals. There were very few foreigners in the Badoon capital. She thought Kraglin was silly for letting a few odd looks bother him.

Gamora stuck her lower lip out in a pout. "I'll be good! I'll be good and quiet. Please, gimme dolly back." Kraglin sighs and hands the doll over. Gamora hugs her doll tight, keeping a wary eye on Kraglin. She walks a step behind him, as Kraglin takes the lead. She manages to bottle up her excitement for several minutes. Once she was certain Kraglin was no longer paying any attention to her, Gamora jumps in the puddles and giggles to herself. Muddy water splashed across the streets. Her dress was already soaked from the rain so Gamora didn't mind.

Kraglin, however, he did mind. Muddy water splashed his coat and pants. "That's it!" He snatched the doll out of Gamora's hands. "You can get this back later."

"No! You can't take it!" She jumped up trying to take the doll back, but Kraglin held it out of her reach. "Yondu bought that for me," it was a precious gift. The only real evidence that Gamora had that Yondu didn't hate her. "You can't take it! You can't! I'll tell Yondu!"

Kraglin narrowed his eyes, "Go ahead! You can tell him how awful you've been too. The only thing a brat like you will get is a time out."

The color drains from her face, "Yondu wouldn't do that…"

"No? If it's my word against yours who'd'ya think he'll believe, donut head?" Kraglin replies tauntingly. She knew that Kraglin was always on Yondu's side of things, but it had never occurred to her that the reverse was also true. If Kraglin told Yondu that Gamora needed a time out, she would get one. That also meant she wasn't getting her doll back.

Her expression fell. She hung her head, hoping he would take pity on her. "I'm sorry. Can I please have dolly back?"

"I toldja you can play after ya finish working," He replies coldly. Gamora groans and drags her feet as she follows Kraglin through the city street. She doesn't feel like splashing in puddles without her doll.

They turn down an alley and walk onto a parking lot. There was a tall, pristine building, with two spear-like towers. Gamora assumed that a princess must live there. They avoid walking in the wide-open spaces, instead sticking close to the surrounding buildings. Kraglins gets as close to the entrance as he can without walking towards the castle. They're standing outside another dark alleyway, with a clear view of the castle's entrance. She tugged on his sleeve. "What're we doing?" She was anxious about getting her doll back.

"Right now, we're waiting."

Gamora frowns and looks around the empty parking lot. "Waiting for what?"

"Do you remember when we was movin' those air canisters and that Nova was snooping around?" He waits for Gamora to nod her head before continuing, "Right, I needja ta cry again."

"What? But-but… no! I don't want to!" Gamora furrowed her brow and stomped her foot. "That's like lyin'. It made me feel all yucky." She sticks out her tongue.

Kraglin sighed and knelt down. "You're so fussy today. What time did you go to bed last night, donut head?"

Gamora looked away and crossed her arms. She wanted to tell him it was 'cause he stole dolly from her but instead, she says, "I dunno."

"Uh-huh." Kraglin raised an eyebrow, "What were you doin' instead a' sleepin'?"

His tone of voice made her feel guilty. "I was talkin' ta Richie."

Kraglin chuckles, "A boy? I was hopin' I wouldn't have ta worry about that for a few more years."

"We live in different timezones right now," she says defensively.

Kraglin rubs his eyes, "New plan. We're gonna finish up here first, then you're gonna take a nap."

"No!" She stamps her foot.

He gives her a pointed look, "Prove ta me ya don't need a nap then. Do your job without whining at me."

She jumps up and down and fumes. She thought Kraglin was being so mean and unfair today, but she absolutely did not want to take a nap while it was raining. So she sends all the bad feelings to her feet and stomps them out. Then she takes a deep breath. Once she feels better, she turns to look at Kraglin, "Jazinda helped me last time. I don't like lyin', it makes me feel bad. I'm not good at it."

He nods along, listening intently. When she stops talking, he brushes her hair out of her eyes and cups her cheek with his hand. He was warm. "Oh, I think you're a decent liar. Give yourself a little credit. You ain't the same scared lil' girl I met in the med bay all those months ago."

She furrowed her brow, "Mama would be disappointed in me for lyin'. She says it's bad."

"You feel guilty then?" She nods a little. He shrugs, "Sometimes you have to lie to protect yourself and the people ya care about. The truth can be very dangerous. You don't have to feel guilty about protecting yourself, you're mama would understand. She'd want you to be safe."

Gamora dropped her gaze to the ground, once more, "You think so?"

"Uh-huh." He let go of her face and stood up. "The key to a good lie is basing it on a small kernel of truth. Then keep all the details based on the truth, that way ya won't get caught. I think ya figured that out on your own already, right?" He nudges her playfully and Gamora smiles. "When the security guard shows up, you can run up to him and say the same thing as last time. The important thing here is that no matter what, you do not let him take you somewhere else. You get him as close to this alleyway as you can, got it?"

She nodded slowly, "I think so." With all the rain no one would be able to tell that she wasn't actually crying. "Can I have my dolly back now?" Kraglin narrowed his eyes at her. She adds quickly, "Jazi says if I'm cuter they'll pity me more."

He sighs, and then chuckles, "Uh, well, I guess it's fine then." He handed her doll over and Gamora hugged it protectively. Kraglin pats her head, "You'll do great, kiddo." With that he disappeared into the shadows of the alleyway, leaving Gamora alone in the parking lot.

She didn't have to wait long. A security officer in a blue jacket carrying a black umbrella emerges from the castle. Gamora's heart pounds in her chest. She slaps her cheek lightly and takes a deep breath. She sticks her lower lip out in a pout and knits her eyebrows together. "Mama!" She wails. "Mama! Where are you!?"

The security guard is startled by her outburst but he continues to walk past her. Gamora frowned and walked closer to him. "Hey! Are you a security man? Can you help me, please?" Gamora wipes water away from her eyes and sniffles.

The security officer stifled a heavy sigh and turned to look at her. "I'm off duty, kid."

"Please! I want my mama, I want mama!" Gamora hid her eyes in the crook of her elbow.

"Alright, alright, stop crying." He sighs and holds the umbrella over her, shielding her from the rain. "There's a lost child center inside,"

"No!" Gamora yells and then remembers that she's supposed to be crying. She tries to hide her expression behind her doll. He narrows his eyes. Kernel of truth. Think fast. He'll get suspicious. "Mama says I should stay where I am if I get lost. What if I leave and she can't find me!" Gamora remembers that she hasn't seen her mother in months, and genuine tears spring to her eyes.

The security guard sighs again. "Listen, kid–"

"Please, please, help me…" Gamora's voice cracked. She squeezed her doll tighter. "I wanna go home." Tears spill over as she desperately tries to wipe them away. "I wanna go home! Mama!"

He grumbles a curse under his breath. He glances around the parking lot, "No, no, no, don't cry, kid. You'll be okay. Where did you see her last?"

Gamora pointed towards the alleyway. "Over there." She hides behind her doll again, sniffling softly. She had no idea how she had gotten this far. She's not sure if she should lead or if it would be better to let him lead, what would be less suspicious? The last time the Nova had carried her.

Thankfully, the security officer decides to take the lead. Gamora trails behind him. She keeps her eyes on the ground doing her very best to look pitiful. Just a bit closer, they were almost there. Only two more steps. The officer stops in front of the alley. "Right here?" He looks around, scanning the parking lot. "I don't see–" Two hands reached out of the darkness and grabbed his shoulders. He drops the umbrella. He inhales to let out a scream. A cloth is clamped over his nose and mouth. He's dragged back into the darkness.

Gamora picks up the umbrella. She stares into the blackness curiously, she can hear the sounds of a scuffle but she can't see anything. Thunder crashed overhead. The sound of the rain pounding against the concrete drowns out everything else. "Hey, Kraglin! I am done now?" She calls out into the darkness.

A bright red umbrella opened and Kraglin stepped out of the alleyway. His nose is bleeding but he's grinning from ear to ear. "Yup, you're done for today." He wipes the blood on his sleeve.

"Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, don't worry about it." He glances around the parking lot and then gestures for Gamora to follow. "We should go back to the Eclector, looks like it's gonna flood."

She skips alongside him, "Did I do a good job today?"

"You did very well." He says, and Gamora grins. He lets her jump in some puddles on the walk back. She wonders if Yondu would praise her too, she wanted him to pat her head and tell her she did a good job. Maybe he would even buy her another toy, a friend for her doll. Gamora twirls her new umbrella and giggles.

"We're back!" Gamora bellows at the top of her voice.

It echoes throughout the cargo bay. Everyone paused in their work to turn and look at them. When they see it's only Gamora, they return to their work with exasperated and annoyed sighs. Kraglin snorts, "Alright, settle down."

Gamora spots Yondu talking to Horuz and races over to them. "Yondu!"

Yondu waves at Gamora, but then glances back in alarm. "Hey, don't run–"Gamora slips. She starts to fall. "Shit!" He lunges forward. He snatches up Gamora before she hits the ground. He holds her protectively close and she clings to him for just a moment. They both breathe a sigh of relief realizing that she was unharmed. Then Yondu scowls at her, "Don't run when the floor's wet, ya damn brat!" He raised his hand to slap her. Gamora flinches and whimpers.

It's this same moment that Kraglin catches up with Gamora. His expression is marked with concern. Yondu cringed and shoved his hand into his pocket with a heavy sigh. Gamora watches Yondu cautiously. She's simultaneously clinging to his jacket and pushing him away. Kraglin chuckles dryly, "Didn't I tell ya, you needed ta settle down?"

Gamora frowned and slowly turned to look at Kraglin, "I am settled."

"A timeout oughta calm her down some," Yondu mused aloud. Kraglin chuckles like there's a joke in there somewhere.

"No! I'm settled!" She pouts and looks down at her hands. "I just wanted to tell you something…"

"Well, ya got my attention now," He puts one finger under Gamora's chin, lifting her head. He raised an eyebrow.

She's hesitant at first and Yondu waits patiently for her to speak. "Uhm, um, I...I distracted the security guard all by myself today."

Yondu glanced at Kraglin, "Really?"

He clears his throat. "She lured the security guard over ta where we could grab him, by cryin'."

"Atta girl. I knew you'd be useful." Gamora beams when he says that. He smiles at her amiably, before gently prying her hand off his jacket and setting her down. "Stars and moons, you're soaked." He grumbles and tries to shake the water off his jacket. Gamora had hoped to keep his attention for a little while longer, and she's left with bittersweet disappointment.

"The others should be a few minutes behind us," Kraglin gestures back towards the entrance with his thumb. "Is Jazinda ready ta go?"

Yondu and Kraglin started discussing work, which Gamora found largely uninteresting. Instead, she redirected her attention to her precious doll. It was cold to the touch. The air conditioning was turned on inside the Eclector, and it's much colder than the outside world. Gamora shivers and hugs her doll tight.

Jazinda walks into the cargo bay. She was dressed oddly, a white collared shirt with a black tie, under her ravager jacket. The top two buttons on her collar are left undone. "Hey, Jazi!" Gamora starts to run towards her but Yondu holds out a hand to stop her.

"Ya run like that again and you're gettin' a spanking, girl." A monstrous expression replaced the kind look he gave her mere moments ago.

Gamora stiffened and nodded fearfully. He moved his hand away slowly. She could feel his gaze bore holes into her back as walked quickly over to Jazinda and wrapped her arms around her waist. "Hey, kiddo," Jazinda patted Gamora's head. Jazinda was warm. Her expression twisted into a scowl. "Hey, Captain Moron! Did you let her go out in the rain without a jacket?!"

Yondu crossed his arms, "Why do you assume it was me!?"

Jazinda glares at him, as she strips off her jacket and wraps Gamora up in it. The jacket is far too large for her. It felt like being swaddled in a warm blanket. She keeps her doll inside the jacket too. "Kraglin told me not to wear one," Gamora explains.

Yondu and Jazinda both turn to glare at Kraglin. He shrugs defensively, "It woulda given her away."

Gamora hated the way they looked at him. She wished she hadn't said anything, "Don't be mad at Kraglin."

"You better hope she doesn't catch a cold," Jazinda says this like it's a threat. Gamora wacked Jazinda's arm hoping it would get her to stop saying cruel things. If it hurts Jazinda doesn't react.

A commotion springs up at the entrance to the cargo bay. The crew stopped working and a crowd had formed. Yondu smirks, "Looks like our guest has arrived."

Kraglin and Yondu walk towards the crowd. "You should leave right now," Jazinda gives her this firm warning before joining the others. The crew makes space for them, allowing them to pass into the middle of the crowd.

Gamora fidgets, frozen by her indecision. The commotion had piqued her curiosity as well, however, it was Jazinda who had told her to leave. If she chose to disobey and Yondu decided to punish her, she can't count on Jazinda to stand up for her. Someone cries out and the crowd laughs and jeers. He was hurting someone again.

Before Gamora realizes what she's doing she's walking towards the crowd. There are too many people, even as she gets closer she can't see what's going on. She tries to squeeze through the crowd but someone pushes her back. "Get outta here, kid!" It was Horuz. She ignores him walking around the outskirts of the crowd looking for a way in.

"What're ya doin', brat?"

"Does the Captain know you're here?"

"You'll get hurt, sweetness." This time it's Gef who pushes her back with a condescending smirk. She stamps her foot in frustration. She continued to search for a way through. She wouldn't get too close, she only wanted to know what was happening. The crowd was thinnest towards the exit to the Eclector, if Gamora stood on her tiptoes she could see the center.

The security guard from earlier that day was struggling to break free from Noto and Birdy's grasp. They spew a vile string of Badoon curses, but this only appeared to amuse them further. Jazinda stood in front of the security guard. Her fists are clenched at her sides, she sneers at the man. Yondu and Kraglin stood behind her. Yondu had his arms folded across his chest. He was simply watching while the other's carried out his orders. Gamora felt her blood run cold. Jazinda was wearing an expression Gamora had never seen before.

Jazinda's fist slammed into the security guard's jaw. It probably would have knocked him over if the others weren't holding him up. He spits blood at her boots. "We'll need his jacket too," Yondu says dryly.

Kraglin chuckles, "Ya heard the Captain!"

Birdy nodded and attempted to rip the security guard's uniform jacket off. With only Noto restraining them, they manage to slam their elbow into Birdy's throat. They choked and stumbled back. "Bitch!" The security guard throws a punch at Jazinda. It goes wide. Gamora barely sees Jazinda move. The palm of her hand drives up into his chin. Noto loses his grip on the security guard. He hits the ground hard. Blood splatters across the deck, mixing with the rainwater. The crowd backs up.

The security guard scrambles to his feet and bolts. "Whoops," Jazinda chuckled and Kraglin sighed.

The security guard smashed through the crowd. He was running directly towards Gamora. She takes two steps back. Then watches as the security guard slips and wipes out on the deck in front of her. She winced and scolded him sternly, "Don't run when the floor's wet! That was very naughty." There was laughter from the others.

"You!" The security guard glares up at her. The color drains from his face, "You're working with them! You little bitch!" He lunges at her. Gamora drops her doll as he grabs her throat. "You did this to me!" The uncomfortable pressure is building towards pain.

Suddenly, a creature made of scales and muscle pounces on him. He let's go of Gamora. She falls to her knees. The creature's claws dig into his flesh trying to pin him down. He desperately tried to fight it off but he doesn't stand a chance. It's maw splits open like a flower in bloom, exposing the needles it has for teeth. A scream rips from his throat. Gamora keeps her eyes shut tight and puts her hands over her ears. When she finally opens her eyes, the nightmare creature is gone and Jazinda is left in its place. She was sitting on top of the man. He isn't moving. The only sound is the pitter-patter of the rain outside, as the others stare at her. Jazinda spits a hunk of blood and meat onto the deck. She runs her tongue along her blood stained teeth. "He's unconscious."

Yondu breaks the tension by clearing his throat, "Uh right, good job. Throw him in the Brigg." The crew shares uneasy looks, and nobody moves. They didn't want to get any closer to Jazinda.

She wipes her mouth on her arm before crossing the room to kneel down next to Gamora, "Are you o–" Gamora tackles her in a hug. Jazinda comforts her the best she can.

Gamora gulps down air as she clings to Jazinda. She was terribly frightened and was desperately trying to calm down. Yondu snaps at the crew. "Now! I gave you an order!" Gamora flinches when he yells, and Jazinda reassures her that his anger wasn't directed at her.

Noto and Birdy scrambled to pick up the man's body. They rush to get out of the cargo bay. Noto slips on the wet floor and drops the body as he falls. Yondu grabs Noto by the arm to steady him. "And would someone clean up this fucking water!" Gamora cracks a small smile.

"Aye, sir," Gef hurried to carry out the order. He moves too quickly. He loses his balance and fails about wildly before grabbing onto Horuz in an attempt to steady himself. They both fall over.

Yondu rolled his eyes and put his head in his hands. She hears him grumble in a language she doesn't recognize, "This is the stupidest shit." Gamora bursts into a fit of giggling.

Kraglin raised an eyebrow at her, "Oh you think that's funny, Donut Head?" Gamora covers her mouth with her hand and shakes her head bashfully. He stuck his foot out and tripped Huhtar. Then grab him by the back of his collar before he falls on his face. "Be more careful," Kraglin says in almost a condescending tone of voice. Huhtar glares at him.

Gamora giggled despite herself. "Don't do that! It's not nice."

Kraglin replied with a shrug and an easy smile. "I ain't nice."

Yondu picks the security guard's jacket up off the ground. He walks over to where the three of them are talking. "You okay, girl?"

Gamora takes a deep breath and nods, "I'm okay."

He shifts his attention to Jazinda. "You oughta get going. His lunch break ends soon." She sighs knowing he's right. Yondu throws the jacket at her and when she catches it she looks like someone else.

"Yes, sir," Jazinda says. "Hold on to my jacket till I get back, okay?" Gamora smiles and wraps the jacket around herself tightly. Jazinda walked off the ship and into the rain.

Hazira pushed a cart full of towels into the room. The towels are warm, soft, and citrus scented. Gamora and her doll dry off. She decides to help Hazira pass out towels to the others, clean up the water that covered the floor. The rest of the day was peaceful.