If I was your girl believe me

I'd turn on the Rolling Stones

We could groove along and feel much better

Let me in

I could do it forever and ever and ever and ever

By the time they arrived at their destination - Knowhere - Riley was actually starting to enjoy the motley group's company. Despite still getting to spend time with Heather at the church, it felt like it had been years since she'd had actual friends. Heather was…a husk of who she'd been and while Riley still took every opportunity to hang out with her, it broke her damned heart. If things went well, she could get the package hidden, get back to the Church, get Heather, and start deprogramming her by the end of the week.

Even in her own head that sounded incredibly optimistic. Knowing her luck, or lack thereof at times, it was more likely she'd be caught and put back into 're-education'.

Suppressing a shudder, she followed Peter and the rest through the marketplace. As soon as they were at the bar, she could break it off with them. That was the plan.

She took a look around Knowhere, biting back a smile at how little had changed as Peter asked what the place was. Gamora launched into an explanation as Riley drifted through her memories.

Last time she was there…. Stars, had it really been nearly twenty years? Hopefully her bag was still safely stored. It wasn't much, nothing important, but hopefully its contents would help with Heather's memories of who she'd been before. Shortly after they were taken, the Church members had made a stop through Knowhere on their way back home. Riley had decided to steal her bag back and sneak out to store it safely with the hope she could one day come back for it. So much of it would probably just be ruined - hell, she was pretty damned sure the batteries for her discman had died ages ago. They might've even leaked out of where she'd stored them and wrecked the bag and its contents.

That would be her first stop, get the bag then she could figure out what to do with her package. It occurred to her that it might actually be safe on Knowhere. Sure, the outpost was filled with some of the worst beings in the galaxy, but it also had people good at keeping secrets. For a price, anyway. Could she trust any of them with it? Damned if she knew. Then again, if her bag was still safe, maybe there was a chance?

Maybe it was a stroke of luck that they'd wound up on Knowhere.

"We come from a planet full of outlaws," Peter's voice pulled her from her thoughts as he put an arm around her. "Billy the Kid, Bonnie & Clyde, John Stamos."

Riley actually laughed. "John Stamos?"

Peter grinned at her. "Sure, you remember him, right?"

"Of course," she agreed, schooling her features into seriousness. "If I remember right, the house he lived in was just…full of kids. With so many mouths to feed, he became an outlaw at a tender age, just so he wouldn't starve."

"Escalated quickly from stealing food to kidnapping, then murder," Peter agreed.

A group of poor children ran up before Riley could continue the fib. Peter's hand dropped away and he reminded everyone to watch their wallets. The children pawed at the newcomers, but when one approached her, he recoiled when he saw the Church's logo on her shirt and ran around the group with a cry.

"Shit," she sighed. Maybe she should button her jacket to hide the logo. Then again, maybe it would be helpful in a place like Knowhere to go in with preconceived notions. Peter gave her a look, but she shook her head, not really wanting to explain.

From the corner of her eye, though, she saw Groot give the scared child a flower. At least the kid wasn't screaming in terror now, she supposed.

As the children scattered, the Boot of Jemiah came into view up ahead.

"Your buyer's in there?" Rocket asked.

"This is no respectable establishment!" Drax protested. "What do you expect us to do while we wait?"

Peter exchanged a smirk with her, hand again at the small of her back. "You coming?"

Riley shook her head. "I…I have to…there's something I have to do."

"You could come back here after?" he said, coming to a stop in front of her. His hand slid from her back to her hip as he looked down at her. Until he looked at her like that, she'd had every intention of saying 'no'. But with the puppy dog eyes, that smirk that made her feel things she shouldn't, and the fact that it was nice to talk to another Terran…. She was screwed.

Dammit. "Yeah," she sighed, trying not to smile. "I could."

"Will you?"

She looked up at him through her lashes, chewing on her lower lip. Maybe after she had her bag, he'd be a good safe way out of Knowhere. "Yeah." That was all. Just a safe ride back to civilization. Had nothing to do with how much she'd miss him. Because she wouldn't. She'd known him, what, a day and a half? Definitely wouldn't miss him.

"Good," he said. "See you then."

"Yeah." She watched him disappear into the Boot of Jemiah with a wink, then turned back to the market and forced all thoughts of him from her mind as she tried to remember where the hell the bag was stored.

To say the Boot of Jemiah was a dump would've been an understatement. The place was filthy. Filthier than a Ravager ship. Peter sighed as he watched the rest of the group wander off in different directions, then headed to the bar to figure out how to get his damned ship refuelled. Someone in there should, in theory, be able to point him toward a refuelling station.

The bartender approached him with a nod and he ordered something, then asked about refuelling as the guy prepared his drink.

"Over there," he grunted, slamming the drink down on the table. At the other end of the guy's nod was a large A'askavariian male who looked ready to tear the head off the next being who sat down at his table. Shit.

"Thanks." Peter took a sip of the drink and damn near spat it out as he walked. Shit, that was strong! Maybe his best bet was to watch the A'askavariian for a bit, see if he could get any insights as to how to approach and get the best deal for fuel.

A quick glance around the room and he found a place to sit where he could watch both the A'askavariian and the door. He dropped into the seat and took another sip of the entirely too strong drink. Part of him hoped Riley would come back, but the other part was convinced she was just agreeing to get away quicker. Then again, the way she'd gone along with him when he brought up John Stamos…he thought she was having fun. Maybe she would come back, if only to get off this creepy-ass severed head floating in space.

A shiver ran through him. Something about the idea of having a drink inside the severed head of a Celestial gave him the willies.

Across the room, someone sat down with the A'askavariian. He watched carefully as they talked, noted the guy's demeanour, looked for signs of irritation on the A'askavariian. When the guy walked away seemingly unscathed, Peter decided to make his move.

Riley walked into the storage building and it was exactly as she remembered it. Long rows of lockers, rotting desk to one side, dim lighting. The only new thing was the large Kree man glaring at her from behind the desk. He stood up and crossed his arms, demanding to know why she was there. This definitely wasn't who ran it back when she was a teenager. Then she noticed the foot sticking out from behind the desk. Great. She was walking into a robbery.

"I need my things," she said, smile pasted on. "If you'll move that big blue ass out of my way, I'll grab what I need, pay out my balance, and be on my way."

The Kree didn't move.

When she tried to step past him, he grabbed her. Without thinking, she spun around and elbowed him in the nose, kneed him between the legs, and punched him. He swayed a little, eyes unfocussed before collapsing to the ground, moaning in pain.

"I tried to ask nicely," she said, smiling as she walked over to her locker.

Riley grinned to herself as the locker popped open and she saw her backpack still inside. A quick look showed her that everything in it was still intact - pristine even. No battery acid, no mould, no signs of wear. Everything looked exactly the same as the day she'd put it in the locker. Pulling it out, she walked back across the room and stepped over the prone Kree, still writhing in pain. She looked at him over her shoulder as she walked away, smirking. "I'll be sending someone from the Collector's security team! Enjoy imprisonment! Or worse…."

Ducking around a corner, she watched the Kree scramble away quickly. With her backpack slung across her shoulder, she made her way back to the Boot of Jemiah.

The bar reeked like alcohol, various body odours, and fragrant foods from across the galaxy, but Riley managed to ignore it all as she crossed the room to where she saw Rocket, Groot, and Drax. Whatever the stakes were in this bet, they must've been high to attract so many onlookers. Rocket and Drax were absolutely wasted as they screamed at the poor creatures running around on the table.

"Where's Quill?" she shouted, suppressing a cringe as the larger animal chomped down on the smaller one. Roars of anger and triumph mixed as credits were exchanged around the table.

The raccoon gestured vaguely toward a quiet alcove off to the side, then turned back to Drax and loudly discussed the next bet. Rolling her eyes, she didn't even bother to thank him before walking off. Not like he would've heard her anyway. Or remembered. How the hell much alcohol did it take to get a raccoon drunk anyway?

In the alcove, she saw Peter sitting alone at a table, nursing a mug of something he clearly wasn't enjoying as he scanned the bar. When his eyes lit on her, he smiled and scooted over to make room for her at the table. That was when she noticed the headphones he wore - bright orange sponge over his ears. He slid the headphones down around his neck as she neared.

She grinned as she dropped down next to him. "You managed to find the only quiet place in the bar."

"Good view of the whole bar, too," he said, nodding out to the rest of the room. From their vantage point, she could see everything. It was just the right angle - every table, every door, the bar, the betting tables, the whole place.

Despite how goofy he acted, Quill was pretty damn smart. "What's with the walkman? You risked your life for it, must be pretty important."

His smile turned sad and he looked out over the room.

Maybe she'd overstepped. "You don't have to -."

"My mom gave it to me," he said, still staring out at the room as he toyed with the walkman in his hands. "When I was a kid, she would share with me all the songs she loved growing up. Just happened to have it on me when…I mean, the day she…when I left Earth." Shaking his head, he looked down at it, then back up at her. Wordlessly, he reached out and put the headphones over her ears, then dropped one arm around her shoulders and hit play.

But then I fooled around and fell in love

I fooled around and fell in love, since I met you baby

I fooled around and fell in love

I fooled around and fell in love

As the music played, Peter scooted closer and caught her eyes. She couldn't look away as he leaned in and reached a hand up to trace her jaw. Before she knew it, his forehead was resting against hers and her breaths became short gasps for air. She could almost taste what he'd been drinking, they were so close.

Free on my own that's the way I used to be

But since I met you baby, love's got a hold on me

(Fooled around and fell in love) woo, it's got a hold on me now, yeah

(Fooled around and fell in love) I can't let go of you, baby

(Fooled around and fell in love) I can't stop loving you now

(Fooled around and fell in love) hey, 'cause I fooled around

This was such a bad idea, she had so much to do and the odds were pretty good Quill was only after one thing. Maybe in another time or another place, it wouldn't have been. Even still, she couldn't look away. "Peter, I -."

BANG!

She jumped and turned to look back at the table where Rocket and Drax were shouting, surrounded by people throwing money at one another over the impending fight.

"Shit," Quill hissed, taking the headphones back before running to the table in a panic.

Riley swallowed and took a minute to compose herself. If it hadn't been for the fight breaking out, she…. Shit. The last thing she needed was a distraction, she had to get the package to safety, then rescue Heather. She couldn't lose sight of her priorities, not now. Even if Quill was her safest bet off Knowhere, the man was a walking distraction. An attractive one, sure, but she needed to focus.

By the time she collected herself and walked over to Quill, Drax was storming angrily out of the bar and all the patrons had gone quiet. "Everything okay?" she murmured to Quill.

He sighed heavily, but before he could reply a Krylorian woman approached the group. Her hair was tied up in pigtails, her voice small, her eyes haunted and empty. It immediately set Riley on guard.

"Milady Gamora," she said. "I'm here to fetch you for my Master."

That hit too close to home. The poor woman sounded like she'd just finished re-indoctrination with the Universal Church of Truth, sounded like Heather. A hollow husk.

"You okay?" Peter murmured.

"Yeah," she said softly. She didn't realise she had been shaking her head 'no' until Peter put an arm around her waist.

"Do you want to wait here or come with us?"

"I told you, we ain't splitting the payout," Rocket grumbled as he walked past.

Rolling her eyes, she shot back, "And I told you I'm not interested in that." She looked up at Peter, then over at the pink-skinned woman leading the others out of the bar. Could she ignore what she'd just seen? "Yeah," she sighed. "I'll come." At the very least, she needed to figure out what the hell was going on and whether Quill was safe to hitch a ride with.