Rocket and Drax walked into a bar in the middle of Starharbor on Pettoco. The cyborg had forbidden Groot from drinking until he was fully grown again, Gamora had elected to stay in and spend time with the tree, and Peter was off doing something or someone. So Drax would have to be his drinking buddy, as unwise as that was. It would be a miracle if they could make it through the night without getting into a brawl. The bar was quite crowded, being in a major spaceport. Dim lights hinted at unfinished metallic walls, but it was actually a relatively classy establishment.
As soon as they sat down at a booth, they were approached by one of the last people Rocket wanted to see. "Well if it ain't my favorite little fuzz-bucket!" Yondu smiled and sat next to the raccoon.
"Friend Rocket is not a bucket." Drax stated the obvious as usual.
"Go ta hell Yondu." Rocket glared daggers at the blue man.
"I take it you didn't appreciate my heartfelt gift." The Centaurian faked a frown.
"I blew it up." The raccoon grinned.
Yondu noticed the cane sitting next to Rocket. "Walkin' with a cane? Wimp."
"You shot an arrow through my foot like a week ago!"
That got the tattooed man's attention. "He was the one that did that? Shall I rip out his spine?"
Rocket quickly shook his head. "Nah. As much as I'd like you to, Quill wouldn't like it." Drax nodded, though Rocket didn't doubt that the man would very much like to rip out a vital organ or body part from someone before the night was over.
"I betcha 50 units I can out-drink you." The Centaurian dared him with a smug grin.
"You pickin' up the tab?" The raccoon felt that Yondu owed him at least that much.
The Ravager hesitated for a moment, but quickly relented. "If ya behave."
"You're on!" Rocket was at a natural disadvantage due to his small size. Alcohol affected him much quicker than the average man, but he couldn't deny a challenge like that.
They ordered a gargle blaster for Rocket, a pina colada for Drax, and Yondu got his 'usual.'
Rocket was perplexed. "I don't know what that is, but it's not a pina colada. Quill said it's a sweet, weak, frozen drink colored white. That is none of those things. Granted, he's only had it without the alcohol, but still." The supposed pina colada was an acidic yellow color, no ice, and the strong scent of alcohol attacked Rocket's nostrils.
The blue man was knocking back drinks like they were fruit juice. He didn't even seem remotely buzzed. Rocket on the other hand was significantly sloshed by his second drink. Yondu excused himself to use the restroom.
"Yo Drax buddy, does that Yondu have special drinkin' powers or summin?" He wasn't quite to the point where the room was spinning, but he was close.
"His species doesn't have an abnormal tolerance." Drax had been nursing his drink, probably afraid of messing things up royally like he usually does when drunk.
The raccoon leaned over and sniffed the Centaurian's drink. "That krutacker! There ain't booze in this."
Yondu came back to the table to find a furious raccoon.
"You d'ast cheater! You're drinkin' fruit juice!"
"I ain't a cheat. I never said it had ta be booze, just that I could drink more quantity than ya." Yondu smirked proudly.
"Bet's off." Rocket crossed his arms in a huff.
With the charade over, Yondu got the attention of a waitress and ordered another round, this time with his drink being very alcoholic.
"How bout we play strip poker instead?" The blue man waggled his eyebrows. The raccoon thought it was strange seeing him in a casual setting and acting like this. He had only previously seen Yondu as the eccentric-but-ruthless captain of the Ravagers.
Rocket had been surprised to learn from Quill that even Terrans played poker. There were countless variations and rulesets across the cosmos, but most planets with any sort of gambling had some form of it. "One, the last thing I need to see is your filthy blue ass naked. Second, on what planet is that fair? You got on like 20 layers, Drax is already half-naked, and I'm wearing a one-piece."
This elicited a boisterous laugh from Yondu. "Lighten up, I'm just pullin' yer tail."
"Sicko." The raccoon twisted his snout in disgust.
"This bar does birthday specials, when are yers? We should come back here n' celebrate." The Centaurian was obviously a regular here.
"Don't know, don't care. What those scientists did to me ain't nothin' to be happy about! ...Just reminds me that I have one less cycle to live." Rocket struggled to compose himself after the outburst.
"I have not celebrated my birthday since my family was taken from me. It only marks another cycle they have not been fully avenged." Drax not celebrating that either made the raccoon not feel quite so strange.
Yondu frowned in disappointment. "You two are no fun." He switched to a sly grin and turned to Rocket. "So I heard you've been up to some mischief. Couldn't stay a goody-goody fer long huh?"
"That wasn't me." The raccoon stared at his drink.
"Sure it wasn't. And I'm the Gramosian duchess," The Ravager teased.
"It wasn't me dammit! I got some evil twin or clone or somfin goin' around and I don't know what's what anymore. He's ruining my life and I don't know what he is or how he even exists. An' Quill doesn't seem to wanna go after him." Another outburst Rocket let slip through the cracks. He needed to keep it together.
Yondu scooted closer to Rocket and gave the raccoon a noogie. "Yer cute when yer angry."
"Get off me or I will shoot your delicate parts off." The mammal's lips curled into a snarl.
The blue man backed away. "You got spunk, I like that. Ya'd make a good Ravager."
"Not happening."
"Just think about it, will ya? Open invitation for when stuff don't work out with your little band of delusional heroes. I had ta give up Quill yanno, you fer him wouldn't be a bad trade."
Rocket stared at Yondu in disbelief. "Are you saying you ain't gonna leave Peter alone unless I become a stinkin' Ravager?" That was not something he wanted to hear.
"Pretty much."
"I don't get you Yondu. One minute you're tryin' to kill Quill, and the next minute you're bending over backwards for him. You beat the shit out of me, but then you let us go like it's nothing. And now you're drinking with us. What's your deal?"
The Centaurian grinned. "I'm complicated."
"If friend Quill had been younger, I might have adopted him. It wouldn't be the same as having my daughter back, but you are a terrible father figure." Drax stated it as an obvious fact.
"Say that again and my arrow will be through your skull. I'm still way better than the boy's jackass father." Yondu focused his intense red eyes on the tattooed giant, clearly displeased.
"You knew his dad the whole time, didn't you? Drax, let's keep that between us okay? Speaking of, Quill and I met the guy. Star something…Starfox, that's it. He seemed to be under the impression Quill was dead. Did you have anything to do with that?" The raccoon asked despite already guessing the answer.
"Maybe. Thanks for the warning."
"I gotta take a leak." The raccoon slowly left the table with his cane.
When Rocket stumbled back from the john, Yondu was nowhere to be found. His eyes darted around the bar, searching. "Where'd he go?"
"The blue annoyance left after asking for the check."
Rocket growled. "That krutacking Yondu left me with the bill! He said he'd pay if I behaved! I behaved, didn't I buddy?"
"Could we leave without paying like you normally do?" Drax's suggestion would have been welcome most of the time, but it wasn't viable at this point.
"I got enough fake charges; I don't wanna add real ones!"
Rocket reluctantly paid and Drax carried him back to the ship slung over one shoulder, the raccoon drunkenly ranting the whole way about nothing in particular.
Once back on the Milano, the raccoon managed to make it to his room, and he was greeted by a waving Groot. Rocket weakly waved back, but was muttering under his breath. He slumped on the floor and had a forlorn, distant look in his eyes. All the talk of birthdays, coupled with the revelation of Quill's long-lived nature, was really getting to him. The clock was ticking, his days were numbered. Well, that was an exaggeration, but his lifespan was still quite short. His life would be a mere fraction of even Drax's or Gamora's.
"I am Groot?" He asked with a worried expression as he sat beside his furry friend.
"Nuffin. I'm fine." Rocket wasn't convincing anyone, not even himself.
"I am Groot." The tree said in a demanding tone this time.
"S'not fair. Stupid Quill gets ta live for practically forever. Flarkin' half-Eternal. Well, he's an idiot so he won't last that long, but he'll prolly get to at least 200. But I'll be lucky if…"
"I am Groot?" He pulled back in surprise.
"I haven't told ya? I've got maybe a few cycles left. Not sure how old I am exactly but no one's expecting me to get much past 20. My enhancements might give me longer or shorter, no way of knowing." He looked down dejectedly.
He looked up as Groot's wooden tendrils curled around him. A blob of light, like the tree's usual lights but bigger, emerged from Groot's chest. It gently hovered in the air for a moment as they gazed at it. The orb of light floated down and entered Rocket's chest. An incredibly soothing warmth coursed through his little body.
"We are Groot." He said with a smile.
Rocket panicked. "You WHAT? Part of your life force?! Take it back! I don't want it!" He couldn't hold back the tears. He didn't deserve Groot. His claws dug into the tree's bark.
"I am Groot." The tree assured him.
"R-really? You'll still live for a super-long time and it's only prolonging my death from natural causes? You better not be lying and putting yourself in danger, shortening your life for my d'ast sake!"
"I am Groot." He was the best friend Rocket could ask for. They were a part of each other.
"Yeah, it wouldn't be the same without you either, buddy." They held there for a while until Rocket felt Groot place him in his bed. His implants didn't hurt quite as much, and one of the weights on his chest had been lifted. He felt like he would never be able to make it up to Groot, but there would be time to worry about that later.