DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters from Guardians of the Galaxy, either in its movie or comic incarnation. I own any OC I can invent, though. I am not making a £ out of this. It is just for shits and giggles.
Warnings: this chapter contains some language, some bad attempts at humour, some sexism and lots of politics.
Apart from that, it is quite plot-heavy.
Sorry for not posting anything last week. I was at a conference without reliable internet access, but I wrote quite a lot in the pauses. I hope this chapter can compensate you of the wait...
Enjoy, and please don't shout at me!
They do sit down and they do talk. They do a whole lot of talking.
Peter's head feels like it is going to explode out of the massive headache he is nursing.
His only consolation is that his sister doesn't look any better than he feels. Her face is blotched, her eyes are swollen and red from all the crying she has done, and her expression is pinched with discomfort, but she soldiers on, unwilling to let Gladiator lead the dances.
Being the Crown Princess and a female role model must be a hell of a stressing life. It looks like she always has to demonstrate to the whole of Spartax, and possibly of the Galaxy, that she is tougher, smarter and braver than any man, just to offset the fundamental "flaw" of being a woman. She is under such amounts of pressure that it is a miracle she has not cracked yet.
Peter would like to be still totally mad at her for treating him like a piece of walking refuse, like his Terran relatives used to do, but the problem is that he understands where she is coming from, he understands why she panicked, so he cannot hold on to his indignation and just sits there quietly, letting his mates do most of the talking for once.
He is too tired, totally washed out by the roller-coaster of emotions of the last few days. He'd like to let his feelings sediment a bit, to take it easy and just relax, bask in the newly bloomed three-way relationship between him, Gamora and Ronan, but it seems that there will be hardly any time for it, between saving his sister's wedding from the agents of Thanos or whoever, meeting Nebula and her Asgardian pals, and organizing a plan to bust the Mad Titan's arse. While the others discuss strategy and possible diplomatic alliances with Helenai and Gladiator (and princess Vesta shamelessly cuddles with Little Groot), Rocket is already sketching some humongous weapon he intends to use on the big purple sociopath.
"Happy families..." he thinks sluggishly.
And they are a big messy, dysfunctional family, in a way.
At the beginning of the discussion, Helenai whips out a DNA sequencing chip and asks him for a drop of blood. By the time they have delved into the discussion of whether the Emperor knew or not that he existed, the chip pings.
"Congratulations, Peter! It's a match!" Drax exclaims, slapping him around the back with one of his big paws. Peter gives him a wan smile.
It doesn't mean much to him. The Guardians are his family, Yondu is his father, for what he is concerned.
They even call his adoptive father at a certain point, trying to clarify some obscure points of his arrival into space.
Yondu answers the call, shirtless and looking totally shagged out. In the background, Peter thinks he sees a lavander-coloured tail flicking, then the tall, elegant figure of K'se We'al crosses the screen behind the Ravager captain's chair confirming his hunch.
A smile sneaks on Peter's face. He is happy that they have managed to get back together. Yondu is a bit of an arsehole, but he is not 100% a bad person, and he deserves a bit of happiness.
With his help, and some offstage comments from a cheerful, chirping We'al, they manage to confirm that the person who had asked the Ravagers to retrieve him, and prompted them to disobey out of how much an asshole he was, is not Emperor J'son of Spartax.
As it turns out, Gamora recognises his description instead.
"If he is who I think he is, this plot is much more complicated than we originally imagined. " she declares with a certain alarm.
"Why? Who is that guy?" Peter asks.
"We knew him as Everyman. He is an agent of Thanos." she replies.
As the implications of this tidbit of information sink in, Peter feels very happy to be sitting down. His head is spinning and all of a sudden he feels vulnerable, exposed.
"Do you mean that he meant me to be..." he starts.
Gamora nods solemnly. "Yes, I think you were meant to be one of my brothers." she concludes.
He gives her a long look, grabbing the edge of the table to steady himself. It is not outside the realm of possibility that Thanos' people had been spying him and his mum, waiting until he was at his most angry, alone and vulnerable to arrange the abduction. He would have been easy to twist, back then. Thanos could have easily turned him into one of his living weapons and pointed him at Spartax to wreak havoc and sow the seeds of death. The mere thought makes him nauseous.
"It's alright, Peter. He is never going to touch you. I promise. - Ronan whispers in his ear, kneading his shoulder in an attempt to reassure him - I'll kill him first. I'll keep you safe." he adds, low and dangerous, and Peter loves him for it.
"We'll keep you safe." Gamora adds, placing her hand on his arm and smiling at him.
Peter takes a deep breath and steadies himself. It is not the right time to go into hysterics over could-have beens. He can do that later, privately, when they finally manage to find a room with a bed large enough for the three of them.
Now he needs to focus and help. Isn't he the most successful scoundrel this side of the Universe?
"We'll all protect each other. - he retorts with what he hopes looks like determination and not constipation - And hopefully the rest of the Universe. So... looks like step one is making sure that the lovey-doveys there actually manage to marry!" he adds with somewhat forced cheerfulness, waving a hand towards Helenai and Gladiator.
His sister rolls her eyes, but Gladiator nods in thanks.
"Help would be appreciated. We don't know who to trust, either here or at my parents' court." he explains.
Peter smiles. "You cannot trust us with money or with not making stuff explode. - he warns - But on one thing you can trust us. We hate Thanos and would never work with him. We will help you." he pledges, knowing that he has full the support of the Guardians in his declaration.
"And we will help you eliminate the cause of the problem at the root." Helenai counters, a hard glint in her eyes. She offers him her hand, and Peter clasps it firmly, meeting her gaze. It is not outright brotherly love, but it is a start. He can work with that.
After much discussion, they agree that the Guardians will room at the Palace until the wedding.
If Thanos has agents on Spartax, they probably already know of their presence on the planet, or soon they will. They are not exactly the most discrete of presences, so it seems that the best strategy is to make their presence and their role public straight from the bat.
Peter agrees to make a public declaration of support to Helenai, renouncing his every right to the throne of Spartax. It doesn't cost him anything to do so, since he had never wanted it in first place. The not-so-hidden sting is that he will have to confront Emperor J'son. This is something that has a huge potential for awkwardness, and he is definitely not looking forward to that. He knows he can sweet-talk anyone in the Galaxy, but faced with the perspective of confronting his biological father, he is even starting to feel some performance anxiety.
They have nearly finished their talk, when the door to the meeting room they are sitting in opens all of a sudden, and Emperor J'son marches in in all his imperial glory, without even thinking of knocking.
"Ah, there you are, Helenai! I've been looking for you all afternoon... - he starts, pleasantly enough, then his eyes drift towards the Guardians - Who are these people?!" he adds then, clearly irritated by what he must perceive as an invasion.
Helenai stands and goes towards him. "Father, these are..." she starts to explain.
Peter stands too, thinking that it must be like with pulling teeth, best to do it quickly and in one go.
"I am Peter Jason Quill, sire. - he interrupts her - Son of Meredith Quill from Terra. And apparently your son too..." he adds, rolling the sequencing chip between his fingers.
Emperor J'son turns towards him so fast that he must have given himself a whiplash.
"M-meredith Quill?!" he stammers, eyes wide with shock.
Peter nods. "Correct. I suppose you might not even remember her." he adds wistfully.
From what Helenai has told him, Emperor J'son in his youth was even worse than he himself was until he met Gamora and then Ronan and became exclusive.
His father must have had a girlfriend in every port and so on... his mom was likely to be just one of the many.
"Of course I do! - J'son protest - I met her back when I was exiled. I crash-landed on Terra, and she rescued me from the wreckage. Pointed a shotgun in my face when I woke up. Such an amazing woman..." he comments fondly.
At his side, Ronan chuckles quietly. "It must run in the family..." he comments in a whisper.
Peter feels himself smiling at least a bit in spite of the tension.
"We spent a pleasant few months together on Terra. - Emperor J'son continues, clearly lost in pleasant reminiscences - She was a very talented mechanic. Without her help, I would have never managed to fix my ship and come back home. We used to work in her shed at the campus, with the music blasting from her stereo... What was the name of the band we used to listen to all the time? Yes, the Jackson 5!" he exclaims cheerfully.
"Ah, those were good times... sun, music, freedom and young love... I miss that. - he reminisces wistfully - Meredith didn't tell me... that she... that we... I would have... I don't know... I would have insisted more about taking her with me if I had known." he adds, and he seems sincere.
"I did offer, I swear! - he goes on, wringing his hands - I told her I loved her, that I was going to marry her and make her my Great Royal Wife, and do you know what she told me? That she didn't want to marry and leave, that she wanted to finish her degree, and build her own spaceship. That she'd be the first Terran in hyperspace, and then, only then, she'd come to Spartax and marry me. And, may the Goddess have pity on me, I believed her..." he sighs.
"Danm! - Peter thinks - He didn't know, he truly didn't know."
He cannot even be angry at him, or blame him for anything more than being a moron who doesn't know what safe sex is, but then, his mom can be faulted with the same. They were young, and foolish and in love, and if they had not been, he wouldn't be here.
"I... I feel guilty that I didn't realise. - the Emperor says - Is she alright? Why did she decide to never contact me again? Did she manage to finish her degree? Did she marry a Terran, instead?" he asks, sounding truly concerned and more than a little bit jealous.
"No, she didn't. She never graduated. She had to go back to her parents, when..." Peter replies sadly, thinking of the menial, low-paid jobs she had to take up to support him and of the scorn of her family.
She could have been an engineer, could have worked for NASA, at least that was what she used to say, and instead ended up cooking hamburgers for minimum wage because her parents didn't want to pat to support an "easy woman" at college.
"She has been dead for the last twenty-odd years. A cancer. - Peter reveals, tired and close to tears once more - She still thought of you in her final days. She still loved you." he adds, even if he knows that it will hurt him, because it is true and his mom would have wanted him to know.
She had never blamed him, not like he used to do. She was a good person.
Emperor J'son seems to deflate at that piece of news.
"Oh, gods... - he whispers, a hand pressed to his chest - This is... I am so sorry, son. How did you cope? How did you find me?" he asks, stepping closer as if wanting to hug him.
Peter takes an instinctive step back.
He doesn't want to be hugged. Not by him, at least.
Emperor J'son is his biological father, and probably not a bad person, but he is a nearly total stranger and it would be awkward instead of comforting.
The Emperor seems to get the message and stops in his tracks, leaving plenty of space between them.
"The Ravagers took me from Terra straight afterwards. I didn't really have time to mourn her. - Peter tells him - And I've found out just recently about you. Like, this morning. And I'm not exaggerating." he adds.
"I knew about him. I have known for a while." Helenai confesses. The Emperor turns towards her with a surprised expression.
"How long is a while?" he asks.
"Nearly a year." she confesses sheepishly.
"Why.. why didn't you tell me?" the Emperor asks, sounding wounded.
"Because... because I wasn't sure that he wasn't just a pretender. - she replies - And I was scared that you would... that you would put him before me because he is male." she adds, her voice small and a bit broken.
Emperor J'son grabs her by the shoulders and stares at her hard.
"Helenai of Spartax! Don't even joke about this! - he scolds, shaking her slightly - You are my chosen heir, my beloved daughter! I have complete confidence in you. I wouldn't replace you for anything in the world!" he declares.
"No offense meant, son." he adds, turning towards Peter.
"None taken. I'm not interested in that, at any rate. - he repeats once more - We Guardians are just here to help with your little Thanos-related problem." he adds cheerfully.
At that point, Emperor J'son does a 'WTF face' that looks even funnier that Ronan's.
They explain, bringing him up to speed on the hard facts and their reasonably solid theories on Thanos' role in most, if not all, large-scale conflict in the Galaxy.
By the end of the explanation, Emperor J'son is both horrified and solidly in their camp.
"Happy families indeed..." Peter thinks.
The thought is still echoing in his mind when he sits in Emperor J'son office, dressed in his best finery, relatively speaking, under the objective of the holocameras of the Spartax System ComNet.
The Emperor is sitting next to him and a troupe of make-up people have worked on them to make sure that the striking resemblance between them seems even more striking under the cameras. They are even wearing matching colours.
His biological father seems relaxed enough. Probably giving statements and interviews to the press is a totally commonplace activity for him. Peter feels trapped and exposed, instead, and is covered in cold sweat.
He'd rather have a bare-knuckles boxing round against an enraged Kree than do this, but there is no escaping from his predicament. This farce is required by the plan and it will be over quickly enough.
The camera-person gives the signal, and the interviewer nods, counting the seconds off on her fingers.
"Three... two... one... on air!" she whispers, then takes a thrilled expression, as if there is no other place she'd rather be.
"Greetings fellow Spartoi! - she starts - This is Z'nobia from SSC, transmitting directly from the Imperial Palace with amazing news about the Imperial Household!" she announces, taking up the scene.
The camera then moves to capture both her and the Emperor at the same time.
"As Your Majesty must know, rumours about a mysterious male pretender to the throne have been circulating wildly in the last couple of years... - she continues - In all this time, Your Majesty has declined to comment on the issue. What has changed now?" she asks, crossing her legs daintily.
The Emperor wears his most charming smile, and Peter can see that it has an immediate effect on the interviewer.
"What has changed is that it is no longer a rumour, but a certainty. - he replies - After several years of uncertainty on his fate, I have managed to find my only son. Dear Z'nobia, my beloved subjects, let me introduce Peter Jason Quill, the Star-Lord, hero of the battle of Xandar Prime!" he announces bombastically, motioning towards Peter's seat. The camera swivels to capture him and Peter forces a smile on his face.
"This is a bit too exaggerated, father... - he protests, but cheerfully, feigning complicity with the Emperor - Most of the credit goes to the heroic blockade of the Nova Corps, and also to my fellow Guardians." he adds, trying to be very politic about it. He doesn't want Nova Prime to get even more pissed off at him.
Z'nobia laughs a charming little laugh.
"Not just a hero, but modest too... - she purrs, evidently flirting - A true Prince Charming. I am sure the Spartoi will be impressed. And where was such a hero hiding until now?" she asks.
"Oh, here and there, adventuring throughout the Galaxies. I wasn't aware of my heritage until recently." Peter replies as agreed. He doesn't want to reveal much about himself. The interviewer seems satisfied, however, and turns back towards the Emperor.
"You must admit that such a revelation, and so close to the marriage between Crown Princess Helenai and Prince Gladiator of Shi'ar is bound to cause some excitement. - she comments - How is this going to affect the succession, Your Majesty?" she asks politely.
Emperor J'son shrugs lightly.
"It is not. - he replies coolly - Crown Princess Helenai is and remains my sole heir." he declares.
"But, Your Majesty, Prince Peter is a male son of yours... - the interviewer objects and Peter cringes at her choice of words - The precedents are clear..." she adds somewhat slyly.
"Let me take this from here, father. - Peter intervenes - My sister Helenai is a brilliant politician and general, she has been instructed by the best tutors and has the full confidence of our father the Emperor. She has all my support in her difficult and exalted role as heir." he declares.
"Does this mean that you will formally give up your right to the throne?" the interviewer asks, somewhat surprised and disappointed.
"I have already done this. There is a document, written and signed by me, that attests it. - Peter reveals nonchalantly - I have spent my life adventuring and traveling. I know nothing of politics or diplomacy. Being male doesn't make me automatically prepared to rule. And to be honest, I don't even want to be Emperor. But one thing I pledge: I will always support my sister and her descendants, come whatever may." he declares, his expression hardening. He wants to make it clear that he will not be swayed or persuaded into any sort of scheme or conspiracy.
Next to him, the Emperor nods in approval.
"Well spoken, my son! - he exclaims, patting him on the back - This is how a true hero of Spartax speaks! And now, I think that we will leave you at that. We have been only very recently re-united, and we still have many things to say to each other." he adds, part ordering and part appealing to her feelings.
"Of course Your Majesty. I'll leave you to your happy reunion. - she beams - From the Imperial Palace this is all. Z'nobia of SSC out!" she concludes, and the camera-person signals the end of the transmission.
Peter and the Emperor slip out of the room as the ComNet people pack their things.
Now that their little play is finished, they both look exhausted.
"This should give them pause." Emperor J'son comments, leaning against the closed door.
"And now comes the hard bit." Peter adds.
"Do you reckon you can find them in time?" the Emperor asks.
Peter shrugs. "I hope so. We'll do our best at any rate. - he replies - We're bounty hunters. Finding perps is our day job."
"I can't ask for more, son." J'son declares, laying a hand on his shoulder. Peter accepts the gesture in silence, feeling like he is betraying Yondu somehow.
"Listen Peter, I know you must be angry with me, but want you to know that I truly wish I could have been there for you and your mother all these years." the Emperor says, trying to hold his gaze.
Peter shakes his head. "I am no longer angry. Just sad... She loved you." he retorts quietly.
"And I loved her. With all my heart. - the Emperor declares - In my long, complicated life, I loved only three women: your mother, Helenai's mother and Irani, and I lost them all."
Peter feels a twinge of sympathy towards him and pats his shoulder too, then his mind does a double-take.
"Hang on a sec, Your Majesty! - Did you say Irani?" he asks, going from wistful to full-blown alarmed in one go.
"Yes, I did." the Emperor confirms.
"As in Irani Rael, the Nova Prime?!" Peter insists.
"Of course. - the Emperor says calmly - Her first post was as a diplomatic attachè here on Spartax. We had a relationship before I was exiled, then she went and married that bastard, Illian Dahun. She is a wonderful woman, she always was. I would have married her, if I had had the chance." he confesses.
Peter looks at him with a slightly horrified expression. His father and Nova Prime... that is a sobering thought.
"I thought you knew. I thought she had told you, that she had been the one to point you our way. I thought you were her protegè." the Emperor says, sensing his distress.
Peter shakes his head.
"She hinted that she knew something about my parentage, but kept mum. - he explains - We had a bit of a falling out about Ronan, and now all of us Guardians are personae non gratae in the Nova Empire." he reveals.
"He is your lover." the Emperor says without hesitation, an inquisitive look in his sharp blue eyes.
"He is my significant other. - Peter corrects him - Both him and Gamora are. We are in a triada. For Gamora's people it used to be traditional. I just happen to like it." he explains coolly. He is not going to deny or hide anything. There is nothing shameful in what they have.
The Emperor's expression doesn't shift, as if he is waiting for more explanations.
"It is pretty new, but we are happy, very happy, and I hope that you can accept it, because I love them, and I need no authorizations from anyone. - Peter goes on, slightly belligerent - Sorry if I ruined any marriage plans you had for me, but this is how it is." he concludes firmly.
"You're old enough to know what you want, son. - the Emperor retorts, refusing to take the bait - If those people make you happy, you have my blessing." he declares.
Peter is speechless for a moment. Is it truly so easy?
"Seriously? Are you not even a bit disappointed or angry?" he asks.
"Well, I had half a mind of arranging for you to marry Irani's daughter, but..." the Emperor teases.
"Ew! That would be almost incest!" Peter protests, and the Emperor starts to laugh heartily.
"I am happy that we found each other, Peter. - he says as soon as his laughter dies down - I know I cannot make up for the years I left you alone, and I know I cannot even replace that scoundrel Yondu as a father figure, but I am glad that I got to meet you. I truly am." he declares, and this time, Peter lets him hug him, albeit briefly.
"Now go. Go to your comrades and lovers. - he exhorts when they separate - We'll speak more in the morrow. Rest now. It has been a long day and it will be an even longer couple of weeks." he foretells.
Peter does as told. A servant directs him to a room and he follows almost in a shuffle. The adrenalin that had kept him alert has faded, and he feels exhausted and weak.
Gamora and Ronan are waiting for him in the room, already half-undressed.
He slips out of his clothes too and curls in their waiting arms on the bed, sobbing quietly from the confusing mix of emotions that swirls in his chest.
They soothe him and calm him down with their presence, whispering words of love and support in his ears, promising to destroy his enemies and keep him safe.
And he feels safe. He feels at home.