#halfwcrld

Despite Rocket's harsh reprimand, the little flora gave a cheerful if not unruly chime of--

"I am groot" {Watch this!}

“Best…?” She thought for a moment, tapping her chin as blue eyes cast towards the floor, her tools sitting right where she’d set them beside her.

“Probably when I met Rocket.” It wasn’t even really a question, it was by far the craziest story she had–because getting arrested was usually surprisingly boring.

“So I am on a junk run outside Knowhere…okay like more than a few clicks away…a hyperjump away–ANYWAY…” She laughed almost nervously “I find this ship and it’s CLEARLY custom, right? All retrofitted and custom parts, even the canon system was custom made.” She held up her hands.

“Total gold mine for a junker, but the thing is, a certain foul mouthed–albeit adorable–vermin, was still using it. I decide not to let that stop me, so one thing leads to another and before I know it we’ve pulled guns on one another, I have him half strapped to the pilot’s seat with a cable and he’s blown a Cree patrol ship in two.” Pausing, she’s grinning fondly and then added.

NOT-SUBTLE GAGGING IN THE DISTANCE

I HAD TO ANSWER AND I WASN’T GONNA ANSWER THE BOY SO SHUSH. AIN’T LIKE IMMA DO IT FOR REAL.

Groot watched his would be guardian sleep, anxious brown eyes glancing every so often to the door, beyond which the world seemed to never stop. But here, inside the dark of the room they shared--no bigger than a cell they once shared, back when they first met--time seemed to still if only for a moment or two.

It started with grumbling. Muttered and incoherent words that roused Groot from his sleep. When he sat up and yawned, the thrashing started. First a tick in one foot, then a jarring, then Rocket's body shook and his voice rose; vague yells as he wrenched and fought violently with an assailant that wasn't there.

With each yell Groot shrank and took a step back, wide brown eyes staring in fear at his friend as he watched him seem to devolve right there before his eyes. And soon it was too much for the little flora. He turned and raced for the door, racing for someone who would make him feel safe again.

Gamora's room was only a little ways away from the one he and Rocket shared, and perhaps that had been by design. Because it was the first one that he reached.

"Th'fuck do you know?" Her words were slurred as she all but slumped against the wall, the bottle of jack she'd stolen from him the last time they'd seen each other--before half the universe had been ripped from existence--clutched in her fingers and half drained of it's mind numbing contents.

She'd lost her family--again! No rhyme or reason, one second they were there and the next they'd faded into nothingness; and she was left utterly and completely alone in the middle of some dark corner of space.

Moving to take another swig of her mindnumbing remedy, she paused; something was wrong, even halfway down a bottle she could see that. Then it hit her.

"Wh--...where's the kid...?" It was no secret that Arista liked Groot, she and the little twig had managed to foster a special little relationship; she'd sing to him and dance with him around the workshop. She'd even bought him that video game that Rocket and the others seemed to hate.