^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Gone. Violet never realized how much one word could hurt. The last thing she'd expected to hear was that her team- and the man she'd grown to love- were...gone.

Sure, she'd moved on with life. They all had. Aside from upgrading her suit with Rocket and helping the remaining Avengers, she'd given up on the whole hero gig.

She particularly missed one Peter Quill. Stealing his Walkman, dancing in the night, singing off pitch. It all felt sad to her after five years.

Then things began moving again. Scott Lang, the time traveling, Bruce's snap, all led to this moment. Tony Stark, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist, was laying down his life for the greater good.

She hadn't had much room to react when she saw the other Guardians step through the portal. But now, she found herself moving subconsciously towards where Peter stood.

For a moment, it felt selfish. After all, Tony was part of the reason everyone had come back. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she got closer to Peter, catching his eye. The instant she was close enough, she catapulted into his arms.

"Welcome back." Was the only thing that could come to mind for Vi. Peter, on the other hand, was at a total loss for words. He had been gone longer than he realized. Her hair had grown out. She looked more mature. Solemn. Tired.

"Miss me much?" He finally said once he rebounded out of his shock, though his hands were still shaking.

"Five years is a long time."

^^^^^^^^^^^^

Over the next week, Violet and Quill were inseparable. At all times they were hand-in-hand, or one was gripping the other's shoulder. Point is, they needed to know that they were safe. They wouldn't leave each other.