Chapter 2
Everyone slept late the next morning, so when Peter rose at seven he was the first one up. He took his time showering and getting dressed- a luxury he didn’t often have. He frowned at the bruise evident on his chest. Oro had hit him hard. Really, he’d gotten lucky by getting up and showering before any of the rest of the crew. They might complain about him, but they were as protective of him as Yondu was. Sometimes, even more so.
He ambled into the kitchen, looking for something to eat. Looking through the ingredients in the pantry, he decided to make pancakes. Several years ago, in an attempt to get Peter to reconnect with his Terran heritage, Kraglin had compiled various stories, movies, and recipes onto a pad for him. Sometimes it was painful, experiencing all of the things that he missed, but other times it was pretty rad. He had vague memories of his mom making him pancakes when he was little, and times like these, he felt a little closer to her.
He had to substitute lots of the ingredients for weird space ones, but it was essentially the same. He was feeling generous, so he made enough for the rest of the crew- most of them liked his cooking pretty well. Plus, Peter had seen how wasted Cook was last night- the old man would definitely appreciate the break. He even put on a couple pots of coffee. The crew drank an exorbitant amount on a regular basis; after a drinking binge, even more. Unsurprisingly, Kraglin was the first to show up that morning.
“You look like shit,” Peter said frankly.
“Well, I feel like- hey, language!” Kraglin chided. Peter rolled his eyes.
“I made pancakes. And coffee.” Kraglin thought for a moment.
“I love you,” he declared, practically moaning over the scent of the coffee.
“Geez, you two need a room?” Peter asked, rolling his eyes. Kraglin gave him the finger as he fixed a cup of coffee. Because no one else was around, he made it how he liked- with lots of sugar and milk. Peter thought it was such a stupid thing to be self-conscious about, but if any of the other crew was around, Kraglin drank it black.
The rest of the crew trickled in slowly, most of them thanking Peter for breakfast, sometimes with a pat on the back or a nod. Yondu wasn’t much of a morning person, but when he came in to the pancakes that he knew Peter must have made, he ruffled his hair. Peter had known Yondu long enough to know that that constituted a very sincere ‘thank you.’
Unfortunately, Oro walked in at that moment, and he scowled at the display. Peter supposed that to someone with a chip on their shoulder already, the sight of the entire crew thanking him could be a bit irritating.
“Pete made breakfast, Oro,” Exel told him from the corner. The Ravagers could be a tough group, but they tried to look out for new recruits, particularly the younger ones.
“It’s good. Sweet, but good,” Sparta added. Oro grunted something indecipherable. He fixed a plate and sank down on the opposite end of the cafeteria. No one but Horuz noticed Peter’s sigh of relief at that. Oro tasted the pancakes and frowned.
“That shit’s disgusting,” he declared. The room went silent. Peter saw Yondu glance at him, asking what he wanted him to do, but Peter just shook his head. The last thing he needed was Yondu chewing Oro out for being a little rude to him. Finally, Kraglin spoke up.
“You don’t like it, don’t eat it. But when someone else makes the food for your sorry ass, you sure as hell don’t criticize it.” The other Ravagers muttered similar replies. Oro just glared down at his plate, but Peter knew the other man would find a way to blame this display on him.
“If you aren’t going to eat it, then I will!” Fordin said exuberantly, grabbing Oro’s plate and enthusiastically devouring the pancakes. Peter gave him a weak smile, knowing he was trying to make Peter feel better, but he was just digging him into a deeper hole. He knew Oro would give him hell for this scene later; why wouldn’t the man just leave him alone? As much as he appreciated the other Ravagers sticking up for him, he dreaded what Oro would do to retaliate.
He decided to stick close to Yondu or Kraglin for the day. Oro wouldn’t dare do anything in front of them.
“Pete, why don’t you work in the engine room for a while today? Shaz’s got some repairs that need doin’, and it’d be good for you to get the experience,” Yondu told him. He hadn’t missed the way the kid practically salivated over the M-Ships in the hangar bay. If he was going to get the kid a ship, he wanted to be sure he could handle it first.
Peter nodded while trying to suppress a groan. That shot his plan to hell. Still, he might be okay. Shaz could get pretty zoned out when he was working on a project, but Oro should know to stay away.
“Hey Pete! It’s your lucky day, this is a real interesting repair, great time for you to learn. See, this wire here...” Peter relaxed into the familiarity of a lecture on mechanics. He’d spent time working in all areas of the ship, so the problem here was a little challenging, but nothing too difficult for him. After a couple hours, he and Shaz had the wiring problem fixed. Peter knew it could have been done faster if Shaz had worked alone, but he appreciated that the older man was letting him figure out the problem with minimal help.
“Thanks, Shaz,” Peter said sincerely. The older man grinned, a twinkle in his eyes.
“No problem, Pete. Hope this knowledge proves useful to ya.” Peter wondered what he could have meant by that when he sees Oro walk in the room. Shit.
“Hey Pete,” he says in a false-friendly tone. When he’s sure Shaz isn’t looking at him, he gives Peter a leer. “Cap’n wants you helpin’ me with the vents.”
“Ah, yes,” Shaz said absent-mindedly, fiddling with some wires. “Dirty job, but it must be done.” Peter bit his lip.
“You sure you don’t need my help anymore, Shaz?” he asked, trying not to sound desperate. Shaz shook his head.
“No, thanks, you’ve helped me plenty this morning. I’ve just got a bit of tinkering to do... Better run along now and do as your father asks,” he said distractedly. Peter sighed.
“Thanks, Shaz,” he said again, and while he wished the older man would have let him stay, he still meant it. Oro grabbed Peter by the arm in a painful grip, leading him into a seldom-used alcove where it was unlikely they’d be overheard.
“My dad really say to help you?” Peter asked, unimpressed. Oro grinned dangerously.
“Doesn’t really matter, does it?” Peter said nothing, frowning. “You made me look damned stupid today, boy,” he said, and Peter shuddered. Only Yondu could call him ‘boy’; from his dad it was an affectionate nickname, but from anyone else it was dehumanizing.
“You did that yourself,” Peter said, which in hindsight, was pretty stupid. Oro hauled off and socked him in the face, hard enough that Peter tasted a little blood.
“What’d you do that for?” Peter asked in slight amazement. He'd had no idea the other man could be so stupid.
“You oughta learn when to shut your damn mouth,” Oro muttered. “You may got the rest o’ the crew under your spell, but you’re just an orphaned runt.” Peter ignored that comment and rolled his eyes.
“Maybe so, but at least I ain’t stupid enough to hit the Captain’s son across the face. What do you think he’s gonna do when I tell him what happened, huh?” Oro actually looked a little worried at that prospect. The bastard hadn’t exactly thought it through.
“He won’t believe you,” he said desperately. “You’re just a kid, and I’m an adult. They won’t listen!” Peter glared at him.
“You and I both know that’s not true. But because I’m nice, I won’t tell him. That is, if you promise to leave me the hell alone.” Oro stared at him.
“You ain’t gonna say nothing,” he said, trying to sound confidently. Peter nodded tiredly.
“I'll stay quiet so long as you leave me be.” Oro released him after a moment, looking at him warily, as if Peter might suddenly start shouting “abuse.” Peter rubbed his arm. Oro wasn’t messing around. Peter felt his face, and he winced at how tender it was. How was he going to explain the giant bruise forming on his face?
He sighed. He’d have to rely on his acting skills- and he’d never been very good at lying to Yondu. You could just tell him, a voice in his head that sounded a little like Kraglin told him. No. He could take care of it himself. And hadn’t he just made Oro stop? It was over.
Later that night, he walked onto the bridge looking sheepish, ensuring that he’d draw attention to himself. He’d seen the bruise in the mirror, and it wasn’t something that would go unnoticed.
“What the hell happened to your face?” Yondu demanded.
“Nothing, I’m fine!” Peter protested, intentionally making his voice awkward. As expected, Yondu caught him by the arm and immediately started examining his face.
“Did someone hit you?” he demanded angrily. Peter shrugged him off.
“Relax, old man, I’m fine. Don’t you think you’d know if somebody hit me?” Yondu relaxed a little at that. He clearly didn’t expect Peter to lie to him.
“Then what did happen?” Peter gave a small, embarrassed grin.
“If I tell you, I’ll never hear the end of it,” he said in a long-suffering voice. Yondu rolled his eyes.
“Out with it.” Peter sighed.
“I tripped over my boots and hit the door, all right? You were right, I should pick up my room. Happy?” Yondu snorted.
“Yeah, maybe you’ll listen next time I tell you to pick up your shit. It’s a flarkin’ health hazard,” he laughed. He looked at Peter carefully. “You go get some ice on that.” Peter nodded.
“Yeah, yeah.” He rolled his eyes and headed out of the room.
“I mean it!” Yondu called after him exasperatedly.
“Cap’n,” Kraglin asked hesitantly. Yondu gave an answering grunt. “You really reckon he ran into the wall?” Yondu paused.
“Yeah,” he admitted, “I do. But we’ll keep an eye on him, just in case.”
“Quill!” Horuz barked as he left the bridge. Peter startled. He knew he hadn’t done anything to annoy Horuz recently.
“Huh?” Horuz laid a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. Peter very nearly flinched at that, reminded of Oro cornering him in the halls.
“Somebody hurting you?” Horuz asked sternly. Peter shook his head, giving a small laugh.
“No, Horuz. I’m just clumsy; you know that.” Horuz grunted.
“You sure?” This was an out- as gruff as Horuz was, Peter knew that he could say the word and he’d kill Oro, kick him off the ship, or throw him in the brig, no questions asked. He probably wouldn’t even tell Yondu, unless Peter wanted him to. Horuz was grumpy, but he was one of the most reliable Ravagers on the ship.
“I’m sure,” Peter said after a moment. Horuz looked him over.
“Fine. But if you run into any more 'walls', you let me know. Clear?” Peter sighed and nodded. Maybe he wasn’t as good of an actor as he thought. At least Horuz was giving him space, not treating him like a child.
He was practically an adult, now. He could totally handle himself.