Yondu Week Day Three: Despair / Family / Reunion
[A/N] So I SWORE I uploaded this one, but I canât find it anywhere on my Tumblr, so I either a) didnât post it b) Tumblr was stupid and didnât save the draft or c) somehow it accidentally got deleted.
Anywho, hereâs day 3, which was inspired by headcanons by the awesome @shanoniusrex / @stakarbage , which can be found HEREÂ Â
Itâs a routine mission, but itâs Yonduâs first. Itâs a small moon that Krugarr recently found was home to a healing herb that is worth hundreds of units a leaf. The mission is to find these plants and report back to the ship before nightfall.
Yondu wants to prove that he can handle a simple look-and-find job, so he sets off to search by himself. He unintentionally wanders farther and farther away from the others as he walks along â then he gets distracted following a stream he believes might lead him to the plant. He travels further and further into the tall ferns that carpet the forest floor, and before he knows it, heâs alone in the woods â and the sun is on its way down in the sky.
âStakar?â he calls, turning around in a slow circle, looking for any signs of the party. âMartinex?â He cups his hands around his mouth. âCharlie?â
Thereâs nothing but silence. He stands stock-still for a second, then, fear rising in his throat, he tears back the way he thought heâd come. But he didnât study the planet as carefully as he should have â he doesnât know in which direction the sun sets, didnât pay attention to what side of the trees those purple flowers grow on. Dammit! he scolds himself. Ya know better than this! Less than a year with these Ravagers and ya gone soft! Idjit, ya up and forgot all yer survival training!
âStakar!â he yells as he runs. âAleta! Marty! Anybody hear me?â
As the sun dips lower and lower into the sky, he begins to slow his pace. He stops at last, panting, and listens. Thereâs no movement except for the lonely rustle of wind amongst the ferns, and no sound except the winged creatures that cackle mockingly in the trees high above. Thereâs no voices calling for him, no sound of footsteps.
They left me, he realizes in shock. I - I thought they was different. His heart sinks in his chest, and he backs up against the nearest tree, sliding down its trunk into a sitting position. Iâve been lookinâ fer âem fer hours, but they ainât been lookinâ fer me. He laughs ruefully to himself, shaking his head. Why was I foolish enough to think theyâd keep me around? His lips purse into a tight line. I ainât any good to nobody. I ainât helpful like Martinex, or kind like Charlie, or brave like the Ogords. I ainât talented or skilled or nothinâ. The Kree was right, Iâm jusâ a waste aâ space, ainât worth shit. They probably couldnât wait to get rid aâ me.
This last thought comes with something unexpected and unfamiliar â a tight feeling in his throat, and the sting of tears in his eyes. He scrubs them away angrily with a fist. I deserved this, I probably did somethinâ wrong.
He draws up his knees and rests his arms over them. He looks up to the sky. The sun is setting; he can see the three moons hanging in the sky. He needs to find shelter, and he can figure out a way to get off the planet in the coming days. His shoulders sag as he wearily climbs to his feet. No more comfortable cot, no more regular meals.
But thatâs not what hurts most, thatâs not what heâs going to miss. Martinexâs jokes, Charlieâs booming laughs, Aletaâs nearly-hidden smile of approval, Stakarâs voice, his comforting hand on his shoulder. Yondu has to get used to being alone again.
Yondu sets his jaw and begins to head towards the remaining sunlight. Git yer thoughts straight. If I can find that stream again, it might lead to a river or larger body of water. And wherever thereâs water, thereâs probably game, and possibly shelter. Hopefully he can find it before the sun is completely below the horizon.
Heâs about to start walking again when he stops. He thought he heard something. An animal, maybe? He listens, but he doesnât hear anything. He goes to take another step, when â
âYondu!â
Itâs faint. Too faint. Yondu shakes his head. âDamn imagination,â he tells himself, gritting his teeth, and takes a few more steps.
âYondu!â
He gasps, whirling on his heel. âStakar?â he whispers, not daring to believe it.
âYondu! Where are you? Yondu, answer me!â
Itâs not his imagination. âStakar?â he yells, turning towards the voice. âStakar!â
âYondu?â Thereâs the sound of someone crashing through the underbrush, and suddenly Stakar is there, about a hundred meters away. They both stop, staring at one another. âYondu!â Stakar yells, and tears towards him. Before Yondu can react, the Ravager Captain has seized him in a one-armed hug, slapping his back. âThank gods youâre all right.â He releases him quickly, knowing that Yondu still isnât used to affectionate physical contact. He takes him by the shoulders and gives him one sound shake. âDonât you run off like that again, boy! We were worried sick.â
Yonduâs eyes widen. He canât believe his ears. âYa â ya were?â
âOf course we were,â Stakar says earnestly. âWhen we couldnât find ya, we all started lookinâ for ya everywhere. Oh, speakinâ of which.â He presses a button on his wrist com. âAleta, come in.â
âDid you find him?â Her voice snaps. ââCause if you didnât and youâre wasting breath to-â
âI found him. Say hi, boy.â
âHi Aleta,â Yondu says, a little tentatively, leaning towards Stakarâs wrist.
âYondu!â Thereâs a nearly-imperceptible sigh of relief in her rough voice. âAre you hurt?â
âNo maâam,â he answers.
âThank all the gods,â she replies in a murmur they barely catch. âIâll round up the team, Stakar. Just get our boy back on board.â
âCopy that.â Stakar slings an arm around Yonduâs shoulders. âLetâs get you home, son.â
Later that evening, Yondu is sitting awake, seated against the wall, watching his crew mates as they sleep. Stakar rolls over towards him, and Yondu is surprised to see he too is awake. They catch each otherâs eyes, and Stakar quietly gets up, seating himself next to Yondu.
âYa okay, boy?â the Captain asks. âWhy ainât you sleepinâ?â
âMâ fine. Jusâ thinkinâ.â Yondu replies.
Stakar nods. After a few minutes of silence, he turns to him again. âCan I ask ya something?â
âYer the Capân, ya can ask me anythinâ ya want.â
Stakar chuckles quietly, then asks, âDown on the planet - when I said we were worried about ya, ya seemed surprised. Why was that?â
Yondu offers a shrug of one shoulder and fiddles with a loose thread on his pant leg. âGuess no oneâs ever been worried âbout me before.â
Stakar falls silent, and Yondu is worried he might have said the wrong thing. He looks up into the Captainâs eyes and sees something he wasnât expecting â sadness. Without a word, Stakarâs arms wind around him, pulling him into an embrace.
For the first time he can remember, Yondu doesnât want to escape it. They didnât leave me. They didnât want me gone. They came to find me. They want me here. I ainât worthless, not to them. He curls his fingers into Stakarâs shirt, pressing his head into the older manâs shoulder. It feels right, somehow.
He feels Stakar hand cradle the back of his head, and his quiet voice a moment later near his ear. âYondu,â he says, âYou are part of this family, I want you to understand that. And as family, you will never be left behind. I promise.â
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