The Girl Who Held the Universe in her Hands | marvel [1] ✔

TEN

CHAPTER TEN
' EGO'S CHILDREN . '

Ash stopped behind Gamora with her hands pushed into her pockets. She had followed at the same distance since she stormed from their quarters, keeping back to allow her some time. Her sister stared at the sunset, and Ash began to kick at the grass as boredom took over.

"Are you, uh, are you done brooding?" she asked, spinning around and catching half of Gamora's glare. "Sorry."

"It's just Quill," she seethed, lowering to the ground with a huff.

Ash moved forward and sat beside her. "Well, what did Quill do?"

"I confronted him about how wrong this feels. He accused me of being jealous of him being the strong one."

"I can kill him if you want?"

Gamora looked over at her, but Ash focused on pulling strands of grass from the ground by her feet. "No, not yet," she replied. "I can see why he was defensive. I'm surprised you didn't act the same way."

Ash shrugged, keeping a hold of a particularly long strand and wrapping it around her fingers. "No, I don't like it here, really."

"How come?"

"Just feel on edge." The plant snapped in her hand, and she tossed it to the side. "It shouldn't be too long 'till Rocket comes back with the Milano, but I can see Peter wanting to stay."

"How does it feel having a blood relative?"

Ash sighed, going back to pulling at the grass. "At first, it was nice, but..." She shook her head and fell quiet.

"But what?"

"Thanos always put us against each other, and I can't now look at Peter and not compare us. I look for weaknesses and I let the things he does get under my skin. But then again, he's more annoying than the others were, and he has more personality. At least he hasn't dangled me upside down to see how long I could last without passing out yet."

Gamora made a noise of agreement. "Maw really didn't like you."

"None of them did," Ash countered quietly.

"You got Noah out of it, though."

She remained quiet, seeming as if she didn't hear her.

"Ash?"

"Oh, sorry. Yeah, yeah, I guess I did."

If Gamora noticed her discomfort, she didn't relent. "That boy was head over heels for you."

"Sure was."

"What do you mean?" Gamora's eyes narrowed.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does, Ash," Gamora snapped. "He gave his life for you. What does that tell you?"

"He did not give his life for me!" Ash snapped. "He didn't die, Gamora. Thanos murdered him. He literally tore him apart because of me. Yes, he was everything and more, but I can't think about him without feeling guilty, okay? It's easier to not think about him at all."

"Ash-"

"-Shut up."

"Excuse me-"

Ash leapt to her feet, turning in a circle. "I said shut up."

They both whipped around, looking towards a spacecraft flying straight towards them. They erupted into a sprint as it started to fire, fleeing from the M-ship, which sent chunks of land exploding on either side of them. They leapt into a ditch, landing hard with the ship swooping a couple of feet above them.