30 I See Skies Of Blue

This chapter has a song, but it's not necessary to listen to it.

However, those who want to, you might find the chapter more enjoyable and immersive by listening along.

For those who are going to do that, just wait for the moment when Tony asks Jarvis to play it.

Song: Louis Armstrong - What A Wonderful World.

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"Can I hug you?" I asked.

"Huh?! Me?" Rocket couldn't react properly and pointed to himself, uncertain.

"Yes, you. You're cute and very pitiable." I said, and without waiting for his response, I hugged him.

Rocket is still very young at this point. If it were him in the future, he'd probably bite me and shoot at me.

But this young one didn't. He couldn't even react and just stayed frozen in my embrace.

"You three, come with me. I want to talk to you." I said as I walked with Rocket in my arms to a private room.

The three of them followed quickly.

Upon entering the room, I sat down while still caressing Rocket's head.

"Please, make yourselves comfortable." I said, pointing to the sofa in front of me.

They did as I said cautiously. The two girls had a little trouble getting on the couch, so I had to put Rocket on the couch and help the two of them. They were initially frightened when I picked them up, but they calmed down when they saw that I only wanted to help.

I noticed that Lylla and Floor were surprised as they sat

Unfortunately, Teefs couldn't experience this as he lived in a wheelchair.

I picked up Rocket in my embrace again and sat down, placing him on my lap. He didn't resist, he just looked at me in confusion.

"Look, what I'm about to tell you is kind of a secret, so don't tell others." I said, looking at them.

They were surprised but still nodded.

"My name is Tony Stark. And I kind of saw your future." I said with a serious face.

"What?!" They whispered, surprised.

"The universe is bigger than you think. Seeing the future isn't that difficult. My family, for example, has an artifact that allows us to see the future. And the future I saw made me very sad." I said with a sad expression.

"Today, Lylla, Floor, and Teefs would have died. Rocket would have torn the High Evolutionary's face in fury and then fled. Then, in the coming years, he would live in sadness, hating the fact that he was born and considering himself a monster because he believed he was formed from a mix of beings, in addition to the High Evolutionary's words that called him a monster and imperfect. Alone, Rocket would always live with his life at risk, stealing and killing to survive." I said, looking at them.

They were all shocked. They put their hands over their mouths and looked at Rocket with sadness.

Fortunately, they were very young, so it wasn't difficult for them to believe my words.

"D-Did I cause the death of my friends?" Rocket looked down as tears streamed down his face.

"No! The High Evolutionary did. If you hadn't done anything, all of you would have died in an even worse way." I said, looking seriously at him.

He looked at me and wiped away his tears. Then he nodded.

I affectionately stroked his head.

"I haven't finished your story, Rocket. On your journey, you meet Groot, a Flora Colossus. He became your first friend after you escaped. The Flora Colossus is a race of tree-like people who only speak the words 'I am Groot,' in that specific order. You need to live with them to understand the meaning of their words or study their language. Universal translators don't work, which is interesting." I explained and I ended up dispersing.

But looking into their bright eyes as I told the story, I guess it's fine.

"So, somehow, you and he met and became friends and partners. You did everything to make a living and have fun. Then one day, you encountered a guy with a bounty of... He called himself the Star-Lord... It was in the prison that..." I began to tell them the long story.

They listened attentively, and whenever they heard about Rocket tricking others or coming out on top, they would applaud and jump happily, filled with laughter. When sad scenes occurred, they shed tears.

"So, I asked to take his mechanical leg just for fun?" Rocket asked with bright eyes while sitting on my leg.

"Yep." I said, with a gentle smile for him.

"Haha! That was really funny." Rocket chuckled cutely.

"Hahaha! Rocket is the best!" Floor rolled over onto her belly while laughing.

Well, it's not as fun as she makes it sound, but it's cute. I can't judge the fun of a little girl who has always been trapped in a cage.

"Pfff! Rocket is amazing!" Lylla laughed and said with admiration.

"Amazing! Hohoho!" Teefs also exclaimed, clapping her hands and laughing.

In this way, I spent a few hours telling stories to them.

"... That's how Rocket found purpose and redemption from his past." I finished the story, seeing their eyes filled with tears.

I also saw uncertainty. They didn't know what to do now.

"But now, I've already changed your future. And I've really taken a liking to you all. I want you to come live with me. I want to take care of you. You've suffered enough. I want you to be happy now." I said while caressing Rocket's head, who hugged me and started crying.

The others were also crying, partly out of sadness for their past and partly out of hope for their future.

After a while, they all agreed to come with me.

"Jarvis, I'll leave you and Carol to handle everything here." I said with a smile, waved my hand, and opened a portal.

"Wow!" The four of them reacted with stars in their eyes.

The portal I opened led to the entrance of my mansion, so when we stepped out, we saw a beautiful sea and blue sky.

"S-Sky!" Lylla murmured, hypnotized, looking up at the sky.

The others weren't any better, except Rocket, who had seen the sky through the High Evolutionary's window.

"Well, you can keep watching or come inside to eat. The sky isn't going anywhere." I said gently with a smile. I put Rocket on the ground next to his friends and entered the house.

"Jarvis, prepare the best food you can. Although I don't know what they like to eat..." I hesitated.

"Well, prepare a little of everything. Try to focus on foods that their respective species like, along with the foods that the girls and I like. Also, call Pepper and tell her to try to come home earlier today. Tell her there's something important at home." I ordered. 

[Yes, sir.] Jarvis replied simply.

I sat on the sofa overlooking the balcony, where I saw the four little friends sitting, talking, laughing, and crying while looking at the sky.

"J., play 'What a Wonderful World' by Louis Armstrong for me and my little friends out there." I said after thinking for a moment.

[Playing.] Jarvis responded.

[♫ I see trees of green

  Red roses too

  I see them bloom… ♫ ]

I looked at the four of them outside, and after they were surprised, I saw them fall silent and begin to sway their bodies slowly, shoulder to shoulder, as they gazed at the sky.

"Was it because of them that you were looking for Counter-Earth?" Carol entered the room and asked.

"Hmm." I agreed with a murmur and continued, "You've gone through the procedure?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Yao and I have already undergone the procedure. The new power is really good. But don't change the subject, Tony!" Carol responded but got the topic back on track.

"I've been wanting to ask you for a while now. Sometimes you seem to know the future as much as Yao does. I know you don't like to use the Time Stone to see the future, so how?" Carol looked at me, curious.

Well, we've been a couple for years. It's hard for her not to notice some things.

And unlike Yao, who loves to see the future, I feel that seeing the future of what I do can stifle my creative process. Seeing the end of a project cuts many corners, But you end up losing a lot along the way.

Of course, seeing the future is essential for protecting my family, but since Yao does that for me, there's no need for me to harm myself by revisiting the future and not trusting my partner.

She'll see the same things I do, so just a warning from her, and everything can be corrected.

"Don't worry, I'll talk about it when everyone arrives." I said seriously to her.

I'll never talk about my reincarnation. There's no reason, and I don't want to. But I can talk about some other things.

As I pulled Carol into a hug and kissed her forehead, Yao entered the room and sat beside me.

I embraced both of them, and we stayed in comfortable silence as we looked at the 'fantastic four' outside swaying their bodies.

[♫ Yes, I think to myself

  What a wonderful world. ♫]