Chapter title is from Gooey by Glass Animals

Shuri waited until they were well away from her lab to offer Nebula assistance. She knew the woman would at least want to save her pride from the raccoon's blast. For a few moments Nebula didn't respond to her offer, stubbornly limping forwards, letting out soft grunts of pain with each step. After a few more agonising paces forwards, however, she swung around to glare at Shuri.

"Fine." She hissed, holding out her arm stiffly for Shuri to take. Triumph flashed through the young queen as she wrapped Nebula's arm around her shoulders once again, guiding her to the interrogation rooms slowly. The cuffs she had been wearing had been destroyed by Rocket's explosion, but Shuri didn't feel that she needed to put on new ones. For now.

Shuri noticed that Nebula's body vibrated beneath her fingertips with each step, the mechanical parts whirring. It was an odd sensation, to say the least.

The two didn't speak to each other at all as they made their way down halls and staircases, finally reaching an elevator that would take them down to the centre of the mountain, where prisoners were held for interrogation. Nebula panted slightly inside the elevator as she caught her breath, eyes half closed, her metal and non-metal eyebrows drawn together in a frown.

Shuri watched her carefully. She wasn't sure how to feel, exactly. The discovery that Nebula was the daughter of the universe's worst enemy was certainly a shock, and Shuri had a million questions about it, but her emotions regarding Nebula's presence were definitely mixed at the moment.

Once the elevator arrived at their destination, Shuri led Nebula to one of the interrogation rooms and unlocked the door, before bringing the other woman inside and letting her slump down into a metal chair, across a table from Shuri's seat.

Nebula lifted her leg, examining it with a wince. It was bent at almost a 45-degree angle, and Shuri could see wires poking out at the break.

"Go and get the tools from last time." Nebula grunted, letting her leg fall back down with a grimace. "Please." She added as an afterthought.

Shuri narrowed her eyes. She didn't have to take orders from the alien woman who was currently her prisoner. She readied herself to refuse, but at seeing the woman's pained expression, she felt a slightly unwanted pang of sympathy twist her heart and knew she had to fetch the tools for her.

But did the alien deserve her sympathy? She was the daughter of the man that had killed all those people. Her people. Her brother. Her mother. The raccoon had said she was a criminal. The thoughts jolted her out of her sympathy, and she felt an unexpected coldness towards the woman before her.

'Wait! SHE didn't kill them!' Shuri reminded herself. 'But she could have been involved in killing them? But I don't know if that's true! But that doesn't mean she's entitled to my help… I can't let her suffer like she is though, can I?'

Nebula tilted her head at her, eyes flashing at Shuri's hesitation. "You blame me, don't you?"

Shuri jumped at her words, guilt sweeping through her. She took a moment to compose herself, carefully controlling her voice so that no anger seeped in. "No. But… There are still things I need to find out. I don't know what to think of you until then."

Nebula looked away. "Tools first. Then I'll talk."

Shuri felt a stab of annoyance. She was in no position to be making demands. But there was something about this alien woman that fascinated her. She was rude, graceless and mean, sure, but Shuri could tell she was smart. Shuri respected intelligent people. Nebula had information that she needed right now. So, she inclined her head in a small nod before turning and heading back to her lab, locking the security doors behind her. She bumped into Okoye on the way back up.

"Okoye! What are you doing here? You're supposed to be watching Rocket!" Shuri exclaimed.

"The raccoon is being watched by Thor. They left shortly after you did." Okoye reassured her. "I came down to make sure you were alright. Did the alien give you any trouble?"

Shuri's skin prickled slightly at hearing Okoye say that word. Alien. Like it was a bad thing. Given their past run-ins with aliens, it probably was, though. Shaking off her discomfort, Shuri waved her hand dismissively.

"No trouble. Not that she could give me any even if she wanted to. She's injured. I'm going to fetch some tools so she can repair herself."

Okoye looked surprised. "Really? You're going to help her?"

Shuri frowned. "She hasn't done anything wrong." She pointed out, pushing down her own misgivings. "Besides, she won't talk until I give her the tools."

Okoye narrowed her eyes. "I could probably make her answer our questions," she growled.

"No, it's fine. She's in pain. And uh… I'd like to talk to her privately, at first. You can stand outside and watch and listen and I'll call you in when I'm done."

"But that's not how it's done!" Okoye protested. "When dealing with an interrogation, we –" she broke off when she noticed Shuri's expression. Okoye ducked her head, embarrassed. "Yes my queen. I will wait here for your return." She mumbled. Shuri nodded at her gratefully and continued her journey back to her lab.

It was empty when she arrived, and she found her tools back on the bench where she had left them with Nebula, except they were… different. Absolutely, perfectly spotless, arranged neatly in a line on the table. Shuri was always considerably clean when it came to her work, and often cleaned her tools, but they hadn't looked this good in a long time. Had Nebula done this? She found this thought surprising, and felt a hint of warmth return for the strange woman. Shuri made a mental note to ask her about it later. At a more appropriate time. She also spotted the scanner on the table, and wondered if the data about Nebula's body had been wiped from it already. She made another mental note to check it after the interrogation. Yeesh, so much stuff to remember.

Arms full of tools, Shuri descended back to the interrogation rooms, finding Okoye right where she had left her. The woman's back was straight, and she had an incredibly serious expression on her face. Shuri hadn't seen her look this formal in a long time. Shuri nodded at her with a small, kind smile.

"I'll tell you when to come in," she promised. Okoye dipped her head and stood beside the door as Shuri tapped in the code to the security locks before stepping through the now open doors. She sealed the doors behind her again, not that she expected Nebula to make a break for it in any case.

"Here." She dropped the tools on the table in front of Nebula before taking a seat across from her in the other chair. Nebula instantly began rummaging through them, frowning as she searched for the right one. The white lights in the small room glinted off of her bionic parts, and Shuri gazed at them thoughtfully. They were functional…

But they could still be improved.

Pushing these thoughts to the back of her mind for now, Shuri cleared her throat to gain Nebula's attention, before diving straight in.

"So, you're Thanos' daughter?" She questioned, a little bit unsure of how else to begin.

Nebula didn't answer for a few moments, lifting up her broken leg and inspecting it careful. Then, she nodded slowly. "Formerly known. Still recognised as it across most galaxies, however."

"Formerly?"

"My sister and I betrayed Thanos and left him a few years ago." Finally finding the right tool, Nebula used it to pry open a panel on her leg, wincing, before pulling out a few wires.

"Your sister? One of Rocket's friends, and part of the… the Guardians, right?"

"Gamora was one of them, yes." Nebula's voice was terse, eyes trained on her leg. She didn't appear to enjoy talking about her sister. Shuri knew how it felt.

"I'm… sorry for your loss." Shuri offered, tilting he head.

"So am I. It shouldn't have happened."

"No it shouldn't."

There was silence between them for a minute or two as Shuri thought of what to say next.

"Do you have any information regarding Thanos' whereabouts?" She asked, deciding to cut to the chase.

Nebula snorted. "No. I wouldn't still be on this dumb planet if I did."

Shuri elected to ignore the comment.

"Were you aware of Thanos' plan to wipe out half of the universe?" She questioned instead.

Nebula hissed softly as her leg suddenly sparked, shaking her hand irritably. She glanced at Shuri, then returned her attention back to her leg. "Yes, I was. I was a part of it, once."

Surprise and anger flashed through Shuri. "What role did you play in furthering Thanos' plan?" She asked, struggling to control her voice.

"I was sent to look for the infinity stones. I was almost sent to acquire the power stone for my father, but… my sister took over the job, and that is when she ran away. I betrayed Thanos too, a few days following."

Shuri tried to consider her next questions carefully, but emotion was threatening to overwhelm her. She had to find out the exact role this woman took in her brother's death. "What else did you do while working under Thanos?"

Nebula paused her tinkering momentarily, her gaze flickering up to meet Shuri's. "I was a galaxy class assassin. I killed people. Lots of people. Whoever my father wanted." She curled her lip suddenly, before continuing bitterly. "I was never good enough, though."

Good enough… at killing people? "Could you please elaborate?"

Nebula's face twisted into a mixture of anger and pain. "I was never good enough for him. Gamora was his favourite child. I was always in her shadow. Every time we trained and fought against each other, I lost to her. And every time I lost to her, I lost a part of myself." She leaned towards Shuri with a sudden wild intensity. "Thanos took pieces of me. He replaced them with metal to make me stronger, he said. I was awake and aware throughout most of his… modifications. I could feel it all." Her eyes gained a haunted a look, and she took a deep breath before continuing. "I can still feel it. And that is why he must die. He doesn't deserve to live after what he has done to me."

Shuri blinked at the woman before her, shock and horror warring for dominance inside her. Thanos did this to her? Her own father?

"What do you mean you can still feel it?" Shuri whispered, her eyes flicking over all of Nebula's exposed bionic parts, momentarily forgetting the interrogation. She could still feel all that?

Nebula just stared at her, jaw clenched. She didn't reply, and after a little while she jerked her gaze back to her leg, yanking out another wire with more force than was probably necessary.

Shuri shook her head, trying to expel the swirl of horrific thoughts running through her mind about what Nebula may have experienced and turning her focus back to the interrogation.

"So you weren't on Thanos' side? At all?" Shuri asked.

Nebula paused, a look of anger crossing her face once again. "No." She forced through gritted teeth. "Unless you include the involvement he forced upon me."

Shuri sat back in her chair. "I will not." She decided. "It is not my place to judge you for crimes you have committed under someone else's hand. I will judge you for your actions following your betrayal."

Nebula huffed. "You might not judge me, but I'm sure others have and will continue to do so." She blinked and tilted her head to glance up at Shuri. "I am a wanted target across the galaxies." She told her, suddenly seeming uncharacteristically uneasy. "Especially after what has occurred. Even here, on Terra. The people want to catch who is responsible for killing their families. I'm Thanos' last remaining child, and people will want my head. If they were to find out I was here…"

Shuri blinked at her, realising she was right. The rest of the world couldn't know that Wakanda was harbouring an alien, especially not one as closely related to the recent disaster as Nebula was.

Shuri nodded slowly. "As far as the world is concerned, you aren't here." She promised. Some of the tension eased from Nebula's shoulders, and she gave her a short nod before returning her attention back to her broken leg. It sparked again when she tried to work on it more, and she grunted, out of pain or irritation Shuri was not sure. She was once again reminded that, apparently, Nebula could still feel the pain from her modifications.

Shuri gazed at her blankly, unable to even fathom the pain she must be feeling.

Nebula suddenly stopped, hanging her head and sucking in a sharp breath. Shuri wasn't prepared for what she said next. "He killed my sister." She hissed. "Because of me. It's my fault that she's dead. And it's my fault that half of the universe is gone now, too." Shock pulsed through Shuri, along with another wave of grief and anger.

"What do you mean it's your fault?"

Nebula shook her head slowly. "Gamora knew where the soul stone was, but wouldn't tell my father its location. So he tortured and threatened to kill me to get the information out of her. She told him to save me. I should be the one dead. Not her." She glanced up at Shuri dully. "Not your brother."

Shame washed over Shuri. Nebula blamed herself for her sister's death. For everyone's deaths. But it wasn't really her fault.

"Thor's brother – you know Thor, right? Right, well – Thor's brother, Loki, gave up the space stone to Thanos to save his brother's life. Thanos killed him, too." Shuri whispered, remembering the story that Thor had told her of Loki's heroism. "Your sister saved your life just like Loki saved his brother's. They payed the same price because they loved their siblings. You're no more at fault than Thor is, if this is the case." Nebula blinked up at Shuri, pain and anger visible on her face. More than just physical, Shuri knew. She mourned her sister, just as Shuri mourned her brother. And her mother. Shuri knew she could not condemn Nebula for being raised by an evil man.

Shuri's gaze flitted over the rest of Nebula's body. She could not do much about Nebula's emotional pain, but maybe she could do something about her physical pain. But that was a conversation for another day. It was time to do an 'official' interrogation.

"Okoye, you can come inside now." Shuri called over her shoulder, not taking her eyes off of Nebula.

She heard the door slide open, and Nebula dropped her leg with a wince at Okoye's arrival. The other woman sat down in the seat next to Shuri.

"We're going to take down Thanos." Shuri began. "Tell us what you know about him. His forces, anything."

Nebula raised her eyebrows and sat back in surprise. "Shouldn't the rest of you be here?" She asked drily. "I'm not going to repeat myself to them, so if you want to start making plans, I suggest you either write down what I say or bring the others in here."

Okoye curled her lip. "That is no way to speak to a queen!" She spat, slamming her fist on the table between them.

Nebula looked unimpressed. "I don't care." She replied bluntly, and Okoye looked like she wanted to punch the blue cyborg. Nebula crossed her arms before continuing. "I'm not going to waste time explaining things twice. And before you think of torturing information out of me, I can tell you now that it won't work."

Okoye sat back and exchanged a swift, shocked glance with Shuri. "We weren't going to torture you." Okoye stated, looking slightly offended at the thought.

"Then what are you waiting for?" Nebula asked, and Shuri almost grinned at her boldness and the look on Okoye's face. "I'm tired of waiting around on this planet. I came for allies, and we have done nothing. Like I said, if you're going to start planning, everyone should be here first. I heard that you're all… heroes, or whatever the equivalent of that is on this planet. So your information could be just as useful as mine."

Okoye stared at her silently, before glancing at Shuri questioningly. Shuri cleared her throat, nodding.

"Okay. We'll arrange a meeting. You can't be released yet, since we don't have all of the information we need yet. But if you're willing to wait, we'll wait."

Nebula didn't look too pleased about being locked up, but she nodded tersely in agreement.

"Good." Shuri clapped her hands together, feeling satisfied. "We'll hold the meeting after Tony wakes up."

SPECIAL THANKS:

ELAY GRIMM: Here's the next chapter! Sorry for being inactive, I hope you don't mind too much!