lady stardust.

20. the great gig in the sky

When Ziggy awoke again, the world was pure white, it was almost blinding. She stirred, feeling like her memory was hazy of what had happened. Slowly, she remembered her hands fading like dust — she lifted them, shifting them in her sight. Pinching herself, she felt real. She had all her fingers, so she wasn't dreaming.

She remembers the Spider kid fading, Strange fading. Mantis and Drax had gone too, but she never saw what had happened to Peter, Tony, or Nebula, if they survived. Ziggy stood, glancing around.

"Mantis? Drax?" She calls, stepping forward. Was this the end? Was this heaven? "Peter? Strange?"

Looking down again, Ziggy was suddenly in a gown, the gown she had worn when she first escaped Dermitris years ago. The pink was as vibrant before she had fled her planet, and she smoothed her hands over the fabric. She was suddenly hesitant of where she was, wondering why she was now in the past.

As she walked further, things began to appear to her. Dermitris reformed in front of her eyes, back to its full glory. She was at the top of her castle, where her parents were murdered in front of her. She saw two figures standing ahead, looking out over the balcony.

"Hello?" Ziggy called, walking forward.

One figure turned toward her, and with a few more steps, they cleared out and Ziggy could see who they were. Her mother smiled at her, and Ziggy's heart dropped. "Ziggy dear, what took you so long to get here?"

"Mother?" Ziggy whispered, her voice suddenly thick as her throat tightened.

"Cersei, leave the girl alone. She has a lot to live for." Midas, her father, spoke as he turned to face Ziggy too.

"Dad?"

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Cersei smiles softly at her girl, stepping forward. "You look like you haven't seen us in years."

Ziggy didn't bother to comment that it was because she hasn't. She rushed forward, swooping into her parents arms as she hugged them. Ziggy sobbed, her shoulders shaking as she held them.

"Oh, Ziggy." Her father murmured, stroking her hair as he held her.

"I missed you guys so much." She sobbed.

"We missed you too, of course. We love you so much." Cersei spoke.

Ziggy pulled away, wiping her eyes. "Why am I here? Am I dead?"

"No, not yet." Cersei told her. "This is just the in between. You still have plenty left to do."

"So am I going back?" She asked, confused.

"You just have to wait for your signal. It shouldn't be long." Her father explained.

Ziggy nodded thoughtfully before glancing at her parents. "I wish you guys could meet my friends. You'd like them."

"We've seen everything you've done, we already know them. We appreciate so much how they care for you and took you in." Cersei says.

"Really? Erm... What do you think of Peter?" She asked, curious to know what they thought of her boyfriend.

Midas laughs to himself. "He's something else, isn't he? I can see why you like him though. He treats you very well, we can appreciate that."

Ziggy smiles.

"I'm glad you have people you can count on." Cersei smiles at her.

"If you guys are here, in the actual afterlife, while I guess I'm just passing through, can you guys see the future? Do you know what happens, if we win? If we beat Thanos?" Ziggy asked.