2: Got to Begin Again
The atmosphere was hazy and the large expanse of skin that Faye's skimpy outfit permitted was misted with steam. The metal of the gun was pressed back against her bare collarbone as she snuck up to the wall next to the shower. Its occupant continued to wash undisturbed as if the sound of the rushing water over his body really was enough to drown out all of his worries, all of his cares. Faye's turquoise eyes narrowed as she prepared herself to apprehend him. In the back of her mind, a little part of her was trying to convince herself to put the gun down and go back into the next room, that what she'd heard on the answering machine had been a delusion, that this man couldn't possibly be in league with Vicious. He'd been so kind and brave and heroic…
Faye, get a grip! People like that and the things they do are fiction, She mentally chastised herself, this is the real world. People will lie, cheat, and use you for a woolong, no skin off their noses. You gotta fight to survive alone in this world.
The decision made, Faye took a deep breath and flung herself forward. Desperately, she made a ferocious grab for the shower curtain and threw the light purple fabric roughly to the side while raising the pistol in her other hand. It took a few seconds for her mind to put together the conflicting messages traveling from her eyes through her nerves to the brain, but when it all finally clicked for her, Faye hesitated and her eyes opened as wide as they could go.
What? A Woman?
"Faye, Faye. Faye, Faye puff, puff smoke, smoke, Faye, Faye!"
Faye jolted into a grudging wakefulness on one of the sofas in the Bebop's common area. First the bright overhead lights came into focus. Then a looming coffee colored shadow whose orange hair was darkened by the overhead lamps appeared, grinning from cheekbone to cheekbone.
"Morning, up, up, Faye, Faye."
Edward was balancing from foot to foot on the floor above her like some sort of sugar fed monkey. Beside Ed, Ein sat staring at Faye in that way dogs sometimes do, like they can see into your soul or something even when all they want is a little something in the bottom of their food bowl. She looked away. It made her uneasy.
After a few seconds of this abuse, Faye groaned and flung one of her arms across her eyes, "Go away, Ed. What does it take for a girl to get a little beauty rest around here?"
"Well, sleeping in your own bed might be a good place to start."
Faye uncovered her eyes enough to send a glare at the man who was sitting on the sofa on her opposite side. Jet shrugged his broad shoulders and went back to reading the computer file in front of him.
"You asked," he defended solemnly.
The common room was silent for a couple of minutes then Faye sighed loudly.
"We haven't had a lead in months. I'm starting to get bored with this dump," Faye said, then her stomach gurgled loudly earning her the undivided attention of the rest of the group, "And hungry."
Edward plopped back on the coffee table, all of her former energy expended. She stretched out beside the computer hugging her unhappy middle tightly for all it was worth.
"Edward wants food too," she said.
Ein whimpered sympathetically.
"Cut it out you three. We're not too far from Ganymede now," Jet rationalized going back to his computer. "Spike said he'd fly out there as soon as we came within range. Until then I'm afraid we're all just going to have to stick it out."
"Easy for you to say, you're a man, but what'll become of a thin gorgeous gal like me? I'll waste away," Faye said dramatically.
"Waste away," Ed echoed pitifully.
"I doubt that," Spike said, walking down the stairs into the room.
Faye sat up on her elbows and scowled. "No one asked you," she snipped.
"Well, then maybe I'll just have to keep my opinions to myself," Spike said, fishing for a cigarette in his pocket then settling it into the corner of his mouth before he reached back into his pocket for the lighter.
Faye snorted, "Like that'll happen."
Spike shrugged his shoulders, lighting the cigarette and taking his first real drag off of the thing, "You're the one who likes to go on and on about how she's feeling all the time."
"At least I don't spend all of my time brooding over a girl who's not in my life anymore," Faye said indignantly.
Spike moved quickly reaching into his waistband for a gun which wasn't there. Then, almost as quickly, he rethought his position. Slowly, he lowered his hand back to his side and took a tense step forward.
"You take that back!" He shouted.
By this time Faye too had moved, throwing herself over the back of the couch and standing with it as a firm barrier between her and the rest of the room.
"Make me!" Faye challenged, setting her hands on her hips.
The loud clang of metal against metal made everyone in the room temporarily forget about their personal arguments as Jet's mechanical arm slammed a dent into the coffee table.
"Will you both knock it off! I can't think with all of this racket."
Twin voices answered accusingly back at him.
"He started it!"
"No, she started it!"
"Liar!"
"You're the liar!"
One of Jet's eyebrows twitched as he tried to retain control of the minor headache beginning to well up behind his eyes. Finally, it became too much. He stood and walked through the heated bickering, up the stairs, and into another room. Faye and Spike stopped arguing long enough to watch him leave. Then they started back in again.
"Look what you did!" Spike accused.
"What I did? Ugh! You're such an annoying brainless lunkhead…"
"Lunkhead, lunkhead!" Ed chorused.
"Be quiet, Ed!" Spike yelled, but without any real threat behind it.
Ed giggled loudly, Ein barked, and Faye laughed at Spike's frustration. Feeling maligned by the whole lot of them, Spike shoved his hands into his pockets roughly and turned his back on his comrades.
"Hm, women," he muttered as he strode into the hallway and turned a corner out of sight.
Faye plopped back down on the couch and comfortably folded her arms behind her head, content in her victory. She closed her eyes and as if it had somehow been waiting for her, an image of twin blue eyes, half open and intense came into her mind. They had been smiling down at her then and perhaps somewhere they still were. Faye sighed. Gren. That man drove her to distraction and not always in a good way. Now more than ever, she was convinced that there was no one like him in the entire solar system.
A high pitched hum came from the table beside her and Faye opened her eyes. Ed was sitting Indian style in front of the computer and flipping through screen after screen of smiley faces.
"Edward found you!" Ed squealed.
Faye sat up, intrigued by the possible smell of money, "What did you find?"
Ed pointed at the mug shot plastered over the smiling screen, "Him!"
Faye leaned forward and narrowed her eyes, reading the name below a picture of a pale, dark featured man, "Dominic Demirovic, huh? Who is he?"
"Edward knows, hmmm," Ed read on. "Wanted for extortion, theft, and murder on three planets."
Faye perked up at that and squeezed Ed's shoulder, "For how much?"
"300,000,000 Woolongs," Ed chirped helpfully.
In a fluid motion, Faye reached forward, scooped up Edward and twirled her around.
"300,000,000! Do you know what I could do with that kind of money?" Faye burst out excitedly, clutching Edward to her chest, "I could buy a mansion by the sea and have my every whim catered to by blond suntanned boys in speedos. And the best part is I'd never have to set foot on this hunk of junk ever again!"
"Um…Edward can't breathe!" Ed wheezed from between Faye's breasts.
"Oops." Faye unceremoniously dropped Ed on the floor and the kid squirmed to her feet. Faye leaned down to her and put her hand on her shoulder, "Now, Ed, I need you to promise not to tell Jet or Spike about this okay?"
"A secret? Faye, Faye, why keep it a secret Faye, Faye?"
"Um, because it's going to be a surprise, yeah that's it," Faye lied, coming up with the words as she went. "I'm going to drop down to Mars, nab this guy, and bring back all of the money. Guess how happy that would make everyone?"
"Edward supposes, but Edward thinks that Jet will also want to know where Faye, Faye has run off to all of the sudden…"
Faye waved the words away, "Nonsense, Ed, they'll be so excited when I come back with this guy Jet will forget he was even angry."
Edward thought for a bit then, "Alright, Edward will help. What about you, Ein?"
Ein barked and the deal was sealed. They were going to Mars.