Accidents Do Happen
Disclaimer: I don't own the original Firefly characters, but Aaron, Jackson, and Laychen are mine.
Rating: R, for a brief adult situation, violence, and swearing
Summary: When an accident leaves the Serenity with a new crew member, Mal is less than happy.
Author's Note: I don't know the world of Firefly exactly, so if I mention something that doesn't exist in this universe or is wrong, please review and tell me!
*******************************************************
The bed was cold. It was only the middle of the night. The bed was usually only cold in the really early morning when Zoe got up. Wash rolled over, sleepy and even slightly annoyed.
"Zoe?" He murmured drowsily, pulling a thin white sheet up to his neck. When she didn't respond, he opened the eye that wasn't pressed into the pillow.
"What the hell?" Wash reached over and grabbed some loose pajamas off the floor, pulling them on under the covers. No sense is wasting what good heat there was left. 'Why do I always have to be so cold blooded?' He wondered, sliding off the mattress.
Tiptoeing over the icy floor, he made his way to the only place Zoë would possibly be. The kitchen. His instincts were correct, for there she sat, spinning a plate in uncountable circles on the table. Her finger glided effortlessly along the ceramic blue, keeping up just enough rhythm to hold the flatten sphere is harmony.
Wash took a step forward, "Hon?"
Zoë turned slowly in his direction, recognizing the anxious voice of her husband, "Yeah?"
"What're you doing up so late?"
"Couldn't sleep. After that run today, the adrenaline is still running through my system. Like drinking a few cups of coffee before bedtime."
"Oh."
A long silence followed, husband and wife looking for the right words. Suddenly, Wash noticed that Zoë was shivering, and he reached over and ran his hand down the length of her bare arm.
"Why don't you come back to bed? You can sit up as late as you want, but at least you'll be warm."
She nodded and they rose simultaneously. Walking back to their room, Zoë grasped her husband's hand in her own, and a devilish smile crossed her face,
"Maybe there's a way to get rid of all that adrenaline." Her voice was tantalizingly low, and Wash felt the heat from it melt into him, right to the very core of his being. The suggestion, or, at least how he'd interpreted her suggestion, was too good to pass up. Inside the door frame, a long kiss was started. Having the greater 'energy of the moment' of the two, Zoë pulled her husband into the room and slammed the door behind them.
Between the lover's talk, and the scattered bits of Chinese that found their way into the whispers, the pair made it to the bed, collapsing. Wash leaned back against the pillow, too tired to put up a fight as to who got to be on top. Besides, it always seemed to be better when Zoë dominated; she was the warrior woman he loved.
"I love you." He whispered, as she removed his pajamas. It earned him a tender smile, along with her removing her top,
"I love you too, baby." Came her voice. Hands began to roam everywhere, and Wash tilted his head back in ecstasy as she began to move above him. An audible moan was silenced by her lips,
"We can't wake up the others."
The response was a masculine groan of pleasure as he gripped the sheets beneath him. Everything seemed to be moving faster, everything was getting more and more intense. Emotions that had been only tiny pieces of sensory memory were returning to the surface in this embrace.
"Oh Wash…" Was the excited and almost unheard whisper that escaped her mouth. He couldn't reply, as he moved his hips to meet hers for the final time, reaching his climax. Zoë wasn't far behind, and a few continuing motions brought her to his level of pleasure.
"Oh God." He gasped, holding the tired Zoë to his chest. She repeated his comment and then lay in a breathless stillness against him.
"Still got too much energy to sleep?" Joked Wash, stroking her curly brown hair, but his wife was already slightly snoring in his aching arms.
************************************************************
(2 months later)
Mal's boots made heavy noises as he strode through the cargo bay. Jayne and Zoë were waiting for him. Jayne looked worse for wear, bleeding from several different cuts. Zoe, on the other hand, had a small gash in her forehead.
"If I'd have known we were gonna get in a fight over one lousy engine part we could've just bought, I'd have stayed on the ship." Jayne snarled, wiping a spot of blood off the barrel of his gun.
Mal shook his head and turned away from Jayne to Zoe, "Do we have what we need?"
"Yes."
"Then why don't you two go to the infirmary? Have Simon patch up some of those cuts?"
Jayne clenched his jaw in anger, "Well then, ladies first."
Zoe ignored the murderous tone in his voice and marched away to the infirmary. She didn't need the good doctor Tam on this one, just a band-aide. However, she guessed that this was Mal's way of having his two 'most skilled at avoiding physicals' officers get a yearly checkup. Following orders wasn't her problem, doctors just weren't her favorite people.
She passed most of the other crew members, most working, on her way to the infirmary. Once there, Simon invited her inside graciously,
"Zoe, here for a little help?"
"A little, doctor."
"While you're here I'm going to run a few basic tests, just to make sure everything is normal."
"Nothing is normal. This has been a long time coming. Someone else is here. Someone else is here. Someone…" River, who had been curled up on the side bed, trailed off.
Zoe watched the young girl, her eyes holding a touch of sadness and curiosity. 'It must be a little bit of a curse to know everything.'
"River, who else is here?" Asked Simon, briefly lifting his eyes from the needle he was prepping.
"Too young, can't tell. Can't tell, too young." The recitation continued as River turned to face them. Her bluish skin and pale features almost made her look dead underneath her brown, tangled hair.
Now Zoe was curious, "Is this person dangerous?"
"No, no. Too young, helpless."
Suddenly, Zoe inhaled sharply as the needle pierced the skin over the vein that was so prominent at her elbow joint, "Well, good to know that we don't have to go searching for this helpless, young person right away. Simon, when you're done with that will you tell the Captain?"
River rocked back and forth, rubbing a pain in her hand, "That's no good. The Captain couldn't find this person." River looked as though she might smile, but it disappeared as she retreated in her psychic mind, her refuge.
"Your sister is starting to scare me."
"I'll call Mal while this reads your blood," Said Simon, placing Zoe's blood sample into a chemical sampling machine, "I don't doubt that River knows what she's talking about, but just to be safe."
He pressed an intercom button that called to the Pilot's station. It buzzed, and went all for static for a few minutes, "I thought Kaylee had fixed this thing."
"We've never really used it before, give it another shot."
"Fine. Mal? Hey Mal?"
A voice crackled back to him, "Yeah Simon?"
"Sounds like Wash." Commented Zoe, pressing the cotton down harder over the area where the needle had just been.
"No, that's Mal. You just haven't seen your husband for a few hours, everything will sound like him. At least, that's what the one semester of psychology I took said." Simon repressed the button, "Mal, River is talking about there being some new person on board the Serenity. She says that he's young and helpless, but do you think that you and the others could start looking for him anyway?"
"Are we looking for a little boy then?"
"I don't know, River just said some young and helpless person."
"Okay doc, thanks."
Simon turned around to find Zoe smiling, "He won't go looking too fast. He's probably expecting to find another version of Saffron in the cargo bay."
"You're probably right." Chuckled the doctor, returning to Zoe's blood scan. He held up the papers as they were printed off, skipping past any sentence that began with a 'Not present' or 'No detected' until he came to a final sentence.
Noticing that he'd stopped, the patient began to stare at him, "What's the matter, did I get some kind of disease from that planet?"
"No, but you've got something." Simon crossed over to where River sat, curled up like an infant, "River, can you tell me where this person is?"
She extended her arm and the pointer finger on her right hand, indicating Zoe.
"I'm the young and helpless person? There's no way that's right, just ask Wash."
"She's not saying you are. She's saying that your child is."
"What?" It was the first time since certain periods in the war that she'd been completely dumbfounded.
"You're pregnant Zoe. Approximately 2 months along. That's why River couldn't say who it was, only where."
Zoe didn't say anything, only rubbed the sore spot on her arm in disbelief.
Simon walked back over to intercom, "I'll call Mal and tell him it was a false alarm, but I'll leaving it up to you to break the news to everyone. River and I will keep our mouths shut until then."
**************************************************************
"Hey babe, it's lunchtime." Wash said, entering their room.
Zoe looked up from where she sat, "Oh, okay. I'll be down in a minute."
Sensing that something wasn't right, he didn't leave right away, "Are you okay Zoë?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. You forget who you're married to, nothing's ever wrong here unless I'm unconscious or dead."
It earned her a false smile from her husband. She knew he was trying to conceal his concern for her after her last statement, but was failing miserably at it, "I'll keep your food warm until you get there." He said, but didn't leave, "Hey, did you hear about River's little prediction that there was someone else on Serenity?"
"I was in the room with her when it happened."
"Oh, what was the deal with that anyway?"
"She just thought she felt that someone else was on the ship, but it passed after a few minutes."
Wash nodded, took one last look at his wife, and left for the kitchen.
******************************************************
Zoe stormed into the infirmary where Simon was cleaning up and River was now sleeping.
"Did you tell Wash?"
"No, of course I didn't. Doctors aren't allowed to tell, it's part of the practice."
"I don't believe you."
"There's no sense in not believing me. Besides, I figure that you'll have to tell soon enough. A few more months and you'll be beyond just 'showing'."
"The sooner I tell, is the sooner that Mal takes me off active duty."
"I should think that would be your request." Simon was confused at her attitude.
"No, I'm a soldier. I work until I physically can't, and I'd prefer it if Mal got to keep that faith in me at least."
"Zoe, you're carrying a child. Yours and Wash's child. Do you want to jeopardize the life and health of the infant?"
"You know I'd never do anything to hurt this baby."
"In combat today, you could've miscarried. You were lucky. I know this is new to you, but until this child is born you have doctors orders to avoid all combat and excessively strenuous work of any kind."
"Who's going to fight in my place?"
Simon swallowed, not wanting to mention the name that entered his head, "Kaylee."
"Kaylee? In case you've forgotten, she's the mechanic, we need her. The girl hasn't seen a lot of fighting either."
"Then you and Mal and Jayne can train her. You'll train her sparingly, though. Look, I don't like this idea any more than you, but for both of your sakes, I'm telling you to forget your normal job for the next 7 months."
"Alright doctor." What could she do but agree? He was right.
"Here, let me get River and we'll go down to lunch. Eating is also now a top priority for you. The next planet we stop on, I'll pick up some specific foods you'll be needing."
Zoe had a feeling that it was going to be a long 7 months for her.
*************************************************************
Disclaimer: I don't own the original Firefly characters, but Aaron, Jackson, and Laychen are mine.
Rating: R, for a brief adult situation, violence, and swearing
Summary: When an accident leaves the Serenity with a new crew member, Mal is less than happy.
Author's Note: I don't know the world of Firefly exactly, so if I mention something that doesn't exist in this universe or is wrong, please review and tell me!
*******************************************************
The bed was cold. It was only the middle of the night. The bed was usually only cold in the really early morning when Zoe got up. Wash rolled over, sleepy and even slightly annoyed.
"Zoe?" He murmured drowsily, pulling a thin white sheet up to his neck. When she didn't respond, he opened the eye that wasn't pressed into the pillow.
"What the hell?" Wash reached over and grabbed some loose pajamas off the floor, pulling them on under the covers. No sense is wasting what good heat there was left. 'Why do I always have to be so cold blooded?' He wondered, sliding off the mattress.
Tiptoeing over the icy floor, he made his way to the only place Zoë would possibly be. The kitchen. His instincts were correct, for there she sat, spinning a plate in uncountable circles on the table. Her finger glided effortlessly along the ceramic blue, keeping up just enough rhythm to hold the flatten sphere is harmony.
Wash took a step forward, "Hon?"
Zoë turned slowly in his direction, recognizing the anxious voice of her husband, "Yeah?"
"What're you doing up so late?"
"Couldn't sleep. After that run today, the adrenaline is still running through my system. Like drinking a few cups of coffee before bedtime."
"Oh."
A long silence followed, husband and wife looking for the right words. Suddenly, Wash noticed that Zoë was shivering, and he reached over and ran his hand down the length of her bare arm.
"Why don't you come back to bed? You can sit up as late as you want, but at least you'll be warm."
She nodded and they rose simultaneously. Walking back to their room, Zoë grasped her husband's hand in her own, and a devilish smile crossed her face,
"Maybe there's a way to get rid of all that adrenaline." Her voice was tantalizingly low, and Wash felt the heat from it melt into him, right to the very core of his being. The suggestion, or, at least how he'd interpreted her suggestion, was too good to pass up. Inside the door frame, a long kiss was started. Having the greater 'energy of the moment' of the two, Zoë pulled her husband into the room and slammed the door behind them.
Between the lover's talk, and the scattered bits of Chinese that found their way into the whispers, the pair made it to the bed, collapsing. Wash leaned back against the pillow, too tired to put up a fight as to who got to be on top. Besides, it always seemed to be better when Zoë dominated; she was the warrior woman he loved.
"I love you." He whispered, as she removed his pajamas. It earned him a tender smile, along with her removing her top,
"I love you too, baby." Came her voice. Hands began to roam everywhere, and Wash tilted his head back in ecstasy as she began to move above him. An audible moan was silenced by her lips,
"We can't wake up the others."
The response was a masculine groan of pleasure as he gripped the sheets beneath him. Everything seemed to be moving faster, everything was getting more and more intense. Emotions that had been only tiny pieces of sensory memory were returning to the surface in this embrace.
"Oh Wash…" Was the excited and almost unheard whisper that escaped her mouth. He couldn't reply, as he moved his hips to meet hers for the final time, reaching his climax. Zoë wasn't far behind, and a few continuing motions brought her to his level of pleasure.
"Oh God." He gasped, holding the tired Zoë to his chest. She repeated his comment and then lay in a breathless stillness against him.
"Still got too much energy to sleep?" Joked Wash, stroking her curly brown hair, but his wife was already slightly snoring in his aching arms.
************************************************************
(2 months later)
Mal's boots made heavy noises as he strode through the cargo bay. Jayne and Zoë were waiting for him. Jayne looked worse for wear, bleeding from several different cuts. Zoe, on the other hand, had a small gash in her forehead.
"If I'd have known we were gonna get in a fight over one lousy engine part we could've just bought, I'd have stayed on the ship." Jayne snarled, wiping a spot of blood off the barrel of his gun.
Mal shook his head and turned away from Jayne to Zoe, "Do we have what we need?"
"Yes."
"Then why don't you two go to the infirmary? Have Simon patch up some of those cuts?"
Jayne clenched his jaw in anger, "Well then, ladies first."
Zoe ignored the murderous tone in his voice and marched away to the infirmary. She didn't need the good doctor Tam on this one, just a band-aide. However, she guessed that this was Mal's way of having his two 'most skilled at avoiding physicals' officers get a yearly checkup. Following orders wasn't her problem, doctors just weren't her favorite people.
She passed most of the other crew members, most working, on her way to the infirmary. Once there, Simon invited her inside graciously,
"Zoe, here for a little help?"
"A little, doctor."
"While you're here I'm going to run a few basic tests, just to make sure everything is normal."
"Nothing is normal. This has been a long time coming. Someone else is here. Someone else is here. Someone…" River, who had been curled up on the side bed, trailed off.
Zoe watched the young girl, her eyes holding a touch of sadness and curiosity. 'It must be a little bit of a curse to know everything.'
"River, who else is here?" Asked Simon, briefly lifting his eyes from the needle he was prepping.
"Too young, can't tell. Can't tell, too young." The recitation continued as River turned to face them. Her bluish skin and pale features almost made her look dead underneath her brown, tangled hair.
Now Zoe was curious, "Is this person dangerous?"
"No, no. Too young, helpless."
Suddenly, Zoe inhaled sharply as the needle pierced the skin over the vein that was so prominent at her elbow joint, "Well, good to know that we don't have to go searching for this helpless, young person right away. Simon, when you're done with that will you tell the Captain?"
River rocked back and forth, rubbing a pain in her hand, "That's no good. The Captain couldn't find this person." River looked as though she might smile, but it disappeared as she retreated in her psychic mind, her refuge.
"Your sister is starting to scare me."
"I'll call Mal while this reads your blood," Said Simon, placing Zoe's blood sample into a chemical sampling machine, "I don't doubt that River knows what she's talking about, but just to be safe."
He pressed an intercom button that called to the Pilot's station. It buzzed, and went all for static for a few minutes, "I thought Kaylee had fixed this thing."
"We've never really used it before, give it another shot."
"Fine. Mal? Hey Mal?"
A voice crackled back to him, "Yeah Simon?"
"Sounds like Wash." Commented Zoe, pressing the cotton down harder over the area where the needle had just been.
"No, that's Mal. You just haven't seen your husband for a few hours, everything will sound like him. At least, that's what the one semester of psychology I took said." Simon repressed the button, "Mal, River is talking about there being some new person on board the Serenity. She says that he's young and helpless, but do you think that you and the others could start looking for him anyway?"
"Are we looking for a little boy then?"
"I don't know, River just said some young and helpless person."
"Okay doc, thanks."
Simon turned around to find Zoe smiling, "He won't go looking too fast. He's probably expecting to find another version of Saffron in the cargo bay."
"You're probably right." Chuckled the doctor, returning to Zoe's blood scan. He held up the papers as they were printed off, skipping past any sentence that began with a 'Not present' or 'No detected' until he came to a final sentence.
Noticing that he'd stopped, the patient began to stare at him, "What's the matter, did I get some kind of disease from that planet?"
"No, but you've got something." Simon crossed over to where River sat, curled up like an infant, "River, can you tell me where this person is?"
She extended her arm and the pointer finger on her right hand, indicating Zoe.
"I'm the young and helpless person? There's no way that's right, just ask Wash."
"She's not saying you are. She's saying that your child is."
"What?" It was the first time since certain periods in the war that she'd been completely dumbfounded.
"You're pregnant Zoe. Approximately 2 months along. That's why River couldn't say who it was, only where."
Zoe didn't say anything, only rubbed the sore spot on her arm in disbelief.
Simon walked back over to intercom, "I'll call Mal and tell him it was a false alarm, but I'll leaving it up to you to break the news to everyone. River and I will keep our mouths shut until then."
**************************************************************
"Hey babe, it's lunchtime." Wash said, entering their room.
Zoe looked up from where she sat, "Oh, okay. I'll be down in a minute."
Sensing that something wasn't right, he didn't leave right away, "Are you okay Zoë?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. You forget who you're married to, nothing's ever wrong here unless I'm unconscious or dead."
It earned her a false smile from her husband. She knew he was trying to conceal his concern for her after her last statement, but was failing miserably at it, "I'll keep your food warm until you get there." He said, but didn't leave, "Hey, did you hear about River's little prediction that there was someone else on Serenity?"
"I was in the room with her when it happened."
"Oh, what was the deal with that anyway?"
"She just thought she felt that someone else was on the ship, but it passed after a few minutes."
Wash nodded, took one last look at his wife, and left for the kitchen.
******************************************************
Zoe stormed into the infirmary where Simon was cleaning up and River was now sleeping.
"Did you tell Wash?"
"No, of course I didn't. Doctors aren't allowed to tell, it's part of the practice."
"I don't believe you."
"There's no sense in not believing me. Besides, I figure that you'll have to tell soon enough. A few more months and you'll be beyond just 'showing'."
"The sooner I tell, is the sooner that Mal takes me off active duty."
"I should think that would be your request." Simon was confused at her attitude.
"No, I'm a soldier. I work until I physically can't, and I'd prefer it if Mal got to keep that faith in me at least."
"Zoe, you're carrying a child. Yours and Wash's child. Do you want to jeopardize the life and health of the infant?"
"You know I'd never do anything to hurt this baby."
"In combat today, you could've miscarried. You were lucky. I know this is new to you, but until this child is born you have doctors orders to avoid all combat and excessively strenuous work of any kind."
"Who's going to fight in my place?"
Simon swallowed, not wanting to mention the name that entered his head, "Kaylee."
"Kaylee? In case you've forgotten, she's the mechanic, we need her. The girl hasn't seen a lot of fighting either."
"Then you and Mal and Jayne can train her. You'll train her sparingly, though. Look, I don't like this idea any more than you, but for both of your sakes, I'm telling you to forget your normal job for the next 7 months."
"Alright doctor." What could she do but agree? He was right.
"Here, let me get River and we'll go down to lunch. Eating is also now a top priority for you. The next planet we stop on, I'll pick up some specific foods you'll be needing."
Zoe had a feeling that it was going to be a long 7 months for her.
*************************************************************