I do not own or claim to own any of the characters from the show Cowboy Bebop.

Song credits for once in a life time go to the Talking Heads.

Water dissolving……and water removing

There is water at the bottom of the ocean

After he finished his three beers and about ten cigarettes, Jet decided to watch some tv. The silence in the ship was deafening and he needed a distraction desperately. He grabbed the remote favoring this means of turning on the screen rather than Spike's foot method. It was just better for the equipment. 'Shit, it's better for the equipment if Spike never went anywhere near it' Jet cringed as he thought of his technologically impaired partner and his usual treatment of all things electronic. Even the more precious than gold swordfish could not escape the wrath of Spike the god of destruction. 'As if kicking everything is the answer'. Although when he thought about it, Faye wasn't too far behind. 'Faye' he hoped that Spike would find out something ' I wonder if he's having any luck?' he hadn't checked in yet, so that meant he either hadn't found her yet or he was too drunk to figure out how to use the communicator. 'Or both' trying to push those thoughts out of his mind and relax, Jet began to perform the age old art of channel surfing. This is when he realized all of the pointless shit that they put on tv. When in real life would you see a woman in an evening dress getting all excited about a pasta pot with holes in the lid? That wasn't as good as the woman that could telepathically talk to your pets though. Now that was entertainment. After another twenty minutes Jet finally settled on an old gangster movie. He had seen it a million times before but it was still as good as the first time he had seen it. He especially loved the part when the guy had to give the bosses wife the adrenaline shot after she overdosed on heroin. It made him jump every time. 'You can't beat the classics' a small smile spread across his face as he got himself comfortable on the couch.

Remove the water, carry the water

Remove the water at the bottom of the ocean

Jet was roused from his alcohol induced slumber by the sound of something crashing on the deck of the ship. He gave a confused glance around the room. Once he had gotten his bearings, he realized that he was still on the couch in front of the tv. 'Mmm..' scratching the top of his head as he stood up 'I must have dozed off'. As he bent down to turn off the tv, another loud crash was heard coming from the deck. Jet trotted up the steps and made his way towards the hanger to investigate. After opening the now dented doors that led out onto the deck, he was greeted by the smashed nose of the swordfish. On the deck a few feet away was the pilot, taking a piss over the side of the BeBop. Turning his head in both disapproval and the fact that he didn't want to see Spike's wang, Jet waited for his obviously inebriated partner to finish his business before making his way over. "So, how did you make out?" boomed Jet when he was about three feet away from Spike. The younger man nearly jumped out of his skin before turning to find the source of the noise. "Fuck, don't do that!" the lanky cowboy responded after he had had time to compose himself. "Well?" Jet asked impatiently. "Well…." Spike stopped to light up a cigarette making the slightly agitated man in front of him start tapping his foot while waiting for an answer. After a dramatic pause he exhaled and finished his sentence. "I didn't find shit." The older man's shoulders slumped. Feeling no further need to carry on a conversation with Spike, Jet slowly turned around and walked back past the crumpled monoracer and back into the ship.

It had been a good hour or so before Spike gave up the effort and decided to get the swordfish into the hanger in the morning. He laboriously made his way to the common room. The lumpy yellow couch was a god send after facing the perils of the mesmerizing rotating hallway. While plopping on his stomach onto the couch he reached under the cushion for his hidden stash of smokes. His brows furrowed in first confusion and then anger as he met with no success. 'Fucking Faye' was the only rational thought to come to his head. That stupid bitch always fucking did this and he was just as stupid for not finding a new spot. Letting a low growl escape from his mouth, he turned over onto his back and looked up at the fan. ' You're my only friend Mr. Fan' smiling at his favorite listener on the ship and at the same time regretting his earlier comment about it's appearance. 'Sorry about what I said about you being ugly' he paused as if waiting for his apology to be accepted. When he was sure that all was forgiven his smile returned. 'You'd never steal my smokes would you?'

Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down

Letting the days go by/water flowing underground

Into the blue again/once the money's gone

Once in a lifetime/water flowing under ground

No one could or would completely understand the bond between Spike and the fan. It was a constant joke to Faye and Jet. But he didn't care, Mr. Fan knew about his whole life. Every little detail that Spike would divulge. The fan wouldn't judge his actions or call him lunkhead. It all started by innocently counting the revolutions out of sheer boredom. Then it slowly progressed to a sounding board for all of Spike's problems he didn't want anyone to hear. Mr. Fan never disagreed and he never complained. Sometimes Mr. Fan would even talk back. Usually only when Spike was drunk or stoned. Spike wanted to see if this was one of those times. He needed to get out what was going on in his head. 'What do you think about all of this?' The fan turned a few times and the drunk cowboy nodded his head in agreement. ' Yeah, me too' Mr. Fan was apparently going to miss his newly departed shipmates just as much as Mr. Spiegel was. 'But why?' once again the fan responded via several clockwise turns. 'Well I guess that's my reason also' Spike let out a sigh as he realized along with the fan that he liked being around Faye and company. They kept him from thinking about his past. He dwelled way too much on things and the distractions of the circus chimps that doubled as his shipmates helped to keep in a little more grounded. There was no time to replay past events over in his eye when he had Ed running around with Ein nipping at her heels. Even Faye could snap him out of a unwanted reverie with ease. Now he was just going to have to let the days pass one at a time like he used to before. Before the kid, the beast and the tomboy came into his poor excuse for a life. 'Goodnight Mr. Fan' a somewhat sad expression played across his face as he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Into the blue again/once the money's gone

Under the rocks and stones/there is water under ground

While laying on his back in bed Jet listened to Spike's failed attempts at getting the swordfish into the hanger. 'Stupid shit' rolling over onto his side 'there's going to be nothing left of it to fix'. This was just a preview of what was to come. How long was he going to be able to stand this shit. After about an hour his partner gave up the battle and quiet once more returned. That was until he heard Spike clomping through the halls at a painstakingly slow pace. 'Fucking kid sounds like a sasquatch' he turned onto his other side so that he faced the wall. On the wall was a picture of the crew, taken with all of them posed on top of the swordfish. He remembered when it was taken a year ago. It was after a bounty that they actually did catch. His real hand reached out and touched the photograph. A sad smile spread across his features. 'I sure hope that you three are ok' the smile was now gone and a small tear escaped from his left eye. Thank god no one was here to see this. The black dog cry. He had only done it a few times in his adult life. But it just seemed right to do it now. After letting his hand drop from the picture he pulled the covers up around his neck. 'You know that you'll always have a home here'. With that last thought he fell asleep hoping that tomorrow would be a better day.

And you may ask yourself

What is that beautiful house?

And you may ask yourself

Where does that highway go?

The blinding light of morning filtered through the dirty windows of the BeBop. It seemed as if the crust built up on them helped to concentrate the little beams of light, turning them into high powered lasers and shooting them straight into Spike's skull. The lanky figure that was sprawled out like a collapsed spider on the couch groaned and shifted to his stomach. Hearing some signs of life Jet peered out of the kitchen to see that the mass of limbs he regarded as his partner had shifted his position. 'Wait until he sees the swordfish' the older man let out a chuckle. Spike could deal with it on his own. Jet had things to do. First off they needed to leave Earth. There wasn't enough money to just hang around. Even though his first instinct had been to stay and wait incase anyone had changed their minds. But now even though he didn't like the idea he knew that his missing crew could find the ship if they left the planet. He would just stop by the nearest town before they left for some supplies. All they currently had were eggs and beer. They were in dire need of toilet paper too. Spike had a knack for using it all up. He took as long in the shitter as Faye took in the shower. Although, most of the duration of time that those two spent in their designated areas was really spent getting high. Jet liked going into the bathroom when Faye was done to get a contact high. Before Faye he was forced to sneak into Spike's room and steal some of his stash. He would be damned if he was going to try and get a contact high out of the toilet. But with Faye he had the added option of stealing from Faye's stash and letting Spike take the fall. Another one of those times when he needed to make the scapegoat decision. He made his way to the hanger hoping that Spike's ship wasn't too close to the doors that he couldn't get his hammerhead out.

After landing in a waterfront town that reminded him of Ganymede, he looked around for a grocery store. Passing by small shops he kept an eye out for his missing shipmates. He had made sure to give a quick look into all of the casinos that he passed. No computer store was left unturned Every time a dog would bark his eyes would search for its source. About two blocks away from the grocery store on the opposite side of the street stood a small pet store. Jet looked into the window as he passed and found himself eye to eye with a tan and white welsh corgi. It actually took ten minutes for him to pull himself away and proceed to the grocery store. Once everything that was on the list had been purchased, the balding man found himself in front of the pet store once more. A smile started to form at the corners of his mouth. He opened the door and disappeared inside. He could be seen through the window smiling and petting the small dog while talking to the sales clerk.

And you may ask yourself

Am I right?……Am I wrong?

And you may say to yourself

MY GOD!……WHAT HAVE I DONE?

'Wet…..something wet……something making my hand wet' conscious thought was very hard for the severely hung over cowboy. He thought that he must still be dreaming. It felt like Ein was licking his hand. But Ein was gone, wasn't he? A cinnamon colored eye sprang open to survey the scene. There still in the act of licking his palm was indeed a tan and white corgi. The other eye then opened to confirm that this was not an illusion. Spike lifted his head up slightly and let out a confused "Ein?" The dog stopped it's licking and looked at the owner of the hand . A loud but amused "No" traveled from the direction of the kitchen. Both bounty hunter and pooch looked in the direction of the voice. Jet emerged from the doorway wearing his apron and made his way to the couch. The dog happily wagged it's tale and left the bewildered Spike. It sat down in front of Jet and let out a small bark. He knelt down and patted it on the head. "This is Olivia" the older man proudly exclaimed. Struggling to get himself into a sitting position. "Olivia?" the younger man asked, "and where did Olivia come from exactly?" "Olivia came from the pet store" Jet turned on his heal and went back into the kitchen. Not wanting to discuss the matter anymore with his dazed partner. Spike looked at the dog and let out a low grunt. "We're taking off in twenty minutes, so I suggest that you put what's left of the swordfish into the hanger". The green haired man winced as he thought back to the night before. 'Oh well' Spike stretched as he stood up 'Jet and Olivia can fix it'. He started towards the hanger making a short stop at the toilet on the way.

Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down

Letting the days go by/water flowing under ground

Into the blue again/once the money's gone

Once in a lifetime/water flowing under ground

Same as it ever was……same as it ever was…….same as it ever was

Same as it ever was……same as it ever was…….same as it ever was

Time isn't holding us, time isn't after us

Time isn't holding us, time doesn't hold you back

Letting the days go by……….