On Board the Bebop, Jupiter Space

February 9

Jet sauntered onto the ship, whistling in satisfaction. They'd left Gilbore two days ago and he was finally starting to feel like his body temperature had recalibrated to something tolerable. Even the sunburn was starting to fade.

On top of that, he'd been able to pick up a whole gang of small fries on Ganymede, though it had taken him the entire night. Still, there was something extremely rewarding about being able to handle a whole crew of hoodlums by oneself.

Spike had volunteered to join him, but both men knew it was an offer in word only. The other man was loathe to leave Faye now that she was considered full term and therefore prime to have the baby at any point.

Ein came trotting up as Jet entered the living area, butt waggling with joy and tongue lolling out of his mouth.

"Ah, there's the welcome committee I was hoping to see," Jet said, grinning down at the pup. "Figured everyone else would still be asleep given the hour."

"Papa Jet?" Ed's voice, thick with sleep, came from the couch as the hacker sat up and rubbed at her eyes.

"Whatcha doing sleeping out here, kid?"

"Papa Spike took Faye-Faye to Almathea," Ed announced then, jaw cracking as she yawned hugely. "She was having pains so they got nervous. Ein doesn't think it's baby time yet but Ed couldn't convince them to believe him." She shrugged.

Ein yipped in confirmation and hopped up onto the couch where Ed welcomed him onto her lap.

"Well, these things are tricky. Babies tend to come at their own time. They might come back with a baby even though Ein thinks otherwise. Sometimes labor progresses quickly. It's okay either way at this point, Faye's far enough along that the baby won't need any special medical care." Jet joined the pair on the couch, reaching over to turn on the monitor.

He skipped around the channels aimlessly until he found something that seemed decent to leave on in the background and then draped his real arm around Ed's shoulders. Grinning up at him, she snuggled closer to his side and Ein laid his snout on Jet's thigh so he could be on two of his favorite humans at once.

"So Ed... How're you feeling about everything? I know this is probably a big change for you. Hell, it's a big change for me too. But, well, Spike and Faye aren't here right now so you don't gotta be tough and keep the smile on if you're worried. It's perfectly natural to be anxious about what's next."

"Papa Jet is anxious about the baby?" Ed queried, looking stunned at this revelation.

"Papa Jet has been anxious about this baby since he found out." Jet admitted shamelessly. "To tell you the truth, I've never been around kids really. Sure, I was one once but I had no siblings or cousins and never babysat. Give me a gun and a criminal and I'm in my element. This whole baby business we're about to be buried in?" He gave a shudder for effect but it wasn't far from his honest reaction.

Babies were terrifying. Tiny, stinky, wet, messy. He'd done some research as well - knowing Spike and Faye were technically gonna be the ones in charge wasn't much of a relief so he wanted to be as prepared as possible to step in if and when needed.

On the bright side he was pretty used to dealing with destructive and unreasonable companions, one of whom often required a babysitter and bandage changes due to frequency of injury. So...maybe it would be a nice change of pace having to handle the same sort of responsibilities on a much smaller scale.

Ed was biting her lower lip thoughtfully and stroking Ein's fur.

"Ed is... Happy more than anything else. Anxious, hmm. Yes and no. Ed dealt with little bitties in the orphanage from time to time. Sister Clara let older kids help with the younger. So Ed knows all about diapers and feedings and pulling faces to make smiles. So... Ed isn't nervous about the baby. Excited to see the hair and eyes and skin! Who is it gonna look like more? Who is it gonna act like more? Lots of fun questions! Will it be a girl or boy? Not that it matters - Ed will teach it all the tricks and smarts that Ed has learned herself!"

"You aren't worried about all the crying?"

Ed laughed. "Not from the baby. They mostly just sleep and eat to begin with. And if it cries, will we even hear up here? Actually ...that worries Ed. Spike-person and Faye-Faye have been reading and watching and learning but hands-on is a whole big thing. Way different. And neither of them had a childhood they remember - nothing to draw upon from personal experience. Ed is very very very concerned for them. There will be tears aplenty. And neither does well with frustration." She sighed. "It will be... A transition."

Jet sighed too. "That's my thinking as well, Ed. Although they both step up to challenges in life pretty readily. And they're both looking forward to this so that's the right attitude to have. It's just...a baby is a huge responsibility and I've never seen them seek out much responsibility."

"It's okay, Papa Jet. They won't have to do it alone. They've got you and me and Ein and DB will probably let them call her at all hours. Even Doc said he'd be willing to come stay on the ship for a week or two if it out their minds at ease."

"Really? That old codger said that? Huh. He must be antsy for a break from the crowd in the belt. I can understand that."

Ed hummed as if agreeing but then asked, "why's that? They seem so friendly out there! That's where Chessmaster Hex lived with his old friends."

"Ahh, well, since there's literally no law out there I'm sure he's busy with work rather often." Jet replied. But then he decided he wasn't doing Ed any favors by concealing the truth. "And out there people like to do all sorts of drugs. Lots of drinking too. It can make people act silly or reckless or amplify their emotions which makes them hard to deal with. Drunk people repeat themselves a lot, which is annoying. Stoned people talk a lot of nonsense, which is annoying. And then the emotional ones... Well, it's fine if it's a good emotion but usually it's sadness or guilt or anger. A doctor is in charge of healing broken bones or providing medicine to help with sickness, but lots of people unload all their personal problems on 'em as if they were a therapist. Gets old quick."

Ed nodded. "Yes. Ed has experienced some degree of all of that here on Bebop Bebop."

Jet winced, thinking back to the occasions he could remember where they'd gotten wasted while Ed was around. As if sensing his thoughts, Ed took her hand off Ein's back to pat Jet's thigh.

"Small doses is whatever." She told him. "It's never been anything annoying to Ed - just sometimes makes the sad spread. Sharing pain and sorrow is good, but when it comes out because of drinking...it doesn't really help the person suffering, it just makes others sad for them."

"Sometimes people need an escape from themselves. It's not good to do regularly but... well, life is hard. Sometimes we need to take the edge off." Jet said then. He squeezed her shoulders. "Dunno how you manage to stay so chipper all the time but it sure is nice. Just don't ever feel like you have to put on a brave face all the time. You're allowed to feel all the emotions too, kid. We appreciate your cheer but ultimately we just want you to be free to be yourself. So, it's okay to get mad or sad or whatever. We'll be here to talk things through or to try and fix the problem. Even now that there's gonna be a baby on board demanding all the attention."

Ed laughed. "Spike-person and Faye-Faye have shared that role for long enough. It's time for someone cuter to take over. Ed is ready to be a sister or an aunty. For cuddles and spit up and long nights and early mornings and watching someone younger get to experience all of life's lessons." She nodded in resolve. "You'll see, Papa Jet - it'll be better than you expect. So don't be afraid! It's just another adventure and it'll be the most rewarding one yet!"

He'd gone into the conversation anticipating some sort of big reveal from Ed. Secret fears or jealousy perhaps. And once again he was reminded of just how intelligent and open hearted she was. She'd turned the tables on him so she could be the one to comfort him instead of requiring it herself. How could such a young kid - who'd been solitary on so many occasions - have such a remarkable grasp on how to be such a good person?

Her uncanny ability to read a person's heart was certainly not something she'd ever been taught. Hell, if anything all she truly learned from the crew here was things not to do and ways not to react and what depression looks like. They were typically a pretty sorry lot with the exception of Ed and Ein.

"Do you feel that, Papa Jet?" Ed said then, leaning sleepily against him.

"Feel what?"

"Love. It echoes all around us. The ship is happy we're here and excited about the baby too. Bebop Bebop is a safe place. A place where love is free to bloom and grow. Love conquers fears. It breaks hearts wide open to expand into newfound joys. When we let it into our lives, it makes the world better. ...can you feel it?"

"I...never paid much attention before, Ed. But..." He paused, looking down at the girl half asleep at his side and the dog fully unconscious on both their laps. Even though Spike and Faye weren't present, he could almost feel their energy here as well - though maybe that was partially due to the debris in the living room that was obviously from one or the other.

"Shit, kid. Yeah. I can feel it."

Ed smiled, eyes closed. "When you want to falter just let it be the guide..." She yawned again, snuggled closer, and then began to snore.

Eventually he would get up and relocate her to her bedroom. Eventually he would make his way to his own bed to sleep.

But for now, all he needed in this life was right here at his fingertips. A content child. A happy dog. No worries distracting anyone from a peaceful rest. Just a simple quiet moment to share together.

A baby would disrupt this. But...a baby would eventually be just as commonplace on this ship as any of the strays he'd picked up. And over time a baby would become a child, perhaps as precocious as Ed herself. If there was anything this universe needed...it was definitely more folks like Ed.

Maybe he'd focus on that thought the next time he started getting overwhelmed at the prospect of the changes to come. The present would be tumultuous - it typically is - but the future...now that was always worth the tears and effort to get there.