Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nothing! Well, I only own what you don't recognise from Dark Angel or Firefly.

In answer to one of my reviewers, Charlie's history mostly remains in shadow this story. I'm currently working on a sequel while reworking this story. The second story "Freedom" will be up right after this one's done, it goes into depth the past, present and future of transgenics in the Firefly 'verse. Also there's now a Jayne and Charlie forum for any questions you have.

That night, when everyone had finished dinner, Mal turned to Charlie.

"Okay, what's the big news?" He asked, pushing away his plate.

Charlie grinned, shooting a look at Jayne, who was looking confused, as usual.

"Shortly before our fearless leader returned, bleeding." She shot a glare at Mal. "I had an appointment with Simon."

"Didja find out whether the kid's a boy or a girl?" Jayne asked, wrapping one arm around what was left of her waist.

"Yes, both." Charlie grinned at the shocked and confused faces around her.

Kaylee was the first to speak. "What do you mean both?"

"We're having twins, a boy and a girl!"

Jayne stood up and wrapped his arms around her. Laughing, he twirled her in a circle.

"Wait, I thought that transgenics and ordinaries could have children at all. How are you two having fraternal twins?" Zoë asked, picking up her dishes.

"Fraternal twins?" Jayne set Charlie down.

"It means that it's the father who created twins, identical twins are the same egg, fraternal are two eggs." Simon answered, his arm around Kaylee.

"Me huh?" Jayne swelled with pride. He looked down at Charlie. Then he bent his head down and whispered something in her ear.

Charlie blushed. "Well, uh...see you guys later." Jayne grabbed her hand and they rushed out of the room.

"We'll be in my bunk." Jayne called over his shoulder.

Charlie tried not to scream as the contraction hit. Mal, Zoë and Jayne were out on a job. River and Inara were out on a shopping trip. Kaylee stayed onboard to watch over Rex and Simon had stayed to watch Charlie. She had protested until she had gone into labor a half hour after Mal had ordered radio silence.

Twenty minutes into her labor, Charlie had reached hard labor. Arching off the table with tears of pain streaming down her face, she gratefully squeezed Kaylee's offered hand, making sure not to hurt her. She delivered a large healthy boy, then an equally healthy but slightly smaller girl.

Kaylee held her "niece" as she sat beside Charlie, who was holding her new son. "What are you going to name them?"

"We hadn't decided yet." Charlie rolled her eyes. "Jayne and I thought that we had had another month. But now, meeting them, I know exactly what to call them."

"What?" Kaylee smiled down at the baby in her arms.

Charlie touched her daughter's cheek. "Alexa, for the library of Alexandria in Ancient Egypt, the center of knowledge in the ancient world." She smiled. "We'll call her Lex."

Kaylee smiled back. "Sounds all cultured and refine. And your son?"

Charlie kissed the top of her son's head and grinned.
"Jesse James, after a gunslinging bankrobber who robbed a railroad tycoon's payrolls, and gave some of the money to people hurt by the railroad." She smiled warmly. "We'll call him Jess."

"A gunslinger?" Kaylee laughed. "Sounds like Jayne's son to me."

The sound of a loud crash came from the cargo bay. Simon silently went to check it out. He came rushing back in, panicking.

"Strange men. They've managed to open the bay doors." Simon looked from the two women to the two babies. "What should we do?"

Charlie gingerly stood up, handing Jess to Simon. "Hold him. I'll take care of this."

Before Kaylee or Simon could protest, she had grabbed her underwear and was out the door, her long skirt swirling around her bare legs

.

Charlie ran into the bunk she shared with Jayne. Grabbing her favorite silver handguns, she headed for the cargo bay. She slipped along the catwalks, observing the men below. One of the men turned, and she saw a vivid barcode on the back of his neck.

Charlie froze. They were transgenics! In her distraction, she didn't hear a tall combat model come up behind her.

Lane carried his unconscious captive down to the cargo bay floor.

"A X-5, an assassination model too. And by the looks of it, she's recently given birth." He pushed back her long dark hair, revealing a rapidly bruising cheek. "We don't need a brat with unknown bloodlines in the program. We'll just leave it here."

The other two transgenics nodded, and headed out the bay doors. Lane's expression turned remorseful as soon as their backs were turned.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered. "There's nothing I can do. If I show any sign of weakness they'll kill me." He walked out the doors, deliberately not seeing Kaylee watching him.

Please review this story. I've worked hard on it and reviews are like food coupons for a communist worker, dearly needed and proof of a hard day's work.