Carving Out a Future

By: Dreamfall

Summary: Her crew doesn't know that Serenity's new passenger, a carpenter with an 'unusual upbringing', is a relic from the past. Xander says he's not looking for trouble. But, then, neither are they. Not usually, leastways. It just always comes calling anyway. Gen. Canon couples mentioned, but definitely not the focus of the story.

Written for: NaNoWriMo and TTH100: Xander/Firefly

TTH100 prompt: 071-River

Rating: FR13/PG13/T

Disclaimer: I own neither Firefly nor BtVS.

Spoilers: Takes place post Season 7 for Buffy, and post-Objects in Space (and post the comic books, for that matter), but pre-Serenity for Firefly.

Author's Note: This is the story I started in November for NaNoWriMo. I'm thirty or so chapters into it, but since there's going to be at least one hundred chapters (since it's for tth100), they're mostly pretty short. If you're coming from this from my HP fanfics-- it's very different. Way less dark. It's also an incredibly fun story to write, and I do intend to continue with it to its conclusion. And no, it's not taking any real time away from Cat, now that I'm not working obsessively on it, like I was in November. I'll be posting every couple/few days at least till I'm caught up with my livejournal (username dreamfall(underscore)nnwm). Hope you enjoy!

Review Response: Responses to any reviews will be posted in the same livejournal as my other review responses-- username dreamfall(underscore)ff.

Chapter Two
Talkin' Nonsense

The man struggled to rise, one hand pressed to his side, trying to stop the flow of blood, and Kaylee rushed to him. "Gos se! Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he murmured, swaying slightly as he finally managed to stand.

"How'd you see that comin'?" Jayne demanded. "I didn't see it 'till just after you did!"

"Caught a motion in th'corner of my eye," Xander said, slurring slightly. "S'good for that." He looked around. "Best get goin' 'fore th'other two wake up." He stumbled towards the wall.

"Um-- there's nowhere to go that way," Kaylee pointed out worriedly.

He shot her a dirty look, stooped, and grabbed the shoulder strap of a dark duffle bag, the weight of it swinging him around as he slung it over his shoulder, grimacing in pain. He grinned at her triumphantly and then stumbled again, dropping to one knee, his face twisting into a mask of pain as he mouthed archaic curses.

"We've gotta get him back to the doc," Kaylee said, turning urgently to Jayne.

He glared back at her. "You gone mad? We can't be bringin' strangers back to th'ship! Specially not to the doc!"

"He's not a stranger-- he rescued me!"

"'Sides, we're shippin' out first thing in th'mornin', and the doc can't patch him up that soon!"

"Then we'll have to take him with us."

He stared at her blankly.

"I'm not letting him die, Jayne! Not when it's my fault he's hurt!"

"We can't just take a man off-world without so much as a by-your-leave! 'Specially not when we don't want him noways!"

She glared at him a moment longer, then dropped to her knees next to Xander. "Xander." He looked blearily over at her. "You wanna go off-world a while? You can send a wave later, let folks know what to do with your stuff till we get back."

"Leavin' m'stuff?" he murmured, a frown between his brows as his fingers tightened on the bag's strap.

"We'll take yer bag. Just can't go lookin' fer nothing else. We really gotta get you to the doc, Xander," she said, taking in the amount of blood flowing through his fingers. She undid one buckle of her coveralls so she could reach her shirt to rip off the bottom several inches.

"Else?"

"Well, don't ya got nothin' more'n what's here?"

"No." He paused. "Yes? Um. Can you repeat the question?"

"Boy's got a ruttin' concussion. Won't get no sense from him," Jayne said, seemingly more interested in leering at the strip of skin revealed before Kaylee refastened her coveralls.

"Xander," she said, folding the strip into a thick pad. "Can you leave this world for a little while? Few weeks maybe?"

"Never tried," he admitted. "Slipped time once, but never really left f'r it."

She groaned, gently lifting his hand enough to slide the pad underneath it. "Gotta try to staunch this a bit. Try to focus just fer a sec here, Xander. Would it cause you any trouble to go off-world with our ship for a couple weeks?"

"Don' think so."

"Good enough. Help me get him up, Jayne. Xander, you hold that pad tight -- don't want you bleeding to death before we reach the doc, dong ma?"

"Huh?"

"Just hold it. I need a hand here, Jayne."

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "I'll get 'im there, but he's not goin' onboard 'less you convince Mal."

"Hate havin' bullets in me," Xander commented.

Jayne snorted in amusement as he crouched to wrap Xander's free arm about his shoulder, put his own around the other man's waist, and levered him to his feet. "You ain't the only one. C'mon."

Kaylee grabbed the bag. She stumbled a bit under its unexpected weight, but managed to follow in their wake.

"Wish Dawn was here. Fine hand with tweezers, Dawn," Xander muttered. "Once got a hundred seventy-three Korzic spines out of my back. Spike had t'hold me down."

Kaylee sent Jayne a wide-eyed look, and he shrugged. "No idea."

"Prolly let him lick the bowl," he said, voice fading as he stumbled against Jayne's side.

"Wake up, Xander, no passin' out with a concussion," Kaylee said urgently. "Tell me about Dawn. Where's she at now?"

He turned his head to look at her blearily. "Dead," he said, tone completely matter-of-fact, even faintly surprised at being asked. "They're all dead. The whole world. And the records lost so I don't even know when or how or why they died."

Jayne stopped dead in his tracks. "His whole world got killed? Kaylee, this is trouble we don't got no need of."

"Not lettin' him die, Jayne. C'mon, he's fading fast. Probably not talkin' sense anyway -- people always talk crazy when they have concussions."

The blood-soaked pad dropped to the ground, and she looked up at Xander worriedly. His head lolled bonelessly. "Gos se! He's unconscious. We have to get him out of here now, Jayne!"

"Yeah, okay. Let's go, then," he muttered, swinging the other man up into his arms and starting for the ship at a jog-trot.