Thana
Title: Thana
Author: kanedax
Pairing: #171 Simon Tam - Firefly / Death - Sandman
Rating: PG-13 for mild blood and violence
Spoilers: Serenity; Death: The High Cost of Living
Notes: This is my first time writing any of these characters. I consider myself a Firefly fan, but I never read HCoL until last night. I hope I do the characters justice, even though I’m playing a little with Gaiman’s universe. He doesn’t say when HCoL takes place, so I’m saying it takes place in 2018, or else this story wouldn’t work at all. I don’t own any of these characters. Simon Tam and the Firefly crew belong to Joss Whedon and 20th Century Fox. Death and the rest of the Sandman Mystery Theatre universe belong to Neil Gaiman and DC Comics.
Simon Tam pulled out his instruments as Captain Malcolm Reynolds and Jayne Cobb carefully lay the dying girl on the operating table.
“Can you fix her?” Jayne asked. “Gorramit, can you fix her?”
Simon looked into Jayne’s eyes. He hadn’t seen the usually gruff man this shook up since the first day he and River had come aboard this vessel. The day that the Alliance agent, Dobson, shot Kaylee in the stomach.
“I don’t know,” Simon said, pulling on a pair of rubber surgical gloves. “I’ve fixed worse. But when it comes to shots to the abdomen, looks can be deceiving.”
Mal grabbed him by collar and spun him, staring him in the eye. “She doesn’t die,” he said forcefully, pointing to the girl. “Do you hear me, Doc? She’s our ticket to our next job, and she doesn’t die.”
Simon heard the captain’s words, but also recognized the shaking of his voice for what it was: rage. Not rage toward him, but rage toward the people who did this. His rage was mixed with fear and sadness; it said that the girl was more than a job. Simon turned to the door, and saw the same look on Zoe’s face as she leaned against the back wall. He looked to the window and saw the same look on Kaylee’s face, on Inara’s face, as they stared with eyes wide into the small operating room.
He saw the same look in River’s eyes as she stood on her tiptoes between the two women. The dying girl’s black top hat was perched jauntily on River’s head, set there when she was happy and perky and not bleeding all over Serenity’s medical lab. River’s face wore a look that Simon so rarely saw from her since he rescued her all those months ago. A look that said one of her best friends was dying in front of her.
“I’ll do what I can,” Simon said shortly to the two men. “But I can’t do it with you two hanging over her like a bunch of gou jou. Step out and let me do my job.”
Mal and Jayne turned and walked out the door. Zoe turned to follow them. “Zoe,” Simon said before she could leave. “I could use some assistance. Are you game?”
Zoe looked at him with that same flat, militaristic stare the she had had for as long as the two had known each other. It had become more commonplace since Wash died, and Simon supposed that it was a symbol of her escape route. Do the job, sir, she had said to Mal that day on Miranda, and it’s a motto that she still held to tightly today.
“What do you need me to do, Doctor?”
“Hook up some sensors,” Simon said as he dug through the drawers, pulling out a pair of scissors. “Blood pressure, heart rate, the usual.”
“Yes, sir,” Zoe said in that same business-like tone, and ran some wires from the nearby monitors to the girls arms and chest. The girl was wearing a blank tank top with spaghetti straps and, as Simon confirmed as he cut the top away from the gunshot wound, no bra for her almost non-existent breasts, so Zoe had the sensors on before he even had to get the clothing away.
“Zoe, I’m going to want to go in right away,” Simon said calmly. “Grab some morphine so we can knock her out.”
“Yes, sir,” Zoe repeated, and as she prepared the injection, Simon took another look out into the hall. The three women had been joined by Mal, who was nervously pacing up and down behind them, and Jayne, who sat on the staircase, his head in his hands.
How is it possible? Simon thought, looking down at the bleeding girl, with her black lipstick, frizzy hair, and skin that looked was astonishingly pale for someone who had spent a lifetime on that sun-baked rock.
How is it possible that it took months for Serenity’s crew to get used to River and I when we first came aboard, yet three hours with this girl, and they’re treating her like she’s been with them for years?
“Her name is Thana,” Mal had told them as the cargo hold door opened onto the planet Paquin. “Badger didn’t have a picture, but he said he’s fairly easy to pick out.”
“Don’t give us much to work with, do he?” Jayne said. “You sure I can’t bring Vera?”
“No, you cannot bring Vera,” Mal said placatingly as Jayne set the big gun down. “We head to the tavern, find the girl. She’s gonna be our passenger until she gets us where we’re supposed to go. Simple as that.”
“We’re taking on passengers?” Kaylee said.
“We haven’t had a job since we left Miranda, we’re taking what we can get,” Mal said. “Jayne and Zoe, you’re coming with me, as usual.” He turned to the others. “You four can watch the ship?”
“Actually,” Simon said slowly. “I’m running low on supplies, I was thinking I could go into town with you and stock up while you’re dealing with our contact.”
“Ooh, a field trip!” Kaylee said, bouncing on the balls of her feet as her hands wrapped around Simon’s arm.
“Fine,” Mal said. “The doctor can come with us.”
“Hey!”
“No ‘heys,’ Kaylee,” said Mal. “Someone has to stay back to guard the ship.”
“We haven’t been off the ship in weeks,” Kaylee pouted. “I need to stretch my legs.”
“I wouldn’t mind getting some air, either,” River said from the stairs. Inara was leaning against the railing behind her.
“I can stay, sir,” Zoe said. “I figure you and Jayne can handle business without me if worse comes to worse.”
Simon shared a glance with Mal. Simon knew what he was thinking. The last thing that they would want is to leave Zoe alone on this ship, the one that used to be flown by her husband.
Inara seemed to be on the same wavelength. “I can stay, Mal,” she said quietly. “I don’t know the complexities of the ship, but I can get her off the ground if we get any ugly signals, or send a shuttle your way.”
“Fine,” Mal said shortly. “Kaylee and River can go with the doctor. Make it quick and contact Inara when you’re done.”
Kaylee squealed and clapped her hands. “I love my captain!”
They had made it quick, and when Simon contacted Serenity, Inara told him that the three had not returned with the passenger. He, Kaylee and River carried their bag of medical supplies into the tavern, fully prepared for any trouble.
What they found instead was more of a shock than any violence. Mal, Jayne, and Zoe were sitting around the table with a young girl. Not much older than River, Simon instantly knew what Badger was talking about. There’s no way that this girl fit in with the other dust-covered denizens of this settlement. Dark frizzy hair, with pale skin bordering on pure white. She wore black lipstick with a curly symbol painted beneath her right eye, and had a giant ankh hanging around her neck.
She smiled at them when they entered, and Simon saw with not a small amount of shock that there were matching smiles on Mal and Jayne’s faces. Even Zoe, who he had never seen smile since Wash died, had cracked a her cheek a bit.
“You must be the rest of the crew!” the girl said, waving them over.
“Most of ‘em,” Mal told her. “Kaylee, River, Simon, this here’s Thana. Pronounced like ‘Dana’ if you have a really bad lisp. She’ll be flying with us the next few days.”
“Oh, I knew who they were, Captain Reynolds,” Thana said, slapping Mal on the arm. “I told you that.”
Jayne snorted into his beer. “Yeah, that’s right.” He looked over at the trio and pointed his thumb at her. “Thana here says she’s Death. That’s a kick, ain’t it?”
“Believe what you want to believe, Mr. Cobb,” Thana said, taking a sip of her orange juice. “You three want something to drink? My treat.”
“It ain’t your treat, Thana,” said the bartender, a gruff-looking man whose three remaining teeth were showing in a grin. “It’s your last day here in town, drinks are on the house.”
“Awww, thank you, Quitely!” She turned to Simon. “So, what’ll it be?”
“Actually, we should probably get going, sir,” Zoe said to Mal. “Sooner we get airborne, sooner we get the job done.”
“Zoe’s right,” said Thana as she chugged the rest of her juice. “I don’t have a lot of time, anyway, and I want to make sure you all are at least pointed in the right direction.”
“Here that, captain?” Jayne said, elbowing Mal in the ribs. “Sounds like you’re being you-surped.”
Mal gave Jayne a look, then walked to the door, the others following suit. Thana grabbed her black top hat from the table, but put it on River’s head. River giggled as it fell down to her eyebrows.
“Looks better on you, anyway, cutie,” Thana said, winking mischievously.
“We’re coming back in, Inara,” Mal said into the communicator. “Start warming her up.”
“This is going to be awesome!” Thana squealed. “I’ve never been on a spaceship before!”
“Never?” Kaylee asked.
Thana shook her head. “Nope, I was born here.”
“How old are you?” River asked.
“What time is it?” she asked Simon, who pulled back his sleeve.
“About two pm,” Simon said. Thana nodded and turned to River.
“I’m about eighteen hours old.”
“Because you’re Death,” Simon said.
“Mmm hmm.”
Simon and River exchanged a glance.
“Well, you’ll love flying,” Kaylee said proudly. “Serenity’s one of the best rides you’ll ever have.”
“This is going to be so cool,” Thana said as they walked down the dirt main street of the town. As they passed a roadside merchant, she grabbed Simon’s arm. “Hang on, I wanna buy something for the trip.”
Before anyone could protest, Thana had walked over to cart, where an ancient-looking woman stood with a small smile on her face.
“What can I get you, dear?” she asked.
“Ummmm,” Thana put her finger to her lips as Simon approached behind her. She turned around. “What do you think Inara would like? Maybe one of those wind chimes?”
She pointed up to a collection of silver plates hanging from the overhanging tarp.
“Yeah,” Simon said, wondering when Thana had heard Inara’s name. “I think she’d like them.”
“Okay,” she said. “How much?”
“Three platinum,” the old woman replied. Thana dug into her pockets and pulled out five platinum pieces. “Here you go.”
“Thank you, dear,” the old woman replied.
“Can I get a loaf of bread, too?” Thana continued, pointing to one in particular. “How much?”
“That will be on me, dear,” said the woman. “Consider it a gift for being so happy on such a nice day.”
“Oh, thank you very much!” she bounced, taking the loaf and waving to the woman as they joined the rest of the crew.
As the group reached the edge of town and neared Serenity, a group of shadows fell in behind them.
Simon looked up from the monitors as he heard a small gasp from the bed beside him.
“You’re awake,” he said to Thana, who was looking around weakly. “How are you feeling?”
“Where am I?” she asked, her breathy voice touched with confusion. “What am I doing here?”
“You’re on Serenity,” Simon said, walking over to her and taking her wrist in his hand, checking her pulse. “You got shot, and we brought you on board.”
“Oh, right,” she said, wincing in pain as a small laugh came through her lips. “I forgot what it can feel like.”
“You’ve been shot before?” Simon asked. “I didn’t see any scarring.”
“You wouldn’t,” said Thana, looking down at her stomach, now covered in one of Jayne’s spare t-shirts. “It doesn’t work that way. Shouldn’t I be dead?”
“I fixed you up,” said Simon. “Good as new. All you need is some bed rest, and you’ll be fine in a day or two.”
“I should be dead, though,” Thana said, suddenly looking nervous.
“You can’t die,” Simon said, a small smile cracking his lips. “You’re Death, remember?”
Thana shook her head. “Doesn’t work that way, either.”
“Who were they, anyway?” Simon asked. “The people who shot you?”
“He took my ankh, right?” she asked, and when Simon nodded she answered: “The Eremite.”
“Eremite,” Simon muttered. “Are they dangerous? Should I tell the captain that we might be followed?”
“Nope, they’re harmless,” Thana said. “He does this every time, and he never realizes that the power doesn’t lie there.” She looked around the room, and her eyes fell on a piece of IV tubing. “Can I have some of that? And your scissors?”
Simon looked between the tube and the girl, suddenly feeling quite lost. He shrugged to himself. Why not? What’s one IV line among friends?
As he handed the length of tubing to her, along with the scissors, he said, “I’m going to go tell the captain and the others that you’re awake. They went back to their duties after I told them you were going to come through okay. Captain Reynolds is going to need a course from you, too.”
“Awesome,” Thana said, cutting off a six-inch length of the tube, followed by another two-inch tube.
“I did want to ask you, though,” said Simon, looking concerned. “I was checking your monitor when you were under. Your heart rate’s awfully fluttery. Do you know if you’ve inherited anything? Any heart condition?”
Thana looked up from her work with dawning comprehension. “So that’s how it’s going to happen,” she said quietly.
“How what’s going to happen?” Simon said.
“What time is it?” she asked, taking the long tubing and bending it in half.
“Ten to eight,” said Simon. “Why?”
She took the short tube and tied it around the middle of the long tube. She held it up for examination, and Simon realized that it was a fairly decent representation of the ankh necklace that she had lost earlier. Realizing she had made her a new one, Simon went to the drawer to pull out some surgical stitching.
“I’ve had a really great time today, Simon Tam,” Thana said. “You all have been so wonderful. I had a great time drinking with Mal and Jayne and Zoe. I haven’t been in a gunfight since World War I. And this is the first time I’ve ever been on a spaceship. Maybe next time I’ll even be able to look outside and see the stars.”
“Next time?” Simon asked. “What are you talking about? And how did you know my last name?”
“I’ve met you before,” said Thana. “I meet everyone at least twice. Once at the beginning, once at the end. I’ve seen you a few times in the middle. You’re a doctor, so our work has lined up on many occasions.” She took the length of string in Simon’s hand and pulled it through the ankh.
“You really are…?” Simon said, his face slack with shock.
“I haven’t got a lot of time,” she said calmly, tying the ankh around her neck. “But there’s a few promises I need to keep before I go.”
Malcolm Reynolds walked into the med lab fifteen minutes later to see Simon Tam standing over the body, a recorder in his hand.
“First name,” he said quietly into the microphone, “Thana. Last name: unknown. Cause of death: heart failure, possibly stimulated by abdominal trauma. Time of death: eight p.m. and zero minutes, Universal time.”
“Damn it,” Mal growled. “You told me she was going to pull through. You told me that you had her patched up.”
“I did have her patched up,” said Simon. “The bullet didn’t kill her. She was dying anyway. The bullet just sped up the process.”
“She’s gone?” Kaylee said sadly from behind Mal.
“She’s gone,” Simon replied. He set down the recorder and picked up two small circles of metal from the surgical tray.
“She was such a nice girl,” Kaylee said, her voice quaking. “I was hoping she would stay on after we were done with the job. It seemed like we knew her forever, you know?”
“Yeah,” Mal whispered. He cleared his throat, trying to contain his emotion. “So what now? What about the job?”
“We’re going to Gaiman,” said Simon, handing Mal a scrap of paper. “She wrote down the coordinates before she died, but I honestly don’t think she knew what they meant. She’s been around for so long, things like interplanetary navigation weren’t in her vocabulary.”
“What are you talking about?” said Kaylee. “She was so young…”
Simon nodded, and took the platinums, one between each thumb and forefinger.
“What are you doing?” Mal asked as Simon placed one platinum on each of Thana’s eyelids.
“Giving her her fare,” said Simon quietly. “So she can get home.”
The bar on Gaiman was raucous. As Simon Tam walked through, deftly avoiding the drunken patrons, he realized that, despite his outward appearance and proper upbringing, he was becoming more and more accustomed to this type of clientele.
“What can I do for ya, buddy?” the bartender said, wiping his sweaty bald scalp with a dishtowel.
“I’m looking for a woman,” said Simon, clutching the cloth-wrapped package to his chest. “Older, British accent. A little loopy. Goes by the name of…”
“Hettie…” the bartender replied, spitting a wad of tobacco onto the ground. “Yeah, I know her. She’s over there.” He pointed to a dark corner, where a small woman sat, wearing a light blue rain slicker and matching brimmed hat.
Simon walked slowly over to her, wondering why, while Mal and the rest of the crew were off on their job, he was following through with this…
“Hello, Mister Pretty Boy,” said Hettie. “What are ye doin’ here?”
“I have a package for you,” Simon said. “I was asked to deliver this to you. By a friend.”
“A friend, eh?” she cackled. “Then just what is it, dearie? And who from?”
Simon set his package on the table, and unwrapped it. “It’s from a girl named Thana,” he said. “She said you were looking for it.”
“Aye, so I was, laddie,” the old woman replied. “You were a good boy to bring it to me. Thank ye much. Are ye expectin’ anything?”
“No,” Simon said. “It was a last request from a friend. I’m just following through with it.”
“Thank ye,” Hettie repeated. “Good day to you, then.”
“Good day,” Simon said, and quickly walked out of the bar.
Mad Hettie looked down at the loaf of bread, and cackled. “There you are, you pretty thing,” she said as she picked up the loaf and tore it in half. “All the trouble I’ve been through to find you.”
She dug her fingers into one of the half-loaves and began pulling out the insides. “What are you doin’ in there, then, eh? Did I put you in there? Maybe I did. It’s been a long time and me mind does wander.”
Her fingers slipped around a length of metal, and she pulled out a chain from the middle of the loaf. After a little more tugging, a gold locket came out with it, in the shape of a heart. She held it before her eyes and smiled.
“Now, I suppose I’d better hide you again,” she said as the heart reflected the light of the bar across her face. “If she’d stuck around, I could of asked her for advice. I bet she could come up with somewhere to put you that no one would think of lookin’, not if you paid them ready money.
“Still, it’s not as if any of us are going anywhere,” she sighed, slipping the locket into her pocket and watching Simon Tam walk out the door.
“Give her time,” Mad Hettie said quietly.
“She’ll be back.”