FIC: Different Eyes 4/6
Different Eyes part 4/6
by Mhalachai
Rating: PG
Spoilers: All of Firefly, same for Anita Blake.
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy own all things Firefly. Laurell K. Hamilton owns all things Anita Blake. I am but borrowing the characters for a brief time and shall return them intact at the end.
Summary: Serenity gets four new passengers and, as usual, things are not as they seem.
~~. Part One .~~ ~~. Part Two .~~ ~~. Part Three .~~ ~~. Part Four .~~ ~~. Part Five .~~ ~~. Part Six .~~
~~*~~
Inara watched the tea leaves swirl slowly in her cup, sinking gently in the hot water. That was how she felt on that day. Sinking slowly, the thin tendril of fear swirling in her head.
Not for the first time, she had lain awake in her bed on the shuttle last night, shaking. Why was she here, in the dark cold of space, on this ship with these people, with no real defences against Reavers or pirates or even space debris?
With a start, Inara shook herself out of her thoughts. She knew why she was here, and not on a Core planet with its easy work. She had made her decision, and even as she threatened to leave Serenity, this life was in her blood now.
"No!"
Inara looked up to see the child, Ashley, shove his book away on the table with remarkable strength for his age. The book hit an empty cup, knocking it to the ground with a clatter.
Nathaniel took a deep breath, looking as if he were trying to contain his temper. "Go pick up that cup, Ashley," he said.
"No!" the child shouted again, climbing down out of his chair. "I don't want to!"
Ashley's yells bordered on the hysterical, and Inara looked away. Simon had told her earlier that morning that he had heard the boy talking throughout the night. He must not have had much sleep, and after what he had seen happen to his mother the previous day, Inara understood why he was so upset.
Anita, who had been sitting on a chair at the far end of the room, stood up and intercepted her son's dash for freedom. "Ashley, you need to stop this," Anita said forcefully. "This is not acceptable behaviour."
"I don't care!" Ashley said, trying to twist out of his mother's grasp. Nathaniel quickly joined Anita beside the frantic child.
"Stop it!" Anita exclaimed, her own voice a little hysterical. She gave the boy a small shake. "Why can't you just behave for two more days?"
"I hate you!" Ashley shouted, kicking at his mother. "I hate you and I want to go home!"
"All right, that's it," Nathaniel said, picking up Ashley around the middle and hoisting the boy over his shoulder. "You're going to lie down for a while."
Ashley's protest descended into an unhappy wail as his father carried him to the stairs down to the passenger dorm. Anita stayed crouched on the floor, staring at the spot where her misbehaving child had recently stood. Her shoulders were slumped in exhaustion, and Inara saw the dark circles under her eyes.
Zoe appeared in the door from the hallway to the bridge. Her eyebrows were raised in a question, to which Inara shook her head. Zoe nodded and went back down the hall.
"Would you care for some tea?" Inara said into the silence. Anita's head swung around, and Inara was struck by the hollowness in her dark eyes.
After a moment of examination, Anita shook her head and stood up. Slowly, she retrieved the wayward cup and set it on the table, then sank into the chair Nathaniel had just vacated. Inara pretended that she hadn't seen the shaking in Anita's hands.
Inara picked up her cup and took a chair at the table. She waited until Anita looked at her again, then smiled in a non-threatening and friendly way. "Space travel is hard on children, sometimes," she said.
Although Inara had meant it in a polite way, Anita frowned at her. "I'm not making any excuses for my son," the woman said sharply.
"I didn't think you were," Inara said, verbally retreating. She hadn't meant to put the woman on the defensive.
Anita put her elbows on the table and buried her head in her hands. They sat in an uncomfortable silence until Richard appeared by Anita's side. He nodded at Inara, then put his hand on Anita's shoulder. She jerked her head up, startled.
"Sorry," Richard murmured. "I just wanted to tell you that everything's okay."
Anita pushed her hair out of her face. "What happened?"
Richard brushed his fingers over her cheek. "Ashley proclaimed loudly that he hated you, Nathaniel, me, this ship, space, reading, and strangely, peanuts, before bursting into tears. He fell asleep a couple of minutes later."
Anita sighed, taking Richard's hand in hers and twining their fingers together. "Good to know he hates us all," she murmured.
"He doesn't hate anyone, he's just tired and scared," Richard said. "He's not sure how to deal with--"
"Not now, Richard," Anita interrupted, careful to not look at Inara.
"Sure." Richard ran his hand over Anita's hair. "Why don't you go get some sleep? You look pretty tired yourself."
"I was up all night with Ashley," Anita reminded him.
"All the better. It might do Ashley a world of good to wake up with both his mom and dad there."
Anita stood up and reluctantly let go of Richard's hand. "Maybe you're right."
Richard smiled at Anita and kissed the top of her head. "I'll see you in a bit," he said. As Anita walked-- no, dragged herself to the stairs, Richard's calm facade slipped, and Inara saw the worry etched into the lines of his beautiful face. Then the expression was gone.
Inara smiled at Richard, then went back to her tea. Every time she thought she had these new passengers figured out, they did something to surprise her. Of all of them, Inara thought she understood Nathaniel the best. He might act like the young doting father, but there was something in the turn of his head at times, the way he watched people, the weight of consideration in his eyes, that reminded Inara very strongly of herself.
Anita was a complete mystery. It was obvious she cared about her son, but her attempt at suicide the previous day was so at odds with Inara's impression of the strong woman, that Inara questioned her own conclusions at first. But they were solid, her views of this woman. So how could she have tried to kill herself in front of her son?
It was those doubts, coupled with River's strange and disturbing comment after the Reaver ship blew up, that had caused Inara to think very hard as she lay awake in bed all night. As a Companion, she had been places in the Core worlds that no one else on this ship, not even Simon, had been. She had heard stories that none of them would dream of. She had serviced a client once, who drank a little too heavily and spoke a little too freely. He tried to impress her with what she had supposed were ghost stories from Earth, long forgotten. Of people who could use magic to read minds, make people believe things, even raise the dead. She had thought them only drunken ramblings.
Until River came and began to speak in whispers of what lay in the minds of Serenity's crew. Until River spoke of skins and vengeance and blood.
"Penny for your thoughts," Richard said. He smiled at Inara as she looked up at him. "You seemed to be thinking too hard," he said.
For all that he was bigger than Mal, Richard held an innocent appeal about him. Inara wanted to like him, which made her distrustful. She had too many years of practice at making people like her, to fall for that so easily. "I also had a hard time sleeping," Inara said, settling on a safe topic.
Richard sighed. "It was a bad night for everyone," he said.
He sat down in Anita's abandoned chair and drummed his fingers on the table. Inara suddenly wanted to ask him about his relationship with Anita. Their body language told her that Richard and Anita were lovers, but she could tell the same thing about Nathaniel and Anita. That was mere gossip, however, and Inara resolved to leave her curiosity unsatisfied.
Richard looked so lonely that Inara had to offer something. "Would you care to play chess?" she asked.
The look of sudden relief on Richard's face made Inara glad she asked. As she stood to retrieve the chessboard from the drawer in the wall, she found herself looking forward to the game. They would talk, Inara hoped, and she would learn more about Serenity's new passengers. Then, maybe, she might begin to unravel the mystery of these strange people.
~~*~~
Zoe leaned against the doorway to the Shepherd's bunk and watched as Simon took the sleeping man's pulse. "How is he, Simon?" she asked in a low voice.
Simon removed his fingers from Book's wrist and pulled the blanket a little higher over the man's chest. "He'll be fine," the doctor said. "He's in no danger."
"Then why is he still unconscious?"
"It's the drugs I gave him for the concussion," Simon explained. "They'll make him sleep for a little longer." He gathered up his things and stepped into the hall. Not having anything else to do, Zoe followed him to the infirmary.
A peal of childish laughter from the cargo hold caught Simon's attention. "It's amazing how four hours of sleep can give a child a new outlook on life," Simon said. "He certainly is feeling better. What are they doing?"
"The boy needed to run around, and it was either have him tear around the hold, or have him go pester Jayne on the bridge," Zoe said. "It's hard on children cooped up on ships in space."
Simon began putting equipment in drawers. "I'm surprised that Captain Reynolds would let them have the run of the cargo hold."
"It was either that or another tantrum," Zoe said, heading for the door.
"I guess," Simon said slowly. "Children need activity."
Zoe arched an eyebrow at Simon. "I was talking about Jayne," she said as she exited the room.
Although Zoe would never admit to it, she was still on edge from the narrowly averted Reaver attack the day before. River's words had stayed in her head, and she had woken in a cold sweat from nightmares. Wash had asked her what was wrong, but Zoe couldn't answer. She was stronger than that, strong enough not to be woken in the night by nightmares brought on by childish nursery rhymes.
For now, she resolved to push those fears away as she walked into the cargo hold. Ashley and the two men were throwing a ball between them, every semblance of a child at play with his family.
Anita sat on the hood of the mule, watching the game solemnly. Zoe's eyes lingered on the woman for a moment. She was very pale, her dark hair loose about her face, yet she sat with her back ramrod straight, her hands placed carefully on her knees.
Ashley threw the oversized ball over Richard's head. The tall man went to catch the ball with an exaggerated movement, and it flew though his outstretched hands. Squealing with delight, Ashley jumped up and down until Nathaniel picked him up and hoisted him into the air.
"All-time champion!" Nathaniel proclaimed, swinging Ashley around. Zoe heard a giggle, and looked around to see River watching the game from behind the stairs. The girl saw Zoe looking at her, and did something that she never had. She smiled at Zoe.
The girl was beautiful, Zoe realized. When she wasn't screaming or terrified or confused, River was a beauty.
"Where's the ball?" Ashley asked.
Richard looked around. "It's gone." He grinned at Ashley and Nathaniel. "We could always play Ashley-ball."
"Yes!" Ashley crowed. "Ashley-ball!"
What was that? Zoe wondered. She got her answer, as well as a moment of panic, as Nathaniel took a few steps back and threw his son at Richard.
Richard caught the boy easily in a scoop-hold, then heaved the child back at Nathaniel.
Heart beating a little rapidly, Zoe found she couldn't look away. The gravity on the ship was standard. She had held Ashley the previous night, he was a normal weight for a five-year-old. No matter how strong they were, two grown men shouldn't be able to throw and catch the kid that easily. it just wasn't possible.
Movement on the upper ramps made Zoe look up. The Captain stood there with Inara. Mal met Zoe's eyes, and she knew he was worried by this, yet another strange incident with these strange people.
Nathaniel adjusted Ashley in his arms, then tossed the boy into the air. Ashley twisted in the air, and Richard had to take a few steps to the side to get under the boy. He was slightly off-balance when Ashley landed in his arms, making Richard slam into part of the box barrier that no one had thought to dismantle, after Anita's blood-letting the previous day.
For the precariously constructed structure, already shifted around in the frantic escape from the Reavers, the impact was too much. The heavy top box slid off its perch and crashed into another crate, before bouncing once more and crashing down on the black box the passengers had brought.
The box cracked with the sound of shattering glass. Richard swung around, horror dawning on his face. There was a moment of complete stillness in the hold, like the sound of the moment's calm before bullets came in a hail.
Then the box cracked further, as if there was something inside trying to get out. Richard, only a few feet from the box, swung around with Ashley in his arms. He saw Zoe, and she only had a moment to brace herself before the man flung the child at her.
The boy slammed into her, and Zoe fell back under the impact. She looked up in time to see Richard running toward the box, putting himself between it and the others, a second before the black box broke apart. Something inside the box unfolded and flung itself at Richard.
Anita's scream echoed in the hold as the thing.... no, a man, Zoe realized, pulled Richard down. Richard's short yell was cut off into a wet gurgle.
Zoe got to her feet, world crystallizing into an adrenaline-fuelled battlefield. She shoved Ashley behind her and drew the firearm at her side.
Richard's attacker, all long black hair and ragged clothes, rolled off his victim. Zoe could see that Richard's throat was torn out, making him thrash as he scrambled to breathe. The man, his face a snarling mask of blood and glowing blue eyes, looked around and saw the closest person. Zoe.
"Hey!" Nathaniel yelled frantically, throwing something at the man. It hit his shoulder, making the man whirl around. He leaped with inhuman strength and landed on Nathaniel, sinking his teeth into Nathaniel's shoulder.
Anita stood on the ground in front of the mule, her hands full of a short sword and a gun. "Jean-Claude!" she screamed, aiming the gun at the struggling pair. "Nathaniel!"
The man lifted his head from Nathaniel's bloody neck and stared at Anita. He climbed off Nathaniel and stalked toward Anita on his hands and feet.
Zoe felt movement by her leg as Ashley suddenly darted past her. Zoe dropped her gun and barely caught the boy by the shirt. She yanked him backwards hard, wrapping both arms around him and somehow managing to clap one hand over the struggling boy's mouth.
The bloody man didn't seem to notice the scuffle. He continued to slowly stalk toward Anita.
Anita watched the man. As Zoe watched, the fear in her eyes was replaced with sadness, and then resolve. She raised her gun higher, and moved her finger to the trigger.
The man stumbled and dropped to his knees, his head down. "Ma petite?" he said thickly.
Anita quickly moved her finger from the trigger and put the gun up. "Jean-Claude?" she said hesitantly, almost hopefully.
"Where are we?" the man asked.
Anita took two careful steps toward him. "Is it you?" Anita asked.
The man nodded as shudders passed over his body.
Zoe wanted to yell at Anita to shoot the monster that had just attacked her men, when Richard convulsed again. Then his skin split from the inside, bones sliding through exposed flesh, as if something inside of him fought to get out.
The world got grey around the edges, and Zoe made herself keep breathing. Fur crawled over those bones, flesh reformed, until an animal stood up in place of Richard. The animal, like a dog but almost as big as a pony, padded across the floor to Nathaniel. The other man sat up at the animal's urging, shaking his head.
It had to be a wolf, Zoe thought, mesmerized. No one had seen a wolf in hundreds of years. They went extinct on Earth-That-Was before the planet was used up. But now, here one was, in Richard's place
The wolf stopped by the bloody, ragged man, and whimpered. The man reached up a shaking hand to touch the wolf's head, and the wolf nudged forward and began licking the blood off the man's face.
Anita laid down her short sword and walked to the man and the wolf. The animal licked over her hand with a bloody tongue, then rubbed its head against her thigh. Slowly, almost reverently, Anita touched the man's face with her fingers. "I thought we'd lost you," she said.
The man went up on his knees and wrapped his arms around Anita's waist, pressing his face against her stomach. She took a shuddering breath, then put one hand on his head. The other hand, the one that still held the gun, she kept by her side.
The room was still. Ashley trembled against Zoe's arms, but he made no sound as he watched his mother hold the monster that had almost killed Richard and Nathaniel.
Anita raised her eyes from the man and the wolf, and looked at Zoe. Anita stared at her son for a moment, then turned her head. Zoe followed her gaze, and had to swallow hard at the expression on the Captain's face. She had seen strong and well-armed men quail under that stare.
Anita just stared at Mal, wolf at her side, as the man with blood on his face clung to her as if she was a lifeline.
Next chapter...
by Mhalachai
Rating: PG
Spoilers: All of Firefly, same for Anita Blake.
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy own all things Firefly. Laurell K. Hamilton owns all things Anita Blake. I am but borrowing the characters for a brief time and shall return them intact at the end.
Summary: Serenity gets four new passengers and, as usual, things are not as they seem.
~~. Part One .~~ ~~. Part Two .~~ ~~. Part Three .~~ ~~. Part Four .~~ ~~. Part Five .~~ ~~. Part Six .~~
~~*~~
Inara watched the tea leaves swirl slowly in her cup, sinking gently in the hot water. That was how she felt on that day. Sinking slowly, the thin tendril of fear swirling in her head.
Not for the first time, she had lain awake in her bed on the shuttle last night, shaking. Why was she here, in the dark cold of space, on this ship with these people, with no real defences against Reavers or pirates or even space debris?
With a start, Inara shook herself out of her thoughts. She knew why she was here, and not on a Core planet with its easy work. She had made her decision, and even as she threatened to leave Serenity, this life was in her blood now.
"No!"
Inara looked up to see the child, Ashley, shove his book away on the table with remarkable strength for his age. The book hit an empty cup, knocking it to the ground with a clatter.
Nathaniel took a deep breath, looking as if he were trying to contain his temper. "Go pick up that cup, Ashley," he said.
"No!" the child shouted again, climbing down out of his chair. "I don't want to!"
Ashley's yells bordered on the hysterical, and Inara looked away. Simon had told her earlier that morning that he had heard the boy talking throughout the night. He must not have had much sleep, and after what he had seen happen to his mother the previous day, Inara understood why he was so upset.
Anita, who had been sitting on a chair at the far end of the room, stood up and intercepted her son's dash for freedom. "Ashley, you need to stop this," Anita said forcefully. "This is not acceptable behaviour."
"I don't care!" Ashley said, trying to twist out of his mother's grasp. Nathaniel quickly joined Anita beside the frantic child.
"Stop it!" Anita exclaimed, her own voice a little hysterical. She gave the boy a small shake. "Why can't you just behave for two more days?"
"I hate you!" Ashley shouted, kicking at his mother. "I hate you and I want to go home!"
"All right, that's it," Nathaniel said, picking up Ashley around the middle and hoisting the boy over his shoulder. "You're going to lie down for a while."
Ashley's protest descended into an unhappy wail as his father carried him to the stairs down to the passenger dorm. Anita stayed crouched on the floor, staring at the spot where her misbehaving child had recently stood. Her shoulders were slumped in exhaustion, and Inara saw the dark circles under her eyes.
Zoe appeared in the door from the hallway to the bridge. Her eyebrows were raised in a question, to which Inara shook her head. Zoe nodded and went back down the hall.
"Would you care for some tea?" Inara said into the silence. Anita's head swung around, and Inara was struck by the hollowness in her dark eyes.
After a moment of examination, Anita shook her head and stood up. Slowly, she retrieved the wayward cup and set it on the table, then sank into the chair Nathaniel had just vacated. Inara pretended that she hadn't seen the shaking in Anita's hands.
Inara picked up her cup and took a chair at the table. She waited until Anita looked at her again, then smiled in a non-threatening and friendly way. "Space travel is hard on children, sometimes," she said.
Although Inara had meant it in a polite way, Anita frowned at her. "I'm not making any excuses for my son," the woman said sharply.
"I didn't think you were," Inara said, verbally retreating. She hadn't meant to put the woman on the defensive.
Anita put her elbows on the table and buried her head in her hands. They sat in an uncomfortable silence until Richard appeared by Anita's side. He nodded at Inara, then put his hand on Anita's shoulder. She jerked her head up, startled.
"Sorry," Richard murmured. "I just wanted to tell you that everything's okay."
Anita pushed her hair out of her face. "What happened?"
Richard brushed his fingers over her cheek. "Ashley proclaimed loudly that he hated you, Nathaniel, me, this ship, space, reading, and strangely, peanuts, before bursting into tears. He fell asleep a couple of minutes later."
Anita sighed, taking Richard's hand in hers and twining their fingers together. "Good to know he hates us all," she murmured.
"He doesn't hate anyone, he's just tired and scared," Richard said. "He's not sure how to deal with--"
"Not now, Richard," Anita interrupted, careful to not look at Inara.
"Sure." Richard ran his hand over Anita's hair. "Why don't you go get some sleep? You look pretty tired yourself."
"I was up all night with Ashley," Anita reminded him.
"All the better. It might do Ashley a world of good to wake up with both his mom and dad there."
Anita stood up and reluctantly let go of Richard's hand. "Maybe you're right."
Richard smiled at Anita and kissed the top of her head. "I'll see you in a bit," he said. As Anita walked-- no, dragged herself to the stairs, Richard's calm facade slipped, and Inara saw the worry etched into the lines of his beautiful face. Then the expression was gone.
Inara smiled at Richard, then went back to her tea. Every time she thought she had these new passengers figured out, they did something to surprise her. Of all of them, Inara thought she understood Nathaniel the best. He might act like the young doting father, but there was something in the turn of his head at times, the way he watched people, the weight of consideration in his eyes, that reminded Inara very strongly of herself.
Anita was a complete mystery. It was obvious she cared about her son, but her attempt at suicide the previous day was so at odds with Inara's impression of the strong woman, that Inara questioned her own conclusions at first. But they were solid, her views of this woman. So how could she have tried to kill herself in front of her son?
It was those doubts, coupled with River's strange and disturbing comment after the Reaver ship blew up, that had caused Inara to think very hard as she lay awake in bed all night. As a Companion, she had been places in the Core worlds that no one else on this ship, not even Simon, had been. She had heard stories that none of them would dream of. She had serviced a client once, who drank a little too heavily and spoke a little too freely. He tried to impress her with what she had supposed were ghost stories from Earth, long forgotten. Of people who could use magic to read minds, make people believe things, even raise the dead. She had thought them only drunken ramblings.
Until River came and began to speak in whispers of what lay in the minds of Serenity's crew. Until River spoke of skins and vengeance and blood.
"Penny for your thoughts," Richard said. He smiled at Inara as she looked up at him. "You seemed to be thinking too hard," he said.
For all that he was bigger than Mal, Richard held an innocent appeal about him. Inara wanted to like him, which made her distrustful. She had too many years of practice at making people like her, to fall for that so easily. "I also had a hard time sleeping," Inara said, settling on a safe topic.
Richard sighed. "It was a bad night for everyone," he said.
He sat down in Anita's abandoned chair and drummed his fingers on the table. Inara suddenly wanted to ask him about his relationship with Anita. Their body language told her that Richard and Anita were lovers, but she could tell the same thing about Nathaniel and Anita. That was mere gossip, however, and Inara resolved to leave her curiosity unsatisfied.
Richard looked so lonely that Inara had to offer something. "Would you care to play chess?" she asked.
The look of sudden relief on Richard's face made Inara glad she asked. As she stood to retrieve the chessboard from the drawer in the wall, she found herself looking forward to the game. They would talk, Inara hoped, and she would learn more about Serenity's new passengers. Then, maybe, she might begin to unravel the mystery of these strange people.
~~*~~
Zoe leaned against the doorway to the Shepherd's bunk and watched as Simon took the sleeping man's pulse. "How is he, Simon?" she asked in a low voice.
Simon removed his fingers from Book's wrist and pulled the blanket a little higher over the man's chest. "He'll be fine," the doctor said. "He's in no danger."
"Then why is he still unconscious?"
"It's the drugs I gave him for the concussion," Simon explained. "They'll make him sleep for a little longer." He gathered up his things and stepped into the hall. Not having anything else to do, Zoe followed him to the infirmary.
A peal of childish laughter from the cargo hold caught Simon's attention. "It's amazing how four hours of sleep can give a child a new outlook on life," Simon said. "He certainly is feeling better. What are they doing?"
"The boy needed to run around, and it was either have him tear around the hold, or have him go pester Jayne on the bridge," Zoe said. "It's hard on children cooped up on ships in space."
Simon began putting equipment in drawers. "I'm surprised that Captain Reynolds would let them have the run of the cargo hold."
"It was either that or another tantrum," Zoe said, heading for the door.
"I guess," Simon said slowly. "Children need activity."
Zoe arched an eyebrow at Simon. "I was talking about Jayne," she said as she exited the room.
Although Zoe would never admit to it, she was still on edge from the narrowly averted Reaver attack the day before. River's words had stayed in her head, and she had woken in a cold sweat from nightmares. Wash had asked her what was wrong, but Zoe couldn't answer. She was stronger than that, strong enough not to be woken in the night by nightmares brought on by childish nursery rhymes.
For now, she resolved to push those fears away as she walked into the cargo hold. Ashley and the two men were throwing a ball between them, every semblance of a child at play with his family.
Anita sat on the hood of the mule, watching the game solemnly. Zoe's eyes lingered on the woman for a moment. She was very pale, her dark hair loose about her face, yet she sat with her back ramrod straight, her hands placed carefully on her knees.
Ashley threw the oversized ball over Richard's head. The tall man went to catch the ball with an exaggerated movement, and it flew though his outstretched hands. Squealing with delight, Ashley jumped up and down until Nathaniel picked him up and hoisted him into the air.
"All-time champion!" Nathaniel proclaimed, swinging Ashley around. Zoe heard a giggle, and looked around to see River watching the game from behind the stairs. The girl saw Zoe looking at her, and did something that she never had. She smiled at Zoe.
The girl was beautiful, Zoe realized. When she wasn't screaming or terrified or confused, River was a beauty.
"Where's the ball?" Ashley asked.
Richard looked around. "It's gone." He grinned at Ashley and Nathaniel. "We could always play Ashley-ball."
"Yes!" Ashley crowed. "Ashley-ball!"
What was that? Zoe wondered. She got her answer, as well as a moment of panic, as Nathaniel took a few steps back and threw his son at Richard.
Richard caught the boy easily in a scoop-hold, then heaved the child back at Nathaniel.
Heart beating a little rapidly, Zoe found she couldn't look away. The gravity on the ship was standard. She had held Ashley the previous night, he was a normal weight for a five-year-old. No matter how strong they were, two grown men shouldn't be able to throw and catch the kid that easily. it just wasn't possible.
Movement on the upper ramps made Zoe look up. The Captain stood there with Inara. Mal met Zoe's eyes, and she knew he was worried by this, yet another strange incident with these strange people.
Nathaniel adjusted Ashley in his arms, then tossed the boy into the air. Ashley twisted in the air, and Richard had to take a few steps to the side to get under the boy. He was slightly off-balance when Ashley landed in his arms, making Richard slam into part of the box barrier that no one had thought to dismantle, after Anita's blood-letting the previous day.
For the precariously constructed structure, already shifted around in the frantic escape from the Reavers, the impact was too much. The heavy top box slid off its perch and crashed into another crate, before bouncing once more and crashing down on the black box the passengers had brought.
The box cracked with the sound of shattering glass. Richard swung around, horror dawning on his face. There was a moment of complete stillness in the hold, like the sound of the moment's calm before bullets came in a hail.
Then the box cracked further, as if there was something inside trying to get out. Richard, only a few feet from the box, swung around with Ashley in his arms. He saw Zoe, and she only had a moment to brace herself before the man flung the child at her.
The boy slammed into her, and Zoe fell back under the impact. She looked up in time to see Richard running toward the box, putting himself between it and the others, a second before the black box broke apart. Something inside the box unfolded and flung itself at Richard.
Anita's scream echoed in the hold as the thing.... no, a man, Zoe realized, pulled Richard down. Richard's short yell was cut off into a wet gurgle.
Zoe got to her feet, world crystallizing into an adrenaline-fuelled battlefield. She shoved Ashley behind her and drew the firearm at her side.
Richard's attacker, all long black hair and ragged clothes, rolled off his victim. Zoe could see that Richard's throat was torn out, making him thrash as he scrambled to breathe. The man, his face a snarling mask of blood and glowing blue eyes, looked around and saw the closest person. Zoe.
"Hey!" Nathaniel yelled frantically, throwing something at the man. It hit his shoulder, making the man whirl around. He leaped with inhuman strength and landed on Nathaniel, sinking his teeth into Nathaniel's shoulder.
Anita stood on the ground in front of the mule, her hands full of a short sword and a gun. "Jean-Claude!" she screamed, aiming the gun at the struggling pair. "Nathaniel!"
The man lifted his head from Nathaniel's bloody neck and stared at Anita. He climbed off Nathaniel and stalked toward Anita on his hands and feet.
Zoe felt movement by her leg as Ashley suddenly darted past her. Zoe dropped her gun and barely caught the boy by the shirt. She yanked him backwards hard, wrapping both arms around him and somehow managing to clap one hand over the struggling boy's mouth.
The bloody man didn't seem to notice the scuffle. He continued to slowly stalk toward Anita.
Anita watched the man. As Zoe watched, the fear in her eyes was replaced with sadness, and then resolve. She raised her gun higher, and moved her finger to the trigger.
The man stumbled and dropped to his knees, his head down. "Ma petite?" he said thickly.
Anita quickly moved her finger from the trigger and put the gun up. "Jean-Claude?" she said hesitantly, almost hopefully.
"Where are we?" the man asked.
Anita took two careful steps toward him. "Is it you?" Anita asked.
The man nodded as shudders passed over his body.
Zoe wanted to yell at Anita to shoot the monster that had just attacked her men, when Richard convulsed again. Then his skin split from the inside, bones sliding through exposed flesh, as if something inside of him fought to get out.
The world got grey around the edges, and Zoe made herself keep breathing. Fur crawled over those bones, flesh reformed, until an animal stood up in place of Richard. The animal, like a dog but almost as big as a pony, padded across the floor to Nathaniel. The other man sat up at the animal's urging, shaking his head.
It had to be a wolf, Zoe thought, mesmerized. No one had seen a wolf in hundreds of years. They went extinct on Earth-That-Was before the planet was used up. But now, here one was, in Richard's place
The wolf stopped by the bloody, ragged man, and whimpered. The man reached up a shaking hand to touch the wolf's head, and the wolf nudged forward and began licking the blood off the man's face.
Anita laid down her short sword and walked to the man and the wolf. The animal licked over her hand with a bloody tongue, then rubbed its head against her thigh. Slowly, almost reverently, Anita touched the man's face with her fingers. "I thought we'd lost you," she said.
The man went up on his knees and wrapped his arms around Anita's waist, pressing his face against her stomach. She took a shuddering breath, then put one hand on his head. The other hand, the one that still held the gun, she kept by her side.
The room was still. Ashley trembled against Zoe's arms, but he made no sound as he watched his mother hold the monster that had almost killed Richard and Nathaniel.
Anita raised her eyes from the man and the wolf, and looked at Zoe. Anita stared at her son for a moment, then turned her head. Zoe followed her gaze, and had to swallow hard at the expression on the Captain's face. She had seen strong and well-armed men quail under that stare.
Anita just stared at Mal, wolf at her side, as the man with blood on his face clung to her as if she was a lifeline.
Next chapter...