Firefly Fic: Nothing In Common (Mal, Simon, PG)

[fan_elune]

Title: Nothing in Common
Fandom: Firefly
Disclaimer: They're all Joss's, I'm merely playing around with them.
Rating: PG-13
Warning: hint of gore.
Summary: Some would think that Mal and Simon have nothing in common.
Author's notes: this was written for greenie_breizh, who finally gave up on me writing Real Person fic and instead asked for something about Mal in the war, or Simon's run, so I took those two and made one short ficlet out of it. Hope you like it, love.


Nothing in common


Sergeant Malcolm Reynolds watched another one of his men die, and he felt another little piece of himself die with him. He took cover, catching his breath, gripping his rifle tight, and replayed the moment in his mind: he hadn't seen the bullet come, but he'd seen Lowers' head suddenly snap backwards, then the body had fallen, and when he'd looked – how could he not – he'd seen the bullet had caught him in the eye, and the right side of his face was a bloody mess. He'd been a comely boy, all in dark shades, and now he was a corpse. He thought his first name had been Nikki.

Zoe stopped by his side and a modicum of strength coursed through his veins; she had that effect on him.

"We just lost Lowers!" she informed him.

His voice sounded exhausted as he answered, exhausted and yet still full of energy in the simple statement he shouted back at her. "I know, I saw!"

They had to shout because bullets were still being fired and the battle was everything but silent, it was a deafening racket. A racket and a call to arms, to keep fighting until the battle was won, or lost.

Zoe and he exchanged a look, and they went back at it.



Doctor Simon Tam's contact with the underground was called Jake Lesotho, and he learned not to ask more. He did gather, by overhearing some of his men, that Jake was the father of two kids, and he knew not to ask why there was never any mention of his wife. When they brought River to him, she was already in the cryo-chamber and there was no victory in their eyes. It took him a few minutes to realise that Jake hadn't come back with them.

He looked at the cryo-chamber and thought of the vulnerable girl sleeping inside; he knew it wasn't her they had fought for, but for him it had always been her.

"What happened to Jake?" he asked, and his voice trembled.

"Just take your sister somewhere safe, doc," was the only answer they gave him.

And he thought of two children that had lost their father, and of the child asleep inside the cryo-chamber, and he wondered about his assumption that they hadn't done it for her, wondered whether they did it for the dead or for the living.

He wished them luck and took his sister away.



When former sergeant and doctor met they disliked each other on sight. A few days later, learning more about each other had only deepened that dislike. There was no getting along for the two of them, but still something enabled Mal to offer Serenity as a harbour for the Tams, and something enabled Simon to accept. Perhaps because Simon wondered whether Mal did it for the dead or for the living, perhaps because Mal saw a pretty face that had not been ruined by a bullet.

They might have different perspectives, but they had something in common.

~~ fin ~~

Comments

[the-grynne.livejournal.com]

It took him a few minutes to realise that Jake hadn't come back with them.

I had always wondered about those underground folk... Nice touch. That was a lovely story.

[fan-elune.livejournal.com]

Thank you! And yes, I wonder whether any fics have been written about Simon and the underground fellows. It has potential for very good story-telling. Hmm, I should go look for it.

Thanks for commenting! :)

[the-grynne.livejournal.com]

It's the mystery that keeps us going. :) I for one was intrigued by River's words when she first emerged from the cryo-box: "They want me to talk..." The impression I got after my very first viewing was that she was referring to the rebels who "rescued" her, because they wanted inside information as to what was going on in the facility where she was being kept. But then I think about how much they risked to get her out, and for so little relative gain.

[fan-elune.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's right! Very good point, that is. They might have wanted to at least get something out of it, then realised she was far too unstable for them to get anything out of her, and then only cryonised her and passed her over to the oblivious Simon. Aw.

You know, you should write that. *nods* Yes, you should.

[the-grynne.livejournal.com]

It really is pretty tempting... *nudgenudge* You write it. :) I'd so rather hear it from you.

[fan-elune.livejournal.com]

Oh nonono! River is the most difficult voice to capture, I'm just not used to Simon, and still I'd be very tempted but I have entirely too much on my plate these days to launch myself into this! Besides, it's your idea! *tries and fights off the muses* *nudgenudge right back* Come on, you write it.

[the-grynne.livejournal.com]

:) I'm nervous just at the thought of tackling Mal Reynolds. He has this way of talking that's always so on-the-fly, unexpectedly beautiful and articulate.

I have the same problem, too much going on at the moment... But now it's kind of stuck in my brain, so I know I'll probably get to it eventually.