Author: Tinadoll (aka Tina- That’s me!)

Setting: After BDM- No Wash or Book.

Rating: R to NC-17.

Spoilers: Yes.

Author’s note: REPOST. Don’t remember if this chapter was Beta’d or not. I try to do the best I can editing by myself but you can do nice by just ignoring all the mistakes. Dong ma?

Disclaimer: Firefly is the brainchild of Joss Whedon-I'm just playing around with it

Chapter 12: Hope from beyond.

She jumped down the stairs, past where River was sitting and into the common area where she over heard Simon saying to Zoë: “… Lost a lot of blood and I can’t see the bullet. It’s only a matter of time. Wish I had a scanner.” She couldn’t hear Jayne but when she approached the door, she saw him sitting to the side, very quiet. Maria entered the infirmary but Zoë tried to push her out. “This is none of your concern,” she said, angrily. But Maria stood her ground. “Like hell its not,” she said, pushing back. “This time, you need *my* help.” Zoë was about to lecture her but Simon interrupted. “What do you have that can...” his voice trailed off, he had just realized her usefulness. “Your eye!” She nodded and blinked. “What about her eye, Doc?” Jayne said confused. “With her eye, I can see the bullet and I can operate,” he said and then added to Zoë and Jayne. “But I need room and I need you two to leave,” he said “Like hell I am leaving her in here,” Zoë said angrily. Jayne sat there and said nothing more. “Do what the Doc says, Zo. It’s for the best.” Mal replied in a hoarse voice. He coughed and there was blood. But the message was clear- he was giving her an order. Kaylee gasped and went off in tears. Jayne and Zoë begrudgingly stepped out of the Infirmary. The Doctor looked at Maria in the all business tone and said “Ready?” “Yes,” she responded, simply. She blinked on her eye and gave a look into the wound.

“What do you see?” Simon said patiently. He understood the gravity of the situation and saw that she was trying to help

“It’s deep and but its avoided any major artery,” she said, confirming what the Doctor had thought. “Thank you,” he said simply. As she turned she saw in the Infirmaries window a shadow. She saw Jubel smiling at her. She went back to focusing on the Doc and put Jubal out of her mind.

Simon said something to the Captain (It sounded like a reassurance) and put Mal to sleep and proceeded to operate. She stood over him making sure that he didn’t puncture any vital organ. She noticed all the bloody gauze and stained towels on the floor. It seemed that the Captain needed a blood transfusion ASAP. “Lots of blood…” she said, quietly.

“He needs some… Don’t know where I can get…” before he could answer, she had already hopped on the bed.

She lay down on the bed next to his and nodded. With out another word- he set up the equipment and took two pints of the stuff. When she had started to drift off he knew that she couldn’t take anymore.

Jayne stepped in and gave a pint of his own. He didn’t know what else to do but he wanted to be useful too. With Mal set, Simon excused her. And proceeded to set Jayne up for givingblood. “It’s only a matter of time before we know the outcome,” he said, with sorrow and determination in his eyes. “He’ll live,” she said, hoping for the best. She hopped off the bed and staggered past the worried members of the crew. Zoë said nothing to her. She didn’t want to stand there and argue with her. She could see the sorrow in Kaylee and River’s eyes. Their ge-ge (big brother) was NOT out of the woods yet. She went back to her room and sat on the bed. Something in her heart told her to open the drawer on the nightstand. In the drawer she saw a book. It was the Bible and it had belonged to a Shepard named Book. There was an inscription in it “For when you lose you way…” She kneeled and opened the Book. “Thank you Shepard, wherever you are,” she said drawing comfort from its pages. And there was Psalm 23.

The LORD [is] my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou [art] with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. And she was calm. She put down the book and lay on the bed. She stared up at the ceiling,woozy from the blood loss.

She heard a commotion outside her and then she saw Zoë standing there in the doorway. She had come to argue with her about not following orders. “You were supposed to start the engines like I ordered you,” Zoë said, stone cold. Maria didn’t know why Zoë was picking a fight; perhaps she felt frustration on the count of the captain getting wounded and not her. Maria mused that Zoë could probably take anything; therefore she wasn’t a person to be trifled with. But Maria couldn’t help but feel that ere was a looming confrontation. “We were still refueling, and it’ll take another hour or so to reheat the engines,” Maria replied, anger building. “You should know that only when the job is done is when we refuel,” she said, angrily. “Well it’s kinda my first day,” Maria responded. Well it was- she didn’t realize that she had made an error until that moment. Next time would be different. “First day or not, you put the rest of us at risk,” she said, eyes blazing with anger at Maria’s disobedience. “You know as well as I do that it’s a hazard everyday out here.” She said and then added, trying to change the subject “Who did this? I really would like to know.” “You wouldn’t know him,” Zoë said simply. “Oh cut the crap ma’am,” she said, standing up and letting the anger get the better of her. “You know and I know both that I am in this with you, whether we like it or not.” “It doesn’t matter, our main concern is the Captain,” she responded, grimly. “Our main concern is the Captain and since he is the main source that allows us to make a living, seeing that some one interrupted that I really would like to know who the hell it was,” she said, insisting that Zoë give it up. “His name is Badger,” Zoë said finally. “He has an accent and he wears this bowler hat.” Zoë knew that Maria would probably go get him- and probably do something stupid in the process River tossed Maria her knife and sheathed it on her back and hid it under her vest and walked passed Zoë. She knew the one named Badger. She knew the Badger very very VERY well.

Zoë followed her out of her bunk, down the stairs and into the cargo bay. The rest of the crew, hearing the commotion waited for them. “What are you going to do, Scorpion?” Zoë said, trying to antagonize her by calling her by her old name. “You going to go down there and reap revenge.” Maria shook her head. Zoë didn’t get it. “Well you should,” Jayne said. “It’s a gorram shame that we didn’t get paid,after all that has happened.” Zoë and Jayne exchanged looks. “Oh we are going to get paid, alright,” Maria said smiling. River closed her eyes and Maria understood. So she closed hers as well. *** The stood face to face “Take me with you,” she said. River pleaded with her. Perhaps she wanted to keep Maria safe. “I can’t,” Maria responded. “You aren’t ready…yet.

Then she opened her eyes and faced Zoë again. *** “What are you going to do kill him?” Zoë said, angrily. “You haven’t changed one gorram bit,” Zoë didn’t have faith in her as Mal did, Maria mused. “Who said anything about killin?” she said with a sadistic smile. “For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. (Psalm 37:28)” Something out of her past allowed her to remember that. She didn’t know what but at a later time she would address it further.

And then she walked out the cargo bay.