WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE MOVIE!!!! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!! (in rather tasteless upper case, too, so you’d better take note) * * * * * * * * * Disclaimer: Serenity and all related characters are, sadly, not mine, (goddamit!) they belong to the wondrous and fabulous Joss Whedon and related companies and corporations. Don’t you just hate capitalism. “If everyone cared” is property of Nickelback and Roadrunner Records, so please, big scary ppl, don’t sue me, I have almost no money. Blurb: A little song fic bout Zoë and Wash after the movie. Feedback is shinier than a polished chrome kettle, and is very much appreciated

From underneath the trees we watch the sky Moonlight plays on her soft skin, lancing in sparkling beams off Serenity’s inner hull. Zoë watches the ship, curled like a cat on the bridge, the rest of the crew out in town for the night. Her eyes rest on the stars, those brilliant points of far off light that he loved so much. Confusing stars for satellites He’d joined flight school just to see what was out there. They’d brought him to her. She didn’t know whether to worship them or curse them to oblivion. There’s nobody here but her. Nobody but her. She’s alone. I never dreamed that you’d be mine She doesn’t move. Doesn’t make a single sound. Doesn’t need to. Still, silent as a statue she falls apart. Broken pieces of a shattered heart. All torn up inside, torn up everywhere. But here we are, we’re here tonight The pilot’s chair is empty. Cold as stone yet burned into her minds eye like a seconds old brand. A leaf on the wind, floating, falling out of her grasp. Her warmth fills the co-pilot’s seat, draining her like it never had before, on all those times she took this same position with him beside her. Singing amen I, I’m alive Let her die with him. Let her die in peace. Let her follow the only one she ever loved. Let her die. Oh god, she’s dead already, living as a corpse. She’d give up anything, leave the ship, be a soldier no longer, put a bullet in Mal’s brainpan, just let him be there again. Singing amen I, I’m alive River’s hands trace the pulse of life along the ships corridors. Nobody knows she’s here. Nobody hears her silent footsteps, her thudding heart, her soft breaths. If everyone cared and nobody cried Everything shines, calls out to her, wants to be touched, heard, loved, wants to live. Even the woman on the bridge. Coldness in her mind, surgically sterile. Warmth in her heart, a new torn wound, a fiery pain feeding itself more and more every second. If everone loved and nobody lied Slim white hands travel carefully over well worn plastic toys, gently caressing, giving what they can. Hazel eyes spill sharp tears onto a grey steel console, a cold steel console. Three switches above a right shoulder click distinctly, calling mournfully of a familiar hand. If everyone shared and swallowed their pride They rise, the sleeping warrior, the grieving dancer and the shining mother sun, her life energy beating around them, beating in them. We’d see the day when nobody died A quirky smile, a caring heart and a courage to match no other. They flow through her, guide her fingers to love, to life. Zoë. She understands. She sees. Sees the firm grip, the soft murmur, the smile of pure joy. He’s here. Amen I, I’m alive Amen I, I’m alive Rivers on her cheeks. Salty as such she has not felt in living memory. The joy at being alive, at being loved. Oh god, she’s alive. And in the air the fireflies Amongst the starlight he plays, twirling, spinning, soaring, a leaf on the wind. Our only light in paradise She’s with him. His heart, his soul, his love, his all. Tears on her cheeks and moonbeams in her hair. His angel, his fair one, his only meaning in life. Fly with me baby. Fly with me always and forever, no matter how far, how fast. I’m with you always. We’ll show the world they were wrong Descent is slow, stately. No gliding her in this time, no rocking, no explosions, no bits falling off. Which was good, since Mal would kill him if he smashed up the ship again. And teach them all to sing along If only he was alive. Singing amen I, I’m alive Singing amen I, I’m alive Resting now, sitting on landing gear like a bird ready for sleep, perched in it’s favourite roost. He lets go, lets go of them all. If everyone cared and nobody cried If everyone loved and nobody lied If everyone shared and swallowed their pride We’d see the day when nobody died Kaylee and Simon in the trees. They’re doing what he remembers from years past – hiding from the captain as best they can, being together in as many ways as they can. He knows their happiness, wishes it to last forever. Jayne snoring in the bar, regret parading through his dreams. He knows. He knows you cared, that you would shoot yourself rather than have let him die. But you couldn’t. You lived for them. For them all. Mal and Inara walking in the moonlight, stolen moments. Don’t waste it. You never know when it’ll be snatched away from you, never to return. Love and don’t look back. Don’t ever look back. And as we lie beneath the stars Far off suns in her hazel eyes. He leaves her. He’ll be waiting, she knows. She’ll feel him waiting until he waits no more. We realize how small we are Live and love and don’t look back little angel. It wasn’t your fault. Nothing was your fault. Fly forever. Soar on the wind for me. If they could love like you and me The sky has her safe. He’ll love her forever, and the stars will be in her eyes. He’ll wait for her, defy hell, heaven and earth for her. He’ll be there. Imagine what the world could be One day they’ll soar, two leaves on the wind. Flying with the stars. If everyone cared and nobody cried If everyone loved and nobody lied If everyone shared and swallowed their pride We’d see the day when nobody died