Standing in Snow [#2, River/Jayne, Firefly, PG]

[walkwithheroes]

[#2, River/Jayne, Firefly, PG]

 

Standing in Snow

 

Theme: 2. The cruelest month
Character/s or Pairing:  Jayne Cobb and River Tam
Series: Firefly
Rating: PG
Notes:  I don’t own them, just to be clear. No spoilers. Written for 52 flavours

 

 

 

 

The planet of Kerry had had trouble terra-forming, which meant that its weather was all messed up. For example, in the planet’s summer months, it was freezing. In fact, the month of July was said to be the coldest and cruelest month. It was just the crew’s luck that their first job in weeks brought them to Kerry, in July.

 

It was well below zero degrees and it was snowing when Serenity docked at one in the morning on July tenth. The entire crew dressed themselves in sweaters, jackets, gloves, and hats. Jayne noticed that River Tam wore pants and an oversized coat that had once belonged to her older brother. The girl was drowning in rich and fancy clothing that made her look like prissy Simon. 

 

“I’m drowning in dead sheep.” River stated as the crew gathered in the cargo bay. She was tugging on her coat and Jayne could tell she longed for her thin, but tasteful shawl. “Simon,” she gave her brother a look. “I am not a sheep. Cotton.”

 

Simon just gave her a little look: “River, please let the coat stay on? It’s freezing. Oh,” he took a pair of wooly mittens out of his pocket. “put these on, as well. I don’t want you getting a cold.”

 

River had stuck her tongue out at her brother.

 

“Put the gorram mittens on.” Jayne growled at River, as he put on his orange hat. “Ain’t no use arguing’ w’at’s been decided.”

 

River stuck her tongue out at Jayne, but put the mittens on anyhow. The mittens made it nearly impossible for her to properly use her hands, but Jayne saw that as a blessing; at least he knew she wouldn‘t try to slash him across the chest that day.

 

“I wouldn’t cut you again.” Jayne heard River mutter, though it sounded more like she was just talking to herself, again.

 

“Oh, River, no one thinks you’re going to hurt them.” Simon gently told his sister. “That was just…you were having a bad day.”

 

“She knifed me!” Jayne shouted out at the crew. “That ain’t a bad day, that’s cracked.” Mal shot Jayne a look and the big man ducked his captain’s gaze. “Well, she did.” He muttered under his breath.

 

“Won’t do it again. Blue Sun‘s gone from the heart, dumbo.” River whispered as she breezed past him and to Inara and Kaylee, who are waiting for her just outside the ship.

 

Jayne just glared at her as he picked up a large crate to carry out; he had no time a crazy girl named River Tam and her insane logic.

 

____________________________________________________________________

 

He spotted her later in the day; gorram fool was standing outside Serenity, letting the snow hit her in the face. To top it all off, the girl wasn’t even wearing her coats, mittens, boots, or hat; no, she was standing out there in nothing but a pink and thin looking sundress. She really was crazy.

 

“Hey!” He called out. “Gorramit, you want ta die?” Jayne didn’t wait for a response, he just took her by the hand and drug her inside and straight to the sitting area just outside the infirmary.

 

It figured that everyone else would appear to be off the boat just as River decided to stand, nearly naked, in the snow. Jayne wasted no time in putting his coat onto River’s thin shoulders before rushing to the dinning room to get her a cup of something warm and the blankets that he had spotted in the dinning room’s sitting area. When it was all finished, Jayne had River in his coat and wearing three blankets and her combat boots while drinking hot coca. Jayne did have to wonder when he turned into a baby-sitter.

 

“Ya warm?” River just looked at him. “Ya could o’ died, ya know that?” Again, she just stared at him. “Girl!”

 

“She hears you.” River whispered. “Cold lets you know you’re still alive, Man.”

 

Jayne glared at her. “Ya belong in a bughouse.” Glancing around, Jayne noticed that River’s coat, hat, mittens, and boots, were all neatly set on a counter in the med lab. It hit Jayne that River had set her clothing all together on purpose. There was a method to River’s madness and Jayne was just starting to figure it out. “It snow on yer world?” He asked her, nearly whispering the question.

 

River glanced over at Jayne and nodded. “Snow came, made the roof heavy. But, Daddy and Mummy took me and Simon south. There was a garden and flowers.” She had a far away look on her face and a sweet smile on her lips. “We found berries, once.”

 

Jayne watched River for a moment. “Oh.” He got up and went to get River another couple of blankets.

 

When Jayne returned, he found River in the infirmary, quietly putting her coat back on.

 

“W’at are ya doin’?” He questioned her.

 

River didn’t even look at him when she answered him softly: “Putting the layers back.” She put the hat on and then the mittens, all with grace.

 

Jayne stood in the doorway and watched her. She was just getting redressed as if she hadn’t been standing in the middle of the snow a few minutes before. She looked so peaceful and scientific as she put her layers of clothing on. When River finished dressing, she glanced over at Jayne and smiled shyly at him.

 

“W’at?” He moved uncomfortably under her gaze.

 

River seemed to think for a moment. “You want me to die in your arms tonight?”

 

Jayne’s eyes grew wide. “I don’ wan’ ya ta die, girl.”

 

She rolled her dark eyes upward. “No. ‘I just died in your arms, tonight.’ You want me to say it to you, one day?” River looked at Jayne, some kind of confusion on her pretty face.

 

Jayne looked just as confused. What in the gorram hell was she saying? I just died it your arms tonight, did that even mean something? Was she saying she was going to die in his arms and that he wanted her to or…or was it something else all together?

 

“Rebirth, orgasm, death.” River said in a little voice as she breezed past him and toward the cargo bay.

 

Jayne watched her disappear, a confused look on his face. Not only was July the cruelest month on Kerry, it really was the strangest.

Comments

[julie-reads.livejournal.com]

Good fic, thanks! I heard that song last night, during the 'I Love the 80's' and thought it would be a great Rayne song -- big hugs for using it! :)

[dubbage42.livejournal.com]

***ICON LUST***

gah

thud

[julie-reads.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous, isn't it? I got that one (and this one!) from the multi-talented teh_indy here.

[walkwithheroes.livejournal.com]

lol. Confession time. I too heard the song on 'I Love the 80's' and the thing Hal Sparks said, about 'I just died in your arms tonight' being something William S. would have used for an orgasm, well it basically gave me the plot bunny.

Thanks for the hug and yes, someone really should use the song on a mix or for a vid. :)