P I L O T

ind. & prv. 𝙷𝙾𝙱𝙰𝙽 𝚆𝙰𝚂𝙷𝙱𝚄𝚁𝙽𝙴 of 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒚. written by skye (she/her, 33, est). blog established march 2013. (fuck w.hedon!). ship friendly. low activity.

" if you want a bribe, that's fine by me - just don't tell my wife... " that's all the greeting he offers as he bursts into the infirmary, covered in dust, his hand wrapped ominously in one of his old aloha print shirts. he lets out a frustrated sigh as he flings himself into the chair. honestly, he deserves this. it's what he gets for thinking it'd be an oh-so-exciting change of pace to take part in a job after more than two months of twiddling his thumbs ship-side. wouldn't it just be his luck, then, that this would be a job where things went squirrelly... he'd been separated from zoe and the captain... and managed to mangle his paw in the process. side note: apparently badger's contacts are into booby traps now, so... that's fun! " i - uh - just need a shot of something for the pain... did the bandaging all by myself, see doc? " he says, lifting up the bloodied hand-shirt mess. there's sweat on his forehead now, but he still manages a smirk and shrug. " so! what've you been up to? "

" absolutely thrilling stuff, ain't it? " he offers her a knowing smile as she appears at the top of the stairs. it's several hours into a job and - as usual - he's manning the ship. this time, at least, he's got some company. he clambers to his feet and wipes his hands on his flight suit. his plan had been to tinker with the old mule's sticky breaks - but after an hour, he's more than happy for the distraction... " i know you'd think all the excitement's out there with zoe and the captain - " he jerks his head towards the large cargo bay doors. " but actually it's right here where we do the all-important waiting and worrying... "

" you - " he points at her, as firm a glare as he can manage in his eye as he drops down onto the sofa beside her. " you owe me... i could've died today! " okay, so maybe he's being dramatic. but after the day they'd had, he's not inclined to be all sober and sensible like. " that guy was almost two of me! could've taken my head off with just a sneeze... " the job that had brought them to this tiny, backwater of a world had seemed simple enough on the surface. zoe and mal would do the talking, distract the target - meanwhile wash and kaylee'd abscond with the goods all tucked away in nondescript crates of protein bars... and it had all been going smoothly, too. that is, until some brick wall of a local deputy had seen fit to stop the mule before they were even halfway back to the ship. sure, wash had talked them out of it eventually - but not before he'd started to wonder if he'd updated his will... now, safe and sound aboard serenity, it was hitting him just how close they'd come. " you're lucky. if he'd squashed me, i'd be haunting you 'til you're old grey! "