Sorry it took so long to get this up! I was in NYC for Christmas and didn't have access to a computer. I hope I made up for it by giving a good chapter.

And special thanks to GrayAlbatross for pointing out that mentioned Miranda in the last chapter when I said the BDM didn't happen. I meant to say that it had been a couple of months, but I must have been delirious or something. And Amdobell, I didn't get the name Tripp from Enterprise. I've never seen it before. I got it from the US Census Bureau's list of the most popular baby names. :) I'll stop rambling now and let you read.

Miracles

Even at midnight, Simon still sat in the infirmary with Tripp, sprawled out on the chair and repeatedly checking the monitors to make sure the baby stayed in stable condition. He had been getting steadily better throughout the night, which gave Simon the hope and strength to stay awake. He sighed and fought off sleep's last attempt to make him surrender.

Everywhere else in the ship was quiet. Wash and Zoe slept, not because they weren't worried, but because they were exhausted to stay awake. Mal, Inara, and Jayne tried to remain detached from the matter at hand, knowing that sleep was necessary. Even Jayne felt a tiny bit of compassion for the baby since his own brother, Matty, had been born the same way.

Kaylee, River, and Book, though not peacefully sleeping, made no noise either. Book prayed silently in his bunk, not knowing if Tripp, his parents, or anyone would appreciate it at all. River's sleep, as usual, was plagued by nightmares of unknowable and incomprehensible evils. Kaylee, however, wasn't even in her bunk. She was in the kitchen, making Simon some food and some juice. She didn't feel right sitting idly by and falling asleep while he had to stay up all night to make sure that Tripp lived.

She walked down to the stairs quietly to infirmary, the usual bounciness absent from her step. She tapped softly on the window so as not to startle him. Simon's head popped up and he saw her, a smile emerging on his