I know that I just got out the last chapter yesterday, but I'm on a kick here. I will hopefully have another chapter by the end of today. Only two more chapters in this story, and then I'll write a sequel.

THE Question

Three years had passed since Tripp's birth. In that time, another Washburne boy- Kieran Emory- had been born. Mal's resolve finally crumbled after seeing the birth of Kieran, and he and Inara had one child now. A boy, named Spencer Thurmon, who went by Spence.

Tripp had grown up a bit. He was now three years old and the leader of three boys. He nicknamed their group the Space Boys. Tripp certainly looked the part of a leader: calm green eyes, a serious face with his mother's stare, and curly black hair, Tripp gave off a powerful presence. Kieran, however, turned out to be a clone of his father instead of his mother.

Kieran's skin was lighter than Tripp's, his hair dirty blonde. No one, however, was sure where his green eyes came from. Both of the boys had that odd genetic quality. Kieran also was very carefree and fun. He ran around a lot, screaming at the top of his lungs. Kaylee obviously loved him more than the others, enjoying his wild nature. Zoe and Wash often had to stop her from spoiling him or trying to teach the two-year-old how to shut off the gravity in Mal's bunk whenever he put Kieran in time-out.

Mal's own son, Spence, ended up looking like his father's clone. In fact, when they compared captures of the two, they looked almost exactly alike. Since he was only one, Spence wasn't allowed to fully participate in Tripp's elaborate games of Space Boys, even if his mother watched from the sidelines. Or his father. Mal had turned out to be a surprisingly good father, not spoiling the boy rotten nor depriving him of life's joys. He punished him when it was appropriate, but wrestled with him playfully in the common room, much to Jayne's enjoyment.

Things were progressing quite satisfactorily for Serenity and her growing family. The only people left without love on the ship we