It took three hours before Kaylee announced that all the air in the old Firefly had been filtered, and another ninety minutes before Simon was satisfied that every trace of Shadow’s pathogens were gone. By that time Mal had changed his clothes and almost worn out the cargo bay floor with his pacing.

Finally Simon slipped the small scanner back into his bag, and leaned over the catwalk railing. “She’s clean, Mal.”

“Should say she is,” Serenity’s captain muttered, sliding the door to the common area open. He stopped.

“Shh.” Bethany stood just inside, her finger to her lips.

“What? Why?”

“Everyone’s asleep,” she whispered.

“Oh.” He lowered his voice to her level. “They all okay?”

She nodded. “Shiny.”

He smiled a little. “You looked after ‘em?”

“My job.”

“Reckon it is, short stub. You gonna show me?“ He held out his hand and she slipped her small fingers into his.

“Yes, captain.” She led the way through the common area to the lower crew quarters and the ‘maternity suite’. At the door she touched her lips again. “Shh.”

He nodded, just standing watching.

Freya lay on the bed, slightly turned away from them, Ethan between her and the bulkhead. He had his thumb in his mouth, his other hand clutched tightly to her dress. Her knees were drawn up slightly, and down by her feet were the two babies, rolled into each other. They all appeared to be away with the fairies.

“Oh, that is so sweet.” Kaylee had come down the stairs and now stood at his side.

“Shh, Momma,” Bethany scolded. “Wake them up.”

“Sorry. But I wanna take Hope upstairs, give her some food.”

Bethany’s eyes lit up. “Hungry.”

“Yes, you too.”

“And Ben.” Zoe was behind them. “I think we all need to eat something.”

“Shh!”

“Sorry.”

Bethie looked pensive. “Ethan’s hungry too,” she whispered. “Just doesn’t know it.”

Mal stepped into the room and disentangled his son’s fingers from the sea-coloured fabric. “Then you’d better take him along too.”

“Give him to me,” Simon