In Stitches

By

KMS!

kmspider@aol.com

http://hometown.aol.com/kmspider/myhomepage/index.html

Just another quiet day out in the black.

Simon sat on the couch in the common area reattaching a button to one of River’s hand-me-down dresses she’d received from Kaylee.

He didn’t mind the labor too much. Being a surgeon, he had been encouraged by his teachers to learn different patterns of stitching. It kept the fingers nimble, and taught students both patience and the intricacies of thread; and strengthened the fine motor skills required for sewing and surgery. Different thread behaved differently. Nylon slid through fabric easily, but tended to slip knots. Cotton wasn’t as strong, but a good knot required snipping. The same principles held for both cloth and flesh. It was no wonder that half the surgeons he had known had owned boats. Sailor’s knots were useful, too. He’d even had a nurse teach him to crochet a little. Not that he would ever achieve the speed that she had, but, again, he’d learned a little about how loops and thread could be bound together, or easily pulled apart.

His stitches never pulled apart.

He’d tried to show River how, but her bit of yarn had quickly morphed into a cat’s cradle, and she’d run off to get Kaylee to play with her. When last he’d looked up, she had cornered Jayne at the bottom of the stairs near the infirmary, while the mercenary grumpily tried to maneuver the string to form the next shape, all the while claiming that he had better things to do and no ruttin’ time for crazy girls.

The Captain had walked by the two of them and had merely rolled his eyes at his big mercenary playing children’s games, but had said nothing.

Mal passed through the common area again, and had, with studied casualness, asked if Simon wouldn’t mind working on the pair of pants that he had tucked away in his hands. Simon hid his grin and nodded. The Captain dropped them beside him and headed to the bridge.

Simon had to smile when he picked up the Captain’s trousers