I’m not usually a fan of the songfic, but this just seemed to fit.

Firefly belongs to Joss Whedon, Universal et al.; ‘Mercy of the Fallen’ belongs to Dar Williams and Razor and Tie. The last bit of dialogue is straight from the show. What can I say, it’s just too good to be messed with.

Sorry about the ‘G-d’ for the big girl upstairs, but I do believe that some words have too much power to be used lightly.

‘Mercy of the Fallen’

‘Oh my fair north star, I have held to you dearly.

I had asked you to steer me, ‘til one cloud-scattered night

I got lost in my travels...’

Was a time the ‘verse made sense. When redemption could be earned through righteous acts. When G-d was G-d, and G-d was good. When the abbey was all the sanctuary he needed. When the only unforgivable sin was the loss of faith. Laws were to be abided, might worked for right, and system deserved respect. It made so much sense, he thought he could share it with the lost ones. He needed to share it. So he packed his bags and headed for the docks. And then he made the mistake of falling for an innocent smile and a beautiful soul with a ship that looked weather worn but true. Shepherd Book stepped on board, and the ‘verse lost all meaning.

‘I met Leo the lion...’

When he heard the soft thud and feminine grunt of the impact of the first punch, he took Vera out and set her on the bar. Then he went back to his drink. When the whore came tearing out of the room, sobbing and half-dressed, the john close on her heels, staggering drunkenly with a mean look on his face, he took the safety off and cocked the gun before setting it back down. When the john pushed the whore down the stairs, cursing her price and threatening to kill her, he called for another round. Finally, when the john reached the bottom of the stairs, the whore huddled in a corner, folded in on herself, he picked Vera up, turned on his stool, and shot the man three times in the head. He idly wondered if the house would give him a free turn for his services. Only