(no subject)

[flybywash]

Flying from Three Hills to Lavinia can take three days or more, if the conditions are tricky. Wash had a few extra hours to kill before take-off, was more or less finished fixing the flight simulator, and could only reenact a prehistoric version of Hamlet so many times before deciding that there was really no way for the whole poison-in-the-ear bit to work on animals with no visible ears.

Hence, through some of the craziest-looking flight vectors ever calculated, their travel time's just been cut down to forty hours.

He's ridiculously proud of himself.

He's also paging through the Cortex travel data on Lavinia and making noises that sound a lot like "ooooh."

Comments

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

There's footsteps, and then pressure on the back of his chair as Zoe leans her elbows on it, craning her neck to read over his shoulder.

"So, what's there s'posed to be about this one that makes it so great?"

Zoe, as her crewmates know well, is not the greatest fan of Core planets.

[flybywash]

But this one's so pretty! And:

"Look, look at this." Wash pages back a bit and grins at her. "Strato-fireworks displays; we're gonna land just in time for one of 'em. And hot springs."

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

Zoe looks down at him, fondly exasperated.

"There's hot springs an' fireworks on worlds that ain't crawlin' with feds. Or at least, I figure there's gotta be somewhere."

[flybywash]

"But not somewhere any time within the next five months." His face falls, just a little. "Come on, honey."

They have more than earned their right to a vacation.

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

Zoe moves from her spot over his shoulder to a place where she can lean against the console, looking at him more directly.

"That look ain't gonna work, you know."

It isn't.

Really.

...Probably.

[flybywash]

Wash kneads his forehead.

"Just once," he says, voice edging into weariness. "Please? I'd really like to see the Core from some place other than the bridge before I die. Preferably in ways not involving crime."

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

Zoe sighs.

"You really have been lookin' forward to this, haven't you?"

She could tell them to just go without her. Say she'll hold down the ship.

But somehow, she doesn't think Wash is looking forward to the prospect of visiting hot springs by himself.

[flybywash]

He spreads his hands. "All I'm saying is, when was the last time we got a couple nights to ourselves?" he asks her. "Someplace nice? We wouldn't even have to pay for it -- you heard Crowley's wave, he said he could put us up wherever we want."

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

Zoe folds her arms, considering.

"Crowley's alright...I suppose, if he set things up for us there, it wouldn't be too bad."

[flybywash]

Instantly, Wash brightens again.

Puppies don't look this hopeful.

[righthandwoman.livejournal.com]

Zoe used to be immune to looks like that, you know.

Alas.

She shakes her head at him, smiling. "I guess maybe I could let myself get dragged out there without too much of a fuss."

[flybywash]

See what married life does to you? It's tragic, really.

On the other hand, married life also means you'll get pulled into a very thorough kiss from your husband when you do things like agree to fun vacations.

Good thing those hot springs are only forty hours away.