Prompt: Hot Seat

[garnigal.livejournal.com]

Title: In the Hot Seat
Fandom: Firefly
Prompt: Hot Seat
Warnings: None
Rating: G
Word Count: 550
Disclaimer: Borrowing someone else’s toys. I promise not to break them.
Summary: He regretted nothing.

*****

He’d envisioned the end many ways.

In the blackout zone:

“Who’s the pretty boy?” A large man was eyeing me… hungrily.

“I’m looking for Zhang.” I was way outside my comfort zone, way beyond familiar territory. All I had left was arrogance. “He’ll want to see me.”

“Zhang don’t have much use for a pretty boy like you,” the big man said.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have much use for hired muscle. I need to speak to someone with intelligence.” I think it was the sneer that pushed it too far.

The big man roared angrily and pulled a knife. He waved it menacingly and grinned when I flinched. He was trying to decide where to cut me first when Zhang came out and rescued me. He didn’t have much useful information about where River was, but I’ll always be grateful to him.

I don’t have much love for large violent men now, though.

In the facility:

I had to tour the entire lab before I finally got to River. She was their star pupil, the culmination of everything, and thus, they saved her for the end.

I saw a five year old boy sitting silently in a grey room, staring at a wall.

I saw a ten year old girl screaming and thrashing in the corner while four burly interns held her down and injected her with something.

I saw a twelve year old boy standing motionless while they tested for pain tolerance by breaking his fingers.

I saw an operating theatre with bloody implements on and surgical towels on the floor.

I saw a morgue, and a small figure mercifully covered with a white sheet.

I saw River.

In every face, I saw River. Silent, screaming, tortured and dead. I was sickened by the horrors in this building, angered by the lack of humanity displayed. I wanted to throw up, I wanted to scream. I wanted to kill someone. I needed to save someone.

I needed to find my sister.

On Serenity:

I could hear the words coming out of my mouth, could hear myself breaking my oath and threatening to let Kaylee die.

I didn’t seem to care. All that mattered was getting the Captain to do as I asked, as I demanded. I had to stay out of Alliance hands. I had to stay alive. I had to keep River hidden.

But this was something he’d never imagined.

“Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.”

So he stood, by choice, atop a pile of dry brush, waiting for the fire. There were too many to fight, and they were too backward to be reasoned with. He’d helped them while he was here. He’d treated their sick, been kind. He thought he’d found a safe haven, a place he and River could just… disappear.

He’d led them to their deaths.

His fight to find, rescue and hide River had been a series of failures and small victories. He’d placed himself and her in danger again and again.

Why should this be any different?

Now, with his feet to the fire, in the hot seat, he reviewed his life. Reviewed the choices which had led him to this.

He regretted nothing.

He wrapped his arms around River and hid his damp face in her neck.

“Time to go.”

Comments

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

The shift between third and first person is a bit disconcerting, throwing the reader out of the story occasionally, but as a series of scenes, summing up for Simon the pivotal moments of his search and continuing rescue of River, this is nice. And that last line is great, with added significance to someone who has seen the episode. Very nice.

[garnigal.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your comment. I wondered about the shift, but there is no better place for experiments than ttm.

[jitkajaylor.livejournal.com]

Mm, interesting. That uncomfortable shift between third and first actually works well as a mood-setter. It starts disconnected and moves toward a powerful moment of time that is completely wrapped up with the "Time to go" dual meaning. I like the way it flowed, though I might have gone with a change of tense from past to present somewhere during the last scene for a change in the immediacy of 'the end'.

A different look at one of my favorite eps. I like it!

~JJ~

[garnigal.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for the comments. The experiment with flashbacks and the POV was interesting, but difficult, so I really appreciate your well-thought out suggestions.