Zoe Alleyne marries Hoban Washburne

Marriage

...disobeying Mal's order to the contrary.
Their marriage ceremony does not call for Zoe to swear obedience to Wash.

Zoe Alleyne marries Hoban Washburne, disobeying Mal's order to the contrary. Their marriage ceremony does not call for Zoe to swear obedience to Wash.   ["War Stories." Mal and Wash argue about this in Niska's Skyplex. The marriage is assumed to have taken place fairly soon after they met, especially since Kaylee automatically thinks of Wash as being married to Zoe in "The Message," implying that she has never known that not to be the case. On the DVD commentary for "Shindig," costume designer Shawna Trpcic indicates that the cord around Zoe's neck is a symbol of her marriage bond to Wash, but in "Out of Gas," we see that she was already wearing it before she even met him. Mal does not say why he was against the marriage, and no other details of the wedding are known.]