Of Adventures Pirates and Shiny Apples
Fandom: Firefly
Pairing: Kaylee/Simon
Rating: T
Word Count: ~ 1300 (more or less)
Summery: How a few stolen apples can lead to new perspectives.
The market-place was bathed in warm sunlight, with town-folk strolling between the stands and surveying the offerings. Some were buying, others volubly bargaining for better prices. The peaceful atmosphere was suddenly disturbed by a couple bolting through the crowd, followed by a very upset marketer.
There was no chance the vendor could ever catch the two, so he stopped his chase, shaking his fist furiously after the fleeing couple, while cursing and swearing in a way that would make the devil blush.
"This way!" The young woman grabbed the hand of her companion and steered him into a small alleyway. After a quick survey of their surroundings, she pulled him into a doorway that was barely deep enough to hide them from anybody's view.
"Quiet now!" she whispered, and pressed her face into her companion's shoulder to contain the joyous giggles that were still bubbling in her chest. Wrapping his arms around her and pressing her further into his body came more as a reflex than a deliberate action. But if the barely muted giggles and the way her lean form fit against him were any indications, she didn't mind it in the least.
After a while, when they were sure that nobody had followed them into the alley, and the vendor's swearing had long trailed off, Kaylee freed herself slowly from Simon's embrace and took a peek around the doorway's edge to make sure the threat had gone.
"That was fun!" she beamed, swiveling happily on the ball of one foot, apparently trying to mimic some of River's fancy dance moves. "We should do that more of'en!" With that, she pulled an apple out of the deep pockets of her coverall, and took a hearty bite from the shining, red-cheeked fruit.
"What? Stealing apples?" An incredulous eyebrow lifted Simon stepped from the doorway, too, joining the still ecstatically bouncing mechanic as she headed for the exit of the alley.
"Ain't like that fat guy can't afford to give away some for free." Kaylee munched, unimpressed, ignoring the doctor's scolding undertone. "'Sides," she continued after swallowing a chunk of apple, "The runnin' didn't hurt him neither."
A small grin appeared on Simon Tam's face. "As a doctor I have to agree," he said, following her out of the alley and back into the main street. "Still, I can't approve the concept of stealing for fun."
Kaylee stopped dead in her tracks and turned on her heels in one smooth move. The way she rolled her eyes at him reminded Simon a little too much of his little sister. He was always a wee bit concerned how the crew's ways biased the younger Tam, but obviously River's quirks were rubbing off on the crew, too.
"Don't tell me you ain't never stole before." She snorted, her gaze piercing Simon, who had started to tug on his earlobe.
"I did." he confessed slowly. "But only out of necessity."
"And you never enjoyed it? Not even a bit?" Kaylee continued to walk, albeit backwards, her eyes never leaving his face.
"No."
"I don't believe you!" Stopping again, she gave him a challenging look.
"And why not?"
Again, the frown on Kaylee's face showed an astonishing similarity to the "You're such a boob!" look River used to throw his way every so often.
His sister was assimilating to the crew faster than he fact, she was assimilating much faster than he could himself. Kaylee's finger poking into his chest, with enough force to be uncomfortable, brought him back from his musings.
"Yer livin' on a smuggler's ship, eatin' food that was paid for with boodle and thiev'ry."
"That doesn't have to mean that I like it."
"Yet ya haven't left Serenity," Kaylee countered. " Yer still with us on our smugglin' tours and thefts. Why's that, if you hate it that much? There's been opportunities enough to leave the boat with River, live somewhere, somehow, different."
The mechanic's voice sounded stressed, and all the cheery bounciness that had emerged from her, mere minutes ago, had vanished completely, replaced by fazing tenseness.
"Kaylee, it's not…" Simon exhaled slowly to gather his thoughts. "That's not what I said," he tried to explain, and at Kaylee's wary look he continued.
"I… I kind of …" he paused again, searching for the right expression.
"I like being on Serenity," he finally admitted. "I like being a part of Serenity. And with that - although I'd still prefer to be called the ship's medic - I'm likely to be a thief and a smuggler, too."
He paused and watched the woman vis-à-vis.
"Kaylee, I was a fugitive, running from the Alliance, before I even set a foot on the ship in the first place. But if I have to steal, it ought to be out of necessity, not for fun."
Kaylee's disappointed mien had changed in less than a second to her more relaxed, trademark inquisitiveness. Simon admittedly liked it better then the awkwardness of a presumable fight. Once more, though, he had to wonder about the speed with which Kaylee's moods were changing. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, although Kaylee again didn't leave him any time to dwell on that thought.
"Ain't nothin' that says you can't have fun with necessities," she stated, "and what about Ariel?"
"Ariel?"
"When you planned the job at St. Lucy's. You were so…" Kaylee's gaze became absent for a second or two, and Simon could only assume by the dreamy look on her face that the way he was, or had been back then, hadn't been that appalling in her eyes. But she refocused quickly and explained "Ya seemed to have fun. You were so focused, so determined, so pirate-y."
"Pirate-y?"
"It all seemed to come to you just nat'rally; ev'rything was so thought through." She looked at him starry-eyed. "Not like the cap'n's plans. Ain't nothin' wrong with the cap'n's plans, though!" she hurried to clarify. "'Cept in 90% of 'em he gets himself shot in the process."
Although Kaylee's admiration made Simon slightly uncomfortable he had to chuckle.
"So what? Now I'm a natural thief?"
Kaylee's laugh chimed like a bell through the sun-flooded street and she smacked him lightly on his chest.
"Maybe ya are an' ya just don't know it yet. You really wanna tell me you didn't enjoy Ariel the least little bit? Kickin' their Alliance pi-gus, gettin' a little payback for all the things they stole from you?"
"What they stole from me?" He appeared at a loss, and the mechanic stepped closer, laying her arms loosely around his neck.
"Your sister," she explained soberly, inching closer. "Your former life."
On their own accord, his arms circled around her middle, pulling her flush against him.
That feels natural.
The thought came so casually that he didn't dare voice it. Instead he just looked at the solemn eyed woman in his arms.
"Maybe I don't miss my former life that much," he pondered quietly.
Maybe he really didn't, because right now, the scent of apples, the warmth of the sun, and the softness of the woman in his arms, along with the relative freedom of being the doctor of a ship full of renegades - and also being fugitive, too, but that wouldn't make a difference anymore - was all he wanted. That, and the knowledge that he, and more importantly his sister, were considered crew and protected as such, seemed to be enough.
"Maybe I do enjoy it." Why have we even wasted time arguing about that?
"Maybe you are a pirate," she reasoned, smiling up at him, "but ya could be more adventurous."
"And how would I do that?"
Her smile grew deeper as she closed the distance between their lips.
"I can show you."