disclaimer: I wished for it on my birthday, but sadly I still don't own the Firefly Verse
"Please, Jayne? Please, please, please...?" How could he say 'no' when she looked at him like that? He turned his face away, desperately searching for a reason to deny her. When he looked back at the big round green eyes set into the smooth white face she purred and he turned desperately to Kaylee.
"Gorramit, girl. Fine" He took the tiny calico kitten out of the mechanic's hands. "But you're tellin' Mal. I ain't 'bout to get tossed out the airlock for her." You, maybe but not a kitten, he thought to himself. The merc quickly grabbed the girl's arm before she could turn back to the mewing box.
Jayne led Kaylee down the street and into the store before releasing her arm. He thrust the kitten at the smiling mechanic and dug the list out of his pocket. "Hey there, Mr. Benson. Here's what we need. And maybe some more rounds for Vera, if'n you've got 'em." He handed the crumpled paper to the store clerk.
"Of course, Jayne. Ordered 'em special for ya after Mal waved that Serenity would be stoppin' in for a spell. You guys runnin' a job for Fanty and Mingo again? And Miss Kaylee, how are you this fine afternoon?" The older man spoke over his shoulder as he shuffled around collecting the munitions Jayne had asked for. He turned back to the counter, crouching to grab a wooden crate to put the ammo boxes into.
"Oh, I'm great, Mr. Benson! Look what I got today," she gushed holding up the tiny kitten. "How are you? No, we ain't working with Fanty and Mingo till Cap'n and Jayne can get 'em back down to twenty-five percent. They still won't go below thirty-five right now though."
"My muscular buttocks..." Jayne grumbled, not understanding how the girl could be so bubbly all the time. Hearing her talk so happily about them cheating the crew out of their work grated on his last nerve. "No sir, we're refueling, just picking up supplies and such and then we are doing a pick up from Monty next week." Mr. Benson had known Monty, Mal and Zoë back in the war so no more explanation was necessary. Jayne handed the man a handful of Mal's credits for the crew ammo and shifted to remove his own coin from his other pocket for the rounds for Vera.
Kaylee handed Mr. Benson her own credits before leaning forward to give the older man a hug and a peck on the cheek. She turned expectantly to Jayne who stood there mystified. He recovered after a moment and, hefting the crate from the counter, he followed Kaylee out of the small store with a nod at Mr. Benson.
They walked in companionable silence for a few rows of shops. Unable to refrain any longer Jayne opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by her sweet voice, "Happy birthday Jayne," she said it with a huge grin. Jayne was dumbfounded. He turned to speak again but got caught in her eyes as she stared up ant him.
"How- how'd you know 't was my birthday?" he finally managed. Over the years she had done something for everyone's birthdays. She'd sent Mal and Inara off places for both of their birthdays this year. She'd gotten Wash more dinosaurs and obnoxious shirts each year since they came on board. There was that one year when she got Zoë the new holster, made special for her and everything and she got Book his new bible after Crazy tried to 'fix' his old one. Last year she made the doctor that cake before the ship died and she took River out and bought her a new dress since the one she was wearing on Miranda got all covered in Reaver blood and guts. She even sent something back to The Heart of Gold for Jonah's first birthday. But she never did nothin' for Jayne's birthday. It just wasn't something that happened, buying Jayne gifts. And yet..."No one knows my birthday but my ma..." Realization struck like a blow between the eyes as Kaylee grinned.
"Your ma mentioned it in a letter a few years back. Don't look so shocked. I do stuff for everyone's birthdays." She ran her hand over a red scarf in a nearby storefront.
"My ma? In a letter? You been reading my letters, girl?" Jayne growled as she shook her head. "And you don't do stuff for everyone. What've you ever done for my birthday?"
Raising to the challenge Kaylee responded, "Last year, on your birthday, what did we have for dinner?"
"We had steak 'cause we got paid and Mal...didn't buy or cook that beef, did he?" Jayne sputtered.
"The year before, you ran out of ammo for Vera and Boo on the job for Badger. What was on your bed after dinner? Or the year before that when you found that bottle of whiskey? Where'd you think it was all comin' from, Jayne? Ain't you s'posed to be some great tracker? I know I wasn't that good hidin' my tracks. I even left your bunk unlocked when I dropped off the whiskey 'cause you almost caught me in there!"
"Still don't 'xplain how you know'd my birthday. Ain't right t'be going through a man's personal letters."
"Never said she said it in a letter to you, Jayne. Right after you come on board I got a letter from a woman I ain't ever met. Said that she thought I sounded like a 'real nice girl' and to make sure you 'treated everyone proper-like' while you were on Serenity. To let her know if'n you didn't." She suppressed a grin at the look of horror on the merc's face.
"It was YOU? I railed on Mal for near an hour after I got the letter tellin' me she knew how I was treated the Doc and Moonbrain, almost got tossed out the airlock 'cause of it."
"But you didn't- 'cause of me, if you remember. I got the Cap'n calmed down just fine with a glass of my moonshine and everything." She looked up to see they had already made it clear back to Serenity. She affectionately scratched the kitten's head as she skipped up to Mal and thrust the sleeping ball of fur in his face. "Lookit, Cap'n. They was givin' 'em away on our way to Mr. Benson's. Isn't she cute? I think I'm gonna call her...Kyra"
Mal glared into his mechanic's chocolate brown eyes as he started shaking his head from side to side. "No. No no no no no. No animals on my ship. Not havin' it. No matter how round your eyes get, Mei mei. Ooooh, stop lookin' at me like that and get that thing settled into your bunk already." Kaylee pecked him on the cheek, murmuring her usual 'I love my captain' in his ear. Then she turned to run up the stairs, pausing only to poke her tongue out at Jayne who just chuckled at Mal's lack of resistance to the girl.
"Hell, Mal, I lasted longer 'gainst her than you did." The merc grinned to himself as he stored the munitions in the weapons locker, taking the crate with him as he climbed the stairs. Jayne was still grinning when he climbed down the ladder into his bunk. He crouched low looking for the stack of letters from home that he kept under his bunk. He pulled them out, sifting through them he was convinced himself there were none missing. There were some phrases that jumped to mind though, suddenly making sense.
'That Kaylee sure seems like a nice young lady, Jayne.' 'You make sure to take care of those girls, Jayne. Especially Kaylee if'n she doesn't like fighting and weapons and the like.' 'Why do you have to treat him like that, that's not the way to treat family or friends. I taught you better than that.' 'She doesn't love him.' The last had always struck him as strange. It was a single line, after she signed her name. He had no real way to know who 'she' or 'him' was supposed to be, though he had always thought of Kaylee and the hun dan of a Doc when he read it. And now that he was sure he knew better than to question it. Mrs. Cobb had an uncanny ability to tell these things, apparently without even meeting the parties involved. The thought put a hopeful smile on his face as the man stored the letters away and reached into the crate at the end of his bed, pulling out a handful of nuts and bolts.
Jayne stood and fished out the old knit socks he had packed up when he left home so many years ago. They were well worn with age and one had a hole clear through and he was able to pull the stitches loose, using Binkie to cut the yarn into several pieces varying in length. He tied one end of each of the pieces to several of the nuts and bolts, and was tying the last one when Kaylee's voice sing-songed over the intercom announcing dinner. He climbed the ladder to be assaulted by the scents of stew and...pie? He nearly barreled over Shepherd Book on his was to the mess. The table was set, flowers in the center and all. Kaylee was just handing the last bowl of stew to Inara to put on the table when the men stalked in. Everyone sat and devoured the fresh stew. The merc stood ready to head back and finish his project in his bunk when a soft hand fell on his arm. Kaylee handed the kitten to Jayne as she stepped back into the kitchen. He idly scratched the animal's head as she fell asleep in his lap, watching Kaylee come back to the table holding a fresh baked pie. He smelled peach and something else, raspberries? They all sang to the blushing merc though there were no candles or hints at his age.
Later on, still tasting the, what had his Ma called it again, oh yeah peach-a-berry pie on his lips, Jayne descended into the cargo bay with his welding torch and several oddly shaped pieces of scrap metal. After an hour or so he had crafted a tower of sorts for the playful little furball asleep on the weight bench. He grabbed her as he ran up the stairs to his bunk. He rifled through a few piles of clothes finding a couple of shirts that had definitely seen better days. He took them and his old canvas duffel which had too many split seams to try to patch up again and he climbed the ladder and returned to the tower. He tore and fitted the fabric onto several of the surfaces, tying them in place. He carried the structure to the common room, placing it next to the crate he had filled with shredded paper to serve as a makeshift litter box. Lastly he used Binkie to carve 'KYRA' into the side of the crate.
He turned then, pride filling him to bursting, to go find Kaylee. He checked the kitchen, the bridge, and the engine room with no luck. With only one idea left he knocked tentatively on the center of the nameplate marking the mechanic's bunk. "Who is it?" he heard her sweet voice muffled slightly by the closed door.
"Its...umm...it's Jayne. Can you co-"
"Come in," she giggled slightly as she cut him off.
"I made something for the cat. It's up in the common room. I just wanted you to see." The large merc stumbled awkwardly down the ladder, not sure what to do with himself in such a girlified atmosphere. All thoughts of awkwardness and just about everything else left his head when he saw Kaylee. The mechanic was lying back on her bunk with nothing but a soft red scarf tied 'round her middle. He just stood there, mouth hanging open, eyes glazing over.
"Happy birthday, Mr. Cobb. You gonna come over here and open your present?"