The Prologue
She stared at herself in the mirror as she pinned up her long hair. Her roots were showing again, she noted. Have to run the brown colour through it again in the shower. Not that it looked bad, but more people might recognise her if they knew her natural colour. Finally satisfied, she lifted the wig from the block and manoeuvred it into place. Gray hair pulled tight into a bun, and already it had changed her appearance, even as she held it in place with grips. Picking up the brush, she dipped it into the paintbox and began to apply shadows and lines. Tilting her face first one way then the other, she added dimension, hollowing out her cheeks, making her forehead more prominent. As last she sat back, an elderly woman looking at her from the glass. She nodded, a small smile lifting one corner of her now thin lips.
Someone knocked. "Janith?"
"Uh huh?"
"Five minutes to curtain."
"Thanks." She stood up and smoothed the plain brown dress over her hips. "Showtime," she whispered.
---
Act I - Ezra
"Just you make sure you keep in touch." Mrs Cobb straightened Jayne's collar for the fifth time.
"I will. And you be letting me know how you are. Use the Cortex screen I got ya, even if it's just to leave messages."
"We could have used the feedstore's."
"Don't want you having to go all that way just to speak to me."
"No, well. But you shouldn't have spent your money on us."
"Weren't that much," Jayne said quickly. "And it was Kaylee boosted it so the signal'll go further."
"Thank her for us, then."
"I will."
Mrs Cobb ran her hand down her son's face, as if trying to memorise it. "And you be good."
"Ma, I ain't a kid no more."
"You always will be to me. And it don't mean you don't have to be good. Don't forget, as soon as you get that little girl to say yes, you call me. I'll arrange the biggest wedding this planet's ever seen."
Jayne felt a tug at his insides. "Ma -"
"Now, you just promise me."
He looked down into her eyes, and wished he felt like he was ever going to see her again in person. "I promise, Ma."
"Good boy." She patted him on the shoulder, knowing what he was thinking. "Now, you'd best be getting back. Your captain is bound to be wanting to get going."
"Yeah, Mal don't like hanging about." He stared at her for a moment, then hugged her tightly to his chest. "I love ya, Ma."
"I know. And I love you too, Jayne. And I'm so proud of you."
"Ma …"
---
"Perfect!" The man stood in the doorway to the Firefly and grinned widely, his voice filling the cargo bay.
"Excuse me," Kaylee said, coming down the stairs a little timidly. "Can we … is there something I can do for you?"
"Only if you're the captain of this fine craft," the man boomed, not seeming to have a volume control.
"Well, no, I'm the mechanic, but –"
"Then you keep her in such good condition?"
Kaylee warmed a little. "I do my best."
"I can see that you do. And it is a marvellous best, as well."
"So what can we do for you?" she asked, something about this man with his big shoulders and bigger belly just making her feel like she was special.
"I want to hire this vessel." He winked at her. "And her crew, of course."
"Just … wait there a minute." Kaylee held up a hand. "Right … there."
"Not going anywhere," the man said.
She stared at him for a moment, then hurriedly ran towards the upper cabins. "Mal?" she called down one of the open hatches.
"Yeah, Kaylee?" He moved into her vision, buttoning his shirt.
"Don't wanna disturb you, but there's a man in the cargo bay offering us a job."
Mal glanced behind him, then hurried up the ladder. "Did he give a name?"
---
"Theodore Hawkins, at your service." He shook hands, and Mal wondered if he'd ever have the use of his fingers ever again. "But you can call me Theo. Actor/manager of the Hawkins troupe. Have you heard of us?"
"Well, sir, I have to say, no I haven't. But then I ain't been in too many theatres in the past few years."
"Hawkins?" Kaylee squeaked. "Ooh, I saw you once! In something about a soldier and his one true love, and he thought she'd died, and she thought he had, and it all ended with them finding each other but it was too late, and they died in each other's arms …" She sighed happily. "It was qi miao."
Theo beamed. "Ah, the sweet tale of Eleanor and Rodrigo. Of course, that was probably when I was younger. And somewhat less on the corpulent side."
"It was a few years ago, back on Phoros …" She realised what she had said, and blushed. "Not that I meant that –"
"My dear girl, I am perfectly happy in my own skin. And if I like my food, then what's the harm?"
Mal watched the pair, trying not to smile. His mechanic still acted like a girl somedays, even though she was a mother and wife. Still, she didn't have the monopoly on not behaving like a grown-up sometimes. And he needed to get the conversation back onto a business footing. "So, Mr Hawkins –"
"Theo, please."
"Theo. You want to hire us?"
"I have several engagements on the outer moons, and my own transport has let me down, very badly. Suffice it to say we don't have such a pretty or gifted an engineer as your own."
"Oh, I'm just a mechanic," Kaylee put in, her face open and bright.
"I doubt you are just anything." Theo sank his head into his many chins and beamed at her. "But I do need someone reliable to get me and my troupe where we need to go."
"And where would that be?" Mal asked, feeling this was getting away from him somehow.
"First of all to Carson's Moon, then Amity and Whitefall before heading on to –"
"Whitefall?" Mal began to shake his head.
"I'm sure Patience won't try and shoot you again, Cap'n," Kaylee said quickly.
"Patience? Would that be the dear sweet old lady I dealt with?"
Mal raised his eyebrows and couldn't help but laugh. "Not quite the description I'd use of the old wu po."
"Cap'n!" Kaylee berated him.
Theo chuckled. "If Whitefall is a problem, I'm sure we can accommodate a change. Of course, it would be disappointing a number of our fans …"
"No," Mal said, seeing Kaylee's hopeful face and giving up. "Whitefall ain't a problem."
"Besides, we might not need you for the whole run. As soon as my ship's up and running again, they can meet us. In fact, I wouldn't be looking at all if my other vessel wasn't off working the other side of the Rim."
"How many of you are there?"
"Eight all told, plus our props. Will that be a problem?"
"No, we can accommodate you. When do you have to be on Carson's?"
"Day after tomorrow." He held up a hand. "I realise this is short notice, but I'm willing to pay well above the normal rate."
"Cap'n, what about Inara?" Kaylee put in. "Carson's Moon ain't exactly the same direction as Lazarus."
"'Nara …" Mal mused.
---
"We've got a job," he said, leaning on the doorway and looking into Inara's room.
"That's nice for you." She continued her packing.
"For me, yes. For you … Not sure."
Inara gave him one of her looks. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"If I take it, we can't take you back to Lazarus. Least, not yet."
"Oh? How long would the delay be?"
"Probably at least two weeks. Maybe more. It looks as if we're taking a troupe of actors on a tour of the Rim."
"Actors?"
"Man by the name of Theo Hawkins."
Inara's eyebrows raised. "The Hawkins Troupe?"
"I gather you've heard of them."
"They're famous, Mal. I'm surprised you haven't."
"Well, I don't frequent that many playhouses."
"Why are they riding with us?"
"You make it sound like we're a bunch of cut-throats," Mal complained. "I have a reputation myself, you know."
"Mmn. So why are they riding with us?"
Mal exhaled noisily. "Their ship's broken down, and we're available. Truth is, he seems mighty pleased with Serenity. Said we'd make an ideal tiring house. Whatever that means."
"It means he'd use the cargo bay as a sort of room, where some of the action takes place." She sat down on the edge of the bed. "The tomb scene in Romeo and Juliet, the inner sanctum in Lost Edifice, the lovers' tryst in -"
"I get your drift."
"It would be fascinating to see behind the scenes," she went on, adding, "And I've got nothing to head back to Lazarus for."
"What about the girls?" Mal pointed out.
"They'll be fine with Mrs Boden. Another couple of weeks … they'll think it's Christmas all over again. And I'd love to watch the Hawkins Troupe in action." She looked up. "I saw them once, on Sihnon, when I was a child. I think they did … yes, it was The Mask of Aramis."
"Not Eleanor and Rodrigo?" Mal asked.
"No. Why?"
"Seems to me any number of my crew've seen these actors except me."
"Oh, then you're in for a treat."
"So I take it you're staying?"
"I'm staying." She looked around her cabin. "Will you need the space?"
"No, I think we'll be fine. I'll let you know if otherwise."
---
"Mr Hawkins, seems like you've got yourself a ship," Mal said, walking back out into the sunshine of Ezra and holding out his hand. They shook firmly.
"That's wonderful," Theo said. "I'll just collect everyone and be back shortly. When can you be ready to leave?"
"Soon as everything's loaded."
"Then I won't delay." He smiled broadly at Mal, bowed deeply to Kaylee, and headed back into town.
"Who was that?" Jayne asked, striding up to the Firefly.
"Our next job."
"Right." He went to walk past, but Mal stopped him.
"You okay?"
He paused. "Yeah. I guess. Just … she ain't gonna last much longer, Mal."
"You're sure?"
"I can see it in her eyes. She knows, too."
"You could always stay."
"I tried. Knew you wouldn't … but she said no. Told me I had a life of my own to live, and a woman to get back to."
"She's right."
"I know."
There was silence for a moment, then Mal dragged a handful of notes out of his back pocket. "Here. Get what you can in the way of supplies. There's gonna be a number of us."
"Sure." He turned back towards the town.
"Don't you want to know who they are?"
"Is it gonna make any difference to me?"
"Probably not. But they're actors."
---
"Actors?" Freya said, fastening Jesse's diaper and pulling the soft stretchy pants back up.
"The Hawkins Troupe. And if you say you've seen them play, I'll divorce you," Mal threatened from the doorway to the nursery.
"No, I haven't." She lifted her daughter up into her arms.
"Good."
"I have heard of them, of course."
Mal shook his head. "I've never felt so uncultured."
"How old is Mr Hawkins?" Freya asked, smiling at him.
"Theo?" Mal flicked his eyebrows. "Told me to call him that. He's … fifty, fifty-five, maybe."
"Then he isn't the first. I remember my parents going to see them once in a special performance in the Grand Theatre on Osiris. My mother was particularly enamoured of the leading man, that he reminded her of her first love, but I'm sure that would make your Theo too young."
"Maybe he's aged well."
"Maybe." She passed him into their bunk. "Still doesn't explain what he's doing out here."
"What do you mean?"
"You don't work at the Grand Theatre if you're a travelling stock company. The Hawkins Troupe was one of the best."
"Maybe they've fallen on hard times." He followed her up the ladder, admiring her buttocks as he did so. He never got tired of looking at them.
"Perhaps." In the corridor above Freya paused, waiting for him. "You know, there were rumours that Hawkins was an Independent sympathiser. I wonder if that made it hard for him to work during the war."
"Maybe." He hitched her around the waist and pulled her in close. "You can ask him at dinner."
"You don't ask guests who they sided with, Mal."
"I do."
"That's because you're a philistine."
"Probably. If'n I knew what that meant."
She leaned forward and kissed him softly, catching his bottom lip between her teeth. He moaned slightly.
"You know exactly what that means. And talking of dinner, hadn't you better get Jayne to put that table up again in the cargo bay?"
"He's out hunting food and stuff. Besides, they're bringing pretty much their whole kit and caboodle with them."
"Then you'd better make sure they leave enough room to sit down." She walked into the galley where Bethany and River were waiting, Ethan swinging his legs. "I have a class to teach."
"I'm still captain," he called after her.
"Always," her voice drifted back to him as he turned down the stairs.
---
Janith looked up as Mikel stuck his head around the door.
"You packed yet?" he asked, his blond hair falling in his eyes as usual.
"Nearly done."
"Just got a call from Theo. He's managed to pick up a transport until the Cressida is back up and running."
"That old ship just can't handle it like she used to."
Mikel nodded sadly. "I know Theo doesn't want to junk her, but I can't help thinking he's gonna have to look for something a bit newer."
"Doesn't he have enough money put away? I mean, he is Theodore Hawkins." She picked up the last of her dresses, taking care to keep the small gun concealed in their folds.
The young man smiled. "The way he tells it, he's as poor as a church mouse." He laughed. "Nah, I think if he had the cold hard cash he'd get her done up properly. Like she used to be, when the highest and mightiest of the Alliance would come calling to watch him act."
"Poor Theo." She put her dresses in the case and closed the lid. "So what ship are we meeting?"
"Theo said it was a Firefly."
Janith paused for a split second, but Mikel didn't notice. "Firefly? Do they still operate?"
"According to Theo. Called something like Serendipity."
"Really." Janith picked up the case. "And when are we joining them?"
"Day after tomorrow on Carson's Moon. That is, if Pol can get us moving."
"Why? Is there a problem?"
"According to her, we can't take off yet. Something to do with the manifold pressure." He shook his head. "I don't understand these things."
Janith smiled. "Nor do I."
