I own nothing. Italics are past events.


Jayne was beginning to hate himself. He'd finally gotten himself on a core planet and what was he doing? Working security for some rich kid's birthday. No pay was worth this humiliation...well okay, maybe this pay was. Jayne leaned up against the mansion, next to the back door. The birthday boy's sister slipped out the french doors, her arms full of brightly wrapped presents. She smiled up at him as she passed. She was the only one to acknowledge his presence. She glanced over at her mother before grabbing a champagne flute and handing it to him. The "hired help" wasn't to partake in any of the refreshments. Jayne tossed her a conspiratorial wink and down the contents, handing it back to her. She giggled and started back into the house.

Jayne let his eyes roam the crowd of guests with little interest. The only interesting one in the bunch was the sister because she's wasn't such a snob that she wouldn't sneak him some bubbly or a cookie every now and then. She had a nice giggle and she was a cute kid; he guessed she was fourteen maybe. She was gonna be a looker when she grew up and filled out.

Jayne shoved off of the wall. It was about time he walked the perimeter anyway. Ignoring the obnoxious and overly snooty laughter of the several of the guests he passed, he rounded the corner and stopped.

"Come on, Riv, we just wanna talk to you," said a boy, fingering the girl's hair. She was pressed up against the side of the house, her eyes wide and scared. "They're about to cut the cake soon...Simon will come looking for me."

"River, we just want to talk to you," one boy insisted as the other four snickered. The boy moved in closer. "You're real cute, you know."

And then the boys hand started moving South and Jayne was seeing red. It was boys like that, that gave all the good ones a bad name. "Hey," he growled, causing them to jump. "What the hell d'you think yer doin'?"

"Just keep movin', this isn't any of your business," one of them sneered at him and the others laughed and they moved to tighten the circle around her. Jayne growled again and stalked forward. He grabbed the one that had been touchin' on her by the throat and tossed him aside. "Since her parents is payin' me to keep stuff like this from happenin', I think it is my business," he snarled and they scurried off. He looked down at her. She was crying softly and her bottom lip was trembling. He knelt down in front of her. "Hey, you okay," he asked in a voice so quiet it surprised him. She nodded furiously, keeping her eyes on the ground. Jayne frowned a little. "You sure? Want me to get your brother or you mom or whoever it is should be watching out for you. Or I could go beat up all them boys for ya if ya want."

"No, I'm okay," She looked up at him then, smiling she leaned forward quickly and kissed his cheek. "Thank you."

She hurried off then. Jayne rolled his eyes and rubbed at his cheek in annoyance. Just because he'd saved her and she was the nicest person he'd met since leavin' home over ten years ago didn't mean he wanted her kissin' on him even if it was as a thank you for savin' her. He paused, staring down into the giant fountain in front of the mansion and sat down on the edge. Someone cleared their throat behind him and he turned to find her standing with two plates in hand, both topped with two pieces of cake each. She handed him a plate and seated herself next to him. Jayne raised an eyebrow at her. "Thought you'd be off with some of them debutante girls."

She shrugged. "They think I'm weird," she said, nonchalantly, though she glanced at him out the corner of her eye.

"Oh yeah, why's that? Is it cause yer prettier than they are an' they's jealous?"

She bit her lip and smiled, blushing slightly. "No, it's because I'm smarter than they are. I have the highest IQ on Osiris. Possibly in the 'verse."

"So, yer smart, big deal. Don't make you weird."

She smiled up at him thankfully and pulled her legs up against her chest. She stuck her hand out to him. "I'm River."

He shook her hand and nodded. "Jayne."

River smiled up at him. "I think you're the nicest person I've ever met...besides my brother."

Jayne snorted and took another bite of cake. "I ain't nice, girlie."

"You saved me," she argued.

"Yeah, well yer the only person I've ever saved. I'm usually the person people need savin' from."

River tilted her head to the side. "Why?"

"I kill people."

"Oh," she said in a small voice. She finished off her first piece of cake slowly. "Jayne?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you save me?"

"'Cause what were planin' on doin'....ain't right," He looked at her for a long minute before going back to his cake. "And you're the nicest person I ever met."

She beamed up at him and dug into her second piece of cake. Jayne smiled down at her and followed suit. Maybe corefolk weren't so bad after all. Especially if they was in the habit of giving you cake.


Jayne groaned and rubbed a hand over his face as he sat up slowly. It was just before dawn and he had to get himself and the girl moving quick. He stuffed the blanket into one bag and stood up. He and the girl had dug through the men's belongings for anything of use. Jayne grimaced as he thought of all the things he'd found in one of the bags. Luckily, they'd found a lot of useful stuff in the largest of the bags and Jayne had grabbed what weapons they had on them. And then they had walked in silence for three hours until finally she couldn't take it and had nearly passed out. Jayne figured if he had been in her position, he'd have passed out too.

There was a soft yawn beside him and he turned to find her staring up at him. He blinked in suprise as he stared into her face, lit by the predawn light. He hadn't been able to get much of a look at her in the dark, but now that he could see her-he'd been right; she was a looker now. "You gave me cake," he muttered, dumbstruck. She smiled brilliantly at him. "Jayne!"

He blinked again. He hadn't expected her to remember his name. River's smiled her admiration up at him. "This is the second time you've saved me."

"You know, I told you once I'm usually the person people need savin' from, so don't go thinkin' I'm some knight in shining armor," he grumbled, moving away from her as quickly as possible. River shrugged and stood, folding up the blanket she had used. "Maybe you're only in the habit of saving me and you're my own personal knight in shining armor."

He snorted. "Right."

She handed him the blanket and he shoved it into the bag. He rubbed the back of his head and frowned. "So, nice seein' you again, I guess?"

River giggled and Jayne tried not to glare. That damn giggle was cute as hell. River glanced around. "Which way are we going?"

"Well, I know the cold's gonna be a bitch ta deal with, but it'll be our best bet for stayin' away from them an' keepin' ourselves from gettin' shot dead."

She bit her lip and nodded. Jayne jerked his head to the side. "Well let's get goin'."

Without needing to be told, River kept close to his side as they walked. She did a good job of keeping up for the mostpart, only needing to run to catch up every so she was busy staring up at a particularly twisty tree with big branches that she wanted to climb badly, she tripped over one of the roots, colliding with Jayne's back. He grunted in surprise and turned just in time to see her bounce off of him and fall back onto the ground, landing with a thud. She smiled up at him sheepishly. "I wasn't paying attention."

Jayne rolled his eyes, but couldn't keep the grin off his face as he helped her up. Keeping a firm grip on his hand even after she stood, she dusted herself off and tugged at her nightgown to get it back into place. Jayne loosened his grip on her hand as he began to walk again, hoping she got the hint that it was time for her to let go. Instead, she shocked the hell out of him by lacing her fingers through his. He looked down at her, intending to ask her what in the hell she thought she was playin' at hlding his hands like that, when she let go of her own accord and stopped to pick a flower. River held it up to her nose to smell it. "I've never smelled a Rock-rose before."

She twirled back around to him and held it out. "We must be nearing a Mediterranean climate."

Jayne just stared at it. River pulled it back and took up his hand in hers again and began to walk once more. Jayne followed for a moment before taking the lead and ignoring her decision to get some hand-holding in with him. He hoped Mal would find them soon...if Mal was even lookin' for him.

"But what were you doing here on Heinlein?"

Simon shifted uncomfortably. "My sister isn't exactly happy with the prospect of marrying."

"Oh, so it's arranged?" Wash frowned, "they still do that?"

"Well, what does that have to do with y'all bein' on this dumb rock?"

"My sister is very....she's a handful, inquisitive, spontaneous," Simon said with a smile, "she's always wanted to see the 'verse and she was afraid she would never get to once she's married. I thought maybe if I took her out on this trip, maybe it would be easier for her to accept this whole thing." A pained expression came to his face. "I'm not happy with my sister's having to marry someone she hardly knows and if I had any say in it, she wouldn't have to, but my parents were very adamant."

Kaylee patted his arm sympathetically. "That's awful. You must be the 'verse's best brother for lookin' out for her like that."

"My sister's always gotten into trouble-and not always from her own doing," he sighed, "I just hope she's alright."

"Son, I'm sure she's fine," Book assured him, "I'm sure she was able to get away from her captors and find some safety."

"Now, I'm thinkin' only safe place ta keep a troublesome girl-if she's a troublesome as you say she is-would be in them woods-"

"The woods," Inara cried, cutting off Mal, "do you have any idea how dangerous it is out there? Not only is the wildlife unpredictable, but so is the plantlife and the climate. "

"What's the matter? You worried Jayne can't handle a toruble-magnet of a girl and a few wildcats," Wash snorted, "I think if there's anything we need to worry about it's gonna be her innocence because Jayne-ow!"

Zoe's face remained neutral as her husband stared at her in shock, rubbing his chest where she had elbowed him. Kaylee and Inara both shot Wash a warning glare. Wash shot them an equally dirty galre and slumped in his chair.

"Well if they gone off in the woods, we best starts lookin' fer 'em," Mal sighed. He made aface, and scowled at his first mate. "How in the Gorramn hell are we supposed to land the boat in the woods?"

Zoe shrugged as they headed onto Serenity. Kaylee smiled up at Simon, who was sanding on the gangway with a lost and worried expression. "Don't worry, Cap'n won't stop lookin' 'till he finds 'er."

Simon nodded and smiled down at her, finally seeing her for the first time. She looked real pretty with grease all over her. Most girls didn't look pretty smudged. "Thank you, Kaylee."

Her smile grew and she nodded up the ramp. "You wanna see the engine room?"

"Sure." He smiled at her sunny expression. She was so happy and open with her emotions. The women in the core weren't like that. It was a nice change.

River and Jayne fell to their knees beside the creek, scooping large handfuls of water into their mouths. Jayne paused in his drinking to follow the path of the creek and sighed in relief. "It's coming from the way we're headed. Means we'll have fresh water."

They stood in unison and began walking again, only to come to the edge of what seemed to be a never ending Serengeti plain. They both blinked their bewilderment. Jayne made a face. "This is such a fuckin' weird planet."

At the splashing sounds of water, Jayne turned to find River kicking her feet in the water. River sighed. "They hurt."

Jayne crouched down next to her. "Lemme see 'em."

She swiveled and extended her leg out straight in the air toward him. Jayne gulped as he took in the line of silky smooth skin before him and forced himself to think of something not completely tempting. If he was ever gonna show Inara that he could be a good and decent individual, this was it-not sexing up the barely legal sexy damsel in distress with legs a mile long that his hands were just aching to touch was a good start. Without touching her he studied the sole of her tiny foot. There were a few scratches and bruises, but nothing serious. "I guess we can stop here for a while."

"Is it okay if I take a bath?"

"What?!" Jayne practically screamed, "No!"

"But I feel all dirty and sweaty."

Hell, he wanted a bath too, but he weren't gonna be splashin' through the same creek nekkid with her just a foot away. She raised an eyebrow and gave him a mischevious grin as she nudged his knee with her foot. "I promise not to look if you promise not to look."

He couldn't help grinning. "Fine. But we get nekkid and jump in at the same time. No peeking."

And as promised, River hadn't peeked. Jayne knew this because he had peeked. But only to make sure she ain't peekin', he told himself resolutely. And he'd almost groaned in agony at what he saw. All that skin was almost more than he could handle. He turned away quickly. If he didn't see it, it wasn't there and he wouldn't get in trouble for puttin' his hands in places they didn't belong but so desperately wanted to be. River turned away politely when Jayne finally emerged from the creek to dress, wringing out her long dark hair and humming to herself.

She did that a lot he noticed. She was always humming when they walked. River settled on top of a small rock as she combed her fingers through her hair and stared at the water absently. When she finally looked up at him, she smiled broadly. Jayne settled on the ground next to her rock and rolled his shoulders in an attempt to get the kinks out. He jumped slightly when he felt River's tiny hands on him and swallowed a protest when she began to rub.

"Do you think they'll find us soon?"

"Doubt it, not many people out there care about me," he mumbled. River made a face and for a moment Jayne thought maybe she was agreeing. "Why not," she asked, continuing to rub at him and Jayne felt his head loll againt her arm. "Don't know, just never have. I been lookin' after myself fer a long time so it don't really bother me much," he said, shrugging to cover up his lie. River pursed her lips and watched her hands intently. "It's nice knowing you have someone to depend on, though, don't you think," she asked softly. He shrugged again. "I'm too old to start trustin' people to help me when I need it."

River watched Jayne's words as they colored and began to merge with the ones in his mind. "Thank you for doing all this for me."

He shrugged at her again and River bit her lip. She rubbed his sore shoulders until they were knot free and stretched out on the rock. Jayne fell back into the tall grass and threw an arm over his eyes, yawning. River rolled onto her stomach and let her eyes drift over him. He was just as she remembered him; still so big and strong. She was right; he was her own personal knight in shining armor. And he was still so handsome. River wondered if she would still have been so adverse to marrying her fiance if it weren't for the persistent preoccupation she had had for Jayne ever since first meeting him. River yawned. The warmth from the sun was making her sleepy. She smiled down at Jayne's dozing form for a moment before her eyes drifted shut and she fell asleep. She awoke not long aftrwards when the air around her cooled. She sat up groggily and looked around. The afternoon sun had dimmed and turned into a sunset and the chill of night was slowly creeping in. River looked down to where Jayne was. His head was resting on the bag with the blankets in it and if she woke him, he'd get cranky. He was always cranky when he woke up.

River slipped off of the rock and settled in next to Jayne, making sure to keep her distance, but the body heat she could feel radiating off him was too much to bear and she slowly inched closer. River reached out and latched on to his arm. She blushed when he shifted to accommodate her closeness by moving his hand and dropping it down on her thigh, squeezing lightly.

She inhaled sharply and waited. Jayne's breathing evened out once more and River finally settled her head on his shoulder, smiling to herself when she felt him nuzzle the crown of her head. River yawned and closed her eyes.

Jayne's conscious mind was having trouble understanding who the soft skin he was rubbin' up on belonged to. He was having trouble trying to figure out who the body was curled up in his arms. Jayne groaned and shifted. His groan became more distressed when the firm little body flush against his cuddled back closer to him. Jayne mentally punched himself. He didn't have time ta be tryin' ta figure out who it was sleepin' with him. He needed ta figure out a way ta save himself and River while keepin' his Gorramn hands to himself so he could prove to Inara- His eyes snapped open and every muscle in his body went stiff. He'd touched her! He'd Gorramn touched her! Jayne rolled away hastily and clamber up onto his feet clumsily. He shifted from foot to foot as he tried to figure out what to do next. He nudged her with his foot gently. "C'mon River," he said in a strained voice, "We gotta get going."

He nudged her again and she moaned groggily before sitting up. Jayne hesitated and then held out his hand to help her up. She dusted herself off and yawned before smiling at him. Jayne opened his mouth to yell at her for cuddling up against him when his stomach let out a long growl. They both stared at his stomach in surprise.

"We need food," she frowned. She whipped around in a circle, brow knit in concentration. She bent down and picked up a long stick and then began picking through the grass.

"Uh, what'er you doin'?"

"I need a sharp rock," she replied absently, picking up a rock and then discarding it. Jayne raised an eyebrow. "Fer what?"

"To make a weapon."

"River we got guns, why do we need another weapon?"

"Guns are for security, this will be for hunting, fishing," she said as she came back with a sharp rock. She pulled the drawstring out of the bag and began to tie the rock to the end of the stick. "You have an overly large knife, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Good, you can use it to sharpen the end of another stick. This rock will not be as effective, but food sooner than later would be more appreciated."

Jayne just nodded and searched around him for a good stick. He cocked a grin at her. "Yer a quick thinker, ya know that?"

River began to blush as she continued to fuss with the rock. Jayne tilted his head to the side and watched her, wondering idly is she had blushed because she wasn't used to compliments or because it'd been him who complimented her. She gave him a shy smile as thanks and Jayne felt a funny pang in his chest. Her blush deepened and she turned away quickly, standing at the creek's edge.

"You ever done that before?"

"No."

"Then how d'you expect ta get anything?"

"Exceptional aim." She kept her eyes trained on the water, following the movementf each ripple and the fish swimming under them. "And my knowledge of the deceptiveness that is light refraction."

Jayne let his eyes settle on her firm little backside, figuring it didn't hurt to look and it wasn't like she would know. Plus, her sayin' all them big words was turnin' him on somethin' fierce, which was odd. Usually, when Inara used big words on him, she just sounded snooty and bitchy, like maybe she was doing it to show him how much better she was than he was. But when River said them it was like she didn't even realize they might be too big for someone to understand and it was just the way she talked. She'd kinda talked that way the first time he'd met her too, only she'd been embarassed about it then. It was cute that she knew all them big words and used 'em because she could and should and not because she was tryin' ta make herself look good. She stabbed into the water quickly, bringing up an empty spear with no rock attached to the tip. She glared at it. "Damn it."

Man, she was even cuter when she cursed. River perked up as she stared at the tip of her now splintered spear and ripped away part of the splintered end. It was sharp now. She looked up at him. "Are you done?"

"Yeah," he said with a nod. She jerked her head in the direction of the creek, "Come on then. I expect you to have caught me a fish by the time we're done."

"That so," he teased back. He kicked off his boots and socks and took a couple steps into the water. At the first sight of a fish, Jayne stabbed, surprised when he hit nothing but creek bottom. "Huh, I hit it dead center."

"That's why you missed, look," River said, dipping her spear into the water at an angle. "See how it looks like the spear's broken right where it hits the water?"

"Yeah?"

"Light refraction. You have to aim a little bit to the left." River stabbed at a fish. It wriggled free of the spear. "Cao!"

She threw Jayne a wry grin. "I guess my aim isn't all that exceptional afterall."

Jayne chuckled and stabbed at his own fish, pulling up the spear. River clapped her hands together. "You got one!"

"Holy shit, I sure did!"

River squealed. "It's a big one, too."

"Good thing 'cause I'd like ta eat fast an' get going," Jayne replied and she nodded. Jayne slapped the fish down on a rock and pulled out his knife and began to gut the fish. River watched curiously. Jayne gave her a questioning look and she shrugged. "I've never seen someone clean a fish before."

"Really, yer Dad never gone fishin' 'er nothin'?"

"Gabriel Tam, catch and prepare his own food," she snorted, "please. The only thing that man ever does is make money."

"Nothin' wrong wth making money," Jayne said as he turned back to the task at hand, laughing at her dismissal of her father.

"Sometimes there's something wrong with the way you make it," she said softly and Jayne looked up at her, pausing. "He do something bad?"

"In a way, but it's not something we really need to worry on now," she said in that same soft voice that sounded sad and he thought for a minute she was gonna start cryin'. Jayne wondered if her Dad had done something to hurt her. He almost hugged her to make her feel better. Almost.