"Wo de tian, a!" Mal exclaimed as he nearly ran into Meadow. "Girl, what did I tell you about walkin' around after a shower?" he demanded.

The sixteen year old pretended to think then said, "Oh, the towel should be on my head because my hair drips and someone's liable to fall and die, and it would be my responsibility to clean it up."

He glared at her and said, "You shoulda been beaten more as a youngin."

She shrugged and continued past him into the infirmary. River was waiting for her, a syringe prepared and waiting. "You took a long shower on purpose," she accused her daughter.

"I did not. Uncle Mal stopped me to yell at me," she said, turning so her back was to her mother. "I told you I should have gotten dressed first."

As casually as anything, River pulled up the bottom of the towel and stuck the needle into Meadow's backside. "No point in that. Easier this way."

Mal watched them in a mixture of surprise and horror. "Albatross, you givin' meds now?"

She laughed and said, "Oh, God no. It's birth-control. I was a young mother of my own choosing, but I will be a young grandmother chu fei wo si le. The issue makes Simon uncomfortable, so I do it myself."

His eyes closing in pain, Mal muttered, "Yeah, he's not the only one."

"Well, at least she asks me now instead of just sneaking up on me," Meadow said, giving her mother a dark look. "I was reading and you came up and just jabbed me in the pigu-"

"Would you stop complaining about that? That was two years ago!" River said tiredly.

They both looked up when Mal made an odd noise. Meadow moved closer, looking at his face very carefully. "Are you alright, Uncle Mal? You look really pale."

River sighed and moved her daughter out of his line of sight. "Go lie down before you faint," she instructed.

"He looks like he's having a heart attack," Meadow said casually.

"Oh, his heart is fine," River said indifferently. "He just needs to grow up and realize you're a jian huo like Kaylee used to be."

"I am not a jian huo!" Meadow protested as her mother pushed her away from the infirmary toward their room.

>>>

Chinese:

Wo de tian, a: Dear God in heaven

chu fei wo si le: over my dead body

pigu: bottom

jian huo: cheap flouzy

Author's note: I'm upping the rating just to be safe. A couple stories might be a little more mature but not too much.