This was one of the first chapters I wrote back when I was drafting the skeleton of this fic. I've had to tweak it along the way, but I'm so excited to be able to finally publish! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, I'm beyond thrilled that you all are enjoying this.


Jayne sat at the bar, calling for a drink. While waiting for it to arrive, he let his eyes wander. It was the usual crowd, more or less, fellow scoundrels, gun enthusiasts…though what they had to be enthused about, he didn't know. None of them had anything like Vera and in this bar, a gun like that was fully appreciated. He set the gun up on the countertop, an intimidating visual.

Ah, here was someone different. The woman who had entered from the side door and was making her way up to the far end of the bar was one he'd never seen before. She was probably a good ten, fifteen years younger than him, but that wasn't why they'd never crossed paths. Her hair was done nicely, her clothing was expensive, and while the clothes were more on the conservative side for her profession – and though he wasn't rich enough for any personal experience whatsoever – Jayne Cobb knew a Companion when he saw one.

She probably had money on her, he figured. Mebbe just came from a client, and they'd pay well, especially for a pretty one like her. Jayne inched closer, glancing at Universe, who began to move in the opposite direction. Jayne looked back at his target. He could lift considerable money off her considering the time it took to pickpocket. And considering they'd had a helluva time convincing Mal that stealing money fit perfectly into their "no worries" motto, they were still, most of the time, two people working to gain money enough for three.

Jayne took his drink and backed slightly off from the counter, inching down the line toward the young woman. She was glancing at the crowd too, mostly at the best dressed and the scarred. An interesting difference, Jayne thought. But he didn't care who she was looking at long as it wasn't him.

Just a few feet behind her now, Jayne waited. Universe was chugging his drink, and slammed the glass down on the counter. It shattered. He belched loudly.

Jayne made his move – and found nails digging into his hand and fierce eyes boring into him. "Keep your hands off me," she said fiercely.

"Hey there, sweet 'art," Jane said, his free hand lifting a small package from a concealed pocket in her dress. "I was just-"

She lunged at his other hand, hers clamping around it at the wrist. "Hey now, little lady…" Jane spun, attempting to pull his wrist away. It didn't work. She spun with him, as if she'd fought like this before, and the rest of the bargoers cleared out the same side door the woman had entered from, like usual, not wanting to interfere in a fight involving Jayne.

Usually Jayne could win a fight on brute strength, but this woman was throwing off his game. She'd initiated the fight – a rare occurrence when Jayne was involved, and she was too quick for him to gain the upper hand. She regained control of her hands and used one to clamp onto the parcel he'd lifted, the other, her thumb and forefinger straightened, went for his eyes.

Outside the bar, Mal was throwing darts at a target painted on the wall with a couple of the regular drunks that were at the establishment literally every time he decided to come along. A few more exited the bar and picked up the ones that had fallen from the target, intent on joining the game. Upon hearing a yowl that sounded like Jayne, Mal grew concerned, and raced inside to find his friend doing battle with a…a woman! She was dressed nicely, looking like the last person that would be involved in a bar fight, and yet was giving the big man a run for his money. Jayne was always embarrassed if Mal or Universe had to help with a fight, but he had his hand on what looked like could be money, and they certainly needed it right about now.

"Hey!" Mal said, running across the room. Jayne and the woman were locked, their momentum spinning them, knocking over chairs, neither really making progress, and then the woman's knee flew up, hitting Jayne solidly between the legs. He howled, and Mal jumped forward, grabbing the woman by the upper arms from behind and pulling her away from the gunman.

"Get her, Mal!" Universe shouted. "Do the eye thing!" He jumped off the bar stool and knelt beside Jayne, slapping his shoulder enthusiastically. "You guys always bring me the very best violence."

Mal tried spinning the woman in a circle, hoping she didn't have good backward balance, but she threw her own weight backward, almost before Mal could react, and he tripped over one of the fallen chairs, stumbling back with too much momentum to prevent himself from slamming into the wall. The woman spun, her reflexes surprisingly fast, to face him and her hands went to his throat as she raised a knee, prepared to do Mal in the way she'd reduced Jayne to a squeaking, useless mass against the bar.

Her eyes flashed, staring Mal down, unblinking. And suddenly, now that he'd seen her face, Mal's expression changed to one of complete shock. It had been six years, he was looking in the eyes of a grown woman, but she was so recognizable it was as if she looked exactly the same as the day he'd left.

"Inara?"

She released his throat and backed up instinctively, looking wary and surprised. Mal's mouth hung open slightly as he stepped forward. "Is…is it really you?"

She backed up another step, somehow remembering that a chair leg was in her way and lifting her foot gracefully over it as she put some distance between herself and Mal. "Who are you?" she asked, cocking her head.

He hadn't realized that she might not recognize him as easily as he had her. "It's me," he said. "Mal."

She looked as if that was the last name she'd expected to hear, and then her expression changed. It seemed as if she wanted to believe him…she squinted, searching his face, and then her eyes widened in shock. "Wah!"

"Wah!" he echoed as he stepped toward her and she ran into his arms. He lifted her off the ground and spun them in a circle, both of them making incoherent excited sounds. Setting her back down, Mal held Inara at arm's length. "How-"

"How!" she said, her eyes bright, her fingers digging into his arm. "Run-tse duh fwotzoo, Mal, where did you come from?"

"Where…I was…" he started laughing. "Well this is a bang-up day! It's great to see you! What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here? She said, "What are you doing here?"

"Hey!"

Mal and Inara hadn't noticed Universe walked up to them. "Mal, what's going on here?"

"Universe," Mal said. "This is Inara. She's my best friend."

"You're…friends with her?" Universe said incredulously.

"Yeah," Mal said. He looked over at where Jayne still lay. "Jayne, get over here." Jayne got to his feet, grumbling. "And give her back the parcel," Mal added. "Inara, this is Jayne. Jayne, Inara."

Jayne frowned, and cleared his throat upon Mal's glare. "Nice to meet you."

"Hold on one sweet second here," Universe said. "Let me get this whole thing straight. You know her, she knows you? But he wants to rob her, and she wants to blind him. And so…we're just…we're just going to be okay with this?" He threw his hands in the air. "Did I miss something?"

"Relax, Universe," Mal said, holding a hand out to settle him.

"Oh Mal," Inara said, smiling broadly, "wait until everyone finds out you've been here all this time! Your mother…"

"Don't tell her!" Mal said sharply.

Inara took a step back. "What?"

"No one needs to know."

"Of course they need to know!" Inara said. "Everyone thinks you're dead!"

"Wait…" Mal cocked his head. "They do?"

Inara nodded. "Atherton told us about Serenity Valley."

Mal supposed he would have. "What else did he tell you?"

Inara was shaking her head. "It doesn't matter. You're alive." Her eyes widened. "And that means…Serenity. She's yours, you're Captain!"

"You're captain of that Firefly that came in last night?" Universe said.

"No, I'm not," Mal said.

"Yes, he is!" Inara said. "His father, Book, he…he always intended to leave the ship to you. It was written. It'd be your job to protect..." She looked at Universe. "He was so excited about it, too."

"That was a long time ago," Mal said. "I'm not Captain of a ship."

"Mal!" Inara turned to Universe and Jayne. "Could you two give us a minute alone?"

"I ain't goin' nowhere," Jayne said. "We're buddies, the three of us are."

Mal cleared his throat. "Could you guys excuse us?"

"Heh," Jayne scoffed, turning with Universe to leave the bar.

"I'd say you'd learn to love 'em," Mal said, watching them go. He sank down on a bench near the window. "But Jayne can be pretty horrific." When there was no answer, he turned. Inara had her arms folded, staring at the ground. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I've spent the last six years thinking the Reavers had killed you," Inara said, looking up at him. "Not just dead…but at the hands of those monsters…" she shook her head. "Mal, an hour ago…ten minutes ago I thought you were dead. Everyone thinks you're dead, it's…" She dropped down on the bench next to him. "You have no idea how much it would mean to everyone to know you're alive. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"Hey, it's okay," Mal said. "I'm here. I'm fine. I haven't seen a Reaver in six years."

She closed her eyes and put her head on his shoulder. "I've really missed you."

He lowered his head to hers, reaching over to rest his hand on her knee and feeling her hand come to cover his own. "I missed you too."