Hello glad to know people still enjoy my work.

As usual, I only own my idea of how to rework the world of the story into my desired shape. All characters are owned by respective owners.

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The world was topsy turvy for several moments as the ship spun in space. A barrel role at speed while in middle of a loop de loop immediately followed multiple 180deg directional changes and twists as the small ship was put through makeovers usually only a small single pilot fighter craft could pull off.

"Wash!" roared a voice from the lounge, as the ship went through 3 consecutive alternating 3dimensional 180deg turns. "Don't you dare break my ship! We just got the damn thing fixed up right."

"Don't worry Mal, just getting used to the new thruster controls and the ships responsiveness. Kaylee said it was running smooth, but last time I was in control of anything that moved like this was at the Pilot Academy. If I wasn't flying the tub, I would never believe something with this weight class and profile could move like this."

"Well stop it. Starting to loose inertial dampeners. Was weightless a few seconds there and dumped my bowl of porridge on the ceiling then on my head."

Wash chuckled. "Sure that was me and not something you said to upset River? Given Simon's confirming her propensity for introducing heads and bowls of gooey goodness."

Wash grinned as he waited for a reply he knew was not coming. The captain had continued to make snide comments to River about her open infatuation and ever increasingly blatant attempts at seducing the ship's head of public relations. The man just could not get over the fact that the girl was mostly in her right mind and well sane enough to make this kind of decision for herself. Even if Wash occasionally poked at the gruff bear, he found himself liking the man. Especially since his return.

He always appreciated having the man around. He was a large buff crude fool, but he made a nice big target to draw fire away from his lovely wife, so that had put a large plus in the man's favour.

However, since the 'return' as the crew had taken to calling it, the man was vastly different while still clearly being the same. For one thing, he looked at least 10 yrs younger. His attitude was still a little short, but he'd dispensed with most of the off colour comments on women and was no longer acting like a buffoon. In fact, Wash had over heard him having several conversations about rather advanced topics with River and Kaylee about the functions of the ship. He'd even seen the man nodding along with one of Simon's medical monologues, inserting the occasional comment that actually had the doctor nodding and taking notes.

He'd asked his wife what was going on, and some of Jayne's background was finally explained to him. Learning he was a mutant and classed as a 'feral' do to the nature of his abilities was not that shocking, once he'd assimilated the fact mutants were real and not the stuff of horror stories. However, learning he was nearly twice the age Wash thought, and actually had a very advanced education and several degrees that would make Core world academics and higher class professionals jealous was surprising.

His thoughts were interrupted as the new intercom beeped and flashed from the console. Reaching up, he grabbed the handset, now shaped like ancient phone receiver instead of a radio. The light flashing and tone of the beep indicated who was calling so he greeted the person as he held it to his ear. "Hey Kaylee, me girl. What's up?"

"Gonna need you to get into a regular flight orientation Wash. A little strain on the left fuel regulator and there could be a blow out if you continue dancin' my baby around like this for much longer." the mechanic stated cheerfully, which was nothing knew for the sunny, friendly girl.

Wash immediately set the ship into a standard flight path, using his shoulder to cradle the receiver to his head. "Was I hurting our girl? If so, tell her I'm sorry and I'll try to make it up to her." One thing that made complete sense in the new world he found himself in was that Kaylee could actually talk to the ship and other mechanical devices she worked on, and she claimed that every device had their own personality and 'life'. Wash could completely agree with that, after flying different ships for so long, he was well aware that even beyond the specs of the engineers, each ship he'd ever flown had their own quirks and traits that he had already viewed as personalities.

"Nah, the old girl was having a good time, but been a while since she got to really run through her paces like that and she's just a little tired from it all. Take it a little easier at a time for a bit, and she'll soon be runnin' circle around anything out there with a grin and flash of her engine burst."

Wash chuckled, the checking the various astronomical date for the current flight path, he set the auto pilot. "Well, that's good. Glad to help our beautiful girl get her exercise. We got a clear path for next 12hrs or so before any course changes. I'm gonna grab a bite and then a nap. See in the mess?" he asked as he sent a message to Mal's cortex and a timer for River as well. With 5 members of the crew now able to pilot, they had set a rotation so that the bridge was manned at least 20hrs a day. Since the return, Mal insisted on everyone eating at least the 'morning' and 'evening' meals together regardless of assigned tasks. A lot of their time recently was spent training each other on their own specialties so that they would never be in a position where vital needs of the ship were unable to be performed if the primary member of the crew was not able to perform their duty.

Wash, River and Jayne were working with Kaylee on learning as much as they could about running and repairing the ship. Book and Inara were working with Simon on learning some more detailed medical procedures. Zoe and Mal, along with River and Jayne learning some Piloting tricks from Wash. And Jayne and River were passing along some knowledge of both armed and unarmed fighting to the rest of the crew. Well, aside from Inara who seemed to have more than a passing familiarity with the subject. Then again, she was Jayne's sister, and their entire family was basically made up of walking weapons.

'Just gonna get cleaned up a bit. Had to change out some oil in that regulator while ya was dancin' and spilled some all over my overs. Gotta take a quick shower and change, see you in about 10min." There was click over the line and the light went dead on the console.

Wash hung up the phone and finished setting the autopilot, deliberately programming a little shake and rattle for about an hour after he left. 'Wasn't good to let the captain think that the ship didn't really need a constant hand on the tiller of his pay could be cut' he thought to himself with a chuckle. It was a common trick all pilots exploited to make naive or inexperienced captains think that flying was more difficult then it was for a straight run. Technically, with the advances in computers and flight systems, you really only needed a pilot for take off and landing in a gravity well or for combat flight. A basic cargo run or transport flight with no fancy dodging, could be handled completely by the ships computers. It was all math to an advanced level, and it was easier to let the system run itself then for the pilot to try and manually control it all.

With a final pat on the top of the head to his stego and rex, he left the bridge with a whistle, heading to the mess to whip up a snack before he went to grab a few hours of sleep. Zoe, Mal and Inara were in her shuttle going over the books for the ship and from the grunts and sounds drifting up from the cargo bay, it seemed that Jayne, Book and River were working out.

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The Operative frowned slightly as he finished the call with his superiors. They had ordered him to remain discreet and not take action against the ship his patrol had been following the last several days. They had remained well outside of scanning range for a vessel of it's class and the behaviour of the ship had baffled the analysts on the crew.

He did not understand why he was not being ordered to simply blow the ship out of the sky. The identifier clearly showed it was an anti-Alliance vessel and responsible for the series of troubles that had occurred since that blasphemous Miranda broadcast spewed it's lies about the Alliance and their clearly faked role in creating Reapers. His brother Operative had claimed that the message was genuine, but it was clear the man had been corrupted by his odd fetish for getting close to his targets and speaking to them and watching them die personally.

It was much cleaner and easier on the psyche to kill their targets from a distance and not engage in personal banter with them. He had hoped that the command would be able to help correct this defect in his fellow Operative's thought process, but somehow, the other -who insisted that they call him Javert- had escaped from the training facility, killing several of the special agents and doctors at the site.

Standing and moving away from the console, he glared out the nearby window into the dark of space. 'Where are you brother? Why have you forsaken our sacred mission to serve the Alliance and root out and eliminate our enemies? Especially those freaks and monsters from those unholy moons?'

He remained standing, staring into the distance until the door hissed open and one of his crew entered, holding a pad for his inspection. This was the one aspect of commanding a ship and patrol that he hated, the constant need of the crew to seek his approval for tasks they had spent years learning and that cost the Alliance untold credits in trainers and materials for said training. Unlike he and his brother Operatives who, when given a task, completed it or died in failure, these simple fools required almost constant coddling and affirmation that they were performing adequately for their superiors. 'When the 'verse is cleansed, my final task before my reward will be to bring peace to all these cowardly boot spits who are too weak to live in the new world of peace.' he promised himself as he started signing off on the task lists and work orders that filled the pad in his hands.

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"So what is the next job you lined up, Mal?" Book asked as he served out a pork chop to each of the plates on the table. Following after him, Simon spooned out some masked potatoes and next to him, River laded some creamed corn onto the plates.

"Going to visit Lord Harwick. He's got another cargo of heifers he need moved off-world This one going to an Ag school farm on Ariel. Oddly enough, school is owned by a Tam family." he said with a quick glance at the former fugitive siblings. "Either of you think it likely to meet yer folks there?"

The pair shared a look, Simon frowning in thought while River rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't think so, captain. Our family owns a lot of businesses and industries."

"What Simon is trying to say, is that he had no idea that the family owned anything off-world of Londinium and certainly nothing as mundane as a school for farming." she lightly punched her brother's shoulder. "As for running into them, Gabriel Tam would be unlikely to go within orbiting range of a farm school, let alone actually step foot in one or personally handle and transactions involving farm animals. As for mother, she rarely leaves the house except for shopping or social events, and even then, she'll usually have the sales department sent staff and a selection of items to the home instead of deigning to actually enter a shop where she might have to interact with -shudder- lower classes."

Jayne interrupted the flow of the conversation and he used his fork to grab the chop off of River plate and plop it down on his own. The girl just rolled her eyes again as Book placed another onto her plate. "Uh, Mal? You said Harwick? I thought the Operative fellow said he killed all our contacts. How come he didn't take our Harwick?"

Surprised at the actual good question, Mal answered. "Harwick's too high profile and moneyed to simply kill. The Operative sent word that if he was found dealin' with us again, he would be arrested and charged with treason, and at that point, his money wouldn't matter as he would be found dead in his cell. An open and shut case of suicide with a note begging for forgiveness and explaining he done himself in to spare his family the shame of a public trial."

Jayne nodded. "Makes sense, I guess why he ain't dead. But man must have balls of steel to work with us again after a warning like that."

"Well threat don't apply now, since Javert expunged our warrants. They go after him now, and it's made clear they ain't got no legal standing to do so, they's gonna have more trouble then already got dealing with riots and backlash from news on Miranda." Mal grinned after taking a forkful of tater and corn. "Plus man is right bright. Had taken a recording of the threat and has it all set to be released if anything happens to him untoward like." He turned back to the siblings who were now sitting. "So you don't think this could be some convoluted plot to catch you two by then Blue hand freaks?"

River cocked her head as her mind ran through the possibilities. "Unlikely, but not impossible. We should be on guard. More likely possibility is that Atherton Wing might attempt to intercept us while we load the animals or arranges a trap of his own on Ariel."

"Well then we'll just have to set up a little protection of our own." He eyed the crew for a moment before sighing. "Inara, can you get landing permission without your Companion credentials?"

Inara nodded. "Yes Mal. I have re-registered as a mediator. While not as lucrative as a full Companion, we are just as highly in demand and appreciated for our assisted in mediating disputes and contract negotiations. I could likely get a request for a mediation with a few hours of work on the cortex. What do you have in mind?"

"I want you and Jayne on world before we land. Take a job and work it while you send Jayne for some errand in the city. Jayne, you circle around and make your way to Harwick's place and scope out any potential trouble. IF you find some, don't take them out on your own. Call us on the secure comm Kaylee created. We'll flip the ambush around on them. River will take the second shuttle and lag back as we enter the gravity well.

Thanks to yer folks and our new friends, the shuttles are as agile and armed as a fighter. She'll have Simon with her. If she can't intimidate the ambush into failing, he can use his gift and grab any weapons on the ambushes. Zoe's gonna be with me and she can light up the sky with some blast of lightning and winds to scare up off. That still don't work, then Jayne and River can let loose and take them out."

Every one nodded agreement, though Book had a frown on his face. Mal forestalled his possible objections with a nod. "We will do everything we can NOT to kill anyone as we don't want to get back on the radar of the Alliance or on the wanted list. But if they push it, the crew an Harwick's folk come first. Best I can do, Preacher."

Book nodded. "I understand and agree, Mal I was just wondering if perhaps I should accompany Inara. My presence as her spiritual council will lead credibility and a branch of protection to her presence."

Mal looked to his . . . well, he wasn't sure what to call her yet. He knew what he wanted her to be, some time in the future. Not too near, but not too far in the future. "Inara?"

|"Mediators rarely travel alone, usually with at least 1 body guard/servant so Janus would fit there and often bring another assistant or a guide to bounce ideas off and balance the reputation of the Guild. Derrial would be a welcome presence suited to that role."

"So that's the plan then, " Mal stated as he scooped the last of the corn into his mouth. After chewing and swallowing he continued "We're about a day and a half from Harwick's, so get some sleep. I want the three of you on the way in 12 hrs. We'll slow Serenity a bit and let you land ahead of us so that it's less likely to remind Atherton that yer based on the ship."

Inara gave a little shrug. "I've registered as a mediator under the name Sarah Howlett. New start needs a new name. Tradition within the Guild is that if you change your classification, you take on a new name to distance yourself from any past complications. I figured since you all know, might as well use my birth name. Of course all of you can still call me Inara if that makes you comfortable."

"Guess I'll have to beat your ass another time, feng le." Jayne said with a grin, chewing on the bone of his chop to get at the tasty marrow within.

River gave a little smirk. "There's a lot of things you might one day be able to do to my ass, but beating it is never going to be one of those." she added a little wink at her words before standing and sashaying from the mess, dropping her dished into the fresher.

She could feel Jayne's eyes following her swaying hips and felt a thrill at getting an honest reaction out of her object of desire. Her smile widened as she heard a double thunk as, she assumed, someone took exception to Jayne eyeing her form in a lustful way. 'Sounded like Simon slammed Jayne's head with a tray then Jayne head hitting the table.' she giggled silently as she kept walking to her quarters.

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'Jayne old boy, you are in a shit ton of trouble.' the merc thought to himself as he washed the dishes before he could head to his cabin for some sleep. 'That little feng le girl got you tied up in knots and the saucy minx damn well knows it.'

Remember the view as she left earlier and the way she fought, a soft gentle smile crossed his features. 'Well, at least she's got some grit to go with her beauty. Make a good mate for a man like me.' He paused in a moment of panic. 'Well, if she were about a decade older and half as crazy.' he tried to justify to himself, still not willing to completely give in to his growing affection for the girl.

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Well, here's another chapter in one of my stories, i hope every one is enjoying my resurgence into the writing field. I am so glad that i have a decent set up now to be able to physically write. Still not perfect but far better then I've had in years, and only getting mild pains in hands after not working for a year, carpal tunnel and arthritis are eased up a bit.