NirSighted Chapter Two: The Enemy Enters
Inara awoke to the sound of water dripping overhead. Confused, she sat up and pulled a shawl around her shoulders. She slid into her slippers and opened the door to her shuttle. Seeing no one, she moved towards the galley, which made the most sense. Where else would the water have been coming from?
No one was in the galley, which mystified Inara further. The sound seemed to be coming from the hallway nearest the passenger bunks. She followed the noise and was rewarded with the sight of River kneeling on the floor near an air vent, holding a bottle in her left hand. "Bao-bei, what are you doing?" Inara asked gently.
"I'm winning," River muttered, or at least, that was what it sounded like she said. "Going to drown the enemy."
"Does Simon know where you are?" Inara asked, concerned. River seemed to be pouring something down the air vent. Inara didn't know for sure, but she didn't think that was the best of ideas.
"Sleeping with Kaylee," the younger girl replied, then turned her face towards Inara. "'Nara?"
"That's me, sweetie. What's wrong with your eyes?"
"Dark," River said matter-of-factly. "Doesn't matter, don't need them to win."
"Are you playing a game?"
River nodded, then turned back to dump more liquid down the air vent. "Haveta drown the enemy, otherwise she's going to win."
"Nobody's down there; it's just an air vent," Inara said, putting her hand on River's shoulder. "Come with me. Here, give me that."
River, without turning from the vent, handed Inara the bottle. Looking at it, Inara could see that it had once been full of clear syrup, the kind they poured on oatmeal to sweeten it. Now it only contained a third of the original contents. She shook her head, still confused. Syrup? What was that about?
"She's going to win," River repeated, more petulantly.
"Let's go back to bed," Inara suggested, screwing the lid onto the syrup bottle. She reached for River's hand, then realized it was sticky with syrup. River seemed to realize this at the same time, and stuck her fingers in her mouth and murmured, "Sweet."
Footsteps echoed in the hallway, and Inara looked up. "Mal!"
"Surprised t' see me?" the captain asked. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. As usual, he wore his pants, but on top, he sported a creamy, soft-looking nightshirt-resembling garment. "What're ya doin', little one?" he asked River kindly.
"Winning," she replied offhandedly, her blank eyes looking elsewhere. "Haveta win, she's very good though."
Mal looked at Inara, who shrugged. The captain then said, "Where's the doc?"
"With Kaylee, I guess."
"Ah, God!" Mal said, clapping his hand to his head.
"Never mind," River said suddenly, standing up. "Good night."
Before Inara or Mal could say anything to her, she turned and ran away from both of them, leaving the captain staring confusedly after her. "What was that 'bout?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Inara replied, still holding the bottle of syrup.
"She… all right?" Mal asked. "I mean, she's not all right, but… what's wrong with her eyes?"
"She said…"
There was a pause, then a shriek, then a crash. "River?" Inara asked, hurrying into the hallway, Mal following her.
There was not one girl in the hallway… but two.
One was River, Mal could see that straight off, still covered in clear syrup, her hands out in front of her, a confused expression on her face. "I thought I heard you," River was saying as he and Inara approached.
The other girl looked… well, like a scared rabbit. She was scurrying backwards, away from River as fast as she could. "Can't… won't… just playing… can't make me go back there!" she yelled as River, hands out, tried to find her. It was like some odd game of hide-and-go-seek.
"What's going on here?" Inara asked.
Footsteps came pounding from the other side of the room, and Jayne, sporting a T-shirt, short pants, his hat, and a gun, burst in. "Thought we was…" he said blurrily. Then he seemed to take in the sight – two girls on the floor, Inara and Mal in the doorway, and said, "What's all this fei hua?"
Simon and Kaylee appeared a moment later. Mal had only a moment to notice that Simon was shirtless and Kaylee was only wearing a shirt and some flimsy undergarment, like some jian huo, before Simon burst out with: "River! What are you doing?"
His sister gave him the cutest I-have-no-idea-what-you're-talking-about smile, then said, "Found the enemy. Do I win?"
"What… who…?"
The girl, who was against the wall now, her knees drawn up, had her hands in front of her face as though that could prevent them from seeing her. It sounded as though she was sobbing.
River crawled over to the other girl and put her arm around the sobbing one. "Shh, shh, all right. You can win next time, 'kay?"
Inara came slowly towards them. "River, who is this?"
"Enemy…" River thought for a moment. "Maybe not enemy, maybe friend?" she asked Inara, looking up with her wide, blank eyes.
Simon had also come near them, and knelt down beside his sister and her sobbing friend/enemy. As he leaned in, he noticed a metal bracelet made of thin, delicate chain links around the new girl's wrist. Attached to the bracelet was a tag with engraved words on them. Simon gently undid the clasp on the bracelet and removed it from the girl's wrist. He could easily read it now: "Subject B-171217. Academy Experimental Zone 004. Please Return Immediately if Found." He put the bracelet on the table next to him. "River, where is she from?" he asked, knowing his sister would know.
Her arm still around the girl, whose sobs had quieted, River tilted her head, bit her lip, and thought. "Secret?" she asked.
"No, it can't be a secret. I want you to tell me."
She "looked" at everyone else in the room, even though that consisted of nothing more than her blank eyes swimming over Kaylee, Mal, Jayne, and Inara, before coming to rest, eerily, on his face. Then she leaned in with one hand and put it behind his neck, presumably figuring out where he was in relation to her. When she was assured of his position, she closed her eyes and whispered into his ear, "She is from a very long way away, but she is not my fault."
Simon nodded, her hand still on his neck, so she could feel it. He whispered, "Where?"
She thought a moment, as though reading something from the girl. Then she whispered, "Osiris. Saw her through the mirror."
"Who is she?"
"She is… enemy? No, friend," River corrected herself.
"Does she have a name?"
River nodded, then thought, her eyes elsewhere. "Catie. That is what she says she likes to be called, but there have been others who call her other things – Cathleen is her fullest name, but they always called her Catie. But the ones she was with last called her other things, not-nice things."
Before Simon could say anything else, she released the girl's shoulder and grabbed onto Simon's neck with both hands. He managed to choke out a gasp. "You have to listen to me," his sister said, lowly, urgently. "She knows… she knows the things I know. She has seen the things I have seen. She has been with them. You can't make her go back, you can't. I won't let you."
Simon looked from his oddly earnest, oddly lucid, blind sister to the girl crouched on the floor next to her. "Catie?" he asked softly. He felt River's hands release from his neck. "Catie, my name is Simon. You're safe here."
The girl was shaking. "Please don't… you can't… they can't know," she managed to mumble.
"You're safe here," Simon repeated.
She put a shaking hand to her face again, as though trying to hide. "Can't…"
"Are you hurt?" Simon asked, still gently.
She shook her head. "N…no, just… just… I lost!" she wailed.
"You can win next time," River assured her.
"What in th' hell is she talkin' 'bout?" Jayne thundered from the doorway.
"Was playing game," River informed him, her blank eyes fixing on him. "Didn't let her win, should have."
"Come with me," Simon said, stretching out a hand to Catie. "I'll take you somewhere safe, all right?"
She nodded, her eyes still wide and very afraid. He realized she was dripping with syrup. "We'll get you cleaned up," Simon continued. "Come with me."
She stood up, River relinquishing her grasp, and unsteadily followed Simon.
"Let's get you cleaned up, bao-bei," Inara said to River, who pulled herself off the floor in acquiescence.
Simon led Catie to the infirmary and began gently washing the syrup off her. "What game were you playing with my sister?" he asked kindly.
"Hide-n-go-seek," Catie replied, her eyes faraway. "Was winning 'til she decided to drown me."
"River likes to win," Simon agreed, carefully wiping the syrup from Catie's hands and face. "She's very good at most games."
"Could have won," Catie declared. "Going to win next time, tell you what."
"Catie, how did you get here?"
She thought for a moment as Simon finished cleaning the syrup off her. "Don't remember. Remember falling, remember running, remember… remember being hurt too much. Needed a warm place, didn't know it was going to move."