This is my longest story yet….please review to let me know how it's going! Feedback is always welcome and appreciated! Thanks:o)

Disclaimer: I don't own "Serenity" or any of its characters….They're products of Joss Whedon's beautiful brain, not mine.

Family Affairs

"Ooo, look at these!" squealed Kaylee in delight, dragging a smiling River over to a nearby shop window. "Ain't these just the prettiest dresses you've ever seen? Look at that red one! Kinda looks like something Inara would wear..." River didn't say anything, but her wide eyes and delighted smile spoke volumes.

Behind them, Wash and Zoe smiled indulgently. Wash leaned close to his wife and whispered something about slinky dresses, to which Zoe laughed softly. Simon gazed fondly at his little sister, glad to see her so relaxed and happy. Mal was the only one who looked put out. His voice tinged with exasperation, he said, "Kaylee, aren't you supposed to be looking for engine parts? And besides, don't you already have a nice dress? A big poofy pink one? Why d'you need more useless fripp- Oof!" Mal turned his head in shock to the man who had just none-too-subtly elbowed him in the side.

Simon didn't look at him; he merely stared into the store window and cocked his head slightly. "You know, I do think that dress would look absolutely lovely on you", he said to Kaylee. The engineer beamed at him in gratitude. Wash snickered and Zoe rested her cheek on his shoulder in a weak attempt to hide her amusement from the Captain. River gave her brother a proud look.

Mal glared at his crew, his eyes narrowing even further when they came to rest upon the doctor at his side. His lover continued to ignore him. Kaylee couldn't quite suppress her laughter as she moved over to the captain, taking his arm and resting her head on his shoulder. "Cap'n, you know we ain't spent a decent amount of time on any planet in a real long while. An' it's so nice here. What's the harm in lookin' around a little while we're picking up supplies?"

Mal gave an exaggerated sigh. He was no match for those bright brown eyes, and he damn well knew it. "Fine. Take your time, look around, get what you need, but you'd better be back to the ship before nightfall, dong ma?" He delivered the last bit with a stern shake of his finger.

Kaylee grinned. River bounced happily to her side and announced, "I'm going with Kaylee!"

Simon's eyebrows furrowed in concern. River had made leaps and bounds with her recovery in the past few years, and he knew that there was no permanent Alliance presence on this planet, but still...As hard as he tried, he couldn't quite bury his overprotective instincts toward his little sister. "Just...make sure you check in once in a while, alright?" he said weakly. "Every half hour would be good." River rolled her eyes before kissing his cheek and skipping off with a giggling Kaylee. Simon attempted to smile, but it came out as more of a wince.

Reluctantly forgiving him for the earlier betrayal, Mal slipped a sympathetic arm around Simon's shoulder, and the doctor automatically leaned into his warmth. Mal turned to the other couple and asked, "So. You two gonna go find yourselves some trouble to get into?"

Wash's eyes twinkled. "God, I hope so." He turned to his wife. "We could go to those steam baths and get naked, or hike over to that hidden lake and get naked, or grab some lunch in a nice restaurant and...wait 'til later to get naked, because eating establishments don't generally like people to get naked in them..."

Zoe raised her eyebrows. "That's quite the rich fantasy life you have, husband."

Wash grinned proudly. "Yup. My mind is a glorious place to be." He nuzzled her neck. "A place filled with naked Zoes."

Simon was blushing slightly at this point, and Mal looked pained. "Y'know, I'm suddenly looking back a mite more fondly on being tortured..." he muttered.

"I can arrange that, Sir", said Zoe evenly. Mal tried to summon up a mock glare, but it fell short. He knew it wouldn't have ruffled Zoe anyway. She'd long since failed to be afraid of him when he wasn't truly in a rage. Zoe turned back to Wash and said in a tolerant voice, "Why don't we go visit that toy store down the street instead? I'm sure you can find a few new dinosaurs there."

"Ooo!" exclaimed Wash excitedly. "I've been meaning to look for a new Allosaurus...my old one had a tragic Jayne-related accident." He paused thoughtfully. "Strange, really...they could almost be kin. Big jaws, tiny brains." Simon gave an enthusiastic nod of agreement at this.

Zoe took her husband's arm and started to lead him off. "We'll be back before nightfall to relieve the Shepherd from watch duty, Sir." Wash gave them a brief but animated wave goodbye. As they walked off, Zoe whispered just loud enough for Mal and Simon to hear, "We can get naked then."

After they were gone, Mal and Simon turned to face each other. "So what were your plans for the rest of the afternoon?" asked Simon.

"Well", said Mal with the mischievous smile that always made Simon's heart beat a little faster. "I thought maybe you an' I could do some married people stuff of our own. After we go get your medical supplies, of course."

"Ah. And...What exactly constitutes "married people stuff" on this planet? Aside from collecting toy dinosaurs and public nudity, that is." His tone was neutral, but the sparkle in Simon's eyes conveyed his interest.

Mal blinked. "Actually, I don't rightly know. M' sure we'll find something, though."

Simon smiled and hooked an arm around Mal's waist as they started walking. "As long as we don't get arrested, shot, kidnapped, or run into Jayne, I'll be happy."

Mal let out a snort at the last part and draped his arm over his husband's shoulders. "Well, I can't make any promises as to the rest, but I'm fair certain we can avoid Jayne if we stay outta seedy bars and whorehouses."

"No seedy bars. Damn. Whatever shall we do with ourselves?" deadpanned Simon. He smiled as he felt Mal chuckle under his hand, and the two men walked down the street in a comfortable silence.