Title: What He Sees In Me
Author: Jmaria
Theme: Sight
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Joss is Boss. River and Jayne are his.
Pairing: Jayne Cobb/River Tam
Words: 305
Summary: It's what he sees in me that touches me the most.
Author's Notes: Post-Serenity, and set in the Gravity 'verse

What He Sees In Me

There are the things he's come to appreciate, images he clings to even in his sleep that haunt her dreams. Visions she knows she hasn't a right to, but they wash over her none the less. Before they'd been simple, images of her being naked or being crazy, mostly the latter. It had been common her first year on the boat, because most of the crew had held firmly to that image.

But now, other images cluttered in his mind, held tight for a rainy day. Today's image blurred with one of her flying with Zoe's children on her lap, her cuddling little Hoban and Gaia as they cooed up at her. Images of Mal and Simon's equally outraged faces that always set her to smiling, and him to laughing when he talked about future kids of their own.

And in his sleep, he clung to images of would-be children, dark haired mischief makers that were too smart for their own good. Beautiful would-be children who could handle themselves just as well as their mother and father. She smiled at the thought, just like he smiled at the thought of making said would be children.

For the first time in her life someone thought of her as a real person, not something to shape or use or fix. She was all that he needed her to be, and that was a damn sight better than she had been in a long time.

"You're gonna be fine, just, you know don't think of it so much as a wedding as a landing you need to get right."

River took a shaky breath as she made her way down the rocky path on Haven, comforted by the voice of her lost friends. Her eyes set firmly on Jayne, who waited for her at the end and beginning.