A/N: Yeah, still a bit new at this, this is my first story. The last chapter was called Stowaway. I appreciate praise and constructive criticism, but if you just give a review that says "That sucks, I hate this story" I won't be able to improve. Also, I'm still learning format and things like that. This is after Serenity, the movie. Disclaimer: Only one character is of my own creation, the rest are Joss Whedon's brain children.
Chapter 2: Reunion
Kaylee finished the repairs as ordered, and soon they were off-world again, out in the black. After a few hours, the little stowaway started getting a bit antsy. She decided to do some exploring, as Mal couldn't just drop her out here. She wandered down the hallway that everyone's rooms branched off of, and was just outside Jayne's quarters when his door opened. She froze; there was no where to hide, and she couldn't very well run with out being caught. Jayne, however, was not paying attention, and didn't even notice her as he headed for the ships common area. The girl was tempted to follow him, not sure what compelled her to do so.
She felt the hairs stand on the back of her neck. Someone was behind her. "What are you doing on my ship?" asked a rather angry sounding Malcom Reynolds. The girl turned to face him, and all she said was "Surprise"Jayne turned to watch the altercation. This'll be interesting', he thought as he leaned against one of the doors. He expected Mal to explode with anger at the stowaway, and was almost hoping for a fight. Stowaways always seemed to mean trouble for the crew. Jayne was shocked when Mal actually embraced the young girl. "Mei-Mei, it's been s'long since I seen ya last," he said smiling.
"You actually know this xiao gui?" asked Jayne, shocked by Mal's reaction.
"Yeah," said Mal, grinning as he turned the girl to face the merc. "Meet Sidalee Reynolds, my kid sister."
Mal had called everyone to the dining table to introduce Sidalee. One could just look at them and tell they were related. Sida, as she asked everyone to call her, looked like a younger, smaller, female version of Mal. They had similar hair, though hers was longer, done in two shoulder length braids. She had similar eyes, though hers were softer than Mal's. She wore a long red peasant top with a black hand knitted scarf tied around her waist as a belt and a tan skirt. She had replaced the heavy boots, which came just above her ankles. As Mal went around the table, telling her the names of the crew, she shook each's hand. Mal thought he noticed a bit of a blush when she shook Jayne's, but shook the thought off.
"So, what you been doin' with yourself?" asked Mal as the two down.
"Looking for you," she answered in a mock irritated voice. "I got around doing what odd jobs I could in return for food, a place to sleep, and travel fares." She almost felt Mal tense from across the table. "Don't start to worryin', I din't do no wh-uh-companion work," she said, looking at the table. She had guessed at Inara's occupation from Mal's less than subtle reference, and didn't want to offend the lovely lady. Sida glanced back up at Inara nervously.
"It's all right," Inara reassured her. "I'm almost used to the insults by now." Mal gave her the look he always did when commenting about her career choice. In the moment Inara and Mal locked gazes, Sida thought she felt something pass between them. After an awkward silence, Sida said "Oh, I brought presents." She dumped the contents of her small drawstring bag onto the table. There were a few boxes of chocolates and other candies, as well as big, juicy strawberries.
Kaylee bit back a squeal of delight as she reached for one. "I like her already, Cap'n"
"I can stay, right?" asked Sida hopefully.
Mal put rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know, Mei-mei. We get into some dangerous stuff. If'n you got hurt, I would blame myself for puttin' you in harm's way"
"But I can clean, and I can cook a decent meal outta almost anythin'," protested Sida.
"We could use the help, sir," said Zoe with a half smile. River put her two cents in.
"Simon wants to bunk with Kaylee, but can't leave me by myself. If Sida and I share, he can have both." Simon's face turned bright red, and Kaylee turned to smirk at him.
"We don't need no other gorram little girl runnin' around this boat," said Jayne.
"For once, I agree with him," said Mal, standing and walking away from the table a bit.
The whole crew broke into protest about what was to happen to Sida, when she finally managed to shout over the din. "I ain't got nowhere else to go!"
