6. Whim
"We got a meet with Badger," Mal announced as River skillfully set the ship down on Persephone.
"Why we keep dealin' with that piece of go se?" Jayne grumbled, putting Arlene in his ankle holster. It would do him well to be prepared to deal with Badger and his henchmen.
What he wasn't prepared for was River to skip down into the bay, her light blue dress flowing softly around slight frame.
Mal took one look at Jayne's stunned expression and knew he had made the right decision, even if it had been on a whim, to take her along.
7. Wasteland
"What're we doin' here again?" Jayne wondered aloud for the hundredth time in five minutes.
"Picking up cargo," River told him, scanning the desolate wasteland that was laid out before them.
"There ain't nothin' here but sand n' hot," the mercenary grumbled, already starting to sweat even though the sun had just risen over the horizon. "I jus' hope'n we just get it and get off this ol' dead rock a'fore it gets to hot for Serenity to break atmo."
"We have one hour, twenty eight minutes and approximately forty-three seconds," River replied, praying Mal would hurry up with the coordinates.
8. Whiskey
"Whiskey," Jayne told the bartender, dropping onto a stool, "Imma gonna need it."
While he waited for his drink, Jayne watched as some scrawny kid approached the table where the rest of the crew was sitting, to ask River to dance. He watched the boy take her hand and pull her out onto the dance floor, quickly knocking back his drink when the boy pulled her close against him.
"N'other," Jayne ordered, not taking his eyes from the pair.
Tossing back the second glass, he stood and stalked onto the floor, intent on showing everyone exactly whose girl she was.
9. War
Jayne had purposely avoided fighting for either side in the Unification War for this exact reason—he wasn't one who wanted to die some unnamed body in the middle of a bloody battlefield. He was a man who wanted some recognition, whether good or bad, in his death.
Lying on the cold metal floor, watching River dive back through the blast doors, Jayne knew he was going to die an unidentified soldier in the continuing war he had so desperately tried to avoid.
The crazy girl would be the only one going out with any honor, fighting to her death.
10. Bride
Jayne stood quietly next to Zoe and Inara, watching River make her entrance into the mess, her pink dress sparkling under the lighting. It was a new dress, he noted, appreciating the way it hugged her curves in all the right places.
With a smile on her face she made her way to where Simon stood with Mal, softly kissing her brother on the cheek before stepping into her place next to Jayne.
Turning their attention to the door, they waited for the bride to make her entrance.
One day… Jayne thought, taking River's hand in his own. One day.