Disclaimer: I'm poor. I own nothing

--o--o--o--

The lights of the festival could still be seen over the hill but sixteen-year-old Jayne Cobb didn't notice. He only had eyes for the girl currently tugging on his hand leading him away from the party.

She turned to him as they reached the barn doors and tucked a strand of strawberry blonde hair behind her ears. Standing there, biting her lip nervously, in a simple blouse and pants made more for working in than fashion, Jayne couldn't think of a more beautiful sight.

Jayne let her pull him close, enjoying the feel of her hands on his chest. She grabbed fistfuls of his shirt, pulling him down as she rose on her toes. Their lips were a hairsbreadth from touching. "Jayne," she breathed.

"Ya Lily?" His voice was heavy; his hands loose on her waist.

Suddenly she pushed hard and the unbalanced and unprepared Jayne found himself on his butt. "Catch me if you can!" She giggled as she took off running.

Jayne watched wide-eyed as Lily ran into the barn, the door closing a moment later. He sat there stunned, his teenage mind trying to process what just happened. Then he suddenly stood up. "Hey! Wait up!"

He ran to the barn and threw the door open, perhaps harder than necessary in his rush. Jayne paused in the doorway and looked around. The barn was empty as far as he could tell. There was no sign of Lily anywhere.

Just as Jayne thought she might have gone out the other door he caught a soft glow coming from above.

He took the stairs to the loft two at a time. Lily stood waiting illuminated by a small lamp next to the window. She grinned at him and crooked a finger.

Jayne didn't need any more of an invitation. He rushed over only to trip a couple steps away and send them both tumbling. They landed in one of the hay bales filling the loft, laughing the whole way.

Then they're kissing though still not able to stave off all the laughter. Jayne's hand hesitantly worked its way under her shirt.

Lily tugs on him and shifts her hips. Jayne allows her to flip him over. She deepens the kiss before jumping off him and pulling him to his feet.

"Dance with me."

She spins him around and suddenly rain is beating down on his now clothed form. Jayne's breath is coming in haggard pants, but no longer from the thrill of a first love. There's unrelenting fear in his eyes.

He ignored the flaming barn at his back, only seeing the door of the house ajar and the rain as it washed away the bloody footprints on the deck.

"Lily!!" Jayne screamed his voice filled with terror as he sprints forward.

"You don't want to go in there Jayne." A voice called out somewhere behind him causing him to stop and spin around. There was a woman there that he was certain hadn't been there a moment ago. Her flowing white gown and pale skin seemed to almost glow and her long dark hair remained dry despite the torrential rain.

"Who the gorram hell are you?!"

"It doesn't matter who I am Jayne, only what I have to say."

"I don't wanna hear it!" Jayne bellowed as he turned toward the house again. "I have to get to Lily!"

"She's gone Jayne." The woman's calm voice stopping him in his tracks faster than anything else could. "You know that."

"No," he denied. "I can still get to her."

"She's gone Jayne," the woman said again, suddenly standing in front of him. "And you're not a teenager anymore."

Jayne looked down at himself and sure enough he was no longer in a teenage body but the body of the man he became, knives and guns strapped to his person.

"I don't get it? What goin' on?"

"You're dreaming Jayne. And I didn't come here to be your therapist but a bit of free advice, you have to let it go," she said with a look of sympathy. "Would Lily really like the man you've become? Or that you use her as an excuse for becoming it."

"Hey-" Jayne growled out only to be cut off with an idle wave of a hand.

"I'm not judging, Jayne," she told him soothingly. "I'm just offering insight."

Jayne stayed silent for a long moment before meeting her gaze. "If I'm dreamin' then you must be a dream too right? One of them subconscious thingamajigs the doc yammered on 'bout?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, no such luck. I'm real and, whether you want to admit it or not, you know that."

He nodded, just accepting it as fact. If asked he would never be able to explain why. It could be something she did to his head or she could just have a calming aura. It could also be the generous cleavage the gown showed distracting him. Who's to say for sure?

"Why are you here?" he asked.

"I normally don't appear to people Jayne. These are some extraordinary circumstances though." The woman paused for a moment and seemed to consider her next words. "I can't affect the physical world; it takes a great deal to affect even a dream. I need to… contract out I suppose you could say."

"You want me to do a job for you."

The woman smiled. "I can't pay you I'm afraid."

Jayne looked away in thought. If this really was just a dream it was one of the strangest he had ever had. He still felt in was more in his gut. Real or not at least she stopped things before he finished the nightmare. He turned back to the woman. "What's the job? Not saying I'll do it or nothin', just wonderin'."

"Xander." She said simply.

Now Jayne was confused. Why was the strange kid invading his dreams? He couldn't keep the confusion out of his voice. "Xander?"

"Dark hair, yeh tall," She held her hand up about the kid's height. "Strange sense of humour, hideous fashion sense. Xander."

Jayne was still lost. "What about him?"

"He's in trouble." The woman told him like it was something so normal as to be expected. "You need to save him and take him with you. Protect him. Xander is more important than anyone knows. Especially himself."

Jayne blinked at the, now, obviously crazy person who invaded his dream. "Couldn't I just go back to the sex part of the dream?" he asked.

"Look buddy!" The woman's calm demeanour vanished and she was on him in an instant. She didn't so much advance on him as she was simply there. Her voice rose as she spoke and she punctuated each word with a sharp jab in his chest. "I have tried to be nice about it, but let me tell you how it is! You're not my first choice for a champion but you're what I got to work with right now. This is what's going to happen. You are going to wake up. You are going to get out of bed. You are going to save my Xander! Now wake the hell up and get to work!"

--o--o--o--

Jayne woke with a start.

He blinked confusedly for a long moment, taking in the room. For a second he wondered how he got inside and where Glowy Lady went. Then he remembered it was just a dream.

Briefly he considered waking his bedmate for another round but thought better of it. The damn dream left him in no mood for sex, and that was saying something.

Untangling himself from the hooker he had bought for the night Jayne set about finding his clothes. He grumbled quietly as to himself as he dressed, swearing never to drink alcohol he couldn't pronounce ever again. It led to weird dreams.

Jayne went into the hall, closing the door silently behind him. He started to make his way to the brothel's reception area to take the elevator down to the main entrance. The Jungle Room was a bit more ritzy, not to mention pricier, than the joints he normally frequented but a guy has to treat himself to the finer things every once in a while. After saving the day with Vera taking out that chop shop Jayne felt he deserved a high class lay.

He didn't get more than a few steps before he paused.

The elevators in reception only went from the two brothel floors to the club entrance downstairs. It was a security measure to prevent people from wandering where they shouldn't. The main stairwell and elevators for the building were in the back and likely guarded. Jayne couldn't explain the sudden compulsion to head there.

The smart move would be to head for the door. These were killers. Killers with a well deserved rep at that. Not the type even Jayne would normally risk a confrontation with; not one he didn't start or have a damn good reason for, and certainly not over some stupid dream.

So why was he heading deeper into the lion's den?