Chapter 2
Continues approximately a week and a half after chapter 1. Hope you like it!

"Aww hell cap, I din' mean that!" Jayne protested loudly as Mal advanced on him. Kaylee's crying could be heard ringing through the cargo bay and it wrenched at everyone's hearts to hear the normally optimistic young mechanic in pain.

Jayne's huge, muscled body was covered in sweat and oil. He'd been attempting to help Kaylee fix the engine when, all of a sudden, there was a loud bang, followed by a snap and all the lights went out as the strained G-line on the engine finally gave. Kaylee froze up at the sound of the bang and Jayne, frustrated about breaking the ship, snapped at her. Jayne knew he wasn't among the brightest of men even at the best of times but he instantly regretted what he said to the woman. He followed her as she fled from the engine room to the cargo bay trying to apologise about the engine and what he said when the captain and Wash had caught up to him. Now he was attempting to defend himself from the captain's harsh words and the rest of the crew's disapproving looks.

"Look, Kaylee, I'm sorry for bein' insensitive." He said to the mechanic, putting extra stress on the 'sorry'. Kaylee looked up and smiled through her tears.


He wasn't a big brute underneath all that muscle, she figured.

As the rest of the crew gathered around Kaylee, Mal stopped inches from Jayne his eyes hard, looking him over as a viper might look over its prey however the fading burn on his forehead wasn't helping him much.

"What the ruttin' hell are you thinkin'!?" Mal hissed at him menacingly. "Early, River and Niska all put somethin' common into Kaylee and that common thing happens to be a dislike of firearms an' anythin' about them including the noise they make." Jayne nodded, understanding what Mal meant.

"Don't let this happen again, dong ma?" With that Mal walked over to where Book was comforting Kaylee. Jayne stalked off to the galley.

"Shepard?" Mal said to the elder, nodding at Kaylee. The older man smiled.

"She'll be OK, just give her time." He said as Inara wrapped her arms around the mechanic as she sat by the main door controls. Kaylee looked up at Mal.

"He's not horrible on purpose Cap'n, just don't think much 'bout what he says is all" She said, glancing in the direction Jayne went. She wiped her eyes and stood up.
"Thanks Inara" She said quietly as the Companion's hands slid off her shoulders. She turned to face Mal.

"What happened to the engine, thought everythin' was fine with the inner workin's" Mal asked her softly.

"G-line broke, gonna need a new one. Should be able to get one from somewhere in this port Cap'n." She said wearily. "Glad it broke when we're on the dirt though, we'd a had no power for a controlled landin' if it broke in the air." Mal drew a breath.

"OK, well you get right on that as soon as you feel up to it Kaylee." She nodded and turned to go back to the engine room. Zoe marched up to the control panel and hit the release button, her dark skin glowing bronze in the lighting of the cargo bay.

"Sir, we got word from Badger, he's waitin' for us." She said in her perfectly calm voice.

Mal nodded adapting himself for 'captain role'.
"About time too, right, Wash," The small blonde pilot perked up at his name, "You help Kaylee in findin' the parts she needs when she goes." Wash nodded and headed back up the stairs to the cockpit.

Mal then punched the intercom on the door control panel. Zoe checked her sawed-off.

"Jayne, we're movin' out, we need you down here mesh ong." There was a grunt in reply and Jayne re-appeared a moment later with his favourite weapon, a huge assault rifle he called Vera, cradled in his arms. Zoe rolled her eyes at the fire power that was bouncing in his arms as he moodily stomped down from the catwalk. Mal nodded to him and then turned to face the others.

"Simon, 'Nara, Shepard Book, y'all to mingle out 'n' about 'n' try to find us some halfway decent food 'n' whatever medicinal stuff you're needin'." Mal locked the doctor's eyes with an intense stare. "You best be keepin' River close doc, don't want her causin' trouble none." Simon nodded, recognising the concealed threat in Mal's stare.

"I'll keep her close, she won't touch anything." Simon affirmed, turning to follow Kaylee up to the engine room, brushing past Jayne on the way. Shepard Book walked forward and smiled.

"I'll keep this flock outta trouble as much I can Mal." He said, clapping his captain on the shoulder. Mal gave him a nod as he heard Jayne step out of the ship.

"Very well, see y'all later." He smiled to Inara, who gave him a smile in return. "M'lady" He said, bowing slightly by way of a goodbye. Mal spun and strode out of his ship into the bright Persephone sunshine with Zoe and Jayne flanking him.

The now familiar stench of the ass-end of the Eavesdown Docks assaulted Mal's nostrils as he, Zoe and Jayne strode toward the decrepit looking café that served as the entrance to Badger's lair. A huge black man with dreadlocks and a weapon almost as large as Vera served as the security to Badger's den. He leered at the trio as they approached.

"Malcom Reynolds," His deep bass voice rumbled, "He's expecting you, straight through, you should know the way by now."

Mal flipped him a coin and nodded, pushing aside the heavy canvas that covered the doorway. The guard deftly caught the coin with one hand and tucked it lovingly into a pouch on his shirt.
The group walked through the dingy passage and through a solid looking metal door into a roundish chamber. Mal stopped in the middle of the chamber and glared at the little man stood leaning indolently on the large wooden desk in front of him. Badger touched the rim of his cap in acknowledgement of the group's arrival.

"Howdy strangers" He said, his lilting accent already annoying Mal.

"The hell you have us ruttin' drop and run to you for?" Jayne growled, shifting Vera slightly. Mal looked at Jayne and winked. He turned back to face Badger, who looked like he'd been physically slapped.

"I do believe my good mannered associate asked you a question." Mal said with a hint of humour playing in his voice. Badger pushed off from his desk and stopped just short of Mal.

"Well, if you stop talkin' out your pi gu for a second I'll tell ya where you can get us both rich, without streakin' for the gorram law-man!" Badger shouted prodding Mal in the chest.

"Wash! I think I found somethin'!" Kaylee shouted over the crowds milling around the busy port. Serenity's pilot muscled his way through. He stopped, taking in the heap of spare parts for sale.

"I'm confused," he said honestly, "what am I looking at?" He asked Kaylee who was so giddy she was almost shaking.

"Engine tenders, G-line replacements, compression coils and synchronisers." She said, pointing to each part as she labelled them. She picked up a new G-line and a pair of synchronisers. She handed over a pouch of coins to the salesman and hauled her goods over her shoulder.

"Got everything you need?" Wash asked as he helped Kaylee manoeuvre through the crowd. She nodded.

"Everythin' but a clutch plate for the grav-boot. Should be fine though, it'll hold for years yet but you know..." She trailed off as they rounded a corner. They stopped for a minute and then carried on toward the docks where Serenity was waiting.

Simon didn't know how the captain did this. He felt dizzy after just a few minutes and was struggling to keep on any one train of thought as he walked with Inara to the more up-town areas where medicinal stores were likely to be found. There was definitely something about this woman that drove men into some kind of insanity.

"It was awfully nice of Shepard Book to offer to look after your sister while you're out." She said wrapping her shawl around her bare shoulders. The wind was much colder without the heat from the sun. As they walked through the district shaded by tall buildings Inara almost shivered but she managed to control it with very little concentration.

"Umm, yeah, yes it was. Very kind of him." Simon agreed, distracting himself further by looking for a sign for a drug store. He found one and pointed it out to Inara. He glanced at her. She was wearing a deep purple armless affair with very low neckline giving anyone who was looking a free viewing.
I guess Inara is pretty comfortable with her body to be able to show it off... He mused silently, walking at a steady pace to the store.
Well, work she does, I suppose she has to be... Stop thinking like that Simon, She's not yours to be thinking of! He berated himself. He had done his fair share of observing and knew very well that the captain and Inara were friends, after a very convoluted fashion.

"What are you thinking, you look very distracted." Inara asked.

Simon almost froze in panic. GoSé! Think of something... anything!

"Kaylee." He said, closing his eyes momentarily. Why had he said that?

"You want to know why you can't quite connect." She asked, trying to coax Simon out of his shell. "I can see that you love her and she loves you." She supplied as they reached the bleached white door of the store. She pushed the door open for him and he moved through.

"Thank you. I just don't know, I want to be with her but every time we get close I just lock up and push her away." He said quietly, grabbing a basket and walking down the aisles, seemingly plopping items in at random.

"I know honey," She said sweetly, quietly. He looked at Inara to find her staring, almost dejectedly at her hands as she held them together in front of her. "I think, all you have to do is let the moment continue, build up to what it should be, just do what you want to do and let her know that you love her." She looked up, her eyes sparkling and dropped her hands to her sides. "Nicely though" She advised.

"Thank you. Your wisdom beyond your years continues to amaze." He said smiling with gratitude. He hadn't meant for today's outing to be a class of Inara's Relationship Building 101 but he would take all the advice he could with regard to Kaylee, especially from her friend and a professional.

"I think we're done here, we should get some food then get back to the ship." Simon said as he took his basket to the pay area and handing over a note and three coins. He tucked the change into a inside pocket of his blazer and held a door open for Inara. She nodded her thanks and they moved on to the food store across the road.

"Coming back now!" River shouted from the galley. Shepard Book climbed the stairs from the passenger dorms.

"That didn't take so long as I expected." He said, rounding the corner and stepping into the galley. River cautiously looked at the Shepard; glancing at his hair to make sure it was tied and then locked her piercing gaze back at the empty bowl she was vigorously sloshing around in the basin. There was a crackling from the intercom speakers, like the sound of dry leaves skittering in the wind.

"You couldn't open the doors for us could ya?" Kaylee's happy voice projected a smile even though it was filtered through the intercom. Book pressed a button on a nearby panel and spoke into the microphone.

"Of course, the doors will be open in just a second." Book said. He flicked a switch on the panel and followed River to the cargo bay to open the door. He pushed a green button and the doors began to open with a loud whirring. The burning sunlight cascaded into the cargo bay like a golden ocean swell as Kaylee and Wash entered the ship.

River advanced on Kaylee and took one of the synchronisers from her. Kaylee smiled and tilted her head questioningly.

"Have to fix her broken heart," River said enigmatically as she walked up the stairs with the mechanic, "Nearly time to make you whole again too." She grinned at Kaylee. Wash and Book watched them go in silence. Wash began to feel uncomfortable after the ladies left.

"I'm gonna go up to the bridge Shepard, gotta stop Mama T-rex eating the rest of the herd. Could you lock up please?" He said, looking back over his shoulder as he strode through the cargo bay.

"Sure son, you go tend to your Dino-flock." The preacher said, pressing a larger red button. The doors hummed shut again with a clang as the inner doors shut fully, forming an airtight seal. The Shepard was about to walk away when Inara's voice piped over the intercom.

"Serenity, this is Inara, could you open up please?" The Companion asked wearily as she and Simon waited in the shade of the Firefly's 'neck'. The cargo ramp swung downwards with a muted buzz and slowly descended until it met the dusty ground. The pair entered the ship and the cargo ramp began to swing slowly back upwards to close with a muted thud. The Shepard greeted them.

"Good day travellers." He greeted them. Simon nodded to the older man, concern playing about his features.

"Is River…?" He started but Book cut him off.

"She's with Kaylee in the engine room."

"Right, thanks, I'd best get these…" He muttered, twitching the bag full of medicine and equipment. He walked away, confused.
River and Kaylee haven't gotten along since… well since Mal went and got his ear cut off by Niska… What the hell? Simon couldn't shake that thought as he restocked the ship's infirmary.

Book turned to Inara.

"You sounded tired, you look it too." He said, thoughtfully looking her over. "Perhaps you should get some rest before the others get back." Inara smiled to herself but felt a little self-conscious of the fact that her weariness showed.

"Thanks, I may just take you up on that offer." She replied as they walked up the stairs and onto the catwalk leading to her shuttle.

"The sun really takes it out of a person." He said as he bent to take the bags of food off her. "These are heavy; you should have got Simon to carry these!" Inara couldn't help but laugh at the Preacher as he pretended to struggle with the bags; he waddled down the catwalk and through the door to the galley. She turned and walked up the few steps at the entrance of her shuttle and crossed the threshold to more familiar territory. She flopped, carefree yet gracefully, onto her massive, soft bed. She remembered then exactly why she had brought it.
The feathers are so yielding it feels like the mattress is trying to swallow you yet they are more supporting than memory-foam. That was the explanation she had given to the Mistress of House Madrassa when she inquired as to why Inara wanted to take the bed with her when she left Sihnon and she hadn't regretted it for a second.

"Right, so why are we still talkin' about this?" Mal asked his second-in-command as they walked back to the ship after the meet with Badger. He used his hand to shield his eyes from the early evening sun.

"I just think the mission is too easy." Zoe clarified. Jayne grunted as he shifted Vera again.
"He ain't tellin' us the truth." She finished. Mal turned to look at her with an incredulous expression.

"'Course he ain't, we take that as surely a fact as the worlds are turnin'" He turned back around and started toward the docks again and the others fell in beside him. An atmospheric shuttle screamed overhead, causing the three friends to glance into the bright blue sky.

"Just might work though, or the gorram hóun dán got us killed worse'n dead" Jayne grunted as they rounded a corner and spied out the beaten and ragged Firefly, nestled away in the slightly less busy port.

"I'll tell the crew once we're out of atmo" Mal told the others as he pressed a button on the pad he was holding. The cargo ramp descended for the final time and the last three crew members boarded the ship.

For the next hour Serenity was a hive of activity as everyone went about their business.
Calm had finally descended like cold water quenching red hot steel.
Kaylee and River had fixed the engine, among other things. Inara was peacefully sleeping. Simon had finished stocking the infirmary to his liking and was moping moodily around the eating area. Shepard book was keeping him company and Wash was in the cockpit.

Mal stood on the threshold to Inara's shuttle, watching her sleep. The rhythm of her breathing, the rise and fall of her chest was hypnotic. He looked around to see if anyone was watching and crept silently into the shuttle. He stood a respectful distance away and continued to watch her. He was doing some serious contemplating as he observed and he couldn't quite place what he was feeling. He finally came back to life, reaching down toward the woman curled on the bed. He gently pulled the duvet out from under her and, delicately, picked her up and moved her so her head was resting on a pillow. He was just placing the duvet over her when she stirred and, half asleep, called out his name. Mal paused, shocked, but he quickly recovered and boldly kissed her forehead.

"Go back to sleep bao bei." Mal said softly, his voice low and soothing. Inara smiled, her eyes still closed.

"Yessir." She sighed, drifting back off. Mal watched her soar off to wherever her flight of fancy took her and then swiftly made his exit, blue eyes glinting in the muted ambience lighting. He turned and closed the hatch to Inara's shuttle to afford her some privacy. He strode off to the bridge.

"Port control says we are clear for take-off and free to leave atmo." Wash stated as he looked at the small display to his left. Mal sighed.

"Ok, take us out." He stood and re-tucked his shirt and adjusted his suspenders slightly. Wash started pressing buttons and flicked three switches to his right as he began the start-up sequence.
"You need a co-pilot?"

"Nah" Wash declined. "I got it." He resumed his nonchalant button-pressing. Mal left him to it.

Serenity's stubby wings unfurled gracefully. The massive turbofan thrusters at the end of each wing tilted 90 degrees to deliver maximum upward thrust and spooled up with a keening whine, nearly ready to lift the heavy ship into the sky. The gravity ring settled just behind the galley and just before the bulbous abdomen-like aft section lit up and began to spin providing artificial gravity for the crew. The painfully loud whine was replaced by a roar as fuel was fed to the engines and ignited. The ship lifted vertically from the ground, kicking up vast, choking clouds of thick, brown dust. Serenity rose at a sedate pace to about one hundred and fifty feet when her nose suddenly dipped towards the ground. She accelerated and the thrusters began to traverse to flight configuration to enable her to maintain lift and to power out of the gravity well and out into the deep black of space. For the whole hour it took the ship to reach a safe escape velocity Wash's eyes were glued to the view port as the atmosphere thinned with altitude and changed from pristine sky blue to beautiful navy to a brooding, deep violet. Finally they left the last wisps of air behind and the black enveloped them. The turbofans, needing oxygen to burn the fuel flickered and died as they entered hard vacuum. There was a moment of silence before the gravity drive engaged to provide propulsion. Four panels around the rear end of the ship opened hydraulically, revealing the engine cowlings which started glowing orange as the drive engaged. This is how the Firefly class transport got its name. Wash put the autopilot on to orbit Persephone, his standing order until Mal told them where they were going, and went to meet Zoe in the galley.

"All crew, this is the captain." Mal's voice sounded throughout the ship. "Food's in five minutes, come as y'are, provided you're clothed." Mal replaced the mic and made his way down from the cockpit to the galley.

"You grab those plates sir." Zoe said. She and Wash were washing up the utensils from making the food they were about to have. She indicated that it was his turn to set the table. He did as he was told and took the plates, making a place for everyone before setting out the plastic crockery and cutlery. One by one the eclectic crew of the firefly transport Serenity appeared, seemingly from nowhere and took their place at the table. All the crew had realised that no matter what happened between any of them, be it awkward or hurtful, they were always welcome at the table. The captain sitting proudly at the head of the table made sure of that.

Inara was the last to arrive, not a hair out of place, her make-up flawless, looking for all the 'verse the Sihonese princess she was. Had Mal not known better he wouldn't have even suspected she was asleep until about fifteen minutes ago. Their eyes met for instant, blue agates boring into warm toffee. A tiny, triumphant smile pulled at the corners of Inara's mouth and she quickly looked away, busying herself with her food.

The nutritious eating affair passed without incidence, even River was being almost normal, enjoying her food until she stood and fled, Simon hot on her heels, to the infirmary to find a bedpan to puke into. Mal didn't pay that any attention and rose, causing a silence to descend upon his crew.

"First item on the agenda, our resident Companion, Miss Sera," Mal indicated Inara who looked away like a bashful child, "Shall be staying with us for a mite longer." He finished. Kaylee squealed in delight and clapped her hands.

"See I told you so!" She shouted, her infectious glee lifting everyone's spirits. "That's a twenty from Wash, Jayne, Zoe, Simon" She counted the number of people who owed her with her fingers, "And another twenty from you Cap'n!" Her pinkie finger rose to join the others. She giggled a low wicked giggle as the mentioned people squirmed uncomfortably under the fierce gaze of the object they had gambled on.
"Another twenty?" Inara said, her demeanour frosty, a perfectly shaped eyebrow arched menacingly. In all his life, even when staring down the barrel of an alliance rifle, Mal had never been as terrified as he now was. He almost shuddered. Even Kaylee looked slightly guilty now.
Mal coughed, the entire room descended into an instant, but warm silence.

"As you may, or may not, be aware," Mal started, glancing at Zoe. She nodded almost imperceptibly. "We got a job from Badger."

"It involves robbin' and possible bloodshed so, for once, my ship will be the town hall Wash so desperately wants her to be." He directed a good humoured grin at the pilot, who gave him a thumbs up.

"Two guys, a Mr Samson and a Mr Francis are the targets of this operation. They live on a moon called Sapphire, which orbits Londinium. As we all know, that there is the corey-est part of the 'verse, its crawling with Feds, the bigass guns they use and the bigass ships they fly, ones that take a disturbin' likin' to shooting down little boats like ours." River, pink faced, and Simon had returned at this point and stood behind Inara. Everyone's eyes were wide.

"Both of these guys is rotten, they have connections to Niska," There was a quiet, collective intake of breath that sounded like a sighing breeze. "And they have plenty of cash, cashy goodness that is owed to more'n a few people. All we have to do is get the money, dispense of these guys and get out. We need to deliver about fifteen thou to Fanty and Mingo on Beaumonde and twenty to Badger. The rest is ours. We could be talkin' in excess of two hundred and fifty K for ourselves."

Mal sighed and took stock of the faces looking up at him. The prospect of the mind-bending amount of money was clearly having its effect. Jayne was almost salivating.

"If you want in, raise your hands." Jayne's hand was already in the air. Mal snorted. "If you don't then it's understandable, you won't be judged and no-one here will think anythin' less of you."

Six hands joined Jayne's in the air. Shepard Book looked thoughtful and then asked his question.
"All those involved get paid?" Mal nodded. "But do we need to kill these men? Couldn't we deliver them to Badger?"

"What Badger'd do to them... no. Way it stands, no one needs do no killin' if that ain't what they do but these men are evil."

"Not evil." River blurted, her dark eyes challenging Mal. "No person is evil, but cruel, unfair and unrelenting, yes they are. They are wicked and must be brought to justice for their crimes. Do what you do, but make sure I get my share." River turned and strode off to the passenger bunks, leaving a stunned silence in the wake of her outburst. Mal recovered first.

"See? You're on my boat, you're on my crew, you're on the job and you get paid." The Shepard nodded.

"'Nara?" Mal asked. The Companion was already on her feet moving around the table toward him.

"I'm in. What do you need me to do?" She asked. Mal gazed into her soft yet twinkling eyes, reminding him of nothing as much as the sunlight flashing on the surface of a swift flowing brook.

"Fascinatin'..." Mal mumbled, Inara's brow furrowed and Mal's eyes widened in shock.

Chin chuh duh, I said that out loud!?

"Uh, yeah, I'll let y'know, but for now," Mal smirked, "you can help me with the dishes."
Inara sighed dramatically and threw her hands in the air.

"I grow up to be the most glamorous Companion in the universe, toil for many years, finally get on a ship to see the sights and now I'm on one, my highly specialised training is spent on washing the dishes, with the captain." She smiled at Mal.

The rest of the crew began to disperse as Mal and Inara swept over the table, competing for the most plates.

"I'm glad we finally have a job." Wash said to Zoe as they walked up to the bridge together. They walked into the control room and Wash flopped into the seat and began manipulating the touch screens to create a fast route to Sapphire and several egress routes.
"Ain't exactly the most nicest of jobs we've ever had to do but, as Mal said, cashy goodness." He turned in his chair, grinning to his wife.

"Won't that be nice, some money for ourselves?" Zoe agreed, leaning on the edge of the console and playing with her husband's hair.
"No small amount too might spend me some time planetside after the heist."

"Really?" Wash sounded surprised. He grabbed Zoe's hand and spun his chair around to face her. Zoe slid into his lap and leaned her forehead onto his. She smiled unabashedly.

"Yep, a few days with proper ground under my feet, fresh air, a bath…" Zoe kissed his nose.

"Sounds good to me, lemmie just get this autopilot on…" Wash reached around her and flicked the AP master switch above the main display. It clicked and the view outside changed, Persephone sliding out of view, as the ship reoriented itself and sped away into the black.

"Now, where were we?" He asked her coyly, sighing as Zoe kissed his nose again.

"You were about to take my clothes off..." Zoe reminded him, straight faced. Wash grinned.
How does a guy get this lucky? He wondered as he began working at the fastenings of her shirt.

"So, what did you and Kaylee talk about today?" Simon asked River as they sat in their passenger dorm. River flopped back onto her bed and stretched. She looked over at Simon with a smug, I-know-something-you-don't-know look playing on her delicate, porcelain features.

"Why don't you ask her yourself Simon? I'm not your little carrier pigeon any more, brother. You're a big boy now." Simon was taken aback. River usually wasn't full of attitude like this, but at least it was less violent than normal.

"Was it something important?" He tried again, in vain.

"Importance of any single thing is a subjective analysis based upon one's own interpretation of what is important." River sighed loudly and rolled away from her brother. Simon knew he wouldn't get any more information from her.

"I guess I should go see her then…" Simon sighed, defeated, as he got up and left the little room. River, full of happiness for her brother, jumped out of her bed and danced along to the joyous tune playing in her mind.

"Kaylee?" Simon tapped tentatively on the bulkhead outside the Engine room portal. He heard a clunk from under the engine.

"Yeah?" Came Kaylee's muffled reply as she wiggled out from where she had been tinkering. She crawled out and then froze as she saw Simon watching her. She smiled quickly and stood.
"Hey Doc... uh, Simon." Kaylee corrected herself, Simon hated being called doctor, "Whats got you wanderin' about up here? Not that you're not allowed, I mean..." She blushed, her cheeks turning crimson.

"I came to see you," Simon interrupted her, "We haven't spoken properly in a while." He finished with a grin. Kaylee's face lit up like the sun re-emerging after an eclipse, illuminating the entire engine room in her glorious happiness. Simon crossed the threshold and reached down, taking Kaylee's hand. She was covered in engine grease.

"I just figured that you could use some company after, you know, umm… Early." Simon said in a hushed tone. Kaylee's smile faltered. The subject of the bounty hunter was taboo around her. The young engineer looked away and picked up a rust-spotted wrench.

"Thanks, it's real thoughtful of ya." She said quietly as she began busying herself with the engine again.

Simon watched her as she worked. Five minutes passed, then ten. Simon was almost nodding off when Kaylee burst into tears. The adrenaline rush woke him instantly and he was by her side, holding her, murmuring softly as she rocked slowly, sobbing into his shirt. She cried herself to sleep resting her head on his, now soaked, shirt. He gently laid her unconscious form in her hammock and sat by her side, holding her hand and gazing into her face until sleep claimed him too and his weary head flopped onto her chest.

Inara advanced on Mal, her eyes glinting with fury.

"That was my plate!" She hissed. Mal had backed up against the stove and was now trapped. Inara smiled a cold smile.

"I don't see your name on it." Mal countered. Inara lunged forward, grabbed the plate and would have made off with it had Mal not twisted it at the last second. Her grip failed and she slipped. She stumbled into Mal but quickly recovered, laughing like a little girl. Mal followed her to the basin and twisted the hot water tap. The steamy water tumbled out of the spigot like a lazy waterfall.

"You know I could get used to this." The Shepard said to Jayne as they lingered at the table. Jayne was noisily crunching on the remains of a dried protein cake.

"Yep," Jayne agreed, taking another bite. "The quiet is almost relaxin'." He twisted in his seat.
"Hey, when you stop sniggerin' like little gorram kids we might find out what the quiet's like!" Mal looked up and shrugged. Jayne scowled back and turned back to face Book.

"I guess listenin' to yous gigglin' like morons is better'n listenin' to you and I-Nara fightin'."
Shepard book grinned and stood stretching his arms in the air like he was trying to take off.

"Ain't that the honest truth?" the Shepard chuckled, "Goodnight everybody, sleep well." With that he disappeared toward the passenger dorms. Jayne left soon after with a grunt.

The dishes were finished and stood in their normal cupboard, shiny and clean. Mal and Inara were once again sat in the little social area with their cups of tea. Mal was not going to be trying any more balancing acts anytime soon.

"Jayne's right y'know?" Mal said after a lengthy silence. Inara looked up at him and she nodded slowly.
"It's nice that we ain't fightin.'" He stated with a grin. He took anther sip of his tea and again it was the best cup of tea he'd tasted since Shadow. He put the mug back down on the table.

"I find this whole affair rather pleasant as well." She agreed, watching him intently as he wrung his hands. He seemed to come to some conclusion because he grabbed his cup of tea, necked the remains and replaced the cup on the table. Inara quickly took a sip before he launched into whatever he was about say.

"I gotta ask 'Nara. How comes you ain't had no clients for the last sorta two months?"

The surprise of the question was like being jolted by a few hundred volts. She nearly chocked on the second mouthful of tea. It was true though, she hadn't contracted with any clients for a while now but hadn't expected Mal to catch on so quickly. In fairness, no-one on the cortex attracted her at all and she didn't much feel like randomly inviting men into her shuttle. For a Companion to work, she must feel a slight attraction to the clients they contract with but for her, it just wasn't working.

"Uh..." Inara faltered, what could she say? None of the men she sees even come close to exciting her the way that just thinking about Mal did? That she nearly lost it with the last three clients because she was fantasising about Mal being the man on top of her?
"None of them are good enough for me I suppose." She recovered. That was the truth and Mal could tell as he gently gazed at her, ever watchful. Inara broke the link between them and looked at her cup to see if there was any more tea to drink. It was empty. Mal grunted as he stood up with his cup. Inara rose from her seat too. Mal walked around to her and held out a hand for her to put her cup into. She gave him the mug and reached up on her tip-toes, holding his face, and kissed him properly this time.

They melted into each other, eyes closed, arms wrapped around one another. A smashing noise from near their feet brought them abruptly back to their senses and they leapt apart from each other.

Mal had dropped his cup.

"Ah..." Mal started, looking around frantically.

"Umm.." Inara followed suit, but she was already moving to find a dustpan and brush.

Simon stumbled through a second after, red-eyed and obviously tired, looked at the two of them in an almost accusatory manner. He weaved toward the galley.

"Whoa doc, what's up?" Mal asked as he followed the younger man to the galley. Inara brushed past him on her way to the breakage site. Mal's eyes followed her for a second then he put her cup in the basin to wash in the morning.

"Kaylee told me that there should be some strawberries lurking around in here somewhere." Simon said slowly, as if concentrating hard on something.

"Next cupboard over, right at the back. Yeah that's it." Inara guided him to a little wooden box as she walked back to dispose of the smashed pieces of cup she'd swept up.

"Thank you. Well..." Simon wiggled the box, "Thanks and goodnight."

"Night" Mal and Inara replied simultaneously, glancing at each other. Simon left quickly.

"Well, I guess it's bed time for us too." Mal stated. "Wait, I'm not meanin' together, not that I would have a problem with that but, you know..." Inara smiled again.

"I know, goodnight Mal, sleep well." She said, turning to leave.

"And you, m'lady" Mal replied as he walked backward toward the crew quarters. She nodded and disappeared through the portal toward her shuttle. Mal flopped onto his bed ten minutes later without patrolling his ship and slept soundly for the first time in a fortnight.

Inara paced in her shuttle, her mind working in overdrive, as she contemplated the ramifications of what she had just done. She was happy that the borders between them were starting to crumble but the doctrine of the Companion in her was fighting back. Companions don't find true love. A single tear of frustration slid down her cheek. Only one solution was readily available to relieve the burning tension inside of her. She calmed herself by mumbling a few passages from the Scriptures of Sihnon. Serene once more, she stripped her clothes off and fell into her bed. Rolling over to the left she plucked a little red box off the stand. Inside the box was a small tower of brown shapes. Inara took the first and replaced the box. She slipped the piece into her mouth and shuddered in delight as the chocolate melted slowly on her tongue.

River couldn't fully understand what the hell the problem was. Two people love each other so very much and dance all the right steps for each other, a little flat-footed and heavy at times and yet they still can't quite get it right. Her brow furrowed, biting her lower lip, River was beginning realise that no math in the 'verse could solve this equation and because of the apparent stalemate everyone was suffering. A single tear of frustration slid down her cheek. She felt scared of the powerful waves of emotion coming from the proud Companion who was normally so very well controlled and yet honoured that she should be sharing her grief. She looked over to Simon's bed. Her brother was still not back yet.

Serenity carried on toward Sapphire. The lights dimmed and cut plunging the ship into darkness. The chronometer read 23:45. An early night for her crew.