River sat on the catwalk above the cargo hold, watching Jayne work out. She swung her legs back and forth as she contemplated what had happened earlier and what was going to happen. She was lost deep in her thoughts when Peter walked up and sat down next to her.
"I'm sorry for earlier," he said quietly. "I know it was hard for you to face your memories. But I hope you understand that I did what I had to do."
River looked down and began studying her hands intently.
"She understands," she replied. "She is wondering if you could teach her control. Teach her how to be whole. How did you do it?"
"I can teach you control. But that control means nothing if you don't understand the source of your power." Peter looked at River and took one of her hands in his. "You are a special woman, River. You are already whole. All the pieces are there. You just need to learn how they fit together."
River blushed at his touch and quickly withdrew her hands from his.
"I want to see what you're capable of," Peter said suddenly as he stood up. "How about a little sparring match?"
River grinned and followed him down the stairs into the main cargo bay. Jayne sat up from his weight bench, interested in what was going on.
"Sure you don't mind getting beat up by a girl?" River teased, taking an offensive fighting stance.
"I wouldn't be so sure of myself, if I were you," Peter replied, going on the defensive. They circled each other slowly, each sizing up their opponent. Then, it began.
Kick, block, parry. They were moving so fast; Jayne couldn't keep track of who was kicking whom, and who was throwing what punches. River roundhouse kicked Peter, but he blocked her with lightning speed. Jump, kick, punch, block. It was like a dance: deadly and beautiful.
Jayne was in awe and for once in his life, was rendered speechless. Slowly, the rest of the crew trickled in, as they heard the sound of sparring. Mal stood above on the catwalk, watching his killer pilot fight.
God, she's beautiful when she moves.
They danced together, their movements' fluid. They danced for hours until the only one left watching them was Mal. Then as suddenly as they started, Peter and River stopped. Peter bowed and grabbed a towel off of Jayne's weight bench. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and turned to River.
"I haven't had a worthy opponent in nearly a century. That was a good fight," he said then walked away.
Mal and River were left alone in the cargo bay. She looked up at him, still standing on the catwalk.
"Will you dance with me, Captain?" she asked.
Mal shook his head.
"Don't reckon I got as many fancy moves as Peter," he replied as he walked down the stairs toward her.
River smiled at him and tilted her head to the side. "Didn't mean that kind of dance," she said. "You think I'm beautiful when I move."
Mal cleared his throat and looked away. "You heard that, did you?" he asked her.
River's smile widened.
"You think loudly sometimes. It's hard not to hear. I don't dig."
"I know you don't, River. Just don't like the idea that you can hear my thoughts. My mind's no place for a innocent girl like you," he replied. Without thinking, he reached out a hand and brushed a stray hair away from her eyes.
"Haven't been innocent for a long time," she said, eyes downcast. "She is sorry for listening in. She will be on the bridge checking the flight sequence if you decide you want to dance." River rushed away, her mind and heart racing.
Mal was left alone in the cargo hold. Gotta control this, he thought to himself. But it feels so right.
River walked onto the bridge a few minutes later to see Peter sitting in the pilot's seat. His eyes were closed as he ran his fingers over the console, slowly breathing in and out. She recognized his communion with Serenity. She herself had done this very thing many times before.
"She has missed you," River said, quietly interrupting.
Peter looked up from where he was sitting.
"I've missed her," he replied.
River sat in the co-pilot's chair and began checking the flight pattern. She paused in her movements and looked over at the man sitting next to her.
"Why do you want to destroy the Academy so badly?" River asked.
Peter paused and thought for a moment. She didn't have to be psychic to clearly see the signs of an internal battle written on his face. Peter contemplated telling her his secret. The one secret he had never told anyone else, except for Serenity. He looked over that the crazy young pilot and decided to take a leap of faith.
"River, I've never shared this with anyone, but I think you need to understand exactly why I'm doing this. There's something I have to show you," Peter said.
River nodded her head solemnly, understanding that Peter was about to take a big risk sharing his secret. Peter looked at her intently, staring into her eyes. All of a sudden, there was a rush of images and River realized she was watching Peter's memories.
An older woman in a black fur coat stepped forward, tears streaking her heavily made-up face as she took Peter's hands in her own. River recognized her as Peter's mother.
"Peter, we did what we had to," she said. "We created the Company to serve mankind. Protect the innocents." Peter wrenched his hands away.
"Protect them or control them?" he asked, venom dripping from his voice. "So far I haven't seen any evidence of protection. All I've seen is the death of those so-called innocents. Killed by your virus!"
The woman's face changed from tearful to hardened in an instant.
"I always knew you were the weak one. If your brother was still alive…" she began, but was interrupted by Peter.
"Nathan was killed by the virus your Company created. If he was still alive, he would agree with me." Peter stormed out of the room.
As quickly as it had come, the memory faded and changed.
"Peter, I had to see you as soon as possible," said a beautiful young girl. Peter looked up from a stack of files he was shuffling through.
"Claire," he said. "What's wrong? You look like you've been crying." Peter walked over to her and hugged her. He brushed a few strands of hair off her face and tucked it behind her ear. It was a movement River recognized. Mal had done the same thing to her many times before.
"Is everything all right, Claire?" The young girl wrapped her arms around him and began to shake.
"The virus…it's mutated, Peter," she said through her tears. "My blood is no longer a cure."
"It'll be alright, Claire," replied Peter. "We'll find another cure. Mohinder's working around the clock…" he was cut off, abruptly.
"No Peter, you don't understand," she interrupted. "My blood is no longer a cure for me. The virus has mutated to the point that my blood can no longer regenerate. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm dying, Peter."
River watched as the memories faded in and out. She watched the years progress through Peter's eyes. She felt his pain as he watched every person he loved and cared about die. She saw how the Company manipulated the masses into believing the virus was a result of these mutated individuals. People with unique gifts were herded like cattle and experimented on in the name of science. She watched a mad man take power over the surviving members of the human race and then watched an even madder man kill him. She watched the world descend into chaos. War, disease, and famine ripped across the land. She saw the first pioneer spaceships launch toward a new solar system and a new life. Then she saw the Company re-emerge as the new face of power in the ever-changing universe.
Finally, River understood.
Peter pulled out of her mind and looked at her. "Now you understand, don't you?"
River nodded.