Chapter 10
River sat alone on the bridge of Serenity. Peter had left her a few hours ago to her thoughts. They were a few hours from the Georgia System and the Academy. River breathed deeply, in and out. She focused on the pattern in an attempt to calm her mind. It wasn't working. Her thoughts were becoming scattered and she couldn't control them. She looked up, startled as Mal walked onto the bridge. She hadn't sensed him coming. How could she do what she needed to if she couldn't control her psyche? She stared at him, eyes wide and filled with fear.

Mal knew something was wrong and went to her quickly.
"Bao bei," he said as he leaned down over her. "What's wrong, darlin?"

River looked up at him and tears began to streak down her face.
"Can't do it," she started babbling. "Too hard, bad memories. Put me in a room, needles in my brain, cut her up. Make her the perfect specimen! Don't make me go back, Mal. Don't make me face the needles again!"

Mal drew her up into his arms and held her close. He whispered words of comfort in her ear.
"Shhhh," he whispered as he stroked her hair. "It's ok, darlin." He pulled the shaking girl closer and stroked her hair. "Would I let you do this if I thought you weren't coming back?" he asked her.

River leaned into his embrace and wiped the tears from her face.
"Cannot see the future," she replied. "You don't know what could happen."
"You seeing something that scares you, albatross?" Mal asked, looking at her intently. "You seeing an outcome you don't like?"

River shook her head.
"Many outcomes. None of them certain," she replied.
"Then I guess that means you have to trust me, don't it," Mal told her. He placed his fingers under her chin and tilted her head up so that she was looking at him. "I promise you, River. I would never let anything happen to you."

River smiled sadly at him.
"Captain shouldn't make promises he can't keep," she replied. River pulled back and turned away from him, unable to let him see her so vulnerable.

Mal grabbed her hand as she turned away and pulled her back toward him.
"Hey now," he said to her. "I don't make promises lightly." He brushed the hair out of her face. It was becoming a habit, but one he couldn't seem to stop himself from doing. He needed to touch her, as much as she needed his touch. It was becoming a dangerous distraction; she could feel it. He played on her mind constantly and wreaked havoc with her thoughts. She was his waking fantasy and his deepest fear. But at this moment, it seemed neither one of them could turn away.

Mal cupped River's face in his hands and slowly drew his face closer to hers. Later on, both of them would be unable to say who kissed whom. But they would both be able to say that it was the most tender, most gentle, and most passionate kiss either had experienced. Months of pent-up feelings and frustrations released themselves the instant their lips met, and as they kissed, River felt her fears fade away. For the first time since this situation had begun, River felt her mind clear.

Mal pulled away first and looked at her. River's eyes were still closed and her lips were swollen from the kiss. In that moment, Mal knew he had never seen anything more beautiful.
Mine.
"I don't make promises lightly, River," he repeated. "This is worth fighting for." Mal turned and walked off the bridge, leaving River alone once again.
The ship came into low atmospheric orbit around the small moon two hours later. The plan was for River and Peter to break off and take the shuttle in the direction of the facility. Mal would pilot the ship to the designated rendezvous point and the crew would wait for Peter's signal. Once they received the signal, they would power up all engines and prepare to hightail it out of there as fast as possible.

The crew was assembled in the cargo hold as Peter and River prepped to infiltrate the Academy. Simon looked at his sister, dressed up as an Alliance doctor. He knew it couldn't be easy for her to pose as the people that destroyed her mind.
"I'm so proud of you, mei mei," he said, taking one of her hands. "You can do this, I know you can."

River smiled at her brother and hugged him.
"Thank you Simon," she replied. "I'll be okay. Really, I will. Peter will be there and will keep me safe."

Simon looked at the young man, dressed the part of Alliance security. Peter nodded his head once, acknowledging Simon's unspoken warning.
Keep my sister safe.
Mal came up beside Peter and clapped him on the back. He looked over at the man, then at River, before he spoke.
"She gets hurt or they capture her, I will not hesitate to kill you," he warned.

Peter gathered up his weapons. He strapped a gun to his belt and slung a sword across his back.
"Captain, if River gets hurt, I'll fall on my sword," he replied as he sheathed a knife into a side holster.

River looked over at them, watching their conversation intently. She could read the concern etched on Mal's face and could feel his emotions warring. He felt helpless. He wanted to do more than what he was, but he knew he couldn't. This was River's mission. This was her revenge.

She lifted the long tunic of her uniform and strapped a small dagger around her thigh. Inside her jacket, she had hidden a gun. She was as prepared as she would ever be.

Mal walked toward her and took one hand in his.

"I meant what I said, up on the bridge," he said. "You be careful. We'll be waiting for you to get back."
"River," Peter interrupted before she could reply. "We have to leave now."

River looked over at him, then back at her captain.
"I'll be back soon," she told Mal as she followed Peter up to the shuttle. The door shut on them and Peter began the breakaway sequence. River strapped herself in next to him and took a deep breath.
"Nervous?" Peter asked.
"Scared," River replied.
"I'll bring you home to him," Peter told her.

River felt the jolt as the shuttle broke off from Serenity. She watched as Peter piloted the shuttle away from the spacecraft and toward their destiny. Her thoughts drifted back to the captain and she knew she had to come back.
Please God, let me make it back home

A/N: I chose the Georgia System as the location of the Academy based on a quote from "The Train Job". After Mal and Zoe steal the medical supplies, there's a cut to an Alliance cruiser. The conversation between the two officers indicates that the entire squad of Alliance military personnel were on the train headed to "the installation."(direct quote). My overactive imagination picked up on that and began imagining that "the installation" referred to the Academy. Also, it makes sense that it would be on a planet outside the Core, because Simon had to go into "blackout zones" in order to find out any information. As well, it would have been easy for him to visit River had the Academy been located on a Core planet.