I don't own Firefly or Star Wars. They belong to Joss Whedon and George Lucas respectively.

Chapter II: Solo

Mal smiled triumphantly. It had been an uncomfortable few days, but between Shepherd Book's basic knowledge of Fireflies and Kaylee offering advice from Serenity's infirmary, they had managed to baby the ship long enough to reach New Mexico. Even better, Mal had been told they might be able to get work at one of the local bars.

Mal turned to look his crew over. "Alright then. Doctor, you get to stay here and run herd on your sister. Keep an eye on Kaylee, while you're at it." Simon simply offered a serious nod and left. They both knew that Simon wouldn't be leaving the ship for long periods until Mal had his mechanic back in proper working order.

"Inara, keep in mind that we'll be leaving in just a few hours. That means any business you'll have will have to be very short or you'll be staying on this planet for duration of our next job." The companion's face was unhappy, but she didn't complain. Mal was still rather tetchy after Kaylee's shooting and subsequent setback. Besides, what Mal had said wasn't anything new.

"Jayne, you're coming with me to the Purple Dragon. We'll be getting information on our next job there." Jayne's response was a large grin. He was being offered paying work and the chance to get drunk? This was his kind of opportunity.

"Wash you'll be staying on the ship too, in case we need a quick getaway. I don't expect trouble, but the Dragon is an Alliance-friendly bar. This close to U-Day, things could get a might perilous." Wash simply nodded his unenthusiastic assent. He wasn't fond of always having to stay with the ship, but that was one of the hazards of being the pilot. If there was any chance that the ship would need to fly in a hurry, the pilot was essential.

"As for you, Zoe, you'll be heading out to the pit races out of Eclipse Canyon. That's where Monty says our prospective temp works these days. His name is Anakin Solo. Monty didn't give me much of a description except to say he had blue eyes and a scrappy look."

Zoe was unimpressed. "That's not much to go on, Sir."

Mal shrugged, conceding her point. "I know it. Just ask for Solo at the races. Monty says they'll know who he is. I want you to look him over personally, Zoe. Monty says he's good, but I'd prefer to have a second opinion before I commit to taking this man on."

"Of course, Sir."

"And what can I do, Captain?" The Shepherd broke in, having been ignored in Mal's little briefing.

Mal looked at the elderly preacher, managing to put his bitterness about God aside for a moment to really consider the options. "Seems to me, Shepherd, that you wouldn't want to join Jayne and me at the Purple Dragon… If you got a real hankering to leave the ship, it might be that Zoe could use hand on her end."

Zoe offered the Shepherd an evaluating glance before nodding resolutely. "You'd be welcome to join me, Shepherd."

Book smiled benignly. "Thank you, Zoe. It'll be good to do something useful."

The pit races of Eclipse Canyon were one of the primary features of New Mexico's underbelly. It was a high-stakes racing challenge that allowed any land-based vehicle to compete. Weapons were perfectly legal, as long as it was built into your vehicle, which had led to some very unique races. One race had almost been won by a massive tank which had rather very efficiently cleared most of the field of competitors the hard way. The actual victor had been a person riding a mule* that had managed to survive long enough to escape the slower tank's range. To say the least, the race was cutthroat by nature.

Shepherd Book wrinkled his nose at the various disreputable characters that were hanging about the race area. No race was scheduled until nightfall, but many competitors and their pit crews were already present working on their vehicles. A few questions led them to a tall, fat man who ran the races, Yancy Trueheart. The man's face truly redefined ugly. "What can I do ya for?" he asked with a leer in Zoe's direction.

Zoe raised an eyebrow at the leer, but failed to comment. While Zoe might not appreciate being leered at, she was prepared to put up with it for the sake of the job. Anything beyond that… Well, then Trueheart was going to eat his own kneecaps. "We're looking for one of your racers… Anakin Solo. We've got an offer for him."

Yancy showed enough sense to limit himself to the leer, but was not about to be helpful without something more to justify it. "What's he worth to you?"

Book, who simply did not like the look of Trueheart, could not help but comment. "We can start by not telling this woman's husband that you were looking in his wife's direction. He's a rather large and possessive gentleman. And if that's not enough, might offer you the last rites before he hears of this…"

Trueheart proved to be the tower of jello that he resembled and folded rather spectacularly to Book's unsubtle threats. "Solo's about a dozen tents down, in the one with the green flag hanging off of it."

Zoe offered an insincere smile. "Thanks for your help." She flipped the man a low value coin and turned to leave, Book by her side. As soon as they were out of earshot, she could not help but comment. "My man may be a bit possessive when the mood hits him, but ain't no one but Simon who might consider him large, and even Simon probably wouldn't."

Book simply offered a smug smirk. "That imbecile doesn't know that. I rather enjoy the thought of that man jumping at shadows for the next little while whenever a very large man crosses his way. It might serve as a little penance for breaking one of God's commandments…"

Zoe shrugged. "I'm pretty sure Wash ain't that guy's neighbour, Shepherd, but thanks all the same." She glanced ahead to see that they had reached their destination. "Let's get the Captain his mechanic."

The inside of the tent was a rough circle, centred on a floating vehicle that bore a vague resemblance to a mule, specifically a hover-mule**. The difference was that the vehicle in question was far smaller and sleeker, obviously built more for speed and maneuverability rather than its cargo capacity.

"It's a speeder-bike." Zoe's mare's leg was leveled and loaded even as she spun towards the person who had spoken as he slid out from under the speeder-bike, obviously having been working on it. The young man had a mop of brown hair that fell into his eyes and was wearing a surprisingly easy grin for someone faced with the immediate prospect of death by explosive dismemberment. "No need to be so shocked. This is my home, such as it is. Obviously, I'm going to be here."

It took Zoe an embarrassingly long time to understand who she was talking to. At only about twenty-five, the young man in front of her would have only been a teenager when the Unification War was in its final years. He wasn't as young as Kaylee or River, but he was actually younger than Simon, which was mind-boggling for a Browncoat veteran. There weren't many pilots that were quite that young. "Anakin Solo?"

The kid's smile was somewhat endearing. "That's me. What can I do for you two?"

Zoe actually started as she recalled the Shepherd. She shook herself angrily. It wasn't like her to be so easily thrown off by an odd circumstance. That was usually the Captain's thing. "I'm Zoe Washburne and this is Shepherd Book." She gestured to her traveling companion. We're here on behalf of Malcolm Reynolds, hoping to hire you for a temporary mechanic job."

Anakin frowned slightly. "I'm committed to a race tomorrow, Miss Washburne. Also, I'm not about to leave this place for a temp job unless you can really sell it. Convince me, Miss Washburne…"

* A mule refers to a cargo vehicle, rather than a four legged animal of the equine variety.

** A hover-mule is like the mule in the movie Serenity, rather than the wheeled version in the show.

Hope you enjoyed

Jasper