Chapter Five: Avoidance

For a length of time, Mal and River sat on the bridge in silence. It had started to rain beyond the ship, but Simon and Kaylee still hadn't come back. Mal didn't want to repeat the news, so they decided to wait until everyone was around to discuss it. River wasn't in the mood for silence, so she stood and moved to the door. Mal looked with sad eyes.

"Where you goin', albatross?"

"Cargo bay. Want to feel the rain," she explained and sensed his next question. "You can come. If you want."

He simply got up and followed her towards the kitchen. It was quite unsettling to see Jayne wrestling with a dead deer on the table and Zoe plucking feathers by the sink. They were too busy with their tasks to even notice Mal and River slip by them. Once they reached the cargo bay, River lowered the ramp and went into the open. She let the rain wash away the fear and darkness, but Mal was worried about her health.

"Come in here 'fore you die with pneumonia or something."

Relenting, she joined him just beneath the cover of the ship. They sat on the ramp together with the sounds of heavy rain dancing in their ears. The water dripped from above like runoff from a clogged gutter. River felt Mal's uneasiness, but for once the captain was willing to admit it…in his own way.

"How far can you see, River? Do you have any notion about what's going to happen?"

"Can't know that far. Too variable. Things can change. This isn't going to be like last time, Captain. I've seen your dreams. By accident. Things won't happen like that again. Not this time. Don't have to be a soldier for either side."

He glanced with curiosity. "How can you know if you just said you can't see that far?"

"Because you have me this time. I won't let it happen. I'll protect you."

Instead of making a snappy remark about being able to defend himself, he was too busy wondering why she would say such a thing. "You? Why?"

"First two rules of flying…" she smiled while leaning back to expose her bare foot to the rain water. "It's cold. Rain is nice. Washes away the old. Creates the new. Good beat. Patter, patter, patter."

A smile crossed his face. Somehow, she always made him feel better. The rain was cold, which meant that River's body was racked with shivers. Mal automatically offered his arm, and she slid into his side with her head tucked under his chin. Something about being alone with the rain felt therapeutic to them both. With a war on the rise, they both knew that these moments could soon change.

Simon and Kaylee appeared on the ramp an hour later. He glanced at the captain and his sister, but he didn't think anything of it. They were like blood relatives in his mind. Kaylee, on the other hand, nearly squealed in delight. She ran into the kitchen while Simon changed to deliver the news.

"Cap'in and River are cuddling in the cargo bay!"

Jayne sent an arrogant look at Zoe. "I told you."

"They aren't together yet. I haven't lost my money."

"You made a bet?" Kaylee questioned.

Zoe nodded. "Yep. While we were waiting for something to shoot, we got to makin' wagers. We have one on you and Simon too."

"Yeah, be sure you get knocked up 'fore you get married or I'm in the hole."

"Jayne!" Kaylee chided with a slap on the shoulder.

They were interrupted by Mal and River entering the room. Simon entered shortly after, which River knew would be the case, and Mal made the announcement. "River and I have news."

"Gorram," Zoe grumbled. "I'll pay you later."

"What?" Mal wondered. "You know what I'm going to say about the war?"

That froze everyone in their place. Kaylee could only squeak. "War?"

"We saw it on the cortex. The Alliance declared war on the New Independents. There was a rebellion uprisin' after we exposed Miranda. That's why the Alliance wants this ship and her crew. I conjure that plenty of folk will want this ship for many reasons. It's another civil war, and we'll be hard pressed to avoid it. But, we're gonna try."

"Aw, hell. I almost didn't make it outta the last one!" Jayne hissed with a dramatic motion of his knife. "Those Alliance guys almost drafted me on accident. I was just theivin' about on this nice planet. Got arrested and they were gonna ship me off to war! Luckily, I broke outta there and ran off 'fore they could find me."

"As educational as that was," Simon began while clearing his throat, "what exactly are we doing to do about this?"

"You heard me. Avoid it as long as possible. Same plan as before. I think that we should enjoy our last day of vacation and we'll go from there. End of conversation."

Kaylee was clearly shaken, so Simon walked with her to the engine in order to calm her nerves. Jayne kept working on the deer, he was now curing the hide, and River left for the bridge. Zoe pulled Mal aside with concern. "Sir?"

"Fine," he understood her perfectly. "River gave me some peace of mind. She can't see too far ahead, but she thinks we'll be able to stay together."

"We'll, sir?"

His ears turned bright red. "The crew."

She smirked. "I see. Well, I think that she's right. She's one hell of a fighter. Jayne's willing to blow up anybody any day of the week. We've got a solid doctor and engineer. I don't want to be a solider again, but it's still in me. This crew can handle a lot."

"I don't want to fight neither, Zo. But, like you said, it's still in me too. Just three years back, I'd have…I don't know what…but I wouldn't of handled this right. I guess time does strange things to stubborn old criminals."

"Maybe it wasn't time," Zoe grinned as she went back to her dead birds.

Mal's brow furrowed. "What's that s'pposed to mean?"

"Nothing," she promised, though her mischievous grin betrayed her.

Confused, Mal retreated to the quiet of his bunk to think on things. Soon, the night cycle had begun and he fell asleep. However, his dreams were plagued with battlefields and bodies. The talk of war had brought up so many horrors. When he woke screaming, the dark room slowly came into focus. His ragged breath calmed and he told himself that it was over and never going to happen again.

"Correct, Captain."

He screamed and jumped backwards to turn on the light. Sure enough, River Tam was sitting at his desk. "River, what are you doing in here?"

"Your nightmares were loud. Became my nightmares. I woke before you. Imagining the blood and bombs. I brought you hot apple cider. Kaylee bought some. I heated it."

She went to him and held the mug as a peace offering. He decided to take it. "You didn't have to go to the trouble of all this."

"Wrong. I told you I'd protect you."

"How is this protectin'?"

"You know you'll dream it again if you go back to sleep. I'll keep you awake."

She slid closer to him on the bed and he recoiled. "What…what exactly…does that mean?"

Without answering, she leaned across his bare chest and plucked a book from beneath the bedframe. It had fallen there during turbulence some time ago. His spine was rigid as she curled neatly in his lap and thumbed through the book. He held the apple cider above her head to be sure he wouldn't burn her. This was all too cozy, too weird, and too wonderful.

"The Rime of the Ancient Marnier, by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Part one: It is an ancient Mariner—"

"Are you readin' the entire poem out loud to me?"

"Affirmative. Unless you want me to leave and your nightmares to resume."

"I mean, no…I guess it'd be okay if…" he fumbled as she smirked. "Just read the gorram poem."

She cleared her throat as he sipped the apple cider. He liked the sound of her voice, and he liked the poem. It was one of the few he had actually read all the way through in that collection. River had a bit too much fun with the dramatic language, but especially during her favorite passage in part one.

"And a good south wind sprung up behind; the Albatross did follow, and every day, for food or play, came to the mariner's hollow!"

He grinned at her excitement and listened as the poem went on and on. By the time she finished, it was morning and he felt oddly refreshed. The vacation continued without any problems. Mal started to almost follow River around, but she did the same thing. That night, as they drifted towards a contact for a job, he had the nightmares again. This time, River showed up with coffee and a Shakespearian play. She cast Mal in all female parts, and she played the men. They read until the night cycle ended.

Sure enough, their good friend—Striker—had a decent job for them to pull. They headed off to the planet along the rim, and River set the ship in a well-guarded canyon. Mal, Zoe, and Jayne took the mule towards the town and the warehouse they were robbing. However, upon getting nearer, they heard gunfire—and a lot of it.

"Sir," Zoe spoke as she pointed to the sky. "That's an Alliance cruiser."

"And, I see a lot of folk in brown coats up ahead…" Mal agreed.

Jayne shook his head. "Gorramit, we're in a ruttin' warzone!"

"Should we try to finish the job?" Zoe wondered.

Mal sighed deeply. "We need the money. Work is gonna be hard to find."

Despite the battle going on to the east, they went to the south for their job. Once they reached the warehouse, they found the many crates of potatoes. Apparently, there were a few planets that weren't able to grow them and paid top dollar for the spuds. Yet, the crates were so heavy that only one person could be in the mule.

"Ladies first," Jayne grunted clumsily as he pointed to the mule.

She smirked and looked at them both. "Don't get pulled into that mess over there. We're thieves, not soldiers today."

As Zoe left with the haul, Jayne and Mal began the long walk back to the ship. They tried to use the buildings as cover, and it seemed to be working. While they hunkered behind the side of another warehouse, someone saw them move from building to building and followed their path. They heard the unmistakable sound of a hammer cocking.

Three gunshots filled the air. Two of them belonged to Jayne and Mal. The Alliance man, who saw Mal's brown coat and leapt to conclusions, was dead on the ground. Meanwhile, the captain had a bullet in his chest. He grumbled to himself as Jayne lugged him to his feet.

"This ain't my day…"