"He came to see me, about a week ago," Inara explained to the whole crew. They sat around the galley an hour after everyone had disembarked off the shuttles and Inara got settled.
Simon and Kaylee sat together at the table, the opposite end of where Inara sat, Kaylee waiting for tea to steep. Jayne leaned back on the sink, arms crossed over his chest. Zoe and Mal had pulled chairs beside each other against the supply cupboards. River sat alone, her knees pulled up and hugged to her chest. Mal kept glancing in her direction. He noticed Simon sending similar concerned looks in his sister's direction, but she didn't look up at either of them.
"He met me in Madrassa. He knew you were heading to this area to deliver wool from Kerry. He said it was easier to track you because this job fell on the legal side of trade," Inara smiled despite herself. She paused as Kaylee poured tea for everyone. After taking a sip, she returned to her story.
"I was going to send you a wave and tell you all this, but you were already in Kerry, and due to come to Farraday. So I booked passage to Harvest and Fess Higgins' picked me up and took me to Canton to wait until I could wave Serenity. The magistrate wasn't all to pleased to see me actually." She winked at Jayne. "Fess Higgins said to say hi."
Jayne glowered at her.
"He said they've activated another operative, an assassin to go after River," Inara went on, serious now. "That they've already planned the job that will get her in the right place at the right time.
"He gave me the coordinates I gave you earlier," Inara nodded towards Mal. "He wants you to meet him there in six days, with River. It's a place where no alliance will be monitoring. He says that he could have taken the new operative down alone, but with River there, he has found a way to end the whole thing, to keep the Alliance away from all of us, and from River for good."
"So he didn't explain how exactly he planned on doing this?" Simon piped up, sounding skeptical. Inara shook her head.
"No, he didn't." Inara replied. "He said that he would meet us first and he would explain. And we would finalize a plan together."
"Where are we s'posed to meet him, anyway?" Kaylee asked. Mal looked down grimly at the coordinates that Inara had given him.
"Shadow," He answered shortly. "Not far from where I grew up as it just so happens."
"Shadow?" Zoe cut in, her eyebrows raised doubtfully. "Don't make sense. What's he playin' at?"
"Meetin' where you grew up before the war, out of all the places in the verse, that sounds wrong to me," Jayne muttered. "Nothin' on that rock anymore except graves. Don't like it." Mal privately agreed with Jayne. He looked over at River, who hadn't spoken up once.
"What is it you're thinkin' little one?" He asked gently. All eyes turned to River. She looked up at everyone, seeming startled. Then she focused on Mal and gazed at him intently.
"I want to go." River replied. "No one else has to come with me, but I want to. I know what I'm up against this time, and I can fight. No need to drag any of you into this."
"Hoo-tsuh!" Jayne exclaimed. Everyone looked to him, surprised. "We all go in, look after each other." He blushed, self-conscious as everyone gaped at his outburst. "Well, I said I owed you anyway, didn't I Moonbrain? Not that your favour back on Farraday was much good to me as it turned out. But, I still owe you." He looked up at River, almost shyly, and she felt her own eyes tear up, touched beyond comprehension.
"Thank you." She whispered.
"Well I think that this is one of the few times I can say that Jayne speaks for all of us." Mal stood up, addressing everyone. "We'll keep the meeting, see what the operative has to say and try to get a sense of what we're up against. Not meaning to imply I fully trust him but we'll be armed with weapons and our resident reader to let us know if things go sideways."
As he dismissed everyone, Mal went to move to River's side, to talk to her, but Simon got there first. He, watched Simon whisper something into his sister's ear, and she got up. She sent Mal a quick glance before allowing Simon to take her arm and lead her out. Mal felt an irrational annoyance that he couldn't be the one to be at her side, but couldn't think of any reason to stop them. He was about to quit the galley when he felt Inara's hand on his arm.
"Mal. I'm happy to see you, despite the circumstances," Inara smiled, reaching to give him a hug. He returned it, relaxing into her and breathing her familiar scent in as he did. It was good to have her back.
"I'm glad you're home, for good this time I surely hope." He replied, meaning it. "Work was good?" He asked without bitterness and Inara smiled gratefully.
"Yes, it truly was nice to get back into it, I felt like I was doing the work I was meant for."
"You'll be able to do that work here, 'Nara. I promise," Mal started. Inara raised her hand.
"I know, Mal. That's all past us now. I'm glad. Because as much as I missed my work, I missed Serenity. I guess I've gotten used to a more colourful way of life than Sihnon had to offer," She smiled ruefully, then looked around the galley. "It's so nice to be home. Good to see everyone the same. You seem different though," Inara observed, giving Mal a penetrating look.
"I 'spose I am," Mal said noncommittally. "Older and wiser. Better looking too I imagine." Inara laughed at that.
"Always." She continued to look at him searchingly. "There is something else though."
"We'll it's a bit of a tense time," Mal offered. He was on cautious gound. He didn't know how Inara would take him being with River, but he had a feeling she wouldn't be happy, wouldn't understand. But he was getting tired of keeping secrets on his boat.
"Yes," Inara agreed. "But you seem... I don't know. Comfortable. In your own skin." She waved her hand vaguely, not knowing how to articulate it. "When this is all over, this business with River and the Operative, we should sit down and catch up."
"Okay," Mal nodded. "There's some things I wouldn't mind tellin'. "
xxxx
"You okay, mei mei?" Simon asked, finally sitting down with River when it was just the two of them. They were on the bridge. While he waited for her answer, Simon looked out into the black and stars. It struck him that this was the one place on the ship where you could look outside and yet he rarely came to this room. For a time, he'd felt deeply uncomfortable with the idea of a small window separating him from space. That fear had lessened greatly however in the last years. The view was actually quite beautiful, he reflected now.
"It's hard, it's all on me, all of this." River whispered. "All my fault." His sister's words dragged Simon back into the present. He looked at her with all the anxiety he'd been feeling since Inara returned.
"No one blames you," Simon was firm. "We're all in this together, that's been true for ages now, you know that." River nodded after a moment's pause. Simon continued on. "But I trust you above everyone else. I don't care what Mal thinks is best, if you want something else, I'm with you. Do you really think we should meet this operative on Shadow? Is he honest?"
River smiled at her brother, feeling a rush of love at his unwavering trust. It was ironic, both he and Mal were thinking along the same lines, thinking that this was a trap.
"No, it's what I need to do." She looked away. "We've had good work the last few months, things have been as peaceful as they ever are. But the Alliance will keep coming, time and again. We'll never be free unless they stop coming for me. One way or another, this running has to stop. It's not fair to anyone here. It's not fair to you, to Kaylee and the life you should have together." When she looked back to Simon, her mouth was in a straight, determined line. "I mean to finish this."
Simon stared intently at her. He wanted to argue, but he saw the determination in her eyes. "Okay, River. I trust you. Whatever you need."
The two stared out into the black together. Simon made a promise to himself. When River was safe again and all this business was behind him, he'd bring Kaylee here one night. To look at the stars.
xxxx
Later that night, Simon left with a kiss on his sister's head, off to bed to his fiancée. River was just about to head off the bridge herself when she turned to find Inara coming in. They were alone.
"I have something for you, sweetheart," Inara held up the object in her right hand.
It was the sword that River had only seen in the pictures Inara had sent. She pulled it out of the hilt and examined it. It was indeed beautiful. She held it in her hand, feeling the weight of it. She ran her hand down the river that cut down the middle of the sword, feeling the waves of the water, carved in relief. River had never wielded a sword before, but she knew she could. As she held it in her hands she itched to try it out.
"There's something else too, isn't there?" River said, her eyes not moving from the sword. She felt, rather than saw Inara nod.
"He also gave me this to give you to. The man has style, I'll give him that," Inara handed River a sealed letter made of rice paper, with an old-fashioned wax seal. "He said no one else was to see this, except for you, and that you weren't to tell anyone about it."
"Do you know what it says?" River asked, looking at Inara intently.
"No," She admitted. "He said you'd understand everything when you read it. I didn't tell Mal. I wanted to, but I trust you to decide that."
"Thank you, Inara," River replied, softly. She tucked the letter into her dress pocket out of sight.
"How've you been?" Inara asked sympathetically. "This can't be easy for you."
"Always someone after me it seems," River agreed, setting the sword down, back into it's hilt. She thought back to her conversation with Simon. "I'll be glad to get this meeting done. Everyone else is worried about the next few days, but I'm not. It's a relief. I'm tired of my problems affecting the lives of everyone else." Inara nodded. She didn't bother arguing with River. Everyone loved River and no one blamed her for the Alliance on their heels. But she understood how River felt regardless.
"You up here, little one? Was wonderin' what was takin' you so long," Mal burst in, then stopped short as he saw Inara alongside River. "Oh, hey 'Nara. Didn't know you were here too."
"No, I just came up to talk to River." Inara said. She saw Mal take in the sword beside River. She was glad River had already put the letter away. She watched as something she didn't quite understand pass between River and the Captain. No one spoke. "Taking so long for what?" Inara said finally.
"What?" Mal asked, distracted. He turned his gaze to Inara.
"You said River was taking too long. Too long for what?" Inara repeated her question. Mal looked stumped for a second.
"Course corrections, settin' course for Shadow tonight, she was sp'osed to come tell me when she'd done it." He finally responded. Inara nodded. Made sense. She couldn't shake that Mal had just lied to her. But she didn't know why.
"Well, I'll be off to bed," Inara said finally, after some silence.
"Me too," River said abruptly. She pushed a few buttons on the controls, then stood to kiss Inara's cheek. "Good to have you home. Goodnight Captain, course is set." She acknowledged Mal and walked alone, back to her bunk. Inara and Mal watched her before Inara took her leave also, leaving Mal standing on the bridge alone.
xxxx
An hour later, after she was certain no one would hear, River crept into Mal's bunk. He was standing by his desk, leafing through one of his books distractedly. He looked in her direction as her feet touched the floor.
"Didn't know if you'd come," He said, setting his book down.
"Then you don't know me," River said with a slight smile.
Before she knew it, Mal had her cornered against the wall where she had come in.
"I know you," Mal whispered. "I'd know you anywhere. If I were blind I'd know you." He kissed her fiercely, immediately igniting the fire that was always simmering beneath the surface of her. Like she had been dying of thirst and finally given drink.
It was frantic, much like that first night. They didn't even take the time to get back to the bed. Instead, Mal took her right next to the ladder, pushing her dress impatiently up over her hips, pulling down her underwear and then lifting River up and bracing her against the wall. He took only the time to unfasten his trousers. Before River knew it, Mal was inside her and she gasped with pleasure.
"Shhh, shhh Darlin,'" Mal soothed, kissing her to halt her cries as she came, almost immediately. He marveled at how fast it could be for her. He was soon to follow, his release shuddered through him so all he saw was white. He then collapsed against her, fully spent, breath heavy.
"You weren't kiddin' earlier when you said tonight would take forever to come," He finally whispered into her hair. "This morning feels like a week ago."
"I know," she sighed. Time could be strange in the black. The weight of the day's events that had been blissfully forgotten started creeping back into her consciousness. Mal gently backed away from the wall so that River could slide down. He winced, his legs shaking from bearing her weight. He knew he'd be stiff in the morning, but also that it was worth every ache.
They crawled into bed. Mal tenderly removed the dress she still wore, and then removed his own clothing before pulling the covers over them. They lay there, enjoying each other's warmth.
"You say your full piece back there to everyone?" Mal asked eventually. River leaned in against him and his arm went automatically around her shoulder. She told them about her conversation with Simon. Mal felt his respect for the doctor who showed unfailing good sense when it came to trusting and protecting his sister.
"What'd you and Inara talk about?" He asked when she'd finished.
"She came to give me the sword," River replied. "I'll show it to you tomorrow, it's in my bunk." She neglected to mention the letter, as Inara had instructed. Her instinct told her it was the right course of action for the time being. She hesitated before asking the other thing that had been on her mind. Biting her lip and trying to sound casual, she asked, "Is it strange, having her back?" Mal looked at her appraisingly.
"It's always been the plan to have her come back, Darlin' and I'm surely happy she's here, despite the reason being we have that Operative to deal with again." He scrutinized her expression. "But if what you're really askin' is if it has any effect on the landscape where you and I are concerned, you can let those worries settle right here and now. That's long over, what was between us." River had known that already. Mal and her had discussed Inara in the past weeks and she heard the full story of the ending of their relationships. It was still a relief to hear him put it into words though.
They stayed up longer, talking about the Operative and the meeting at Shadow, what could happen afterwards.
"Will you be okay being home?" River asked. Mal sighed.
"Ain't home anymore anyway, River." He replied. "Serenity's home. And even if it weren't, Jayne's right. Nothin' but graves on that old rock anymore. All that made it home's long gone." He was silent, thinking he'd talked more about Shadow today than he had in a long spell. River's hand was tight in his. He felt her quiet support and was grateful for it.
Eventually, yawns punctuated their speech, and both found themselves fighting sleep.
"Well, course is plot anyway," Mal sighed sleepily, kissing River and reaching for the lamp. "Take us time to get there and plenty of time to go over the plan. Or in this case the lack of plan. Best be getting some sleep now."
River cuddled up against him and was quick to slumber.
xxxx
In the early hours of the morning, River felt herself being gently coaxed awake by Mal's hands and lips exploring her body. She smiled sleepily.
"I thought I was dreaming," she whispered and felt his lips in an answering smile against her neck as she lay on her stomach. "Is it time for me to go?"
"We got plenty of time," Mal murmured, his hand running up and down her back. River glanced at the clock by the bed and saw that that wasn't strictly true, but she decided to let it slide, just this once.
"This okay?" He whispered, his hands becoming more purposeful in their seduction. She nodded wordlessly, her drowsiness melting away with each passing second and each gentle caress.
River could scarcely believe how much she wanted this man. She felt her breath catch in restless anticipation as she felt him move so he was on top of her. She started to flip over but his hands stopped her.
"Stay like that, please," he whispered tightly. She nodded her assent, hearing the arousal in his voice, and feeling it coming off of him in waves, fueling her own desire.
He soon realized she was as ready as he was. With this knowledge, Mal groaned softly and buried himself into her. The unfamiliar position was jarring for only a moment before River relaxed into him, enjoying his weight on top of her. His hands wandered over her during his slow but purposeful thrusts. His breath was hot at her ear. "I love you," he hissed, his breaths coming faster as his pace quickened. "Do you know how much I love you, Darlin?"
"I know," she choked out, trying to keep from moaning by pressing her face to the pillow. "I love you too, I love you..." She felt her hips arch back against him. She hadn't thought she'd be able to come in this position, but her body was proving her deliciously wrong...
xxxx
"Gettin' hard to keep pretence that this ain't goin' on to everyone else." Mal said after they were finished, watching her dress so she could sneak back to her bunk. "I'm tired of treatin' this like it's wrong, what you and I have."
"I know," she agreed. She was glad he was feeling more ready. She knew the day planetside with Mother Ally had helped a lot. "It'll be time soon. We finish all of this, and then we go from there."
Mal nodded thoughtfully. "Do the job, then we tell everyone. Be damned if I know what we'll say though. Don't expect there's anything we can say that will keep me from gettin' a good shiner from that brother of yours." He pulled her in for a kiss before she quit the room. River giggled softly.
"We'll find a way," She promised.
xxxx
When River got back to her own room, her mind was on getting an hour or so more sleep. But upon entering, she eyes fell on the letter Inara had given her the night before. It had sat, forgotten on her bed where she had hastily laid it, before leaving to Mal's bunk. She sat down now, fingering the wax seal and old-fashioned paper. The seal was dark purple, and pictured a flame with an arrow going through it.
She was so overcome by curiosity, it was hard to believe she had left it unopened for so long. Only Mal, she thought fondly, could keep her distracted enough that the contents of this letter could remain a mystery until now.
Gingerly, careful to preserve the seal as best she could, River opened the letter now. It was written in skilled calligraphy, beautiful, almost a piece of art.
Sitting on her bed, River began to read.
By the time she was done, sleep was the furthest thing from her mind. She read over the letter again, considering. Six days until their meeting. She had work to do.