Story: Why Not Me Chapter: Breakfast, few characters drop in and out. Warnings: female/female pairing. Authors Note: My first Firefly fiction. I'm having trouble personifying River and Kaylee both. With River, it's this graceful confusion I'm having trouble capturing, and with Kaylee, it's the language, the accent, the jargon. Help Help Help, feedback deeply needed. Hasn't been Beta'd. Don't know someone who could. Anyone volunteering? Disclaimer. Joss is Boss. Don't own characters, But I'd sure love to own all the women of the ship.

River and Kaylee sat in the galley alone, drinking tea and having a quiet conversation. River had cooked breakfast for Kaylee and the rest of the crew. It wasn't her day, but Kaylee had been hungry. Simon would just be happy he didn't have to.

Mal walked in, rubbing his left hand through his hair, and pressing his right into his back to straighten it. The girls stopped talking.

Kaylee noticed that it looked as if Mal hadn't slept to well, even with the comfortable bunks they all had.

It made Kaylee think again of how great she'd felt all morning. She felt River's gaze on her, and smiled her way, thinking nothing but 'thank you'.

River nodded. "Mornin' Cap'n. You ain't lookin to good, how'd ya sleep?"

Mal grabbed a cup of coffee, it'd been made for him by River when she'd realized he was awake. He gave her a nod and tried to strech his back out again.

"Feelin' a mite twisted. Like I slept all kin'a wrong. It'll fix." he looked in River's direction and smiled. "Mornin' lil' albatross.

She smiled back and took a sip of her tea. Sleepily, Mal waved at the two young women before heading out and towards the bridge.

They continued their conversation when he left.

"Whys't he calls ya lil' albatross all the time?" Kaylee looked to River for an answer.

"Something the Assassin said about me being dangerous. Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. He had his reference wrong, Mal fixed him. So that's what he calls me, I guess it kind of makes sense."

Kaylee looked dumfounded. "Huh? Ain't Jing zi, River."

River looked Kaylee in the eye and squeezed her hand. She felt slightly out of place saying such serious things to anyone. Almost anyone. "Dang-ran you are."

Kaylee nodded, blushing. "Well, keep on 'splainin

River scanned her mind for the reference. "The albatross, known as a good omen before that point, led the mariner and his ship out of the land of ice, the crew praises it, but the mariner shoots it, and the ship is then surrounded by a storm, the crew blames the mariner, the captain. It was then known as a bad omen." She nodded, knowing she had the summary of what she'd been asked.

Kaylee nodded slowly. "He reckons ya good for Serenity, in the account no one hurts ya."

River nodded. "Which is why he almost had to throw Jayne out the hatch."

Jayne froze halfway to the coffee pot on the stove.

"Hey, now girl, I thought we wasn't talkin' bout that ruttin' day. Gorramit! Keep ya trap shut bout that! Like I didn't risk ma life helpin gettin ya secret cross the gorram verse." River shrugged. That much was true.

Kaylee's mind went reeling. "Wen'd the Cap'n almost throw you out the hatch?"

Jayne grabbed his coffee and a handful of food and shook his head, trying to swallow the food already in his mouth. "Ain't talkin about that gorram day. Ain't ruttin' talkin bout' it." He left the room as quickly as possible.

Kaylee looked to River, and River shook her head. "You heard him." She bucked her shoulders up and blew her mouth out, imitating the great man ape. "Ain't ruttin' talkin bout it."

Kaylee laughed.

"River! Language!" Simon had walked into the room and was also drawing off the Coffee River had made for the Captain."Civilize people don't talk that way. Only man-apes." Simon laughed.

"Hey!" Jayne had come back for more food. "If I was some kin'a gorram ape, I'd of killed ya a'ready."

River nodded at Simon in agreement with Jayne before he left the room. Jayne stuffed his mouth and left as well.

Kaylee looked down into her mug, having noticed it was empty. River handed her her own. Kaylee filled them back up and headed into the lounge. River followed behind her.

Kaylee handed River her mug as she sat down, not to close, and not too far from River.

"Talking time?"

Kaylee nodded. "Talkin time"

River spoke first. She reached for Kaylee's free hand and grabbed it in her own. "Do you need to see it again?" There was no need for physical contact to let her see, but she liked Kaylee's hands. Fairly small like her own, but slightly worn smooth, and soft, River suspected, from the amount of grease she had on her hands daily. Kaylee didn't let go.

"Naw, I don' need ta see nuthin. I reckon ya need ta see mine." She steeled herself, knowing River would, however she did it, be in her mind instantly.

"No need for all that, it's all already in the forefront." River skimmed Kaylee's foremost thoughts, and saw them all in images, her feelings, and her scent were all encorporated.

River watched as the images grew large in front of her. She and Kaylee playing jacks, she and kaylee running around the ship playing tag, she and Kaylee laughing and joking. She understood. She didn't very much understand her own emotions. But she could easily read those of oth- she cut off her thinking process as a image flashed by her. She grabbed it, pulled it closer for examination.

This kiss they'd shared earlier.