Wasn't "Out of Gas" the best episode ever? Well, I've decided to keep the party going with that elusive scene from Shuttle One.

As always, the chacters are Joss's, the story is Tim's, and the shame is all mine!

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“I’m sorry, Kaylee. The captain was adamant that we not speak.”

“But, ‘Nara--” she cuts me off with a shake of her head.

Fine. If she wants to spend our last hours in silence that’s her business. Not that it matters, I guess. Inara and Shepherd Book may be happy to just sit and stare at each other, read some book, or pass that note back and forth, but I’m not. I’ve gotta do something or I’ll go crazy. Sitting here trying to think about what little air we have left just makes me take deeper breaths. They say suffocation is pretty bad. ‘Specially if you’re not the only one doing it. The thought of the last thing me seeing is them three...chokin’...in pain...dying a horrible--Ooo, loose wires! Coming from under the comm. panel. Gonna check those out.

Just as I get under the panel, I can hear Jayne grumble. I don’t know why he’s so mad. He’s the one who had to go to sleep, we had to be quiet so he could, and then he goes and snores while he takes up the whole bed. And the others didn’t seem to mind. Now he’s sitting up and smacking his lips like we’re all supposed to just rush over to him. Then he sees me lying down and raises his eyebrow. If he didn’t have a bunch ‘a that white stuff hanging out of his eye...I just roll mine and keep looking to see where the wires go.

“So ‘Nara, I gotta buncha coins I won’t be needing,” he mumbles as he scratches himself.

Shep hands her the piece of paper with the note. She looks at it, frowns, and folds it. “For the last time, Jayne, no.”

“We don’t even have ta’ go all they way--“

“Is that really how you want to spend your last moments?” I can tell Shep hasn’t even looked up from his book.

“Hell, yeah!”

I hear a page turn. “Then you’re fresh out of luck.”

Jayne mumbles something in Chinese and begins to check his gun. “What is that smell? Why does it stink in here?”

“It’s incense.” I can tell Inara is annoyed at being made to talk as she begins to write on the paper.

“Why would you name a smell that?” He takes out the clip, counts the bullets, and puts it back. Why did he do that?

No one answers him as he puts his gun away. He waves them away and begins snooping through all of Inara’s things. But she either doesn’t care or is too busy with whatever she’s writing. What are they writing over there? Last time I walked by, I almost got a look at it, but ‘Nara hid it from me. Now she’s passing it back to Shep.

“What with the letter?” Jayne doesn’t even attempt to be subtle. “You negotiating a price behind my back, Preacher?”

“Jayne, I believe you were rifling through my things.” Inara answers, cuz whatever she wrote Shep don’t like reading.

“Fine,” Jayne turns his attention to a bunch of scented candles. He picks up each one, smelling them.

Shep looks up from the paper and shoots Inara a look like he wants to say something, but she just shakes her head.

“Lemonwood?” Jayne is reading one of the candles. “I just gotta see what that smells like.” He digs through Inara’s candles until he finds some matches. He could not be that...

“Hey, Preach! What do you think they mean by Lemonwood?” Jayne smiles as he lights the candle and shoves it at the Shepherd.

He never breaks eye contact with Inara as he licks his finger and puts out the candle. “I think that’s enough speaking, and definitely enough lighting things on fire for now.”

Jayne’s smile fades as quickly as the candle’s flame. “Well, I don’t know what you expect me to do, cuz if you think I’m just gonna sit quietly and die of stink--“

“My journal,” interrupts Inara as she points to a book. “I’m sure you’ll find it entertaining as I’d prefer to not have to speak again.”

Like she flipped a switch, Jayne’s mouth slams shut, he takes up the book, and goes into the washroom, closing the door behind him.

“And wordless!” Shep reminds him.

I don’t hear a peep from the washroom. Shep takes out his pen and starts writing something furiously on the paper. If only I could sneak a look at it...and then a BANG from the washroom. We all look with concern. Then another BANG. And another. And I’m realizing there’s a rhythm to it. And back to the loose wires. Must focus on wires. But it’s getting louder and louder...

“So, Shepherd, what was seminary life like?” Inara asks.

“Very peaceful. Some of the calmest days of my life.” Shep raises his voice a tad as he answers. As does Jayne. It’s like the door isn’t even there.

“That sounds very much like the Companion House on Sihnon.” Inara also raises her voice to match the goings on in the washroom.

“You know, I think we have more in common than either of us would like to admit!”

“What?!?”

Jayne’s moaning is crazy. I’d swear he had four or five girls in there if I didn’t know any better.

“I SAID I THINK WE HAVE MORE IN COMMON THAN EITHER OF US WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT!”

He’s almost there, almost there, almost...

“I WOULD BE VERY HONORED TO THINK SO!”

I hear a sigh of relief as Jayne finishes. The rest of the shuttle goes silent as well. We all stare at the floor as he comes back in.

“What’s to eat?” he mumbles as he shoots a snot rocket across the shuttle.

Inara points to a cupboard, her eyes glued to the floor. Jayne rushes over and grabs some kind of bread.

“I think I’ll make some tea,” Inara says as she rises. Shep don’t look too happy ‘bout that. But I know their little note couldn’t have been about tea. He finishes what he’s writing, walks over to Inara, and shoves the note at her. She takes it as she begins mixing tea stuff.

I turn away just in time to see Jayne kneel next to me. “I’ve been thinking.” He sprays bread crumbs out at me as he’s talking. “We got a lot better odds ‘a making it, if there’s only two of us.”

“Jayne, I don’t know what you’re talking about, and I don’t wanna know.”

“I’m just sayin--“

“Well don’t. I’ll blow this shuttle up myself if I hear you talking ‘bout getting rid of anyone.”

“Two’s better than four. Just think ‘bout it.” He scratches himself with his free hand as wanders off. “Stinks in here.” He says to Inara. “Specially that tea.”

She doesn’t even look up as she finishes reading the note and puts it away in her robe. Grabbing her tea kettle and a cup, she turns back towards her table and sits down. Shep follows her, grabs her wrist, and I hear him whisper “no.” She looks back at him. Are those tears in her eyes?

“Inara?” I ask.

“It’s okay, mei mei. Everything’s going to be okay.” But she doesn’t look away from Shepherd. They just stand there staring at each other. After a while, Shep releases her and turns away. She sits down at the table, closes her eyes, and says some kinda Companion prayer. As she opens them she sees a teacup placed on the table. Shep sits across from her and holds out the cup.

“Together,” he says. She hesitates for a sec, then nods, and pours him a cup. Then one for her as well. She’s lifts her cup--

“Any honey?” Shep asks. She looks at him as if that was the most bizarre question he could ask. With the day we’ve had, honey seems like the most normal thing ever. She smiles, nods, and rises.

“Don’t I get any tea?” Jayne is back on the bed, chewing loudly.

“If you don’t like incense, you won’t like tea,” Inara tells him. He seems convinced. She grabs a small bottle from the cupboard and then does something weird. She takes the note out of her pocket, places it where she knows I can see it, and turns back to the table.

I immediately sit up and reach out, but she shakes her head. I guess now ain’t the time.

She sits back at the table and they both put honey in their tea.

Jayne swallows the rest of his bread, takes out his gun, and aims it at nothing in particular. He’s not doing what I think he’s doing. He turns towards the table, gun in hand.

And I pull out the two wires I was working on and threaten to twist them together. Their for the comm. speakers, but please let him be too stupid to know that. He makes a face and puts the gun away as if he were the most innocent man in the ‘verse. And, as usual, no prayer for Jayne’s stupidity goes unanswered.

Inara and Shep are making some sort of weird toast and are about to drink when

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Inara lets out a scream as her teacup flies out of her hand. “What is that?” she asks.

I light up as I realize what it is. “It’s Wash’s callback! Him or the cap’n must be callin’ us back to Serenity!”

“Then...we don’t have to...they found a way?”

“Looks like.”

“That’s wonderful news.” Shepherd Book doesn’t sound too excited as he sets his tea down.

“Bout ruddin’ time,” Jayne grumbles. “Things startin’ to go crazy in here.”

“What do you mean by that?” Shep asks curiously.

“Nuthin’.”

Shep seems to buy this from Jayne, but I know damn good and well what was brewing in that head ‘a his. How could someone even think something so horrible?

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I can’t believe I spilt my tea. I guess Wash designed the callback to be loud for a reason. Book and I exchange a look as he dumps the rest out. I take the note from the shelf and put it back in my pocket. There’s no conceivable reason for anyone to see it now. I’ll burn it first thing when we get back to Serenity. I just want to read it one last time.

You’re planning something...

What makes you say that?

The way you keep looking at your brewery. Do you see something you’d like to have?

I have a vast array of interesting choices. There might be something appropriate.

Even ritualistic? Say, something a Companion might do in her last days? Especially if it were helpful to others?

For a Shepherd you know an awful lot about Companions.

And for a Companion you certainly seem to be secretive about something you claim to cherish. We both know that smell is not incense.

And we both know there is only so much air in this shuttle. Every breath I take means someone else can't.

By your reasoning, perhaps I should stop breathing? If there's nothing wrong with what you want to do, why hide it?

There are people here who might not understand what I want to do. Are you one of them?

Yes.

Then I must inform you that the only way to stop me will be physical force.

I won’t do that. What I will do is remind you that you don’t need to. It’s far better that the four of us die together than two by two.

The Companion Farewell Ceremony is strictly for one.

Then I must inform you that the only way to stop me will be physical force.

I must respectfully request that you take no part in this. I’m going to make the ceremonial tea now and I ask, in fact I beg, that you let me do this alone.

Earlier Mal told me that everyone dies alone. I can’t help but think how wrong he was as the Shepherd and I watch the black tea swirl down the shuttle’s drain.

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I wonder if she knows that I put the antidote in the tea when I asked her to go for honey?

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Like what you read? Didn't like? Then comment below and let a sister know why.

And if you did like, or you have a lot of free time check out Shuttle Two!

And if you like angsty River stories with lots of insanity (written in script format) get spanked here!