After the second day home, Kaylee had, once again, found her place among her family. By the third day, it had been as if she’d never left. She giggled with her sisters like schoolgirls. Her mother doted over her as if she were still twelve. Simon and Carl were engaging in long talks that involved alcohol. When asked how they had hit it off as well as they had, Simon’s response was vague and uninformative. Carl said that, since Simon hadn’t come off as ‘a spineless, quivering weenie vying for his girlfriend’s father’s approval’, he figured that Simon must be a man, after all. Even Kaylee’s older brothers, Tom and David, were quick to adjust to the new circumstances surrounding their family life. They were quieter and more reserved than the young Kent, especially David. Tom, the eldest, actually reminded Mal of a young Jayne when the man would speak. *Mite less mouthy, though...* Kaylee was the only crewmember to stay at the home. Everyone else was perfectly content residing on Serenity, as usual. Kaylee’s parents seemed quite relieved at the news that Simon had a room aboard ship. What they didn’t realize was that the room was now the same as Kaylee’s. “Mal.” Having been fixated on the foreign horizon, Mal hadn’t heard Inara’s approach. “Gyaa!” he exclaimed. Inara grinned, descending the cargo ramp to stand next to him. “I thought that was supposed to be, ‘Bwaa’.” Mal shrugged. “Key ingredient to bein’ a great warrior. Ya gotta toss it up a bit now an’ again. Confuse an’ surprise yer enemy an all that... What am I explainin’ myself to ya for? No need for sneakin’!” Inara feigned indignance. “I was not sneaking!” “You were so sneaking!” Mal shot back. “There’s sneaking goin’ on behind my back *without* my permission!” Inara grinned. “I just came to deliver a message.” Her expression became more stern. “What message?” Mal inquired, his curiosity piqued. Inara glanced over her shoulder toward the interior of the ship. “The lounge. River says you’re needed.” Mal arched an eyebrow. “What’s River need?” Inara peered down her nose at the man. “I don’t think it’s River who has the need.” ************************************************************************

River and Gabriel sat, side-by-side, on the sofa. They said nothing, but for all Mal knew, they never needed words to communicate. After a moment, River stood. She looked down at Gabriel for a moment, then turned and approached Mal. “You two need to talk,” she explained. She reached up on her tip-toes, hands resting on Mal’s shoulder, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “It will be good.” She joined Inara, and the two of them exited. Mal blinked, standing confused for a moment. Next, he strolled across the room and sat beside Gabriel. “Not a problem,” Gabriel explained before Mal could even speak. “Still...” He raised his close-eyed face skyward and inhaled deeply. Then, he turned toward Mal with eyes wide-open. “It’s entirely unnecessary.” “There’re people worried ‘boutcha,” Mal began. “Care to explain what that’s all about?” Gabriel shrugged. “They think I’m sulking.” He scratched at the side of his head, just above the left ear. “Or brooding. Or possibly a deep level of being darkly aloof.” He rubbed at his eyes, then returned both hands to their crossed, hanging position along his knees. Mal rubbed his hands on his own knees. “Well, if yer gonna slam a gorram door in my face, don’t ruttin’ entice me.” Gabriel stared at his captain as if the man had just sprung horns from his forehead. “I didn’t ask for this conversation. In fact, if I recall correctly, I just sat here, lookin’ like I didn’t wanna talk at *nobody*.” Mal heaved a sigh. “It was the ship, wasn’t it?” Gabriel said nothing. “The Reaver ship,” Mal continued. “It’s tearin’ atcha inside, ain’t it? Knowin’ what you saw, an’ ya couldn’t do nothin’ about it. Knowin’ what you had to do to survive. It’s killin’ ya slowly, but it’s killin’ ya as surely as Reavers could have.” Gabriel grunted. “Go se shows its ugly head. It happens. That’s called life. Anybody who don’t wanna accept that got no place in this world.” He studied the coffee table before him. “Nothin’ I can do to change it.” Mal watched the young man’s face carefully. “That ain’t it,” he realized. “That ain’t all of it.” Gabriel had no response. Mal turned more fully toward his friend. “It ain’t the Reavers. It’s Dante.” Gabriel finally looked at his captain, eyes clear and sharp. “That man is far more dangerous than you could possibly know.” “Sure I know,” Mal insisted. “He’s a-” “You never met him,” Gabriel interrupted. “He ain’t human. Never was, far as I remember. He’s a monster, an’ next time he shows up, don’t do me no favors. This ain’t a pride thing. You don’t even give me a chance to fight him; you put a bullet straight through his melon.” “Never had no notions elsewise,” Mal replied. “Remember,” Gabriel warned, looking back to the coffee table, “head shot. You shoot him in the chest, he’ll still tear you limb from limb ‘fore he drops.” Mal peered worriedly at Gabriel. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he muttered. “I know you know, yanno,” Gabriel murmured distantly, looking again toward Mal. “About...” Mal nodded. “I know.” “Anybody else know?” Gabriel wondered. Mal shook his head. “I don’t think so. ‘Sides River, right?” Gabriel nodded. “I love her to death, Sarge, but if she weren’t psychic, she’d’ve had to figure it out on her own, same as you.” Mal nodded. “I can understand that.” “Kaylee’s sure havin’ a good time, huh?” Gabriel mentioned, abruptly changing the subject. Mal nodded again. “Everyone is. ‘Cept for you an’ me, huh?” Gabriel picked at a loose thread on his black pants. “Let’s keep it that way, then.” Mal frowned. “Got somethin’ to say?” Gabriel nodded at the table. “Don’t wanna bring the others in on it just yet; spoil their fun.” He sat for a moment in silence, while Mal patiently waited for the young man to gather his thoughts. Even with the medication Simon had procured for him, there were days where it could take several minutes for Gabriel to put everything together in his head to convey his message. Mal understood this now, and allowed Gabriel the breathing room he required. “I’ve been talkin’ to River.” Mal leaned back. “That don’t sound good.” “It’s not.” Gabriel hunched his shoulders and rubbed his hands together. “She’s been actin’ weirder an’ weirder lately, an’ I ain’t talkin’ just her... problems.” He made eye contact with Mal for a split second to emphasis the seriousness of his statement. “Somethin’s comin’. Somethin’ kinda huge. An’ it ain’t good, but parts of it ain’t bad, neither.” “Somethin’ like Miranda?” Mal guessed. Gabriel shook his head. “River’s filled me in on every minute detail of that little adventure of yers.” He turned to glower at Mal. “You lost two good men in that muck, but it ain’t in comparison to what we’re gonna face. This will affect the lives of every single person in this ‘Verse.” He turned his head forward again and rubbed his eyes. “Particularly us.” Mal studied Gabriel for a moment, waiting for more information. “Did she go into any detail?” “Nope,” Gabriel replied. “Then, what should we do about it?” “For now?” Gabriel pulled a lighter from his pocket and finally burned away the loose thread. He extinguished the flame and returned the device to the pocket. “We wait.” ************************************************************************

“How’s this feel, Doctor Tam?” Kaylee inquired, inhaling two lungsful of the cool, night breeze. “Bein’ the last night of yer bachelorhood?” Simon shrugged as he put his arm around his fiancee’s waist and drew her close. “Terrifying,” he responded with a grin. Kaylee laughed. “That’s real refreshing.” “What about you?” Kaylee settled her cheek on Simon’s shoulder. “Nervous,” she replied. “Not about us. I know this is right. It’s more of the springin’ it on my family the way we did.” “The lives of fugitives are sporadic,” Simon commented. “We’re doing the best that we can.” “Kaylee Tam,” Kaylee spoke aloud, her tongue thick in her mouth as she tasted the words. Simon looked down. “So you’re changing your name?” he questioned. “Mmm,” Kaylee returned sleepily. “Some planets continue the old tradition of the wife takin’ the husband’s name. Some don’t.” She turned her head to kiss the curve of Simon’s jawbone. “Here, we tend to follow the tradition.” Simon grunted his acceptance. Kaylee frowned in curiosity. “You don’t sound entirely excited ‘bout it.” Simon shrugged. “Osirius had a mixed tradition. My mother kept her maiden name, but River and I took Tam from our father.” He smiled and kissed Kaylee’s forehead. “It’s entirely your choice. Whatever makes you happy is going to make me happy.” Kaylee seemed to melt in relaxation. “Good answer, Lover.” After a few moments of silence, the two decided to return to the house, where Kaylee’s family resided in the den for the evening. “You two goin’ to bed?” Jessie inquired teasingly. The Frye’s lived an old-fashioned life. Jessie and Betsy still shared a room, whereas Kent had his own. Tom and David lived down the road now in a small mobile home, and Simon was taking the couch for nights. “Bed is good,” Simon answered decidedly. “Long day of plannin’,” Kaylee added. “So where’s this Jayne character we’ve heard about?” Anne inquired. “We’ve yet to meet him.” Kaylee shrugged. “He’s doin’ a...” She paused as she formulated an answer. “He’s been guardin’ the ship. Crappy detail, anyhow. He’s prob’ly bored outta his mind.” ************************************************************************

With a rough shove of her mouth, Helen forced Jayne a step backward into her room. Grunting, Jayne stumbled for a moment before regaining his balance. He kissed Helen again, and then her hands were grasping for his belt buckle. “Kinda... mmph... aggressive for a... mmgh... woman, ain’tcha?” Helen paused for a moment as she stripped Jayne’s shirt off. “Why? Would you rather take me to dinner and a movie whilst I...” She kissed him again. “...listen to tales of your dashing and daring escapades as a swashbuckler and fawn over your...” He kissed her again. “...handsomeness and heroism?” “Not really,” Jayne decided as he de-shirted the soldier woman. “I tend to lean toward forwardness.” “Shut the hell up and kiss me, you lug,” Helen demanded as she shoved Jayne onto the bed. ************************************************************************

“I agree,” Simon concurred. “Guarding the ship is usually a fairly boring affair.” “Well, the poor boy,” Anne decided. “We’ll hafta give ‘im a nice, hot supper to make him feel better.” “Now, Anne,” Carl voiced, “let’s not go *too* overboard.”