Chapter 5 can be found Here

Thanks to Tamsibling and Mal4Prez for the beta.

------------ Chapter 6

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Mal squinted as he watched Jayne and Aaron return to the hovercraft and begin rifling through the items they’d found at the abandoned Independent compound. Mal rolled his eyes when Jayne lifted out a weapon and began to examine it with care - like a mother would examine an injured child. He spoke to it, caressed it, cooed loudly about his new toy’s ability to shoot off multiple rounds without having to cock it or reload, and more uncomfortable things than Mal really wanted to think about flew through his mind.

While Jayne was distracted with his new toy, Aaron rummaged around in a few other cases and slipped out a thin silver cylinder. Mal’d almost missed it, distracted as he was with Jayne’s childish cooing over a simple weapon. Something about this situation wasn’t right and Mal quickly determined to get to the bottom of it. As Aaron attempted to conceal the cylinder in his hand and walk away, Mal appeared in his path.

“Find something useful?”

Aaron cleared his throat to cover his surprise, and turned slightly to wave back toward Jayne, who was still admiring his new weapon. “Oh, we’re going through a few items we managed to get out of the compound before you radioed.”

Mal glanced quickly at Jayne and then leveled his gaze at Aaron. “Yeah, I’m noticin’. Anything good?”

“Mainly weapons.” Aaron swallowed thickly, nervously.

Aaron didn’t notice Zoe come up behind him until she’d grabbed the hand that clutched the small tube and lifted it. “Pretty small weapon.”

Mal took a step away and drew his gun and Jayne, who had been listening the entire time, leveled his new weapon in their guest’s direction.

“Oh, I – ah –“

“Time for some truth-tellin’,” Mal said as he snapped the tube out of Aaron’s hand.

“I –“

“You Alliance?” Zoe asked, taking a step back and leveling her gun at his chest.

“No,” Aaron said quickly, almost too quickly as he noticed Mal and Zoe’s eyebrows arch in disbelief. “Well, not anymore,” he amended swiftly.

“Anymore?” Jayne asked, rounding the hovercraft to get a better look at the object Mal held.

“First things first,“ Mal held up the cylinder. “What’s this an’ why you so eager to keep it hidden?”

Aaron sighed heavily. “It’s a long story.”

Prodding him out of the cargo bay with her gun, Zoe said firmly, “We got time.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Aaron stood at the head of the table while the rest sat around it, their demeanor stiff and uncomfortable as they found out how a Core educated man had ended up this far out on the Rim and got a glimpse at what he was hiding.

Madeline, having only heard part of this story before, sat closest to her father, hanging on his every word. When he was done, there was only a moment of silence before Kaylee voiced the first question.

“You stole it?”

“It wasn’t that difficult to gain access. My wife designed the plans herself.”

“Plans?” Mal and Zoe asked at the same time. Mal turned the silver cylinder over in his hands, eager to open it but not as yet having the knowledge to do so.

“That’s plans?” Jayne asked, befuddled, glancing toward the silver cylinder Mal held.

“Plans to weapons that would make defeating any Independent uprisings much easier.”

“Your wife was an engineer?” Zoe asked, her eyes shifting slowly from the object in Mal’s hands to Aaron’s face.

“Bio weapons,” Aaron confirmed with a nod.

After sharp inhalations were heard all around, the table erupted into a flurry of questions. But Mal’s voice echoed the loudest above them all.

“An’ you felt the need to hide this from us, why?”

“I needed to be careful. I didn’t know if you were friend or foe. And my wife has been searching everywhere for us. I wouldn’t put it past her to hire some people like you to bring us back.”

Jayne stared down his nose at Aaron. “People like us?”

“You have to understand I needed to protect –“

“And put my crew in more danger than they were before!” Mal stood, slamming his hand into the table.

“Always happens when we take on passengers,” Jayne muttered, sparing a lingering, sidelong glance at Simon and River. “Ain’t never as innocent as they seem.”

“How close were the plans to completion?” Simon asked suddenly, clearly hoping to alleviate some of the tension.

Aaron exhaled, recognizing the question for what it was. “Pretty near. I destroyed all the other copies when I left the Core.”

“None left in some high-tech Alliance facility?”

“My wife was very proprietary. She kept all her projects safely hidden within our home.”

“Guess it weren’t too safe seein’ as you made off with ‘em.” Jayne grinned smugly.

“You must understand that until a few months ago, I was as staunch an Alliance supporter as some of you once were,” he nodded toward Inara and then to Simon. “But there were too many secrets, too many lies. And then with the plans to this weapon –“ He stopped and took a deep breath. “Well, let’s just say I could not condone the destruction of so many innocent lives on such a mass scale.”

“So you took Madeline –“

“Everyone calls me Maddy.” The little girl smiled sweetly at Simon

“Maddy,” Simon continued with a small smile, “and left everything you knew behind?”

“And joined the Independents,” Zoe finished. Though it wasn’t a question, everyone could detect the disbelief in her voice.

“If I could get these plans to the appropriate people, they would be able to create a defensive weapon capable of –“

“Winning the war?”

Aaron shrugged. “I don’t know but it would have given them a chance.”

“Mom was working on a weapon to kill lots of people,” Madeline sighed sadly. “She was –“

Conversation stopped as all eyes turned to regard Madeline. But before anyone could speak, her father moved to her side.

“But she loved you,” Aaron knelt beside his daughter, put a finger beneath her chin and lifted her eyes to his. “Never doubt that.”

“How can she love me but want to kill other kids like me?” Madeline asked, genuine curiosity in her eyes. “Just because they don’t live on the Central Planets, just because they’re not like us.”

“Because the Alliance likes to meddle,” River said, staring at, and through, Aaron and Madeline. “They like to make things better.”

“For them,” Zoe said, her voice laced with disgust.

“Yes.”

“So what do we do now?” Jayne asked. “Drop ‘em somewhere?”

Mal turned to Aaron after a long, silent moment. “Where were you headed when you had to hide these plans?”

Aaron pursed his lips, wondering how he could be so transparent.

“Wait, you weren’t on Athens to fight?” Jayne asked, brows knitted in confusion.

“No, I was going to change transports and meet with the appropriate representatives in a few weeks. But after we landed, we learned of an Alliance warship bearing down on our position and we couldn’t take off.

“I took Madeline and left as quickly as I could. By the time we reached the settlement where you found us, most of the people had been killed by a chemical blast of some nature. Only those who were in the underground shelters survived it. And even then, some of them got sick and died.”

“You know who you were supposed to give these plans to? Can we contact ‘em?” Mal asked quickly.

“Sir –“ Zoe began.

Mal raised a hand to silence her question.

“I thought you didn’t want to get involved?” Aaron asked, recalling his earlier conversation with the captain about why he hadn’t joined the Independents the second time around.

“I don’t. But you made it impossible for me now, haven’t you?”

Aaron pursed his lips. “I have their names but I don’t know how to contact them. The captain of the vessel that dropped us on Athens had that information.”

“Then we’ll just have to find someone who knows.” Mal glanced slowly around the table.

“I’m in, Sir,” Zoe said, without him having to ask the question.

“It’s a fair frightnin’ thing that you knew what I was gonna ask.”

“Yes, Sir. Years of practice. I should be makin’ the big bucks readin’ your mind.”

Mal’s eyes slid to Jayne. If anyone was more apt to decline this unspoken request, it’d be the man who looked out for number one and asked what was in it for him at regular intervals.

“Do I get to shoot folks?” Jayne asked, cradling his new weapon to his chest like a baby.

An exasperated sigh preceded the answer. “Yes, Jayne.”

“Then I’m in.”

“I’m with you too,” Inara said, folding her hands onto the table.

“No ya ain’t. You’re taking your shuttle and going back to your girls.”

Inara raised an eyebrow and everyone but Mal took an unconscious step back.

“I’m part of this crew Mal, I’m not leaving.”

“Ain’t no cause for you to –“

“Which specific portion of my refusal do you fail to understand?” Inara asked, her eyes narrowed. “Do I need River to draw you a diagram?”

“Am just concerned for –“

Before Inara could respond, Simon stepped up to her. “I want Kaylee to go with you.”

“What?” Kaylee’s shocked look quickly turned to anger as she stood and shoved her hands onto her hips.

“I’m not leaving, Mal,” Inara insisted, trying to focus on the captain but was instead drawn into Kaylee’s vehement reaction.

“You don’t own me, Simon.”

“I just want you and the baby to be –“

“I don’t care if I’m pregnant. I’m goin’! We’re family. We don’t leave no one behind.”

“Kaylee –“

She refused to let Simon get in a word until Mal demanded her attention. He glanced around the table with a barely recognizable playful gaze. “Anyone got a calendar? I’m thinkin’ we need to mark this day. I agree with Simon. Kaylee needs to go with ‘Nara. “

The look on Kaylee’s face at the perceived betrayal made everyone’s blood run cold.

“You need me, Cap. Ain’t no one else that can keep Serenity in the air.” She stuck her chin out smugly and crossed her arms over her pregnant belly.

When no one said anything, Kaylee continued stubbornly. “I ain’t leavin’.”

Suddenly the proximity alarm sounded. River pushed away from the table and rushed for the bridge, Mal and Zoe hot on her heels. Jayne stayed behind to keep an eye on Aaron, while Inara went to Kaylee as the young woman whirled on the father of her baby when he opened his mouth to speak.

“Don’t even, Simon.” Her eyes betrayed the hurt she felt but she knew Simon wouldn’t give up.

“I’m sorry. I just –“ He took a breath. “I don’t want you to get hurt. Or the baby –“

“But it’s ok for you to get hurt?” She snapped, hands clenching into fists at her side.

“Mei mei,” Inara spoke softly, trying to calm the agitated woman. “Stress is not good for the baby.”

“I know that, ‘Nara,” Kaylee snapped and rubbed her hands against her belly. “An’ I ain’t havin’ it hidin’ out while it’s daddy is off fightin’ a war we’ll probably all die tryin’ to win.”

As much as Inara wanted to deny her friend’s words, she found her lips glued together, unable to do anything but stare sadly.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Maris Kim stood in the ruins of the Independent compound and waited for her men to return with their report. She fingered a small piece of clothing that had been discovered in the rubble, knowing it had once belonged to her daughter. No Rim world scum would have anything so fine.

“If they died in this attack, someone will pay dearly,” she seethed as she paced a small path around the rubble of a nearby demolished building.

Madeline was an innocent, dragged into the middle of this disgusting war by a father Maris only wanted to see again so that she could be the one to end his life.

An aide marched up to Maris and saluted. “The damage is quite extensive.”

“Have you found them?”

“No, ma’am. The bodies that we’ve located are not recognizable.”

Maris narrowed her eyes. “Continue searching. If Aaron and Madeline died here, I want to know.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Another man, this time one of much higher rank, stepped beside the woman.

“Well, we know they don’t have the plans.”

“And how do you know that?” Maris turned an annoyed look on the man.

“Because we’ve captured the men that were going to meet with your husband.”

Maris’ eyes lit and she clasped her hands together. “Where?”

The man grinned eagerly. “On my ship, of course.”

Maris turned and walked toward her small transport. “They’d better still be alive when I get there.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“Don’t wanna talk to you right now, Simon,” Kaylee said as she caught sight of him hovering uncomfortably in the doorway.

“We need to talk, Kaylee.”

“’bout what? You not wantin’ me around?” She continued to work, tweaking the engine as much as she could so that when the inevitable happened, they could get away quickly.

“That’s not the case and you know it.” He made no move to enter, clearly hoping for an invitation.

“Seems like it to me. We don’t do nothin’ but fight lately.”

“With everything happening, I just want to make sure –“ Simon stopped himself and Kaylee unconsciously held her breath as she waited for him to say something else that would upset her. She clenched her wrench tighter.

“I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Kaylee’s head swiveled toward the door and she straightened herself up from the engine. “Bad things happen out here all the time, Simon. You seen how it can be.”

He stepped in and moved to her side, his eyes remorseful. “I’m sorry I’ve been such an ass but –“

“Can’t protect everyone all the time,” Kaylee said with a brief look out the engine room door and toward the direction of the cockpit. She knew River was there, and she’d seen just how determined and dedicated he was to protecting his sister. It was something she’d never found fault with before – until now, when he wanted to send her away.

Simon smiled wryly. “Doesn’t mean I don’t want to try.”

Kaylee leaned into his arms and sighed when they came down around her and embraced her tightly. After a few moments, her voice muffled, she said, “Feel so sorry for Maddy. Knowin’ her mom made somethin’ like that.”

“Life on the run can’t have been easy for her, given how she grew up.”

Kaylee lifted her head. “You adjusted, didn’t ya?”

Simon smiled slightly. “It took a very long time.”

Kaylee returned her head to his shoulder. “Yeah it did.”

Another few moments of silence passed. “I just wanna help ‘er, y’know?”

Simon pressed his lips to her temple. “You’ll make such a good mother.”

Kaylee stared at him sideways. And by the way he bit his lip, her skeptical look made him suddenly nervous. “Sure I will. Maddy don’t even like me.”

“I’m sure she’s scared being in a new place so far away from everything she’s ever known.”

“She took to you right off.”

“Maybe I remind her of home, of the privileges she’s lost. Of what’s she’s missing living out here, now on the run.”

Kaylee leaned out of his arms suddenly. “Meanin’ what?”

Simon stammered to find a response that wouldn’t anger her further. Finally he settled on a defeated, “I don’t know, I’m frequently an idiot, remember?”

Kaylee grinned wryly. “Yeah, you ain’t so good with the talkin’ sometimes.”

Simon took her hands and squeezed them gently. “Maybe go talk to Maddy? Get to know her. I bet she’d like to talk.”

Kaylee’s eyes twinkled. “All the time she been spendin’ with you and ya ain’t been talkin’ to her?” She shook her head and raised a finger to his lips to keep him from answering. “Oh, no, that’s right. You ain’t so good with the words.”

“Hey,” Simon took her ribbing in stride and grinned. “I interacted with River at that age with no problems.”

“Yeah, but you done grown up since then, ain’t so innocent no more.”

Simon’s smile faded and Kaylee could tell she’d said the wrong thing. He no doubt was remembering the things that had happened to take the small, innocent child River used to be away from him. Kaylee quickly leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “I’m sorry. I know you’re rememberin’”

“Go talk to Maddy.” The quick subject change was not lost on Kaylee. “I’m sure she could use someone to talk to.”

Kaylee nodded, not wanting to press him. “I will.”

Simon kissed her gently, flattened his hands against her stomach for a moment before leaving the engine room, and Kaylee, to her tumultuous thoughts.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Maddy sat with her small hands wrapped around a tea mug, sipping slowly as Inara tried to get her to talk. The little girl simply shook her head each time she was asked a direct question, or would mutter something that Inara couldn’t make out beneath her breath.

By the time Kaylee had composed herself and arrived at the shuttle, little Maddy was sitting demurely on the couch, picking at some invisible loose fiber on her pants.

“Hi Maddy,” Kaylee met Inara’s befuddled look but moved right to the couch anyway, Simon’s words echoing in her mind. “Wanna come to the engine room? See its workin’s?”

The little girl’s voice was soft and proper. “No thank you.”

Kaylee pursed her lips and tried again. “Well, what ya wanna do?”

“Go watch Doctor Simon work.”

Kaylee lifted her eyes and met Inara’s equally as confused ones. “Well, he’s gotta work alone sometimes.”

“You don’t need to entertain me, you know.”

“But we wanna.” Kaylee slid closer to Madeline and noticed how the girl didn’t so much as acknowledge her presence. It worried Kaylee. Not only because she’d never had this kind of difficulty with children before, but it worried her even more deeply that maybe she really wasn’t cut out to be a mother, and she wouldn’t be able to do right by her own child.

“Doctor Simon is nice. He likes to heal people, not hurt them.”

Inara inhaled sharply and Kaylee’s eyes flew to the older woman’s face. When Inara took a seat on the other side of Madeline, she slid a finger beneath the girl’s chin and forced their eyes to meet.

“I think you need to talk about this, Madeline.”

The girl shook her head out of Inara’s grasp and returned her eyes to that invisible spot on her pants.

Off Kaylee’s confused look, Inara continued. “Simon is a very kind man, isn’t he?”

“Yes.”

Kaylee squinted, not understanding.

“He grew up in the kind of society you did. And – he’s a doctor. He heals people.”

“I wish everyone had to take the Doctor Oath.” The despondency in the girls voice was such a contrast to her normal, peppy mood, that both woman instinctively leaned closer.

“To ‘Do no Harm’?” Inara asked, her hand inching closer to Madeline’s.

“Wouldn’t be so many people dying. My dad wouldn’t have taken me away and my mom –“

The women waited for Maddy to continue and when she didn’t, Kaylee slid closer and Inara gently touched the little girl’s hand, stilling its nervous motion.

“Ain’t everyone cut out to be a good parent, little one.”

Three sets of eyes snapped toward the doorway, where Mal stood, hands hanging loosely at his sides.

Inara stood quickly and moved to his side, immediately admonishing him for not knocking.

But Maddy slid off the couch and walked over to Mal, her dark eyes clearly pleading with him to take away her pain.

Inara stepped back, glancing at Kaylee briefly before turning a confused gaze upon Serenity’s captain and his newest passenger.

Mal knelt in front of her and swallowed thickly. “Just like not everyone in the ‘verse is good. Gotta have some bad so the good don’t get all cocky thinkin’ they know it all.”

“Always thought it was people out on the Rim that weren’t good. Was a lie.” Maddy lifted her eyes to Mal’s. “You’re pretty okay.”

Mal grinned. “Well thanks, little one, you’re pretty okay too.”

The women stood back and watched, stunned that Mal had such a calming effect on the child.

TBC

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