She wandered aimlessly through the common area, seeing only her memories, seeing only Wash. It all felt like yesterday - their first kiss, when they had made love for the first time, being caught by Mal, getting married - all of it. She smiled as she touched the kitchen bench. This was where they had begun. They had been arguing about something or other, standing nose to nose and toe to toe as they had yelled at each other when all of a sudden the yelling had given away to kissing. She had never felt so much passion before. Things had quickly progressed and they had sneaked to his bunk before making love so many times she thought she would explode. And it didn't stop there; they sneaked around for almost a month, while trying so hard to keep it from the rest of the crew - mainly Mal. She saw vividly the time they were finally caught out - they had grown hungry one night after their escapades that they had dashed to the kitchen in nothing but a sheet between them, and the boldness of it all made them all the more in the mood. Mal, having been woken up by crashing pots walked into one situation he didn't think was true. It had been hell trying to live with the captain for at least a month after that night, but when their relationship was made public it had made things a lot easier. Zoe walked around the Wash's seat - always remaining vacant now, his ownership to it still intact.

As Zoe continued to wander around the common area, River and Jayne watched. It hurt them both watching this very personal and very painful scene being played out in front of them, but unlike Jayne, River felt every feeling coursing through Zoe. As Zoe neared them, River took a gentle hold of Zoe's elbow and guided her back to her bunk, knowing that Zoe needed rest.

As River guided Zoe out of the common area toward her bunk, Simon watched from the other door, surprised and glad at how his sister was reacting to this new family, because that was exactly what the crew of Serenity had now become, even Jayne. Satisfied his sister had taken care of Zoe, he made his way to the engine room, where not only the heart of Serenity lived, but his as well most of the time.

As Simon poked his head through the doorway, he could see Kaylee’s feet sticking out from under the engine, and heard he tinkering away. It continually amazed him how lucky he was, not only to have a home with such an honourable group of people, but to have found a love that he had barely dreamed about back on Osiris. At that moment, Simon knew his life was extremely better now with Kaylee in it than any success he enjoyed in his former life. Continually pondering these thoughts he didn’t notice Kaylee had slipped out from under the engine and was smiling a million watt smile on him. “Hello there stranger, you with us here or still off in fairy land?” Simon smiled, only Kaylee could ever have made him this deliriously happy, and despite everything that had happened to him, to River, and to all of them, Kaylee was his shining light. “Hello beautiful” he whispered, as he gathered her in his arms, kissing her softly on her greased cheek. “Oh, are we startin’ somethin’? Let me just turn somethin’ off!” Simon chuckled as she hurried to finish whatever she had started and ran to lock the door to the engine room.

“Just a dream.” Mal instantly said as he woke up. “Just a pleasant, beautiful, totally unattainable dream.” Then, with a wider perception of things, he noticed Inara sitting in his chair, one of his shirts draped elegantly around her shoulders, a smile on her lips. “I don’t think totally unattainable, do you?” She answered, a grin slowly creeping onto her face. He cheekily grinned, glad that their lovemaking wasn’t just another dream in a long line of others, and raked his hand through his tousled hair. “Old thoughts die hard I s’pose.” He responded, beckoning for her to re-join him on the bed. Inara happily obliged, letting his shirt slip from her shoulders, showing her fully naked body in all its glory. “One question Mal,” Inara started, putting a hand over Mal’s lips, pushing away his anticipated kiss. “What happens tomorrow?” Pulling her into an embrace, Mal replied “Tomorrow can wait forever, darlin’. Tomorrow can wait forever.” ---- “As I said before girly, Mister Universe is dead, and favour for him don’t mean favour for you. Now, as for me contactin’ Malcolm Reynolds, I don’t know the man personally. Heard on the Cortex he was in a mite of trouble with the law, and as I am an upstanding member of the commu’ity, let’s just say I limit the amou’ of, shall we say, undesirables, I deal wiv.” She looked at the greasy little man, his rugged suit and his bowler cap, and smiled, cold and icy. “Be that as it may, I know for fact you’ve dealt with Reynolds personally. I ain’t here to dob you in or kill you for association,” Badger’s eyes somewhat bulged a little, “I’m here to get word to him is all.” A light bulb seemed to have been turned on in the man’s head. She highly distrusted Badger, unsure whether Mal himself had felt the same. “Due to the …ah…wider attention my sometime acquaintance has brought to himself these days, we’re gonna require your…assistance…in acquiring an artefact we, as in I, have great interest in.” She glared at the man in front of her, disgusted by him to the very core. How could Mal have ever had any dealings with this man she questioned. “So what you’re saying is, you won’t wave Reynolds unless I do a job for you. Correct?” “Correct li’l lady. Now we in agreement or are you walking your fine li’l behind out o’ my establishment?” “I guess we have a deal.” “Good, come into my office and I’ll give you the particulars.”