“Refreshing” Mal commented to no-one in particular, dabbing at the blood trickling from a cut lip, and limping up the stairs from the cargo bay in the direction of the infirmary. Zoe was close behind the captain, holding her upper right arm while the blood oozed between her fingers.

“Personally don’t find getting shot particularly refreshing, sir” she commented dryly. While her face was inscrutable as usual, there was a tightness about her mouth. “They were bad people Zoe,” Mal replied. “What civilised person would hit a Preacher?” Jayne, River and the Shepherd brought up the rear, bruised but in a better condition than the captain and his first mate. “Yes, Captain” Book said, “And we all know what a great defender of the Faith you are.” Mal and the Shepherd traded glances.

“Where’s the hell’s the doc got to?” Mal called out as he turned his back on Shepherd Book. Simon rushed out from his bunk at the sound of the return of the party. “River! River, are you hurt? What happened?” Simon inquired. “The same as usual doc, folks taking exception to the colour of my coat. Patch up Zoe first, and don’t worry, your sister is fine! Just see to them as needs your attention”. Mal shoved Zoe forward gently, his expression showing regret and concern, as well as a little guilt.

After assuring himself that River was unhurt, Simon turned to Zoe, who removed her left hand from her arm allowing a fresh rush of blood to escape from a nasty looking wound. Zoe lay down on the operating table, and Simon proceeded to dope her, and began cleaning the torn flesh in preparation of removing the bullet from the wound. “Are you seriously hurt, captain?” Simon threw over his shoulder. “Nothing a good wash won’t set aright” Mal said, walking over to the com. “We clear, Wash?” “We shook ‘em cap’n, heading for Persephone now. Had a ‘wave from Badger, he’s awaiting our meeting with baited breath. Could be he’s in love, Mal!” “Yeah, I can’t wait to see him either, tell him how I feel”. Mal said, clicking off the com, and going to his bunk for a wash-up.

The stop at the moon had been necessitated by an apparent distress call from an old friend, Wash received a bad quality wave from this sparsely inhabited moon, loyal to the Alliance, indicating that Monty had run into some trouble and would appreciate some help from Mal to get his ship up and running again. It had turned out to have been either an old distress call, or an intended trap. However, nothing had ensued from the visit to the moon except the traditional brawl on Unification day. While Kaylee had the opportunity to iron out a few kinks in the engine room, and Wash had the chance to check the wiring as Serenity hadn’t been responding like her usual self. Simon had his time following up a new avenue of thought with regards to River’s medication. He was hopeful that the new cocktail of drugs would have a stabilising influence on her deteriorating state.

***

River looked around the infirmary as her brother deftly started stitching the wound on Zoë’s arm, the offending bullet in a container next to the operating table. Everything in her mind was clear. She was in the moment. Simon was Simon of today, she was on Serenity. She knew who she was. She smiled. Then she felt it. Something…someone on the ship. Someone who had been there before. Her smile faded.

Mal kicked open the hatch to his bunk and clambered down the ladder, intent in reaching the basin in the corner of his bunk. He was feeling pretty good, as he washed the blood and sweat from his face. While guilt nagged at him because of Zoe getting wounded, he knew it wasn’t serious. He was also sure that Wash wouldn’t consider it a kindness that Mal had caused his wife to be injured. Especially not just before their first break in months. However, the hold contained cargo that was as good as sold to Badger, and at a price that would enable him to pay the crew, fuel Serenity and provide Kaylee with at least one of the engine parts that she always insisted that Serenity needed to keep her in the sky.

He wondered when Monty had left the distress call on that little moon. If Monty had left the distress call at all. The set-up bothered him. It had seemed like such an obvious trap, and they had gone in so carefully, and yet, nothing. It was passing strange. He pushed the drawer containing the basin back in to the wall and turned back to the room, then he froze. There on the bed, looking as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth, sat his wife.

“Surprise!” she said brightly. Mal picked up his jaw from the floor and picked up a towel, drying off his face. He looked in the direction of the bed again

“Oh, you’re still here. I was hoping that you are a figment of my over-tired imagination. I also hoped you were in jail, y’know, or dead, after your last little double-crossing activity on Belerephon?”

“So grumpy!” she said sweetly. “Come now, confess, you are happy to see me!”

“I can barely contain my excitement. Now. What do you want? Again?”

“I have a perfect job lined up, hubby! It’s so simple, it almost robs itself!”

Mal rolled his eyes “Why do I feel like I’ve heard all this b’fore? Oh, because I have! No, no little crazy, this time y’all will have to go and find another dupe for your shenanigans. By the way, how the hell did you get on my ship?”

“In the hue and cry of your heroic return from a scuffle with drunks in the bar, I passed in unnoticed. Your crew should be more alert, but then, I also have more talent then most” Saffron replied smugly.

“Modest too” Mal replied and walked over to the com. “Jayne, Zoe, get down to my quarters right now. We have an unfortunate pest invasion that I need some help dealing with”

“Oh, come on Mal!” Saffron wheedled “This plan is fool proof. There is an outpost on Persephone where the med supplies of all the rim worlds are dropped regular. I know your finer feelings about denying the good people of the rim of their medical care. But the run that drops the meds there is like clockwork, and I happen to know that there is a backup supply in case of a failure to deliver. All spick and span Alliance style. What do you think?” She paused for a minute to get her breath. “You have a bit of a reputation now for getting meds out here. You have a ready market. What’s not to like?”

Mal couldn’t help but hear her, and think to himself that as usual they had very little fuel, a very small margin of food, even after Badger's job was paid. And Kaylee had been whining about a catalyser or some such again since she had had some time to spend on the engine. Also there were no jobs waiting just at present.

“Just seems to easy, what’s in it for you?” Mal asked, suspiciously.

“A cut of the take? You must know that a girl escaped from prison has a lot of trouble accessing her previous bank accounts. I need to start afresh before I can hire someone to get that money out again.” She smiled winningly “You’d be helping me get off to a new beginning, Mal. How can you refuse a lady in distress?”

“Lady?” Mal snorted just as Zoe came down the ladder into Mal’s bunk. “Well, look what the cat dragged in” she said as soon as she saw Saffron. “Want me to throw it out the airlock, sir?” “Charming to see you too, Zoe” Saffron returned. “No better dressed than before? Oh hun, it’s a pity you lost your charm on the battlefield, along with your nice complexion.”

Zoe glanced at Mal, who nodded with smile, then she swung back and knocked her out. “Want me to throw it out now, sir?”

************************************************* To be continued... maybe...depending on the reception!:)