EXT: Space

SERENITY enters screen from right to left. As it passes camera, we turn with it, and then zoom into:

INT: INARA’s Shuttle

INARA is packing her things, picking up several items and looking at them with obvious nostalgia before putting them in the luggage. The last thing she picks up is a sword, the same one MAL used in ‘a high handed attempt to defend her honor’. Behind her, MAL enters, as usual, unannounced, but stops once he sees what she’s holding. He pauses for a moment, not sure what to do, then backs out and knocks.

INARA: [startled] Just a second. [she hurriedly puts away the sword, then turns towards the door] Come in.

MAL: [doing so] Wash says we’ll be coming up on Persephone in not too long. [looking pointedly at luggage] You...all ready?

INARA: Yes, thank you, captain.

MAL: Well, I just can’t help but wonder one thing. If you’ll be leaving us so soon, then why did I find this month’s rent by my door, which might not have been the wisest choice, considering Jayne’s philosophy on ownership, and I’m not too terribly sure how the Shepherd would have fared, tempting as it looked?

INARA: I shan’t be able to leave as quickly as I had hoped. Hopefully, you won’t mind me taking a few days to prepare. There are certain affairs that need attending to first. Finding a place of residence, searching for a client base...

MAL: Telling the crew.

INARA: [quietly] Yes.

MAL: [with rising anger] Be sure you do. I don’t want you sneaking off with out so much as a word. That’s ho- [he pauses, catching himself] That ain’t right.

INARA: Mal...I’ll tell them.

MAL: Good. [doesn’t leave] Well...I’ve got...things that need to be...thinged.

As he leaves INARA smiles sadly to herself at his foolishness. Cut to:

INT: CATWALK ABOVE CARGO BAY

Outside the shuttle, on the catwalk above the cargo bay, MAL leans on the wall next to the companion’s shuttle door. While he’s there with his head against the cold metal, eyes closed in thought, he doesn’t notice KAYLEE come up.

KAYLEE: Cap’n?

MAL: [eyes shooting open, startled] Wha-? [realizing that it was only KAYLEE, who had jumped back a pace at his surprise] Wa Cao!

KAYLEE: Wow. Never thought I’d here you use a religious term.

MAL: Well, you learn a great deal from a person when you sneak up on ‘em.

He starts walking, leaving KAYLEE to try to follow.

KAYLEE: Cap’n, I was wondering if now would be a good time to talk to you about that port compression coil. You know we need a new one bad and I-

MAL: Do you know how much one of those things costs? ‘Sides, I remember some one telling me that Serenity’ll run just fine with the one we got.

KAYLEE: Ok, first off, I never said she’d run fine. I said she’d run. And, another thing, that was a while ago. She ain’t doin’ so well. If we don’t get a new one some time soon...

MAL: [thinking over it, and then coming to a decision he doesn’t like] All right, Kaylee. I’ve a bit tucked away. It’s not enough right now, but hopefully we’ll be able to find work on Persephone to cover the rest.

KAYLEE: [squeals] Thanks, cap’n.

She hugs him, and camera moves, revealing the fact that he is silently going through a list of Chinese swearwords.

[Credits]

EXT: PERSEPHONE: ATMO

SERENITY descends and INARA’s shuttle detaches and flies off.

INT: COCKPIT

WASH and ZOE are in the cockpit, mid conversation, while WASH lands ship.

WASH: Look, all I’m sayin’ is something might, or might not, be going on between them. I mean you know how they fight. It looks to me like your classic love-hate relationship.

ZOE: You need your head examined, you know that? I mean she’s...and he’s... It’s just not happening.

WASH: How do you know? They could be sneaking around behind our backs. Besides, even if something isn’t happening, there’s definitely some sexual tension between them that could spell future romance.

ZOE: There is no, nor is it likely that there ever- and I stress- EVER will be, any romance as far as those two are concerned.

MAL: [coming through the door] What two?

ZOE: [standing up straight] My husband seems to think that there...[she hesitates, clearly not wanting to say what she is going to] He thinks that Jayne and River are...an item.

MAL: [trying to stifle a smile, and failing] Jayne...and River?

WASH: [defensively] I never said they were an item. All I said that there’s a possibility that they have deeper feelings for each other.

MAL: [broken down to all out laughing] First off, Jayne is about as deep as a puddle back on Shadow after a drought. And River would need to quit acting crazy for five minutes. And let’s not forget her slicing him across the chest with a gorram kitchen knife. I’d be surprised to find them in the same room without trying kill one another, let alone in a relationship.

Cut to:

INT: SERENITY KITCHEN

JAYNE and RIVER are indeed in the same room not trying to kill each other. On the table next to each of them are stacks of small pieces of paper. The one by RIVER is by far greater than JAYNE’s. There are cards on the table as well, but they’re not playing now. They’re just looking at each other, JAYNE with anger, RIVER with indifference. SIMON comes into the room

SIMON: All right, Jayne, who was win-?

He cuts off as he sees the two of them looking at each other over the table.

SIMON: What’s going on?

JAYNE: [not shifting his gaze] Well, while you were off taking a piss, your gorram sister here decided to play your hand for you.

RIVER: [proudly, turning to SIMON] I won.

SIMON: So I see. Jayne, how did you lose that much? You couldn’t have had time to play more than two hands.

JAYNE: We only played one hand. Beginner’s gorram luck is all. I figured I’d have me a chance seein’ as it’s her first time playing it.

SIMON: No, it isn’t. [at this, JAYNE finally looks at SIMON] We played this game all the time as kids.

JAYNE turns back to RIVER and narrows his eyes. RIVER responds by merely beaming back at him. Cut to:

INT: ENGINE ROOM

BOOK is helping KAYLEE with some of engine repairs, and they talk while they work.

KAYLEE: Did Inara say why she had to be gone for so long? I heard she told the captain that if he got a job to go ahead and pull it without her, then pick her up when done.

BOOK: Could be she just wasn’t interested in getting involved in another caper. I have the feeling her and the captain are finding that their professions do not go hand in hand.

KAYLEE: [becoming hysterical] You don’t think she’s going to leave do you? That’d be terrible. She’s part of the crew. Without her here it’d be like weren’t the crew anymore.

BOOK: [trying to calm her down] Don’t worry. I’m sure that she isn’t planning on leaving anytime soon.

KAYLEE: Yeah?

BOOK: [putting a hand on her shoulder] Yes.

Cut to:

EXT: PERSEPHONE DOCKS

MAL and KAYLEE are walking off the ship, the others behind them.

MAL: Now Kaylee, get only what we can’t live without for right now. If you want that part, we’re going to have to cut corners as much as possible.

KAYLEE: Aye-aye, cap’n.

ZOE: [coming up from behind] She seems awful happy about something.

MAL: Yeah. I had to give in on the compression coil. It’s gonna eat up all the money from just about any job we find.

ZOE: Ta ma de.

MAL: Yeah.

ZOE: Simon said that he and River would make sure to stay on the ship. The Shepherd’s watching ‘em just in case.

MAL: Good. Last thing we need is for one of them stepping anywhere Alliance eyes might spot ‘em.

ZOE: Excuse me for asking, captain, but just where the guay do you figure we could find jobs here?

JAYNE: [coming up from behind] Badger’s hirin’, last I heard.

MAL: That’s where I figured on startin’.

INT: THIEVES’ DEN

MAL, ZOE, and JAYNE are standing in front of BADGER’s desk, while the sad little king looks at them from behind it.

BADGER: Yeah. I ‘ad a job a while ago. Someone else came along and I ‘ired ‘em. Their captain treated me with... respect.

MAL: Well, if that’s the case, then I guess we’ll be on our way.

BADGER: Now, wait a minute. Problem is, seems this captain, who respected me, didn’t respect his crew very well. They mutinied. An’ all over my cargo, too.

MAL: I’ve got some job hunting to do, so if you’d get to the point.

BADGER: Point is, they managed to kill ‘im in the end, but ‘e decided that if ‘e wasn’t bringing the cargo in, no one else was, either. So stupid bloke blew out the engine, before they could take him. Really stupid move, considering he got them before he died. So there’s a ship out there, with my cargo on it, just ripe for the taking.

MAL: And how do you know all this happened? He come tell you all this in spirit form.

BADGER: They took on a passenger, try to legitimize what it is they was doin’. After the cap’n went, he hopped in one of the shuttles and made it back ‘ere.

MAL: Sounds like a fair enough deal. What’s the catch?

BADGER: No catch. I’m offering the same deal as them, minus 25%, seeing as you don’t have to go as far out of your was as they did. Plus, whatever parts you get of the boat. And make no mistake about it. Alliance won’t know where the cargo originally came from. Looks like you landed yourself a legitimate job this time.

MAL: Yeah, I’m sure the feds’ll believe that story when we tell ‘em, just on our say-so.

BADGER: Won’t ‘ave to. Your passenger’ll tell ‘em 'isself.

MAL: Passenger?

INT: BAR

A young man is sitting alone at a table, drinking quietly. MAL comes out of nowhere, and sits across from him.

MAL: [flashing his winning smile] Hi.

JACE: Evening.

MAL: Man of few words, I like that. Now my name is-

JACE: Malcolm Reynolds, captain of a ship named Serenity. [off MAL’s look] Ferret said he’d talk you into taking his cargo.

MAL: Ferret?... Oh, you mean Badger. I must say, that’s one of the tamer name’s he’s been called.

JACE: Yeah, well, I’m not much in the mood for thinking up names for people like him, or you for that matter.

MAL: Well now, you might just be making an assumption ‘bout him and me being the same.

JACE: Look, captain. My first time in space, I witness a fire fight and near die from lack of air ‘cause the shuttle I was in wasn’t meant as a long range vehicle. So, you’ll have to excuse me if I’m a mite worried about doin’ the same thing again.

MAL: Well, I hear you, but the thing is, you’re the only one who knows where that boat is. Without the boat, I don’t have a cargo, and without a cargo, I don’t have an income. And at this juncture let’s just say it’s very important I have an income. Now, I understand your feelings, believe me, I do, but you can’t spend your whole life down here on the ground.

JACE: [downing his drink] Well, just why not?

MAL: ‘Cause, if you try that then that big man behind you is gonna have to knock you out and drag to my ship.

JACE: What?

JAYNE hits JACE on the back of the head, and JACE is immediately knocked out.

JAYNE: Well, you did try an’ warn him.

CUT TO: BLACK

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