"In sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord, we commend to Almighty God our brother, Captain Malcom Reynolds; and we commit his body to the ground: earth to earth; ashes to ashes, dust to dust. The Lord bless him and keep him, the Lord make his face to shine upon him and be gracious unto him, and give him peace. Amen."

Book closed his bible and tucked it close to his chest as for a moment he looked down, dry eyed and solemn, upon the closed casket. Then, through the fringe of his lashes, his gaze passed over every face in the too small mass gathered around, those tired and weary faces, each carrying their own memory and pain and something he knew he couldn't touch. His eyes lingered on the man in the blue body armor, staunchly refusing to take off his vac. helmet.

"If anyone wishes to speak a few words..."

He let the thought hang half spoken in the cool air of a fine Persephone evening.

It was a surprise when the first person to take up his invitation was not Inara, veiled in black like some mysterious Madonna, silent and slender a silhouette. Though there were no flowers here at the graveside, there was the Ambassador.

Nor was it stoic Zoe, who stood at attention as if with her rigidness she could stand tall for her closest friend as well as herself, defiant for him even now.

No, it was Wash who let his wife go and came forward only to rest beside Book.

"Malcolm Reynolds was... was a singular man. Without him, I don't know what my life would be like only that it would be empty. I wouldn't have married Zoe, I wouldn't have had this family of ours, and I would never have met Serenity. Whereever he's gone, I hope it's something like home."

Wash raised his hand to rub the back of his neck. Sheepishly, he returned to his wife. She glanced to the man in blue and her jaw tightened subtley.

Beside them, River rested her head on Simon's shoulder, and he kept one arm wrapped around her waist but Book didn't miss the fingers tangled with Kaylee's. She reached up her free hand to swipe at her eyes, where tears etched trails down her softly rounded cheeks. It was odd to notice for once, she wasn't smudged by dirt, by engine grease. It made him realise how young she was.

Book winced when her whisper cracked and she was forced to turn away. "Zàijiàn, Cap'n."

And Jayne. His head was bowed and he too held the a shimmer of tears in his eyes, the huge frame more ox than man crumpling in on itself as he clutched the hideous knitted hat to his chest. Something about the way his fingers curled tight suggested that he was almost afraid to let it go.

Serenity could not speak for herself.

Inara silently turned away and floated like a grey specter in the blood-tinted twilight, disappearing into the ship.

Finally, Book looked at the three men. Hired Guns. Mercinaries. He and the leader measured one another. Face-to-shield. Inhuman somehow. Book watched the leader of the trio wave to the other two men who came and bore the casket away, back to their waiting transport. He wanted to rage, to stop them, but knew better.

"What's done is done, Grandpa," said the Blue-suit. "and No hard feelings. We will consider this payment in full."

Zoe's hand splayed wide across Jayne's chest was the only thing that stopped him from ripping Blue-suit apart with his bare hands, and Book wondered if that might not have been a bad thing.

In the wake of the fading engine sound, it seemed to be forever before the Mercinaries were gone and every breath was held.

"Hun dan," Zoe muttered and kicked at the fresh turned earth, and no one was sure to whom she refered to, and yet, she did not so much as blink an eyelash when a hand, elegant yet blunt, broke from the dark, rich loam.

Frenzied chaos broke out as Book and Jayne rushed toward that outstretched hand and pulled hard. The ground broke apart, spitting out the tall frame of Mal, who despite being 'deceased', who had spent the entirety of his funeral buried under his coffin with only a rebreather keeping him from a true grave, coughed. He stretched, and then he laughed.

"Well. Quite a little show you put on there. I thought...I thought I was gonna bawl, specially you, lil' Kaylee."

The Engineer gave him a dirty look and slapped a little less than playfully at his chest. "I won't be so nice next time."

"Good to have you back, sir." Zoe said and Wash only shook his head.

"Thank you, Zoe. Alright kids, I'm feelin' a might needful of some sky before I start growin' me some roots."

There was a general murmur of consent as the crew dispersed, but all of them thinking of their own mortality. Only Mal and Book hung back, and they were slower walking to Serenity.

"This only bought you a short reprieve, Captain. Eventually word will get back to Niska and he'll be coming after you again."

"And when it happens, Shepherd, we'll have another cunning plan. I trust you."

As they made their way up the gang, Mal's steps leaving trails of dirt behind him, Book was seized by the need to ask, "And in the future? Think you'll come back here and have your bones laid to rest-"

But Mal interupted him. "I refuse to have an emotional attatchement to a piece of ground. At one end of the scale, it's called patriotism, and at the other it's called gardening. I ain't particularly fond of either. Still it was a good service. Might reconsider lettin' yer God stay on Serenity a spell, only He'll have to share your bunk."