Chapter 9: It was a Dark and Stormy Night and the Captain said to his Daughter…

Tzao gao, he hated getting dressed up. Mal stared in the small mirror and squirmed a little at the tight collared shirt which made him feel like he was choking. One more swipe with the brush through his hair; that was as good as it was gonna’ get.

“Mal, are you ready? We need to go or else were going to be late and I want a good seat.”

“I’m ready.”

Everyone piled into the wagons; it was a motley crew: people hiding from the Alliance, loners, and the such. It was a nice day for a wagon ride, not a great day to be stuck in a schoolhouse listening to a spelling bee – not where Mal wanted to spend his Saturday. The only free day of the week; every other day had stuff crammed so full into it that he was kept busy from sunrise to sunset.

Diyu, there were a lot of people there. It was like the whole town was there. Mal sat in the buckboard for a moment after everyone else had gotten out and gone to find seats inside or meet up with friends. Nerves, it had to be nerves; he hated events like this.

“Malcolm Reynolds, get your butt in here. This thing ain’t going to start without you.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m coming.” Mal started walking the schoolhouse dragging his feet.

“Don’t you scuff your new shoes, either.”

“Mǔ. I’m coming.” He walked into the one room school house. Mama and Mr. Wang, the ranch foreman, was sitting right in the front row. It seemed that everyone in town was there, and all the ranch hands. This was the big social event of the month: The Spelling Bee finals; everyone was socializing afterwards there was going to be a picnic lunch. Mama had made fried chicken, Mrs. Xing, the washerwoman had brought fried apple dumplings, and the Jen’s, the local grocer’s had brought ice cream – homemade ice cream, both peach and strawberry.

The first few words were easy: apricot, trouble, principal, and the like. Jen Xing got out on marzipan. She was really pretty, long black hair almost to her waist; Xing had kissed him behind the barn last week. Pieter Smith misspelled received. He made it through the first few rounds spelling: researched, arguing, and commitment. The Larsen twins got out in the next round on secretary and introduction. Easy words, mama had quizzed him on all of these words: mimicked, inspired, and cruelty. Mal looked over; it was just him and Hans. The words were getting harder: recognition, prophesy, and penicillin. Hans was starting to sweat. Mal clenched and unclenched his fists, and his palms were starting to feel clammy: Anthropology, innuendoes, and individualize. Loquacious, Hans misspelled it. Mal started “Loquacious L—O – Q – U – A,” he squeezed his eyes shut trying to see the word like mama taught him. “C – I – O – U –S. Loquacious.”

Mal opened his eyes to his mama jumping up and rushing the stage to capture him in a big hug. Mr. Wang was standing and clapping, all the other hands were cheering. Mr. Koble, the teacher, gave him his prize, a silver cross. Mama hung the little cross around his neck.

“I have faith in you my son. You can do anything that you set your mind to; always remember that” she whispered in his ear as she tied the leather thong around his neck.

The rest of the day was a blur, the preacher blessed the food people brought. He didn’t say the blessing like Mr. Wang, not nearly as good. One day he was going to be as good as Mr. Wang at blessing. Mama called him Henry; but, everyone else called him Sir or Mr. Wang. The local newspaper took captures of him, Hans, and their families. He wanted everyone from the ranch in his picture; but, the man from the news service said only his mama could be in it.

After his chores that night mama made him chicken and dumplings. Sometimes she added molded protein to the meat to stretch it. Feeding forty people every night was hard; but, not tonight. It was all real chicken, they were having a celebration. A party just for him -- the Shadow Spelling Bee Champ! He could hear mama singing, she always sang when she was happy. Mal could smell it all the way from the barn. The chicken smelled so good.

“Mal, Mal, wake up. We can’t have dinner with you sleeping at the table.” Mal felt for the cross on his chest as he turned his head to see Wash looking at him. It wasn’t there, and hadn’t been for years; but, he could still feel the weight of it around his neck. Kaylee was singing at the stove, something she musta pulled off of the cortex.

“Huh?”

“Dinner’s about ready. Shepard and Kaylee made chicken and dumplings. You were muttering in your sleep ‘bout someone named Hans?”

Mal just shook his head clearing out the cobwebs. “Dinner, best I go get cleaned up.” He looked around for the low melodic noise he heard. Almost like singing.

“…as thou wilt have it. Now make you ready, said Merlin, this night ye shall lie with Igraine in the castle of Tintagil; and ye shall be like the duke her husband, Ulfius…” Shepard, he thought to himself; reading to Caroline out of that book. The title was Death something. At least he wasn’t reading to her out of his bible.

“Little one best you get cleaned up for dinner, and you need to get the table set.”

“But, Shepard’s readin’”

“Now. Go.”

“Go little one. I need to clean up too.” Shepard Book told Caroline in a low stern voice.

“Yes, ba’.” The Shepard and Caroline got up and left the common area with Caroline completing some ballet thing. Mal was sure that River had a proper name for the movement; she’d told him all of them at one time or another. Caroline was copying her a lot now, it was pretty comical looking at her spinning and leaping, kind of like his heart leaped whenever she called him “ba’.” Until she’d showed up he’d never thought that there was so much emptiness in his life; but, Caroline had filled the invisible holes in his soul.

Mal walked over to the steaming pot and got ready to open it up; and Kaylee promptly swatted him with a dish towel.

“Don’ chu go ruining my pot of chicken n’ dumplings. You’re as bad as Jayne wantin’ tastes of everything.”

“Aww… Lil’ Kaylee, just one bite, please?”

“Nope. You go wash up. No tastin’. You neither Wash. Go get everyone.”

Dinner was a happy affair. Everyone was glad to have work; and the layover on Boros had made almost everyone happy. Zoë and Wash had found a bathtub. Inara had lined up a client for Pythagoras. Shepard Book had visited friends. Kaylee had gone to the junkyard and uniform shopping. Jayne had partook of the local color for a few hours. Even Simon had left the ship for a little while. And best of all, no one had been detained by the law or injured.

The discussion at dinner centered round the new job. After Wash and Kaylee had gotten back from the junkyard, Kaylee had gone to looking for a nanny uniform. Wash had plotted a course to Pythagoras, a direct course; no skirting the Alliance, no hiding in the black. Kaylee enthused about their finds at the junkyard and her new uniform; it wasn’t everyday she got to participate in their missions. River was really subdued; the effects of the heavy sedatives Simon had given her. She was mumbling into her bowl about gardens being planted and the sun turning dark. Everyone was ignoring her. Jayne shot ugly looks at her occasionally. Shepard Book was talking about the twin suns of Pythagoras.

Mal interrupted Kaylee’s animated description over a set of mostly new gaskets and seals. “Simon, tomorrow you need to go through those crates, mark everything, and integrate it into your supplies. Need to make everything look kosher, like it belongs. Dong ma?”

“Yes, Captain. I’m looking forward to it. SS is the best manufacturer of medical equipment in the core.”

“SS. Whats’ that?” Wash looked at Simon. “Some sort of Super Simon stuff?”

Jayne snickered. “Simple Simon’s more like it.”

“It’s Sol Sapphira. They’re a medical equipment and pharmaceutical house.”

Mal looked over at Caroline and Inara. Inara was trying to teach her manners; it seemed to be a losing battle. She still gobbled food like Jayne; but, less food was getting on the floor. Then Mal angled his head toward Wash who was dabbing a bit of dumpling off his wife’s face. “Wash, we got a course?”

“Yep, right in the front door. Haven’t done a course like that in a long while.”

Jayne muttered to anyone that would listen in between bites of his third helping of food “I ain’t likin’ this. Know a gorram bad idea when I hear one.”

Kaylee punched him in the arm. “Shut up, Jayne. It’ll be shiny. Just you wait and see.”

“Gone a little smooth for my comfort,” Zoë added in as Wash stood up and started clearing the table. It was his night to do dishes. Mal gave a significant look over at Caroline she sighed, got up and started helping.

“Smooth is good. Ain’t got enough jobs that go smooth,” Mal responded pushing back from the table. “Wash, I’ll do those dishes you and Kaylee go get us airborne. Time to get off this rock.”

Wash gave a little jig as he waved his towel in the air. “Free, free at last.” He kissed Zoë and left heading up to the bridge, Zoë followed him out. “We’ll be breakin’ atmo in fifteen minutes.” Kaylee left heading towards her engine room to make sure Serenity was ready to go.

“I believe that I too shall take my leave. I’m going to go and conduct an initial inspection of the cargo,” Simon said looking like a kid on Christmas morning when confronted with a pile of Christmas presents. “Come on River.” He pulled River’s chair back from the table and guided her out of the galley. Book left soon after, heading to do his evening meditation.

Jayne muttered under his breath as he watched the pair leave “liu kou shui de biao zi he hou zi de ben er zi and his fengdian sister.”

“Jayne.” Mal and Inara both glared at him, as Caroline started laughing.

“On that note of charming civility I will take my leave.” Inara stood up and glided towards the door. Jayne left right behind her.

“Well little one it’s just you and me.” Mal hung the towel up; not much clean up was needed when Kaylee and the Shepard cooked. They cleaned as they went; only ones on the crew that did that. “What’s say we go and read a story or sumpin’ for bed?”

“Yeah, when we gonna get to Py… Pythagras, Ba’?”

Mal put his hand on her shoulder after he dimmed the lights in the galley. “Pythagoras. Couple a weeks. Couple a weeks. Took us the better part of a week to get here.”

Caroline climbed down the ladderwell into their berthing compartment “What story you gonna tell me? Something ‘bout your horse?”

Mal followed her down the ladder “I was thinkin’ I’d tell you about when I won the spelling bee back on Shadow.”

Ba’ -- Father Diyu – Hell Dong ma? – Understand? Fengdian- crazy Gorram -- Bad Liu kou shui de biao zi he hou zi de ben er zi -- Stupid son of a drooling whore and a monkey Mǔ – Mother Shirr ah -- Affirmative Tzao gao- Damn it