Title: Afterlife Parts I & II (Will be ten altogether)

Not Mine: All the characters and little plot references belong to Joss and Co...

Setting: Takes place after the movie.(Some spoilers).Everyone tries to find their own way to move on.

I

Serenity’s rotating engine hummed and thumped in a comforting rhythm that had become as familiar to Kaylee as her own heartbeat. With her eyes still closed, she smiled warmly as she hovered in that glorious place between asleep and awake, when dreams are at their most vivid. She stretched her slender form beneath the tattered, quilted blanket. Her bare leg brushed against his and she savored the sensation. She slowly opened her clover and almond eyes to focus on the sleeping form of Simon Tam, his handsome face inches from hers. Side by side they were unceremoniously sprawled out on a makeshift bed on the engine room floor. She took advantage of the stolen moment to lovingly glance over him, from his sleep tousled black hair and strong jaw line , to the way his cheek was pressed into the blanket beneath them.The circumstances that had kept them apart were banished now, their reasons seeming so small compared to the scheme of things. Compared to what they had all been through in the weeks past. She was truly happy, but those who knew her would say she’d always been happy. This was different, she was in love, and the feeling confused her terribly. She felt a guilt beyond what she’d ever known. She had no right to be happy, now that everything had fallen apart. Now that Book and Wash were gone. Not for the first time since their deaths she began to cry. She rolled over to turn away from Simon, not wanting to wake him. Her tears slipped down her full cheeks and she lifted the back of her hand to wipe them away as she sniffled softly. A gentle arm wrapped over her bare shoulder and Simon pulled her to him in a warm embrace. He lowered his lips into her honey gold hair and breathed her in. His warm breath on her ear sent chills down her spine. “Kaylee, what’s wrong?” he asked, “Aren’t you happy?” She rolled over to face him and he wondered why he had wasted so much time before admitting his feelings to her.He brushed a lock of hair way from her damp cheek and she leaned in to kiss him softly her lips lingering over his. “Yes”, she confessed with a bittersweet smile, “But..”she traced the lines of his jaw and his lips,and he kissed her fingertip. “But what?” he asked her gently. She sighed, “It’s just, I feel like it ain’t right cuz’ a Zoe.” Simon wiped away her tears and she went on, “Poor Zoe’s a widow now.” Simon leaned over and kissed her forehead, “That’s true,” he said, “But do you think Zoe would take back the time she did have with Wash? Kaylee, Zoe’s got to heal in her own time in her own way. You can’t not live your own life because Zoe lost Wash. We have a chance to maybe have what they had someday. Don’t you think that’s what Zoe would want for us? And Wash?” She smiled at her memory of the way that Wash seized life, “He would want us to live, and love, and never look back, “ she said with a fond grin. Simon pulled her to him and his lips met hers and she concentrated on the warmth that coursed through her. She returned his kiss, pressing her body into his. He pulled her over on top of him and reached down to tickle her playfully at her side. He admired her beauty as her hair fell around her face in ringlets and a sweet smile played across her lips. He reached down to her other side and doubled his efforts and she giggled, a sweet , chiming laugh that blended in with the hum of the engine behind them.

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II

Mal climbed halfway up the stairs to the bridge before leaning over against the railing as a wave of pain shot through the stab wound in his abdomen. The Operative’s med crew had done a fine job caring for their hurts, but he knew from experience that it would take time to fully recover. At least he survived, he thought solemnly as he continued his way to the top of the stairs, if you could call it that. He crossed the bridge to the cockpit and rested his arm against the back of the co-pilot’s seat as he stared out at the sea of stars ahead. “They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” River asked from the seat beside him,”Like fireflies.” Mal glanced at the empty pilot’s seat and the dash littered with toy dinosaurs and then down at the young woman. “Yeah, like fireflies,” he said in a ghostly voice. Truth was, he was growing a little less wary at the thought of her flying his ship. She had her long brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, most likely administered by Kaylee or Inara, and she held a firm, concentrated grip on the ship’s controls. Recalling Simon’s opinion of his sister’s aptitude for catching on, he wasn’t genuinely surprised to find she was quite good at flying. “How’s she handle for ya’ little one?” he asked her. She smiled, “Like home.” He grinned and leaned against the dash to face her, “What about you, darlin’? How are you handlin’?” The tired circles were gone from her face and her dark eyes were free of the ghosts that had haunted her. He was almost used to thinking of her as a normal teenager again. “Okay,” she said softly, “Everything is right side up in my head.” He laughed at that and winced at the result, “Good to know seein’ as how you’re our new pilot. If you want her...” River tilted her head at him,“Does that mean I’m part of your crew?” He studied her thoughtfully, recalling the first time he’d laid eyes on her unconscious form, right up to the second time she’d saved his crew’s lives, “Yeah, it does.” He turned to leave the bridge, growing more confident in River’s newfound stability. “Mal?” she called out to him. “What is it mei-mei?” he asked as he turned back to her. “Don’t move the dinosaurs,” she told him. He smiled at her, “Wasn’t plannin’ on it.”

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This is my first fanfic so I’d love comments. Next parts Mal ponders his altered relationship with Zoe and Zoe and Jayne deal with their losses.....