Life’s Too Short- Part Four

These characters aren't mine... :(

Author's Note: I know I said this one would be really long, but it kind of isn't. So I lied. It's pretty long, though, and the next one will have to be long because it'll be all actiony and exciting. So for all of you who like to read a lot at a time, by tomorrow afternoon (I hope) there should be more. :) * * * * * “It’s come to our attention that you have had dealings with a Captain Malcolm Reynolds, of the Firefly-class transport vessel-” “Serenity. Reckon I know the name,” said the gray-haired woman with the lined face and the flinty eyes. She sat at a wooden table, watching the screen expressionlessly as the Alliance commander narrowed his eyes. “We’re also aware that you and Captain Reynolds did not part on… friendly terms.” Patience didn’t move a muscle. Her tired, pinched face didn’t give an inch, and her eyes were far from old and far from tired. They were calculating and hard and totally unafraid. The Alliance commander was taken aback by this calm, controlled woman out here on a Rim world, staring him down like a crocodile. “And?” “We’d like to offer you a job.” Patience smiled at the commander, and it was a sweet smile. It even reached her eyes. Somehow, the commander was not taken in by the smile. It seemed almost as dangerous as the stone face he’d seen before. “I’m quite fond of money, Commander Nolson.” Of course you are, he thought. “We’ve become aware of the fact that you are arranging a job with Captain Reynolds in the near future. What we want is simple: when and where the rendez-vous is to take place, and your full support.” “You want me to set up an ambush for your people, is that it?” “It is.” “Well, son, how much in payment are we talking?” “How much would you like?” Patience leaned forwards on the table, clasping her hands in front of her like a woman at prayer. Perhaps she was, though her god would never appear in any church. “Now, I ordinarily don’t like strangers on my world. But I think we can do business.”

* * * *

“Why, hello, Malcolm. How are you? How’s that scrape I gave you last time?” Mal smiled tightly at Patience. “Doing just fine, Patience. And yourself?” “Oh, I’m getting by. Now, about our little meeting.” Mal sighed as discreetly as possible. “Hmm?” “Make it thirty miles to the west of where we originally discussed. Two hours early.” “Two hours? Patience, we’re four hours from atmo.” “I’m sure you’ll come up with something. If you want to deal, that’s the way it’s going to happen.” She gave him her trademark smile, the one that meant she was in shark-mode. Mal readied himself. “Ain’t gonna shoot me again, are you, Patience?” “Now, now, if we all stay pleasant, this will be so much easier.” “Think that’s what I said last time.” “These are new times, Malcolm. New times.” He thought there was something ominous about that, but couldn’t quite pin it. Best take extra care with this, then. Extra extra care. “Suppose they are. See you in three.” “In three,” she said, and clicked off. Mal sighed again and switched off his own screen, running his other hand through his hair. Things were getting real complicated, real fast. His and Inara’s little scene in the kitchen was still running through his mind. She and Kaylee had left for Orion about ten minutes ago, saying they would wave Serenity when they were finished. Mal hadn’t said goodbye, only waved from the cargo bay as they disappeared into Inara’s shuttle. He wasn’t sure how to deal with this new development. He’d wanted to kiss her, and apparently she’d wanted to kiss him. But… well, he’d just thought… Damn it, he’d expected it to be easy after they finally kissed! Everyone had been waiting for it for so long that Mal had just thought their issues would clear up with their intimacy problems. Apparently, he’d thought wrong. He was just as uneasy about being… intimate… with Inara as before, though he wanted it almost more, and all their other issues were still alive and kickin’. For the third time, Mal sighed. Now there was this thing with Patience. Why had she changed the time and place? Ambush? With her, almost certainly. But something about it didn’t sit right with Mal. Rather, something sat not-right-ER. But they had to take the job. Serenity needed the money, and Patience had offered a mighty fine take. Hopefully, she’d actually pay them without more bullets having to fly. Somehow, Mal doubted it. * * * * “Ooh! Look at the pretties! Oh, ‘Nara, feel that!” Kaylee was in heaven. She ran her hands over a bolt of sky blue silk, gasping at its softness. Inara smiled, watching her, her own fingers running over a darker bolt of silk with a more practiced, and more critical, touch. They’d landed on Orion twenty minutes ago, after an hour’s flight in the shuttle. Kaylee had chattered nonstop about Simon and River and everything but what had happened between Inara and Mal. Inara was glad of that. She knew Kaylee desperately wanted to talk about it, but something in Inara’s face must have warned her off. Inara wasn’t quite ready to discuss what she’d felt in that kitchen. She was a little scared of what she might end up telling Kaylee, and what she might end up admitting to herself. She was in love with Mal, that was an awful, wonderful truth. And she was fairly certain that he loved her, too. But Inara was scared, no, terrified! What would happen to them? Mal’s life and her life were so very different. Or are they, her mind whispered. Are they really? You’ve survived on Serenity for this long. You need it. You need the ship, the people. Him. And he does, too. Are you really so different from each other? She could see herself becoming a mother figure to the crew, like Mal was the father figure. But to do that, she would have to give in to what her heart most desired, and she’d spent her entire life since the age of ten learning how to never do that. “’Nara? Inara!” Inara snapped out of her thoughts, and smiled at Kaylee. “Sorry, Kaylee-bird, I was…” “Thinkin’ about the Cap’n?” Kaylee asked, with a hopeful grin. Inara bit her lip. Kaylee was the only one she would ever talk to about this, she knew. “Yes,” she admitted, feeling surprisingly shy. Merciful Buddha, I’m acting like a teenager with a crush! “So? Are you two… together, really?” Kaylee had abandoned the bolt of silk for a stuffed parrot that sat on a wooden stand by the vendor’s table. She stroked it gently, not taking her eyes off Inara. “I don’t know,” Inara said truthfully. “I don’t think either of us expected… what happened. It just sort of….” “That’s so romantic! You’n the Cap’n are so perfect together! I mean, not that your other clients aren’t fine and all,” she added hurriedly, her eyes large and apologetic. Inara laughed and shook her head. Kaylee went on. “But Cap’n, he’s so shuai and all, and he’s real nice, even if he hides it all the time. He loves you, too. Everybody knows it.” “Do they? What about me?” “I always thought you had a thing for the Cap’n, but I dunno about everyone else. You’re so perfect, ‘Nara, always so… so together,” she ended earnestly. Inara was surprised to find herself a little sad that that was how the crew saw her. “I’m not really that together,” she confided with a smile. “Honey, a lot of the time, when people feel things very strongly, they keep them locked away. I think it’s wonderful that you don’t do that.” “So that means you feel very strongly about the Cap’n?” Kaylee looked so adorably hopeful that Inara had to draw her in for a hug. “Promise not to tell?” “Promise.” “I feel pretty strongly for the Cap’n,” Inara revealed in a whisper. She wasn’t ready to say ‘love’, but thought that ‘pretty strongly’ sounded all right. Kaylee gave a squeal and hugged Inara again. “Enough talk about me,” Inara said, arm around her friend. She led Kaylee down the line of stores towards a dress-making shop. “How are things between you and Simon?” Kaylee opened her mouth to respond and forgot to close it as she stared, wide-eyed, at a hot-pink dress in the window. Inara was reminded of the dress Kaylee had worn to what Mal still referred to as ‘the shindig’, but this dress was… well, it was definitely a jaw-dropper. Folds of cloth fell to the floor in what should have been a demur skirt, but for artfully placed slits that showed flashes of the model’s thighs and calves. The bodice was tight and low-cut, the straps thin and lacy. It was, in a word, gorgeous. “Things’re great,” Kaylee murmured, sounding dazed. “Oh, if he could see me in this dress!” “How about we see if it fits you?” “Oh, no, I could never-” “But I could,” Inara whispered in Kaylee’s ear. Kaylee squealed again and raced into the dress-maker’s shop. Inara followed at a more sedate pace, but she could not keep the smile from her face.

* * * * * “So what you’re saying is that it’s a trap?” Simon had his arms folded, and was wearing his classic ‘I-just-don’t-understand-how-you-can-be-this-insane’ look. “Yup,” Mal replied, pulling a canister of Protein Delight out of a cabinet. “And that we’re going through with it anyway?” “Uh-huh.” “What about the part where it’s a trap?” Mal was reminded of the conversation just before he went to get Inara from the Training House. See how that’d turned out? Everything would be just fine. “Hush, doc,” Zoe said absently, shoving a pistol into one of her holsters. “We’ve got a plan.” She looked at Mal. “We do have a plan, don’t we, sir?” “A plan. Right. Yes. I’m still workin’ through the details.” Zoe straightened. “Sir,” she said, crossing her arms, “is this going to be one of the plans where we end up running for our lives with people shooting at us?” Mal stared at her. Where was the faith? Where was the trust? “I don’t come up with plans like that!” Everyone in the room turned and looked at him. “Okay, so maybe one or two have ended a little more complicated than they began, but this one won’t.” As soon as there IS a this one, he thought glumly. He strode out of the kitchen, intending to talk to River on the bridge. Maybe she’d have some clue as to what Patience was up to. “Sir?” Zoe was walking beside him. “Yeah?” “Why do you think she moved the spot ‘n time?” “Got no idea, Zoe. You?” “Can only come up with the same things you have, sir. You plannin’ on bringin’ River?” “There’s a thought. Hadn’t planned on it, but now that you mention it-” “She wants to go.” Both of them stopped and looked around. “Up here.” Mal and Zoe tilted their heads to look at the ceiling. River was above them, arms and legs stretched out to hold her flat on the ceiling. “What are you doing up there, sweetie?” Zoe asked. “C’mon down from there, lil one.” River dropped to the floor and stood, her dark hair coming out of the loose ribbon it was tied with. “Wants to go. Can help.” She shook her head sharply as if clearing it. “I want to go,” River said carefully, as if she had to think about the words before saying them. “I want to help with the job. It’s not what it seems.” “Well, I know that, darlin’. And aren’t you supposed to be flyin’ my ship? She crashes, I blame you.” “She won’t,” River said, smiling shyly. Mal grimaced. “She better not.” “Won’t. But you’ve got to take me with you. I have to go.” “Why’s that?” “Proof,” River said. “It’s not what it seems. She’s lying to them.” “Who’s lying to who?” Zoe furrowed her brow, folding her arms. “Bought and paid for, that’s what they think. But you shine more in the darkness. Don’t worry.” “Got to be clearer than that, lil Albatross. Captain Dummy talk, remember? An’ Zoe Dummy talk.” Zoe glared at him for that, but let it pass. Mal was the only one who dared treat her as if she weren’t a piece of fragile china, liable to break at any moment. She valued that, and wouldn’t give it up. River huffed a frustrated sigh. “I’m trying,” she said in irritation. “She’s too hard for them. Won’t give in to the hammer. When you can’t fight yourself, you find someone else.” “Okay,” Mal said slowly. “This is Patience we’re talking about?” River nodded. “So is it us she’s lying to?” “In part, but not the whole.” “Is it gonna get us killed to meet her,” Mal said in exasperation. A man could only take so much psych talk. “Not if you’re careful. She’s not planning it.” “Ah, good. Solid information. So she’s not plannin’ on endin’ our honorable and completely legal escapades, is she?” River giggled. “No, she doesn’t want to kill you.” “Good to hear, Albatross, good to hear.” River walked past them towards the cargo bay, and Mal and Zoe shrugged, then followed her. It was time to go.

TBC: next, definately some action scenes. Mal and the others have fun on Whitefall, and Inara and Kaylee run into some trouble on Orion. There'll be some Rayne pairings mixed with the fight scenes, because we all know what gets Jayne excited, and more Mal/Inara angst. See you soon!