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Athor: psycholizard
Pairings: River/Jayne, Simon/Kaylee
Summary: Simon doesn't have a romantic bone in his body. Or does he? Kaylee is frustrated by the lack of romance in her life, or is she? River and Jayne become the unknowing targets of a convoluted and complicated matchmaking plan formulated by the people that know them best: Simon and Kaylee.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never was. Never will be.
Inara stood impatiently by the docks on Beaumonde, her bags piled around her feet and a look of annoyance plastered across her face. She was frustrated, upset, angry, not to mention very put out.
They were nearly two hours late.
Mal had sent her a wave yesterday telling her the approximate time Serenity would land on Beaumonde and the berth where they would be docked. The time had come and gone, the berth was still empty, and Inara was still waiting. She had tried to raise them on the cortex twice, but to no avail. She received a busy signal every time she tried to patch a connection through so she eventually gave up. Now she was alone on the docks with no sign of Serenity anywhere.
With a heavy sigh, Inara looked up and down the street, almost expecting to see Mal and his merry band of brigands walk up and inform her that she had been waiting all this time in the wrong area, but it appeared there was no such luck left in the universe. Instead, she was left to wait among the smog and grime, forced to listen to the inane ruckus of a thousand vendors peddling their wares amidst the bright lights and advertisements lining the streets.
Honestly though, what did she expect from Mal? She wasn’t even sure the man owned a timepiece. He’d be late to his own funeral if Zoe wasn’t there to keep him on track.
A light tug at her dress drew her attention downward. A young child with grime smeared across his face peered up at her, his big brown eyes peeking out from underneath the dirt.
“Want some sugar cane, miss?” The child smiled and held up a bag of the hardened sweet. “For you, I give good price.”
“How much is a good price?” Inara knelt down so she was eye level with the child and smiled kindly.
“Good price for you is 3 credits, miss,” the child replied without hesitation. Inara knew it was far too much for the product, but the sight of the child’s ratty clothes and messy hair garnered enough sympathy, which was undoubtedly part of the young beggars plan. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out the necessary credits and handed them to the little boy.
“Here you go, er tong.” Inara smiled as the boy handed her the sugar cane and scampered off into the crowd, proudly grasping the credits between his chubby fingers.
Inara looked down at the sweet in her hand and sighed as she stood. Picking up her bags, she lifted a hand and hailed a portering mule. Within minutes, a mule stopped beside her and the driver jumped out.
“Where to, ma’am?” the man said as he hoisted her bags into the back. Inara climbed into the passenger seat folded her hands delicately in her lap as the driver climbed in after her.
“Take me to the Shangri-La Hotel, if you please,” she replied. The driver nodded once and set off. Inara took a deep breath and tried to quell her feelings of frustration over being forgotten by the one man who could incite anger in her simply by not being there. Malcolm Reynolds would just have to wave her when he landed, whenever that might be as Inara was unwilling to wait one more minute for him. However, had the Companion waited a few more minutes, she would have seen a familiar Firefly circling to land.
*****
Mal stood on the ship’s ramp overlooking the Beaumonde docks as he peered into the crowd for any sign of Inara. Serenity had been late to the rendezvous point, a fact that Mal was quick to point out was no fault of his own. He couldn’t help it if the Alliance patrols saw the need to inspect so-called ‘suspicious’ ships of interest. It wasn’t his fault that Fireflys were notorious smuggling ships and that the Alliance felt the insatiable need to stick their noses in the business of well-meaning, law-abiding citizens.
Well, almost law-abiding.
Mal sighed and rubbed his temples in tired frustration. Inara was no where to be seen and had no doubt taken off as soon as she saw they weren’t there. Gorram impatient woman. Sometimes he wondered why he put up with her, but even as that thought crossed his mind he knew the answer.
“Something wrong, sir?” Zoe asked as she walked up beside him, wincing as Mal let loose a long string of curses.
“That woman isn’t here,” he replied.
“I assume you mean Inara,” she responded, resting her hands on her hips.
“Who else can make me upset simply by not being here?” Zoe carefully schooled her expression to hide the smirk that threatened to rise. Unfortunately, she was not as successful as she had hoped to be and Mal’s scowl deepened when he saw the upward curve of her lips.
“Well, in her defense, we were held up nearly two hours by the interplanetary border patrol.” Mal glanced over at his second in command.
“That’s not the point, Zoe,” he replied. “She should have waved us. Let us know where she was gonna be.”
“You were on the cortex with border patrol for two hours, sir. Maybe she tried to wave us.”
“Whose side are you on anyways?” Mal turned and glared at Zoe.
“No side, sir,” The second in command raised her arms defensively. “Just making mention of the facts.”
They stood in silence for a moment, both watching the lively scene facing them before Zoe spoke up again.
“Sir, do you really think this so-called plan of Kaylee’s is everything Jayne says it is?” she questioned. Mal sighed and folded his arms over his chest, resting his chin on one hand.
“You don’t think it is?” Mal skillfully avoided answering the very question that had been bothering him since his conversation with the mercenary. Zoe shrugged, mirroring Mal’s stance before carefully responding.
“I’ve had my doubts, sir,” she replied. “Especially considerin’ River’s odd behavior as of late.”
“You mean near her somewhat jealous outburst whenever she’s in the presence of Kaylee and Jayne?” Zoe nodded silently.
“I think we’ve had the same doubts, Zoe.” Mal stared straight ahead into the swarming mass of people, before turning his gaze to his sidekick. “Think maybe there’s more to this plan then meets the eye.”
“So what do we do about it, sir?”
“Haven’t figured that part out yet. Maybe talk to Inara, see if she can find out anything. If she ever gets here that is.”
“I’ll go see if I can raise her on the cortex.”
Zoe turned and walked back inside the ship, leaving Mal alone to his thoughts.
“Gorram woman.” he muttered to no one in particular as he turned, following Zoe back inside the ship.
*****
River sat alone on the bridge staring out the window into the street below. She wasn’t focused on anything in particular, but was enjoying the bustling scene down below and the flashing advertisements that lit up the street. The commotion of the Beaumonde docks was soothing in a strange and distracting way since watching the movement kept her mind of her present woes.
Woes that currently involved a certain mercenary and her former best friend.
River sighed and hugged her legs against her chest. She had hoped Inara would be onboard by now, giving her some advice on how to deal with this new dilemma but it appeared the Companion was no where to be found. Now she had no one to talk to. She couldn’t discuss this issue with Kaylee, since involved her directly and Simon was of no use anymore. She supposed she could talk to Zoe, but she didn’t know what the soldier’s response would be. She would either keep her confidence or go straight to the Captain with the information.
No, Inara was the best choice for discussion, except she wasn’t here. It appeared as though River had to figure out her feelings on her own, a task she had hoped to avoid for as long as possible.
“River, I need you to try raise Inara,” Zoe marched onto the bridge, interrupting River’s moment of self-pity. River frowned and sat up straight in the pilot’s seat.
“Shangri-La Hotel?” she questioned. Zoe nodded once and leaned up against the console.
“Better make it quick, too, or the Captain’s liable to shoot something. Or someone.” River covered her mouth with one hand in an attempt to suppress a giggle as she tried to make a connection to the hotel Inara had been staying at.
“Shangri-La Hotel.” A man’s friendly face flashed onto the screen.
“Can you tell me if Inara Serra has checked out?” Zoe leaned over and asked. The man pulled up a computer and quickly scanned the contents on his view screen.
“May I ask who is inquiring?” The man asked without glancing up from the readout.
“Her registered transport, the Firefly Serenity.” The man gave a low hum then finally looked at the two women positioned in front of the screen,
“She checked out nearly three hours ago, but has recently returned. I will patch you through to her.” The man on the screen abruptly pushed a button and the monitor went blank. Seconds later Inara’s face came into view.
“Zoe, River,” she smiled as she acknowledged the two women sitting on the bridge. “I was getting worried.”
“We were held up by border patrol,” Zoe explained as she folded her arms across her chest. “Couldn’t help the delay. Captain’s a mite worried you weren’t at the pick up point, though.” Inara rolled her eyes.
“Tell the Captain I’m ready for pickup whenever you are,” Inara responded. Zoe nodded and left the bridge, leaving River alone with the Companion on the viewscreen.
“Alright River, I don’t have to be psychic to know something’s bothering you,” Inara stated with a kind smile. “You seem awfully quiet and withdrawn. Is something wrong?”
“Yes,” River sighed without elaborating further. Inara raised an eyebrow as she looked at the young pilot.
“Do we have a lot to talk about when I return to the ship?” Inara questioned. River folded her legs under her and nodded silently.
“Then I’ll see you soon,” Inara shut off the cortex feed, once again leaving River alone on the bridge to watch the bustle of the Beaumonde docks.
*****
Within hours, Inara was back on board the ship busily unpacking her bags inside her shuttle. As frustrating as Mal could be, she really did love this ship and it felt good to be back on board. She was drawn to the calmness of the Black and there were times when she felt she understood Mal’s love of space.
Inara’s thoughts were turbulent as she carefully folded and hung her many dresses, smoothing out the silky material as she went. Why did Mal have to make things so difficult?
“I see you finally made it on board.” Inara looked up as Mal intruded into her private thoughts and sanctuary.
“And I see you haven’t learned to knock,” she retorted as she continued her unpacking. Mal sauntered in and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Made me wait over two hours,” he replied as he leaned up against her dresser.
“So did you,” Inara quickly returned.
“Weren’t no fault of mine, as I’m sure Zoe already explained.”
“Is there a reason for your visit or did you just stop by to harass me?” Inara was exasperated. Why did it seem as though the Captain was completely incapable of having a normal adult conversation?
“There is actually,” Mal’s expression was sober as he walked over and sat down on Inara’s settee, propping his feet onto a nearby footstool. “Seems something is wrong with my pilot. She hasn’t been herself lately. I know folks think I don’t see things like that, but if it affects the smooth running of my ship, then I take notice.”
Inara sat down beside him, her hands folded delicately in her lap, her posture graceful and perfect.
“You want me to find out what’s wrong?” she questioned, conveniently leaving out the detail that she already knew something was bothering the pilot. Mal nodded.
“I won’t tell you what she tells me in confidence,” Inara continued.
“Don’t need to know,” Mal replied as he stood up. “Just need to know if it’s gonna affect the running of my ship on a long-term basis.”
“I’ll see what I can do, Mal.” Inara watched silently as Mal left her shuttle. Sighing, she leaned back against the cushions. She had a strange feeling that things onboard this ship were going to get very interesting. Now all she had to do was find River for that long awaited discussion.
Comments
thanks for sharing:D
Looking forward to more!