#going2thespecialhell

Captain Mal Reynolds let out a satisfied sigh.

Fate was feeling generous, and had dealt him a winning hand: Serenity was purring like a kitten, provisions were full-up, and he, along with his crew, had just pulled off a particularly well-paying hauling job. It'd been stressful for everyone, with a lot of literal heavy-lifting, but now, as they were flush with the fruits of their labors, he and his crew were able to relax and enjoy the peace and quiet.

"Cap'n?"

Another sigh, this time dressed in resignation. It was nice while it lasted.

"I was just ponderin': what could possibly disrupt this most serene moment?" Mal asked rhetorically as he sat up and focused his eyes on Jayne Cobb.

"Guess it's me!" Jayne replied, almost proud to have the distinction. "Wash told me to holler at ya; got a call on the Cortex from Camellia. Says she's lookin' for a lift."

Mal perked up a bit. "Camellia! Zhè shì lìng rén xīngfèn de xiāoxī!" he exclaimed as he stood. "Haven't heard from her in a spell. Grapevine said she'd been hooked on Bellerophon. Should've known; seems like nothing holds her down."

"Well, I certainly wouldn't mind holdin'-"

"Jayne, for the sake of my knuckles and your jaw, don't finish that thought." With a departing friendly slap on the shoulder applied with a bit more force than usual, Mal passed Jayne and made his way up to the cockpit.

Once he entered, he found Wash in the pilot's seat and Zoe sitting across from him. "So, a little Jayne tells me we're pickin' up Camellia. Where is she?"

"Bernadette," Wash replied, "and we're already on our way."

"Let her know we're-"

"Already did, Cap'n," Wash interrupted, smiling proudly at his initiative.

"You're the best."

"Aww, Mal; I'm all a-blush."

"No flirting with my man, sir," Zoe said, smirking playfully.

A day later, Serenity slowly set down in the New Paris spaceport, and within minutes, Mal, Kaylee Frye, Jayne, and Simon Tam, accompanied by his sister River, were disembarking and making their way to meet with Camellia.

"The air is off. Smells bad, like spoiled food and lies," River muttered.

"They always sling the worst chow closest to the spaceport," Jayne replied.

"Well then, steer clear of the chòudòufu, and don't accept any trades from folks lookin' shady," Mal recommended with a shrug.

"Hang on," Jayne said, pointing ahead. "Ain't that Camellia comin' our way?"

"Sure seems to be," Mal replied.

Kaylee joyfully called out their friend's name and rushed forward for one of her signature hugs. "Ooo, I've missed you, sweetie! So good to see you again!"

"Well, Camellia Alden, as I live n' breathe," Mal greeted, smiling fondly.

“The lights are too gorram bright.”

Jayne narrowed his eyes disapprovingly at the makeshift Christmas tree assembled in a corner of the kitchen.

“Oh, c’mon, Jayne!  I think they’re pretty and twinkly!” Kaylee cooed happily.

“Them damn things are gonna be twinklin’ in my brain all night.”

“Well, at least something will be happening up there,” Zoe deadpanned.

“Very funny.”

“Try not starin’ at ‘em, Jayne; seems that’s the ideal solution,” Mal Reynolds offered, to which Jayne offered nothing more than a frustrated grumble before dropping into a chair.

“Where’s all the popcorn I was going to string up on the tree?” Kaylee asked.

“River...um...ate all of it,” Simon replied awkwardly.

“It was crunchy and needed salt,” River commented.

“Never did quite understand that custom, honestly,” Mal chimed in.  “Seems a tree isn’t the ideal place to be hangin’ snacks.”

“Well, I’m makin’ another batch, then, and NO EATING IT this time,” Kaylee commanded.

Mal noticed Zoe grow quiet before turning away from the others.  The squabbling between the others stopped abruptly as Mal approached Zoe and found her quietly crying.  Zoe quickly wiped the tears and did her utmost to compose herself.

“Sorry.  I was just - “

“Zoe,” Mal interrupted, waving his hand to dismiss her apology as unnecessary, “You are, without doubt or hesitation, the strongest one of my little family here...but you don’t always need to be.”  Mal approached and rested a comforting hand upon her shoulder.  “I miss him too...every day.”

“So do we, Zoe,” Inara said, approaching her and wrapping an arm around her waist for a hug.  

“The ship misses him too,” River said softly.  “I feel its heart ache for him...and mine.”  She began to sniffle, and Simon took her into his arms for a comforting hug.

“Some days are easier than others.  Christmas, though...”  Zoe let out a sigh that expressed her emotional struggle all too clearly.

“Ain’t easy bein’ reminded of who we’ve lost on a day when we want our loved ones ‘round us,” Mal observed.  “There’s only so much joy an’ merriment that can cover up that kind of hurt.  But we carry on and we bring them back to us through memories...like Wash dressed as the thinnest Santa I’ve ever seen.”

Zoe burst out laughing amid her tears.  “I told him to grab a pillow to simulate Santa’s belly.”

“’The man carries toys all over the galaxy; that can’t be good for the ticker,’“, Mal quoted Wash’s comment.   “What did he say?  Oh, yeah...”’I’m promoting a healthier yuletide’.”

Zoe laughed again, and this time, so did Mal, for well over a minute, before calming down and smiling.

“He made the best damn egg nogs I ever drank,” Jayne recalled.  “An’ I ain’t even like egg nog.”

“That’s cuz he loaded them with real whiskey,” Kaylee observed.  “A lot of it too.  Wait!!  We still have the bottle!  I’ll make some for us; things’ll get very festive.”

“Little Kaylee, this is why we love you...well, one of the numerous reasons.”  Mal smiled before looking at Zoe and his family.  “Wash is always with us; him and the Shepherd; in every star we follow to find our next job, in every quiet moment of reflectin’, and in every twinkling light on that tree, blindin’ Jayne’s eyes.”

Zoe burst into laughter again, followed by Mal, and then the rest of the crew...save for Jayne, who rolled his eyes.

Captain Mal Reynolds trudged from his bunkroom towards the bridge of Serenity, barely suppressing a yawn.  “Gorram it,” he muttered,” how anyone can sleep a full night and wake up still feelin’ sleepy is beyond my realm of ponderin’.”

When he stepped foot on the bridge, Mal found River in the pilot’s seat, quietly whispering to herself.  The usual dull ache of grief over the absence of Wash settled in and dissipated just as quickly as he sat down in the seat to her right.

River stopped whistling, leaned forward and smiled.

“What do ya hear, little albatross?”

“The stars,” River replied softly, contentedly.  “So many of them to welcome us and point our way...”

“Right.”  Mal couldn’t think of what else to say.  “Well, if one of ‘em happens to let somethin’ slip about a possible job, get directions and take us there.  Until then, I have a mighty need for coffee.”

As Mal stood to make a beeline for the kitchen, Jayne appeared in the doorway, holding up a metal cup.  “Last cup, Cap’n.”

“Figures,” Mal sighed, inching past Jayne while giving him a slap on the shoulder.  “Once I’m finally awake, remind me to shoot you out the airlock.”

Jayne smirked and took a sip from the cup.  “Oh!”  Jayne called out, suddenly remembering.  “The doc asked to see ya.  Got somethin’ he wants, I reckon.”

“Of course he does,” Mal grumbled as he made his way to the lower deck and into the sickbay.

//The odds are stacked against me. No one's RP'ing for Firefly/Serenity anymore, and I can't get any interest from the Star Wars or Starfield RP crowds here.

"I do the job, and then I get paid. Go run your little world."