Title: Absentee

Author: bookishtype

Prompt: Several Ways to get her attention

Rating: PG

Characters: Inara, River, Shepherd, Jayne

Word Count: 560

Inara fixed the cushions around River, moving them slightly so the girl could sit more comfortably. While she had never seen anyone in a state of stupor before, she understood the concept of shutting off the brain to perform only certain things. It was taught at the Companion House. She sat on the side of the bed and held onto Rivers’ hand. She didn’t speak or do anything and that’s how Shepherd Book found them.

“Am I interrupting something?” Shepherd asked quietly. From the glow of the room it seemed that the two girls who sat facing each other were conversing without words.

“No, Shepherd, please come in”, Inara stood up and greeted him.

She noticed the bible clutched in his hands and smiled, “I’ll leave you to your lamb, Shepherd”, and left the shuttle.

Shepherd pulled up the seat next to the bed closer to River. When they were told that River was catatonic, Shepherd knew immediately that this was something that he could help with. Attending to this misshapen flock on this ship was a hard task most of the time but he knew that they always found his presence somewhat a comfort.

He opened the bible in front of him and started reading from the Psalms.

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Jayne knew his plan was pretty farfetched when he thought it up it wasn’t until he gotten to Inara’s shuttle door that he realised what he was doing.

The girl to him was always crazy, especially with the cutting and the babbling in riddles constantly. It really drove him crazy.

He also didn’t expect to see anyone in the shuttle with River.

Shepherd Book was kneeling along side of the bed with this head bowed. Both his hands were clasped around one of River’s hands. Jayne could hear a faint murmuring of the Shepherd’s words. Praying words, like his Ma used to say to him when he was little.

Not sure how to interrupt, he cleared his throat. The murmuring