Wasn't "Out of Gas" the best episode ever? Well, I've decided to keep the party going with that elusive scene from Shuttle One.

As always, the chacters are Joss's, the story is Tim's, and the shame is all mine!

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“I’m sorry, Kaylee. The captain was adamant that we not speak.”

“But, ‘Nara--” she cuts me off with a shake of her head.

Fine. If she wants to spend our last hours in silence that’s her business. Not that it matters, I guess. Inara and Shepherd Book may be happy to just sit and stare at each other, read some book, or pass that note back and forth, but I’m not. I’ve gotta do something or I’ll go crazy. Sitting here trying to think about what little air we have left just makes me take deeper breaths. They say suffocation is pretty bad. ‘Specially if you’re not the only one doing it. The thought of the last thing me seeing is them three...chokin’...in pain...dying a horrible--Ooo, loose wires! Coming from under the comm. panel. Gonna check those out.

Just as I get under the panel, I can hear Jayne grumble. I don’t know why he’s so mad. He’s the one who had to go to sleep, we had to be quiet so he could, and then he goes and snores while he takes up the whole bed. And the others didn’t seem to mind. Now he’s sitting up and smacking his lips like we’re all supposed to just rush over to him. Then he sees me lying down and raises his eyebrow. If he didn’t have a bunch ‘a that white stuff hanging out of his eye...I just roll mine and keep looking to see where the wires go.

“So ‘Nara, I gotta buncha coins I won’t be needing,” he mumbles as he scratches himself.

Shep hands her the piece of paper with the note. She looks at it, frowns, and folds it. “For the last time, Jayne, no.”

“We don’t even have ta’ go all they way--“

“Is that really how you want to spend your last moments?” I can tell Shep hasn’t even looked up from his book.

“Hell, yeah!”

I hear a page turn. “Then you’re fresh out of luck.”

Jay