II

They were alone in the cargo bay, now – River and Mal were up on the bridge, the rest of the crew devoted to their own tasks. Simon’s focus was entirely on Inara, watching the way she moved in response to him. His actions were hasty, he knew – it had been too long since the last time he had done this. Too much energy wasted, while hers were quick, smooth, well-practiced. When he brought himself forward, she answered him perfectly, bodies moving around each other until their positions were reversed, eyes still intent on each other. She smiled at his enthusiasm, obviously glad to be putting some of her training to use.

When they broke apart after their first interchange, Inara cast a reassessing eye over the young doctor. “You’re surprisingly good at this, Simon. I never would have guessed at this hidden talent of yours.”

Simon beamed at her praise. “I haven’t done this in… well, in a long time. Certainly not since I put everything aside to try and rescue River. I’d almost forgotten how much I’d enjoyed it.”

“It seems like you’ve had some real education in this art. Where did you learn?”

“Well, there was a girl at my secondary school – we dated for a little while when I was about sixteen. She was the year ahead of me, and, well, she was good. Extremely good. After classes in the afternoon, we’d go down to the gymnasium and she’d teach me. Even after she graduated and we broke up, I could usually find someone to practice with. There was never a shortage of partners at the MedAcad, either – it’s one of those things that we snobby Core kids all seemed to learn how to do.”

“Well, it’s a shame that you haven’t had a lot of opportunity out here. Staying in practice can be surprisingly useful when the need arises.” Simon was good, but he didn’t have the confidence or precision of a true expert, Inara decided. The conversation was distracting him, she saw, and she took the opportunity to get under his arm. He flinched slightly when he felt the touch on his leg.

He smiled sheepishly