Chapter G. Bad Connections

-

*Characters and world belong to Mr. Whedon, mistakes and folly my own.

-

Kaylee closed the door of Shuttle Two. She pulled her gold and red blanket around her shoulders; it was one of Inara’s last gifts. She had trailed it behind her from the engine room, knowing the shuttles were always cooler than the ship, especially when shut down. She was glad for the layer. It always warmed her. Pulling a crate over to the console, she keyed up the cortex screen. Pressed in the numbers and characters Inara had left and in moments, was looking straight at her.

“Ni hao,” she said, then Inara’s face changed rapidly, moving from smooth planes to a smile that made her eyes crinkle and dance at once.

“Hey you,” was all of her extended greeting. Kaylee managed to reply the same back. “Well, how are you?” Inara prompted. “How are plans going for your birthday? I hope Mal is doing the right thing and landing on a decent world somewhere, so you can get a real meal, maybe go dancing.”

“I don’t know, ‘Nara, but I’m fine. How are you? Ping an? That’s a real pretty necklace you got on.”

“Do you like it? I stole it from Sheydra,” she said, leaning into the screen and whispering confidentially.

“No, not you ‘Nara.”

“Truly. You all rubbed off on me, I guess.

“Oh ‘Nara,” Kaylee started to cry. “I’ve done a horrible thing. And I don’t know how to fix it, neither, what with Simon being gone and the Captain so upset all the time, talking ‘bout things he ain’t meaning. He don’t listen, like he... But, I don’t deserve a thing. ‘Cept to be shipped off home. Or to jail. For being a thief. A liar and thief, thievin’ from friends and trepassin’ on what I know to be private.”

“Kaylee, mei-mei, you couldn’t possibly have done anything so wrong. What’s got you so worked up? Did Mal say—”

“And,” she hiccupped, “and I went and let Ledah on board, and now she’s here for good.” Inara’s eyes narrowed. “And Zoe’s mad about it, same as the Cap’n were, least, ‘til he heard her st