“You know, Miss Pye. About the shiniest sight I ever saw, was you tacklin’ that guard,” Jayne had followed her to the wash area. The man seemed to have a penchant for propping himself up in doorways.

“Well I certainly look a sight now,” she said, face up to the mirror, studying. There was no way she would have passed for Core-bred if they’d been stopped. Her face had several scratches and the mud was caked in her hair. She grabbed a towel and headed for the fortunately lockable shower, not putting it past Jayne to offer to scrub her back. During the blissful twenty minutes or so she was in there, she felt the ship take off and they broke atmo shortly afterwards. After changing in her room she headed off to find the Doc in the Med bay. She came upon him and Kaylee in a tight and wandering embrace. She coughed and they sprang apart like guilty thieves.

“Sorry to but in, Doc, but I just wanted you to check out my bumps and bruises to make sure I’d not cracked or broken anything.” Simon looked surprised, as it wasn’t often someone came to see him voluntarily, they usually had to be bleeding, unconscious or incapacitated.

“Certainly,” he replied, fully composed now. “Sit down on the couch, please.”

“It’s a very comfy couch,” said Kaylee, strolling towards the door with a naughty gleam in her eyes. “Not good if you want to try different positions though,” and she disappeared leaving Simon with a red face, and Bane trying to find somewhere else to look. She was silent for a moment and then her curiosity got the better of her.

“Tell me, Doc, do the Captain’s jobs always go this smooth?” Simon actually laughed, but he carried on with his examination like a true professional.

“Put it this way. I’m usually patching up bullet holes and knife wounds, not scraped knees and bruises.” Bane was surprised, as it seemed to her that everything went like clockwork. He finished his exam. “Y