CALL THE MAN – CODA [12]

Several days later, the Serenity crew plus their assorted children paid a visit to Jennings' carnival. Later, they looked in on the Ben Nevis children. They'd been settled into one huge house together and were now being looked after by Mattie, her husband and some of their eldest natural children as joint house parents. Jayne didn't seem to mind that thirty odd kids were now wanting to call him 'Pa'. At least he didn't have to look after them all and he could visit now and again when he felt like it. The huge group hug they gave him nearly took him off his feet, but he coped, pretending to be grumpy, but with a smile playing around his mouth.

Melissa grinned, “Got me lots of new brother and sisters! I pick all of 'em!”

Jayne looked at her, “Don't be expectin' 'em all to come around for tea, huh?”

The new school down the road had taken all the children in and they had a secure future ahead of them. Mattie's old home was lived in by her younger teenage offspring, largely looking after themselves with some help from Hillary and Sam Cobb.

*

Serenity eventually made the modest hop to Burnham and everyone moved back into the old joint house near the beach as a semi-permanent base. The children were enrolled in the local schools again and Junior started kindergarten whilst Serenity ran its accustomed harvest run around the Newhall system until just before Solstice and Christmas.

Mal and Inara were walking along the beach, “So, another year gone.”

Inara squeezed his hand, “We've survived.”

“Jayne has almost as many scars as he has regular skin!”

Inara smiled, “Yes. Have you seen the frisson between Clarry and Jessop?”

Mal nodded, “They're teenagers. I remember what that was like, plus we've all been close to death a few times this year.”

“And birth. That bitch from the Skyplex and her puppies.”

“We're going to have to find new homes for them soon. Couple of 'em fathered by Camulus I'm thinking.”

“Jayne and Vera might want to keep the one that looks most like Ares.”

“Hey, we