Kaylee bounded into Inara’s shuttle, humming a tune to herself, one of her supernova smiles plastered on her face. “Hey there, ‘Nara,” she greeted the older woman as she plopped down onto her couch.

Regarding Kaylee’s smiling visage in her mirror, she laid her brush against her vanity and asked, “Good day, mei mei?”

Toying with her new necklace, she said demurely, “Oh it was all right.”

Chuckling softly at Kaylee’s playfulness, Inara turned to face her, finally noticing the glint of gold at the young woman’s neck. “A new piece of jewelry?”

Her eyes lighting with excitement, she sat forward expectantly as Inara moved to her side. She’d been dying to tell someone the story of how she’d gotten it and from whom. As her friend examined it, Kaylee confided, “It was a gift from Simon. Ain’t it shiny?”

Smiling, Inara could not help but feel immense happiness for the young mechanic. It was no secret to anyone on board how much she and Simon cared for one another. It was also no secret how physical their relationship was, but that was another matter for another day. All that truly mattered was that Simon and Kaylee had found one another and the love they shared not only lifted and raised their own fractured spirits, but helped to soothe the other broken souls on this boat; whether they admitted it or not.

“It’s beautiful, Kaylee,” Inara told her, squeezing her hand gently, before settling back to hear the tale. “And it appears to be very old.”

Nodding, Kaylee gazed down at it. She’d been gazing at it for most of the day, even getting caught daydreaming by the captain when they’d returned from the job. He needed her to take the ship to full burn, as he was worried they’d miss their meet with Badger and he’d been none too pleased to find her spacing out in his engine room. But with a mutter and a scowl, he’d simply left her be.

“It is,” Kaylee affirmed, resting into the plush sofa. Wrapping her legs