The Return Home – Part 11

Serenity and her crew were stuck on Miranda, a shot down Reaver attack craft jammed between the Firefly and the prison compound walls preventing take off. The Reavers that survived were all dead thanks to River’s deadly accuracy with a pistol and the added firepower of Jayne, Mal and Zoe’s guns but all worried that they could be back soon. And Kaylee had just found a more serious problem and she knew the Capt’n was going to curse himself blue when she gave her report. She stood in the dining area looking up at the ceiling where the Reaver ship had struck the top of Serenity. The hull seemed intact from this point of view, but three of the small square windows in the front of the dome over the dining area were smashed and the thick space proof glass lay shattered in heaps on the dining room floor. Take off and fly in atmo they could, but no way in the verse could they go into the black in this condition. Just as Kaylee was about to go back downstairs to give the news, Inara and Wash came from the bridge and then followed her eyes to the windows.

“That’s not good,” was all Wash could say. But Inara had other things on her mind.

“Was anybody hurt?” she asked and Kaylee knew who she was thinking about.

“Capt’n’s OK. Jayne got a scratch on his arm but no one else on Serenity got hurt. There’s a badly wounded fellow from the Miranda people. Simon’s looking after him.”

“I should go help,” Inara said but Kaylee stopped her.

“His people are there with Simon now,” she said. “Think it might be bit crowded.”

Inara nodded. “Just sometimes I feel so…”

“Helpless?” Wash said.

“Yes,” she said and then Kaylee got a bright idea.

“Not anymore,” she said with a grin. “From now on you’re helping me.”

Inara was puzzled. “Helping you…do what?”

“What I do,” Kaylee said. “But first we need to get you out of that dress.”

Wash grinned as an image of Inara out of her dressed flashed across his mind but he quickly chased it away as he imagined the stern look Zoe would give if