Title: The Girl and Jayne Cobb

Author: Instant Karma Girl

Date: Started July 2008 – Ended August 2008

Words: 45,734 (Entire Story – all parts)

Disclaimer: Joss is Boss and I would do nothing to detract from him. He and others own the ‘Verse…I just wish they played in it again.

Author’s Note: I haven’t provided translations for the Chinese because they didn’t on the show and if you use your imagination (and a translator), you can get the gist. This is my first Firefly fic. I hope you like it!

Thank you Michelle!!

Inara and I found a lot of great food for River’s birthday meal. No strawberries, but we were able to find grapes, apples, and mangos. Hell, I even picked up an eggplant for her. I thought the vegetable would be one she would like. I hadn’t ever had it, but River liked strange little things like that.

I was right. The next night at dinner, Mal showed her the food and actually handed her the eggplant. “No one knew quite how to fix it, so here,” he handed to her.

River smiled, bringing her hands to fold together on the table, like a kid at Christmas. “Eggplant! The eggplant is a member of the potato family, and it is known ‘Verse wide as aubergine, eggplant, brinjal, melanzana, garden egg, patlican, or qui zi.” She was the happiest about the eggplant. The eggplant was my idea, I kept saying in my head, hoping that she would read it. Don’t know why I was so bent on having her know that it was me that decided on it for her.

Much later that night, I sat on my bunk, waiting for her. For some reason I felt relief when I saw her remove the grate and lower herself down from the vent. A long, long time ago, I felt relief when she *left*the room. Reaching up, I put my hands on her waist and helped her down, even though I knew she didn’t need help.

“Thank you Jayne Cobb for the Eggplant.”

I swear I blushed. “Yeah, well, now we just need to learn how to fix it and eat it.” I turned and grabbed the package off my small trunk. “Here.”

She looked at me with so