“We keep doing this, don’t we?” Jez said, her hands thrust deeply into her pockets as she stood by the airlocks joining Cherokee and Serenity. “Saying goodbye.”

“Way life goes,” Mal said. “At least we’re still around to say it.”

“True.” She smiled slightly. “Be a bit more difficult if we were standing here dead.”

“Sure be messier.”

“Think anyone’d clear it up?”

“Nope. Our mouldering corpses would probably stay until they stunk the place out.”

“Thanks for that mental image.”

“My pleasure.” Mal smiled, his blue eyes warm. “You all gonna be okay?”

“If by ‘all’ you mean me and Flynn … I don’t know. I hope so. We’ve made progress, that’s what’s important.”

“I guess.” His lips twitched. “So are you going to have any more kids?”

She raised her eyebrows at him. “Anyone ever tell you it isn’t nice to pry?”

“Probably. I didn’t take much notice, though. Only I’m figuring Flynn didn’t turn out that badly. Must be his genes.”

She blushed. Jez Thacker actually blushed. “I … suppose he didn’t.”

Mal, stop teasing her.

He had to cough to hide the laugh as Freya spoke in his head, and Jez looked at him sharply. “Anyway,” he went on quickly, “if you need any help any time, you let us know.”

“Don’t worry, we will. And the same for you.”

“I’ll take that as a kindness.”

They both knew it could be months before the two ships were within spitting distance again, but it didn’t matter. Friends were friends, no matter how often they could get together.

“And I’ll let Frey know how things go with Flynn and me,” Jez went on.

“Shiny.”

“Where is Frey, by the way?”

“Lessons. She wanted to get right back into the swing of things.” Mal chuckled. “Must be the first time the kids’ve ever hurried. I think maybe River taking over made ‘em more appreciative of my wife’s talents.”

“I had a governess,” Jez admitted. “And I hated her with a will.”

“I guess it took meeting me to mellow your nature.”

She considered hitting him, but Ida’s voice from