ONE DAY TO BOROS

The sound was even driving Wash crazy. Somehow Jayne had gotten his hands on a broom and discovered that by hitting the pipe that crossed the ceiling of his room with it, in just the right place, it could be heard more or less throughout the entire ship. For him it was an efficient way to get the attention he desperately craved, for everybody else it threatened to become the very thing that finally tipped the scale and drove them all over the edge. It wasn't particularly loud (unless you were in close proximity to the passenger dorms of course) but it was relenting and, after a while, extremely annoying; not unlike a dripping faucet.

Wash had entered the kitchen looking for food, nodding his greetings to Simon and River who was already sitting there, when the racket started again and made him groan out loud. "Taikong suoyou de xingqiu saijin wo de pigu!" he exclaimed as he threw his arms up and dumped down in the seat next to the doctor. "Will you please let the man out of bed, Doc? For all our sakes!"

Simon just nodded and stared blankly at the empty salt dispenser situated on the table in front of him, looking like he'd tried to block out the sound but failed and then just sort of given in to it. "Yeah," he sighed tiredly. "I think he's strong enough."

They heard Mal curse loudly in the hallway leading up to the bridge and Kaylee shout "I'm on it!" from the engine room in the opposite direction and then "Coming, Jayne!" mixed with her footsteps as she hurried down the stairs.

The captain came in, Zoë in tow, and he glared angry around the room at nothing in particular until the pounding beat had stopped. Then he pulled out a chair and sat down, while Zoë slipped into the seat next to Wash, gently touching his arm as she did so.

Shepherd Book entered and after greeting them, went over to the stove and started rummaging through the cupboards, soon joined by Simon.

Wash let his eyes drift aro