Life upon Serenity was once again back to usual. At first glance, no one could tell that a bounty hunter had somehow gotten aboard and threw everything that was normal into a state of chaos. But Mal knew that all was not well. While Wash, Zoe, Jayne and Book were unsure of what exactly had transpired and it's repercussions, the captain of Serenity had noticed secret glances, changes in habit and masks being put up to protect oneself. Inara had been shaken but assured him that she had been startled at the time but was now just fine. This left Mal to contemplate the state of his resident mechanic, doctor and crazy girl. River seemed to be doing just fine and was adjusting to whatever new medicines the older Tam sibling had given her. Despite being shot, Simon seemed to be recuperating just fine, although he kept shooting worried glances towards Kaylee, who was the most puzzling of his crew. During the day, she seemed to be fine, playing with River, messing around in the Engine Room and being the ray of sunshine that everyone knew her to be. But Mal knew better. He knew that Kaylee hadn't slept since Early had been aboard, and she didn't flirt with Simon anymore. She was more reserved than she normally was and this was worrying because, while she acted the same, she shirked away from physical contact, and Mal didn't know why, and when he didn't know what was going on with his crew, Mal was NOT a happy captain.

It was late when Mal had decided to turn in for the night, but that plan was quickly nixed when he heard a scream from Kaylee's room. Jumping out of bed, Mal climbed the ladder in his room with amazing proficiency and was down in Kaylee's room in a heart beat. When he got there, he saw the young mechanic thrashing and pleading with no one. Rushing over, and put his hands on her shoulders and tried to wake her up.

"Mei-mei! Wake up...it's me…Mal..." Instead of calming down, the sleeping Kaylee thrashed even more, trying to push Mal off of her, but he kept a steady grip on the gi