Author’s Note: This story was inspired by something I read in Rosie Magazine (I hate that magazine, just for the record, but given a choice between it and staring blankly at the ceiling, well, my convictions falter). Anyways, this story would have happened about 45 minutes after the end of “Serenity,” and steels the punch from a lot of the conversations in “Train Job” – which is just fine with me because, timeline wise, “Train Job” make no sense whatsoever (like you can have a near-fatal gun shot wound and be up and about in less than three months of intensive physical therapy (Shameless self promotion, see my fic: Therapy)). Anyway’s that’s the stitch; enjoy and thanks for reading.

Peanut butter, we got

River wondered through the ship.

It felt like a dream.

One of those annoying dreams people only have when they are extremely hungry or thirsty and yet, are too tired to wake up and remedy the situation. A dream where there is a waterfall that you drink out of, then you think you wake up, and go to a large fountain to drink out of, then you think you wake up and go to a drinking fountain, then you wake up for and you realize you are in your bed and none of the thirst-satisfying situations you conceived had done you a bit of good: you still have to get out of the warm bed and find something to drink.

But River knew this was not a dream, because she wasn’t in pain and she wasn’t afraid. Of course, her stomach did hurt a little. It felt hollow and seemed to twinge. She was hungry.

Simon had said the drugs would help her sleep. He’d wanted her to sleep. She didn’t understand why. It occured to her, as she crept past him, sound asleep on a couch, that perhaps he wanted her to sleep so he could sleep. Perhaps he thought she needed sleep. Perhaps he knew that they were living in a dream and a fantasy. She wasn’t sure.

Her thoughts seemed to shift, like puzzle pieces in a box. They were disjointed, unformed. She hadn’t had to think for so long, or maybe she hadn’t been free to think fo