Credit must be given due to KaySky, who really helped me out with the dialogue. Thanks, babe.

As much as the three of them wanted to get back to Osiris as soon as possible, various things kept them from going home immediately. For starters, the new engine wasn’t completely installed yet. And even with Kaylee working from morning till night, it would still take about three days to have it fully operational with all the bugs worked out of it. And there was still the matter of getting there. Demand for the ship was still high out in the furthest reaches of space, and it was only after dropping off more cargo that they were able to land a job that took them back to Osiris. It was only two weeks later that Simon, Kaylee and River were able to touch down outside the old Tam estate.

As Serenity fueled up and packed with more cargo with the help of Shooter who decided to work for Mal on a temporary basis, Inara took them out in her shuttle to Evergreen Gardens, the high society section of Capital City, and the Tam’s estate. During the flight, she gave the young couple some encouraging words, although they did little to relieve the tension that hovered around them. Simon’s mind kept racing over what to do and what to say. The estate that was his home for the longest time felt like an Alliance facility. He kept trying to think of ways to get out as fast as possible. But as he said those six words to his father and the iron gate creaked open, he realized that there was no turning back. River slew her demons. It was time to slay his.

As the gates clicked onto the side latch, the three of them began walking up the concrete driveway. Simon remembered how during special occasions and holidays, the servants would line the trees and hedges with Chinese lanterns and pipe classical music (usually Mozart) through the speakers in between. The driveway stretched out for another hundred yards before reaching a main parking area with a large Victorian fountain. Normally, water would be cascading from it, but now it was empty,