Title: "Wait my Dissolution"

Author: Sullen Siren (adena(at)direcway(dot)com)

Fandom: Firefly

Pairing/Characters: River, Simon

Summary: Simon receives a copy of the surveillance videos made during River's counseling sessions at the Academy. (The Session 416 tapes)

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I own nothing and no one from the Firefly 'verse, and am deeply bitter about that. I'm not making any money from this, either.

Feedback: Would be shiny!

Note: Title from Henry King's "The Exequy". This was a bunny planted by aliaspiral ages ago. She already did one on this concept that is far better, but I wanted to finish this anyway. Spoilers for the River Tam Sessions, but none for the movie. Set pre-movie, post-series.

"Somethin' you care to explain, doctor? Like how come you're gettin' mail addressed to me when you're supposed to not exist?" Mal's voice was clipped and angry and Simon didn't care. He stared at the box Mal had opened instead, a smaller parcel with his own name written hastily on the envelope. "Doctor." Simon jerked his head up to meet Mal's gaze, recognizing the command in his voice.

He scratched at the back of his neck, a nervous habit he'd never quite overcome. "I – it was only for emergencies. I found them highly trustworthy. They did get River out of-"

Mal stood abruptly, pacing a few steps away and back. "You telling me you gave gorram smugglers my name? Son, are you stupid? Just soft in the head? They'll sell you out so fast your head'll spin and-"

"They haven't yet." Simon met Mal's gaze, keeping his own resolute. "They've known how to contact me for months, Captain. If they were going to sell me down the river, I expect they would have done so already."

"You just keep on thinkin' that." Mal snapped. He threw the package at Simon carelessly, watching as Simon scrambled to catch it before it fell. "What