He can't dance.

He's never been able to, through no fault of his own - and he's never been called upon to dance, so things have more or less worked out in that aspect. But now, after several years of marriage, Zoe wants to dance? Wash has never been able to say no to her, not to something this... well, it'd be silly to tell her no, wouldn't it? It's not as though she asks a lot from him - apart from that he accept the odd relationship between her and Mal.

"Can fly," River tells him, causing him to jump. She moves so quietly no one seems to know she's lurking until she... well, de-lurks. "Flying is dancing. There's a rhythm to it."

Wash snorts in disbelief. "River, dancing may come as easily to you as flying does to me, but I've never left a dance floor feeling anything but 17 kinds of stupid."

"She doesn't care if you dance well," River smiles. "Skill is not the issue."

Wash knows that, but he still doesn't want to leave Zoe disappointed - or with broken toes. Mal would kill him - quite possibly literally - if Zoe were incapacitated, and besides that fact, he loves her and doesn't want to break her toes with his clumsy footwork anyway.

"I could teach you," she offers.

Wash looks up. "You'd do that?"

~*~

Zoe doesn't know what to think when she steps onto the catwalks to the sound of classical music, tinny sounding as it comes from Kaylee's old music player, and the sight of her husband swirling River around the cargo bay while Kaylee watches, laughing. Then she hears him wince as he steps on River's bare foot.

"River, I'm so sorry - I'm never gonna get this."

"Aw, Wash," Kaylee says encouragingly. "You were doin' real good 'till then. You just gotta have more faith in yourself."

"How much longer until we reach Persephone?" River asks, though he's sure she's deduced the answer on her own when she was watching over his shoulder.

"Day and a half," he responds automatically. "More, if the meteor storm they're expecting hits."

"We'll go get us some supper," Kaylee suggests, "an