A/N: There's some fairly graphic M/S slash in this chapter. So so ya know :D!

Inara carefully lit the incense and candles that stood on the small altar. She blew out the tip of the incense stick, letting the scented smoke curl up to the ceiling and begin to fill the room, before she started to prepare the tea. Inara sighed as her thoughts drifted to the client she was about to entertain. She’d had the good fortune that an Alliance general had contacted her several weeks ago. Inara had put aside the proposal at the time. He wasn’t someone she would normally select as a client. However, she had gladly dug it back up after Mal had sent her that wave.

She couldn’t suppress a slight shudder when she thought of Simon and River in the hands of the Alliance… And then there was Mal. His face kept drifting to the forefront of her thoughts. Inara frowned when she recollected the expression on his face. If it hadn’t been for her Companion training, she never would have noticed it; but as it was, it was as clear as day to her that Mal felt responsible for River and Simon’s capture.

As she sat down and folded her hands in her lap, Inara smiled sadly. That was Mal for you, she thought. Always fighting battles he couldn’t win. Rallying for causes that weren’t his own. Taking matters to heart that he had no control over. It made him both frustrating and endearing to her. Even though he pretended to be a hard-headed criminal, he always wanted to do what was right. It was why he would never fit in with anyone. It was also why she loved him.

A knock on the door woke Inara from her reverie. She quickly rose from her chair, straightened her silk dress and stood in the centre of the room, radiating beauty. “Chin yin,” she said in a kind voice. The door opened, and a tall man in a military uniform walked in.

Definitely not someone I would have selected if it was up to me, she thought; but if it helped to find Simon and River, she was more than willing to do her part.

“General Marcellin, good afternoon,” she greeted him