Title: The Gift

Rating: PG

Synopsis: River is assigned to distract Simon and Kaylee while the rest of the crew put together a gift.

Timeline: Takes place 13 months after Serenity, the movie.

Notes: Next part of a series beginning with : And So It Begins, Kiss Me, Coming Together, Tell Me, What’s Proper?, Tears , Peekaboo, Impatient, Waking Up is Hard to Do, The Talk, I See You, Exhaustion,.Moving Day, Celebration, Surprise , Vacation, Reunion, Manipulation, Baby Talk, A First Time for Everything, The Way It Is, A Special Day, Girl Talk, The Gift

Disclaimer: This story is not meant to infringe on the copyright of any person or company related to the trademarked characters and situations depicted in the Serenity movie or Firefly series. I make no money from this. Only done for fun – and a desperate craving to have more stories told about this wonderful ‘verse Joss Whedon created.

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“Mal?” Inara approached the cockpit cautiously, as if she expected him to turn around and snap at her at any moment. After two years of grousing at one another, it would take a lot more time to get used to speaking like civil human beings. Of course, their arguments now tended to lead to far more fun things.

“Inara, to what do I owe this pleasure?” His eyes were warm and inviting, with just a hint of a spark of something behind them.

“I, well –“ she looked at the flight plan. “Where are we headed?”

“Simple delivery. Should be in and out in a few hours.”

Inara nodded, distracting herself with the blinking lights on the console in front of her. “I wanted to talk about the wedding.”

Mal chuckled and the simple sound caused gooseflesh to pebble her arms. “Isn’t this something you should be talking about with Kaylee or Simon?”

“Eventually,” Inara looked down the hallway to make sure no one would overhear them. “I need your help.”

Mal raised a concerned eyebrow and reached out to touch her hand. It was a simple gesture but it held far more meaning than any casual observer wo