Morning brought breakfast and the big announcement that they would be spending a few days on Muir.

"Wash has set a course for Muir. We’re gonna meet the buyers for the Lassiter and then spend a few days getting some supplies." Mal’s hand went up to silence Kaylee’s squeal. "And, yes, Kaylee, y’can go do girlie things, shoppin’ and all." He didn’t wait for Inara to speak. "We will be planet-side for ‘bout three days, best I figure. First day, with the meet, we’ll be a ways from civilization. We’ll meet the buyers, do the swap, then fly to the docks. Wash is gonna put us down at West Piers. We’ll refuel and get the food supplies we’ve been needin’ so badly. Next day, y’all can head out shoppin’ for what y’need: engine parts, medical supplies, ammo, girl stuff. Whatever. We’ll hang out another one for finishin’ up supplies and shopping. A short, and I stress short, planet-side vacation."

"You hear that wife? Planet-side vacation!" Wash whooped with joy.

Kaylee squealed and whirled to Inara. "Can you save some time, Inara, and shop with me? We can try on pretty dresses and have tea and look at shoes and buy engine bits and... and…!"

"Breathe, Kaylee. Breathe. I can make time. We'll go wherever you'd like." Inara laughed at her friend’s enthusiasm.

"Guns. Ammo," Jayne mumbled wistfully, eyes wide and voice soft, as if he was caressing a fine whore. "Big boots."

"You are one scary guy, Jayne," Wash observed, as he was dragged out of his daydreaming by the look of pure pleasure on the mercenary’s face. "You look like someone just gave you a bucket of untraceable, chocolate-covered credits."

"Husband, quit pickin' on Jayne and go fly this ship so we can have our vacation," Zoe reminded Wash with an indulgent look in her eyes.

"Going, wife. In fact, color me gone!" Wash said and was already out the door, heading towards the bridge.

The storeroom was dark and smoky, lit by a florescent bulb that dangled from a wire above a cluttered, ink-stained desk. Dusty bookcases filled to overflowing with old magazines and moldy periodicals reared up on either side, making the tiny room more claustrophobic than Mal though was entirely necessary. "Kids these days," he muttered. "Always with the theatrics."

"Kind of makes you yearn for the sort of folk who'd just shoot you between the eyes proper," Zoe agreed from behind his right shoulder.

Jayne sneezed and let out a slew of angry Mandarin curses, culminating in, "Ta ma de, thought you said these was schoolboys. Ain't schoolboys s'posed to be clean and all that go se? You muss up the Doc's infirmary any and he goes all pink and squealy."

"Sorry about the mess, lady and gentlemen," a new voice chimed in from somewhere behind the bookcases to the left. All eyes turned in that direction as three young men appeared. They were dressed to the nines in sleek suits that were completely out of place juxtaposed against the dirty storeroom. They lined up behind the desk, the speaker flanked by his two followers. He was pretty enough to be a girl, Mal thought, with pale skin that'd make Simon look like a field worker and blue eyes that Kaylee'd find dreamy.

Mal glared at him. "Don't much appreciate bein' kept waitin'," he pointed out sharply. "We was here on time with the merchandise. You'd better be in possession of the appropriate coin, else we can find us another buyer."

The leader smiled. It was an oily, holier-than-thou kind of smile, and it rubbed Mal in the wrong way. Here was a fellow who thought he could own the whole 'verse if he had enough money in his back pocket. Sad and sorry thing was, he probably could, provided the Alliance held all the deeds of sale.

"I assure you, Captain Reynolds, we have the money," he virtually purred.
"Make them show us the Lassiter, Lenny!" the one to his left hissed.

Mal turned his attention in that direction. This one was a pencil pusher if ever he'd seen one: greasy hair, skinny face, glasses that made him look like the unluckiest turtle ever to crawl out of the swamp. He was probably a worrier and a control freak.

"All in due time, Wembley," the boss soothed, but there was an edge to his voice that made Mal smirk. Obviously this one didn't like having his actions questioned by his peons.

"Oh for God's sake, cut the crap, Lenny," the one to his right said, rolling his eyes before giving Mal a bright smile, holding out his hand. "Hi, Ricky Porter. This Greek god of a man next to me is Leonard Leoben III – I can get his autograph for your nieces, if you want. The one farther down is Wembley Quentin, and yes, his parents named him that. They were cruel people."

Mal took the proffered hand cautiously. "Malcolm Reynolds, captain of Serenity." He nodded over his shoulder at Zoe. "This here's Zoe, my second in command. The ugly one's Jayne."

"I like to kill people," Jayne grunted.

"I bet you do," Ricky said, still grinning. Letting go of Mal's hand, he rubbed his palms together. "Right, let's get this done, yeah? You've got something we want, we've got something you want, yada, yada, lots of masculine posturing – with apologies to Zoe, of course. Why don't we just cut to the chase? I'm guessing that's the Lassiter?" He gestured to the case by Mal's feet.

Mal glanced down, and then back up. "Reckon it is," he concurred. "Presume that's our payment?" He nodded to a briefcase Leonard had carried in with him, which was now sitting atop the desk.

"You presume correctly," Ricky said with a sharp nod. "Now, I'll admit I've only seen this kind of thing in movies, but I think the way this works is, we give you the money, you give us the merchandise? We can play around and feel each other out, act suspicious and confrontational, and so forth? But we're all busy people here and it saves time to just get it done, don't you think?"

If it was at all possible, Mal disliked Ricky even more than Leonard. At least Leonard was a deliberate grease ball. Ricky was the kind of guy who could make you like him before stabbing you in the back.

"Make them show us the Lassiter!" Wembley hissed again, eyeing Mal's group suspiciously.

"Yes, fine." Ricky held out his hands palm upward. "Would you? He's fractious when he hasn't had his nap."

Mal glanced at Zoe, before picking up the carrying case and popping open the lid. "Happy now?" he asked, watching the greedy gleam that sparked up in their eyes as they caught sight of the Lassiter nestled in it’s foam cushion. "Now how's about you show us the cash?"

Leonard's eyes never left the Lassiter as he flipped open the briefcase and turned it toward them, revealing neat stacks of paper Alliance money.
"Big happy family?" Ricky asked cheerfully.

Mal gave him a withering glare. "Wembley, bring that money over here," he deadpanned, not looking away from Ricky.

"Why me?" the squirrelly young man asked, recoiling.

Mal turned the full weight of his glare in Wembley's direction. "Because you ain't tryin' to make me like you. Which is workin', by the way. Now take the money from Lenny and come and get your laser gun, dong ma?"

Grumbling, Wembley gathered up the briefcase, sideling around the desk, holding it out as though he were offering meat to a hungry crocodile. Rolling his eyes, Mal reached out and snatched the case away from the younger man before shoving the carrying case into his hand. "Pleasure doin' business with you boys," he said, handing the briefcase behind him to Zoe. "We're done here. Enjoy your little piece of history."

Turning around, he followed Zoe through the door as Jayne covered their exit. Pausing in the doorway, Mal turned and gave the three men a cursory glance.
"Oh yeah. Stay in school." He bobbed his head at them. "Thank you kindly."

While Mal, Zoe and Jayne were doing their crime, Simon had gone with Kaylee into the marketplace and purchased medical supplies and a few engine parts Kaylee needed to stock up on. With the promise of the Lassiter sale, they felt justified in using the last of the coin.

Back on Serenity, it was like fish at feeding time as Mal handed out the crew’s shares of the Lassiter sale money.

"Want you all back here by sundown!" Mal barked to be heard over the clamor.
"Shut up and give us th’gorram money already!" Jayne griped.

"Yeah, come on, Cap'n!" Kaylee pleaded. "It's already almost noon!"

"And ain't a one of you settin' foot off this boat till Wash lands us nice and proper at the West Docks anyway, so you can bite your tongues and show your captain a bit of respect!" Mal snapped, tapping his foot beside the briefcase.
"I'm layin' down the ground rules and I 'spect you to follow 'em. Been a while since we've had this kind of coin, and it'll probably be a while ‘till we have the same again. So, don't go blowin' it all on fripperies, dong ma?"

"Yes, Captain," came the humble chorus from the rest of the crew.

"No puppies!"

"Yes, Captain."

"No authentic Earth-That-Was dinosaur toys!"

"Yes, Captain."

"No cute little budgies you say is stuffed but turns out they're alive and kickin' and end up flyin' round the ship and gettin' sucked into the engine coil!"

"Don't be speakin' ill of the dead, Cap'n!" Kaylee protested, sniffling. "Poor li'l Jimmy."

Mal spared her a stern glare, turning back to the crew at large. "I'm gonna 'spect you all back by sundown, and I don't want t’hear tell of no bar fights, fist fights, food fights, or generalized killin' takin' place in that interim of time. Do I make myself clear, Jayne?"

"Why you gotta pick me out for?" Jayne whined.

"’Cause ain't another member of this crew liable to get into a bar fight, fist fight, food fight, or generalized act of killin' while they're out enjoyin' themselves. Just you."

"Oh."

"Doc, want you and River t’keep your heads down," Mal warned, turning toward Simon. River was idly wandering between old empty crates. "This ain't an Alliance-friendly port, so I don't reckon there's going to be anybody liable to see you, but that don't mean I'm happy lettin' you off the boat with so many folks around. The pair of you stick out like sore thumbs on a man with no fingers."

"Actually, River's... not going with me," Simon supplied nervously.

Mal frowned. "She ain't?"

"No."

"Well how come?"

"Going with Wash," River murmured, drifting up behind Mal before her brother could answer.

"When did this happen?" Mal asked.

Zoe shrugged from her seated position on the stairs. "Girl wanted to go with Wash," she answered honestly. "Didn't see as there'd be any harm in it." An affectionate smile touched her lips. "Might be she'll keep him out of trouble."

"Might be," River sing-songed. She was staring with avid interest at the collar of Mal's shirt.

Mal shifted uncomfortably. "Right," he muttered. "Fine then. Just... be good. Keep a low profile."

River shifted her gaze up from his collar, staring hard at his face. "Mal means bad," she murmured. "And Mal's been very bad indeed. Hubris is the downfall of gods and men."

"She on her meds, Doc?" Mal asked out of the corner of his mouth, eyeing River warily.

River poked him in the arm.

"Ow! What y’pokin' me for?" Mal asked, glaring at her as he rubbed his arm.
"Lucidity is not measured in CCs," she protested, before spinning around and stomping up the stairs.

"We're coming up on the West Docks," Wash’s voice crackled through the intercom. "Zoe, can I buy a pony?"

"No, dear," Zoe answered to the air.

"Not even a small one? This place is renowned for their miniatures."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because the Captain says so."

"What if we bought him a pony, too?"

"Wash, what'd I tell you 'bout usin' the 'com for personal chit-chat?" Mal asked.
"That it was wrong, wrong, wrong and I wasn't to do it, except in emergencies."
"Right. Which this ain't."

"And I'd agree with you, if not for this passionate debate about a pony."

"Wash?" Mal groused. "Just hush up and land my ship so my crew can go spend all my money."

Kaylee squealed with delight, flinging her arms around his neck, kissing him on the cheek. "I love my captain!" she said, smiling.

Mal chuckled, patting her back. "Go hand it around, mei mei," he said with a sigh. "I already got it sorted per person."

Beaming, Kaylee peeled herself away from him and picked up the briefcase, scurrying around to hand each crewmember their share of the loot.

"You found a buyer." Mal glanced to the side to find Inara standing by his shoulder. For once, she didn't smell of jasmine. She hadn't been wearing the scent much lately.

"That I did," he said, turning back to the front, watching as Jayne carefully counted through his stack of bills, feeling each one against the side of his thumb. "Bet you weren't expecting that, were you?" He tried not to sound smug. He really tried.

"Well, it's like they say," she conceded. "There's a sucker born every minute."
"Damn right," Mal agreed, snickering. "What those boys done paid us for that piece of le se 'bout boggles the mind."

"I was talking about you."

Mal glanced in her direction again, brow furrowing. "Shen ma?"

Inara looked at him, her eyes oddly flat. "This is going to come back to haunt you, Mal. It was too easy."

"How's easy a bad thing?"

"Please, Mal. This is Serenity. When has easy ever meant anything good?"

Mal's jaw tightened. "You just can't let it rest, can you?" he growled under his breath. "You just can't trust that I did this right, by myself, without your fancy friends helping out."

"It's got nothing to do with me, Mal," she said softly.

"Like hell it don't!" he exploded. The rest of the hold fell silent as all eyes turned in their direction. Mal glared back. "What're you lookin' at?"

"Mal, I'm just worried about you," Inara soothed.

"Worried about me?" He turned towards her, keeping his voice low but hot. "And when have I ever asked for your worry, huh? You know, few weeks back I thought we'd gotten somewhere between us. Thought we were finally gonna start trusting one another. But you been actin' all manner of strange since the whole thing with that protein go se, and you won't tell me why. So worry? I don't need your worry. I don't need nothin' from you, dong ma? You wanna act like there ain't nothin' wrong here, then fine, I ain't gonna argue. But don't start actin' like everythin's all right, neither."

She blinked at him, momentarily speechless, and he took the opportunity to spin on his heel and march across the bay towards the hatch controls. They'd be landing soon. He had things to do.

Wash landed Serenity at the West Docks, a hotbed of activity of both the legal and illegal variety.

If Book hadn't known they were on Muir, he’d have sworn they'd landed at the docks on Persephone. It even smelled like Persephone. It housed the same type of dodgy folk in tattered, old clothes. He half expected Badger to poke up his head out of the crowd and smirk at them.

He stood at the hatch after they landed, watching the crowd come into view as the ramp opened. The different walks of life moving about in the same place interested him – always had. But this time a face in the crowd caused him to do a double take.

Hodges? Had he really just seen Hodges? This wasn’t his normal area of operation!

Book’s thoughts flew through his mind. It had been seven years since he had last been in contact with anyone from the Alliance, but could things have changed that much? The only thing Book knew for certain was that he had to stay on Serenity, for now. Maybe in a day’s time he’d venture out, but today especially, he was staying put.

He and Zoe watched the crew disembark, going their separate ways. Book felt his trepidation melt away a fraction as Kaylee eagerly tugged on Inara's hand, dragging the Companion into the press of humanity. The crowds parted before them, making way for the elegant woman and her plain friend. The rest of the crew – even Simon, blessed be to God – melted into the crowd and soon disappeared.

"So, Shepherd, how you fixing to pass the time?" Zoe asked once the last crewmember was out of her sight.

"Well, I wasn’t planning on hearing any confessions, but I can make time if you've got one," he answered with a smile.

"Funny, Shepherd. I like that." Zoe laughed. "Was thinkin’ more on the lines of an inventory of what we got in the kitchen, and what things we should stock seein’ as we finally got the coin to do so well enough. All those herbs and what-not you like using… sure’d be nice to have plenty of ‘em for when times get hard, like they always seem to do."

"That sounds like a sensible way to spend a few hours’ time," Book agreed, if for no other reason than it would keep him away from this hatch for a while.
People watching had suddenly lost its savor.

Continue to part three