"Mornin’, Cap'n!" Kaylee chirped as Mal entered the kitchen. Mal smiled at her as he helped himself to some coffee, or what passed as such on Serenity. His smile turned to a frown as he caught sight of Simon staring blearily into his own cup, dark circles under his eyes indicating he’d had another rough night.

“You ain’t gettin' enough rest, Doc,” he stated bluntly, as he slid into the chair opposite the younger man. “How’m I supposed to trust a doctor to patch up my crew when I’m afraid he’s gonna collapse from exhaustion at any minute now?”

The Doc looked at him and blinked, “River --”

“It’s always River,” Mal interrupted, holding out a warning hand. “I ‘preciate how dedicated y’are to that sister of yours, I really do, but what good are you to her or me if you make yourself sick?”

Simon shrugged at that and frowned into his coffee again. “I gave her a different drug combination last night,” he replied. “I thought it might help her, but obviously...” He shrugged ruefully. “I had to give her a smoother before she ended up waking everyone else up.”

“Maybe she should start the night off with a smoother, and that way you could sleep, too,” the captain pointed out reasonably. “Ain’t no one on this boat can help you much if you make yourself sick. How’s that leg of yours?”

Simon grimaced as he automatically flexed it. “Sore. At least I know what it feels like to be shot, now. Early was right about that…”

Kaylee stiffened at the mention of the Bounty Hunter and she dropped the spoon she was using into the pot with a clang.

Mal and Simon jumped at the sudden noise, and looked at her. They both knew that Early had threatened the mechanic. They might not know to what extent, but they saw that lately little Kaylee's eyes didn't always match the smile her mouth was making. Mal noted the way Simon couldn’t hide his concern for the girl, and bit back a slight smirk.

“You did good though; you all did good.” Mal offered reassuringly. “Ceptin’ Jayne, o'course. You sure you haven’t been giving him smoothers, Doc? Ain’t right for a man to sleep that heavy.”

The younger man shook his head and grimaced. “He’d need a horse tranquilizer to knock him out. A smoother wouldn’t do anything.”

“Simon...” Kaylee giggled but it was a little forced, “be nice.”

“It’s the truth,” Simon muttered. “Remember how long it took to knock him out the last time? The man’s not human.”

“Talking about Jayne again, are we?” Wash offered cheerfully as he and Zoe entered the room. The pilot walked over to see what Kaylee was making but he grimaced in distaste as he caught a whiff of her concoction. He settled on coffee, pouring two large mugs. His wife had already slid into her regular seat, her expression stoic. Wash winked at her as he handed Zoe her beverage and she smiled back.

“I still find it odd he slept through that,” she offered. “The man’s a trained mercenary, the ta ma de hun dan. Isn’t he supposed to sleep light?”

Everyone else shrugged at that. Kaylee grabbed a bowl and started ladling out breakfast. “If it weren’t for River, who knows what mighta happened.” She shuddered.

Mal stopped her, “It don’t bear thinkin’ on.”

"River did good though," Kaylee continued. “Makes me wonder what she’d be like if she weren’t so crazy.”

Simon smiled wistfully at that, “She'd be brilliant. I wish...”

“If wishes were horses then beggars would ride, my momma used to say,” Kaylee said, laying a gentle hand on the Simon’s shoulder. “You’re doing everything you can to help her. You ain’t God.”

“No, but I should have found something by now to...”

“Good morning.” The sound of a bright voice coming from the door of the kitchen cut him off and attracted everyone’s attention. River was standing there, her face sunny. She smiled at everyone in turn before frowning inscrutably at her brother. For once, her hair was neatly brushed and tied back from her face with a simple ribbon, and the clothes she was wearing had been adjusted so they didn’t look so big.

“River!” Simon smiled at her, “You look...you brushed your hair.”

“All of them,” River corrected quietly. She moved into the room, walking around the table to get to the oven and trying to avoid looking at Simon. “The artificial oatmeal flavored protein smells delicious, Kaylee. I’m hungry.”

Simon slid to his feet and approached her, smiling. “Did you sleep better last night, after your nightmare?”

River moved away from him and shrugged, but otherwise didn’t respond. Simon tried again, reaching for an empty bowl and attempting to hand it to her for her breakfast.

“How are you feeling this morning? You seem well.”

She ignored him and the bowl, instead getting her own and quickly filling it, before moving to sit beside Mal. Simon tried not to let his hurt show as he carefully returned the bowl he’d been holding back to the shelf and went back to his seat. Mal cocked an eyebrow at him, as if to say ‘What’s up with her?’ but the younger man couldn’t answer.

“I wish we had some sugar,” River said to Mal. “The real kind, that’s white and made from sugar cane. When I was a little girl, my father used to bring home cut cane for me to suck on. It was always such a wonderful treat.”

“River,” Simon added, “that wasn’t father who did that. It was me -- I’d pick it up fresh in the market on Fridays on the way home from school. Do you remember how --”

“My father used to read me bedtime stories too,” River ignored Simon’s comments as if she hadn’t even heard them. “He was always looking after me. He’d never want anyone to hurt me.”

Mal cocked an eyebrow at that, before turning his gaze on Simon, who was just sitting in his chair shaking his head.

“Way I heard it, little one, is that your brother...”

But River never let him finish. Instead she turned to face the kitchen door, a bright smile on her face. “Hello Jayne,” she chirped when the large Merc stomped into the room.

Jayne grunted as he made his way to the coffee pot, growling when he realized it was almost empty. “Gorramit,” he muttered. “Is it too much to ask a man be able to have fresh coffee in the morning without having to make it himself?”

“I can make coffee,” River offered, jumping up.

“So can Jayne,” Mal stated calmly. “Sit down and eat your breakfast.”

“I like to help,” she replied. “It makes me feel useful, like I’m part of the crew. A contributor; a piece of a well-oiled machine, like a working cog in a watch.”

“Be that as it may, Jayne can make his own coffee. Simon told us you had a rough night. Eat something.”

River’s face darkened at the mention of Simon’s name and she stared at him suspiciously. Simon smiled tentatively at her. “I’m surprised you’re awake so early.”

“Perhaps you didn’t drug me enough,” she offered tartly.

Everyone noticed the quick flash of hurt that traveled across Simon’s face. “River, you know that --”

“Don’t want to talk to you,” she interrupted.

Over at the oven, making a fresh pot of coffee, Jayne snickered. “"Hey - she don't seem to like you too much today. Maybe she is sane. Wouldn’t want to claim you as family either, Doc.”

“That’s not funny, Jayne!” Kaylee immediately jumped to Simon’s defense, patting his arm reassuringly. “We all know she didn’t mean it.”

River snorted at that, but Kaylee ignored her. “We all seen how hard you work to make her better. No girl could ask for a better brother.”

River rolled her eyes. “What if he’s not making me better? What if he’s making me worse?”

They all turned to look at her. Jayne leaned a hip up against the counter by the stove and crossed his arms. “There’s something about you that’s different today, girl. Can’t rightly put my finger on it.”

“She seems slightly less crazy than normal?” Mal offered.

“Nope, that ain’t it.” The big Merc frowned and studied her a bit more intently. “You wearing make-up or something?”

River shook her head and smiled.

Jayne shrugged, “I’ll figure it out eventually. How long does it take a gorram pot of coffee to get done?”

“It depends on the amount of water in the pot and the temperature the water was before you started boiling it,” River offered. “Also, the flavor of the coffee plays an important role. If you like your coffee weak, it will be ready sooner - however, if you prefer your coffee strong -”

“Am I missing a science lesson?” Book queried as he entered the room. “Good morning, River -- you look lovely today. I almost didn’t recognize you with your hair pulled back off your face.”

Jayne snapped his fingers, “That’s it. You brushed your hair.”

“Oatmeal, Shepherd?” Kaylee offered, quickly rising and getting a bowl for him.

“Thank you, Kaylee,” Book replied.

“How come it’s alright for Kaylee to get Book a bowl of oatmeal, but when the feng le girl offers to make me a coffee, she ain’t allowed?” Jayne asked no one in particular, which was a good thing since they all chose to ignore him.

Shepherd bowed his head over his meal and said a quick prayer, before he looked back up and caught River’s eye.

"Why are you thanking God for something that was flash-frozen and reconstituted in a factory?" she asked him seriously. “Or is praying another symbol, like your book and your hair?”

“It’s my way of communing with God and thanking Him for all His many blessings,” Book replied, smiling. “You see, River --”

“No preachifying at my table,” the Captain interrupted. “You want to talk God, go somewhere else. Dong ma?”

Book frowned slightly at that, but stopped talking. River leaned towards him and whispered, “We can talk about it later. You can even let your hair out, if you want. I realize now that you are not Sampson, and even if you were there is no Delilah on board.”

“Delilah,” Jayne muttered through a mouthful of food, “that’s a good name for a gun.”

Continue to part three