The Universe's Mixer

Book was still digesting all that had been revealed to him. He’d learned a great deal in his conversation with the young man, Jesse Custer. Wasn’t exactly settling, but it was enlightening. How was he to exist in such a place?

But then, hadn’t been all that long ago that he’d been asking himself that very question after landing in the midst of a certain crew. Seemed like a lifetime ago now. Also seemed like a bit of a cakewalk in comparison to this place. After all, a few crimes were easier to deal with than the fact that there was a section of The City where color simply ceased to exist. There’d been many a time on Serenity where he’d prayed for patience and guidance. Here, he didn’t even know what he was praying for. ( Just that he was praying. )

( ((Backdated to during the snowstorm )) )

The split log landed atop the burning campfire with a loud clap and a rising flurry of orange specks that drifted upward with the smoke. The Captain, who'd not only thrown the timber, but cut it earlier, sat back down on one of the steel footlockers that had been pulled out of the ship to encircle the fire pit.

Sure, the weather had taken a rather pleasurable turn from the snow and ice that had come before it, but nights still had a cutting chill to them. The ship had heat, but even Mal was getting frustrated with the walls of Serenity's hull when it wasn't cruising through the black, leaving the City far behind.

The rising sparks dulled as they floated higher, the orange fading into black against the dark, star-dotted sky. The expanse of space stretched out each night as if only to taunt the planet-bound Browncoat. Lowering his gaze from the stars, he came to focus on the flames as they lapped the firewood. Quiet nights on Serenity used to be anything but. Dinner conversation would linger long after the meal'd been choked down; usually up until he or Inara insulted the other, or River did something... odd. Wash and Zoe'd manage to slip off while no one was paying any particular attention. In times where they'd had a fire like this, Jayne'd been known to trade in a gun (singular, not plural) for a guitar; Kaylee'd be trying to snag a seat closest to the doctor and it would all remind Shepherd Book of some story he'd want to share.

But here? Now? It was just Mal.

Or was it?

The day was crisp and clear. Only a slight warm breeze made the leaves of the trees move, making the dappled light on the ground below shimmer and dance. Playing shadows over the faces of the playing children and the walking couples in the area.

The Valentine's day spirit had taken up residence in many, and was showing thusly in the store windows. Nobody had yet taken down their decorations. The sales for jewelry and candy went on, with the hope that more would be bought and lavished upon those who were loved and loving.

There was a man carrying balloons for sale. A woman carrying a basket of assorted flowers that never seemed to empty, no matter how many of her beautiful wares were bought. Another man pushing an ice cream cart, and a lady in a colorful outfit giving out free cotton candy and selling roasted nuts. There were performers of every sort. People on stilts, people juggling. A fire breather, yes, right in the middle of it all, carefully showing what she could do. A belly dancer dancing around in a circle, a sword swallower doing his thing in the middle of that circle. It was almost like a circus, this show for the lovers.

It seemed as if everything was greener. The sky bluer. The flowers more radiant and filled with scent. The water of the lake clearer, with paddle boats and row boats gliding over it's surface easily. The birds sang sweeter. All was perfect.

( ooc )

With Sidney's luck in the romance end of things she wanted to forget the whole day even happened. But as she took a shortcut to check out the ships (they screamed movie set to her after all) in the park was when she felt something dig into her shoulder,"Your aim is so off!" she screamed at whoever shot her as she tried to dig the arrow from out of her shirt, seeing a little person out of the corner of her eye. But she was having no luck whatever so there she was, staggering around with blood coming from her shoulder and trying to see if anyone could help. "Just great" as she felt a wave of pure lust wash over her or was it the blood from her shoulder talking?

That was when she crashed into one of the ships, this was turning into a bad romantic comedy at every turn. She could even hear the usually bad montage music going off inside her head at the same time along with giggling.

Cupid has a sick sense of humor.

Zoe had the map, and what with the weather letting up, she might actually have a decent chance in finding someone, anyone. The map though wasn't always the biggest help; it made her sick sometimes to look at it. Streets and dots moving this way and that. But, she wasn't going to let that stop her, not this time, not when she could find what she was looking for...finally.

So, with a new set of clothes, that were definitely lighter than the fare she'd been sporting, what with the snow and all, she headed out. The dot she'd marked as Wash, hoped was Wash, seemed to have settled for the day. Well, it hadn't moved, and she had to hope that that didn't mean he was dead. She actually had to stop as that thought came to mind; if he was dead again, she was going to kill him.

Grabbing a real cup of coffee, she might have become addicted, she made her way to where she thought the dot was. She didn't look like some tourist with the map open in front of her: one, she didn't want to look like an easy mark, and two, looking at the damn thing for long sent her into a tail spin. She wasn't going down that easily.

The Amazon wasn't all that surprised when she found herself at the docks; though, she did find the ship's new placement a little odd. How had they gotten it out of the warehouse? She didn't care; it just better be her ship with her crew, mainly with her husband.

She walked up to the cargo bay and entered the code to get in.

Kaylee was excited. There was no getting around the fact that she had been runnin around the corridors, jumping up and down the steps, and making all sorts of noise while inside her bunk. Mal had to have noticed, perhaps Wash had too, but Kaylee didn't mind. She was so happy to just be goin' out on a real date. Sure, this had been a terrible place at first. She almost died, or was dead, or whatever. Simon was not her Simon so they weren't together. And Serenity was stuck on the ground. But now, now she was renewed. She'd fixed an engine, and got asked out by a really really really pretty guy. She had to stop thinking about Simon, Mal had told her the truth and she'd been heartbroken too long. Now she was gleefully fixing her hair and her face and making sure not one speck of dirt hit the nice shirt and pants she was wearing.

( She could hardly contain herself. )

There were a great deal of things wrong with the City, even Kaylee knew that, but it did provide when she really needed something. She was starving hours ago and when she rolled out from under the engine she found a sandwich waiting for her. Whenever she got thirsty there was always strawberry lemonade waiting for her to drink in her glass, even if she emptied it the last time she drank from it. She liked having everything provided for her. But at the same time, as much as she hoped for Serenity to spring to life it wasn't happening. Her mechanical know how was pretty useless when the city was living in the dark ages as far as she was concerned. Mal had his guns, Wash was alive, Simon had the hospital, and Kaylee had a dead engine and more repairs to do to Serenity than she'd ever done before. It was like her baby went through hell and back to get here.

( It was enough to make anyone frustrated. )

( a shot to the head and they're dead, right? )

( grounded and lamenting. )

Mal had given her the address, but Kaylee wasn't sure about wanting company right away. Simon didn't know about Miranda. He didn't know about them. Her Simon was different than this Simon. While Simon had been kind to her, and checked in on her, it wasn't her Simon. Kaylee finally found the address. Was Inara gonna remember her? Remember everything that happened or was Inara gonna be different too?

Kaylee wasn't sure she could stand any more different thinkin people. She couldn't stand a different Inara. Inara had always cared for her, always worried her head about little Kaylee and Kaylee surely needed someone'ta worry about her now. Someone to take care of her for a bit till she could stand up without the heavy feelin' in her heart.

Gorram City.

Kaylee found the apartment fine, and pulled on her hair a little. Least she wasn't all covered in grease now. City had provided her with new clothes. In fact, the nurses had a new set of her normal clothes waiting for her. A new pair of cover alls embroidered with her teddy bear and a pretty flowered shirt for underneath it all. Least her arms didn't hurt no more. She knocked for a second. Pressing her forehead against the door. Was Inara even home? Kaylee sighed to herself. That was until she heard the door unlocking.

"Inara?"

Kaylee felt pretty off balance. Not just because of the wounds she had covering her arms, large cuts that were still leaking blood from being pulled out of Serenity by the large vacuum of space, but because her heart felt a little heavy. Mal said Simon didn't remember anything after the beagles. But how could he forget? How could he not know? Kaylee felt it was kind of painful to forget about her an him like that. Mal had tried to explain it, like he wasn't their Simon. But then.. He didn't know about Wash being departed? Or Book? Kaylee felt certainly out of place. Normally she was so bright and cheerful but it felt drained right out of her like motor oil out of an engine too fast. Life wasn't there no more.

Felt lick getting kicked in the gut, it did.

Kaylee was leaning heavily on Mal now. Getting blood onto his nice brown coat. She kept apologizing for it. Wounds weren't lethal really, but Kaylee wasn't weak enough to walk on her own considerin'. Finally they made it to the hospital. She'd have preferred the medical bay of serenity. She never liked normal hospitals. Even with the promise of seeing Simon.. well this Simon. Simon that didn't remember everything that'd happened with Miranda, or the Reavers, or Mr. Universe. Kaylee wasn't keen on it at all. She turned her head to look at Mal. Mal looked determined, as he always did. All worried about her. She had to go in.

She took a deep breath as the doors were open. When they came to the main counter, Kaylee lifted her head and tried to stand up fully. But Mal kept her firmly half leaning on him. To that she smiled. "My name is Kaylee Frye, I wanted to see Dr Simon Tam."

"Frye. Frye. Right here. Your appointment is in a moment."
"My what? I didn't call or Nothin' of the sort."
"Right here. Kaywinnit Lee Frye, right?"

Kaylee winced at her full name, but nodded. "Mal how did they know I was comin' before we got here?" She asked, half expecting some mess of officers to come out, having known her name and tired her with Serenity. They knew she was here, here with Mal. What if it was the Alliance was here? Calm Kaylee. Calm. Kaylee looked around, expecting something.

"Gorram pressure coils are going again. I told Cap'n I needed new ones." But he didn't listen, because he knew she'd try to fix it anyway, for as long as she could hold them until Serenity fell straight outta the sky.

"Kaylee give me some feedback on that engine. She gonna keep flying?"
Kaylee pressed the panel on the wall for the intercom. "Dunno cap'n, looks bad. She's seen better days."
"Make them the best days of her life right now Kay, we have to be in the black right now. Too many on our back."

Kaylee frowned and returned to the engine. Everyone else was stationed for some kind of battle. Zoe, Mal, Simon, and River were watching monitors and out windows. Inara was back on that planet meeting some nice guy who had money so she had money.

And here she was. All alone tending the dying engine. Kaylee was about ready to cry because of the sounds the engine was making. "Come on baby, not today, not today. Let ol' Kaylee fix what ails you." The sputtering sound stopped as Kaylee turned her wrench a few more times. Whew. Narrowly avoided.. Oh no. Her eyes went wide. A panel suddenly let loose and blasted off the engine and through the wall. Kaylee was all a panic. The lights were going on and off now. People were racing down towards her but Kaylee was already sucked over the engine and against the wall. One hand gripping onto her hammock, hoping she could keep herself inside until..

"KAYLEE!" Mal was there, his hand was over hers, but she was losing her grip anyway.
"CAP'N I'M SORRY!" They were both losing their grip. It was one hard tug and then she was gone, out the hole and into the black. Serenity looked like she was just floating along, happy as could be, cept for her wrenches, nails, screws and all a manner of odds and ends flying out into the black.

Can't breath. Kaylee shut her eyes and held her breath. The cold was enough to kill her. But as soon as it got icy, it slipped away and got warm all over again. Like the sun on a hot day. Warming her skin. Kaylee opened an eye. Blinded. "Oh by the bendable wrenches." She covered her hands over her eyes, she ached. Her cover-alls torn up from loose bits of ship and sharp walls she passed through. She ached. She had to have been. She felt her arms, Definitely bleeding a bit. No time to panic. Where was she? She opened her eyes a little. She could see sky. Normal sky. No black. She turned her head now. Street. Sidewalk. normal car..

Normal car.

With wheels.

No hover.

"What in the name of the 'verse." Kaylee winced as she pulled herself from the ground. Where was she. Where the hell was she? "CAP'N!!!!!" SHe yelled, hoping Mal would answer. "ZOE!" Anyone anyone! Where was she?! Panic. Panic. Panic!

How any of them could be contently living in this place was well beyond the understanding of Malcolm Reynolds. Pausing at the street corner, waiting for the clearance to cross the street safely -- he watched as a postal box flickered out of existence only to reappear right beside him. At least this phenomenon had ceased in surprising him nearly a week into his 'visit'. In fact, it barely caused a brow to raise, if at all. This rearrangement just served as a reminder that he needed to find his crew, find his ship (or any at this point would do) and get out.

But Simon had been the only one he'd found thus far. The least he knew was that Zoe, River and Inara were out there someplace. Hopefully so was Kaylee -- maybe even Jayne. Mal's hike was on it's third day. He couldn't quite explain how he found a safe place to rest his eyes each night, but he did. Though he wasn't sleeping enough. His shoulders were sagging as he waited there on the street corner.

Traffic paused and Mal strode across the way. If there were tracks for there to be an "wrong side of" and a "right side of" -- he'd found them. And he was heading right by way of wrong. For a City that supposedly "provided" this new stretch of town seemed to be provided for a bit better. The sidewalks were cleaner, the street lamps more ornate, brighter too. But the Core-worthy class of this area was lost on Mal as well; between simply not caring and the dull aching of his feet within his boots.

Dr. Tam. Good Dr. Tam. Hard-working, never-eating, sometimes-forgetting-to-sleep Dr. Tam. He hadn't seen his sister in a while. He'd only briefly caught a glimpse of John, and that guy down the hall was a little creepy. Simon had thrown himself into his work, and he had to wonder if this was all he was meant for. He was even a little shocked that he'd some how accepted, for the moment, that River was becoming an adult and that she might be able to stop someone from turning into a complete monster - Simon had his doubts, but work was dulling them. He was also a little amused at his occasional wish to be out on some hair brained adventure that was going to end up getting at least one person shot and others incarcerated - escape capers were also good for the heart.

Dr. Simon Tam needed a vacation or a life or both. Nurse Ratchett had stopped giving him the evil eye and had gone so far as to say the doctor should take a break and have a little soup. The realization that the woman had only glared at him a little while she said it rather than giving him the evil eye that would probably cause sterility in lesser men made Simon actually sit down in the caf and contemplate his existence over a cooling cup of broth.

I should find River, maybe Inara. Think I saw Zoe at that crazy party. Maybe I should look for George - we never got that coffee... Thinking of George led him directly down a path he was doing rather well at avoiding, Kaylee. It wasn't that Kaylee wasn't in his thoughts when River, Inara, or Zoe were there but that George was a semi-possibility like Kaylee, well, not exactly like Kaylee. He couldn't see George covered in grease happy to be working on some capacitor or fuel in-take.

Good Dr. Tam sat and stared into his soup, thinking and possibly for the moment relaxing.

Face down in his pillow, when Malcolm Reynolds shifted his legs to the side he expected them to drape over the edge of his bunk. But they only found the comfort and support of more mattress. That would go on record as the first thing he noticed was wrong. Next was the pillow. It was big and soft and not his. Pushing himself up with his forearms, Mal inhaled sharply as his sleepy mind raced to sort things out.

The room he was in was softly illuminated by the sun pouring in through the windows. Big bed, windows -- this wasn't a prison by any definition he knew. Looking around, this place looked like someone's personal quarters more than a cell. Glancing down, he found that he was still dressed in his own attire. Patting down his side, there was a moment of anger mixed with dread as he found his gun missing. But as he moved to get up, he saw his holster as well as his jacket slung over a nearby chair. Mal didn't waste any time replacing that particular belonging to his person.

"Zhe shi shen me?" Leaving the bedroom, weapon in hand, back pressed to the wall -- Mal crept up to the next corner and peeked around it carefully before stepping out into what looked like some empty parlor. Gun still drawn, he was starting to believe his earlier notion that this was just someone's apartment. But it was so sterile, so empty, it was if it had no resident to speak of. Mal would go on to check the adjoining rooms, which turned out to be nothing more than a bathroom and an obscenely large closet only to turn up empty handed. Ending up back in the living room/parlor, he saddled up next to the window, looking out onto an unfamiliar cityscape. Where was this place? Where were the others? Where was Serenity?

The clap of a door opening and closing from the other side of the wall drew his attention to what would turn out to be the front door to the apartment. Firearm still in hand, he approached the door with caution. The door creaked open after Mal twisted the knob and he stood still -- listening.