Who: Kaylee & Henry What: Catch up on Serenity, perhaps a tour. When: April 20th Where: Starting in Serenity’s cargo bay Rating/Warnings: Low/None Status: Started via Gdoc, continuing via comments
It was a relief that things were slowly returning to normal, or so it seemed, the general sense of worry and endless work to figure out what had happened to their friends and family had lifted, and though some required more help and care than others upon their return - everything as a whole felt as though the tension was gradually easing. Kaylee felt as though she’d not been able to do very much at all but she’d tried where she could, and she was grateful in particular for Henry reaching out so she could do something, however small a contribution it felt.
Though he’d declined her invitation at the time to visit Serenity, Kaylee had assured him it was open for whenever he wanted to come by, so long as the ship’s ramp was down, he was welcome to poke his head in, and she could show him around whatever he wanted to see. When she wasn’t working in the garage with Bucky, Kaylee would spend her time on board her beloved ship, working on the engine, or tightening up and polishing the Mule. Today the weather was bright and sunny and when Kaylee had gotten ready for the day, she’d opened Serenity’s ramp to let the air and the sun in, and set herself up in the cargo bay to tinker on the Mule. It was well past her usual lunch time when she finally took a break, smudges of grease on her face, but feeling accomplished.
Lóu luo the Golden Akita puppy was flopped nearby the Mule, chewing on a rope toy and occasionally bouncing up and pouncing on it with an excitable yapping, her curled tail wagging wildly. She paused from her efforts as Kaylee crouched by her to rumple her ears.“Keepin’ us all safe from the rope monster, are ya?” She grinned, as the pup soaked up the attention.
—
Henry felt a little bad that the people who’d been sucked into alternate worlds had been back for several days, and he hadn’t taken Kaylee up on her offer to get a tour of the space ship. Honestly, as much as he was taken with the brilliant, beautiful mechanic, he’d sort of forgotten that she’d invited him. So many other seemingly urgent, pressing issues had taken the forefront of his mind.
He headed to where she’d said the ship was parked, and parked his car nearby. It was glorious, and huge, and shocking. He wandered up, his head tilted skyward to stare at the ship, his heart thundering just a little as he neared. Giving a low whistle, he stopped near the open cargo bay, hands in his pockets. –
Kaylee was throwing the rope for Lóu luo, what seemed the thousandth time when she heard a sound behind her and turned to see Henry wandering through. “Hey!” She called out brightly to him, heading over, of course she’d noticed he seemed impressed so she was already beaming with pride.
“Told ya she was a real beauty.” Of course aside from seeing Henry being taken by the ship, Kaylee was just extra happy to have someone around, particularly someone whose company she was enjoying, life on Serenity was lonely most days, and that didn’t seem right.
“Thanks for comin’ by Henry.” She seemed genuinely thankful, still smiling warmly. Though by his expression she didn’t think it was because he felt obligated, she hoped not anyway. “Did you want tea- or there’s coffee? Or you’re just welcome t’see anywhere you’d like aboard.” It was then Lóu luo trotted over and dropped her rope toy on Henry’s feet.
–
How could Henry not be taken by that ship? He looked over at her with a bright smile, noting for a moment how pretty she looked with the grease smudge on her forehead, and the smile on her face, and then he couldn’t help but turn his eyes back up to the ship. “You told me… And I really did believe you, it’s just… wow.” He couldn’t stop grinning. How amazing was this? A real, live space ship. He’d never been invited up on a space ship before--others had, but Henry had never had the pleasure.
“Well, of course I came by,” he added gently, turning to her again. “Sorry I couldn’t… last week… I was just… y’know.” He’d been beside himself with worry. “I’m here now, though. And excited. Coffee would be great. Or tea? Your choice. I’ll have whatever you’re having. And… show me everything?”
He turned to look at the puppy down at his feet. “Is this Lóu luo?” He added, remembering the time she mentioned getting one of Yelena and Clint’s puppies. “She’s so cute.” He reached down for the rope to toss it for the dog.
–
“The Firefly is considered an older Class of ship in our ‘verse- and they don’t even make the Series three, like this girl anymore.” She affectionately looked around at her surroundings, as if she couldn’t imagine why. “But fancy don’t always equal better when it comes to space travel, they’ll cut all sorts of corners just to make ‘em look all smooth and pretty. Ship like Serenity’ll outlast ‘em.” Including how they handled exhaust from the ships and whatnot. One look at this ship, and it wasn’t traditionally streamlined, there was plenty of it exposed, pipelines, and fixtures of all sorts. But, Kaylee did try not to ramble.
“I know-” She nodded in understanding, offering a sympathetic look, moving to put a kind hand on his shoulder. “Wasn’t easy on a lot of folk. Not to mention some like yourself gettin’ almost no sleep the whole time.” And it had been clear how worried he was. “Everyone’s back and okay?” she asked with arched brows, of course she knew he wouldn’t have come if it turned out badly, but she still wanted to check in.
“Sure is, she’s a good girl. She’ll make you do that all day if you let her.” Kaylee laughed and motioned for him to follow her, knowing the dog would too when she retrieved her rope. “We’ll get some tea and I’ll show you the rest?” She guided him up the stairs in the cargo bay into the galley, which consisted of the long dining table, the small space that barely passed for a kitchen, and an adjacent recreation area. “Used to there bein’ a crew aboard-” She noted as she went about getting some cups out, and putting the water on to heat. “So it’s real nice having you come by Henry.” She hoped that didn’t sound too desperate, but she did mean it, she was happy to have the ship, but was having a hard time with it being so empty.
-
Henry didn’t really care what kind of a ship the Serenity was in her world. In his mind? It was the most amazing thing he’d ever seen. And he’d seen some really amazing things. He nodded, though, as if he understood, and followed her into the ship.
“Everyone’s back, so far as I can tell. And no serious injuries. My friends have returned.” Having Jemma back meant he could breathe again. He slipped his hands in his pockets and grinned a little at the sound of the puppy following them up into the ship. “...I think I might. I’m a bit of a pushover for adorable girls who want my time.” …he’d really been talking about Alya, but as soon as it came out he realized it could have applied to Kaylee, too. His face flushed, and he added quickly, “--I mean, I’ll throw the ball for her anytime.”
The idea that this place was normally full of people made Henry think of the times (few and far between) that he’d had the Old City Sanctuary to himself. It always felt so empty, when Magnus, Ash, Will, Kate, and Biggie were off on missions or doing whatever other things they needed to do. He felt bad that Kaylee was going through that. “I’m sorry. It sounds… lonely. Is there anything else I can do?”
–
It was sweet, really. Stumbling somewhat over his words, Kaylee stifled her amusement just a little, but it wasn’t completely hidden; she’d found what he’d said funny and it was unmistakably cute. “Well she’ll just love you for that attention.” And really, Kaylee couldn’t help but tease him. “As well as all them other adorable girls wantin’ a piece of you.” she offered, as if Henry had just posed himself as a bit of a player when it came to women, of course she didn’t get that vibe from him at all.
“Glad to hear it- know it was causing you some heartache.” And that wasn’t something she liked to see folks going through. “You’re already helpin’” She assured. warmly. “Like I said, means a lot that you came by and you’ll always be welcome to whenever you like.” The thought of inviting him for a meal was already turning over in her mind. Dinners on board alone were extra dull.“‘Course if you ever need an extra hand with any of your tech, you know I’m happy to help.” She didn’t doubt for a second Henry’s expertise, but she liked to tinker, the numbers and the calculations and all that deal wasn’t so much her thing, but putting things back together, or working with it’s parts, well she could do that.
As the water boiled, she poured two cups of tea, bringing one to him. “It’s Jasmine tea-” Fragrant and a little sweet, she liked it. “Hope you like it okay, there’s plenty else if not, always got a little honey or sugar if you want to sweeten it up too.” She offered as she took a sip.
-
Henry was definitely not a player. He was about as far from player status as a guy could get, really. His face was still rather pink as he gave his head a gentle shake. "No, I just... there's just one. Just the one. And she's five." He said, as if that explained everything. "--Jemma's daughter. Jemma and Fitz's daughter. She's like a neice to me." ...that was better, right? He felt the need to explain that A) he wasn't interested in other girls--women, and B) he was definitely not interested in girls. Gross.
"Well, I'd love to come by. Anytime." He was itching to learn everything there was to learn about this ship. When she offered to help with his tech, his mind started to spin about all the things they could work on together. He'd have to come up with a project just for them.
"I'm sure it's perfect," Henry added. "I drank a lot of tea with Magnus--with my adopted mother--back in my world." He reached for his cup and lifted it to breathe in the scent. It was lovely.