Kaylee's Wiles
Newly rediscovered, altho written last October to cheer up our own Kaylee on a down day. Not like I'm writing anything new, so I thought I'd blow the dust off of this site and post this old piece of silly.
“Oh, Cap’n, here, let me help you wipe that up. I didn’ know you was gonna go all splurty on me. Was jus’ askin’ a question.”
“Cut that out,” Mal managed between coughs, jerking the greasy rag out of Kaylee’s hand before she could dab at him again, and quickly mopping his face and chin on his own coat sleeve.
“Waste a perfectly good ng gaa pei,” he grumbled, now wiping the table with the oily cloth.
“Oh, it’s not like you didn’t get to have some,” Kaylee scowled. “’sides, I sure didn’t expect you to choke over such a simple question. Just figured you’d have an answer. But now I’m thinkin’, since you’ve got so upset, maybe you don’t.”
“I got answers!” Mal said indignantly. “I got all manner of answers. I just ain’t sharing ‘em with you.” He signaled for a new drink.
“Oh.” Kaylee used her best ingenuous voice, “All manner of answers, huh?” She poked his shoulder, grinning. “Maybe you ain’t so unadventurous as we make you out to be.”
“I ain’t unadve--- who is we, and what exactly you been talking about?! For that matter,” Mal leaned around the barmaid to keep Kaylee in view, “how in the hell am I havin’ this conversation with you?” That the captain’s voice had risen even higher in octave made Kaylee grin all the wider. Zoe was right. This was kinda fun.
“Ain’t nothin’ to get in a twist over, Cap’n. Jus’ talk that comes up time to time ‘tween friends, like when we’re doin’ dishes or such. Sorta the way me ‘n you are chattin now, what with havin’ to wait here for hours ‘fore the rest of the crew shows up, an’ you not havin any coin I can use to pick up those shiny parts I seen next door.”
“Ain’t gonna work, lil’ Kaylee.” Mal took a sip from his new drink. “And that’s the sorta talk I’ll thank you to leave me out of. Ain’t seemly to talk about your captain that way.”
"Wang ji ni, Kaylee scoffed, “ I ain’t talked about you that much, sides mentionin’ your tailor. I’m more interested in the question I asked you right off, one as made you choke on your drink an’ look all shocked.” She tried not to laugh as Mal, alarmed, extended his drink to arm’s length from his mouth. “ ‘n that just made me think what t’others said ‘bout you is prolly right, even though I didn’t agree at the time.”
“Kaylee,” Mal growled a warning.
“But River was pretty sure, ‘n Zoe weren’t sayin’ one way or t’other…”
“Kaylee, you drop the topic or I’ll leave you locked on the ship next time we’re planetside.”
Kaylee stopped, pausing just long enough to appear chastened. Long enough for Mal to risk another sip.
“ ’Course, ‘Nara thinks...”
Kaylee backed away as the spray of rice wine covered the table.
Later she thought that maybe she oughtn’t have been quite so cruel to the cap’n, making up so many stories, but the almost-perfect connector feeds she’d got for a song said otherwise.
And it would be great to tell the girls, next time they got to swappin’ tales in ‘Nara’s shuttle.
“Oh, Cap’n, here, let me help you wipe that up. I didn’ know you was gonna go all splurty on me. Was jus’ askin’ a question.”
“Cut that out,” Mal managed between coughs, jerking the greasy rag out of Kaylee’s hand before she could dab at him again, and quickly mopping his face and chin on his own coat sleeve.
“Waste a perfectly good ng gaa pei,” he grumbled, now wiping the table with the oily cloth.
“Oh, it’s not like you didn’t get to have some,” Kaylee scowled. “’sides, I sure didn’t expect you to choke over such a simple question. Just figured you’d have an answer. But now I’m thinkin’, since you’ve got so upset, maybe you don’t.”
“I got answers!” Mal said indignantly. “I got all manner of answers. I just ain’t sharing ‘em with you.” He signaled for a new drink.
“Oh.” Kaylee used her best ingenuous voice, “All manner of answers, huh?” She poked his shoulder, grinning. “Maybe you ain’t so unadventurous as we make you out to be.”
“I ain’t unadve--- who is we, and what exactly you been talking about?! For that matter,” Mal leaned around the barmaid to keep Kaylee in view, “how in the hell am I havin’ this conversation with you?” That the captain’s voice had risen even higher in octave made Kaylee grin all the wider. Zoe was right. This was kinda fun.
“Ain’t nothin’ to get in a twist over, Cap’n. Jus’ talk that comes up time to time ‘tween friends, like when we’re doin’ dishes or such. Sorta the way me ‘n you are chattin now, what with havin’ to wait here for hours ‘fore the rest of the crew shows up, an’ you not havin any coin I can use to pick up those shiny parts I seen next door.”
“Ain’t gonna work, lil’ Kaylee.” Mal took a sip from his new drink. “And that’s the sorta talk I’ll thank you to leave me out of. Ain’t seemly to talk about your captain that way.”
"Wang ji ni, Kaylee scoffed, “ I ain’t talked about you that much, sides mentionin’ your tailor. I’m more interested in the question I asked you right off, one as made you choke on your drink an’ look all shocked.” She tried not to laugh as Mal, alarmed, extended his drink to arm’s length from his mouth. “ ‘n that just made me think what t’others said ‘bout you is prolly right, even though I didn’t agree at the time.”
“Kaylee,” Mal growled a warning.
“But River was pretty sure, ‘n Zoe weren’t sayin’ one way or t’other…”
“Kaylee, you drop the topic or I’ll leave you locked on the ship next time we’re planetside.”
Kaylee stopped, pausing just long enough to appear chastened. Long enough for Mal to risk another sip.
“ ’Course, ‘Nara thinks...”
Kaylee backed away as the spray of rice wine covered the table.
Later she thought that maybe she oughtn’t have been quite so cruel to the cap’n, making up so many stories, but the almost-perfect connector feeds she’d got for a song said otherwise.
And it would be great to tell the girls, next time they got to swappin’ tales in ‘Nara’s shuttle.