(Untitled)

[belongtonobody]

Inara had endured six months on the island of Tabula Rasa, bearing witness to a season of snow and a day of Reavers. She had moved from Serenity to separate herself and still spent time with the crew regularly. She had made plans to start a school, a Companion house of her own, and found herself unable to start so complex a project, one that would

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[beentodamascus]

In Damascus, they prayed facing towards Mecca, prayed south, and the sun passed over their heads on the way to setting. Adam was sitting on the sand, watching the sun go down, his weight leaned lazily across his knees, and he was letting himself think about Fiona. He'd been trying not to linger on things he couldn't change, but if he thought about her for a couple of minutes every day, her and Wes, he wasn't going to forget.

He watched a woman walking in the shadow of Coraline's beloved spaceship, and he thought about Fi.

[belongtonobody]

Inara felt herself being watched. It was a familiar sensation, even a welcome one, and she ignored the man kneeling in the sand for a minute or two. Walking out of the shadow and into the warmth of the sun, she turned her head to look at the man and smiled. "It's a beautiful sunset, isn't it?"

[beentodamascus]

"One of the best things about this place," said Adam, an almost dreamy quality to his voice as he glanced back at the sun. "Changes the entire feel of a place, a sunset. Even ugly places look beautiful, sometimes. Not that this place is ugly."

He smiled, and shook his head at himself.

"You know what I mean."

[belongtonobody]

"I do," Inara agreed warmly. "The way a world looks at sunset is different. Golden. Very nearly liquid. It... gives a glow to what is already beautiful and polishes what is ordinary."

She took a few slow steps forward, the hem of her skirt catching at the sand, then stopped to look again toward the horizon.

[sidlong_glance]

Sara had felt unsettled lately, felt like things were too quiet for her liking, especially since Nick and Greg had received those...things. A CSI could never be paranoid enough, really. She let her feet guide her, though, today. It was leap year, that extra day that was like any other day, even on this damn island that gave and took away with measured abandon.

Besides, she didn't get south as much as she'd like. And as she looked up at the...well, it was a spaceship, maybe?...she realized that no, she really didn't. Knowing something was there wasn't the same as seeing it. "Oh my god," she said, almost shocked.

[belongtonobody]

Inara turned at the sound of the voice, looking from the woman to Serenity and back again. "Have you never seen a ship like this before?" she asked, her voice light, curious. It was clear that she never had, or at least that she had not known this particular one was here. Inara smiled. "She's called Serenity."

[sidlong_glance]

Sara looked slightly embarrassed, not having realized anyone had heard, least of all a very beautiful woman that reminded her vaguely of Lady Heather, but only in benign ways--the way she stood, maybe. "Only on television," she admitted. "Or in one of the casinos, but never one that was...well, real."

And this Serenity was real. The wear to her that Sara could see was indicative of travel. "Serenity's an interesting name for a ship. More zen, less fighting."

[belongtonobody]

"It depends on the Serenity you think of, I suppose," Inara said. To her, it seemed a fitting name, regardless of the battle that had marked its captain. "There's a surprising amount of peace to be found on that ship, especially given the crew that work her. I take it you're from a time before this is the norm then?" She smiled broadly then.

[crazyspacegirl]

River did not like to dwell on the past, either. Nor the future for that matter, when it was so unpredictable. The present was all she felt she could count on, and today the present was good. She was running, not from anything or even really to, though she was glad to be nearing home. She was just running on the beach because she liked to run, the burn in her muscles and her lungs, and her dog beside her as they raced flat out through the sand.

She saw Inara and stopped, because crew was crew no matter where they lived and she didn't see Inara nearly as much as she felt she ought to.

"Ni hao," she said, catching her breath and laughing at Simon Chicago's confusion when he found himself running alone.

[belongtonobody]

"Ni hao," Inara said, a genuine smile growing on her lips at the sight of River. "It looks as if you've worn him out."

It was good to see River looking happy, content even, after the scare with the wanted posters she had heard about. Every time she saw her or Simon, she remembered all over again how much pleasure she found in spending time with her, as if the realization slipped away when she wasn't around. It had, at one time, seemed exactly the reason to stay away. These days, she wondered.

[crazyspacegirl]

"The plan is to wear us both out, really. Though I do tend to not need to do so as much as I used to." River didn't have nearly as much trouble sleeping as she had before she had taken to sleeping in Mal's bed, but she figured that went without saying. "Just... lately..." She shrugged, because that went without saying, too, when she'd made such a fuss over the poster surely everyone had heard about it.

"What brings you all the way out here?" she teased, just a little bit. "I was starting to think you were liking being away from all this." She indicated Serenity, shining in the sunset, and wondered why anyone would ever want to leave her.

[belongtonobody]

"Well," Inara said with a soft laugh, "it certainly is more peaceful, not living on board." It was her turn to tease, stepping forward to kneel down and stroke Simon Chicago's fur. "But a little chaos now and then doesn't hurt."

Although, in some ways, it had, hadn't it? There was more than a little chaos in her life, and much of it could be traced to this ship and her crew -- or, at least, much of what had been there before this island. She had always kept a neat life, an orderly one, until she had gone seeking somewhere off Sihnon and found Serenity. She'd never counted on taking mysterious islands into the bargain. "And how have the two of you been? Other than worn out."

[benedictbecky]

The spaceship was old news-- in that crazy island way that spaceships COULD be old news, but the pretty lady underneath it was new. To be honest, Becky got a twinge off her, the way she held herself, like all the mysteries in the world were in her head.

Or well, not her head so much.

Becky was on her way to see Wes and Gunn, but she figured she had the time to stop and say hi. Which she did.

"Hi there, traveler. You belong to that there ship?"

[belongtonobody]

It was a curious question, but the rhythm of the girl's language felt familiar to Inara, more at one with her own time and place than much of what she had heard since arriving on Tabula Rasa.

"I suppose that I do," she agreed evenly, though she was certain of no such thing. There was more of herself in that ship and its crew than she wanted to say, and still the divide existed which she had created herself, for her own safety. Still, any uncertainty was well-hidden as she smiled. "The crew are friends of mine."

[benedictbecky]

"Really? That thing has been here as long as I've known this place, and I heard since... the beginning, as it were." Becky stepped forward and held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Becky. 'fraid I'm not from space, though."

[belongtonobody]

"Much longer than me, then," Inara said, smiling. "I arrived late last year." Yet the ship itself seemed to be from sometime in Inara's future, one in which she had done as she'd intended and left them all behind for a Companion house elsewhere. Stepping closer, she took Becky's hand and gave it a firm, but gentle shake. "I'm Inara. Have you been here long, Becky?"

[gorramcheerful]

It was strange, Inara not living on Serenity. Wasn't the same. But at least Kaylee still knew where to find her, and that she was still here, it wasn't like she went to the Companion House, and they couldn't see her at all. She should be visiting her, she hadn't even seen where she'd settled.

"Look who it is! Hey 'Nara, come by t'visit our girl?" She greeted in chirpy tones with an indication toward Serenity, grinning broadly, glad to see Inara. She knew she had reasons, and that she had to find her own space but she'd always be crew, and always special to Kaylee. "She misses havin' a touch o'class about th'place as much as we do, y'know." She smiled, sunnily and wiped a smudge from her cheek. "You gettin' by just shiny, got yourself all settled proper?"

[belongtonobody]

Inara smiled, bright and true, as she stepped forward to slip an arm around Kaylee and press a kiss to her cheek. "Just shiny," she agreed, a hint of wryness in her tone. If there was one thing she was grateful for in its constancy, it was the fact that Kaylee, dear Kaylee, was always herself, as steady and warming a presence as anyone could ask for. Inara had herself a hut in the middle of nowhere, on a bug-infested island with no cities to speak of and weather which changed on a whim, but she had the crew here, or some of it, and Serenity and sunsets like these. It had to be enough, until the day came that they found their way home, wherever that may have been. "Any day now, I'll be setting up to have evening parties in the middle of the jungle

[gorramcheerful]

Kaylee beamed, she'd never had siblings, but 'Nara would always been like a big sister; and she always felt a little more grounded with her around. She was reminded by how much she really did miss her on a visit like this. Perhaps it was 'cause she could make it on her own too, could Inara, she was so strong and the mechanic admired her. Kaylee'd be lost without Serenity and her crew, the family. "Oh, you gotta hold t'that proper now you said so." Her gaze practically lit up, clearly Kaylee was delighted by the very idea of evening parties held by Inara. "Pretty clothes n'the whole thing right? Everyone there." She grinned, imagining it. "N'praps you can even help me talk that doctor in to owin' me a dance."

Again, Kaylee regarded Serenity as Inara did, and she smiled, when informed not to breath a word to Mal, Kaylee made the zipping motion across her lips. "Oh she got her own way o'bein' proper, that's true." Kaylee agreed, nodding. "But you made her feel beautiful Inara." The mechanic said with absolute certainty, a real sense of

[belongtonobody]

Inara had meant it as nothing more than a joke, but the change in Kaylee's expression was enough to make her reconsider. The notion of a soiree in these circumstances was, initially, ludicrous - but they had had parties enough, certainly, in these parts before, and the little hut by the waterfall could be made to look lovely with some lanterns and a touch of effort. Maybe it wasn't such a silly idea. "Simon owes you more than one dance," she said, her own face lit up now, teasing, pleased. "Just keep being patient, mèimei, he'll come to his sense in time