SquidgeWorld Archive

Title: Babysitter

Author: Dex

Email: dexf@sympatico.ca

Website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dexf/

Characters: Malcolm, River

Crossover?: No

Rating: PG

Genre: gen

Status: Complete

Summary: In an empty ship, in the middle of a rainstorm, in way over his head, River spends an afternoon with Captain Mal Reynolds.

All recognizable "Firefly" characters and settings belong to Joss Whedon and (or copyright) Fox and its related entities; I am using them without permission but mean no harm and am making no profit. The plot and original characters, however belong to me. Any and all feedback is appreciated at dexf@sympatico.ca. Redistribution of this tale for profit is illegal. Please do not archive this story without contacting me first to obtain my permission.

"Babysitter"
by Dex

"This. This is... not fun." Mal Reynolds stuffed his hands in his coat pockets and peered out through the pouring rain. The Serenity shed curtains of water around the open cargo hold, adding a new density to an already thunderous downpour. His crew was in town, delivering their cargo and taking advantage of the stop in Persephone to do some shopping. Malcolm had to wait on ship for his new, creatively edited trader documentation to arrive, which had left him elected to his least favourite job.

***

"I am not a babysitter, Inara. You know, ship's captain. That means I'm the one that gives the orders. I'm pretty sure I remember reading about that as one of the perks."

"Don't be silly, Mal." Inara said. "We know you don't read."

"Look, I've got an idea. You watch River."

"Of course, captain."

"Really?"

"Absolutely." She patted his cheek. "But I really must insist you take over for me with Count Riandelo."

"Take over?"

"I have a bottle of his favourite wine chilling and, oh, I almost forgot to warm the scented oils."

"Scented oils? Why do you need scented oils?"

"Massage, of course. The Count is very tense. Oddly enough, he likes his whole body to be lubricated before he starts."

"Starts? There was no starting mentioned before. Starts what?" Mal's eyes widened with horror as Inara began to take a variety of intricate and blunt objects from a drawer. "Starts what, Inara!"

"The usual, of course. Tell me, have you ever used a chang long before?"

"A what?"

There was a snap-hiss of oiled steel, and a predatory gleam in Inara's eyes. "A long dragon, Mal."

"Maybe I'll watch River instead." Mal edged towards the door. "Ah... yeah." The captain fled.

"Are you sure, Mal?" Inara called after him. "I'm sure the Count won't mind!"

***

Mal stalked away from the cargo hold door and up the stairs. Serenity seemed hollow without her cargo; a ship messing it's food, waiting to be filled up again. He shook his head as the odd thought bubbled up, and took the last flight two steps at a time.

Malcolm Reynolds hit the apple on the top step at full speed. It crushed wetly under his boot, throwing his foot up and forward. For a moment he hung in space, and pin-wheeled backwards, gravity clutching greedily, ready to dash him against the steel treads.

A pale white hand snaked out and grabbed his right suspender strap. It yanked, halting his fall and twisting him enough that instead of somersaulting to land on his head, he smashed knees first into the metal steps. Grimacing with pain, Mal groped back to his feet, and the pale hand withdrew.

"An apple a day keeps the doctor in pay, captain," giggled River.

***

"So." Mal said, holding the icepack to his knees, sitting at the kitchen table. River sat across from him, carefully peeling an apple with her fingernails. The crew tried to keep her away from knives.

"A needle. A needle pulling... a needle." Se said haltingly.

"Ah, good. It's a fully crazy day." Mal said dryly. River ignored him, a curl of apple peel growing under the Red Delicious in her fingers.

"Needles, Captain. They open you up with one, and put you to sleep with another. Then they find another to close you up with later. The scar on your shoulder needed twenty-eight stitches. Bitten fifty-six times by a needle."

"Crazy and creepy today. Boy, I lucked out." Mal rubbed his face with both hands. "Wait, how did you know about the scar?"

"I've seen you, Captain. Kaylee has. Even Zoe, although she doesn't really look. Inara looks, but not where she can see you. She sees more, everywhere; always. Why is that?"

"Occupational trait. Whores see a lot of everything."

"Whore? Whore." River said, as if testing the word for the first time. "Whore, whore, whore, whore."

"Great. I'm sure your brother is going to love that little addition to your vocabulary."

"What's a whore, captain?"

"You already know what."

"Tell me again."

"Why?"

"You can prove you know."

"But-- alright, fine! If only to get some quiet." Mal huffed. River set down her apple and crossed her legs in her chair, squirming happily.

"A whore," Mal coughed, almost uncomfortable to say this to the smiling teenager who huddled in the overlarge sweater across from him. "A whore is a person who sells themselves... for money."

"You sell yourself."

"What?"

"And the rest of the crew."

"That's different. This is a trading vessel. We're hired."

"So is Inara."

"Yes, but we're hired to move cargo, not-- " Malcolm cut himself short. "Not, uh, for companionship."

"Shepards are called on for their companionship. Is he a whore?" River asked.

"That's a different thing entirely, is all."

"How?"

"Shepard Book ain't selling his body."

"No, his presence. His comfort."

"Yes, exactly."

"So how is Inara different?" Her tone was white innocence.

"Well, she, um... you know, let's...uh." Mal huffed. "She has dealings with them."

"You mean fucking?" Her voice didn't change, the innocent girl tone rocking Mal back.

"Now that's not-- "

"But Inara sells her presence. Anyone can sell sex."

"Yes, but-- "

"And she doesn't give herself, anymore then you'd sell the Serenity. Bartered for need for a moment."

"But-- "

"The same thing." River looked around her for a moment. "Serenity isn't a whore, Captain."

"Of course she ain't!"

"But if she's doing the same thing as Inara..." River trailed off, picking her apple back up.

"I-- " Mal started, and his mouth snapped shut. Crazy as a hammer sandwich or not, she did have a point. He got up and poured himself a cup of coffee, trying to shut off the words in his head.

"Do you play, Captain?" River said brightly, as if nothing had been said. Mal followed her pointing finger to a go board sitting on the shelf.

"A bit."

"With me?"

"You want a game?"

"It's all a game, Captain."

"What's that?"

"Life." River got up and collected the board. "Winners, losers... lost pieces."

Mal sipped his coffee silently as she arranged the pieces. River ran the smooth black and white pebbles through her fingers as she placed them in the bowls. "They all look the same." She mused, setting down her first stone in a corner vertices.

"Alike."

"What do people look like during war, captain? Are they all alike? Only important by the position they occupy?"

"No." Mal cleared his throat, placing his own stone. "People get more real, more focused. You remember little things about the person beside you. Pictures, names of their children, how they laughed."

"How can you let them die inside?"

"You can't. They die anyway, but you keep them alive inside, in your own way. Promises to kin, toasts in bars, that sort of thing." Malcolm said. "Darren Wu taught me how to play go in a burned out factory on the outer range. He caught a chain-gun arc across the torso. Cut him in half. I play his game cause he can't." They were playing rapidly, defining the board early.

"The stones are pretty." River held her handful of white pebbles as if she'd found a cache of precious gems.

"Yeah, I suppose they are." Mal said, sipping his coffee and watching River's demeanor flicker, mercurial quick. He set down another stone, threatening her defense.

"The go masters of the verse haven't solved me yet." River grinned impishly, and placed her own piece, undermining Malcolm's attack.

"You think so, young lady?" Mal said, guarding his threatened quadrant. "You see, I'm not about to-- "

"Atari. Arrest the corner." River interrupted, placing a stone. The move locked up a corner in conflict between them. Malcolm's highly flexible attack had just had half of his pieces paralyzed.

"Hey!"

"Your play, captain."

"You think you're pretty smart, don't you?"

"I'm a genius. I have papers to prove it."

"Really? Try... this." Reynolds placed a piece innocuously in the midst of hers and captured eight pieces, carving a hole out of her position.

"Ambush, captain." River said. She placed a stone, and Malcolm watched his stones collapse in total loss.

"You sneaky..." Mal smiled, shaking his head over the game. "How did you-- "

"I'm not easy meat."

"What?"

"Not easy. Not easy." River chirped, rocking in her seat.

"River?" Mal said, coming over to her.

"Simon is bothered. He doesn't see what he thinks he should."

"And what's that?"

"Someone who gets better." River's face went grim, and she flung an apple from the table up towards the bridge. "Do you think Kaylee can repair Simon like Simon thinks he can repair me?"

"I don't rightly know." Mal edged forward around the table. River looked ready to explode, and he was desperately hoping that Jayne hadn't just happened to have accidently `forgotten' a grenade launcher or something in the kitchen.

"Do I need a new compressor?" River grabbed another apple and flung it at the corner. "Another injector?" An apple missed Mal's head by inches. "An overhaul of my particle manifold, across the gamma range!" River was screaming, whipping the whole bowl across the room. Mal leapt forward, grabbing the hysterical girl by her upper arms.

"Hey! Stop that!" Mal shook her twice, hard. River moaned and collapsed against him.

"Strings cut. Strings cut. Not a real boy, father." She choked into his shirt, terror tears streaking her face.

"Hey, it's alright." Malcolm soothed, gentling her as best he could. Personal feelings aside, River was just a scared sick kid.

"Why can't it make sense?" River moaned. "Not real. Not here."

"Listen here. This is real. Serenity is real." Mal said, wrapping his arms around her. "Feel her. She's right here!"

Malcolm guided River's hand to the bulkhead, letting her grasp the buttress, clutching it with one hand as she grasped him with the other.

"Polycarbonite alloy. Over three hundred thousand moving parts. A fusion heart. Why is it so alive, captain?" River sobbed.

"Because people care for her, River. Just like people care for you."

"Jayne doesn't."

"I said people. Shush now."

"They call you Captain Tightpants." She said, from the depths of his shirt.

"Do they?"

"Then they laugh. Except Kaylee, who gets red and hides in her room after."

"I reckon so." Mal said. A breathless giggle escaped his shirt, and the sobs slowed and stopped. Malcolm eased back into his chair, holding River against his chest as she drifted into a spent sleep.

"Well... great." He said, closing his eyes to doze himself.

***

"I reckon as long as he makes an honest woman of her, it's alright." Jayne said, lips quirking. Mal's eyes opened slowly to the sight of most of his crew standing in the common room, staring at him cradling River in his arms.

"Uh..."

"Captain, you don't need to explain." Zoe said.

"Yeah. Iffin crazy is your liking, more power to you." Jayne replied.

"She had a fit. I calmed her down."

"Always calms me down." Zoe quipped.

"Zoe..." Malcolm growled and Zoe held up her hands.

"Alright Mal. River okay?"

"Something's wrong with River?" Simon Tam appeared suddenly in the doorway, Kaylee at his heels.

"Understatement of the year, Doc." Jayne muttered.

"She had a.. Fit, I guess."

"Did she hurt anything?"

"No, she's fine. Here," Mal lifted her into Simon's arms. "Maybe you should get her to her quarters, Doc."

"Yes." Simon turned to go. "Captain? Thank you."

"Wasn't nothing." Malcolm said, watching Simon take her downstairs.

"Everything fine then?" Kaylee asked.

"Not quite. I do have one question, Kaylee."

"What?"

"Captain Tightpants?"

"Oh. Oh my, I-- oh. I have to go." Kaylee flushed crimson and fled. Malcolm smiled.

"You enjoyed that a little too much, Mal."

"I have no idea what you mean, Zoe."

"You've got the go board out, Captain." Zoe mentioned quietly.

"River wanted a game."

"I haven't seen you play since Darren got killed."

"Shame to waste the board."

"You should babysit more often, boss." Zoe touched him lightly on the arm before disappearing into the cargo hold. Mal stuffed his hands in his pockets and shook his head.

"Maybe I should."

## The End ###