NOT SO SHINY
A/N: This is my first attempt at a Firefly fanfic. It's pretty
rough. Pre-Serenity, post-Firefly. Inara has left the ship. "No gorram way."
Jayne Cobb crossed his beefy arms across his beefy chest. "Do you know what
happens to a soldier who don't follow orders?" Captain Malcolm
Reynolds leaned toward Jayne, staring him down. A brief look of
consternation visited Jayne's face. "We ain't havin'
this conversation anymore." Mal spun neatly on his heel and
headed for the door of the tavern. Zoe looked at Jayne as
she rose from her seat beside him. The look was one of her most
infamous harsh looks. "They get dropped," she stated
matter-of-factly and left Jayne in his corner. ------------------------- Kaylee was waiting for
the others to return. She had the ramp of Serenity down and
everything. The captain and Zoe's boots clunked loudly as they
entered the cargo bay. Mal walked past Kaylee without the normal
greeting. "Hi, Cap'n!"
Kaylee greeted him jovially nonetheless. "What's with the
Cap'n?" she asked Zoe. Zoe sighed in response. "Where's
Jayne?" "You really can't
do it can you?" Mal called from halfway up the steps. Kaylee turned. "Do
what?" "Not talk,"
Mal stated. "Don't bother 'bout Jayne. Close up." He
continued up the stairs. Kaylee sighed and
pushed the button. "No wait,"
Mal yelled back down. Kaylee pushed the
button again. Mal disappeared into the upper hallway. He returned not
three minutes later with a large crate in tow. Mal pushed the crate
off the top landing. "Shove that out
first," Mal commanded then ducked back to the deck. Kaylee looked after him
for a moment, confused. Then she saw a bit of orange tassel sticking
from beneath the lid of the crate and understood. She dragged the
crate down the ramp and watched it as the gap closed. -------------------------------- It didn’t take Jayne
long to realize he'd been left behind, truly and surely. He arrived
at the landing spot just in time to watch Serinity break atmo and
disappear into space. He cursed a bit, as was his wont, and kicked up
the dirt. He even fired a shot or two into the sky to prove his
anger. But he was angry more at himself. He had finally pushed the
captain further than he could. Jayne sighed and dragged his crate
back to the tavern. --------------------------- Wash was in a good
mood. He had just learned the news. No more Jayne. He grinned in
spite of himself. Sure, they'd be down a man who was good with guns,
but hey, he was a loaded gun himself. Wash leaned back in his seat
with a look of smug satisfaction. -------------------------- Mal sat stiffly on the
edge of his bunk, his head in his hands. He had made a grave
decision. He had purposely left a member of his crew behind. And now
he was down the best fighting man. But Jayne had merited the drop.
Oh, yes! Mal wouldn’t have done it differently. But the feeling of
guilt lingered. -------------------------- Simon was curious as to
what had caused the abandonment of Jayne. Not that he cared about
Jayne really. He'd always been just an annoyance to Simon. This
marked the end of crude sexual references and harsh language. Simon
could certainly get used to that. -------------------------- Zoe lay on her bunk
thinking. She didn’t give a damn about Jayne, but she worried about
the captain. She had fought with him; she knew how attached and
protective he could get. Man, this must be hard for him, she
thought. She let out a long sigh, then stood and climbed the latter
in search of Wash. Not that he'd be hard to find. He was always only
one place. Especially when he was happy. And Zoe knew her husband was
happy indeed. -------------------------- Shepherd Book stared
down at his Bible sitting on the dining room table. Something was not
right about this whole situation. He, like most of the others, had no
use for Jayne. He was the toughest crew member and certainly the most
in need of a little spiritual medicine, but Book was not worried
about his situation. He was worried about the effect it would have on
the rest of the crew. Mal was obviously upset; Book could tell this
because of the terse manner in which he treated the crew upon his
return. Zoe also was tight-lipped. It made Book wonder exactly what
it was that had caused this disagreement and separation. Mal had not
even allowed Jayne to come back aboard for his things. The whole
thing had a bad feeling to it, and Book resolved to ask the captain
about it as soon as he saw fit to come out of his bunk and socialize. ------------------------- River was the only
person on Serenity not thinking about Jayne. Instead she was
concentrating on a small beetle that had found its way aboard during
landing. Gently, River flipped it onto its back and watched its legs
flail. "Helpless."
River stated. Maybe she was thinking of Jayne after all. A/N: This is obviously just a beginning.
If you like it, review. Tell me how you think it ought to continue. I intend to
add the trademark Firefly
humor and random Chinese phrases, but I don't really have a plot lined out
in my head. Review, and tell me what you think. Oh, and I really don't intend
this to be Jayne/River, no matter how it might sound now.
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