Mal-Simon, morning after Serenity Valley.

[badinlatin]

It's not early, by anyone's standards. Especially on the ship, where most of the crew are up and moving around early enough to hear the morning news on the Cortex if they really wanted to.

Not today.

Today - Mal calls it this morning, though if anyone calls it 'good' he intends on smacking them - the captain is brewing coffee and trying to figure out if it's worth making his way to the infirmary to find anti-nausea medication.

Mal's got a high tolerance for alcohol. Just not that high.

Comments

[simon_doctor]

There's a creak of decking, and Simon steps into the kitchen, moving very carefully.

[badinlatin]

The creak of a deckplate sounds much too loud to Mal's ears, and he mumbles "No need to be stompin' about" under his breath before seeing Simon.

The doctor.

The one with the drugs.

"Wei, Doc."

[simon_doctor]

Simon nods, and puts a small handful of white pills on the countertop.

(Clickclickclickrattleclick.)

"You're going to want those," he says very quietly. "And about a gallon of water."

[badinlatin]

Rough voice and eyes at half-mast, "Xiexie."

Moving to the sink, Mal rinces out a bottle, fills it with water, taking his pills and drink toward the lounge so he can flop down in a slightly threadbare chair.

Mal pops a few pills in his mouth, swallowing dry, then drinking some of the water.

"Can I take all o' these at once?"

[simon_doctor]

"I wouldn't recommend it every day, but in this circumstance ... go ahead."

They're vitamin B-12. An overdose isn't terribly likely.

[badinlatin]

Mal has no clue what they are. But, if the medical professional recommends it, who is he to argue?

"I ain't trying to make breakfast yet, if you're waiting for it," Mal advises, gesturing to a chair. "I'll get around to it." Grunt. "Eventually."

[simon_doctor]

"Not for a while yet. Keep drinking," he directs. "You need the rehydration."

[badinlatin]

A somewhat petulant glance at the well-composed doctor.

"Why aren't you horrible-lookin' like me? I saw you drinking last night too."

[simon_doctor]

Simon's not all that well-composed; he does wince at Mal's slightly louder voice.

"Because I've been drinking water steadily since I woke up."

[badinlatin]

"No one ever told you the best part of a night o' booze was the hangover after?"

Rubbing his eyes again after another swig of his water, "...Yep, no one ever told me that either."

[simon_doctor]

Simon takes a glass down from the cupboard and moves to fill it with water at the sink.

"If the headache hasn't stopped in about ten minutes, I'll get you a painkiller."

He turns off the water and stands leaning slightly against the counter, sipping.

[badinlatin]

Mal gets enough of a hold over the bass drum reverberating just under his left temple to give the good doctor a once-over.

"You could have told Kaylee to not come. To Hera."

[simon_doctor]

Simon looks a little startled by that.

"Not with any degree of success," he says judiciously, after a pause.

[badinlatin]

Mal nods, "Got a point."

(This isn't the Ancient Sea - you don't have to go down with the ship -- )

More wince at the headache than a smile at his comment, "Seems like I can't shake you people."

[simon_doctor]

Simon's ... not sure how to take that.

"Would you rather we hadn't come?"

It comes out smaller than he'd meant it to.

[badinlatin]

"I didn't say that."

Mal can't even imagine trying to deal with standing on Hera again, if he hadn't had his crew with him.

"The same number o' my people that landed on Hera this time left Hera with me. It was a good feelin'."

[simon_doctor]

...oh.

"I'm glad we could be there," he says quietly.

[badinlatin]

Likewise.

"I'm glad it didn't...conflict with any pressing engagements," Mal chooses his words very carefully.

"That I knew of, at any rate."

[simon_doctor]

If that's meant to be a joke, Simon doesn't get it.

"I ... don't think we have any pressing engagements you don't know of."

[badinlatin]

Mal could turn it into a joke. Something about the 'verse's most eligible bachelor.

He doesn't.

"Not even Osiris?"

He doesn't call it their home, but the inflection is there.

[simon_doctor]

"No."

The word alone seems a little ... bare.

"I'm not sure I understand what you're asking."

[badinlatin]

Squinting his eyes completely closed, Mal looks like he's running through several drafts of what to say and how to say it.

"Now that you're not a fugitive, are you leaving?"

("And when this is all over, who will you stand by? This crew, or go back to Osiris?")

[simon_doctor]

("What do you think? That I've just been waiting for some scrap of approval to go running home?")

"I--"

Pause.

"No." It's quiet. Almost ... gentle.

"We're not going anywhere."

[badinlatin]

("You all gonna be here when I wake up?")

For the first time all morning - early afternoon - Mal doesn't look pained, or tired.

"Good."

Then the pained expression comes back.

"Do I have to fill out a form or somethin', for this magical painkiller I hear of?"

[simon_doctor]

Simon turns to hide a smile.

"I'll bring some up."

And heads for the door.

[badinlatin]

"Doc," Mal calls to Simon, surprising himself as much as he probably did the man leaving the kitchen.




"Why?"

[simon_doctor]

(River's happy here. Are you?)

(Yes. No. I don't know. It's not that simple.)

(Not much is.)

Simon pauses in the doorway, and glances over his shoulder.

And says, in the tone of one stating something self-evident: "I'm on your crew."

Because sometimes it really is that simple.

The door hisses shut behind him.

[badinlatin]

In rapid succession, Mal stares at the door closing behind Simon, leans back in his chair, and calls Simon a hun dan in the way his mother's friends used to call Mal 'whippersnapper' when he was a boy.

Mal's smiling even as he holds the cold water bottle to one temple while waiting for Simon to come back.