Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own any of these wonderful characters, or even the setting and world of Firefly. They all belong to Fox/Universal and Joss Whedon.

James Norrington and related belongs to Disney, Gore and Ted and Terry.

Setting: Takes place right after Down the Aisle

Pairings: Kaylee/Simon, Mal/Inara

Can’t Stop the Music

Chapter 17: Serenade

-

Malcolm had been silent during the Royal Navy of the Caribbean’s performance, not only was his tongue still, so were his thoughts. When they were on his ship he had occasionally listened in on a few practice sessions, enjoying a few songs before he forced himself back to work. Now he was not only listening, but he was also watching them perform. He had no idea how to describe the song. There were elements of rock, a bit of pop, a little bit of jazz and a touch of classical.

“They are amazing,” Zoë said once the applause had simmered down.

“They certainly are,” Mal was no longer ruffled by their choice of a band name. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling. It could have been pride since they were aboard his ship, hope that they will win, envy that if it weren’t for the war he might have been up on that stage. Well it wouldn’t have been that stage, but he might have been with another band, or might have gone solo, or maybe he would have been still living on the Reynolds Ranch, working with his mother and still playing his guitar.

“They looked great,” Kaylee would not stop gushing about the band. “James, didn’t Cyn look pretty?”

“She was quite lovely,” James shrugged. “I was more captivated by her music.”

“Uncle Trey had said she would go somewhere with her singing voice,” Apollo said in a far away voice. “He wasn’t really our uncle, just a family friend. Sally and I used to call him uncle. Cynthia never did. She would just call him Mr. Gibbs.”

James set his drink down. “His name was Trey Gibbs?”

Apollo nodded. “He was former lieutenant for the Alliance, retired after the war. He died along with father when they first came down.” Tears were gathering at the corners of his eyes.

Mal remembered when he had first heard the name. He was one of the members of Sparrow’s crew. Simon had treated his arm along with several other pirates after the death of Jones and the other mutants. He wasn’t certain, but there was a possibility this Uncle Trey might have been a descendant of that man.

“We are going to make certain the ‘verse knows what happened,” Mal placed a hand on Apollo’s shoulder. “That is why we are going right now.”

“Cap’n?” Kaylee stared at him quizzically.

“Yes Kaylee?” He had a pretty good idea on what she was about to ask him.

“Do we all have to go?” Her eyes kept gravitating back to the screen.

“We all have to go. I didn’t even want to see the concert to begin with, we only did it so the kid can see his sis perform, and he has. Y’all know why we are here in the first place, and it is far more important than watching the rest of this show.”

“It might be hard to get him away,” Simon pointed to one cluster of women. Jayne was in the middle laughing. “I would mention they have comely appearances if it wouldn’t upset my wife.”

“I’m not upset,” Kaylee said. “They are very pretty and Jayne looks really happy, and so do they.”

“They must have not have much insight,” James commented. “Or they may have had more than their fair share of spirits.”

“Most likely the latter,” Zoë said.

Mal continued to watch his Mercenary laugh and chat with his new arm candy. “I guess Zoë and I can do it by ourselves, Inara, I need you to watch the kids.”

“I think they can handle themselves,” Inara pointed to River and the newlyweds.

“I’m talking about Jayne and his new friends.”

Inara nodded. “I will keep my eyes on them.” She took a long sip from her glass.

James slid off his stool. “I was only interested in seeing Miss Driscoll’s band perform.”

Mal shrugged. “Apollo, ready to let everyone know the truth?”

The youth nodded. “I gotta help. I have to help find Sally, save the others, let Cynthia know where I am.”

“Good,” he held out a hand in front of his mechanic. “I just need that address.”

“Here,” Simon handed him a folded up piece of paper. “Wrote it down as soon as we found the place.”

Mal unfolded it, not only was the address written down but the doctor had also included directions on how to get there. “Thanks doc, and thank you for not writing like a doctor.”

“I’m also coming,” River drained the last of her drink. “Eight is not great.” She pointed at the screen.

“Everyone who is ready to go, let’s go.” He led the way out the doors. He was glad River wanted to join them, saved him some time of trying to find her later.

-

They did not have to walk too much of a distance to where the holo-recording booth was. It was a small shop, just enough room for a counter with a register, a few chairs to wait and three recording booths.

The young clerk behind the counter glanced up from his comic book he was reading. “O zhe zhen shi gi kuai le de jin zhan, actual customers.” He placed the comic book down and sat up. “Everyone around here is watching that contest.”

“Seems to be,” Mal nodded. “Sorry if you were the only one they had forced to stay behind.” He wasn’t actually sorry, but it did seem like everyone around wanted to watch the show.

“Sorry?” the young clerk blinked and laughed. “I am the only one who doesn’t care, at least on this planet. I was the only one who volunteered. I guessed it might be a bit slow with all that hoopla. I had no idea it was going to be boring.”

“We are glad to have made your night,” Zoë told him.

“I wouldn’t really say that,” the clerk began to type away at his computer. “How long will this recording be?”

Mal glanced at Apollo. He hadn’t really figured how much of a talker this kid would be. “I’m not real certain. The kid here needs to get a message out.”

“A PSA?” The clerk’s hands paused over the keys. “Those do last about two to five minutes.”

“I think that will be just enough.”

“What kind of definition and wavelength?”

Mal shrugged again. “Doesn’t have to be fancy, standard wavelength will do it.”

“I’ll put down crisp definition. How many copies?”

“About three,” Mal raised three fingers. He needed to make certain Apollo had one copy, and he needed two to use across the verse.

“Are you making the recording?”

“He is,” Mal pointed at Apollo. “He has never made one before though.”

“Ah a newbie,” the clerk smiled briefly. “What about you sir? Have you made one before?”

“Once or twice,” it had been a while since Mal had worked the device. “She knows a lot more about it.” He nodded towards Zoë.

“I got the order all ready,” the clerk pointed to both Apollo and Zoë. “If you two can follow me then we can get started.”

“How much should I say?” Apollo asked as he and Zoë walked past Mal.

“Tell them your name and where you were born,” Mal suggested. “Always a good start, and then tell them what you had told us.”

-

River could sense uncertainty around her. She had sensed it with Apollo, along with the pain he had endured, even though she had fought hard to not see, or feel his torture. She had felt it from both her captain and Zoë. There was always the element that something might go wrong, always the one percent to keep it away from perfection. She also felt uncertainty from James.

“You seem to be troubled,” James had stopped watching the action that was going on within the store.

“What had happened to Apollo,” River explained. “He cannot hide behind a curtain and it is hard to not read him.”

“You do seem to like him,” James raised his eyebrows.

“He isn’t mean, not bad, not nasty, not Jayne.”

“I know this isn’t my place, but do you fancy him?” Was there a hint of jealous in his voice, does that mean that he liked her?

“No,” River forced her shield up. She would not pry into his mind. She focused on the sound of her rapid heartbeat, rapid because of the newfound possibility. “His pain is too loud. He isn’t ready, almost as bad as I was when I first came out of the box.”

“I see,” he nodded.

“There is also some uncertainty coming from you.” She stared into his eyes; she could become lost in the green forever and those lips of his. She had lost count of imagining herself being kissed by him.

James shrugged. “I have no idea if this plan of the captain’s is going to work; then again there is a lot in this world that I still do not understand. What is a PSA?”

“It is a public service announcement.”

“That would explain things.”

She would not pry with her mind, but pry with her words. “Unless I am being too bold may I ask you a question?”

“You may ask me anything.”

“Have you ever been kissed?” There, she got it out of her system.

“I believe I have may have kissed two women that I have courted before. I have never properly proposed since I have been busy trying to rid the sea of pirates and then Elizabeth had grown up and I had become smitten by her.” His smile faded. “We have never kissed. I may have been kissed by a few women on Tortuga, but I do not quite recall those dark days.”

“I have never been kissed,” River stared at the ground. Even before she was sent off to the academy she was never in a relationship with a boy. Her parents had forbidden it on account of her age and none of the boys had really seemed interested. “Only by family.”

“You are quite young,” James stared into her eyes. “You are also a fine woman, very beautiful, very intelligent, you are brave, and have a very good heart. I know it will not be long until your very first kiss, and when it happens it will be special.”

River felt her body stiffen from the compliments. Her skin had both tingled and prickled, like when she had waken a foot that had fallen asleep. “Thank you.” She breathed and wanted to cover her eyes. She wanted to read what was on his mind, find out how he feels about her, but she wouldn’t not just because she was being a good girl, but because there was the possibility he still only saw her as a friend.

“It’s a done deal,” their captain stepped out of the store, holding a small clear disc, sealed in an equally clear package. “Gotta find the nearest tower, and darling, I need you to hack into it, need to make certain the locals see it first.”

“I try, I can and I will.” River put the idea her and James being romantic with each other out of her mind. She had a new job to perform.

-

Inara felt her hands tense up as she watched Jayne down another beer. That was his third glass for the night and she knew that by his size and how frequently he does drink that it would be at least another hour before he would be drunk and a few more hours after that until he would pass out. She had to watch, to keep him from doing something stupid, like start a fight.

“The final band just played,” Kaylee tapped Inara on the shoulder. “Don’t you want to see the Royal Navy win?”

“I do,” Inara smiled at her. She wanted to see the smile on the musicians faces when they had had won the contest and be able to hear them perform again. “I have to watch Jayne.”

“He isn’t starting anything,” Kaylee pointed to the hired gun as Jayne seemed to have his lady friends enraptured by one of his stories.

“Not yet.”

“There is still some time before they make the announcement,” Simon told her. “There is still the smallest possibility they might not win. There were six other bands that were pretty good.”

“They may come close, but they won’t win.”

“Tap me on the shoulder when they do announce the winner,” Inara turned back to Jayne and tried to ignore the flicker on the holographic chamber, possibly another advertisement.

“’Nara, look,” Kaylee pointed at the circular player. “It is Apollo.”

Inara turned towards the player as the image of Apollo Driscoll became solid. “They have done it.”

“My name is Apollo Driscoll,” The hologram of the former slave had begun to play. “I was born on Francisco in the year 2503. After the war my family was selected to go colonize a new world, a planet called Eros. We had lived there months in peace, and they came. Many wore the coats of the independents, but they were not true soldiers, savages who attacked us because we were colonizing for the Alliance. The killed my father, a family friend, and several others before they enslaved the rest of us. My older sister and a handful of others had managed to escape and after they had taken everyone off world. They removed the tongues from the adults including my mother. The other children and I were beaten in order to have our will broken. I have been sold to another slaver and sold to another before I was freed. I haven’t seen my mother or younger sister for five years. The rest of the Eros colony is still out there, enslaved and forced into silence. I am hoping my message reaches anyone who can help, and I hope my sister will also hear.”

“What the hell?” someone called out.

“Is he telling the truth?” Another person asked.

“Maybe it is a promotional stunt for a movie, or a new series,” someone else added.

“It is real,” Jayne shouted. “Miranda was real.” More whispers and small discussions had followed.

“I swear that was the same kid who was right here,” one of the bartenders had pointed to where Apollo had sat nearly an hour earlier.

“They are announcing the winners,” another bartender turned up the volume of the screen.

“It seems this is the most exciting battle of the bands yet,” the emcee announced. “For we got two more performances before we can determine the winner.” He held up a hand and shook his head. “These are not last minute entries. We have a tie for first place.”

A pale green light shone on a band of four members. Inara had forgotten what there name was. She felt a sharp pain in her stomach, knowing that it wasn’t The Royal Navy of the Caribbean.

“Our first runner up is Feng of Singapore,” the Emcee introduced and everyone quieted down to listen to them play.

“They were one of the better bands,” Simon had said softly.

“They were still not good enough,” Kaylee folded her arms.

Inara did not focus in on the music. She watched Jayne shout at the screen, encourage his small entourage to also shout. She watched a few people dance and nod to the music, a few seem to still be discussing Apollo’s message.

“Give a big hand to Feng of Singapore,” the emcee took the center stage once more when the band had finished playing. “And now for our other first place band,” the green light shone on five familiar faces. “The Royal Navy of the Caribbean.”

“Hell yeah,” Jayne raised a fist.

“I told you,” Kaylee smiled proudly.

“We like to call this song the Message,” Cyn spoke into her microphone. “This is about an event that happened to me and my family eight years on Eros colony.”

Silence had struck the room at the mention of the name of the planet. Everyone had turned to the screen.

“I had managed to escape this horror thanks to a few people,” tears were forming in Cyn’s eyes. “I had seen my father murdered in front of my eyes. I haven’t seen the rest of my family in years.” She wiped away the tears and nodded at her band mates.

Inara watched as they performed, while they did appear to be as lively as before, Inara was certain it was mask they were wearing, at least it was a mask for Cyn. She tried to focus in on the words as well as the melody. The words were poetry, describing the same event as Apollo had a few minutes prior.

“She is singing about the same event,” someone said.

“I told ya it really happened,” Jayne called out. “I bet that is the sister that escaped.”

Several whispers followed, both in English and Chinese. A few women were starting to tear up themselves as they continued to listen to the lyrics.

“Hey,” the bartender who identified Apollo pointed at Simon. “You were with that kid who did the message. Where is he?”

“He went to make the message,” Simon told him. “And broadcast it.”

“This was true?” The bartender blinked. “This actually happened.”

“It did,” Kaylee nodded. “And we are the ones who rescued him and we are going to make sure everyone knows the truth so the others are also rescued.”

“I gotta contact them,” he pointed at the screen. “I have to let them know here brother is here. They will be back?”

“They will return for us,” Inara nodded.

-

The Message had been performed, not only to the audience in front of them, but also to all who were watching on the Cortex. Cyn only half listened to the applause as she took a refreshing drink from her bottle of water.

“And now we wait for the judges final decision,” the emcee announced.

“This is it,” Dustin nudged his cousin in the shoulder.

“We know,” Alfie just stared at him.

“The Universe is going to know a truth,” Amistance smiled at Cyn.

“They may already know,” Dustin said. “We are on the cortex.”

“The ones watching will know,” Ray reminded him. “And that is a lot of people.”

“Everyone will know,” Cyn said. The Alliance may or may not admit they have made a mistake in not believing Cyn and the others who have escaped. They will investigate every slaver they come across, try to find out the whereabouts of those who murdered her father, Mr. Gibbs and several others. Slave owners will question to their slaves, ask them the truth. She will find her mother, and Apollo and Sally.

“And the winner is,” the world seemed to stop as the emcee opened the envelope. She did not notice another add forming on a holographic projector in the back of the stage., the one that ran adds for soda, video games, and other junk for the audience. “Feng of Singapore.”

Cyn felt her heart stop. They had only come in second place. They would not be able to perform on that stage again, no third song; there would not be the grand interview after where she would tell even more people about what had happened.

“We came close,” Alfie gave her a pat. “And the Message had been played. If it weren’t for the tie we wouldn’t have had the chance.”

“Don’t tell her that,” Amistance said.

“We are still going to get a record deal,” Dustin said. “All the second and third place winners got deals in the past.”

“It isn’t that,” she turned from main stage as Feng of Singapore had started to set up their instruments for one last performance.

“My name is Apollo Driscoll,” the volume from the projector was louder than usual.

Cyn spun around towards it. Her eyes widened in disbelief. “Apollo?”

-