milliways_bar | The Crew.

Wash, after an awkward glance at the rest of the crew and a slight smile for his wife, breaks away from their group to help with the tables.

Zoe joins him a moment later. Briefly, as they shove their table against the one Eddie and Susannah are moving, her eyes meet Susannah's.

The nod she offers is just as much greeting as recognition.

Simon, moving to a seat at the now-conjoined tables (and guiding River along with a hand on her elbow), catches Ted's eye and nods back at him.

It's a call not to be denied. Like others, they'd been at the karaoke party, with friends and laughter and singing, oh aye.

(Hile to me, tet of nine! Time to lay our cards on the table.)

No laughter now-- it's been replaced by quietly grave determination, as Susan Delgado and Cuthbert Allgood cross the room together to join the others.

Mal is the last of his crew to claim a chair, and although his eyes scan across the face of every person at the table, Mal inclines his head toward Roland for the briefest of moments, the easiest sign of respect he could make for the ensemble present.

Roland catches his eye for a moment, and returns the gesture. One dinh to another.

He approves of sai Reynolds. Tentatively.

Moving on. "Not sure if you've been introduced to my crew as a whole yet," Mal offers, more in the interest of full disclosure than an attempt at friendly banter. "River and Simon you know, and Wash, then there's Zoe, Kaylee, Jayne, Book and Inara." Each crew member gives a little sign of recognition at the utterance of their name.

Complex looks pass between Roland and Eddie; the kind you get after two people know each other long enough.

The gist of which seems to be, Eddie's big mouth is on parade.

Roland and Mal are facing each other, each tet on one side of the assembled table, but Eddie is at his right hand.

"Well-met. I'm Eddie Dean. Long Tall and Ugly here is our dinh, our leader, Roland Deschain, but he tends to make me do all the heavy-lifting. The lady in the chair is my wife, Susannah, the young lady is Susan Delgado, and the old dude is Ted Brautigan. The other two fellas are Alain Johns and Cuthbert Allgood."

"Susannah, Roland, Cuthbert and Alain are gunslingers. That means they serve the Way of Eld--they are bound by their honor to stand for justice and to give aid and succor to those in need. The rest of us hold to Eld's Way as well, and for that reason, we've thrown what help we can give behind River Tam. Why we may be able to help her, we'll be happy to explain."

"We've come here tonight, all of us, to lay our cards on the table. To hold palaver. Sai Reynolds--as dinh of your tet--as captain of your crew, do ya not see--will you open to us as we open to you?"

River's been looking off into space. Listening. She doesn't react to Eddie's nicknames, or to the mention of her own name, but her face is intent and absorbed, and she's listening.

At the question, her head turns, and she looks sharply at Eddie, and then at Mal.

Her face is unreadable, as it often is.

*Inara gazes at the serious faces around her. She isn't sure precisely what is going on here, but the importance of the situation is obvious. She sits back, listening intently.*

*Jayne looks at Mal, and then at all these new, serious folk, suspicious.*

Better be some gorram pay in this one, or I ain't openin' to no one, 'specially not this lièzhì bunch of niăo shī de dŭguĭ.

Simon shoots an irritated glance at Jayne, and then an apologetic one to Eddie.

Zoe barely glances at Jayne, her eyes sweeping the group across the table instead. Her expression is neutral, her arms folded.

She's not at all sure about this whole situation. Particularly the part where a group of gunfighters has taken an interest in River. But what the talker--Eddie Dean--has said about honor and justice rings true.

This whole bar at the end of the universe deal is still iffy, to Zoe's mind. But these people--somehow, they feel right.

River doesn't bother to look at Jayne. Her eyes are still on Mal.

"Shoots with his gun."

Flat, simple. Maybe a little contemptuous, maybe not.

Under his breath: "You say true."

Seems this one might be at home with a blue coffin tattooed between thumb and first finger. A regulator. A harrier.

But it won't do to say that here, now.

*He mutters, interested, but trying to hide it.*

Thanks, Stabby. I'll keep that in mind.

*Jayne sizes Roland up; he drops his eyes down and away after a few moments.*

Wash's eyebrow goes up.

Stabby? he mouths to Zoe, trying (and failing) to hide a smirk.

Zoe's better at hiding her own smirk.

Okay, a bit better.

"Jayne, bù guăn nĭshì fŏu xĭ huān, this is the way it is." Mal turns away from looking at Jayne, and meets Eddie's eyes.

"Shia, we're here to be truthful with you. We're just lookin' to take care o' our own; ain't lookin' for trouble and such." The phrase of our own surprises Mal momentarily, but he lets it pass in his mind.

(just lookin' to take care o' our own)

Susan's smile is sudden and soft-- and understanding, oh aye, even though she doesn't say anything. She glances quickly aside at Roland, and then returns her attention to Mal and Eddie.

Duìbùqĭ, but I'm not sure I understand exactly why you are interested in helping River. *She narrows her eyes slightly* What are your motivations exactly?

Ted, quiet until this point, speaks now. Who better to answer?

"Madam, my name is Ted Stevens Brautigan, of your Earth-that-was. I am a psychic. I was imprisoned in a place called Algul Siento -- Blue Heaven -- " And here his eyes flicker to River, and then back to Inara. " -- by forces who wanted me to use what I can do to bring existence to an end." Pause. "Nothing like what was done to River happened to me. But there were...mind games. I was the only successful escapee. They didn't like that very much. And it was these gentlemen -- and this lady -- " A nod to Susannah Dean. " -- who destroyed the place. They hold to Eld's Way, as Eddie said. We asked for their aid, and they gave it."

A small smile. "They have experience. But for the rest of it -- that's for another to explain, I think."

River is not looking at Mal any more. Nor at Ted. She's staring fixedly at the table, head hanging. Shoulders tense.

Her face is set and half-hidden by dark hair, and her hands twist in her lap.

Her lips are moving slightly, but nothing is audible.

Simon looks at her, and reaches over to cover her clasped hands with one of his own.

"It's okay, meimei."

Blue Heaven is the first thing that sets the hairs on the back of Wash's neck on edge.

Bring existence to an end is the second.

And destroyed the place....

His forehead creases, and he swallows, mouth suddenly dry. "Uh...there something you're suggesting here?" he asks slowly. "And I'm kind of really, really hoping the answer's 'no, of course not, your crazy space dementia's just acting up again.' Is it? Please say it is."

"I doubt you're misunderstandin' what they're considerin' taking on there, Wash. Not at all."

Eyes completely focused on Ted. Then Roland. Then Eddie. "Don't know if the Academy's exactly like this...Algul Siento, but certainly sounds like. Seems to me however that we'd be aimin' first for help for River herself 'fore we decided to run off and be heroes in a fight somewhere."

Another bit of a pause. "Not that attackin' a part o' the Alliance doesn't sound like worlds o' fun." Actually said with half a smile.

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