They were dealing with a rash of pranks on board the ship. They had some coin in their pockets and things had been quiet - a little too quiet, apparently.

Which might explain how an adorably glaring Kaylee came to be holding a box of Inara’s very sexy undies that she found in Simon’s clothing drawer (where she was just straightening up and not nosing through his things.) And she knew they were Inara’s because there was a fragile, silk hankie on top with her initials embroidered in elegant Mandarin script right there in the corner. And besides, who else would have pretties like that on Serenity?

Inara’s confusion evidently stemmed from the fact that she’d been looking everywhere for that box of undies. She wanted to up the ante on a certain ship’s captain who’d lured her down to his cabin to see some star charts one night several months ago, and very graciously allowed her to seduce him. The seduction game was still going strong, although who was seducing whom the most was still in question – so far it was tie. That box held the tiebreaker for sure.

Jayne was all manner of pissed off because someone had been going through his bunk – and nobody was allowed in his bunk. Certain items that he “collected” when the crew was out and about had disappeared - namely, a box that smelled heavenly and held some fascinating pieces of slinky frippery. Jayne figured you never knew when they might stop on some planet and a whore might show up. Sometimes coin wasn’t to be had, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t barter.

And Mal. Mal was unassumingly, and with all manner of innocence pasted on his face, enjoying the show. Only Zoe might have shown suspicion at the little telltale curl of a smile and the nearly imperceptible twinkle in his eyes. Yep, things had just been too quiet around here lately. Lot of ruckus over a little box of nothin’. After the fireworks, he'd make sure it was returned to its rightful owner.

Zoe and River were enjoying their own thoughts from the catwalk.

Zoe, a warm, quiet smile on her face, was thinking that Inara had been good for the captain. Putting a person who’d been so broken back together took time - and a hell of a lot of patience - but he was coming along, and Inara was hanging in there. Girl might be all shine on the outside, but Zoe had seen that she could handle herself with the best of them.

There was a time when she’d figured never to see that crazy streak of Mal Reynolds humor again. She hadn’t seen him pull a prank like this since back around the beginning of the war, though this was small and innocuous compared to some of the stunts he’d pulled then.

Might be later, she’d sew the sleeves of his shirt closed. That ought to bring back some memories that would make him smile. Although there wouldn’t be an officer standing outside her tent, and she wouldn’t be trying to get into her uniform after having had some pretty great sex with a wild cowboy from a rim planet that didn’t even have running water. Yep, come to think of it, she did owe him for that.

River was smiling because, after all, she’d been the one that found the pretty box and showed it to the captain in the first place. Really, Jayne was going to have to invest in better locks.