Title: Therapy

A knock on the shuttle door alerted Inara to an unexpected visitor.

What was even more unexpected was that the visitor was Jayne. "Jayne, come in," she waved her arm, welcoming the merc into her shuttle. Pushing back the curiosity of what would have landed Jayne at her doorstep, she proceeded to dispense of the formalities and get right to it. She knew Jayne wasn't one for small talk or tea, for that matter. "Please, have a seat." She settled in the chair opposite him. "Is there something on your mind? I assume you are here to talk about something in particular?"

"Uh, I guess."

Sensing that the man wasn't going to initiate this conversation on his own, Inara sorted through all her counseling techniques and landed on one that even a mono-syllabic gruff giant like Jayne could relate to. "Alright, Jayne, let's try an exercise, it's like a game. I'll say one word and you say one word back. Don't think too long on it, just say whatever comes to mind. Do you think you can do that, Jayne?"

"Guess so," he mumbled as he settled back in the chaise.

Inara rolled her eyes and wondered how she was supposed to counsel a man that barely talks. But with Jayne, it was probably something important for him to even show his face. Knowing she should start with the core issue, Inara decided to begin the "game" with Jayne himself. "Fine, I'll start." She paused to be certain Jayne for ready. "Man," Inara prompted.

"Woman."

"Beauty."

"Dancin'."

Inara raised an eyebrow at that response but continued. "Partner."

"River."

"Water."

"That ain't the kind of river I was meanin'. I meant the girl. She's my partner as gun hand now," corrected Jayne.

"I realize that, Jayne, let's continue," Inara sighed. "Let's start again. Ship."

"Crew."

"Family," Inara responded.

"Children."

Again, Inara was taken aback by Jayne's response. Although she knew he kept in contact with his mother, she never thought of Jayne as a family man. Although, somehow it wasn't the most absurd thought either. She'd think on that further later. She continued off the concept of children. "Mother."

"Love."

Inara sensed it was the time to push the game a bit harder. "Sex."

Jayne didn't respond. In fact, his dropped his head to stare at his hands in his laps, brow furrowed and frowning.

"Jayne, the word was sex," she reminded. "It's your turn. I'd expect your answer to be 'whore'. Are you uncomfortable saying that because of my profession?"

"Nah, wasn't thinkin' of no whores. Just wanted to say somethin' I shouldn't."

"That's fine, Jayne," Inara soothed, not wanting to push the big merc beyond his comfort zone. "We can talk about that later. Let's review your answers. Maybe it will give us some insights into your thoughts." She consulted her notebook. "let's see…woman, dancing, River, crew, children, love." Inara allowed a bit of a grin. "I find that pretty interesting, don't you? What do you think this means?"

Jayne dragged his hands down his face. "Ya', I think it means I'm humped," he sighed. "Damn, Moony. She's gonna' be the death of me one way or da' other."

Settled in the co-pilot seat on the bridge, River giggled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "The first step to recovery is admitting the problem, Ape-Man."