[AU: Kaylee in Eden]

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

This ain't Persephone.

Kaylee ain't exactly sure what this place is, but it ain't Persephone. And that wall with "Eden" written on it, that ain't Serenity, which it should be, seeing as she just left her.

"Uh..." she hazards, rotating around slowly, checking out her surroundings, her smile fading with worry. "Cap'n?"

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[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

Wash.

Pulling his t-shirt on over his head, Sokka smiles and offers his hands to help her up. "Don't worry," he says again, reassuring her. "I'll send you back home."

When she's dressed and standing, anyway.

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee smiles gratefully at him, taking his hands in both of hers, standing before reaching behind herself to do up her bra.

"Not that I ain't had fun," she says promptly. "You ain't forgotten anything in those years."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

"Nice to hear," Sokka replies, laughing. Once she's up, hands are occupied: one in a pocket, the other resting at the back of his neck. "Trust me, if you weren't so worried about your captain, I'd be trying a lot harder to get you to stick around."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"Really?"

Kaylee's sweetened by the flattery, but dismisses it.

"That's awful sweet. And believe me, if there was a way of gettin' back , I'd be up for more of that any time."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

He blinks and Sokka looks at her again, quiet for a moment. He can't imagine why any Kaylee would have trouble believing she was beautiful (or very, very talented) but he hopes, at least, that Simon managed to fix that in Apocalyptica.

Or wherever it was that they started sleeping together.

He does the best he can, just in case, leaning forward to kiss her cheek and replying with "Of course."

Except that she's going and there is, so far as he knows, no way to get back.

This, somehow, doesn't stop him in the slightest from grinning like a fool when she asks him to believe, nodding once. "Now, now, don't get my hopes up - now you're just being cruel."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee grins brightly when he kisses her, shrugging her shirt on over her overalls.

"No kidding," she says, utterly innocent. "That tight ass of yours? I could ride that all night."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

This time when laughter bursts from Sokka, it's accompanied by a red tinge to his dark face. "I'd say the same for you except I had a lot of fun being ridden."

Which is why he didn't protest to being thrown on the floor.

"...though if you do manage to get back, I think we should really finish the experiment with the wall."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee laughs sweetly, and leans forward to kiss his nose.

"You're on."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

He wrinkles it for her and then just goes back to grinning, tightening the tie in his hair. "Don't forget - it's wood with a copper casing, not copper with a wood one. The friction will set the whole thing on fire if it's backwards."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"Gotcha," Kaylee says. "Though I think I knew that already."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

"Well, I don't want your boat catching on fire and get my name spread through the whole universe as the idiot that made you explode."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"Oh now see," Kaylee says, "our boat catches fire in the black? No one's going to be around to tell who's fault it was."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

"...well, that... doesn't really make me feel better at all, really." Smirking a little, hands sliding into his pockets, Sokka leans back against the wall. "Don't die, okay? Promise?"

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee even snaps a tiny salute.

"Ain't managed to die so far," she says.

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

"Well, continue to fail at it, then."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"

Shì a,

" Kaylee says, hand looking for his now.

"You wanna show me how to use your machine?"

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

She's got his hand a moment later, out of his pocket and curling around her fingers as he nods and pushes off the wall. "Sure. You don't have to do anything but stand there. Real simple."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"Think I can manage that," she says. "Ain't like I have't stood before."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

"Could've fooled me!"



"...in a sexy way, not in the vaguely insulting way that sounded like."

He's just going to lead her outside quietly now.

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee gives him a look that's half amused, half confused, and lets him lead the way out.

"You know," she says. "I bet you could make the whole thing more efficient if you route around half of those safety loops. You've been cautious, but the flux drive I saw earlier - ain't really necessary."

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

Frowning slightly, brows drawn together in thought, Sokka's still holding Kaylee's hand as they near the machine. "Yeah, I know... I'm just paranoid about the battery bypass. I know it's like a zero-percent chance it'll blow up without the flux, but if that goes, it'll be months before I can figure out how to make a new one."

A blink and he pauses beside the machine, eyebrows rising as he looks at her. "...now you're just being mean, teasing me with shop talk."

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

"Weren't my intention," Kaylee protests quickly, and kisses him on the cheek before she takes the handle - the one Sokka hasn't even needed to point out to here.

"You take care, OK?"

[notanoptimist.livejournal.com]

His chin tilts for that kiss, and he smiles, squeezing her hand once before releasing her.

"You, too, Kaylee. No exploding now."

A switch is flipped and as the machine hums to life, Sokka settles his fingers over a small button.

[meimeichanic.livejournal.com]

Kaylee has to remember to hang on, because she's really leaning over to see what the whir is and how it's going to look when it works and whether the machine is as healthy as it looks...

But then she's on the Eavesdown docks, and there's a parasol, and she has to find passengers.

Kaylee sighs, and sits down on a deck chair, propping her feet up and grinning like anything.

It's a good day for meeting people.