InsaneJournal

Wiles
Title: Wiles
Author: Bookaddict
Characters: pre Mal/Jayne, Crew
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Firefly and Serenity are the property of Joss Whedon
Word count: 200
Comments: Inspired by my icon and originally written for the LJ community firefly100. Prompt: fair

It wasn’t fair and it had to stop.

He was used to feminine wiles in all their trickiness and could resist them real good. Inara’s tea and conversation, her beautifully kept shuttle and peaceful surroundings. Kaylee’s sunny smiles, coaxing ways and truly magical ways with the engine; River’s big brown eyes welling with tears, her crazy fits and downright spooky mind-reading; they never got to him. Not at all – never.

Zoe’s wiles weren’t exactly like that; they were more soldierly and mostly didn’t work either. Simon wasn’t capable of doing that much believable lying. Wash wouldn’t know a wile if it bit him on the foot, and the Shepherd’s were all religious and easy to ignore.

What wasn’t easy to ignore, in fact it was downright impossible, was the masculine brand of wiles flaunted daily on his ship.

There was the ripped and too tight t-shirts, the grunting while on the weight bench, the continuous food eating, the subtle knife polishing and gun caressing, the arguing, disagreeing and insistence on coin; and the total disregard of every rule he ever set, all contributed to keep Mal right off balance.

He was going to have to talk to his troublesome mercenary.