Lessons

Author's Note: I wrote this as a companion piece/favor to a fanfic my girlfriend was writing, but seeing as how she'll never finish it, I guess I'll share it with you guys. Translations for the Chinese is at the bottom of the page (thanks, Google Translate!)
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Inara sat in her shuttle, bathed in a golden light. She watched herself in the mirror as she brushed her hair, humming a lullaby that she had picked up somewhere on Sihnon. She had some incense burning on her nightstand, filling the air with a relaxing scent. She was warm and refreshed from the bath that she had just taken. Everything seemed just about right for a perfect night. Then came a soft knock at her door.

The Companion sighed, setting down her brush.

"Come in."

As the door opened, Inara spun around on her stool and crossed her arms, expecting another fight with Mal. Instead of the grumpy world-weary captain, a grease-and-oil covered, and still very chipper Kaylee walked into the room with coins jingling in her hands.

"Oh!" Inara quickly uncrossed her hands and wiped the disapproving look from her face. "Kaylee! What brings you here?"

Kaylee smiled, but it was different from her normal heartwarming smile. Kaylee’s joy was there—she had joy in all of her smiles, but this particular one was tinged with—desperation?

"Hey, Inara."

"What’re the coins for, Kaylee?" the Companion asked, tilting her head. The engineer shifted, holding out the coins like an offering to one of the old gods.

"Well…it’s just—you’re so pretty, Inara, and beautiful—even your room smells pretty—and I was just, well, I…" Kaylee bit her lip, and stared at her shifting feet. "I wanna…buy you."

Inara’s heart skipped a beat and her eyes widened, but at the very least she tried to keep her jaw from dropping.

"Kaylee—"

"Well, not for like…you know," the blonde blushed. "I just wanted you to teach me some stuff. Some…Companion stuff."

"Kaylee," The older woman held Kaylee’s hands, squeezing them. "I don’t need these. All you had to do was ask."

"Shiny," Kaylee’s smile brightened into the one that Inara knew and loved. "I wasn’t sure that I had enough—I mean, it’s my life savings, but—"

"Your life savings!" Inara quickly produced a small bag and deposited Kaylee’s credit coins in them before tightly tying the bag shut. "You shouldn’t ever spend this money, Kaylee!" She shoved the bag into the young woman’s hand perhaps a bit harder that she deserved. "Suoyou de yuchun... Who is it, Kaylee? Who could possibly be worth every coin that you’ve ever saved!?"

Kaylee didn’t answer immediately, squirming like a child who’d just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"Simon."

"Simon," Inara echoed. "It would be Simon."

"He’s just so well-mannered and refined and," Kaylee’s eyes became dreamy and clouded as she looked for the right words, "He’s like a well-oiled J-type 327 Nubian. And I’m just a stuttering Capasan 920." The light seemed to have faded from the young woman as she idly kicked the ground. Inara took a breath and wrapped her arms around the greasy engineer.

"Kaylee, you are not last year’s model," Inara cooed, patting her friend’s head reassuringly.

"Not even last years—I’m ancient! I’m one of them’s rusting out at the bottom of a junk heap—"

"No, no, no," Inara squeezed Kaylee harder. "That’s not true! You just need a-a good overhaul and a spit shine!"

Kaylee wasn’t quite struggling anymore and her constant mewls of complaint had faded away to sniffles. Inara took a chance and slowly back away from the younger blond.

"You think?" she asked, wiping at her nose.

"Of course!” Inara answered. "You’re young, beautiful, and spirited, Kaylee, and anyone would be a fool not to notice it."

"But I’m always covered in grease and oil," Kaylee sighed. "And even if I weren’t…I wouldn’t know where to start!"

"Well, why don’t you start where most people start? With kissing."

"Well, I, um," the younger woman giggled awkwardly like a 13 year old at a slumber party. "It’s just been so long."

Inara took a deep breath.

"If you’re that nervous about it, you can practice on me."

The blond turned a bright scarlet, bringing a hand up to her mouth.

"But, Inara, you’re a girl."

"And I make it my job to be a Companion, which is precisely the reason why you came to see me in the first place," she answered, crossing her arms. "Besides, with everything that goes into being a companion, I’d be stuck training you for years. A few pointers in the finer interactions of a man and woman would be more effective."

"Shiny," Kaylee answered uncertainly. "So, umm…where do we begin?"

The Companion sighed. From the stories she’d heard, Kaylee was far from inexperienced with men, and here she was acting like a shy little Catholic schoolgirl in front of her parents! She slowly placed her arms around the younger woman, drawing her in close.

"Get as close to him as you can," Inara said, squeezing their bodies together. "He’s a gentleman—it’ll surprise him and he won’t know how to react." Her hands roamed Kaylee’s back, one swooping down towards the engineer’s overall-clad bottom and the other snaking upwards to hold the younger woman close to her. Kaylee stuttered something as Inara’s face loomed in close enough for her to feel the heat radiating off the Companion’s cheeks. She even smells pretty.

"Get in close," Inara whispered, one hand entangling itself in Kaylee’s golden hair. Her other hand wrapped around a surprisingly soft bottom, drawing out a soft cry from the blond. "Almost become one."

Kayle gulped, not sure what was happening. She’d never been with a girl before—she’d never even done this with a man before.

"Almost," Inara repeated, her lips almost touching Kaylee’s cheeks, inching over the younger woman’s lips. "You tease." Despite herself, Kaylee’s mouth opened. A soft moan squeezed between her pink links as the Companion’s hands massaged her ass cheek. "You draw it out for as long as you can," Inara’s lips traced the outline of Kaylee’s tasting her waiting breath. The tip of her tongue touched the opening of Kaylee’s mouth. The young woman had had enough. She leaned forward, meeting the brunette’s lips in a hungry kiss. The Companion let out an eager moan as she loosened her grip, hands travelling to Kaylee’s front. The younger woman stiffened when a hand reached in through the side of her overalls, attaching itself to her breasts. Inara swallowed the younger woman’s whimper as the older woman’s hand pressed against the front of Kaylee’s overalls.

"Make him want you," Inara whispered as she pulled away, pressing her hand harder against the front of Kaylee’s overalls as her other hand played gently with Kaylee’s erect nipple through her shirt. Inara grinned, feeling Kaylee’s heat even through the thick cloth. "Let him know you’re interested," the Companion took the younger woman’s hand and closed her eyes as she pressed Kaylee’s hand against her own flaming center. "Oh, great Buddha," she breathed as the blonde’s gentle fingers experimentally pressed against the thin cloth, almost feeling the barely contained wetness. She had a smile on her face again as she leaned in close again. "Make him want it."

Kaylee moaned as Inara licked her lips. Their tongues met in a wet dance. Noises escaped the women as they gently rocked against each other and tasted each other. The tingling in Kaylee’s pants was almost more than she could bear. She had never had nor had she ever been between a woman’s legs, but darn tootin’ if anything in the ‘verse were gonna stop her from doing it now! Her hand left Inara’s body as she struggled to get out of her overalls.

"Ah-ah-ah," the Companion smiled, placing a hand on Kaylee’s fumbling fingers. "Maybe the most important lesson, xiao meimei, is to keep him wanting more."

"Oh?" the chime of disappointment seemed in vain as Inara backed away and quickly retrieved Serenity’s chief engineer’s life savings and handed them back to her. Her eyes widened when Inara placed her hand on Kaylee’s cheek and shared with her one last passionate kiss.

"For the first few nights, anyway."
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Suoyou de yuchun = Of all the stupid…
Xiao meimei = Little (little) sister