That Which Makes A Man: Chapter One

[mercsgoodgirl.livejournal.com]

Title: That Which Shapes A Man 
Chapter One: A Tough Beginning

Author: mercsgoodgirl
Summary: Jayne returns to his home world for the funeral of his beloved younger brother. The solemn occasion forces him to confront early events that have shaped his life, in an effort to understand the true meaning of family and loyalty. 
Rating: PG-15 this chapter for strong language, angst and implied violence.
Characters: Crew, Jayne, Kaylee, ofc, omc
Paring: Jayne/Kaylee 
Spoilers/Timeline: Just prior to "Those Left behind"; also, twenty-eight years previously.
Series: All That Shapes A Man, Chapter 1 of 13
Disclaimer: All belongs to Joss. Just one woman’s take on the story. No money exchanged and all that.
Word Count: This chapter - 3,438

A/N: From the first time I watched Firefly, I wondered what circumstances might have shaped the character of Jayne Cobb, an exceptionally complex man. This story emerged from the questions I asked.

Heartfelt thanks to my  most excellent beta, artemis_prime, for making me dig deep. My thanks to the amazingly talentedcantonheroine for the icon and beautiful header for this story. Thanks to bookaddict43, squish_67 andartemis_primefor their patient technical assistance. Finally, sincere thanks to my dear friend, Kristy Bartley, Ph.D., psychologist and therapist, who introduced me to the amazing work on intergenerational family dynamics done by Dr. Terrance Real that gave me insights into the circumstances that might have created the character we see.

 
Cross-posted to jaylee_ship .  Questions, thoughts and comments are sincerely appreciated. Thanks!

The tale begins...