Inara: Thank you for the wine. It’s… very fresh.

Mal: To Kaylee and her inter-engine fermentation system.

Inara: Are you in pain?

Mal: Absolutely. I got stabbed, you know, right here.

Inara: I saw.

Mal:Don’t care much for fancy parties. Too rough.

Inara: It wasn’t entirely a disaster.

Mal: I got stabbed! Right here!

Inara: You also lined up exciting new crime.

Mal: It’s good to have cargo. Makes us a target for every other scavenger out there, though, but sometimes that’s fun too.

Inara: I am grateful, you know, for the ill-conceived and high-handed attempt to defend my honor, although I didn’t want you to.

Mal: Gracious as that is, looking back, I probably should have stayed out of your world.

Inara: My world? If it is that. I wasn’t going to stay, you know.

Mal: Yeah? Why is that?

Inara: Oh, someone needs to keep Kaylee out of trouble. And all my things are here. Besides, why would I want to leave Serenity?

Mal: Can’t think of a reason.

Firefly — Episode 4 — “Shindig”

Harrow: You didn’t have to wound that man.

Mal: Yeah, I know, it was just funny.

Harrow: You willing to fight that hard to protect my property, I’ll have it in your hold before midnight. (shakes hands with Mal and leaves)

Mal: (to Inara) Mighty fine shindig.

Firefly — Episode 4 — “Shindig”

Atherton: Inara. Inara!

Harrow: You’ve lost her lad. Be gracious.

Atherton: You set this up, whore. After I bought and paid for you. I should have uglied you up so much no one else’d want you.

Mal: See how I’m not punching him? I think I’ve grown.

Atherton: Well get ready to starve. I’ll see that you never work again.

Inara: Actually, that’s not how it works. You see, you’ve earned yourself a black mark in the client registry. No Companion is ever going to contract with you, ever again.

Harrow: You’ll have to rely on your winning personality to get women. God help you.

Firefly — Episode 4 — “Shindig”

Harrow: He’s down. You have to finish it, lad. You have to finish it. For a man to lie beaten, and yet breathing? It makes him a coward.

Inara: It’s humiliation.

Mal: Sure, it’s humiliating. Having to lie there while the better man refuses to spill your blood. Mercy is the mark of a great man. (lightly stabs Atherton in the stomach) Guess I’m just a good man. (stabs him again) Well, I’m all right.

Firefly — Episode 4 — “Shindig”

Mal: I thought he made it pretty clear he has no regard for you.

Inara: You did manage to push him into saying something, yes. Made a nice justification for the punch.

Mal: Well, he insulted you. I hit him. Seemed like the thing to do. Why’d this get so complicated?

Inara: Well, it’s about to get simpler. There’s a back door. Desk clerk is on alert. He’ll let us out.

Mal: Whoa, whoa, I’m not running off. I don’t know what you got in your head, but I didn’t do this to prove some kind of point to you. I thought I was defending your honor. And I never back down from a fight.

Inara: Yes, you do! You do all the time!

Mal: Well, yeah… but, I’m not backing down from this one.

Firefly — Episode 4 — “Shindig”