Riddick really didn’t know what to make of the crew of Serenity. When he’d listened to Kaylee on the planet she’d described each crew member and certain events they’d gone through, but no one was as Riddick had pictured them---especially the Captain. The murderer didn’t see the often joking man as one of authority---mostly the one most listened to was Zoë, his right-hand man—er…woman—whom Riddick was sure was having something with the hired-guns.

They all sat around the table in the mess hall. Shazza had gotten into an argument with the captain during their ‘introduction’. Apparently Shazza had once met the captain, though neither would say when where or how, and if Riddick had to guess by the glares they gave each other, they hadn’t parted on amicable terms.

The Australian glared at the captain throughout the whole conversation until he sneeringly brought up ‘that big bluff of a man’ who’d been courting her during the time he’d known her, asking what’d happened to him. All the blood had rushed from Shazza’s face as she got up and ran away from the table, tears streaming down her face.

Obviously, the ‘bug bluff’ had been Zeke, her husband, and the realization that he was dead was once more sinking in now that she didn’t have to fear for her life.

“What?” The captain asked, seeing the glares Kaylee and Jack were giving him. “What did I say?”

“Men!” Kaylee continued to glare at the captain while Simon Tam, River’s brother, who was way too prissy looking for Riddick’s tastes, sat next to her, hand on her knee, as if trying to reassure himself that his bao-bei was back with him safe and sound.

Riddick had to admit that while the younger man looked useless when it came to weapons, he was quite gifted when it came to fixing the damage caused by weapons. He’d taken care of Iman, stitching him up and bandaging him before doing the same to the others and giving them medicine to make sure that none of their wounds would get infected.

“What?” Malcolm Reynolds asked once more, defensive.

“He was the first one killed on that gorram planet cap’n!” Kaylee exclaimed, obviously exasperated. “They were married!”

Suddenly all color left Mal’s face, much like it had Shazza’s. Guilt and pain contorted his features as he turned slightly to look in the direction that the woman had run to. Giving a little huff, he straightened his shoulders and left the mess hall, obviously hot on her trail.

Everyone was silent as they tilted slightly in their seats to watch him go until he turned at a corner and disappeared from sight.

Jack turned to Suleiman before stealing a piece of protein from his plate and plopping it into her mouth. “I bet you twenty that she decks him.”

Riddick, who’d been silent and standing in the shadows of the corner, felt eyes on him and turned to look at the mercenary he knew he’d seen before.

“ I know you.” The man named Jayne announced slowly, eyes widening in recognition. “Since you came in I knew I’d seen ya from somewhere, just couldn’t put ma finger on where.” He blinked. “You’re Riddick. Richard Badass Riddick.”

Riddick tensed. The survivors had all silently agreed that he’d go by Johns’ name now that he’d escaped, yet with his luck he’d had to come across someone who’d recognized him.

Apparently he was going to have to ghost two people on this gorram boat.

The mercenary’s face suddenly broke out into a toothy smile. “I remember you. I was workin’ with some punkass who was mighty obsessed with ya’ some years back. Saw ‘im attack ya and you beat the Gou Shi outta ‘im…nearly killed ‘im too.” He frowned. “What was his ruttin’ name again?” His eyes widened. “Ah! Yes! Johns!”

Everyone at the table froze.

“Hundan never told me ya’d killed Operatives ‘n that were why ya were bein’ chased.” Jayne snorted, leaning back. “Left tha next day. One less Alliance official the better says me.” He was silent for a moment. “Ever seen the hundan again?”

Riddick observed the mountain of a man and analyzed his posture, his facial features, and the likelihood that the man could be acting. When he realized that the man didn’t have the ability to act, he smirked. “Shived his wrist off.”

“Wish I’d seen it.” Jack murmured into her food.

Jayne turned to look at the girl and frowned. “Kid, you been hanging ‘round moonbrain too long. Yer all kinds a disturbin’.”

“Hundan wanted to leave us behind!” The girl snapped at the larger man, obviously unafraid of him. “I think I have the right to be pissed at him!”

“Jack!” Kaylee cried out the same time that Zoë announced: “Language!”

Jayne shook his head, obviously amused. “Did he still have that gorram big shotgun?”

Riddick’s smirk growing darker was the only answer given.

The conversation was cut short as Mal and Shazza returned. The woman’s eyes were red from tears she’d obviously shed, and the captain’s cheek sported an ugly red handprint, yet the antagonism that’d existed between them moments ago seemed gone.

Jack turned to Suleiman, hand outstretched. “Cough up the money.”

The older, Arabic boy looked down at her open palm and then up at her expectant face in obvious amusement. “I never said I accepted the bet.”

She frowned at him.

“Is everything alright, sir?” Zoë asked, eyeing the ugly handprint on his cheek with a mixture of amusement and worry. “Just shiny.” Mal announced before turning to the others. “Now, even though our lil’ Albatross should be here with all of us she’s busy up flyin’ my ship through some turbulence and the crew ‘n I ain’t gonna last ‘till she’s ready, so someone better be tellin’ us what happened on that gorram planet.”

Riddick frowned as Jack and Kaylee vied for the story-telling position as they both broke out in hurried words.

Lil’ Albatross?

What sorta idiotic name was that?

His jaw clenched as he viewed the man standing before the table, listening with deep interest as the girls told them all that they’d gone through after crashing on the planet.

The man stood straight, his face an open book of every emotion that rushed through his face. The three emotions most prominent on his face was the obvious feelings he had for the girls, horror at what they nearly hadn’t survived, and anger directed at those who’d been responsible for the predators.

Riddick could understand why River was attached to the man, he seemed to honestly care for her and Kaylee, but that didn’t mean he had to accept or like Malcolm Reynolds or his part in River’s life…nor the close relationship they had.

‘Our lil’ Albatross’…

Riddick shook his head at the way Mal had called River. Everyone on this ship seemed to believe they owned River somehow, especially that big brother of hers, whom she’d had to kick out from where she was piloting Serenity to get him to stop fussing over her bruises, cuts and the scars that would obviously mar her perfect skin. And Riddick didn’t like that. He didn’t like that one bit.

River Tam belonged to only one person in the ‘Verse.

And that person was Richard Badass Riddick.

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Oblivious to the going ons in the mind of one handsome and ridiculously possessive murderer, River put Serenity on auto-pilot once they’d cleared Atmo and the first thing she did afterwards was to wave a surprised Inara.

The Core Companion was now on a planet close to the Rim training young girls to be Companions as well, as she had been for a while now, and her beautiful dark eyes had widened in horror as River explained—to the best of her ability—what had happened since they’d been parted.

Then, when she’d assured the older woman that ‘the sun and stars are shiny’, she’d pulled out the Big Gauge---figuratively of course---and finally asked the questions that were the reason why she’d waved the Companion in the first place.

To say Inara was surprised would have been an understatement. Her eyes had widened and she’d opened and closed her mouth repeated before asking River if Jayne and her had finally gotten together…or if she was asking because of Mal.

That’d caused the assassin to make a face at her friend and explain that there was someone else, and the relief had been evident on the Companion’s face as she’d announced that neither Mal nor Jayne were the right sorta man for River anyway. And while she didn’t ask anything more about this man who’d gotten River smiling and glowing, the Companion had answered all of her questions as thoroughly and clinically as possible.

When they’d ended the wave-contact, River was sure that she had the theory down pat. Getting up, trying to push away her nervousness, she went in search of Riddick.

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Shazza laid down on the bunk, looking up at the ceiling, holding the pillow to her breaking heart. Images of Zeke and the good times they’d had together raced through her mind, she could hear his accented voice chuckling in her ear, and could feel his loving and surprisingly gentle touch on her shoulder as if he was there in spirit trying to comfort her.

She’d been married to him since she was seventeen, and while he could be course and vulgar with everyone else, he’d loved her, and had treated her like a valuable crystal that could break at any moment despite the fact that she was far from being fragile.

He’d always wanted to keep her safe, had always promised to be there with her, to spoil their kids rotten and make her be the disciplinary figure in their lives. His favorite joke was that if she kept frowning she’d look like his mother---and considering that he was somewhat older than her the thought would always make her smile and forget whatever had been troubling her at the moment.

But Zeke wasn’t here, he’d never be with her again, and she hadn’t even been able to say goodbye.

That was what killed her the most. She hadn’t been able to tell him that she loved him and was going to miss him more than life itself.

A knock on the door caused her to jerk up into a sitting position on the bed and wipe furiously at the tears staining her skin. “Come in.”

The door opened and Shazza was surprised to see Zoë Washburne, Mal’s right-hand woman, come inside.

“I’m sorry to interrupt.” The beautiful, dark-skinned woman announced slowly, obviously uncomfortable. “But my bunk is on the other side of yours and I couldn’t help but overhear your crying.”

“I’m sorry, wasn’t tryin’ ta have an audience. Didn’ even realize I was cryin’ loud.” Shazza lowered her gaze, ashamed and embarrassed.

The other woman stood awkwardly in the doorway before speaking once more. “No, I---I came here because I want you to know that I understand what you’re going through.”

Shazza’s gaze lifted at that.

The woman lowered her gaze, face suddenly downtrodden. “I lost my husband a year ago to a Reaver harpoon. I was right there, one minute he was speaking and the next that monstrosity was sticking out of his chest, pinning him to the pilot seat and taking him away from me forever.” There was a pause as she shivered. “I can never go to the pilot room without remembering that sight up to this very day.”

Shazza gulped loudly, hugging the pillow tighter to her. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you.” Zoë gave her a teary, thankful smile as she continued. “I just want you to know that there is someone who understands how you feel. I know you think that you’re alone and that life shouldn’t go on now that he isn’t here, but if your husband was like my Mister, then I know he wouldn’t want you to stop living just because he did.”

The words were frank, yet utterly truthful. “I know Zeke’d have want me ta go on, but he was me anchor.” Shazza whispered, pouring her heart out to this stranger. “He was me home.”

“Would you like to talk about it?” Zoë asked slowly. “You won’t start to heal until you let go of all the pain, and the best way to do so is talking.”

Shazza nodded, and the other woman awkwardly went to sit on the bed next to her as she began to pour her heart out.

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River had always hated her gift, yet now she shamelessly used it to steer clear of everyone else on the ship other than Kaylee. She’d asked the mechanic if she knew where Riddick had been placed to sleep, and when the other girl had slyly answered, River couldn’t help but blush.

“I’ll keep Simon busy tonight so he doesn’t go to yer bunk and realize that ya ain’t in it.” Kaylee’d announced with a conspirator’s whisper before hurrying off to find River’s Ge-Ge and ‘keep him busy’.

With that obstacle taken care of---although River knew that Simon would have to find out soon and wouldn’t be all too happy when he did---the young woman continued on her way to the bunk that Kaylee had told her Mal had given Riddick.

Finding the dark room and slipping into it noiselessly, River noticed Riddick lying still on the bed, hands behind his head, breathing peacefully, apparently asleep. Her heart sped up rapidly as her hands began to sweat.

She was nervous.

While her hymen had broken at the Academy due to the strenuous exercise and activities they’d made her perform, River knew that what she was about to do would still hurt to some degree.

But Inara had promised her that it would be pleasurable as well once the pain of the initial invasion subdued.

She gulped.

Sometimes knowing all the science behind something didn’t make it any easier…or less terrifying.

But she wanted to do this.

Taking in a deep breath, she took slow steps towards the sleeping man, glad that he was asleep. That gave her enough time to muster up some courage on her way to him and the bed…the bed in which she was determined to give him her virginity.

Buddha, she’d just gotten doubly nervous.

Better not overanalyze this soon encounter, she decided with a firm shake of her head before reaching the bed and looking down at him with another loud gulp. He was all sculpted muscles; every inch of him looked like stone---slightly like Jayne---yet oh-so much more appealing.

She made to reach for him yet quickly pulled her hand back when she noticed the mud and grim capping her skin, face turning red. She had yet to bathe! She’d been so excited to be back home, and had been so busy flying Serenity and talking to Inara that she’d forgotten to bathe!

Embarrassment coating her skin in a lovely pinkish glow, River turned to hurry out and take a nice long bath before returning to resume the mission when something went around her wrist tightly and jerked her back.

Not having expected this, River let out a little squeal and fell onto the bed and the hard body of the man who apparently hadn’t been sleeping the whole time.

“And where were you going?” His eyes still closed, Riddick’s voice was a deep growl reverberating beneath her.

“To bathe.” River announced and would have tried getting back up if Riddick’s other hand hadn’t gone around her back to keep her flat against him. She gulped as she looked down into his handsome face, feeling her body pressed so intimately against his, and recognizing the stirring in the junction of his legs that Inara had told her proved that a man was aroused and thus she was doing a good job seducing him.

This confused River. She had yet to start her coldly calculated plan of seduction and yet he was reacting.

Why?

The hand around her waist lowered to cup her ass and press her down harder on his growing erection, and Riddick let out a low moan.

Her brown eyes widened.

Her body’s contact with his was arousing him so quickly?

She smiled brightly.

This was going to make her seduction so much easier!

But still… “This girl must cleanse the dirt and grim from her skin before she can return to seduce the darkness.” She told him as-a-matter-of-factly, tilting her head in confusion when he chuckled in amusement beneath her.

Had she said something…comical?

The girl pouted darkly.

This seduction wasn’t going to plan at all. She wanted him aroused, NOT amused!

“Why would you do something like that?” Riddick purred before, in the blinking on an eye, he’d switched their positions so that she was beneath him and he was between her legs, eyes finally open and watching her like a predator. “I like my girls dirty.”

She shivered at the jolt of desire that shot through her body at the look of she could see in those silver orbs.

His gaze raked her silently before it rested on her heaving chest. “So,” his voice was husky with desire as he tore open the top of her dress, voice deepening when he realized she wasn’t wearing a bra. “Other than your brother…who might go to your bunk and figure out you didn’t spend the night there?”

River whimpered and arched up when his teeth found her nipple, biting into it harsh enough to mix pain with the pleasure. She cried out and felt heat rapidly pooling at the juncture of her thighs, along with a desire and need so deep it was distracting.

With his hand, Riddick teased her other nipple, rolling it through his fingers, alternating soft and hard pinches that caused her to cry out and jerk at the jolts of electric pleasure it caused.

“I doubt Jayne would go that way.” Riddick murmured against her nipple before pulling away with harsh suck, moving his attention up her heaving chest to nibble on her collar bone. “But what about the captain?”

He squeezed her nipple extra hard at the last word and she moaned, bucking her hips up towards him in response.

“Hmmm?” He questioned darkly against her skin as he traveled up her neck to the shell of her ear, running his tongue around the rim. “Will the good captain be findin’ some excuse to go to your room tonight?”

Realizing that he was waiting on an answer, River somehow found her voice and forced her eyes back open. “Captain Daddy sometimes checks in to make sure that his lil’ Albatross is fine, yet tonight the past is all that is in his mind. I feel he’s aura from here, it’s troubled, angry, confused, and nostalgic.”

Riddick froze above her before removing his mouth from her ear and moving to look at her in her face. “Captain Daddy!”

She wondered why he looked so confused. “Captain Daddy, like Zeus, god of the heavens, made the stars and the sun his Athena and Aphrodite.”

River watched the suddenly realization cross over his features before they were blank once more, and couldn’t help but wonder if he hadn’t realized that Mal thought of Kaylee and herself as the daughters he could have had if the war hadn’t ruined his life.

Suddenly Riddick shook his head, chuckling darkly. “You have no idea how fortunate he is that you told me that.”

But before River could figure out what he was talking about, Riddick’s mouth descended upon hers in a furious, claiming kiss that burnt her from inside.

She groaned in pleasure and before she knew what she was doing, her hands were running down his back, her fingers tearing into his shirt as his hand ran down the side of her body to her thigh and then back up.

The next instances were too blurry for her to remember them clearly. All she knew was that he got off of her but before she could protest he’d yanked off her pants and soon after his naked body was covering hers once more and he probed her entrance.

Her eyes widened in surprise.

He was huge…much larger than Inara had told her male organs were when fully aroused!

Would he fit in her?

What if she was too small?

What if---?

All of her thoughts and worries turned into a lusty and slightly pain-filled moan as, with one swift shove, he was buried within her slick passage to the hilt. She’d been one with many people due to her psychic abilities, yet this was a unity unlike any she’d ever experienced, and when he began to move within her, the pleasure she’d experienced at his mouth’s ministrations seemed like child’s play at the electrical overcharge now taking over.

“Riddick…” She moaned out his name for the first time in a tone she didn’t know she had, and dug her fingers into his now naked back, throwing her head back and closing her eyes at the overwhelming pleasure coursing through her body as he pulled out only to push back in nearly violently, shoving her back physically. “Uh! Uh!”

He chuckled in her ear with smug, manly satisfaction before letting a pleasured groan escape when she gave an experiment thrust of her hips, meeting him halfway. “Fuck, yes, do that!” He hissed when she continued to do so, encouraged by his reaction. “You’re so tight!”

Apparently, that was a good thing.

“RidRidRidRidRidRidRiddick!” She gasped, eyes rolling in the back of her head as she felt something coiling tightly in her stomach with every thrust. It was painful yet in such a way it was pleasurable and she wanted more…she wanted much more.

Sneaking a hand between their joined bodies, Riddick pressed the pad of his finger on her clit and, and smirking in her face, began to tease it mercilessly.

It was as if she died.

Something exploded within her and she came with a scream Riddick did nothing to try and muffle, as she grasped him tightly, riding the blinding wave of pleasure over and over again for what seemed like eternity before, with a hoarse cry Riddick buried his teeth in the curve of her neck, drawing blood as he came within her.

Rolling her hips slowly beneath him, continuing to milk the still throbbing dick, River giggled when he took his teeth from her skin to lap up at the small trickles of blood with his tongue.

Growling seductively, Riddick pulled out of her, earning a moan of pleasure for River before he turned her around so that she was lying with her back against his chest.

Possessive arm around her waist, Riddick’s body relaxed, obviously readying to sleep and not giving her the option of choice whether to stay or go.

Shaking her head, grin on her face, River closed her eyes and burrowed back closer to him before letting out a satisfied sigh and falling asleep.

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Early morning, Simon Tam smiled as he watched Kaylee moaning something in her sleep about engines before turning over and burying her face in her pillow. He couldn’t believe that she was back here in his arms safe and sound with only a cut on her arm to prove that her life had been in danger multiple times during the time she’d been gone.

A frown touched his features as he bent and gave his sleeping bao-bei a kiss and left their room, not surprised to find that mostly everyone was already up and doing something. He’d checked on Iman earlier and the man had been doing well, amusedly watching Jack torment Suleiman, who didn’t seem as tormented as she’d obviously have liked.

As he passed by the mess hall, Simon’s frown continued to grow, and it wasn’t because he saw Shazza cooking breakfast with Zoë, talking as if they’d been best friends for ages and not like they’d only met each other the night before.

Nor was his frown darker because Mal had been avoiding Shazza all morning, yet would sneak glances of her when the woman walked in a room where he was.

No.

Nor was it the fact that Simon knew Jayne and Zoë were together ever since Zoë had come to him some months ago asking for birth control.

No.

The reason Simon was frowning was because he couldn’t find his sister.

He’d gone to her room earlier and found that she must have gotten up earlier than he and made the bed before leaving to begin piloting Serenity. That didn’t bother him because River hardly ever slept much---which was why he was always trying to push some sleeping pill in her---and would usually be up and doing things at ungodly hours of the morning.

But things like that were what made River River, so he’d only shaken his head and gone to the pilot’s hold only to find her seat unoccupied and Serenity still set on auto-pilot.

He’d then gone searching for his sister----he really needed to give her her medicine and look over her injuries better---and couldn’t find her.

After checking all of her usual hideouts, he’d gone back to his room to see if his sister hadn’t gone to visit Kaylee, yet his beautiful sweetheart was still sleeping and arguing with someone in her dreams about which engine was better for a battle cruiser, so he was once more looking for his sister and getting worried.

Where the world was she?

Turning towards the cabin of the only passenger who had yet to appear as well, Simon sighed, knocking. While he didn’t trust this Riddick persona, nor like him in the least bit, Kaylee had assured him that the man had taken care of his Mei-Mei while on M6-177 and that he’d even saved her life, so the doctor decided that he was going to be nice to him…at least until he got off on the next port.

Realizing that no one was answering the knock, Simon opened the door to ask the man inside if he’d seen River when light streamed inside the dark room and the doctor’s eyes widened in horror when he saw the man lying naked in bed, goggles on, watching him smugly…with a sleeping, NAKED, River practically lying on him.

And Simon didn’t need to be a doctor to know that this wasn’t just some innocent “I-can’t-sleep-because-of-nightmares-can-I-slept-in-the-bed-with-you?” scenario. No, the smell of sex saturated the whole room.

“Gao yang zhong de gu yang!” Simon cursed, going from horrified to enraged in seconds. “WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?”

“Now Doc,” the bastard’s voice was pure insolence. “I would have thought they’d have taught you that in your fancy medical school. At least in biology.”

Simon clenched his fists tightly.

River murmured something in her sleep and cuddled closer to the man. “Stop thinking such nasty things Simon. You’re such a boob.”

“Mei-Mei!” Simon knew she shouldn’t have gone so long without her medicine! “Mei-Mei, what’s going on? What--?”

“Sleepy, Simon.” Her voice was muffled since her face was in Riddick’s chest. “Go away. Copulated almost non-stop all night---and most of the early morning. Need rest. Not medicine.”

“Mei-Mei…”

With a swift movement she’d thrown a pillow at his face, causing him to stumble backwards from the blow and tear it away from his face, growing red when Riddick chuckled in dark amusement. “I’m going to tell the captain!”

“Close the door on your way out.” Riddick told him.

Glaring at the other man, Simon slammed the door shut behind him and stalked to find Mal, choking the pillow in his hands.