Awkward Silence

The armored cats lived in as much luxury as a star ship could allot. Min led Riddick to their nighttime kennels, where they stayed when not on display. Servants cleaned the front at night and the back in the day, with solid doors between the two. They wouldn't be disturbed; the servants avoided anything like contact with the cats.

"They called these Hell Hounds on Crematoria."

Min laughed lightly. "No. They're cats. Dogs prefer to pack, and follow a pack leader. Cats are solitary by nature, and these cats only join up with the same mate each year for breeding. Lots of animals on Fury pair bonded." She opened the door and walked in without fear.

"Nik died last year. This is Nor, the queen." Min stopped and rubbed the armored cat in one of her few soft places, along the edge of her mouth. The cat opened her mouth open and rumbled contentedly. Min examined her teeth, then patted her on the head and made a gesture.

"Roll over, Nor."

The cat moved slowly, as if considering the request before actually obeying it. Min scratched her soft belly and spoke to her quietly. Another cat, the male, approached Min from behind as if stalking her. Out of the corner of her eye Min could see Riddick just following its progress. Save the maiden? Bah! Min rolled and let the male pounce in the middle of Nor, who flipped him and had him pinned by the neck the next moment.

Min laughed and patted Nor on the side. "Let Mab up, Nor, he's just a baby." The cat relinquished her hold but looked put out. "This is Mab," she told Riddick. "It means 'little boy'."

Riddick crouched down to look at the animals from their level. Nor ignored him, instead laying at Min's feet and snuffing at her boots. But Mab crouched and approached the Furyan, stalking again. Riddick held his ground and the cat's eye. Min waited to see what would happen. She had trained the oversized kit to obey a few commands, to call him off when he played too rough mostly, but she was interested in how Riddick handled him. Save the hero? Bah!

Riddick did that thing with his head when she almost thought he was getting into hers. Not that she needed another voice in there! The kit stopped and looked at him, turning his head too. Cute. The big baby hadn't been in contact with anyone but her most of his life but she had treated him well and he had no reason to fear or hate. He just didn't understand. Was this a toy? Prey? Or another adult who would knock him around if he played too hard?

Min guessed the latter, and smiled to herself.

Mab must have too, he put his head down and butted up against Riddick's leg, saying 'I'm just a baby, don't hurt me.' Cat language was all in the body language and she had sharpened her skills of observation on them over the years. Riddick smiled one of his few genuine smiles and patted little boy on the side with a couple hard whacks. The kit rolled over for him and waited for his scratch. Riddick obliged him and Min smiled outwardly.

It was nice to have a friend to share this with.

You weren't thinking friend earlier, you were thinking about...

So?

So, he's a temporary distraction.

They spent an hour with the cats, not saying much to each other. Min felt relaxed and happy playing with her babies, but tried not to look at Riddick too much, just to keep the voice in her head quiet. She ran them through their commands and threw the ball for Mab to chase. She told Riddick that Nor meant 'little queen' or 'old lady' depending on context, but it was a term of endearment. Nik was a foreshortened use of the term 'husband', a kind of slang used only with familiarity.

He asked her simple, polite questions about her pets and she answered them readily enough. It was a brief respite, something neither one of them quite knew what to do with it, she thought.

The second time Riddick looked towards the door they'd come in Min patted Nor goodbye.

She was hungry anyway.