Disclaimer: Joss is boss!
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After his second lesson with River, Jayne returned to his bunk beat, but happy. He'd been able to make contact with River, not land a solid hit, but at least graze her, which meant he was gettin' faster and adjustin' ta her fightin style. He remembered the look of slight surprise on her face the first time he'd grazed her shoulder blade, she'd drawn back and given him a small smile before whispering 'scapula.' The memory quirked his own mouth into a smile which he buried into a towel. Jayne dried off the rest of his face, ruffling his hair. Peeling off his sweaty shirt and kicking off his boots Jayne walked over to the ladder leading out of his bunk, hit the lock combo, hearing the hatch latch with a satisfyin' thunk. He pulled his knife and gun from his belt, yanked back the curtain covering his arsenal and carefully restored the weapons to their places before letting the curtain fall back and himself settle back on his bed.
He let his muscles relax feeling the excess tension and remaining adrenalin from his fight with River drain away. His lids grew heavy. The sounds from the rest of the ship were muffled against his locked bunk. His breath evened out.
He was in a dark metal hall, creeping along it all he found were more dark empty halls, but he knew there was something in the dark. His back was to the wall, Vera in his hands. Sounds of fighting rang off the metal walls carrying down the hall to him. He moved along the wall, huge feet carrying him with the quiet skill of a tracker. The sounds of combat grew louder. His back pressed against the cold metal corner he knew would be the last before he reached the fighting, Jayne took a breath, gripped Vera, and jumped into the fray.
The fray was not what he was expecting. There were less thugs rushin' him, and more Reavers snarlin' at a figure in the middle of the room, blood soaked and movin' so fast they were a blur. Blades flashed through the air releasing more spurts and fountains of blood. Bodies fell to the ground. Jayne were starin' at the fight like a gorram tourist, amazed at the whirl of the fighter in the middle of the room. Time stilled for a sec, rich brown eyes locked onto his. River gave him that small smile a' hers, blood splattered on her face and her hair whirlin' 'round her.
Reavers rushed her and time resumed a pace faster than Jayne thought possible. River slashed and cut, dove, jumped, and danced. A Reaver took notice of Jayne, and with a jolt back to the reality of the dream Jayne was fighting too. Vera's blast knocked the body of the first Reaver back with a hole through it's chest, she did the same to the second and third, but Jayne knocked the fourth Reaver to the floor with a powerful roundhouse kick ta the head. He and Vera cut a path through the endless stream of Reavers, 'til he reached River and they faced the enemy back to back, moving and delivering deadly blows as one killing machine. Jayne reveled in the feel of his finger on Vera's trigger, the crunch of breaking bones, the rain of blood, and the feel of River, causin' as much damage as he was, beside him.
They moved in tandem, the merc-man and weapon-girl. River gripped his left shoulder, using the arm not supporting Vera to take some of her weight so that her next kick was wider taking more Reavers down. River rolled across Jayne's back, landing in front of a new opponent who she dispatched with one blow, while Jayne felled five more with a wave of blast from Vera. Jayne grabbed River's hand, pulling her outta the way 'a his next shot. Arterial spray flecked their skin. River's hair was wet with Reaver blood, it made her chocolate colored hair black, like her eyes right now, heavy with fight and bloodlust.
In dreams time bends. As Jayne stared at the River in his dream, time slowed, so that the Reavers didn't matter, and all that did was standin' lookin' up at him with dark eyes. His hand slid through her damp hair and over her blood slick cheek. River's mouth was mashed against his, her teeth bitin' inta his lip, drawing blood, which mingled with that of their foes still dripping off their chins. Jayne devoured her and the sweet coppery taste of his own blood. The fight resumed around them, and they spun 'round the room dispatching Reavers like they was jugglin' geese. Jayne never lost contact with River, some part of her was always touchin' him, tantalizing brushes of skirt and the feel of a bloody path across his arm left by trailing fingers.
Jayne blew a Reavers head to bits, only to find it was the last one moving, the rest of the Reavers were lifeless heaps on the floor. But he was still moving. River still whorled, dancing in a parody of the killing dance she'd just finished, she moved against and around Jayne dragging him into the movement. She was pressed against him again. Her little mouth workin' on his, her nails diggin inta the back of his shirt. He licked down her neck, tasting sweet blood which turned to salty sweat on his tongue. Skin slid on blood, slid on skin. They weren't in that metal room of corpses any more, 'cause where weren't the why of it. They were the center the sun of Jayne's dream solar system. They moved together, and River she were beauty and death all tagether.
Jayne woke. His heart near beating outta his chest, and he felt his blood pulsing through every inch of his body with want. He lay there on his bunk thinking on the girl gone done inspired the burn under his skin, and came to the only conclusion he could,…
"Fuck! Ima gonna get spaced."
