Disclaimer: I do not own Pitch Black, Riddick, or Harry Potter. I do however, own all of the HP books kin various incarnations, and have seen all of the movies for both series… so I do know what I'm doing, though they come and go as they please.

A/N: So this is the last chapter of Dark as Pitch… I'm kind of sad, actually, because this has to be one of my favorites, and the muse has been fairly rabid about getting it out of the way so we can get onto original material. Hope you like my ending. Oh, and sorry for the lack of sex… Muse wouldn't let me take time out for it… Pity, because I had a good one planned. Oh well, I'll save it for the sequel.

To Stephen Holmes: Thanks for your review, not only on this, but on my other stories that you've read. You're a very positive person and I appreciate the support.

Warnings: WILL BE SLASH. Also, Riddick is not as soft as you'd think (I changed it finally because I realized that it really does sound rude the other way) around Harry, and Harry is slightly OOC, though after having lived so long, don't you think you'd have changed a bit, too? Mature themes, violence, swearing, and some sex scenes (clearly marked, as the violence will be, for the squicked or faint of heart). Oh yeah, it's also slightly AU as to Riddick's history, being that he was in Ursa Minor before working for the Company.

Pairing: Harry/Riddick

Summary: If you could live forever, what would you live for? The question was asked of Harry when he was younger, much younger, and he might have found the answer. Question is, can he protect those he loves? And how will his relationship with the convict Riddick change the events that take place?

Chapter 6

They slogged through the canyon, and Harry was glad that the little ones couldn't see what was happening above; all of the tearing and rending as the mating dances began, and the losers helped sustain the next generation. The Call was lessening now, it seemed, as they became less focused on their freedom, and more focused on the continuation of their species. It was still there, however, and he was constantly stopping himself from answering, because the loss of his control before had worn him; he was expending more of his energy to close off his mind from them than he'd had to before.

It was like an addiction; he'd had a taste, and it was increasingly harder to push the stuff away, to stay clean, as it were. Rick was a great help, and the thought of surviving this for Kyra was there also. He felt the hot blood hit his body, and thoughtlessly changed his clothing so that not one bit of skin or hair was exposed. He was afraid of the blood hitting him, of what it would do to him if he allowed it. He heard Kyra's frightened gasp, and his concentration slipped, just enough for the mask on her scent to malfunction.

It was like calling moths to a flame, losing that thread of concentration. Kyra was 12, and like most young girls, was bleeding. He'd masked it without saying anything to anyone, though he was sure Rick had smelled her before he'd masked it. The creatures were circling them, but he had nothing more to give to create the mask again; it was one of the few things he actually had to think about, and he had neither the time or the mental faculties left to spare. In compensation, the lights became brighter, adding a bit more protection.

"Stay around the girl!" Rick roared. "They've got her blood now, and they won't give it up." Harry just ran faster, trying to remember the terrain and translate it to his dark-sight. Rick was better at it, so he stayed next to his mate, running with him, keeping close, for if he opened his senses anymore, he would be lost.

He felt Rick tense, and tapped in, hearing Imam and his sons screaming, begging for Hassan to be returned. The boy had dropped his light on accident when the creatures' blood had slickened the container. As he felt the light return to him, he despaired for the child. Imam and the other boys wanted to stop, he knew they would, so he just kept going.

"We'll mourn him later. Let's go!" And so the group continued, 6 now, and a heavy pall of grief fell over the humans in the party. He shook the despair from himself and kept his eyes moving, watching for more of the creatures. He felt Rick doing the same next to him, and kept a small tap on the man's hearing, so that he would be warned if something else happened.

It began to rain. He cursed silently; the terrain would be much harder to navigate through, what with the mud. They might lose another; he resolved that it wouldn't be Kyra. He strengthened the lights again, gritting his teeth as the pull on his energy became a physical thing, nearly painful, but at the same time a kind of numb tingle, like the ghostly feeling of a freshly amputated limb. He was nearing the end of his endurance, and no matter how strong and old he was, he couldn't help that.

'I'm losing the fight,' he transmitted to Rick a few minutes later, as the Call became louder and more insistent. The mating time was upon them, yes, but the ones who had already mated for the time being were once more taking to the skies in joy of freedom, and painful anticipation of the meal to come. He closed off his sense of smell, and the Call dimmed to a dull roar, painful but ignorable, as long as he had a distraction to get him through it.

'Need help?'

"Talk to me," he grunted, as the lights began to dim again. Kyra was sobbing now, being pushed along by Sulieman, who was also crying. The sound of it, muffled as it was through Rick's consciousness, nearly broke his heart and he pulled from somewhere deep inside him, a wrenching pain that made him gasp for breath. But the lights brightened again, and he would be able to keep them that way for a little while.

"About what? You obviously know what I've been up to the last 5 years, seeing as how you followed me here."

"Fine," he said. "I'll tell you what I was doing. It should prove at least a little amusing." He heard Rick's dark chuckle, and relished in the sound, taking strength from the feeling of his mate being beside him. "While you were getting your eyes fixed, I was teaching at a school." The choked laughter pleased him, made him feel a little lighter. "What? I taught you, didn't I?"

"That you did, Hunter, that you did. But teaching normal kids? Seems like it'd be too boring."

"Says you. Sometimes it's soothing not to have to teach defense tactics along with reading, you know." Their run continued, and Harry just cursed when the rain started. At least his clothing was waterproof. The others were having trouble moving, and he felt it when Ali slipped in the mud and fell out of the group. Before anyone could go back for him, he was completely gone.

The joyous cries of the ones who got the boy cut through Harry's control like a scalpel, even through his connection to Rick's ears. He exploded into shape as one of them; a creature created for the night, born and bred to live in a world without light. What was left of his human mind kept the lights burning brightly with no effort, especially now that the majority of his energy wasn't being turned toward keeping away from this joyous shape.

He vaguely heard the screams of the group over a very familiar roar. But the creature's mind was too strong, and so he joined his brothers and sisters in the sky. Unlike them, he could sense where everything was without making a sound, so he flew silently, joyously, until that first itch was out of his system. Then the screams of the humans became louder, and he remembered. At least, he remembered that he was supposed to protect them.

He screeched a warning to the creatures nearby and dove, ignoring the instinct to rend and tear soft flesh in favor of shielding it. He tried to speak to Rick, mind to mind, but got nothing back. It wasn't working in this form, so he swooped down, hoping Rick would understand, only to scream when his skin touched the lights. He hastily hid behind a rock, trying to explain, and was almost surprised when Rick's signature came closer.

"Harry?" the question was soothing, cautious. He moved his head forward slowly, moth closed, hoping to appear non-threatening. Rick was crouching as well, shined eyes piercing him. He prostrated himself: he wanted to protect the others, but the Call had been too strong, he couldn't find the willpower to return to his human form, nor indeed to any form he possessed.

"Harry, you need to come back." Rick was no-nonsense. "For me. For Kyra. She's screaming, Harry. Can't you hear her?" Indeed, there was a higher-pitched scream among the others, and garbled words in Spanish, that he couldn't make out. "She needs you, Harry. You, not this thing. Come back." Harry curled in on himself, a keening cry rending the air. The other monsters recoiled from it, leaving the immediate area; sorrow was unheard of for them. Anger, joy, and pain, were the only emotions they really felt.

The cry turned into an agonized scream, and suddenly he was himself again, being gathered into Rick's arms. He shook for a moment in reaction; the change back had been painful, and it took time for him to get over it. Thankfully, the part of him that had kept the lights up continued to do so, even through the pain, or else there would have been no point.

"Let's go back," Rick said after a few moments, and Harry realized that Rick cared for the others, if only a little bit. He smiled and pulled away, leading the way back to the group. The Call was gone, as if it had never been, and he summoned a shield of pure light, settling it over the humans, leaving Rick on the outside. But Rick had already turned away, to continue leading them. After summoning his shield he scooped Kyra into his arms and just held her as he walked, murmuring nonsense into her hair as she sobbed into his shoulder.

"What happened, Orion?" Carolyn finally asked.

"I lost the fight," he said simply. Of course he realized that if he had just flown with them in the first place, when the Call began, none of this would have happened, but what was done was done. No use crying over spilt milk as the old expression went.

"But you are here," Imam said cautiously.

"I remembered what I am fighting for. Come on. Rick's getting further away. We're safe now, now that the shield is up. Let's hurry." They began to run, after he set Kyra down, catching up so that they were right behind Rick. Twice they had to crawl through bones, necessitating the removal of the large shield. At the second time, a tail wrapped around Sulieman's neck and dragged him up a cliff face. Harry followed, faster than the eye could see, and killed the creature quickly, carrying Sulieman back down. The boy was winded, and very bruised, but he would live. Unfortunately, he could no longer run on his own, so Imam tried to put him on his back.

Harry pulled the strapped cell off of the older man and lightened Sulieman so that it would be easier for Father and son to hold onto each other, and keep the pace. He himself donned the cell, and erected the shield immediately. After that, he just raised the shield higher whenever it was needed, instead of taking it down.

"How far are we?" he called after a few more minutes, knowing that the settlement had to be close. Rick just kept on running, which was puzzling to him. Rick had brought him back from the brink of nothingness, spouting 'for us' and 'she needs you' but he wasn't answering now? "Rick…" he said in a warning tone. He absolutely knew the other man could hear him. "Richard. How close are we?"

"Close," was the clipped answer that came back to him. He prodded at his mind, and figured out what had irked him. He thought Harry had come back for Kyra, not for him. Time to rectify that. He left the group and joined Rick.

"What's wrong, Rick? Afraid I like her more than you?" The tensing of the shoulders was the only answer he needed. "She's my daughter, Rick. The only blood relative of mine to survive past early childhood. Of course I want to protect her. But you, Rick…" He chuckled darkly to himself. "You happen to be something more important. Honestly, if she dies, I'll wait another century, find someone else. But there is only one Richard B. Riddick. And there only ever will be." The tenseness retreated slightly, and Harry managed to position himself so that he was looking up into Rick's face whilst still running, trusting the big man to navigate him.

"Right…" Rick drawled. Harry grinned triumphantly; he KNEW there was some emotion there! For the most part, Rick was a sociopath; born that way due to his Furyan heritage. But even sociopaths had limits, and he'd found one. Harry himself had tested sociopathic, but after endless millennia of life, and being above everything, anyone would become that way, if only to protect themselves.

"Really!" he said, nodding with a persistent grin. Rick's eyes flashed momentarily, and the tenseness was gone as if it had never been. Harry knew that he was up for some punishment, but hell, he'd become somewhat of a masochist. He straightened, the grin never leaving, and ran faster; even he could see the reflection off of the buildings now. He began shouting jubilations in every language he knew, most of them extinct, as he rushed toward the settlement, sending little balls of sunlight into every shadow, flushing out the creatures in their way.

Moments after he reached the skiff, Rick joined him, and they had a couple of minutes until the rest of the group would join them. Rick bore him into the empty interior, shoving him into a chair. He allowed the movement, growling against Rick's questing mouth. They fought for dominance for a few moments, before he submitted, mewling in pleasure. Part of him wished for more time, but once they got off this gods-forsaken piece of shit rock, they would have all the time in the world. He finally pushed Rick away, running out of the ship and back to the group, leading them to the skiff. There were 6 of them left, very good ending with the circumstances. 6 out of 10 was very very good.

Once they were on the skiff, with the cells plugged in, Rick sat down in the pilot's chair, while the rest of them strapped into the passenger seats, Harry taking the navigations chair. Rick started to run up the engines, and then powered completely down. Harry looked at him curiously: what was he planning?

"What are you doing Riddick?" Kyra asked in a quavering voice. The creatures had begun to swarm the skiff, searching for a way in. Harry had already dispelled all of the lights he'd created, so it was solid black outside the front viewscreen.

"We can't leave…" Rick said, holding the accelerator in a tight grip. The creatures began attacking the viewscreen. "Without saying good night." With that he shoved the accelerator completely forward, burning the ones behind, mowing down the ones in front. The others whooped in celebration, but Harry just smiled. There was the Rick he knew and loved.

Hours later, Kyra brought up a question that everyone but Harry probably had on their minds. "What do we say about you? First ship we run into will probably be a merc ship."

"Tell them Riddick died somewhere on the planet," he answered, and Harry's smile grew. 'Riddick' could never die, but maybe, just maybe, they might find some peace.

THE END

A/N2: And there you have it, the end of dark as Pitch. Now all I have to do is figure out a title for the first sequel and get cracking.

Thanks to all of you who have stuck with the story, even through the long, long hiatus and my insanity. I hope you guys keep a watch out for the next one, and I hope I didn't disappoint.

-Ta!

Roisa