FAMILY MATTERS by ISIS
Disclaimers: Farscape is the property of Rockne S O'Bannon, Jim Henson Company et al. I make no claim on them. I borrow only. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Rating: PG 14
Category: Romance
Summary: The possible future of John and Aeryn's relationship. Very shippy.
Spoilers: Look at the Princess, A Human Reaction
Archiving: You're welcome to it; please tell me where it's at. (louiseboyden@earthlink.net)
Acknowledgements: Thanks as always to Quilt Lady for her great suggestions and criticisms.
PART ONE OF SIX
Enjoy
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Zhaan turned once more to her former crewmates, her smile tarnished by the tears in her lovely pale blue eyes. She caressed John's cheek tenderly. "I will miss you, John. You and I shared a bond that will never be severed." John returned the caress gently, catching the tear that trailed slowly down her blue cheek on his finger. "I cherish that bond, Zhaan." Then he grinned his infectious Human grin. "Besides, it's not good-bye. Moya now has the coordinates to Delvia in her data stores. We'll be by to see you so often you'll be sick of us."
Zhaan could help but laugh at his words. "You are welcome anytime, John. You and Aeryn, and Pilot and Moya. I look forward to our next encounter." The beautiful Delvian priestess reached up and kissed her Human companion on the cheek. When her eyes lighted on Aeryn, standing aloof from the emotional leave-taking, she leaned in to whisper in John's ear. "Please, take care of her. She needs you."
John met Zhaan's wise gaze with a deep understanding in his own eyes. He nodded and then turned to join the Sebacean at the transport pod. They both paused once more to wave back at their former shipmate, then climbed aboard the transport, steering it out of the blue atmosphere of the Delvian homeworld and into the dark space beyond. Soon the familiar bulk of the Leviathan Moya filled their view screens and they felt the clench of the docking web as it guided them back into the living ship that had been their home for more than three cycles.
Only that home was now decidedly empty. In the past six monens, many dramatic changes had occurred aboard Moya. First, Chiana had simply disappeared one night, taking a transport, presumably in search of her brother and the Nebari Underground. John and the others had searched frantically for their mercurial Nebari friend, but to no avail. True to form, Chiana had covered her tracks well. John had been particularly upset by her defection, afraid that he had let her down somehow, feeling her loss as a brother himself. However, events had kept them from lamenting her loss for too long.
Working on the information supplied by Stark, D'Argo had managed to locate and free his son Jothee. The crew of Moya had experienced a few anxious weekens as the slave dealer from whom they had rescued Jothee pursued them through the Uncharted Territories relentlessly. But in a final confrontation on a remote planet, D'Argo had ended the vengeful Sheyang's threat to his son once and for all. After that, D'Argo had decided to leave Moya at a commerce planet that boasted a large population of expatriate Luxans, vowing to try to restore his relationship with his abused son. The end of their travels together had been hard, but the rest of Moya's crew understood that Jothee needed the stability of a quiet planet to recover, not the turmoil of pursuit through the universe, living from one day to the next in uncertainty. D'Argo had vowed to one day find his friends, clasping their hands in an almost painful grip. Then he had stood by, his son at his side, his Qualta Blade on his back as the transport left the farming planet.
They had lost Rygel next. After a frantic starburst to escape a Nebari ship, Moya had found herself in the midst of a large fleet of warships. The crew had been stunned at the numbers of ships, flying into the Uncharted Territories from the direction of PeaceKeeper controlled space. Aeryn had been urgently trying to determine how long it would take before Moya could starburst away once more, when Rygel had floated up to the Command on his throne chair, hissing in disbelief when he saw the vast fleet surrounding them. Having identified the ships as part of the Hynerian Royal Fleet, the former Dominar had insisted that they contact the flagship Rygel. There had been a few tense microts for the crew before the Captain finally returned their hail, his face registering his shock and then pleasure that his search was finally over.
Later that night, over a sumptuous meal, (sumptuous, at least, by Hynerian standards), Captain Gamus had informed his restored Dominar of the extensive search that had been undertaken by his loyal subjects after they had deposed his treacherous cousin twenty cycles earlier. Rygel accepted their adoration and joy as his due, thankful to be restored to his hereditary state. The next day, the remaining fugitives bade a sad farewell to their tiny, autocratic shipmate. Rygel had imperiously bestowed honorary Hynerian titles on them all. Then he had paused to magnanimously offer Aeryn a home on his imperial planet. Her eyes had widened in shock at his offer and Rygel had winked at John unseen. Then, escorted by an honour guard, Rygel the Sixteenth, obviously beloved Dominar of over six billion souls, had boarded the flagship that would return him to the throne from which he had been so cruelly deposed over a hundred and fifty cycles earlier. The trio of fugitives had watched the magnificent fleet depart with heavy hearts, sorry to lose the annoying yet endearing Hynerian.
Then it had been Zhaan's turn to return home. A chance encounter with other Delvians on a planet frequented by religious pilgrims had given Moya the coordinates to Zhaan's lost Delvian homeworld. Starbursting into the system, Pilot had nervously monitored the communications. Zhaan had been delighted to learn that the escalating war between the Nebari and the PeaceKeepers had forced PeaceKeeper High Command to withdraw all occupation troops from worlds such as her own. A coup by loyalists had quickly overthrown the PeaceKeeper puppet government. Zhaan's reappearance had been fortuitous, ascribed to the Goddess herself. The ravaged Delvian people desperately needed a spiritual guide, and Zhaan had been persuaded to accept the role.
The best part of all had been the removal of Scorpius's hidden personality chip from John's head. After several monens of psychotic episodes involving the Scarran half-breed, John had finally allowed Zhaan to join with him in Unity in an effort to find the source of his disturbing visions and increasingly erratic behaviour. The Delvian had succeeded in determining the source of Scorpius's seeming control of the Human but she had been unable to rectify the situation until their return to Delvia. The highly advanced doctors on the Delvian homeworld had removed the chip once and for all. The Human had awakened to find both Aeryn and Zhaan hovering over him anxiously. John had practically wept at his freedom from the tortured existence he had been living for so long.
After leaving Delvia, Aeryn and John found themselves rattling around in the massive Leviathan ship like two parents experiencing the empty nest for the first time. It had taken them a few solar days, but soon the skeleton crew had settled into a monotonous but regular routine. Moya still required regular maintenance and both the Prowler and John's Farscape module occupied their respective pilots' time. Finding the central chamber suddenly lifeless, John and Aeryn had taken to having their meals together with Pilot in his chamber.
It was during one of those meals that Aeryn had looked up suddenly to find John's eyes fixed on her, a strange expression on his face. "What?" she asked with a soft smile.
John returned her smile, his eyes crinkling appealingly. "Nothing. I was just enjoying looking at you."
Aeryn met his grin with a slightly embarrassed chuckle. "Well, that's good,Crichton, because it looks like I'll be all you have to look at for quite a while." She glanced up at the massive symbiont working Moya's controls above her head. "That is, if you don't count Pilot."
"Oh, Pilot only has eyes for Moya." John gazed at Aeryn, his expression growing speculative. Aeryn bent to retrieve their dinner trays, unnerved by the warmth in John's eyes and the direction the conversation was taking. John suddenly reached out and took her hand, "Aeryn, I ..." She looked up, startled, her sapphire eyes glowing. He tried again to say what was in his heart but at the nervous look in Aeryn's eyes, he stopped. "I ... I'll help you with that," he ended lamely. John piled the last of the cutlery on the tray and lifted it, then reached down to help Aeryn to her feet, grasping her hand in a warm grip. They stood for a microt, hands linked, staring at each other. Then each self-consciously moved away from the other, going back to their regular chores. Neither noticed the considering look that Pilot gave them as they left his chamber with a friendly wave.
They cleaned up the remains of dinner in companionable silence, then John turned to Aeryn with a grin. "So what's on the agenda for the evening? A game of chess? Golf perhaps?" His face fell when Aeryn looked at him nervously again.
"No, John, I think I'll retire early, if you don't mind. I feel a little bit tired," she lied, unable to meet his eyes.
John looked so disappointed she nearly changed her mind. "Uhh, okay, Aeryn. Pleasant dreams." He watched the Sebacean woman walk out the door of the central chamber, and an ominous feeling settling over him.
Aeryn wandered slowly down to her quarters, her mind in turmoil. She knew very well how John felt about her, and if she would only admit it to herself, she returned his feelings. But something inexplicable held her back. She hung her head in despair as she reached her lonely quarters. As the door swung closed behind her she leaned back against the doorjamb. *What the frell is the matter with me? Why can't I just tell him how I feel?* She recalled her conversation with Dragen as they lay injured in the middle of the Royal Planet's barren lands. *Am I afraid of the pain?* she asked herself. *I've never feared pain before, so why is this different?* A nagging voice in the back of her mind told her that she felt unworthy of the Human's love. She sat down on her bed dejectedly. *Is that it? Am I punishing myself for Velorek even now?* She sighed as her mind went back over that painful incident. *No, I believe I've made my peace with that. What is it?* she smacked her hands on her thighs in frustration. *You are afraid of being left behind, even now when it seems so unlikely that John will ever find his home,* she told herself. *There are only the two of you now. You cannot even tell yourself that you are self-conscious about showing your emotions. Take a chance, Aeryn.* she tried to convince herself, but something still held her back. Too upset now to sleep, Aeryn flung herself out of her quarters, and headed towards the terrace, hoping the sight of endless space would dwarf her problems.
John lay on his bed in his chamber, his hands linked behind his head, lost in thought. Aeryn's comment about not seeing anything but her for a long time got him thinking. He went back over their strange, often rocky relationship in his mind. It had been a long tug of war, sometimes growing closer then separating as if in some bizarre dance. He sighed and rolled over on his stomach. He knew how he felt about her, that he had loved her for some time now. And he was fairly sure she returned his feelings. He just wasn't absolutely sure and that was the crux of his dilemma. If he moved on his feelings and she didn't reciprocate them, life on the Leviathan would become a living hell. He thought that perhaps always wondering if she loved him was better than knowing for sure that she did not.
A quarter of an arn later, the door to the terrace swung open and John came in silently. After trying unsuccessfully to sleep himself, he had wandered down to Aeryn's quarters, worried by her strange behaviour after dinner, telling himself that he just wanted to make sure she was all right. When he found her door open and the room empty, he had started to search for her in earnest. He walked onto the terrace and his heart leaped at the sight of her. Aeryn stood facing the beautiful starscape, her arms crossed almost protectively in front of her. Her head cocked slightly, the only physical indication that she knew John had entered the room. She waited for his flippant "Hey!" but it never came.
John walked onto the terrace, staring at the picture that Aeryn made standing tall and alone, silhouetted against the stars. He moved forward without a word, coming to stand close behind her. She did not turn to acknowledge his presence. Slowly, carefully, John reached out and wrapped his arms around the Sebacean. After an initial startled jerk, he was encouraged when Aeryn leaned back against him with a sigh. He tightened his embrace and brushed his cheek against the silky softness of her dark fragrant hair. Aeryn snuggled more closely against him and her hands came up to caress his forearms unconsciously. "John ...," she began, but he reached up and pressed a silencing finger to her lips.
"Shhh, don't say anything, Aeryn. Just let me hold you."
Confused but feeling so comfortable in John's arms, Aeryn let her head rest against his shoulder, relaxing further into his arms. They stood like that for a long time. Then John turned his head to nuzzle her cheek. Her warmth and delicate scent filled his senses, driving him on. After a microt's hesitation, he bent his head to trail soft kisses along her jaw line to her earlobe, nibbling gently. Aeryn shivered at his touch but did not protest. Instead she tilted her head slightly, a silent invitation. Encouraged, John pressed his warm lips to the satiny skin of her exposed throat, his tongue tracing increasingly erotic circles on her neck. Aeryn felt her pulse quicken and lifted one of her hands to thread through John's soft hair, the other moving more urgently along John's encircling arms as her body responded to his increasingly arousing kisses. She sighed his name microts before one of his hands came up to gently cup her jaw, tipping her head back so that he could claim her mouth in a deeply passionate kiss.
John's heart sang at Aeryn's unrestrained response to his kiss. Her lips parted beneath the pressure of his mouth, her tongue sliding out to dance with his. He felt the vibration of her moan as his hand caressed the long slender column of her throat. Her hand cupped the back of his neck holding his mouth to hers, urging him to deepen their kiss even more. He felt her other hand slide up to grasp the zipper of her vest and slowly pull it down. Then she guided his hand inside the open garment to cup her warm breast, teaching him how to massage her. He tore his mouth from hers to bury his face in her neck with a groan of longing."Oh God, Aeryn, I need you. I want to be with you so much." He wrapped his strong arms around her more completely, pulling her back against him so she could feel the hard evidence of his arousal. "Please, let me love you. I want to make love to you." She gasped as he crushed her tighter into his embrace.
She twisted out of his arms suddenly, turning to face him, her eyes dark with passion and need. She stared at the strange Human who had come to mean so much to her, more than she was willing to admit even to herself. Her hands came up to frame his beloved face as she stared up into his eyes. For a microt they stood, searching each other's faces for the solution to the quandary of their mutual need and love. Then Aeryn smiled up at him. "Yes, John. Please, yes!" she pleaded in an urgent whisper. She sighed with longing as he pulled her hard against him, matching his hungry kiss with a hunger of her own.
His hands moved insistently up and down her spine. His hips ground into hers. For a moment, he considered taking her right there, but he stepped back, his breath coming in sharp gasps. Aeryn reached out to him blindly, feeling bereft by his withdrawal. John grasped her hands in his and looked down into her eyes with love and desire. "No, baby, come with me," he whispered with a smile. He led her from the terrace and they made their way swiftly back to the crew quarters, pausing every now and then to kiss eagerly. When they reached John's quarters, he palmed open the door and pushed Aeryn through, pausing for a microt to close the privacy curtain. Then he turned back to her. Their inhibitions were shed with their clothes and they fell naked on John's bed wrapped in each other's arms. After that, there were only sighs and murmurs and cries of pleasure as they consummated again the love that had been growing between them since they first met.
John awoke early the next morning, feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Then he grinned to himself, stirring slightly. *The weight hasn't been lifted, only shifted,* he couldn't help but joke. He looked down to where Aeryn lay heavily across his body, her head pillowed on his chest, her arms holding him as if she would never let him go, her legs entwined intimately with his. He smiled contentedly, letting his hand slip down to gently stroke her tousled hair. He lay back, his mind drifting back over the night before. The beautiful Sebacean woman had finally let down her guard, showing him the passion and love that he had hoped she felt for him. He recalled her final drowsy words to him as she drifted off to sleep. He looked down at her again, lying so trustingly with him, sleeping so peacefully. "I love you, John," she had whispered so softly he was almost sure she had not meant him to hear it. But he had. And his heart sang.
Aeryn murmured slightly in her sleep and started to stir. John had a hard time keeping himself under control as the wakening Sebacean moved sensuously against him. Her left hand began to trace slow, enticing patterns over his chest. One of her long legs brushed erotically against his thigh. She pressed herself against him and buried her face in his neck, nuzzling him with a sigh. *Now for the moment of truth,* John thought nervously. Aeryn suddenly came awake with a startled jump and lifted her head up to gaze into John's smiling eyes in shock. "Morning," he said with a lazy smile, letting his hand slide down to trail long, slow caresses up and down her spine. For a microt, she stared down at him, her expression unfathomable, then her face relaxed into the most radiant smile.
"Good morning, John," she replied and lowered her mouth to his, kissing him with incredible longing.With a groan of relief, John responded to her immediately, wrapping his arms about his lover once more, rolling over on top of her to make love to her again.
That night had broken down the last walls between them. Though she never said it out loud again, John finally knew that Aeryn loved him. And he loved her, fully, completely, feeling fulfilled for the first time since he had arrived in her part of the universe. Their lives changed dramatically. Their days were still spent in routine and scheduled duties, but their nights were magic with passion and shared love. And their new-found intimacy gave their days a special quality, of shared smiles and promising looks. John was amazed that two people who spent so much time together could still have so much to say to each other. John spent arns just talking to Aeryn. He would have thought that he had told her everything there was to say about his life on Earth by now , but unbelievably, she still asked him about DK, his father, his family, growing up, even getting him to repeat some of the stories he was sure he had told her before. For John Crichton, somewhere in the universe, life was finally good.
One night as Aeryn lay sleeping in his arms, deliciously spent after their love-making, another idea formed in John's mind and heart. His eye fell on the flash of red silken material he had dug up from his trunk earlier that day, a reminder of the Royal Planet and all that had occurred there. His mind shied away from the thought of the daughter he would never know, not due to be born for another seventy-nine years. Then his thoughts returned to Aeryn's approach with the compatibility serum and the sweet kiss that had followed. John had never given up on the thought that he would someday return to Earth, but as the cycles passed, the likelihood grew more and more remote. *Maybe it's time to just admit that my life will be lived out here in the Uncharted Territories,* he thought. *Maybe I should be concentrating on what kind of a life I want that to be.* He closed his eyes. *A home, a wife, ... children.* Those things still meant a lot to him, he realised. *A home ...Moya? A wife, a mate ... Aeryn.* He smiled. *Children?* seeing in his mind's eye a little girl with a serious expression, violet eyes and long dark hair. Or a tow-headed boy with a mischievous look in his grey-blue eyes. His heart warmed to the idea and he finally drifted off to sleep, a happy smile on his face, his dreams filled with pleasant family images.
Their arrival at a primitive commerce planet a few days later offered John and Aeryn a respite from Moya and a desperately needed change of scene. Without a word to each other, John and Aeryn had pilotted a transport pod down to the relatively barren surface of the planet that boasted a simple market. John had taken over the job of keeping track of the ship's provisions from Chiana and he mindlessly ordered the delivery of their needed supplies to the docking bay where their transport awaited. He was about to signal Aeryn that his job was done when a glow caught his eye.
Aeryn located her Human shipmate staring openly at a PeaceKeeper wanted beacon that clearly described his appearance. She hissed urgently and pulled him away from the holographic image that promised wealth and recognition to the first creature to turn the fugitive Human John Crichton in to Scorpius. Aeryn had dragged the cursing Human away and back to the transport pod. They had flown quickly back to Moya and were underway as soon as they docked. John left the transport pod hastily, without a word. Aeryn stared after her distraught shipmate but stayed behind to secure the cargo they had acquired on the planet. When she gave Pilot the word that starburst could be done safely, she went off in search of the Human. But to no avail. John had made himself unavailable. Unsure what to do, Aeryn made her way the quarters they now shared and waited for John to come to her.
She didn't have to wait long. The Human entered the converted cell, his eyes fixed on Aeryn with desperation. She stood at his entrance and was immediately swept into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him in a comforting embrace, holding his trembling body against hers in a desperate attempt to wipe the hunted look from his eyes. "Aeryn, sweet Heaven! Please don't let me go!" he said, his voice shaking with emotion. She led him to the bed and sat down with him, stroking his back in long, soothing caresses. When he calmed, she pulled slightly away from him, looking into his eyes with concern. "John, what is it? Please, my love, tell me."
John's eyes widened at her words and he bent down to place an affectionate kiss on her lips. "You do love me?" he asked.
Aeryn blushed slightly, then drew a deep breath. She stared intently into his eyes. "Yes, John, I do. I have for a very long time." She reached up to gently caress his cheek. "I'm sorry I was unable to tell you, but I'm glad I have now." John wrapped her once more in his arms. "Now tell me what's wrong, John? Was it the wanted beacon on the planet?"
"In a way," John's voice was muffled against her shoulder. He lifted his head and stared at her. "I'm not afraid of Scorpius any more, thanks to Zhaan and her Delvians. But I had hoped that the escalating PeaceKeeper war with the Nebari would keep Scorpius from hounding us." He took a deep breath and took Aeryn's hands in his. "I ... I was hoping that ... our lives had ... had settled down enough for us to ..." he stopped, afraid to say what was in his heart.
"To what, John?"
John gazed at her, his eyes full of love and longing. "I love you, Aeryn. I know PeaceKeepers don't marry but in my heart, you are my wife."
Aeryn smiled radiantly at him, "I love you too, John." She kissed him gently. "And I'm happy that you think of me as your wife." Her eyes darkened with fleeting sadness. "You're right. PeaceKeepers don't marry. The concept of mating is unknown to us. But if it means wanting to be with one person for the rest of your life, then you are my husband, John." The radiant smile returned to her face. "Is that what upset you?"
"No, Aeryn, I ... I want us to be a family, and I want us to have a family, Aeryn. I want to have a child with you," he said softly. Then he grinned crookedly, "Well, actually more than one."
Aeryn sat back stunned at his words. "I don't know what to say, John."
John pulled her close again, "Don't say anything right away. I'm sorry I brought it up. I thought everything was going to be quiet for a while. But the wanted beacon brought it all back." He turned his face away from hers, embarrassed by the tears that formed. "It was a pipe dream. I can't even contemplate bringing a child into our world of pursuit and uncertainty." He hugged her again for comfort. Aeryn held him close, letting him draw strength and solace from her presence. Finally, he pulled away from her with a weak smile. He stood and held out his hand to her. "Enough self-pity. I believe we have supplies to secure."
Aeryn worked beside John to unload and store the supplies they had purchased, but her thoughts dwelt on John's request. *A child?* she mused. At first, unbidden, the ingrained PeaceKeeper hard-line against inter-species breeding raised its ugly head. But Aeryn soon dismissed that old doctrine, knowing in her heart how narrow-minded and racist it was. *Me, a mother? I couldn't,* she told herself pessimistically. Her thoughts returned to the brief encounter she had had with her own mother. *I have no role model, no one to help me. Not even Zhaan.* She looked up to find John studying her, a worried look on his handsome face. She smiled to reassure him and ordered him to move a crate imperiously. His crooked grin satisfied her fear that he knew what she was thinking of. She stood watching him, seeing again his reaction to the child projected for him and Katrella on the Royal Planet. *John would help,* she told herself with a smile. *He would be a very good father and he could teach me to be a mother as he has taught me so many other things.* Her heart started to warm to the idea as she imagined a dark-haired boy with John's teasing eyes and crooked smile. John stood up and caught her watching him, flashing her that smile that made her heart leap.
"All done here," he stated, then bent to pick up a box of supplies he had separated out from the rest. "Hungry?"
Aeryn grinned at him, "Yes, why?"
John smirked at her then kissed his fingers in a strange Earth gesture. "Vell, mademoiselle, vor your dineeng plezhoor, I vill prepaire zee most exquieezeet meal you have evair had," he replied, affecting a bizarre accent. Aeryn gave him her patented Human nonsense look, but still let herself be led to the central chamber.
Later that night, Aeryn lay in John's arms, sated by the surprisingly good dinner he had prepared. She thought again of his request and finally made up her mind.
"Yes," she said, as if he had just asked her the question.
John looked down at her in confusion. "Yes what, Aeryn?"
Aeryn tilted her face up to his, "Yes, John. I would like to have a child with you," she said, simply.
John held his breath in shock. Then he sat up, pulling her up to face him. "You mean that? You really want to have a child with me, Aeryn?"
Aeryn smiled at him, happy now in the certainty of her decision. "Yes, John. I really do. I've thought about it and I do." Her eyes darkened. "I'm afraid, very afraid. I had no mother growing up, no one to show me what a mother should be like." She gazed at John, her expression serious. "But I love you, John, and I know how much you want children. My mother told me that I was the product of my parent's caring. I too want to share this with you." She watched the Human's face light up with love and delight. "I think I've wanted to since we left the Royal Planet. When the time is right, John, I want to have your child."
John pulled her to him, kissing her tenderly. Finally raising his head, he gazed down into her loving eyes. "I love you so much, Aeryn. And our child will be the luckiest child around to have a mother like you."
Aeryn's eyes teared up at his compliment."Thank you, John. No one has ever said anything so beautiful to me before." She smiled happily up into his tender blue eyes.
Suddenly he grabbed her and tumbled her down into the bed." To Hell with Scorpius!" he ground out.
"John!" she gasped as he lowered himself down on top of her, his need very evident.
John wagged his eyebrow suggestively. "Well, now that we've decided, there's no sense in waiting is there? I think we'd better get started right away," he leered exaggeratedly.
Aeryn met his wicked grin with a seductive smile of her own, "Yes, I think you're right," she said, pulling his mouth down to hers.
The next few days, Aeryn had to smile as John warmed to their 'little project', as he had taken to calling it, with the same enthusiasm that he showed everything else. They had decided to inform Pilot of their plans, happy with the symbiont's positive response. Pilot had even offered Moya as a form of counsellor to Aeryn once she was pregnant. John had questioned the former PeaceKeeper relentlessly, trying to gain whatever knowledge he could about Sebacean reproductive methods. Aeryn had been upset that she knew so little. It was not a subject that was discussed or even made public knowledge on board PeaceKeeper vessels. Prevention of pregnancy had been the strict responsibility of the males.Those females chosen to breed were simply artificially impregnated and then never seen again, transferred to breeding ships and seldom returned to their original units. But John had calmed her fears, scouring the data stores in Moya's memory banks for its sparse information on the subject. The couple found themselves missing their former crewmates. John had even suggested returning to Delvia to consult with Zhaan. Aeryn had agreed to the plan, but told him to wait until they were sure she was in fact pregnant. Despite the compatibility serum, Aeryn still feared that her physiology would not allow her to have a child by a Human.
Everything was going so well, until an unexpected starburst, to avoid a collision with a rogue asteroid, brought everything crashing down.
End of Part One
Part Two of Six
Aeryn picked herself up from the floor of the Command. A few microts later, John's anxious voice came across the comm from the maintenance bay where he had been tinkering with the Farscape module.
"Aeryn? Are you all right? What happened? Is it PeaceKeepers?"
Aeryn answered his frantic questions calmly. "John, I'm fine. It was an asteroid, not PeaceKeepers. Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine. Where are we, Pilot?" he called, as he raced through the Leviathan's passageways to Command.
"Unknown, Commander. This system does not conform to any of those on the most recent charts we purchased. I am beginning to scan now." Pilot's voice was reassuringly calm. "Not to worry, Commander. Though the starburst was sudden, Moya has complete data on our trajectory and coordinates to return to our original course if necessary."
"That's good to hear, Pilot. Well, while we're here, let's check it out. Any commerce planets?" John asked, arriving just outside the Command, slightly out of breath.
"Not a commerce planet, as such, but there is definitely a relatively advanced civilization on the third planet. Very strange." Pilot mused.
John bounded onto the command and then stood still. Aeryn stood facing him, her face white with horror. "Aeryn, honey, what is it?" John demanded, his heart in his mouth at her expression. He raced over to haul her trembling body into his arms. "Aeryn, love? What is ...?" he began again and then his eyes went to the viewport behind her and he gasped.
Time stood still as he beheld the system he had been seeking for so long.
"My God, Aeryn, it's home. It's really home!" His arms tightened around her and with a sob, he buried his face in her fragrant hair. "I'm home, Aeryn. I'm finally home!" He held her as if he would never let her go. Slowly, he became aware that her arms had dropped away from him. She stood limply in the circle of his arms. He raised his head to see the impersonal Peacekeeper mask back in place on her face. "Aeryn, love, what is it?" he asked, stepping away from her in concern.
She stepped back away from him, her eyes dark in her pale face. Before she could answer him, Pilot's voice came over the comm. "Where are we, Commander? Moya cannot pinpoint our location at all."
"We're in my home system, Pilot. That third planet you identified is Earth."
On the clamshell viewscreen, John saw Pilot's eyes bulge in astonishment. Then they slid immediately to Aeryn. John turned to see her backing out of the Command. John went after her at once, but she had taken off. "Frell!" he cursed. "Aeryn!"
Aeryn ran blindly through Moya's corridors, her heart aching, tears streaming from her eyes. Her worst nightmare had been realised. John had found his home and now she would be left alone. She heard him calling out desperately behind her, and she ran even faster. She reached the door of her old quarters and palmed open the entrance, slipping in and locking it behind her. She leaned back against the wall, out of sight of the corridor.
John arrived at the door microts behind her, "Aeryn, sweetheart, tell me what's wrong! Aeryn? Aeryn, please answer me!" He stopped to listen, hearing the distinct sound of someone gasping for breath in the darkened room. "Aeryn, please, let me in. Don't shut me out now. I need you!"
"Commander Crichton! Please return to the Command. I need your help in finding a safe orbit in this system."
"Not now, Pilot!" John groaned, leaning his forehead dejectedly against the grillwork of the chamber door. "Aeryn, love, please just talk to me!" he pleaded. All he heard was the stifled sobs of someone trying very hard to keep strong emotions under control.
"Commander! I must insist. I am encountering some primitive detection devices in orbit around your Earth. I need your guidance immediately." Pilot's voice was rising in frustration.
John slammed his hand hard against the still locked cell door, "Dren!" he cursed. "Aeryn, I have to go to help Pilot, then I really need to talk to you. Don't do this, my love, please." Then he turned reluctantly away to return to the Command.
Behind the door, Aeryn gulped air into her lungs, desperately fighting off the nauseating despair that threatened to overwhelm her. Unsuccessfully. She raced back out into the corridor and reached the washroom in the nick of time. After being sick, she returned to the bed in her room and curled up in a tight ball of misery. Finally, she surrendered to the misery that had engulfed her as soon as she recognised John's homeworld. Exhausted by her storm of weeping, Aeryn drifted off into a troubled sleep.
That's where John found her a half arn later. When she did not respond to his pleas to open the door, John had Pilot unlock it. He moved into the room cautiously, coming to stand beside her bed, gazing down on her in grief. He saw the traces of her tears still on her cheeks and his heart ached at her pain. He bent and gathered her in his arms. She stirred, murmuring his name but did not awaken. He carried her to their quarters and laid her gently on the bed they had been sharing for nearly a monen. Then he lay down beside her, pulling her into the comforting circle of his arms. He lay with her like that long into the night, his mind searching desperately for solutions to their dilemma.
Despite his anxious pleas, he knew exactly what was wrong with Aeryn. It was the same problem they had faced before on what had proved to be a false Earth. He had asked her to go with him then and she had refused, later admitting her fears. Fears that John had to acknowledge had been perfectly justified in the light of what had occurred. He pressed his face into her hair and breathed in deeply. At the time that they had experienced the false Earth, John had been attracted to her and he had felt that she was attracted to him. He had seen the pain her refusal to join him had caused her then. Now, the possibility of their separation was unthinkable. But John knew Aeryn well enough to know that she was still very unsure of herself in their new relationship, very vulnerable and apt to shut him out, as she had already done. He had to move very carefully.
Another thought occurred to him. Despite everything, he knew he had to face the possibility that it would be impossible for her to join him on Earth. John tightened his arms around her. He knew in his heart that if that were the case, he would stay with her. He could never leave her, as he had once told her. All he had to do was convince Aeryn.
He spent the rest of the night considering possible plans for a safe return to Earth, one that would avoid the false Earth scenario and provide a safe opportunity for Aeryn to join him.
John awoke the next morning to find Aeryn lying facing him, studying his face as if memorizing it for a long life without him. He smiled at her, his eyes full of his love for her. She did not return his smile, instead reaching out her hand to trace along his brow and caress his cheek. He grabbed her hand and pressed a tender kiss into her palm. "Feeling better?" he asked. Aeryn did not answer him, but moved as if to leave the bed. Nonetheless, John pulled her back against him. "No, Aeryn, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong."
She looked at him with hurt--anger. "What do you think is the matter with me?" she raged, the old fire back in her eyes. "We've reached your homeworld. It's Earth. You've finally come home, John!" She choked and went on. "When will you be leaving?" she asked, raising her chin defiantly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
John chuckled softly and reached out to flick her stubborn chin with his thumb, "Whenever you're ready," he answered.
Aeryn stared at him in shock, then she looked down. "John, please, be serious." She struggled to control herself. " I guess I've always believed that someday you would find your homeworld and then we would have to part. I just thought that, well, maybe it wouldn't be so soon." She rolled over to face away from him. "I should be so happy for you, but I'm afraid that I'm just selfish." She drew in her breath unsteadily. "I don't want to lose you, John. I don't know how I will live without you."
John groaned and lifted himself up to look down at her. He reached over and pulled her hair back over her shoulder, then he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Aeryn. Aeryn, please." He pulled her back over to lie on her back, looking down at her tenderly. "I'm not going to leave you. I couldn't live without you either. Whether it's here on Moya, on Earth or anywhere, we will be together, I promise."
She stared up at him, searching his face desperately for the truth of his words, then with a cry she threw herself into his arms, clinging to him as she sobbed again. John held her tightly as she wept, whispering soft words of love and stroking her back. Finally she lifted her head and gazed up at him. "I love you, John. So much it hurts." She looked away, embarrassed at her uncharacteristic display of emotions.
John smiled back down at her tenderly, "Ahhh, Aeryn, I don't want it to hurt. I want you to be happy. I intend to spend the rest of my life making you happy." He lowered his lips to hers, "Starting right now."
Sometime later, John checked in with Pilot as Aeryn showered and then together they made their way down to Pilot's chamber. There, John outlined the plan he had come up with for their return to Earth. Both Pilot and Aeryn expressed some doubts about the feasibility of the Human's plan and insisted on coming up with an alternative escape, should the Ancient's recreation of John's Earth and its xenophobic tendencies prove true again.
John spent the rest of the day monitoring the transmissions from Earth, checking all the newscasts for current events. *An election,* he thought with a smile. *I can probably use that to my advantage.* He was saddened by news that the Mideast was explosive again, that the environment was still a mess and that poverty and homelessness were still major issues in American life. He smiled sadly at Aeryn as she brought him a steaming cup of what passed for coffee in the Uncharted Territories. She saw the morose expression in his eyes and gave him a questioning look.
John sighed, "It's nothing, Aeryn. Just the same old, same old. Not a lot has changed since I left."
Aeryn came over to lean against the console beside him, pressing her shoulder into his reassuringly. "Did you really think it would?" she asked quietly. "You've only been gone three cycles."
John smiled ruefully. "Yeah, I know. It's just ... well, so much changed in my life, I just thought that the same thing would be happening on Earth." He shook his head. "Pretty dumb, I guess."
"Not dumb at all, "Aeryn replied with a grin. "Just very optimistic." She reached over and gave him a timid kiss on the cheek. "I think that's one of the things I love the most about you."
John grinned at her and pulled her close to his side, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Thanks, Aeryn."
"Don't mention it," she responded cheekily, making John chuckle.
The next morning, John put his plan into action. Pilot and Aeryn had agreed with him that they should not let anyone on Earth know about Moya's presence in orbit. The Leviathan had taken a position on the dark side of the moon, away from any satellites or probes or orbiting telescopes. John dressed himself in his old IASA orange flightsuit and then took the Farscape module out to orbit above Canaveral. Then he opened his comm. "Canaveral. Canaveral, this is Commander John Crichton in the Farscape One. Do you read me? Canaveral."
There was a moment of static and then a voice came through, "Incoming message, this is Canaveral. Who did you say you were?"
John grinned, "Canaveral. Repeat, this is John Crichton, on board the Farscape One. Over."
There was a stunned silence. "Say again?"
"Look, guys, this is not a hoax. I really am John Crichton. I'm aboard the Farscape One, an experimental spacecraft. I flew out of the shuttle Collaroy almost three years ago and disappeared when a wave of electromagnetic energy hit. I've been gone for a while but now I'm back. Get in touch with Colonel Jack Crichton or Dr. DK Randall. They will confirm my identity. Check the source of this signal if you don't believe me. I will contact you again in twelve hours. Farscape out." John headed back to Moya, wishing he could be a fly on the wall at IASA as they digested that message.
Twelve hours later by John's watch, which he reset to Earth time, John flew out again, this time accompanied by Aeryn. She had insisted on joining him this trip. She was concerned that hearing his father's voice, as he fully expected to do, would upset him and she wanted to be there for him. She was right. The conversation between the lost astronaut and his father was very difficult. Understandably, Jack Crichton was wary and challenged him at every opportunity, trying to establish his identity. Finally, John heard his father's voice catch,
"John, it really is you, isn't it?"
John felt his tears of joy stream openly down his face as he replied, "Yes, Dad. It's really me. I don't believe it. I finally made it home." He reached around and pulled Aeryn's hand into his. She smiled down at him from her perch behind him in the cramped cockpit of his module. "Is DK there?"
"John," a tentative voice answered. "I can't believe you're alive. How? ... Where ...?" DK's voice choked with emotion. "I have so many question I don't know where to begin."
"Don't worry, buddy. I have all the answers for you. Right now, I have to talk to someone in authority. I want to make arrangements to land."
DK's voice was replaced by a deep, unfamiliar voice, harsh and commanding. "Commander Crichton, this is General Anderson. Prepare to land your craft at Wilberforce Air Base in Utah. I will give you the coordinates. You will be met and escorted by two F-16's. Do not waver from your course."
John smiled ruefully, "No, General, I don't think so. I will not be buried away on some top secret air force base, never to see the light of day again. When I land, I want it to be in a very public place, with lots of media coverage and everyone aware of my arrival."
The General sputtered in rage, "What are you, some sort of publicity hound? You must understand that we have to protect public safety. Your father and others here at IASA seem to be satisfied that you are who you say you are, but I have questions. You will land where I say, or you will be shot out of the sky, do you understand?"
John's jaw clenched in anger. "I understand that I have been to Hell and back in the three years that I have been gone, General, and no one is going to put me through any more torture." Aeryn leaned forward to place a comforting hand on John's shoulder.
"John, calm down," she whispered, but not quietly enough.
"What was that, Crichton?" the General demanded.
"None of your business. I have a few more calls to make and then I'll get back to you. Farscape out." John cut the connection abruptly. He sat seething in the seat, angry but not surprised at the General's response.
Aeryn spoke quietly, "What now, John?"
"We go to Plan B. Pilot?"
"Here, Commander."
"Were you able to identify the frequencies of those transmissions that I asked you about?" Aeryn listened in confusion.
"I was, Commander."
"Well, open them up. I'm about to make a public service announcement." John leaned back to Aeryn. "Stay out of sight, Aeryn."
Down on Earth, several news broadcasts were interrupted by the sudden appearance of an astronaut in a module, seemingly high above the Earth. "Hello, Earth. This is Commander John Crichton of the experimental craft Farscape. You may not remember me but I disappeared in an accident about three years ago. I'm sure you all thought I was dead, but I survived and now I've returned to Earth. I have a great deal of information that needs to be made public, but a certain General Anderson wishes to keep my return a secret from you." John could well imagine the furor his broadcast was causing. "This is not a hoax. I do not wish to endanger anyone on Earth, but I must protect myself as well. I will be arranging to land in a few arns ... er hours. I will be ready and willing to share my information with any and all reporters who care to see me. I will contact you again with the location of my landing. This is John Crichton, over and out."
John cut the connection, a massive grin plastered on his face. "That should stir things up." He turned around to smirk at Aeryn, who met his eyes with a worried expression.
"Are you sure you know what you're doing, John?"
"Yeah, this time I'm going back on my terms, not theirs. There will be so much press coverage that the military will be unable to sweep it under the rug." He took her hand again and squeezed it reassuringly. "Everything will work out just fine, Aeryn. I promise." He angled the Farscape back towards Moya
As John had expected, the news of his return caused a sensation. Monitoring the transmissions from his homeworld, John had to grin. Newscasts all over the country and eventually the world replayed his message over and over. Panels of 'experts' speculated outrageously in interviews. Remote teams were sent to IASA for confirmation of the story. General Anderson, a tall, imposing, barrel-chested African-American who reminded John of James Earl Jones stalked through a scrambling crowd of reporters, his face like a thundercloud. His aide repeated "No comment," like a broken record. *I haven't made any friends there,*John thought ruefully. He met Aeryn's eye, seeing the same idea had struck her. "It had to be done, Aeryn."
"I know. I just hope it doesn't backfire on you, John."
John took her hand and returned his attention to the screen. He saw his father and DK being similarly hounded and his heart wrenched. "I really wish I didn't have to put them through this as well," he said with regret. "Please forgive me, Dad."
Finally, the report he was waiting for came through. Reporters had managed to catch up with the President, out on the campaign trail. In a hastily arranged press conference, the man who was seeking re-election promised the electorate that John Crichton's information would be kept public and that no harm would come to him. Hearing from his opponent at a similar press conference, the challenger vowed to keep tabs on his opponent's promise, making sure that the public would be kept safe from any threat that the returned astronaut posed, but that all Americans would benefit from whatever John Crichton could tell them.
"Yesss!" John shouted, grabbing Aeryn and lifting her off the ground exuberantly. He spun her around until she laughingly ordered him to put her down. "It's going to work, Aeryn! I know it's going to work!"
They flew out a few microts later to contact IASA. "Canaveral, this is John Crichton, come in."
The transmission was answered immediately. "Canaveral here." The first voice was quickly replaced by the angry tones of General Anderson. "What kind of game are you playing, Crichton?" he demanded.
"I'm sorry, General but it has to be this way. As I said, I have to protect myself. I hope the reporters weren't too pushy. Are you ready to come to some agreement about my landing?"
"How do you know about the reporters? Where are you monitoring our broadcasts from? For that matter where exactly are you?"
"I'll tell you and everyone else all about it when I land. Are you ready to talk?"
"Yes," the General's consent was obviously given grudgingly. "Against my wishes, and those of his security staff, the President has indicated he wants you to land on the White House lawn. Is that possible?"
John's heart did cartwheels. "Yes, it's possible and acceptable." The General then outlined the necessary decontamination procedures and debriefing that would occur, all of which John readily agreed to. Aeryn listened to their conversation with a heavy heart, but John's satisfaction with the deal eased her worry somewhat.
That night they shared a special meal in Pilot's chambers, John doing what he could to lighten the oppressive moods of his friend and his lover. Aeryn smiled wanly at his jokes and listened in confusion to his predictions about what she would see on the television he had asked her to monitor with Pilot. When she rose to take away the remains of their dinner, John lingered behind to speak privately to Pilot.
"Please take care of her, Pilot. I will be back, but it may be a couple of weekens before it is safe for me to return for her or to let her come down to Earth. I refuse to let anything happen to her," John stated fiercely.
Pilot looked at the Human that he had come to trust and admire with approving eyes. "Moya and I will do everything in our power to keep her safe and happy. But please, Commander, be careful. We can never replace you in her heart."
John looked at the giant alien with surprise. "Pilot, you are a true romantic." He patted Pilot's claw where it rested on his console then went to spend his last night with Aeryn.
The next morning, Aeryn stood sadly at the door of the docking bay, watching John load the last items into his module. She fought to hold her emotions in check, not wanting to ruin John's joyous return home with her fears. He straightened finally and walked slowly towards her. Aeryn was reminded of the times past when they had parted like this. She looked down, overcome.
John came to stand directly in front of her. He lifted her hand and threaded his fingers through hers as he had before, then he tilted her face up to his with a gentle finger under her chin. "This is definitely not good-bye, Aeryn. I will come back for you. And if it's not safe for you on Earth, I promise you, we will leave here together. Nothing will keep me from you, nothing!" He leaned his forehead against hers, pulling her lightly into his arms. "I love you, Aeryn Sun." He bent to give her a gentle kiss, but she pulled him closer to her desperately, kissing him hungrily. Passion sparked between them and for a time, John wondered how he could ever consider even a brief parting from this beautiful, fiery woman.
It was Aeryn who finally pushed him firmly away from her. Her eyes glistened precariously as she looked up at him. "You had better go, John. They're waiting for you.They might grow suspicious if you are late." She stepped back from him and took a few deep breaths to calm herself. Then with a grin, she stuck out her hand in the gesture John had taught her at their parting at the the Gammak base. "Good luck."
John grinned lopsidedly back at her, then the smile faded."We'll be together, I promise." He lifted her hand to his lips and then turned abruptly and clambered into his module. He saw her lips move as the docking bay doors closed on her forlorn figure standing alone in the hangar. He settled himself in his module, took a few deep breaths to calm the rattlers in his stomach and then signalled to Pilot to open the outer doors. The tiny white module shot out of the Leviathan and headed down to the blue and green planet.
"Pilot, is everything okay?"
Aeryn's voice came back over the comm, controlled and businesslike. "I'm monitoring the news transmissions from Earth, John. It seems that General Anderson is keeping his word. There are several live broadcasts even now from the White House lawn. They're expecting you."
"That's great, Aeryn. You see, there's nothing to worry about. I'll be landing in a few microts. Watch for me, I'll wave to you from Earth."
John could hear the smile in her voice at his foolishness. "Just don't do anything reckless, Crichton. I want you back in one piece."
"When have I ever done anything reckless?" he replied facetiously, happy to hear Aeryn snort with laughter. "I'll probably be out of communication with you for the next few days, but monitor the television broadcasts. I'll try to let you know how everything is going as best I can. I just don't want them to know you're here yet."
"Understood. John ... I ..."
"What?"
"I love you. Be careful," Aeryn said quickly and then broke the communication. John smiled, pleased that she was growing more and more able to tell him how she felt. *Let's get this little expedition over with so I can get back to Aeryn as soon as possible,* he thought.
"Canaveral, this is John Crichton. I'm within two minutes of landing. Where is my escort?" He needn't have asked. Through the thin clouds of the upper atmosphere, John saw a flash of sunlight on metal and then a pair of fighters drew up along side him.
"Farscape One, this Alpha Six. We will guide you to your landing site. All air traffic has been cleared so you will have an open flightpath. Do not deviate from this heading."
John grinned, "I wouldn't dream of it, Alpha Six. I've waited for this day for too long."
There was a silence on the other end then a friendly voice said, "Welcome home, Commander."
John stared at his comm in surprise and grinned even wider. "Thanks." The clouds parted and John saw the rapidly approaching ground. He spent the rest of his time concentrating on setting the craft down on the green lawn in front of the tall white complex. *A perfect three point landing,* John thought proudly. *At least I didn't embarrass myself by bouncing or crashing.*
He opened the comm to Moya one last time, "Did you see that, Aeryn? Pretty good for a Human, huh?"
"That's not saying much," her voice came back, amused.
"Okay, this is it. Talk to you again in few days," John turned off the engines and began to release the restraints.
"I'll be waiting."
John took another couple of deep breaths and then released the hatch.
Up on Moya, Aeryn watched in nervous fascination as the television broadcast John's arrival. A strange man seemed to feel it was necessary to describe everything in a hushed whisper even though it was clearly shown on the screen. The Farscape landed perfectly and soon afterwards the hatch opened. The crowds watching drew back skittishly as a figure emerged. John stood slowly, cautiously checking his surroundings. Then he climbed down to the green ground. He stood warily waiting for several men clad in heavy encounter suits to come forward. He was escorted forward slowly. The men around him seemed to be more concerned about his safety than any threat he might have posed, Aeryn noted with relief. John was quickly placed into some sort of chamber and the scene quickly shifted to a camera placed inside the chamber. John sat quietly with two of the suited men beside him. One of them gave him an earplug with a mic attached and indicated that he should put it on. Then a tall dark-suited man that the announcer identified as the President approached the chamber, surrounded by six or seven men and woman in equally dark suits. There was a crackle and the sound switched to the conversation between John and the leader of his country.
"On behalf of the people of the United States, I welcome you back to Earth, Commander Crichton," the man said, more to the listening crowd than to John. As he continued in a somewhat pompous and well-rehearsed manner, Aeryn thought that the man could give Rygel some competition in the speechmaking department. The expression on John's face seemed to mirror her thoughts and she smiled that they appeared to be on the same wavelength. Her smile grew even broader as she thought she saw John mouth 'Rygel' into the interior camera.
"Thank you, sir," John said humbly, when the President finally stopped. "It's good to be home at last." The crowds outside cheered suddenly. He waved at the camera and then the scene shifted to the announcer again as the outer camera showed the chamber rolling away. The announcer explained the procedure of decontamination and examination that John would undergo then promised the next report a few hours later. The last shots were of several more suited men lifting the Farscape module onto a transport, covering it with a cloth similar to the one their suits seemed to be made of and that vehicle rolling away as well. Aeryn turned away from the sight, her heart a little lighter at John's obviously positive reception. But she sighed, missing him already, refusing to think about any of the other hundreds of things that could still go wrong.
*************** End of Part Two
PART THREE OF SIX
Enjoy
***********
Standing in front of the television, ironing in the dingy apartment she now called home, Dr. Alexandra O'Connor could not believe the sight that she beheld. She stood for a few moments in absolute shock then put down the hot steaming iron and came to sit in front of the television, her eyes fixed on the amazing images it broadcast.
"Again, this is Tom Watkins, live from the White House lawn in Washington, D.C. where history has just been made. Astronaut John Crichton, once thought lost in an accident high above the Earth, has just landed in his Farscape module after an absence of nearly three years. The obvious questions are where has he been all this time? How did he survive in outer space? Did he have help?" The reporter cocked his head, listening to voices on his remote earphone. "Even now, our panel of experts back in the studio are telling us that the Farscape module has been modified. It was never designed to land in the manner we have just seen." The television screen split and half the image was taken over by a replay of the white craft settling gently on the grass of the White House. Then the hatch popped open and John appeared. The camera closed in on his face. Alex studied the image intensely. He looked older, more rugged, his hair shorter than before, but then he smiled and she grinned, unable even now to resist his boyish smile.
There was a noise behind her. Alex turned and caught sight of her son. "Baby, come here," she called. The child bounded over to her and threw himself into her arms. She ruffled his brown hair playfully, then drew his attention to the television. "Jonathan, look. See that man there. He's an astronaut. Just like Buzz Lightyear. And he's a friend of Mommy's."
Jonny studied the screen but only saw boring pictures of a man making a speech. He frowned. "That's not Buzz," he objected stubbornly.
Alex had to laugh at the expression on his face. "No, you're right, it's not Buzz. But it's someone just like Buzz."
Jonny looked at her, his eyes clearly showing that he didn't believe that there could be anyone real who was a wonderful as his Buzz. Then he grinned, his blue eyes sparkling. "Okay," he said with a young child's dismissiveness. He wriggled out of his mother's lap and grabbed up his Buzz Lightyear action figure, racing around the room yelling Buzz's signature *To infinity and beyond!* at the top of his lungs.
Ignoring her boisterous son, Alex sat sadly, only half aware of the television replaying the landing again and again. She was lost in thought of what her life might have been like had she turned down the Stanford job and stayed in Florida with John. That last night together, she had been pretty sure he was going to ask her to marry him. Now she would have been his wife, happily reunited with her lost husband instead of a single mother, abandoned and disgraced.
The Stanford job had started off promisingly enough. Upset by the abrupt end to her three year relationship with John, Alex had let herself drift quickly into a rebound affair with the charming Dr Troy Saxon. Soon they were inseparable both in the lab and at home. He had asked her to move in with him a short three months after her arrival in California and she had accepted, swept away by his dashing good looks and intelligence. They had worked together on several projects, finally making a major breakthrough with a drug that inhibited the growth of cancer cells in human tissue. Alex had been flattered when Troy had insisted that she share the credit on the paper that they had published soon after. The publicity had been enormous, overwhelming. Drug companies clamoured for their work. Symposiums begged for their lectures.
Then it had all come crashing down. A research lab in England, trying to recreate their results, had found several errors in their procedures. It had eventually come to light that Troy had manipulated his results, in some cases manufacturing them outright. By the time the news was made public, Troy had disappeared, leaving Alex to face the storm of controversy alone. Furthermore, he had cleaned out their savings, mortgaged his beach front house to the hilt and even embezzled research funds. He left Alex broke, homeless and pregnant with his child. When the dust settled, her career was in ruins. Her credibility had been compromised. She was unable to get a job at any laboratory. No one in the scientific community would touch her with a ten foot pole. With the threat of an ongoing fraud investigation lying over her, she was even unable to get a job teaching science in a junior high school.
About that time came the news of John's disappearance and presumed death. The shock had sent her into labour. She gave birth to a son, whom she named Jonathan in memory of the man who she realised she had foolishly given up. She sighed, aroused by the sound of the iron sputtering dryly. She leaped up and pulled out the cord. Then she stood looking around at her small apartment. She wiped a tear away at the disaster her life had become. The state had set her up in this apartment, giving her just barely enough to live on let alone raise a child. Her parents helped where they could. They often begged her to come home, but she repeatedly refused. Never well-off, they had spent every cent they had on helping her get through medical school and MIT. She had been their hope and she had destroyed it. Her mother had absolutely adored John and though she had never said so, Alex knew she felt her daughter had made a dreadful error in leaving him for Stanford. Her parents had made a couple of trips out to California from Florida to see her, their faces registering their consternation at her straightened circumstances. But even that had been some time ago. Her father's stoke two years ago had prevented any further trips, and apart from a phone call or two, Alex had all but broken off contact with them.
Suddenly a plan formed in her mind. She turned to her son, who was now playing quietly, lost in imaginary worlds of space and aliens. "Hey, Jonny, baby, how would you like to meet John? A real live astronaut?" She warmed to the idea. "How would you like to meet Mommy's friend, eh, honey. He's been living in outer space for three years. I bet he met aliens just like Buzz." she said, picking up one of the three-eyed cartoon aliens. "Maybe he'll even let you talk to one. Or take you for a ride in his spaceship. Would you like that?"
Jonny looked at his mother wide-eyed, growing excited by her enthusiasm. Then he beamed at her. "Yeah, Mommy. Could we fly in his spaceship?"
She hugged him tightly, laughing as he wriggled out of her arms, already embarrassed by his mother's attentions. Then she ruffled his hair again, before rising and making him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from her meagre stores. Once he was settled at the table with Buzz, the sandwich and a glass of milk in front of him, Alex picked up the phone, dialing her mother's number. The phone rang so long, Alex was almost afraid no one was home. then her mother's voice answered. "Mom? It's me. It's Alex." Tears formed in her eyes. Jonny watched his mother curiously. "Mom, if it's okay with you and Dad, I'd like to come home."
***************'
Up on Moya, Aeryn spent every walking arn monitoring the television broadcasts, sometimes with Pilot, sometimes alone. Hungry for every glimpse of John, her wishes were granted. His image seemed to be everywhere. Pictures of his past, reports on his career, disturbing replays of his funeral, repeats of the famous landing and constant speculation filled the news on nearly every frequency Moya scanned. When there were no live shots of him, Aeryn grew concerned but on the third day after his landing, television reporters were allowed into the decontamination facility to interview the famous astronaut.
Aeryn's heart lurched when she saw the quarantine cell, so much like the one she and the others had been confined in on the false Earth. But inside the chamber, John was smiling and relaxed. A man who Aeryn immediately recognised as John's father stood nearby. The reporters shouted questions out like a chittering flock of Pyrasta birds until John laughingly had to hold up his hand, asking for one at a time. With his father moderating, John spent a full two hours telling them a modified version of his life on board Moya. He left out Scorpius' torture and continued pursuit, only hinting that the wormhole technology he had stumbled upon was a much sought-after commodity in the Uncharted Territories. But he did tell them about Captain Crais and the PeaceKeepers, looking despondent at the accidental death of Tauvo Crais that had begun his life as a fugitive. He explained about Zhaan and D'Argo and Rygel and Chiana, how they had all been falsely imprisoned and were now returned home. He told of Moya and Pilot, watching the reporters scribble furiously and reach up with their recorders as he described the massive biomechanoid ship that had been his home for so long. Then he went on to describe the marvels he had seen in the Uncharted Territories, both beautiful and terrifying, all the worlds he had visited, the races he had encountered and the almost miraculous things he had seen.
Aeryn studied the faces of the reporters carefully. A few of them clearly showed that they thought this man was a raving lunatic. One reporter even went so far as to storm out, refusing to listen to such nonsense. But the majority of them seemed to believe John's fantastic stories. When General Anderson came out and answered more technical questions to give John a bit of a break, it became clear to those watching that the military and IASA were taking John's stories very seriously. General Anderson confirmed the speculation that the Farscape module had indeed been modified using an unknown form of technology. He also confirmed that while John Crichton appeared to be in excellent health, his body carried some sort of microbes that had colonized at the base of his skull. Again the reporters pounced, asking about threats to Human life from space viruses. With a quick glance back at John, General Anderson reported that they had found no trace of any disease or virus and that they were satisfied that Commander Crichton posed no threat to Earth. He would be released on schedule the next day.
Just as the General called a halt to the press conference, a woman's voice rang out with a final question to John. "Commander Crichton, you're a handsome young man. You haven't told us anything about your romantic adventures in the Uncharted Territories. It's been three years. Surely you must have had some 'encounters of the closest kind', shall we say, since you've been gone." The woman smiled up at John challengingly. The reporters all laughed at her question. But Aeryn noticed they did not turn off their recorders. Even the General looked amused.
Aeryn held her breath, waiting to see what John would say. As if he could see her, John smiled warmly into the camera, that smile that always melted her heart, then he turned to the woman reporter with a grin. "Yes, I met some interesting ... er females, out there. One in particular. But a gentleman never reveals anything about the woman in his life. Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm just not the 'kiss and tell' type." was all he would say, with a teasing smile. The reporters began calling out for more details but were ushered out of the room. Aeryn grinned, seeing that John was safe and clearly enjoying himself.
It was another two days after John was released from quarantine before he felt he could safely contact Moya. He was staying with his father in his childhood home, happy to be back in his own room again. Unfortunately, they had very little privacy. Reporters were camped out on the front lawn, with remote trucks and satellite feeds everywhere. IASA had had to provide the Crichton's with security in the face of a few threats made by some radical groups and unstable crackpots. John was pleased at the success of his plan, but now was growing impatient. He desperately wanted the storm of publicity to die down so he could bring Aeryn down safely. He missed her so much it hurt.
That morning, he finally had some time to himself. He reached under his shirt and pulled out the commbadge. He had lied to the IASA, saying it was a present from Zhaan, a symbol of Delvian Unity. They had examined the item but were unable to recognise it as a communications device and so had let him keep it. He hit the badge, speaking into it quietly. "Pilot? Pilot, are you there? Aeryn?"
In the Command, Aeryn raced over to the comm, nearly tripping over a DRD in her haste to answer John's hail. "John? John?" Her face broke into a wide grin at the sound of his voice.
"Hey! Is everything all right up there?"
Pilot replied, "We are all well. Are you?"
John smiled, "Yeah, Pilot. It's going better than I had hoped. No one's tried to cut me open or lock me away. I'm home now, staying with my father at his house." He smiled again. "How are you guys doing?"
"We're doing well, Commander. Moya is fascinated by the transmissions from your world. She and I have so many questions."
John chuckled at Pilot's enthusiasm. "That's great, Pilot. Just don't let her watch too much television. It'll rot her brain." He laughed as he heard Pilot gasp. "No, Pilot, not literally. It's just a figure of speech. Aeryn, are you there?"
"Here, John. I'm afraid I've been watching television too much as well. We've been monitoring every broadcast since you landed. You certainly got the media coverage you wanted."
John sighed. "Yeah, sweetheart, it sure worked. Too well. I miss you so much but it's still too hot for you to come down here. I mean, I can't move a muscle without some reporter showing up. I don't want them finding out about you. I won't put you in any danger."
"I miss you too, John. And I understand. I see now what you mean. Will it ever let up?"
John laughed. "Yeah, don't worry. It's the nature of our media. I'm a nine days wonder. Pretty soon they'll be off hounding some other poor schmuck." He grinned. In his mind's eye, he saw her frown as her translator microbes struggled with that term. "Soon, honey, soon. Hang in there."
"I will," Aeryn's voice was warm with longing.
"Oh, gotta go, love. I'm off to Washington to have dinner with the President. Dad, DK and I. Dad and I are taking my sisters and DK's got his fiancée along. I'll be back tomorrow and I'll contact you then. I love you," he said as he signed off.
John had just managed to slip the commbadge back under his shirt when he heard voices outside the door. There was a knock at the door and his father appeared. "Good morning, John," he said warmly, still unable to believe that the son he had thought dead and gone was alive and well and returned to him. Jack frowned slightly, "Were you talking to someone?"
John smiled ruefully, "No, just talking to myself. It's a habit I picked up in the Uncharted Territories. When do we leave for Washington?"
Jack laughed, clapping his son on the back. "The car isn't due to get here for another hour."
"Great, then I've got time for a real home cooked breakfast. I hope you've got bacon and eggs. And real coffee. Man, I missed coffee more than anything else."
"More than me?" a voice asked. John turned in astonishment. There in front of him stood the woman he had hoped one day to marry.
"Alex?" he cried, stunned. The last time he had 'seen' her had been on New Delvia, recreated from his memories by Lorana. The woman who stood in his father's kitchen was much changed. Her blonde hair showed the first traces of grey. She was slightly heavier, her slender figure now more voluptuous. There were tiny wrinkles around her care-shadowed eyes. But then she smiled and he saw again the woman he had once wanted to share his life with. "Alex! I can't believe it!" He pulled her into a tight hug. "I thought you were in California!" He leaned back to study her again, his face bright with joy at seeing her again.
Her eyes filled with tears. "I just got back! I can't believe you're alive, John. I nearly died when they said you had been lost in an accident!"
John smiled sadly at her and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "Yeah, that's what everyone thought." He grinned suddenly, "But I'm back now! I'm alive!" He led her over to the table where his father had placed a cup of coffee for her. "Are you hungry? I'm just about to make some breakfast." Jack poured himself and John some coffee, but before he could sit down, the phone rang. With a muttered ,"That better not be some reporter," Jack excused himself to go and answer it.
John set about making himself the breakfast he had been dreaming of since he left Earth, clanging pots and pans happily. Alex smiled sadly, reminded of all the mornings he had made breakfast for her. Once everything was sizzling away, he turned back to the blonde woman. "So, how was Stanford? You said you just got back. Did the job end?"
Alex looked down, embarrassed. "Not exactly. Things just didn't work out as I had hoped."
John saw the shadow pass over her face and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Alex. I know how excited you were about the job. So what are you planning to do now? Do you think they'll give you your old job back here in Florida?"
Before she could answer, Jack came back into the room. "That was your sister Marion, John. It seems that the kids have all come down with chicken pox. She's really disappointed but she can't go to the White House with us." Jack sat down at the table, watching with amusement as his son dished out his massive breakfast and dug into it enthusiastically. Then he cast an eye at Alex, who watched John eat as if he had been denied food for the last three years. Jack's look grew speculative. "Say, Alex, are you busy tonight? Why don't you come with us to Washington?"
John groaned inwardly at his father's not so subtle match-making and tried to catch his eye without Alex seeing him. Alex looked from one to the other in growing excitement. "Do you really think ... no ... I'd need to be checked out first."
Jack was already on his feet. "I'll call the White House secretary. I'm sure it will be okay. They hate it when their numbers are uneven."
"But I have nothing to wear!" Alex exclaimed in dismay.
"You're the same size as Marion. I'm sure she wouldn't mind you borrowing the gown she was going to wear tonight." Jack smiled at the pair. "Come on, for old times' sake," then he went off to make his phone calls.
Alex looked at John in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, John. I had no intention of butting in. I just wanted to see you again."
John took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Not to worry, Alex. Besides, like Dad said, it will be just like old times."
Jack came forward with the phone, indicating his daughter wanted to speak to her old school chum."Alex! When did you get back in town? I'm so glad to hear you're back. And not a moment too soon." Marion chuckled conspiratorially. "I can't believe I have to miss a dinner at the White House. The joys of motherhood, huh!" Alex grinned at her old friend's exuberance. "Well, if I have to give up my date with my long lost brother, I can't think of anyone I'd rather have take my place. Do I smell a reconciliation between you two? Well, no matter. You have all the time in the world now. Dad said you need a dress. You might as well wear mine. It's a little too fancy for dosing out medicine and rubbing calamine lotion into rashes." Marion exclaimed. "Have the driver stop by here on the way to the airport. I'll have everything you need right down to the brand new underwear ready for you to pick up. Oh God, Alex, I'm glad you're back. John needs a stabilizing influence in his life right now," Marion declared before ringing off.
On board Moya, the days stretched to a weeken and then two. Aeryn wandered around the massive empty Leviathan despondently. John called up to them every day, twice if he was able, his voice filled with excitement as he described for Aeryn and Pilot the places he had been and the people he had met. But every communication ended with him telling Aeryn that it was still too dangerous for her to join him. Aeryn was growing increasingly impatient and anxious. She felt uncharacteristically listless and sluggish. Her appetite had fallen off and she was not sleeping. She had taken to spending the night in Pilot's chamber, unable to face the chambers she shared with John, now empty and cold without him. She tried to keep up her exercise routine but even that failed to stimulate her. All she could do was sit for arns watching the transmissions from John's Earth, hungry for even the slightest glimpse of him.
Unfortunately, gossip mongers and trash television shows had picked up on the John Crichton phenomenon. Pilot and Aeryn watched one show in particular, in horrified fascination. A tall man in a suit cavorted around a stage in front of a large group of people, an elongated communications device in his hands. On the stage was a strange assortment of people all of whom claimed to have had contact with, been abducted by, been experimented on, and, in a couple of cases, impregnated by aliens. Aeryn and Pilot listened to their wild stories in shock.
"I thought Commander Crichton said that his people had not had any contact with outside races before," Pilot commented in amazement.
"So did I, Pilot. But it seems he was mistaken. Now that he has returned and made his story public it looks like there have been more cases." Aeryn listened closely to the descriptions the Humans gave. "Do you recognise any of the races they're describing?"
"No, I've never heard of a race of little green men before, have you? Could they possibly mean the Ja-Kench? I would not have thought they had travelled this far?" Aeryn shook her head, as mystified as Pilot. Somehow the Human's description was not in keeping with the servile little alien Aeryn remembered from the Royal Planet. Pilot's voice broke into her thoughts, "I'll have to add that to my list of questions for Commander Crichton when he comms us again." Pilot watched Aeryn's shoulders droop when he mentioned John's next communication. He was growing worried at her melancholy demeanor.
Suddenly the scene on the viewscreen shifted to a smiling couple of Humans in front of a flashy backdrop. After the blaring music died down, the screen behind the female was filled with a picture of John kissing a blonde woman. They appeared to have been caught in the act by a flash photographer, looking in wide-eyed guilt at the reporter.
"Has America's most eligible astronaut finally found love on this side of the Universe? Inquiring minds want to know. And who is the mystery woman? It seems that astronaut John Crichton has taken up where he left off with former medical researcher and close friend Dr. Alex O'Connor." The woman smiled knowingly at her partner. The screen behind them flashed with other pictures of John with the blonde woman, in a number of different situations.
"That's right, Sally. You remember Dr Alexandra O'Connor. She was at the centre of that cancer drug scandal a few years ago at Stanford."
"Right you are, Brock. It seems to me that John Crichton can't afford a scandal at this time. And neither can Dr. O'Connor. We'll be following this story with great interest."
Aeryn turned away from the screen, a mass of hurt and anger. Pilot tried to quell her fears. "I'm sure there's a good explanation, Aeryn. John loves you. He would never do anything to hurt you. You have to trust him, not these garish images from his bizarre world."
Aeryn smiled sadly back at Pilot. "You're right, Pilot. I do trust John. I just miss him, that's all. And I'm worried about what's taking so long."
"He wants to make sure you will be completely safe on Earth. It appears that he is still the object of undue surveillance by reporters. You must be patient a while longer."
"Yes, Pilot, I'll try." She flashed him a quick smile of gratitude. "I'm going to do my exercises. Please call me immediately if John contacts us," she said unnecessarily. Pilot watched her leave his chambers, his eyes filled with concern.
Once outside Pilot's chambers, Aeryn collapsed against the wall, gasping for breath as waves of sickening emotion washed over her again. She hadn't lied to Pilot. She did trust John. She knew he loved her. She just didn't trust herself. She doubted that she was ever going to be able to go to Earth with him. Aeryn questioned her own motives for wanting to be with John. She knew she loved him. She just wasn't sure it was enough. She remembered how tempting Larraq's offer to join Special Ops had felt and she had known it wasn't real. John was back on his Earth, the possibility of a return to his old life right there in front of him. She recalled the enthusiasm and excitement in his voice as he reported everything back to them daily. If it weren't for her, he could be living that life freely, without a care. Instead, John had to spend every day trying to figure out a way for her to join him safely. And even then, Aeryn was beginning to realise that her presence on Earth could only be temporary. There were too many dangers. She didn't want John's life on Earth to be the uncertain pursuit that his life in the Uncharted Territories had been. She bent over as waves of pain crashed through her abdomen, a testament to the intensity of the emotions she was feeling. She veered from her intended exercise and raced to her quarters, reaching the washroom just in time as the retching nausea overcame her.
A DRD that Aeryn passed unseen in her dash signalled back to Pilot. The symbiont communicated his concerns to Moya and together, they decided to try to reach John.
End of Part Three
PART FOUR OF SIX
Enjoy
***********
Down on earth, John scowled out the window at the circus of reporters and the curious still camped out on his father's front lawn. He was growing increasingly upset and anxious as the days passed without an abatement in their scrutiny of his every move. Unless it eased, there would be no way for him to bring Aeryn down from Moya. He cursed, seeing that his oh-so-clever plan had turned into a trap. They followed him everywhere. No matter what he did, there was always some photographer or reporter there to record it, even when he thought he was alone.
His jaw tightened angrily and he bit at his thumb, thinking back to two nights ago. He and Alex had thought they were alone. After many times together, where she had graciously agreed to be his date for the many functions he found himself obliged to attend, she had finally told him about the scandal at Stanford and about her son, Jonny. He had been shocked at the miserable turn her life had taken and had hugged her, pressing a friendly kiss to her lips to comfort her. That's when the flashes began. Some skinny, greasy-haired kid with a massive camera had leaped out of the bushes behind them, snapping shot after shot. John had roared in impotent anger then hurried Alex away, but the damage had been done. The resulting photos had appeared the very next day, gracing the front of every rag in every grocery checkout. Headlines proclaimed everything from a torrid affair to hints that his story, like her data, was fabricated. John cursed again. The phone had rung so often that finally Jack had taken it off the hook.
Worried about his son, Jack came silently into the room, seeing the despairing slump of his shoulders as he peered out the window unseeing. Suddenly there was a crackle and a rapid staccato of sound that sounded like a voice. Unaware of his father's presence, John reached down under his shirt and pulled out the device he had claimed to be a Delvian necklace which he wore constantly. He lifted the golden metallic device to his lips and spoke, stepping back from the window. "Yes, Pilot, what is it?" He listened to a steady stream of unintelligible syllables, before cursing again, more vehemently this time. "Is she there, Pilot? Can you put Aeryn on?" The voice replied with the same strange language. John's face went from angry to worried. "She's sick? What's the matter with her? Pilot, maybe I had better get back up there to you." The staccato continued, more urgent than before. "I understand. I'll try to find a way to get her down here unseen. I'll try to figure out something for tonight. Thanks, Pilot, I'll be in touch. And thank Moya for me." John hit the badge again and turned around, standing stock still at the sight of his father motionless behind him, Jack's face registering his own shock at what he had just heard. John grinned sheepishly at his father, looking for all the world like he had just been caught sneaking in after curfew with alcohol on his breath. "You heard that, didn't you, Dad?"
Jack stared at his son, "Yes, I heard it. But I only understood your half of the conversation." He closed his eyes, "What the hell is going on, John? What was that voice I heard?"
John smiled again, "That was Pilot."
"You mean the alien that flew Moya? But I thought you said the Leviathan dropped you off on Earth and then went to join your friend Zhaan on Delvia."
"Yeah, Dad, I did say that, but I lied. You better sit down. I have a lot more to tell you." John grabbed his father's arm and led him unresisting to the sofa. Before he could speak, there was a knock at the door. The younger Crichton opened it to see DK frantically fighting off questioning reporters. Cameras flashed as John swiftly pulled his childhood friend into the house and slammed the door. DK leaned against the doorjamb wearily, then he saw the scowl on John's face and the stunned look on Jack Crichton's. Before he could ask what was the matter, John hauled him unceremoniously into the room and pushed him down on the sofa. "I need you to hear this too, DK, because I think I'm going to need your help." John then proceeded to fill his father and friend in on the situation high above Earth.
An hour later, Jack and DK were still staring at John in astonishment. "So you're telling me that Aeryn has been up there waiting for you on Moya all this time. She's been monitoring the television and radio to make sure you're okay? And now you want to bring her down here?" DK asked.
John dropped his head wearily into his hands, raking his fingers distractedly through his hair. "Yeah, that's about the size of it. Do you think we can do it?"
Jack looked at his son apprehensively. He had seen the love in his eyes, heard it in his voice when he spoke of this alien woman called Aeryn. He had never seen such intense emotion in his son, not even on the night John had divulged his plan to ask Alex to marry him. "Son, I know you want her to see Earth, to see your homeworld, but do you think it's safe? What about those vultures outside? Even if they don't find out about Aeryn being an alien they won't let you alone. You've become quite a celebrity. How will you even sneak away to meet her?"
John sighed, "I have to find a way, Dad. You don't know Aeryn. The longer I'm gone the more insecure she will become. Pilot already told me she saw some tabloid show this morning and she's making herself physically ill with worry. She's never been alone before, Dad. She was raised in the military, regimented her whole life." He stood up and began pacing. "Even after we ended up on Moya, we've almost never been apart. I promised her! I promised her I'd never leave her. I need her here, Dad. I love her."
Jack stood up and placed his hands on his distraught son's shoulders, shocked at the state he was in. "Okay, John, calm down. We'll think of something." Jack looked back at DK, an idea beginning to form in his head. "What tabloid show, John?"
John looked at his father blankly, "What?"
DK understood where the elder Crichton was going. He reached over and flicked on the TV. The newscast8s celebrity reporter appeared. John watched horrified as she repeated the story, showing the guilty picture of John kissing Alex. DK grimaced apologetically. "It's on nearly every channel, replayed almost hourly."
John closed his eyes in despair, "Oh, dear Lord, Aeryn, I'm so sorry!" he groaned.
"No, John, I think we can use it to our advantage. Here's what I propose."
Across town outside the O'Connor residence, the same skinny greasy-haired kid photographer was stationed outside the home of John Crichton's 'girlfriend'. While his compatriots had staked out the Crichton home, 'Flash', as he was known in the business, had taken a different tack. One that appeared to be paying off. He had already taken several shots of Alex O'Connor and her parents playing with a brown-haired child of about four with startling blue eyes who bore a passing resemblance to John Crichton. He was already calculating the money he would make auctioning off those photos. True or not, the speculation about the hapless astronaut's love child would sell tabloid newspapers like hotcakes. He raised his camera to his eyes and focussed the lens. Alex was just putting down the phone and then she hurried out of the room. A short while later, she returned dressed for the evening. She kissed her son on the cheek and then bid her parents good-bye. Five minutes later a black towncar with darkened windows arrived and she climbed in with the photographer in hot pursuit.
The towncar inched slowly through the seething mass of reporters up the long driveway to the Crichton home. The door opened and a man, swathed in a trenchcoat and dark glasses climbed in. The car backed out the driveway and headed off, followed by the majority of the reporters and photographers.
Meanwhile, seeing the reporters take off after DK and Alex like hounds after a fox, John pulled out his comm and signalled up to Moya. "Pilot? Pilot, are you there?"
John's heart twisted as he heard Aeryn's beloved voice answer. Jack Crichton listened in fascination to the melodious voice speaking a language of liquid syllables punctuated by strange clicks. "Aeryn! Are you ready to join me, sweetheart?" John asked anxiously. He was very much afraid that the damage done by the frelling tabloid TV show would prompt Aeryn to refuse to join him out of anger and hurt. He held his breath, waiting for her answer. She hesitated for a microt then answered softly, "Yes, if you still want me to." He closed his eyes, hearing the insecurity and hurt in her voice. He desperately needed to hold her and reassure her that everything was all right. "Of course, I still want you to, Aeryn. It's not perfectly safe down here, but I can't wait any longer. I need to see you. I miss you so much, Aeryn."
"I miss you too, John," she replied quietly.
John proceeded to give her precise instructions on how to bring the Prowler down safely, avoiding the inevitable radar. Then he told her where to land, describing a deserted field not too far from his father's home. There was a moldering old barn that would provide a perfect hiding place for the Prowler. "I'll meet you there in two arns, after dark. Oh and Aeryn? Do you still have the sundress from the false Earth?"
Aeryn's voice registered her confusion at his question, "Yes, I still have it. Why?"
"Would you mind wearing that instead of your leathers?" John asked nervously. "You will blend in better in that dress. And no pulse rifle." John grinned as his father blinked in shock at his request.
Aeryn gave him her grudging consent, then signed off. John sighed then sat back, looking forward to the evening ahead with a mixture of excitement and anxiety.
John managed to sneak out the back door of his house, past the few bored reporters who had remained behind. He had to grin when he thought of the merry chase DK and Alex were leading the others on. The towncar belonged to a friend of DK's, and the three of them had decided that they had to go at least to Atlantic City, planning to lose the reporters in the casinos. John made his way swiftly to the field, doubling back three times to make competely sure he was not being followed. But it looked like his father's plan had worked. He sat out under the stars and nearly full moon, waiting nervously for Aeryn's arrival, shivering anxiously in the cool night air. Then he heard the familiar whoosh of the Prowler, flying unseen in the night. There was a slight flare and the craft landed not too far from where he waited. He arrived at the sleek fighter craft just as Aeryn climbed down. He could just barely make out her form in the white flowered sundress as she stood uncertainly beside her flyer. Knowing her eyes were better in the dark than his, he stepped forward, whispering her name urgently. She moved warily, her eyes fixed on him. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out into the moonlight, staring down at her eagerly.
He was shocked by her appearance. Pilot had not been exaggerating. Aeryn had lost weight. The sundress nearly hung on her. Her face was drawn and her beautiful blue eyes were like dark pools in her pale face. She did not say anything, staring up at him, her eyes full of pain and loneliness. John groaned and then pulled her into his arms, crushing her to him. "Oh, God, Aeryn, I missed you! I should never have left you! It's been Hell here without you!"
He felt her stiffen in his arms, then she wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him fearfully. "John!" she whispered, before she pulled his head down to press her lips against his urgently. John slid his hand into her hair, while his other arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her slender body even closer to his. He kissed her deeply, hungrily, his mouth angling passionately across hers. Aeryn met his need with a fire of her own. Soon John was lost in the taste of her sweet mouth, the ardent press of her body against his, the caresses of her hands as they slid under the edge of his shirt to stroke the naked skin of his back. Unable to stop himself, he pushed her down onto the soft fragrant grass, intent on wiping out the pain of the last two weekens of separation and loneliness.
Afterwards, Aeryn lay wrapped in John's arms, happy to be once again with her lover. John lay back, gloriously exhausted. Then he groaned and sat up, pulling her with him. His face registered his consternation. "Aeryn, I'm sorry. I ... I couldn't help myself. I missed you so much." He grinned down at her sheepishly. "You make me lose control."
Aeryn beamed happily up at him, her hand gently caressing his cheek, "I missed you too, John," she said softly.
He kissed her tenderly then groaned as he felt her eager response to him, a response that threatened to make him lose himself in her again. He pulled his mouth reluctantly from hers and groaned again. "God, Aeryn, what have you done to me? I can't get enough of you." He rose to his feet and began to look around for his clothes and hers.
Aeryn watched him lovingly, for once unembarrassed by her nakedness. John caught the wicked gleam in her eyes and nearly surrendered to her again. He pulled her to her feet and wrapped the sundress around her, staring down into her eyes with shining happiness. He didn't trust himself to button the dress up. Instead, he pulled on the rest of his clothes and went over to the Prowler. Aeryn joined him soon after and together they pushed the craft into the dilapidated barn, satisfied that it was well-hidden. Then he took her hand, "Come on, my love. It's time to meet my father, for real this time."
John and Aeryn laughed together triumphantly as they slipped back into the house unseen. Jack Crichton heard them and stood to meet the woman his son loved so well, who had saved his life repeatedly in the treacherous Uncharted Territories. Despite John's description of her, Jack was unprepared for the beauty of the Sebacean woman. She stood nervously beside his son, almost as tall as he was. Her eyes flashed sapphire. Her long dark hair lay loosely about her bare shoulders. Jack understood what John had described as her mixture of strength and vulnerability. Without a word, Jack's eyes flickered to the pieces of grass and twigs still caught in her lovely hair. John followed his father's gaze down and unbelievably blushed. Instead of chastising them for the nerve-wracking delay, he smiled at the woman his son gazed down at so proudly. "Aeryn Sun, it's a pleasure to finally meet you," he said sincerely. He reached out and took her two hands in his.
Aeryn smiled up at him radiantly, her whole face glowing. Jack jumped when she spoke in her melodious alien tongue. "She says she's happy to finally meet you, the real you, as well." Jack looked at him in confusion. "Don't worry, Dad, I'll tell you later."
Jack chuckled nervously. "This language thing is going to take some getting used to," he said.
Aeryn smiled at him and nodded. She turned to John and said something. "She says she should have thought to bring along some translator microbes." John bent to gently kiss her lips. "There will be time enough for that later, Aeryn." He grinned down at her.
"Hungry?"
She nodded. "Dad, do you think those vultures out there would let the pizza delivery guy through? I've vowed that Aeryn will get a chance to try everything that Earth has to offer, starting with pizza." He kissed her again, much to her embarrassment. Then he leaped up and headed for the phone.
Jack looked at Aeryn with an expression close to sympathy. "I'm afraid you're in for quite a ride, my dear," he told her. Aeryn rolled her eyes to show she fully agreed.
John bounded back into the room and leaped onto the couch next to Aeryn. "The pizza will be here in a few minutes. Get ready for the taste sensation of the universe." He leaned in to kiss her once again.
Aeryn avoided his kiss skilfully, missing Jack's carefully hidden smile. Then, unfortunately for his son, she reached up to push a strand of her hair out of her eyes. Her fingers came in contact with something in her hair. She deftly untangled the twig, staring at it in horror. Her eyes slid to John's father, who tried his hardest to keep a straight face, then she glared at John, her cheeks flaming. "Crichton!" she cried, "What the frell is this?" She ran her fingers through her hair, coming up with more momentos of their 'close encounter' in the woods. John tried his best to look innocent but failed miserably. "How could you, John? Now your father will think I'm the worst trelk in the universe!"
John tried his darndest to placate her, but she pushed him away furiously. She stormed out of the room, her eyes flashing fire. Jack watched her go in amazement. "Does this happen a lot?" he asked his son.
"Oh, yeah. Life with Aeryn is always a challenge. If she doesn't kill me, I'll be back in a microt, er minute." John followed the irate alien out of the room. Jack listened unabashedly to the furious whispers that emerged from the hall. Suddenly there was a gasp and then silence. By the time the pizza delivery boy arrived, John had returned to the living room with Aeryn. Her cheeks were flushed again, but with a different kind of fire. John was looking very smug. Jack refused to think on it further.
The trio shared a very pleasant evening. Over the pizza, Jack asked Aeryn a number of questions, with John interpreting her answers. She asked Jack a number of searching questions about John, much to his son's embarrassment, but Jack willingly answered them and offered more, knowing that John had caused more than his fair share of Aeryn's blushes that night. When John wasn't looking, Aeryn gave Jack a distinctive wink, acknowledging his role as co-conspirator.
Soon, Aeryn was having trouble hiding her exhaustion. Things got a little tense when John suggested that Aeryn should retire. He looked at his father in confusion, uncertain what sleeping arrangements to suggest. Jack walked over to his son and slapped him on the back. "John, we're all adults here, " he said. "I like her. I like her a lot." he whispered. Then he added out loud, "Well, Aeryn, I'm with you. It's definitely time to call it a night. If I know John, he's got a full day planned for you tomorrow." He bent and risked kissing the Sebacean woman on the cheek. "Good night, my dear. Sleep well." When he was gone, John slid over to join Aeryn on the couch. He pulled her unresistingly into his arms and kissed her soundly. She sighed and relaxed against him happily. John sat that way for a time, revelling in the feel of her in his arms. When he bent his head to tell her how much his father had liked her, he found her asleep, snoring softly. John kissed her again, then lifted her into his arms, momentarily troubled by how light she was. He carried her down the hall to his room, slipping the shoes from her feet as he laid her on his bed. Aeryn stirred slightly as he pulled the covers out from under her and tucked them in around her. Then he went back through the house to check the locks and turn out the lights. Closing the door to his room, he shed his clothes down to his customary sleeping garb and slid into the bed, drawing the sleeping Sebacean into his arms before drifting off to sleep himself.
Aeryn awoke in the pink light of dawn to find John watching her, his blue eyes filled with love and desire. She smiled lazily at him with a murmured "Good morning." John pulled her closer, his lips finding hers in a kiss that was at first tender, then demanding. With a sigh, Aeryn surrendered herself to his caresses, loving the sensation of waking up once more in John's arms. When the storm of passion subsided, they slept again, content in each other's embrace.
When John awoke later, the sun was fully up. He heard his father already moving around in the kitchen. The bed beside him was empty. Sitting up, he saw Aeryn going through his chest of drawers, pulling out a pair of his Calvins in triumph. "Hey, you little thief, what the hezmana are you up to?" he cried teasingly. Aeryn jumped guiltily and then turned to face him defiantly. "I don't have anything to wear, Crichton," she declared, unconsciously echoing the age old lament of Human women everywhere. "You insisted I wear that frelling thing and now what do I do?" Aeryn flicked her hand contemptuously at the now wrinkled cotton sundress.
John lay back, enjoying the view of his Aeryn clad only in a pair of his Calvins. "I don't know. I think you look fine the way you are."
Aeryn called his bluff, marching purposefully toward the door of the room. "Then you won't mind in the slightest if I go out and wish your father a good morning dressed like this." Her hand was on the door handle before John pulled her back.
"Okay, okay. You win." John searched through his own meagre wardrobe and pulled out a pair of jeans and one of his old MIT sweatshirts. Aeryn practically swam in the clothes. John had to pull out a belt and cinch it around Aeryn's waist twice to hold up her jeans. He helped her roll up the sleeves of the sweatshirt. She turned to face him, looking very much like a child dressed in her father's clothes. They both stared down at her bare feet. Shoes were going to be another problem. Aeryn absolutely refused to put on the flimsy pumps that went with the sundress ever again. John sighed and dressed himself, then taking Aeryn's hand, he led her out into the kitchen where his father had prepared an enticing breakfast for them.
John watched Aeryn pick at her food, all traces of her previously healthy appetite gone. He caught his father's eye, sharing his concern. Aeryn looked up and intercepted the exchange between father and son. She gazed at John, her eyes full of guilt. Her melodious voice conveyed her apology. John turned to his father. "Aeryn wants you to know that she loves your cooking. She's afraid she's just off her food right now. It's probably the stress." John looked at his father, his eyes showing his worry.
Jack smiled reassuringly. "It's all right , Aeryn. You've had to deal with a lot over the past few days. Don't worry. Soon you'll be eating like a horse." He turned to his son, missing Aeryn's confused expression. "So I guess today's project is shopping, huh John?" Jack teased, knowing how much his son loathed shopping and shopping malls in particular.
John slumped dejectedly in his chair. "Yeah, Dad. Aeryn needs some things and frankly, so do I."
"Do you mind if I make a suggestion?"
John looked up at his father in surprise, "No, what is it, Dad?"
"How about calling your sister Marion in on this little expedition?" Jack raised his hand before John could protest. Aeryn watched the two of them nervously. "I know, I know. You and Marion don't always see eye to eye. But John, you really need a woman's touch here. You can't be helping Aeryn pick out underwear, now can you?" Jack saw the amused exchange between his son and the alien. "What?" he asked impatiently.
John grinned "It's a private joke," catching Aeryn's eye and making her blush. Then he sighed. "But you're right, Dad." John turned to Aeryn, anticipating her protests "Aeryn, there are some places you're going to have to go and some things you're going to have to buy that ... well, it just wouldn't be right for me to be there with you." He reached over and caressed her cheek softly. "I know it's the twenty-first century. Can I help it if I'm an old-fashioned kind of guy?"
"Primitive, Crichton, not old-fashioned," Aeryn smirked impudently. Then her eyes grew worried. "Will you tell your sister the truth about me?"
John translated her question for his father. Jack met her eyes sincerely, "We had better not, Aeryn. I love my daughter dearly, but she's apt to blurt out something at the wrong time, in the wrong place. We can't risk it. We'll just tell her you're mute, unable to speak."
John looked at his father, not entirely convinced of the viability of his plan, "You know Marion, Dad. You'd better have a complete dossier ready, or she'll never stop asking questions."
Jack Crichton smiled ruefully, "You're right, John. You and Aeryn work something out while I go give her a call."
Aeryn stared at John in confusion, "John?" she asked growing increasingly nervous.
John reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "It will be all right, Aeryn, I promise." John sighed. "Marion's my older sister. Ever since Mom died, she feels it's her duty to mother me and my younger sister. That includes checking out all potential mates." Aeryn's eyes flew to John's in horror. "No, relax, Aeryn. It will be all right. Dad and I will be there with you. Most of the time. Just pretend you can't answer her questions." John grinned wickedly. "The PeaceKeepers taught you how to resist an interrogation, didn't they?" Aeryn nodded, bewildered. "Well, just use the same techniques." The Sebacean hit the Human playfully. "Hey, no hitting!" John laughed, then he pulled Aeryn into his arms. "Only kissing," he quipped before covering her mouth with his.
It was a very nervous Sebacean who sat waiting for John's sister to arrive to accompany them on their shopping expedition. John and his father had managed to pull together a pair of tennis shoes for Aeryn but even then, she felt uncomfortable in her outfit. Their story was that Aeryn was visiting from Europe, some country called Bell Jump, Aeryn recalled. And her belongings had been lost at something called an airport. John had drilled her in all the particulars of when and where they had met, so much so that Aeryn was now a nervous wreck, at least as much of one as she ever was."I would much rather be facing the entire Scarran army, John," she told him. "At least then I would feel that I had half a chance." John grinned at her and then drew her into his arms, kissing her passionately, his hands moving over her body searchingly, pushing her clothes aside with desire.
Unfortunately, Marion chose that very second to burst through the door unannounced. A few photographers even managed to reel off a few shots of the couple on the couch before John leaped up and slammed the front door shut in their faces. Aeryn pulled herself together, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment.
"Damn it, Marion. Can't you knock?" John raged, rounding on his sister.
"This is my home too, John Crichton! I've never felt the need to knock until now!" Marion cried, her eyes narrowing at the dark-haired woman in suspicion. Aeryn closed her eyes, mortified.
Hearing the commotion, Jack came in and draped his arm around the alien, trying to comfort her. Unfortunately, his actions inflamed his daughter even more. Though she said nothing, her thoughts were clear in her outraged face.
John turned to his father in despair. "Dad, maybe we'd better forget this whole thing!"
"No!" Jack said, his tone clearly brooking no resistance from his children. "Marion, this is Aeryn Sun. She is a friend of John's from Belgium. A very good friend. She worked with him on the Metricon satellite project in '95. She's here in the US, visiting for a few months but unfortunately her luggage was lost on the way over here." Jack pleaded with his oldest daughter. "She heard about John's return and came to pay her respects." Over Marion's shoulder, John winced, seeing the thundercloud pass over his sister's face at their father's use of the term 'respects'. "She's a stranger to the US, Marion. And she's mute. She can understand English when it's spoken to her but because of ... of ... meningitis she suffered from as a child she is unable to speak," Jack finished weakly. "Look, Marion," Jack said quietly, "I told John we would help her purchase a few items until her luggage was recovered." Seeing the stubborn look still on her face Jack grew impatient with his eldest child. "Marion Crichton Kirby! I'm sure your mother and I raised you better than to leave a stranger hanging."
Aeryn and John saw Marion hang her head at her father's criticism. The strawberry blonde woman with John's incredibly blue eyes reached out her hand to the tall dark-haired woman standing so close to her brother. "Pleased to meet you, Aeryn. How do you like the 'States so far?" Aeryn looked up at John helplessly.
"Uhh, Marion, you have to ask her yes or no questions, remember?"
Marion looked at the woman, her blue eyes hard. "Yes, John, I remember." Then her eyes swept up and down the dark-haired visitor, her eyes widening in horror. "My God, Aeryn, you really don't have a thing to wear, do you? Did you lose everything? You should sue that airline. Nobody should have to wear my brother's cast offs," she said with a smirk. Her eyes swept over her brother with equal contempt. "And you, John. You look like a refugee from a prison camp. At least Aeryn has an excuse." Marion turned just in time to catch the intimate look pass between her brother and the mysterious woman who was no more Belgian that she was. * I will get to the bottom of this, * she vowed to herself.
A few arns later, Aeryn stood on what Marion had called an escalator, in a mass of Humans, moving slowly up to the second floor of a bright and crowded covered market. The rough handles of the bags she had in her hands chafed her skin. A Human child pushed roughly past her, nearly making her lose her grip on the bags. In an effort to hold onto them, Aeryn teetered into the Human standing directly below her. The woman glared at her, then returned to her conversation on the hand-held comm device that Aeryn had seen everywhere. Beside her, John's sister continued the nearly non-stop stream of talk that had started shortly after she had joined them in the parking lot of the mall. Aeryn closed her eyes. *I will never accuse John of talking too much, ever again,* she vowed. Her mind automatically shied away from contemplating how long 'ever' would be.
Marion's eyes had registered her disapproval of John's decision to take his own car with Aeryn while Marion travelled with her father. But Jack had agreed, letting John take a more roundabout route in an effort to lose the photographers tailing them. John had used the trip as an opportunity to show Aeryn a bit of his world, pointing out some of the landmarks he had told her about aboard Moya. Aeryn enjoyed herself, as much from viewing the sights as from seeing the joy on John's face as he raved about his world. By the time he wheeled into the parking lot, Aeryn was feeling much more relaxed.
In truth, the shopping expedition was not too different from the many supply runs that Aeryn had participated in with the rest of Moya's fugitive crew. The shops were crowded, the salespeople anxious to make sales, the shoppers searching for a bargain, much like on the numerous commerce planets that she had visited. John had strolled through the wide aisles, taking Aeryn's hand occasionally to point out item after item, sometimes leaning in close to whisper reminders of some past encounter to his Sebacean friend, drawing chuckles from her.
There were a number of distinct differences however, one of which being the currency used on Earth. John had explained dollars and coins to Aeryn a long time ago during a quiet period on board Moya. He had even gone so far as to draw crude pictures of his country's paper bills and impressed metallic coins. But to Aeryn's confusion, almost no one seemed to actually use the currency. Transactions were completed by swiping thin, square, multicoloured cards of a pliant material in machines that spewed out long strips of paper to which the purchaser added a signature. Or sometimes, no signature was required. Aeryn's head hurt trying to figure it out. No one bartered or haggled. *Rygel would be extremely disappointed,* Aeryn thought.
Marion's face had registered her disapproval of the 'Belgian' when John had used one of his cards to pay for a couple of black cotton shirts for Aeryn. "Did you lose your money along with your luggage?" she asked Aeryn snidely. Aeryn nodded, not completely understanding. "I'm surprised at you, Aeryn. You're obviously a seasoned traveller. You must have lived in a number of countries because of your job. Even the most naive tourist knows you never put your money in with your luggage." Marion laughed harshly and turned away. Aeryn watched her, growing concerned at her behaviour. Despite John's father's decision, Aeryn wished they had told the woman the truth. She was clearly suspicious and bound on getting to the truth about her brother's relationship with this mysterious stranger.
Marion's eyes grew harder and harder as John paid for more and more clothes and other items for Aeryn. *My brother has fallen into the clutches of a gold-digger, and Dad is too much of a gentleman to do anything about it,* she raged inside. She watched as her father smiled gently at the woman, leaning closer to her to point out the huge fountain in the centre of the mall, watching Aeryn's eyes widen in delight at the jets of water that shot high into the air. *God, I wouldn't put it past her not to try to seduce Dad too. Men!* She watched her brother carefully. When Alex had appeared out of the blue, Marion had been delighted to hear from her old friend. She had prided herself on being the one who had introduced Alex to John. She had been as devastated as her brother when Alex had taken off to work in Stanford. Marion had had such hopes for them. Hopes that had been renewed with John's return and Alex's reappearance. Hopes that she was not about to allow this little opportunist dash. She noticed the way John stayed almost constantly at Aeryn's side, touching her hand and bending in to whisper to her. Marion knew it was up to her to set things right.
When John insisted on taking a break in the food court of the mall, Aeryn agreed readily, feeling uncharacteristically tired. With aching groans, the little group fell into the hard seats around a red and white plastic table. Then John got up and took everyone's order. John's father and his sister settled on just coffee. Marion started to ask Aeryn what she wanted, changing her question to list several items in the now familiar yes or no pattern. "Don't bother, Marion. I already know what Aeryn's having." John bent over the dark-haired woman, grinning wickedly. "Ready for the second taste sensation of the universe?" Aeryn looked up at him apprehensively, while Jack chuckled at her nervous expression. She looked over at John's father for support as John bounded away, but all he would do was shrug, his face cracked into an infectious grin so like his son's.
Aeryn was relieved when John returned a few microts later, balancing a tray with multi-coloured cups of the steaming aromatic coffee and a large dish filled with a dark substance that resembled a thick brown foodcube, covered in round creamy balls of a cold substance. The whole thing was drizzled with a dark brown liquid and topped with a rippled white pyramid of a fourth substance and a red orb. Two spoons stuck out of the conglomeration. John wagged his eyebrows at Aeryn promisingly. "Aeryn, prepare to experience the famous fudge brownie sundae. It's chocolate, Aeryn." Aeryn recalled John's statement that this was one of the reasons why he wanted to return to his Earth. He had searched the Uncharted Territories, but declared that there was nothing even remotely similar. She watched him take a spoonful of the dessert and down it, an expression of ecstasy crossing his face.
Marion sipped her coffee and stared at her brother in disgust. "Honestly, John, you must have a cast iron stomach to eat that. Besides, why would Aeryn be impressed by chocolate. She's Belgian, remember!" Her tone of voice dripped with sarcasm. "Even I remember how you raved about the quality of Belgian chocolate when you got back from that project, John." She turned to Aeryn. "I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed with American chocolate, Aeryn."
Jack stared at John uncomfortably, uncertain what to do when Marion was so close to catching them in their lie. Aeryn suddenly broke the tension by seizing the other spoon and shovelling a rather large helping into her mouth. John watched her closely as the flavours melded together in her mouth. Her eyes widened in astonishment and delight, then she smiled at him, one of her radiant smiles that John lived for. "Do you like it, Aeryn?" he asked anxiously. Aeryn beamed at him and nodded enthusiastically, grabbing the spoon and helping herself to another bite. John leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Some people even say it's better than sex," he confided wickedly, grinning when Aeryn blushed scarlet. Her eyes flashed with frustration, knowing she couldn't reply in front of his sister
Marion watched her in contempt as the dark-haired interloper demolished the rich dessert with John. "Did you really think Aeryn wouldn't like it, John," she asked skeptically. "There isn't a woman in this world who can resist chocolate."
She saw John share a secret glance with Aeryn and his father. "Not even in this Universe," he added, "Or any other." Jack snorted and suddenly Aeryn joined in their laughter, her chuckle deep and rich and throaty.
Marion stared at her in astonishment. *People who are mute can't make a sound when they laugh,* she thought, her eyes narrowing again in distrust. John's sister decided to stir things up a bit. "John, I was so upset to see that tabloid picture of you with Alex. It's really appalling how the press have hounded you since your return. You can't even go out on a date without some lousy paparazzi ruining your evening. I hope Alex wasn't too upset. Things seemed to be going along so well between you two lately. Any chance of a reconciliation, John?" Marion asked innocently, pleased to see the other woman lay her spoon down as if her appetite had suddenly deserted her. She pressed on. "Have you had a chance to meet Alex yet, Aeryn? She's such a wonderful girl. I was the one who introduced her to John." She smiled blandly into her brother's glaring eyes. "They were such a perfect couple. I was devastated when she left for California. So was John. It took him quite a while to get over her." Marion lifted her eyes to face her brother, a look of challenge on her face. "I don't know. Did you ever really get over her, John?"
"Marion!" her father interrupted loudly. He glanced at his son's thunderous expression. Before he could say anything, he noticed that their little group was attracting quite a bit of attention. People around them were starting to realise who John was. Some were pulling out cameras and cellphones. Jack reached over and touched his son's arm, drawing his attention to the growing crowd of curious shoppers. John pulled Aeryn to her feet and quickly collected their packages. He hustled them out of the mall and to his car just as a couple of photographers appeared, intent on getting shots of the mysterious woman with the newsworthy Commander Crichton.
Aeryn sat quietly beside John as he raced away, driving somewhat recklessly. He cursed and smacked the steering wheel angrily. Then he looked at the silent Sebacean. "Aeryn, I'm so sorry about that. I don't know what's gotten into Marion."
Aeryn sighed, "She's suspicious, John. You and your father should have told her the truth about me."
John stared straight ahead at the road in front of him. "Yeah, I'm afraid you're right. Knowing Marion, she'll be like a dog with bone until she finds out the truth." He reached over and took her hand. "I'll talk to Dad. We'll have to find a good opportunity to tell Marion and her husband Sean. I guess we'd better fill Sue and Mark in as well." He grinned, "It'll be a Crichton family affair, Aeryn."
Aeryn smiled weakly at him. "And what will they say, John? Will they believe you? Will they be pleased? Or will the thought of you with an alien woman repulse them? It's obvious Marion would rather see you with Alex." Her voice got louder as she grew more agitated. "And what then, John? Even if they accept me, is it fair to them to place the burden of this secret on them, forcing them to hold their tongues and constantly watch what they say in case they reveal something unintentionally?" She turned away from him in despair, pulling her hand out of his. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. I should just go back to Moya and ... and ...," she stopped. *And wait for you?* she thought but didn't say.
John slammed the steering wheel again in impotent rage, startling Aeryn. "No way, Aeryn! You're not leaving! You can't go! I won't let you!" He glanced sideways at her, seeing the PeaceKeeper mask settle back over her features. His voice softened. "Please, Aeryn, give it a chance. You just got here. There's so much I want to show you, to share with you. Please, don't think about leaving," he pleaded. "Not yet." He took her hand again, raising it to his lips and pressing a warm kiss against her palm, before rubbing his cheek against her soft cool hand lovingly. He took his eyes from the road to look at her. She was gazing at him, her eyes troubled. He smiled to reassure her, seeing her lips curve in a slight smile before turning back to concentrate on his driving. "That's it, babe. Everything will be all right. I promise." He kissed her hand again, before laying it gently in her lap. "So what shall we do first? Disneyland? Marineland? The beach?"
The next few days were a whirlwind of activity. John decided to throw caution to the wind and appear in public with Aeryn. Her presence in his home had been revealed by the end of the day of their shopping expedition. Pictures of them racing out of the mall and trying to get through the reporters at his home, along with a few suggestive shots of him kissing Aeryn in his home, had been broadcast on the evening editions of the tabloid TV shows and grocery store rags screamed with headlines speculating on who the dark-haired woman was, and whether she had replaced Dr O'Connor in the handsome astronaut's affections. John publicly escorted Aeryn to dinner, out dancing one night and to all the tourist attractions within driving distance of his home. He had even risked asking permission to give her a tour of IASA. Aeryn watched the Human work with the scientists who were analysing the technology on his Farscape module, losing himself in correcting some of their assumptions and data. Her fingers had itched to help him but she knew she could not, that it would reveal too much about her to the watching scientists and ever-present aide to General Anderson. John had ended his visit by making arrangements to return to IASA to guide the engineers and astrophysicists in their work trying to duplicate the new technology.
The only dark cloud was John's ongoing refusal to make any definite plans with Aeryn about what they were going to do next. *All right, avoidance, not refusal,* she told herself. Much in all as she was enjoying being on Earth with John, Aeryn really needed to know what they were going to do. She did not want to consider the possibility that they would part. Her heart lurched at the very thought of it. But she needed to have the question settled once and for all, as much for her sake as for Pilot and Moya's. The Leviathan and her symbiont were being incredibly patient with the remaining members of their crew. Moya was fascinated still by all she was learning about Earth from monitoring its myriad transmissions. John spoke to them daily, always answering the numerous questions Pilot asked on Moya's behalf. But soon, a decision would have to be made. Aeryn gasped as a wave of nausea passed over her at the thought. She sat down on the side of John's bed, wrapping her arms around her stomach, hating the illness that her ragged emotions had aroused in her lately