Blue Eyes - Chapter 22 B
Sep. 16th, 2003 03:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
itsallovernowSorry about the endless domestic scenes. I've just had them in my head for a long time, and many of them will be bounced once this is edited. They're blatantly excessive, but until I get through them, I can't continue with the plot, which is in progress. It's the risk of reading a rough WIP, I guess.
Chapter 22 B
Aeryn rubbed her temples and dug her fingers into the corded tendons in her neck. She tried to ignore the pain, but the day just kept getting worse.
“You’re certain?” she said into the long range com.
“Something was here,” the commando responded. “Recently, but I don’t know who or what. I think you should come look, then we can decide what to do.”
“Fine,” Aeryn sighed. “We’ll be there at first light.”
She signed off and looked at D’Argo who was spilling over the sides the Sebacean sized chair.
“Could be nothing,” he said.
She just continued to rub her temples. “Doesn’t matter, it could be anything. There’s something out there that have made them think it landed out there in the barren lands. That’s a very bad sign.”
D’Argo agreed wearily. “At least there’s been no sight of a command carrier. Maybe we got lucky.”
She laughed bitterly, “We’re never that lucky.” She yawned, her jaw cracking.
“Aeryn, you need rest. Everyone’s doing their job. You’re no good to anyone so exhausted that you can’t see straight.”
She shook her head. “I’m fine D’Argo. I just need to confirm the roster for tomorrow. And I’m changing some of the duty shifts. If we’re both going out to the barren lands tomorrow, I want Teyvn and part of his crew to work with the people in the city and with the people still living in the palace. Find out what they most need, and what we can do to help. Anix will be happy to be reassigned from rock duty.”
She raised an eyebrow at D’Argo. “Apparently though, she’s worked steadily without complaining.”
“It’s only been a few days,” he replied with affection, “but today must have been miserable for her. You should be proud of her, Aeryn.”
“I am,” she said softly. “But I don’t think she knows that.”
“She went to see Crichton,” he offered. “Why don’t you go talk to both of them.”
She closed her eyes. “I don’t think I can face either of them right now,” she admitted quietly. “John’s right. We should have told him about the possibility of it being neural tech., but I didn’t really think it was a danger. The hallucinations could easily have been the result of what his body has been through, and he was so afraid before…” her voice trailed off.
“He’s still scared,” D’Argo said, “And I don’t blame him. Scorpius is a monster, and that tech has destroyed stronger men than John, men who were trained to deal with torture and interrogation. But he’s not going to stay angry at you, Aeryn, and neither will Anix.”
She opened her eyes and looked at him steadily. “Maybe he should stay angry. It might be better for everyone.”
Her voice grew even more careful. “Wormholes D’Argo. You know that’s what he’s seeing, don’t you? The equations everywhere, they’re wormholes. If he figures them out, it could change the whole course of this war. For us, for everyone if we had access to them first.”
D’Argo sat up straight and looked at her incredulously, “You can’t be frelling serious, Aeryn.”
“We could end the war, even up the balance of power,” she said, her voice raw and choked.
“And we could destroy the universe as well,” he growled. “You saw first hand what those things can do. You know how many people want that knowledge, even now in the middle of this nightmare, the Scarrans still know to interrogate John Crichton for wormholes. Would you risk that? Would you risk him to end this?”
“Yes,” she snarled, banging her palm onto the desk. “If I thought we could end this war now, I’d trade John in a heartbeat. I’d trade myself even faster, D’Argo and you know that!”
“Would you give him to Scorpius?” he retorted, anger and fear rising in his voice.
“No.” Her shoulders sagged. “ I’d kill him before it came to that.” There was no remorse in her tone, only a cold certainty.
“Aeryn,” he chastised, even though he knew better, had seen the same levels of destruction and violence and needless cruelty.
“D’Argo, the likelihood of me surviving this war is almost non-existent. I’ve cheated death too many times. We all have. I can live with that,” she bared her teeth in a parody of humor, “well, I suppose I can’t. But if I can go making this someplace where my child will have a future, that’s worth it, don’t you think? I, John, my feelings for John, won’t stand in the way of that.”
D’Argo turned away from her, ending the discussion. “Someone should go retrieve him from the medical area.”
“I wanted to give him some time,” she said, ignoring his look of skepticism. “I am not completely without compassion D’Argo. And I’m not going to exploit Crichton for his knowledge of wormholes.” She said, exasperated. "I don't think he's anywhere near to figuring them out."
D’Argo nodded, and got up. “First light,” he confirmed.
“Yes.”
“Maybe we should take Crichton with us,” he pondered. “Could watch him, keep him away from the coms array.”
Aeryn nodded wearily in agreement. “Fine.”
***
Fatigue pulled at her limbs, at her muscles and nerves but her mind was wired, circuits firing, processing all of the day’s information and events. The techs had reported on the Scarran’s ship, confirmed that he was interrogating John, trying to seek out information, although they were unsure of what the Scarran had acquired and couldn’t tell if anything had been saved or transmitted. It hardly mattered now, anyway. There was little they could do.
She needed to hit something, bleed off some of the aggression and edginess. Even that morning’s recreation with John hadn’t calmed her for long. He had wanted her soft, calm, absorbing the textures of his tongue, the feel of his mouth and scritch of his fingers, but she had needed something else entirely and he’d given it, unabashedly, always so generous with her.
It was late, and when she got to the workout area and heard voices and movement, she fought down the frustration, until she walked in and saw her daughter and John. Weekens ago, she’d stood in this room, faced her past, watched Anix knock him to the ground. Now, he had an arm around Anix’s waist, her smaller hand held in his. She was tall and thin, but still smaller than John, and she stood on his feet, a dubious look on her face while he moved slowly to the tune that he was humming.
Her daughter laughed, clutching his shoulder, and said that he was fahrbot, questioning why anyone would want to learn this.
John laughed, and then caught sight of her, giving her a small smile, but addressing his reply to Anix.
“My mom insisted. Nice Southern boys need to know how to dance with the ladies at the Spring cotillion,” he drawled.
Anix just furrowed her brow and snorted.
“I don’t know. It’s fun. Well, seeing girls all dressed up, glowing and giggly with flowers in their hair was fun. Boys spent most of the time at dances drinking behind the building and throwing up afterwards. Anyway, my dad would have my sisters stand on his feet, and hold onto ‘em. They didn’t learn to dance very well, but they had a good time, nonetheless. They were also more interested in drinking behind the school, but at least mom thought we were well-mannered and civilized.”
He grinned down at her daughter, and added,” And now you know how to do something that you’re mom doesn’t,” he turned that grin on Aeryn, and Anix turned her head, gave her a tiny smile. “Unless she wants to learn as well.”
“No,” she replied. “ I don’ t think so.”
He shrugged. “Suit yourself,” and then patted Anix on the back. “Ok, kid, lesson’s over. You cut off all the circulation to my feet.”
Anix bounced lightly on the arches of his booted feet, grinning devilishly, and then stepped off and nodded at Aeryn.
“I’m going, I’m going,” she said half-heartedly. “Thank you,” she tossed politely back at John.
“No problem kid, first lesson’s always free.”
She laughed lightly and then sauntered past Aeryn, saying “Good night, Mom.”
Aeryn raised an eyebrow at the name, stopping her daughter and struggling for words. “I, you’ve been doing well with the troops.”
Anix looked surprised, and said, “Ok,” uncertainly.
“Teyvn’s assignment has changed,” she added. “I’d like you to go with him.”
Anix continued to look confused, but slowly said “Sure. Does that mean no more rock?”
“Mm hmm.” “
Cool,” she replied, and Aeryn felt her brows shoot up even higher, ignoring John’s snickering laughter on the other side of the room.
“Well, good night,” she repeated, waving at John and leaving them alone in the room. Much of the laughter had disappeared from Crichton’s face after Anix left, and Aeryn was at a loss.
“I figured it was ok to take a break from solitary,” he said, challenging her to contradict him.
“It’s fine,” she said. “Anix was supposed to tell you that.”
The edges of John’s mouth curled slightly. “She’s a teenager,” he replied. “Not always so hot on the details, but she generally gets the point across. Just make sure she doesn’t have to deliver phone messages.”
Aeryn shook off the typical bewilderment at his phrasing to look at him. Weariness cut deep lines into his handsome features, his blue eyes dull with exhaustion and sorrow. Remnants of equations looped around his forearms, and he rubbed at them absently, not looking her in the eye.
“Should have told me Aeryn,” he muttered. “I told you right away, trusted you with that and you should have told me.”
“I know,” she agreed. “I guess I didn’t want to consider it as a possibility, and there was so much to contend with.”
“Yeah,” he answered softly, without giving ground. “I do know that.”
He looked at her more closely then, seeing her dressed for a workout. “You need a partner, or you goin’ solo right now?”
She could sense a double entendre layered in there, but was too tired to fight her way through his odd speech. “If you’re up for it,” she offered carefully, “I’d like to spar.”
He didn’t answer, just stripped off everything unessential, gunbelt and boots and shirt, folding it carefully and laying it beside the makeshift mat.
She glanced at the leather pants, but he shrugged. “At the very least, they’ll give me a little protection against today’s ass kicking.”
She moved into place, ignoring the healing ugliness of his bruises and the awkwardness of some of his movements. She’d get just as good a workout trying not to hurt him as she would whaling on Teyvn, although it might not satisfy the more primal needs.
He’d gotten better since she’d watched him with Anix, was faster, made better decisions about advancing and retreating, and she was pleased with his progress, pleased with the lessons he’d learned from her daughter, and from her. Jabs and kicks, feints and blows, and he ended up on his eema more often than not, but the rhythm, the discipline of the exercise was starting to settle her nerves, and from the look on his face, red and sweating, set in intense concentration, he had needed this as much as she did.
She feinted a blow, ducked and came up under his ribs, connecting solidly with one of the bruised areas and he grunted in pain, folding in towards it, and he threw a punch, connecting with her jaw accidentally, and she brought her elbow up to strike as she whipped her head back around, stopping just in time at the sight of his bloodless face, and his hands trying to block the blow. She pulled her movement up short, throwing herself slightly off balance and he caught her around the waist, steadying her and panting with pain and exertion.
“You feel better now?” he asked, gasping for breath. She thought about it and nodded, sinking into the clean feeling of exertion and sweat.
He tightened his grip on her waist. “Good. I give up. Can I do that or are you required to pulverize me first? Anna and I never really established the rules. Something usually gave before that point, and I got my ass kicked last night anyway. D’Argo’s been waitin’ cycles to do that.”
“It’s not a real fight, John,” she responded. “You can walk away anytime.”
His eyes darkened, and he put his other hand on her waist. “No,” he said, “I don’t think I can.”
“We’ve had a report that something or someone has been in the Barren Lands,” she said lowly, “A ship, and not the Scarran ship. It’s probably nothing, but D’Argo and I need to go investigate it in the morning.” She paused, “I’d like you to accompany us.”
She licked her lips, suddenly nervous about his response, but he just eyed her shrewdly.
“That an order or a request, Captain Sun?”
She considered it briefly, ignoring the warmth of his hands on her waist, the beat of her blood, focusing on the task at hand.
“A request,” she said finally. “Although, admittedly, your other choice is to join Teyvn and Anix and that team as they find out what else the people in the city and the palace residents need.”
She broke out of his hold, and went to get her water and the towel, wiping off her face and neck before tossing it to him. She deliberately didn’t watch him slide it along his torso, tried to ignore the sight of his body, glistening with sweat, or the sudden unbearable appeal of his bent neck, his bare feet.
“Probably should stay here, so what I can do to help out,” he said thoughtfully, and then looked at her, the towel looped around his neck, hands wrapped around the ends. “But I’ve been doin’ some of that already. There’s not a lot I can do.”
He wiped off his face, let his thumb rest on his lip. “What do you think?”
She could hear the huskiness, ignored it, when she said,” I’d rather you stayed close,” and left if at that.
He looked at her assessingly, and then surprised her, as he was always want to do. He grabbed his shirt, slid it over his head and tucked it into his pants, and then turned to her. “You promised me some time tonight,” he said casually, as if nothing had happened that day that might have interfered in that morning’s hasty promise.
She looked and felt taken aback, and he walked towards her, gently stroking her cheekbone with his knuckles. “Aeryn, I’ve had a bitch of a day, and yeah, I’m still pissed as hell at you and D’Argo, but right now, I’d just like some quiet and some time with you, before we lose the chance.”
“What would you like to do?” she asked softly.
***
His warm hand laced with hers, the joints interlocking.
The room was shadowy with bioluminescence and a few wax candles, old-fashioned and primitive indulgences that were likely to set the remains of the palace on fire. It was little more than a large, empty echoing space, but it was less damaged than she thought it would be. The marble of the floor was still intact, the intricate patterns still whirling dizzily. The marble was cold against her bare feet, but she welcomed it.
When he spoke, his voice was steady but low.
“This is where I got married,” he said. “Stood there and married an alien princess. Very Buck Rogers.”
His hand clasped hers more tightly, knowing before she did that the statement would make her want to jerk away.
“Novia wrapped our hands together, and I looked around and thought, she has to be here somewhere. If she’s not watching this, it’s not real, she’s found an answer, something, and then we were married. But you hadn’t, had you?”
He didn’t sound angry or disappointed, and he held firmly to her hand.
“No,” she replied. “I didn’t find you an answer.”
“I gave D. a vid chip. You ever get it?”
She shook her head. Two cycles had passed between leaving the Royal Planet and meeting up with Moya. He shrugged, pulling her hand up to rub his lips against her knuckles.
“’S okay. Not much on there that you probably didn’t know.”
He released her fingers, brushing up her arm, sending those shivers running through her.
“All this time Aeryn, and now you’re here, in front of me, in this room. And you’re leaving again.”
“There wasn’t ever going to be another outcome,” she said softly, tracing the swirling patterns of the floor. “I never pretended that we could stay.”
She looked at him, completely lost as to what he was thinking or feeling.
“Come here,” he said, his voice thick.
She was hardly far away from him, but she moved closer, standing in his space. He took her arm and wrapped it around his neck, holding her other hand loosely and guided her head to rest on his shoulder. She could feel her heart thump, feels his in counterpoint as he slid his arm around her waist.
“Just let me lead for once, Captain,” he murmured into her hair as he began to sway back and forth.
“What are we doing?” she asked.
“Sh. We’re dancing. Didn’t even get to dance at my wedding.” He said, resting his cheek on her hair and pulling her more tightly to him, and started to sway in a pattern.
She wanted to shrug out of his grasp and push away from him, there was too much to do, to much to think about to be dancing in a this shadowy hall with a man caught up in too many emotions, too many conflicting duties and needs.
But this was possibly going to be the last thing she could give him, and she’d promised him this time, so she relaxed her body, followed his lead, moving slowly with him to a rhythm he could hear in his head, and when he stopped, slid his hand into her hair and tilted her face up to meet his mouth, she followed his lead on that as well, slow and soft and sweet like deral syrup, drugging her mind with heat and stars and the headiness of his touch.
Chapter 22 B
Aeryn rubbed her temples and dug her fingers into the corded tendons in her neck. She tried to ignore the pain, but the day just kept getting worse.
“You’re certain?” she said into the long range com.
“Something was here,” the commando responded. “Recently, but I don’t know who or what. I think you should come look, then we can decide what to do.”
“Fine,” Aeryn sighed. “We’ll be there at first light.”
She signed off and looked at D’Argo who was spilling over the sides the Sebacean sized chair.
“Could be nothing,” he said.
She just continued to rub her temples. “Doesn’t matter, it could be anything. There’s something out there that have made them think it landed out there in the barren lands. That’s a very bad sign.”
D’Argo agreed wearily. “At least there’s been no sight of a command carrier. Maybe we got lucky.”
She laughed bitterly, “We’re never that lucky.” She yawned, her jaw cracking.
“Aeryn, you need rest. Everyone’s doing their job. You’re no good to anyone so exhausted that you can’t see straight.”
She shook her head. “I’m fine D’Argo. I just need to confirm the roster for tomorrow. And I’m changing some of the duty shifts. If we’re both going out to the barren lands tomorrow, I want Teyvn and part of his crew to work with the people in the city and with the people still living in the palace. Find out what they most need, and what we can do to help. Anix will be happy to be reassigned from rock duty.”
She raised an eyebrow at D’Argo. “Apparently though, she’s worked steadily without complaining.”
“It’s only been a few days,” he replied with affection, “but today must have been miserable for her. You should be proud of her, Aeryn.”
“I am,” she said softly. “But I don’t think she knows that.”
“She went to see Crichton,” he offered. “Why don’t you go talk to both of them.”
She closed her eyes. “I don’t think I can face either of them right now,” she admitted quietly. “John’s right. We should have told him about the possibility of it being neural tech., but I didn’t really think it was a danger. The hallucinations could easily have been the result of what his body has been through, and he was so afraid before…” her voice trailed off.
“He’s still scared,” D’Argo said, “And I don’t blame him. Scorpius is a monster, and that tech has destroyed stronger men than John, men who were trained to deal with torture and interrogation. But he’s not going to stay angry at you, Aeryn, and neither will Anix.”
She opened her eyes and looked at him steadily. “Maybe he should stay angry. It might be better for everyone.”
Her voice grew even more careful. “Wormholes D’Argo. You know that’s what he’s seeing, don’t you? The equations everywhere, they’re wormholes. If he figures them out, it could change the whole course of this war. For us, for everyone if we had access to them first.”
D’Argo sat up straight and looked at her incredulously, “You can’t be frelling serious, Aeryn.”
“We could end the war, even up the balance of power,” she said, her voice raw and choked.
“And we could destroy the universe as well,” he growled. “You saw first hand what those things can do. You know how many people want that knowledge, even now in the middle of this nightmare, the Scarrans still know to interrogate John Crichton for wormholes. Would you risk that? Would you risk him to end this?”
“Yes,” she snarled, banging her palm onto the desk. “If I thought we could end this war now, I’d trade John in a heartbeat. I’d trade myself even faster, D’Argo and you know that!”
“Would you give him to Scorpius?” he retorted, anger and fear rising in his voice.
“No.” Her shoulders sagged. “ I’d kill him before it came to that.” There was no remorse in her tone, only a cold certainty.
“Aeryn,” he chastised, even though he knew better, had seen the same levels of destruction and violence and needless cruelty.
“D’Argo, the likelihood of me surviving this war is almost non-existent. I’ve cheated death too many times. We all have. I can live with that,” she bared her teeth in a parody of humor, “well, I suppose I can’t. But if I can go making this someplace where my child will have a future, that’s worth it, don’t you think? I, John, my feelings for John, won’t stand in the way of that.”
D’Argo turned away from her, ending the discussion. “Someone should go retrieve him from the medical area.”
“I wanted to give him some time,” she said, ignoring his look of skepticism. “I am not completely without compassion D’Argo. And I’m not going to exploit Crichton for his knowledge of wormholes.” She said, exasperated. "I don't think he's anywhere near to figuring them out."
D’Argo nodded, and got up. “First light,” he confirmed.
“Yes.”
“Maybe we should take Crichton with us,” he pondered. “Could watch him, keep him away from the coms array.”
Aeryn nodded wearily in agreement. “Fine.”
***
Fatigue pulled at her limbs, at her muscles and nerves but her mind was wired, circuits firing, processing all of the day’s information and events. The techs had reported on the Scarran’s ship, confirmed that he was interrogating John, trying to seek out information, although they were unsure of what the Scarran had acquired and couldn’t tell if anything had been saved or transmitted. It hardly mattered now, anyway. There was little they could do.
She needed to hit something, bleed off some of the aggression and edginess. Even that morning’s recreation with John hadn’t calmed her for long. He had wanted her soft, calm, absorbing the textures of his tongue, the feel of his mouth and scritch of his fingers, but she had needed something else entirely and he’d given it, unabashedly, always so generous with her.
It was late, and when she got to the workout area and heard voices and movement, she fought down the frustration, until she walked in and saw her daughter and John. Weekens ago, she’d stood in this room, faced her past, watched Anix knock him to the ground. Now, he had an arm around Anix’s waist, her smaller hand held in his. She was tall and thin, but still smaller than John, and she stood on his feet, a dubious look on her face while he moved slowly to the tune that he was humming.
Her daughter laughed, clutching his shoulder, and said that he was fahrbot, questioning why anyone would want to learn this.
John laughed, and then caught sight of her, giving her a small smile, but addressing his reply to Anix.
“My mom insisted. Nice Southern boys need to know how to dance with the ladies at the Spring cotillion,” he drawled.
Anix just furrowed her brow and snorted.
“I don’t know. It’s fun. Well, seeing girls all dressed up, glowing and giggly with flowers in their hair was fun. Boys spent most of the time at dances drinking behind the building and throwing up afterwards. Anyway, my dad would have my sisters stand on his feet, and hold onto ‘em. They didn’t learn to dance very well, but they had a good time, nonetheless. They were also more interested in drinking behind the school, but at least mom thought we were well-mannered and civilized.”
He grinned down at her daughter, and added,” And now you know how to do something that you’re mom doesn’t,” he turned that grin on Aeryn, and Anix turned her head, gave her a tiny smile. “Unless she wants to learn as well.”
“No,” she replied. “ I don’ t think so.”
He shrugged. “Suit yourself,” and then patted Anix on the back. “Ok, kid, lesson’s over. You cut off all the circulation to my feet.”
Anix bounced lightly on the arches of his booted feet, grinning devilishly, and then stepped off and nodded at Aeryn.
“I’m going, I’m going,” she said half-heartedly. “Thank you,” she tossed politely back at John.
“No problem kid, first lesson’s always free.”
She laughed lightly and then sauntered past Aeryn, saying “Good night, Mom.”
Aeryn raised an eyebrow at the name, stopping her daughter and struggling for words. “I, you’ve been doing well with the troops.”
Anix looked surprised, and said, “Ok,” uncertainly.
“Teyvn’s assignment has changed,” she added. “I’d like you to go with him.”
Anix continued to look confused, but slowly said “Sure. Does that mean no more rock?”
“Mm hmm.” “
Cool,” she replied, and Aeryn felt her brows shoot up even higher, ignoring John’s snickering laughter on the other side of the room.
“Well, good night,” she repeated, waving at John and leaving them alone in the room. Much of the laughter had disappeared from Crichton’s face after Anix left, and Aeryn was at a loss.
“I figured it was ok to take a break from solitary,” he said, challenging her to contradict him.
“It’s fine,” she said. “Anix was supposed to tell you that.”
The edges of John’s mouth curled slightly. “She’s a teenager,” he replied. “Not always so hot on the details, but she generally gets the point across. Just make sure she doesn’t have to deliver phone messages.”
Aeryn shook off the typical bewilderment at his phrasing to look at him. Weariness cut deep lines into his handsome features, his blue eyes dull with exhaustion and sorrow. Remnants of equations looped around his forearms, and he rubbed at them absently, not looking her in the eye.
“Should have told me Aeryn,” he muttered. “I told you right away, trusted you with that and you should have told me.”
“I know,” she agreed. “I guess I didn’t want to consider it as a possibility, and there was so much to contend with.”
“Yeah,” he answered softly, without giving ground. “I do know that.”
He looked at her more closely then, seeing her dressed for a workout. “You need a partner, or you goin’ solo right now?”
She could sense a double entendre layered in there, but was too tired to fight her way through his odd speech. “If you’re up for it,” she offered carefully, “I’d like to spar.”
He didn’t answer, just stripped off everything unessential, gunbelt and boots and shirt, folding it carefully and laying it beside the makeshift mat.
She glanced at the leather pants, but he shrugged. “At the very least, they’ll give me a little protection against today’s ass kicking.”
She moved into place, ignoring the healing ugliness of his bruises and the awkwardness of some of his movements. She’d get just as good a workout trying not to hurt him as she would whaling on Teyvn, although it might not satisfy the more primal needs.
He’d gotten better since she’d watched him with Anix, was faster, made better decisions about advancing and retreating, and she was pleased with his progress, pleased with the lessons he’d learned from her daughter, and from her. Jabs and kicks, feints and blows, and he ended up on his eema more often than not, but the rhythm, the discipline of the exercise was starting to settle her nerves, and from the look on his face, red and sweating, set in intense concentration, he had needed this as much as she did.
She feinted a blow, ducked and came up under his ribs, connecting solidly with one of the bruised areas and he grunted in pain, folding in towards it, and he threw a punch, connecting with her jaw accidentally, and she brought her elbow up to strike as she whipped her head back around, stopping just in time at the sight of his bloodless face, and his hands trying to block the blow. She pulled her movement up short, throwing herself slightly off balance and he caught her around the waist, steadying her and panting with pain and exertion.
“You feel better now?” he asked, gasping for breath. She thought about it and nodded, sinking into the clean feeling of exertion and sweat.
He tightened his grip on her waist. “Good. I give up. Can I do that or are you required to pulverize me first? Anna and I never really established the rules. Something usually gave before that point, and I got my ass kicked last night anyway. D’Argo’s been waitin’ cycles to do that.”
“It’s not a real fight, John,” she responded. “You can walk away anytime.”
His eyes darkened, and he put his other hand on her waist. “No,” he said, “I don’t think I can.”
“We’ve had a report that something or someone has been in the Barren Lands,” she said lowly, “A ship, and not the Scarran ship. It’s probably nothing, but D’Argo and I need to go investigate it in the morning.” She paused, “I’d like you to accompany us.”
She licked her lips, suddenly nervous about his response, but he just eyed her shrewdly.
“That an order or a request, Captain Sun?”
She considered it briefly, ignoring the warmth of his hands on her waist, the beat of her blood, focusing on the task at hand.
“A request,” she said finally. “Although, admittedly, your other choice is to join Teyvn and Anix and that team as they find out what else the people in the city and the palace residents need.”
She broke out of his hold, and went to get her water and the towel, wiping off her face and neck before tossing it to him. She deliberately didn’t watch him slide it along his torso, tried to ignore the sight of his body, glistening with sweat, or the sudden unbearable appeal of his bent neck, his bare feet.
“Probably should stay here, so what I can do to help out,” he said thoughtfully, and then looked at her, the towel looped around his neck, hands wrapped around the ends. “But I’ve been doin’ some of that already. There’s not a lot I can do.”
He wiped off his face, let his thumb rest on his lip. “What do you think?”
She could hear the huskiness, ignored it, when she said,” I’d rather you stayed close,” and left if at that.
He looked at her assessingly, and then surprised her, as he was always want to do. He grabbed his shirt, slid it over his head and tucked it into his pants, and then turned to her. “You promised me some time tonight,” he said casually, as if nothing had happened that day that might have interfered in that morning’s hasty promise.
She looked and felt taken aback, and he walked towards her, gently stroking her cheekbone with his knuckles. “Aeryn, I’ve had a bitch of a day, and yeah, I’m still pissed as hell at you and D’Argo, but right now, I’d just like some quiet and some time with you, before we lose the chance.”
“What would you like to do?” she asked softly.
***
His warm hand laced with hers, the joints interlocking.
The room was shadowy with bioluminescence and a few wax candles, old-fashioned and primitive indulgences that were likely to set the remains of the palace on fire. It was little more than a large, empty echoing space, but it was less damaged than she thought it would be. The marble of the floor was still intact, the intricate patterns still whirling dizzily. The marble was cold against her bare feet, but she welcomed it.
When he spoke, his voice was steady but low.
“This is where I got married,” he said. “Stood there and married an alien princess. Very Buck Rogers.”
His hand clasped hers more tightly, knowing before she did that the statement would make her want to jerk away.
“Novia wrapped our hands together, and I looked around and thought, she has to be here somewhere. If she’s not watching this, it’s not real, she’s found an answer, something, and then we were married. But you hadn’t, had you?”
He didn’t sound angry or disappointed, and he held firmly to her hand.
“No,” she replied. “I didn’t find you an answer.”
“I gave D. a vid chip. You ever get it?”
She shook her head. Two cycles had passed between leaving the Royal Planet and meeting up with Moya. He shrugged, pulling her hand up to rub his lips against her knuckles.
“’S okay. Not much on there that you probably didn’t know.”
He released her fingers, brushing up her arm, sending those shivers running through her.
“All this time Aeryn, and now you’re here, in front of me, in this room. And you’re leaving again.”
“There wasn’t ever going to be another outcome,” she said softly, tracing the swirling patterns of the floor. “I never pretended that we could stay.”
She looked at him, completely lost as to what he was thinking or feeling.
“Come here,” he said, his voice thick.
She was hardly far away from him, but she moved closer, standing in his space. He took her arm and wrapped it around his neck, holding her other hand loosely and guided her head to rest on his shoulder. She could feel her heart thump, feels his in counterpoint as he slid his arm around her waist.
“Just let me lead for once, Captain,” he murmured into her hair as he began to sway back and forth.
“What are we doing?” she asked.
“Sh. We’re dancing. Didn’t even get to dance at my wedding.” He said, resting his cheek on her hair and pulling her more tightly to him, and started to sway in a pattern.
She wanted to shrug out of his grasp and push away from him, there was too much to do, to much to think about to be dancing in a this shadowy hall with a man caught up in too many emotions, too many conflicting duties and needs.
But this was possibly going to be the last thing she could give him, and she’d promised him this time, so she relaxed her body, followed his lead, moving slowly with him to a rhythm he could hear in his head, and when he stopped, slid his hand into her hair and tilted her face up to meet his mouth, she followed his lead on that as well, slow and soft and sweet like deral syrup, drugging her mind with heat and stars and the headiness of his touch.
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Date: 2003-09-16 04:03 pm (UTC)The anticipation of further hurt is building up chapter by chapter, but I don't want to stop reading at any point.
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Date: 2003-09-16 04:20 pm (UTC)And I could never have asked for better feedback than that.
It's funny, I've planned this out, although that may be hard to tell, but when I typed in her desire for the wormhole knowledge, I surprised myself. I went back, looked at it, and thought, nope that's right.
*happy sigh*
Date: 2003-09-16 05:54 pm (UTC)I'm not. I'm enjoying all of it. It's good to have these moments with J/A to enjoy 'cause I shudder to think what poor John is going to have to endure as the story further unfolds and I can't wait to read it *g*
Re: *happy sigh*
Date: 2003-09-17 10:11 am (UTC)And what's giving everyone the impression that I'm gonna further torture John:) My story notes clearly say that Katralla dies off and they live happily ever after on the planet, the war tapers off, there's more babies, Aeryn starts wearing a dress and baking cookies and Anix finds a nice boy and settles down. Psah, I'm not going to make things worse:)
hee, hee. Actually, that future would be worse:)
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Date: 2003-09-16 07:34 pm (UTC)*sniffle*
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Date: 2003-09-17 10:08 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-09-17 09:04 am (UTC)Can't wait for the next chapter.
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Date: 2003-09-17 09:56 am (UTC)