Summary: Two hybrids meet by chance unaware of the past that surrounds them A/U

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Farscape

Rating: T+

Pairing: Scorpius/Sikozu, John/Aeryn Deke/Rylani

HYBRIDS:

PART II

Outside Pilot's den, and a little bit away from the door, Deke sat on the floor with Rylani beside him, stretched out on her side, and her head rested in his lap using his jacket that he folded into a pillow for her. "We don't have to sit here, you know. I can give you a tour of Moya to keep you from obsessing over what Pilot will say."

Rylani turned her head into the jacket, muffling her chuckle. Obsession. That word perfectly summed up how her and her father could be. Sitting up, she nodded, "I do not want to be far away when he makes his choice." Resuming her previous position, she placed her head in his lap again, liking the way this felt. It was something so normal for two people who didn't know what normal could be. "It does not mean that we cannot talk while we wait."

Deke rested his hand on her shoulder, and then moved it up to stroke her hair. "Do you have any happy memories from when you were a child?" He saw how she interacted with her parents, they were reserved, but couldn't conceal the deep emotional bond they had as a family. Deke wanted to know what Rylani and her family were like when they were alone.

Rylani nodded, "I have many happy memories, which you may find odd seeing as I am Peacekeeper. Soldiers are not known to have been raised in a family." Even though she had slogged through the blood and carnage as any other soldier, risen through the ranks on her own merit, she knew she was still an outsider. Rylani had been raised as a daughter, not completely thrust into the hard life of a cadet. She got to know her parents and she wasn't just a means to fill the ranks.

"Tell me a memory," Deke urged gently. "Unless you want me to go first," he offered, setting his hand on her waist again. There were many happy remembrances he could relate to her. His father made sure there were mood good things to happen aboard Moya to outweigh the bad that usually happened.

"No," Rylani shook her head. "I was four, maybe five, cycles old the first time I could remember my mother and I spent a standard week away from my father. He wasn't that far away, but we felt his absence. At the time we were living at the Gammak Base, with a Command Carrier in orbit," she rambled without meaning to. "One night, I wasn't sleeping, and I wanted to be with my mother. Getting out of bed, I went to her, and found she was awake studying various reports I stood there for a few minutes watching her until she noticed me. All she had to do was hold her arms out, as quick as I could I ran to her. She and I curled up together while she told me about her travels when she was younger. The next thing I knew, I was waking up, and my father was there. He was watching us with a small smile, and love in his eyes." That night she didn't know what had possessed her, but Rylani had crawled out of her mother's arms, and gone to him, holding her arms up. Her father picked her up, carrying her over to his work station where they worked on statistical probabilities. "I'm more like my father, in that I don't have to sleep much. So, we worked through various mathematical problems until the new shift cycle started."

Deke chuckled, "You did math all night with your dad?" Somehow, that wasn't a surprise to him. From all he knew of Scorpius, the hybrid was a genius. It would make sense that Rylani was the same.

"Yes," Rylani nodded, adding her own little chuckle. "And then he taught a game called 'Chess'." When she was learning, she asked where he learned to play. He replied, while keeping his attention on the board, was that he learned the game from memories he obtained from Crichton.

"You play chess?" Deke asked. Perhaps, if time permitted they would get a game going. He was very interested in seeing why type of player she would be. His dad would have him play a game, or two, and in the end Deke would get frustrated with the game. He wasn't a really good player, but he still tried to learn how to improve his game.

"Not anymore," Rylani replied. "I do not enjoy it as much as my parents do." She would sit and watch them play, it wasn't so much the game they engaged in, but the battle of the mind they waged with each other. Rylani found it fascinating to watch them try to out think the other.

'Wow, she's amazing in every sense of the word,' Deke thought, he leaned his head back touching the bulkhead. He could talk with her for arns and not be bored. She had this life that vastly differed from the one he led, and he was completely taken with it. He couldn't imagine how she forged ahead whilst being in the thick of Peacekeeper revulsion. Hybrids were never tolerated amongst pure blooded races.

Rylani heard the thought Deke projected, and before she could keep her mouth shut, she responded, "I like that you think I'm amazing."

Deke looked down at her, "How did you…?" She reacted to what he was thinking about her. "Did I…?"

Rylani sat up once again, crossing her legs, "No, you did not say anything. You were projecting that thought rather loudly." At his confused expression she elaborated. "There are some Scarran's within the ruling order with the ability to read the thoughts of others."

"How'd you end up with that nifty little trick?" Deke brushed a stray lock of snow white hair out of her face, tucking it behind her left ear.

"Every Scarran, whether pure blood or half-breed, carries the telepathic gene. It just takes the right combination of DNA to activate it." Rylani angled her head to the left. "I was not always in control of it, and it brought me my fair share of trouble." The only person she could have been around safely was her father; his immunity afforded her peace and quiet.

"What happened?" Deke inquired, taking her hand in between his. He couldn't imagine what it was like trying to filter out all the stray thoughts of others. It had to have been ten kinds of mental torture for her as a youth.

"I had just turned twelve when my father had us moving to the Command Carrier so they could run tests on new weaponry. While they were engrossed in reports and field tests, I was put into barracks with the other cadets. Most of them left me alone, but there was one, Ceta, he took an instant dislike to me." Rylani took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "It was during hand to hand combat training; we were learning to fight in an arid climate. Ceta was projecting his hate for me so loudly that I could not keep my temper in check. I attacked him."

"Oh…" Deke lifted her hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles. "Baby, I can't imagine what that fekkik thought of you." He knew the disdain Sebacean's had for other races. Deke had encountered it. A half Human, half Sebacean with a Luxan name.

"He was 17 cycles old, and already creative in his vile insults," Rylani sneered. "I broke three of his ribs, fractured his right orbital bone, punctured his paraphoral nerve, and knocked out several of his teeth." In the moment of her victory, she looked up, scanning the faces of the crowd where she found her father. That single microt of distraction had given Ceta all he needed to break her leg in two places. "I beat him worse than I should have."

"Baby, he insulted you," Deke reminded. "Thoughts or not. He did it with intention of provoking you." She looked grinned when he called her 'baby'. It was a term of endearment he'd heard his dad use many times in regards to his mom.

"But that was no excuse," Rylani sighed. "I should have been stronger, guarding against hate and other natural revulsion because I am a hybrid. For that reason alone, I have to be better than the others. In control, and yet, brutal when I have to be." On a good day, she could ignore the fact that all pure blood Peacekeeper officers thought she was lesser than what she was.

"Remind me never to get into an actual fight with you," Deke joked lightly. "You'll kick my eema up one side of this ship, and down the other." When she didn't rise to the joke, he cupped her cheek, "What happened after you fought?"

"I let myself get distracted," Rylani nodded. "My father saw it all, and because I saw his face in the crowd, it was all the time Ceta needed to break my leg." The angry pure blood had been more resilient than she originally thought.

"Which leg?" Deke asked. Rylani patted her left, leaving him to take her ankle, and pull it over his lap. He massaged her calf muscle saying, "That had to be so painful." Being the rough and tumble hybrid he was, he was no stranger to wounds, but never had he had a broken limb. Stabbed; yes. Shot; a couple of times. He'd even had a concussion a time or two, but nothing broken.

"It was more pain than I had ever experienced up to that moment in my life," Rylani confirmed. "I was in medical for a full solar day while the bones knitted together, and my father never left my side. We never spoke, but he stayed with me." That night she made sure she showed no pain, no weakness that would make him feel disappointment with her. He needed her to be strong, to live up to her name, and her genetic heritage. She was the daughter of Scorpius, after all.

"Hey," Deke said, "Pilot may be a while making up his mind. I'll make you something to eat." Getting up, he offered his hand to her. He wiggled his fingers, willing her to let him take care of her for a few arns. She nodded, reaching up to grip his wrist. Deke pulled her to him, holding her against his chest, bringing his hand up to cup her right cheek.

ONE ARN LATER:

Rylani sat opposite Deke, finishing off the last of her meal that he took the time to prepare for her. Crispy grollak and fried sork wings. She found herself licking her lips, and her fingers. "This was delicious. Thank you," Rylani smiled, picking up the goblet of Raz'lak. It had been a long time since she had a freshly prepared meal that didn't start out as a food cube. "Where did you learn to cook like this?" she asked, getting up to clear the table.

"Chiana taught me," Deke answered. "When the mood struck her, she would cook everyone's favorite meal." Sadness took him then, "At least she used to. D'Argo's death hit her pretty hard. That fun loving, precocious, burglar lost her light. Her good days were few and far between." Most nights, when he had been little, he would go and sit with her while she cried. Deke had only been a little boy and he hadn't understood why she was so sad. All he knew was that she was in pain, and he wanted to make her feel better.

Rylani stopped what she was doing, she left the plates where they were, and went to sit next to hm. In a show of kindness, what she rarely allowed anyone to see, she wrapped arms around him so she could hold him close. She felt like she should say something, but she didn't know what. So, she said nothing. Rylani just held him, rocking back and forth gently. She didn't know how to react when someone was suffering emotionally. Physically, it could be fixed. Emotional wounds were something else

Deke only let himself be comforted by Rylani for so long. Chiana's absence had been felt so keenly by all, and it was a wound that wasn't going to heal anytime soon. Pulling back, he gave her a sad smile. "How are you at dancing?" Deke asked as he got up.

"Dancing?" Rylani arched her right brow. That was a drastic change from his emotional state microts ago.

"Yeah," Deke took her hand, pulling her along with him. They left the center chamber to head to the terrace. He left her by the open door, to go and set up music.

Rylani stayed where she was, watching Feke fish out a small piece of technology from the inside of his pocket. Microts of silence were suddenly broken by strange music. She was drawn to his side, her eyes going to the screen of the little rectangle. "What is this?"

"Music by Lindsay Sterling, the song is called Elements," Deke answered. "She's a violinist from Earth; my father's home world." He stepped away from the console to stand in front of her. "Dance with me." Right now, all he wanted to do was move and not think about anything.

Rylani let him see the unease in her eyes. She'd never done anything like that before. She'd never been in this situation before. Everything in her was telling her to put distance between them, to maintain space, but she couldn't. Not when he was looking at her like she was the only thing he wanted to hold. "Show me how."

"Ok," Deke took her hand in his. "Put you left hand on my shoulder, and then stand on my feet."

Rylani looked down, "You want me to stand on your feet? Really?" The idea seemed so absurd to her, but the look on his face told her he was serious.

"Best way to show you how," Deke nodded and then was confused when she pulled away from him. She toed off her boots before doing as he advised. "You didn't have to do that."

"I did not want to hurt you," Rylani whispered, placing her hand on his shoulder, and then standing on his feet. She felt odd, her arm slid across his strong shoulders. He in turn wrapped his arm around her waist and took her hand once more.

"You comfortable?" Deke waited till the song was over, and a new one started before he would move. He could see he was putting her out of her element, and he wanted just that. Having her unbalanced was the best way to get her to open up to him.

"Yes," Rylani bit her bottom lip, her toes digging into the leather of his boots. Then the song changed and he took that first step. Her hold tightened on him, unprepared for it all. Deke moved them in small circles, not really in time with the music. Rylani was mesmerized by him, by the music that was playing. "Have you ever been to Earth?" she asked quietly. Somehow she was afraid to speak too loud lest she break the spell of the moment.

"A hand full of times," Deke responded just as quietly. He curled his fingers into her side so he could make sure she stayed firmly against him. Her nails dug into his shoulder telling him she was still a little tense about all of this. It was a loss of control for her. She had to trust his movements. The song Crystalize, one of his favorites, floated on the air around them. It was blocking out everything else that wasn't Rylani. She was all he could focus on, all he wanted to focus on.

"What is it like?" Rylani touched her forehead to his, and closed her eyes. She concentrated on the way his feet moved, on the way his fingers tapped out the rhythm of the song that was now playing. It almost tickled. She liked the way his finger tapped on her side.

"Small…" Deke sighed. "A little backwards, and the people are more interested in fighting each other." The times he had been there, they had to keep to the house his grandfather lived in. Few people could know they were there, or his father feared they wouldn't allow them to leave.

"Oh," Rylani mouthed, she couldn't imagine what that was like. Even though she lived on a planet, secure within a Gammak Base, she had the freedom to leave. Her mother had told her about Earth, about how limited the humans were. She wanted nothing else to do with them, and when she had the chance, she left.

Just inside, Aeryn watched as history was repeating. D'Argo was dancing with the young Shanu in the same way John had danced with her in the elevator on Katratzi. The mother in her wanted to warn her boy away from collaborating with a dangerous Peacekeeper, but the woman in her felt she had to give the young girl a chance. At one time, Aeryn had been one of the Peacekeepers who hated all other species. And then she met John Crichton and was deemed irreversibly contaminated. Her life had been tough, but it ended up for the better. She had a husband she adored, and family she would kill for.

John came up behind his wife, his arms slipping around her, and his eyes were fixed on their son. "This is not gonna end well," he muttered close to her ear. From his own experience, he knew that pain and anguish waited for his boy the moment this mission was over, and that Captain left him behind.

"What do you want him to do, John? Ignore her?" Aeryn asked him. "She's his age, and she's new to him. That makes her exciting to Deke." When all was said and done, D'Argo liked a challenge, just like his father. "He's just like you," she said allowed.

"Yeah, except he doesn't know danger when he sees it." John replied. "That girl… She's the definition of it."

"Your paranoia is talking again," Aeryn stated. Scorpius always brought out that side of John.

"Yeah, I know. I'm trying not to let it get to me," John kissed Aeryn's cheek. "I let Scorpius and Sikozu out of the cell, put them in her former quarters down on tier eight, treblin side." Aeryn didn't respond, she only nodded, and continued to watch their son.

TEIR EIGHT:

Sikozu sat on the bed in her former quarters, a few of her possessions right where she left them. "It is so strange being back here." A flash of orange caught her attention. Getting up, she went to the small alcove where she found the clothes she used to wear. The orange vest, the matching top, leggings, boots, and skirt. It seemed like a lifetime ago that she ever wore anything like that. She reached out to touched the leather, remembering how good it felt against her skin. That version of her no longer existed.

"At least I'm not confined to a cell this time," Scorpius mused standing next to Sikozu, his right hand cupping the back of her head. He much preferred the copper walls of Sikozu's old quarters than those of his dark cell. When they had previously resided aboard Moya, he'd only been in her quarters twice before John sent them over to Braca on the Command Carrier. The bed behind them had served them well after they returned from Katratzi.

"Crichton has no reason to keep us in there," Sikozu faced her imposing half-Scarran mate. "He finally realized that we are not here for him." She saw a strange expression cross his face. "What?"

"His mistrust of us, it may directly affect how he perceives Rylani," Scorpius said. "You know what he's like when he feels as if he's being manipulated. Imagine how he'll be if he feels our daughter is trying to maneuver his son." He wasn't blind, he saw the way Rylani looked at D'Argo. She was intrigued by the young man, having never seen anyone like him. That kind of fascination could be dangerous.

"Not even Crichton is that paranoid…." Sikozu shook her head. Scorpius only looked at her. "Alright, maybe he is." She brought her hands up, unfastening the front closure of her vest. Slipping it off, she tossed it over on the bed. "Then, what are we going to do?"

"Nothing," Scorpius answered. "Rylani has to learn on her own just how damaging Crichton's infantile obsession with betrayal can be. She has to learn how to navigate around his paranoia." As much as he hated it, he couldn't interfere with her, and how she was handling this mission. He, and Sikozu, were here to watch out for their child.

"And her growing infatuation with the young Crichton?" Sikozu didn't want her child falling for someone she could not hope to be with. If her history with Scorpius was anything to go by, Rylani would be suffering from a broken heart by the end of this mission.

"Another lesson she'll have to learn," Scorpius cupped Sikozu's face. "If we intervene, she'll fight us, and she'll win." Rylani had learned pretty quickly the most expedient way to get what she wanted from them. Once she mastered the ability, she rarely used it.

"Because you will let her," Sikozu pointed out playfully. When their daughter fought them, she went to war with the intention of being the victor. Lucky for them, as her parents, that never happened too often. Rylani showed respect and due deference to them, but she could defiant. It was a trait she inherited from Scorpius.

"And so would you," Scorpius replied, angling his head to kiss her lightly on the lips. He dropped his hands down to wrap his arms around her waist. She draped her arms over his shoulder's, her hands cupping the back of his head. Right now, all was quiet, and they could indulge in a few basic carnal needs. Scorpius tightened his hold, lifting her up so he could set her on the metal shelf. He growled deepening the kiss.

TERRACE:

Deke had stopped moving his feet, content to sway with Rylani still in his arms. He'd never met a female like her, someone so strong, and yet at the same time, she had such a gentle spirit. They were born into the middle of a chaotic history, and yet when he was with her, none of that mattered. The loyal son in him knew he should stay away from her. Rylani was a Peacekeeper, and the child of two very manipulative people. That alone should be enough to keep him away from her. When he looked in her eyes, he only saw kindness, and that cut straight to his heart. Was this how his dad felt the more time he spent with his mom?

For some time, Rylani had her eyes closed, trusting Deke with guiding her body. She kept her brow resting against his temple, and her arms were drape over his shoulders while his were wrapped around her waist. They were swaying under the stars with music surrounding them. This was one of the most self-indulgent moments of her life. Before, when she'd used her feminine wiles, it had always been to further her mission, and complete her goals. With Deke, she had no mission that involved him when they met. She started a liaison with him because she wanted to. He was the first male she met that made her feel anything. A good soldier guarded against any emotions. Rylani was finding out quickly she wasn't such a good soldier in this moment.

"D'Argo?"

Deke stopped moving, freeing his left hand to activate his comms, "Yes, Pilot." Being in this little musical bubble couldn't last, but he was happy it lasted as long as it did. Rylani smirked as she stepped off his feet, taking her arms from around his neck. She walked away to get her boots.

"Is the Peacekeeper Captain still with you?"

"She's close by," Deke answered, his voice light as he looked at her.

"Will you bring her back down here so that I might speak with her?"

"Sure thing, Pilot," Deke answered when Rylani nodded. He tapped his comms, deactivating it. To her he asked, "Do you think Pilot will accept, and ferry you into Nebari space?"

"I do not know," Rylani tugged on her right boot. "Moya is a remarkable ship; I was not lying about that. She has done things no other Leviathan has, survived so much." When she had been given the dossiers on Crichton and his crew, a profile had also been included pertaining to the infamous ship. Moya had given birth to the first Leviathan/Peacekeeper hybrid ship. And that was just one of many situations the resourceful ship had survived.

"Then…" Deke walked over to her, and took her hand. "Let's go find out what his answer is." He liked walking side by side with her through the halls of the ship that was his home. If he was to strip away the top layer of her Peacekeeper uniform, take down her hair, Rylani looked like she belonged with them. She could easily turn outlaw if the spirit moved her to do so. He liked that about her.

PILOT'S DEN:

Rylani stood in front of Pilot waiting for him to give her his answer. Around her various DRD's zipped around preforming their assigned tasks. As much as she may want to know immediately, she had to exercise patience, and wait for Pilot. One of the DRD buzzed passed her, making her jump when it clipped the heels of her boots. She hadn't been expected it to be that close to her.

"Are you alright?" Pilot asked when he noticed her sudden movement.

"Yes," Rylani nodded. "I am unaccustomed to the DRD's moving about. We do not have them aboard Command Carriers." She knew from times spent on Scarran vessels, that they had their own version, but they were mainly used for security purposes. She liked the little yellow bots better. They at least had multiple functions. "It is too bad, though. They are incredibly useful."

"Thank you," Pilot said, not sure why.

"Pilot, is there something you want to ask me?" Rylani crept closer, leaning on the edge of the console. She could see the apprehension in his eyes. Deception was not a trait his species was known for.

"Why should Moya and I trust you?" Pilot kept his gaze on her, trying to pick up on any hint of her intentions towards him, Moya, and everyone else aboard. He didn't want to trust her, because of who she was sired from. Then he was reminded of another Peacekeeper he gave a chance to. Aeryn Sun. She stood where Captain Rylani Rayvin Shanu was now standing. Pilot knew he had another choice to make and it wasn't about the mission.

Rylani sighed, "Your first inclination is not to trust me on the basis that I am a Peacekeeper. My people have subjugated yours, put Leviathans under the thrall of control collars. I want you to know, I am not like them, and I do not wish to control you or Moya. Time allowing, I hope you will come to see me for who I am, not the uniform, and not my heritage."

"Moya and I will help you," Pilot consented.

TO BE CONTINUED: