A/N: Here's the next chapter. Hope you like it! Oh, by the way, I don't own Farscape or any of its characters, that distinction belongs to one Rockne S. O'Bannon...and boy am I jealous! love xx
John walked down the hall towards command, Aeryn by his side. He squeezed her hand, their fingers interlaced, then lifted it to his lips, kissing her thumb gently. She smiled up at him, before turning to face him and pulling his head down to kiss him passionately on the lips. He wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her against him as he kissed her back.
"John! How lovely to see you again! And Officer Sun!" Suddenly John was unable to see or move. He was tied to a chair, and all he could do was listen. "So, Officer Sun, whatever shall we do with you?" He heard Scorpy say gloatingly. Aeryn screamed, a drawn out, pain-filled sound that seemed to go on forever.
"Aeryn? Aeryn?" John yelled, fighting against his bonds. Suddenly he was free, and the screams had died down to whimpers. "Aeryn, baby, where are you?" He groped with his hands, crawling towards where the whimpers seemed to be coming from.
"You'll never find her, John. I'll keep doing this" and Aeryn screamed loudly, "and you can't do a frelling thing to stop me" he laughed as Aeryn screamed even louder.
"STOP IT!" Yelled Crichton. Suddenly the surface he was lying on shook, and he heard Aeryn calling his name.
"John, John, wake up. Come back to me, John. It's just a dream, please wake up."
"Ae…Aeryn?" He gasped.
"Breathe, John. Take a deep breath. Now, take another" she coached him, trying to calm him.
"Oh...oh God, what a nightmare" he choked out between breaths. Aeryn stroked his cheek gently, trying to calm him. He caught her fingers in his own and clung to them, trying to reassure himself that she was all right. "I was asleep, right? That was all a dream?"
"Yes, John, it was a dream. Sounded pretty awful, though. Would you like to talk about it?" John squirmed on the mattress, then shook his head.
"Not really, Aeryn, thanks anyway." Aeryn sighed softly, frustrated, but let him have it his way.
"You hungry?" She asked, trying to sound bright and happy.
"Actually, I'm starving." He chuckled "doesn't seem, with everything that's going on, that I should be starving right now, does it?"
"Well, we've been asleep for arns, and it's not like you ate very much at the party anyway" offered Aeryn, also chuckling.
"Well, then, lets head to the galley, shall we?" He said, pushing himself up off the mattress and standing unsteadily. Aeryn quickly wrapped an arm around his waist once again, and he wrapped one around hers. She leant her head against his shoulder as she led him out of the room, carefully sidestepping a lone DRD in the passageway. When they reached the galley, they found Chiana sitting, still muttering under her breath. She glanced up when she heard them enter, and raised a hand in greeting before turning her attention back to her food.
"So, John, what do you want to eat?" Asked Aeryn, sitting him in a chair and surveying the food that had survived Moya's sudden stop-start manoeuvre.
"Any smoke pronga sinew left?" He asked hopefully. Aeryn chuckled and, taking a plate, served him some, setting the plate in front of him.
"Here you go, John. Still fresh" she said, guiding his hand to the plate rim. He ran his fingers lightly over the surface of the plate until he found a piece of food, which he carefully lifted in his fingers to his mouth. He chewed slowly, then swallowed, and grinned.
"You are really good at making these, Aeryn" he took another mouthful, and sat quietly chewing it. Aeryn grinned and sat down opposite, grabbing a bottle of water, two cups and an extra plate, which she loaded with food from the platters still littering the table. She poured two cups of water, setting one down near Crichton's plate, and draining the other herself.
"There's a cup of water to your right, John. Forward about two inches…there" she said as he found the base of the cup, then carefully lifted it to his lips. He sipped, and set the cup down on the table where he could find it again.
He bit into a piece of sinew, then stopped as fear clenched his gut in an icy fist. He choked, and spat the piece back into his hand. "Is Pilot okay, Aeryn?" He demanded, concern evident in his actions.
"He's fine, John. He woke up just after your seizure; because their connection isn't complete, Moya wasn't able to clear up his infection straight away." She reached across the table and stroked Crichton's cheek gently. "Don't worry about him, he's fine. Just concentrate on getting better, okay? And finish eating that" she added, looking at his hand.
"Yes mom" replied John mockingly, tossing the piece back into his mouth and swallowing it whole.
"And don't do that! You'll choke!" She slapped his arm lightly.
He flinched away and cried "Ow! Be careful, woman! Zhaan might have healed my bones, but I am one giant, walking bruise! That hurt" he made his lower lip quiver, and Aeryn chuckled appreciatively.
"Big baby" she teased, gently rubbing the place she had slapped. Chiana snorted mirthlessly from where she was sitting.
"Who's that?" Asked John, rearing back in confusion. He sniffed the air carefully. "Pip? Is that you?"
"Yeah, Crichton, it's me. Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I though you knew I was here. It's not like Aeryn didn't know. How did you know it was me?" She asked, curious.
"I could…smell you" he replied, after thinking about it.
"You? You can't smell anything" scoffed Chiana. "You're nose is totally deficient." Aeryn laughed softly, exchanging a look with Chiana. Chiana smiled at her, a smile tinged with sadness. Aeryn gave her a searching glance, raising a questioning eyebrow. Chiana shook her head slightly, indicating she did not want to talk at the moment. At that second, D'Argo appeared in the doorway. Chiana glanced at him, then away, staring down at the plate in front of her. Glancing from one of them to the other, Aeryn put two and two together easily, and decided it really wasn't any of her business. She turned her attention back to her own food, and to John, who had eaten everything she had put in front of him, and drained his cup.
"You want some more?" She asked him, as D'Argo stood at the door and watched.
"No thanks. I'm full" he replied, sounding tired. He leaned back in his seat, stretching slowly. D'Argo stared at him with anger smouldering in his eyes, before looking at Chiana, and his gaze softened.
"Chiana…" he began, but she jumped to her feet and stormed past him and down the corridor. "CHIANA!" He yelled, exasperated.
"D? What's up?" Demanded John, concerned.
"None of your frelling business, Crichton! Leave me the frell alone!" He stormed down the corridor, following Chiana. John looked stunned and hurt, and Aeryn reached out and grabbed his hand.
"Just give him some time, John. He's teetering on the brink of hyper rage right now. Just stay out of his way, all right?" She squeezed his hand, and he shifted his fingers in her grip so that he could squeeze hers back.
"No argument from me, Aeryn. I've seen hyper rage once too often as it is." He grinned, and Aeryn was suddenly struck by how out of focus his eyes were. To distract herself from the tears that were threatening she refilled John's cup and set it back down next to his food.
"There's some more water, John" she took his hand and guided it to the cup.
"Thanks Aeryn" he smiled softly and raised the cup to his lips. He sipped and set it back down on the table. "Did Zhaan say how long this is going to last?" He asked, indicating his eyes.
"She's not sure, John" Aeryn replied, hedging slightly, trying not to tell him what Zhaan had actually said, and silently praying he wouldn't ask.
"Well, then, I guess we'll just have to wait" he replied with a shrug, and Aeryn breathed a silent sigh of relief. Just then she noticed a DRD sitting unobtrusively on the shelf on the side of the room. She dismissed it from her mind; the things where everywhere onboard Moya, although they weren't often seen sitting still. She focused on finishing her meal so she could get John back to his quarters. John sat quietly, occasionally taking a sip of his water. Aeryn finished her meal and sat back, replete.
"Well, that wasn't half bad, if I do say so myself" she commented. "One or two things could have used a touch more seasoning, perhaps, but other than that, it was very nice." John nodded in agreement.
"The pronga sinew was great, Aeryn. So, what now?" He asked her, slurring his words slightly.
"John, are you feeling all right?" Asked Aeryn, as Crichton raised a hand to his head.
"Something…doesn't feel…" in the middle of his sentence his eyes rolled up in his head and he started to convulse.
"ZHAAN! GALLEY, NOW!" Screamed Aeryn, slapping her com as she vaulted the table and lowered Crichton onto the floor, cushioning his head and grabbing his jaw to prevent him from biting his tongue. Zhaan came bursting in through the doorway, and dropped to her knees, cursing underneath her breath. She clamped one hand on Crichton's forehead, and placed the other more gently on top of his head. She concentrated, her eyes turning deep blue, and Crichton's convulsions slowed, then stopped. He drew in a shuddering, gasping breath, then opened his eyes.
"John? Can you hear me?" Asked Aeryn, pressing her cheek against his hand. He blinked several times, dazed, then seemed to come to himself.
"Aeryn?" He coughed, clearing his throat, then asked "what happened? We were…eating, weren't we?" He sounded lost and confused. Aeryn exchanged a glance with Zhaan.
"You had another seizure, John. Just breathe; it's going to be all right. I'll take care of you." She ran her fingertips through his hair, and he yawned, his eyelids flickering.
"I'm tired" he stated, yawning again. His eyelids closed, and Aeryn and Zhaan were left looking at each other over his somnolent form.
"What are we going to do, Zhaan? This is serious. He's totally incapacitated. Blind, weak, and having seizures with no kind of warning. Is there anything else you can do?" Aeryn raised her eyebrows questioningly.
"There may be something, but I will need some time to work on it, and it may not even help. Don't mention it to Crichton yet; I don't want to raise any false hope, if it doesn't work. Agreed?" Aeryn nodded emphatically in response to Zhaan's fierce expression, then turned her gaze once more upon Crichton. "How are we going to get him out of here? I don't think D'Argo is in any mood to help" she said, worried.
"We'll carry him between us" replied Zhaan, watching as Aeryn gently caressed Crichton's face.
"All right, lets get him up then" she replied, taking one of Crichton's arms while Zhaan took the other. They hauled him to his feet, draping his arms around their shoulders and wrapping theirs around his waist. They half carried, half dragged him back to his cell, where they laid him down on the bed. Aeryn snugged the covers in around her shoulders, and, lifting his head gently, placed a pillow beneath it. She yawned hugely, and Zhaan followed suit.
"That's contagious" Zhaan commented laughingly "but we should both get some rest. He'll be fine for now; he'll probably sleep for several arns yet. Go to bed, Aeryn." Zhaan held Aeryn's gaze with her own, trying to force her compliance. Aeryn acquiesced graciously enough, and they made their way out of the chamber together. Zhaan saw Aeryn back to her quarters before making her way to her own where she settled once more into her meditations.