Chapter 12
The sound of the Peacekeeper scan resonated throughout the small ship. The scans had started about an arn ago and so far they seemed to be coming back every quarter arn.
They had taken refuge on a small ice planet a couple of arns ago as the pursuing Peacekeepers got closer. Crichton had decided that the only way to lose them was to lay low for a while. He had picked this spot because he hoped that the tall overhanging forest would mask any signal from the ship. The planet was also very sparsely populated, with what he wasn't sure; judging by the occasional rustlings and howling that came from outside. The only real down side seemed to be that it was about twenty below. Not taking any chances, he had powered down all the systems, especially anything that generated heat. Consequently he was sitting, listening to the Peacekeeper scan, freezing his butt off. With the scans coming back so regularly there was nothing for it but to bed down for the duration.
He had laid their only blanket over Aeryn. She was conscious now, but not very talkative, probably still in pain but more comfortable now her various injuries had been treated. Crichton himself had put on a couple of extra jackets he had found in the back of the ship. He sat quietly in the corner listening to the interminable booming from the scan and watching Aeryn. The bruises on her face had now faded from purple to yellow, and she could at least open her eyes more now. John realised that they were looking at him.
"Crichton don't be a drannit. Come over here and share this cover" she whispered
"I'm fine, really" he said, blowing on his hands
"No you're not. It's, what did you call it? colder than a frob sass"
"Frog's arse. Look, there's really not room on that bunk for two." She just gave him a look. He came over and stared down at her.
"I wasn't sure that you'd want me that..close. We've not exactly been on kissing terms since, well you know," he said quietly
"I know, John, but the only way we're going to survive this cold is by sharing what body heat we have left." He climbed into the bunk next to her and lay flat under the cover, doing his best not to touch her.
"Come on John, if we're going to share body heat, you're going to have to get closer. I won't bite, I don't think I can" she tried to joke. "I trust you completely John. Besides I'm not exactly looking like your dream girl at the moment.
John turned and gently put his arms around her, careful to avoid her injuries. "You'll always be my dream girl, Aeryn. No matter what you look like or what you think of me." She looked at him solemnly. Her eyes were bright with tears but she stayed silent. They lay there not talking, hardly moving until eventually the scan passed.
"I'm sorry, John" Aeryn whispered
"For what?" he asked, pleased that she seemed comfortable calling him John again.
"For the way I've treated you since I came back from Talyn. I had a lot of time to think when I was in custody. Funny how certain death clarifies the mind." She paused, as if gathering her thoughts. "Do you remember when we were stuck in the Flax and you said that humans believed that when you died you went to a place where all your friends and relations who had died before already were? Well you would have thought that I would have welcomed death to be with him, the other John, again. But I didn't. I just kept thinking about you, how you must be felt when I treated you so coldly. I found that, when I thought my death was inevitable, I wanted to stay alive for the chance to tell you how I really feel."
"How is that Aeryn?"
"I know that you're not just the copy. You were both the man I fell in love with what seems like cycles ago. You don't have the experiences from those few short monens on Talyn, which will always be precious to me, but you're still John Crichton: still incomprehensible most of the time, still always coming up with terrible plans with almost unfailing optimism for their successful outcome, still doing reckless things to help those you love. Still loyal, trusting and loving." She reached up with her good hand and caressed his cheek. "I suppose that's just a long winded way of saying that I realised in that cell that I love you. That's why I tried to protect you when I was in the chair." John drew an unsteady breath.
"You don't know what that means to me, Aeryn, hearing you say that. I love you too"
"I know, but John, just as my body is bruised and battered, so are my heart and mind. They will take a while to heal. I'm still not sure that I have the emotional strength to give you what you want."
"Then we'll take it real slow, but I'll be there, babe, I'll always be there" He reached over and gently kissed her, trying to avoid her split lip. As the kiss deepened she moaned a little.
"Was that from pleasure or pain?" he asked
"A bit of both" she replied with a cross between a smile and a grimace. He pulled her more closely against him and kissed her hair. They drifted off into a companionable sleep as the resonating scan began again
The sound of the Peacekeeper scan resonated throughout the small ship. The scans had started about an arn ago and so far they seemed to be coming back every quarter arn.
They had taken refuge on a small ice planet a couple of arns ago as the pursuing Peacekeepers got closer. Crichton had decided that the only way to lose them was to lay low for a while. He had picked this spot because he hoped that the tall overhanging forest would mask any signal from the ship. The planet was also very sparsely populated, with what he wasn't sure; judging by the occasional rustlings and howling that came from outside. The only real down side seemed to be that it was about twenty below. Not taking any chances, he had powered down all the systems, especially anything that generated heat. Consequently he was sitting, listening to the Peacekeeper scan, freezing his butt off. With the scans coming back so regularly there was nothing for it but to bed down for the duration.
He had laid their only blanket over Aeryn. She was conscious now, but not very talkative, probably still in pain but more comfortable now her various injuries had been treated. Crichton himself had put on a couple of extra jackets he had found in the back of the ship. He sat quietly in the corner listening to the interminable booming from the scan and watching Aeryn. The bruises on her face had now faded from purple to yellow, and she could at least open her eyes more now. John realised that they were looking at him.
"Crichton don't be a drannit. Come over here and share this cover" she whispered
"I'm fine, really" he said, blowing on his hands
"No you're not. It's, what did you call it? colder than a frob sass"
"Frog's arse. Look, there's really not room on that bunk for two." She just gave him a look. He came over and stared down at her.
"I wasn't sure that you'd want me that..close. We've not exactly been on kissing terms since, well you know," he said quietly
"I know, John, but the only way we're going to survive this cold is by sharing what body heat we have left." He climbed into the bunk next to her and lay flat under the cover, doing his best not to touch her.
"Come on John, if we're going to share body heat, you're going to have to get closer. I won't bite, I don't think I can" she tried to joke. "I trust you completely John. Besides I'm not exactly looking like your dream girl at the moment.
John turned and gently put his arms around her, careful to avoid her injuries. "You'll always be my dream girl, Aeryn. No matter what you look like or what you think of me." She looked at him solemnly. Her eyes were bright with tears but she stayed silent. They lay there not talking, hardly moving until eventually the scan passed.
"I'm sorry, John" Aeryn whispered
"For what?" he asked, pleased that she seemed comfortable calling him John again.
"For the way I've treated you since I came back from Talyn. I had a lot of time to think when I was in custody. Funny how certain death clarifies the mind." She paused, as if gathering her thoughts. "Do you remember when we were stuck in the Flax and you said that humans believed that when you died you went to a place where all your friends and relations who had died before already were? Well you would have thought that I would have welcomed death to be with him, the other John, again. But I didn't. I just kept thinking about you, how you must be felt when I treated you so coldly. I found that, when I thought my death was inevitable, I wanted to stay alive for the chance to tell you how I really feel."
"How is that Aeryn?"
"I know that you're not just the copy. You were both the man I fell in love with what seems like cycles ago. You don't have the experiences from those few short monens on Talyn, which will always be precious to me, but you're still John Crichton: still incomprehensible most of the time, still always coming up with terrible plans with almost unfailing optimism for their successful outcome, still doing reckless things to help those you love. Still loyal, trusting and loving." She reached up with her good hand and caressed his cheek. "I suppose that's just a long winded way of saying that I realised in that cell that I love you. That's why I tried to protect you when I was in the chair." John drew an unsteady breath.
"You don't know what that means to me, Aeryn, hearing you say that. I love you too"
"I know, but John, just as my body is bruised and battered, so are my heart and mind. They will take a while to heal. I'm still not sure that I have the emotional strength to give you what you want."
"Then we'll take it real slow, but I'll be there, babe, I'll always be there" He reached over and gently kissed her, trying to avoid her split lip. As the kiss deepened she moaned a little.
"Was that from pleasure or pain?" he asked
"A bit of both" she replied with a cross between a smile and a grimace. He pulled her more closely against him and kissed her hair. They drifted off into a companionable sleep as the resonating scan began again