I'm pretty sure that at any given time, I have no clue where anyone is aboard Moya unless everyone's sleeping. During what passes for day here, they are in the very last place I look. Maybe they do it on purpose. I wouldn't put it past them. All I want to do is check up on them, it's not like anyone has to hide...

After finally asking Pilot where Aeryn and Rose were, I find them in the maintenance bay. Aeryn's inside the cockpit of the Prowler, I can see that much. Of course, she's the only one I can find. "Where's Rose?" I ask her.

"The DRD's are watching her," she tells me.

I look across the room to look where she's pointing. Rose is sitting in the center of three DRD's, playing. She's putting one hand over their lights, trying to see what they'll do. She giggles when one of them backs away, then tries it with the next one. I can hear her laughing even from here.

"She's so cute," I say, smiling as I turn back to Aeryn.

"Not when she's trying to climb the Prowler," Aeryn says. She hops out of the Prowler, dusting off her hands on her pants. "Where have you been?"

"There was an oncoming ship, we thought it might be Peacekeeper. False alarm. Why didn't you answer your comm?"

Frowning, Aeryn checks the collar of her tank, rolling her eyes when she sees the comm badge lying in the middle of the floor. She goes to pick it up and fastens it on. "If there is anything that girl has not made into a toy, I'll be amazed," she tells me. "Just look at the DRD's. I'm sure Pilot's thrilled about that."

"She's probably hinting that she wants more."

"She has enough," she says. "Rygel's threatening to barter them on the next commerce planet. When did we get to the point that Rygel trying to sell our child's toys is part of daily life?"

"It's all part of domestic bliss, Aeryn," I say.

"I don't know how much more domestic we can get," she says, almost groaning. I know she's kidding, though. We've talked about this. As irritating as it must be for an ex-Peacekeeper commando to spend most of her day watching over a ten-month-old baby, I know she loves it. She's told me as much without actually saying it. That's Aeryn for you.

"You know, we could always make it more domestic. Official," I say.

Oh, God.

Did I just say that? Where did that even come from? Those words couldn't have come out of my mouth. Oh, hell, I did say it. Don't get me wrong. It's not like I haven't been thinking about it. Since before Rose was even born I'd been wanting to ask her to marry me, but things just kept happening and... Maybe it was just an excuse, but it worked for me. But who knows, maybe my little slipup is a sign. Okay. Just say it. Now's the right time. Do it.

But damn, I wish I could have started off some other way.

"How?" Aeryn asks.

Dammit. Say it, John. Just say it. "Marriage is usually the next step." There. I said it.

I see the look on her face- total amazement and shock. She didn't see that one coming, that was for sure. "Marriage?" she repeats.

"Yeah. I know you have it in your culture," I say a little teasingly. Am I holding my breath? Stop that. Breathe. Inhale, exhale.

"Why?"

Why? Of all the things I expected her to say, "Why?" was not one of them. "Why?" I say, raising my eyebrows at her.

"Yes. Why? We're fine the way we are," Aeryn states. She looks pretty shaken. Oh, God, I shouldn't have asked this. She's not ready, I should have seen that.

Maybe I should end it here. Yeah, right. You can't end a proposal just like that. 'Marry me, Aeryn. Oh, on second thought, forget about it.' "Yeah. Exactly. And I want to make it official," I explain, swallowing hard. "I love you, Aeryn. And I want you, me and Rose to be a family with a more permanent bond."

"So why now?" Aeryn wonders, stammering a bit. "Why not half a cycle ago? Or five cycles from now?"

Good question. "I just realized how badly I want this," I say truthfully, taking her hand. She lets me, but she might not realize that I'm even touching her right now. "You're really going to put me through the ringer on this one, aren't you?"

Aeryn nods, eyes widening. "Oh, yeah. I need some convincing." She sits down on the ground, like that's the only way she's going to stay at least somewhat upright. Well, if nothing else comes out of this, I managed to shock the hell out of her. Story for the grandchildren right here.

At least that isn't a no. "Okay," I say, sitting next to her. It amazes me how quickly I can just jump in and fight for this. But I am. I'm wanting this. And with every time I have to explain myself to her, I'm wanting it more. This is why I love her. That's it, I'm not stopping until I get a yes out of her. I take a deep breath, looking her straight in the eye. I love when she looks vulnerable like this. "I've been thinking about this lately," I begin, trying to let the words just flow. Let her know how I really feel, without censoring myself. "For a long time, actually. A lot. And I can't see my life without you. I can't. When I got here, I never thought I'd be married, or have kids. And... Here I am. I'm in love, and I've got a little girl, and I'm happy." I smile at her. "I want to be able to call you my wife without it being a slip of the tongue."

"You've said that?" Aeryn interrupts.

Yeah, I could deny it, but people have caught me at it. No sense in saying no. "Once or twice," I admit. I wonder how she's going to react to that...

I will never forget the look on Aeryn's face at that. She just looks at me, seeming completely surprised, like it's only now that she realizes how much she means to me. (Well, dammit, Aeryn, what else do I have to do to prove that one to you?)

Keep going. I let my hand tangle in her hair, brushing it gently away from her face. "Aeryn, you have been my friend, my lover, the mother of my child... I would never have made it out here if it wasn't for you. You're the only reason I've survived out here this long. I don't think I would have wanted to if you weren't a part of my life. Aeryn... Will you marry me?"

I watch her with bated breath. This is killing me.

Finally, she slowly shakes her head. "I can't believe you're doing this," she says quietly. She doesn't look convinced, and she doesn't give me any other answer.

"So I'm guessing that's a no," I say, trying to hide my disappointment. Okay, maybe this wasn't the time. I'm going to try again, but not now. I don't think my pride could take any more today.

We sit in silence, except for the beeps and whistles of the DRD's Rose is playing with. Okay, so now what? Where are we supposed to go from here when she apparently doesn't want to go anywhere? I should have expected this answer. I know Aeryn. I know how she gets with stuff like this. Even now. Cycles later, even with a daughter between us, she still gets scared. She's still got problems with the "I love you." She'll say it, but it doesn't come easy to her. Not as much and not about the same things, but... I should realize this by now.

"Yes."

What?

I'm hearing things. Maybe I'm hearing things. I'm surprised I can hear anything, considering I can hear my heart pounding. "What?" I ask, turning back to her.

Aeryn takes a deep breath, exhaling her answer: "Yes."

"Yes? It's a yes?" I ask, still not believing what she's saying.

"How many times do you want me to say it?" she says, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Oh my God. She said yes. She said yes! I smile widely at her. "One more time."

Aeryn looks almost embarrassed as she says, "Yes."

I can't help it. I kiss her long and hard, partially relieved at hearing that word (and so many times!) and the other part just being ecstatic. I don't know what kind of disaster it would have been if her answer had stayed "no." Aeryn's kissing me back just as hard; I think she's as relieved for this as I am. I pull her closer, closing the distance between us-

"Da."

We only stop at Rose's interruption, like she's trying to get our attention. We break away just in time to see her take a single step towards one of the DRD's. And then she falls backward.

"She's walking," Aeryn says, not sounding too surprised. Rose has been trying it for a while, it was just good timing on her part to actually walk.

"Or at least she was," I say, smiling. "Come here, sweetie."

I'm almost expecting Rose to start crying, but she doesn't. She just gives up on walking it and crawls over, letting Aeryn pull her onto her lap. "It's a big day for you, isn't it?" she asks her.

"Hey, Rose," I say, touching her tiny little nose, "your mommy and daddy are getting married. What do you think about that?"

She looks at me for a split second, then turns her attention back to the DRD's. Looks like the bright yellow moving things are a lot more interesting than her parents right now.

Smiling, Aeryn looks to me. "We're actually doing this," she says.

I nod, touching her face. "You're sure you want to do this?"

"Yes," she says, sounding much more decisive. "I'm sure. We can't just stay as we are forever, can we? It has to go somewhere. I want it to go here."

I still can't believe this is really happening. I pinch myself. "Ow."

"What are you doing?" she asks.

"I'm making sure I'm awake. That this isn't just some dream," I tell her.

Aeryn smiles. "It's real, John. I love you."

"See, now I know I'm dreaming," I tease.

She hits me lightly- it'd probably be a lot harder if she wasn't holding Rose. To prove it, she kisses me again, gently biting my lower lip. "Did that wake you up?" she asks.

"No."

"Then you're not dreaming."

I know, I know, it's real. But sue me, I can't believe it. "I love you," I tell her.

"Say it again," Aeryn says, leaning in toward me.

"How many times do you want me to say it?" I ask her, echoing her earlier words.

"One more time."

"I love you, I love you, I love you," I say, giving her a kiss for each one.

"I only asked for one," she laughs.

"Two to grow on."

Her brow furrows as she mulls that one over. "What does that mean?"

"I have no idea. It's just a saying," I admit. I pause, staring into her eyes. "You know you're going to be stuck with me. And my expressions."

"That's okay," she says. "You're stuck with me. I think we're breaking even."

No. Not even close. I have the better side in this deal.