Tour Bus: 3

By ISIS

Disclaimer and Notes: See part 1

---

"ETA to planet Lensh 12?" Orm demanded.

The inexperienced pilot he had pressed into flying the ancient Marauder checked his instruments twice before answering. "Three arns, I think."

"You think?" Orm snarled.

"Well, the Marauder's tachometer has not been functioning correctly for some time now, so I can only guess at its accuracy."

Orm sighed and cursed again the cruel fate that had placed him on that remote forgotten outpost. He looked around at the rest of his so-called troops in dismay; one was so young he was practically still teething, one was so inept he would have been declared mentally deficient if he hadn't had some connection to someone in High Command, and a third was no better than a mindless idiot, hooked as he was on Dardanian Ecstasy powder. The other fifteen were not much better.

Orm sighed again, a sense of doom growing in him. He should never have let that Shiona talk him into not reporting the fugitives to the nearest Command Carrier. The punishment for failure would far outweigh the reward for success.

***************

John stood with Aeryn backstage, watching as the roadies completed the set-up on the massive stage of the Lenshian Royal Arena. John was still gaping in wonder at the sheer size of the thing. Milban smirked at the primitive Human, declaring that it was considered one of the premier venues, built to hold over two million spectators. Huge screens dotted the stadium and spectators could also purchase virtual reality glasses, to give them the feeling of being up in the front rows. John could only imagine the possibilities.

"And it's sold-out, "Rygel added with an avaricious gleam. "Even the Emperor and his family will be here tonight." He looked over at the suspended Royal box, a nostalgic look on his face.

"Does he have any daughters?" D'Argo asked.

"Yes, three apparently, all huge fans of the band."

"Well, keep them away from Raf or there go all the rest of your profits," John replied with a grin. Milban's eyes widened in horror and he looked around to locate his predatory lead musician. But Raf was caught up in the last preparations for the rehearsal and sound check. Even now, John could see a few privileged souls in the audience, who had paid extra to be able to witness the sound check.

He turned to Aeryn with a smile. She was extremely uncomfortable that they had had to leave their weapons behind, by Lenshian law. Even now her hand hovered nervously over the place on her thigh where her pistol usually resided. "It will be okay, Aeryn. Calm down." Her eyes flashed blue fire at him, then she sighed. "The concert will be over in three arns, we collect our money and it's good-bye Vortex."

She sighed again, then smiled reluctantly. "You know, Crichton, I might even miss them."

John bristled in unreasonable jealousy "Really!"

She caught his reaction then grinned. "I mean the music." Her smile grew wider as he relaxed.

"Well, Sunshine, now that I know what a good singer you are, I expect at least a few private concerts," John whispered, daring to lean forward and steal a quick kiss.

Aeryn blushed at his teasing and hit him.

The exit of the roadies from the stage signalled the beginning of the rehearsal. Raf and the others spent a bit of time tuning their instruments and playing a few fragments of several songs to check the volume and balance of the mics and amplifiers. Then Raf put down his instrument and walked over to where Chiana stood, a dressmaker frantically trying to alter one of Shiona's wispy dresses. "You ready, Chiana?" he asked with a slight smile.

She looked at him and nodded. John noted that the Nebari was looking a little pale, if that was possible. He gave her an encouraging thumbs up as she went out onstage. Etric and Zel gave her reassuring smiles as Raf retrieved his instrument. They played the intro to the first number. Chiana gripped the mic in her shaking hand. When it came time for her to sing, she opened her mouth.

And nothing came out.

"That was your cue, Chiana," Raf said, a little impatiently.

"Give her a break, Raf. She's never done this before," Zel said softly. "We'll give you the intro again, okay Chi?"

Chiana gulped and nodded. The band repeated the opening chords and still nothing emerged from the Nebari's throat. The music faded away. Chiana stood transfixed in fear. Then she dropped the mic and fled from the stage. D'Argo caught her shaking form in his arms and hugged her to calm her. She buried her face in his chest and wailed, "I can't do it! I can't do it! I thought I could but I can't!"

"We're doomed!" Milban cried.

"We're broke!" Rygel sobbed.

Raf threw his instrument down in disgust and marched over to the weeping Nebari. Zel got there in time to temper the Hegemonian's anger. Raf took careful control of himself and spoke to her softly. "Chiana, what's wrong? You were amazing in rehearsal up on Moya."

"There are people listening! So many people!" she mumbled.

"You're frelling right there are, girlie! They're the ones who are paying. They're the source of the profit!" Rygel declared. "Think of the money, Chiana. Sing for the money!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, stage-mum!" John interrupted. Rygel and the others gave him a familiar confused look "She's suffering from stage-fright." He took Chiana's arm and turned her to face him. "Look, Pip, much as I hate to admit it, his Royal greediness is right. No concert, no money." Chiana looked at him and sniffed. "Try this. Pretend the audience is all naked."

Chiana gazed at him in growing horror. "That's supposed to make me feel better, Crichton? You think of Rygel naked and see how confident you feel!" John looked at her and sighed, seeing her point.

"Look, Chiana, you'll just have to do it. Remember how scared you were when you jumped into the pit on the Royal Cemetery planet?" Aeryn declared. The Nebari looked at her and nodded. "Well, you had something to prove then, you have something to prove now. Prove to yourself that you can do this too."

Chiana stepped back from D'Argo and straightened up. "You're right, Aeryn. I can do this." She turned and marched towards the stage. John and the others smiled, but their smiles faded as Chiana froze in place before stepping out from the wing. Then she turned and threw herself into D'Argo's arms again. "No, I'm sorry, I can't do this! I'm sorry!"

Milban groaned, echoed by Rygel. The band all turned away from the weeping Nebari in despair.

"I'll do it," a voice piped up.

All eyes turned to Aeryn in shock. She had a look of determination on her face.

"What?" Raf asked.

"I said, I'll do it. I'll sing." Aeryn faced the group defiantly.

Rygel was the first to react. "No offense, PeaceKeeper, but I didn't think voice lessons were part of basic training."

At the bleak look that crossed Aeryn's face, John reached over and smacked the Dominar so hard he nearly tumbled out of his thronechair. "That's enough, your lowness!"

Raf smiled ingratiatingly at Aeryn. "I appreciate the offer, Aeryn, but we need someone a little more accomplished than ..."

John marched over to stand beside Aeryn, taking her hand in his, unseen by the others. "Don't be so quick to turn down her offer. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised," he said, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

Raf sighed and went out on stage to try again. The others trailed out after him, their faces filled with skepticism.

"Are you sure about this, Aeryn?" John asked her quietly.

"Yes. It will be a fitting tribute to Timon, after all these cycles," she replied with a sad smile. Then she went out on stage.

The band repeated the intro to the first song yet again. After a slight hesitation, Aeryn began to sing. The mouths of the musicians gaped in shock then turned into wide grins as the ex-PeaceKeeper wowed them with her beautiful contralto voice, rich with resonance and emotion. Their tentative playing grew more confident as they responded to the passion and skill of the singer and soon the arena was filled with an incredible synthesis of sound, rhythm and voice.

Backstage, Rygel nearly fell out of his thronechair again, this time in amazement. "Fapootah! I don't believe it!"

D'Argo and Chiana stared at their Sebacean crewmate then turned to John, who was smiling triumphantly. "Incredible! I didn't know Aeryn could sing!" Chiana gaped.

"I did," John declared boastfully, then he glared at the suggestive smirks from his crewmates. "Get your minds out of the gutter, guys!" He watched proudly as the rehearsal continued. Aeryn even forgot herself enough to sway to the rhythms of the more up-tempo songs. At one point, during an instrumental interlude, she cast John a shy smile. The Human smiled back, happy to see that she was clearly enjoying herself.

When the last notes of the last song ended, there was a microt of silence, then the small audience burst into cheers and applause, as did the musicians and roadies. Aeryn put the mic down and smiled slightly, then left the stage. She walked right over to John, who desperately wanted to take her in his arms and kiss her, but didn't dare embarrass her with such a public display. Instead, he stood by her as the band flew off stage, raving about her performance.

Raf did, in fact, grab her and kiss her resoundingly, but Aeryn pushed him firmly away. John bristled again, but relaxed as he realised it was the artist in Raf and not the lustful male that was kissing her. He was simply pleased to have found someone to interpret his precious music. "Wow! If you can do that again, Aeryn, we'll be a resounding success!"

Aeryn just smiled at him confidently. "Yes, I can do it again, Raf. Don't worry. It was kind of fun."

Milban spun in his thronechair, until he was nearly out of control, then he trailed Aeryn back to the hotel, clearly intent on convincing her to join the group permanently.

***************

Shiona stirred and groaned. She turned her head and groaned again, this time because of the painful bruise on her throat. Memory came back and she stiffened, then opened her eyes to see where she was. Her fury grew as she found herself dumped rather unceremoniously on a bed in some hotel. For a microt, she thought the band and Moya's crew had simply abandoned her. She reached over and commed the front desk, reassured somewhat when they informed her that the members of Vortex and their security had not yet returned to the hotel, though they were expected in about a half arn. Shiona put down the comm with a smile then checked her chronometer. She scrambled out of the bed to keep her rendezvous with the PeaceKeeper Captain Orm.

She reached the rendezvous location, across the square from the arena, just as Orm and his troops moved into sight. Passers-by eyed them curiously, but thankfully did not seem to be able to identify them as PeaceKeepers, who were very unwelcome on Lensh 12. Shiona waved to the group and settled back into her chair at the sidewalk cafe as they approached. Orm instructed his troops to wait and went over to meet with the singer.

"So glad you made it!" she smirked, sipping at her ras'laq.

Orm took the chair opposite her. "So where are they and when can I arrest them?" he demanded without preamble.

"Patience, my dear Captain Orm. I have a few groundrules to lay first, or I turn you in to the Lenshian guards." Orm glared at her but said nothing. "You don't do anything until after the concert is over. I need the currency that we will be paid, but it won't appear until after the concert. So do not disrupt it in any way! I'll get you backstage, lure Aeryn and John over to you and you can arrest them from there." Orm grunted in reluctant agreement. "Second, nothing happens to the band. Our careers are taking off. I need them. Just John Crichton and Aeryn Sun, agreed?"

"Yes, they're the only ones of any value. The bounty on the other fugitives was lifted when Crais turned traitor." Orm nodded. "Anything else?" he asked sarcatically.

Shiona's eyes flashed with anger, but she smiled triumphantly. "No, that should be all." She got up from her seat and started to walk away. "Oh, would you be so kind as to pay the bill?" she threw back over her shoulder with a laugh as she left. Orm grumbled but did as she asked, then joined his troops to get in place.

***************

John stood backstage with Aeryn watching the last of vast crowd filter into the enormous stadium. He kept glancing at his Sebacean crewmate, checking for any sign of stagefright or regret. Finally, she turned to him with a sigh, "Okay, John, what is it?"

"I'm just nervous for you," he admitted.

Aeryn smiled and touched his hand. "I'll be fine. I told you, it was kind of fun. And I meant it."

"Well, this crowd is definitely in for a treat!" John said vehemently. "I'm very proud of you."

Aeryn met his warm gaze and was momentarily lost in it. Then she smiled back at him. "Thank you, John."

At that microt, Milban glided over, anxiously checking on his lead singer. "Are you sure you won't consider it?"

Aeryn glared at the hovering Hynerian. "No, I told you. I'll sing, but there's no way I'll put on one of your frelling costumes. I refuse to look like a trelk."

Milban sighed, his eyes passing over her slender form clad in her usual black leather vest and pants. "Too bad. You would have had the males eating out of your hands. Some of the females too."

"It won't matter what they're doing because they'll never see me again!" Aeryn stated emphatically.

"I wanted to talk to you again about that too," Milban added, a pleading tone to his voice. "Are you sure you can let a possibility like this pass you by? Fame, fortune, the adoration of most of the Uncharted Territories?"

Aeryn sighed. "Yes, I can. And I will."

"We'll see how you feel after the concert. It can be a pretty potent rush!" Milban said smugly as he floated away.

"I could be your manager," John whispered, leaning in close.

Aeryn turned and hit him lightly. "Don't you start!" John laughed at the look on her face.

Whatever he would have said next was interrupted by a flourish of some trumpet-like instrument. The thunder of over two million beings rising to their feet was defining. John peeked out to see a transport deliver the Lenshian Royal family to their highly secure floating box. The Royals waved to their subjects before settling into their seats. Then at a signal from the Emperor, the concert began.

Raf had decided to begin with a purely instrumental number, to get the crowd warmed up before dropping the bombshell that Shiona was not singing. The noise of the cheering crowd was deafening. Vortex plied them with pulsing rhythms, compelling harmonies and spectular theatrics and the crowd ate it up. At the end of the number, the crowd rose to its feet as one, screaming for more.

A sweating and somewhat nervous Raf stepped up to the mic. The sound of predominantly female screaming drowned him out for several microts, but finally, at his request, the crowd settled down a bit. "My dear friends. We are more than overjoyed to be here in your beautiful arena, performing for the best fans in the Uncharted Territories. And at the request of your most beloved ruler!" The crowd roared its approval of his flattery. Raf saluted the Royal Family. A big screen behind him broadcast the delighted smiles on the faces of the Emperor's three rather plain daughters. When the crowd settled somewhat, Raf continued. "However, my friends, I have some bad news for you. Our wonderful lead, Shiona, is indisposed. She so desperately wanted to be here on stage for you, her loyal fans, but her illness was too serious." A groan of disappointment rose from the arena. "Not to worry!" Raf said hastily. "Because we are extremely lucky to have found a singer of such incredible talent that you will still see the quality show that Vortex is noted for." He turned and held out his hand to the wings of the stage where Aeryn waited. Realising what he was about to do, Aeryn shook her head in warning, but it was too late. "I'd like you all to welcome Aeryn Sun!" Aeryn sighed and shared a glance of resignation with her crewmates. Then she walked out on stage.

"Why don't we just call up Scorpius and give him backstage passes!" D'Argo growled.

John noted the camerabots hovering everywhere, broadcasting the concert all over the Uncharted Territories. Then he hit his comm. "Zhaan, Pilot, better be on the alert up there. Raf just announced Aeryn's name. I'm sure the PeaceKeepers will pick up on it soon."

"We will be vigilant. Thankfully, PeaceKeepers are not welcome on Lensh 12. If worse comes to worst, you can always ask the Emperor for asylum," Zhaan replied.

"Right. Great, another Emperor!" John groaned, then turned back to watch the concert.

At Aeryn's obviously Sebacean appearance, combined with her PeaceKeeper black and somewhat military bearing, a dark rumble started through the crowd. Some even went so far as to boo. On the screen behind them, the Emperor's face darkened dangerously. Raf hastily pulled the strap of his instrument over his head and signalled the band to begin. Seemingly ignorant of the hostile audience, Aeryn calmly walked over to the mic and faced them defiantly.

In the wings, Rygel covered his face in despair. "We're all going to die!"

Then Aeryn started singing. The ugly murmuring in the crowd soon died away as the ex-PeaceKeeper's rich tones wafted out over the arena, throbbing with emotion as she sang one of Vortex's number one hits, her new interpretation of the song raising it to the height of classic. The crowd grew silent then cheers began as Aeryn's voice rose in pitch and volume towards the climactic ending. As the last note died away, incredible silence reigned, then the crowd went wild. Aeryn turned and cast the rest of the group a smile, sharing their looks of relief. Then they launched into the next song and the rest of the concert.

***************

Shiona flashed her badge at the backstage guard who looked at her with surprise. She motioned to Orm and two of his PeaceKeepers to join her, smiling at the confused guard. Then she slipped into the arena.

Confusion crossed her face as she heard the distinct sounds of one of Vortex's opening numbers. Orm caught her expression and pulled her back roughly. "What? What is it?"

"It sounds like the concert has started. But that's impossible. They couldn't possibly begin without me!" The enraged singer hurried through the organised confusion of the backstage towards the wings. Orm followed her, signalling to his escort to stay back.

Shiona flew through the backstage until she was in sight of the wing. Unbelievably, she heard the distinct sound of one of her featured numbers, But there was another voice singing it, someone really good, She listened to the performance for a few microts, rage and frustration growing within her. *Frell them! They've found someone to replace me already!* she thought. She caught a quick glance of John Crichton watching the show from the sidelines and her expression hardened even further. *Well, there's one of my targets.* She looked around and saw Orm hurrying towards her. She frantically motioned for him to back off, which he thankfully did. Then she moved towards the stage, careful not to attract any attention, but burning with curiosity as to who possessed the decidedly talented voice.

Shiona moved stealthily through the crowd of roadies, technicians and hangers-on to take up an unnoticed position just inside the massive curtain-like structures of the arena stage. She leaned out and nearly lost her control at the sight in front of her.

Out there on the stage, singing her songs, seducing her fans, performing with her friends, was the second object of her enmity. Shiona nearly gave herself away as waves of black hatred washed over her at the sight of Aeryn Sun taking her place in what should have been the most important concert of Shiona's career. The singer wanted to fly out on stage and tear the mic from the ex-PeaceKeeper's hands, throw her to the ground and tear out her heart. But she kept her anger in check, knowing that soon she would have her revenge.

Taking several deep breaths to control herself, she slipped back to where Orm was waiting and outlined the plan she had concocted.

***************

The concert was nearing its end when John caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned in time to see Shiona in conversation with a Sebacean. John moved closer. Unseen by the pair of them, he openly eavesdropped.

"The concert is nearly over," the Sebacean was saying. "When do I get my prizes?"

"Patience, Captain, patience," Shiona answered. "I will try to lure John Crichton over to you in a few microts. It shouldn't be too hard. The creature's an idiot. Then when Aeryn comes offstage, I will tell her you have captured Crichton. She will try to rescue him and you will have the pair of them. It will be up to you what you do next."

"I have the Marauder hidden not too far from here, in an old abandoned spaceport," Orm smiled. "Then it will be on to Scorpius and my richly deserved reward."

Shiona dismissed the ambitious PeaceKeeper with a wave of her hand. "And I will have my old life back. Once I tell Raf and the others what I am capable of, they will be too afraid to cross me again."

John moved away, his mind racing. He quickly scanned the backstage and his heart sank as he recognised several more PeaceKeepers, clearly uncomfortable in their civilian disguises. He moved over to where D'Argo and Chiana waited with a hovering Rygel. "Time to go, folks," he said.

"What? We haven't been paid yet!" Rygel objected.

"What good will currency be if you're confined to a PeaceKeeper prison?" John replied, pointing out the PeaceKeepers he had already identified. Onstage, Vortex had begun their final number, Raf's new song.

"Good point," D'Argo commented. "We will make our way to the transport." He hit his comm. "Zhaan, has Moya detected any PeaceKeeper vessels?"

"No, D'Argo, nothing."

"Well, there's a unit of PeaceKeeper soldiers down here. They're working with Shiona. Chiana, Rygel and I are going to the transport. John will get Aeryn and join us. Make sure Moya is ready to starburst as soon as we dock." He ended the communication abruptly. "Get Aeryn off that stage. We're leaving now!"

John moved over to the wings as the others left. He tried desperately to attract Aeryn's attention, but she was too caught up in the song to notice. John could not help but admire her as she closed her eyes and put all her heart and soul into the lovely melody. The crowd was again silent, spellbound.

John saw Shiona approaching him, a determined look on her face. "John! How did you like the concert?" She pressed herself up against him. "I must say I was surprised to hear Aeryn taking my place out there. She certainly has hidden depths!"

John looked over her head to see several PeaceKeepers approaching. "What the frell have you done, Shiona?" he demanded, pushing the singer away.

Shiona's face darkened with almost insane jealousy. "Only reclaimed what is mine. Removed a threat. And taken my revenge on a stupid primitive and his frelling trelk!" she cried, her voice rising. She saw that John knew about the PeaceKeepers and smiled triumphantly. "There's no escape, Crichton. They're all over the backstage and covering all the exits."

John pushed her away and turned back to the stage. The audience was roaring its approval of Aeryn's performance and demanding more. Knowing he had to reach her, John raced over to the lighting panel, knocking a technician aside. He reached up and pulled the main switch, plunging the entire stage area into darkness. Tripping in the dark, John made his way out onto the stage where he had last seen Aeryn. He grabbed her hand, not pausing to explain and tried to pull her back off the stage with him. Suddenly the lights came back up. Caught in the spotlight, John turned to the rest of the band.

"PeaceKeepers, Raf. We've got to get out of here!"

The elfin musician nodded his understanding. John looked from one side of the stage to the other, but realised that the PeaceKeepers had both ways covered. He looked at Aeryn then at the front of the stage. She nodded. Together, they leaped off the stage into the audience. The crowd went wild. Hands grasped at them, fans called Aeryn's name and autograph books were thrust in their faces. John held Aeryn's hand tightly as he pushed his way through the crowd. Finally, he reached the exit. The fans around them turned back to the stage where Vortex had launched into their first encore. Suddenly, he found himself face to face with a grinning PeaceKeeper. Behind him, Aeryn gasped. Her hand was torn from his grasp and he turned to see that a second PeaceKeeper had her, a knife held to her throat.

"Well, well, well. Scorpius's prize I see." The PeaceKeeper studied the Human, his expression showing that he was clearly unimpressed. "There must be more to you than meets the eye." Then he turned to Aeryn, who struggled in the other PeaceKeeper's grasp. "And you!" he snarled. He slapped her across the face. John started forward, but a third PeaceKeeper pressed a pistol into his side. Aeryn's eyes blazed and she shook her head, silently begging him not to resist. "Associating with aliens! Acting like the traitorous trelk you are! Singing! Demeaning our entire race by your very existence!"

Aeryn stared at him defiantly, but said nothing. He slapped her again, then signalled for his men to move the fugitives out. Just then another roar went up from the crowd.

"And let's hear it again for our lovely and talented singer, Aeryn Sun. Aeryn, where are you?" A spotlight swept over the crowd, guided by Zel, searching. Finally it came to rest on Aeryn. Raf's eyes opened wide when he saw the PeaceKeepers with her. Behind him, a subdued Shiona stood nervously. Then Raf spoke. "Well, it seems that not everyone liked your singing, Aeryn. My friends, I'd like you to meet Captain Orm and his men. PeaceKeepers." The air was filled with boos and hisses. Orm looked around him nervously as several fans surged forward. "Captain Orm is trying to arrest our lovely Aeryn. What are we going to do about it? Are we going to let that happen?"

"No!" With a roar, the crowd surged forward again. John and Aeryn were torn from the PeaceKeepers and passed through the audience back up to the stage. Zel reached down to pull John up, while Friq helped Aeryn. The crowd cheered and applauded. Aeryn bowed and smiled, accepting their adulation graciously. John watched with delight as the Emperor's own guards hauled a bruised and battered Captain Orm and his men out of the angry crowd and led them away. More guards rounded up the PeaceKeepers backstage. Raf and the rest of the band saluted the Emperor once more, then left the stage.

***************

The rest of the evening of the concert was pleasant, if sad. After the arrest of Shiona, Captain Orm and the rest of the PeaceKeepers, the fugitives had made preparations for a hasty departure, fearful that the broadcast of the concert would bring Scorpius down on them. At the reception following the concert, the Emperor had graciously offered them sanctuary, but Aeryn had declined, explaining their ongoing search for D'Argo's son and the crew's homeworlds.

Then had followed the sorrowful leave-taking. After all that had happened, Moya's crew all felt that their passengers had become friends. Milban made a final attempt to get Aeryn to stay with the group, echoed by Raf, but she smiled again and shook her head. Zel had quietly wished D'Argo well in his search for his son. With a teasing grin, Etric had presented Chiana with a copy of the vid of her rehearsal on Moya and her aborted attempt to sing in the sound check. Raf shook hands with John, leaning in to make him promise to take care of Aeryn. Then, with a wicked gleam in his eyes, he pulled the ex-PeaceKeeper into a passionate embrace, kissing her soundly. Aeryn pushed him away, preparing to protest, until she saw the musician glance deliberately at John and with an equally wicked gleam, grabbed Raf and kissed him back. As they returned to the transport, Aeryn met John's thunderous expression with a look of bland innocence.

Several days later Moya glided through the Uncharted Territories two starbursts away from Lensh 12. After a rather rowdy meal at which Rygel, ecstatic over the vast amount of money they had made, entertained them with story after story from his days as Dominar, John went in search of his Sebacean crewmate. He found her at work on her Prowler, updating the tracking system with technology purchased with her share of their earnings. He leaned against the door and smiled as she hummed away contentedly. Finally, he walked in.

Aeryn turned to him with a radiant smile. "Say, I know you!" John cried. "You're that famous singer, the one from Vortex!" He pretended to be overcome. "Man! I don't believe it! I'm actually meeting my idol! I've seen every one of your concerts!" Aeryn grinned at his silliness. John rummaged around in his pockets. "Can I have your autograph?" He ran over to her, holding out a transparency and a stylus.

Aeryn laughed. "You idiot!" she retorted, hitting his shoulder playfully.

John grinned at her. "Hey, get used to it. I'm sure we're going to be running into your fans all over the Uncharted Territories."

"I don't have any fans! I sang one concert. No one will even remember in a few monens!"

John moved closer to her. He wrapped his arms around her, enjoying the way Aeryn relaxed into his embrace. "Well, you'll always have one fan. And I think this fan deserves a kiss."

Aeryn leaned back away from him, a teasing look on her face. "Oh, you do, do you?"

John pulled her closer. "Yes, I do!" When she continued to avoid him, he added. "Better pay up or I'll tell Rygel how much money is to be made in selling autographs. He'll have you signing everything he can get his hands on."

"That's blackmail, Crichton," Aeryn objected, but she leaned into him, her eyes fixed on his mouth.

"Whatever works," John said, before claiming her smiling lips.

FIN