Title: Home Coming

Chapters: 10

Word Count: 11,412

Originally posted/updated: 11/1/09

Rating: PG

Spoilers/Setting: About a year after PKW. Possible spoilers for that period, but no spoilers for the comics (I haven't read them yet)

Genre(s): Romance, Drama, Unrealised Reality, Angst

Character(s): Aeryn, John, Chiana, Noranti, Jothee, Moya, Pilot, 1812, Jack Crichton, Olivier Crichton, DK, humans, aliens

Pairing(s): John/Aeryn, John/Jack,

Beta's: Unfortunately, like always, this idea can to me too quickly to find a beta. So please, don't mind the mistakes.

Disclaimer: Cheeseburgers don't actually look like the picture! Oh and Farscape is not mine, never has been, never will be. It belongs to Henson and friends; I'm merely borrowing it. All humans in this story, excluding those mentioned in Farscape, are the work of my imagination. Any similarity is purely coincidental. Same goes for aliens.

Summary: The way I pictured John's return to Earth.

Authors Note: For this story:

1 John never made it home in Season 4

2 John didn't had the wormhole knowledge removed by Einstein in PKW

3 D'Argo never lost the puzzle ring in Family Ties, which is what he used to propose to Aeryn.

OK, so, on with the story…

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There was not a sound on Moya's command, except for the faint whirring of DRD's as they buzzed past. The crew stood looking out the forward portal, not saying a word. John Crichton stood closest, his eyes fixed on the void of space that Moya sat before, his left hand raised as if to touch what was in front of him.

There, just within reach, was a wormhole.

It was not as if the crew had never seen a wormhole before. They had been up-close and personal with wormholes ever since the day five cycles ago when John appeared in the midst of a battle. But for some reason, this wormhole had particular significance to the human, which made no sense to them, as they could not feel or understand the raging battle inside his mind.

Aeryn Sun placed an arm around her husband's waist. She, of all the crew, had the best idea as to what this wormhole could be. While she couldn't say she was scared by her hypothesis, the thought did worry her. This wormhole could lead to Earth.

Dargo Sun Crichton stirred in Aeryn's arms, and she smiled down at her son, before looking back to John. The intensity of his blue eyes struck her, and she leant her head against his shoulder so he would know she understood. As she did, he looked down at her, kissing her head, peeling his eyes from the wormhole for the first time in what seemed like arns.

"John?" Aeryn whispered her throat constricting as she saw the tears well in his eyes. "Is…Does it… Earth?"

"Yes," John breathed and some of the tears spilled over. This strange wormhole could be the only way home he had seen since he got here. But still something nagged at him. Would Earth be his home after all this time? He looked back up to the vortex before them, and saw it close. His breathing hitched as he turned, and walked from Command.

Chiana moved as if to stop him, but Aeryn grabbed the Nebari's arm.

"No, Chiana, I'll look after it. There's a possibility that this wormhole goes to Earth. Let me talk to him okay?" She said, patting the girl's white hair and looking her straight in the eyes. Chiana nodded, and Aeryn left Command, following her husband.

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John was in the quarters he shared with Aeryn, on Tier 14, Hammond side. Hammond side was most commonly referred to as Crichton Side on this Tier, as John had filled most of the rooms, to make it more like a house. No one else on board had a problem with it, as it meant that the Crichton's didn't take up everyone else's space on Moya.

When Aeryn reached their "house" she stopped only to put the baby to bed before continuing down the hall to their quarters. She paused outside the door, took a breath, and tried to get her thoughts in order. She steeled herself and took a step inside.

As she'd expected, John didn't move when she entered. He knew her so well, he could tell when she walked past, even if his eyes were closed, and his ears covered. She knew him just as well, which is how she knew he was thinking. He sat on the end of their bed, his head bent as if he was studying his feet, and his hands were resting under his chin.

Aeryn sat beside him, and lent her head on his shoulder again, her long black hair trickling down his back. He tilted his head slightly and it rested lightly on top of her head.

"Are you okay?" Aeryn whispered. She'd only seen John like this a few times over the cycles, but it was enough to scare her. The last time had been after Ka D'Argo had died a cycle ago, but even then it wasn't this bad. Even after Katratzi, John had been a little better. But this, this was how she imagined he had been after she died three cycles ago. Scared, disorientated and broken. The sight of him sent her heart flying.

"Yes," John said. "No. I don't know."

"It'll be alright. I'm here for you," Aeryn stroked his cheek, smiling softly up at him.

"I should be glad, right? I may have just found a way to go back to Earth," John said. Aeryn was only slightly surprised at the fact that John had said 'go back to Earth' instead of 'go home'. He'd been referring to Earth as home less and less these days. It warmed her heart to know that he thought of Moya as more of a Home then Earth, but also sent a chill down her spine as she thought of it.

"But, for some reason, I'm scared to go. I need to see Dad, DK, Olivier, Susan, everyone! But they could just be getting over what happened. If I go back, and then just leave, what would that do to them?"' John kissed Aeryn's forehead as he spoke.

"You mean, you'd leave Earth? After five cycles searching, you'd leave?" Aeryn had always thought that if John made it back, he'd stay.

"Of course, Aeryn! What did you think, that I'd just leave Moya? I can't. She's my home. She's looked after me. And what about you? I couldn't ask you to stay on Earth with me, not unless we lived somewhere ridiculous, like Canada, because of all the heat! And then there are the scientists with all the tests they'll want to perform. I cannot subjugate you, or Dargo to that! You are the world to me, better then some backwater, primitive planet, no matter how much I miss Earth. I would rather stay with you!" All traces of John's earlier depression seemed to have vanished, and in its place was anger. Aeryn said nothing; she just stretched her head up and kissed John passionately on the lips.

When they finally broke apart, John was smiling, and Aeryn was grinning like a fool.

"What?" John said. "I know that face. You have a plan!"

"Pilot and Moya have told us that they are happy just exploring the galaxy, right?" She said through her smile.

"Yeah, 'Boldly going where no man's been before' and all that. What's you point?"

"Well, we don't know for sure that no leviathan has ever flown the distant Uncharted Territories, but we do know somewhere that they certainly have never been," John's face froze as he realised what Aeryn was saying.

"You think that Pilot and Moya should stay in the Milky Way, so I can visit Earth when ever I want?" Aeryn nodded, but John shook his head. "What if we need a doctor? If there's intelligent life in the Milky Way, we can't be sure that they will be able to help a Sebacean, or a Nebari, or a whatever-the-frell-it-is-that-granny-is, if they stay aboard."

"It doesn't matter. We've survived five cycles of med exams with you, and you seem ok. We'll just muddle through it."

"Aeryn-"

"No, John. Let's not discuss this now. Now we have to get ready for our –oh what is it you say? -Trip down the badger hole?"

"Rabbit hole. Trip down the rabbit hole." John said, laughing at Aeryn's Earth-speak. "Are you sure you want to come?"

"'Of course John. And we're taking Dargo with us. For now, the rest can stay aboard"

"Have I told you today how much I love you?" John said as he pulled Aeryn into his arms.

"No, but I guess I already knew," Aeryn countered, and they kissed happily.

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Can you say 'sappy-ending-but-the-rest-will-be-better'? Please reveiw,

Ari