John Sheridan and Delenn of Mir - the missing scenes

I am setting out to write scenes for this beautiful couple that we never saw on the actual show. Naturally, the focus of Babylon 5 was on the wars they were in. Behind the scenes, there must have been more to this romance that what we saw. This story is an attempt to complete the love story of the Earth Force Captain and the Minbari Ambassador by filling in the blanks I would have loved to see on screen.

Each scene will be introduced by telling you where to place it in the whole.

Setting of the first scene: after episode 16 of season 2 ("In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum") and before episode 17 ("Knives"). Everything you saw before this on the show, is the same in this story. Detailed knowledge of the Babylon 5 universe and story are assumed.

The scene itself is very small, but I'm using it to set the stage for our beloved characters with some backstory added in.

"Captain."

Her stomach clenches briefly when she spots him, strolling up to her casually as if they are taking a walk in the park instead of coming across each other in a packed corridor of the station. He stops in front of her, his hands on his back, and greets her formally.

"Good afternoon, Ambassador."

"Have you heard from him yet?" she asks, not mentioning a name since the walls of the station have ears. She'd had a long and sincere conversation with the Captain after she and Kosh had basically forced him to let Morden go. But they hadn't had any choice. They couldn't allow his 'associates' to stay on the station any longer. John understands this now, or at least she thinks he does. She knows they are still keeping information from John but she feels they have no choice at this stage.

John shakes his head, his eyes focused on hers.

"Not yet but he knows he can reach me at any time through Ivanova so I thought I'd mingle with the people on the station for a while before we have another crisis on our hands."

"Yes. There seems to be one around every corner these days," Delenn confirms. "I just wish we could take a break from all of it for a while."

John smiles and she swears he's standing closer to her than before.

"You and me both," he says, leaning into her slightly.

Just standing this close to him makes her body respond to him in a way she is certain it has never responded to a Minbari male before. Not that she has had any meaningful romantic relationships with other Minbari back home. It is not the way of the religious caste. They do marry but more often than not, marriages are arranged simply to make sure the caste remains and stays pure. Curious as she had always been, she had studied the rituals when she was younger of course. The Minbari rituals surrounding a budding romantic relationship are extensive but she has always seen them as very devout and thoughtful; more rational than emotional. She feels that even what she's learned about the rituals with regards to physical pleasure is somewhat subdued.

Besides, the focus of her upbringing and education have always been on study, religion and leadership. Her mother left her and her father when Delenn was still very young to pursue her own calling, so sacrificing one's own desires to do what is required had been ingrained in her from an early age.

When she was in that awkward stage between childhood and adulthood, her curiosity had gotten the better of her and just once, she had skipped all the boring rituals to get straight to the good parts. At the time, she had been friends with a like-minded young male from the warrior caste who lived down the street from her, and he had been as curious and as passionate as she was. To this day, she isn't certain if her father found out about them or if it had been a coincidence that she'd been transferred only a week later to start studying with Dukhat.

It had been a great honor to be selected to be mentored by the great Dukhat himself so she had left her young lover to return to her calling, and while she had savored the memory of the physical experience, she had not had any such encounters again since.

Her father had told her she had all it took to be a leader, and that she could grow up to be a member of the Grey Council one day. Dukhat could be the one to help her reach her full potential. He had been right on all counts and Dukhat had prepared her well to become a strong and courageous leader. So courageous that she had taken the enormous decision that she had - entering the chrysalis - fulfilling the prophecy without knowing for certain who or what she would be once she would emerge - if she would even emerge alive.

The only thing her upbringing and studies had not prepared her for, was falling in love. She hadn't expected to even have time for personal relationships on Babylon 5 beyond the ones that would benefit Minbar.

And yet here she is, staring into the hazel and very human eyes of the man who is gradually capturing her heart. The way he is looking at her now makes her wonder, as she has before, if he might have similar feelings. She has tried to tell herself he never would, since as a Minbari, she is still perceived as the enemy by most Humans. But the kind, almost tender look in his eyes is telling her something else entirely.

John smiles as if he knows exactly what she is thinking and she feels her face flush slightly. That's something it never used to do either. He is grinning now, and chuckling softly.

"What is it?" she asks, slightly annoyed at her own lack of control of the responses of her body.

"You're …"

He chuckles again and shakes his head. He feels the urge to reach for the flustered Ambassador's hand but decides against it. It wouldn't be appropriate. While they have been developing a warm understanding lately, they still have a professional relationship to uphold after all.

"Why Ambassador, I do believe you're blushing," he says softly and his gentle voice sends a chill up her spine. She looks away quickly.

"Minbari do not blush," she says as businesslike as she can although she knows she is no longer a regular Minbari and she is most definitely blushing.

He thinks she's so cute when she's embarrassed. He knows better than to call her cute though. He'd been slightly intimidated by the determined Minbari Ambassador at first. He knows she is fierce and strong, and on top of that she's a very cunning strategist with a clear sense of diplomacy as well as an enormous drive to get her way. But she's also a beautiful and sensitive woman, and the more he sees that side of her, the more he is enamored with her. He hadn't known if he would ever be able to develop feelings for another woman again after losing Anna so abruptly. Yet here he is, in an awkward yet strangely warm moment with the Ambassador of Minbar no less. And his heart beats a little faster every time he sees her.

"I hate to break it to you, but you are blushing," he tells her softly, standing even closer to her than before. He is making it seem like he has to make room for a few Drazi that are passing behind him but he suspects she is aware that it isn't really necessary for him to stand this close to her. He watches Delenn's eyes flit back and forth while she still looks away from him and he decides to help her out of her predicament.

"I'm guessing it's the heat. Our climate system has been acting up these past few days and on top of that, it's pretty crowded here."

Delenn is visibly relieved that he's giving her an out and it fills him with an odd sense of pride that he has such an effect on her. He is almost afraid to hope that maybe she's feeling some of the same things he is feeling whenever he is near her. Despite his natural inclination to dislike the Minbari because of the war, he finds himself seeing Delenn more as a woman than a Minbari. Her change in appearance definitely helps in that respect but even before her transformation, she had been beautiful in her own way. He's seen the pictures and no matter how human she may look now, she hasn't lost the Minbari fire in her eyes.

"Yes. Of course. That must be it," Delenn stammers.

She usually isn't shy. In fact, she had been the one to ask him a while ago if they could have dinner together. To get to know more about Humans and their food and culture, she'd said. But when she had arrived in that jaw-dropping black dress, he hadn't been so sure if that had been the only reason she'd asked him out. But whatever her reasons had been, that dress had definitely been a determining factor in how he remembered their evening together. That, and her laughter, which had genuinely surprised him. He thinks now that maybe that was the moment he started seeing her as a woman instead of a Minbari or even a political figure. He has found himself capable of relaxing in her company in a way that he can't quite find with anyone else on the busy station. She has a way of looking at the world, the galaxy even, that somehow puts his mind at ease about the grand scheme of things, and where exactly he fits in.

It amuses him how Delenn suddenly makes up an excuse to dash off and he shakes his head as he watches her leave quickly, although she manages to keep her dignity as she weaves through the crowd to get to the nearest tube. He looks around for someone else to have a chat with, but he suddenly doesn't feel like chatting anymore. He strolls towards a tube as well and wonders to himself if Anna would have liked Delenn. Anna was as stubborn and strong-willed as Delenn is. Would they have gotten along or would they have clashed? John sighs. It's a redundant question. If Anna had still been alive, they would probably never have met anyway. He can only hope now that she's smiling down on him and that she's happy for him that he is finding a way to move on.

To be continued - if anyone is interested?