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Chapter Text

The room was dark when he opened his eyes and looked around to see what had awoken him. The first thing he noticed was his lover was no longer in bed. He sat up and scanned the room. The next thing he saw was that neither cat was in their bed. The sound of retching drew him to the final thing that was out of place, the bathroom door was partially open, letting light into the master suite. Evan got out of bed as quietly as he could, since it seemed Sheppard wasn’t bothered by the noise. He crept to the bathroom door and slipped inside. Mariah was sprawled out on the cool bathroom floor, her eyes closed, with Trouble and Fearless cuddled up against her sides. He grabbed a couple of things and sat next to her.

“Here, beautiful.” He draped a wet cloth across her forehead. “I also have some water, when you feel ready to rinse your mouth out.

“You’re a saint, Ev.”

“Just helping where I can.” He reached out and stroked her cheek and neck. “What’s wrong?”

“Must’ve been something I ate.”

“You ate the same thing as John and I and neither of us is sick.”

The linguist sighed. “Maybe I didn’t wash my hands enough between steps in the recipe and gave myself food poisoning.”

“Do you want me to call the infirmary?”

“No… I just want to lay here for a few minutes. Besides, there isn’t anything left in my stomach.”

He sat there with her and continued his attention to her neck and face. Then he made a suggestion. “Why don’t you sit up and rinse out your mouth? Then we can go back to bed. We have things to do tomorrow.” He took the cloth off her forehead.

“Okay.” Mariah struggled to sit up, but was helped by her lover. However, her stomach revolted against being compressed. She dove back towards the toilet and dry heaved into it. Her cats were upset by her sudden movement, but rubbed against her in an attempt to soothe her.

Setting the glass on the floor, Lorne pulled her hair away from her face and rubbed her back. He breathed a sigh of relief when she stopped trying to expel her stomach and picked the glass back up. “Take this, beautiful. You’ll feel better once the taste is out of your mouth.” She took the glass without looking at him, sipped some water, and swished it around. She spit it out, then took an actual drink. Her throat hurt.

“You guys are always disappearing on me in the middle of the night.” John padded into the bathroom, then saw what was going on. “What’s wrong?” He dropped down on the floor on the other side of his lover from Evan. He pressed a kiss to her temple

“Her stomach’s upset. I think we should get her into bed, laying down.” Lorne stood and returned the glass to the sink area. He hung the wet cloth over the edge of the counter. When he turned back around, he spoke to the cats. “Trouble, Fearless, go back to bed.” They hissed in response, startling both men.

“Babies….” Dr. Gray said in warning. Her pets meowed, rubbed against her one more time, and finally, trotted out of the bathroom.

“What’s gotten in to them?” Sheppard asked. He slowly stood and helped Mariah to her feet.

“Probably trying to protect me, since I don’t feel well.” She held a hand to her mouth and muttered around it. “I’m not sure moving me is a good idea.”

“Come on, beautiful. You’ll be fine once you’re prone.” Evan rejoined them and kissed her forehead. “We’ll find the heating pad to put on your stomach. That should help.” He and John led her back into the bedroom. Then he got her into bed and asked. “Could you go get the heating pad? I think it’s in the spare room.”

“Sure.” The leader of AR-1 smiled and darted out of the room.

Lorne helped the linguist get situated in the middle of the bed and went back into the bathroom for a minute. He came out with the wet cloth, freshly rinsed in cool water, and a small basin. “Let’s put this on your head and I’ll keep this on my bedside table, just in case.” He gestured to the basin as he rounded the bed. He put it down and placed the cloth on her forehead again.

“I hate being sick.”

“We know, sweetheart.” John declared as he reentered the room. He had the heating pad. Thankfully, McKay had rigged it with a portable rechargeable battery a while ago after Sheppard had wrenched his back training with Ronon, so no cord or outlet was needed. He turned it onto its lowest setting and climbed into bed, where he settled it on her stomach. “You going to be able to sleep?” He slid down under the sheets and propped himself up on his right arm. He rubbed her cheek with the back of his hand.

“Yeah, if you keep doing that.” She smiled and let her eyes slide closed.

“Whatever you need.” He leaned down and kissed her temple again. He watched as the other man got back into bed and began to rub their lover’s arm. “What are your plans for…?” He glanced over at the clock. “Later today?”

“Translations and babysitting.” She answered sleepily. “It’s Teyla’s first day back on active duty.”

“Yeah, we have a mission in the afternoon.” Sheppard shared.

“I know. I’m going to watch Torren for a couple hours in the morning, too. Teyla has a bantos lesson to give and Ronon is working with one of the marines on his hand-to-hand combat skills.” Mariah snuggled down into her pillow and let her head loll to the side. The former base XO took the cloth off her head and tossed it towards the bathroom to deal with later. 

Evan kissed her cheek and smiled. She would be asleep in a few more minutes. “I thought Teyla was getting one of the Athosians to move back to the City to act as a nanny.”

“She is, but it isn’t for a few more weeks. The Athosians are about to begin their harvest and they need everyone to help. She didn’t want to pull Myla away until afterwards. I don’t mind helping. AR-1 only goes on a mission or two a week and between me and the medical staff, there are enough people to watch Torren until Myla can come help.” She gave a contented sigh and muttered. “Love you both.” Then she was asleep.

“Do you think we should be concerned about her getting sick?” John whispered. He thought the lights down to their lowest level, but stayed where he could see the other man.

“No, not yet. If it keeps happening, we may have to take her to the infirmary to see Carson.” Lorne paused. “Once he gets back from his R&R, that is.” He yawned. “We need to get some sleep, since we both have missions tomorrow.” He slid down under the sheets, being careful of his lover’s stomach.

Sheppard followed suit. “Yeah. Is this the first internal mission since the division of power?”

“Yeah. Some of the new marines showed potential during their shadowing rotations and I’m going to test them out. Cadman’s going to help me.”

“She’s still trying to figure out how to build her own team. Most of the people she’s interested in already have team assignments.” He pressed a kiss to Mariah’s forehead.

“Laura’s smart, she’ll figure it out. Night, John.”

“Night, Ev.”

The lights turned off. 

*****

“Sorry, babies. He’s too little for you to play with. Anyway, he’s sleeping.” Dr. Gray continued working on her current translation. She was sitting at the dining room table in the apartment, working on some documents from the energy production lab. Radek and Rodney had made little progress in figuring out the science behind creating and/or recharging a ZPM and because of that, O’Neill had to resume the normal mission schedule. However, translating the documents from the manufacturing facility was still a priority and a science team had been going back and forth from the facility as often as possible, gathering additional data for her to review. Zelenka was team leader, or at least, he was when the CSO wasn’t available.

The linguist had felt a great deal better when she woke up, but still allowed her lovers to take care of her. They even brought her breakfast in bed. Her pets got in on the action, joining her in bed and giving her some love. And for the first time, Fearless licked and groomed her. She almost cried she was so excited. Soon, the two military commanders were off to work and she started on her translations. After a while, Teyla came by with Torren. The little boy was getting so big after just three months. The two women got the baby sling attached to Mariah and slid the sleepy infant into it. The new mother left with a bit of reluctance, while her friend just smiled and waved. 

Since the Athosian left, she had been working for about thirty minutes and for that entire time, the two cats had been pestering her. They either wanted in the baby sling or they wanted to play with Torren. Neither thing was going to happen and they weren’t getting the message. Then her radio chirped.

Hitting her radio on, she responded. “Gray here.” 

“Mariah, can you swing by my office?”

“Depends on what you need, Jack.”

“Why do you have to be difficult?”

“I’m not.” She smiled and chuckled at his sigh over the radio. “I’m working and babysitting, plus dealing with needy cats. I’m just trying to figure out how important your summons is.”

“Fine.” The General sighed again. “I want to talk to you about AR-1’s mission today and your current translation efforts.”

“Okay….” She saved her work and stood. The young woman wasn’t quite sure about the first thing, but the second was definitely a legitimate reason for her boss to call her. “I’m on my way, but keep your voice down. I want Torren to stay asleep until Teyla comes to get him in an hour.”

“No problem. O’Neill out.” The radio connection went dead.

The linguist hit her radio off and headed for the door, then realized her pets were following her. “Babies, you need to stay here.”

They sat at her feet and looked up at her with sad eyes. Trouble gave a pathetic meow.

“Oh, fine.” She rolled her eyes. She really had no self-control when it came to her pets. “You can come, but no running off and no climbing anyone. Is that clear?” She looked down and wagged a finger at them, trying to look stern. 

They rubbed against her ankles and purred.

With a shake of her head, Mariah left the apartment. When she got to the transporter, she waited for the felines to climb in and with a flash, they came out by the Control Room. She smiled when a couple of the scientists did double takes, seeing the cats trailing after their owner. They were laughing by the time they left the Control Room, but the linguist did her best to ignore it. Her pets were weird, she was well aware. She nodded at Chuck and headed to the open doors of the expedition leader’s office.

“Knock-knock.” She stated softly and entered. Trouble and Fearless sprinted across the office and rounded the desk.

“Hey. AHHH!!” O’Neill cried, then covered his mouth when he remembered the sleeping baby. He reached down and came up with a cat in each hand. “What are they doing here?”

“They wanted to come, but they promised no climbing.”

“Well, they didn’t exactly keep that promise.” He tossed them gently on the floor and watched as they returned to their owner’s side. “Have a seat.”

“Thanks.” She headed to one of the visitor chairs and sat down. “What can I do for you?” The cats laid down on either side of her chair.

“You know about AR-1’s mission today, right?”

“Ancient outpost. It was referenced in a document I translated from the database.”

“Yeah.” He smiled. “AR-3 did the initial mission, however they were unable to gain access to the facility. With only one gene carrier and no scientist on their roster, there wasn’t much they could do beyond scout the area and see what else was around.”

“Did they find anything?” She asked, then rubbed Torren’s back through the sling. He was shifting minutely against her and she wanted him to remain asleep.

“Nothing of interest. But AR-1 is going back to see if Sheppard can open the facility and if he can’t, McKay is going to try to bypass the door controls.”

“All very interesting, Jack, but what does any of this have to do with me?”

He growled at her. “I was getting to that.” He shook his head and continued. “If they still can’t get in, I want you to go on a mission with AR-3 to gain entry, since you have an Ancient level of the gene.”

Dr. Gray nodded. “Okay, but you know, you could go. Your expression of the gene is stronger than John’s.”

“Why waste time?” He grinned at her.

“By that logic, any time there’s an Ancient facility suspected to be on a planet, I should go to save time.” She was fighting not to smirk at him.

“I suggested the same thing to the boys, but Sheppard reminded me off-world missions are under his purview and you’re only going when there’s no other options. I decided not to point out I was his boss and could make it an order.”

“He’s such a worrywart.” Mariah rolled her eyes. “But you bypassed my point. Why do you only go on missions to the shipyards?”

“Because when we go there, there’s a chance I get to fly advanced alien spaceships. I’m a pilot. It’s what I live for.”

“Grown men acting like little boys with toys.” She rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll accept the fact I may need to go on a mission, but don’t let your off-world military commander go crazy and insist on multiple security teams going along to protect me.”

“Deal.” He grinned again. “I like it when you make things easy.”

“I’m a softie, what can I say.” She cleared her throat and sat up. “So, what did you want to know about my current translation efforts?”

“How is the data from the ZPM lab looking?”

“I’m about a quarter of the way through, but beyond that, I can’t tell you much. Most of it is over my head. I only took basic physics in both high school and college.” She paused and thought about what Janus had told her. “But we’re going to get it to work.”

“Huh?” The General leaned forward on his desk. “How do you know that?” She looked down and blushed. He thought about it. “You spoke to Janus?”

“Yes, when we were on Earth.”

“That was two months ago…. Did you tell the boys?”

“No. You’re the only one I’ve told. I asked him if we’d be able to recharge a ZPM and he said yes.”

“Why didn’t you say something?”

Mariah shrugged. “At first, he didn’t want to tell me, but after I told him I wasn’t asking for the details, he said yes. I wouldn’t have understood his explanation, even if he could’ve told me.”

“Do you think he could help us to get it working?”

She shook her head. “No, he’s already in trouble with the Others. They’ve stopped his ability to see my future. I just thought between Radek and Rodney they would’ve already figured it out. But that isn’t the case.”

“No, it isn’t.” O’Neill sat back in his chair and studied her. He knew he and the boys sometimes exploited her abilities and Ancestral knowledge. He wanted to press her, but thought better of it. It was his job to protect her, not use her for the expedition’s and Earth’s gain. If Janus, the great inventor, said they would get it to work, then he was going to have to have faith in the process. “That’s all I had. Get out of here and get back to work on those translations. Am I still invited to dinner tonight?”

“Yup. I’m making chicken Milanese with roasted potatoes and sautéed veggies.” She stood and rounded her chair. She smiled at her friend. “See you later.” Then she turned and left, her pets trailing after her.

Jack shook his head, then bellowed. “Chuck, where are those reports?” 

Without missing a beat, the Gate tech hurried into the office. The normal daily grind continued.

*****

“Amazing meal as always, Mariah.”

“Thanks, Jack.” The linguist stood and started to clear the table. Her lovers immediately rose and helped her.

“Did the boys tell you about their missions today?” The General sat back in his seat at the dining room table and watched his hostess. They had kept the dinner conversation rather innocuous, but he wanted to be sure she knew about the outcomes of both missions, especially John’s. 

“No, they didn’t. However, Rodney came by after AR-1 got back and ranted for ten or so minutes. He stopped as soon as I gave him a cookie.” She opened a cabinet and pulled out her cookie tin. “Do you want coffee with your dessert?”

“Sure. What am I getting tonight?”

“Oatmeal raisin, my mom’s recipe.” She put a couple cookies on a plate and handed it to Sheppard, then went to pour her guest some coffee.

The General happily accepted the plate from the Colonel and smiled at the young woman when she brought him his coffee. “Thanks. Wanna hear about the missions? The boys can chime in if I miss something.”

“Sure.” Mariah slid back into her seat and smiled when Lorne handed her a cookie.

“I’m certain you gathered from McKay’s rant that AR-1 wasn’t able to get into the Ancient outpost. Sheppard’s gene didn’t even seem to register, then McKay pulled the door control apart and tried to reroute it. Sheppard ended things after two hours of him trying.” O’Neill chuckled.

“I was afraid he was going to blow the crystals if he wasn’t careful. He even suggested getting one of the portable generators and trying to use it to bypass the controls. I told him no.” John grumbled while he munched on a cookie.

The expedition leader smiled at Mariah. “That means you get to go on a mission in a week or two, whenever AR-3 is available and it can be worked into the schedule.”

“I’m already coordinating things with Stackhouse, sir.”

“Good man, Sheppard.”

“My mission was a lot more productive, but I only had to contend with green marines, Cadman, Miko and Radek, so….” Evan offered with a smile. He leaned down and kissed his lover’s temple. He was standing behind her chair, since his former CO had taken his seat at the table.

“Yeah, they were sweeping the hallways around the Wraith lab, plus Dr. Z got the transporter working, finally. Only took four years.” Jack chuckled again.

John defended their actions. “We’ve had a lot more important things to be working on, sir. Like the shipyards, losing the City, the Asurans and other things.” He tried his best to not glare at his superior.

“And two kidnappings.” The linguist added. The room went silent at her comment, causing her to sigh. “Just consider the fact I’m the one who mentioned it and move on. Both kidnappings took up a lot of time and mental energy.” She opted to change the subject. “What else did you find down by the Wraith lab?” She bent her head back and looked up at her lover.

Lorne shook his head to clear his unpleasant thoughts. “More labs. Miko came with the team and me to sweep the rooms, while I left Cadman with Radek at the transporter. From what she told me, they were mainly genetics and biochemistry labs, which makes sense with the Wraith lab being there. Thankfully, the Ancients shut down most of the experiments in those labs prior to their evacuation to Earth.” He brushed a hand against the young woman’s cheek.

“That’s good. We don’t need to deal with any out of control experiments or deadly pathogens. My paperwork is already out of control. I don’t need more.” The General shook his head and drank up the last of his coffee, his two cookies were long gone. He stood. “Thanks for dinner. I’m going to get out of your way.” 

“Night, Jack.” Mariah stated with a smile. The expedition leader smiled back, before turning and heading to the front doors.

“Good night, sir.” The two Colonels said in unison and watched the older man leave the apartment with a wave.

Standing with a sigh, Dr. Gray headed into the kitchen. The mess wasn’t bad, but it would still take her awhile to clean things up. Her lovers started to help her without prompting, which made her happy. 

After about 30 minutes, all the dishes were clean, dried and put away. The linguist sat back down at the dining room table and continued to work on a few translations she wanted to finish up. A couple hours passed, then she felt a presence. She turned and spotted Sheppard hovering behind her.

“Yes?”

“Bedtime, sweetheart.” He reached around her, saved her work and closed her laptop.

“What?” She looked at her watch, only to see it was later than she thought it was. “Oh.” She yawned. “I am kind of tired.” She stood and let her lover usher her towards the bedroom.

Lorne met them at the door. “Of course you are, beautiful. You did lots of stuff today.” He took her in his arms and held her close. “I drew you a bath. You should relax a bit before bed.”

“Okay.” Mariah knew the men were babying her because she had a rough night the night before, but she wasn’t going to complain. She let her lovers disrobe her and laughed each time they got distracted, but soon she was sitting in a warm bubble bath, her tension melting away. All too soon, the water was cooling and when she stood up, they were both there, helping her out and drying her off. They climbed into bed together and fell asleep within minutes of each other.

Several hours passed, before John awoke. He paused, trying to figure out what had disturbed him. His lover was in his arms, but she was shifting uncomfortably. He cupped her cheek and whispered to her. She had to be having a nightmare. “Wake up, sweetheart.”

“Huh?” She slowly returned to consciousness and met his eyes. As soon as she did, a look of panic spread across her face and she pushed him away from her. Scrambling over him and almost kneeing him in an unfortunate spot, she bolted into the bathroom. Then all he heard was retching.

“Ev, wake up.” He nudged the other man, then started to climb out of bed, the lights coming on in the bedroom.

“Wha…?” Lorne was half asleep, but sat up and looked at his friend.

“Mariah’s sick again.” Sheppard headed into the bathroom, doing his best to avoid the cats who had just sprinted past him. The linguist was hunched over the toilet, doing her best to empty her stomach of all its contents. Several minutes passed before she finally stopped, draping her unhappy body along the edge of the toilet seat. He knelt down next to her and brushed hair away from her face. “Feel better?”

“Not really.” She absently pet Trouble, who was rubbing against her thigh.

Lorne entered the bathroom, holding a glass. “Drink a little of this, beautiful.” He held out the glass to her. John took it from him and held it to her lips, once she was kneeling upright.

“Where’d you get ginger ale from?” The cool, effervescent liquid soothed her raw throat and calmed her stomach’s displeasure. “It’s my favorite. Sick or not.” She took a few more sips and pushed the glass away.

“I know. I asked Chuck who might have some and traded for it with a little help from David.” He walked around the pair on the floor and dropped down behind his lover, offering her some support.

“Someone wanted fresh vegetables?” Sheppard asked. “Not that I blame them, but still.”

“Lt. Romano is Italian and has been craving his mother’s marinara. I gave him some fresh tomatoes, basil and oregano so he could make it.” He sighed happily, when Mariah leaned back against him.

“What did you have to give Parrish?” The two men kept the conversation going for the young woman’s sake. John offered her the glass again. He smiled when she took a few more sips.

“Trip to the mainland. The botany team hasn’t been back since the Kirsan fever outbreak and he wants to do some more exploring. The General said the mainland was under my purview, so I set up a mission for next week. There are a few marines who’d like to join Gate teams and this is my chance to see how they do in the field with scientists.”

“Good thinking, Ev. I look forward to hearing about how it goes.”

“I’m going to write up a report for you and O’Neill when we get back. I know we have 14 Gate teams now, but with twice the number of people, we’re going to need at least ten more to achieve the right balance.” Lorne kissed Mariah’s temple. “How you doing, beautiful?”

“The ginger ale is helping.”

“You should probably go to the infirmary tomorrow, sweetheart, and let Keller have a look at you.” John held the glass to her lips yet again and grinned when she drank the rest of its contents.

The linguist shook her head. “I can wait for Carson to get back from his R&R, but I’m going to see if Marie will give me some anti-nausea meds. Just enough to tide me over.”

“Jen really isn’t that bad.” Evan stated, then grunted when he got elbowed in the stomach. “Or I could be mistaken.”

“You’re mistaken.” She looked down at her pets. “Babies, go back to your bed. It’s time to get some sleep.” With a final rub from each of them, she watched as they scampered back into the bedroom. She then started to stand up.

Both men scrambled to their feet and assisted her. They led her back into the bedroom and helped her into bed. Sheppard set the empty glass on his bedside table and grabbed the heating pad without prompting. “Let’s get this on your stomach.” He turned it on and offered it to her.

“Thanks.” She grabbed it and pressed it to her tummy. 

“Of course, sweetheart.” He climbed in beside her and watched as the other man did the same on his side. He thought the lights down. “Do you think you picked up a stomach bug?”

“Not sure. We’ve been getting a lot of new people. Maybe someone brought something from Earth with them.” Mariah gave a contented sigh, when John began to rub her cheek.

Lorne got in on the action, rubbing the side of her neck and pressed a kiss to her temple. “There’d probably be more people sick, if that was the case, beautiful.” He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it right now. Go to sleep.”

“Love you, Ev. Love you, John.” A few minutes later, she was asleep.

The two Colonels shared a look, but didn’t speak. Thinking the lights off, they both settled down to sleep. They were both hoping something wasn’t seriously wrong with the woman they loved. 

*****

“You’re sure?”

“Aye, love.” The CMO chuckled at her frown. “Wasn’t this the outcome you were expecting?”

“Yeah…, but not this quickly.”

“Things happen in their own time.” He covered her hands, which she had clenched in her lap. “There’s nothing to worry about, love.”

“Yeah….” She almost whispered, then looked down and mumbled something softly, too low for the physician to hear.

“What was that, love?”

“I didn’t tell them.”

“Didn’t tell who what?” The Scotsman was confused.

“John and Evan, I didn’t tell them what I had you do.”

Beckett shook his head. “Ach, love. They should’ve been involved.”

“No… all they would have done is plan and plot everything out. I wanted it to be more natural than that.” She sighed and hopped off the infirmary bed.

“I can understand that, but now you have to tell them.”

Tears started to enter her eyes and she sniffled. “And Jack.”

“Well, he is your boss, but that can-.”

“It’s not because he’s my boss.” She sighed again. “I’m slated to go on a mission in two days.”

“Ohhh.” Carson’s eyes got big, then he smiled. “Still it can wait. Speak with the lads today and tell the General tomorrow.”

“It’ll be easier to tell them all at once, plus John is less likely to overreact if a superior officer is there.”

“And the General can always yell at him for you.” He chuckled when she smiled at his comment.

“That’s a definite positive.” The linguist hit her radio. “Gray to Control.” She paused and her smile turned to a grin. “Hey, Chuck. Is O’Neill busy?” She listened to his response. “Actually, that’s perfect. Could you pop in and mention I’m on my way? I need to speak to the three of them.” She gave a sigh of relief. “Thanks, Chuck. Gray out.” She hit her radio off and locked eyes with her friend.

“Would you like me to come along for moral support?” He pulled the curtain around the bed out of the way and walked with her to the entrance of the infirmary.

“No, but if I come back here in tears, could you get out the big needles and protect me?”

“Aye, love. I think I can manage that.” He pulled her into a fast hug and whispered in her ear. “It’s going to be okay. This is what you all want.”

“Yes, it is. Thanks, Carson.” She said, before pulling away and heading down the hall to the transporter. She muttered to herself. “Time to face the music.”

Chapter Text

“Thanks, Chuck.” The expedition leader nodded at the Gate Tech as he left the office. The doors stayed open in anticipation of Dr. Gray’s arrival. “Any idea what your girl wants?”

“No, sir.” Lorne answered for both men. The Colonels were seated in the visitor chairs across from O’Neill. They had been discussing the need for additional Gate teams as well as allocated City teams. They had been making a good argument for their cause, when Sgt. Campbell came in and informed the General the linguist needed to speak with them. The former base XO had been able to school his features to hide his shock, his former CO had not.

Jack stood. “Move your chairs by the couch, boys. I’ll sit there with Mariah, then we can all be comfortable while she tells us what she needs to. I know she hasn’t been feeling well.” He rounded his desk and plopped onto the couch. He watched as his military commanders rose and did as he suggested.

“We appreciate that, sir.” Sheppard responded and retook his seat. The young woman had been sick five nights out of the last eight, but had booked an appointment with the CMO for that morning. Hopefully, she was just coming by to tell them what was wrong. It concerned him she wanted O’Neill to hear what the issue was, too.

There was no more time to think about it because the linguist had arrived and she chuckled at the scene she came upon. “This looks cozy. Do you sit like this during all your meetings?”

“Nope, though this is way more comfortable than my chair.” Jack snuggled back into the plush cushions of the couch. “We actually did this for you. This way you can relax and the boys can’t hover behind you.” He chuckled at the two frowning faces across from him. “Have a seat and tell us what you wanted to talk about.”

“Okay.” She faltered for a moment before walking the short distance to the couch and sitting herself down, on the very edge of the cushion. She looked at her lovers, then over at her boss. She gave a heavy sigh, but quickly remembered to think the doors closed and windows opaque. This conversation deserved privacy. She wasn’t sure where to start, but opted to skirt the actual issue for now. “I can’t go on the mission the day after tomorrow.”

“Any particular reason?” O’Neill had watched the doors closing and sensed it was her attempt to protect them from prying eyes. Whatever she had to tell them was personal.

Sensing her unease, Evan decided a little prompting might be needed. “Is this because of your appointment with Beckett?” She nodded her head and looked at her lap. “Beautiful, just tell us.”

“Um….”

“Mariah….” The General said in warning. He was almost as concerned as her lovers. He shifted forward on the couch so he was right next to her and rubbed her back.

“I’m pregnant.” She whispered. The room went quiet and the hand on her back froze. She didn’t dare look up, but she would wager the boys were excited.

In actuality, several emotions passed over their faces, confusion, alarm and finally, joy. They both wanted this, but Mariah’s reaction gave them pause. They had thought she would’ve been happy, but she seemed petrified. Sheppard sat forward in his chair and put a hand under her chin, tilting her face up so he could see her eyes. They were filled with tears and it broke his heart. “This isn’t a bad thing, sweetheart, unless it isn’t what you want.”

“It is and isn’t. I’m scared… of all the things we talked about a year ago, but when I held Torren after he was born, it just felt right and I wanted that… for the three of us.” She tried to smile, but it was a struggle. She felt the expedition leader’s hand start to move on her back again. “But now….”

“You aren’t in this alone, beautiful.” Lorne moved closer to the young woman. “This baby will be ours, the three of ours. We’ll be equal in his or her eyes, though….” He smiled at her. “I’m sure you’ll be their favorite, just like with Trouble, Fearless and Bernard.” Everyone chuckled. “So, your middle of the night bouts of vomiting are morning sickness?”

“Yeah… Carson gave me some pills to take each night before I go to bed, but even with them, there’s no telling when it might hit me.”

“We’ll work through it.” John stated with a smile. “How far along are you?”

“Five or six weeks, but probably closer to six.”

“That would mean it happened after we got back from Earth.” The former base XO posited. 

“Probably during our last visit to the spa, when-.”

“Sheppard, stop right there. I don’t want to hear about your sex life and I doubt Mariah wants you sharing personal information.” The General chuckled when he saw the linguist’s face turning red in embarrassment. “How are you doing, Mariah?”

“I’m okay. Just wasn’t expecting this to happen so fast. And I’m sorry about the mission. I know you need my gene to try to open the door.” She leaned forward and gave her lovers each a kiss on the cheek, before sliding back on the couch until she was sitting normally. The three men followed suit.

“Yeah, about that, I don’t see an issue with you going.”

“What??” John shouted and glared at his superior. Lorne, on the other hand, held his tongue. He knew the General had his reasons and would explain.

Jack chuckled. The boys might not like it, but he knew what he was doing. Plus, based on the smile Mariah was giving him, he knew this was what she wanted, too. The Colonels be damned. 

*****

“All right, guys. You remember the plan, right?”

All he got in response was a couple of meows and a squeak. Well, that and the laughter of his human companion.

“Stop that, Ev. This is going to work.”

“No, it’s not. But please go ahead. If nothing else, your plan is entertaining.”

Their lover exited the bedroom, halting any further comment. She was dressed in her off-world uniform and had her pack over one shoulder. She was smiling at the two men. Then she looked down and spotted her pets. Trouble and Fearless were sitting at her feet, Bernard on the black cat’s head, all looking up at her with sad eyes. She sighed and glanced at John. “Nice try, but it isn’t going to work.” She spared a look at Lorne, when he started to laugh again.

“They don’t want you to go and I don’t want you to go. That should tell you something.”

“Yes, that you’re being a pain in the ass and bribed my pets with food.” Mariah leaned down and grabbed Bernard, holding his up to her face. He licked her a couple times, before getting a kiss. She took him over to his cage and carefully placed him inside. Then she squatted down. The two felines hurried over to her to both give and receive a little love. “Be good, babies. Keep John company while he worries needlessly about me.”

“It’s not needless. You’re carrying our baby.”

The linguist stood and looked at him sternly. “Yes, I am, but I’m also able to take care of myself. Plus, Stacks and his team will do everything in their power to keep me safe.” She quirked her head at him. “You didn’t tell him, did you?”

“No, beautiful, neither of us mentioned it to him. We’re respecting your privacy, per your request.” Lorne strolled towards them.

“And Jack’s order.” She smiled. “I appreciate it. I’d like to keep this to ourselves as long as we can. Once I start to show, everyone will figure it out.” She groaned and tilted her head up to the ceiling. “Then I’ll need to go back to Earth to see my mom. I’ll have to tell her everything.” Her mother was something else.

Evan stepped forward and took her in his arms. He gave her a gentle kiss, then hugged her against his chest. Her pack slid down her arm and landed with a thud on the floor as her arms went around his waist. “Be careful, beautiful. If you can’t get in, just return to the City. We trust you to protect yourself, but want you to be safely back with us as soon as possible.” He dropped a kiss on her head.

“Will do.” She sighed in contentment when John joined them and stepped right up against her back. This was where she felt the safest. After a couple of minute, she wiggled out from between them and hoisted her bag on her shoulder again. “Come on. The two of you are going to make me late.” She headed to the doors and exited the apartment, her lovers trailing after her.

It only took a few minutes for them to appear outside the Control Room, where they parted company with waves and smiles. The military commanders headed into the Control Room and right over to the dialing computer. O’Neill was already there, waiting for them. He was grinning and rocking back and forth on his heels. 

“Boys.”

“Sir.” They both responded.

“Dial it up, Chuck.” The General said offhandedly. He herded the two men towards the head of the stairs. AR-3 was slowly assembling down in the Gate Room. The last to join them was Sgt. Petrov, who was following after the linguist. It was obvious Stacks had assigned the Russian to be her escort, since she was so comfortable with him. The Gate connected and he asked. “Stackhouse, you ready?”

“Yes, sir.” The Security Chief replied with a smirk. “We’re happy for the chance to go back to M3M-K19. Can’t wait to see what we find.”

Sheppard was still completely focused on his lover. “Dimitri.” He called out and waited for the marine to lock eyes with him. “Don’t let anything happen to her.” He did his best to ignore Mariah shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

“Da, sir. I will protect her with my life.” Petrov received a nod from his CO.

“Get going, Stacks, before Sheppard tries to go through the Gate with you.” Jack said. He received a nod from the Staff Sergeant and watched the team depart. Once they were gone and the Gate disconnected, he glared at John. “Behave, Colonel. She knows what she’s doing and this isn’t going to happen all the time. She’s too important to the expedition for me to put in harm’s way any more than necessary. You’re dismissed.” The look of displeasure didn’t leave the other man’s face. He looked at the former base XO. “Lorne, find something to occupy him until they get back.”

“Yes, sir.” Evan responded crisply. He watched as the expedition leader turned and went into his office. He grabbed his friend’s arm. “Come on, John. We have work to do.” He tugged him over to their office and walked in, the doors shutting firmly behind them. 

*****

When AR-3 arrived on the planet, the sun was shining, making the yellow and green field before them appear like gold and emeralds. The planet looked just the same as during their previous visit. Nate waited for the full team to appear and scanned each of them. He immediately noticed something was off with the linguist.

“You okay, doc?”

“Not exactly, but hopefully it goes away during our walk to the outpost.” She tried her best to smile, but she looked a little green around the gills. 

Stacks shared a look with Dimitri, before turning towards the path. “Yeager, take our six. Kreis with me. Petrov, you and the doc stay in the middle.” The marines took up their positions and they began to walk. The Staff Sergeant added one more comment for the linguist’s sake. “It should only take us about fifteen minutes to get to the facility.” Then their group went silent.

Even with the sun beating down on them, the temperature was mild with a gentle breeze. It was overall a pleasant hike to the outpost, or more aptly what they assumed was an outpost. Dr. Gray studied the structure as they approached. It was right on the edge of a dense forest and appeared to be a large cube of a building with a set of doors in it. When she really thought about it, it kind of reminded her of the structure at the top of an elevator shaft, where the pulleys were housed. It seemed to imply the outpost was underground, which wasn’t unique but also wasn’t the norm for Ancient structures. The Ancient were vain and liked to show off their superior architecture and technology.

By the time they approached the doorway, Mariah was feeling worse and Petrov was eyeing her with a great deal of concern. She had to speak up. “Stacks, I need to use the little girl’s room.” She didn’t want to share her need to throw up, for obvious reasons.

“Okay, doc. Sergeant, escort Dr. Gray into the woods. But let’s be quick. I don’t like being out in the open any longer than needed, especially if we can’t get in.” Nate was antsy for some reason. 

“Come along, malen’kiy.” The marine ushered her towards the forest.

When they were out of sight of the others, the young woman picked up her pace and called out over her shoulder. “Stay there, Dimitri. I want some privacy. I won’t go far.” With a glance behind her, she smiled when she saw him stop a couple yards away from her. She went a little farther, hoping he wouldn’t hear her. Once she was behind a large tree, she expelled the entirety of her breakfast into a bush. She vomited four times over the course of five minutes and stood up with a sigh of relief. She leaned against the tree and fumbled for her canteen. She took a swig and rinsed out her mouth, before she took another sip to soothe her throat.

“I’m not sure which one of us is having a worse day, you or me.” A voice said to her. It came from the opposite direction of the outpost.

Mariah whirled around and froze. There was a stranger standing about ten feet from her. He was black, with short curly, black hair. He was dressed in homespun clothing and was carrying a Wraith stunner rifle. The thing that really stood out to her was the scarring on the left side of his face and his left eye was almost completely black. She knew who he was. “Lt. Aiden Ford?”

“How the hell do you know who I am?” He brought up the rifle and pointed it at her. She brought up her hands, showing him she wasn’t a threat and had no weapon.

“John… I mean, Colonel Sheppard told me about you.”

“You know the Colonel?” He was confused, but kept his weapon pointed at her.

“Yes…. I, um, came out with the second wave of the expedition, after they reestablished contact with Earth. I’m a linguist.”

“I don’t believe you.”

She looked down at herself. “Don’t you recognize my uniform?” She turned a little, all ready to show him the patch on her uniform, then realized they didn’t wear them off-world to avoid drawing attention to themselves. She thought of how she could prove she was telling the truth. “I’m here with AR-3, Sgt. Stackhouse’s team, though he’s a Staff Sergeant now. He got promoted a few months ago.”

The rifle wavered in his hands and he angled it down, so he could see her better. “Stacks is here?”

“Yes, he’s back at the entrance to the outpost with two of his men. Another is about ten yards behind me. I can call them for you.” Her hand started towards her ear.

“Don’t.” The weapon came back up and she froze again. He used his support hand to point behind him. “There are a bunch of Wraith on the other side of the forest. Using your radio could alert them to our presence.” He chuckled. “Though me killing six of them may have already done that.”

“You killed them for their enzyme, right?” Mariah was scared stiff at the prospect of there being Wraith on this planet. She had to warn the others.

“Yeah, but it doesn’t seem to be helping anymore.” Ford grimaced and stopped himself from doubling over in pain.

It was then that she notice his brow was damp and he was shaking. This was very bad for both of them. “Your body has built up a tolerance to the enzyme. No matter how much you take, it’ll never be enough. You’ll eventually OD.” Her experience with drug addicts was limited and she was basing her comments on what she had read and seen on TV, but all his symptoms seemed to fit.

“I know, but I need it.” He dropped the weapon back down to his side.

“Let me help you.” She took a couple steps forward, but other than eyeing her warily, he did nothing. “We can take you to Carson. He can treat you.”

“He couldn’t before.”

“I know, but right now, he’s your only chance.” She looked around. She could have sworn she heard something. “Look, we need to go. Once the Wraith find the ones you killed, they’re going to come for you and find me. I’d really rather not have to deal with space vampires today. How about you?” She rubbed her stomach. John was going to kill her if something happened to her or the baby.

“I… I… okay. I’ll-.” He was interrupted by another voice.

Petrov came through the brush and smiled at her. “Malen’kiy, what is taking-?” Then he spotted the other person and brought his P90 up, pointing it at the stranger.

Aiden brought his stunner up in response. “Don’t even think about it.”

“Stop it, both of you.” She hissed and stepped between them, facing her friend. “Dimitri, put down your gun. There are Wraith on the other side of the forest. We need to get back to the others and get off this planet quickly. Lt. Ford is coming with us.”

“Lt. Ford?” The Sergeant knew that name, but it took a minute for him to recall from where. He put down his gun. “I am sorry, sir. I did not know.” He grabbed the linguist’s arm. “We must go quickly if there are Wraith.” He went to hit his radio.

“Don’t. Using your radio might alert them to our presence.” Ford stepped forward. He then clenched his stomach and doubled over.

Mariah grabbed the young man’s arm. “We need to go, now. John is going to kill me if something happens. I’m….” She was loathe to do it, but maybe it would get them moving. “I’m pregnant. The General only let me come on this mission because this planet was uninhabited and thus unlikely to attract the Wraith.”

“O Gospodi. Quickly, then.” Petrov began to drag her back through the woods towards the rest of his team.

Dr. Gray’s hand slid down Aiden’s arm until she was holding his hand and pulled him after her. She wasn’t sure if she would be able to heal him, since his injuries were older, but maybe she could do something. She didn’t have time to contemplate if it was working when they burst out from amongst the trees.

Stackhouse, Kreis and Yeager were pointing guns at them, their sudden arrival having startled them. Then the Security Chief noticed there was an extra person. It took him a moment to recognize who it was. “Ford?”

“Hey, Stacks.” He smiled at his old friend, then grimaced when another stab of pain hit him.

“We do not have time to explain. There are Wraith here and Dr. Gray just informed me she is pregnant. We must get her to safety, now.” Dimitri knew he probably shouldn’t be sharing the young woman’s business, but he felt his team should know. They would not tell any of the others in Atlantis.

“We can’t take him back to the City.” Nate stated as he silently directed the two corporals to start towards the Gate. They did so without question, trotting off down the path, back the way they came.

“The Alpha site. Then Beckett can come look at him and see what he can do to help.” Mariah smiled at the Staff Sergeant. He had moved behind the trio and was urging them forward. He would guard their six and make sure nothing happened to his COs’ pregnant girlfriend. She was slightly miffed she had let the cat out of the bag, but at least it was getting people to do what they needed to.

“All right. But let’s double time it.” The leader of AR-3 agreed, then smiled as the people in front of him started to jog down the path after the others.

The linguist grimaced when the Lieutenant squeezed her hand hard as another wave of pain came over him. She nudged Petrov. “Do you have a field medical kit with you?”

“Da.” He studied her. “What do you need, malen’kiy?”

“The morphine.” He gave her a questioning look. “For Ford. Hopefully, it’ll take the edge of his withdrawal and the pain he’s in.”

The Russian paused and searched through his pockets. He did his best to ignore the impatient look of his team leader, but he eventually found the pre-loaded syringe. “Here.” He offered it to her.

“Give me your arm, Lieutenant.”

“Call me, Aiden.” He rolled up his sleeve. “What’s that?”

“Morphine.”

He was startled, but allowed her to inject him with it. “Why?”

“It’s an opioid and should help even out your withdrawal symptoms and lessen your pain. I heard about-.” She was interrupted by a blast from a Wraith stunner, hitting the ground next to them. She dropped the empty syringe in fright. Behind them, about two dozen Wraith were racing out of the woods towards them and further away, a Wraith cruiser was rising into the air.

“Let’s move, people.” Stackhouse shouted. “Petrov, grab Ford. I’ve got the doc.” He grabbed the young woman’s arm and they started to sprint towards the Gate. He hit his radio. “Dial the Alpha site, guys. Tell them we’re coming in hot.”

“I might be able to help with that.” Mariah muttered as she slowed and glanced behind her. She waved a hand towards the approaching enemy and suddenly, the blasts from their weapons were deflected.

“How did she-?” Ford started.

“Do not ask questions, sir.” Dimitri stated. The Gate had just come into view and was already connected. Kreis and Yeager were waiting next to the DHD for them.

“Go, now.” Nate shouted at the Corporals. They did as he ordered. “Head straight through, Dimitri. We’ll be right behind you.” The Russian sped up and almost dragged the former member of AR-1 through the Gate. “You next, doc. I’ll hold them off.”

She shook her head. “I’m not leaving you. We can’t let them through.” She turned and braced herself. Mariah could see Stacks watching her closely out of the corner of her eye. The Wraith were almost on them. She pulled her arms back until her hands were next to her body, then pushed forward with all her might. She could only hope to do like what she had done to save Evan’s life.

The Others must have been listening to her silent plea as the gold and emerald of the field rolled up and away from them, coming down on top of the Wraith in front of them. They were wiped from the face of the planet as tons of soil and rocks came down on top of them. However, the cruiser was almost over them. She reached up and grasped at the alien ship. It froze in the sky, then plummeted when she pulled her hand down hard and off to the side. It exploded on impact with the planet.

As secondary explosion began to engulf the ship. Nate gently grasped her shoulder. “It’s time to go, doc.” He was in awe of what she had done and had no idea what he was going to put in his report or tell his COs. They headed through the Gate. 

*****

“What do we have, Chuck?” O’Neill asked when he exited his office and went towards the dialing computer. He sensed when his military commanders joined him, but did nothing to acknowledge them. They had three teams off-world, but no one was due to check in for another hour or so.

“It’s the Alpha site, sir. They’re requesting AR-1 and Dr. Beckett’s presences.” The Canadian gasped. “Seems AR-3 gated in with an old friend.”

“Old friend?” Jack asked, confused.

Lorne latched onto the more troubling piece of information. “What’s AR-3 doing at the Alpha site? Is Dr. Gray okay? Why do they need Carson?” He threw a restraining arm against John’s chest. The leader of AR-1 had lunged towards the radio, desperate to hear their lover’s voice.

The General sighed and stated sternly. “I’ll speak with them and find out what’s going on. Sheppard, gather your team and gear up. Chuck, alert Beckett he’s needed at the Alpha site.” No one moved. “Now, people.” The Gate tech quickly hit his radio and contacted the infirmary.

“Come on, John. The sooner you get ready to go, the sooner you’ll see her.” Evan urged and got a nod from his friend. He watched the other man jog out of the Control Room, hitting his radio as he went. Turning back to look at his superior, Evan could see the shock on O’Neill’s face and asked. “Sir?”

“You’re in charge, Colonel. I’m going to the Alpha site.”

“Is she-?”

“She’s fine, but… she recovered Lt. Ford. He’s at the Alpha site and is going through withdrawal. She doesn’t want to leave him and AR-3 won’t come back without her, so….” He rubbed a hand down his face. Something in Stackhouse’s tone of voice told him there was more to the story, but he wouldn’t worry about it until he could speak privately with the Security Chief. Jack hurried down the stairs to the Gate Room, then exited through the doors there to go to the armory.

Fifteen minutes later, AR-1, General O’Neill and Dr. Beckett were all in the Gate Room, geared up and ready to head off-world. Lorne was next to Chuck at the dialing computer and watched as they departed through the event horizon. They came out in the middle of a large clearing in a lush forest. Stackhouse and Captain Gregson, who had taken over the Alpha Site from Captain Markus, were waiting for them.

“General, Colonel, if you’ll come with me, we have Lt. Ford and Dr. Gray in the medical tent.” The Captain stated and turned to lead them there.

“Is Mariah well?” Teyla asked on behalf of the others. She could see it was taking all of John’s restraint to not run ahead to check on the woman he loved.

“Yes, ma’am. She threw up when she and SSgt. Stackhouse came through the Gate. Lt. Davenport was concerned and hooked her up to an IV.”

“Davenport?” Sheppard was trying to place the name.

“Naval medic, lad.” Carson answered with a smile. He was familiar with all the field medics who were part of the expedition and ensured all their certifications stayed current. “How’s Aiden, Captain?” It had been several years since they had last seen the AWOL marine and the CMO was hoping to be able to help him this time around.

“The withdrawal is going to be bad, Doctor. He’s already in a great deal of pain and is starting to shake and sweat.”

“Is he himself? He was a little crazy the last time we saw him.” Rodney’s comments earned him a glare from his team leader and a disapproving look from the Athosian. “What?? He was. I don’t want to deal with him if he’s like that again.”

“He’s surprisingly lucid, sir.” They had finally reached the camp, a combination of tents, huts and caves. Gregson led them to the one tent which had its flaps down. He held it aside and let the others enter. There were a half dozen gurneys in the tent, with two currently in use. Lt. Ford was in one, hooked up to multiple machines with soft restraints around each wrist and ankle. A young woman was standing beside him, speaking softly to him as she wrote things out in his chart. In the other was the expedition’s linguist. She had an IV and her eyes were closed. Sgt. Petrov was seated on a stool between the two beds. He sprung to his feet when the group entered the tent. 

“At ease, marine. Take your seat.” O’Neill barked and watched Dimitri sit back down. He saw Mariah’s eyes open, but they didn’t speak to each other. “Doc?” He pointed the CMO over to Aiden and moved closer to the marine’s bedside, John a step behind him. 

The Scotsman walked over to the young woman. “Robin, lass, how’s our patient?”

“Doing surprisingly well. Dr. Gray gave him a mild sedative in the field, which helped his symptoms somewhat. Also, he passed the mental acuity test with flying colors, but I still think he needs to be monitored closely. He’s been taking the enzyme for over 5 years, the withdrawal is going to be rough and long.” She handed the chart over to the physician to review.

“I agree, lass.” The Scotsman scanned the chart and nodded at certain bits of data. After a few minutes, he looked at the young man in the bed. “Hello, Aiden. How are you feeling?”

“Good, doc. The pain meds are helping. Plus, I feel more like myself than I have in a long time.” He ducked his head and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry about what I did back on Atlantis, doc. I wasn’t myself and-.”

“Water under the bridge, lad. Right now, let’s focus on getting you better.” Carson glanced behind him and saw John and Jack waiting anxiously to speak with their man. “General?”

“Thanks, doc.” O’Neill stepped forward. “Do you remember me, Lieutenant?”

“Yes, sir. You’re General O’Neill, formerly of SG-1 and Director of the SGC.” The marine could see his teammates hovering behind the older man, but turned his full focus to his superior.

“Then I became Director of Homeworld Security and now I’m leader of the expedition.”

Ford’s eyes got big. “What about Dr. Weir…, sir?”

“We lost her during a skirmish with the Pegasus Replicators. The General took over for her.” Sheppard stated as moved to stand on the other side of the bed from his CO and the physician.

“Sir, I’m so sorry about kidnapping you and the others. I have no idea what I was thinking. I-.”

“It’s okay, Ford. Like the doc said, water under the bridge. Let Beckett take a look at you and we’ll figure out what to do next.” John smiled at his young friend. He had missed Aiden.

“Aye, lad. If you gentleman could please step away, I’d like to examine my patient in private.” The CMO directed.

“Fine, doc, but don’t undo those restraints. Not that I don’t trust you, Lieutenant, but I want all of us to be safe.” Jack said sternly.

“Understood, sir.” Ford gave him a weak smile. He disappeared behind the privacy curtain.

O’Neill and John moved to stand beside the linguist’s bed, hoping she could provide some additional information. Teyla spoke up before they could start with their questions. “Rodney, Ronon and I will wait outside, until Dr. Beckett advises us Mariah and Aiden are up for visitors.”

“But-.”

“Let us go, Rodney.” The Athosian glared at the physicist. Her lover grabbed the Canadian by his arm and pulled him from the tent, she followed them.

This left Petrov, Stackhouse, O’Neill and John by the young woman’s bed. Captain Gregson had remained outside during their visit. The Colonel leaned down and gave Mariah a quick kiss. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

“Yeah… um, traveling through the Gate seems to aggravate my morning sickness.”

The General looked at the two members of the AR-3 and saw nothing but calm, accepting expressions. He sighed. “They know?”

“I let it slip in front of Dimitri and he mentioned it to his team. Aiden found me when I went into the woods by the outpost to throw up. He’s the one who told me there were Wraith on the planet.” She was playing with her hands, her eyes firmly focused on them.

“Sir?” Stackhouse interjected. When he had the attention of the two officers, he blurted out. “She created a force field to protect us from their stunner blasts, pushed a portion of the field on to the drones and pulled a Wraith cruiser out of the sky.” He was still amazed at what she had done and decided to be fully transparent with his COs. They needed to know, so they could come up with a plan on how to handle it and protect his friend.

“I couldn’t let them follow us.” She whispered.

“You did what was needed, malen’kiy. No one can fault you for that.” Petrov stated as he stood. “I will go join my teammates, with your permission, sirs?”

“Go on, Dimitri. You, too, Stacks.” Sheppard ordered softly. The two marines hurried out of the medical tent. Once they were gone, he tilted the linguist’s face up towards his and gave her another, deeper kiss. “It’s okay, sweetheart. Dimitri’s right. We’re not mad, are we, sir?”

“No, not mad.” Jack sighed. “Start at the beginning and tell us everything.” He was doing his best to stay calm. It would appear his friend’s powers had leveled up again. His report to IOA would have to be carefully worded if he was going to be able to continue to shield her from their attempts to control her and her abilities. 

*****

Evan gave a sigh of contentment and tightened his arms around his lover. He was out on the balcony of their apartment, sitting in the linguist’s easy chair, with said-linguist (and Bernard) curled up in his lap, sleeping. The last few hours had been hectic and a bit crazy, but he wouldn’t change his current position for anything.

He had waited in Control for well over an hour, before the Gate dialed and connected again. He breathed easier when the General advised him he would be bringing Dr. Gray back to the City in a few minutes. But first, Chuck needed to call Marie, in order for the nurse to care for the young woman. They were using her morning sickness (though they weren’t calling it that) as the reason AR-3 had headed to the Alpha site. Lt. Ford’s reappearance would be kept secret for the time being while he began the process of detoxing from the Wraith enzyme. The Gate tech and the former XO were sworn to secrecy about what they had overheard earlier. Once the head nurse had arrived in the Gate Room, the duo came through, Mariah immediately throwing up in the basin offered to her. He hurried down the stairs and took her in his arms. She was home and she was safe.

Lorne was granted permission to go to the infirmary with the pair and stayed close by his lover’s side while Marie gave her a shot, advising her to go home immediately since the injection would make her sleepy. He was ordered to see her home, then to report to the expedition leader’s office for a debriefing. At the apartment, he helped her to clean up and change, then left her with her three pets, all curled up with her in bed. He promised he’d come back as soon as he could.

Hearing about what Mariah had done on M3M-K19 was unnerving, first, that she had done what she did and second, because she even thought to do it. It warranted another discussion between the General, the two Colonels and Mr. Woolsey. He was thankful every day the IOA rep had become an ally. He wasn’t sure what would’ve happened without the bureaucrat. Just as the debriefing was wrapping up, alarms started to blare and AR-3 returned from the Alpha site. O’Neill ordered the Security Chief and his team to grab two security teams, get in a Jumper, and head back to M3M-K19. He wanted a full survey of the planet done, or at least, that was what he said out loud. His actual orders went unspoken. Stacks knew he needed to grab two teams of people he trusted, probably some of the men who went back to Earth during the Trust incident, and find out if any Wraith had survived and the extent of the damage to the planet. There was still an outpost there they needed to investigate, but it had to be safe for their people to return. The four marines nodded at their COs and went to do as instructed. The expedition leader dismissed Lorne and ordered him back to his apartment. He left without comment. 

Mariah was laying restlessly in the middle of their massive bed when Evan returned. It took a little coaxing, but he was able to wake her some and did his best to ignore the two cats, who were hissing at him. His lover sleepily ordered her cats out to their cat tree in the living room and sat up with some help from the Colonel. She asked him to carry her out to her chair on the balcony. He agreed with a smile and after removing his boots, belt and BDU shirt, lifted her into his arms, heading out to the sunshine and gentle sea breeze. 

It had only taken her a few seconds to get comfortable, then she fell back asleep. Her mouse was curled up on her chest, right over her heart, also asleep. Lorne remained on watch and a couple hours passed. He was sure he had heard the apartment doors open, but was afraid if he tried to look he would wake the linguist. Then he heard soft footsteps and turned his head. He smiled when he saw who it was.

“Hey, John.” He whispered.

“Hey… how is she?” He took a seat on the ottoman, pushing his friend’s feet slightly to the side.

Lorne rubbed the linguist’s back and smiled when she nuzzled his neck. “Good. Marie gave her something when she came back to help with the nausea, but it made her sleepy, too.”

He nodded his head and sighed. “Seems Gate travel makes her nauseous, at least right now.”

“I don’t envy her that. Thankfully, she doesn’t go off-world often.” He studied the other man. “How’s Ford?”

“Good and bad. The withdrawal is just starting and is going to get a lot worse before he’s better, however he’s acting like himself from before… he was hurt.”

“Do you think…?” Evan pointed at their lover.

Sheppard nodded. “Beckett thinks she tried to heal him, but because his wounds are old and withdrawal is a natural reaction, all she could do was rebalance the chemicals in his brain. It means we’ll be able to help without him fighting us or thinking he’s better this way. He’s going to stay at the Alpha site for however long Beckett thinks he should. We have to make sure he isn’t a threat.” He slid forward on the footstool and ran a hand down Mariah’s arm. “I met with O’Neill and Woolsey when I got back.”

“And?”

“Looks like we’re actively lying to the IOA now. The plan is to omit the entire Wraith attack for the mission reports, plus any mention of Ford. Officially, AR-3 aborted the mission and diverted to the Alpha site because ‘Dr. Gray was sick.’ The General is going to send the President a complete report, though, since he’s on her side.”

“Nice to know the lengths everyone’s going to for me.” A soft voice said.

“Hey, sweetheart. How are you feeling?”

Mariah sat up a bit in her lover’s lap and smiled at John. “Better, but also hungry. I didn’t get to finish digesting breakfast and I’m sure, by now, I’ve missed lunch.” She pet Bernard with her right hand and smiled when she felt the tiny animal stir. She heard a squeak and felt him scurry up her shirt to sit by her neck. She giggled when he started to lick her. “That tickles, baby.” The licking stopped, instead he cuddled up against her.

“Let’s get you and Bernard some lunch, beautiful. Then you can lay down again.” Lorne helped her to stand and hefted himself out of the chair. He led her back into the apartment with Sheppard’s assistance and sat her at the table. “What do you want to eat?”

“Grilled cheese for me. Veggies for Bernard. We need to cut back on his fruit intake. He’s getting a little chubby.” A displeased squeak sounded in her ear. “I’m just looking out for you, baby. After we eat, you can have some time in your plastic ball. Okay?” He rubbed against her in response. “Is AR-3 back from M3M-K19?” The two men looked at her in shock. “Ev mentioned it after he moved me out to the balcony.”

“Really?” The leader of AR-1 glared at the other man and set the bread and knife in his hands down on the counter.

“Don’t yell at him, John. He was just talking while I went back to sleep.” She gave her lover a hard look and he looked down bashfully. “So?”

“Yes, they got back about 25 minutes ago. Stacks reported there are no life signs on the planet, but the cruiser was still burning. The three teams scouted the perimeter of the crash site, but couldn’t get inside to verify if any of the Wraith were hibernating. The General had me add a mission to the schedule for next week to have them go back and provide an update.” John chuckled. “They removed the dialing crystal from the DHD while they were there, too.” He handed the slices of cheese and bread to the other man to assemble their lover’s sandwich. He grabbed a container of diced veggies and headed over to the table.

“Why?” She asked and took the container from him with a smile. She opened it, then grabbed Bernard off her shoulder, setting him on the table. She picked up a piece of carrot and handed it to him. He began to munch.

“In case there are any survivors, they won’t be able to get off the planet. Yeager thought of it.” Sheppard answered and slid into the seat next to her. He might help in the kitchen, but he did not cook. He left that to Mariah and Evan. He just burned things.

“Seems like he’s finally learning.” Lorne commented. He placed the assembled sandwich in the piping hot pan and it began to sizzle.

“Yup.” John gave the linguist a one-armed hug and kissed her temple. “How’s your stomach?”

“Dreading the next time I have to go through the Gate.” She leaned into him and gave her mouse another piece of vegetable. 

“That won’t be any time soon, if I have anything to say about.” Sheppard grinned. “Which I do.”

“Unless Jack overrules you. He’s likely to do that when M3M-K19 is deemed safe again.” She pet Bernard as he ate another piece of carrot.

“Then I’ll be going with you, along with a couple dozen marines.” He responded sternly.

“Please, no.” She shook her head and pulled away from him, turning to look him in the eyes. “I know you want to keep me safe, but your marines are not my personal bodyguards and you’re abusing your command.”

“No, I’m not.” He cupped her face. “You’re a valuable asset and a civilian. My duty is to keep you and every other civilian in Atlantis safe.”

Mariah covered his hand with hers. “Then you need to treat me like the rest of them. I don’t deserve special treatment and I don’t want or need the extra attention. I’m already dreading how everyone under your command is going to react when my pregnancy becomes common knowledge.” She leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss. A plate was set in front of her and she glanced behind her to see Evan standing there. She righted herself in the chair. 

The former base XO pulled a chair over to sit on her free side. “We’ll try our best to tone down on the special treatment. We know the pregnancy makes you uncomfortable and don’t want to add to that.”

“Thank you.” She gave him a fast kiss and grinned. “However, the special treatment can continue in private, especially if it means I don’t have to cook.”

“I thought you enjoyed cooking, sweetheart.” John rubbed her back and shared a startled look with Lorne.

“I do, just not all the time. It’s nice to be pampered on occasion.” She began to eat her sandwich. “Yum.”

Evan laughed and kissed her cheek. “Anything for you, beautiful.”

Chapter Text

“Sir?”

“Hey, Laura. Have a seat.” Lorne barely glanced up, before he went back to what he was working on. The marine slid into a seat across from him at the Mess table and waited. A few minutes went by, then he saved his work, set his pad down, and looked at his old friend. “What can I do for you?”

“You’re a tough man to find, sir.”

The Colonel chuckled. “Well, McKay’s up in the office and we don’t exactly get along, plus he and Sheppard were debating who’s the most powerful X-Men, or at least they were when I left. I have work I actually need to get done today and the office is not the place to do that with them there.”

“I completely understand, sir.”

“Drop the ‘sir’ for right now, Laura, and tell me what’s going on. You look like someone stole your lucky piece of C-4.”

The demolition expert chuckled, despite how she was feeling. “It’s about my team, si….” She caught herself, but still earned a half-hearted glare. “It’s about my team, Evan, or more appropriately, my lack of a team.”

“What’s the problem? Sheppard and I told you, you get first pick of the people available.”

“That’s the issue. All the people I get along with are either already on a team or have no interest in going off-world. I don’t know what to do.”

“You’ve never had trouble making friends and there are a lot of new marines in the City, many of whom are eager to go through the Gate.”

“They’re all so green.” She bemoaned.

“They can’t all be AR-1 and that’s a good thing.” He shook his head and smiled at her. “How about starting with a scientist for your team then? Have you spoken with the department heads?”

“Yeah, Dr. Manyon and his team are interested. They want to take turns being on my team, or they will once I have one.”

“Xenobiologists… xenobiologists….” Lorne bowed his head and thought. None of the available marines or international troops came to mind, then a thought occurred to him. “If you’re going to have xenobiologists on your team, you’re going to need someone who knows something about Pegasus animal life to direct you to the right planets.”

“That’s a good point. I hadn’t thought about that.”

“That’s why you’re the Captain and I’m the Colonel.” They both chuckled. “There’s a group going to Proculus in a couple days. Why don’t you tag along and see if one of the Athosians would like to act as a guide? Maybe Halling would be interested.”

“Thanks. I think I will.” She paused and asked. “Who’s going?”

“Teyla and Torren are going to pick-up Myla. Stackhouse is flying, plus Mariah and Sgt. Petrov.”

The marine chuckled and got a questioning look from her companion. “I’m surprised Colonel Sheppard isn’t tagging along with a half dozen marines.”

“Why?”

“Well, considering Dr. Gray’s… current condition.”

Evan groaned and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and asked. “Who told you?”

“Stacks, but only after I cornered him and made him tell me.” She laughed again. “I heard about her vomiting after going through the Gate and I put things together.”

“You’re not allowed to tell anyone, Laura. She doesn’t want people knowing and treating her differently.” Then he added. “Don’t make me order you to keep it quiet.”

“I have no plans to tell anyone. I like the doc. I just feel bad for her.” She smiled when he raised an eyebrow at her. “Colonel Sheppard was protective before, we’ve all seen it, but now that she’s… you know, he’s going to be worse.”

“Exactly the reason he isn’t going to Proculus. She told him to stop with the special treatment, but agreed to let Petrov go along to placate him. He accepted her decision with a minimum amount of grumbling.” He wanted to ask a favor of the woman across from him, but he was almost afraid to. She seemed to know what he was thinking.

“I’ll keep an eye on her, too, Evan. However, I doubt anything too exciting is going to happen on a planet protected by an Ascended Ancient.”

Lorne grinned and showed off his dimples. “Thanks, Laura. Your COs appreciate it.”

*****

The Athosians were eagerly greeting the people who had arrived at the settlement in the Ancestral flying machine, but he was looking for one person in particular. He had missed her during her last few visits to the planet, having been out with the hunting parties or off scouting areas around the settlement. But he knew the Ancestors had been smiling down on him, when he chose to take a day of rest on the exact day the Lanteans visited. He really hoped she was one of those who had come.

Then he spotted her. “Dr. Gray!” He wove his way through the crowd until he was by her side. She was looking up at him with a smile on her face.

“Hello, Kiryk. I haven’t seen you in quite some time. What can I do for you?”

“Can we speak? In private?”

“Sure.” She made her way out of the crowd, smiling and greeting the Athosians she knew. 

The former Runner trailed after her, but when they reached the edge of the crowd, he realized something. He didn’t even glance behind them, before he said. “One of the others is following us.”

“I know.” She sighed and turned around. “Dimitri, Kiryk isn’t going to hurt me. There’s a fallen tree at the edge of the settlement. We’re going there to sit and chat. I’ll find you when we’re finished.”

“I told the Colonels I would stay with you.”

“Nay zastavlyayte menia….” She pointed a finger at him. He took a step back and she smiled. “We’ll be fine. You can keep me in sight, but don’t hover.”

“Da, malen’kiy.” The Russian swallowed hard. He knew better than to make her mad.

Mariah turned back around and smiled at the good looking man next to her. She continued to lead him to the edge of the settlement. Taking a seat on the log, she waited for him to join her. She thought back and surprised herself. “Wow, you and Celise have been here for almost two years. It really doesn’t seem that long ago.”

“It’s good to know she’s safe and doesn’t need to fear the Wraith any longer.”

“Must also be nice to have other children for her to play with and a community to support you both.”

“It is. The Athosians have welcomed us without question. I think that may be because of you.” She looked at him puzzled and he chuckled. “Halling and the other leaders hold you in high regard. They welcomed Celise and I because you wanted to give us sanctuary.”

“No.” She shook her head. “They’re a kind people. They wanted to give you a safe place for Celise to grow up and for you to be able to stop running.”

Kiryk muttered under his breath and huffed out a laugh. “Stop running….” He spoke louder. “What do you know about me?”

The linguist studied him. Something was going on, but he seemed to want to draw it out. She was sure it would all become clear, so she answered his question. “I know you were captured by the Wraith and turned into a Runner, like Ronon. I know you took Celise with you after her world was culled. I-.”

“Because of me.”

“What?”

“Her world was culled because of me. I brought them there. Taking her with me was the least I could do.” He looked away from her and out across the green fields.

Putting a hand on his arm, she waited for him to turn back towards her. She smiled. “Her world would’ve been culled with or without your presence. It’s what the Wraith do. You saved her from dying alone on her planet with no one to care for her. Because of you, she’s alive and safe.” He nodded at her. “The main thing I know, Kiryk, is that you’re a good man. Everything I’ve heard and seen tells me that, kidnapping Dr. Keller notwithstanding, but I can’t say I blame you.”

“You give me more credit than I’m due.”

“Not really.” She laughed softly. “Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

“Partially…. There are no words I can say to properly thank you for finding me and reuniting me with Celise, but I can’t stay here.”

“What?” She stared at him in confusion. She must have misheard him.

He shook his head. “I can’t stay. Celise will remain here, where she’s safe. One of the families has taken her in. They have a daughter her age and they are great friends. But I wasn’t meant for a simple life. I was a soldier and hunter on my world. I’ve grown restless. I’d like permission to return to the Ancestral City with you, with the understanding that I may visit Celise from time to time.”

“I, um…. The decision isn’t mine, but I’ll speak with General O’Neill for you. What would you do in Atlantis?” She wanted to see if he had really thought this through.

“Help your people fight the Wraith. They’re evil and must be stopped.”

“Oh….” A thought occurred to her and she grinned. What was the old saying? Two birds, one stone. “Just a second.” Mariah hit her radio. “Gray to Cadman.” The smile didn’t leave her face while she waited. “Laura, could you come see me? I’m on the edge of the settlement.” She paused and chuckled. “Find Petrov and follow his line of sight.” Another pause. “See you in a minute.”

“Who’s Cadman?”

“She’s a marine in the City. I think the two of you can help each other.” It was clear he didn’t understand. She just patted his arm.

The former Runner stood before she could say anything else. Someone was jogging up to them. “Who are you?”

“Captain Laura Cadman. And you are?”

“Kiryk.”

“Man of few words. I can appreciate that.” The marine looked down at the other woman. “What can I do for you, doc? Was trying to convince one of the Athosian hunters to join my team.”

“I have a better idea.” The linguist stood. “How would you like to have your very own Runner on your team?”

“He’s a….” Laura grinned. “This is better than I could’ve hoped for.” She looked the man up and down. He would be a significant asset in the field. “What do you say, big guy, wanna join my team?”

*****

“Congrats, Cadman. Getting a former Runner on your team is quite the accomplishment.”

“Thank you, sir. But it was Colonel Lorne’s idea to go to Proculus to get a local guide and Dr. Gray who introduced us.”

“Still good work.” General O’Neill grabbed his pad and pulled it closer to him. “I have no issues with Kiryk joining us in the City. However, he’ll need to undergo an IOA review and interview. I’ll speak with Woolsey and see if we can do it in-house. Either way, we’ll officially consider him part of your team unless the IOA says otherwise. That work for you, Sheppard?”

“Yes, sir.” John grinned from his place on the couch in the expedition leader’s office. His fellow Colonel was sitting next to him. Laura was in one of the visitor chairs across from O’Neill. “You’re going to make all the other teams jealous, Cadman.”

“That’s my goal in life, sir.” She looked over at him and smirked.

“Let’s not digress, people.” Jack snapped and scrolled through a document on his pad. He missed the three officers shifting uncomfortably. “So AR-15 will compromise of Captain Cadman, Kiryk, one of six xenobiologists and…?” He looked at the marine expectantly.

“I don’t know who my fourth will be yet, sir.” She paled, but kept her head up.

Lorne cleared his throat and all attention turned to him. “If I may, sir?” The General nodded his head. “How about we rotate through some of the new prospects, those marines who’ve expressed interest in going off-world and have passed all the required tests?”

“Good idea, Colonel. And I have an ideal first mission for them, the return mission to M3M-K19.”

“But, sir, I-.”

“Can it, Sheppard. It’s been two weeks. A sweeps of the wreckage and the planet found no survivors and the Apollo was able to beam the cruiser off the surface of the planet, then propelled it into the sun.”

John and Evan shared a panicked look, before the leader of AR-2 spoke. “Sir, Captain Cadman wasn’t briefed on the Wraith cruiser or the other things that happened on M3M-K19. And she doesn’t know about Mariah’s… past.”

“Yes, she does.” O’Neill chuckled at their shocked expressions. “Your girl requested Cadman get a full briefing on what she did to stop the Ori and I shared the details with the Captain last week.”

“And the mission to M3M-K19?” Lorne was realizing his superior had everything all planned out. He had a sneaking suspicion his lover was behind the whole thing. She had pulled the expedition leader aside when the group got back from Proculus and had been grinning when she departed for her medical checks. He’d speak with her about it later, without John. The other man would just yell at her. Her sneaky little plan had taken a lot of forethought.

“Stacks and I got her up to speed on the mission a couple days ago. AR-3 can’t go since Kreis left on R&R the day after the failed mission. Since AR-15 has more than just a team leader now, it’ll be a nice easy mission for them to see how they mesh. Well, at least Cadman and Kiryk and a random marine.”

“Sir, can I make a suggestion?” Laura spoke up.

“Sure, suggestions are always welcome.” Jack grinned at her.

“Could our third be Corporal Hoffman? I heard from Stacks and Taylor that he’s interested in joining a team, sir.”

“NO.” Sheppard almost shouted.

“John, calm down. The Corporal made an honest mistake and-.” Evan started.

“He almost ruined everything and I don’t want him off-world with Mariah. He’s-.”

The General shouted. “ENOUGH. You can’t keep acting this way, Sheppard. Not only is it pissing me off, I know for a fact Mariah has about had it, too. She’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but to make you feel better, you can suggest one person to tag along, who-.”

“Me.” The Colonel responded.

“Who isn’t you or Lorne.” The expedition leader shook his head. “You can’t keep smothering her. She’s going to snap. Do you really want to get flung into another wall?”

“But she’s… you know.”

“Laura already knows Mariah’s pregnant.” Evan clarified.

“How’d you figure that out, Captain?” Jack asked. Stacks had already told him the whole story and it was part of the reason they had briefed her about the mission in the first place. But the Colonels didn’t know any of that and he wasn’t going to be the one to tell them.

“I had an inkling and forced Stackhouse to confirm it. It’s a woman thing, sir. I’m sure I’m not the only one who figured it out.”

“Makes this easier.” He looked at his two military commanders. “Just because she’s pregnant doesn’t mean she can’t take care of herself. She’s proven that time and time again, including on M3M-K19. Who do you want to tag along?”

“Probably Petrov, sir.” Lorne answered for the both of them. His friend was pouting next to him. They would have a discussion about it later. John needed to get over his fear of something happening to their lover. The General was right about her losing her temper. He rolled his eyes. He really should let Sheppard fend for himself, but their relationship meant too much to him to do that.

“Good. Let’s plan it for three days from now. That should give us time to pick-up Kiryk and let Cadman start to bond with him and Hoffman before the mission. But Captain?”

“Sir?”

“Make sure Kiryk and Ronon spend some time together, too. We need to let our resident Runner explain what being on one of our teams means and how we operate.”

“Yes, sir, and thank you. I think we’re going to kick ass.” The marine smiled at her superior. She still couldn’t believe her luck. 

*****

“Stop right there, love. Let me see your arm before you put on your vest.” Dr. Beckett hurried into the mission staging area by the armory.

“Why, Carson?” Mariah asked. She handed her pack to Sgt. Petrov and peeled off her BDU jacket.

“Little shot to help with your current Gate-related issue.”

“Oh….” Lifting the sleeve of her t-shirt, she let him poke her and tried not to wince. She hated needles.

The physician rubbed the spot. “All done, love. It should take effect in just a few minutes and last the entire time you’re on the planet, I hope. It really depends on how long the mission takes.”

“Lovely.” She sighed and put her jacket back on, zipping it up. “Thanks, Carson. I’ll tell you how well it worked when we get back.”

“Be careful, love.” He looked at her sternly.

“I promise.” She smiled and watched him leave. Dr. Gray nodded at Laura and the marine ushered Hoffman and Kiryk into the Gate Room. The former Runner looked a bit overwhelmed. She would try to speak with him before they left, if she could. She quickly donned her TAC vest and winced. Her boobs were tender and the vest wasn’t helping matters any.

Dimitri helped her get her pack on. “There you are, Mariah.”

“No pet names today?” She raised an eyebrow at him.

He shook his head and grabbed her blaster off the armory counter, handing it to her. “No, this is not my team, our friends. I do not wish to be misunderstood.”

Shoving her weapon in its holster, she studied him. It seemed an ideal time to ask him something she had been meaning to for a while. “Why do you call me, malen’kiy?”

The Russian looked away and answered softly. “It is what I called my sister. She died many years ago. You remind me of her, or of what she could have been.

“Then I’m honored you call me that. I always wanted a big brother, instead of an older sister. Big sisters pick on their little sisters, but big brothers protect them. I appreciate your willingness to be my bodyguard.”

“It is my honor.” He bowed his head to her. “Are you ready?”

“Yup. Let’s see if Carson’s magic shot actually works.” They headed after the rest of the team and joined them off to the side of the Gate. The dialing sequence had already begun. She worked her way to Kiryk side. “How are you doing?”

“I’m well, Dr. Gray. Your people are very….” He wasn’t sure how to put it that wouldn’t insult those who had saved him.

She smiled. “Cautious? Overly-prepared? Paranoid?”

“Yes.” They both chuckled. The Gate connected.

The linguist grew serious. “We do everything for a reason. Just remember, we’re a team today and have to work together. I know you’re used to being alone, but-.”

“I understand. I won’t let you or your people down. I don’t wish to waste this chance to help and strike back at the Wraith.” He looked down at her and nodded.

“All right, people.” O’Neill’s voice washed over the group and halted further conversation. He was standing up by the dialing computer, his military commanders with him. “Let’s try to actual go in the facility this time. Think you can manage that, Captain?”

“Yes, sir.” Laura grinned up at her superior, but her good humor wavered a bit at the stern looks the two Colonels were giving her. She swallowed hard and shook her head. Couldn’t psych herself out this late in the game. “With your permission?”

“Get going. We’ll dial the planet in two hours for a status. Godspeed.” The General stated with a smile.

“Let’s move out.” Cadman ordered and herded the others through the event horizon.

Dr. Gray waved to the Control Room before she disappeared. M3M-K19 was different than she remembered, however she did her best to stay calm. The path away from the Gate was gone and the green and yellow field was rough and brown. She watched Laura scan the area when she joined them and the Gate disconnected.

“Um….” Cadman was perplexed.

“It is that way, ma’am.” Dimitri offered, pointing directly away from the Gate.

“Thanks, Petrov. Kiryk, you scout ahead and see if there are any threats. Sergeant, you and Hoff take our six. The doc and I will be in the middle.” Everyone nodded at her and did as she ordered. They began to move across the uneven terrain in front of them. The former Runner shifted ahead of them quickly, while the others moved at a slower pace. “You okay, doc?” Cadman asked the other woman.

“Yeah… grounds just a little rough and I don’t want to fall or trip.” The linguist answered. She was having a tough time finding places to step. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that Dimitri and Hoffman were trailing behind them and weren’t in hearing range, which she was happy about. She didn’t need the Russian worrying about her falling on top of everything else.

“Hold on to me if you want.” Laura offered.

“I’m good. I don’t need to give John another reason why I shouldn’t go on missions.” She sighed. “I really did a number on this field.”

“With good reason, doc.” The marine said with a smile. 

Their group went quiet as they continued their trek across the upturned ground. Eventually, the field turned back to the greens and yellows from the previous missions and the ground evened out. They all breathed a sigh of relief as they walked along what was left of the path. The odd little building came into view, but Kiryk was nowhere to be seen.

“Where the hell did he…?” Cadman reached for her radio, but a hand on her wrist stopped her.

The linguist smiled at her. “He’s probably just in the woods making sure we’re safe. Give him a minute to rejoin us.” She got a nod in response.

Kiryk emerged from the woods like a specter, startling the three marines. “There’s no one around. We should be good to try to enter.”

“Awesome. Doc, you’re on.” Laura studied the door, noticing the writing on it and the surrounding wall. “How long will it take-?”

“Already translated it all. Teyla took pictures during AR-1’s mission. Simply states this is a Lantean outpost and only those authorized to enter may do so. Explains why neither AR-1 nor AR-3 could get in.” She approached the door crystal, but someone asked a question, before she could swipe.

“Then why do the General and the Colonels think you’ll be able to get in?” Corporal Hoffman asked.

“Ummm….” Dr. Gray was at a loss about how to answer.

“Mariah’s expression of the ATA gene is very strong. Systems in the City and at other locations mistake her for a Lantean General named Altheria. General O’Neill believes we can use that to our advantage here.” Petrov shared. It was a plausible explanation and pretty close to the truth, while skipping over what was actually going on. The Russian moved closer to his friend.

“Oh.” Norman seemed to accept the explanation.

Not waiting for further interruptions, the linguist waved her hand over the crystal and the doors opened without issue. A room was revealed, three walls with a display in the one directly across from the door, nothing else.

“That’s disappointing.” Cadman said. “Maybe there isn’t anything here.”

“Just a second.” Mariah stepped into the room and the display lit up, showing a map. She smiled and turned to look at the others. “I think it’s a transporter, but there are only two choices on where to go. Wanna try it out?”

“Sounds like a plan. Everybody in.” She joined the other woman in the room and the two other marines quickly followed. Kiryk looked unsure. “Come on, big guy. If the doc thinks it’s safe, I doubt anything is going to happen to us.”

“Maybe I should stay-.” 

Wordlessly, the linguist held out her hand to the former Runner. He took it without any hesitation and joined them in the transporter. She hit the map, causing the doors to close and a bright white light engulfed them. The doors reopened and they were somewhere new. It reminded her of the control room at the shipyards. Consoles lined the walls, a single console with chair and a control chair were in the middle of the room, and a single door was set into each of the walls. She let the marines and Kiryk get out first to sweep the room.

“Where are we, doc?” Laura asked as the others moved around the room, looking for any threats.

“I picked the location that said command center. The other said residences or barracks. I thought we could figure out what this place was better here.” She stepped out into the room and lights brightened.

A voice began to speak to them in Ancient. The Corporal was alarmed. “What’s going on? What’s it saying?”

“Calm yourself, Hoffman.” Dimitri stated, setting a hand on the younger man’s shoulder. “The facility is likely welcoming, Dr. Gray or more accurately, General Altheria. Mariah, what is it saying and why is there no hologram?”

“The facility is welcoming General Altheria, like you said.” She grinned. “And there’s no hologram, because this is a military outpost. Talk about perfect timing.” She got strange looks from the others, causing her to chuckle. “I’ll let General O’Neill explain.” 

*****

“You have the most uncanny luck.”

“I know, Jack.”

The expedition leader was grinning like a little boy behind his desk. The linguist was sitting across from him in one of the visitor chairs, Cadman next to her in the other chair. The Colonels were standing behind the two women, along with Sgt. Petrov. They were having an informal debriefing. AR-15 had returned about thirty minutes earlier and following their medical checks, Laura, Dimitri and Mariah had reported to the General’s office to share what they had discovered.

“Sheppard, I’ll need you to go do a survey of the facility as soon as you can work another mission into the schedule. This places sounds ideal to be our first off-world outpost and has potential as a Gamma site. Your girl will need to tag along to let you and whoever else you want to go inside.”

“Sir, I’d-.” John started, only to be interrupted by said-girl.

“Not necessary for me to go.” Jack raised an eyebrow at her, so she continued. “Carson gave me DNA samples of the five strongest ATA expressions from the military side of things to take with me. I was able to feed them into the system at the outpost and got it to recognize all of them. I took a sample of Rodney’s blood, too, because I knew he’d probably like to go take a look at the place himself.”

“That was good thinking. Well done.” The General grinned at her.

Dr. Gray shook her head. “Tell Carson. It was mainly his idea, but I had him include Rodney in the mix. He doesn’t seem to like the idea of me going off-world any more than the boys.”

“Good.” John said unhappily from behind her.

O’Neill ignored him and looked Cadman. “Tell me what your team found, Captain.”

“Of course, sir. What I gathered from Sgt. Petrov and Dr. Gray is the command area was similar in layout to the control room at the shipyards. There were numerous consoles and displays in the room for a variety of functions. There was also a conference room and a set of quarters directly off the main room and finally a hallway. The hallway led to a residential area. It was made up of about two dozen small sets of quarters, each with their own bathroom, and a common area. At the far end of the residential area, there was another transporter as well as a few storage rooms, a kitchen/mess hall and an armory.” Laura stopped speaking, waiting for everything she said to sink in.

“Armory?” Lorne was the first to realize the significance. 

A big grin broke out across the demolition expert’s face and she turned to look at her old friend. “Yes, sir. We found handguns and rifles inside, along with some type of grenade and a few other items. Dr. Gray was familiar with the guns, but not the grenades or anything else. We thought it best to not touch or bring anything back until one of the science team could go and take a look.” She chuckled and righted herself in her chair. “Actually, Petrov wouldn’t let her touch any of them and none of the rest of us have the gene, so….”

Sheppard smirked at the Russian. “Thanks, Dimitri.”

“Pojaluista, sir.” The Sergeant smiled at his CO.

“Impossible men.” Mariah rolled her eyes and muttered.

“All right, everyone.” The expedition leader shook his head. “Good job, all around. You’re dismissed. The three of you enjoy your day off tomorrow, but Mariah?” She paused and turned back to look at him. She was already out of her chair, standing just in front of her lovers. “I want the new data from the outpost moved to the top of your pile along with the ZPM lab stuff. It would be good to know why they established an outpost on that planet and what if anything they might have been doing out of the ordinary. Copy?”

“Yes, Jack. I’ll work on it when the ZPM lab stuff starts to make my head hurt. I agree, there has to be a specific reason they picked that planet for an outpost.” The young woman smiled for a final time at her friend and let her lovers herd her out of the room. She barely had time to say goodbye to Dimitri and Cadman before she was whisked away in the transporter. She chuckled when they each took possession of one of her hands, taking whatever connection they could get with her. They entered the apartment a few minutes after leaving the Control Room.

With a gasp, the linguist was suddenly engulfed in Evan’s arms, where he gave her a thorough and complete kissing. She was melting by the time he pulled back to let them both breathe. “Welcome home, beautiful.” He whispered to her, his lips inches from hers.

“Good to be home.” She said softly back. There was a tug on her right hand and she glanced over at Sheppard. “Yes?” She bit her lip to cut back a groan as Evan began to kiss her neck and ear. 

“Just making sure you don’t forget about me and I get my turn.” He gave her a cheeky grin.

“I was only gone for a couple hours.” She chuckled when Lorne’s arm loosened and she was pulled into John’s. “Aren’t you both still on duty?”

“Yes….” Sheppard kissed her deeply and lovingly. “But it’s almost time for lunch. We thought we’d eat together, then go back to work.”

“Sure….” She studied him. “Anything else you’d like to say?”

“Good job on the mission?” He asked with a smirk.

Pushing out of his arms, Mariah shook her head. She spotted her cats waiting patiently for their turn and squatted down to pet them both. “How about ‘sorry for overreacting about you going off-world’? I think I’ve proven once again that I’m fine going on missions.”

“Yes, you have, beautiful.” Evan helped her stand and led her into the kitchen. “How’d your stomach feel going through the Gate?” He cuddled up next to her and rubbed her belly

“The shot Carson gave me worked as predicted, though by the time we came back, it must have started to wear off. I was a little queasy in the infirmary during my exam.” She leaned into him and put her hand over his on her middle. “We need to talk about me going back to Earth in a few weeks.”

“To see your mom?” Lorne asked as he reluctantly pulled away from her and opened the fridge. He began to pull out stuff to make sandwiches.

“Yeah. Plus, Jack alerted the IOA about my condition and he’s sure they’re going to want to speak with me.”

“One of us can go with you, sweetheart.” John came up behind her and wrapped one around her shoulders and the other around her waist.

The linguist shook her head. “No, I have to do this on my own. I’m just hoping she doesn’t overreact. She’s prone to do that when she doesn’t understand something.” She sighed. Dealing with your own family was never fun and her mother was scary. 

Chapter Text

“This is an odd welcoming committee and definitely not who I was expecting.” Dr. Gray walked down the ramp into the SGC. She studied the three men in front of her. “Where’s General Landry and the IOA representatives?” The Gate disconnected behind her.

“Landry’s got Coolidge up in his office, distracting him and the other two are being entertained by Jackson and Vala.” Cam responded and stepped forward, pulling her into a hug. “We’re just here to say hello, before Caldwell whisks you away.”

“Whisks me away?” The linguist asked as she enthusiastically returned her friend’s hug. She pulled back and gave Teal’c a similar embrace.

“Indeed, Mariah. Colonel Caldwell and the few members of his crew who remain on the Daedalus will be beaming you to your final destination, then will keep an eye on you the entire time you are on Earth. We will not allow the Trust to go after you again. We promised O’Neill and John Sheppard.”

The young woman pulled back and studied the Jaffa’s face. He was definitely serious. She looked at the final person standing there. “How do you feel about playing chauffeur?”

“Happy to help, if it keeps you safe.”

“I appreciate that, Steven.” Then something hit her. “What’s Coolidge doing here? I thought after Shen’s little plot was thwarted he’d be out of a job.”

“Little weasel talked his way out of trouble. He’s here to speak with you about the rules for you staying in Atlantis in your current condition….” The leader of SG-1 smiled down at her. “Congrats by the way.”

“Thanks. Well, we should probably leave before Coolidge and his friends figure out I’m here.” She shifted closer to Caldwell. She was tempted to give him a hug, but she wasn’t sure how receptive he would be. She waved at the other two men. “Bye, guys. Hopefully we can catch up before I head back.”

“Count on it. Bye, Mar.” Mitchell waved at her and grinned.

“Be well, Mariah.” Teal’c stated and bowed his head to her.

Steven hit his radio. “Caldwell to Daedalus. Two for beam out.”

A bright white light engulfed the Colonel and the linguist and when it dissipated, they were on the bridge of the Daedalus. The room was empty save a single person sitting in the pilot’s chair. Dr. Gray recognized who it was and smiled at him.

“Hello, Major Marks.”

“Welcome aboard, Dr. Gray.” His eyes moved from her to his CO. “Where to, sir?”

“Doctor?” The Colonel asked and took the command chair.

Mariah hurried over to Marks and provided him the address. He maneuvered the ship out of their current orbit into a better position to beam her down. She moved to stand next to Caldwell. “Who’s still on the ship?”

“Several of the engineers, a few members of the support staff, Dr. Novak, Hermiod, Marks and myself.” He looked at her. “All people I trust.” He held out his hand. “Can I see your radio?” She handed it over without comment. He pulled a new radio out of his breast pocket. “Use this one while you’re on Earth. Hermiod set it up and will be monitoring it. We’ll beam you down as close to your destination as possible and that spot will also be used as your beam out location, as long as it’s still clear.”

“Thanks.” She took the radio and slid it in her ear. She started to speak again, when Marks’s console beeped.

“We’re in position, sir, and I found a wooded area about half a mile from the address. It should work as a beam in/out location.” The Major shared.

“Familiar with it?” Caldwell asked.

“Yeah.” She nodded and stepped away from him.

The Colonel stood as well and moved in front of her. “Radio me once you’re safely there and we’ll move to monitoring verses active tracking.”

“Will do. Thanks for the ride.” Mariah smiled at him. He nodded his head at the other man and she was engulfed in white, disappearing from the bridge. Steven retook his seat.

Roughly forty-five minutes later, Caldwell’s radio chirped. He was startled, since he wasn’t expecting another call from her after she alerted him she had reached her destination, but hit it on. “Yes, Dr. Gray?”

“Could you… could you beam me up? I’m in the same spot… where you dropped me.” Her voice was broken and full of emotion.

He rose from his chair again and frowned. “Of course. Marks, beam Dr. Gray back to the ship.” The Major nodded and did as ordered. White light filled the bridge and when it was gone, the linguist was standing there, hugging her duffle bag to her chest and tears sliding down her cheeks. “We’ll be in my quarters, Major. You have command.”

“Yes, sir.” Marks shifted in his seat. He was curious about what was going on, but knew it wasn’t any of his business.

Ushering her through the door and out into the hall, Steven guided Dr. Gray down and around the corner. He leaned around her and pushed the door to his quarters open. The room was larger than the standard bunks and instead of the normal narrow twin beds, a full size bed stood in one corner of the room, covered in a colorful quilt. Seeing the bright, cheerful colors of the bed covering caused her to start bawling.

“Sit right here.” The Colonel sat her on the foot of the bed and stepped away for a moment, coming back with a box of tissues. “Take this.” He pulled a single sheet from the box and pushed it into her hand, while he sank down on to the mattress next to her. He rubbed a hand up and down her back, trying his best to calm her. Several minutes passed and the tears finally abated.

“Thank you.” She whispered, wiping the wetness from her face.

“You’re welcome. Do you feel like telling me what happened?”

“Okay.” She sniffled and took a couple of deep breaths. “It took me seven or eight minutes to walk to my parents’ house, which you know since I radioed when I got there, and my dad opened the door. He was surprised to see me, but also happy. We hugged and I went in. When my mom came out, she about squeezed the stuffing out of me, she was so excited I was home. I sat on the couch, was given a drink and we caught up for a while, then I told them I needed to share something with them.” She sniffled again.

“Take your time. There’s no rush.”

Mariah nodded, but continued. “Mom was a little freaked out, but she and my dad waited patiently for me to tell them what was going on. Then I told them about the baby.” She paused.

“And?”

“My dad seemed happy, but my mom got really quiet. Then she told me to get out. I tried to ask her why, but she started screaming at me. She told me I wasn’t her daughter anymore and to leave. I tried to speak again, but Dad shook his head no. I left. Once outside, I started crying, then I walked back to the beam-out site.” Tears formed in her eyes again and fell down her cheeks. She pulled a new tissue from the box, dabbing at her face.

“Do you have any idea why she might have reacted like that?”

“She’s very religious and since I’m not married…. I thought she’d be happy to have another grandbaby and I didn’t even get to tell her about John and Evan.” Her crying started in earnest again.

Caldwell’s hand continued to rub her back and he thought about what to say. Once she was calmer, he spoke again. “I’m probably not the best person to be giving advice, what with my failed marriage and the fact I hardly know my grown daughter, but… sometimes people react without thinking. Your mother just needs time to think over what you said and maybe with some help from her heart, will realize she overreacted and apologize.”

“You don’t know my mother. She does NOT apologize, even when she knows she’s wrong.” She sniffled. “Hell, my sister didn’t even get married in the church and still gets fully embraced, her and her kids. But then again, Emily can do no wrong.” She wiped her cheeks and did her best to smile. “Thanks.”

“Of course.” He stood and walked a few steps away from her, before turning back. “Since the reason for your trip is over with, what do you want to do now? You can’t go back to the SGC because of the IOA and while you could stay here, it isn’t very exciting. Do you have somewhere else you’d like to go?”

“Not really.” Then she remembered something. “Oh, wait.” She leaned back and opened her duffle bag, which was in her lap. She pulled out a piece of paper. “I can try to go here. They may or may not let me stay, but it doesn’t hurt to try.”

*****

Alan Eppes muttered under his breath and pulled his car into the driveway. He thought his days of playing servant to his sons were long over, but he continued to get sucked back in. Charlie and Amita had left a few days earlier to go to a math conference and made him responsible for the construction/demo of the garage. True, the garage was being turned into a guest house for his use, but his younger son was the homeowner and should be around to supervise. Yet again, he was an urban planner before he retired and did love a good renovation project.

Turning the car off, he climbed out and opened the rear door. He pulled out the groceries he had bought and chuckled. He had two absolutely gorgeous steaks in one of the bags. Since there was a hockey game on tonight, he was sure his eldest son would be swinging by for free food and beer. He would have to remember to get the grill warmed up around Donnie’s normal arrival time. He headed for the front door.

“What the…?” There was something on the front porch. As he drew closer, he realized it wasn’t a thing, but a person curled up into a ball against the front door. He cleared his throat. “Excuse me?”

“Huh? What?” The figure uncurled and blinked up at him. “Oh, Mr. Eppes, you’re home.” She scrambled to her feet.

“Mariah, what are you doing here?” He looked around. “Is John with you?”

“Um, no.” She looked down and scuffed her foot on the stoop. “It’s a long story. Could I come in?”

“Of course, of course. Just let me find my keys.”

“Give me one of the bags.” She dropped her duffle on the porch and took one of the bags from him.

“Thank you.” Alan pulled his keys out and unlocked the door. He entered the house and turned on the lights. “Just take that into the kitchen. I’ll grab your bag and be right there.” He set his bag on the entryway table, before heading back outside. He returned with her bag, shut the door and placed the duffle on the table next to the rest of the groceries. He picked the paper bag back up and headed into the kitchen. He saw his guest was already emptying the other bag of its contents. “You don’t need to do that, Mariah.”

“Happy to help, Mr. Eppes.” She gave him a weak smile and continued working until the bag was empty.

“It’s Alan.” He studied her, trying to figure out why she was visiting and what might be wrong. He was much better than his sons at detecting people’s emotional states. Then he noticed her rub her hand over her stomach and could see she was a little heavier than during her previous visit. “Oh, my… are you pregnant?”

“Yes.” She whispered. Her eyes were averted. Right now, just thinking about the baby made her upset.

“Is that why you’re here? Because John isn’t happy…?”

Dr. Gray looked up at him with startled eyes and shook her head. “Oh, no. No, no, no. John’s ecstatic about the baby and so’s Evan.” She quickly covered her mouth with both hands. She hadn’t meant to say that much.

The older man chuckled. “I figured out what was going on with the three of you during your last visit and Don confirmed it. You forget, I was a hippie in the 60s. Free love and all that. I’m not judgmental and if you’re happy and they’re happy, what business is it of mine.”

“That’s wonderful to hear.” She gave him a real smile.

“If they’re happy about the baby, what’s wrong?” Alan began to put the groceries away.

“Well… I went home to see my parents and tell them about the baby. And my mom… my mom….” She almost couldn’t bring herself to say it again. The tears started again, spilling down her face and she blurted out. “She disowned me and threw me out.” The linguist began to sob.

“Please don’t cry.” Mr. Eppes went over and held her, trying to soothe her. Raising two boys didn’t lend itself to comforting someone who was crying, but he seemed to be doing a good job. She clung to him and eventually, her sobs died away. “I’ll start off by saying you’re more than welcome in this house. But why come here? Wouldn’t you rather be with family?”

Mariah sniffled. “Well, you and Charlie and Don and Amit and Larry and everybody else were so kind during our visit. I felt this was a better place to go than to see Mr. Sheppard or Mrs. Lorne. All they would do was smother me and try to make me feel better. I just want to wallow for a bit. And I couldn’t go see my sister, because my mom would just guilt her into kicking me out, too. Would it be okay for me to stay for the week, until I have to report back to base?” She pulled away and looked up at him.

“Yes, of course, you can stay.” He looked at her wet face and red eyes and realized something. “However, right now, I’m going to take you upstairs and you’re going to lay down. You’ve had a stressful day of travel and emotions and must be exhausted. All of this isn’t good for you or the baby.” He began to lead her out of the kitchen and they mounted the stairs. He took her down the hall to a partially open door and they went in.

“Whose room is this?” She looked around curiously It looked like a teenage boy’s room, walls covered in posters and shelves full of trophies, with a twin bed under the window. It was warm and inviting.

“Don’s. I never got around to redoing it and I doubt Charlie will do anything with it, until he needs it for his own children… if he has any.” He led her to the bed and sat her down.

She tried to stand, but hands on her shoulders stopped her. “I can’t take Don’s room. What if he wants to use it?”

“He’ll either sleep on the couch or in the solarium. Lay down and rest. I’ll bring your bag up later.” Alan watched the linguist get comfortable on the bed and smiled when her eyes slowly closed, signaling she was succumbing to sleep. He headed back downstairs, after he carefully closed the door to the bedroom.

He spent the next couple of hours getting everything ready for dinner, before he finally fell into his favorite chair in the living room. He hadn’t had time to read the paper that morning, what with renovation tasks and errands. He did so now with a smile and was just finishing up a final article in the sports section when the front door open.

“Dad, you here?” A voice called out and the door shut.

“In the living room, Donnie.” Alan responded to his older son as he folded up the paper and set it on the table next to him.

The FBI agent ambled into the room and smiled at his father. “We got beer? I could use one.”

“Yes, in the fridge. Grab me one, please. Once you’re ready, I got a couple of steaks to grill up for dinner.” He glanced over and watched Don go into the kitchen. His son came out with two beers and a puzzled look on his face.

“Who’d you make a burger for? Is Larry coming over?”

“Sit down, Don, and I’ll tell you.” Mr. Eppes smiled and took a beer out of the other man’s hand.

*****

“Where is she?”

“Hello, Patrick. It’s nice to see you, too.” Mr. Eppes stepped back, holding the door open for his guest.

Mr. Sheppard walked into the house and tried to calm himself. “I’m sorry. It’s nice to see you, Alan. It’s been a long time. Your phone call threw me for a loop. Why did she come here? She knows my house is always open to her and I would’ve done whatever I could for her.”

“That’s exactly why she didn’t go to you or Evan’s mother. She wanted time to be sad before people tried to fix everything.” He gestured into the living room. “Why don’t we sit down and I’ll tell you everything I know?”

“Thank you.” Patrick strode into the room and sat on the couch. “You know about her odd relationship with John and Evan?”

“They tried to hide it, but I knew something was up. Don confirmed I was right.” Alan sat in his chair and sighed.

“How are Don and Charlie? I haven’t seen them since….” He trailed off. Talking about his wife’s death wasn’t something he liked to do.

“The funeral. I know. It was very hard for them to understand why their cousins stopped coming to visit. However, they’re both doing well. Don’s a FBI agent and leads a team of very capable men and women. And Charlie’s a tenured Math professor and helps his brother out quite a bit with cases and problems.”

“Must be nice to have them working together. I don’t think Dave and John could ever do that. They’re much too different.”

“The same could be said about Don and Charlie, but they found their common ground. Now, let me tell you what’s going on.” Mr. Eppes began to share what he knew of the events from two days ago when he found Mariah sitting on the front porch. It was obvious to him Patrick was upset the young woman hadn’t come to him, but he seemed to understand her reasoning. It was also apparent they were both livid over how her mother had treated her.

“How could her own mother…?”

“I feel the same way, but it’s best to not bring it up. She was emotional through lunch yesterday, but I got a few smiles and laughs out of her in the afternoon. That’s why I called you after dinner, telling you to come. I didn’t have any way to contact Mrs. Lorne.” Alan studied his former brother-in-law. They were probably still brother-in-laws, legally speaking, since neither man had remarried, but time and distance had turned them into mere acquaintances. Until now.

Patrick nodded. “I have her information. I’ll call her later and let her know what’s going on. I was so happy when I got John’s email about the baby a couple days ago. This puts a damper on the whole thing.”

“It shouldn’t.” The Eppes patriarch shifted uncomfortably and asked. “But how do you really feel about the baby? What if it isn’t John’s, but Evan’s?”

“Doesn’t matter. I care about Mariah, like she was my own daughter and this child will be loved by John because it’s Mariah’s. The father doesn’t matter in the long run and I plan to spoil it rotten, just like Dave’s girls.”

Alan smiled. “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear. Let me go get her.” He rose and headed to the backdoor, opening it and calling out. “Larry, bring Mariah in. I think it’s time for another chess lesson.”

“Larry?” Mr. Sheppard stood and moved towards the other man.

“Co-worker and friend of Charlie’s. He’s filling in for Charlie at the FBI while he’s out of town. He and Mariah were outside, contemplating the koi pond. She really likes the fish. Says they’re calming.” He held the door open and two people came inside, a smaller man with dirty blonde hair and the linguist. Her face lit up when she saw who was there.

“Patrick.” She cried and headed right over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. “What are you doing here?”

He hugged her back. “Alan called me yesterday and let me know you were here. I came as soon as I could make arrangements. Dave is covering my meetings for the next few days.” He pulled back and looked down at her. “How are you doing?” He smiled. “I’m very excited about the baby.”

“John said you would be.” Her own smile faltered. “I’m doing okay. I assume you know everything.”

“I do, but we’re not going to talk about any of that. We’re going to have a nice visit. But now, you have a chess lesson, I believe.”

Dr. Gray groaned. “More like an evisceration. I don’t understand how John and Rodney enjoy this game.”

“You only feel like that when you lose. Trust me.” Mr. Eppes stated as he moved the chess board to the table between his chair and its neighbor. “This time, I’ll teach and we’ll play Larry.”

“And I’m much easier to defeat than Alan, especially if you distract me.” Dr. Fleinhardt sat down and smiled at his young friend.

Pulling over a footstool to sit on, Mariah grinned. “Then let the distracting begin.”

*****

“Howdy. I’m looking for Dr. Gray.”

“And you are?” The man inside the house studied the stranger on the front porch. He was tall with light brown hair and piercing blue eyes and was dressed in jeans, boots and a button-down shirt. Behind him parked along the curb were four large, black SUVs.

“Cameron Mitchell, Colonel, United States Air Force. You?”

“Don Eppes, Special Agent, FBI.” His face stayed emotionless as he continued to stare at the other man.

“You’re John’s cousin.” His comment earned him a raised eyebrow and he chuckled. “Mariah told me all about you, Charlie, Amita, Larry and a slew of other people. She has the ability to make friends with anyone, because everybody likes her.”

“Not everybody likes me.” A new voice stated. Both men peered into the house and spotted the linguist standing there, having just come into the dining room from the kitchen. “I know him, Don. You can stand down.” She walked over to join them and stepped out to give the leader of SG-1 a hug.

Mitchell enveloped her in his arms and lifted her off her feet. “Hey, Mar. Having a nice visit?”

“Yeah, Cam, but what are you doing here? I thought Steven was picking me up.”

“Steven?” He set her down and pulled away to see her face.

“Colonel Steven Caldwell. About yeah high, bald, always looks very serious.” She held her hand up above her head trying to estimate the commander of the Daedalus’s height.

“Oh, Caldwell… he told us what was going on and I thought you might like to see a friendly face.” He pointed into the house. “Can we go in?”

“Don?” Dr. Gray asked the FBI agent. He moved back and the pair stepped into the foyer, the door shutting behind them.

“Also, I heard John’s dad was here and that you may have gotten some gifts.” Cam grinned at her.

“The Mountain is full of gossips.” She shook her head, bemused by how nothing stayed a secret either at the SGC or in Atlantis.

“Not really. Daniel told Vala and she told everyone. Well, all the people she was allowed to tell you were here.” The Colonel looked around what he could see of the house and nodded. It was an amazing example of a Craftsman home. “Are you ready to go? All packed?”

“Yes, I’m packed. My bag’s upstairs. But I was planning to leave after lunch. I’m making soup and sandwiches.”

“I could eat.” Mitchell smacked his belly and rubbed it. “The marines may not appreciate having to wait though.”

Agent Eppes was perplexed. “Marines?”

“Yup, brought along some helping hands for all the stuff she got.” Cam thought for a moment. “Why don’t we let the marines grab your stuff and start back, then we’ll leave after we’ve eaten and you’ve said your goodbyes?”

“Deal. Don, could you show him to the pile in the solarium, while I finish getting everything fixed? Alan, Patrick and Larry should be back soon.” She smiled at the two men.

“Sure.” The older Eppes brother beckoned the Colonel to follow him. “It’s this way.” They left the foyer together and Dr. Gray hurried back into the kitchen. It didn’t take them long to get to the solarium, where a decent sized pile of boxes and stuff sat. “Here it is.”

“Looks like she and baby are all set.” Mitchell studied Don. “How’s she doing? Really?”

“Good… better than when she got her. She gets a little sad sometimes when she sees or hears something. Must remind her of her mom. But we’ve all been trying our best to distract her. I even asked for her help with a case.”

“What??”

“Just translating something. I brought the documents here, she wrote out the translation and I left with it. She wasn’t in any danger. If she had been, John would’ve come back and kicked my ass. Even though he’s younger than me, he’s always been able to get the upper hand in a fight, somehow.”

Cam nodded. “Yeah, and after Shep kicked your ass, about a dozen more people would be in line to do it again, including me. She has a lot of friends.”

“I gathered that. My team loves her. Though if she stays much longer, I’m going to have to start working out more. I’m dreading my next physical fitness test.”

“You’re lucky. Cooking for family and friends is something she started in the last few years. I missed out on it when we worked together. But I’ve gotten a few chances in the last couple years and it’s always amazing.” He surveyed the pile again. “I’ll go get the guys and we’ll load up the SUVs with this stuff. Hopefully, we can get it taken care of before the others get back.”

“I’d appreciate that. My dad and uncle are going to be freaked out by all the official looking vehicles outside.”

“We wouldn’t want that. I’ll be right back.” The Colonel exited the solarium and headed back to the front of the house, hitting his radio as he went. “Meet me at the front porch, boys.” By the time he got to the door, half a dozen marines were crossing the lawn. He let them in. “Follow me. It should only take a couple trips.”

Over the next twenty-five minutes, all the items in the solarium were moved out and packed into the SUVs. Three of the vehicles were pulling away when Mr. Eppes turned his car into the driveway. Alan, Patrick and Larry all got out and watched the retreating vehicles.

“Donnie, is something wrong? What were those cars doing here?” Father asked son as he entered the house with the other two men. Then he spotted the stranger standing next to his son. “And who’s this?”

“Colonel Cameron Mitchell, sir. I’m a friend of Mariah’s. I came to pick her up. Those SUVs have some of my men in them and all of the baby stuff Mariah got.” The leader of SG-1 offered his hand to the older gentleman. They shook.

“Oh…, Alan Eppes. And this is Patrick Sheppard, John’s father, and Dr. Larry Fleinhardt.” Alan gestured to his companions.

“Nice to meet y’all. Mar has nothing but nice things to say about you. She invited me to stay for lunch. I hope that’s okay.” Mitchell kept a smile plastered on his face and nodded to each of them. The three men were all frowning at him and looked generally unhappy.

At that moment, Dr. Gray came out of the kitchen, a plate in each hand, one with sandwiches on it and the other with add-ins for the soup she made. “Lunch is ready. Let’s eat.” She surveyed the scene and did her best to not roll her eyes. Looked like it was going to be one uncomfortable meal.

*****

“That is quite the haul, sweetheart.” John stated with a smile as marines carried boxes into the apartment, taking them into what had previously been John’s bedroom.

Mariah smiled at her lover. She had returned to the City about an hour ago, where she was met by the General and his two military commanders, as well as an impatient CMO. The physician had hustled her out of the Gate Room so quickly she didn’t even have time to say hello to the men she loved, but called out over her shoulder that the boxes the marines pushed through the Gate were for her and the baby. The three Air Force officers had trailed after the two doctors, chuckling. Carson gave her a very thorough exam once they were in the infirmary, but eventually declared her in good health and let her leave. Sheppard and Evan had been waiting for her at the door and took her home.

Inside the apartment, the trio had just started to reconnect, when the doors chimed, causing the linguist to laugh at the disgruntled looks that appeared on her lovers’ faces. She took a seat on the couch and Lorne let Stackhouse, his team and a few others in with all of the baby stuff. They had just carried the crib in with supervision from the two Colonels and Dr. Gray, who was sitting on the couch with both cats and Bernard in her lap. She watched Petrov carrying in a final box and held up her hand.

“Stop right there, Dimitri. That box is for you.”

“For me?” He looked at the box in his hands. It was heavy and seemed only partially full.

“Yes. Dr. Galuski gave it to me. It has books for next semester in it, for you and Radek and Rodney. Take it to Radek to look through. He needs to grab out the teaching materials, before he gives you the rest.” She smiled at her friend.

The Russian nodded. “Da, malen’kiy. Thank you for bringing this for me. I will take it to Dr. Zelenka presently.” He smiled at her, exited the apartment and was promptly followed by his teammates, the other marines had already returned to their duties. This left the young woman and her lovers alone.

“Trouble, Fearless, go to your cat tree.” Evan ordered. The felines looked at him, but stayed where they were.

“Come on, babies. We’ll play after dinner.” Mariah pet the two cats and watched as they shifted off her lap and scampered over to their tree, climbing it with ease. Hoisting herself off the couch, she took Bernard over to his cage, pressing a kiss to his head and getting a squeak before she dropped him inside and closed the door. She had barely turned around before she was in Evan’s arms with Sheppard pressed against her back. “Careful, guys. I’m a little bigger around the middle. Don’t squeeze me too much.”

“We missed you, beautiful.” Lorne cupped the back of her head and held her close.

“Missed you, too. It was an interesting week.”

“We know, sweetheart. There was a special dial-in from Earth the day you left. Caldwell sent the General and both of us messages. We’re so sorry.” John kissed the back of her head and her neck.

“Thanks….” She swallowed hard and tried to get her emotions under control. “It made for a rough couple of days, but Alan, Patrick, Don and Larry did their best to keep me occupied. I made the right decision to go see your Uncle.”

“We agree, but I’m sure John and I are both going to have emails from our respective parents, asking why you didn’t go to them.” Evan rubbed a hand up and down her side. She had gained a bit of weight, not that it would be noticeable to most people, but it didn’t change what he or the other man felt for her. She was theirs and they loved her. That was all that really mattered.

“First, I didn’t want to play favorites. Second, Alan was nothing but welcoming when we visited the first time. I needed simple acceptance and support. Patrick would’ve tried to fix everything and your mom would’ve tried to sympathize or reason out why my mom reacted the way she did. Neither of those things was what I needed.” She burrowed into his chest more. What she didn’t say was she would’ve rather had the two of them there to hold her in their arms and make her forget. She was in her safe place right now.

“Understood, sweetheart.” Sheppard chuckled. “Do you want to lay down before dinner?”

“Nope, I have groceries to put away and I want to see what you did to your bedroom. Where’d you put all your stuff?” Dr. Gray reluctantly wormed her way out from between them and headed into the kitchen. The crate of food was sitting on the counter. Cam had helped her pack it up before she left the Eppes house. They had driven the last SUV to a designated spot and were beamed from there into a secure hanger at the Mountain. The other SUVs and the six marines were waiting for them. They unloaded everything and took all of it, the linguist and her bag straight down to the Gate Room where the rest of SG-1 was waiting for them, along with two marines going back to Atlantis. The SGC’s premiere team had bid their pregnant friend goodbye and had given her a few more gifts for the baby. Then the Lanteans had headed through the Gate. Mariah waved back at them as she disappeared into the event horizon.

“Some’s in the spare bedroom and the rest I put in with Ev. We thought the baby deserved the room with the most light.” He followed her into the kitchen and started to put away the things she took out of the box.

Lorne leaned against the wall into the kitchen. “We don’t use our rooms that much, beautiful, so we didn’t see a problem sharing one of the bedrooms and storing our bigger items in the middle bedroom. I put my art supplies in there to make room for his stuff.”

“And my surfboard and guitar are in there, too. My extra clothes and toiletries are in his room and bathroom, since the cats use the guest bathroom for their time-outs, I didn’t think putting my stuff in there was a good idea.”

“Good thinking. Trouble would destroy it all out of spite.” She chuckled and lifted the empty box, handing it to Evan. He took it and placed it by the front door. Then she yawned.

“Naptime, sweetheart. Don’t think we didn’t see that.” John grabbed her hand and led her into the bedroom.

The linguist swatted at his hand. “I’m not a child. Quick shower and I’ll lay down.” She set her hand on her hips and looked at him. “Aren’t you on duty?”

“Well-.”

“Yes, he is. I had the foresight to take the afternoon off.” Lorne stated as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. “I’ll keep her company, John. Doesn’t AR-9 have a pre-mission brief?” He glanced at the clock. “You’ll be late, if you don’t hurry.”

Sheppard grumbled, but surged forward to give Dr. Gray deep, lingering kiss. “Fine. You better be here when I get back.”

“Of course. Now go.” Mariah chuckled as he hurried out of the bedroom, then the apartment. She leaned back against Evan. “Wanna soak in the tub with me, before I shower?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Chapter Text

“Myla?”

“Yes, Teyla?”

The Athosian leader handed her son to her friend. “Please take Torren. I must gather a few things and go to Mariah.”

“Is Dr. Gray unwell?” The young woman followed the new mother into the master suite of Teyla and Ronon’s apartment. She was slim with dark features, dark hair and her eyes were a deep amethyst. She was lovely and exotic.

“No. She just radioed to tell me none of her clothes fit and was in need of assistance. Ronon has already left for his run with John and Colonel Lorne is off-world with his team. She is frustrated and very emotional. I must do my best to calm her and will take her some of the clothes I wore during my pregnancy.” Teyla began to take items out of the dresser, stacking them into piles on the bed. “How do you find Atlantis? You have been here with us for several weeks and I do not know what I would have done without you.”

“I am honored to be living in the City of the Ancestors once again. The people here are most kind and accepting.” She paused and thought, then asked. “Is what Halling said true?”

“What did Halling say?” Teyla stopped gathering clothes and stared at the other woman.

“That Dr. Gray was blessed by the Ancestors and our people owe her for our new home.” Myla bounced Torren on her hip, the little boy giggled.

A look of anger swept over the Athosian leader’s face and stepped right in front on her friend. “When did you hear him say that? Were you eavesdropping on conversations not for your ears?” She was doing her best to not to yell. All the same, her son began to cry. She took the boy from the young woman and comforted him, holding him tight and rubbing his back. He quickly began to calm.

“I, um… I heard him say those things to General O’Neill.” Myla was pale and looked down at her feet. She had not meant to upset her friend.

“You must never repeat what you heard.” Teyla shook her head and took several deep breaths. Shouting at the other woman would get her nowhere. “Mariah’s secret must remain as such. If people were to discover it….”

“I would never. I like Dr. Gray very much. She is kind and has done everything in her power to welcome me here. I would never endanger her or ruin my opportunity to remain here in Atlantis. Please do not be angry with me.”

“I am sorry, Myla. I should not have shouted at you. General O’Neill has been very clear that only Mariah may choose to share her secret with others. You should not have been listening to other people’s conversations. I will have to report this to the General and Mariah.”

“Please, no. I promise I will tell no one. They will send me-.”

“Calm yourself.” Teyla offered her son back to her friend. “I will assure them you can keep what you heard a secret. General O’Neill may wish to speak with you, but I do not believe he will send you back to Proculus.” She went back to collecting clothes to take to her friend.

Myla cuddled Torren. She was still fearful of what might happen to her, then she made a suggestion. “Perhaps it would be best if I accompanied you to Dr. Gray’s apartment and tell her myself.”

“She will appreciate that.” Lifting one of the piles off the bed, Teyla exited the bedroom, the other woman trailing after her. “Let us go now. You may tell her, then bring Torren back here to play. It will take some time for her to try all these clothes on and see which feels best.” They exited the apartment and walked down the hall. Within a minute, they were outside the linguist’s quarters. They rang the chime.

“Oh, thank God, you’re here. I have to go-.” Mariah paused and pulled her robe more tightly around her. “I didn’t realize Myla and Torren were coming with you.”

“They are here for just a few moments. May we come in?” Teyla smiled at her pregnant friend.

“Yes, of course, sorry.” Dr. Gray stepped back and let them enter. She watched the Athosian leader take the pile of clothes into the bedroom, then scanned the other woman. Myla was nervous, shifting from foot to foot.

“Please, sit down, Mariah.” Teyla ushered the linguist to the couch. Her eyes caught those of her son’s caretaker and nodded at her. “Go ahead, Myla.”

“I… I must apologize to you, Dr. Gray. I overheard something I should not have and….”

*****

“Fine, Rodney. Is this better?” Zelenka wrote an equation out on the whiteboard.

“What are you, an idiot? Did you actually get a degree or did you just cut it off the back of a cereal box?” The CSO grabbed the marker out of the other man’s hand and erased the equation. “I’ve known undergrads with a better understanding of basic physics than you. You are a-.”

“Be nice and breathe, Rodney.”

The two scientists whirled around and Radek smiled at the person standing in the doorway. “Come in, Mariah.” He cleared off a chair and rushed to her side, guiding her to it. “Sit down. You should not strain yourself.”

“I’m okay, but thank you.” She sank into the chair with a sigh. She was about 5 months pregnant, but thankfully her bump wasn’t too big yet. She smiled at both her friends. Her mood was pretty good, since she had just received a special delivery from the SGC quartermaster. He had taken the initiative (probably with some prodding) to design her a maternity version of the Atlantis BDUs. They were surprisingly comfortable and roomy. She had plans to thank him in person the next time she was back on Earth… with baked goods. “What did you guys need me for?”

“Huh?” McKay looked at her in confusion, then over at his Czech colleague, only to see he was just as baffled as him.

“Jack said there was some device you needed me to think ‘on’ at and a translation you wanted to discuss.”

“Ano, ano.” Zelenka hurried over to the Ancient device box and pulled it out, setting it on the workspace. He dug around inside and pulled out something in triumph. “This is the item. It was found in one of the labs swept by the City teams and was apparently the only salvageable device there.” He offered it to her.

The linguist carefully took it from him and let her eyes slide closed. She thought at it and smiled. The device lit up and chirped. Her eyes opened. “It should go to the biologists.” She held it back out to Radek.

“Why?” Rodney snatched it away from the other man and looked at it. There was nothing that clued him into its purpose. “What is it?”

“Used for sample analysis. Water, soil, air, anything organic or naturally occurring.”

“How did you figure that out?” He continued to inspect the device.

“It told me.” She chuckled at McKay’s gaping face. “Works in conjunction with a console in one of the labs, probably the one you found it in.”

The CSO snapped his fingers at Zelenka. “We need… what’s his name?” For once, he honestly couldn’t remember the name of their lead ecologist.

“Dr. Weston.” Mariah supplied.

“Yes, him.” He paused. “How’d you know that?”

“Good with names. Always have been. Plus, I’ve done some translations for him.” She continued to smile at her friends. Rodney was glaring at her, while Radek smiled back.

“Do you have time to turn on a few other items, milý Mariah?” The Czech asked and sorted through the remaining devices in the box.

“Sure, but wasn’t there a translation you wanted to talk about?”

The physicist grabbed his laptop and scrolled through a few things. “Here, this is the document. It’s from the ZPM lab. I just need you to confirm the translation is accurate.” He shoved the computer at her.

“If I sent it to you, it’s accurate.” She took the laptop and scanned the document. “I didn’t translate this.” She quirked her head at him. “Who translated this?”

“I did. I used the key word document you sent out and did it myself.” The Canadian blushed and looked at the floor.

“Good for you, Rodney.” She read through the document and made a few edits. “Looks relatively accurate. A few of the tenses were wrong, but I fixed those. Otherwise, it’s fine. I’m happy to see you putting your Ancient language skills to use.” She gave him back the computer and rubbed her belly. She was still getting used to her distended stomach and knew it was only going to get bigger.

“Thanks.” He set the laptop back at his workspace, looked at her and blurted out. “Are you going to let me hold the baby?”

“Where’d that come from?”

“Well, um… Teyla won’t let me hold Torren anymore, unless I’m supervised, because I….”

“You dropped him?” Dr. Gray asked with a smile. She had been present at the incident in question.

“He fell like 2 inches. Six at the most. And I caught him.” McKay responded defensively.

She whispered something back. He didn’t hear what she said, but Zelenka did and chuckled.

“What? What did you say?” The CSO demanded.

“You caught him with some help.” She was fighting not to laugh.

“Help? What help?” Rodney put his hands on his hips and glared at her. Then he thought over her comment. He waved a hand in the air and said. “You used your… you know, to help me?”

“Yeah… I didn’t want Torren to get hurt and I wanted you to have a chance to redeem yourself.” The linguist answered softly, then answered his initial question. “Of course, I’ll let you hold the baby… while you’re sitting down and… I have a clear line of sight.” She paused and added. “Though John might have something to say about it.”

The physicist waved her off. “If you say yes, he can’t really complain.”

“Yes, he can, but I’ll let you discuss that with him.” She held her hand out to the Czech scientist. “Give me the next device and I’ll do my best to tell you what it is.”

*****

“Hey, Chewie.” The Satedan smiled at his team leader and stepped back to let the other man into the apartment. Sheppard surveyed the living area and tried to tamp down on his nervous energy. Mariah always told him, it doesn’t hurt to ask, because the worse thing a person can say is no. He knew his teammate probably sensed his unease, but Ronon said nothing, just waited for him to speak and explain his presence. “Anybody else here?”

“Teyla and Myla are leading a meditation session and Torren’s napping. Why?”

Deciding to bite the bullet and just ask, John said. “I was wondering if I could borrow Torren.” This earned him an arched eyebrow and he sighed. “We’re going to have a baby in a few months and I’ve never really… had much exposure to babies. Evan has, what with his nephews and being more outgoing than me. I need to learn to hold, feed and change a baby.” He tried not to shudder at the last part. Dirty diapers scared him to death.

The former Runner turned and walked away without a word, disappearing into one of the smaller bedrooms on the far side of the apartment. This gave the Colonel time to peruse the place. It was a similar layout to his quarters, but smaller. The living room and dining room areas were half the size and there were only two extra bedrooms in addition to the master suite. The kitchen wasn’t much, just a single counter, fridge, stove and sink. He had only been inside his teammates’ apartment a handful of times. Mariah was the big entertainer in their circle of friends and family. He stopped his study of the space when Ronon came out with Torren in his arms. The little boy was sleepy, but smiling. One of his tiny hands was gripping his father’s shirt.

“Here.” The Satedan offered the child to the other man.

“Hey, buddy.” John tried to smile and gingerly took the child, who immediately began to bawl. He turned startled eyes to Ronon. He had no idea what to do and kept Torren at arm’s length.

“Babies smell fear, just like animals. Don’t be afraid. Also, they like to be held close and cuddled. Makes them feel safe.”

“Okay.” Sheppard pulled the baby against his side, one hand holding his butt, the other rubbing his back. “Don’t cry, little guy. I’m your Uncle John, remember?” He rocked back and forth and the crying started to abate. He smiled. That was easier than he thought it would be. He had held Torren a few times when he was just a newborn, after all he was the godfather, but he needed more hands-on experience before his baby was born. Or more accurately, their baby. He and Evan were going to be equal in the baby’s eyes, no matter how obvious it was who the father was.

“Keep up the rocking motion and move around. That’s the best way to calm them and help them settle down for a nap.” Ronon continued to coach his friend.

Over the next hour, John received a crash course on babies from his friend. He learned a variety of things, but more than anything, he got comfortable with handling a baby. The changing part was just as horrible as he imagined. It didn’t seem to make sense how big a mess such a tiny human being could make and how awful it could smell. Ronon assured him the size and smell was all based on what he was fed, though he laughed the entire time Sheppard gagged and complained about it. His favorite part was playing with Torren. The little boy seemed to find him hilarious. Their time on the floor together was full of giggles and full blown laughter. The Satedan kept an eagle eye on them the entire time.

The Colonel leaned back on his hands and looked over at his teammate. Torren was safely sitting between his legs, playing with some soft toys and leaning against his Uncle. “How’d I do?”

“Decent. Might want to make Lorne deal with the diapers.” He smirked.

“I think it would be easier if Mariah was willing to use disposable diapers, but she and Ev have insisted that cloth is the way to go. They said it’s better for the environment.”

“It is.”

“Don’t tell me you actually help rinse out those smelly things?”

“Yup. Have to breathe through my mouth when I do.” The former Runner studied the other man. “Feel better?”

“Yeah…. Thanks for letting me take him for a test drive.” Ronon arched an eyebrow at him again. “For letting me try out being a dad for an hour.” John explained.

“No problem.” He stood and came over to sit on the ground next to his friend. “I didn’t know any of this stuff when he was born either.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“Neither did Teyla.”

“Really?”

“Yeah… Marie and Beckett showed us some, the rest we figured out. The three of you will figure it out, just like us. Wanna know the most important thing?” Sheppard nodded. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Teyla told me that.”

“Thanks, buddy.” He stroked Torren’s head and the little boy looked up at him, smiling. He couldn’t wait for his child to look up at him like that. He corrected himself again, their child. He secretly hoped it wasn’t obvious whose child it was, unless he or she looked like their mother. It would make everything easier for him and Lorne, but he would love him or her all the same, even if he or she had Evan’s eyes or dimples. He wouldn’t fulfill Mariah’s biggest concern, that he would love the baby less if it wasn’t his.

All of a sudden, the doors to the apartment opened and Teyla and Myla walked in. They surveyed the scene that greeted their eyes and laughed. The Athosian leader spoke to the two men. “What have the three of you been up to?”

*****

Evan was fighting not to grin. He was overjoyed about having an evening to himself, not that he didn’t like hanging out with Sheppard or being with their lover. But it had been a long time since he had a few hours alone and was inspired to paint. Since Mariah’s pregnancy had become common knowledge, the two men had been trying to have one date night a week, each, with her. This one-on-one time allowed them the opportunity to reconnect with her and show her how much they loved her. He knew she was struggling with gaining weight and her growing waistline. A few nights earlier, he had taken her for a moonlight dinner on one of the piers. They had fed each other and chatted about their day, but the best part was holding her in his arms and dancing with her, just like on the date where he confessed his love for her. Tonight, she was with John and hopefully, they had a similar great experience together.

However, right now, he was on a balcony in their tower with a spectacular view into the heart of the City, painting a picture to go in the baby’s room. The linguist had been working on decorating it over the last few weeks and he wanted to contribute. His sketch was done and he had just started on the first layer of paint, when his radio chirped.

Hitting it with a sigh, he stated. “Lorne here.”

“Ev, I need you here, ASAP.”

“John… what’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure, but I could really use some backup.”

Cleaning his brush off in his water cup, he stepped back and headed inside. “Where are you?”

“The spa. Hurry.” The radio connection went dead.

“What the hell is going on?” Evan muttered and jogged down the hall to the transporter. A few minutes later, he was walking into the pool and spa facility. The main room of the spa was empty, so he opened the door to the hallway. They must be in the private room. He thought, then he spotted his fellow Colonel sitting in the corridor, the door to the large room at the end was shut. “Where’s Mariah?”

“Inside.” Sheppard pointed at the closed door.

“And you’re out here because?”

“This is where she flung me.”

“She flung you?”

“Sort of.” He thrust his hand at Lorne and was hoisted to his feet. He brushed the seat of his jeans off.

“John, tell me what happened… from the beginning.”

The other man sighed and started speaking. “After you left with your painting stuff, I let her finish the translation she was working on and got the blindfold out. She let me put it on her and I led her down here. Once we were inside, I kissed her and as we got into it, I pulled the blindfold off. Eventually, we needed air, so I pulled away and waited for her eyes to open. When they did, she took one look around and started bawling and yelling at me. I tried to calm her down, but she lifted me off my feet, thought the door open and tossed me out here on my ass. I have no idea what I did.”

“I do.” Evan went over to the door and knocked. “Mariah, John didn’t mean anything by it. Could you open the door?” No response.

“What didn’t I mean?”

“You’re so dense sometimes.” Lorne growled and spoke softly but vehemently to the other man. “She thinks she’s fat and ugly right now. She’s almost 6 months pregnant and super hormonal. Fooling around under the covers is one thing, being naked in front of you is completely different. Plus, you sprung it on her.” He knocked again. “Please, Mariah. He’s sorry. Let us in.” The door unlocked and opened. He stepped inside, followed by Sheppard, who was cursing under his breath.

Both men scanned the room. It took them a minute to find the linguist. She was in the far corner of the room, behind the hot tub, sitting on the floor with her knees pulled as close to her chest as her stomach would allow. Tears were streaming down her face, but she wasn’t sobbing or yelling at them.

Evan went straight over, knelt down next to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He pulled her close. “Hey there.” He didn’t use her pet name for obvious reasons. He didn’t want to set her off. “You okay?” He moved back so he could see her face.

“Yeah….” She eyed John warily. He was standing a few feet from them, watching their interaction carefully. “He… he….” She couldn’t seem to get the words out and her face crumbled.

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” Sheppard stated and came closer, falling to his knees.

“I’m fat.” She cried and dropped her face into Lorne’s chest.

“No, you’re not.” John put his hand on her neck and rubbed his thumb along her jaw. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize how you were feeling, because all I see is the beautiful woman who Evan and I love. You get more beautiful every day.”

“You just think that because the two of you did this to me.” She lifted her head and gestured to her tummy.

Her lovers laughed. Lorne took the lead in responding. “No, that isn’t it. Do you remember our conversation about why I find you beautiful?” She nodded. “Yes, you have a very lovely exterior.” He chuckled when she rolled her eyes. “But you are beautiful to us, because you’re kind, compassionate and have such a big heart, giving us so much love. Also, this.” He rubbed her belly. “Is temporary.” He kissed her temple. “Are you ready for me to leave you with John again?”

“Yeah, I think so.” She pushed both men away. “Help me off the floor.” The Colonels scrambled to their feet and lifted her up. She hugged Lorne. “Sorry for interrupting your painting.”

“I’m always available when you need me, beautiful.” He glared over at his friend. “Though I dislike playing referee.”

“Hey, she wouldn’t let me in.” Sheppard defended himself.

“With good cause.” Lorne stepped away from her and walked backwards towards the exit. “I’ll see you both later. Try not to upset her for the rest of the night.”

“Promise.” John grinned, then dove in to give Mariah a searing kiss.

Evan shook his head and trotted out of the room and down the hall. The door closed behind him. He really wanted to get back to his painting and make some progress before he was interrupted again. There was no telling when the emotionally challenged leader of AR-1 would say the wrong thing and he would have to calm down their lover yet again. But he now had several ideas for his next date with her, ideas to show her just how beautiful she was.

*****

“What exactly did you want to discuss with me, Richard?”

“There are a few matters, General.” The IOA rep adjusted his glasses, before he continued. “The first is in regards to Kiryk. My superiors agreed to let me do his interview and review, which I have already completed.”

“How’d that go?” Jack chuckled.

“It was interesting. He was NOT very friendly initially and when I requested Ronon join us, he refused.” Woolsey shook his head, when the expedition leader laughed again. “Thankfully, Captain Cadman and Dr. Gray came to my rescue and I was able to get through the required questions. He passed. My notes and decision will go through with tomorrow’s data burst. You’re copied on the email.”

O’Neill leaned forward on his desk and eyed the other man. “How did he answer the all-important question?”

“He stated he joined the expedition to help us fight the Wraith and to repay our kindness for saving Celise and himself. He will remain here with us until he believes the debt has been paid.” He shifted his position in the visitor chair.

“Good. Hopefully, it takes him a long time to repay us. Having two former Runners here, helping us fight everything Pegasus has to offer, is amazing. They’re making our people better fighters and are assets in the field.” O’Neill could see how uncomfortable the other man was, so he opted to push ahead. “What’s the next thing?”

Richard bowed his head and calmed himself. He looked up after a moment. “The second item is about Dr. Gray.”

“Okay…?”

“The IOA was perturbed they didn’t get a chance to speak with her when she was on Earth and while they didn’t blame anyone, in particular, they’re putting restrictions in place. I believe out of spite.”

“Restrictions? RESTRICTIONS? She doesn’t fall under their purview any longer. The President and Thor made that abundantly clear to the member countries. They can’t stop her from doing anything she wants to do.” O’Neill was doing his best to not lose his temper. It wasn’t the other man’s fault that the IOA was full of idiots.

“I agree, however their… let’s say, suggestions, instead of restrictions, seem to be reasonable.” He knew the General was mad, but he hoped he would at least hear him out.

“Fine, what are they?” He sat back and crossed his arms.

“She’s permitted to go to and from Pegasus, but is not allowed to go on missions. They requested any usage of her powers be reported to them, again. Apparently, they’ve figured out we’re omitting these instances from the official reports. And finally, that she undergo weekly doctor exams. She’s a valuable resource and they don’t wish anything to happen to her.” He relaxed as soon as he finished speaking. It felt good to get it off his chest.

Jack nodded and thought. He wasn’t sure the other man was going to like his response. “Agreed, hell no and that’s her decision. I’m not going to mandate she do anything she doesn’t want to. She’s proven time and time again she can take care of herself and others.”

“But General, I….”

“No, Richard. Mariah is safest here. If we tell them about every usage of her powers, they’ll worm their way back in and try to govern what she does. She isn’t a weapon, she’s a young woman starting a family with the men she loves.” He took a deep breath and added. “However, now that I’ve thought about it, I’ll suggest the last thing to Beckett. If he sees a need, then he can talk to her about it. All your friends are trying to do is control her, by whatever means necessary.”

“Colleagues, not friends. I believe I’m closer to the people here than I have ever been with the other IOA representatives. And I prefer it that way.” He smiled at the expedition leader and got a smile back.

“Glad to hear that. We good?”

“Yes, I agree with your responses to all three suggestions now that we’ve discussed it. I do have one final thing to bring up.”

“Okay?”

“In typical bureaucratic fashion, while the IOA does not wish Dr. Gray to go off-world, they have requested a status on the repairs to the Selene.”

“That’s just great.” The General chuckled and shook his head. “They don’t want her to go off-world and in the next breath, basically state she has to go off-world. Do they know she’s the only one who can gain access to the shipyards?”

“They do.”

“All right. I’ll get with Beckett and see what he has to say, after he rants at me. If he says she can’t walk the mile and a half it takes to get to the facility, they’re just going to have to wait until after she gives birth and actually wants to go. But if he says she can, I’ll work up a mission. The Colonels are not going to like it.”

“Could I perhaps…?”

“Sure, if it happens. Give me a week or so to work out all the details. I’ll bring it up at the senior staff meeting the week after next. I’m not looking forward to the yelling and screaming that’s to come, but the boys will just have to deal with it.” Jack shook his head again. Sometimes it really didn’t pay to be the boss.

Chapter Text

While it wasn’t unusual for him to wake up in the middle of the night, John actually jolted awake, when he instantly realized the woman he loved wasn’t there. He scanned the master suite. The bathroom light was off, but the doors to the living area were cracked open. He slipped out of bed, donned his track pants and exited the bedroom. The light was on in the kitchen and he headed there.

“Whatcha doing, sweetheart?”

“I was hungry.” She didn’t look at him, just kept stirring the contents of the pot she had on the stove. Trouble and Fearless were sitting at her feet. The young woman was dressed in a sleep shirt, nothing else. She was almost six month pregnant, so it wasn’t even one of John’s shirt, since they didn’t fit anymore, at least not as sleep shirts.

“Having some soup?” He leaned against the counter next to the stove and glanced in the pot. He wasn’t sure what she was making.

“Pickles.”

“Pickles? You’re making pickles?” He thought for a minute. “As far as I know, we don’t have any cucumbers. What are you pickling?”

“Onions.”

“Um, no. I don’t think so.” He grabbed the pot out of her hand and lifted it off the stove, thinking the burner off as he did. “Since you got pregnant, onions give you indigestion. Not happening.” He poured the liquid out in the sink and dumped the nasty onions into a bin under the sink, asking Atlantis to empty their trash. Sheppard looked at his lover and swallowed hard.

The linguist was upset and on the verge of tears. “But I want pickles. Why’d you do that?”

He tossed the empty pan in the sink and took her into his arms. “I’m just looking out for you, sweetheart. I’ll go down to the Mess and steal you a jar of pickles.”

“You will?” She sniffled and cuddled against him.

“Of course. All you had to do was ask. But first, we’re going to wake up Evan and he’s going to keep you company while I commit grand theft pickle.” He dropped a kiss on her head and ushered her back to the bedroom, the two cats trotting after them. “Lorne!” He uttered softly, but with authority.

The former base XO bolted upright and scanned the room, the lights coming on to half strength. “What?” Then he spotted the pair. “What’s wrong?”

“Keep our girl company. I need to go get some pickles.”

“Pickles?”

“Yes, pickles. She was making pickled onions.” He helped Mariah into bed and smiled when she immediately leaned against the other man. “I put a stop to that.” He grabbed his t-shirt and quickly put it on.

“Good. Did you…?” Evan cradled their lover against his chest and rubbed one hand over her stomach. He felt the baby move and smiled.

“I had the City empty the trash and I think she’s airing out the kitchen.” Sheppard opted to forgo shoes and headed out of the room. “I’ll be back.” Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the two cats jumping on the bed and shook his head. Everyone was getting time with her but him. He walked out of the apartment.

It only took him a couple of minutes to get from their tower to outside the Mess Hall. John smiled when he discovered the main area devoid of people. He was happy he wouldn’t have to explain his presence in the middle of the night. He went towards the entrance to the kitchen and was surprised to see the lights were on. He cautiously entered and took stock of the room. There was someone there, cooking or at least what he assumed was cooking. He cleared his throat.

The man at the stove cursed and dropped the tongs he was holding into the large pot he was standing over. He swung around. “Colonel Sheppard, sir, what are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing, Gunny.”

“Well, it is my kitchen.”

“But it’s two in the morning. What are you doing up so late? Or is it early for you?” John moved closer to the expedition’s head cook.

“Early, sir.” He turned back to the stove and turned off the burner. He started to fish his tongs out of the hot water with a spoon. “I’m making bagels.”

“Bagels? With a pot of water?”

“Yes, sir. You put the raw bagels in a hot water bath for 90 seconds to 2.5 minutes before you bake them in the oven. It smooths out the skin and gives you that chewy exterior.” The marine returned his full attention to his superior and studied him. “What are you doing here, sir?”

“I came to steal a jar of pickles.”

“Pickles, sir?” The Gunny quickly realized what was going on. “Oh… are they for Dr. Gray?”

“Yeah… I caught her making pickled onions. I tossed those out and promised her I would come get some out of the pantry. Do you mind?” Sheppard looked at the floor and tried not to blush. He hadn’t expected to be caught in the act and need to explain what he was doing.

“Of course not, sir. Give me a second.” Stevens headed into the pantry.

The Colonel’s radio chirped and he hit it on. “Sheppard here.” His eyes dilated for a second and he sighed. He called out. “Can I get a jar of peanut butter, too?” He paused and listened to the voice on his radio. He added. “And any goat cheese or feta you might have?” He whispered into the radio. “That’s enough, Ev. Gunny’s here and I’m talking to him. I’ll get those things and be right there.” He hit his radio off and did his best to smile when the marine came out of the pantry with two large jars.

“Here you go, sir. Let me see what we have in the freezer. I think we have some goat cheese.” He handed the jars to his superior and disappeared back into the pantry where the door into the large walk-in freezer was. A minute or two passed and he returned carrying a large white log wrapped in plastic. He set it on top of the jars in the other man’s arms. “Goat cheese. Anything else?”

“Got any of those bagels finished? I’ll take three, if you have ‘em.”

“Of course, sir.” Stevens was trying his best not to laugh and grabbed three bagels off the cooling rack, then wrapped them in plastic wrap. He added them to the pile in John’s arms. “If that’s all, sir, I’d like to get back to making bagels. Breakfast is only a few hours away and I have a lot to make.”

“Thanks, Gunny. I’ll let Mariah know how helpful you were. I’m sure she’ll thank you with baked good, like she usually does.”

“That’s not necessary, sir, but thank you all the same.” The marine smiled. “I’m sure I’ll see you later. Have a good rest of your night, Colonel.”

“Thanks. You, too.” Sheppard smiled one finally time and bolted from the kitchen. He fled across the Mess Hall, right to the transporter. The City took him to his corridor without hitting the map and less than a minute later he was walking into the apartment. He popped into the bedroom and started to speak. “I got every-.”

“Shhh.” Lorne hissed and pointed at their lover. She was curled up on her side in the middle of the bed asleep. “She just dozed off.”

“But I…. She said….” He hung his head. “I can’t win. I just can’t….” He took his bounty into the kitchen and put it all away. He couldn’t wait for this whole pregnancy to be over.

*****

“All right, people. Now that all the updates are out of the way and the department heads have left, we can discuss some of our more sensitive projects.” Jack turned and looked at the CMO. “How’s Ford doing, doc?”

“As everyone’s aware, he’s been at the Alpha site for just over four months, with Dr. Keller and myself going out weekly to check on him. It appears the worse is finally over. He’s eating regularly and the outbursts have finally stopped. I think we need to discuss having him come back to the City.” Carson shifted in his chair. All the military personnel in the room sat up straighter.

O’Neill nodded. “I’ll take that under advisement. Kate?”

“Yes, General?”

“I’d like you to go out and have a chat with him. I want a full evaluation of his mental health. If you think he’s doing okay, I’ll include your report along with mine to the IOA, alerting them to the fact Lt. Ford has been found.”

“Sir, are we omitting the fact that we’ve had him for the last four months?” Lorne asked.

“Yes. The only person on Earth who already knows he was recovered is the President. The SGC and the IOA labeled him a security risk after the expedition’s two run-ins with him and a capture-or-kill order was issued.” Looks of horror passed over a few people’s faces. “Only Dr. Weir and Colonel Sheppard were advised of this and I doubt either of them considered sharing that order with the expedition. I thought it wise to keep his ‘capture.’” He air-quoted the word. “A secret until we could attest to his mental and physical health.”

“Are you planning to tell them about my involvement?” Dr. Gray asked from her seat between Teyla and Rodney.

“My report will simply state he was recovered by AR-3 during a mission and taken to the Alpha site for evaluation. What really happened on M3M-K19 won’t be shared.” The expedition leader looked her in the eyes and smiled when she nodded. He turned to look at the Security Chief. “Stacks, I’d like your team to accompany Dr. Heightmeyer to the Alpha site and I want you to do a security assessment of Ford. I need your honest opinion on if he’s a security risk and if he can be re-integrated into our community. If he comes back to Atlantis, he’ll have to remain here, no missions and no off-world responsibilities. Lorne, you’ll need to figure out where to put him.” Nate and Evan nodded at him. “Next topic…. We need to-. Mariah, you okay?”

The linguist was squirming in her seat, but paused and looked at him like a deer in the headlights. “I’ve been sitting for over an hour. My butt’s numb.” The room chuckled and she added. “Hey, I’m carrying around a bunch of extra weight. Give me a break.” She pouted. “Go ahead and continue.”

“A little too much info… however, my next topic involves you and an edict from the IOA. They have requested a status on the Selene, which means a mission to the shipyards.” He held up a hand when his fellow Air Force officers began to speak. “I’ve already conferred with Carson and he advised me that she should be able to walk from the Gate to the facility without issue, though a little slower than normal. He’s also insisted on going with the team.”

“Aye, I’m not letting a pregnant patient go off-world without medical supervision, especially when she’s about to enter her third trimester. And if the ship’s not ready to bring back to the City, she’ll need to rest and have her vitals checked before we head back to the Gate.” The Scotsman looked around McKay at the patient in question. “Is that clear?”

“Yes, but don’t I get a say on whether or not I go?”

“I’m sorry, Dr. Gray, but my superiors were quite clear on their need for a status on the ship. I know this is probably not what you want to be doing, but-.” Mr. Woolsey looked at her and tried to smile. He disliked being the bad guy. She interrupted him.

“I understand, but I’m not sure if I can get through the forest around the Gate or not. It’s a bit dense and I’m larger than I was during our last visit. I’m worried about making a path.” The young woman was doing her best to not look at her lovers. She was sure they were both frowning and could feel their eyes boring into her.

“Can I go? I can help her get through the forest.” Ronon asked. He knew his team leader wanted to tag along, but wouldn’t be allowed. He was willing to volunteer to help his friend, but he also wanted to keep the little doctor safe.

Jack smiled at the Satedan. “I was hoping you’d offer. I’d like both you and Kiryk to tag along. I want to see how he works with our people, firsthand, as well as how he interacts with you. Plus, having two former Runners tag along should placate my military commanders.” He looked at Sheppard and Evan in turn.

“We’d be better placated if you let one or both of us tag along, sir.” John muttered under his breath. Sadly, Mariah heard him and glared. He ducked his head.

“No can do. I need the two of you to hold down the fort while Richard and I go on the mission. It’s the normal group, plus four.”

“No. NO! Zelenka can’t go. He’s supposed to be going back to the ZPM lab to prepare for our first test.” The CSO started to stand up in protest, but Mariah set a calming hand on his arm.

“Breathe, Rodney. He hasn’t told us when the mission is slated for yet.” The linguist said calmly and quietly to him.

“She makes a good point, McKay. I spoke with Dr. Z and he’s supposed to go back to the energy lab a week from tomorrow. The mission to the shipyards is going to be the day after tomorrow. I want to get it over and done with for all our sake, but especially Mariah’s.”

“And mine.” Dr. Beckett interjected.

“And the doc’s. Any further comments about the mission to the shipyards?” He scanned the room. The Colonels appeared to be biting their tongues, for which he was thankful. “The only other matter of discussion is the increase in Wraith sightings and attacks. We need to alert all of our people who go off-world and tell them to remain vigilant, even when on allied worlds. We’ve been lucky with only a few injuries amongst our people. I don’t want to lose anyone.”

Sheppard cleared his throat and waited for his superior to look at him. “Sir, we’ve met with all the AR team leaders and told them about the incidents. And I know Rodney alerted his folks. Or more likely yelled at them.”

“Makes them absorb it better.” The CSO said with a smirk.

O’Neil shook his head and rolled his eyes. He wouldn’t get into a debate with the physicist about how he handled the science teams. He’d never hear the end of it. He moved on. “Would it be possible to reach out to Todd and see if he knows anything about the attacks?”

“I don’t think so, sir.” John answered quickly. “We owe him after our last run-in. He rescued Mariah and returned her to us without us asking for his help. I’m not sure how receptive he’d be to doing us another favor.”

“I’ll defer to you on this, but if they continue, we might not have a choice. He’s our best bet for intel.”

“Yes, sir.”

“That’s all I have. You’re dismissed.” The General stood and thought the doors to the Conference Room open. He headed to his office, but turned when he heard footsteps behind him. Dr. Gray was hurrying after him, her lovers trailing behind her. “Come on, Mariah. We can chat in my office.” He waited for her to catch up and ushered her through his office doors. He thought them closed after his military commanders joined them. He studied her. “Do you want to sit down?”

“No, I’ve sat enough and getting up might be a challenge.”

“Then what can I do for you?” He leaned against the front of his desk.

She gave a heavy sigh. “You didn’t actually address my concern about the forest. I’m-.”

“Ronon’s going along to help you. Plus, Beckett, Petrov and I can help, too. You’re not-.”

“Don’t interrupt me!” The linguist hissed. She was so tired of people doing things without her asking them to and not listening to her when she tried to speak. They were all treating her like she was made of glass or sick or something. Jack was staring at her agape. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lose my temper, but I’m not asking for help. Like I said during the meeting, I’m concerned having me go through the forest will create a discernible path and compromise the security of the planet. I know I need to go, but….” She hung her head, then heard her lovers coming closer. Mariah held up a single hand to make them stop. There was a grunt of frustration from behind her and she smiled.

“Did you just freeze Sheppard?” O’Neill asked as he pushed off his desk and came closer to her.

“Yeah…. Sometimes he doesn’t take direction well. More so now that I’m pregnant. I’ve been practicing on him and the cats. Evan and Bernard listen to me.” She put her hands on her hips. “Are you going to listen?”

The General smiled at her and held up his hands in surrender. “I hear what you’re saying and I think a good solution would be to have the team go through the forest on the opposite side of the clearing. We can skirt the edge of the field and exit where we normally come out. It'll add some time, but will disguise where we’re going, if we do create a path. That work?”

“Yes.” She smiled. “Thank you for listening.” She paused and asked. “Did you see my request?”

“Yup, already in progress. Give me a couple of weeks to finalize everything.”

“Perfect, thank you. I’ll get out of your hair. Got a stack of translations and a nap on the agenda for the rest of my day.”

Jack chuckled. “A nap sounds great. I wish I could get away with that. Enjoy.” He watched as she turned and headed towards the doors, which were already opening for her. When she passed John, he unfroze and growled, but obediently followed her and Lorne from the office. The expedition leader shook his head. He didn’t envy his off-world military commander. Having a lover with superpowers was great, until she decided to use them against you.

*****

“Good mission, sweetheart?”

“Yup, but my feet hurt. Lots of walking.” Dr. Gray leaned against her lover’s chest as best she could with her growing belly. She smiled and rubbed her stomach. It wasn’t very large, but it messed up her entire center of gravity. However, that didn’t matter right now. She was home. The couple was standing in the military command office, the linguist having just returned from the mission to the shipyards.

The Selene had not been ready to come back, due to insufficient raw materials. O’Neill planned to write a report up for the IOA to that effect and emphasize the next mission would have to wait until after the birth of Mariah’s baby, per direction of her physician. The plan to go through the forest at another point had worked and only left a slight path. The walk to the facility hadn’t taken as long as anyone anticipated, since Mariah was supported on either side by Ronon and Dimitri. But once at the facility, she stayed in the control room, waiting for a radio call about the ship, along with her two escorts and the CMO. Everyone was disappointed when the Selene wasn’t ready to go to Atlantis.

The return trip to the Gate was slow. Dr. Gray was tired and Carson was tutting along behind her, or at least he was until he pushed the Russian marine out of the way and took his place. She was leaning heavily against the former Runner by the time they reached the field. Everyone helped her through the forest, showing her where to step and which branches to duck under. The Scotsman had repeatedly refused throughout the mission to let Kiryk use his transportation device on his pregnant patient. As soon as the team stepped through the event horizon and entered Atlantis, Colonel Sheppard was there, taking the young woman into his arms and leading her to his office. Dr. Beckett yelled after them and demanded the linguist’s presence in the infirmary in the next thirty minutes or he would come back and personally escort her there. The couple nodded and continued up the stairs. In the office, she immediately cuddled up against his chest and sighed in contentment. The only thing missing was Evan. Having him there would make it the perfect homecoming.

As if on cue, the office doors opened and Lorne walked in, chuckling at the sight before him. He thought the doors closed and pressed up against his lover’s back. He stayed silent and basked in her scent and feel, the trio reconnecting with one another. After a few moments, he whispered. “Have you been to the infirmary yet, beautiful?”

“No, John brought me straight here and I’m so tired. Can’t I skip my exam?”

“Not unless you want an angry doctor with big needles hunting you down, sweetheart.” Sheppard pulled back and looked down at her. Her exhaustion was readily apparent. “Let’s get it out of the way, then we can go home. You deserve a soak in a nice warm bath and a foot massage.”

“Have I mentioned I love you recently?” She pulled back and looked up at him, adoringly.

“Not since you left this morning, but you can say it more if you want.” He smirked at her.

With a shake of her head, the young woman turned and melted into Evan’s embrace. “I love you, too.”

“And I love you, beautiful. Come on.” He let her go far sooner than he wanted to and gently led her out of the office with assistance from his fellow Colonel.

The two men supported her to the transporter and down to the infirmary. Carson pounced upon them as soon as they walked through the doors and gave her a full exam. All her readings were fine, but he still directed her to go home and rest, being sure to stay off her feet as much as she could over the next 48 hours. He feared her ankles might swell. The linguist nodded and gave him a tired smile. Then her lovers were there again, leading her back to the transporter. She gave a sigh of relief when their doors came into view.

“I think I could sleep for a week. Maybe Jack….” Mariah trailed off when the doors opened and she took stock of their apartment. “Are we on the right floor?”

“Yeah, beautiful…. What the hell?” Lorne scanned the room.

There were a half dozen people inside their apartment, three in the kitchen and three in the living room. The two people on the couch rose and stood at attention while the man in the armchair leapt up, running over to them. “You’re back. Why are you back? You should’ve been gone at least another hour.”

“Why are all these people in our apartment, Rodney?” Dr. Gray asked as she stepped inside and tried to figure out what was happening. She addressed the people by the couch. “Laura, Norm, what’s going on?” They didn’t move.

Sheppard sighed and barked out. “At ease, marines.” They dropped into parade rest and he continued. “Answer her question.”

“But she asked-.” McKay started.

“Yeah, and then she asked Cadman and Hoffman. They’ll probably give her a clearer answer.” He smirked when his teammate pouted.

The Captain stepped forward and spoke to the other woman. “Well, Dr. Manyon and a couple of his guys wanted to do something nice for you, so Hoff and I found Rodney and asked him to let us in. We were hoping to be finished before you and the team got back from the shipyards.”

The linguist started towards the kitchen in an effort to figure out what was going on. There were three xenobiologists in her kitchen, Drs. Manyon, Smith and Aggarwal, doing something and it made her uncomfortable. Before she got very far, Evan was by her side and guided her back into the living room to sit on the couch. Sitting down had never felt so good. She stopped herself from rolling her eyes in pleasure. “Could someone take my boots off? I’m too tired to try to get them.” She pointed at her feet. She was careful to omit the fact her lovers had to help her put her shoes on that morning. Lorne knelt down and took them off without a word. “Thanks, Ev.”

“You’re welcome, beautiful.” He smiled and carried her boots into their bedroom. The cats rushed out when he did and hurried to their owner’s side.

“Hey, babies.” She stroked her pets after they jumped on the sofa, then giggled when they draped themselves over her tummy. They were very protective of the baby. Mariah looked at Laura. “Why do they want to do something nice for me?” She saw Evan rejoin them out of the corner of her eye.

“Because, Dr. Gray, you’re the reason we have a team to finally go off-world with.” One of the men from the kitchen said as he approached, his colleagues steps behind him, carrying a few things.

“That’s not quite true, Dr. Manyon. You have a team because Captain Cadman asked the science contingent who was interested. I just pointed her in the right direction about a guide.” She smiled at the head of the xenobiology department. He was a tall, older man with salt-and-pepper grey hair, a warm smile and a runner’s frame. The standard uniform suited his as did his stylish pair of glasses.

“Then you sped thing along. Here.” One of the other man handed her a bowl and a small plate.

“Is this dal?” The linguist gazed into the bowl and tried to stop from salivating.

The man who gave her the dishes smiled. “Yes, my mother’s recipe. I remember you mentioning your love of it.”

“One of the only Indian foods I like, as long as there isn’t too much curry in it.”

“There is not and you have some homemade naan to dip in it.”

“This is wonderful, Dr. Aggarwal. Thank you.” The linguist set the dishes down next to her, ripped a piece of bread off and dipped it in the bowl. She popped the morsel in her mouth and savored it. “Delicious.”

“I am glad you like it.” Dr. Aggarwal was a dark-skinned man, probably from somewhere in the Asian Subcontinent. He was shorter than his boss and quite a bit rounder. He had a kind, inviting face and a calming demeanor. He gestured to the final scientist. “Dr. Smith has prepared something for your dinner. It-.”

“I can speak for myself, Raj.” His colleague chided, a faint accent escaping when he did. Dr. Smith was a big man, with broad shoulders, well-muscled arms and a no-nothing attitude. He towered over both his fellow xenobiologists. However, he was quick to smile at Mariah. “Fixed you all a nice shepherd’s pie. It’s in the fridge. I wrote out the instructions for baking it and left them on the counter.” His voice was deep and thundering, his British accent breaking through. It would be easy to mistake him for a marine, especially since he was known to workout with them. He offered her the cup in his hand. “Also, I made you some English breakfast tea.”

“Thank you.” She took the drink from him and sniffed it.

“Be careful. I brew it strong.”

Mariah sipped some of the tea and smiled. “It’s perfect.” She looked at the three scientists in turn. “You didn’t need to do this, but it’s a nice surprise after a long morning. Thank you, again.”

Dr. Manyon grew serious. “That’s our cue, gentlemen. Let’s leave Dr. Gray and the Colonels. Having uninvited guests is not a very nice thing to come home to.” He ushered his team members towards the doors, which opened for them. They waved as they departed.

“We’ll leave as well, sirs. Let’s go, Hoff.” The two marines started towards the still open doors, but the munitions expert stopped to snag Rodney by the arm, pulling him along with her. “You, too, McKay.”

“Don’t manhandle me. Why is everyone always-?” The rest of the physicist’s tirade was cut off by the doors closing.

The trio breathed a sigh of relief. Their home was theirs again. Sheppard headed into the kitchen to see what kind of mess the scientists had left, plus scope out their dinner, while Evan went to their lover’s side. He looked down at the two cats. “All right, guys, let’s go.” They looked at him with disdain.

“Babies-.” The linguist started with her hand over her mouth. She had just swallowed another bite of food. She knew better than to speak with her mouth full, but she also knew how her pets could get.

“I got this, beautiful.” Lorne interrupted her. “Mommy needs to eat, clean up and lay down. She doesn’t need either of you for those first two things, so come on. You can join her when she has her nap.” He held out his hands to the cats. He really hoped his new strategy didn’t get him clawed or hissed at. Also, he got a kick out of calling his lover, Mommy.

Trouble rose with a put-upon look and let the Colonel pick him up, placing him on his shoulder. Fearless followed suit and was held in his arms. Evan transported them over to their cat tree, where he put them in the basket at the top.

“Impressive, Ev.” John stated with his usual smirk, returning from the kitchen with two plates. He offered one to his friend. Each plate had a few pieces of naan on it and a small dish of dal.

“Thanks. They seem to do better when I reason with them.”

Dr. Gray drank the last of her tea, then set the cup on the coffee table. She quickly grabbed her dishes of food, making room for her lovers to sit beside her and smiled when they did exactly that. “Just imagine how they’re going to behave once the baby’s born.”

“Nope, we’re not going to discuss it.” Sheppard shook his head, refusing to contemplate that the two cats could get any worse than they already were. “Eat your food. Then it’s bath and foot massage time.”

“Yes, John.” Mariah gave the leader of AR-1 a smirk of her own, before setting her head on Lorne’s shoulder. There was no place she’d rather be than at home with her lovers and her crazy pets.

*****

“Everyone’s staring at me, sir.”

“There just happy to see you’re back.”

“More like terrified he’s going to flip out again.”

“Really, McKay?” John growled at the physicist.

Aiden chuckled. “I’ve missed this, sir.” The other two men arched an eyebrow at him so he continued. “The banter. We just need Teyla and her disapproving looks.”

“Well, she has a baby and a lover now. Most of her looks are reserved for them.” Rodney posited, then yelled. “Don’t you people have work to do? Nothing to see here. Move along.” He clapped his hands and pointed at a scientist. “I know for a fact you have an experiment that’s overdue, Dr. Chui. Shouldn’t you be working on that, instead of loiter in a hallway where nothing is going on?” People hurried away from the threesome and the crowd in the hall slowly disappeared.

“Only you could clear an area that quickly.” Sheppard said to his teammate. He was trying his best not to grin like a fool. He was so happy Ford was back in Atlantis. But he refrained from glancing behind them at the two marines, who were playing escort. It would only dampen his good mood. The General had insisted on it, saying it was a condition of the Lieutenant’s return. What went unsaid was that it was a way to appease the IOA, who had serious misgivings about the formerly-AWOL marine. He pushed all those thoughts away. “So, what do you want to do first?”

“How about a team movie night?” Aiden suggested, hesitantly. He was already well aware his teammates all had lives and significant others now. He really missed being with them, but didn’t want to impose.

The Colonel rubbed his hands together. “Sounds good. How’s tomorrow night? Chewie will be there, too, because he’s on the team now. And we might need to invite-.”

“NO!” The CSO shouted. His companions stopped and stared at him. But he wasn’t done yet. “If you invite Mariah, I’ll have to invite Jen. Plus, Mariah will want Lorne there, who will invite his team, then Stacks and his team will get invited. And they’ll invite Radek and I need him working on the analysis of our test data, not that’s there’s much to look at since the stupid thing didn’t work. And-.”

“FINE!” Sheppard shouted back. He should've known better than to upset the balance and make a radical suggestion of inviting someone else to a team movie night. “It’ll just be the five of us. I’ll bring the popcorn.”

“Could you maybe ask Mariah to make some of those-?”

“No, Rodney. If she isn’t invited, I’m not going to ask her to make you food. You can’t have it both ways.” John shook his head, then smiled when he heard Ford laughing. His young friend looked good, almost like he did from before the Siege. The only remnants of his injuries was some faint scarring on his face and his messed up eye. Carson had a few things he wanted to try now that his patient was back in the City. He made no promises, but he hoped to help the marine get back a little more of what he had lost.

“Sir?”

“Yeah, Ford?” He could see the marine was studying him. He resumed their stroll down the hallway. After a couple of oblivious seconds, McKay jogged to catch up.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“You already-.” The physicist started.

John spoke over him. “Of course, shoot.”

“It’s about Dr. Gray. Is she dating you or Major, I mean, Colonel Lorne?”

“Both.” The leader of AR-1 averted his eyes. He knew Aiden was confused and had been hoping to avoid this conversation until he was better settled in.

“How does that work?” The marine looked around. Seemed his CO was leading them out to one of the piers. He had missed the sea air and the calm of having water all around him.

Sheppard sighed. “It’s complicated. It started out because we both loved her and she needed us, but has morphed into more. Evan is… Evan’s probably my best friend. We balance each other out.” He chuckled. “Though sometimes we drive Mariah crazy. Then she sics her cats on us.”

The marine laughed, too. “I’d pay to see that.” Then he shrugged. If it worked for his friend, who was he to complain, but another question occurred to him. “But what about the baby?”

“What about it?” John did his best to hide his shock. He’d forgotten that Ford had been there when Mariah told Petrov about being pregnant. He knew where this was likely headed and didn’t want to discuss the baby’s paternity.

“Who’s the father?”

“We both are.”

“Nope.” Rodney added with a shake of his head. The trio walked through a door out onto the East pier. It was shady, the spires of the City blocking the sun.

“Yes, we are.”

“No, you aren’t. Only one father can be listed on a birth certificate. Carson’s going to have to do a paternity test after it’s born.” The Canadian gave his friend a smug smile.

Quirking his head, the Colonel thought about it. The other man was right and it irked him. “Drop it, McKay.” He growled. He really didn’t want to think about it. He walked over to the edge of the pier and sat down, sighing. He didn’t need people pointing out the obvious, especially when it was something he had overlooked. He calmed himself. He was not going to fulfill his lover’s worst fear. He would love the baby no matter whose it was. The others sat down on either side of him.

“Don’t worry about it, sir. McKay’s just jealous.”

“Jealous? JEALOUS? HA! I pity him. At least my girlfriend’s normal and doesn’t-.” He screamed in indignation when he received a slap upside the back of his head. “Don’t hit me.”

“Then stop being stupid.” Sheppard growled.

“I’m most definitely not stupid. I’m the smartest man in two galaxies.” He stuck his tongue out at his team leader, crossed his arms and pouted. Silence descended over them.

Several minutes passed before they heard footsteps behind them on the pier. Turning his head and looking beyond the marine escort, John spotted a figure approaching and smiled. He called out. “Hey, sweetheart.”

“You were next to impossible to find. I finally had to radio Chuck to figure out where you disappeared to.” Mariah harrumphed and scanned the three men. They all looked happy and relaxed and that pleased her. Her eyes settled on the young marine. She spoke to him. “It’s nice to see you here, Lieutenant.”

“Not a lieutenant, ma’am. I’m on extended medical leave until General O’Neill and my superiors in the Marine Corps deem me fit for duty again, if ever.” Ford scrambled to his feet. “Please, just call me, Aiden.” He reminded her, then smiled at her. She was glowing. He definitely could understand why the Colonel had been attracted to her.

“Well, then, Aiden, would you like to come over for dinner tonight? I’m making a roast. Teyla and Ronon are coming.”

“What about me?” Rodney interjected as he awkwardly got to his feet, huffing and puffing.

Dr. Gray sighed and rolled her eyes. “You and Jen can come, too.”

“HA! You called her, Jen.” He pointed at her.

“Don’t start or I’ll uninvite you.” She grinned when he clamped his mouth shut. The linguist sighed again, but in contentment this time, when Sheppard stood and took her in his arms. “So, with John and me, that’s seven.” She snuggled against her lover’s chest.

“What about Lorne?” Sheppard asked.

“Having dinner with his team, then he’s overseeing the monthly marine poker game. After the brawl last month, Stacks requested his presence.”

“Nice to know things haven’t completely changed.” Ford stated with a smile. He was happy to see his CO had finally found someone. He still had a few more questions he wanted to ask about her, but he felt they could wait until he had the chance to get to know her better.

The linguist chuckled and stepped away from John. She grabbed his hand and began to walk back to the City, ignoring the marine guards when she passed them. The CSO and Aiden were a step behind them. Looking over her shoulder at the marine, she said. “The more things change, the more they stay the same. Alphonse Karr may never have been to Atlantis, but I think the quote applies.”

“Alphonse Karr? Who the hell is that?” McKay asked indignantly. The young woman laughed and he shook his head, muttering. “Soft sciences….”

*****

“Daniel.”

“Jack.”

“Good to see you.”

“You, too.” The archeologist smiled at his friend. The Gate shut down behind him. He was overjoyed to be back in Atlantis, this time for an extended stay. He was just hoping O’Neill didn’t overreact to the predicament they now found themselves in.

“Vala.”

“General. Have I ever told you how attractive I find older men?” She smiled seductively at the expedition leader, ignoring the death glare her boyfriend was giving her.

Jack sighed and rubbed his temples. “What’s she doing here?”

“I promise I won’t let her wander around unsupervised.”

“I’m not a child. I don’t need to be supervised.” The dark-haired beauty scanned the Gate Room and grinned. She was sure there were untold treasures hidden somewhere in the City. She was elated that she might actually have time to search for them on this visit.

“You didn’t answer my question, Danny. What's she doing here?”

“Landry wouldn’t let me leave Earth without her and I thought your order to report here overrode your order about you and her not being within ten miles of each other.” Dr. Jackson blurted out and groaned. He really hoped he hadn’t misjudged his old friend. It wasn’t like he could send his girlfriend off-world (in the Milky Way) for a few months while he went to Atlantis. He could only imagine the trouble she would get herself into.

O’Neill weighed the situation. He needed Jackson here and Vala had mostly behaved herself during SG-1’s last visit. He tilted his head up and stared at the ceiling for a minute in quiet contemplation. Then he finally responded. “Fine, but if she steals one thing or breaks something, I’m going to dial a Wraith-controlled world and send her through. And knowing my luck, she’ll find a way to wipe them out, just to irk me.”

“I knew you liked me, handsome.” The space pirate slinked over to him, but he held up a hand in an attempt to stop her.

“Don’t even think about it, Mal Doran.” He glared and she just smiled back at him, before she went to Daniel’s side and hooked her arm through his.

“You don’t know what you’re missing.”

Jack shook his head and opted to focus on his former teammate, instead of responding. “Because of how long you’re going to be here, I had them set up the VIP quarters for you. Why don’t you get settled, then we can talk about what’s going on?”

“No need, handsome.” Vala took her bag and Daniel’s and started towards the Gate Room door. “I’ll take our stuff there, while you boys chat. It shouldn’t be too hard to find.”

“Stop!” O’Neill shouted. “Talbot, take Vala to the VIP quarters and play escort. She goes nowhere alone.”

“Yes, sir.” The marine hurried to the woman’s side.

“You’re no fun.” She flounced out of the room, her escort hurrying after her.

“Come on, Jackson.” The General beckoned his friend forward and headed up the stairs to his office. He rounded his desk and took a seat. The archeologist sat in one of the visitor chairs and the office doors closed. “Did you read her request?” He asked as he got comfortable in his chair.

“Of course. I’m happy to help out and fill in. I now have three assistants, who are working on my backlog and will be covering my duties. Landry and Mitchell stated they would send any sensitive or important translations through the Gate for me to address.” Daniel opened his satchel and pulled out his notebook. Then he paused and met the other man’s eyes. “How’s she doing?”

“Happy and glowing when she isn’t complaining about how her back hurts or how her center of gravity is out of whack. She’s still working on translations, but the rate at which she pumps them out has slowed. Lorne advised me she’s been getting tired a lot and is taking a daily nap.” The expedition leader grinned. “I countered her about her balance issues, since we both know she’s a klutz, which allowed me to experience her telekinesis for the first time.”

“She flung you?”

“No… more lifted me up, turned me around and moved me away from her while she stormed off. I had a good laugh with Sheppard and Lorne afterwards. Though Lorne hasn’t been on the receiving end yet.”

“That’s because he’s smarter than you and John combined, Jack. Never piss of a woman with powers, especially when she’s pregnant.” Dr. Jackson opened his notebook and got out a pen. “Give me a rundown of the translations you want me to focus on.”

The two men spent the next thirty minutes going over the data that was of the most importance to the expedition. Most of the data sets were familiar to Daniel, since he was Dr. Gray’s boss and he got copies of all completed translations, however it was unreal to him how much more there was to translate. He really hoped his ex would be able to continue to work on some of it during the rest of her pregnancy and maternity leave. Their conversation was interrupted by the doors opening.

“I thought I locked those.” Jack muttered, then he saw who it was and everything became clear. “Did the doors being locked register or didn’t you notice?”

“They just opened as I approached.” Dr. Gray answered with a blush. She ducked her head. “I heard Daniel was here and wanted to see him.”

“Hey, Mariah.” The archeologist stood and strode over to her. They met in the middle of the room and hugged. He was elated to see her and to know she wanted to see him. Ever since they had reconciled, their friendship had grown stronger and stronger. Plus, they were both happy and he couldn’t ask for anything more than that. He pulled back and looked down at her. “You look beautiful. Pregnancy suits you.”

“Please don’t say that around John or Evan. I’m not sure I can handle going through this ever again.” She smiled when he laughed.

“Excuse me, but who told you he was here?” O’Neill stood and added. “And where’s my hug?”

“Needy little boys….” The linguist muttered as she went around the desk and gave the older man a hug. “What did I inadvertently interrupt?” She asked as she went back around the desk and sat beside her boss. Jackson retook his chair as did the expedition leader.

“Just giving Danny a rundown of all your translation efforts.”

“I could’ve done that… if someone had taken the time to call me.” She gave the expedition leader a poignant look.

Jack held up his hands. “Hey, you’re supposed to be taking it easy, per Beckett and the boys. Which reminds me, you didn’t answer my question. Who told you he was here?”

“I know that without even asking. Has Vala lost her escort yet?” The archeologist looked at the young woman.

“Not for lack of trying. Corporal Talbot was struggling to keep up with her.” She looked over at O’Neill and added. “You should probably assign her more than one escort next time. Less chance of her losing two people.”

“I’ll take that under advisement.” The General stopped himself from smiling when his two friends started to laugh. He should’ve trusted his gut and just sent Vala back to Earth, let her be Hank’s problem. He had enough of his own. It truly felt like the inmates were sometimes running the asylum that was Atlantis. He shook his head and opted to just get back to their previous conversation. “Where was I?”

Chapter Text

“Is all the bouncing really necessary, Carson?”

“Aye, lad. We need to get you to the OR quickly so I can get a look at that wound. You’re bleeding very heavily.”

Sheppard hissed when the gurney crossed the threshold of the infirmary, jarring his shoulder again. Teyla pushed harder on the wound and he cut back another scream. “I am sorry, John, but I must keep pressure on it.

“I get it.” The Colonel closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The mission had started off so nice and gone downhill far too quickly for his liking. He and his team had gone on a routine mission to visit the Bardoans, the people they got the not-grapes from. They had taken them some medical supplies and were coordinating to help with their harvest in a few weeks. They had just sat down and started to exchange pleasantries when the sound of Wraith darts rang through the village. Then his sole focus was getting the Bardoans to safety and shooting Wraith. However, one of them had gotten the drop on him and stabbed him in the shoulder. But before the Wraith could feed on him, Ronon had appeared, gutting the Wraith. AR-1 and most of the villagers had made it into the forest and lost their pursuers, then they waited for the buzzing of the darts to die away.

Once the coast seemed to be clear, they emerged and took stock of the damage. However, by then, he was getting woozy from blood loss. Without a word, the Satedan had scooped him up like he weighed nothing and ran to the Gate. Teyla gave the Bardoans their apologies and promised others would come back to help them rebuild and tend to their wounded. Then she and Rodney had hurried to follow the two men. The physicist called for medical as soon as they were connected with Atlantis and their IDCs had been sent through. A medical team, the CMO and SSgt. Stackhouse had been waiting for them in the Gate Room.

“Stacks, get three or four security teams, plus some engineers and medical personnel and go back to Bardos. They have wounded and a lot of damage to deal with.” The Colonel ordered.

“Yes, sir.” The Security Chief bolted from the room to do as his CO commanded. Plus, he needed to report to the General and Colonel Lorne.

“Lad, stop being in command for a moment and act like a patient.” The Scotsman snapped as he stopped the gurney in the pre-op area and called for his nurse. “Marie, we need to assess the Colonel’s wound and prep the OR for emergency surgery.” He grabbed some scissors and began to cut John’s shirt off. His TAC vest and weapons had been removed in the Gate Room.

“It’s not that bad, doc.”

“Let me be the doctor, lad.” The physician began to inspect the wound as soon as he had unimpeded access to it. “Whatever you were stabbed with hit the bone. We’ll have to debride, before we patch you up.” He began to feel the joint. “Your shoulder was dislocated, as well.”

“The OR is ready, doctor.” Marie stated when she rejoined her boss. “I’ll prep the Colonel, while you wash up.”

“Thank you, lass. Also, someone needs to alert Mariah about-.” Dr. Beckett started.

“NO! Don’t you dare tell her. She shouldn’t get stressed out right now.” Sheppard grimaced again when the nurse put in the IV. She’d surprised him.

The CMO shook his head. “I don’t want her stressed any more than you, but she deserves to know you were hurt.”

Before John could rebuke his friend again, Rodney perked up and pointed towards the doors. “Too late.” Everyone looked where he was indicating and spotted the linguist hurrying into the infirmary with assistance from the expedition leader.

“Oh, John.” She cried, breaking away from her friend and moving along her lover’s uninjured side. “Is he okay? Can I…?” Dr. Gray held out her hand and let it hover over the Colonel’s wound.

“He’ll be just fine, love. Come with me and we’ll get you cleaned up to be in the OR with Marie and me.” Carson ushered the pregnant woman away from the injured man’s bed and called over his shoulder. “Marie, get John in the OR, now.” With a nod of her head, the nurse wheeled the gurney towards a set of doors and they disappeared inside. This left Jack with the rest of AR-1.

“Who wants to tell me what happened?” O’Neill asked while he scanned the threesome.

“We will happily tell you what happened, General, but I must ask, has SSgt. Stackhouse collected the needed people to go back to Bardos? We left the village very abruptly and the Bardoans were confused and disoriented by the attack.” Teyla took charge, since she knew her lover would not wish to speak and Rodney would say more than was needed with most of it being of no importance.

“Yeah…. Lorne’s coordinating a return mission, right now. They’re gathering supplies and people to go help out. Stacks interrupted Lorne and me when we were meeting with Mariah and Daniel to go over one of her translations. I thought he could do with the distraction while I brought her down here. She was frantic. Danny’s holding down the fort in Control for me.” O’Neill rubbed a hand down his face. He hated when easy missions went sideways. “Now, what happened?”

The Athosian leader calmly laid out the series of events of their mission, from the minute they went through the Gate, to the attack, to Sheppard’s wound, until they finally returned home. McKay added comments here and there and even Ronon spoke about saving his friend’s life. Just as Teyla was finishing up her tale, a pale white light filled the window into the OR, before it slowly faded. Jack shook his head.

“Looks like Sheppard will be on his feet shortly. Get your exams taken care of and start working on your reports. We’ll just count this as the debriefing. Tell Sheppard and Mariah I’ll stop by later.” The General smiled wryly at AR-1 and quickly left. He was still shaking his head and muttered under his breath. “Why should I expect her to be discrete?”

Ronon chuckled, earning him a raised eyebrow from the mother of his child. He shrugged and said. “He should know by now, she’ll do whatever is necessary to help and protect the people she loves.”

“Quite true.” Teyla stated. “We are very blessed to have her in our lives. Now, let us do what the General ordered.” She grabbed the CSO’s arm. He was looking towards the operating room. “Come along, Rodney. We are in the way here.” She led him over to a bed and smiled to herself. She was well aware of what Mariah had done and was willing to do, having been on the receiving end of her healing power. She could only hope the linguist’s powers continued to grow and that she mastered them each with her normal kindness and grace.

*****

“That was different.”

“Did you like it?”

“Of course, and baby did, too.” Mariah rubbed her stomach and pulled Evan close for another kiss. The Colonel had taken the morning off to have a date with the young woman. They had lazed in bed together for over an hour before Lorne had gotten out the massage oil. He had rubbed her back, legs and feet, before pulling out a small tub of cocoa butter to rub into her belly. She had been skeptical, but quickly discovered how sensual it was. There were logistical issues with being more intimate, since she was seven months pregnant, but if there’s a will, there’s a way and they made it work. Then they cleaned up and dressed to go about the rest of their day. It was only mid-morning, so they still had some time to spend together. They exited the master suite to be greeted by her cats. “Hello, babies. Thank you for your patience. Let me get you a treat.” They raced into the kitchen ahead of her.

“You know it’s creepy how they understand you.”

“No, it’s not. It actually makes things easier. If they didn’t understand me, they would’ve watched us the entire time we were in there. Do you want that?”

Lorne chuckled. “No.” He shook his head. “Fine, you win. Not creepy.”

She had just pulled out a bag of treats when they heard an explosion and the room shook. The Colonel hit his radio and called down to the Control Room. “This is Lorne. Somebody give me a status.”

“Atlantis, lock down all civilians. Allow military personnel full access to defend the City.” The linguist called out into the ether. Alarms started to go off. “Babies, go in the bedroom.” As her pets hurried to do as she told them, the young woman lifted Bernard’s cage and carried it into the master suite after them, leaving it there and exiting. The doors closed and locked behind her.

“Yeah, Dr. Gray just had Atlantis secure all non-combat personnel.” Evan paused. “I’m on my way.” He hit his radio off and went to his lover. “I need to go. Stay here.”

“But-.”

“No buts, beautiful. You don’t just have yourself to think about.” He pulled her close and gave her a hard, fast kiss. Pulling away before he forgot what he was doing, he headed out the doors without a backward glance.

“Men….” She muttered and looked around the apartment. There had to be something she could do to help. “I wish there was some way I could find out what was going on.” She said to herself.

Suddenly, there was a whirring noise and she turned to look at the outside wall of the living room. A section of the wall was retracting, revealing a display console. It came on and showed tactical maps and camera feeds from all over Atlantis.

“Of course, Altheria had a tactical display in her quarters.” Dr. Gray stepped closer to the screen and studied the images. She was startled to discover Wraith were inside the City with a heavy concentration going towards the Gate Room. “Atlantis, bring up the Gate shield and protect the Control Room.” Looking at the monitor, she saw shields go up around the Gate and the forward edge of Control Room. She breathed a sigh of relief when a blast aimed at Chuck’s head was absorbed. “Good job. I know everyone says you can’t think for yourself, but you and I know different.”

The City’s pleasure reverberated through her head. Ever since they had put in the two full ZPMs, the City’s personality became more and more apparent, at least to her. Her eyes stayed on the screen. She watched the military doing their best to defend the City, repelling the enemy in some areas and retreating from them in others. Mariah gasped when she saw Sgt. Petrov hit the floor, a Wraith closing in on him.

“Close that door and the one on the other side of the Wraith.” She smiled when the City did as she asked. She swallowed hard and added. “Create a vacuum. Keep the doors closed until they’re no longer a threat.” She closed her eyes and turned away when the four Wraith trapped in that section of hallway began to claw at the doors and silently screamed. The image disappeared from the screen.

Atlantis sent feelings of calm and comfort towards the pregnant woman.

“I’m okay.” Her eyes opened and she went back to watching the action, giving commands here and there and doing her best to help where she could. But there were too many Wraith in the City for her to protect everyone. She screamed and fell to her knees when she saw a young marine grabbed by one of the drones. He collapsed to the floor as he was fed on. “No, no, no. Oh, God….”

Faint meowing could be heard from inside the master suite. The linguist ignored it and thought the monitor off. The wall closed back up. She knew what she needed to do, but she couldn’t do it alone. She sat on her heels for a moment, then struggled to her feet.

Starting her meditative process, she reached out as soon as she was calm. *Janus…?*

*Yes, Mariah, how may I help you?* The Ascended Ancient’s voice echoed in her head.

*I have to stop them before they destroy Atlantis and kill any more people.*

Janus’s voice was filled with regret. *We are not allowed to interfere. You know this.*

The linguist gave a heavy sigh and rubbed her stomach. *I’m not asking you to interfere. I’m asking you to help me. I know I have the power inside me to do what I need to do, but harnessing it is the part I’m not sure about.*

*Do you know what you are asking of me?*

*I’m not just asking it of you, I’m asking it of the Others, too.* She squeezed her eyes shut and pleaded. *Please help me. I can’t do this without you. All of you.* Suddenly, it felt like a million voices were talking in her head and she grasped her temples. As soon as it happened, it was over.

*I did not believe it possible, but they have agreed. We will help you since it is not truly interference on our part. We will guide you through what needs to be done and lend our power to you.* His pleasure and surprise were equally apparent.

*Lend your power?* She asked, but there was no time for an answer because a warm feeling started in the pit of her stomach and slowly spread throughout her body. An unreal sense of calm passed over her and opening her eyes, she looked down at herself. A faint white glow was emanating from her and she held her arm away from her body, studying them. “This is freaky.” She said aloud.

*The freaky, as you say, has only begun.* Janus responded with a laugh.

The warm feeling turned to hot and her whole body began to tingle. In her mind, she could see exactly what she needed to do to save her City from the Wraith. Pulling her arms up to her chest and looking up at the ceiling, she waited until the feeling in her body became close to unbearable. Then she threw her arms out and the energy inside her was released sweeping over the entirety of Atlantis.

“This better work.” She muttered as she headed to the doors out of the apartment. She needed to get down to the center of the action.

*Have faith, Mariah. I will not lead you astray.*

“You say that now….” The linguist shook her head and sighed. She could only hope her lovers and friends would understand what she was about to do. She disappeared down the corridor. She had somewhere she needed to be.

*****

Colonel Sheppard dove into the Control Room, barely escaping a Wraith stunner blast. He breathed a sigh of relief that he was now safely hidden behind a console. Then he noticed all the Gate technicians were still in their seats, seemingly unconcerned with the enemy fire raining down on them. “Chuck, everybody, take cover.”

“We don’t need to, sir, but thank you.” He gestured to the area in front of me. “Some type of shield went up around the same time the Gate shield did.”

“Mariah….” John muttered as he crawled across the Control Room to get to the main staircase.

“I thought it might be Dr. Gray, sir.” The Sergeant glanced down into the Gate Room and gasped. “Sir, Todd’s here.”

“What?” The Colonel jumped to his feet and immediately spotted their some-time ally. He was being dragged into the room by another Wraith. He didn’t look good and was stumbling around. Then Todd was thrown on the floor and the other Wraith laughed. Sheppard got back down on the floor. He knew he didn’t need to, but it made him feel safer. “Of course, he’s involved in this.”

Sgt. Campbell ignored his CO’s comment and spoke. “Sir, we’re getting reports from all over the City. Our people are being driven back in the majority of the locations where we’re engaging. What should I tell them?”

“To keep fighting.” John got to the edge of the console on the other side of the Control Room and started to shoot down into the Gate Room, hitting a few of his targets. While his head was out, he noted there were marines at both doors out of the Gate Room, which hopefully meant they had at least a portion of the Wraith contained, but there were just too many of them. Before he ducked back behind the console, he had spotted Lorne firing at the enemy from the door of their office. He also knew that the General and Woolsey were in the O’Neill’s office, since that’s where he was when all hell broke loose. Hopefully, they were coming up with a plan.

“Sir, sensors are reporting a massive power surge in one of the towers.” The Canadian tech shared. Then something odd happened.

A white light washed over the entire Control Room and the weapons’ fire died away, leaving only the sounds of heavy breathing. Sheppard peeked out from his hiding place and scanned the area. The Wraith in the Gate Room were frozen, mostly. There was one struggling against an invisible force, while Todd lay panting heavily on the floor at his feet, his face and clothes bloody. The guards and other marines who had been engaging the enemy were motionless on the floor. He stood up and surveyed the Control Room. All of the technicians were slumped over their consoles, except for Chuck, who looked at his CO, his face full of confusion.

“What’s going on, sir?”

“I don’t know, exactly. Check the others and make sure they’re alive.” The Colonel was pretty sure they were asleep. He had an idea what might be going on.

“Yes, sir.” The Sergeant hurried over to one of the others and checked for a pulse. He smiled. “Alive, sir. Just unconscious.”

“Sleeping, actually, but good.” Hearing movement behind him, John swung around and saw Evan was still awake and coming towards him. At the same time, General O’Neill and Woolsey exited the expedition leader’s office. He called out into the void. “Is anyone else still conscious?”

“Release me, human.” The Wraith in the Gate Room yelled.

“I’m not talking to you.” Sheppard growled, then breathed a sigh of relief, when he heard another voice.

“Ramirez and I are, sir.” It was Sgt. Taylor. The two marines were near the door on the far side of the Gate Room from Control.

“Standby, Sergeants.” Jack shouted as he joined the leader of AR-1. “Chuck, send out a general radio call. Ask anyone who can hear you to report in and provide a status.”

“Yes, sir.” The Gate tech sat down at his console and did as ordered.

“Do you think…?” O’Neill asked John.

“I do. There was a white light that spread over the room. It has to be her or the Others, but the Others aren’t allowed to interfere.” He clamped a hand on Lorne’s shoulder and smiled. Their guardian angel had swooped in to save them again.

Sgt. Campbell cleared his throat. The three military officers turned to look at him. Mr. Woolsey was wandering around the Control Room, taking stock of what was going on as best he could. He was keeping one ear on the conversation. “Sirs, all members of ARs 1, 2, 3 and 4 have reported in as have Radek, Dr. Heightmeyer, Cpt. Cadman, Kiryk, Lt. Ford and several members of the security teams. Also the entirety of the infirmary is fine, they’re treating about a dozen wounded. Dr. Jackson and Ms. Mal Doran are there, helping.”

“What are they reporting?” Evan asked.

“Frozen Wraith and sleeping expedition members, sir. Major Teldy requested all conscious military personnel report to her with plans to sweep the corridors and take any wounded to the infirmary. Ronon and Kiryk are on their way here to assist.”

“Tell her good work and to keep us apprised.” The General stated with a smile. He spoke to his military commanders. “Boys, let’s go deal with the leader of our intruders. Maybe he can explain what prompted this and what Todd has to do with it.” Jack hadn’t missed the fact that there were two unfrozen Wraith (sort of) in their midst.

“Yes, sir. And if he can’t tell us, Todd probably….” Sheppard trailed off when he heard footsteps reverberating across the two rooms. Seeing there wasn’t anyone moving on their level, he moved further into the Control Room to get a better view of the area below again. Lorne and the expedition leader followed him. Then someone started speaking.

“You know, it’s kind of rude to come into another person’s home, uninvited, with guns blazing. Gives the distinct impression you don’t like us.” The linguist’s voice washed over all the people still awake. She had just walked through the doors of the Gate Room. She scanned the partially frozen Wraith standing over the injured Todd, who was shifting away from his captor and keeping an eye on Mariah as he did.

“Release me.” The Wraith screamed. He was still fighting the invisible hold over him. He couldn’t seem to understand it was futile.

“The likelihood of that happening is slim to none.” She gave him a predatory smile and continued towards him.

“Don’t, Ev.” John whispered as he put his arm across the middle of the other man’s chest. For once, he had faith their lover knew what she was doing. She didn’t need their protection, not right now. She had everything well in hand. Lorne nodded and fought the urge to start forward again. The two Colonels were thinking along the same lines as each other.

“Your kind is not allowed to interfere.” The Wraith hissed.

“If you’re implying I’m an Ancient, you’re gravely mistaken. I was just a girl who selfless sacrificed herself for billions of lives. My… abilities were the Others’ way of saying thank you. But now, I’m a woman, protecting the people and home she loves.” She absentmindedly rubbed her belly. “I don’t take kindly to invaders.” He hissed at her again, but said nothing.

The linguist turned and looked down at Todd. She spoke softly, so only he could hear her. “Are you all right, Guide?”

“I have been better, but I thank you for saving me.” He smiled weakly up at her. “I have questions I have been meaning to ask you, but they have been replaced by new ones.”

“Do you think they can wait?”

Todd chuckled. “I believe so. I am looking forward to what you do next.”

“Me, too. I just hope it works.” She swung back around and spoke normally to the Wraith standing over her. “Order all your men, except for your top two lieutenants, to leave Atlantis and to take your ships a mile outside the City perimeter. Have your lieutenants report here.” She knew this was something he could likely do. The Wraith’s mental abilities were well-known. She just hoped he would do it, because manipulating the minds of a couple hundred Wraith was not something she was looking forward to.

The Wraith laughed. “Why would I do what you ask?”

“Because if you don’t, I’ll make you.” She concentrated on him. His eyes shut and he screamed in pain. She grimaced and stepped back. “It won’t be pleasant.” She didn’t like being cruel or hurting other living things, but she was willing to admit there were exceptions to that rule, especially when it came to protecting her family.

The Wraith opened his eyes and stared at her. Then the Wraith around them began to move, heading towards the exits. They seemed to be moving with no awareness of their surroundings, mindless drones doing the bidding of an unseen master. Eventually, there were only three Wraith in the Gate Room: Todd, the partially frozen Wraith and one other.

“Wow…. Chuck, tell our folks to step aside and let the Wraith leave unchallenged. And find out where Ronon and Kiryk are.” O’Neill was in shock. The linguist was at an Ascended Ancient level of power. This was not going to be reported back to Earth. He might not even tell the President. They would be having a serious discussion when this was all over. After a while, another Wraith entered the Gate Room, the two former Runners trailing after him. “Ronon, Kiryk, stay there.” He was on the receiving end of two nods.

“Sir?”

“Yeah, Chuck?”

“The Wraith ships are lifting off the piers and moving away from the City. What do you want me to do, sir?” The tech looked up at his CO. He had known for quite some time Dr. Gray was different, but this was beyond his comprehension. He really hoped one of his COs would explain things to him…, but it could wait until this was over and the City was safe.

“As soon as they’re outside the perimeter, bring up the shield. Then we'll wait and see what she has planned next. We wouldn’t want to mess things up.” The General spared the two Colonels a glance and could see they were itching to act. He was proud of how calm they were staying and knew their pregnant lover was, too.

Suddenly, Sgt. Campbell’s console began to beep and the three officers moved closer. “Sirs, weapon systems are coming on line.” A slightly louder beep sounded. “Drones are deploying and heading towards the Wraith ships.” His monitor changed to display a radar screen, showing the blips that were the enemy ships and a swarm of about a hundred drones heading towards them. The ships were engulfed and a bright flash came through the windows, blinding them. Once it cleared, the monitor showed no more blips. “All the Wraith ships have been destroyed, sirs. I’m bringing up the shield now.”

“Scan the City and make sure the only Wraith life signs are the four down in the Gate Room.” Lorne ordered, then his eyes darted down to Mariah. She was speaking again.

“That was example number one. You’re about to be example number two.” Dr. Gray was speaking to the partially frozen Wraith again.

“I will tell you nothing, human. No matter how much you hurt me.”

“I’m not planning to do anything TO YOU, but I am going to make an example OF YOU, for your lieutenants.” She turned away from him and stepped over to Todd. She held out her hands to him. “Let’s get you off the floor.”

“Mariah, don’t.” Jack yelled down to her as he rushed to the head of the stairs.

Shaking her head, the linguist smiled up at her friend, then at her lovers, who had joined him. Her voice echoed through the cavernous Gate Room. “Guide won’t hurt me. He’s had plenty of opportunities before and never did. He’s trusted me when he probably shouldn’t have and saved me when he didn’t have to. He isn’t going to hurt me now, not when I’m saving him and repaying some of his kindness.” She smiled at the Wraith sitting on the floor in front of her. She squatted down and offered her hands to him again. He placed his hands in hers and allowed her to help him to his feet.

“Guide?” The General asked and exchanged looks with his military commanders. He headed down the stairs, the two Colonel a few steps behind him.

“That is my name, General O’Neill, the name of my people. I shared it with Mariah the first time we interacted, because she asked me.” The injured Wraith staggered a bit, but the linguist steadied him. He looked down at his savior and smiled. “Thank you again.”

“Of course.” She looked up at him and swallowed hard. She couldn’t chicken out now, not when this whole ordeal was almost over. “Do you remember when you met Sheppard?”

“I do. It is when I fed from him the first time, before our unlikely alliance.”

“Dr. Weir… Dr. Weir let me see the recordings of you feeding from him… all three times and-.”

“Sweetheart.” John interrupted and met her eyes when she looked at him. He hadn’t known she watched the video. He glanced over at Lorne and saw his shock as well. They would need to discuss it later, when they were alone.

“It’s okay. Kate suggested it and together, we met with Elizabeth. I watched it with them and talked it out.” She shook her head and focused back on the Wraith next to her. “Do you remember what Kolya said to you… the last time?” She started to move him closer to the other Wraith, who was eyeing them warily.

“I do.” Todd looked from her to his former captor and back.

“I can’t believe I’m about to say this. It goes against everything I believe in, but this is what needs to happen.” She closed her eyes and took a couple of deep, calming breaths. When she opened them, she simply said. “Take your fill.”

Guide smirked at her and thrust his hand forward, grabbing the other Wraith’s neck. The linguist turned away when the Wraith began to scream. Two pairs of arms wrapped around her and she buried her head in the chest of one of her lovers. She had to make an example of the Wraith in order to get his lieutenants to cooperate. She could only pray it worked.

“We’ve got you, beautiful.” Evan whispered, then kissed her forehead.

“I know.” She fought back the tears. The screaming turned to whimpering, then there was a thud when a body hit the floor. She whispered. “Ronon and Kiryk need to move over by the other two Wraith. I’m going to unfreeze them.”

“You got it.” Sheppard responded, before he turned to look at the two Pegasus natives. “Chewie, Kiryk, flank the other two Wraith. They’re going to unfreeze.” He could feel his lover shaking and shifted closer. The two men did as they were bade, drawing their weapons and pointing them at the Wraith. They unfroze with a collective gasp and took stock of where they were. They held up their hands in defeat as their eyes locked on the dead body of their commander.

A minute or two more passed, before Mariah gently pushed her lovers aside, turning to face the last of the enemy forces. She spotted the dead husk on the floor and tamped down on a wave of nausea. “You have two options. Answer our questions and live for a while longer, before you die a quick death. Or refuse and die like him.” It was distasteful, but she nudged the dead Wraith with her boot. She needed to get her point across. “You don’t have to answer now, but I want you to think it over.” She caught the eyes of the Satedan. “Escort our guests down to the holding cells. Be sure to put them in separate cells in different rooms. We don’t want them strategizing, do we?”

“Sure thing, doc.” Ronon shoved the Wraith he was covering in front of him and shouted. “Move!” He left the Gate Room with the Wraith, Kiryk and his prisoner following after them.

“All right, Todd or Guide or whatever your name is, I want to know what the hell is going on and I want to know right now.” O’Neill yelled, then he felt a hand on his arm. He looked down into the smiling face of the linguist.

“That can wait, Jack. You need to ensure we’re safe and get teams out to assess the City. Guide is going to come with me to the infirmary, so Carson can check him out, before he goes into a cell of his own.” She turned and looked at the Wraith. “I’m sorry, but that’s the way it has to be.”

“I understand, Mariah. I will go with you, without complaint. I am very grateful to be alive at present, as well as healed.” Todd bowed his head to her in deference.

“But-.” Jack started.

“Please. Everyone’s going to start waking up shortly and they’re going to need someone to explain to them what happened. That’s your job.”

“Fine, but the boys are going with you.”

“No.” She shook her head and surveyed the Gate Room. “Sgts. Taylor and Ramirez will accompany me and keep me safe. Sergeants?” She turned and looked at the two security officers.

“Happy to help, ma’am.” Taylor stated with a smile as he and the other marine walked over to join the group.

Looking back at the expedition leader, Dr. Gray continued. “John needs to find Rodney, so they can survey the damage, while Evan coordinates efforts to have the security and City teams sweep and secure Atlantis. You lead us.”

“Fine.” The expedition leader crossed his arms and glared at the Wraith. “But once everything’s secure, we’re going to have a chat.”

“As you wish, General.” Guide smiled at him.

“Then you, I, Woolsey and the boys are going to discuss what you did.” He looked down at his young friend. She might be telling him to lead, but she seemed to be the one in charge. He wasn’t going to argue with her now, not after she saved them all.

“Looking forward to it.” She gave him a pained smile, before moving over to Todd. “Let’s go before he gets any madder.” The linguist headed towards the doors, the Wraith by her side and the two marines behind then. Once they exited, the sleeping figures on the floor began to move and rise.

O’Neill sighed and addressed his military commanders. “Let’s get to work, boys, and find out exactly what kind of shape we’re in.”

*****

“This is a disaster. Do you know how much time this is going to take me to fix?”

“You’re not doing it alone, McKay. Plus, once the Athena is space-worthy, we can fly it to the shipyards for repairs.” John was doing his best to calm his teammate as they wandered into the expedition leader’s office.

“What’s he complaining about now, Sheppard?” Jack asked from behind his desk. Mr. Woolsey was sitting in one of the visitor chairs across from him. They were going over what they knew thus far about the attack and the aftermath.

“The Athena has a huge hole in its hull, sir. That was the massive explosion we heard. It damaged the West Pier, as well. We’re just lucky we moved the Orion to the mainland for those drills we had planned for next week.” The Colonel dragged Rodney over to the couch and pushed him down on to it. He took a seat next to him.

O’Neill studied the physicist, who was typing away on his pad and asked. “What other damage do we have, McKay?”

“Tower 27 was severely damaged and is potentially unstable. Thankfully, we haven’t been using it for anything. I got Sgt. Petrov working with the combat engineers to figure out what we can do to avoid losing it all together. Radek and I are going to have him use it as his end of year project. Besides that, most of the damage is minor. Radek’s coordinating the teams and getting people out to each of the affected areas.” He looked up from his pad and met the General’s eyes. “We were very lucky it wasn’t worse.”

“It would seem so. Where’s Tower 27?”

“East side of the City, sir, overlooking the pier. People will need to stay clear of the area until they can stabilize it.”

“Good…. Casualties?” Jack was dreading this part of the report.

“Two dead, fed on by the Wraith. Beyond that, we have about two dozen wounded, ranging from severe to minor. The field medics are treating the minor and non-life-threatening wounds, while Carson and his people focus on the more critical patients.” Sheppard chuckled. “It seems Vala brought a Goa’uld healing device with her and is helping out. Dr. Jackson was a bit miffed, but the medical team is extremely thankful. It doesn’t look like we’re going to lose anyone else.”

“She’s going to be the death of me… her and Mariah.” O’Neill muttered under his breath, but Richard and the Colonel laughed all the same. “Military or civilian?”

“The dead were both marines, been here a couple months. They got too close. Nobody could’ve saved them from what I heard. Such a waste.” John shook his head. He hated losing people, but knew that sometimes he couldn’t do anything to prevent it. He often reminded his lover of that fact. Thinking of her made him smile. “It would’ve been a lot worse if Mariah hadn’t locked down all the civilians.”

“I know and I’m happy she acted, however we have to talk about what she did after that. But how is she? And where’s Todd?” The expedition leader refused to call the Wraith, Guide. It was a weird name, plus he kind of liked the name Todd.

“He’s in a cell. After Beckett scanned him, Taylor and Ramirez took him down to the holding area. They reported in once he was locked in the cell. He didn’t try to escape once.” The Colonel was sure it was mainly due to his lover. He wasn’t surprised, since everyone liked her, including their enemies, it seemed.

“And Dr. Gray?” Richard prodded.

Sheppard looked at the IOA rep and answered. “Sedated and resting in the infirmary. Teyla asked Myla and Torren to stay with her. Marie radioed and gave me a status. Seems she got dizzy when they were scanning Todd and they made her lay down.”

“Did she say anything before she was sedated? Anything about what she did?” Jack leaned forward on his desk, waiting to hear what the other man said.

“Actually, she did, when she was drifting off. Something about asking the Others for help and them surprising her by saying yes. So, it may not have been all her. Lorne and I will confirm later and let you know.” He shifted on the couch. He knew he had responsibilities to the City, but he would’ve rather been with her, making sure she was okay for himself.

Before the General could reply, his radio chirped and he hit it. “O’Neill.” A smile broke out on his face. “Good work, Lorne. Tell them to keep patrolling. I’ll have Chuck make an announcement for people to stay out of the halls for the time being. Sheppard will meet you in the infirmary.” He nodded. “Sounds good. O’Neill out.”

“Sir?” John asked.

“We appear to be Wraith free. Patrols will remain heavy for the next couple of days. I want everyone to feel safe. Go get your girl and head home. Teldy and Stacks have everything under control and you’re only a radio call away, if I need you. We’ll do an after action debriefing tomorrow afternoon. I plan to meet with Todd in the morning. I want you and Lorne there for that, as well. You’re dismissed. McKay, go fix something.” The expedition leader looked back over at Woolsey. “Where were we?”

Not needing to be told twice, the Colonel stood, pulling Rodney up with him, and exited the office. “Get back to the labs, McKay, and figure out how to get the Athena fixed.” The physicist waved at him and wandered off, his sole focus on his pad. John made a brief stop at Chuck’s console to advise the tech about the announcement he needed to make. It went out City-wide just as he was jogging out of the Control Room. It was a quick trip to the infirmary. It was easy to spot where his lover was resting, because a crowd was congregated around the bed.

The CMO spotted him first and moved away from the others, speaking to his friend. “Lad, you’re here. Thank God. I think it would be wise to get the lass home. She canna rest with all these people and the infirmary is much too busy.”

“Sure thing, doc. But I thought you were dealing with the wounded?”

“Aye, lad, I was, then Marie alerted me to Mariah’s presence and I came out to check on her. When I scanned our Wraith friend, the lass got faint and all these people showed up.” He gestured to the group. It seemed to be a mix of ARs 2, 3 & 4 and some of the security teams.

The military commander took charge and spoke quietly but with a great deal of authority. “Don’t you all have duties you should be preforming?”

“Yes, they do.” Evan had just come into the room and looked disapprovingly at the marines. “Back to your posts. There’s a lot of work to be done before any of you rest tonight.” The men and women around the bed scattered, until there were just a few remaining people.

“Here.” Dr. Parrish shoved a potted plant at his team leader. “It’s a zantedeschia aethiopica, her favorite. Needs full sun to part shade and to be watered at least once a week. Let me know if she has any problems with it.” The botanist scurried out of the infirmary.

“I can take the plant, Colonel.” Myla came over to Lorne and took the pot from him. “I believe one or both of you will need to carry her. I will bring it by tomorrow.” She shifted Torren on her hip and kissed his forehead. She kept the plant out of the baby’s reach and swiftly left the infirmary.

“I’d really rather you didn’t carry her, but I’m fearful she’ll wake up if we put her in a wheelchair.” The CMO was weighing his options. The decision was taken away from him and the linguist’s lovers.

“I can carry her.” Kiryk stepped forward.

“What exactly are you doing here?” Sheppard wasn’t sure why the former Runner was by the young woman’s bed.

“Because, Colonel.” He put his arms under Dr. Gray’s shoulders and knees and gently lifted her when Carson finished unhooking her from the IV and monitoring equipment. “It’s obvious we owe her our lives and standing watch seemed like the least I could do. Lead the way.” Kiryk waited for the two Air Force officers to leave the infirmary and followed them. The transporter was a bit cramped, what with the alien towering over them, but soon enough they were in their corridor, approaching the apartment.

Once the doors opened, John looked around. “Where are Trouble and Fearless?” Then he pointed at the empty side table. “And Bernard?”

“She locked them in the bedroom after the explosion. I can only hope they didn’t destroy everything while we were all gone.” Lorne answered and went to the doors into the master suite, but they didn’t budge. “Shit, she locked it down. I can’t get it open. You try.”

“Nope.” Sheppard shook his head after thinking at the doors. Then he had an idea. “Let’s try it together.” He set his hand over the door crystal and Evan put his hand over his. They thought at the doors and they opened. “Awesome.” The cats darted out and looked around. They meowed and hissed at Kiryk.

“Stop.” The Runner growled and the felines bolted away from the scary man, going up and into their cat tree. He stepped into the bedroom and laid his charge in the middle of the bed. When Kiryk stood back up, he heard a squeak and peered into the cage, which was sitting on one of the dressers. He spotted the little mouse, who was sniffing at him. “Interesting. Perhaps she should be on the team with the xenobiologists.”

“Not a good idea. She’d bring all the animals they found home with her.” Lorne chuckled. He and Sheppard had both stepped into the room. “Thanks for carrying her. We’ll take it from here.”

“I’m happy to help. Let me know if you need anything.” He nodded his head at the two military men and left the room, then the apartment.

John lifted the cage up and took it out to where it belonged. He quickly got some food for the rodent and filled the cats’ dishes as well. Smelling food, Trouble and Fearless hurried into the kitchen to eat. By the time he returned to the bedroom, Lorne had gotten Mariah’s boots, socks, pants and jacket off and was shifting her under the sheets to lay on her side. “She is really out.”

“Good thing, too. I’ve been moving her round like a ragdoll, but at least she’s comfortable now.” He kissed her forehead and tucked the sheets around her. “Let’s get out of here and let her rest.” Evan suggested and they left the bedroom together. “She’s going to be hungry when she wakes up.”

“I already took something out of the freezer for her. Hopefully, it defrosts by then.” Sheppard looked around the apartment. “I wonder how she kept an eye on the action.”

“I was wondering that, too.”

In response, the wall on the outer edge of the apartment began to move and revealed the display the linguist had discovered earlier. It came on again and gave views of the damaged pier and the Control Room, which were a hive of activity.

“Now that is cool.” John went over to the couch and took a seat. It was the perfect place to monitor the goings-on around the City. “Thanks, Atlantis.” He felt a little buzz of pleasure in the back of his mind.

Lorne joined him and smiled. “We can stay here and still be in command.”

“We never have to work out of our office again.”

“Not a good idea. I have no desire to be on the receiving end of her telekinetic powers.”

“You’re missing out. It’s quite the rush.” John gave him a cheeky grin.

“I’ll take your word for it.”

*****

“All right, Todd, tell me exactly how you and your friends got here without us detecting you.”

The Wraith growled. “They were not my friends, General. They were my hive mates. The Wraith I fed from was my third in command. He killed my Second as well as any others who refused to follow him. He thought I was weak.”

“Why?” Sheppard asked as he stepped closer to the bars and peered inside the cell.

“Because of my willingness to work with you and your people. And my refusal to share with them the location of Atlantis and take the City by force.” Todd turned away from the three men standing outside the cell and took a couple of steps away, before turning back. “The Wraith fear the power of Atlantis and all the City-ships.” He received questioning looks from his captors and continued. “You have never seen them in battle. They are… beyond anything my brethren have and are nearly impossible to best. With this City, we could wipe any rival hive from existence. It is the ultimate weapon.”

“Then why haven’t you?” Evan asked. The former base XO had seen the General shift uncomfortably and knew his superior was wondering the same thing.

“Because mastery of this City would take years and during that time, your people would only attempt to take it back. The risk was not worth the reward.” He chuckled and grinned. “Also, Sheppard and his team have been useful on occasion and betraying him would threaten our tentative alliance.”

John huffed. “Nice to know my help is worth more than the Ancestral City.”

Todd studied the two Colonels. “The kindness of your mate is worth more than your help, Sheppard. I would even be willing to call her my friend.” He paused and added. “Though I am unsure if she is your mate or his.” He gestured at Lorne. “Or perhaps both.” He gave them a sinister grin.

“That’s none of your business.” The leader of AR-1 growled at their captive.

“Of course, however I may just ask Mariah the next time I see her. She will tell me the truth.”

“John.” Lorne said in warning as he grabbed his friend’s arm, pulling him away from the cell.

“Let’s get things back on track.” Jack said with a shake of his head. “So, you had a mutiny. Why’d they keep you alive?”

“Because of my knowledge of Atlantis and your people.” Guide bowed his head. “I was tortured physically, as you saw, and mentally. The power of a Wraith’s mind varies and I am stronger than most, but as my body weakened from pain and hunger, so did my mind. I succumbed, unfortunately. I apologize for bringing them to your doorstep.”

“We lost two marines because of you.” Sheppard almost spat at him in rage. He was trying to stay calm, but it was getting harder.

“I know, but you would have lost many more if the City had not locked down. I believe Mariah was behind that.” He looked back up and smiled. “Will I be able to speak with her? She said she would address the questions I have.”

“Hell, no. She’s staying-.” John started.

“COLONEL!” O’Neill shouted. “Enough. Lorne, get him out of here.” He watched as Evan dragged the other man from the room. The door to the room shut, leaving the General alone with Todd. The guards were out in the hall. The expedition leader had ordered them out when they arrived, unclear what they would be talking about and wishing to keep who knew what actually happened to a minimum. “She’s resting. Yesterday was very trying and exhausting, especially for her.”

“I can only imagine. I have never seen someone do what she did, though I have heard stories, which I never truly believed until now. Plus, she is with child.” He shook his head. “I cannot understand how humans bear their offspring in such a manner. Cloning is much simpler and far less messy.”

The General chuckled. “Our world has only just begun to experiment with cloning, but we learned from some good friends cloning can have disastrous consequences.”

“That is good to know. Do you have any further questions for me?”

“Not right now, but you’re going to remain our guest for the time being.”

“I have no place to go, General O’Neill. All that is left of my hive are the other Wraith you have in cells. I have no ships and no confederates. I am alone, but I know that I am safe here and that is enough.” His smile turned into a sneer. “And I may have the chance at another tasty meal, if my former hive mates do not provide you the information you want or need.”

“Lucky you.” Jack looked a little sick, but shook it off. “All right, I’ll be back to chat in the next few days after I have a chance to speak with the other Wraith. I still want to know how you got past our sensors and defenses.”

“I will tell whatever you wish to know, since it ensures my survival. I shall await your return.” Todd bowed his head and went over to his bunk to sit. His eyes slid closed. Their conversation was done.

The expedition leader hurried to leave the room and ordered the security team back inside. Sheppard and Evan were waiting for him. He chided the leader of AR-1. “Losing your temper with him just gives him the advantage, John. You played into his hand.” He used his military commander’s first name in an attempt to get through to him. He knew that rage well.

“I know, sir. It just made my blood boil when he said Mariah was his friend.” The Wraith’s first comments about his lover had sparked his anger and all the subsequent ones had stoked it.

“It’s true, though.” Lorne interjected, earning him two surprised looks. “He trusted her when she asked him to help Sheppard. They helped each other when Michael invaded. He saved her when those rogue Genii took her. And now she’s saved him. It’s like she said in the Gate Room. He’s had numerous chances to hurt or kill her, but he’s never even tried to harm her. They’re friends.”

“I don’t like it.” John crossed his arms.

“I don’t either, but he’s right. Against all odds, they’re friends.” O’Neill closed his eyes for a minute. He wasn’t sure things in Atlantis could get any weirder, but now that he had thought it, something even crazier would come out of the woodwork. “Let’s get back to work.” He beckoned the two Colonels forward and strode down the hall. There was a lot to do before the after action meeting.

“Yes, sir.” Lorne responded crisply before he grabbed Sheppard’s bicep. He dropped his voice to a whisper. “And we might be able to have lunch with our girl.”

“Now that I can get behind.” Both men smiled. It was always nice to have something to look forward to.

Chapter Text

“Whatcha doing, beautiful?”

“Does the SGC screen our mail for explosives?”

“Yes, they do. Why?”

Mariah pointed at the box on the other end of the dining room table from her. She had her pad and laptop in front of her, but she wasn’t working. The box had her full attention. She gave a heavy sigh. Things had finally returned to normal after two weeks of chaos. The aftermath of the attack had not been fun, but the expedition had pulled together and done what they needed to get everything repaired and cleaned up, though the Athena was still not space-worthy. Thankfully, there weren’t many Wraith bodies to deal with since most of them had left the City and been blown sky-high. The young woman did have to explain about the four Wraith she had suffocated, but once she got woozy, that conversation had ended and she was rushed to the infirmary. Getting out of certain things was one of the few advantages of being pregnant. But today, she had been happily working with plans to meet Daniel later to review some stuff, when a chipper young Corporal had brought her mail to the apartment. The letters were nothing exciting, but the box stopped her cold. She wasn’t sure what to do with it.

“Whose it from?” Lorne walked over to his lover and gave her a fast kiss.

“Look for yourself.” She watched as he rounded the table and peered at the return address table. He gasped.

“Is that…?”

“My mom. I’m afraid to open it.”

Without a word, Evan pulled a knife from one of his pockets and sliced the box along the seams. Putting his knife away, he carefully opened the box. “It doesn’t appear to be an attempt to kill you. Why don’t you come over and have a look?”

“Okay.” Dr. Gray hefted herself out of her chair and ambled over to her lover. Her cats, who had been sitting by her, followed her and began to coil around their feet. She ignored them and looked inside the box. She expected to see a note, but instead she just saw stuff wrapped in bags. “How can you be sure she isn’t trying to kill me?”

“Trust me, beautiful.” He pulled the first bag out and opened it. It appeared to be a small quilt, in yellows and greens. “Did she make this?”

“Probably.” She tentatively touched the fabric. “It’s really soft.” She paused and squared her shoulders.  “What else is in there?”

Over the course of the next thirty minutes, they slowly went through the contents of the box. There were a few onesies, some booties, a couple of bibs, the quilt (of course) and at the very bottom of the box, an envelope. The Colonel handed it to the linguist. “It has your name on it.”

“Yeah… in my mother’s handwriting.” She carefully opened it and pulled out the papers inside. It was a letter, written in her mom’s distinctive scrawl. As she slowly read through each word, her eyes grew moist and she sniffled. Her lover wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“What does she say?”

“She apologized for yelling at me and for the other things she said. My dad told her about you and John. She’s sorry she hasn’t had a chance to meet John and about how she treated you during our visit a few years ago. She’s hoping I can come home again before the baby’s born and that she’ll have the chance to meet her new grandchild.” Mariah was staring at the letter in her hand. She had seen everything now, her mother had actually apologized. She didn’t think that would happen until after pigs learned how to fly.

“This is a good thing, then.” He could see her uncertainty.

“She hurt me, Ev.”

“I know.”

“Deeply.”

“I know.” He turned and took her in his arms. “I also know it’s going to take you some time to accept her apology and to forgive her. But in the end, I know that you want to forgive her and have her in the baby’s life. You take all the time you need. John and I will be here for you ever step of the way.”

“Thanks.” She kissed the underside of his chin, before she shifted out of his arms and headed for the bedroom. “I think I want to lay down.” She disappeared into the bedroom, the cats along with her. The doors shut behind them.

Lorne sighed and gathered up all the baby gifts to carry them into the nursery. Just as he reentered the living space, the doors chimed. He thought them open and did his best to smile. “Hello, Daniel. Can I help you with something?”

“I’m looking for Mariah. We’re supposed to meet to go over some of her translation efforts and areas she wants my help with.” The archeologist scanned the apartment, then looked at his watch. “I’m early for once. I really expected her to be here.”

“She is, but decided to lay down.”

“Is everything all right?” It was obvious Jackson was worried for his ex.

“She got a box and a letter from her mom. She’s feeling some mixed emotions.”

Daniel’s eyes got big. He had never met Mrs. Gray, but remembered the stories Mariah told him about her and was flabbergasted. “What did she send?”

“Stuff for the baby, including a quilt she made.”

“And the letter?”

“Apologized for what happened.”

“Really?” The archeologist was incredulous, which caused Evan to chuckle.

“Yeah.”

“All right then. Let her rest, when she wakes up, tell her I stopped by and to radio when she wants to meet.”

“Thanks, Daniel.”

“Of course, Evan. She’s my friend and I have lots of other things I can work on, both for the expedition and for some of my personal projects. I’ll see you later.” He waved and quickly exited the apartment.

The Colonel shook his head and laughed again. He knew John didn’t like it, but he was happy Mariah had reestablished her friendship with Dr. Jackson. He was a good man and a good friend to his lover. He helped her when she truly needed it, listened when she wanted to vent and goaded her when she had to act. He broke down the box and set it aside to dispose of later. Grabbing Mariah’s pad, he sat at the dining room table. He had some reports to review and a couple of exploration missions to finalize. He would stay busy until Mariah woke up and wanted to have lunch. Lorne smiled and got to work.

*****

“You know I’ve never been in the VIP quarters. This is nice.”

“They’re much nicer than the SGC’s guest quarters. We get sunshine here.” Vala gestured to the large windows and all the natural light coming into the room. “Let’s go out and sit on the balcony.”

“All right.” Dr. Gray stated with a smile and let the other woman guide her outside. As they crossed the room, she surveyed the whole place. The VIP quarters in Atlantis were basically one-bedroom suites. The living area was spacious and airy. There was a couch and a couple of chairs around a low table, as well as a round table with four chairs and a small desk tucked into a corner near the balcony windows. The desk was covered in books and papers, leaving Daniel’s mark on the space. There was a single door in one of the walls, which likely led to the bedroom and attached bath. The linguist didn’t need to see that space. The balcony was larger than in the standard crew quarters and had two lounge chairs and a square table between them. The sea air filled the pregnant woman’s nose and she sighed in contentment. She sat in the chair she was taken to and watched Vala take a seat beside her. Then she waited.

It only took a few minutes for the dark-haired women to crack. “Thanks for coming.”

“Of course.” She didn’t say anything further. She didn’t want to pressure her ex’s lover.

“Do you need anything?”

“I’m fine.” The linguist smiled at her friend.

“Um….” Vala wasn’t sure how to start the conversation. She reached under her chair and pulled out a bag. She handed it over to the pregnant woman and blurted out. “These are for the baby.”

Opening the bag carefully, Mariah looked in the bag and quirked her head. She was perplexed by its contents. “What are these?”

“Things I picked up during my previous occupation.”

“As a space pirate?”

“Well, yes. I wasn’t sure what to get you and I thought….”

The linguist smiled. “I appreciate that, but….” She pulled something out the bag. “Jewelry isn’t appropriate for a baby.” There was a bejeweled tiara in her hand. She put it back in the bag and came up with some fabric. “Neither is silk.”

“That’s a robe… for you to wear. It’s very pretty.”

“I’ll keep the robe and give the rest back to you.” She took the robe out of the bag and handed the bag of stolen jewelry over to her friend.

“Oh….”

“Don’t be upset, Vala. I appreciate you trying, but I don’t need gifts.”

“I don’t have a lot of experience with babies. While I was pregnant, it wasn’t really by choice and she didn’t stay a baby long.” The former space pirate/thief put her hands in her lap, ducked her head and sighed. A hand on her arm had her looking back up to see the smiling face of the other woman.

“The best gift I can get from you, Vala, is your friendship. That means more to me that jewels or robes or anything else. You’re going to be a great aunt to this baby.”

“An aunt?” She perked up and was on the verge of smiling.

“Of course, and Daniel will be his or her uncle. Babies don’t care about things. They just need care, attention and love.”

“I can do that.” A full-blown smile graced the dark-haired woman’s face.

“I know you can.” Mariah’s smile wavered, but she pushed forward and asked. “You brought up something I’ve been wondering about. Did you ever find Adria after I killed the Ori?”

“Yeah… she was taken in by a farming village, who didn’t know anything about her past. She ran away when she spotted us entering the village, but Muscles saw her. I’ve gone back a few times and we’ve had a chance to talk. She’s broken and I don’t….”

“You’ll figure it out. You’re her mother, after all.” The linguist heard doors opening behind them and turned to see Dr. Jackson entering the VIP quarters. “Hey, Daniel.”

“Hey, yourself.” He leaned down and kissed his ex’s head, before giving his girlfriend a peck on the lips. “What are you two plotting and should I be concerned?”

“My Daniel is such a worrywart. No plotting or scheming, I promise.”

“Mariah?”

“You should be a little more trusting. We were just having a chat and look at the beautiful robe Vala gave me.” Dr. Gray held out the silk robe and offered it to him.

Taking the robe, he gave it a good look. “Nice, but where did you…?”

“You don’t want to know.” The women said in unison and then laughed when the archeologist rolled his eyes at them. Daniel was just too fun to pick on.

*****

“I don’t need an escort.”

“This is true, malen’kiy, but it is wet and slippery, plus the pier was damaged. I do not wish for you to fall and-.”

“You don’t want to piss off your COs.” She smirked at him.

The Russian marine laughed. “Also true. However, I must provide Dr. Zelenka with a progress report on Tower 27 and would like to see if I may be of assistance here. Fixing the pier, not the ship. This ship is far beyond my-.”

“I understand, Dimitri.” Her foot slipped on the smooth metal of the pier and she felt the Sergeant steady her. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“I thought you would see it my way.” He gave her a smug smile and they continued to walk out onto the East Pier, looking for the CSO, who had summoned the linguist.

It was a quiet walk down the pier and the pair did their best to enjoy the sea breeze and the sunshine. As they neared the damaged Athena, they were spotted by Dr. McKay, who hurried over to them, and he was out of breath when he reached them.

“Breathe, Rodney.” Mariah stated with a smile and a touch of concern. “You might want to increase your cardio. Your breathing sounds awful.”

“Don’t start. Jen’s been harping on me, too.”

“That should tell you something.”

The physicist growled and moved to her free side. “I’ll take over. Petrov, go find Zelenka and give him your updates, then find Dr. Monahan to go over the status of the pier with him.”

“Da, Dr. McKay.” He let go of his friend’s arm and started to walk off, but suddenly paused and looked back. “Will you be all right, malen’kiy?”

“She’ll be fine. Go!” The CSO chided the marine and pointed towards the ship. Dimitri saw the linguist smiling at him, which he took as an affirmative, and hurried onboard the Ancient battleship.

“You could be a little nicer to him.”

“Why? He’s a grunt. Once he has his degree, I’ll think about it.” He guided her closer to the ship. “Can you hear the ship from here or do you need to be onboard?”

“Hear the ship?” His abrupt change of topic threw her, but she quickly caught up. “I can hear her just fine from here. What do you need to know?” She turned a little to look at him.

“Is it space-worthy?”

“No.”

McKay growled at her. “You didn’t even have time to ask. Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” She shook her head and refrained from rolling her eyes. “I knew as soon as I got here. Atlantis and the Athena are communicating with each other. I probably could have told you from the apartment.”

“Well, that’s just great.” He let her go and threw his hands up in the air. “We’ve been working on fixing this bucket of bolts for almost three weeks and I thought…. Are we close?”

“Rodney….” She put her hand on his arm. “The inertial dampeners aren’t repaired yet and the shields are at 16% percent.” He hung his head in defeat. “Can’t you get more people to help you?”

“NO!” He shouted, then lowered his voice. “I have everyone who is even mildly qualified out here already. I don’t know what more I can do.”

“Can’t the SGC send out some people?” This earned the young woman a glare and she sighed. “What about Atlantis?”

“What about the City?” He refused to call an inanimate object she/her.

Mariah let go of him and walked a couple steps closer to the ship. “She has to have some type of repair systems. Going to the shipyards couldn’t have been possible all the time, especially during the war.” Suddenly, she heard and felt a system come on behind her. She turned and watched as the physicist brushed past her and hurried towards an access panel on the wall of one of the pier support buildings.

“What the hell is this?”

Waddling over to her friend, Dr. Gray scanned the data displayed on the screen. “Reminds me of the repair bot controls at the shipyards. You don’t think…?” Instead of waiting for him to respond, she thought at the panel and a small door at the base of the wall opened. A tiny mechanized robot darted out and drove around her in a circle. “We have repair bots.” While holding on to the wall, she squatted down and patted the little bot. Its head popped up and rotated until it saw her. It beeped happily.

“How did I miss this?” Pulling a cable out of his pocket, Rodney interfaced his pad with the panel and began to read through the data. “There are two dozen bots assigned to this pier.”

“Good. Let’s get them to work.” The linguist shut her eyes and thought hard. More bots poured out of the tiny door and darted towards the damaged Athena, going up the ramp into the ship. There was a scream of surprise and Mariah covered her mouth to muffle a laugh. “Oops.”

“If you hurt one of my engineers, so help me.” McKay pulled the cable free from the panel and strode towards the ramp. He paused when he reached it and looked back at her. “You stay there.”

“Yes, Rodney.” She chuckled when he disappeared inside, then fell back on her butt, sitting cross-legged. The one bot that had stayed with her darted over to her side and got another pat. “Thanks for keeping me company.” She got another beep. “I wonder if John and Evan would let me keep you.” She shook her head at the thought. “Better not. But I’ll be sure to visit.” She leaned against the wall, closed her eyes and smiled.

*****

“Whadda we got, Chuck?” Jack asked as he came out of his office. He had heard the alarms blaring through the open doors and had gotten there as quickly as he could.

“Unknown ship heading towards us, sir. It came out of nowhere and is moving fast.”

“How long?”

“Should be in orbit within a minute.”

“Shit.” The General cursed. “Bring up shield and alert Sheppard, Lorne and Teldy.”

Sgt. Campbell nodded. “Shield is up and a radio call has gone out.” A smile unexpectedly appeared on his face. “It’s Asgard, sir.”

Before he could say anything else, a white light filled the Control Room and an Asgard was standing right next to the Air Force officer. “Greetings, O’Neill.”

“Thor, buddy, this is a surprise. Why didn’t you let me know you were coming?” He studied his alien friend. “Are you taller?”

“I am, indeed. My people have been busy implementing corrections to our DNA. I wished to show you my new body. We are still working out some of the issues, but we have made significant progress.”

“Glad to hear it. So, what can I do for you?” Jack started towards his office and the Supreme Commander followed him.

“I would like to see Mariah, if it is possible.”

The General smiled and turned back. He had just reached the doors into his office. “Chuck, ask Dr. Gray to come see me. Don’t mention our guest.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Come on, buddy. Let’s get comfortable while we wait.” O’Neill rounded his desk and retook his chair. He watched as the alien climbed into one of the visitor chairs and stared at him with his big alien eyes. “You got my message, then.”

“I did. My people and I were very excited to hear Mariah was with child. It took us some time to come up with an appropriate gift, however we did. That is why I am here.” He blinked at his friend.

Jack smiled. “She’s been getting a lot of gifts the last few weeks. The whole expedition is excited about this baby. It’s going to be spoiled rotten.” He glanced away from Thor at the doors and spotted the linguist along with her escort. “Hey, Danny. What are you doing here?”

“Mariah and I were working on some translations when Sgt. Campbell radioed her. She invited me to tag along.” The archeologist spotted the other occupant of the office. “Hello, Thor. This is a surprise.”

“For me as well, Dr. Jackson. It is very good to see you.” The Asgard stood and walked over to the pair. “Greetings, Mariah. I hope you are well.”

“Tired and sore, but I’ll survive.” She smiled at the grey alien. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I bring you the congratulations of my people on your pregnancy and a gift for your child.” He came closer and another flash of white light filled the room. In his hand was a small device, which he touched, and a variety of lights were projected up and around the room in a variety of colors. “It was traditionally used to teach Asgard children spatial awareness, when we still had offspring, however I thought you might find it aesthetically pleasing. It was copied from a design in the Asgard archives.”

“It’s beautiful. Thank you.” Dr. Gray stepped forward and took the device from him. “I’m sure the baby will love it. Thank you from John, Evan and I.”

“You are most welcome. I will let you get back to your work. I will stay for a short time and speak with O’Neill. I wish to update him on the progress we have made with our genetic deterioration.”

“If he gets that look in his eyes, run for cover.” Mariah warned.

Thor blinked his eyes at her and responded. “If you are referring to the dazed look he gets when confused, I most assuredly will. Congratulations again.”

“Thanks and have a safe trip. Home, Daniel.” She hooked her arm back through her boss’s and let him lead her from the room.

Retaking his seat, the Supreme Commander looked at the expedition leader and could see he was scowling. “Did I not properly interpret her joke?”

“You did, I just didn’t think the Asgard were big on humor.”

“I am known to be quite funny in certain circles, O’Neill.” He blinked again and continued. “Let me start from when I returned to Orilla. Our scientists….”

*****

“Sweetheart, what are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?”

“Moving the crib across the living room by yourself.”

“Your powers of perception are excellent.”

John gave a heavy sigh. “Put the crib down, please.”

“Oh, fine.” Mariah gently lowered the crib down to the floor behind the couch. Two furry heads popped out of the crib, their paws on the rail.

“Why are Trouble and Fearless in the crib?”

“Well, they were sleeping in the rocking chair when I moved it and loved the trip across the apartment, so when I went back to move the crib, they jumped in for another ride. They seem to like floating.”

“Out, both of you.” Sheppard ordered as he walked over to the crib. The two cats hurriedly climbed out and sprinted over to the safety of their cat tree. “Why are you moving furniture without supervision?”

“It’s not like I’m actually lifting it.” Her evasion of the questions didn’t go unnoticed and she sighed this time. He was giving her a stern, disapproving look. “Because I thought it would be nice to have the baby close to us for the first few weeks, while we establish a schedule and figure out what kind of baby he or she is.”

“What kind of baby?”

“Some babies scream, some mew, some fuss, plus the thought of having the baby so far away makes me anxious.”

“You could’ve waited for Evan and me to get home. We would’ve helped.”

“I know, but you both have been so busy and I can do it with my powers. I didn’t want to bother you.”

“It isn’t a bother.” He took her in his arms and gave her a gentle kiss. “Evan should be along shortly, then he and I can finish moving it.” He grabbed her hand and took her over to the nursery, peering inside the room. Over the last couple of months, she had been decorating it and it looked very homey and cheerful, perfect for a baby. Lorne’s painting of the City at night hung proudly over where the crib had been until its telekinetic journey. “Are you sure you don’t just want the baby in here? Then the bedroom would just be our bedroom.” He looked at her hopefully.

Mariah shook her head. “Nope. Either way, I’m going to be getting up every couple of hours to feed the baby, which will probably just wake one or the both of you up, plus the cats. Having the crib in with us makes everything simpler.” She tugged on his hand. “I need to get to work on dinner.”

“What are we having?”

“Ground beef tacos. They’re easy to make. I worked all morning and took a three hour nap. I’m not up for much.”

The doors to the apartment opened as the couple crossed the dining room and Lorne walked in. He smiled at the pair. “Hey, guys.” Then he noticed the crib. “What’s that doing there?”

“Help me move it into the bedroom and I’ll explain.” John let go of his lover’s hand and lifted one end of the crib while Evan got the other side. He began his explanation once they were carrying it into the master suite.

Leaving the men to chat, the linguist waddled into the kitchen and started getting out everything she needed to make tacos. The meat was just starting to brown when the two men emerged in their off-duty attire. “Ev, could you radio David? I’m out of tomatoes.”

“No need. David has a bumper crop. He gave me some a couple days ago. I’ve been keeping them out on the balcony, so the cats don’t bother them. I’ll get a couple.” Lorne headed out on to the balcony and pulled two plump tomatoes from a basket that was sitting out there.

“John, get Bernard. He needs his dinner.”

“Sure, sweetheart.” Before going to the cage, he grabbed the container of diced vegetables from the counter and set it on the table. He went over to the cage and reached in, lifting the little mouse out. “Dinnertime, buddy.” He placed Bernard on the table, opened the container and took out a few pieces of carrot, placing them in front of the rodent. He began to munch and Sheppard put the lid back on the container.

Evan had already returned from outside and was helping cut up tomatoes and lettuce. John opted to set the table and keep an eye on Bernard. The threesome worked in quiet companionship. When the linguist pulled the foil-wrapped tortillas from the oven, the leader of AR-1 headed into the kitchen. They all loaded up plates and carried them into the dining room. Mariah sat next to her pet and gave him a little scratch. He squeaked happily and scurried over to her plate. She gave him a piece of tomato and smiled when he devoured it. They all began to eat.

“These tomatoes are great. Do we have a lot?” She asked the man sitting to her left.

“David gave me a couple pounds. Why?”

“Maybe I’ll make a nice summer pasta with them.” She was halfway through her dinner, but before she picked up her next taco, Dr. Gray opened the veggie container and gave Bernard a few more pieces. The little animal had been eyeing her dinner and she didn’t want him getting any ideas. She was really hungry.

Sheppard sat back, having eaten everything on his plate. He was stuffed. “Worry about that later, sweetheart.” John stood and grabbed Bernard. “Come on, buddy. Cage time.” The mouse squeaked unhappily.

Dr. Gray chided him. “Don’t hurt him and make sure you put a few more vegetable bits in there for him. He needs something to tide him over for the night.”

“Give him to me.” Lorne stood as well and held his hand out. He waited for the other man to drop the mouse into his hand. He grabbed a few more pieces of the diced vegetables and put them in front of the rodent. “Here you go. John didn’t mean to be rough with you, little guy. He just wants to get Mariah to rest after playing mover.” Bernard squeaked a bit more happily and grabbed a piece of celery.

“Done.” The linguist said as she pushed away from the table. She grabbed her plate, stood and went into the kitchen. She felt Sheppard hovering behind her, but ignored him. Brushing past him, she watched Evan drop her pet into his cage and smiled. “That’s how you handle him. No grabbing. He’s delicate and small.”

“Uh-huh.” He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck.

“Do you need something?” She asked as Lorne gathered up his plate and the other man’s as well as the container of diced veggies. He walked past them into the kitchen.

“Wanna lay down?” John kissed her neck.

“No, I have two translations I need to finish tonight and want to make sure you put the crib in the right place.” She tried to break away from him, but he wouldn’t let go. “I’m the size of a blimp, you cannot possibly want to fool around.”

“He always wants to fool around.” Evan interjected.

“Not true.” Sheppard said in his own defense and turned to face his friend.

With his grip loosened, Mariah quickly shifted away from him and headed back to the table. Her laptop and pad were on the far end, where she took a seat and opened both her devices. She got to work. She smiled when she heard her lover growl. “Give the cats a treat or find something else useful to do.” She directed without removing her eyes from her work. After about ten minutes, someone sat down next to her. She glanced over and smiled. “What’s he doing?”

“Pouting in the bedroom. We put the crib in the corner over by my side of the bed, next to where you had the rocking chair. That okay?” Lorne asked and powered on his pad. There were a few emails he hadn’t gotten to before he left the office.

“Yup.” She grinned at her lover and leaned over to kiss his cheek. “How long should I make him suffer?”

“As long as possible. Then maybe you and I can fool around.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

Mariah laughed. “You’re on.”

*****

“When you get this excited, David, you make me nervous.”

“No reason to be nervous. You’re going to love this surprise and so is Teyla.”

“Is Teyla here, too?” Dr. Gray looked around, but the blindfold stopped her from actually seeing anything.

“Katie went to get her. This is a gift from the whole botany department to our two resident mothers.”

“You know I don’t really need any more gifts. This baby is going to be so spoiled as it is.”

“This isn’t that kind of gift.” A door opened and he drew her forward. “We’re almost there, but you have to keep your eyes covered until Teyla gets here.”

“Did you borrow this blindfold from Sheppard?”

“Actually, Evan gave it to me.”

“Of course, he did.” Mariah sighed and tried to figure out where she was, without asking Atlantis for help. It was obvious they were outside, since she could hear the water lapping against the City and could feel the sun on her skin. However, she wasn’t quite sure where outside they were. A transporter ride had been part of the journey to get here and could’ve taken them any number of places. She really needed to stop letting people ‘surprise’ her. It was getting annoying. Her contemplation was interrupted when she heard the door open again and two sets of footsteps. “Teyla?”

“I am here, Mariah, along with Katie Brown.”

“Are you blindfolded?”

“I am not. Katie simply asked me to close my eyes, which I did.”

“I wish David had done that with me.”

“Evan said you might peek.” He said, then spoke to Dr. Brown. “Ready?”

“Yes.” At his nod, the female botanist said. “Open your eyes.”

At the same time, Dr. Parrish pulled the blindfold off the pregnant woman’s eyes and said. “Surprise.”

Dr. Gray blinked repeatedly when she was suddenly blinded by the sunlight. She heard the Athosian woman gasp and turned towards her friend. She could see Teyla smiling and took the opportunity to take in her surroundings, now that she could see. They were in a courtyard nestled between a few towers of the City. She was positive she had never been there before. It looked like most of Atlantis, lots of glass and bluish-grey metal, but something stood out. There was a rainbow of color all over the place. There was grass, bushes and trees, a splendid mix of greens and browns. But on top of that, there were flowers in every shade imaginable.

“How did you…? When?” For a master of words, she was at a loss.

David smiled brightly. “We’ve been working on this ever since we took the City back from the Replicators. We had hoped to get it completed before Torren was born, but it didn’t happen. Then when you got pregnant, it pushed us to finally get it finished before another baby was born. It’s for the whole expedition to use, but we thought it would be nice for the kids to have a place outside to play where they wouldn’t be in the way of engineers or ships or marines. Do you like it? Both of you?”

“It is very beautiful, David. Ronon, Myla and I will happily bring Torren here. It is often hard for us to get permission to go to Proculus to visit with my people and this will be the perfect place to have a bit more nature in our lives. Thank you and you as well, Katie.” Teyla bowed to both botanists and began to wander around.

“Mariah?” Dr. Brown came closer.

“It’s perfect. I love being outside.” The linguist rubbed her stomach. “I can bring the baby here and Trouble, Fearless and Bernard, too. Can I?” Her hand went towards her ear.

“Yes, yes, of course. Evan and Colonel Sheppard knew we had a surprise for you, but not what it was. General O’Neill is the only member of the senior staff who knows.” The lead botanist answered. He turned his attention to the Athosian leader, while Mariah hit her radio and started speaking.

“What of Rodney? He is technically your boss, is he not?”

“He is, Teyla, but his eyes glaze over as soon as I start talking about plants, especially if I use the Latin names.” He and Katie chuckled. “Please explore. It’s much bigger than it looks.”

Teyla and Mariah, who was off the radio, walked around the space together. It was the size of a neighborhood park back on Earth. There was a central green with a few benches around the edges and paths led off the green back into the wilds of plants that had been installed. After a while, the mother and the mother-to-be heard the door open again, followed by a couple of low whistles. The leader of AR-1’s voice carried over to them.

“Did you do all this, doc?”

“Yes, Colonel, me and my staff.”

“Where’s Mariah? Sweetheart?”

“Follow the path to the central green. I’ll meet you there.” She called out to her lover, then she spoke to her friend. “Keep looking around. I need to go find him, before he tears the place apart trying to find me.”

“I doubt he would actually do that, but I understand what you mean.” The Athosian set her hands on her friend’s shoulders and bowed her head until their foreheads met. They stayed like that for a couple moments, before they broke apart.

Dr. Gray hurried down the path back towards the green. She smiled when she spotted her lovers waiting for her. “Isn’t this place amazing?” She asked.

“Sure is, beautiful. So, this was David’s big surprise. I’m impressed.”

“About that… no more loaning out the blindfold, okay?”

“Parrish blindfolded you?”

“Yes, John, he did and he got it from Evan.”

Lorne grinned at his lover, trying to defuse the situation. “Why don’t we focus on the positive? Atlantis has its very own park. We can bring the baby here and spend time together as a family.”

“Umm hmm.” Mariah wasn’t going to let this go, but right now, she couldn’t help but smile. There was now a green space in the City, not just for the children (or soon to be children), but for everyone. “Do you think Jack would let me get a dog now?” She laughed when her lovers groaned. She would have to ask the expedition leader later.

Chapter Text

“Something wrong, beautiful?”

“No. Why?”

“You’ve eaten maybe two bites of your lunch and have been pushing the rest around your plate for the last ten minutes.” Lorne leaned forward on the Mess Hall table and tried to catch his lover’s eyes.

“I’m not very hungry.” She sighed when she peeked up and saw the look of disbelief on his face. She kept her face averted.

“But you’re always hungry.” Realizing his statement could be taken badly, he continued. “At least, since you’ve been pregnant and got over the morning sickness.”

“Well, I’m not today. Actually, my back hurts. I think I want to lay down.” She pushed back her chair and struggled to her feet. It was Wednesday and she was having her usual lunch date with Evan. Sheppard was off-world on a mission. AR-1 was helping to get a dozen marines situated at the Ancient military outpost. Their first off-world base of operation was finally happening. “But I need to go see Jack first.”

“Maybe you should see Beckett.” His comment earned him a glare. “Just to ask him if back pain is a normal thing for an 8 month pregnant woman.” He stood, moved her dishes onto his tray and lifted it up. Evan went around the table to the young woman’s side.

Mariah gave him a look of disbelief. “I’m carrying around 20 or so pounds of extra weight and am walking funny in order to not tip over. Back pain is normal, trust me.” She walked over to the discard bins and helped him put the waste and dishes in the correct places. They exited the Mess Hall and went to the transporter together. They came out by the Control Room. She pointed towards his office. “Go be in charge. Don’t you have some teams out doing City exploration?”

“Yeah, CT-2 and 3 are out, looking for a particular lab and doing a sweep of the West pier outbuildings, respectively.” He hesitantly started towards his office. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, go.” Ignoring him, she turned towards the expedition leader’s office and strode to the open doors. Or more like waddled with purpose. She really couldn’t wait for the whole pregnancy thing to be over. Dr. Gray smiled at Chuck as she passed him, getting a smile back. O’Neill was behind his desk when she entered. “Hi, Jack.”

“Hey, Mariah. To what do I owe the pleasure?” He reclined back in his chair and grinned at her. 

“Did you see my email?”

“Yeah, but I haven’t looked at it yet. Wanna give me a quick summary?”

The linguist moved over to the wall next to the couch and leaned against it. “I figured out what’s so special about M3M-K19, well Daniel and I did.” She gave a sigh of contentment.

The General rose from his chair and walked over to her. “You okay? Do you want to sit down?”

“If I sit, I may not be able to get back up. I’m fine here. Lantis is taking care of me.” She laughed when her friend arched an eyebrow at her. “My back hurts and she’s heating up this section of wall for me. Feels great. Can we get back on topic?”

“Your connection with the City is not normal.” He shook his head and thought for a minute. “All right, what’s so special about M3M-K19?”

“There’s a mine on the planet. The military outpost monitors the mine and the Gate, with the intent of protecting whatever they were digging up. I think we should do a full survey of the planet.”

“Interesting…. I’ll bring it up with Sheppard and Lorne when we have our next mission proposal meeting.” He took a good look at her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yup. I’m planning to take a nap after we finish chatting.”

“Go. I’ll read the email and radio Danny if I have any questions.” He watched her push off the wall and head to the doors. “Enjoy your nap.”

“I definitely will. Bye, Jack.”

“Bye, Mar.” He chuckled when she paused and shook her head. Mitchell was a bad influence on him, for sure. The expedition leader hit his radio. “O’Neill to Lorne.” He waited a beat for a response. “Come by my office. Your girl just shared some interesting information with me. I want to go over it.” He turned his radio off without waiting for the other man to respond. He went back to his desk and sat. He was concerned about his young friend, but opted to not bring up that concern with his commander of internal City operations. He didn’t need to make him or John any more protective than they already were. He looked up and smiled when the Colonel entered his office. “Have a seat and let’s go over this email."

*****

“Trouble, what the hell are you doing?” Sheppard hissed as he came awake. He knew the older of the two cats was the only one who would dare harass him when he was sleeping. The little grey cat was standing on his left arm and shoulder, licking his ear. It was the middle of the night and the master suite was dark. Then he heard a sigh of relief and a small moan. Finally, he noticed the mattress in front of him was damp.

“John….” Mariah whispered.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” He turned his head towards the middle of the bed and met brown eyes filled with pain

“My water broke.”

“What??” He sat up and reached across her, nudging his friend’s shoulder. “Ev, wake up.” He turned away from his bed companions, knocking the cat off him, and grabbed his radio from the bedside table. “Control, I need medical to my quarters, now. Alert the infirmary that Dr. Gray’s water broke.” He threw the radio back on the table and got up. Trouble and Fearless were sitting by the side of the bed. “Stay out of the way, guys. Help’s coming.” The cats ran back over to their bed in the corner of the room and watched the action.

By now, Lorne was sitting up and had helped their lover to roll onto her back. He had heard everything the other man had said. “Beautiful, we need to get you out of bed.”

“It hurts.” All the same she sat up and swung her legs towards John.

“I know and help will be here soon, but you’re going to have to move.”

“I don’t want anyone to see me like this. I’m all wet and sticky. I need to change.”

“Sweetheart, I don’t-.”

“Please….” She interrupted. Then her eyes slammed shut as another wave of pain hit her. She tried her best to breathe through it.

“Grab her a clean night shirt and her robe.” Evan ordered. It took Sheppard a beat to do as he asked. 

Setting the clean clothes on the corner of the mattress, John began to help his lover out of bed, with Lorne supporting her from behind. “That’s it, you’re almost there.” Then the doors to the apartment and bedroom opened. Marie and Dr. Keller rushed into the room, the nurse pushing a wheelchair.

“Let me see her.” Jen stated and pushed her boyfriend’s teammate out of the way. “How are you doing?”

“It hurts, but I need to change before we go.”

“Okay.” The physician wasn’t happy about it, but she understood. She wrapped her arms around the pregnant woman and pulled her to the edge of the bed. Then lifted her up onto her feet. “Marie, help me. Colonels, strip the bed so it can dry out.” The three women headed towards the bathroom. The head nurse had already grabbed their patient’s clothes. Calling over her shoulder, Keller added. “And you might want to get dressed.”

Evan blushed scarlet when he realized he and Sheppard were wearing only boxers. He hopped out of bed and quickly put on pants and a shirt. “Help me get the sheets off, John.” He pulled the comforter and top sheet off, then worked on getting the fitted sheet and mattress pad off with the other man’s help. Together, they loaded the sheets into the washer unit, then moved to stand next to the bathroom door, waiting for the three women to emerge. They didn’t have to wait long.

Marie came out first and immediately grabbed the wheelchair, pulling it over to allow the pregnant woman to sit down. The physician got her patient situated and locked eyes with the nurse. “Get her down to the delivery room. Carson should have everything set up by now and will give her an epidural as soon as he gets her settled.”

“Praise God, pain meds.” Dr. Gray muttered as she was pushed out of the room.

“Come along, Colonels. We need to get you cleaned up and gowned.” Jen herded the men out of the bedroom and into the hall. She could see how anxious they were, but kept their pace slow. “Everything is going to be fine. She’ll feel much better once she has the epidural, then the long process of having a baby begins.”

“Doc, why’d you come and not Beckett? No offense, but you and Mariah aren’t exactly friends.” Sheppard asked. He needed something to distract him, since the doctor didn’t seem to be in a rush to go anywhere.

“I’ve seen her for a few of her appointments, when Carson wasn’t available. We’ve reached a level of mutual respect. Carson thought sending me might help us become closer, but we’ll see.” Dr. Keller stated with a half-smile.

They had just gotten to the corridor juncture when they heard a door open and O’Neill was running down the hall towards them. “Where is she?”

“Marie took her to the infirmary, sir. We’re heading there now. What are you doing up?” Lorne was perplexed by the General’s presence.

“Chuck called me a few minutes ago. I thought I’d come along for moral support. I was a nervous wreck when my son was born and could’ve used a buddy or two to be there with me. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not, sir. Let’s go.” John offered. The foursome picked up their pace and were entering the infirmary a few minutes later. He was startled to see his team waiting for them. “Chuck?” He asked.

“Yes, John. He alerted us. We are here to-.” Teyla started.

“To support us.” Her team leader interrupted her with a smile. He was happy his teammates had opted to come straight to the infirmary instead of the apartment.

No one was able to say anything further as the Assistant CMO hurried the two soon-to-be fathers over to the wash room. They cleaned up, donned gowns and were pushed into the isolation-turned-delivery room. Beckett, the head nurse and Mariah were already there. The linguist was hooked up to an IV and looked much more comfortable. Her lovers rushed to her side without any prodding. They each took a hand and smiled down at her.

“I’m scared.” She whispered to them.

“No reason to be scared, beautiful. We have the best medical staff in two galaxies, plus John and I are here with you.”

The young woman squeezed their hands as a contraction hit her. Sheppard glanced up to the viewing area and saw his team along with the General. It was reminiscent of when Torren was born. That thought comforted him. The two men spent the next few hours helping their lover to breathe and work through each contraction. After an eternity, the two doctors told them it was time and they helped their lover to sit up. She pushed and screamed until she was told to stop. Then they heard it, a soft mewing followed by a tiny cry.

“Well, love, lads, you have a beautiful baby girl. A wee bit small since she’s a little early, but otherwise perfect. Who’s going to cut the cord?” The Scotsman asked the new fathers.

“Go ahead, John.”

“But, Ev-.”

“Please.” Lorne smiled at his former CO.

Sheppard nodded and released Mariah’s hand to move to the end of the bed where Marie was waiting with scissors. He cut where he was told before shifting back to the head of the bed to press a kiss to his lover’s temple. “She’s so tiny.”

“Newborns always seem tiny.” The linguist stated breathlessly. She was so tired. But she perked up when she saw Jennifer coming alongside the bed with a bundle in her arms.

“Here’s your daughter, Dr. Gray.”

“It’s Mariah, Jen. And thank you.” She took her baby from the other woman and grinned. She was beautiful. The new mother pressed a kiss on the infant’s head. “Hello, sweetie, I’m your mom.” She brushed a finger against her daughter’s cheek and the baby opened her eyes. Mariah almost cried. “She has Evan’s eyes.” Her lovers leaned closer and saw what she saw, two stormy blue eyes, an exact copy of her father’s. It was Lorne’s baby.

“What’s her name, sweetheart?” John tried his best to keep his disappointment out of his voice.

“I wasn’t sure until I saw her eyes, but now I know it’s right. Her name is Christine Elizabeth, after your mom and Dr. Weir. Is that okay?” She looked at Evan, who smiled and nodded, then at Sheppard. There were tears in his eyes, tears of happiness.

“I love it. My dad is going to spoil her rotten.” He brushed the wetness of a single tear from his cheek and looked up. Ronon had McKay in a bear hug and was lifting him off his feet, while Teyla and Jack waved down at them. They were a family, all four of them.

*****

“Are you disappointed?”

“What?” John whirled around and stared at the bed. His lover’s eyes were open and boring into him. He strode over to her, remaining cognizant of who he was cradling in his arms. He had been walking the length of the isolation room, rocking their daughter to sleep. Lorne had left to check on the cats and write an email to his mother and sister, telling them the good news. “Why would I be disappointed? We have a healthy, happy, gorgeous little baby girl. What more could I ask for?”

“But she isn’t yours.” Mariah swallowed hard. “I heard it when you asked her name and I….” She sniffled and wiped her eyes. Crying wasn’t going to help matters any, but she’d just blame it on her hormones if it came to that. 

“Sweetheart….” Sheppard softly chided her and leaned down to give her a soft kiss. “I was initially, but then something hit me when I heard her name. She’s ours, the three of ours. After all this time, I know you aren’t going to throw me over for Ev or vice versa, so the three of us will always be a family. And now we have her.” He kissed the baby’s forehead and the little girl stirred. He rocked her some, settling her back down. “Even if she isn’t my blood, she’s my daughter, just as much as she’s yours and Evan’s. I know my name won’t be on the birth certificate, but-.”

“I already thought of a solution for that.”

“You did?”

“Yes, while you aren’t the father, we can name you the godfather as well as an additional legal guardian. You’ll have as close to equal rights to her as Evan and I.”

“How did you figure all that out?”

“Your dad.”

“Of course.” He chuckled, then turned when the door open. He smiled. “Apartment still in one piece?”

“Yeah… they were all over me as soon as I went inside. I think they smelled her.” Lorne came right over to John and looked down at the baby. “It’s probably about time for her first feeding.”

“Whoop-de-freaking-doo.” Dr. Gray growled, causing both men to laugh. She opted for distraction. She wasn’t looking forward to being a living, breathing buffet. “Did your email go out?”

“Yeah. General O’Neill did a special dial-out. I put Mr. Sheppard, Mr. Eppes and your dad on the email, too. I knew they would all want to know.” Evan saw the baby open her eyes and she started to softly cry. “Meal time.”

“Here you go, sweetheart.” Sheppard carefully transferred the baby into her mother’s arms. He watched while the linguist got the baby situated and she began to suckle. “You’re a natural.”

“I’ve seen Teyla do it enough times, so I would hope so.” She kept the unhappy look on her face, but inside she was smiling. Both men were hovering protectively by her and it made her happy. Having them close by always made her feel better, however she was really looking forward to taking a long hot shower, which would make her feel even better than her lovers did.

The door to the isolation room opened and Beckett came in, pushing a contraption on wheels. “Lads, don’t smother my patients.”

“What’s that, doc?” John asked, while remaining beside mother and child. Lorne didn’t move either.

“This is a neonatal incubator. It just came through the Gate from Earth along with the remainder of SG-1. Actually, I think all members of SG-1, past and present, are outside.” The CMO pushed the incubator to the far side of the room, then went to the linguist’s free side. “You’re doing well, love. She’ll need to be burped when she finishes.”

“I know, Carson. Also, I highly doubt all the members of SG-1 are outside, since I’m pretty sure Jonas Quinn is still in the Milky Way.” She sighed when the baby released her, then carefully shifted her against her shoulder, patting and rubbing her little back. She smiled when she heard a tiny burp. She went back to cradling Christine in her arms and readjusted her clothes.

“Who’s Jonas Quinn?” The leader of AR-1 asked.

“Took Daniel’s place after he died and ascended. Very nice man from everything I’ve heard and loves Earth pop-culture.” Mariah answered. She was warily eyeing the incubator. “Does she really have to go in there?”

“Aye, love, but just so I can monitor her when you’re resting. When I discharge you, wee Christine will be heading home with you.” He brushed a hand against the infant’s cheek and smiled when he saw her drifting off. “When you’re ready for your next nap, let me know and I’ll come back in to get her safely inside.” The Scotsman pointed at the two military men in turn. “You’ll be leaving then as well, lads. They both need to rest, without being disturbed.”

“Of course, doc.” Lorne stated with a smile.

“Glad to hear it. Don’t forget there are lots of visitors outside, waiting to see the lasses.” He gave Christine a quick kiss on the head, before bustling out of the room.

Before the threesome could resume their conversation, the two men’s radios chirped. Evan hit his first. “Lorne here.” He paused, then his eyes got big. “Thanks for the warning, Banks.” He hit it off and saw two questioning looks coming his way. “Two strange energy balls just came through the shield and entered the City. They’re heading this way.”

John wasn’t able to respond, because the energy balls came through the door, one immediately materializing into a man before his eyes. He moved to stand between the stranger and his lover and child. “Who the hell are-?”

“Greetings, Colonel Sheppard. Colonel Lorne, it is a pleasure to see you again.”

“Hi, Janus.” Evan responded and set a hand on Sheppard’s arm. “You can stand down. He isn’t going to hurt them.” All the same, he eyed the other energy ball, warily. As far as he knew, Mariah only interacted with one Ascended Ancient. He wasn’t sure who else was here.

“You’re Janus?”

“Yes, Colonel. I wished to congratulate you and meet Mariah’s child. I hope that is all right.”

“As long as she doesn’t mind, I don’t care. But why make your presence known? You usually just freeze time and visit with no one but her being the wiser.” John was glaring at the Ancient, but he turned to the bed, when he felt a hand on his back.

“It’s okay, John. Could you and Ev wait outside? I’m sure everyone’s wondering what’s going on.” The banging on the isolation room door hadn’t gone unnoticed by the linguist. She smiled at her lovers in turn.

“Come on, John.” Lorne grabbed the other man’s arm and pulled him to the door. It opened for them and they were met by the frantic faces of Teal’c, Colonel Mitchell and O’Neill. The men exited and began to explain. The door shut behind them. 

“Hello, Janus. Come meet Christine.” Mariah smiled at her visitor and waited for him to come closer. She rubbed the little girl’s face and her eyes opened. “Christine, this is Janus. He’s my friend and looks out for me.”

“She’s lovely.”

“Thank you. Who else is with you?”

“Ahh, yes.” He turned to look at the energy ball. “You may show yourself now.” He looked back at the linguist. “She wasn’t allowed to materialize with the others here.” The white form landed on the floor and began to take shape.

“She? She who?” Then she saw who it was and tears entered her eyes. “Elizabeth!!”

“I told you we might meet again.” The former leader of the expedition stood next to Janus, dressed in a white flowing dress and smiling from ear to ear. She moved closer.

The new mother held out her free arm and hugged her friend. “I’ve missed you so much. Not that Jack isn’t great, but he isn’t you.”

“I understand.” Dr. Weir pulled back and looked down at the baby. “She’s beautiful. Congratulations.”

“I named her after you, because… because without you, she’d probably never have been born. I would’ve stayed on Earth and been miserable.” Dr. Gray began to cry in earnest.

“Please don’t cry. I was honored to have you as part of the expedition. You’ve brought joy to everyone you’ve met. You’ve saved lives. You’re the force to be reckoned with that Janus predicted.”

Mariah wiped the wetness from her cheeks and stared at her long lost friend. “It was you, wasn’t it? You convinced the Others to help me. I should’ve known. You’re the best negotiator in two galaxies, dead or alive.”

“I only showed them that there was no harm in helping you hone the powers you already had.” Elizabeth looked up to the viewing area and saw a group of extremely shocked people. “The cat’s out of the bag.”

“We must go, Dr. Weir.” Janus warned. The Others would not be happy with him. They needed to leave before there were serious consequences for them both.

“Wait, please. How are you alive? Did he…? Janus, did you save her?”

“Yes.” He leaned forward and kissed the young woman’s forehead. “We must go, NOW.”

“Of course…, you’re really turning into the Oma Desala of Pegasus.” The two women laughed when he shook his head. “Thank you for bringing her to see me, but she can’t go yet. Elizabeth, hold your niece, just once. You may never get another chance.” She offered her daughter to her friend.

“My niece?” Dr. Weir took the child, shock all over her face. Mariah just nodded. “Well, hello, niece. It’s very nice to meet you.” The baby opened her big blue eyes again and seemed to be smiling up at her. She gave the infant back to the other woman. “Thank you. I’m not sure when I’ll-.”

“It’s okay. Go before you both get in trouble.” Mariah cuddled Christine close and watched the two Ascended beings step back, transforming into light. “Bye.” She shouted as they disappeared through the wall. She looked at her baby and touched their heads together. Silent tears streamed down her face. She looked up when the door opened. Her lovers and the expedition leader came into the room.

Jack spoke first. “Tell me exactly what they said.”

*****

“Are you sure you’re okay, beautiful? Carson said we could keep the wheelchair as long as you needed it.” Evan tightened his grip on her elbow as they exited the transporter.

“I’m fine. I’m just excited to be going home.”

“Is she still asleep?” Sheppard leaned over and looked at the bundle in the linguist’s arms, then he pressed a quick kiss to his lover’s temple. He had one arm wrapped around her shoulders.

“Yup, it’ll make introducing her to Trouble, Fearless and Bernard a little easier.”

“They’re going to pounce as soon as the doors open.”

“I know, Ev.” The trio and their child turned the corner into their hallway and strolled down to their apartment. “I’m going to go straight into the bedroom and sit in the middle of the bed. One of you will need to grab Bernard. I want all three of them to meet Christine at the same time.”

“I’ll get him.” John answered. The doors opened and the cats were there. They both meowed and started to paw at the linguist’s legs.

Ignoring both of her pets, the new mother continued on into the bedroom and crawled up on to the bed with help from Lorne. She sat cross-legged there and kept the baby out of the felines’ reach. “Just a second, wait for your brother.” She chided the animals. Then Sheppard appeared with the mouse in his hand. The rodent was squeaking up a storm. He leapt off the hand holding him as soon as the mattress wasn’t too far away. He scurried over to join the cats. “Everybody, sit down.”

“Does that include us, beautiful?” Evan gave her a cheeky grin. His former CO was a bad influence.

“Sure.” She waited for her pets to obey and her lovers to join her on the bed. “Good job, babies. I’m going to introduce you to your sister, but you have to be careful. She’s very delicate and tiny. Also, there will be no going in the crib during the night. You could hurt her and that will make me very angry. Is that all clear?” Two meows and a squeak were her only response. The two men were trying hard not to laugh.

“Come on, sweetheart, you’ve kept them in suspense long enough.” Sheppard shifted closer to her on the bed.

“All right.” She lowered the baby until she was nestled in her crossed legs. All three animals moved forward and peered into the bundle. Mariah reached out and lifted Bernard up so he could see better. “This is your sister, Christine.” The cats and mouse sniffed at the infant, then Trouble licked her little face. She moved a bit, but stayed asleep. Fearless climbed onto his owner’s leg and cozied up against the baby’s feet. His brother followed suit on her other leg and the rodent crawled off Mariah’s hand onto the black cat’s back. They all settled down to nap together. “That went pretty well.”

“Except you’re trapped now, beautiful.” Lorne moved to kneel on the bed next to her. “John, help me.” He put his hands under her knee and butt and lifted. His friend did the same. Together they shifted her back on the bed until she could lean against the headboard. “You can relax, now.”

Sheppard grabbed their pillows and wedged them around their lover. “Just in case you fall asleep, too, sweetheart.”

“Thanks, guys.” She smiled and gave them each a kiss when they leaned towards her. Dr. Gray wiggled into her pillow nest. “A nap does sound good.”

“You’ve earned it. John and I will be out in the living room, if you need us. We’ll keep the doors partially open, so just call out.” The former base XO gave her another peck on the lips and moved to exit the bedroom.

Not to be out done, the leader of AR-1 grabbed a kiss for himself. “We have mission plans and reports to review. Shaft is covering for us in the office. Teldy and Stacks are briefing him on all current efforts.”

“It was nice of Jack to get his old team to come out to help while we’re on leave.”

“Yes, it was, but now you rest. She’ll be awake before you know it. Don’t waste your chance.”

“Will do, Ev.” She closed her eyes and was asleep in less than a minute.

The Colonels quickly made themselves scarce. They wanted her to relax, however they wouldn’t go far. It was hard for the two men to grasp that they were now responsible for the life of a tiny human being, an extension of the woman they both loved. Their daughter was tiny and fragile and Pegasus was full of a multitude of threats and dangers, not only off-world, but inside the majestic City of the Ancients. All their decisions going forward would directly impact Christine, so every choice would have to be carefully weighed before any action was taken. That would be harder for one of them than the other, but with practice, it would become second nature. With smiles on their faces, they sat down and got back to their duties.

*****

“Feel my middle.”

“If you wanted to fool around, sweetheart, all you had to do was ask.” John smirked at the linguist.

She playfully smacked him. “That’s not what I’m after. Feel my middle.” She was standing just outside the bathroom door in their bedroom, dressed in one of the nightshirts she wore during her third trimester.

“Okay….” He took a step closer and put his hands on her stomach and side, rubbing her middle all the way around. “What the-?” Sheppard lifted the shirt and stared at her lower body. “Did you get thinner overnight?”

“Would seem so. My stomach, thighs and ass are all back to pre-pregnancy size, which means all my clothes will fit again, well, at least my pants.” She waved her hands over her breasts. “They’re still oversized.”

“That’s understandable, beautiful. You have a baby to feed.” Evan chuckled from his spot on the bed. He was lacing up his boots. He and John were headed to the senior staff meeting. Even though they are on leave, the General had ordered them to continue to attend, as long as they were in the City. Mariah was exempt from that order, since she had an infant to care for. “Do you want to go see Carson?” He stood up and rounded the bed. 

“No, Christine and I have an appointment with him in a couple days, her two week check-up. I’ll mention it then. It’s probably like my eyesight and my hair length, all residuals from Altheria. I must have been around the same size as her when she got uploaded in me and just didn’t notice any difference in weight or size until now.”

“Nice perk, sweetheart, just be careful how you tell Teyla. It took her like 6 months to shed the baby weight and she complained the whole time.” The leader of AR-1 slipped into the bathroom to finish getting ready. 

Lorne went over to his lover and took her in his arms. They kissed and eventually needed to break for air. “Having powers isn’t all bad then?”

“Not all the time.” She kissed his chin. “Can you put Christine in her bassinet, while I get dressed?”

“Sure, but wouldn’t you rather have her in the baby sling?”

“Trust me, the bassinet is better. Then you and John need to get going. The coffee should be ready and there are more of the muffins I made yesterday in the fridge.”

“All right, beautiful.” He moved back over to the crib and carefully took his daughter out. She snuffled in her sleep, but went into her bassinet without waking. When he turned around, Dr. Gray was mostly dressed and working on fixing her hair. “Where do you want her?”

“On the chair next to mine at the dining room table.” He left with their child and her cats coiled around her ankles. She got her hair fixed and Sheppard slid out of the bathroom, dropping a kiss on her check as he went by. He exited the bedroom and she followed. Both men were in the kitchen, getting coffee. “Don’t forget to grab a muffin and take one for Jack.”

“Sure, sweetheart.” John grabbed two muffins out of the fridge along with his travel mug of coffee and headed to the front doors, but not without grabbing another kiss, this one deep and intense. “Don’t forget to eat yourself.”

Mariah smiled up at him. “Wouldn’t dream of it. Need to feed the animals, too. Now go, before you’re both late.” She watched him jog out of the apartment. Evan was just coming out of the kitchen. She stopped him for a kiss. “See if you can get him to behave.”

“I’ll try, but since I haven’t been able to for the last 6 years, I doubt today will be any different.” He gave her another kiss and hurried after his fellow Colonel. The apartment doors shut after him.

With a shake of her head, the linguist went into the kitchen. She made herself some tea and toast and after feeding the cats, took her breakfast to the table, sitting in the chair next to her child. She got everything situated and started to work on some translations. An hour passed without her even realizing it. Then the door chimed. She thought it open and smiled at her guest. “Hey, Cam.”

“Hey, Mar.” Stepping into the apartment, he pointed at the table. “I didn’t think they were allowed on the table.”

“They’re usually not, but it makes things easier. Come here.” She stood and waited for her friend to come closer. This was only the second time Mitchell had visited her in her quarters and she was wondering what had prompted his presence today. As soon as he was standing next to her, she pointed to where the cats were looking from their vantage point laying over the edge of the dining room table. “They like to watch her sleep, but know they aren’t allowed in the crib, bassinet or sling with her. By letting them on the table, I avoid them bothering me for hours on end and can get work done.” Christine was in her bassinet sleeping while her furry brothers kept watch. Both cats ignored the humans. 

“Smart thinking.” He turned and looked down at her.

“I thought so.” The new mother shifted and looked up at him. A memory suddenly hit her and she blurted out. “Do you remember the last time we were standing like this?”

“Yup… you kissed me.”

“Because I thought I was going to die. I wanted you to have a good memory of me before that happened.”

“All my memories of you are good, except for that day in the cave.” He diverted his eyes.

“Oh….”

“Is that the only reason you kissed me?” He went back to looking at her. 

“No, but that was a long time ago.”

“It was and now you have two boyfriends and a kid, plus three pets.”

“And you have a certain Chief Medical Officer.” She smirked up at him when he gaped at her in shock.

“How did you…?”

“One guess.”

“I’ll kill her later.” He shook his head and chuckled. “What are you working on?” He gestured at the laptop.

But she shook her head at him. “I doubt you came by to find out what I was translating. So what’s up?” She asked, leaning on the back of the chair where her baby was. She didn’t want to go too far. The infant would be waking soon.

“Why would you…?” He started, then sighed at the look he was getting from her. “Fine. I came by for two reasons.”

“And the first is?”

“I need you to tell me Teldy and Stackhouse were just joking with me. It had to be some type of hazing the new kid thing, right?”

“You lost me, Cam. What are you even talking about?”

“All the stuff they told me, the dangers inside the City. They were reviewing the incidents with me and all that stuff couldn’t have actually happened.”

“I know for a fact you’ve read all the expedition mission reports. You should know everything that’s happened in Atlantis.”

“I thought most of it was just hyperbole, ghost stories or the like to scare us Earth-bound saps. Sheppard’s way of deterring people with any type of sense from joining the expedition.”

“I wouldn’t put that past him, but Lorne would never do that and neither would Major Teldy. Anne is as straight laced as they come. The closest she comes to humor is showing up the new marines, who don’t think they should be taking orders from a woman. She laughs when she lays them out on the mat.”

“Yeah… she offered to spar with me. I passed.”

“Smart man, though I would pay to see her and Teal’c go toe-to-toe. Her or Dusty.”

“Dusty?”

“Sergeant Dusty Mehra, she’s on AR-4 with Major Teldy, Captain Vega and Dr. Porter. Nobody messes with the ladies of AR-4.”

“Thanks for the warning.” He looked around the apartment, happy to let the conversation die, however Dr. Gray knew him too well. A hand on his arm got his attention and their eyes met.

“What’s the second thing?”

“Um….” He ducked his head and mumbled. “I wanted to see if I could hold her.”

Without a word, she straightened up and shifted to the side of the chair. Her first action was to lift her pets off the table and set them on the floor, then she leaned over the bassinet. She spoke to him as she did. “Sit down.” He quickly pulled out a chair and sat down. “Come here, baby. Uncle Cameron wants to hold you.” The little girl opened her eyes and gurgled. Her mother cradled her and stepped over to her friend. “Be sure to support her head and neck.”

“This ain’t my first rodeo, Mar. I’m an uncle three times over.”

“How is the Mitchell Clan?” She carefully placed her daughter in the Colonel’s arms.

“Jessie is pregnant with her fourth. My brother, Cody, is ecstatic and so are my folks, for that matter.” He looked down into a set of beautiful grey-blue eyes. “She’s gorgeous, just like her mama. Shep and Evan are going to be beating them off with sticks.”

“Don’t give them any ideas.” She sat back down in her vacated chair and watched Mitchell make faces and noise directed at her baby. She laughed. “When are you going to have your own gaggle of kids?”

“Carolyn and I are just starting to get serious. Also, there’s the whole issue of her father being my CO.” He kept his focus on the child.

Mariah sighed. “But I thought you and Landry got along.”

“We do, but we might not when he finds out I’m dating his daughter. I don’t want to rock the boat.”

“He has to retire eventually, plus you can’t live like that and I doubt Carolyn wants to be your dirty, little secret.”

“She’s not-.”

“I know that, Cam, but you need to talk to her about it. She’s not getting any younger and neither are you or your folks.”

He smiled at her. “I promise I will.” He cuddled the baby close and added. “She’s adorable. Thanks for letting me hold her.”

“You’re welcome.” Before she could say anything else the door chimed again and she thought the doors open. Vala flounced into the room.

“So, this is where you’re hiding, Cameron.” The former space pirate’s eyes lit up. “Ohhh, you’re holding the baby. Can I have a turn?” She almost ran over to join them.

“She’s not a party favor, Vala.” Dr. Gray laughed and shook her head. Her friends were really something else.

Chapter Text

“You sure you want to do this?”

“Yes, Jack.”

“Okay, let’s go.”

Mariah shook her head and stood her ground. “No. I have to go in there alone.”

“But-.”

“He can’t hurt me. He’s locked in a cell with a force field around it.” She looked up at him, pleadingly.

“Fine.” He peered into the holding area and barked at the marines. “Everyone out, NOW.” The four marines guarding the cell hurried from the room. “Please be careful.”

“Of course.” A hand on her arm gave her pause and she looked back at the expedition leader. “Yes?”

“Where’s Christine, if I may ask?” Separating a mother from her newborn was never a good idea and he was surprised the baby wasn’t with her or nearby.

She chuckled. “John is getting a baby lesson from Carson and Teyla and she’s the main attraction. He wants to help out more, so he needs to learn how to give her a bath, swaddle her and a few other things. I thought while he was doing that, it was an ideal time to talk to our guest. I owe him some answers.”

“You really don’t.”

“But I do, Jack. Trust me.” Dr. Gray broke away from him and continued into the room. The massive door closed behind her. By the time she got over to the bars, the Wraith was already standing and studying her. She greeted him with a smile. “Hello, Guide.”

“Greetings, Mariah. You have had your offspring?”

“Yes, a little girl.”

“Congratulations. I hope she will take after you and not her father, whoever he may be.” He gave her a toothy grin.

“Nice try, but I’m not playing that game with you.”

“Then to what do I owe the honor of your visit?”

“You told me you had some questions for me. Ask whatever you want to. I’ll do my best to answer you as truthfully as I can.”

He was still studying her. Several minutes passed in quiet contemplation, when he finally spoke, asking. “What are you?”

The young woman sighed. “That’s a long story. Let me start at the beginning.”

She began to speak, telling him in essence her life story. Skimming over her childhood and education, the story really started when she joined the SGC. She mentioned her romance with her boss and her very first mission through the Stargate, which culminated in some bad luck. She stopped herself from chuckling when she brought up her encounter with the two Priors, emissaries of Ascended beings masquerading as gods. The Wraith was shocked and duly impressed. This all led her to discovering what actually had happened to her and to her willingness to give her life to save a galaxy from enslavement and death. Tears came without warning when she detailed her return to the world of the living and the rejection she faced at the hands of the people she had given up everything for. Finally, she told him about her journey to Pegasus and her life the last six years as power after power came to light. Two hours later she fell silent and studied the alien in front of her. It was a lot to digest and she hoped she hadn’t made a mistake in telling him the truth.

“That is quite the tale.” He stated, breaking the silence.

“Imagine living through it.”

Guide chuckled. “I do not doubt what you told me actually happened, but it is beyond what I could imagine your answer would be. I appreciate hearing the truth.”

“I thought you deserved that, since you’re trapped here for the foreseeable future.”

“As I told General O’Neill, I have nowhere to go, so staying here is not an inconvenience. May I ask what has become of my former hive mates?”

“One’s dead. He provided our people with the information we requested. The other will remain in a cell until you need to feed again.” She stopped herself from turning away in disgust. She was just thankfully she hadn’t been present for the execution of their prisoner.

“It may be some time until I need sustenance. I had quite a full meal and do not need much energy within my cage.” He tried to not let his disdain show, but she noticed.

The linguist looked down and took a deep breath. She knew there wasn’t anything she could do for him, but his predicament still upset her. “I’m sorry. If I could-.”

“You need not apologize, Mariah. This is a situation of my own making. I am alive and well taken care of. I am grateful for your kindness and… your friendship.”

Her head popped up in surprise and she scanned his face. He was serious. “You’re welcome. I wish I could do more.”

“Not necessary.” He turned away and walked over to his bed. Swinging around, he smiled softly at her. “But I would like to ask, if you would be willing to come see me from time to time.”

“Of course, whenever I can. I’ll also see if we can maybe find you something to read or occupy your time. The marines aren’t allowed to speak with prisoners.” A thought occurred to her. “About that, could you not mention what I told you? Most people here don’t know about me and it could lead to a bunch of issues if they found out.”

“Everything we spoke of will remain between us. Though I have a feeling you will be sharing what happened with your mates and perhaps General O’Neill.” He gave her a scary grin.

“If I didn’t have to, I wouldn’t. But knowing them, they’re probably watching me through the security cameras and know everything. I’ll give them a quick recap all the same. I hope that’s okay.”

“It is. Thank you for trusting me with your secret.”

“You’ve taken a lot on faith when it comes to me and helped me when you didn’t need to. I owed you the truth.” She glanced at the door. “I better go.”

The Wraith sat down and replied. “Be well.” His eyed slid closed.

“You as well… my friend.” She turned towards the door and thought it open. She hadn’t missed him smiling when she returned the favor and called him her friend. She exited the room and was met by Jack and Lorne. The marines returned to their posts inside without prompting. She, her lover and the expedition leader began to walk down the hall. They didn’t talk until they turned the corner. Evan spoke first.

“You should’ve told me you wanted to meet with Todd, beautiful.”

“I told Jack and it wasn’t a big deal.”

“It kind of is, because you specifically did it when John was otherwise occupied. How do you think he’s going to react when he finds out?”

“You both need to remember I’m an adult and can-.”

“Enough.” The General stated sternly. He didn’t need the couple bickering. “This is on me, Colonel. I agreed to her request and let her go in alone. Drop it. And if Sheppard has an issue, he can come see me. Clear?”

“Yes, sir.” He wasn't completely happy, but he understood where his lover and his superior were coming from. Plus, he appreciated the other man’s efforts to protect the woman he loved.

“Good.” Jack couldn’t stop a smug smile from appearing on his face. “What do you say we go check on Sheppard? I can’t wait to hear how his baby lesson went.”

The linguist laughed at her friend. He and John were so alike. Hooking her arm through Lorne’s and leaning in to him a little. “Sure. And if John won’t tell us what happened, I’m sure Carson and Teyla will with minimal prodding.” And with that, they were off down the halt the transporter. They had a Colonel to make fun of.

*****

“I think it’s my turn to hold her.”

“I’ve only had her for like a minute, John. You’ll get another turn. I promise.”

Sheppard pouted and looked imploringly at the person next to him.

“If you don’t stop, it’ll be my turn to hold her and you won’t get another chance for the rest of the day. Is that clear?” Mariah glared at her lover.

“Beautiful, you just gave me flashbacks of my mom yelling at me and my sister.”

“Don’t you start either or your turn will end right now.” The linguist shook her head and scanned her daughter. Christine looked okay, almost happy, sitting in her father’s lap, leaning back against him, one of his hands holding her firmly in place.

The trio, their daughter and her three pets were having a picnic in the City’s park. There were a few others there, milling around the area, enjoying the sunshine and gentle breezes. They were tucked away in one of the corners of the large green space and everyone was steering clear, though it was obvious some of them were tempted to come over and ask to hold the baby. Mariah was petting her animals, who were piled into her lap and keeping an eagle-eye on their sister to make sure she wasn’t in distress. They had all finished their lunch and were now relaxing and digesting. Christine was a month old and they would be heading back to Earth in a few days for two months. It could be their last chance for a while to just have time together as a family unit. Grandparents were known to be greedy with their grandbabies.

“Have you packed yet, sweetheart?”

“Haven’t had time. Between Christine and translations requests, there just aren’t enough hours in the day.” She scratched Trouble under the chin and he purred happily, rubbing against her lovingly. “Have you guys?”

“It takes us like ten minutes to pack, beautiful, so of course not.” Evan shifted the baby and picked her up, then cradled her against his shoulder. The little girl was dozing off and he wanted her to be more comfortable.

“I really could use some help then. We each have to pack, then we have to worry about Christine and all the animals. We’re going to look like a caravan when we head through the Gate.”

“I sent Colonel Edwards an email. He and his team will be there to help us with all our stuff.” There was clear affection in his voice as he spoke about his former team.

John spoke up. “And my Dad already chartered a plane for us. A car will meet as at the airport when we land.”

“We’re going to need a car seat.” She stated.

“Car seat?” Sheppard looked at Lorne, who shook his head at him.

“Yeah, John, we need a car seat to put Christine in… to and from the airport.” Evan smirked at the other man.

“I can just hold her.”

“No.” Dr. Gray stated firmly. “It’s not safe and I want one either way. It'll be useful here in the City, too.”

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted when a bellow sounded out across the park. “SHEPPARD.”

“Incoming.” Lorne whispered.

“Go find him and make him quiet down. If he wakes Christine….” The linguist warned.

John sighed and scrambled to his feet. He was just brushing himself off when McKay appeared on the edge of the green. He spotted his team leader and headed right for him. “There you are. HOW DARE YOU-?”

“Quiet, Rodney.” Sheppard hissed and pointed at the sleeping infant. He kept his voice low and continued. “If you wake Christine, you may get to experience being flung across a room.”

“Sorry.” The physicist swallowed hard and looked at the linguist out of the corner of his eye. The new mother was glaring at him. He angrily whispered at his friend. “How DARE you give Mitchell a lemon and tell him to threaten me with it if I didn’t do what he asks. Do you want me to die or something? That Neanderthal is incapable of understanding the importance of my work and everything I do to keep us safe.”

“I didn’t expect him to need to use it so soon. We haven’t even gone back to Earth yet.” John chuckled and was pleased to see his lover and his fellow Colonel smiling up at him.

“Cold showers for a week!!” The CSO pointed at Sheppard and glared.

“Rodney, calm down.” Mariah stated softly. She removed her pets from her lap and carefully stood. The leader of AR-1 steadied her when she was on her feet and kissed her temple for good measure. He pulled her close and wrapped an arm around her.

“Calm? CALM? I am calm.” He was waving his hands wildly in the air.

“No, you’re not. You’re going to pass out if your face gets any redder.” She grabbed one of his wayward hands and squeezed. She sent feelings of peacefulness his way. He immediately began to settle. “That’s better.”

“Wow….” McKay relaxed and his free arm fell to his side. “I feel amazing. How’d you do that?”

“Not important.” The linguist sighed and released his hand. “You need to learn to stay calm or you’ll have a heart attack. Cam’s just testing his boundaries before we go on leave. He wanted to see how you’d react. Flipping out is not a good response and plays right into his hand. He’s probably laughing his head off. You need to prove to him that you’re reliable and can keep your cool. Can you try to do that?”

“Of course, I can. I’m a genius, after all.” He grinned at her, then took a moment to take in the scene. “Oh, were you guys having a picnic? Do you have any food left? I missed lunch.” He plopped down in Sheppard’s vacated spot and opened the cooler sitting next to Lorne. He pulled out some food and started to munch on their leftovers.

Mariah sighed, turned towards Sheppard and rested her head against his chest. He chuckled and held her close. He might not get to hold the baby again today, but holding his lover like this was even better.

*****

“There she is. There’s my granddaughter.” Patrick stepped closer to mother and child and held out his hands. “May I?”

“Yes, of course.” Mariah carefully transferred the sleeping infant into the arms of her lover’s father. She smiled and watched as he started to coo and fawn over Christine. Then she looked at John and Lorne in turn. “Don’t expect to hold her again for the next two weeks.”

“Damn right. I’m only letting this precious little bundle go when she needs to eat, sleep or be changed. She’s absolutely beautiful. Christine… Christine would’ve loved her and would’ve been very honored to have her named after her.” The elder Sheppard rocked the baby gently.

Sheppard and Evan laughed, the latter wrapping an arm around the linguist’s shoulder and kissing her temple. He spoke for all of them. “I hope the holding thing’s negotiable.”

“We’ll see.” Everyone laughed.

Dr. Gray sighed and leaned into her lover. She was just so happy to have made it to the Sheppard family home. It had been a struggle. After the interruption of their picnic, the threesome had divided and conquered. Lorne had taken the sleeping Christine and the three animals back to the apartment with plans to stay there until Mariah joined him, which would allow him to go back to his duties. John, on the other hand, was tasked with dealing with Rodney and the remains of their picnic. He did his best to keep McKay calm, but also provided him with strategies for dealing with Mitchell and the rest of SG-1. He didn’t envy his friend’s position, being surrounded by people who didn’t understand him, his thought process or his methods. The only bright spot was General O’Neill no longer openly disliked the physicist and had learned how to get results from him with a minimal amount of insults from either party. That left the linguist with Cam, his team and the expedition leader. She had called Control and requested to meet with SG-1 and Jack for an impromptu discussion. Once she arrived in the General’s office, she had laid out her concerns and they agreed to be a bit more generous with the CSO while she and her lovers were back on Earth. She also suggested they elicit Zelenka’s help when they knew one of their comments would anger the tightly-wound Canadian. That seemed to appease her friends.

After all of that, the countdown for their trip commenced. The young woman spent all that time trying to pack and making sure she was only taking exactly what she, her daughter and her three pets would need. It still resulted in a massive pile of stuff and she growled when her lover’s packed in the aforementioned ten minutes, resulting in one duffle bag for each man. It made their last 24 hours in Atlantis tense. They were leaving with the Thursday morning data burst and loaded up two dollies with all their stuff. John and Lorne took charge of pushing them through the Gate, while Mariah carried Christine in the baby sling. They were greeted by General Landry and Dr. Lam. The physician led the new mother directly to the infirmary for an exam (for both mother and child), while the Colonels received the congratulations of their superior and information about their ride to a nearby airstrip where the plane Mr. Sheppard had chartered was waiting for them. Then SG-11 arrived and helped the two men transport their bags and boxes topside into a waiting SUV. After that, Sheppard and Evan headed to the infirmary for their exams and to collect their lover and child. Finally, they were off to the airport.

The flight was relaxing for all of them. After a meal and a change, the baby dozed in her mother’s arms, while Mariah rested. The two men caught up on the news (newspapers, TV and the radio) and kept an eye on their two lovely ladies. It was a short flight from Colorado Springs to their destination, where they were met by another SUV. They offloaded the plane straight into the vehicle and got on the road. They were at the Sheppard house before they even realized it. Mr. Sheppard and Sarah, the housekeeper, were waiting for them on the front porch. The trio, the baby and the three animals all exited the SUV and were escorted inside. Then came the demands of Grandpa Patrick.

Meowing from the carrying case drew the linguist’s attention. “Can I let them out? I can’t guarantee they’ll behave, but they’ve been in there for quite a while.”

“That’s fine, Mariah. All the rooms with breakables should have their doors closed and I had Sarah purchase all the necessary supplies for them already. But Bernard is going to have either stay in his cage or be with you. Sarah threatened to quit if I let a mouse roam around her nice clean house.” Mr. Sheppard responded, but his eyes stayed locked on the baby, who was just starting to wake up. She opened her eyes and cooed at the man holding her. “She has Evan’s eyes, I see.”

“It’s not a big deal, Dad. We really try to not focus on that.” John was afraid about how his father would react now that he knew the baby wasn’t his flesh and blood.

“I think you should though.” He looked up and saw shock all over his son’s face. “With those eyes, her mother’s coloring and, hopefully, her mother’s disposition, she’s going to be a knockout. You and Evan are going to have your work cut out for you.”

Dr. Gray laughed. “Our friend, Cam, said the same thing.” She leaned down and opened the carrying case, lifting the two cats out. “Remember we’re guests. No chasing, climbing or breaking. Okay?” She got two meows and watched as they trotted out of the room to look around. Fearless had never been there before. She was pretty sure they would head to the kitchen, especially if Sarah had treats. “We should probably unload the car and get Bernard’s cage upstairs.”

“We’ll get everything up to our room, sweetheart. You stay here with Dad.” Sheppard grabbed Evan’s arm and led him back out the front door.

Patrick called after them. “We’ll be in the den, son. Come along, Mariah.” The older man turned and led them to a cozy room off the main hall. He sat down carefully on a plush couch. The linguist quickly joined him and kissed her daughter’s head. The little girl was dozing off again. “How are you doing, young lady?”

“Good. Adjusting to this amazing change in our lives.” She was studying Mr. Sheppard. She wasn’t sure how to ask her question tactfully, so she just went for it. “How do you really feel about her?”

“She’s beautiful, Mariah. I’m looking forward to getting to know her.”

“You know that wasn’t what I meant. She isn’t actually your granddaughter. I don’t-.”

He shook his head. “That doesn’t matter. You and Evan are part of this family now. Mrs. Lorne and I have been in communication since I found out about the three of you and the two of us are becoming good friends. This sweet, innocent child is my grandchild, because you’re like a daughter to me and Evan’s like a brother to my son. And because I say so. I’m going to spoil her rotten.”

“Please don’t….” Dr. Gray chuckled. “We’ve gotten so many gifts. I’m going to have to start giving stuff away, because there’s no way she could use it all.”

“That’s too bad. I’ve already invited several people over for an impromptu baby shower.” He gave her a big grin.

“Oh, no. Please-.”

“There will be no arguments. It’s just a few close family and friends. Dave, his wife and the girls will be there, along with Sarah, her daughter, Angie and her little girl, plus a couple of John’s friends from high school, who are married with kids.”

“But how are you going to explain her eyes?”

“There are blue eyes on Christine’s side and I doubt very much that anyone is going to be focusing on that. But if it becomes an issue, I’ll deal with it. Does that work for you?”

The new mother sighed. “Just four families?”

“Yes.”

“I can live with that. It’ll give John a chance to be a proud papa for an afternoon. He’s obsessed with Christine.”

“I can see why.” He was watching the little girl sleep, but it turned out she had been playing possum. Suddenly her eyes opened and she began to cry. “I think she needs her mommy.” He offered the child to Mariah.

“I see how it is. As soon as she’s unhappy, it’s my turn.” She stood and took her daughter, placing her against her shoulder. “Don’t cry, precious. I’ve got you.” Another louder cry. “That’s the hungry cry. I’ll go upstairs and feed her. Excuse us.” She smiled at Patrick and quickly exited the den. She passed John in the hall, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, and continued up the back stairs.

Sheppard stood in the doorway and locked eyes with his father. “Hey, Dad.”

“Come and sit with me, John.” The Colonel crossed the room and sat beside his father. The older Sheppard was eyeing his son and could see he was tense. “How are you adjusting to fatherhood?”

“Good. She isn’t overly needy and is sleeping for longer periods at night. She’s also starting to interact with us more. Christine’s a good baby, but I don’t think I will ever get used to being on diaper duty.”

Patrick laughed. “Shows you’ve got a good head on your shoulder. I’m happy to see how committed you are to her. Mariah told me you were obsessed with her.”

“Of course, she’s my daughter.” He gave his father an incredulous look.

“That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.” He hoisted himself off the couch. “Let’s see what Sarah’s got planned for dinner. Maybe she’ll let us sneak a taste.”

“That only happens if you have fast hands and she doesn’t catch you.” John stood as well and followed his father out into the hall.

“True or if you have a handy confederate to act as a distraction.” He winked at his son.

“I’m game.”

*****

“Wake up, beautiful.”

“Huh? Evan….” Mariah sat up and rubbed both hands down her face. “What time is it?”

“A little before 1600 hours.”

“Shit… I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I fed Christine and was just going to lay down for a second.”

“You should listen to your body when it’s telling you to rest.” Lorne was perched on the edge of the bed in John’s old room. The little family had fully moved in. There were bags and boxes all over the place. They had only been at the Sheppard house for a week and it looked like they had been there for months.

“Yesterday was a long day and it messed up our schedule.”

“I know, beautiful. Remember I got up with the two of you last night.” He smiled when she leaned against him and cuddled into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and enjoyed their closeness.

The linguist gave a contented sigh and let her eyes close, only to open them quickly. She couldn’t fall back asleep. Trouble and Fearless started to climb all over the couple. “Hey, babies. Sorry, I’ve been neglecting you.” She pulled away from her lover and gave her cats some attention. Then she realized what they were after, soft sounds were coming from the crib. “Can you get her? I want to try pumping to see if we can get her to take a bottle tonight for one of her feedings.”

“Sure.” The Colonel stood and went over to the crib. “But don’t take too long. There’s a surprise for you downstairs.”

“Surprise?” She stopped on her way to the en-suite bathroom and turned to stare at her lover. “I don’t need any more surprises. Not after yesterday.”

“What? You didn’t expect to get a huge trust fund for the baby, a star named after her or a donation to your favorite charity?”

“No, but it was nice to not get any more stuff, besides the beautiful hand-knitted baby blanket Sarah made.” She was still staring at him. “So, what’s the surprise?”

“Nope, you’ll just have to wait.” Evan cradled his daughter in his arms and started to walk the room with her, talking to her in a soft voice and paying his lover no mind. The two felines followed after them.

With a shake of her head, Dr. Gray continued into the bathroom. Her lovers and surprises did not mix. She pushed all of that from her mind and got down to business. It shouldn’t take too long and she was sure whatever the surprise was, it could wait. Twenty minutes later, she was putting the pumped milk into the small refrigerator Mr. Sheppard had installed in the bathroom, just for that reason, and walked back into the bedroom. Lorne was playing with Christine and the cats on the bed. The little girl didn’t quite understand what was going on, but her father and the two animals looked happy.

With a smile, she interrupted. “Ready when you are.”

“Come on, princess. Let’s go see Mommy’s surprise.” He stood and held his daughter against his chest. He looked at Trouble and Fearless and stated firmly. “Guys, you need to stay here.” They meowed sadly and looked at their owner.

“It’s okay, babies. Stay here and after I see my surprise, I’ll come get you. Okay?” The linguist went to the bed and gave both her pets a bit more love. After a brief stop at Bernard’s cage to give the mouse some attention as well, she headed out of the bedroom, her lover and child a step behind them.

“Front stairs, beautiful.”

Changing directions, Mariah did as she was told and started down the stairs. She spotted Sheppard and Patrick standing at the bottom of the staircase, talking to someone. They must have heard them coming down, because John stepped to side, revealing who was there. “Daddy!!” She cried and hurried down the last few stairs, straight into the arms of her father. Joyful tears were streaming down her face. She couldn’t believe he was there.

“Hey, brat.” Her father hugged her back.

“What are you doing here?” Her voice was muffled as she clung to her parent.

“We were invited to come for a visit.”

“We?” The linguist pulled back and studied her father’s face. He was hard to read, always had been.

“Hi, baby.” A new voice said.

Mariah released her father and swung around. There was shock all over her face. “Mom? What are…?” She turned to John. “What’s she doing here?” She started to back up, but her lover stopped her.

“Dad thought your parents might like to meet their granddaughter, sweetheart.” He could feel her shaking. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. “Give her a chance. You know you want to.”

Swallowing hard, the young woman stepped forward and gave her mother an awkward hug. “Hi, mom.”

“You look good, Mariah. Motherhood suits you.” She returned the hug. Pulling back, she continued. “I’m very happy to finally meet John and to see you again, Evan.”

“It’s my pleasure, ma’am.” Lorne responded with a smile. “Beautiful, why don’t you introduce your parents to Christine?” He offered the baby to his lover.

“Oh, yeah, right.” The linguist hurried over Evan and took her daughter, cradling her in her arms. She walked slowly over to her parents. “Mom, Dad, this is Christine, your granddaughter.”

“She so little. You were a big baby.”

“Mom….” Mariah whined. It pleased her to see both her parents smiling at the baby. “Do you want to hold her?” Uncertainty filled her voice. Her father quickly took Christine from her.

“I better get my turn. Your mom won’t let me get another.”

“It’s a grandmother’s prerogative to hog her grandchild.”

Stepping back from her parents, the young woman bumped into Evan, who wrapped an arm around her shoulders from behind. “You did good, beautiful.” He whispered in her ear before kissing it.

“Thanks.” She relaxed against him and smiled. At that moment, Sheppard grabbed her hand and a feeling of contentment came over her. Maybe everything was going to be okay after all.

*****

“Trouble, Fearless, stay with me. Don’t go into the stalls.” Mariah warned her pets as she stepped inside the dimly lit stables. She, Christine and her pets were taking a break from all the people in the house. The grandparents were playfully fighting over the little girl and her lovers found the whole thing amusing. So, after feeding Christine, the linguist and her pets escaped out the back door and headed to the barns to see the horses (but not the dogs). Bernard was cuddled against her neck, while her cats were trotting along next to her. Her baby was cradled in her arms.

The two cats meowed and sat down next to her when she stopped in front of the first stall. An older grey horse was housed there and Mariah knew the animal was gentle and calm, the perfect horse to introduce her baby to. She wanted her daughter to love animals just as much as she did. Sensing company, the horse stuck its head out and gave a soft whinny, shaking its head. It nudged her shoulder and she rubbed the bridge of its nose. The horse stayed perfectly calm.

“This is a horse, precious. They’re very gentle animals once they get to know you.” She continued to stroke the animal. Her mouse scurried down her arm and sniffed at the big animal. The horse didn’t even flinch. “Be careful, baby. I’m not sure what he thinks of mice.” He ran back up her arm and returned to his spot against her neck.

“You need not fear, Mariah. I believe this horse is used as a companion to calm the younger, wilder colts and fillies brought into the stables. Very little startles them.” Someone spoke to her from the shadows.

“I think you’re right. Patrick told me that on my first visit. I’d forgotten.” She turned and looked at her Ascended friend. “Did you and Elizabeth get in trouble for coming to see me?”

“No.” Janus chuckled and stepped out into the light, joining her. He rubbed the horse’s neck and received a nudge in return. He smiled. “They simply gave me a warning and reminded me freezing time is much easier than being caught visiting you.”

“But you didn’t freeze time for this visit.” She could still hear the sounds of crickets, frogs and birds outside the stables. It was dusk when nature seemed to be the most active. Mariah smiled when the horse nuzzled her baby and the little girl reached out for the big animal.

“I did not see the need, since you were alone. Though your lovers do have a tendency to appear without prompting.” He looked at the door, half expecting the two men to be standing there.

“They do, especially if I’m thinking about them, but we should have some time before they start a search. I just hope they don’t think the Trust took me.”

Janus laughed. “If they came for you while I was here, they would not lay a hand upon you.”

“But wouldn’t that get you in trouble?”

“No. We all wish to protect you, but within certain parameters.” He had stopped petting the horse and was watching her. “Something has been weighing on your mind. Ask and I will do my best to answer.”

The linguist sighed. She should’ve known. He knew everything, just like every other time they had interacted. “Will Christine… will she be blessed… like me?” Her focus stayed on the horse in front of her.

“Mariah… stop your worrying. She will be blessed because she is your child, protected by myself and the Others. But she will have no gifts beyond the kind heart of her mother and the bravery of all three of her parents.” He set a hand of her shoulder and she looked at him. He was smiling. “She will have a good life with family and friends and perhaps a few more siblings, both furry and not.”

“I’m going to have-.”

“I said perhaps. Your future is still hidden from me, but hers.” He stroked the baby’s head. “Hers, I can see bits and pieces of. I wish I could tell you more….” He stepped back and looked away.

“No, I understand. Thank you.” Janus glanced back at Mariah and saw her smiling at him.

A voice interrupted them. “Sweetheart, are you out here?” Dr. Gray swung towards the door and watched John enter the barn. She knew without looking Janus was gone. “You can’t wander off like that. I almost had a heart attack when I found the bedroom empty, but then I saw all the animals were gone and realized you had escaped.” He smiled at his lover and invaded her personal space to give her a passionate kiss.

“Just introducing Christine to the horses.”

“I see.” He gave the grey horse a scratch. “Shadow’s a good horse for her to meet. My dad’s had him for a long time.” He pulled the baby’s blanket out of the horse’s mouth and continued. “But I don’t think that’s the only reason you’re out here. You’re hiding.”

“No, I’m not.” She walked away from him and the horse, strolling further into the barn, her cats at her heels.

“Yes, you are, but I understand.” He hit his radio. “I found her. We’re in the main barn.”

“You and Evan brought your radios on our trip?”

“Can never be too careful.” He followed her and spoke again when she stopped. “Your mother is something else.”

“I warned you.” She chuckled.

Lorne entered the building and jogged down to his fellow Colonel. “I should’ve known. Hey, beautiful.”

“Hey, Ev.” Mariah turned and examined the two men who were standing there, watching her. Her lovers were vastly different. Calm and steady verses brash and relaxed. Tall and lanky verses shorter and broader. But looking into their eyes, all she saw was the same thing, love, pure unadulterated love, for her and their child. She walked over to them, right into Lorne’s personal space, being careful to not smoosh Christine. John immediately moved behind her, gently wedging her between them. She rested her head on Evan’s chest. “Things will be calmer when we visit your mom in a few days, right?”

“Of course, beautiful, besides having to deal with Billy and Henry, though they are a bit older now.”

“They’re easy compared with my mom, plus they’ll have two cats to chase.” Her pets meowed in response to her comment and she glanced down at them. They were looking at her aghast. “I’ll protect you, babies.”

“Just like you protect us, sweetheart?” Sheppard nuzzled her ear. He was cognizant that Bernard was sitting by her neck and wanted to avoid upsetting the little animal or his lover.

“Yes, John. From whatever may come.” She sighed happily. All those closest to her were there in the barn. She couldn’t be any happier than she was right now.

The End?