Checkmate 'Verse: Body Language: Interpretive Dance
Title: Body Language: Interpretive Dance
Series: Checkmate 'Verse
Author: Beadattitude
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: AU, Animal Transformation, eventual slash (John/Rodney)
Warnings: None
Spoilers: None
Beta: None, written on the fly in LJ, so, you know, if there's anything huge I missed, let me know.
Summary: Sometimes the best part of friendship is that you don't always have to spell everything out. Particularly when, at the moment, you don't have thumbs or a larynx that works the right way.
Author's note for Body Language: This is a series of vignettes, scattered throughout the story.
Author's note for this story: Wait for it. There's necessary build-up.
~~~~
Dateline:That handy grey area of days 18-23.
~~~~
Rodney was aware of John just on the edges of his peripheral vision, marching around the perimeter of his office. He'd slunk in about ten minutes ago and ignored Rodney's greeting.
Finally, John jumped up on Rodney's table and meowed so hard his muzzle wrinkled up and his ears flattened sideways.
Rodney winced sympathetically. "Okay. Yelling. Why is there yelling?"
John complained just as emphatically and kept on complaining, pacing back and forth across the table. Rodney leaned back to avoid John's lashing tail.
"Hmmm, Lorne?"
John sat, wrapped his tail around his feet and gave Rodney a flat look.
"Okay. Not Lorne. Or your Marines. Or me?" John twitched his ears impatiently. "Well, I had to ask! You and Ronon didn't have another breakfast standoff, did you? That never ends well..." under John's glare he added, "usually for Ronon."
Unfurling his tail and re-wrapping it around himself, John gave him another look. Apparently the last match, which ended with gravy in John's tail, had tempered John's interest in getting Ronon's goat. Thank. God.
"Jensen and Ackles...didn't..."
"Rrrrrowr!" John complained again, and wow, that with the ears and the muzzle...that was really kind of hilariously adorable. Best not to mention it.
John leaned forward and butted Rodney in the shoulder with his head, then looked at Rodney with the big tragic eyes. Rodney thought hard for a moment, Tuesday, what happened on Tuesdays and....
"Oh," he said softly, stricken. "The 'jumpers. I-I'll ask Radek to find someone else to help with the repai...."
John hissed.
"O-kay," Rodney said slowly. "I won't."
John stared at him, hard.
"I promise!"
John leaned forward and pressed his head against Rodney's shoulder. "Aowr," he replied in a tiny, voice.
Rodney swallowed hard. "I can only imagine," he said, and stroked one hand down John's back.
After a minute, John gave Rodney one last headbutt and sat to give his paw a few nervous licks. He glanced at Rodney and plunked down, paws underneath his chest. Rodney glanced over at John's box, then back at John. Didn't say anything, just went back to work.
Several long moments later, John silently reached out, brushed Rodney's arm with his paw and tucked it back under his chest, his eyes downcast.
"John." Rodney said softly. "Anytime."
John didn't look at him, but after a minute or so, he started to purr.
~~~~~
The next time John appeared after playing lightswitch for Radek, he hunched miserably next to Rodney's laptop. Rodney stretched and drank a swig of coffee, contemplating this, then, reached out and slid John across the stainless steel table until he rested between Rodney's arms and the laptop. John remained stiff with surprise for a long, long moment while Rodney began typing again. Eventually the line of his back softened as he relaxed little by little. Eventually, John rested his chin on Rodney's arm and purred until he fell asleep.
~~~~
And about twenty minutes after that, Rodney's eyes watered while he tried not to laugh at John's tiny kitty snores. It might wake him up.
~~~
When John woke up, he stretched until his feet were planted in Rodney's belly and the laptop had slid forward a few millimeters. He rolled to his side - halfway on the keyboard - and blinked up at Rodney sleepily. "Brrr?"
"Yeah, I could eat," Rodney replied, wiggled one arm free enough to hit "save," scooped a mostly-boneless John up onto his shoulders and headed for the mess, whistling.
~~~
Series: Checkmate 'Verse
Author: Beadattitude
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: AU, Animal Transformation, eventual slash (John/Rodney)
Warnings: None
Spoilers: None
Beta: None, written on the fly in LJ, so, you know, if there's anything huge I missed, let me know.
Summary: Sometimes the best part of friendship is that you don't always have to spell everything out. Particularly when, at the moment, you don't have thumbs or a larynx that works the right way.
Author's note for Body Language: This is a series of vignettes, scattered throughout the story.
Author's note for this story: Wait for it. There's necessary build-up.
~~~~
Dateline:That handy grey area of days 18-23.
~~~~
Rodney was aware of John just on the edges of his peripheral vision, marching around the perimeter of his office. He'd slunk in about ten minutes ago and ignored Rodney's greeting.
Finally, John jumped up on Rodney's table and meowed so hard his muzzle wrinkled up and his ears flattened sideways.
Rodney winced sympathetically. "Okay. Yelling. Why is there yelling?"
John complained just as emphatically and kept on complaining, pacing back and forth across the table. Rodney leaned back to avoid John's lashing tail.
"Hmmm, Lorne?"
John sat, wrapped his tail around his feet and gave Rodney a flat look.
"Okay. Not Lorne. Or your Marines. Or me?" John twitched his ears impatiently. "Well, I had to ask! You and Ronon didn't have another breakfast standoff, did you? That never ends well..." under John's glare he added, "usually for Ronon."
Unfurling his tail and re-wrapping it around himself, John gave him another look. Apparently the last match, which ended with gravy in John's tail, had tempered John's interest in getting Ronon's goat. Thank. God.
"Jensen and Ackles...didn't..."
"Rrrrrowr!" John complained again, and wow, that with the ears and the muzzle...that was really kind of hilariously adorable. Best not to mention it.
John leaned forward and butted Rodney in the shoulder with his head, then looked at Rodney with the big tragic eyes. Rodney thought hard for a moment, Tuesday, what happened on Tuesdays and....
"Oh," he said softly, stricken. "The 'jumpers. I-I'll ask Radek to find someone else to help with the repai...."
John hissed.
"O-kay," Rodney said slowly. "I won't."
John stared at him, hard.
"I promise!"
John leaned forward and pressed his head against Rodney's shoulder. "Aowr," he replied in a tiny, voice.
Rodney swallowed hard. "I can only imagine," he said, and stroked one hand down John's back.
After a minute, John gave Rodney one last headbutt and sat to give his paw a few nervous licks. He glanced at Rodney and plunked down, paws underneath his chest. Rodney glanced over at John's box, then back at John. Didn't say anything, just went back to work.
Several long moments later, John silently reached out, brushed Rodney's arm with his paw and tucked it back under his chest, his eyes downcast.
"John." Rodney said softly. "Anytime."
John didn't look at him, but after a minute or so, he started to purr.
~~~~~
The next time John appeared after playing lightswitch for Radek, he hunched miserably next to Rodney's laptop. Rodney stretched and drank a swig of coffee, contemplating this, then, reached out and slid John across the stainless steel table until he rested between Rodney's arms and the laptop. John remained stiff with surprise for a long, long moment while Rodney began typing again. Eventually the line of his back softened as he relaxed little by little. Eventually, John rested his chin on Rodney's arm and purred until he fell asleep.
~~~~
And about twenty minutes after that, Rodney's eyes watered while he tried not to laugh at John's tiny kitty snores. It might wake him up.
~~~
When John woke up, he stretched until his feet were planted in Rodney's belly and the laptop had slid forward a few millimeters. He rolled to his side - halfway on the keyboard - and blinked up at Rodney sleepily. "Brrr?"
"Yeah, I could eat," Rodney replied, wiggled one arm free enough to hit "save," scooped a mostly-boneless John up onto his shoulders and headed for the mess, whistling.
~~~