Thorn Wall (McShep, PG)
Title: Thorn Wall
Author: lavvyan
Word Count: ~1400
Rating: PG
Summary: "Before we agree to an alliance, we will need to know if you are mature enough for true mutual understanding," she had said, her wings glittering in a myriad colours as she flapped them lazily, just once. "That we are of the same mind.
Notes: Yes, I wrote a fairytale. Kind of. There just aren't enough stories with a happy ending out there right now. *pouts*
X-posted to mckay_sheppard and sga22_slash for prompt #1.
~~~
Thorn Wall
"Before we agree to an alliance, we will need to know if you are mature enough for true mutual understanding," she had said, her wings glittering in a myriad colours as she flapped them lazily, just once. "That we are of the same mind."
"Of course," Elizabeth had answered, and the Aroee - something like a lizard with butterfly wings, although voicing that thought would have probably come over as rude - had smiled.
"So we propose a test," her voice smooth like honey, curious if they would agree.
"What kind of test?" he had asked, and her smile had widened.
"You will see," another flap of those wings, "and I promise you that there will be no harm in what you will undertake. Call it an additional question of trust."
John hadn't liked it, but Elizabeth, ever the diplomat, had obviously decided that Atlantis was in desperate need of allies, and the Aroee were actually powerful enough to be a real help, and so she had nodded in agreement after a moment of contemplation.
"Very well."
And that had been when everything whited out for a moment, and when John had blinked against the sting in his eyes, everybody had been quietly leaving the briefing room, and through the open doors he had been able to see the personnel on duty filing out of the halls. The Aroee had still been standing at the table, regarding him with calm green eyes.
"Where are they going?" he had demanded, pushing back his chair as he jumped to his feet, hand at the butt of his gun.
"Do not worry. They are simply returning to their beds, where they will fall asleep, unharmed."
"Asleep? What the f-"
"You are an important man," she had interrupted him, "and each living being in this city has entrusted you with a piece of their soul, some of them large, some of them small. It has left a gap, a place you need to fill; that will be your test. You have one of your days to complete your task."
"And how do you propose I do that?" John had asked acidly, tempted to simply shoot her and forget about the alliance. If she had hurt anyone-
"There is a truth each of them needs to know. They will wake up if you tell them the right thing. Do not worry: if you fail, I will rouse them myself." She had smiled again, and then with a wink of her wings, she had disappeared, leaving him alone in a sleeping city.
He had tried to wake them, of course, but without success. Going from room to room, shaking his sleeping people, shouting, feeling increasingly helpless and angry. It had ended with him throwing a glass against the wall, grimly satisfied as it had shattered loudly, breaking the silence. Then he had taken a deep breath, and started with Elizabeth out of a vague notion that he had to wake her first, wondering what she might need to hear from him.
He settled on "We may not always see eye to eye, but I respect you as a leader," and was rewarded with a slow blink and a satisfied smile. Maybe this test was easier than he had thought.
Ronon came next.
"You don't have to run anymore. You belong with us now," and it worked like a charm.
Teyla was a little trickier, as "I don't respect you any less because you're a woman" and "You are very beautiful" both didn't get him anywhere. John hated soul-searching, especially when it forced him to be emotional, and he had never been very good at talking about his feelings. Still, they needed the Aroee, and Teyla had more than earned his honesty over the years.
So, "I don't want you," he told her, hoping like hell he was doing the right thing just in case she would remember even if this wasn't what she needed to hear. "You are one of the most beautiful women I ever met, and I admire you, but I don't want you as anything more than a friend."
Her eyes opened, then, and she smiled up at him.
"I am glad we both understand the nature of our relationship," and wow, did he never want to talk about this again.
John spent the day going around the city, starting with the people he knew.
"You are a very good doctor, and we all trust you." Carson.
"Everyone knows you're brilliant. The only thing is that Rodney is just that bit more brilliant than you, but you're still a genius." Zelenka.
"I do appreciate the job you're doing, even if I didn't choose you myself." Lorne.
"I don't hold you in any lower regard just because McKay doesn't like you." Kavanagh.
"He does not love you back. I don't think he ever will. He thinks you're not completely useless, though." Strangely enough, that was the thing that worked for shy Japanese scientist, Miko something-yama. He kind of admired her for that.
"You may not go into combat, but that doesn't mean you're any less of a soldier." Sgt. Jasper, one of the gateroom guards.
And so on. When he ran out of people he knew personally, John asked the ones he had already woken up. The Aroee hadn't said he had to pass the test on his own, and almost everyone around had friends or at least colleagues who could give some hints on what the sleepers might want to hear. There were a lot of "You've been doing a good job so far" for the soldiers and "Being a civilian doesn't automatically mean you'll die out here" for the scientists, and each time it was the truth, because even well-intended white lies didn't work. By the time the Aroee turned up again, John was tired but triumphant, having only four people left to wake up out of over three hundred, and still an hour left.
"Just remember: you have to wake up each and every one."
"And I will," he retorted, and ten minutes later, only one person was left. Which was good, because it meant he was winning, and bad, because it meant he would have to quit stalling. With a sigh and a certain feeling of weariness, John made his way to the last quarters.
Rodney didn't look any younger in sleep than he did when he was awake. His face was slack and expressionless, and if anything, it just betrayed his exhaustion, even after almost twenty-four hours of sleep. John took a deep breath, telling himself that this wasn't harder than any of the things he had done so far, and jumped in with both feet.
"I do trust you. I still believe in you. I always did." There, it was out, and when Rodney didn't react, John sighed in disappointment. He could have sworn that this was the one thing Rodney needed to know more than anything else. Apparently, he was wrong.
And it wasn't "I don't think I could do this without you", or "You are an important part of the team", or "Don't worry, I know all about your allergies, I'm looking after you", or "I'm sorry", about a variety of things.
Neither was it "I love you". It had been a long shot, anyway.
In the end, John had to admit defeat. Whatever 'truth' Rodney needed to know, John didn't have it. Rodney was complicated on a good day, arrogant and insecure at the same time, easy to read and hard to understand, and John didn't know what to do to call him back from wherever the Aroee had sent him. And in ten more minutes, that would be a moot point.
He stood in front of the bed, looking down at his sleeping friend. Rodney wouldn't wake up whatever John did, and it was tempting, oh so tempting. And he was tired, and he had done his best and still failed, and he could easily rationalise that he might as well indulge himself, just this once, because who would know but him?
So he knelt beside the bed, leaned down, berating himself for feeling a little shy when Rodney was completely oblivious. The kiss was chaste, just a soft brush of mouths, Rodney's lips dry and a little chapped under John's own. Still his heart was beating faster, his hands clenching the blankets, and he wished that their simple touch meant more than the nothing it was.
Beneath him, Rodney stirred.
Author: lavvyan
Word Count: ~1400
Rating: PG
Summary: "Before we agree to an alliance, we will need to know if you are mature enough for true mutual understanding," she had said, her wings glittering in a myriad colours as she flapped them lazily, just once. "That we are of the same mind.
Notes: Yes, I wrote a fairytale. Kind of. There just aren't enough stories with a happy ending out there right now. *pouts*
X-posted to mckay_sheppard and sga22_slash for prompt #1.
~~~
Thorn Wall
"Before we agree to an alliance, we will need to know if you are mature enough for true mutual understanding," she had said, her wings glittering in a myriad colours as she flapped them lazily, just once. "That we are of the same mind."
"Of course," Elizabeth had answered, and the Aroee - something like a lizard with butterfly wings, although voicing that thought would have probably come over as rude - had smiled.
"So we propose a test," her voice smooth like honey, curious if they would agree.
"What kind of test?" he had asked, and her smile had widened.
"You will see," another flap of those wings, "and I promise you that there will be no harm in what you will undertake. Call it an additional question of trust."
John hadn't liked it, but Elizabeth, ever the diplomat, had obviously decided that Atlantis was in desperate need of allies, and the Aroee were actually powerful enough to be a real help, and so she had nodded in agreement after a moment of contemplation.
"Very well."
And that had been when everything whited out for a moment, and when John had blinked against the sting in his eyes, everybody had been quietly leaving the briefing room, and through the open doors he had been able to see the personnel on duty filing out of the halls. The Aroee had still been standing at the table, regarding him with calm green eyes.
"Where are they going?" he had demanded, pushing back his chair as he jumped to his feet, hand at the butt of his gun.
"Do not worry. They are simply returning to their beds, where they will fall asleep, unharmed."
"Asleep? What the f-"
"You are an important man," she had interrupted him, "and each living being in this city has entrusted you with a piece of their soul, some of them large, some of them small. It has left a gap, a place you need to fill; that will be your test. You have one of your days to complete your task."
"And how do you propose I do that?" John had asked acidly, tempted to simply shoot her and forget about the alliance. If she had hurt anyone-
"There is a truth each of them needs to know. They will wake up if you tell them the right thing. Do not worry: if you fail, I will rouse them myself." She had smiled again, and then with a wink of her wings, she had disappeared, leaving him alone in a sleeping city.
He had tried to wake them, of course, but without success. Going from room to room, shaking his sleeping people, shouting, feeling increasingly helpless and angry. It had ended with him throwing a glass against the wall, grimly satisfied as it had shattered loudly, breaking the silence. Then he had taken a deep breath, and started with Elizabeth out of a vague notion that he had to wake her first, wondering what she might need to hear from him.
He settled on "We may not always see eye to eye, but I respect you as a leader," and was rewarded with a slow blink and a satisfied smile. Maybe this test was easier than he had thought.
Ronon came next.
"You don't have to run anymore. You belong with us now," and it worked like a charm.
Teyla was a little trickier, as "I don't respect you any less because you're a woman" and "You are very beautiful" both didn't get him anywhere. John hated soul-searching, especially when it forced him to be emotional, and he had never been very good at talking about his feelings. Still, they needed the Aroee, and Teyla had more than earned his honesty over the years.
So, "I don't want you," he told her, hoping like hell he was doing the right thing just in case she would remember even if this wasn't what she needed to hear. "You are one of the most beautiful women I ever met, and I admire you, but I don't want you as anything more than a friend."
Her eyes opened, then, and she smiled up at him.
"I am glad we both understand the nature of our relationship," and wow, did he never want to talk about this again.
John spent the day going around the city, starting with the people he knew.
"You are a very good doctor, and we all trust you." Carson.
"Everyone knows you're brilliant. The only thing is that Rodney is just that bit more brilliant than you, but you're still a genius." Zelenka.
"I do appreciate the job you're doing, even if I didn't choose you myself." Lorne.
"I don't hold you in any lower regard just because McKay doesn't like you." Kavanagh.
"He does not love you back. I don't think he ever will. He thinks you're not completely useless, though." Strangely enough, that was the thing that worked for shy Japanese scientist, Miko something-yama. He kind of admired her for that.
"You may not go into combat, but that doesn't mean you're any less of a soldier." Sgt. Jasper, one of the gateroom guards.
And so on. When he ran out of people he knew personally, John asked the ones he had already woken up. The Aroee hadn't said he had to pass the test on his own, and almost everyone around had friends or at least colleagues who could give some hints on what the sleepers might want to hear. There were a lot of "You've been doing a good job so far" for the soldiers and "Being a civilian doesn't automatically mean you'll die out here" for the scientists, and each time it was the truth, because even well-intended white lies didn't work. By the time the Aroee turned up again, John was tired but triumphant, having only four people left to wake up out of over three hundred, and still an hour left.
"Just remember: you have to wake up each and every one."
"And I will," he retorted, and ten minutes later, only one person was left. Which was good, because it meant he was winning, and bad, because it meant he would have to quit stalling. With a sigh and a certain feeling of weariness, John made his way to the last quarters.
Rodney didn't look any younger in sleep than he did when he was awake. His face was slack and expressionless, and if anything, it just betrayed his exhaustion, even after almost twenty-four hours of sleep. John took a deep breath, telling himself that this wasn't harder than any of the things he had done so far, and jumped in with both feet.
"I do trust you. I still believe in you. I always did." There, it was out, and when Rodney didn't react, John sighed in disappointment. He could have sworn that this was the one thing Rodney needed to know more than anything else. Apparently, he was wrong.
And it wasn't "I don't think I could do this without you", or "You are an important part of the team", or "Don't worry, I know all about your allergies, I'm looking after you", or "I'm sorry", about a variety of things.
Neither was it "I love you". It had been a long shot, anyway.
In the end, John had to admit defeat. Whatever 'truth' Rodney needed to know, John didn't have it. Rodney was complicated on a good day, arrogant and insecure at the same time, easy to read and hard to understand, and John didn't know what to do to call him back from wherever the Aroee had sent him. And in ten more minutes, that would be a moot point.
He stood in front of the bed, looking down at his sleeping friend. Rodney wouldn't wake up whatever John did, and it was tempting, oh so tempting. And he was tired, and he had done his best and still failed, and he could easily rationalise that he might as well indulge himself, just this once, because who would know but him?
So he knelt beside the bed, leaned down, berating himself for feeling a little shy when Rodney was completely oblivious. The kiss was chaste, just a soft brush of mouths, Rodney's lips dry and a little chapped under John's own. Still his heart was beating faster, his hands clenching the blankets, and he wished that their simple touch meant more than the nothing it was.
Beneath him, Rodney stirred.