SGA3:2 Hideout

by MagpieSong

This is the next fic after Nobody Gets Left Behind, featuring the team of Major Ashley Woodstock. Accompanied by Major Lorne's Team, Willow and Carson get to work in a new alliance, but things quickly turn sour for the group of Atlanteans. Beckett/OC and McKay/OC. Rated M to be safe

The stargate disengaged almost immediately after Willow Luxford stepped through. She was greeted by two of the men from Major Lorne's team, both offering welcoming smiles.

"It's not too far to the settlement, ma'am", said Hyatts, offering a hand as she unsteadily made her way down the steps. She took it gratefully and clung on hard when she almost tripped on a rock.

"Crap, sorry", she blurted out, relinquishing him and adjusting her heavy pack. "Okay, lets get on our way, then."

The trio walked in comfortable silence through the dense forest, listening to the various bird calls and other natural noises that surrounded them. The path opened up into a grassy area and curled down a fairly steep hillside into the valley.

Smoke rose from the camp fires of the village below them. It was a moderately sized collection of semi-permanent tents, dotted with carts and tied up horses. A dog barked somewhere in the midst and the sound of the bustling community washed over them as they approached.

Willow spotted a white tent on the outskirts and immediately recognised it as Carson Beckett's makeshift clinic.

Following her gaze, Hyatts cracked a grin. "Beckett should be still down there – he hasn't started his morning rounds yet. I'm sure he'd be happy to see you."

She looked at him, a question in her eyes, and his companion gave him a soft punch on the arm. "What my good friend here means is that you should probably check in with him since we're going to be leaving you two here for a couple of days."

"Right", she responded sarcastically. "I'm sure that's exactly what he meant."

They made their way down the steep, muddy hillside, trying hard not to slip. Unfortunately, that's just what Hyatts did! His radio crackled, causing him to jump and put his foot down wrong. He fell flat on his backside and skated several metres to the bottom of the hill.

The other two hurried to catch up with him, Willow giggling as he got to his feet, muddy, wet and scowling.

"That's what you get for teasing the doc", commented his teammate, grinning.

"Yeah, laugh it up, Glossop", he took off his cap and shook it out, before carefully returning it to his head.

They walked quickly to Carson's tent after that. One of the marines drew back the flap, allowing Willow to enter first. Inside stood Lorne, Beckett and a hulking shirtless stranger. Willow dumped her pack on the floor.

"Ah", said Lorne, smiling as the trio entered. He looked up at the tall man. "J'red, please allow me to introduce Willow Luxford."

"Is this one of your wives?" grunted J'red, looking slightly confused. "I thought you were bringing someone to help with our farming?"

"Uh, no", said Willow, stepping forwards. "That's me. I'm a botanist."

J'red reeled back as if stung and fixed Lorne with a steely stare. "You allow your women to talk?" he hissed with what sounded like rage in his voice.

"I don't understand", said Carson, unsure. "Is that going to be a problem?"

The man growled and took a step closer to Willow, hand outstretched. She stepped out of his reach, glaring at him with burning eyes. "I don't think so, mate."

He snarled. "You will be whipped for your insolence, woman!"

Lorne drew his sidearm, followed by the other members of his team, all four of them taking aim at the huge man. Carson stepped forwards to put himself between Willow and J'red. "You'll not be laying a single hand on her."

J'red gave a single, barking call. Immediately, several rough, dirty men forced their way into the tent, axes and knives drawn. He fixed his eyes on Willow, but spoke to the group as a whole.

"We won't be doing any trading with people who don't keep their women in check. Such is an insult to our way. You will leave this place and never return", he paused, a wicked smile coming over his face. "But first we will have to teach this one some manners…"

He shoved Carson aside and grabbed Willow by the jaw, smearing grime on her face. He tilted her head to the side, examining her for a moment. Suddenly, she aimed a wild kick, right between his legs. He hunched in pain, but responded quickly, striking her to the ground with a heavy, backhanded blow.

"Relinquish your weapons. You are outmanned."

"Don't do it, Major", hissed Willow, blood oozing from a split bottom lip.

J'red grabbed her by the hair, immobilising her. "Wag that tongue of yours once more and I will remove it."

"Okay", said Lorne. "We can talk this out. Just let us leave, we won't come back and give you any more trouble, right boys?"

"It is too late for that, Evan Lorne", he responded coldly. He looked around at his men. "Take their weapons, bind them, and lead them to the courtyard. The woman comes with me."

Willow gave a shrill cry as he dragged her to her feet and out through the tent flap. She staggered through to the heart of the village where there was an open space for public gatherings. In the centre was a large totem pole, carved with various animal figures.

J'red gave her an almighty shove, and she fell face-first to the hard, slightly soggy ground, smearing more dirt across her features. She looked up to see the men of her party kneeling in a row with their hands behind their backs.

She made eye contact with Lorne and could tell he was cursing coming so minimally armed. Carson's eyes were steely blue and cold and she couldn't bring herself to look there.

By now the villagers had gathered in the space, surrounding them with an impenetrable wall of armed might.

J'red walked around her, grabbed her by the hair and reefed her head back, tilting her jaw up so everyone could see her defiant features. "Today we show that we will not tolerate disrespect from women kind, even an outsider who does not know our ways. For her insolent tongue she will receive 50 lashes – ten for each comrade of hers that refused to bow to our traditions."

Willow scowled at him, but said nothing. He moved his hand, extending to her shoulder to pull her up and in a swift movement, she turned her head and sunk her teeth in as hard as she could.

He bellowed something unintelligible and his other hand connected with her jaw in a closed fist. She was cast back to the ground and spots of light popped in front of her vision. Her hair was pulled again, lifting her head and dragging her along the rough ground to the totem, where two much smaller men forced her to shed her jacket and bound her in place.

She turned her head to the side, trying to make eye contact with the team, but couldn't see far enough behind herself.

J'red paced behind her, calling out and inciting cheers from the crowd, most of which was composed of burly men. From there ranks stepped a tall, fairly muscular man with a long, braided beard. He made his way across and handed J'red a formidable looking whip.

Carson grimaced, eyeing the spectacle. He looked across at Lorne. "There's gotta be something we can do."

"Silence", ordered a man, nudging him in the back of the head with his axe. "Lest you wish to whip her yourself, you shall not speak."

J'red had turned around to face Willow now, slowly uncoiling the long whip onto the ground. Teeth bared in a feral snarl, he spread his feet apart, digging into the ground, and raised the whip in preparation for the first strike.

The crack echoed around the open space like lightning striking the ground. Willow flinched, but made no sound whatsoever. Then again, and again. The hulking man built up a steady rhythm, crack after crack laying into her back.

The soldiers cringed and looked away. Lorne growled low in his throat and Carson winced with every stroke. First ten, then twenty. Willow's control started to slip. She began to whimper with each strike of the whip, then to cry out and by the time the ordeal was almost at an end, she was gasping and screaming with every breath.

J'red finally threw the whip aside, spitting on the ground. "Return to your tent and prepare to leave. Do not show your face to me again, wench."

Strong hands pulled the men to their feet and cut their bonds. The immediately swarmed around Willow protectively as the crowd began to disperse.

There was blood all over her back and her tank top barely held together by a few shreds of cloth that somehow still remained. Carson didn't even know where to begin – the lacerations were fairly deep and hardly clean in any sense of the word.

"How bad is it, doc", Lorne's voice was hushed. He watched as Hyatts started fumbling with the rope that held the delirious Willow Luxford.

"I…I need to get her back to the tent, disinfect the wounds, dress them. She's in no condition to be out hiking to the stargate, that's for sure."

"Alright, help me get her up", he pulled one of her arms over his shoulder, motioning for Hyatts to do the same. She could barely put one foot in front of the other and they mostly dragged on the ground as the two men half carried her back to the tent where Carson had set up the clinic.

They helped her sit down on a low stool and steadied her as best they could.

"Alright gents, out", Carson announced. "I need to take her shirt off, so I'd wager she'd like the privacy."

Lorne nodded solemnly and led the four other men to stand guard outside the entrance.

"Carson", Willow croaked weakly, twisting a little to see him.

"I'm here, love", he squeezed her hand. "Just sit still now, I need to look at your back. This may sting a wee bit."

He grabbed a pair of scissors from his open medical kit and cut away her tank top as she folded her arms to cover her chest. What was revealed was a maze of cuts and welts and a whole lot of blood and dirt.

Going through the motions, he grabbed a bottle of antiseptic and started to clean each wound as thoroughly as possible, wincing as she hissed at the pain.

"Alright, lass, its done. I'm going to need to bind you all up now, so you'll have to lift your arms up for me."

She sighed submissively and tossed what remained of her top onto the ground before lifting her arms and folding them over the top of her head.

Carson worked quickly and after using several rolls of bandage, he was finally done. He patted her on the shoulder gently and passed her jacket, which one of Lorne's men had retrieved for her.

"Oh, right", he said, fishing in the medical kit for some painkillers. "Here."

She took them with a small but grateful smile. "Thankyou."

"Not to worry, love. We'll have you out of here and back to Atlantis in a jiffy", he paused. "I can't believe how strong you must be to have gone through that."

"To be honest, neither can I."

Lorne ducked his head into the tent, his face a mask of urgency. "We gotta move, docs. Now."

"What is it?" Carson turned around as Willow eased down from the stool.

"We got dart activity. Leave the gear- we can come back for it later."

The trio stepped outside into utter chaos. Women and children were running from tent to tent, screaming hysterically. Men lumbered around and between them, gripping weapons tightly and snarling.

"Hyatts, Knox - stay with them, keep them safe. Docs, stay between them and try not to get shot. Glossop, you're with me."

"Sounds like good advice", muttered Willow, watching as Lorne reached for the pistol he no longer had.

He cursed under his breath and took off, running out of the village and along the path, to secure the gate. The rest of them followed, but at a much slower rate.

The darts were overhead now, screaming through the air, culling beams scooping up their hapless pray. One peeled off from the main group and headed straight for them.

"Scatter!" bellowed Hyatts, shoving Willow and Carson off the path. They fell and rolled back down the hill, into a muddy ditch. Knox tried to grab for his team mate, but in an instant they were both gone.

Willow stared at the place where they had just been standing, horrified. Carson grabbed for her arm. "Come on, its not safe here. We need to make it to the tree line and try to find our way back to the stargate."

She nodded numbly and began to follow him around the outskirts of the settlement and towards the nearest part of the forest. They made it to the tree line despite having to avoid several wraith on the way. This was no ordinary culling - it was more a decimation.

They set off in what they hoped was the direction of the stargate, hiking through the thick scrub as fast as they could. Carson kept a firm hold on Willow's wrist, lips pressed together in a thin, worried line.

They walked for about twenty minutes before he stopped so suddenly that she bumped into him. "Och, sorry lass."

"What's wrong?" she asked, looking around at the unfamiliar scenery. "We're lost aren't we?"

"Aye, I think we are. Its going to be dark soon", he made a face. "I think we might need to find somewhere to hunker down for the night and wait until Doctor Weir authorises a recovery mission."

"Well", she began slowly, looking to the sky. The sound of darts was distant, but the presence warranted caution. "We could head up into the mountains and look for caves. That way we'll have decent shelter and it'll be a good place to hide from any wraith on the ground."

"Aye, I think you'd be right", he said, following her gaze up towards the looming mountains. "Are you sure you'll be able to walk that distance. Your back is very badly lacerated..."

"I'll be fine, Carson", she murmured, offering a small smile. "Lucky for me, its not my first time receiving this sort of treatment. You can check me over for your peace of mind once we get to wherever we're going."

"Not your first time...?" he looked mortified.

"I'll tell you later. Not really keen to hang around with wraith so close by", she said.

"Right."

They hiked for another hour through increasingly rough terrain. Small rocks and scrub crunched underfoot as they climbed and circumvented various obstacles. Finally they reached a rock face that seemed impossible to scale or get around.

The stone was black as midnight and clearly of volcanic origin, its surface fairly rough where chunks had broken away over time. Various sized boulders lay scattered around, laying where they had fallen against trees and other rocks.

Carson stopped walking and folded his arms, eyeing the obstacle course they now faced. "How are we going ta get through that?"

Willow breezed by him and started climbing the nearest rock. "Come on, it's not too hard once you get used to the climbing."

He repressed a sigh and followed, mounting the rock as she jumped down onto the next patch of dirt. "Well I suppose this will at least be useful as some sort of barrier between us and the wraith, assuming they're searching for us."

"Always good to assume the worst, so Doctor McKay likes to tell me" she chuckled, climbing the next boulder. "These rocks are a bit unstable, so be careful."

Just as she said that, her right foot slipped on the smooth surface of the one she was climbing and she skated backwards down the face, crashing into Carson and knocking him down as well. They came to a rest in a heap of tangled limbs.

"Crap, are you okay?" she clambered off him and offered him a hand.

"Aye", he took it and she pulled him up. "You?"

She held up the hand she had just used, showing him the large, bleeding gash across her palm. "Sorta."

"Lass, has anyone told you that you're injury prone?"

"All the time", she grinned as he took her hand again to examine it.

"This shouldn't need stitches", he said after a few moments. "But it definitely needs to be cleaned and dressed."

"Well, we're stuffed for that, aren't we?" she mused as he broke out a small bottle of hand sanitiser. "A bunch of bandaids, then?"

"Right", he said, fishing through his pockets for the box. "A field dressing is much to big."

After some careful paving of several bandaids across her palm and the application of a small bandage, they set off once again, climbing and hiking across the rock strewn path. The sun was starting to set by the time they found the entrance to a cave.

"I guess this is us", said Willow, pulling out a small flashlight and turning it on.

"Wait", Carson grabbed her arm. "Are you quite sure its safe? We know iratus bugs are fond of dark caves."

"They're not native to this planet", she replied. "Colonel Sheppard insisted that we check the database for all planets where they are known to live and redlist them."

"Ah. Yes, well, that does sound like something he'd do", he smiled. "Alright, lets-"

He faltered. The air had started to vibrate in a deep, sorrowful hum, growing steadily louder. They looked at each other, and she motioned to a pile of large rocks just beside the cave entrance that should give them a good view into the valley.

"I'll do it", said Carson, moving to the pile to start climbing. "You're hurt. Stay down there."

He clambered up the face of one boulder, feet scrabbling for purchase. Then the next one, and the next, until he had reached the very top. He stood, stretching out his arms for balance, and then froze at what he saw in the valley.

"What is it?" asked Willow, concerned by his expression.

"I don't think we're going to be rescued any time soon, lass", he said, looking down at her and moving to start climbing down again.

"What? Why not?"

"There's a hive ship landed in the valley. Occupying the entire space. There's no way they could get a team through that gauntlet and back again without serious casualties."

"Well, what the hell do we do, then?" she asked, her voice strained.

He paused, thinking. "The Daedalus might be able to get us."

"Its three weeks away, still in the Milky Way", she said, horrified. "What are we gunna do until then?"

"For now, worry about scouting the cave", he said, voice firm. "Once we've got a place to set up, we can start thinking about food and water and other things like that."

Willow closed her mouth and nodded. "Right...Right, yes. Okay."

She held up the flashlight, shining it into the dark tunnel. Carson pulled out his and turned it on as well.

The walls were uneven, yet oddly smooth, flowing like solid black water as they walked. The tunnel was long and winding, leading deep into the mountain.

"Is it just me or is it getting a bit warm in here?" asked Willow, rolling up her jacket sleeves to her elbows.

"Aye, I noticed it too", he responded, doing the same. "Maybe there's geothermal activity in this area?"

"Possibly", she murmured, shining the light around the next corner. "We know the continent has experienced volcanic activity fairly recently in its geological history...Maybe its not all completely finished up?"

They rounded the corner and were met with an incredible sight.

The tunnel opened up into a large cavern with an open ceiling through which poured a large amount of light, as well as a small waterfall. The water flowed in a bubbly creek around a small island that was clustered with trees bearing strange fruit, then down a series of levels and into a crack in the cave wall. To the right of the cavern was a fairly enclosed alcove and on the opposite side were several fairly deep springs engulfed in clouds of steam.

"I think we just found the garden of Eden", whispered Willow, staring around in amazement.

"Think it was a volcano?" Asked Carson, eyeing the hole in the ceiling thoughtfully.

"Probably", she said, following his gaze. "This is like the most one-in-a-million formation I've never even imagined..."

"Come on", he said finally, catching her elbow. "Lets find somewhere to sit and I'll have a look at your back."

They strolled to the alcove and had a peek inside. There was a low plinth of rock jutting out from the rear wall like a bench and upon it sat a small, dilapidated looking chest. They exchanged a look. Hidden treasure?

Willow picked up the box and they walked out again, into the lighter part of the chamber. They looked around for a few moments before settling on a pile of rocks by the edge of the stream. It seemed like a good enough place to sit.

She eased carefully out of her jacket and bent down to pick up a small rock. Carson eyed her for a second, then sat behind her and started to examine the bandages. They had become a little soggy and contaminated when they took that tumble down the hill.

"So you were saying before that it's not your first time being in that situation", he said, initiating conversation. "What did you mean by that?"

She put the chest down and started rolling the rock in her uninjured hand, smoothing her skin over its surface. "I did some field work with SG5 shortly after I signed the nondisclosure agreement. Figured it would be a good idea to get some experience if I was going to another galaxy."

"Aye", he couldn't help but smile at the notion.

"We got captured by a group of uh, I guess you could say they were primitive? They traded women as a commodity. Didn't go over well with myself or Buki."

"Bookie?"

"Seargent Bukette Mandoon", she responded. "Bit of a hardass. Funny, though."

"Ah. Were you friends?"

"Not really. We didn't go on enough missions together for that. I get the feeling she felt like she was babysitting me."

"Aye, I know what you mean", he said as he began to peel away the dirty bandage.

"It wasn't that bad, though. The rest of the team was pretty accepting. I guess we even had fun when we weren't running for our lives."

"So what happened?"

"Well", she began, folding her arms. "We got ourselves captured and I guess they wanted to break in their new cattle?"

Carson grimaced. "I'm sorry, love. I can't imagine you want to talk about this."

"It's fine, doc", she smiled, even though he couldn't see. "Shit happens."

He was silent for a few moments. "Alright, all done", he said finally, prompting her to pick up the chest and turn around. He eyed the bruise that was beginning to show around her split lip. "That should really be stitched…"

She shrugged, then winced. "Ah, it'll be okay."

"Well, I don't think I have much choice in the matter, anyway. I left most of my equipment at the settlement."

Willow picked up the small chest again and peered at the oddly shaped padlock thoughtfully. She deliberately changed the subject. "Think I can smash it off, or would we rather just break apart the box?"

Without waiting for him to respond, she swiftly lifted the rock she had been holding and brought it down to the lock, which broke apart and pieces scattered about, clinking as they hit the stone floor.

"Aha!', she exclaimed, flipping the lid up to see what spoils they had gained.

Carson looked over her shoulder to see. Inside were various items. Jewellery, a silver goblet, a long black scarf. Willow hastily started pulling things out and setting them aside as though they were artefacts preparing the be catalogued.

Finally she reached the bottom of the chest. It moved slightly as her fingers moved against it. She paused for a moment, then dug her nails against the edge of the wood. He watched her slowly pry it up, revealing another, much smaller box, this time with no lock.

She lifted it out, and turned it over. It was intricately carved with vines and flowers. After a moment of admiration, she lifted the lid to reveal absolutely nothing.

"Hm", she said as she began to place the items back into the box. She picked up the scarf last and allowed it to linger in her hands. "Will you help me with this for a second?"

Despite her upper body being covered with bandages, she couldn't help but feel she was a little naked. She wrapped the long, wide scarf around her chest several times and had Carson tie her up at the back.

"Much better", she said, once they were finally done. "Now I don't have to march around in a jacket for the next however long."

"I'm sure once Doctor Weir figures out what happened to us, she'll get a message to the Daedalus telling them to hurry", he offered half-heartedly.

"Still", she said, getting to her feet and stretching experimentally. "At best they'll only be able to shave a couple of days off their travel time. And that's if they assume we're alive at all."

"Now, don't go sayin' things like that", he chided, looking stern. "I'm sure Major Lorne and Lieutenant Glossop got back to Atlantis and they're no doubt organising a reconnaissance mission. They'll find out pretty quick what happened and when they realise they can't send a team, they'll get the Daedalus. We're just gonna have to sit tight until then."

"Hmm", she responded, looking around at the cavern. "I suppose you're right. I'm sorry. Three weeks, though. Yeah. That's a long time."

"Aye, but we should be okay. We've got plenty of water here and those trees over there seem to be bearing some sort of fruit that we can probably eat. We've got most of our basic needs sorted out."

She looked thoughtful for a moment, eyeing him and considering what he'd said. "Yeah, I think I'm gunna do my job and go check out those trees. Wanna chat?"

Carson smiled warmly. "Of course, what would you like to talk about?"

She led him to the edge of the creek and sprang gracefully to the other bank. He jumped after her, but his foot slipped on a rock. She grabbed him by the front of his jacket, steadying him, and he stepped onto the grass.

"Thankyou" he said simply.

"No problem", she nodded her head, smiling. She turned about and started looking at the trees as he found a rock to sit on. "Well, I suppose I should get to know you since we'll be spending so much time together. I'm sure you have questions of your own."

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a wee bit curious", he responded.

"Okay, well I'll go first", she said, pulling on a branch to examine the silvery leaves. "I'm from Australia, obviously", she laughed a little. "I'm an allround botanist but I specialise in Australian plants. I was a volunteer firefighter before I joined the Stargate programme. Did a fair bit of work in the US during bad fire seasons."

"Hard work, I imagine", Carson commented. "I gather you mostly worked with forest fires and the like?"

"Yeah. I never was much for the confined space of a burning building", she grinned. "I lived in Sydney back then. Fire seasons were pretty bad there."

"Ah, I see."

"But enough about me, what about you?" she nudged his shoulder gently and reached for one of the mottled, pear shaped fruits.

"I'm afraid I'm not all that interesting", he responded with a small smile. "I come from a family of seven, including myself. Four brothers and two sisters. I took an interest in medicine when I was just a wee lad and I've been working in the field for quite some time now."

"And what about Scotland – is it nice there?"

"Its bloody beautiful", he said, eyes glassing over as he thought of home.

She smiled and turned her attention back to the fruit. There was silence between them for a few moments before she spoke again.

"So I'm pretty sure this is something called a Jhukka fruit", she said slowly, turning it over in her hands. "Its incredibly rare. Halling told me it has some pretty interesting qualities…"

"Halling?" asked Carson, interested.

"Yes, I spend a fair amount of my spare time on the mainland with the Athosians", she turned the fruit again and gave it a slight squeeze to see how ripe it was.

"So what sort of qualities are we talking about?"

"Well, among rumours that it's capable of curing various illnesses, it's also said to have an aphrodisiac ability", she grinned at him and he squirmed under her gaze. "Not to worry, Carson. Most of those rumours start flying about things that are hard to find. Makes 'em more valuable."

"Oh. I see", he said, looking away.

"Either that or it's the Selassian Venom Fruit, in which case it will paralyse whoever eats it", she said, taking a huge bite.

Carson stood up so fast his head spun and Willow lapsed into a fit of giggles, almost choking. "That's not funny", he said bluntly.

"You should have seen your face, though", she straightened and wiped the bright red juice from her chin. She grabbed a fruit and tossed it at him.

He eyed the odd fruit uncertainly. "You're sure its safe to eat?"

"Wouldn't be eating it if it wasn't", she said and pranced away.

He pondered for a few seconds, then screwed up his face and took a bite. The fruit tasted like the sweetest, richest peach he'd ever imagined. He briefly wondered how long it would take for him to get sick of the taste. At least it wasn't horrible.

"Holy shit!"

Willow had stopped in her tracks and was bending to pick something up. He took a few steps towards her, trying to see what she was holding. She turned around and held out what looked like a rock.

He took the mossy thing and rubbed a thumb over the surface, smearing away the grime. Beneath it shone the unmistakable beauty that was the biggest diamond he'd ever seen.

"Oh my", he said, staring at it numbly. "I think we've struck it rich, lass."

"More than rich", she said, picking up another rock and tossing it for him to catch. "There's tons of them!"

He looked down at the new rock, and sure enough it was the same as the first one – only bigger! He eased down onto a small boulder and watched Willow as she started to take off her boots to put her feet in the stream.

"This has been a roller-coaster of a day", he muttered to himself.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

The gate room was a bustle of activity as technicians prepared a MALP for transport. Elizabeth walked with a sense of urgency across from her office and into the briefing room.

Inside sat several people – Colonel Sheppard, Lorne, Glossop, Major Woodstock and the new member of her team, Captain Heidi Richmond. She quickly took her seat.

"Okay, what's the situation?"

Evan Lorne straightened, his face a mask of worry. "A lot happened, ma'am. I made it to the Stargate with Glossop. I left Hyatts and Knox with Beckett and Luxford. The wraith came out of nowhere and were hitting us pretty hard."

He paused aware of Ashley's eyes boring into him.

"We waited for them until the last possible second. We had wraith at our position. If I'd just-"

"Your actions aren't in question", said John, glancing at Ash's stony face. "We just need to know what happened.

"I don't really know, sir. One minute everything was fine, then we couldn't hail them on the radio. It's like they just disappeared. The docs didn't have radios on them."

"Why not?" asked Elizabeth.

"Well, things went pretty sour with the natives once they realised we respect and work with women in our culture. There was an incident."

"Incident?" Heidi looked at him coldly.

"We were outmanned and outgunned", he said evenly, matching her glare. "They took our weapons, our tacticals, everything. I guess the guy wanted to make an example because he publicly whipped Doctor Luxford. There was nothing we could do."

Heidi opened her mouth to argue, but John cut her off.

"None of that matters now. We need to send a MALP and determine if the culling's over yet", John leaned back in his chair, fixing Ashley and Willow with a stern expression. "Then we can organise a search party and try to locate our people."

"I have a MALP being prepped right now", said Elizabeth, looking around at them all. "it should be ready shortly. I plan to send it through as a priority."

"Alright", said John, standing. "Lorne, Woodstock – come with me. Glossop, Richmond – dismissed."

They walked with Elizabeth back to the other side of the area, into the control room.

"Dial P2M-483", commanded John, waving a hand over the console. "Then send the MALP."

There was silence for a few moments as the technicians prepared. The wormhole connected and the MALP surged forwards, travelling through to the other planet. "Receiving MALP telemetry", said someone. "On screen."

The group turned to look at the video information the MALP was sending back. It was fairly dark, but they could see the trees that surrounded the area immediate to the stargate. Several bodies lay, twisted and shrivelled, in the grass nearby. Suddenly a pair of wraith drones appeared and began firing on the MALP.

"Shut it down", said John, waving an arm at the technician. "The mission is scrubbed."

"But—" began Ashely.

"No", he said curtly, cutting her off. "I wanna go after our people as much as anyone here, but I am not sending anyone into that situation."

"The Daedalus is due back in three weeks", offered Elizabeth. "We can get a message to them VIA the SGC and divert them straight to the planet. They'll be able to detect if our people are still down there and extract them."

Ashley was clearly not satisfied, but she didn't comment further, simply saluting John and marching away stiffly. Lorne watched her go. "She's not happy."

"I don't think any of us are, at this stage", replied John.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

On the third day, Carson awoke to a very pleasant sound. He stretched out his aching muscles and sat up. They'd decided that the alcove would be the most appropriate place to sleep and the stone shelf in there had proved just big enough for two. They worked out pretty quickly that the nights were rather cold and sharing body heat was the best solution to that problem.

He peered out into the cavern and saw Willow standing on the island, engulfed in warming sunlight, and singing. Her voice was the most heavenly sound Carson had ever heard, though he had to admit he was a little biased considering she was singing Celtic folk music.

She walked slowly around the trees, looking up at the fruit and leaves, a blissful smile adorning her soft features. As she reached out to touch the trunk of one of the trees, she turned her head and suddenly fell silent. It took a moment for Carson to realise he'd been busted staring.

He cleared his throat and looked away, fidgeting. He finally got to his feet and emerged from the alcove. Willow had moved to sit with her feet in the creek, humming to herself now.

He approached her slowly, offering a small, awkward smile. "You didn't tell me you could sing."

She looked up at him from the opposite bank. "Well I suppose I don't really think I can…"

"Nonsense", he responded, voice firm. "You have a lovely voice."

She was silent for a few moments. "Thanks, Carson. That means a lot."

He smiled. "Had breakfast?"

"Yeah. And thinking about a nice soak in the hot spring", she grinned. "Care to join me?"

"Well, only if you're ok with being so minimally dressed in my presence…"

"Meh, you've seen it all before, doc", she responded. "Unless you're worried I might check you out, that is."

Carson flushed a little at that, causing her grin only to widen further. He cleared his throat nervously and rubbed a hand over the stubble that was beginning to make its presence known.

She was looking at him again. "I know, I need a shave", he said.

"Actually, you look pretty good like that", she winked, offering the tiniest smirk.

"Cheeky", he folded his arms. "Alright, lass I'll have a look at those bandages of yours first. I think they should be ready to come off."

He jumped the bubbly stream, flailing for balance for a moment. Once steadied, he settled himself in a crouched position behind her and started fiddling with the scarf knot. After a few seconds it came loose and she pulled it forwards, giving him access to the bandages.

He slowly unwound the slightly bloodstained cloth to reveal the flesh beneath. Red lines crisscrossed over her skin where some of the smaller cuts had healed. Other, much deeper wounds had scabbed over quite nicely. He was thankful that there was no sign of infection.

He wound up the stained bandages and helped her tie up the scarf once more. It was then that he noticed the scars – tons of them, almost too faded to recognise. She was most certainly telling the truth about being in that situation before.

"Staring is rude, you know", she piped up, grinning at him over her shoulder.

He blinked. "Right, sorry."

She stood and hopped across the stream, leading the way over to the steaming hot spring. He looked away as she shed her pants and slid gracefully into the inviting water.

"Oh god, its amazing", she gasped, turning around and resting her head in her arms at the edge of the deep pool. "Salty. That's good."

Showtime. Carson kicked off his boots and quickly stripped down to his underwear. He kept his eyes carefully to the ground, but he didn't need to see to know that she was looking at him. He felt heat rise to his face.

Clearing his throat, he slipped into the inviting depths beside her and let out a gasp of his own. The hot water was delicious after such a rough night's sleep. He floated over to the opposite side and leaned back on his elbows, letting his legs float on their own.

Willow turned to face him, eyes sparkling. "Not bad, doc."

He flushed and looked away. "Thanks", he said, his voice tiny.

She grinned, fully aware of how awkward she was making him feel.

There was silence between them for a long few minutes before she spoke again.

"So, I've been thinking", she said slowly, meeting his eyes. She was serious again. "We need to live off more than just Jhukka fruit. I haven't got the right equipment to analyse it so we won't know what effect it will have to eat only that for three weeks straight."

"So what are you suggesting?" he asked, frowning slightly.

"Well, we know the people from the settlement are primarily hunters with some small amount of farming crops. That means there's game in the area."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" he asked mildly. "All I've got is my tactical knife!"

"Well", she said, thinking. "I'm not an expert, but I've been learning how to work with wood from one of the Athosian carpenters. I'm sure I could make some sort of spear type of weapon out of what we've got here in the cave."

"You want to make—have you quite thought this through?" he looked unsure. "What if we get injured by wild animals, or worse – captured by the wraith?"

"As long as we stick to the area around the cave we shouldn't have to worry to much about getting captured", she said evenly. "And I plan to take your knife with me just to be on the safe side."

"What, you want to go it alone?" he asked, incredulous. "Lass-"

"Carson, I'll be fine", she cut him off. "Besides, two of us together will probably scare anything we want to hunt away."

He opened his mouth to argue further, but it was too late for that. She was right, and she knew it. Blasted stubborn woman. He sighed. "Alright, fine. But you get yourself hurt even once, and you'll be grounded."

She saluted him, grinning. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

"Aye, you say that now…"

He stretched and allowed himself to sink in to his neck, then turned around to lean against the edge more comfortably. Willow took the opportunity to try and check out his backside, no matter how deep in the water it was.

She smiled and began to hum one of her favourite songs quietly, closing her eyes and relaxing in the blissfully hot water.

They stayed in the hot spring for at least an hour before it was decided that they had become far too wrinkly for their own good. Carson got out first and after realising he obviously had no towel, dried himself with his jacket, got dressed and hung the sodden garment in the sun.

Willow didn't much care for getting dry or dressed for that matter. Wearing her most comfortable pair of boxer briefs and her trusty scarf, she went and laid in the lush grass in the warm sunlight and basked for at least twenty minutes.

Carson marvelled at how easily she'd transitioned into such a simple lifestyle. Honestly, he was bored out of his mind and desperately needed something to keep his hands busy. He had taken to turning over small rocks in his hands and watching the creek rush by just to pass the time.

The nights were fairly cold in the cave, but they dared not let a fire burn long in case the smoke was seen by any wraith out on patrol in the valley. Instead they were forced to lay curled against each other using Willow's jacket as a makeshift pillow and Carson's as a blanket.

He was suddenly aware of her voice carrying across the cavern to him. She was singing again, a sweet melody he barely recognised from a movie he'd been forced to watch one time with his niece and nephew. Her voice was like molten honey, yet clear as crystal and it coiled around his heart and mind like a soothing blanket enfolding him with warmth. He sighed and allowed the smile to come onto his face. This could definitely be a worse situation than it was.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Ashley paced across the lab, jaw clenched tightly shut, arms folded. She stopped suddenly, swinging out in all directions, and turned to glare at Rodney. He shrank away, looking disturbed by her anger.

"I know, I know", she ranted. "Sending a team is suicide with who knows how many wraith in the area. I just hate sitting around waiting!"

He sipped the fruity energy drink she had provided and sighed. "I know, but there's nothing we can do right now. Have you asked to be a part of the extraction team?"

"Yes. I'm going with Sheppard and Ronon. Heidi and Lorne are tagging along too. Daedalus is going to pick us up on the way through."

"Well...you're doing all you can, right?" he said in a small voice, leaning back in his chair. "Who knows, maybe they'll slip by the wraith, make it to the gate and get back here before the Daedalus even arrives..."

"I doubt that", she said, perching on the edge of one of the benches. "If there was a way back, Willow would have made it by now. No, there's gotta be a big wraith presence keeping her from getting home. How's Beckett with roughing it?"

"Honestly, I have no idea. He's not much for field work", he responded, fiddling with the edge of his jacket. "What about Willow?"

"If I know her like I think I do", she said slowly. "She'll probably have them hunkered down in a cave somewhere hiding out. She's been spending a lot of time with the Athosians lately. I wouldn't be surprised if she picked up a few of their tricks to survive out there."

"And what about the two marines? Knox and, uh...whats-his-name, Hyatts?"

"They're hardy guys", she said, swinging her legs. "They'll be fine babysitting. Unless she's singing. Then they'll probably lose their minds."

"Oh", he said. "Is it that bad?"

She shook her head, smiling. "She's great, but I can imagine they're not used to being bombarded with music all the time like the rest of my team."

Rodney opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the sudden presence of Louanna Carlisle. She sailed into the lab on a skateboard and spread her arms wide, grinning.

"It's the lovebirds, Shep!" she announced, flipping up her board into her outstretched hand. She hefted it under her arm and turned back to the doorway, where John had appeared, holding a skateboard of his own.

Rodney scowled and Ash jumped up, keenly aware of her commanding officer.

"At ease, Major", he said, punching her softly on the arm. "We're all off duty here."

"Speak for yourself", muttered Rodney. "What are you all doing in my lab?"

"Ouch", Lou leaned back, feigning offence. "Looking for Ash, actually. Sorry to interrupt, sweethearts, but I'm raining on your first base parade."

Ash pulled a face at her, folding her arms. Rodney Glared and flushed. John smirked.

"Wanna join us for lunch?" he asked, eyeing to blonde. "There's talk of steak, last I heard."

She perked up and looked at Rodney, who groaned and rolled his eyes. "You know, I am kinda busy—"

"Oh, come on, McKay", interrupted Lou, rolling her eyes. "Nothing comes close to your almighty hunger. What's so important that it can't wait an hour or so?"

He opened his mouth to argue, but John piped up.

"As a member of my team, I'm ordering you to take a break", he said.

"I'm not military."

"Fine. Woodstock, I order you to assist us in abducting McKay and taking him to the mess hall for food."

She grinned and saluted. Rodney groaned again, but didn't argue further. "Fine."

They made it to the mess hall in no less than five minutes, and with a good dosage of complaining from Rodney after they decided it would be a good idea to force all four of them inside a transporter at once.

Ash peeled off from the group and grabbed a sandwich and a bottle of water. Lou and John made a beeline for the buffet, piling up with plenty of meat, veggies and a healthy serving of gravy. Rodney opted for the chicken pasta dish that looked rather appetising.

They all met up again and found a table for four, digging in without ceremony. After several hasty mouthfuls, John decided to break the silence.

"So when are we expecting the Daedalus to show up?" he looked across the table at Rodney, who grimaced.

"Pushing their engines as hard as is safe, we think about fifteen days", he said, pushing his food around the tray. "I'm told Hermiod is working on trying to streamline the hyperdrive, but by the time he's got any solutions up and running, they'll be just about back in Pegasus. It won't make much difference, then."

"Hey, shaving a day or so off the travel time is good news, though", said Lou, brandishing her fork. "A little less time of this up in the air shit. They could be hurt, you know."

"Yes, and they've got the best doctor in two galaxies with them", he looked a little smug this time. "I'm sure they're just fine."

"That is assuming it wasn't Beckett that got hurt", pointed out John, raising his eyebrows.

"Okay, guys, can we not?" asked Ash, putting her sandwich down. "Thinking about the possibility of losing another member of my team is not what I need right now."

"Sorry", Rodney blurted out. John stared at him as though he'd said something miraculous. Lou shoved a too-large piece of steak into her mouth and almost choked.

She put her hand on his arm. "Its fine, Rodney. I'm just…It's too soon after we lost Mick."

He flipped his arm and gave her hand a squeeze. John looked away awkwardly. He couldn't help but find the scientist's display of affection a little odd. Lou smirked and shovelled more food into her mouth.

Ash offered him a small smile and squeezed back, then picked up her sandwich. She took a bite and then set it down again, suddenly not as hungry as she'd thought.

"So I'm thinking about starting up a bootleg radio station", Lou piped up, trying to stir up a new conversation.

"I don't think Doctor Weir is gonna go for that", said Rodney, looking sour.

"Depends how she spins it", said John, waving his fork around. "Get Heightmayer to back us and we're golden."

"We?" Ash snickered. "So you're both in on it, huh? Got a name for this radio station yet?"

"Yeah, I'm thinking 'Piracy Pegasus' she beamed. "Either that or 'The Mix Tape'."

Ash grinned at her. "Oh jeez. I think I like the second name better. Its kinda catchy. But then again, piracy. Gotta love brutal honesty. How are you gunna choose?"

"Well", she said. "I've still got a lot of planning to do, but once we get Heightmayer on board and get the green light from Weir, I'm going to put it to a vote. We'll see if the people of Atlantis go for humour or not."

"What kind of music are we talking about? No rap I hope?"

"A bit of everything", said John. "We want a lot of people to tune in, so we need to have a good variety."

"Does that mean I have to listen to the woeful Johnny Cash?" whinged Rodney, grimacing at the concept.

"Nobody said you have to listen to the radio at all", Lou stuck out her tongue at him.

There was silence for a few moments, then Ash stood. Grabbing her water bottle in one hand and rubbish in the other.

"I'm gunna head off, guys. It was good to chat and stuff, but I'm getting a bit tired", she turned to Rodney. "Join me for a drink a bit later?"

He perked up a little, looking up at her with a hopeful expression on his face. "Sure, I guess?"

With a small smile, Ash departed, leaving the three in silence. Rodney turned his eyes towards John, who gave him a knowing look and tilted his head after the departing woman. He got to his feet and trailed after the Major.

John turned to Lou and winked. Damn but the scientist had it bad for her.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Willow hunkered down in the thick scrub, gripping the spear so tightly her knuckles went white. The creature she, by some miracle, had managed to locate, was just metres away, foraging through the leaf litter for something to eat.

She lifted her arm stiffly, poised to strike. Suddenly the sound of a twig snapping nearby caused the beast to startle and she took the moment to throw the spear as hard as she could.

The tactical knife that was fastened to the end of the long stick sank deep into the side of the creature. It began to emit a piercing, horrifying scream.

Willow picked up intense movement in the surrounding forest and almost immediately dozens of the creatures began charging straight for her.

She scrambled to her feet and bolted up the mountainside, running as fast as her legs could carry her. The beasts pursued her for ten minutes before she made it back to the cave and rushed inside, hoping to hide from them.

Silence reigned and she knew she had somehow outrun them. She sighed. Great.

She made her way through the tunnel and into the cavern, where Carson was waiting impatiently. He stood once he noticed her, but faltered at her gloomy expression. "What happened?"

"I got chased all the way back here by these…boar sort of things", she pulled a face. "I lost the knife."

His face fell for a moment, but then he forced a smile. "Its alright, we'll just have to think of something new that we can do. We're fine for now with these fruit we've been eating. Besides, making a fire is probably a wee bit risky."

There was silence between them for a few moments, and then he stepped forwards.

"Come on, lass, let me have a look at those scratches", he murmured, reaching for her arm.

"Its fine, Carson", she tried to brush him off. "They don't even hurt."

"Aye, but I'd wager that has something to do with all the running you just did", he took her arm and examined the injuries while she sulked. "These will need to be cleaned at the very least."

He led her over to the large boulder they had designated as a table and had her sit while he fished around in his pockets for the hand sanitiser. Willow eyed the half empty bottle. "You should be saving that, not wasting it on a few cuts."

He fixed her with a stern glare. "In my business its best not to leave anything to chance, especially not in the Pegasus galaxy."

She sighed and affixed an expression to her face that basically said 'get on with it'.

And that he did, cleaning the small wounds in record time.

"Are you even supposed to use hand sanitiser for this sort of thing?" she asked finally, staring at him as he put the lid back on.

"Not really", he replied, pulling a face. "This one's pure alcohol, though, so it might sting a wee bit more, but it does the job."

"Hm", she said. "Could come in handy if we ever need to start a fire."

"Now who's talking about wasting?" he fixed her with a mockingly stern expression. She grinned.

"So, dinner?" she asked, rocking back on the boulder. "Sorry its not mystery meat."

"You make it sound so appetising", he said, chuckling. He sat down and watched as she ventured to the island to collect the Jhukka fruit. She was fairly small, but spirited considering her homeland. Her brown hair glowed like maple syrup in the sunlight and flicked over her shoulders. Large hazel eyes searched the trees for the ripest fruit and then dainty hands reached to pick them.

Carson shook himself mentally. No need to stare at the lady.

She ventured over and plopped one of the fruits in front of him, grinning. "Cream of the crop", she said, and took a large bite out of her fruit. The juice ran down her chin and managed to drip before she could wipe it.

"Thankyou", he responded warmly, and began to eat as well. They munched away in silence before anyone spoke.

"So, seeing anyone?"

Carson almost choked. "What?"

She wiggled her eyebrows at him, putting on her best detective face and pretending to twirl a moustache. "Just curious."

"Oh really?" he asked, eyeing her.

"I'll get it out of you", she said, looking mischevious. "I always figure it out."

"Maybe", he responded. "Maybe not."

She sat back and took another bite. "So what about Rodney and Ash, huh? Think they'll get far?"

Carson pondered for a moment. "I know Rodney is terrible with women, but Major Woodstock seems to be a very patient and caring lady. Who knows?"

"They're so cute together", she grinned, bouncing. "You know there's been a lot of rumours flying around about him turning up near her quarters at odd times of the night."

He chuckled and she continued.

"Okay, what about Lou and Sheppard?"

"Louanna Carlisle? The jumper mechanic?"

"Yeah. They're always together these days", she beamed at him. "Reckon they'll hook up?"

"I don't really know", he said. "Colonel Sheppard hasn't really been one to fraternise with our own, from what I've seen in the past year. He seems to go for ladies who aren't part of the expedition..."

"Oh, so you think maybe him and Teyla?" her eyes widened.

"No, I don't think so", he said thoughtfully. "They're close, but I don't think she's really, uh..."

"Into him?" she finished. "Maybe she's got a boyfriend on the mainland. When we go there, she does spend a fair bit of time with a guy named...uh, Kanen or Kahn or something?"

"And what about you?" he asked. "Got yer eye on anyone?"

For a split second, she looked like she didn't know what to say, but the mask came up in an instant. "That's for me to know and you to find out", she said with a wink.

They finished the rest of their meal in silence and once they were done, Willow took the huge avocado-like seeds to the island so they could dry in the sun the next day.

The cave was mostly dark at this time of the evening. Not much light made it through the ceiling, but that which did cast a dim orange hue over the island. Carson watched as she was bathed in the heavenly glow for a few short moments before returning to him.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Um. Nothing", he said hastily.

"Right", she responded, unconvinced. "Anyways, I'm heading to bed. I think running for my life has made me a bit too tired."

He smiled warmly. "Aye. I'll join ye in a minute."

She pranced off to the alcove, leaving him alone for a few moments. Finally he stood, stretching his stiff muscles out as best he could. He strolled to the alcove in time to see Willow just beginning to get settled. Days before they'd spent over an hour harvesting grasses from the island to build a makeshift bed. It was yellowed and dead now, but it served its purpose of keeping them off the hard ground, and relatively warm.

He kicked off his boots and deposited them just outside the alcove, beside hers, then stuffed his socks inside. Then, he clambered over her curled form as she watched from below and nestled in behind her, spooning close for warmth.

Willow made a small noise as his arm went around her waist, and pulled his jacket over them both, bringing her legs as high as she could. They had long since done away with the awkwardness that came with snuggling so close, and Carson had to appreciate how candid she had been about it.

He closed his eyes and let sleep take him somewhere far away.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Two weeks had passed since the hive ship had landed in the valley, cutting off Carson and Willow from Atlantis. The pair had grown quite close, facing the various challenges of everyday life together.

This particular morning, Carson woke with an unbidden tightness to his pants. Mercifully, he was alone. But that was odd.

Bleary eyed, he sat up, the jacket falling to his lap, and looked around.

Willow was on the other side of the island, standing in the waterfall, ice cold mountain water cascading over her body. He was mesmerised, watching her for several moments before realised she was naked.

Suddenly, she turned around, hands tangled in her brown hair, giving him a delicious view. He clapped a hand over her eyes, but it was too late. He couldn't unsee that.

He eased down onto the floor and prayed she hadn't noticed him.

It was twenty long minutes before it was finally safe to move. He cracked his eyes, peering out into the cavern. Willow was sitting on a rock, bathed in golden light, carefully binding her arms with bandage in preparation for the day.

Carson sat up again, this time following through with the action of getting up. He tossed his jacket onto the grass, stretching leisurely. Something cracked and he winced.

She had noticed him this time and smiled warmly as he made his way over, barefoot. The black sand of the icy stream felt good underfoot as he bounded awkwardly across. She passed him a fruit, her hand lingering as he took it from her.

"Morning, love", he said softly. "You're up early."

"Yeah", she responded, grinning. "I needed a shower alone today."

Carson hastily stuffed the fruit into his mouth to prevent himself from commenting. She raised her eyebrows at him.

"Hungry, huh?"

He struggled to chew, nodding slightly and moving to sit on a nearby rock, warming himself in the sunlight. After a few moments, he swallowed, looking around for a topic to talk about far, far away from naked Willow.

"So, got any plans for today?" she asked, smiling at him.

"Uhm", he said, not sure what to say. "The usual, I suppose. Walk around, sit, hum to myself…"

She grinned. "My sarcasm is wearing off on you, I think", she paused for a moment. "Why don't you come with me today? I could use the company."

"I'm not sure how useful I'd be trying to forage for food, lass", he pulled a face. "Not that I don't appreciate the offer."

"Gotta start somewhere", she said, shrugging. "I learnt most of my stuff from the Athosians. Stuff you might need to know if you're ever stuck in a situation like this again. Could save your life."

"Alright, alright, spare me the sales pitch", he pretended to grumble. "I'll come."

Willow grinned. "Good, it'll do you some good to get out of here for once. Plus I could use someone watching my back in case, you know, wraith."

He chuckled. "Oh, aye."

They finished their breakfast, put on their boots and set off down the mountainside, searching for plants that bore fruit. It wasn't long before they found a small shrub with clusters of purple berries. Willow hastily started picking them and shoving them into her spacious pockets.

"So the berries of this bush are okay to eat?" asked Carson, leaning over her shoulder.

"Yes, see the shape of the leaves, it's a pretty unique feature of this plant", she said, continuing.

"What about the pink ones?" he asked indicating different berries on another bush that looked similar.

"Not unless you want some pretty severe gastrointestinal reactions", she laughed. "The trick is to get them before they ripen. They're a little sour but they won't harm you."

They moved on, walking for several minutes in silence, listening to the sounds of the forest. Birds called and wind rustled the trees all around them.

"What about this?" Carson had stopped, looking at an oddly shaped brown fruit that was hanging from a low tree.

"Nah", she said, reaching to examine it. "This is a Waluu fruit. It contains a paralysing toxin that's removed by cooking. I'd rather not dice with it."

"Oh", he recoiled from the plant a little. "I see."

She grinned at his reaction. "Come on, we haven't been at it long. We've got a fair bit of walking to do."

They trekked slowly around the mountain to the North West, collecting various fruits as they found them. At one point Willow got very excited over the discovery of a fungus she said was known to taste of candy floss. When they had harvested all they could carry, they began to make their way back.

The sun was high in the sky by the time they arrived back at the cave. Willow emptied her pockets onto the table rock and then started fiddling with the folds in her scarf, where she'd stuffed larger green strawberry shaped fruit.

They stood back and looked over their loot. The fruit wouldn't keep very long, but they had a few days' worth, and at the very least it was enough to stop them going crazy on Jhukka fruit. Willow had said the green strawberries tasted like salted avocado. Carson wasn't too wrapped in the concept, but anything was better than what they'd been eating non stop.

"I'm going to go sit in the sun", she announced, catching him on the arm. "Care to join me?"

He followed, hands in pockets, watching as she bounced lightly over the creek and swirled around the trees. She was humming already, but he didn't recognise the tune. She broke out into song every now and again, a few lines here and there, but nothing solid.

He sat down beside her, smiling as he listened. Finally she stopped and turned to regard him. "I don't know the song", he said, curious.

She smiled. "I wouldn't expect you to", she replied. "Its from a fantasy game that Lou plays. Its called Dragon Age. I'm not much for gaming, but the music in it is gorgeous."

"Oh I see", he said, pondering.

"I don't really know as much about it as Lou would, but it looks pretty good", she started humming again, this time something different. Slower, and sadder.

Carson closed his eyes, drinking in the warm sunlight and listening as she began to sing softly. Something about 'grey wardens' and demons. It didn't really matter what she was singing – it was heavenly.

He awoke some time later, laying in the soft grass and swathed in dim orange light. Willow was snuggled under his arm, one hand fisted on his shirt. He shifted a little and froze when she mumbled something unintelligible. After a few moments, he made a decision., Bringing up his arm around her shoulders, he gave them a slight squeeze.

"Lass, I think we ought to move", he said softly. She didn't respond, so he jiggled her a little. "Willow."

Her eyes fluttered open and she yawned. "Oh…Sorry Carson", she struggled to sit, running a hand through her tousled hair. "Crap, we slept the day away."

Carson scrambled to his feet. "Now what are we going to do?" he asked to no one in particular. "I'm not tired at all."

She pondered for a moment. "I'm gunna hit the hot tub", she said finally, clicking her fingers.

"I suppose I'll come with you", he said slowly. "I mean, if I'm invited, that is?"

"Of course", she sprang to her feet and whacked him on the arm.

He made his way to the alcove and kicked off his boots before shedding his black shirt and pants. The thought briefly crossed his mind that he should get rid of his underwear, but he tossed it aside immediately.

He wandered over to the steaming hot springs where Willow was already relaxing, her face showing a blissful expression. Part of the scarf she had binding down her chest was floating around her like an extra limb.

Carson slid into the hot water, breathing a sigh of contentment as it enveloped him in comforting warmth. He settled on a small rocky ledge opposite her and leaned back against the edge of the spring.

"So", she said, watching him. "We'll be going home soon."

"Aye", he said. "I have to say I'm looking forward to a proper shower. And a shave."

"I dunno, I think I'm kinda going to miss this place", she said with a small sigh. "I mean, it's lacking first world comforts. Normal food. A comfortable bed. But it's kind of grown on me."

"I suppose I know what you mean", he responded slowly. "Don't think I'll miss the fruit, somehow."

Willow grinned. "No, I guess not. I'm planning to take back one of the smaller plants, if I can. See if I can't get it to grow back on Atlantis or maybe even the mainland. It could be a pretty sweet bargaining chip if we can make it work."

"Ah, because of the rarity?" he asked.

"Yeah", she said, allowing her legs to float up so her toes stuck out of the water's surface. "I'm sure Doctor Weir would appreciate having something of value to trade with other planets. Not that we don't already, but…you know. Mystical fruit that people already know about, right?"

He smiled, nodding slightly. "I'm glad, I mean", he paused. "You've made the time stuck on this planet bearable."

Willow flushed a little, but it was hard to tell considering the heat of the water. "I…thankyou, Carson", she said, her voice genuine. "I'm glad to have been stuck here with you. Its been. Well. I guess I could even say I enjoyed it a little."

Carson let himself float closer to her. "Really?" he said slowly, eyeing her as she flushed deeper still.

"I…" she almost whispered. "Well, I…um…"

He closed the gap between them, arms on either side of her, gripping onto the stone. She seemed to writhe a little, trapped between him and the rock face.

"Carson, I…" the words died on her lips when he brought up his eyes to hers. She stared into him, tilting her head back a little. "Carson…"

His face was centimetres from hers now, so close he could feel the warmth of her breath intermingled with the steam. Suddenly her hands were on his chest. At first he thought she was going to push him away, but then they encircled him, wrapping around his back. Her face came closer, dangerously close, and paused, hovering just out of reach.

Her eyes searched him, asking the question as her brows peaked in the middle of her face.

The kiss was gentle, uncertain and a little shaky. Willow wasn't sure she was right to take the first step. Carson deepened it, reassuring her, and let his arms come down, around her back, holding her.

Their foreheads and noses met as their mouths broke apart for a few moments.

"I thought I was going crazy", she whispered, dark eyes staring into his. "I thought—"

He hushed her, a gentle finger going to her lips. "You are crazy", he said simply. "And that's something I like about you. A lot."

She squeezed him. "Is this really okay? I mean…aren't there rules against this sort of thing?"

Carson chuckled. "Aye, lass. If you're military. Thankfully, last time I checked, we're not."

"Oh. Oh, okay", she said. "Oh. Good, then."

He leaned in for another kiss, this time tender and chaste. They were closer now, entwined almost, and saturated in warmth. Then Willow squeezed his backside, a cheeky sparkle in her eye, and he almost bounced upwards in surprise.

"Right you, behave or you'll be in trouble", he said, giving her a look. It didn't last – he couldn't help but grin.

"Make me", she said, squeezing again.

He gave a low growl and kissed her again, this time much more fervently. When they broke apart, she was almost breathless.

"I think I like being in trouble a bit too much", she breathed.

"Probably", he responded, floating away. "Alright, I'm getting out."

"Oh, crap", she said suddenly, horrified. "We're not going to have any way to get dry."

"Oh…aye, crap", he said. "We didn't really think this through, did we?"

"Hm", she said as she started to climb out. "I guess we'll have to build a fire after all that. Good thing we thought to collect wood just in case we needed it."

Half an hour and several failed attempts later, Willow and Carson sat beside a fairly small, but merry fire, eating a dinner of purple berries and Jhukka fruit.

"Steak", said Willow suddenly, looking far away. "That's the first thing I'm going to eat when we get back to Atlantis. Steak, with lashings of gravy and roast potatoes and…and blue jelly."

"Aye", he agreed, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "That sounds lovely. Right after our medical."

She groaned and gave him a small shove. "Way to mood kill."

"You're welcome", he responded, chuckling as he stretched. There was silence for a few moments before he spoke again. "I think I'm going to sleep out here by the fire tonight. It'll be cosy."

"Mmm, I think I'll join you", she said, arching her back a little. "Snuggling by the fire, sounds like a good night to me."

He smiled warmly. Yes, indeed.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

John sailed into the briefing room, followed closely by Doctor Weir.

"Okay", she said, sitting down. "Lets do this one by the book - I don't want anyone injured on this mission."

"Yes mum", said the Colonel, offering her a lopsided grin.

"I mean it", she continued, sternly. "Bring them home."

"Yes ma'am", Ashley and Heidi chorused.

Ronon slouched, spinning slightly in his chair. "And what if the wraith notice us?"

"You're to complete your mission as covertly as possible. For now, let's hope we catch them by surprise. We might not get a second chance at this", she said.

"That being said", John leaned forwards, placing his hands on the table. "If the wraith do engage us, we've got the Daedalus there to back us up."

"So how are we going to play this?" Ash asked, focussing on the Colonel.

"The planet has a small moon which Daedalus will hide behind. They drop us off and we take the jumper the rest of the way. Hopefully we'll find somewhere we can land safely that isn't too far away."

"Why don't we just fly by and beam them out?" asked Heidi, confused.

"We've concluded that the most likely scenario is that they're hiding in a cave somewhere, in which case their signals wouldn't be strong enough to beam out", said John. "And between myself, Elizabeth and Colonel Caldwell, we've decided that we'd rather avoid detection if possible."

"And Daedalus is due here in about half an hour, right?" Ash folded her arms, leaning back in the chair.

"Yes", said John. "From here we'll head up to the jumper bay and wait for them to arrive. They pick us up, we go get our people."

For the first time, Lorne spoke. "Are we expecting to need a medical contingent with us?"

"We haven't got the room on the jumper", he replied. "Daedalus med bay is going to have to do."

"Alright", said Elizabeth, looking around at them all as she rubbed her hands together. "We all know what we need to do, so lets get to it."

The group of five shuffled out of the briefing room and made their way up one level to the armoury to gear up. Once they were organised, John led them into the jumper bay and over to jumper one.

"I call shotgun", shouted Ash from the back of the group. Lorne groaned.

"All good, Evan", said Heidi, punching him on the arm. "I'll sit in the back with you so you don't get lonely."

He laughed. "Who said I was sitting in the back?"

"Me" grunted Ronon as he lumbered past.

"Easy, Chewie", said John as they began to take their seats.

Ash bopped the hatch control and made her way to the copilot seat, placing her P90 on the dash.

John tapped into the jumper's radio. "Flight this is jumper one, we are ready to depart."

"Copy that, jumper one, you are go for launch", came the disembodied voice.

He brought them up through the ceiling hatch and out into the atmosphere on a gentle angle, gaining altitude steadily. They reached open space after several minutes and he set them up in high orbit to wait.

The Daedalus arrived in next to no time, Colonel Caldwell's voice ushering them into the F-302 bay. From the jumper, they almost didn't feel the jump to hyperspace. An hour later, they arrived in the alien solar system.

"We've taken up position behind the smallest of the moons", said Caldwell. "Can we make it as fast as possible, please? I don't fancy having to go up against any wraith that might be hanging around still."

"We'll be come in time for dinner", said John, powering up the jumper's systems. "Okay everyone, buckle up."

They cloaked and flew for several minutes towards the planet before the HUD activated. It showed an alarming number of life signs concentrated in a valley, and a lonely pair in the mountain range to the West.

"Looks like we were right. Their subcontinuous signals are transmitting from inside one of those mountains." The display changed again, this time showing something even more worrying. "Crap. We've got a hive ship set up in the valley. No wonder they couldn't make it to the gate."

"Damn, that thing's huge", commented Ash, as they began to make their landing approach. The hive filled the whole valley and was even visible from space.

They landed a ways down the mountainside in a tiny clearing barely large enough to fit the jumper at all. John, Ronon, Ash and Lorne all filed out, followed closely by Heidi. John turned to her with a small smile. "Richmond, stick with the jumper until we get back."

She sighed and slumped onto a bench, frowning. "Yes, sir."

The group of four hiked slowly up the mountain, John heading them with the life signs detector. Suddenly, Ronon stopped, crouching down to inspect the ground.

"I got tracks", he said, looking up at them. "Standard issue. One small. One larger."

"Take point", commanded John, nodding his head. "Woodstock, you have the six."

They followed the big Satedan at a steady pace, covering as many angles as possible in the eerily silent forest. It wasn't long before they stopped again.

"These bushes, they've been picked clean", he growled, examining a branch.

"Some sort of animal?" asked Lorne, frowning.

"No, if it were an animal, there'd be more damage", he responded.

"That's gotta be Willow", said Ash from the back. "She's a botanist; she'd know what's safe to eat and what's not."

John examined the life signs detector. "We're about half a klick East of their position. I don't wanna be out here any longer than necessary; lets keep moving."

They made their way up the increasingly steep mountainside until they came to an unforgiving black rock face. There were many broken rocks of varying sizes laying scattered around, some against trees or each other. Many were green with moss or covered in leaf litter.

The team split up to look for caves. John and Ronon went south, while Lorne and Ash headed Northwards. Progress was slow with so many boulders in their paths, but eventually the Northern duo lucked out.

"Shepard, we've got something here", Ash spoke into her radio, sitting on one of the larger boulders and watching Lorne stagger forwards as he jumped down. "Looks like a tunnel. We're about half a klick North of where you should be."

"Stay put", came the replying voice. "We're coming to you.

Ash turned to Lorne. "So, Evan, been practicing your welcome home speech?"

He cracked a grin. "You bet. Right down to the part where I collapse into an emotional mess and start hugging everyone. You?"

"Nah", she folded her arms. "But you can bet Willow will be all over us like a bad rash. And she's probably driven your guys batshit crazy with all the singing. Us turning up will be like Jesus rising from the grave to them."

"Oh, is she bad?"

"She's freaking brilliant", she responded. "But for people who aren't used to it, it can get old pretty fast."

"I see", he said slowly. "What kind of music does she sing?"

"Oh, bits and pieces", she shifted her P90, looking around at the silent forest. "Some old, some new. She has a bit of a thing for love songs."

"Miss me?"

They turned around in time to see John sliding down the face of a particularly large boulder, Ronon hot on his heels. The characteristic lopsided grin was plastered over the Colonel's face as he hopped up the next rock to climb over. He jumped down, dusting off his pants.

"Okay, I'm taking point. Ronon, you got the six."

They moved into a queue, shuffling slowly down through the tunnel entrance and flicking on the lights on their weapons as they did. Their footsteps echoed alarmingly loudly as they made their way deeper and deeper inside.

All of a sudden, the walkway opened up into a large cavern and an amazing sight. A cheerful sounding stream, an abundant island and a steaming hot spring were incredible features in the cave. A small alcove off to one side seemed to contain a makeshift bedding area, and a small chest sat atop a small cluster of rocks with a small, oddly shaped plant growing out of it.

"Stay sharp", whispered John, looking around at it all as he crept slowly forwards.

"Is it wraith?" asked a muffled voice from across the cavern. "No wait-!"

A head popped up from behind a large boulder on the island, brown hair illuminated by a halo of golden light.

"Oh my god, its them!" shrieked the woman, who then stood up fully, pulling Doctor Beckett to his feet.

"Docs!" cried John, surging forwards, team close behind.

"Oh thank god", said Carson. "Its good to see familiar faces."

"Wait", said Lorne, frowning. "Where are Hyatts and Knox?"

Willow's face fell. "They were taken during the culling", she said quietly. "We…they're just gone. I'm sorry, Evan."

A mask came over the Major's face and Ash placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, squeezing slightly. There was an uncomfortable silence for several moments before John spoke.

"We're kind of on the clock", said John, shifting his weight. "Daedalus is in position behind one of the moons, but we know the wraith are pretty active in this area. I don't want us here longer than necessary.

"Right", said Willow, rushing over to the small chest. She picked it up and half tucked it under her arm.

The Colonel raised an eyebrow at her.

"It's a long story", she said. "But like you said, wraith. Lets get outta here."

"Okay", he said. "Lorne, you're on point with me. Docs in the middle. Ronon, Woodstock, take the six. Lets move."

They trekked slowly down the mountainside, heading directly for the jumper.

"So", said Willow, huffing as they walked. "I don't suppose anyone checked out what's on for dinner in the mess tonight?"

Ash grinned. "Sure did. Provided we get back in time for prep, its steak, chips and salad."

"Oh god, steak", Willow's mouth watered at the concept.

"I take it you two have been surviving on berries and whatever other plant crap you could find?" asked Lorne.

"Well, I tried hunting", she grimaced. "It didn't work out so well."

Ash snickered. "You? Hunting?"

"Well I…I lost Carson's tac knife and got chased up the mountain by a herd of uh…boar things?"

Ronon made a strangled sound, trying not to laugh.

After quite a long walk, they reached the clearing and filed into the jumper, Carson and willow bringing up the rear.

"Nice outfit", commented Heidi, smirking at her teammate. "What happened to your uniform?"

"Long story", said Willow, doing a twirl to show off her scarf top. "This was a bargain though. Its part of a collection I'd like to call 'scavenger'..."

Ash snickered from the front seat. "You're mad, as usual. I was kinda hoping being stuck in a cave for two and a half weeks would mellow you out a little."

"No such luck, I'm afraid", said Carson. Willow whacked him on the arm.

John brought the puddle jumper online with a tapering hum, hands gripping the controls loosely. "Okay kids, play nice."

Heidi folded her arms, leaning back against the seat and awkwardly trying to avoid the cargo netting above her head. "So what's with the plant?"

Willow shifted the chest on her lap. "Its a Jhukka fruit sapling", she said excitedly. "It's extremely rare and valuable, making it an excellent trade opportunity if we can manage to cultivate it."

"Jhukka fruit?" asked Lorne, looking interested. "I think I remember Halling telling me about its uh...interesting properties."

"Yes, well, I can tell you that it's not as amazing as it seems", said Willow. "I've been eating it non stop and trust me, it gets boring pretty quick."

"Aye", Carson agreed.

"Well at least you don't smell half bad", commented the Captain.

"Oh really? Come a bit closer and you'll know about bad smell!" Willow folded her arms. "I gotta say I am hanging for a shower big time."

"Wanna hijack my tub?" asked Ash, leaning out to look at her. "Courtesy of Colonel Sheppard."

"Nah", she said, after pondering for a moment. "We had a hot spring in the cave. I think I'll take the shower for once."

"A freaking hot spring, are you serious?" asked Heidi, looking amazed. "Jeez, last time I got stuck off world I had to paint myself with mud and sleep under a tree! How do you get so damn lucky?!"

"Yeah, it was a pretty amazing cave", said Lorne, turning in his seat. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Well, for all its comforts, lets just say I'm glad to be going home", said Willow. "Now, does anyone have food, because seriously. I'm dying here."

Heidi tossed her a power bar, which she hastily unwrapped and began to eat.

"Oh my god", she exclaimed. "Crappy military rations never tasted so damn good!"

"Okay kids, lets take it to the infirmary. You guys are way overdue for a physical", said John, sidling past them to bop the door control.

"That was quick", commented Carson, getting to his feet as Willow groaned slightly. "Erm, which way to the infirmary again?"

"This way, docs", Lorne bustled past, waving an arm in their direction. "I know this ship like the back of my hand."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

It had been three long days since their return to Atlantis. Carson had finally decided to seek out Willow.

He found her shut up in one of the botany labs, pouring over a laptop with one hand wrapped around an extraordinarily large mug of tea. She looked up at the sound of the door opening and he immediately noticed the dark circles under her eyes.

"Oh, hey Carson", she said softly, lifting the mug. "Sorry I haven't really seen you. I kinda got stuck into it since we got back. There's not a lot of information on Jhukka trees in the database. And it was kinda hard to find thanks to Ancients having a different damn name for it…"

He eased into a chair opposite her and gently placed his hand on hers. "Lass, we need to talk."

She took a long drink from her mug, and placed it back on the table, looking down at her keyboard and trying to think of something to say. "Carson, I—"

"Are we…" he began at the same time.

"No, you go first", she said as he looked at her uncertainly.

He cleared his throat and shifted in the seat. "Well, I suppose I should start by telling you that…well, that I've come to care about you a great deal in the past three weeks. I suppose I want to know where we stand."

She looked up at him, her large hazel eyes wide as she drank in his words. Of its own accord, her arm stretched out to place a dainty hand on his. She opened her mouth slightly, but no sound came out and after a moment she closed it again, looking down once more.

Finally, she spoke. "I'm sorry I've kinda been avoiding you. I was…I guess I was scared you might not want to continue now that we're back home."

"Oh, lass", Carson stood and walked around the table until he stood beside her. He took her hand, encouraging her to get to her feet as well. When she did, he took her face gently in his hands and bent closer for a gentle kiss.

They broke apart and he gazed deeply into her eyes.

"I've never wanted anything more", he whispered, searching her. A smile broke over her features and she lurched forwards into a tight hug, nestling against his chest. He held her like that for what seemed to be several minutes before they detangled themselves and he pulled up a chair to sit beside her.

"Apart from that", he said sternly. "Why haven't you come to see me about your obvious lack of sleep."

"Oh", she said sheepishly, reaching for the tea again. "I um…well, I haven't really adjusted well to sleeping alone again. My bed's pretty big and very empty, no matter how many pillows I stack on it. In the end I figured if I'm up I might as well be doing something useful."

Carson was taken aback for a moment, but he recovered rapidly. "Well, I suppose there's something I can do to help with that…all you need do is ask."

She looked at him over the top of her mug, eyes narrowed. "People are going to have a lot to talk about with the handsome and charming Doctor Beckett departing from my quarters every morning."

He leaned back in the chair, folding his arms. "And who said its always going to be me leaving your room. Why not the other way around?"

"Because", she said. "I'll bet you a month's pay that my bed's bigger."

"I'd like to see you prove it", he said, grinning.

"The SGC said I could bring a few effects plus one personal item of unrestricted size. How do you like those odds, hmm?"

Carson pouted. "Well, when we first came here it was one thing you could carry on your person."

"It's my understanding that Colonel Sheppard had something to do with relaxing that rule", she said, reaching to close her laptop. "I'm guessing it went a long way to improve morale, or they probably wouldn't have agreed to it."

"Aye, you're probably right", he agreed, looking at his watch. "It's getting late. Have you eaten?"

It was at that moment her stomach chose to growl. She gave him a sheepish smile. "Not yet, no."

"Right, come on", he said, grabbing her hand and leading her out of the lab. She barely had enough time to swipe the mug from the desk. They walked briskly to the nearest transporter, passing very few people in the hall, most of whom stared at him dragging her along.

The mess hall was mostly populated by military servicemen who had either just finished or were about to start their shifts. Willow spotted Ashley in a far corner having what seemed to be an intense conversation with Rodney over blue jelly.

They hurried to grab trays and head to the buffet, which was miraculously still serving hot food. Carson surveyed the food critically before selecting a curry with rice and dumping a serving on Willow's tray as well. They moved along the short queue, grabbing a fruit cup and bottle of water each, then made their way to an unoccupied table.

Suddenly, Ash appeared. Rodney was close behind, looking uncertain.

"Hey, it's the lovebirds!"

"What are you talking about, asshat", said Willow, looking up at her. "You're a lovebird too! Hi Rodney", she waved at him.

Carson sighed, looking up at the unlikely duo. He folded his arms and fixed the Major with a look.

"O-kay", she said, turning around and shoving the scientist slightly to make him move. "I'm out, man. I better see you at poker night tomorrow, Luxford"

Willow laughed a little. "Maybe if you promise to let me cheat", she called to her friend's retreating back.

She turned back to Carson, smiling.

"I'm sure she meant well", he said. "But I don't much fancy interruptions tonight."

"Ooh, gunna lay your moves on me, huh?" she wiggled her eyebrows at him.

He chuckled. "Something like that. I'm a wee bit rusty, so don't judge me too harshly, okay?"

"Well", she said, raising her bottle. "You've taken a good first step wining and dining me. What's next?"

He paused for a moment. "Well, its movie night tonight, so I suppose we could sneak in late?"

"Hmm, I sorta think crashing at my place seems like a better idea", she said, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. She yawned. "I mean, its not like I've slept the last two nights or anything."

"Right", he said, shaking his head. "I completely forgot. Sorry, lass."

They chatted for another half an hour whilst finishing their meal. Occasionally a friend would come over to join in, but they all seemed to sense that the two wanted to be alone, and thus didn't stay for very long. Finally, their night came to an end when Willow yawned so hard that her eyes started to water.

"I think I need to hit the shower and go to bed. Meet you at mine in twenty?" she asked, standing and grabbing her tray to return.

"Aye, that sounds like a good plan", he responded, smiling. He squeezed her shoulder and sidled down the row of tables towards the pile of dirty trays, then to the transporter.

Willow didn't take long to shower and blow dry her hair. She had already pulled on a random tank top and a semi decent pair of undies when the door chimed. Mentally she called for it to open, knowing it could only be Carson.

"Ehm", came his uncertain voice. "This is the right place, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I'll be out in a minute", she called from the bathroom, turning down the soft Celtic music that was playing in the background.

After a few moments, she came out to see Carson marvelling over her room. All kinds of exotic fabrics and furs were strung from the ceiling in a vast canopy. Candles burned in various positions throughout the room and the enormous bed was topped with pillows and soft looking blankets.

His eyes fell on her and his expression softened. "Interesting place you have here", he said.

"Well", she said. "I do help a lot of people out with good farming technique, and a lot of them tend to want to give me gifts for my work", she said, hands on hips as she looked around. "That and I do a bit of trade with the Athosians and their trading partners from time to time."

"Quite the salesperson, are ye?" he smiled, eyes twinkling.

She nodded her head around a little. "I get a lot of help from Teyla. A lot of people see a newcomer and try to rip them off, so…yeah."

He stepped a little closer, taking her hand in his and, still smiling, leant in for a tender kiss. Willow began to drown in his eyes, mesmerised, until they broke apart. Still holding onto him, she led him to the bed and pulled back the blanket.

"Last chance to back out", she said, turning to eye him.

He was already stripping off his uniform and dumping it in a heap at the end of the bed. "Does this look like the face of a man who wants to back out?" he asked solemnly.

They slipped into the bed together and snuggled close, facing each other. Willow nestled herself against his chest, head tucked comfortably under his chin. His hands came to rest on her back, fingers slipping under the edge of her tank top.

There was silence for a long moment before Willow felt the need to whisper something.

"I love you, Carson", she breathed almost inaudibly.

"Aye", he murmured ever so softly. "I love you too. Goodnight, lass."

"Goodnight."