AN: This was just an idea that popped into my head. I don't profess to be any sort of great author, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to share. This is set after the premiere of Season 4.

Chapter 1

"Good luck, everyone," called Dr. Weir. Teyla, Ronin, and Rodney entered the shining blue pool of liquid that filled the expanse of the Stargate.

Dr. Keller stopped John in his tracks. "Colonel Sheppard, don't forget about your physical therapy session. You need to report to the infirmary as soon as you return," she announced. The new head of medicine flashed John one of her smiles. He nodded and spun around toward the gate. He ignored the aches and pain that came from his recent ordeal with the Replicators.

John entered the Stargate, unaware that something extremely unsettling would happen on the other side. The familiar swirling blue and white lights of the wormhole surrounded his being. He sensed his body coming apart, molecule by molecule, as he zipped through.

A red light washed over him, but only for a split-second. "Strange," he thought. John felt his molecules come back together as he exited the wormhole. He walked through the Stargate, only to find himself in familiar surroundings. The control room.

"John?" a surprised voice called out. "John Sheppard?" The gate techs stood with their mouths gaping open. Rodney stepped forward, in his pajamas, looking haggard from a restless sleep.

John scanned the room. "McKay, what the hell are we doing back here? And since when do we wear pajamas on missions?"

His friend didn't acknowledge his questions. "Col. John Sheppard! You're alive!" Rodney screamed. He ran up to John and bear-hugged him.

John just stood there. "Rodney."

"I can't believe it!" McKay spun around to the techs. He yelled very quickly, "Find Dr. Weir. Get a medic up here. Quick, quick! Don't just stand there." The men ran to their consoles.

"Rodney."

"Oh, oh, oh, oh! Don't forget Teyla. Contact Teyla." A tech scrambled to dial-up the gate. The wormhole initiated sooner than John expected. Rodney pulled him out of the way of the vortex.

"Geez, McKay! What the hell is goin' on here?"

Rodney could only gawk at him with his goofy smile. "You're alive." He bear-hugged him again.

"Rodney, if you don't get off of me..."

"I know, I know. You'll shoot me. God, you don't know how much I missed you."

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"So, what are you saying? That John might have amnesia?" Dr. Weir clamored. She and Dr. Keller were in one of the offices of the infirmary. Only twenty minutes had passed since John returned through the gate.

"Yes. He still thinks the Wraith are a threat. I haven't had much of a chance to delve deeper, but I think Dr. Heightmeyer may want to step in for that part."

"Right. What about his physical health? Any anomalies?"

"Other than a sore shoulder and back, nothing. I took some blood and tissue samples to analyze for the Wraith toxin. If we find any increase since the last time we checked him, I'll administer the antidote right away. But I won't know until tomorrow morning." Dr. Keller stifled a yawn.

Dr. Weir placed a hand on her shoulder. "Get some sleep. It's been a long couple of months. I'll tell John to do the same."

The other doctor nodded in thanks. "He can return to his quarters if he likes. No reason to keep him here now." She excused herself and left.

Elizabeth peered through the glass at John, who was sitting on an infirmary bed. She expected to see him bloody and injured, but instead, he came back seemingly unscathed. Rodney was speaking at mach-speed about God-knows-what. It looked like John was getting a headache. She decided to save him before Rodney's banter did any more brain damage. "Rodney, I think John could use a rest."

McKay looked up. "Huh? Oh. Well, yes. Of course. I guess now that you're back we'll have plenty of time to catch up, won't we?" He smiled innocently at Sheppard. John stood up and patted Rodney on the shoulder. He mouthed a quiet 'thank you' to Weir as he began to walk out.

"Come by my office when you feel ready," she said in her most sympathetic voice. "There's a lot we need to discuss." John nodded in confirmation and left.

'Weird,' he thought. The Colonel wondered where the time went. Judging by everyone's reactions, he was gone long enough for them to worry. But where? And why couldn't he remember?

As John walked through the halls, Atlantis felt eerily different. The hall lights were dimmed, but of course, it was the middle of the night. There was something else. 'I can't quite put my finger on it.' The strange silence was unusual. John expected to see a marine on duty here and there, but saw no one.

He found his quarters and waved his hand over the door console to open it, like usual. The room was dark. From what he could tell, everything was in the same place. John placed his service pistol in the drawer next to the bed. He stripped down to his boxers and jumped in. "Something seriously weird is going on here." John thought back to Dr. Keller. Her hair had changed. Bags had formed under Elizabeth's eyes. And Rodney. What was wrong with Rodney? "What the hell happened to me?" He wondered where Teyla and Ronin were. Sleep began to overcome him.

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The Stargate began its usual dance of lights. Dr. Weir walked into the control room, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "It's Teyla and her search party, ma'am," explained a tech.

"Deactivate the shield." The shimmering effect of the shield gave way to Teyla and three heavily clad marines. Months of stress had taken the beautiful glow out of her face. Teyla's shoulders slumped slightly.

"Elizabeth, you said you had urgent news." She braced herself for news of John's death.

Dr. Weir walked up and hugged Teyla. "He's alive."

Teyla's muscles loosened. "He's alive," she whispered, repeating the words. "Thank the Ancestors."

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An hour after John fell asleep, the door to his quarters opened quietly. The faint humming sound it created was enough to wake him. 'I thought I locked that door.' He sensed footsteps. Slow. Unsure. John silently grabbed his pistol out of the drawer. He shut his eyes and pretended to sleep.

The footsteps stopped at the side of the bed. He could hear the rustling of items, but without looking, he couldn't tell what they were. Then, the covers began to creep off of his body. His muscles tensed. 'Crap,' he thought.

Suddenly, John shot up with his pistol ready to shoot at his would-be attacker. He slammed the button for the lights. When they came on, all he saw was Teyla.

Her eyes lit up, then filled with tears. Joy? Fear, maybe? He wasn't sure. She held her hands up. Calmly, she spoke. "John, it's me. Put your weapon down."

"Oh. Teyla. I didn't know it was you." John relaxed his stance. He placed his pistol in the drawer. "I've been feeling a little weird since I got here."

Teyla gave him a slight smile and bowed her head. "I understand. I might feel the same way if I had been out there alone for so long." She walked over and hugged him, burying her head into his chest. John had to admit, this was much better than a Rodney McKay bear hug. "I have missed you greatly, John."

Before Sheppard could ask how she got into his quarters, Teyla did something rather unexpected. She kissed him. Hard. One hand cradled his head while another traveled down his chest as if it had done this a hundred times before. John began to return the kiss when he realized that this could only happen in his fantasy. Was this another illusion like the one on M5S-224?

John pulled back suddenly and grabbed his pistol again, aiming it at Teyla. "I knew something was up. This isn't real, is it?"

Teyla could not hide her surprise. "John, it's me. Of course this is real. Put your weapon down. I will not harm you."

"The Teyla I know would never come on to me like that. Now tell me where I really am, and who you really are!" He disabled the safety on his pistol. Teyla flinched at its sound.

She tried to remain calm. John had not aimed a weapon at her in a very long time. "John, I believe you are disoriented from your ordeal. I would not lie to you. You are in your quarters in Atlantis. With your wife."

"Wife?" John shook his head in disbelief. "Now that's a load of bull. You know damn well I'm not good at the whole marriage thing." He paused. "Or maybe, you don't. Who are you!" he demanded.

"How can you not remember me?" Teyla's normally calm face scrunched up and began to leak tears. "I just do not understand," she cried. She fell to her knees and covered her face. John was startled. Her reaction seemed genuine. Something told him this was no illusion.

"If you're my wife, then you should know some things about me that no one else knows. Things I wouldn't tell anybody."

Teyla wiped her tears with the back of her hand and looked him straight in the eye. "Yes. Like the day you got lost in the woods as a boy. You wet your pants because you were so scared." John's face cringed at the embarrassing memory. Teyla spent another five minutes listing all the private information about John that she knew. "...Or the mole that's on your..."

"Okay, okay." John finally lowered his weapon. "I believe you." He stared at her, trying to imagine what being Teyla Emmagen's husband was like. Nothing came to mind. His amnesia must have been blocking all those memories, good and bad. "I don't get it, Teyla. Last I remember, we were just good friends." The consequences of his amnesia were starting to become clear. "How much time have I really lost?"

"What Earth year do you think it is, John?"

"2007."

"Then you have lost five years." A single tear followed the path other tears had made down Teyla's cheek.

Jack collapsed on the bed. 'Five years?'