A/N: Written for round two of the LFWS challenge over at the sgahcchallengers on live journal. No spoilers for any episode. Just a little team-ish love from an OC point of view.

Manetti won the bet. His first time in, and he took the whole pot. The wager was for which team would return from off world with casualties next, bonus points for calling the injured party and the shift. Of course, when the alarm went off in the control room, we didn't know that this was the winning call. All we knew was that there was suddenly something in Atlantis airspace that hadn't been there before. And it was hailing us.

"Atlantis, this is Doctor Rodney McKay! Please don't shoot! We're beaming in!"

There was outright panic in his voice, but there wasn't a lot of time to do much more than register it before there was a flash of light in the middle of the gate room floor. When the light cleared there was a huddle of bodies left in its wake. Moments later, that huddle was surrounded by armed marines.

One form pulled back from a protective position over three others. "I said don't shoot!" That was McKay, and he looked pissed, and terrified, and he was covered in blood and bruises. And Ronon unfolded, too, backing him up with personality alone because that big laser gun he always had was nowhere in sight.

That's when we saw what McKay and Ronon had been protecting. Teyla remained curled on her side, brown hair matted with something dark and ominous. She wasn't moving.

Sheppard was moving, but not in a good way. He was flat on his back, so covered in blood and filth that it was a few seconds before I realized he wore little more than torn uniform pants. The whole of his body trembled with shock or cold or both.

Stunned stillness descended, and then organized chaos erupted.

"Medical team to the gate room!"

"McKay?! What happened?!"

"Where'd you come from?!"

In the midst of the shouted questions, McKay seemed to collapse in on himself as he shared a look with Ronon. The Satedan rested a hand on McKay's shoulder and spoke so softly that I could barely make out the words.

"You did it McKay. You got us home. That's what matters."

I'm not sure what McKay's response was but it brought the briefest of smiles to the big man's face, and then the four of them were enveloped by medical staff.

So, yeah, Manetti won. But ten to one, he'd never actually collect. He would do what everyone else had done – he'd donate the winnings to a get well gift to the injured parties from everyone.

And the office pool would live on.