Author's Note: Originally published on LiveJournal in May 2007. Reviews are wonderful as always.

Spoilers! "Progeny" (minor), "The Return"

The air on the balcony was cool and clean. It was somehow refreshing to stand here and just think about things.

That was what she'd always thought. No wonder she kept coming back here. Of course, it was particularly refreshing after so much time spent away from Atlantis.

She was laughing. A hand brushed the hair away from her face. Her laughter was abruptly cut off as a pair of lips found hers and enveloped them in a sweet kiss.

Elizabeth stood with her back to the city, her elbows resting on the railing. She lowered her chin to her crisscrossed fingers and stared out at the ocean, contemplating the events of the past few days.

It hadn't been that bad, she reflected. A little strange, perhaps. No, strange wasn't the word… different?

They were on the ground now. She was still laughing when his lips moved away, finding her neck instead. Her hands groped along his body.

Yes, it had definitely been different. Different from other missions, certainly, but also different from what she might have expected, given the circumstances. After all, Replicators didn't usually grant… pleasant visions. And she ought to know.

"Whoa, hey," she breathed, catching his hands in hers as they started to toy with her shirt. "Not yet, remember?"

"You know you want me," he murmured, nuzzling her neck.

"I know. But I'm not ready." She lifted his hands to her own face and rubbed them against her cheeks, smiling lazily up at him.

"When will you be ready?"

"Maybe someday," she teased, laughing again at the look on his face.

"Elizabeth?"

She turned from the balcony, somewhat startled. Leaning back against it, she raised an eyebrow at John. "Yes?"

"Thought I'd find you here." John moved forward to lean next to her.

Elizabeth looked up at him sideways. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, really." John gave her a playful shove. "This is where you always go when you want to think."

"What makes you think I'd be thinking?" Elizabeth asked, her voice teasing.

John rolled his eyes. "Come on, Elizabeth. You were stuck to a Replicator for three days. I imagine that'd give you a lot to think about."

"Actually, nothing happened," said Elizabeth, straightfaced. "I was completely unconscious the whole time." When John gave her a look, she laughed and shoved him back. "Of course I have a lot to think about. That doesn't necessarily mean I would want to."

"I don't know," said John speculatively. His gaze, directed towards her face, was thoughtful. "You've been very pensive since we found you."

Elizabeth shrugged lightly. "So what? It's just thinking."

"I know, I'm just saying." John peered more closely into her face. "What did you see while you were stuck to that Replicator?"

"I wasn't 'stuck' to her," Elizabeth protested.

"Whatever. You're avoiding the question."

Elizabeth looked away. She chewed her lip absentmindedly, thinking back to those three days.

The view was breathtaking. She hadn't expected the planet to be so beautiful, but the fields were endless, covered with soft green grass and dotted with tiny, colorful flowers of a sort she'd never seen before.

"I never took you for the flower kind of woman," he remarked as she was kneeling beside a patch of yellow.

"Oh, well, it depends," she said, smiling up into his face. "When I get flowers, I never know what to do with them. That doesn't mean they aren't pretty."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his nose in her hair. "You're pretty," he murmured. She laughed and tilted her head up to receive his kiss.

"Elizabeth!" John was waving his hand in her face. "Answer the question."

Elizabeth blinked and shook herself. "What? Oh… I'd rather not discuss it," she said quickly, feeling her cheeks turn slightly pink.

John rolled his eyes and smirked at her. "Have it your way," he said, before shoving her one last time and sauntering away, ignoring the dirty look she shot after him.

Half annoyed and half amused by the colonel's antics, Elizabeth turned back to the ocean and folded her arms on top of the railing, her mind drifting away again.

When they broke apart, he took her hand and rose, helping her up. She leaned against him for a moment, enjoying his warmth.

"I think the cabin is that way," he said, pointing. She could feel his voice vibrating deeply in his chest.

"How did we manage to find this convenient little planet?" she asked, moving along with him as he started in the direction he'd indicated.

He shrugged. "I dunno. I think some world suggested it to us. Apparently they send their newly married couples here."

She giggled. "But we're not married."

"Not yet." He nuzzled the top of her head and kissed it. "You wanted to do it on Earth, remember?" His fingers found the ring on her left hand.

"I remember." She stopped in her tracks and turned around to look up at him, pressing her body against his. "I'd rather do it there than on some random planet."

Elizabeth shook her head, rubbing her forehead as she thought. Marriage? That was one of the things she hadn't quite figured out about her experience yet. It had been like some sort of bizarre dream.

He chuckled and kissed her forehead. "I guess it would be a harder decision to make if Sateda was still around."

"Hm… that depends. What was your marriage ceremony like?" She shifted away from him to take his hand, and they started walking again.

"Not much," he admitted. "A little celebration, a feast." He grinned. "I always liked that part the best. The rest was boring."

Smirking, she squeezed his hand. "Then I'd still have chosen Earth."

"Whatever you want." He squeezed back, smiling down at her. She smiled back.

That was another part she didn't get. Why had it been Ronon, of all people? She could imagine herself having bizarre dreams about John or even Rodney – but she hardly had any relationship with Ronon beyond the professional one.

Despite this, it had seemed all too real at the time. More strangely, she had really enjoyed it – and it didn't even seem like a foreign emotion when she thought back on it. That was what was confusing her the most.

Elizabeth stopped when the cabin came into view, down in the valley. The hill they were standing on rose high above this valley, presenting an even more astonishing view than the one from the Stargate. She stared down at it in awe.

"You like it." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

She grinned up at him. "It's beautiful."

"You're beautiful," Ronon replied softly, taking her into his arms again and pressing his face against her neck.

Elizabeth giggled. (The giggling. That was another thing to confuse her. She didn't giggle.) "Can I compliment anything without you turning it back on me?"

"No," said Ronon stubbornly. He kissed her neck, then pulled away briefly, studying her face. "No," he said again, decisive. He then leaned forward to press his lips against hers.

Elizabeth smiled into the kiss, before opening her mouth and pushing against his lips with her tongue, longing to taste him. He gave in without a fight, tangling his tongue with hers and caressing her body as he deepened the kiss.

After a long moment, they broke apart, both panting for breath. "I love you," Elizabeth murmured, resting her head against his chest.

"Is that why you agreed to marry me?" Ronon teased, grinning.

Elizabeth rubbed her face against his chest. "Mm… maybe," she teased back. "Aren't you supposed to say 'I love you too'?"

"I thought that went without saying," Ronon replied, stroking her cheek.

She couldn't resist a smile at that. It was something any girl would love to hear from the man she'd fallen in love with. "I'm glad."

They stood like that for another long moment. Finally, Elizabeth pulled away and grabbed his hand, grinning. "Let's run," she said, and before he could protest, she'd started down the hill, towing him behind her.

Needless to say, they didn't reach the bottom of the hill on their feet. By the time they were halfway down, they were both tumbling, laughing as they tried to hold on to one another, though they were separated anyway.

When they came to a halt, Elizabeth scrambled to her feet and pounced on Ronon, still laughing. "Wasn't that fun?" she purred, nosing his face lovingly.

"Absolutely." Ronon grinned and grabbed her around the waist, rolling over so that he was lying on top of her. He took her face in his hands and proceeded to kiss her senseless, while she giggled madly and tried to kiss him back at the same time.

Eventually, they started to calm down. Ronon went from kissing to nuzzling, and Elizabeth closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his whiskers against her face.

The sound of footsteps came from behind her. Elizabeth shook herself out of her reverie and turned around in time to see Teyla approaching her.

"Elizabeth," the Athosian greeted, smiling warmly. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," said Elizabeth, her own smile a little rueful. "Despite what everyone seems to think. I haven't spent the past few days being tortured."

"I would have thought three days with a Replicator probing your mind was a form of torture," said Teyla delicately, her eyes roaming Elizabeth's face.

Elizabeth shrugged, feeling slightly awkward. "She wasn't probing."

"No?"

"She gave me a sort of vision, actually." Elizabeth licked her lips, suddenly nervous. She was coming awfully close to admitting what she'd experienced. "Well, it may have been a type of mind probe, but… I don't think so."

Teyla eyed her curiously. "Why do you say that?"

Elizabeth flushed. "She talked to me, afterwards. It was the last thing I saw before I woke up in the infirmary."

"Ah." Teyla looked even more curious, but she didn't press. Elizabeth was grateful – she'd already said more than she'd intended.

For a moment she thought Teyla was going to leave, but instead the other woman approached her and leaned against the railing beside her. She glanced sideways at her, but said nothing.

Teyla cleared her throat. "Do you mind if I join you? I will try not to bother you."

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, it's fine."

They stood there in silence. Elizabeth's mind began to drift again, thinking back to her conversation with the Replicator.

"What did you do to me?"

"I didn't want to probe your mind," said the woman, looking uncomfortable.

"Then why did you?" Elizabeth snapped.

"I didn't!" the woman protested. "Well – I couldn't stay completely out of it. But I couldn't torture you like the others."

Elizabeth gave her an odd look. "I can't imagine why you would say that."

The woman shuffled her feet, not looking at her. "I'm inexperienced. They want me to practice, but I don't want to. They made me enter your mind, and then something happened – I'm not sure what – but I knew I would be stuck here for a while and I didn't want you to suffer. So I used the information from your mind to build a fantasy for you and prevent your suffering." She said this very quickly, as if desperate to get it out.

Elizabeth blinked at her, processing the information. After a moment, "A fantasy?" she asked.

"Yes. Wasn't it?" The woman peered anxiously into her face. "I thought you were enjoying it."

"I was, but –" Elizabeth stopped, bewildered. "I just can't figure out why that would be my fantasy. Is that really what's in my mind?"

The woman rolled her eyes. "Of course it is. I can't use what isn't there."

Elizabeth frowned. "But that doesn't make any sense. I'm not attracted to Ronon."

"Maybe it's unconscious? I don't know. I told you, I'm inexperienced," said the woman impatiently. "Newly built."

Elizabeth bit her lip, trying to think. Why would she have Ronon in her fantasy?

The woman interrupted her thoughts. "But now that you've figured it out, I'm not sure what I can do. You're strong-minded. I don't think I could keep you in it any longer, not if you know it's not real."

"Where are we, anyway?" Elizabeth wanted to know. "Can't you just wake me up?"

"No," said the woman dismally. "I'm stuck in your mind. I thought I told you that already."

"No, you did," said Elizabeth quickly. "I just wasn't sure exactly what that meant." She looked around at the floor beneath her and then sat, putting her head in her hands. "Well. This should be fun."

The woman sat as well, still looking anxious. "Are you all right?"

"Of course I'm not all right," Elizabeth said dully. "I've got a Replicator in my mind." She sighed. "I guess I should be grateful you're… good-hearted."

"If there was something I could do, I would have done it already," the woman put in.

"I know, I get it." Elizabeth rubbed her forehead, narrowing her eyes at the floor. Now what?

A movement from beside her distracted her from the memory. Teyla had shifted and put her head down in her arms.

Frowning, Elizabeth moved closer. "Teyla? What's wrong?"

Teyla didn't respond, but she started when Elizabeth laid a hand on her arm. "Oh – I am simply tired," she said, smiling faintly. "Do not worry about me."

"Are you sure?" Elizabeth rubbed her thumb gently against Teyla's shoulder. "You look a little upset."

Teyla shook her head. "It is nothing."

Elizabeth gave her a little shake. "Come on, Teyla. You might be able to fool the guys with that, but I know better," she said, gently teasing. "When a woman says 'it's nothing' or 'I'm fine,' she's almost always lying."

Smiling a little, Teyla pressed her hands to her face. "I suppose you are right. I… it's John," she said, hesitant.

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "What about him?"

"When I first met him, I admit I thought he was attractive. I nursed a… a small crush." Teyla shook her head. "I thought I had gotten past it, but lately it has been getting worse again. I do not know what to do," she said sadly, looking up at Elizabeth.

"It's all right," said Elizabeth, her voice somewhat wry. She decided to take a risk. "I just found out that I have a crush on Ronon that I didn't even know about."

Teyla blinked up at her. "What do you mean?"

"The Replicator who was in my mind put me in what she called my 'fantasy,'" Elizabeth explained. "She said she only had my own thoughts to go on."

"And this… fantasy involved Ronon?"

Elizabeth blushed faintly. "Yes."

Teyla thought about this for a moment. "Well… I suppose there is nothing we can do about these things," she said finally. "Only hope that something will happen."

"Hope," Elizabeth repeated, pensively staring back out at the ocean. Hope for what? She wasn't even sure how she felt about Ronon. She hadn't seen him since before her experience with the Replicator…

As she moved away from the railing, she heard Teyla mutter, "Maybe someday…" before looking up at her again, startled.

"I'll see you later," said Elizabeth, an odd expression on her face. She left the balcony quickly, not wanting to deal with any questions.

As she walked, she thought back to the Replicator's 'fantasy' again.

"How much longer are you gonna make me wait?"

"A little longer," said Elizabeth. She was sitting on the bed, her knees pulled up to her chest, arms wrapped around them.

Ronon sat next to her, putting an arm around her shoulders. "I thought this might be a good time to try."

"I'm not ready."

"Elizabeth." When she looked up at him, Ronon kissed her, pulling her face towards his. She closed her eyes, but it was only a brief kiss, and he pulled away after a moment. "I don't want to press you," he said softly.

She smiled weakly. "Thank you."

Elizabeth realized that she was already at the door to the gym. It was closed, and she hesitated, her resolve weakening.

She had to find out.

Pressing her hand against the door panel, Elizabeth peeked inside, wondering if he was actually there.

He was alone, working out, but he stopped when he heard the door open and turned to see who had interrupted him.

"Dr. Weir?"

"Hey," she said breathlessly. "May I come in?"

He blinked at her. "All right," he said gruffly. As she stepped tentatively inside, he shook out his hair. "What do you want?"

It was a little strange to hear his usual abruptness after the Replicator's fantasy, but she tried not to think about it. "I wanted to see how you were doing. I haven't seen you since I got back."

"I'm fine," said Ronon, looking confused. "Why?"

Elizabeth felt herself flushing a little, and tilted her head so that her hair fell down, hiding her face in shadow. "I just wanted to check up on you."

Ronon was silent for a moment. "Oh," he said finally. "I'm fine."

Elizabeth hesitated, then cleared her throat. "Okay. Well then. I guess I'll just…" She gestured towards the door.

"You don't have to," said Ronon quickly. When she looked back at him, startled, he looked uncomfortable, though if he was blushing, it wasn't visible against his ruddy skin tone. "I mean… if you'd rather not."

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked curiously, wondering what his response would be.

Ronon looked at a loss. "Uh, I don't want to push you away."

"It's not pushing," said Elizabeth hurriedly. When he looked at her, she felt the pink in her cheeks deepening. "I mean, everyone needs privacy."

"The gym's a public place," said Ronon, glancing around at the room. "If I wanted to be private, I'd go to my quarters."

She was getting closer to beet color now, she was sure. "Regardless. I don't really belong here…"

"It's your city."

"Not really." Elizabeth frowned at him. "I lead it, but that doesn't make it mine."

"You think of it as yours," Ronon pointed out. "When those Ancients came to take it back, Sheppard said you got really depressed, and you were really mad at them."

"Why were you talking to John about me?" Elizabeth asked, startled.

There was definitely a hint of red in Ronon's cheeks now. "I was… just wondering."

Elizabeth met his eyes for the first time that day, and was surprised to see a hint of longing there. It disappeared quickly, though, and he looked away.

"Ronon," she said softly.

"What?" he grunted.

"Who found me?" She hadn't been told any of the details of her rescue.

Ronon glanced up at her, but then looked down again. "Uh… Sheppard found the planet. McKay figured out where the Replicators were… I found the one with her hand in your head." He hesitated, then added, "And I carried you out."

Elizabeth was watching him with an odd look in her eyes, head tilted slightly to the left, as she tried to decide whether or not to tell him what had happened. Finally, she said softly, "Thank you, Ronon."

"Can I ask you something?" Ronon said after a moment.

"Of course."

"What did the Replicator do to you? Beckett said you were stuck like that for three days." Ronon was eying her curiously.

Elizabeth shifted a little, nervously. "She said she didn't want to torture me, so she put me in what she called a 'fantasy' instead."

"A fantasy?" Ronon sounded bewildered. "What kind of fantasy?"

Elizabeth's blush came back full force. "A… romantic fantasy."

Something about her tone must have given Ronon pause, because he didn't say anything for a long moment, just stared at her. Finally, "Oh," he said.

"I enjoyed it," Elizabeth added, almost shyly. She looked up at Ronon through her eyelashes, half flirting, though she wasn't sure how he would react.

"Funny how it was a Replicator that did it," Ronon remarked, his voice quiet. He met her eyes again, and they looked at one another for another long moment.

"I should go," said Elizabeth at last, looking away.

"You can come back any time you want," Ronon offered. "We could… talk."

His lips were on hers again. She gave in, allowing him to press her against the bed, his fingers sliding up under her shirt.

"You sure you're ready for this?" His breath was hot against her neck.

She breathed deeply, then gasped when she felt his teeth, and his hands slowly making their way up towards her chest. "I'm ready."

He chuckled and pulled away briefly to tug off her shirt, then bent over her again and started to kiss her in earnest.

Elizabeth smiled faintly. Her eyes traveled across Ronon's chest and then back up to his face, where they lingered, holding a glint of mischief. "Maybe someday."