Make Sure She's Cared For
Disclaimer: I still don't own SGA. Poor poor me. Although, if MGM wants to give it to me, I'll accept!
Rating: K-T
Episode: Tracker (509)
Summary: A sugary sweet continuation of Tracker the way it's supposed to. At least, in my mind.
"Promise me you'll make sure she's cared for..."
"I promise." It was an easy promise to make. Celise's bravery in the face of such sickness and the wraith made Jenn fall half in love with her. She could easily see herself calling this child 'hers'. It would take some juggling of time – what with the infirmary hours, research, offworld missions, and all. However, Teyla was managing beautifully with Torren.
Jenn allowed herself a moment to imagine the possibilities. Evenings brushing her hair and kissing her goodnight; taking her home and introducing Celise to Jenn's father; making a home with her.
It was truly beautiful.
It was also a promise forgotten about in the next hours. Wraith attacked, they lost Kiryk though the gate, and a surgery made the promise from the early morning a flicker of memory.
The next morning, Jenn's 5:30 alarm went off and she blinked away the most beautiful dream she could remember having. She was sitting on a sandy beach making sand castles with Celise when Ronon came up behind them and doused them with a bucket of water. They shared laughter and love. It was all real in a way she hadn't truly experienced since her mom died.
The only trouble was, none of it was actually true. She might be falling in love with the idea of having Celise for a daughter, but she had no idea if she wanted to stay on Atlantis with her much less the higher ups allowing Jenn to keep Celise.
And then there was Ronon. Her feelings for him had grown over the last year and a half. What started out with nervous tension grew in respect, friendship, and longing. A longing that she kept hidden – at least she hoped she did.
Jenn just wished she had a clue how to move forward on that front. A nagging part of her was convinced Ronon might feel the same way.
Well, such thoughts would have to wait for a different day. Today, she had a sparring lesson with Ronon and a possible future with Celise to begin.
It was during the rounds that Jenn hesitantly broached the idea of Celise staying on Atlantis with the girl. "You do know we're going to keep looking for Kiryk, right?"
The wan girl simply nodded.
"He's got every chance now. I managed to disable his tracking device. He just needs to keep ahead of the wraith for a few weeks and he'll lose them."
Again, the girl nodded.
"Then it'll just be a matter of our teams finding him and then he'll be right back with you. Colonel Sheppard said we'd leave a message at M33-985. He's sure to look for us there, since we keep in contact with them."
Celise gave a little smile and nodded again.
"The thing is, we've got to figure out where you're going to stay. I promised Kiryk I'd take care of you, but if there's anywhere else you want to stay, we can make that work too."
Finally, curiosity lit the little girl's eyes. "Does that mean I can stay with you?"
Jenn grinned. "I'd like that very much. I can even introduce you to my friend who pretends to be mean."
Jenn took a moment to smooth her hair and uniform before she went to see Woolsey. 'Remember Jenn. This is a colony. Dr Weir said so. Colonies have kids.' Jenn wrapped up her internal pep talk. "Right?" her fears temporarily over-rode her hopes.
She shook her head and marshaled her arguments. Woolsey just had to let Celise stay. It wasn't just her in the equation. There was a little girl and what was best for her to think of now.
"Mr Woolsey."
The administrator looked up from his laptop. "Dr Keller. What can I do for you?"
"I'd like to discuss what Celise's future holds." 'There, Jenn. To the point, added urgency. Great job.'
"It sounds like a weighty subject. I take it you have something in mind." He sat back in his chair giving her his full attention.
"It is my hope that she can stay here under my care." Jenn tried to project hope and confidence, but was afraid when the only thing she heard was anxiety coloring her voice.
"I see. I assume you've thought this through?"
Jenn simply nodded.
"And Celise? Is she open to the idea?"
"I believe with Kiryk's absence, she'd prefer staying with me on Atlantis. At least, we have a connection that she wouldn't have with strangers."
Woolsey nodded. "Very well. I will present this to the IOA in the best possible light. In the meantime, I imagine you'll need to find more suitable quarters and you have your own duties to attend to."
"Of course. Thank you, Mr Woolsey!" Jenn practically ran from the control room. They were going to be a family! And Woolsey was absolutely right. She needed larger quarters. And clothes! And she really needed to learn to cook something.
The next day, Celise was stronger. Jenn was over the moon about that. In fact, she was feeling well enough to be bored. Which made Jenn doubly glad to see Ronon swing by the infirmary with a doll that looked suspiciously like Celise's.
"How did you manage to find her doll? I thought we'd lost it." Jenn was continually astonished at how resourceful – how thoughtful – he was.
"Found it tracking you guys the other day. Every little girl needs her doll." Ronon tried to shrug it off.
"You're right. Every little girl loves her doll," Jenn smiled. "She insisted on having it right beside her when I was checking her over." Jenn paused, reliving he memory of that first connection with her new daughter. "You still made the effort to make sure she got it back. There are others who wouldn't have bothered."
"Like I said, every girl needs her doll." And just that simply, Jenn's heart melted. She was sure that just then, every feeling she had for Ronon showed in her entire being.
"Are you two keeping company?" The innocent, curious question came from behind her.
Ronon saved her from asking for clarification and – likely – a potentially embarrassing answer. "Not yet, Little One," he answered with a wink. "I'm working on it though."
Jenn's jaw dropped. "We need to talk."
"So, what does 'keeping company' mean?" Jenn practically dragged him out to a balcony for some privacy. The possibilities of this conversation had her heart palpitating.
"What does 'intentions' mean?" Ronon countered.
"I'm hoping they mean about the same thing." Jenn took a deep breath and plunged forward "If someone has intentions, it means they are interested in having a romantic relationship with that other person." Jenn tried to hide how nervous she was. She was pretty sure she was just telegraphing exactly how aflutter she was in actuality. "And keeping company?"
"It's the time when people make their intentions," he said with a wolfish smile, "known to the rest of the community."
"So, are we keeping company?" Jenn asked with a smile.
"Don't know. Do you have intentions?" Ronon grinned.
They held each others gaze for just a heartbeat before Jenn gasped. "I'm a Mom now! You okay with that?"
Ronon's face lit up. "Means I'll be a Papa."
Jenn smiled. "Com'on. I promised to introduce Celise to my friend who only pretends to be mean."
Ronon laughed. "I never pretend."
Mr Woolsey made a point yesterday," Jenn whispered to Ronon soon after Celise fell asleep. It had been a good evening. Probably the best Jenn remembered having. Ronon had gently teased smiles out of Celise. Jenn spent much of the evening in stunned bemusement that Ronon and she were actually keeping company. He'd spent most of the evening holding her hand. Somehow, that simple fact seemed momentous.
Ronon raised his eyebrows and rumbled something that sounded like it might be a question.
Jenn mentally sighed happily. A lifetime stretched out ahead for her to learn all about Ronon – to know what he felt or thought with just a glance.
"He reminded me that my current quarters aren't spacious enough for a child. With you in my life now, I'll need still larger rooms eventually."
Ronon smiled. "Com'on. Let's go look."
And finally, midway up the western tower, facing the sunset, was the perfect suite of rooms. It even had a large balcony between the living area and one bedroom. One of the moons shone in with red-gold light. The golden lights of nighttime Atlantis gave a soft glow in all the rooms.
Somehow, Jenn felt her life confirmed. The suite was designed for a family. There seemed to be a pervading awe of the Ancients. As if they only perused science and higher consciousness. The rooms told Jenn that they lived and loved too.
And here she was. With the man she loved. Envisioning a perfect love, a warm family a homey space. She felt slightly overwhelmed with the sheer immensity of the last week.
A week.
One hundred sixty-eight little hours changed her entire life.
One hundred sixty-eight hours ago, she had a vague nagging sense of wanting more. She had a yen for Ronon, but no idea how to break through her own insecurities and their cultural differences to do anything about it.
One hundred twenty hours ago, she was a kidnap victim and fearing for her life.
Seventy-two hours ago, she had a new friend in Kiryk and was fighting off wraith.
Thirty-six hours ago, she became a mother.
And now. She and Ronon had a place to move their family in to. Life was golden.
She turned from the vista of he city to find Ronon right behind her. The night was perfect. Too perfect to not claim a kiss. Their first kiss. The one she'd been dreaming of, fantasizing over for a year.
She reached up on tiptoe and touched her lips to his. It was the barest of caresses, but it made her tremble and want more. She touched the tip of her tongue to his lips and traced their shape. Jenn pulled back and traced her own lips to capture the taste of his lips on hers. She looked up to see his whole face, but Ronon followed her and captured her mouth with his.
The starlight shimmered. The moonlight shimmered. She was sure she was shimmering with the magic of his kiss. It was as if the universe kissed them with sparkles and glitter and golden bells ringing.
So much sooner than Jenn was ready for, Ronon gentled the kiss and pulled away. It was only the future promise of more kisses that allowed her to regain her footing.
"Wow!"
"Yeah!"
Celise continued to heal. It was just a few days before she was allowed to get up and walk. The new family slowly made their way around the infirmary level. "Wait until I take you guys home to Dad's. We live just a couple of blocks from a great park." Jenn paused. And then stopped. "Oh, God! How am I supposed to explain a daughter and a boyfriend coming from a classified location? I mean, I can't really say I found you in Colorado when he knows that's not where I really am."
"Breathe, Jennifer. We'll come up with something. I'm sure Woolsey and O'Neill and everyone is working on that now." Ronon squeezed Celise's hand and smiled over her to Jenn. "I'm the local civilian in charge of security. Celise is what she is. An orphan refugee you're adopting."
Jenn's mini panic attack eased. "So, partial truths. Makes sense. Makes it easier too. Any good lie has at least two parts truth."
Celise giggled. "You're not supposed to be teaching the young to lie."
"She's got a point." Ronon teased.
"Yeah, yeah. So I'm a lousy mother already." Jenn felt a slight tremor in Celise's hand and turned them back to the infirmary.
"So, how soon before Celise here is well enough to go to Earth?"
"Maybe another week or so. She's still fairly weak. A week of rest and good food will do her wonders."
"That's good. Besides, I'm going to need to talk with your Dad."
"Oh?"
"Yeah," Ronon smirked not offering more.
A/N - This is only three weeks late for Intentions Day. Sorry about that. Everybody got busy on me and I had to take up slack. Also, it's obvious I'm out of practice. When I was writing this months ago, (before life screwed up on me) I had much more in mind. I just can't figure out if it's ok to stop here or if I need to go write more. Anyways. Reviews are wonderful. Yes, as always, I've got a dozen stories in my writing notebook.