Title: Sam
Author: Goatcheese
Rating: G
Characters: Beckett, McKay
Acknowledgments: I would like to thank the Academy...wait, wrong speech. Thanks to TJ for the Beta. I know you love to point out my mistakes.
Disclaimer: I own nothing Stargate related...the character of Sam, however, is all mine.

A/N - I didn't use any dialogue on purpose. I was trying something new.

Sam

Carson and Rodney were walking down an empty corridor on Atlantis when Carson stopped abruptly, causing Rodney to shoot a confused look his way. The Scot knelt down and scooped something up into his cupped hand. He closed his other hand over the top and wordlessly changed direction from the mess hall to his lab. Rodney, being the curious scientist he was, followed his friend. He kept peaking around Carson's shoulder trying to get a glimpse of what the doctor was holding, but Beckett's hands were clasped tightly shut.

As soon as the doors opened, Carson went straight towards one of the empty beds in the vacant infirmary. He cracked open his hands, tilting the opening towards the bed. McKay bent down getting his face even with the level of thebedto see what Carson was releasing.

A tiny green bug slowly crawled from the cupped hands and onto the white bed sheets. Rodney let out a small screech and quickly pulled his head away from the bug as fast as humanly possible. Carson smirked at his friend's reaction. For heaven's sake, it was only a wee little bug.

Carson was studying the movement of his little buddy when Rodney grabbed the closest heavy object he could find, a bedpan, and made a move to squish the innocent little creature. The weapon was hurriedly ripped from his grasp and earned him a scowl from the none too pleased doctor. Rodney tried to explain that he was allergic to numerous bugs and could die if the vile thing bit him. Carson reminded the worrisome man that they were in the infirmary and if by some slim chance he was bitten, they could probably save him. McKay glared at Beckett and his less then one hundred percent safety prediction.

They turned their attention once more to the tiny visitor. Carson suspected that it must have been a stowaway on one of the Puddle Jumpers. There were no living plants left on Atlantis, so McKay was forced to agree. Carson wasn't really listening while Rodney rambled on about the many health hazards a mysterious bug could expose the city to. Beckett had taken plenty of biology classes and didn't see the little bug as any kind of threat.

He perched himself onto the bed, careful not to accidentally squish the little guy. He put his finger directly in the walking path of the green guest, and it slowly crawled onto his finger. It walked to the middle of Carson's gentle hand and felt content to just sit there. This action started McKay on a new rant about the bug trying to burrow into Carson's hand or injecting toxins directly into the blood stream. The scientist was basically hopping up and down in dissatisfaction. Beckett just shook his head and explained to Rodney that the bug was not harmful. Of course he didn't really know that, but he had always been a good judge of animals, bugs were no different.

He had a childlike look of joy as he played with the little bug. It wasn't exactly a cute fluffy puppy or kitten, but he still felt a strong connection to it. McKay had calmed down and was now sitting next to Beckett on the bed watching the bug. Carson extended his arm and offered the tiny creature for Rodney to hold, but Rodney wasn't that confident in Carson's entomology skills just yet.

The two scientists just sat there and watched as the tiny creature found renewed energy slowly walking up Carson's wrist, exploring. When the creature got too far up the doctor's arm, he would put his other hand in front of the bug's path, and the process would start all over again.

Cautiously eyeing the little guy and seeing that Carson was still alive, Rodney finally relaxed. When offered for the fourth time, he actually accepted. Beckett carefully tipped the contents of his hand into Rodney's. The Canadian marveled at the little creature and how light it was; he couldn't even feel anything when it started to crawl around on his hand. He passed it back to Beckett after a couple of minutes, snickering as it looked like Carson had found a new little buddy for life and asked his friend what he was going to name the little guy. Carson glared at Rodney, but then his expression changed as if he was making a decision. McKay couldn't believe he was actually going to name the bug; it wasn't a real pet in his eyes, it was a pest.

Carson couldn't believe how attached he had become to a bug; he thought it looked like a Sam. He was already devising a plan in his head to bring back a variety of plants so that it would have a natural habitat to live in. He knew he couldn't do that though. No matter how much he wanted to keep the little creature it deserved to go back to where it belonged. He knew he had to take it back to the mainland.

The doctor stood cradling his little buddy when Rodney stumbled a bit getting off of the bed. He inadvertently jostled Beckett's arm, sending the small bug careening towards the floor. Both men froze, not wanting to accidentally step on their new friend. They crouched down, being careful not to move their feet and started canvassing the immediate area. The attention of the two men was so focused on looking for the lost creatures, they didn't hear as someone entered the infirmary.

A loud smack shattered the silence as a shoe forcefully connected with the hard floor. Muttering about pesky bugs could be heard just behind the two men. McKay looked at Beckett, surprised to see moisture in the other man's blue eyes. At the worried glance he was receiving, Carson stood up and shook off Rodney's concern, saying that after all, it was just a bug. With that he walked out of the infirmary.

The End