-1Misunderstanding
By: YappiChick
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never will be.
Author's note: Just a silly little tale.
Elizabeth looked at Rodney, Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon. "So, everything is all set, right?"
Rodney nodded. "I got Zelenka working on it right now. Who knew he'd make such a delightful party planner?" he commented sarcastically.
Elizabeth nodded, ignoring the jib, before turning to Ronon and Teyla. "Remember, Carson doesn't know about this party, so don't say anything, ok?"
Teyla smiled reassuringly. "The colonel has explained the concept of a surprise party, Dr. Weir. We will not reveal the secret."
Ronon shrugged. "The only time I talk to him is when one of you guys gets hurt and is in the infirmary."
"All right. Then, we'll meet in the conference room at 1900 hours," Elizabeth said. She stood up and left the room.
Everyone else followed her lead, exiting out the room. John walked to Teyla's side. "Hey, you want me to meet you at your quarters before the party? I wanna see what you got Carson."
She nodded. "Sure."
"Great," he said with a smile and walked ahead to talk to Ronon.
Rodney walked next to her. "So, the colonel finally decided to act on his feelings I see."
She stopped walking and looked at McKay. "I am not sure I understand what you are talking about."
"The colonel asking you to be his date to Carson's party. Frankly, it's about time. I mean when the two of you are together, the room reeks of pheromones."
She shook her head. "I do not believe that he asked me to be his date. He only wants to stop by to see the present I am giving to Carson."
"He's just using that excuse to see you. I mean, he's going to see the present at the party, right?" he asked.
"Well…yes," Teyla answered hesitantly.
"And how often am I wrong?"
Teyla raised her eyebrow.
"Look," he said, "the point is that I know how guys think. And he's thinking you are going to be his date tonight."
Teyla forced herself not to smile. Could the colonel really want to move things forward? For so long, they had tiptoed the line of close friends with the taste of something a bit more. "Very well, I will assume you are right. Is there anything I should know? There are not many people who date here on Atlantis and I am not fully aware of any customs you may have."
Rodney thought for a minute then snapped his fingers. "Go to your quarters. I'll meet you there in thirty minutes," he said quickly before walking away. He turned back around after a couple of seconds. "And no, this isn't a date."
True to his word, thirty minutes later, Rodney showed up at Teyla's quarters with his hands full. "Rodney, what is all of this?" she asked, as he put everything on her bed.
He looked at the pile. "Um, clothes, shoes, makeup and some other stuff Elizabeth gave me."
At first, she was panicked. He had gone to Elizabeth? However, her confusion superceded her worry. "Why would I need those things?"
"Well, you can't go in that," he said, referring to her Athosian outfit.
"Why not?" she asked angrily.
"Because you have to wear something the colonel hasn't seen before. That's part of the date. It's all about leaving a good impression," he said, as if he was an expert on the subject.
She looked at the items he brought. "I do not think--"
"Ah! This will be perfect!" he said, holding up a black dress.
"Why does Dr. Weir have all these dresses?" Teyla looked at the pile of clothes suspiciously.
"Well, actually, there not all hers…we contacted a few of the women here on Atlantis and are borrowing some of their clothes," Rodney explained.
Color flooded Teyla's face. "How many people know of your plan?"
He shrugged off her embarrassment. "All that matters is that the colonel doesn't find out." He walked over to the bed and started flipping through the dresses.
"What if you are wrong? And the colonel does not want me to attend this part as his date?"
He looked up, holding a black dress in his hand. "Then I'll tell you I am sorry." He handed her the dress. "Here this is perfect. Low cut in the front. High cut slit on the side. The sleeves are a little rustic, but it should work." He pushed her towards her bathroom. "Put this on. " Rushing back to the bed, he kept talking. "And you have to do something with your hair."
He stacked various hair styling products on top of the dress. "Make it poofy. Guys like poof." He gestured wildly to the top of his head. "I'll wait out here."
Twenty minutes later, Teyla opened the door cautiously. "Rodney, I do not think this is appropriate."
Rodney dropped his tablet on her desk. "Oh, come on now, you're just not use to seeing formal clothing from Earth. Let me see."
Humoring him, she stepped out with a frown on her face.
Rodney cringed when he saw her. "I can't believe it. You're the Athosian version of Elvira. Take it off. Take it off."
She shot him a look, as if to say, "I told you so" and returned to the bathroom.
"All right, McKay, you're going to need some help," he said to himself. He tapped his earpiece. "Elizabeth, I need your help down here."
Meanwhile, John and Ronon walked to the mess hall, talking about Carson's party.
"You know, it's great. I heard Elizabeth actually brought back his turtles that he got on Earth. He's going to be thrilled," John said, taking a seat. "Hey, listen, I'm going to pick up Teyla before the party. We'll stop by your quarters and you can come with us, k?"
Ronon shrugged. "Fine by me."
The door chimed as Teyla walked back out to her bedroom in her Athosian clothes. "Rodney," she said warningly as she placed the black dress back on the bed. "Who is that?"
He shrugged off her question and went to the door. "Ah! Good, Elizabeth, you're here."
Elizabeth entered the room with a slight smile. "So, I hear you need some help."
Teyla forced a smile, though all she wanted to do was get the two of them to leave her quarters. With force, if necessary. "Actually, I think I--"
"Before we start the chit chat, I want to know who invited the bride of Frankenstein to be part of this expedition," Rodney said, holding up the dress Teyla had just taken off.
Elizabeth frowned. "You had her try that on? No wonder you called me down here." She shook her head in disbelief. "That's Dr. Wilson's. You know that her tastes have a tendency to be…"
"Eccentric?"
"I was going to use the word original," Elizabeth said. She turned her attention to Teyla. "So, this is your first date with John?"
Teyla shook her head. "I am still not certain that this is a 'date'. He just offered to pick me up and take me to Carson's party."
Elizabeth and Rodney exchanged a knowing look. "When a man offers to take you to a party, or any kind of social event, that is most certainly a date," Elizabeth reassured her. "But, I will say that this does seem a bit forward of John. Hmmm," she said thoughtfully.
She turned to the clothing on the bed, "Now let's see what we have here." She held up a plain beige dress. "This looks nice."
Rodney made a face. "Remember, Sheppard is an alien babe magnet. Boring won't keep him interested."
Both women scowled at him.
Elizabeth looked at her friend. "Rodney, why don't you check to make sure the colonel doesn't know what's going on? I'll help Teyla get ready."
Rodney frowned. "There is no way he could know. I mean, unless you said something, which I am sure you didn't. Besides--"
"Rodney. Go. Come back in thirty minutes," Elizabeth instructed.
"Fine," he pouted. "But, remember, this idea is mine!" The doors shut as he was still complaining.
Elizabeth turned back to Teyla with a smile. "This is going to be fun."
Twenty minutes later, Rodney approached Teyla's quarters. He impatiently ran his hand past the door crystal. Even though he knew Elizabeth was only trying to help, he couldn't help but to feel annoyed at her pushing him out of the way.
"Come in," he heard Teyla call. Was it him or did she seem annoyed?
When he walked in, he was greeted with a sight that was almost as bad as her first outfit. "Elizabeth! She's going on a date, not negotiating a peace treaty for the UN!"
In front of him, Teyla was wearing a light tan skirt that hit her mid-calf. She wore a matching suit jacket with dark brown pumps. Her hair was pulled back in a classic bun. Her uncomfortable smile finished off the outfit.
"She looks elegant!" Elizabeth argued.
"She looks like she should be standing in the middle of a courtroom! Sheppard's going to take one look at her and fall asleep!" Rodney said animatedly.
"Can I say something?" Teyla asked.
"NO!" The both yelled.
That was it. She was going to get her banto sticks and make them leave. Before she could say anything else, Elizabeth put her hands up. "I'm sorry, Teyla. We're not use to playing Cupid."
Despite her anger, she asked, "Cupid?"
"According to ancient mythology on our planet, Cupid was the god of love," Rodney answered.
If he behaved the way the two of them did in matters of love, it was no wonder why there was so much trouble amongst their people, Teyla thought.
"I appreciate the help the two of you have tried to provide. But, if John can not accept me for who I really am, then I am not interested in going on a date with him," she said.
Elizabeth and Rodney looked away, embarrassed. "Teyla, I apologize again. We got carried away."
Teyla smiled. "It is all right."
Elizabeth looked at Rodney. When he didn't say anything, she gestured at Teyla.
"What? Oh! Yes. I'm sorry too, Teyla. If there were two people who needed this-" The door chime cut him off.
Elizabeth looked at him suspiciously. "Did you invite anyone else, Rodney?"
"Who me? No no."
Teyla waved her hand in front of the door crystal. On the other side, John stood. "Teyla," he said slowly. "What the hell is going on here?" he asked, taking her appearance and the fact Rodney and Elizabeth were in her room.
"John! What are you doing here?" asked Elizabeth.
He glanced at Teyla and then to Weir. "I was picking Teyla up to go to Carson's party."
Rodney looked at his watch. His eyes widened. "The party is in fifteen minutes!"
Elizabeth looked down at herself. She hadn't gotten ready for the party either. As much as she wanted to hear the exchange between the two of them, she knew she had to go.
"Excuse us, John," she said, pushing her way past him.
Once the two of them left, John looked at Teyla. "What's going on here?"
With a sigh, Teyla explained the events that occurred over the past two hours. When she was done, John ran his hand through his hair.
"Why out of all the people on base would you listen to McKay for advice on the opposite sex?" John asked.
"Elizabeth agreed with him also," she reminded him.
"Yeah, but she's got a soft spot for McKay," he argued. "Listen, I'm glad you stood up for yourself at the end, but Teyla…" he didn't want to finish the sentence, not wanting to hurt her feelings.
"This was never a date, correct?"
"Yeah," he admitted.
To his surprise, she smiled. "It is nice to know that I do know you, even better than your own people," she said.
She had no idea how true that is, he thought. "Why don't you get changed? I'll go pick up Ronon and we'll swing by here before we go to Carson's party."
She nodded, glad to not have to wear the outfit any longer. "I will see you shortly."
"And Teyla? When I ask you on a date, you will definitely be the first person to know," he said with a wink.
As the doors closed, Teyla smiled.