CLOSE YOUR EYES AND REST YOUR WEARY MIND

Platon Lilly Ashton smiled as she watched her men race round the orchard. It was a warm, late summer's afternoon and she was content to sit under a tree and knit as her husband and son competed against each other. Up until a few months ago, she would have been eagerly joining in but now she was carrying her second child she was more than happy to be the judge at the end of the contest.

Finn Aston's shrieks of joy filled the air as he sprinted after his papi. The monthly father son race and family picnic's had been the highlight of the summer for the six year old and this was going to be the last one as the nights were beginning to draw in again. Finn was desperate to win.

"Come on Finny," Lilly called. "You can beat papi today!"

"In his dreams," Ben countered as he quickened his pace.

Platon Ben Ashton was as competitive as any father when it came to racing their children but he also knew that he needed to give his son a chance so, and only because it was the final race of the summer, he pretended to trip and allowed one very excited boy to sprint past him and cross the finish line first.

"Yes!" Finn punched the air as he finished. "I beat you, I beat you," he turned and taunted his father who was clambering to his feet.

"You tripped me! Did you see that mami – he tripped me!" Ben held his hands up in mock protest.

Lilly shook her head and placed her knitting down. "No. I am sorry papi but Finn won fair and square!"

"I am the winner, I am the winner." Finn skipped round his father with a huge grin on his face. "You are the loser, you are the loser..."

Ben quickly scoped his son in his arms and spun him round. "You are a cheater, you are a cheater," he chanted.

"Stop it, stop..." Finn giggled.

Lilly continued to shake her head as she poured some juice for her men. "Come on – it's hot. Time to drink," she called and then laughed as Ben dumped Finn in a pile of hay before jogging over to the picnic blanket.

"I won, I won," he chuckled and flopped down at Lilly's side.

"No you didn't," Finn grouched as he picked himself up and stomped after him. "That weren't part of the race," he pouted as he plonked down and folded his arms. "You did cheat!"

"Yes you did," Lilly agreed with her son as she passed him a drink. "Finn beat you by a great distance papi," she smiled and winked at the young boy who quickly drank his juice and held his cup out for a refill.

"Alright, alright," Ben grumbled as he filled the cup for Finn. "You beat me. You're the winner and I'm the loser," he sighed, placed the jug back down on the blanket and reached to ruffle Finn's silky blond hair. "Looks like I'm going to have to practice more for next year," he smiled and leant back again. "Especially seeing as this little one will be up and about," he grinned at his wife as he placed his hand on her swelling abdomen.

"Just think," Lilly sighed in contentment as Ben continued to stroke her stomach. "This time next year three more little people will have joined our family."

Lilly's sister Cara was a matter of days away from delivering her twins and the whole family were on tenterhooks waiting for their arrival. The fact that she was carrying two babies had come as a huge surprise to everyone and she and her husband, Niall were growing very nervous about the whole situation but Lilly knew that the young couple were more than capable of coping with their soon to be handful.

When Cara announced that she was expecting, Lilly had been overjoyed for her sister but her joy had been tinged with sadness for herself. She and Ben had been trying for nearly three years for another child and had been near to giving up hope that Finn would ever have a brother or sister but, out of the blue, after they'd actually stopped trying Lilly had been ecstatic to find herself pregnant. This pregnancy was so different to her first. With Finn, she had been constantly sick but this time she felt wonderful! There were no signs of morning sickness and a part from feeling very tired for the first three months she was really enjoying carrying her second child.

Ben smiled as he lay down and rested his head in his wife's lap and watched Finn as he reached into his backpack for his favourite book. "I'm not sure life could get any better than this," he turned his head and smiled at Lilly.

"It is indeed perfect," Lilly smiled back and started to run her fingers through his hair.

The sun shone, the birds sang and the Ashton family were happy to relax and enjoy their perfect family life.

Xxx

"I need Lilly."

Cara was in advanced labour. Her waters had broken at her parent's house and they'd quickly transferred her to the maternity ward at Quinn hospital where she'd rapidly progressed to nine centimetres dilated. Cara Wenton was the senior midwife at the clinic and had opted to have her children there as an experience for her young Helena's. Not that it wasn't unheard of for twins to be born but it was very rare and, infact, the Wenton children would be the first set in the relatively new birthing suite.

Hanah Tanger dabbed the sweat off her youngest daughter's brow. "Your father has left to fetch Lilly," she reassured. "She will be here as quickly as she can."

Although her grandchildren were being born in the hospital, Hanah was acting as midwife as per Mandanan custom with Drena Beuner, wife of Anton Beuner the junior surgeon, helping her with everything.

"I need her now!" Cara screamed and arched her back. "I need to push – she promised she'd be here."

Hanah knew her daughter was scared – heck, she was scared herself! The last time she'd been present at a birth was when Finn was born and Lilly had been so ill and the birth so difficult. "Shh, shh," she soothed Cara, "Lilly will be here soon, you need to try and relax my love."

"I can't," Cara continued to sob, "I can't do it without Lilly, I need her..."

Hanah blotted the sweat off Cara's forehead and looked over at Drena. "Could you ask Niall to come in," she sighed.

Cara needed as much support as possible and if Sergi couldn't find Lilly her son in law would have to step in.

"Yes, Mrs Tanger," Drena nodded and hurried out of the room.

"Not Niall," Cara cried. "I don't want him to see me like this. I need Lilly, she promised..."

"Everything is going to be okay," Hanah soothed. "It will soon be over and you'll have your beautiful babies in your arms, I promise."

Greta Quinn's recent death suddenly hit Hanah hard as she helped her daughter. The elder platon had been such a big part of everyone's lives in Tanger province, especially at the birth of the next generation. His presence was sorely missed today.

"How much longer," Cara wept as her contraction lessoned.

"Not much longer now, my love. Just try and relax."

Hanah turned and smiled at Niall when the door opened. "Your wife needs you, Niall Wenton." She stood to one side to allow the father to be to support his wife.

Yet again, she felt out of depth at the birth of her grandchildren and willed her husband and eldest daughter to get here as soon as possible.

Cara needed them.

xxx

"Are they alright?"

Lilly turned and gave her sister a reassuring smile, knowing how anxious she must be feeling. "They are fine."

By the time Lilly had made it to the hospital, the first baby had already made an appearance. Hanah had done a wonderful job but had sighed in relief and stood to one side to let Lilly take over. Within half an hour another baby's cry echoed round the room and Cara and Niall were now proud but worried parents, waiting to hear their platon's confirmation that their children were healthy.

"Right," Lilly quickly bundled up the one sleeping baby. "This beautiful little girl," she bent and kissed her forehead "needs a cuddle of her papi," she grinned, handed Niall his daughter, and then turned to the remaining twin. "And – this beautiful little girl is hungry and needs her mami!"

"Two girls?" Cara gasped as Lilly handed her the screaming baby.

"Two healthy little girls," Lilly nodded, sat at her side and helped her niece to latch on to her mother's breast.

"Are you sure?" Cara asked as she made herself comfortable.

"I am sure," Lilly smiled. "Both are a good weight and perfectly healthy. You did such a wonderful job Car."

"I don't believe it," Cara sighed as her daughter began to suckle. "Thank you all so much," she glanced up and beamed.

Hanah took a seat next to Niall and stroked her sleeping granddaughter's head. "You two did the hard work," she grinned.

"We couldn't have done it without you ma, or you Drena," Cara rested her head back and started to relax.

"It was my pleasure," Drena bowed slightly as she gathered the soiled laundry together. "I will leave you to your family," she then patted Cara's blanket covered leg before turning to leave the room.

"Could you give us ten minutes and then ask the rest of the family to joins us," Cara asked as she continued to feed.

"Are you sure you're up to everyone being here?" Hanah queried her smile broadening as Niall passed her her granddaughter.

"Absolutely," Cara nodded. "I cannot wait for Finny to meet his cousins," she grinned at Lilly who was sat with a huge smile on her face.

"And he cannot wait to meet them too. Oh Cara they are so beautiful," she gushed, "Do they have names yet?" She glanced from Niall to Cara, watching them glow with pride over their daughters. She was so incredibly happy for them; they were going to make such wonderful parents.

"Actually," Cara looked at her mother before continuing. "We were thinking of Rachael and Sophie, if that is alright with you ma?"

Hanah Tanger's sister Rachael had perished during childbirth and her newborn daughter, Sophie died within days of her mother. Cara and Niall had always planned to name a daughter after one of them and having two daughters now made the decision an easy one.

"That's...that's..."Hanah fumbled for her handkerchief. "That is so wonderful," she smiled through her tears before drying her eyes. "Thank you."

"It was an obvious choice, Hanah," Niall reached for his daughter to allow his mother in law to regain her emotions. "I think that this little angel will be Rachael, yes?" She turned to his wife for confirmation and Cara quickly nodded.

"Yes – she is Rachael Hanah Wenton," she grinned and stroked Rachael's head "and," she turned her attention to her other daughter. "This hungry little angel," she chuckled. "Is Sophie Mari Wenton."

"Oh...Mari would have been so honoured," Hanah dabbed her eyes again at the memory of Mari Quinn who had passed away within weeks of her husband.

"Yes she would," Lilly nodded slowly in agreement.

Silence enveloped the room as they all remembered the elderly couple who had done so much for all of them. Life without them had been so difficult and Lilly, in particular, felt their loss above all others. Greta Quinn had been her guide through her training as a Platon, he and Mari had opened their home to Ben when he made the difficult decision to leave Earth for a new life on Mandana and Greta had steeped in to help deliver Finn when things got so tough. There had been many occasions recently that she'd longed to draw on their wisdom and knowledge and she would be always sad and disappointed that they passed away without knowing that she was pregnant again.

Mindful that the atmosphere had become maudlin though, Lilly quickly cleared her throat. "Right, we had best ready ourselves," she smiled, "Finn will soon be breaking our peace!"

"Indeed he will be," Hanah agreed. "These poor angels will not know what's hit them," she added with a chuckle.

Xxx

"You're quiet buddy," Ben glanced at his son who was sat on his mother's lap, thumb in mouth.

The Ashton family were on their way home after gushing over the new arrivals and Finn's enthusiasm for his cousins was beginning to wane.

"I'm a bit sad," the little boy shrugged.

"Oh?" Ben clicked the horse on after exchanging a worried look with Lilly. "Why are you sad, Finn?"

Finn fidgeted slightly and then sighed heavily. "'Cause I wanted Auntie Cara to have a boy who I could share my trains with and race with. Girls are no fun."

"Oh, Finn," Lilly chuckled. "You will have so much fun with them, I promise you. When I was a little girl, I loved to play with your grandpi's old toys and my favourite thing to do was to climb trees and jump streams with all the boys in the province. Ask Uncle Niall – I had many a fun day full of adventure with his brothers."

"Oh - you did, did you," Ben teased and nudged Finn's knee. "We didn't know about that, did we Finny?"

"No we didn't," Finn grinned, "We didn't know you liked to play wif the boys," he joined in with the teasing after returning the wink his papi gave him.

"You sure kept that quiet, mami," Ben continued as they travelled down the lane leading to their cottage. "You've never mentioned that before and we a wondering why."

Lilly tutted and shook her head in mock annoyance. She knew full well what her husband was doing. Finn had been so desperate for another little boy to play with and when both babies had been girls, she knew that he would be slightly disappointed.

"I am sure I told you all about the summer evenings spent building bridges over Penten stream with Alex and David Wenton," she replied with a shrug.

"No you didn't," Ben nudged Finn again. "I'm sure we would have remembered that."

"Oh yes, I had so much fun..."

Ben clicked his horse on again, laughing as Lilly elaborated her story for her son's sake.

This was one of the many moments that reminded him why he'd left Earth behind. Life was simple and good on Mandana.

His family was his world now and he wouldn't change that for anything.

Xxx

Stargate Command

"Take a seat Doctor Jackson." Hank Landry closed his filing cabinet and returned to his desk.

"I don't want to appear rude, sir..." Daniel stated as he sat opposite the base commander, "...but I am in the middle of a very important translation."

"This won't take long," Hank nodded as he picked up the file in front of him. "I just want to show you this and ask your opinion on the matter." He passed Daniel a piece of paper and sat back as the archaeologist start to read it.

"That was passed onto me by Washington this morning and I am struggling to know what to do for the best."

"I see," Daniel nodded slowly as he continued to read.

"You know Benjamin Ashton better than anyone on the base Doctor Jackson. How'd you think he would react?"

"Are we sure that this is accurate?" Daniel frowned as he examined the back of the paper.

"Yes – we have had confirmation from Captain Ashton's commanding officer in London."

Daniel scanned the letter again and then passed it back to the general. "Where is Conner now?" He asked after clearing his throat.

"He is currently being transferred to a hospice in Colorado," Hank accepted the letter and placed it back in the file. "What are your thoughts on the matter?"

"I think Ben needs to know," Daniel sighed, removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "I know that if I had a brother, I would want to know that he was dying and in the same way, if I were dying I would want to contact my brother, if I had one. If that makes any sense?"

"It makes perfect sense." Hank reassured before returning the file to his cabinet. "We are going to need your input Daniel," he sighed as he poured some coffee. "This one is not going to be easy to handle." He gave Daniel a cup and took a seat again.

"What do you need me to do sir?"

"Would you be able to break the news to Benjamin? I know it will be better coming from you."

Daniel took a sip of coffee and sat back in his chair. "He will want to see Conner."

"I know. That will be arranged."

Knowing that Lilly needed her husband's support, Daniel sighed again. "It's not going to be easy on his wife. She's expecting their second child."

"I know."

"Do we know how long Conner has?"

"The specialists are saying that he is in the final stages and it could be weeks, perhaps months."

"Damn," Daniel scrubbed a hand through his hair in frustration. The whole situation was a mess.

"Will Ben be at the next check in with Mandana?"

Daniel placed his cup on the desk. "Yes, he's due to be introduced to Doctor Lam."

"We have to give him the option to return home."

"I know."

"Will you be able to handle things?"

"Yes, of course," Daniel nodded slowly. "I would like to be able to talk to Conner first though, if that's possible. I need to get my information correct sir."

"He's due to arrive at the hospice later today. I'll check with the staff," Hank made a note on his jotter. "I'm sure he will want to speak with someone from this end too," he nodded. "We will need to stick to protocol – keep things as need to know but assure him that we will be contacting his brother as soon as we can."

"Yes sir."

"We also need to be guided by both brothers' wishes." Hank stood and moved to his filing cabinet. "It is going to be a case of reacting to the situation rather than trying to steer things in the way we want. Talk to Conner and his specialists' and then see how Benjamin wants to proceed."

"Yes sir," Daniel nodded in agreement. "We are due to check in with Mandana the day after tomorrow. If you could make the arrangements for me to see Conner before that, that would be ideal and we should meet and go through our options before talking to Ben."

Hank returned to his desk and picked up the phone. "I'll make the call now," he smiled.

Daniel stood and returned the smile. "I'll be in my office sir."

"Carry on."

Hank dialled the number with a very heavy heart. It was a difficult situation but, at the end of the day – family was family and he knew what he would do if the same thing happened to him. They might have no choice but to tell Conner Ashton about the Stargate programme. He would have to take advice from Washington on that but, it was only right that they young man knew the truth about his brother before he passed.

"Hello, my name is General Hank Landry..."