Title: Bound and Determined

Author: Jeana

Spoilers: none majorly, but any episode so far is fair game

Pairing: Shep/OC

Summary: Two somebodies get kidnapped. One somebody likes the other somebody. Will their teams be able to find them before the deadline?

Warning: Rated T for violence and some mild language; not anything more than you might see on the show.

Disclaimer: The characters of Elizabeth, Sheppard, Teyla, Ronon, Ford, Rodney, Carson, Lorne, and Zelenka belong to Brad Wright, Robert C. Cooper, MGM, and all that jazz. All other characters are my own and may not be used without permission. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, evil or benign, just might be on purpose.

To Hannah-Banana: Had it not been for you, I never would have known what a "Stargate" was. If not for your urging, I would never have watched "Duet". Thanks. I hope you enjoy not being the editor for once. Hey, boos, I made it not be rope, just for you.

To Commodore Norrington: Thank you for insuring that I became hopelessly addicted to this wonderful show. And thank you sooo much for beta-ing this. And for keeping the names straight! giggles Enjoy the woobie-ness! wink, wink

And to my Beffny, my Tigger, my muse: Thanks for being such a good BF and character model. I hope Michael meets your qualifications. ;)

Author's Note: This is my first serious Stargate: Atlantis fic, so please bear with me if the characters are a little off. Let me know, but please be kind. As always, reviews make my day, and if you leave me one, I'll love you for forever. Or until I want something else from you. Some of the Atlantis TV characters have a smaller role in this story, but that is only because I don't have a good handle on them and don't want to do them the injustice of writing them poorly. Now, because I know mispronouncing things bugs me, I made a little guide for y'all. Take it or leave it, I careth not.

Evie: EE-vee

Emaria: eh-MAR-ee-ah

Eminiei: ih-MEN-ee-ay

Venalian: ve-NAHL-ee-in

Sha'rik: shah-REEK

Yes, yes, I know. "Shut up and get to the story!" Enjoy!


Chapter One - "Coffee?"

"I wear a disguise; I'm just your average Jane. The super doesn't stand for 'model', but that doesn't mean I'm plain. If all you see is how I look, you miss the superchick within; and I christen you 'Titanic', underestimate and swim. I've got the rifle, gonna be myself. And I'll be everything that I wanna be. I am confidence in insecurity. I am a voice yet waiting to be heard. I'll shoot the shot - Bang! - that you hear round the world." - Superchick, "One Girl Revolution"

Late at night, or rather, early in the morning, Colonel Sheppard entered into the commons area(the newly discovered room was serving as a computer station for the time being) with a present for Dr. McKay. "Coffee delivery," he said, waving the steaming cup o' Joe in front of Rodney.

"What would I do without you?" Rodney commented sarcastically, continuing to type on his laptop. "Just set it down, I'm not quite done with my other one."

Sheppard placed the coffee cup beside Rodney's laptop, shaking his head when he saw four other empty cups. He was about to leave, when he noticed Lieutenant Evie Brooks in one of the other chairs, her head resting on her arm on the computer desk. "Is she asleep?"

Rodney glanced up to see who Sheppard meant. "Oh. Yeah. She fell asleep about an hour ago." He returned his attention to his calculations.

"So…we're just going to leave her there?" Sheppard asked.

"If you wanna carry her to her room and tuck her into bed, be my guest," Rodney said, never taking his eyes off the screen.

Sheppard sighed and shook his head. Then, with a sly grin, he grabbed the coffee before Rodney had had a chance to drink any of it. Rodney didn't seem to notice the coffee-nabbing as he studiously checked the numbers on the screen with some calculations on his notepad. Sheppard walked over to Evie and waved the coffee cup under her nose. After a moment, her eyes opened sleepily.

"Coffee?" she murmured, reaching for it.

"It's Dr. McKay's, but I'm sure he wouldn't mind sharing, would you, Rodney?" Sheppard asked.

"Sure, whatever," Rodney replied absently.

Sheppard handed the coffee to Evie, who took a large gulp. She groaned and rubbed her eyes. "What time is it?"

"Two twenty-eight," Sheppard answered, looking at his watch. "What were you doing working so late?"

Evie blinked several times, still not really awake. "I's working' on…something…" was her delayed response as she waved at the computer screen. Sheppard nodded, trying not to laugh at her zombie-like state. Evie looked at her laptop, squinting at the screen. "Oh, look. The transfer finished," she mumbled, more to herself than Sheppard. "Now I just have to, uhh…" She rubbed her eyes again. "…print it out." She clicked a sequence of commands that started the printing of the notes. She stared blankly at the printer for a minute, then said, "Darn. This is gonna take a while."

"Why don't you go to bed and I'll drop the notes by your room when they're done?" Sheppard suggested, noting how exhausted Evie looked.

"Would you?" she asked with a yawn.

"Sure," Sheppard answered. "I'm going to be up for a while anyways."

"Thanks." Evie began gathering her other scattered papers and disconnected her flash drive.

Rodney reached for his new coffee cup and grasped only air. After searching with his hand for a moment, he looked at where his cup should have been. "What did you do with my coffee?" he asked, annoyed.

Sheppard and Evie laughed. "I'll still be awake when those get done," she told him, "so just knock, okay?" Sheppard nodded and sat down in one of the free chairs. "Thanks again." With that, she left.

"Umm, hello? Still need my coffee back!"

XXXXXX

Just as Evie was pulling back the covers to her bed, she heard a knock on the door of her quarters. "Who is it?" she called.

"The Easter bunny," came the sarcastic reply. "Who else would be at your quarters at nearly three in the morning?"

"Just checking," she answered, coming to the door.

As Sheppard stood by the door, his ATA gene whooshed it open. He couldn't help but smirk when he saw what she was wearing. Red boxers with little black moose all over them, and a white tank top with a map of the London subway system and the words "I'm Going Underground" emblazoned on it. Her straight brunette hair was pulled back into a loose bun, and her hazel eyes blinked at him sleepily as she stood there waiting. "I didn't know you went to England," he said, commenting on her shirt.

"Well, 'I've traveled across the Atlantic Ocean' just doesn't sound as cool as 'I've traveled across the Pegasus galaxy,'" she said with a smile.

"Yeah, it doesn't have that same ring to it," he agreed. "Well, here's thirty-seven pages of absolutely fascinating information on the indigenous peoples of some planet somewhere. Enjoy." He handed her the text.

"Thanks," Evie said. She silently cursed her pajamas when her bra strap slipped down her shoulder as she reached for the papers. "Goodnight."

"'Night." He smiled and then left.

Evie waved her hand in front of the sensor by the door and yanked her mutinous strap back into place once the door was closed. She set the notes on her nightstand and turned off her light, climbing into her bed. She loved working with Colonel Sheppard. They had only been on a handful of missions together, but she always enjoyed his company. She laughed to herself as she remembered how they had first met…

"So, the cop says he'll let this foreign guy go with just a warning if he can use the words 'green', 'yellow', and 'pink' in a sentence."

Evie nodded as she listened to her friend animatedly tell her joke while they got ice cream for dessert.

"So the little guy goes, 'Ja, ja, I can do that. So one day I was at my house, and my phone went "green! green!" So I pinked it up and said "Yellow?"'"

Evie laughed heartily; she had a weakness for puns. "That's so great, Summer." She turned around a little too quickly to go back to their table and crashed into the man standing behind her, smearing her small bowl of ice cream all over his shirt. She gasped, horrified.

"Oh, wow, that's cold," the man said, pulling his saturated shirt away from his body.

"Oh, gosh, I am so sorry!" Recognizing him as being one of the military members of the expedition rather than civilian, she quickly added a "sir." Ignoring the shamed heat she could feel flaring in her cheeks, she grabbed some napkins and handed them to him. "Here. I really should have been looking where I was going," she said quickly. "I can't bel--"

"Don't worry about it." He cut off her apology as he attempted to wipe the cold dessert off his front. "I won't melt, Miss…"

"Brooks. Lieutenant Evie Brooks, sir," she answered, handing him another couple of napkins.

He flashed her a smile. "Major John Sheppard. Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go change." Evie nodded, embarrassed. Sheppard turned to leave, but couldn't resist calling back, "Nice bumping into you, Lieutenant." Evie smiled shyly as she watched him walk off…

With that amusing memory, Evie rolled over and was soon asleep.