Ancient's Best Friend
Author's Note: First Atlantis fic, but then again, there have only been three episodes… No pairings as of now… Tried to incorportate everyone, McKay and Beckett in the next chapter, I promise. I love writing for Jintoh, so there's a lot of him in this chapter… Not exactly sure where to go with this… I do have another chapter written but that's it.
Spoilers: Rising pt 1 and 2, Hide And Seek
Disclaimer: Stargate Atlantis and all its characters belong to big companies that I can't remember the names of… Nea, Lorea, and Ano are my Athosian characters, but I don't mind sharing. The story is mine, actually, its my brain's, but that's not the pont.
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"I can get to the end of the corridor faster than you can!"
"Oh, yeah? Race!"
The two young Athosian boys started sprinting down the hallway, yelling, their voices filled with glee. A small group ran after them, laughing and shouting unintelligible encouragements.
The group consisted of Athosian children. The two boys were Wex and Jintoh (the two kids from Hide And Seek), and the group behind them contained two slightly older girls and a four-year-old boy.
"Weren't you kids ever told 'No running in the halls'?" asked Lt. Aiden Ford as the two children ran straight into him.
"Oh, sorry…" muttered Wex.
"No running in the halls?" questioned Jintoh, with a confused look on his face as he rubbed his head where he has collided with Ford. Just then Major John Sheppard rounded the corner. "Major Sheppard!" he cried.
Sheppard looked amused at the scene before him. "Did I miss something?"
"Oh, we-"
"They were having a race-"
"He said he could beat me-"
"I could beat him to the end of the corridor!"
"Did we do something wrong?" asked the four-year-old innocently.
The flurry of activity from the group made Sheppard smile, "Alright, alright, calm down, kids. Maybe you shouldn't be playing in such a crowded hallway. Try over there," he said, pointing to a deserted hall in the distance. "You won't be plowing into anyone."
"Okay!"
"Let's go, come on!" said one of the older girls, carrying the four-year-old in her arms. And with that, the group ran to the aforementioned hall to continue their race.
"Woah," remarked Jintoh. To him, the hall seemed to go on forever.
"I bet I can find the end before you can!" challenged Wex, also noticing the long-ness of the hall before them. "First one to the end and back wins!" The two sprinted off again.
"I wonder how big this place is," thought one of the girls out loud.
"I don't even think Doctor Weir knows that," answered the other girl.
"I wouldn't be surprised if Jintoh is the first one to find the city walls."
"We're floating, I don't think there are any 'walls'."
"Well then, he'll be the first one to fall into the ocean!"
They laughed at the joke and continued talking calmly, waiting for the two boys to return.
The first girl suddenly gasped, "Where's Ano?" she asked, referring to the four-year-old child that had tagged along when they went to play.
"Ano? Ano, where are you?"
"Ano, can you hear us?"
"ANO!" they called, looking frantically about for the missing child.
They were just about to split up when they heard a scream.
"What was that?! Ano, are you okay?!"
Just then they spotted the child running towards them as fast as his little legs could carry him.
"Nea!" He called to the taller of the two girls. "Nea! There's… there's… there's something in there!" he shrieked, pointing to a door that both girls guessed as some kind of closet.
"Calm down, Ano. Are you hurt?"
"It was like an animal-"
"ANO," Nea snapped, getting the boy's attention, "are you hurt?"
"No, I'm okay. I haven't seen anything like it before."
"Are you sure there's something there?" asked the other girl, Lorea.
"Yes. It's in… in… in some sort of box," answered Ano.
"A box?"
"Yes, but it wasn't a normal kind of box, it-"
"How about you show us where this box is," interrupted Nea.
Ano led them towards a door near a little ways down the hallway.
"I'm going to win!"
"No way!"
The boys sped past and finished their race, Wex clearly winning.
"I told you!"
"Boys," called Lorea, "come over here. Ano thinks he saw something in one of these doors."
Finally Ano announced, "this one," a little further down the hall. He was standing some ways away from the door, eyeing it warily.
"Are you sure this is the right door?" asked Nea, approaching him.
Ano nodded in response.
"Was that the scream we heard?" asked Jintoh.
"Yes," replied Nea as she pressed the button next to the suspected door.
"Wow."
"What is that?"
"Is it alive?"
Ano slowly approached the now open door. "That's it."
In front of them was a large circular room covered in writing, with a stasis pod (Note: think the thing that jack froze himself in on Lost City, pt 2) in the very back of the room. And sure enough, there was an animal-like thing in it. Frozen, of course.
"Aw, it's cute!"
"We better tell Major Sheppard!!!" cried Jintoh
"No, we had better go to Teyla first," said Nea calmly, grabbing the back of Jintoh's shirt as he started to run.
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"There's an animal frozen in a stasis pod?" Weir asked with a look of disbelief on her face.
"My people would not lie to me. I believe what they saw may still be there," Teyla answered calmly.
Sheppard's look of surprise suddenly turned to one of confusion. "Are you saying that an Ancient's pet is still frozen here?"
Weir cut in, "From what we've discovered so far, Major, I'd believe almost anything. Let's go see if the kids are right."
Teyla decided that Jintoh should accompany them, then shooed the other children away.
They walked in silence, each contemplating what would possibly compel and Ancient to freeze an animal and leave it here.
"I wonder if it's still alive. I mean, after all these years…" Sheppard broke the silence, thinking aloud.
"John, we don't even know if "it" exists yet. We'll worry about if its still living when we get there," replied Weir, though a voice in her head told her the children weren't just seeing things.
"You don't believe us?!" Jintoh blurted out in response to Weir.
"There is no doubt in my mind, Jintoh. I believe you," Teyla reassured him.
Jintoh wasn't satisfied, though, and declared, "But Doctor Weir doesn't. Why do you not take my friends and I seriously?"
"I, well… Back home, where I come from, I was… I worked as a diplomat, I tried to make friends with other countries. But, well, some of the leaders are not… um, not entirely honest- they made things up to try and manipulate my country's leaders, and I'm not saying that your people are like that, Jintoh, but I learned from that job that- that, um, it's hard to explain."
"I understand, Dr. Weir."
"So, where is this room you're going to show us?" asked Sheppard, fidgeting with is gun that he brought, just in case.
"It is in the corridor where you told us to play," replied Jintoh.
"Is it really?"
"Yes."
"Good, then we're almost there," Sheppard remarked.
"Major Sheppard," said Jintoh.
"What?"
"When Wex and I ran into um…"
"Lieutenant Ford?"
"Yes, when Wex and I ran into Lieutenant Ford, he said, 'Weren't you kids ever told no running in the halls?'. What does that mean?"
"Well, where we come from, children in schools aren't supposed to run in the hallways, but they always do, and the teachers yell at them, something like, 'Hey you, no running in the halls!'," said a voice from behind them.
"Lieutenant!" exclaimed Weir.
"Doctor, Major, Teyla" he addressed, running to catch up with the group, "Jintoh," he said with a smile. "Watcha doin'?"
"After you left, I told them to go play in another hall, and apparently they found some animal, or something," replied Sheppard.
"Cool, can I come?"
"I don't see why not."
"Look! There it is," Jintoh exclaimed, pointing down a hallway.
"That's a lot of doors, kid, you'll have to be more specific," said Sheppard, impressed by the length of the hall.
Jintoh led them to a door. "I think this is it."
"There's only one way to find out," muttered Sheppard as he reached for the button to open it.
"John!" said Weir, a hint of concern in her voice.
"Relax, someone's gotta open it." He pressed the button.
The door opened to reveal the same circular room from before.
"Look, its straight ahead," said Jintoh, pointing to the back of the room.
"Is that a dog in a stasis pod?" asked Ford to no one in particular.
"We can name it later," said Sheppard.
"Ancient's best friend," replied Ford with a smile.
Sheppard gave him a look, getting the joke, then said, "Well, unless that thing comes to life and tries to kill you all, there's not danger. I have to go down to the next level and get something."
"Hey, you have to admit, it does look like a dog," commented Ford, noticing that everyone was now looking at him.
"Dog?" asked Teyla, clearly confused.
Ford smiled, "A dog is, well, its an animal from our planet that people sometimes keep as pets… They have four legs, furry, usually friendly."
"Tell us more!" encouraged Jintoh.
Ford kneeled down so he was eye-level with Jintoh. "Tell ya what. If you ever make it to my planet, I promise I'll get you a dog of your very own."
"WOW, cool! Thank you, lieute… um. lieu-"
"Aiden."
"Thank you, Aiden!"
Teyla glanced at Weir. Both were smiling.
"You're going to make a great father someday, lieutenant," said Weir.
"Aw, well. Thanks…" said Ford.
"The writings look to be of the Ancestors," said Teyla.
"Right, the Ancients. We'd better get McKay down here to check it out," added Weir.
An inconspicuous snort cam from Ford.
"Is there a problem, lieutenant?"
"McKay…" he mumbled, then walked out.
"I would be glad to assist in the translation," said Teyla calmly.
"I'm sure Doctor McKay could use your help," Weir replied.
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Author's Second Note: So, you like? Next chapter coming soon if I get a good response. I promise, its funnier than this chapter…
Reviews are appreciated and will be recognized!