Title: Apology Accepted
Author: Erised
Summary: Kavanagh gets what he deserves
Disclaimer: I don't own any SGA characters or the show. If I did, all the closets in Atlantis would have been broken by now.
Notes: I was watching Critical Mass for like 10th time on Sci Fi channel yesterday, and that scene, where Kavanagh was insulting Elizabeth, made me so angry! I wanted John to be there and teach him a lesson, so I modified the scene a bit. Hehe. I feel better now :D
Thanks to Finnstardust and Alyssa for beta reading
Elizabeth hated the guy, but she had to question him. His actions during the past several months had been way too suspicious to ignore. She knew he wasn't cooperative, but she was going to make him talk if she had to. She asked John to accompany her to the interrogation room and he was more than willing to. He knew Kavanagh had been giving Elizabeth a hard time since day one; he also knew the scientist cared more for his own ass than the whole city put together. He had read the report after being stuck in Stargate with an Iratus bug attached to his neck. Kavanagh, apparently, hadn't wanted to proceed with their plan to get the puddle jumper out of the Stargate. There was a slight chance it might overload and send a blast wave through the gate into Atlantis; while all the other scientists in the city had agreed that the chance of this happening was very slim, Kavanagh had kept arguing with them. He had upset Elizabeth that day and John wasn't going to let him do it again. He would protect Elizabeth from that moron's verbal attacks.
Elizabeth wasn't surprised at Kavanagh's reaction when she and John entered the room. Of course, he didn't want to admit that he planted the bomb in Atlantis. She didn't know whether he was lying or not, but she did know that he was very eager to leave a week before they found out about the bomb.
"Right! Of course! So obviously I did it!" He sat back and folded his arms like he always did.
"Given the circumstances, can you not see how such behaviour might arouse suspicion?" Elizabeth thought how annoying he was. He was always criticizing everything, and he had an irritating voice too, so that whatever he said, sounded like one huge complaint.
"You're suspicious, sure. Seeing as how you never cared for me, nor valued the talents I brought to this expedition." Elizabeth tried not to laugh at that.
John seemed to have found it funny too. Elizabeth heard him chuckle behind her.
"My personal feelings towards you," I really can't stand you "no matter what they may be, have nothing to do with this.
Then Kavanagh started laughing "Oh, please!" sounding like a maniac.
"Everything you do is motivated by personal feelings. You're driven by emotion, not reason. It's why I've always felt you're not capable of doing this job. You don't have the ... strength to be leading the fight against the Wraith."
She felt John rush to help her, his face threatening and his eyes full of hatred. "Watch your tongue!"
"John…" He understood that she wanted to try and talk him into giving some information about the bomb herself.
"If I remember correctly, you were the one who wanted to – what was it? – run and hide?" she said
"And at the time, I was right. If the Daedalus hadn't arrived at the eleventh hour, this city and everyone in it would have been wiped out because of your recklessness. There no need for The Trust to blow it up when Doctor Weir's at the helm!"
Elizabeth was shocked; John rushed towards Kavanagh, looking furious. She thought he was going to hit the guy.
"John, don't! I can handle this"
"No one can handle him, Elizabeth." He turned back to Kavanagh, who now looked like he was going to faint from fear. "Now, apologize to Elizabeth!"
"Apologize? She should be the one to be apologizing for wrongly accusing me!"
"No one was accusing you of anything! We are questioning every single person on the Daedalus and Atlantis! Now. Apologize to Elizabeth!"
Kavanagh started laughing. "I will never apologize to her! She hated me from day one, and guess what? I hate her too!" John couldn't control himself as soon as those words came out of Kavanagh's pathetic mouth. He hit him.
Elizabeth came rushing towards John. "John! You shouldn't have done that!"
"Yes I should have. He was being very rude towards you, Elizabeth, when all you were doing is your job." He turned to Kavanagh, "Which is to protect this city and all the members of the expedition at all costs! I am amazed that you have the guts to sit here and accuse Elizabeth of not doing her job properly! Any other person would have cracked under the pressure Elizabeth is put through every single day! Now, apologize to her!"
Kavanagh just laughed without saying a word, his face full of amusement and surprise.
"I'm waiting!" John yelled
"Didn't you say she was supposed to protect the members of the expedition? Doesn't look like she's doing it now!"
"You stopped being a member of this expedition a long time ago! Now, I'm not going to ask you again! Apologize to Elizabeth!"
"So you two are both driven by emotions, aren't you?"
John felt blood rushing faster through his veins and his fist instantly connected with Kavanagh's. The scientist's nose broke, blood dripping down his face"
"John!" Elizabeth shouted.
"You will get court marshaled for this!" Kavanagh shouted. John couldn't believe that he was still resisting.
"I am doing my job!" he replied, "Which, along with Elizabeth, is to protect this city! Now I said I won't ask you again, but I am willing to beat the hell out of you!"
Now Kavanagh didn't have anything to say. John could see the disgust in his face, as though Elizabeth wasn't worth his apologies. "Fine! I'm sorry!"
"There, was that so hard? Come on. Let's go." He gently grabbed Elizabeth's arm. She followed him out of the room. As they were walking towards the control room, Elizabeth felt guilt rising in her throat. She wasn't supposed to let John beat him up like that, but she couldn't help but feel grateful.
They were slowly walking towards Elizabeth's office, holding each other's arms. John knew that normally, Elizabeth would yell at him for crossing the line, but something told him that it wasn't going to happen this time.
"John…" she said as they walked into her office.
"Look, I know I crossed the line. I shouldn't have hit him. It's just that…" He thought for a moment whether he should say it. "When he started insulting you, I just couldn't help myself." He paused "I just don't want people to insult you for doing your job."
"John, I'm not going to tell you off for hitting Kavanagh. I know you're feeling guilty right now, and so am I, but listen to me – you should control yourself in situations like this, okay?" She leaned closer to him, her green eyes were full of pain, gratitude, happiness, fear, and, something else John knew neither of them was ready for
"I know, Elizabeth." The way he said her name made Elizabeth forget about all the problems in Atlantis, about the bomb that goa'uld planted, about Kavanagh, about everything. All that mattered was now.