Spoilers: Siege 1, Siege 2, Siege 3, Critical Mass
Warnings: none
Disclaimer:I do not own these characters. This is written for fun or something. I make no money, etc.

Author Notes: Sequel to 'Ticked Off' I suppose, though reading that is not necessary. Emmy is an OC created for 'Ticked Off' and more Kav/Emmy was asked for! This is for rodlox :) She was never really a Mary Sue, but she sure could be :P She has no special powers, just a really cool house. You have been warned.

He sat in the rental car outside the house in Woodland Park, not far from Colorado Springs. He was just about to drive away, when the door opened, and the woman came slowly down the path, arms huddled around herself to ward off the cold. As she reached the car, he opened the window.

"Will Kavanagh," she stated in disbelief.

"I think so," he replied acidly.

She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again and grabbed the door handle, pulling it open. "Get out and come in, before we freeze to death." She grinned, as the relief sank in.

He got out of the car slowly, mumbling, "Sorry about this. They said you were on leave. I just kinda..."

She propelled him towards the house with a hand on his back, and interrupted him. "It's okay! This is great. I'm so pleased to see you! I can't wait to hear all about it." She chattered excitedly, and led the way into the house.

"I don't know how much I can say about it..." he said quietly, as she helped him take off his coat.

"Oh, I know, I know, but that doesn't matter! You're back!" She hung up the coat, and turned back to him, finally noticing that he really looked a little pale and thin, and...

"Will?"

His expression crumbled a little more, as he whispered, "Peter is dead, Emmy. A lot of them died. I had to get away. I couldn't..." He sucked in a breath and looked up at the ceiling. A moment later he buried his face in his hands, and sobbed.

"Oh, Will..." she breathed, and put her arm around him, taking him through to the great room. "Here, sit down."

She sat with her arm around him, waiting for him to regain his composure. Will Kavanagh crying was something she thought she would never see. Whatever she imagined the Pegasus galaxy would be like, it must have been far, far worse.

When he finally took the offered Kleenex, and his breath had evened out, she shuffled along the couch so she could see him better, and leaned forward in concern.

"What happened to Peter, Will?" She and Will had known Peter Grodin for years. They had all worked on and off together for the SGC, whether under the mountain at Cheyenne, or, like Peter, on board one of the ships. They had all been in Antarctica together, but Emmy had stayed with the SGC when Will and Peter had gone through the gate a year ago.

Will removed his glasses, and wiped his eyes before answering. "It was last week. He was on a space satellite. It blew up." There was a tinge of anger in his tone.

Emmy's hand flew to her mouth. "Oh no! Oh, poor Peter..."

He leaned his forearms on his knees and looked out of her large picture window. "The city was attacked by the enemy a few days ago. A lot of guys died. Only the Daedalus arriving helped save the rest of us. It was... terrible."

She gulped, and reached to squeeze his hand. "I'm so sorry. I can't begin to imagine what it was like." Enemies were not new for anyone who worked for the SGC, but Emmy had never actually been in a combat situation. And she knew that neither, at least until he left a year ago, had Will.

He stared at her. His blue eyes looked at her piercingly. "And you want to know the worst part?"

"What?" she whispered with dread.

He parsed the words. "There were...no...birds."

She held her breath in shock. Will was, had been, an avid birdwatcher. His photos were spectacular, the lengths he would go to to see a rare species were legendary. No birds in the Pegasus galaxy? Was he for real?

His face broke into a pale grin, and Emmy laughed with him in relief. At least he hadn't lost his dry wit.

She squeezed his hand again, still smiling. "Will, I'm just so glad you are okay."

He moved a little on the couch, rubbing his hands nervously on his knees. "It was a disaster, Emmy. The whole thing, a complete waste of time, and men. And women," he added, wryly.

"Surely not, Will? A whole year? You found the city – the expedition must have learned something?"

He threw his arms open in disgust. "What's the point, Emmy? Who cares what we learn? If men like Peter are going to die because fools like Weirlead us to our deaths?" His tone was liberally seasoned with bitterness.

Emmy knew Will could often be a vehement sceptic, a sarcastic pessimist. And for as long as she could remember, he had been unhappy with his superior officer. It was just who he was. But this... this was different. She shivered involuntarily, sensing the grief and gall in her old friend. She reached out and touched his arm. "I'll make us some coffee, shall I?"

He nodded distractedly, looked out at the snow covered mountain, and felt the cold as she left the room.

When she returned, he took the coffee gratefully.

"Does Matt know you are back?" she asked, settling back down beside him. Matt was Will's birdwatching friend, whenever he had been in Colorado. Perhaps Will's only friend, she thought. Not counting her, of course.

"Matt?" he looked at her in surprise. He didn't think she had ever met Matt. "No, I couldn't face him right now, he knows nothing about our work... Why do you ask? I didn't think...?"

"We met just after you left," she admitted. "I saw him at the Mall, he looked just like in your photos, I... I don't know why I introduced myself. We had coffee a few times, that's all." She blushed.

He was wide-eyed, shocked. "You dated Matt?"

Emmy lifted her chin defiantly. "Maybe. He's a nice guy."

Will shook his head, "For crying out loud. You could have any guy you wanted, Emmy. Matt is an overweight bank clerk. What were you thinking?"

He was right, in his own abrupt, prejudiced way. Emmy was a pretty brunette, young-looking for her years, and with her PhD in Electrical Engineering, more than a match for any intelligent potential partner. Her work with the SGC was just more important, that's all.

"I don't want any guy, Will. Anyway, it was never really serious. We just... He liked my cooking."

"I like your cooking."

"Oh! You'll stay for dinner?"

"Sure, if you want."

She nodded. "Yes. What are your plans, then?

Will looked back out at the wintery scene. He answered her, still bleak. "I don't really have any. I'm supposed to be back in the lab from Friday, if Lam clears me. Not sure what I'm going to do." He shut his eyes.

Emmy had ever known Will to be lost for a plan - he always knew what he wanted ten paces ahead. She had relied on it often enough. Hearing him talk like that was almost heart-breaking. "Why does Dr Lam have to clear you?"

He adjusted his glasses on his nose. "She wants to make sure my injury is okay. I got a burn on my back from some flying debris during the siege."

"Oh," she gasped. "You were hurt?" She looked instinctively at this back, but his black sweater was giving nothing away.

He shrugged. "Yeah. It's nothing."

She relaxed, and forced a smile. "Oh, that's good. I'm sure you'll be fine by Friday. It'll be great to work with you again. I know it will take time to get over everything that's happened, but I'm sure once we build up some military strength, we can get the city back, and you..."

"Emmy. You don't understand," he interrupted.

She smiled. "No, Will, it's okay. General O'Neill won't..."

"Emmy, we still have Atlantis. Most people stayed."

She frowned. "But..."

"I didn't want to stay."

Emmy blinked. That could really only mean one of two things. The experience of the Pegasus galaxy had been so horrible that Will was suffering from some kind of post-traumatic stress, or he had fallen out with everyone in the expedition. On reflection, she decided it could be both.

"I see."

He put his hands down on the couch, as if he was going to stand. "Look, Emmy, thanks for the offer of dinner, but I think I'm going to go. I'm not sure I want to talk about this. I think maybe coming here was a mistake."

She reached out a hand. "No! Don't go. Stay, please."

He stared at her, uncertain what to say. Before he could say anything, Emmy had leaned forward with a swift movement and stretched her head up to plant a firm kiss on his startled lips.

"Oh," he murmured, "What was that for?"

Still in his personal space, her gaze moved from his lips to his eyes. "Idiot. I missed you. You were a pain-in-the-ass, and I missed you. Don't. Go."

"Uh..."

She wasn't moving any further away. "If you had been away any longer I was going to take that post on the Daedalus just so I could see you."

He half-smiled. "No way. You? In space?"

She nodded. "That's more like the Will Kavanagh I knew and..."

The curve dropped from his lips, and he leaned forward instinctively. "And what?"

"And... worry about," she whispered. "Why did you come back, Will?"

"Escape," he murmured, and took her into his arms, covering her mouth with his, in a long passionate kiss.

FIN, or LOL, whatever :P