AN: Well, folks here is the last part. The first eleven or so paragraphs in this piece is what triggered this story. The scene popped in my head and I had to figure out how E/J would be here.
Sitting under a large tree that reminded her of a weeping willow, Elizabeth felt the cool night air seep through her clothes. Suppressing a shiver, she wrapped her arms tighter around her legs, listening to the sounds around her. Straining to hear past the rustling of the leaves, she listened to the rhythmic clicks and chirps of the indigenous insects. She had no idea what they were or even how close they were. All she knew was that their constant murmur meant they were undisturbed by the activity around them.
The sound soothed her. For as long as they kept singing, it meant they were safe for a little while longer.
And the longer they were safe, the longer John could sleep. She knew the pain and blood loss from his leg were wearing on him despite his efforts to hide it.
Glancing sideways, she could barely make out his features. His body was semi-curled around her, his leg lightly pressing against her hip. Someone looking at their positions would assume he was merely seeking warmth.
Experience told her otherwise.
The slightest movement that severed the contact between their two bodies would elicit an immediate reaction from him. He would be instantly awake and be ready to ward off any threat seeking to take her away or cause them bodily harm.
Even if there was none. A slight adjustment of her positioning had awakened him earlier. She had no doubt it would again.
Feeling the breeze seep into her again, she pulled John's shirt tighter around her. After they had finally made it down the mountain, they were both limping severely. Thinking about it, Elizabeth shook her head at how well the adrenaline had worked to mask the pain earlier. She understood a little bit better how John could keep moving when he had been seriously injured.
Finding them a place to rest, John had insisted that she take his shirt for warmth as the night had settled in. Now, toying with the edges of the rolled up sleeve, she couldn't help but wonder if the others were still alive or if they had made it through the gate.
She suspected that she and John were close to it. But she also suspected that it was heavily guarded and that is why he had chosen to wait. Granted it had been late afternoon when they had stopped their travels for the day. Tired and hurting, neither was in shape to take on a battle if they could avoid it. Plus, she was sure that John was betting reinforcements would be here by tomorrow morning.
A yawn escaped as fatigue washed over her. The pain reliever John had forced her to take earlier had dulled the ache in her knee considerably. Gingerly stretching it out, she pressed on it to see how much swelling remained.
"Better?"
Humming a response, Elizabeth focused her attention on him "You?" She asked, not surprised he was alert to her movements. Vaguely she saw his shrug.
"Not bleeding," he added, stretching his legs out. After a few minutes he spoke again. "You're tired. Get some sleep. I'll stay awake," he said, shifting slightly to offer an arm as a pillow.
Lying in front of him, she smiled when he dropped an arm across her stomach and brought her closer to his body. She could feel the chill of his clothes on her back. "You're cold," she muttered accusingly. "You just want me to keep you warm," she countered, her voice indicating she wasn't really upset with him.
"Always," he agreed innocently, trailing kisses on the side of her face. "See, feeling better already."
"I can tell," she breathed, reaching back to capture a kiss. Settling her head back on his arm, she laid her hand over his and allowed her body to relax. She felt like she had just drifted off when she felt John shaking her. Snapping awake she felt the tension in his body.
"Elizabeth," he growled softly in her ear to make sure she was awake. When he felt her stir he tightened his hand on her body. "Stay here," he ordered quietly before rolling away from her.
Alarmed, Elizabeth sat up and slid the pistol from her holster as she watched John slip silently out from under the cover of the tree. Straining to hear any sound that would give her some idea of what was occurring, she realized that the bugs that had been chittering and chirping earlier were silent. Shivering, she couldn't tell if it was fear or the sudden loss of John's body heat causing it.
Time seemed to stand still. Frowning, Elizabeth tried to gauge how much time had passed since he had left. Surely he had found out what was going on by now.
The sound of a branch snapping nearby froze her lungs. Gripping the gun tighter, she forced her body to take a small quiet breath and prepare to move quickly if needed. Focused on trying to determine if the sound was John coming back or something else, she literally jumped when a voice spoke next to her.
"Elizabeth," John called to her, crouching down and pulling the tree leaves aside. Holding out his hand, he helped her move toward him.
As she reached the edge, another hand appeared in front of her. Looking up quickly, she let out a relieved breath. "Ronan," she sighed, grabbing his hand and allowing them to pull her upright. Squeezing Ronan's hand in thanks before letting it go, she looked at the others and nodded at Major Evan Lorne, his team, and several of the soldiers who had been on the training mission. "It's good to see all of you," she finally got out.
"You too, ma'am," Lorne said, letting out a breath. Even in the pre-dawn twilight, he could see the reflection of bandages and scrapes on the pair. They had not escaped the day unharmed.
Realizing someone was missing, alarm went through her and she instinctively gripped John's arm. "Teyla?"
"I am here," Teyla called softly coming up behind the group. Nodding at John and Elizabeth, she looked toward Lorne. "There is a group of Odens coming this way," she reported.
"Time to move," John ordered, pulling the empty magazine from his gun and swapping it with the one that appeared unbidden in front of him.
"SG Eleven has the gate secured. We're about three klicks from it," Evan reported, tucking the empty case in his vest. "You okay to walk?" he asked, nodding to his commander's leg.
Nodding tightly, John tipped his head toward Elizabeth. 'You?" he asked.
Straightening her shoulders, Elizabeth nodded. "As long as we don't have to run," she added.
"Ronan," John stated, looking at the big man.
"Got it," Ronan acknowledged, accepting the order to make sure Elizabeth didn't get left behind if they had to make a run for it.
Moving out, soldiers fanned out to surround their commanding officer and base leader. Lorne positioned himself near John in case he needed assistance. Watching him favor his wounded leg, he was sure Sheppard would need a shoulder to lean on before they got to the gate.
Glancing sideways, he noted Weir's limp was getting more pronounced also. Dropping back by Ronan, he smiled when the big man nodded his agreement about the pair's increasing difficulty and stubbornness to continue with no assistance. An energy bolt hitting a tree near the group sent them into full military response.
Flinching at the roar of the weapon fire passing nearby, Elizabeth gasped as John grabbed her arm and shoved her forward. Stumbling, she yelped as her knee hit the ground, sending pain shooting through her body.
"You hit?" John yelled anxiously, shielding her with his body and sending several shots towards the approaching men before glancing back at her.
"Knee," she gasped out, trying to regain her feet and figure out where they were in relation to the gate.
"I've got her," Ronan yelled, slipping his arm around Elizabeth's knees and back.
"Come on, sir," Lorne urged, pulling on his commander's arm while hitting his radio. "Loretz! We're coming in hot! Dial the gate and tell Atlantis to have medical standing by," he bellowed.
~~SGA ~~ SGA ~~ SGA
Pulling off the latex gloves, Doctor Carson Beckett let out a breath in relief. "It'll take several weeks but it should heal without too much trouble," he reported, looking at John. "Let that finish and then you can head out of here," he added.
Looking up at the IV bags above him, John nodded. Carson said the antibiotic was more of a preventative measure than there being any sign of serious infection setting into the scrapes, cuts and burns. "Elizabeth?"
Carson smiled assuringly. "She's going to need to stay off of that leg for a couple weeks and I'll want to check that arm everyday, but other than that she'll be fine. She's getting cleaned up, but I want her to stay here for a bit so I can run an antibiotic and keep her comfortable."
Nodding, John's attention was drawn to his approaching team members. "We find out why the Odens showed up?"
"You," Ronan snorted, leaning on the end of the bed, "and her," he added, nodding toward Elizabeth as she neared the bed next to John.
Raising her eyebrow at the Satedan, she left any comment until the nurse helped her transfer from the wheelchair to the bed. Settling in, she thanked the woman and watched her leave before turning her attention back to the others. "And we know that because...?," she asked, trailing off.
"Asked 'em," the big man replied, a devilish smile on his face.
"Ronan and I were able to catch one of them," Teyla clarified. "He claims they had no knowledge we were there. They came to the planet when we were there by accident."
John looked skeptically at the pair. "So why'd they stay?"
"Wraith want you bad," Dex reported standing up and looking at John. "Once they saw the men at the gate were from Atlantis, they called in reinforcements and started searching. Said they found our camp during the night, but waited til dawn to attack. Not sure Odens realized who was actually there at first," he added, nodding at Elizabeth. "But when they figured it out, they weren't leaving without both of you."
"The Wraith promised to leave an entire planet unculled if the residents give either of you to them. Each of you would bring much wealth to the Odens. To have both of you...," Teyla stated solemnly taking a heavy breath and leaving the implications of the statement hanging in the air.
"Even so, there is no way the Wraith will keep their word," John snapped.
"But," Elizabeth sighed frowning, "some will want to believe it." Locking eyes with John she saw his acknowledgement that it would make any mission a little bit riskier in the future. Sighing again, she plastered a small smile on her face and looked back toward the others. "What happened to the man you captured?"
"We released him," Teyla stated, sharing a look with Ronan, "with a message."
"Message?" John repeated with a frown.
"To leave us the hell alone," Dex retorted.
"That it would not be wise to believe the Wraith," Teyla clarified, giving Ronan a chiding look. "We shall see if it makes a difference. But," she added with a tight smile, "it does not matter right now so I believe it would be best if we let you rest. I am pleased you are both safe," she said.
Before she and Ronan could move, Elizabeth stopped them. "You better contact all off world teams and let them know of this new development. There's no telling who might decide to turn over any of us in the hope of saving their world."
"And send a second team to MGX-729 to back up Rodney and Major Hitchen's team," John added, no longer comfortable with only four military to protect the twenty scientists exploring the ancient ruins there.
"I will see to it," Teyla replied before she and Ronan left.
"And then get some rest," Carson called after them. Turning to his two remaining friends, he asked, "Comfortable? Need anything to help you sleep?" Seeing head shakes, he smiled. "Get some rest and I'll check back in a bit," he assured them, heading toward his office.
Silence descended after the others left. Watching Elizabeth, John could read the concern in her features at the latest development the Pegasus galaxy had thrown at them. Sliding from the bed, he crossed the couple steps between their beds, careful to not dislodge the IV. "Hey," he called softly when she did not seem to realize he was there. When she looked at him, he cocked his head. "You okay?"
Her gaze softened at his question. "Yeah," she said, her eyes roaming his features. "You?"
Nodding toward the port in his hand, he said, "When this gets done, Carson's releasing me. You, on the other hand, have to stay." A smirk crossed his face at the grimace on Elizabeth's. "Shouldn't be for long," he relented at her apparent misery.
Nodding, Elizabeth dropped her gaze and sobered. "John, about what Teyla said," she began looking back up.
Shaking his head, John cut her off. "Doesn't change a thing," he stated firmly. "It's not like the Wraith weren't after us before."
"Still, now others may be more inclined to help them."
"Everyone will have to be a little sharper, that's all," he replied, allowing his fingers to touch the back of her arm. "We'll figure it out," he assured her. "Right now, just get some sleep," he added, stroking his fingers along her arm to soothe her.
Locking eyes with him to let him know the conversation wasn't really over, Elizabeth relented for now. Focusing on the rhythmic strokes of his fingers, she allowed her body to begin to relax. "You need sleep too," she murmured, feeling her eyes begin to droop.
"I will," he promised, watching her loose the battle to the sleep pulling on her. Waiting long enough to ensure she was out, John eased back into his bed. Staring at the ceiling, he frowned.
Despite what he had just said to Elizabeth, the fact that the Wraith had just created a new level of danger for them weighed heavily on him. Forcing the thought back, John closed his eyes.
He'd think of something. He would have to.
The end
AN2: As I said in the beginning, there were all sorts of additional parts of this that could have been written. I actually wrote this several months ago but my muse was being stubborn and wouldn't go back to finish it. Hope the parts that made it to screen were enjoyable and didn't leave too many unanswered questions for you. And yes, I am fully aware the door is open for all sorts of additional stories here. We will have to see if anything else develops. Thanks for reading!