A/N: And now, we have Alejandro. It's gonna be interesting to see how that's gonna play out. By the way, listen to "American Soldier" by Toby Keith and songs about patriotism. "American Soldier" really reminds me of Selena. "A Soldier's Prayer" by Collin Raye is another song I highly recommend. My country (USA) is a country I am very proud of. I was born and raised in a military family, I couldn't be any prouder of my father and the US Military than I am right now. During the funeral, listen to "American Soldier", it really fits.

Lady: I'm glad you liked it. Selena is very much the protective type, she doesn't let people threaten her or people she loves. So her instincts kicked in when she saw Ford with a gun. Big sister came out to play when he pointed the gun at her little brother. I'd love to give you a little Carson/Selena moment :)

Soccer: You definitely will be seeing more of him later on, but he's leaving in this one. I'd love to write you a little Selena/Carson interaction!


Storybooks full of fairytales

Of kings and queens and the bluey skies

My heart is torn, just in knowing

You'll someday see the truth from lies

When the clouds will rage in

Storms will race in

Plumb - In My Arms


The Wraith were gone, and Selena knew her brother was safe. He was on Atlantis, in her line of sight and her line of protection. Soldiers had died from the attack, but the lost city was nursing its wounds.

Selena stood on the balcony, watching the water ripple in the ocean below. The sun streamed down, its warmth washing over her face. Atlantis was a foreign place until she had had to fight for the right to live. Now, it was her home. No one could take her home from her. The people she had come to know had needed her, and they had received her. Selena was a soldier at heart. For so long, she had had her doubts about her true calling, but the doubts were erased in the attempted siege. Her attention was piqued as she heard someone clear their throat.

"Mind if I join you out here?" she heard Carson ask. Wordlessly, Selena nodded. She felt her throat thicken and her eyes prick with tears at the thought of saying goodbye to Alejandro. She didn't know when she would hear from him again, let alone see him.

"The Marines are leaving tomorrow," she found herself uttering. She wiped her eyes quickly, trying not to cry out at the thought of it. Alejandro was responsible for himself, his duty was with the Marine Corps. A savage war had been fought yesterday, a battle for survival, but humans had reaffirmed their place in the universe.

"That has to be hard," Carson offered. Selena nodded again, the tears trickling down her face. For right now, she wanted to enjoy her brother while he was still with her.

"I don't know when I'm going to see him again," she whispered, her voice breaking. For so long, she had kept up a tough front for her own sanity. Now, it was relieving to just let go of all of the pent-up tension and emotions inside of her. Seeing her brother come to her rescue had awakened the worry she had tried so hard to withhold from others.

"When does he leave?" Carson asked. Selena wiped her eyes, sniffling a bit. If she stopped now, there would be no trace of her miniature emotional show. She was a warrior, and she had survived one of the biggest curve-balls that Life had thrown at her. Now, it was time to put the warrior away and embrace her humanity.

"After lunch tomorrow," she replied, sniffling again. Her gaze dropped to the cement ledge, her hands clenched into fists.

"You've been through a hell of a fight, love, and you can't expect to come out of it without a few scars," he told her.

"Carson, my job isn't to show emotion. It's to protect my people and do what I need to do to make sure my mission is carried out," she said. She didn't flinch as his hand rested on her shoulder.

"But that doesn't mean you shut out your humanity," he argued in a gentle voice. She wiped more of the tears from her eyes, keeping quiet. "No one can hold that against you. Honestly, I'm surprised it's taken you this long to crack."

Selena chuckled, despite the situation. "Remind me why I keep you around?" she said. Carson held out his arms and she hugged him tightly. "All you do is show me that it's silly to have my way of thinking that I'm a robot."

"Because you need a good doctor that can tell you it's silly to downplay things," he replied. "Especially pain and sleep-talking, Tinkerbell." Selena groaned, rolling her eyes.

"Not you, too," she complained. He rubbed her back, chuckling.

"See? We need each other around for a specific purpose. You need me to remind you that you're human, I need you to keep me company," he replied, his Scottish accent thick with amusement.

"Bada-bing," she muttered. It was a good thing he was there with her, because she was losing her grip on her facade. Carson had a soothing presence to her. He made it possible for her to relax. She was showing symptoms of letting her guard down around him. "Thanks for being here."

"No problem. Just take my advice and keep away from Dr. Reid," he warned. Selena smiled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Already done," she assured him. "I saw Dr. Heitmeyer a few days ago and I much prefer her over him."

"Because if anyone is a rat, it's him," he told her. She let out a soft laugh and nodded.

"Can't argue there," she agreed.


She sat down on the ledge, her brother's head on her lap. Selena hummed to him as she massaged his scalp. It was as if part of her heart had healed with his return. It was if the breath she had been holding for so long had finally been released. Alejandro seemed to be calmer when he was around her, his demeanor much more relaxed.

"Back to Cambodia?" she asked. He opened one eye to look up at her.

"First, I go home for R&R for about two weeks," he replied. Selena knew their family would be ecstatic to hear from him, let alone see him. Three years without contact was three years too long for them.

"I know Destiny will be happy to see you," she teased lightly. Destiny Cortes was Alejandro's fiancee back in Puerto Rico. His eyes grew sad as he looked into hers.

"I don't think she would have waited for me, Tinks," he told her. He sighed and sat up. "I don't wanna talk about it."

"Do me a favor when you get home?" Selena requested. His dark eyes met hers and he nodded.

"Anything," he promised. She bit her lip and looked around.

"Tell everyone at home that I'm alright and I'll be sending them a message soon."


Selena stood on the steps in her dress blues, alert to Dr. Weir's words. It was a ceremony for the ones who had died in the quest for Atlantis's survival in the Pegasus galaxy. Her medals and awards hung from the blue material, a reminder of how far she had come since joining the Army.

"We just fought a war, everyone. With the help of each and every one of you, we won that war. I asked more of you than I ever intended to, and you all have followed through. Sergeant Bates was a damn good soldier, he did the job as he had been trained. Colonel Everett was well-respected amongst soldiers everywhere. He was a man who gave respect before commanding it and he fought like hell to protect each and every one of us," Weir said.

The Marines stood near Colonel Everett's casket. The gate was dialed, ready to go to the planet where the Daedalus was to pick them up and take them home. Goodbyes were said to the others, but Selena's goodbye to Alejandro was the hardest. The tears rolled down her face as she sobbed into her brother's chest.

"I have to go, Tinkerbell," he murmured in her ear. She stepped away from him, wiping her eyes and sniffling.

"Be careful out there in that big, bad world, little brother," she told him. He saluted her, his spine stiff. She mimicked the action before keeping her head down from the others. Her heart cried out as he left. It felt wrong to see him leave, but she couldn't protect him anymore. Alejandro was a grown man with a future in the Marine Corps. He was no longer the little brother she had protected from bullies, who used to crawl in her bed when he had nightmares. She had snuck a letter to him in his bag and she hoped he would be able to read it.

Selena walked away from the others to be alone in her quarters. Dr. Weir had given her the day off, to recover from the battle and cope with Alejandro's leaving. Selena hung up her uniform and sat down on her chair in her sweatpants and tank top. A family album was spread across her lap, pictures of her childhood and life experiences.

She played with her dog-tags, not being able to take her eyes off of Alejandro's baby photo when he was born. Tears of sadness and grief came harder until sobs wracked her body. She clutched the album to her chest and curled up in a ball as it overwhelmed her. Her brother was out of her reach. The ignorance of his well-being shook her to the core.

For so long, she had been able to shut down her emotions in the process of doing her job. The Army was her calling, her life. She was married to this profession, it demanded all of her time, energy, and attention. But it was also the most rewarding job in the world to her. She knew that what she was doing was making a difference. Her country had needed her, but now, the people of Atlantis needed her.

She hadn't even known she had fallen asleep until she heard someone saying her name and trying to wake her up. Selena woke up and looked around. Teyla held a brown paper sack.

"We missed you at dinner," she told her. Selena accepted the sack, her bloodshot eyes widening slightly.

"I didn't even know I fell asleep, thank you," she said, surprised at the thoughtful gesture. The attractive Athosian smiled in response.

"You've had a rough day, Captain," she reminded her serenely. "It was no trouble at all."

The sack held a turkey and cheese sandwich, a bag of Doritos, and a bottle of water.

"Would you like to sit down?" Selena asked. "Right now, I could use some company."