"I'm not dead."

"No."

"Someone else is."

She didn't know what to say. She looked at him the handsome and somehow still innocent planes of his face, dark eyes looking into her own searchingly begging for the missing puzzle pieces.

"Methos is gone Jarod."

He flinched and closed his eyes, a single tear creeping down his right cheek. She held his hand fiercely as though it were all that stood between them and disaster. He didn't speak or open his eyes again, simply wept silently.

She woke hours later with Carson at her elbow gently rubbing her back. She sat up and scrubbed at her dry tired eyes. Carson began to examine Jarod who appeared to still be sleeping.

"He's getting stronger. In a day or two you should see if he'd like to try walking. Thanks to your…gifts…the usual muscular atrophy and connective tissue shrinkage isn't an issue. How is he mentally?

Max sighed and stood slowly, she stretched her back then nodded toward the doorway. Silently Carson followed her out.

"I told him today."

Carson nodded slowly, "How did he take it?"

"About as well as I could hope."

"It's important that he doesn't brood."

She shook her head and almost smiled. "Methos knew what he was doing. Everyone that ever met him knew he couldn't be forced into much of anything. Not anymore." She looked troubled then took a deep breath, "He did what he did of his own free will. It cost his wife her husband and…well."

"He was married?" Carson sounded surprised.

"Yes. We do that sometimes. We can't have children but we sometimes marry."

"Did she know about his uh.."

"Yes. Not all our spouses do though. Which is fucked up." She muttered.

"Well, physically his progress is astonishing. Please let me know if you feel he needs more support and assistance than you're able to give. Atlantis has a skilled councilor."

"We don't really do counseling I mean, most therapists hear a patient say they're an immortal and it's Haldol and bright lights but…thank you."

She watched Carson return to his patient and checked the time. She was sore and aching from too much bed sitting. She wanted to go for a run but her rumbling stomach guided her feet toward the cafeteria. It wasn't yet daylight on their new planet but the café was serving.

She took a tray and didn't pay much attention to what ended up on it.

"Interesting." Lorne said.

She blinked and looked up from her plate and her dark thoughts. He was dressed casually in loose jeans and dark t-shirt, hair tousled and loose but still trimmed.

"Uh…hi."

"You always have French toast and fish for breakfast?"

She looked at her plate again and frowned.

"So not breakfast then." He laughed gently.

"I was –"

"Sit with me?" He asked and lead the way to one of the many unoccupied tables.

He had two hard boiled eggs and a bowl of absurdly sugary cereal on his tray. She looked down at her own tray and frowned harder. It was a veritable cornucopia of mismatched foods.

"Never let your cravings do the selecting." She sighed and started cutting up the French toast.

"I thought you were off missions?" He asked starting in on his cereal.

"I …" She thought about how to explain. "I've been sitting with Jarod. I had to tell him about Methos…my teacher today."

"Oh…I'm sorry that must have been difficult."

"He I think he already knew, kind of."

"Is he okay?"

"I don't know. He's Jarod but somehow not. I mean Carson or one of his team are always nearby I guess the IOA or someone is worried he might go berserker again. Not that a medic with a needle will do any good if he does."

Lorne stopped eating and studied her. "You told me that your kind absorb the power and sometimes the personality or other traits of your uh well –"

"Victims. It's okay to say it." She said gently.

He blushed slightly but continued. "What if he's taken on some of your teacher's personality?"

She thought about that. Methos had been mentally more together than she had ever known him to be in the last years of his life. He was also a massively dangerous tactician and combatant. He had by no means been a small man but he also didn't have Jarod's powerful frame and muscular physique. Jarod with Methos' skills and knowledge could be very powerful.

"Honestly? As long as he's more Jarod than Methos we're probably fine."

"If he isn't?"

"Did you ever read the files on the first time the SGC encountered him?"