Being serious

Elizabeth was wandering through Atlantis with awe. There was so much that changed since she was there last and she wanted to memorize every single detail. She needed to visit Woolsey's office but she couldn't just take the transporter. She was home for only three days that she remembered and John had finally let her out of his sight.

"Elizabeth, here you are!" Elizabeth heard a familiar voice. "I've been told where you could be but I thought that I got lost."

"Mom?"

The older woman embraced Elizabeth wholeheartedly.

"It's so good to know you are whole again." She whispered. "You have no idea how good it was to hear."

"Why are you here, mom?" Asked Elizabeth.

"John called me yesterday and arranged a transportation."

"I mean … the clearance and all that and…"

"John told me about your past." Susan understood the question that was not asked. "When he wanted to get you out from the psychiatric ward. Then he took me to the president thanks to one young woman on board the starship."

"Samantha Carter?"

"Yes, Miss Carter. She helped to get me to the president. Then I got a clearance from him so I can now travel here every time I want."

"That's weird, mom." Elizabeth smiled a little awkwardly.

"I know, sweetheart." Susan hugged her daughter again. "It will get easier in time."

"I need to make a call in Mister Woolsey's office. It will not take long. Then I will take you to some quarters, okay?"

"I have already met Mister Woolsey, he is a really nice man."

"I know." Elizabeth walked with her mother for a while. Then she stopped and turned her direction. "Mom, there is something I need to tell you…" She smiled putting a hand on her still flat belly. "I'm pregnant."

"Oh, sweetheart, that's wonderful." Susan hugged her daughter.

They were sitting in the glass office above the Gate room of Atlantis talking.

"Are you sure you want to go?" He asked.

"Yes, I am, Richard." Elizabeth answered angrily. "I am the source of this whole mess and I should be there to take the blame."

"But with your condition…"

"I'm pregnant, Richard, not gravely ill!"

"And you're cranky…"

Elizabeth looked at him with disappointed expression which softened very quickly

"I'm sorry, Richard. It's just … It's just I don't want my people to have trouble because they helped me."

"And you want to go through with your idea."

"You think it's insane, don't you?" She smiled.

"No, I just think you should keep it far from the IOA until it is planned."

"That's honest." She commented. "I'm going to go back to Washington soon, there I can start some preparations. If you can back me up on it."

"I will." He declared. "I think it can work, you know."

"By the way, thank you for notifying my dean about my absence."

"No problem." He stood up and neared a small table. "More tea?"

"I'm glad you're home again." John pulled Elizabeth closer. "You are overtaxing yourself and I don't like it."

Elizabeth laughed softly.

"Everyone seems to treat me like a porcelain doll rather than a person since they know I'm pregnant."

"Everyone is worried about you, Liz." He kissed her. "You're not in your prime when it comes to bearing children."

"Rodney wouldn't even let me help for more than an hour, you know." Elizabeth laughed. "He's been well trained by Jennifer."

"By the way, I've heard you're helping him with some really great stuff?"

"It was me who reprogrammed some of the systems, with the instructions of Janus, and I remember what to do to get them back online."

"Do you think we can make Atlantis fly again?" He asked wishfully. "To take her back to Lantia?"

"I think getting her to fly is much easier than getting the IOA to accept the idea."

"You're the top diplomat of our times, you will find a way."

"John…" Elizabeth got up and looked straight into John's eyes. "There was something that Rodney said that makes me wandering."

"What was that?"

"You didn't want to try the machine, to try if it worked. Why?"

"It might have proved dangerous. I didn't want you to check it the hard way."

"John?"

"Why didn't you want me to get my memories back?"

"I did not…"

"You did want me to be without them. I know it." She put a distance between them. "So why?"

John looked elsewhere for some time and even when he looked back at her he remained silent for a few minutes. He answered only after about a minute. He looked at her, but not directly into her eyes.

"I didn't want you to remember all the bad things that happened." He tried to explain. "All the betrayal from us, from ME. I did some things I'm seriously not happy about. Starting from leaving you on Asuras and finishing with the way you were treated when you were back in Fran's body last year."

"None of this was your fault, John." Said Elizabeth taking his head into her hands and turning his face to hers. "You did the right things in each of the situations, do you understand?"

"After what I have said to… you, I might have as well pushed you through that wormhole myself."

"You were right."

"But still…"

"John," she interrupted, "without all that I wouldn't be here." She kissed John and snuggled against him obviously stating the end of the conversation. "Can we sleep now? I have a meeting with the IOA tomorrow."

"There is one strange thing, you know…" Started John after a few minutes.

"Hym?" Mumbled Elizabeth.

"Atlantis seems to be happy to have you back, you know. It's the feeling the ATA carriers get."

"The song?"

"What?"

"The sounds the City makes, the song it sings…"

"You can hear it?"

"Carson seems to think that our child had inherited the strong gene from you and that it 'shares' with me. It's probably what made the trick with the reversing the machine effects possible." She explained. "I can even access more systems than Rodney…"

"It's great. Sleep, I will ask Atlantis to sing something just perfect for it."

Elizabeth laughed quietly and listened to the sweet lullaby sang by the ancient City.

"Elizabeth, you look tired." Said Emma approaching her table. "Elizabeth!"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't hear you come in." Answered Elizabeth sipping her tea. "Is there something you needed?"

"No, everything is fine, It's you I'm worried about."

"There's no need."

"Liz, you've come back to work only three days ago and you already look like you've been working for two weeks straight." Emma scolded. "You will burn out if you keep on doing this."

"I need to do this for tomorrow and I still have more than half of it left."

"You should take a break."

"Emma, I've spent too much time out already."

"Come with me for some coffee then." Suggested the woman. "It was always good for you."

"I can't." Said Elziabeth shyly.

"Why not? You always liked it."

"I'm pregnant, Emma, and my doctor threatened to ground me if I even taste a drop."

"You are with child?"

"Yes."

"When will you start telling us anything about yourself?"

"Probably not soon…"

"And you won't tell us what were you doing when you weren't here?" Asked Emma.

"I was… rediscovering my past. That much I can tell you."

"And where are you when you leave here during the week?" Asked Emma leaning over the desk. "Is it classified as well?"

"I have some meetings with the civilian authorities that oversee some semi-military operations."

"Ok, that's enough. Will we at least go down to try the newest cake or are you forbidden to eat sweets too?"

"I would like a cake, actually." Elizabeth stood up and left her marker on the table. "This International Commitee is giving me a huge headache."

During their time in the cafeteria Elizabeth got a call. Emma was happy to see a small smile appear on her friend's lips. There was something about the agreement and terms and a lot of talk about military generals. Emma wasn't eavesdropping but it was hard not to hear even the whisper when it concerned the most mysterious part of Elizabeth's life.

"It's really good to hear, Richard." Said Elizabeth. "Thank you for the information."

Elizabeth put her cell phone back to her bag and returned to the conversation at hand.

"So, who was that?" Asked Emma. "Just tell me."

"It is a friend, and now we try to get something done." Answered Elizabeth. "He is my link to some of the negotiations."

"And what would that negotiations be about?"

"About getting the military to agree on some of our, Richard's and mine, terms. It's like hitting a stone wall with your head."

"But it's going forward?"

"Yes. I have two generals that support the idea and I spent a few months dealing with the international politics surrounding the whole project. I think I can handle it."

"I sense some 'and' in your voice." Pushed Emma.

"And if I manage to convince everyone it will leave the final talk to made the plans happen."

"And that would be?"

"The talk with the president himself."

"Wow…"

"I met him five years ago and he is not that bad, you know."

They laughed over the cake and talked even more, but the topic changed to some less serious. Emma wanted to know everything about the wedding and Elizabeth desired more information about her friends' life. It was nice to be back.

"Sheppard, can you stay a moment?" Landry delayed John after the debriefing. "I want to talk to you."

They were left alone, but they both moved to a more private place, Landry's office. John waited until Landry sat and started.

"You know what your wife has planned?" Asked the general with a smile. "It's quite an 'inventive' plan."

"Yeah, we talked about it a lot." Admitted John. "We designed it together."

"And you support her?"

"Yes, fully, sir."

"So you will have no objections to her going?"

"I look forward to it, sir. She will be much better then."

"How is she now?" Asked Landry after a short pause. "I mean physically but also how is she …?"

"How does she cope?"

"Yes."

"She is very well, considering how much has happened lately." Answered John. "She misses the constant sound of the city…" he was cut off.

"The sound of the city?"

"It's what can be heard only by the people with the ATA gene. Some kind of sound or, more accurately, song of the City." John cleared up. "It changes accordingly to the mood of its inhabitants, time of day but it also seems to have moods of its own. Elizabeth falls asleep very comfortably to the sound of its lullaby."

"There is certainly much more to the City than meets the reports… Anyway, she did it."

"Did what?"

"She made it to the last step." Informed Landry. "It's only one was to finish the job now and it is talk to the president to get and okay for the … initiative. If he agrees you will have to start packing."

"For the first time I look forward to packing." Murmured John with a smile.

"Don't be so happy yet, Sheppard." Calmed him down Landry. "The president seems a little skeptical about most of the specifications."

"Elizabeth will get him to agree."

"You can hope…" Teased Landry. "And I suggest you tell Beckett and the rest of your team that you will probably have to pack soon." He smiled.

"So, when is the big talk scheduled?"

"Next week. Prepare to leave, I would like her to have someone to lean on." Said Landry. "And wish her luck from me."