A/N: Standard disclaimer: intellectual property owned by others. No infringement intended.

A/N2: While I look up the medical stuff I use, I get a lot wrong, and some has to be wrong for the plot. Beware.

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Our Friend the Hormone

"Ronon, help me turn him! No, don't put anything in his mouth. Kelly, ativan, stat." Carson Beckett moved quickly into emergency mode, directing all those around him to efficiently manage the crisis.

They moved him to his left side in case he vomited so that his airway remained clear. A nurse appeared on Beckett's right with a hypodermic, and the doctor quickly injected the pilot in the upper arm.

Gradually John stopped convulsing. As Ronon released his CO, Beckett looked at the team and Elizabeth, still gathered around the bed.

"OK, I don't think I have to tell ye that a seizure is not good. I'm going to have to run some tests to see why that happened. He is goin' to be unconscious for a while, so I want all of you to get some food and rest. That goes especially for you, Elizabeth," he finished, looking pointedly at her.

The group slowly made its way out of the infirmary while Beckett and the nurses made Sheppard comfortable. Elizabeth turned for one final look only to see the nurses attaching the monitoring equipment.

When she returned to the infirmary two hours later, John was still unconscious. Beckett came up beside her as she sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"We have him stable for now, but we're not sure what caused the seizure. He has an enzyme in his blood that I assume is wraith enzyme, but it's not the one we're used to. I can only assume that giving life requires a different enzyme from taking life."

Elizabeth nodded. "He hasn't awakened?"

"I've given him a light sedative since I think rest is the best thing for him while this chemical works its way out of his system."

"And if it doesn't?"

Beckett sighed. "I don't know. We'll keep doing blood tests and regular scans to be sure it's decreasing and to determine what effect it's having on his organs." He paused then put his hand on her shoulder. "Be sure to get some rest, Elizabeth. I don't need two patients."

Elizabeth nodded as he walked away, her eyes still on John.

The next two days were unsettling. Sheppard had several more seizures, and Beckett looked worried. The enzyme was decreasing but very slowly, and the scans were beginning to show stress in his organs.

On the third day, Elizabeth was in her accustomed place by his bed. She had relieved Ronon a few hours earlier, and it was now only an hour before dawn. Carson Beckett came up to her again, his weariness evident in his bearing.

"Carson, have you gotten any sleep?"

"Probably as much as you have." They were both silent awhile, watching the unconscious pilot. "His kidneys are failing."

She looked up at him and turned back to her vigil. "You know, he came to me when he returned."

"Aye, I figured he would seek you out. I was na very happy about him running off, but I could tell he had to get away, and Heightmeyer approved. Now I wonder: if I had forced him to the infirmary could we have avoided this?" Beckett ran his hand through his hair, a common gesture if the state of his hair was any indication.

Elizabeth looked down. "I'm sorry. I needed to see him." She paused a moment. "I suppose you guessed why I asked for a checkup a few weeks ago.

Beckett smiled wanly. "Aye, especially when he came in a few days later asking the same things."

Elizabeth looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and Beckett blushed. "You know what I mean. STDs, etc."

"OK." She paused again, taking John's limp hand in her own. "I'm afraid when he found me our hormones kind of took over, almost like a pair of teenagers."

Beckett smiled at the image then tensed as something fell into place. "Elizabeth, when exactly was this?"

Elizabeth cocked an eyebrow at him though her cheeks were slightly pink. "Do you want details, Carson?"

"No, lass, just a timeline."

"Well, he arrived after he had been running, and I don't know how long that was, but I had been out on the balcony for at least an hour, and more likely an hour and a half. We talked for a little while, then, things just happened."

Beckett nodded, obviously thinking of something. "So, he told me he would be back in four hours, so at least one and a half hours elapsed before he found you."

"He said we had another hour and a half. I hadn't realized he had promised you."

Beckett looked at her sharply. "When, exactly, did he say that?"

"Well, when we, uh, finished up?" Elizabeth was scarlet now, uncomfortable with the conversation.

"What did you do for the next hour or so?"

Elizabeth looked at Carson and raised both eyebrows.

"Humor me, Elizabeth, I think there's something here."

Elizabeth looked skeptical, but described the walk to his quarters, a shower, and resting.

Beckett looked like he wasn't paying attention. He seemed to be counting on his fingers then suddenly turned aside. "Branson, this is Carson."

There was a little delay, then a voice replied, "Branson here. Do you know what time it is, Carson?"

"I have an idea on that enzyme. Have you worked out the molecular structure yet?"

"Yeah, we finished it around 7 pm and knocked off for dinner and some sleep, which, by the way, I was enjoying before you called."

"Branson, listen. Does the structure have receptors for hormones?"

There was silence on the line as the organic chemist considered the question. "I think it might. Is this important?"

"It might provide a treatment for the colonel. I'll meet you in the lab. Carson out."

He turned to Elizabeth who was not sure exactly what had happened. "Elizabeth, I've got a possibility on a treatment. If you need me, call. Kelly is on duty also."

"OK, Carson, I'll stay here."

The Scots doctor hurried away, still absorbed in his problem. Elizabeth hoped and prayed he was right.

Elizabeth left around 7 to get ready for her day. John had had another seizure after Carson left, so her mood was glum. After a shower, she grabbed a muffin and began dealing with the routine of the city. Toward lunch, she couldn't stand it anymore so she packed up some of the endless reports and decided to see how hard it was to work on a laptop in the infirmary. After all, if Rodney could do it, …

Just as she approached John's bed, Beckett walked up with a syringe that he injected into the port on the IV that had been inserted in John's left arm.

"Carson, have you got a treatment?" The hope in her voice was unmistakable.

Carson looked over at Elizabeth and then back to his patient. "I'm not sure, lass, but it's a possibility. We'd been noticin' that his seizures were roughly three hours apart. In the hour immediately after a seizure, the enzyme dropped significantly. The drop slowed over the next two hours until another seizure." He stopped and looked over at Elizabeth again. "It was what you said about hormones that triggered my theory. The seizures didn't start until he was in the infirmary. Prior to that he was running, and I know from being in the jumper that the colonel was having a 'fight or flight' response to adrenaline. When he met up with you, testosterone was involved." Carson looked away as he saw Elizabeth's cheeks redden. "Anyway, by the time you got here, it had been about two and a half hours since your, um, activity, and he had a seizure about twenty minutes after arriving."

"So?"

"So, seizures cause the release of large amounts of adrenaline. It made me think that his body was using adrenaline to bind with the enzyme and remove it as it normally regulates hormones."

"So you're giving him adrenaline?"

"No, I thought I'd try testosterone first. We can keep the level of testosterone a little high without the same increase in blood pressure and respiration that adrenaline causes. I haven't given him that much, but I hope it's enough to fool his body into thinking it doesn't need another seizure."

Elizabeth grabbed a chair and pulled it over to the bed. Setting her laptop on it, she moved to the side of the bed and took John's hand. "I sure hope this works."

"Aye, so do I. We should know within two hours since he's due another seizure at some point in that time." Rechecking the monitors, the doctor gave Elizabeth an encouraging squeeze on her shoulder and moved into his office to make more notes in Sheppard's current chart.

Elizabeth settled down with her laptop, pulling up a report to read, but continuing to glance at John. He appeared to be sleeping regularly, but Carson's comment about an imminent seizure had her skittish.

At the two hour mark, Beckett and a nurse came back over and took more blood. After the nurse took it away, Beckett injected more testosterone and looked over at Elizabeth.

"So far, so good. We'll see what the lab results are then decide what we can do." He moved away, following the nurse to the lab, too eager to wait for the results.

Dr. McKay came in at that point, surprised to find Elizabeth with her laptop in his chair.

"Oh, uh, I thought you had the night shift."

"That's OK, Rodney, actually I do. I just wasn't getting any work done, and you always seem to be able to work here, so I thought. . . Anyway, Carson thinks he might have a solution."

"Really? Did he find a pig to sacrifice or something else?"

"Rodney! Seriously, he may have a cure. We're waiting on the result of the latest blood test."

At that point, Carson hurried back in, examining data on his laptop. "I think it's working. The enzyme is still decreasing and he hasn't had a seizure in three hours."

"Excellent, Carson," said Elizabeth, her face reflected her relief.

"Yes, Carson, it seems you're getting better at casting spells."

"Rodney!" said Elizabeth, again, looking at the scientist in exasperation. If she didn't know that this was Rodney's way of expressing relief, she would have slugged him.

"Yes, Rodney, the last grimoire you gave me has proved useful." Carson looked at Elizabeth and winked.

"The last what? What is he talking about, Elizabeth?" Rodney kept looking between his friends, wondering about the apparent joke. At that point, however, there was a slight movement from the pilot in the bed.

"Oh no," said Carson, moving quickly to the bedside. "I thought we were past the seizures." Elizabeth and Rodney both froze.

He began checking pulse and respiration when Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard opened his eyes.

"Hey, Carson," came out scratchy but was recognizable.

"Hi yerself. How about a little water?" responded Carson, motioning to the nurse to bring over a pitcher, cup, and straw. Elizabeth and Rodney quickly moved to the other side of the bed so they could see John.

"Yeah, sounds good." Sheppard closed his eyes, but opened them when he felt a straw against his lips. After a few sips, Beckett took the cup away and returned to checking his vitals.

"Hi there, sleepy," said Elizabeth, gently taking his hand in hers.

"Hey, 'Lizabeth. How long this time?"

"This is the third day since you came back. We were getting worried."

"Well, some of us were," said Rodney. "Others just wanted to see what strange exotic medical condition you came up with this time."

This time she stepped on his foot. "Ow, what was that for?"

Sheppard grimaced, slightly. "So, was I run over by a truck?"

Carson looked at him sharply. "What do you remember?"

Sheppard leaned back, looking at the ceiling, then suddenly appeared more alert. "The wraith. Being fed on." He closed his eyes and grimaced as his hand went to his chest.

"Anything after that?" Elizabeth reached down and pulled his hand away, retaining it in hers. He returned her grasp almost painfully.

"Kolya. Aging." His eyes opened again in shock. "Working with the wraith to escape. Is that right?" He looked over to Rodney.

Rodney nodded. "Yeah, Conan was real disappointed when you wouldn't let him kill it."

"O-Kaaaaay." John looked down at the sheet then he squeezed his eyes in concentration again. "I remember getting my life back and getting back to Atlantis, but after that it gets fuzzy."

Elizabeth tried to keep her poker face. He didn't remember? "Well, you went for a run, got to the infirmary four hours later then had a seizure."

Beckett glanced at her at the omission of their time on the balcony, and she shook her head slightly. He then turned back to John. "Sorry it took us awhile to work out what was causing the seizures."

John looked up at the doctor. "So what was it?"

"The enzyme the wraith used to give you back your life was different from the one used to take it. We found that the enzyme binds with hormones, like adrenaline and testosterone, and is removed from the body. The seizures were stimulating adrenaline production and helping reduce the enzyme levels in your blood. We treated you by giving you testosterone so that you wouldn't need to produce adrenaline."

"You've been giving me testosterone?"

"Just in small amounts to keep your levels on the high side of normal. As soon as I have another round of blood tests, I'll have an idea of how long we need to continue treatment."

John leaned back on the bed, obviously tired. "Do you have to keep up the testosterone? I mean, I have my own, right?"

"Aye, but you need a little more for a little while. Don't worry, Colonel, you'll be fine."

"OK, Carson." He managed to look over at Elizabeth again and squeeze her hand lightly. "I think I'll just take a nap, if that's OK with you. . ." he faded off.

Carson double checked the monitors as John nodded off. "Now he should rest normally for the next little while, so the two of you should go get some rest as well."

Elizabeth nodded, glad John had finally awakened, but wondering about the apparent gap in his memory. "You'll call when he wakes up again?"

"If it's a reasonable hour, yes. Now go, or I'll be putting you in one of these beds with restraints!"

"Going, going," muttered Rodney, pulling Elizabeth out the door with him. "I'm going to grab something to eat. Do you want anything?"

Elizabeth shook her head, glancing back at the infirmary. "No, I think I'll just grab something and get back to the office. The reports don't read themselves. See you tomorrow, Rodney," she finished, heading off toward the control room.

The scientist headed down the corridor, still typing on his laptop, trying to find a definition of "grimoire" only to realize he couldn't spell it.

Hey, Dad.

First of all, I'm fine. I figured you might read a recent report and get worried. Beckett is going to let me out of the infirmary today but I still have to rest in my quarters for awhile. It seems that no one knows what to do for someone who had the life forced back into him.

Way to go on the godfather bit. Just don't make them an offer they can't refuse. I hope you don't mind keeping up with them for me. Actually, it makes me feel a little better knowing you will be in their lives.

By the way, Rodney is back on Earth checking out some new theory, so you might see if you can touch base with him.

Well, here comes Carson. I'm more than ready to get out of here.

More later,

John

John Sheppard closed the laptop and sat up on the edge of the bed as the doctor approached. "Well, ye seem to be OK. The last blood work shows only a trace of the enzyme, so you shouldn't have any more problems. But if you do, call me. We don't know anything about this phenomenon, so we don't know if there will be any delayed effects."

"Got it, Carson. Rest, call if I have problems. Actually, I was just planning on dinner with Elizabeth and a quiet night."

"Dinner is fine, and quiet is a good idea. Early would be good, too. And nothing too strenuous."

"Where's the fun in that? Besides, you've been pumping me full of testosterone for five days."

"Colonel. . . "

"OK, OK, I get it. Gee, Carson, you're killing me."

"Actually, Colonel, I'm trying to save you."

Giving a snort, Sheppard hopped off the bed, grabbed his laptop, and headed to his quarters.

The next few days were boring for Sheppard. Once again, he caught up on all his paperwork. He returned to the schedule of eating breakfast and dinner with Elizabeth, and made it to page 45 in War and Peace.

He also began to remember what had happened before his first seizure. He didn't bring it up, but he watched Elizabeth for any change in how she acted toward him. Seeing none, he decided he owed her a special evening, so he used his extra time to explore some of the other living quarters and gather a few things he might need.

Elizabeth, for her part, was being careful to treat John just as she had before his experience with the wraith. She saw no sign that he had remembered, and she didn't want to force something he wasn't ready for. So, she swallowed her disappointment.

Beckett finally relented five days after his release from the infirmary.

"Alright, Colonel, the enzyme is completely gone from your system. You can return to full duty tomorrow."

"Thank you, Carson," said Sheppard, tired of the checkups.

As he left the infirmary, he tapped is earpiece. "Sheppard to Weir, Elizabeth?"

"Weir here, yes John?"

"Are we still on for dinner tonight?"

"Sure. Meet you in the mess hall?"

"No, the balcony around 7pm. And come comfortable."

As Elizabeth signed off, she wondered what he had in mind, and the afternoon dragged as her imagination ran wild.

John, meanwhile, set up what he would need that night. Sitting around for almost two weeks had given the rest of his memories time to come back, and he had given a lot of thought to how he wanted their next encounter to go. It wasn't that he regretted what had happened, and he didn't think she did either. He just wanted a special evening and an opportunity for them to get to know each other more slowly.

By the time Elizabeth changed into a soft pant outfit, John had managed to collect some food from the mess hall. He even got a few candles from Teyla who just smiled when he asked. He set them up in the new room he had found, a room somewhat separate from the rest of the living quarters. He also set up his i-pod with plenty of music from the last files his father had sent him.

Elizabeth stepped out on their balcony just as the sun was setting. John, also dressed casually, was leaning on the rail, but turned as she came out.

"Hey."

"Hey yourself," she replied, joining him at the rail. "So what's going on? You seemed busy today." She looked around but didn't see anything different.

"Not that busy, but I thought you needed a break, and I'm celebrating."

"Celebrating?"

"Carson cleared me for active duty."

Elizabeth slipped an arm around him. "Great, John. But Rodney is on his way back from Earth and won't be available for awhile."

"That's OK. We can take Zelenka or another scientist, or just check out some more of the city. But that's enough about work." He looked down on her and kissed her forehead. "Now, how about some dinner."

She looked around again. "What did you have in mind?"

"I've found a little bistro, Chez Sheppard, that's featuring turkey a la sandwich, with fruit accompaniments, to be followed by the last of the chocolate chip cookies."

Elizabeth gave him a playful poke in the side. "We could have gotten that in the mess hall."

"Yeah, but not like I have planned." With that, he took her hand and led her into the halls.

"John, where are we going?"

"Patience, Elizabeth. I wanted something quiet with an ocean view."

"OK, that should be easy to find." By that time, they were a little beyond the living area, and John stopped to open the door on a room she had never seen. He brought up the lights halfway as the door opened, and Elizabeth let out a little gasp.

There were candles on a small table with two chairs next to a window looking out on a private balcony. Music played softly, not intrusive, but relaxing. As she looked around, she realized she was in a comfortable room with a sofa and soft chairs as well as the table by the balcony. A door to one side seemed to lead into another room.

"John, what is this place?"

"Why don't you look around before I answer that."

Glancing at him and seeing a gentle, sincere smile, she moved away from him to the balcony, first. The view was superb. She realized they were out toward one of the piers because she could see a large portion of the city, including the central tower. Moving to the other door, she pushed it open to find a bedroom with a bathroom attached. The bed appeared to be close to a double bed, but she couldn't be sure. This room had a balcony as well, and she approached it to find a similar view to the one from the living room.

"John, this is beautiful."

"Well, I haven't had much to do this week, so I decided a little exploring was in order. I've been thinking of upgrading my quarters, and now seemed like a good time." He was looking out the glass doors of the balcony, and Elizabeth could tell he was a little nervous.

"Well, I'd say you found some nice ones. Better not let anyone else know or there will be a stampede to move out here."

"You're the only one I've told. I'm even going to keep my other quarters so no one has to look for me;"

"Then you aren't moving?"

"No, I thought I'd keep these for special occasions."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "And what, exactly, constitutes a special occasion?"

John looked into her eyes. "Helping you relax, celebrating my return to duty." He slipped an arm around her. "And finding a special way to show you what you mean to me."

Elizabeth looked back at him, realizing he remembered their encounter. "You know that isn't necessary. I understood."

"Yes, you did, and I appreciated it. But could we start again? Just for us, and not because it's life or death?" He put his arms around her, pulling her closer and resting his forehead against hers.

"Of course." They stood there for a while, content in each others' arms. Soon, though, the strains of Johnny Cash singing "I'll Walk the Line" could be heard from the living room.

"I should have known Johnny would make his appearance," said Elizabeth, leaning back to look at John and raising one eyebrow.

"Now, now, that's not all we have. But you'll just have to wait and see." Smiling, he pulled her gently back into the living room.

The sun provided the show as they ate dinner at the small table by the balcony. The conversation ranged widely, and John was pleased to see Elizabeth gradually relax.

After the cookies were gone, and the sun had set, a slow, romantic ballad began to play. John stood up and reached for Elizabeth. "Dance with me?"

Who can say where the road goes where the day flows only time. . .

Elizabeth stood up, amazed he would want to, and moved into his arms. They swayed gently to the music, feeling the gradual build up of electricity between them. At the end of the song, he took her hand and led her to the bedroom.

Their lovemaking was slow, this time, without the sense of urgency. They took the time to touch and taste, experience and explore, gasp and giggle. Afterwards, Elizabeth lay with her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart while John stroked her curls. Just as she was about to succumb to sleep, she heard a very soft whisper.

"I love you, Elizabeth."

TBC

A/N grimoire: a spell book; lyrics by Enya

Comments welcome, and incorporated when appropriate