A/N Okay I made the epilogue so long I'm having to post it in two parts. Second bit should be posted in the next day or two. Enjoy.

Deadly Intent

Epilogue Part 1

John shuffled his feet nervously as he waited under a richly polished, wooden replica of a Stargate. Flowers and colourful ribbons fluttered above his head as part of the decorations adorning the facsimile that Athosian craftsmen had so painstakingly carved. It was meant to signify the unity between his and Teyla's worlds since their first contact on Athos, over eight (Earth) years ago now. Years filled with memories, some good and some best forgotten. Memories of joyous times and of sorrow for those lost. And finally, it also signified the welcome the Athosian people had always given those from Earth in their united front in the fight against the Wraith and other adversaries. It was a friendship that still prevailed despite everything that had happened over the years, including the dreadful matter surrounding Michael and the loss of so many Athosians because of his cruel actions. However, life went on and today John's hopes and dreams would finally become a reality as he pledged his commitment to the woman he had loved almost from their first meeting on Athos.

He moved his feet again trying to get comfortable as they still ached a little from time to time, especially in the dress shoes he had been forced to wear today. The injuries he'd sustained in the cave had healed well enough, even though the process had caused him pain and discomfort at times. Now five weeks later, he no longer needed a wheelchair or even a stick to get around. They had offered him a chair, but John refused to sit as he wanted to be standing up to greet his bride when she came to stand opposite him on the other side of the mock Stargate. He knew the symbolism also had something to do with their unusual relationship. Normally, the union ceremony wouldn't have taken place under such an elaborate structure. Teyla had said that most times the ceremony was held either under the open sky on a good day or in a specially decorated tent according to the couple's wishes. John had thought the mock Stargate to be most appropriate for them.

John turned his head to spare a glance at the people surrounding him. The seated guests were talking quietly amongst themselves as they waited. Turning back, he tugged at the collar of his uniform jacket as it caused an irritating itch where it rubbed against his neck. Unlike Rodney's wedding, Teyla had insisted that he wear his full dress uniform. She was proud of him she had said. Proud of his achievements, of his high rank as full bird Colonel in Earth's military structure and the respectable man that he was. Upon hearing her words he had reluctantly relented.

The military guests either from Earth or Atlantis also wore their uniforms, but today they were slightly outnumbered by the civilians and Athosians in their brightly coloured festive attire.

John had been shocked and deeply moved when both General O'Neill and Colonel Carter had arrived on the George Hammond when she landed two days ago. 'Wouldn't miss this wedding for anything,' the retired General had stated. The Daedalus had arrived at the same time, at least a week ahead of schedule. It seemed even Colonel Caldwell had expressed his desire to attend along with several crew members. Thankfully the Athosians had been very accommodating. 'What are a few more mouths to feed,' they had stated. Despite their reassurance, Mr Woolsey had also offered the service of some Atlantis personnel to help with the catering and some provisions from Earth. So there would be champagne for the adults and chocolate ice cream for the kids.

However, it was the few people standing near John that truly warmed his heart. His good friends and teammates Ronon, Rodney, Carson, Radek and his loyal XO Evan Lorne. Then there was his brother Dave, another surprise courtesy of General O'Neill. Dave already knew all about the Stargate program after an incident on Earth that had left John seriously injured while trying to protect some hostages during a bank heist. John had put in a request for his brother to attend, but the I.O.A. had turned him down. Obviously, General O'Neill still had plenty of influence and had overruled their decision, meaning Dave had been free to travel with them on the Hammond. John still smiled when he thought of his brother's reaction to travelling on a spaceship and being in another Galaxy. According to Sam Carter, he had been so overwhelmed by the sight of Earth from orbit and then their jump into hyperspace that he hadn't moved for a good hour or so. And even though Dave had already seen Atlantis while she was on Earth, it had still awed his brother speechless when he saw the magnificent city once again.

Catching his brother's eye, John exchanged a smile with him. They had come a long way in the last few years and now, all fences were now definitely mended. Dave had been informed about Trumble's accusations and had investigated the claim. It turned out that Trumble's father had indeed lost most of his capital on a bad stock deal, although he had never bought shares in Sheppard Utilities. One deal had been on an insurance company and another on an energy concern, both of which had collapsed shortly after. Meaning either Trumble's father had lied or the ex-general had made it all up as an excuse to get at John.

As for Trumble, he had calmed down somewhat by the time the Daedalus had returned to Earth. It was to prove to be the quiet before the storm as the first thing he had done was to try and leak sensitive information to the press via telephone. Of course, he got no further other than the Homeworld Security people who were in charge of monitoring all outgoing calls from the SGC. He had then tried to pass on the information to his legal representative who knew nothing about the Stargate program. To the perfectly sane lawyer, it had just confirmed that the General was indeed mentally ill. Of course, the lawyer would never be given the full details of the charges against his client. After private talks with the high command, the General was stripped of his rank and incarcerated in a mental institute for his attempted murder bid. From all accounts, his condition had deteriorated dramatically after that. It looked like the man would never be released into society again, which suited John just fine. As for the corrupt I.O.A. members, they had resigned without a fuss. No one had been too unhappy to see Shen Xiaoyi finally go after years of being on the committee and the Russians had been quick to remove their member. Investigations were still ongoing in Washington concerning the corrupt Senator and the leaked information. These things took time and were difficult to prove.

The singing began and John turned his attention back to the mock Stargate. His heart began to quicken as he caught sight of his beautiful bride as she began to walk across the open ground towards him. A smile lit his face as he watched his two children walking with her. Although not an Athosian tradition, some of the ladies back on Atlantis had told Beth about flower girls. Immediately, she had wanted to do it for her momma. Then Torren wanted to do it, too but opted to be a pageboy when told about them. So there they were, Torren leading his mother by her hand and Beth scattering flowers along as they went.

John was left mesmerised as Teyla looked truly beautiful in a dress of flowing gold and cream. The Athosian women had gathered together to make a dress that would have caused any Hollywood starlet to be green with envy. At nearly thirty weeks pregnant, Teyla now had a significant bulge. Her dress had not been tailored to hide the fact as Athosians believed one should be proud to be carrying the next generation. The tight bodice of gold coloured material fitted her figure perfectly as the neckline was neither too high nor too low. The lower part of the dress flowed to the ground in a cascade of silky, cream coloured cloth that was intertwined with fine gold threading. The whole dress emphasized her dark skin and golden hair, which fell loosely over her shoulders. To finish off her outfit, Teyla wore the necklace John had given her two years ago. It shone brightly in the afternoon sun showing off its fine craftsmanship and the true beauty of the Dalenian gem.

Mystery still surrounded the pendant as it seemed to have the properties of a talisman. Not that John really believed in that sort of thing, but Teyla had worn the necklace when she had been away on diplomatic missions. Several of which had gone quite badly nearly causing her bodily harm. She had reported some very close encounters and yet she had come away from them totally unscathed. Despite knowing that Teyla was very good in self-defence, John wondered about that. He had eventually confessed about pendant having maybe saved him from Morina's bullet during the raid to stop the child traffickers. That admission had caused quite a heated discussion at the time as Teyla had been upset that he hadn't mentioned it before. She had wanted him to wear it on away missions, but John had flatly refused, stating that it was hers and hers alone. Maybe he should have taken her advice into consideration for his last true away mission and then Trumble's rescue. It could have saved him a lot of pain and agro. When he had the time, John had every intention of going to see the Dalenian monks to ask them about the pendant.

Right now though, John nearly forgot to breathe as Teyla glided towards him to stand just out of reach on the other side of the wooden Stargate. He looked at her and smiled not believing his good fortune before turning his attention to his children as they sat themselves down on two seats provided just a little way from their parents. It amazed him how well behaved they were for their age. He winked at his daughter and smiled at Torren before turning back to face his bride.

Teyla looked up at him so handsome and now back to full health. How she loved this man. Her mind drifted for a minute as she thought over the years she had known him. Through all kinds of danger, laughter and commitment to the team. How for many years she had believed they would never be together because of denial and possible rejection. The attraction had been there from the beginning, yet they had never acted on it. In the end, she had turned to Kanaan believing him to be the right choice. Yet those few years with him had never held the passion and love she now felt for John. She wondered how things would have been if Kanaan hadn't been killed that fateful day nearly three years past. Would she have remained with him while loving another? The answer was clear to her now. As she had told John at the beginning of their relationship, she would have left Kanaan eventually as she had not loved him enough to undertake the union of commitment.

Teyla's thoughts returned to the present as Halling moved to stand near them. The main ceremony would be Athosian. Mr Woolsey stood a little to the side near to John to act as a witness to legalise the marriage for Earth.

As the ceremony began, Halling's voice rang loud and clear. Loud enough for all to hear as he started to say the words of union, words not unlike those of Earth as they spoke of commitment and everlasting love. Then it was John's turn to pledge his love for Teyla and his commitment to keeping her and the children safe. He was nervous, but thankfully, his words managed to flow without too much hesitation or awkwardness. Then Teyla said hers with a little more finesse.

Finally, Halling told them to meet under the mock Stargate and exchange rings. Although once again not normally an Athosian custom, Teyla liked the idea and thought they should have something from Earth. Then they joined hands and Halling bound their wrists together with a beautifully embroidered soft golden band.

His voice boomed out. "Let no one come between them for a union of commitment is for life until death does them part."

Although their hands were still tied, John leant down and gently placed his lips upon Teyla's. They kissed and the crowd went wild with cheering and clapping as Halling finally untied their wrists and gave them a bear hug.

Woolsey patiently stood by until Halling had finished, then he gave Teyla a warm hug and John a hearty handshake. "Congratulations to you both. Now I need you to sign the marriage license in front of your chosen witnesses and myself. Doctor McKay, Ronon Dex and Lieutenant Becket if you would kindly step forward please."

Rodney, Ronon and James joined them at the small table set up for the purpose. For once, Rodney made no comment as he added his signature to theirs, only too pleased that his friends had found true happiness at last. Just like he had with Jennifer who was standing nearby, he turned to her with a smile.

After everyone had signed, the guests were free to come forward and offer their congratulations before the celebrations could begin. It would be a truly informal party with tables laden with food, ruus wine, and champagne. There would be music, singing and dancing in a celebration of union and life together. Far less formal than John's first wedding reception with Nancy, which meant he could soon shed his uniform and slip into something more comfortable.

The first to approach them was John's brother. Dave threw his arms around Teyla and heartily welcomed her to the Sheppard family before grabbing his brother in a bear hug. "Dad would have been so proud, John," he whispered so that only the couple could hear him.

Teyla smiled her thanks as John replied. "I just wish he was here and we could make amends."

"Yes that would have been nice. Well I'd better let others come forward. We'll talk later." With that Dave moved on and allowing Carter and Jack O'Neill to come forward to offer their congratulations.

oOo

Hours later, the party finally began to wind down as John and Teyla quietly said their goodnight to all those remaining. It was late and many had already gated back to Atlantis or retired to their tents for the night. The children were a long time in bed, totally exhausted from hours of play and dancing. A few night birds like Ronon and Amelia might stay and party a little longer, but John was more than ready to call it a night.

A tent had been set aside for them, well away from the others. It had been decorated with flowers and ribbons, and messages of goodwill. Before entering, John took Teyla by surprise as he swept her up into his arms and carried her over the threshold.

"An Earth tradition," he murmured before putting her down. "Well, Mrs Sheppard, although you look truly beautiful in that dress, let's get you out of it," he winked.

Teyla wasn't usually the type to giggle, but for some reason she did. It certainly wasn't due to too much ruus wine because she had only taken a sip when General O'Neill had given a toast to their happiness. She was tired, but not that tired. She stood on tiptoes and kissed him. "Please do."

oOo

John held her in his arms as she slept. The love of his life, for an Athosian union just was just that – for life. There was no going back. Divorces were unheard of, that was why the union ceremony took time and was something one had to be totally sure about before making the commitment. John was very sure because the last few years had been the happiest, most settled in his entire life. All because of Teyla and the children. Gone were the uncertainties, the torment and guilt and yes, the loneliness. For now, he had a family to love and cherish.

As for his job, he now knew for sure that he couldn't take a back seat, at least not just yet. Teyla had understood. She knew he wasn't to type to stand by and watch as others took risks. There was still too much work to be done to make the galaxy a safer place and ensure that Earth remained untouched by any threat from Pegasus. Indeed a safer place for his children, the one to come and for all those dear to him. Although painstakingly slow, Jennifer's work on the gene therapy to enable the Wraith to eat normal food was progressing well, but even if it worked this time around, they still needed to convince Todd and the Wraith to take it again. That could be an almost impossible task. Whatever the future held, John just had to make sure he stayed in one piece for his family's sake.

He yawned and caught the strong scent of Shari flowers in the air. They brought back a fond memory. Although he had nearly lost his life on that occasion, the flowers had not only saved him, but he caused him to finally confess his love for the woman by his side.

A broad smile adorned his face as he began to drift into the welcome arms of sleep.

TBC