Heart remained quiet as she was finally freed from all the medical equipment that had been attached to her the night before. She found it hard to believe that they were telling the truth; that they would simply provide her food and a place to sleep without asking for anything in return. She knew she was unique, both as a young queen and as a wraith that could be sustained by both food and human life. They would be fools not to take advantage of the situation they had stumbled upon. Though she supposed that the colonel had only promised not to turn her into a "lab rat". That still left the possibility that they would demand compensation for their hospitality in the form of information, or even in a way she hadn't yet considered.
A tray of food was set in front of the young wraith, drawing her out of her thoughts. Her eyes rose to the doctor's and she was once again struck by the expression of kindness and care that seemed so out of place coming from her people's enemy.
"Heart, I know that you don't trust us, and that this must all be pretty frightening to you. I don't know what the wraith scientists did to you, but we are not like them. I can promise you-" Dr. Keller put a hand on Heart's arm as she looked down, shifting uncomfortably as memories flashed through her mind. "I will not do anything that would compromise your health or safety." Heart looked up, locking her golden eyes with Keller's. The human's gaze was open and insistent, willing the wraith to believe her.
"What about before?" Confusion, then understanding, dawned in the doctor's eyes. "Those tests you ran when I was…those were not all about my 'health'," Heart argued, determined not to be deceived again. Dr. Keller sighed, removing her hand as she took a seat on Heart's cot, the tray of food separating them.
"Not all of them, no. There is so little we know about your people that we will take what opportunities we have to learn more, but nothing I did caused you any harm. The information I learn from you will teach me more about how your bodies work and may one day be used to help your people-"
"Or to harm my people," Heart interrupted, her voice quiet. Her stare dared the doctor to deny it, to lie to her. This time it was Dr. Keller that broke eye contact, her lips twisting in a frown.
"Like Teyla said, we are in a war, so yes, it may be used against your people. But maybe, someday, there can be peace between humans and wraith, and I will do everything I can to try and achieve that goal. And look," Dr. Keller suddenly held out a hand to Heart, pinky extended while her other fingers closed in a fist. "I pinky-promise to ask your permission before running any more tests on you, alright?" Heart looked at the hand in confusion.
"Is that a type of oath?" she asked slowly. Dr. Keller nodded, a bright smile coming to her face. The human gestured for Heart to raise her left hand in the same manner as her own, then linked their pinkies together.
"If you trust nothing else, trust the pinky promise." As Heart once again locked eyes with the doctor, her lips curved ever so slightly upward as the woman's cheery nature chiseled away at her wariness. "Now go ahead and eat before that gets cold." Heart nodded, pulling the tray closer to her. Dr. Keller stood and walked away, greeting a man that walked into the infirmary holding a hand to his arm.
Heart ate slowly, the eating utensil awkward in her left hand, and watched the doctor tend to the man's injury. It suddenly occurred to her that, since humans were so much more frail than wraith, a healing center would be necessary. She glanced down at her injured hand, and her nose wrinkled at the reminder of her own frailty. Were she back on her hive, her mother would have already healed her. When she finished eating, Heart pushed the empty tray to the end of her bed, still hungry but not wanting to ask for more.
Her golden eyes wandered the room as she sat back on the bed, trying to appear serene despite the many stares she received from those that entered the infirmary. She locked eyes with any whose gaze lingered too long, forcing them to finally look away nervously. After about an hour, though, her restlessness was getting harder to hide. She shifted, sighed, and began to pick at a loose thread on her top, wishing she had her thicker and more comfortable leathers back. Her fingers paused when Dr. Keller stopped at the foot of her bed.
"Mind if I check your wrist and see how it's doing?" Heart nodded, offering her hand to the doctor.
"I would like my clothes back," she stated quietly but firmly as the bandage was unwrapped, revealing the still-swollen joint.
"Um, well, they were in pretty bad shape. And when I treated your shoulder, I had to cut them off." Dr. Keller's sounded both apologetic and uneasy as she waved a device up and down Heart's hand. The news caused a pang to run through Heart and she closed her eyes at the feeling of loss that hit her.
"Did you…dispose of them?" The words were harder to speak than she expected, and she frowned, trying to tell herself that it was just clothing. Dr. Keller paused her exam and looked up.
"No, we still have them, but they're not really wearable anymore. I'll see if we can't get you some regular clothes, though." The doctor turned to the guards by the door, and one nodded, putting a hand to his ear as he began to speak quietly. She turned back to Heart, tilting her head slightly. "Were they important to you?" she asked gently. Heart considered lying but didn't see any harm in telling the truth.
"They were a gift," Heart answered softly, frown deepening as pain twisted inside of her again. "From my mother."
"Your mother?" Heart pressed her lips together, unwilling to continue the discussion. She looked away from the doctor, injured hand still resting in the woman's grip. "I'm sorry-we didn't know. I'll try to get them for you if you'd like?" Blinking back wetness from her eyes, Heart shook her head, desperate to regain her composure.
"That-that isn't necessary." Dr. Keller looked like she wanted to push the subject for a moment, before giving a small nod and turning her attention back to Heart's hand. She lowered the limb to rest against the wraith's thigh before moving away.
"Your wrist hasn't shown any sign of improvement, so I'm going to get an ice pack to help bring down the swelling." Returning with a small pouch that she massaged between her hands, Dr. Keller showed Heart how to apply the ice pack. The wraith remained silent, acknowledging the instructions with a nod. When Colonel Sheppard walked back into the infirmary a short time later, Dr. Keller had just finished rewrapping Heart's wrist.
"You ready to bust out of here?" Heart tilted her head in confusion, unsure of the meaning behind his words. A small part of her thought that maybe he was going to release her, but she immediately quashed that ridiculous notion. "We're going to move you into quarters for now. I brought you some clothes and I'll explain the rules on our way to your room." He laid a stack of grey fabric on her bed, which she eyed dubiously. The colonel shrugged. "Hopefully they fit-I had to guess your size."
Dr. Keller pulled a set of curtains around Heart's bed and, after declining her offer of help, Heart changed into the new clothes. They were warmer and more comfortable than what she had been wearing before, but looser than her own clothing had been. She sighed at the thought, then pushed it away as she stepped out from behind the curtain.
"I want to see you again in two hours to see how your wrist looks," Dr. Keller told her as she slowly walked with Sheppard out of the infirmary. He nodded at the guards standing on either side of the entrance, and as they passed, the guards moved to follow just behind Heart.
She held her head high and ignored the eyes that followed her, though she was hard-pressed to keep her own gaze straight ahead. The halls were wide with windows that let in sunlight, and Heart's pupils narrowed to slits in the brightness. It was in complete contrast to the atmosphere of a hive ship; the air was cool, the walls colored in shades of grey and white, and the floor free of the foggy mist she was used to.
As they passed one of the transparent panels showing the exterior of the building, Heart stopped. Her eyes were drawn to the field of blue that seemed to make up the surface that the city sat upon. The sight of waves hitting against the base of the city had her confused. The movement seemed odd for a solid plane, almost like-
"Is this planet covered in water?" she asked aloud, in awe of the way the surface rippled and sparkled in the sunlight.
"Well, mostly. What, you've never seen an ocean before?" Colonel Sheppard asked, moving to stand next to her. Heart shook her head, pulling her gaze away and they continued their walk.
"I have never been on a planet before. I have only ever been on a hive," she admitted quietly, missing the comfort of her home.
"Huh. I can't imagine being stuck on one of those things my whole childhood." She saw a small shudder run through the colonel.
"I had the whole ship committed to memory." The words came unconsciously, but Heart was too lost in her recollections to stop herself. "Diera and I knew everywhere we could conceal ourselves and would spend hours trying to outwit each other in games of chase."
"Diera?" Heart paused mid-step, jolted from her thoughts as the name was repeated. She hadn't thought about her in a long time. "That sounds like a human name." Colonel Sheppard's statement sounded almost like a question, inviting her to explain. He had stopped again and was half-turned to look back at her.
"I-She…she was a worshipper I knew." She tried to sound casual, as if she had only met her in passing and she meant nothing to her. Inside, she felt another pang of loss. Feeling a need to regain control over her emotions, she relaxed her face and indicated that she wanted to keep moving. "You were showing me to a room?" Relieved when he started walking again, albeit after raising a brow, Heart forced herself to stop thinking about the past.
"Right. So, you will have two guards outside your doors at all times. If you need anything, you ask them. If you need to go anywhere, they will escort you. Meals will be brought to your room. You are expected to-" Colonel Sheppard's words cut off suddenly as he stopped, head bent as a hand went to his ear. "Sheppard here." He glanced over to Heart, and she wondered what was going on and who he was talking to. "He what? He wants to come here? Is that a good idea?" Silence as he listened to the reply.
"Of course he did." The colonel seemed to have expected whatever response he had gotten, and he sighed loudly, turning around and gesturing for them to start walking back the way they came. Heart hesitantly began moving, wanting to know who they were talking about. "We're on our way. I want a full security team with him at all times. McKay, Ronon, Teyla, meet us in the conference room. Sheppard out." Finally pulling his hand from his ear, Colonel Sheppard indicated for them to pick up the pace.
"What's going on?" Heart asked, ignoring his gesture to move faster. She was cautiously curious; he seemed not to fully trust the person being discussed, and she didn't know what they had to do with her.
"One of our…allies wants to meet you," she was told. Heart narrowed her eyes at his hesitation in using the term 'allies', but suddenly froze as another mind brushed against hers. A wraith mind.