"Elizabeth?"

Dr. Weir looked up from the report she'd been reading, and saw Kale standing at the door of the little room she called her office. The Light One was dressed in his clothing, but she flushed slightly when she saw him there.

"Kale…"

"Do you have a moment?"

"Actually… I… was…"

She faltered when he entered the office anyway, and closed the door behind him.

"Are you avoiding me?" He asked her, coming over to stand on the other side of the desk from where she was seated. "I've tried to talk to you several times since Colonel Mitchell and I returned from A-08, but you seem to always be in a hurry to go elsewhere…"

"I've been busy, Kale," she said, straightening the report, nervously, and then realizing that he deserved a little more than that. It wasn't Kale's fault that she was avoiding him, after all, and she didn't have any right to alienate him just because she wasn't sure how to deal with her own guilt. "Actually… yes, I've been… avoiding you – a little."

"A little?"

"A lot."

"Why? Because of what happened between us?"

Oh, he was perceptive!

Elizabeth nodded.

"It shouldn't have happened. I shouldn't have allowed myself to-"

"To feel pleasure? To enjoy the sensa-"

"Yes."

Kale frowned.

"Because of your mate to be?"

"Yes. I betrayed his trust in me by… being with you."

"You enjoyed it."

Oh, there'd been no doubt about that. Weir flushed, even then able to remember how it had felt to-

"I did, but it was wrong of me."

"How was it wrong?"

"It just is. Was."

"Would he really care so much? Would he really be angry that you had found someone to hold you for a while? If you were my mate, and I couldn't be there to hold you, I would prefer you were happy in the arms of another, rather than alone. How do you know he doesn't feel the same way?"

She sighed. She didn't know – and couldn't ask him, because she was cut off from him. For all she knew, Simon had been so angry with her – or upset with her – for leaving him without an explanation that he'd immediately started looking for someone else to love. That thought hurt, but she'd known when she left that it was a possibility, and one that was worth it to come here and see this wondrous place. Of course, there was always the possibility that he was home waiting for her, too.

"I don't know, Kale…" She told him honestly. "I just feel…"

He came around the desk and pulled her into his arms, and cradled her gently. Knowing it was wrong of her, but suddenly needing the comfort, Elizabeth rested her cheek against his chest and closed her eyes.

"You don't allow yourself to feel often enough, Elizabeth," he chided, gently. "You don't always have to be in control of things, you know?"

"Yes I do…" She said. "It's my job to be."

"Well, I think you need a distraction."

She looked up at him, already starting to pull away, but he laughed and held her close.

"Not that. Unless you desire it. I was thinking more along the lines of some dinner and maybe a walk. You can tell me of your mate. He must be a special person to have gained such love from someone as special as yourself."

She hesitated, but found that the offer appealed to her, surprisingly. The Light One was easy to talk to and a good listener, and she needed someone to talk to – and the few people she could open up to around here were off hunting through lava flows doing God only knew what.

"I'd like that, Kale. Thank you."

He released her and she stood up, and the two of them left her office and headed for the commissary.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"So… what did you guys find out?" Sheppard asked Mitchell, who was walking beside him. The two were walking in the front of the others, holding a flashlight in each hand to light the way for Ford and McKay, who were supporting Carson between them. Teyla was walking behind them, her own flashlight also illuminating the way – although from behind.

"This place is about as perfect as I could have asked for, Major," Melony said, feeling smug. "McKay and I found a heat source that will most likely be able to supply me with all the energy I'll need to power whatever equipment I'll need, and there's plenty of room. The place is as hidden as I could ask for, so if someone comes looking for me, they're not going to be able to easily find me."

"And on the first try, huh?"

"Yup." They walked out of the smaller tube and into the main cavern, where Ford and McKay set Carson down for a minute so they could take a quick break. "Someone up there truly loves me."

Teyla shined her flashlight towards the ceiling and looked up, and Melony and Sheppard both grinned.

"It's a figure of speech, Teyla," John told her. "It means… that… someone… up there loves her."

He shrugged helplessly, looking over at Melony. He didn't feel like trying to explain it.

"It means I got lucky." Melony said.

"It just gets better if those beans are really coffee, eh?" McKay said, rubbing his arm.

"My life will be complete if they are." She knelt down next to Carson, who was pale and sweating – and not just because of the heat of the cavern. "How's the ankle?"

"It's fine…"

Yeah, it looked like it.

"We'll get you back to Atlantis soon," she promised him.

"I know." He grimaced. "I'm sorry I cut short your expedit-"

"Don't be." She looked over at the others. "Are we ready?"

There were various nods, and Sheppard came over to take the other side of Beckett. It was their turn to support him so the others could have a break.

"Next time we go on a routine exploration mission," He said as he and Mitchell heaved Beckett up into a fireman's carry between them. "I vote we bring a lighter doctor."

Melony smiled, and the hand that she had around his waist tightened slightly in a light hug so Carson would know they were teasing. She needn't have worried, though. The Major's tone of voice was light and cheerful, and even through the pain of his ankle – and yeah, it was killing him – he knew Sheppard didn't mean it. He leaned his head lightly against Melony's shoulder and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the fact that his leg was going to fall off any minute.