AN: Hello everyone. I apologize for taking so long to post. This seems to be a never-ending story but I promise the end is near. Thanks again for all the reviews. You don't knwo how much this means to me. I don't think I'm ready to pair Shep up with anyone, just yet. To be honest I'm leaning towards Liz myself.
RaK, I don't think I'velost my motivation, just my spare time. The holidays kind of blindsided me and my work is keeping me very busy. I know where I want to go with this sotry but, believe it or not, I do a lot of research and it takes me some time.
Here's one little ch. that I hope will keep eveyone riveted until I can write some more. I think its a little crappy and my worst one so far but I promise it will get better.
Happy Holidays!!!
Chapter 21: Ford and McKay Take Their Turn
Teyla had been gone for about thirty minutes when the Major heard three pairs of footsteps and chatter coming his way. He recognized the voices as belonging to Dr. McKay, Ford, and Beckett. He wondered what McKay and Ford would be doing here this early in the morning; probably having something to do with his physical therapy, no doubt.
"Good morning, Sir," Lt. Ford greeted his CO with a grin as he approached the Major's bedside.
Dr. McKay chimed in with his own greeting. "Good morning, Major."
"Hello, boys, what brings your out this morning?" the Major drawled knowing full-well what they must be there for.
"Oh, you know, Sir. The usual, we thought we could play a little game of tag football and then head over to the mainland for some homemade brew," the young Lieutenant jokingly suggested.
"That actually sounds like a great idea, Lieutenant. When do we leave?" the Major replied not even half joking and wishing like hell he could do just that.
"Well, I'd prefer a game of hockey, myself." Dr. McKayinterjected smugly. "It is the superior game, after all." Major Sheppard and Lt. Ford glanced at each other, rolling their eyes and shaking their heads at the Canadian's snide remarks.
"Hockey, now that's a wussy sport if there ever was one," the Major ribbed.
Dr. Beckett added his contribution to the conversation. "You ought to try rugby, lads. Now there's a brutal sport if there ever was one. None of that shoulder pad nonsense."
"Well that's all well and fine if you want a sport that takes no logic or calculation not to mention the speed at which the game is played. Have you ever timed a hockey puck? Do you know the top speed that a properly executed play can reach?"
"No, but I have a feeling you're going to tell us." Lt. Ford cut in.
The Doctor was warmed by the easy banter the three men had fallen into. It seemed like the Major was displaying some semblance of his old self but the Doctor knew better knowing he could be triggered into an episode at any time. "As much as I'd like to stick around and discuss sports, I need to remind the Major that the lads are here to assist with your physical therapy like we discussed."
"Well, I'm in trouble, now." the Major smirked.
"How is your pain level this morning?" the Doctor asked the Major more seriously.
"Not too bad. I just feel a little sore right now," the Major reported truthfully.
"I would like to go ahead and give you something just to take the edge off. I want to be sure you have your full concentration on your rehabilitation." The Doctor reached into his lab coat pocket and brought out a bottle of some pain killers and handed two horse pills to the Majorand a glass of water. The Major took the meds without putting up his usual fuss.
"Okay, gentleman, you know what to do. If you have any questions, I'll be in my office." The Doctor excused himself and left the infirmary leaving the Major in the capable hands of his teammates.
"So, Sir, how do you really feel?" the Lieutenant asked once the Doctor wasout of earshot, a look of apprehension on his face.
"We've been asking about you all week and Elizabeth kept dodging our questions. At our briefing, she said you hadn't been up to having any visitors. Is that true?" Rodney challenged. It would be like Rodney to get to the point.
"Umm, yeah, about that, I was banged up pretty badly," the Major hoped he didn't sound too much like he was hedging.
"We also heard we almost lost you again, Sir." Ford added.
"Well, yes, there was that," the Major confirmed. "Look, guys, you have to understand, I wasn't quite myself for a few days."
"That's alright, Major," Lt. Ford soothed. "We know all about the post-traumatic stress. Dr. Weir and the Doc explained it to us."
Rodney tried his hand at comforting the Major. "It could have happened to any of us. I don't know what I would have done. You know how I am, it doesn't take much for me to crack up. Actually, I'm surprised more of us haven't gone off the deep end already. For all intent and purposes, we are virtually on a deserted island out here."
"But, hey, you're in good hands. I went through this with my uncle when he came back from Desert Storm and I helped my grandmother with her physical therapy when she broke her hip. If you're anything like my grandma, I'll bet you're tired of those bedpans," the Lieutenant joked trying to lighten the mood.
"What's this I hear about you being in charge, Lieutenant?" the Major inquired changing the subject. This came out sounding a little more gruffly than he intended.
"That's correct, Sir. Dr. Weir assigned me head of military operations until you get better. Is that all right with you, Major?" the young man turned serious once more not wanting to offend his CO.
"I wouldn't have it any other way, Lieutenant," he reassured the young man with a sideways grin. Lt. Ford breathed a sigh of relief shaking his head in understanding.
"Yes," Rodney added, "we all agreed he was the best choice for the job. Dr. Kavanagh had the nerve to suggest that Sgt. Bates be in charge. While he is a colleague, I couldn't agree less with his suggestion."
"Well, there is not going to be any replacement if I can help it. Are you going to get me out of this bed or am I going to have to crawl my way out," the Major exclaimed bristling at the mention of Kavanagh's and Sgt. Bates' names in the same sentence.
Lt. Ford stopped the Major just short of making his way to the edge of the hospital bed. "Sir, you should also know that I took a puddle jumper yesterday morning to pick up Teyla on the mainland. It was my first solo flight, sir."
"Well, Lieutenant, that was mighty gentlemanly of you to offer the lady a ride." This was the Major's way of congratulating the young man.
Understanding the Major's subtle meaning, the Lieutenant grinned in reply and simply responded with an eager "Yes, sir."
"Speaking of Teyla, we also heard you had a sponge bath this morning," Dr. McKay said with a glint in his eye and a knowing grin on his face.
"That must have been the highlight of your morning, Sir," the Lieutenant added smiling just as wildly.
"What? How did you find out about that?" the Major exclaimed dumbfounded. Did everybody on Atlantis know about his sponge bath?
"Dr. Beckett mentioned it to us. He said you'd be ready for your therapy since Teyla had already helped you wash up this morning." Ford reported.
"That's just great! I would appreciate it if you didn't mention this little fact to anyone else," the Major retorted.
Rodney still grinning from ear to ear like a schoolboy, rocking back and forth on his heels and toes said, "I'd do anything to be given a bath byColonel Carter. Did I ever tell you how the sparks flew between uswhen weworkied together?" Dr. McKay had a wistful, starry-eyed look on his face.
"Yes!!!" both the Major and the Lieutenant deadpanned together looking at each other with please not again looks on their faces.
"All right, Major, now that we know you're clean, it's time we got started," the Lieutenant broke in sparing them both before Rodney had a chance to launch into further reminiscing about Colonel Carter. "First thing we're going to do is get you into some scrubs. It's the closest thing we have to real clothes for you right now. Dr. McKay, would you give me a hand?"
They helped the Major sit up and together fumbled with getting the top on. The Major's realized his arms weren't as strong as he thought they would be so he couldn't hold them up for any significant amount of time. So between the two of them, the Lieutenant and Dr. McKay took turns holding up an arm and tugging at the scrub top until the Major could do his part to pull it down round his waist.
The Major couldn't remember the last time it took two people to dress him. There was that time his older sister had to tackled him while his mom got him dressed for school on one particularly rambunctious morning but that was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
They then helped him get started with the pants. The Major was pretty much able to manage the bottoms himself. He was motivated by the thought of Kavanagh suggesting he was unfit for duty, which he sort of was, but that was beside the point and not entirely the case.
"Okay, Sir, we're going to take it slow for today. We're going to start off with a few exercises for your arms and legs and then we'll have you stand up for a little while. Nothing big today," Lt. Ford was in full Marine mode.
Rodney was content with letting the young man take the lead since he considered the medical arts an inexact science and he wasn't all that comfortable with this assignment. He was even less comfortable with the highly intangible psychiatric side of things.
The Lieutenant and Rodney put the Major through his paces for the morning with some resistance training and strengthening exercises. They helped him bend and lift his limbs to get circulation back into his muscles. They used some motivational techniques the Doctor had taught them and mentioning Kavanagh's name from time to time seemed to do the trick. Surprisingly, Dr. McKay was getting the hang of things fairly quickly and he became the head cheerleader as the Lieutenant took the lead with the exercises.
The Major was grateful for the pain medication. He knew he would be sore after this workout but it would be a good sore and he knew he wouldn't have made it all the way through without dulling his pain. During his therapy, he didn't dare complain, beg for them to stop, or quit on them. He was going to get through this. He was a soldier and his training dictated the precedent for the day.
It was not just about the physical pain, either. The emotional and mental pain was also a factor. Neither Ford nor McKay could begin to understand what he had been through but he was grateful for their presence and willingness to help him. At least neither of them had tried to make him talk about his experiences.
He made a mental note to be more appreciative of their efforts and Teyla's, as well. Well that part was easy. How he had missed her company; her bright smile, and eagerness to help him. He realized how much he had come to depend on Lt. Ford and remined himself to give him more reaponsibility. He was definitely ready for it.
Was he wrong in turning them out? Was he wrong for not letting them in sooner? He had always believed in timing. He wouldn't have been ready any sooner than this. The guilt he was feeling didn't allow him to focus on himself and he was grateful for that. His guilt and the team would get him through this.
But then there was the other guilt. The guilt he would carry with him for the rest of his life; the guilt of failing Teyla when she needed him most and failing at this last mission. He should have seen it coming. He should have known that the Xenotites wouldn't have been ready for the news about the Wraith. Why couldn't he have Elizabeth's instincts when it came to diplomacy?
Finally, standing on each side of the Major, Rodney and the Lieutenant got him to stand for a few seconds as they had promised. The Major wavered on sea legs getting a head rush from being hoisted up too quickly for his metabolism to adjust. His teammates held him tightly and steadily daring to not let him go frutherbuilding his trust and confidence in them.The Majorgritted his teeth and leaned on his friends. Tomorrow he would stand on his own; he would make sure of it.
An hour had passed by the time they had gotten done with all of the exercises when Ford announced, "Okay, Sir. That's it for today. Sir…?" Lt. Ford locked eyes with the Major searching the features of the distracted man.
"Huh…oh, yeah," the Major was pulled back to the present having been lost in his thoughts. Ford and McKay helped him sit back down with the younger man swinging the Major's legs back onto the bed.
"Tomorrow, we're going to try walking a couple of steps. You should be playing football in now time," Lt. Ford suggested.
The Major was breathing hard feeling like he had just finished a high impact step aerobics class and had broken a small sweat. Feeling tired, his mood had turned solemn compared to when his friends had first arrived that morning.
"We'll be back tomorrow, Major," Ford reminded his CO not missing the fatigue on the man's face.
"It's good to see you and know that you're all right," Rodney added breathing a little heavily himself from the exertion.
"Thanks, guys, I really do appreciate this," the Major stated rather strained and stoically feeling the soreness creeping up on him already.
"No problem, Sir. Anytime," Ford affirmed equally stoic. "We'll see you tomorrow. The Lieutenant and Dr. McKay turned to exit the infirmary leaving one slightly exhausted Major behind. They checked in with the Doctor on their way out giving a progress report on the morning's activities.
The Major turned on his side in an attempt to relieve his slight discomfort watching them go. That had gone very well, he reasoned to himself. After a few moments he drifted off to a light, blissful sleep curled up on his side in a half-fetal position. What seemed like a few minutes later, he was jarred awake by footsteps approaching his bed. He wondered who it could be this time and mused to himself that the infirmary was turning into Grand Central Station.
A/N: Well, there you have it. Your reviews and your suggestions are always welcome since they do help me a lot and I hope to be back soon with more!