Disclaimer: No, I do not own the show or characters. I wish I did, though...
Later that night, Rodney finished his preparations for the date he had rehearsed several times in his dreams.
'Is this really happening?' was the thought that kept running in his head, alternating with ways of how horribly he could screw this thing up. He straightened his tie, convincing himself it would be fine. 'If I can get my hair to be right,' he had tried gel, a hair spray like substance and water, but he could not convince his hair to do what he wanted it to.
Elizabeth spritzed on some Athosian perfume while happily contemplating her date. 'After all,' she thought, 'Who wouldn't want to dress up and have dinner with him?' It was, of course, a rhetorical question.
"Jessalyn?" she called to the child sitting on the floor reading War and Peace, which was John's book. "Will you come here for a minute?"
"But I'm beating Daddy!" she whined, "He's only on page 33; I'm on 35!"
"This has to do with John and Teyla. Now are you interested? Ok, they're going to the mainland, right? Well, I'm going over to Uncle Rodney's for a special dinner. You have a few options. 1, you can stay here, alone.Personally, I wouldn't recommend that. 2, you could come with me to Uncle Rodney's. I'm sure he wouldn't mind. Or, number 3, which is you can go with your parents to the mainland." She saw the change in the girl's eyes and knew the last would be the best choice.
"Cool! I'll make sure to tell them it was your idea, though," Jessalyn teased.
"Ah, but it was their idea, not mine. Ask them yourself!" Elizabeth laughed back.
"Fine! I will!" the girl cried, quickly packing up what odds and ends she had. "So," she continued, "I really get to stay with them on the mainland?"
"Yes, you do. And, here they are now," Elizabeth replied to the doorbell pinging.
"Hi," Jessalyn squeaked excitedly, as John and Teyla stepped through the doorway.
"Well, hey there back at ya." John replied, looking fairly pleased, but also a little wigged out as the little package vaulted into his arms. "So," he continued, "what do you know of football? Think we can educate Teyla on the subject?" Shaking her head exasperatedly, Teyla commented on Elizabeth's choice of dress,
"You look nice Dr. Weir." Perhaps she stared a little too hard, for Elizabeth's eyes narrowed slightly at the staring. Teyla knew the doctor was an attractive woman, but she had never seen this stately woman so dressed up before.
"Thank you Teyla. Same to you," Elizabeth replied, "Thank you again for showing Jessalyn around the mainland."
Teyla dipped her head, "It is our pleasure, is it not?" she elbowed John, who didn't seem to need reminding.
"C'mon, let's get out of poor Elizabeth's hair. After all, she needs to keep it perfectly styled." John's eyes gleamed with mischief.
"Yes, with no thanks to you!" she teased back, somewhat flustered. "Have fun on your trip. And," she added, winking a Jessalyn, "Make sure he treats you right."
XOXOXOXOXOXOXO
By the time Elizabeth was leaving her quarters, she was, quite literally, shaking in her high-heeled shoes. Every time she became very nervous, her feet had tiny tremors. She'd been to all sorts of doctors and none, not one could tell what was wrong with her. It was just one of her quirky habits.
"Just a minute, just a minute….ow!...I'm coming!" Rodney called to the knocking at his door. "Elizabeth." He stood there, shocked, looking at her with a slightly open mouth.
"Hello, Rodney. Mmmm," she sighed, sniffing the air, "It smells good in there."
"Oh, yeah, come on in," he stood aside, still somewhat dazed, to let her pass. She stood there, in the doorway, taking in the smells and the sight of his quarters.
"What is that? It smells really good!"
"Well," he began, regaining some of his normal composure, "It's an Athosian recipe; supposed to be something akin to pasta. You like pasta?" he asked, silently hoping that she wasn't allergic to it or something.
"Yes, I love pasta. My mom used to make it for me when I was a little girl. It was a feel-better medicine of sorts."
"Yeah, lucky." He turned to the pasta dish. It was all he said, but the tone made it so much more than just a phrase.
"Why 'lucky?' Although, I'll tell you, it was a heck of a lot better than the over the counter stuff!" she mock shuddered, even though his back was turned to her.
He turned back to her and returned her questioning gaze with one she liked to call the "Rodney look." It was when he was thinking, or very passionate about something, that he got that look in his eyes. Elizabeth felt a thrill run down her spine at being the subject of the look.
Reluctant to break the look, but feeling he had to, Rodney turned back to what passed as an Ancient stove. He couldn't let her in, not yet. Not to that part of his life so soon. He had seen her shudder, but it couldn't have been that bad because, while she was breathing harder than normal, it wasn't out of fear or disgust. Rather, she had had a smile playing around her mouth.
"Right, food," he began, whirling around to find the plates, "If I do say so myself, it is a wonderful thing. Then again, I am hypoglycemic, so food is a very good friend of mine."
"It's a mystery how you stay so fit with everything you eat," Elizabeth commented, watching as a very nice blush spread across the back of his neck.
"Yeah, well, y'know, running from the Wraith burns calories better than any diet," he smiled, rubbing his neck.
"Yeah, I can imagine," Elizabeth replied, smiling a bit as they fell into a comfortable rhythm once again.
"Want some wine? It's Athosian," Rodney asked, holding two glasses and a jar. Her eyes narrowed somewhat, but her jovial smile held, "Yes please, but first, tell me how you got that."
"I promised not to tell, but, for you….John apparently talked Teyla into bringing some back for us."
"Oh, really?" Elizabeth's tone held a good-natured slyness, "Well, I'll have some now. Thank you."
'And thank you John,' she silently added, as he filled her glass.
"Ahhh," Rodney settled into his chair, taking a sip of his wine. After serving Elizabeth the pasta-like dish, he sat back, tucking into his own food and studied the woman across from him.
'Wow,' he thought, 'she really said yes; this is really happening. She's always so….so poised, so graceful, and so beautiful. She's extremely gorgeous tonight! How does she always look that good? I wonder how she would look in- No! Bad thoughts!' he stopped his thought process there, as he always did when she was around. At night, however, alone in his bed, dreams crept up.
"So, how'd you think John's doing with Jessalyn?" he asked, smirking a bit, still mirthful, and if truth be told, a little jealous, of John having a child to take care of.
"I think that as long as Teyla's in charge, they'll survive the night," Elizabeth teased, beaming at the man in front of her. Being a "strong, female leader", she had somewhat of a "girl-power" streak.
"Ahh, I forgot!" Rodney exclaimed, jumping up. He scooped up a box of matches and two candles. "There we go. A little ambiance"
"Oh, that is nice," she commented, staring not at the candles, but at Rodney through the flames and smoke.
They talked about small things: the weather, the state of "affairs" through out the city, and other such trivial matters. The window showed the progress from day to sunset to striking stars and smooth water under the large moon.
"That was excellent!" Elizabeth commented, as she sat back in her chair.
"Yeah, well, I used to be one of the cooks in my family. A very good one, in fact," Rodney had become his usual self, with a slight change in how he said her name from professionally to personally. "More wine?" he offered her the bottle, "I believe it is highly praised and would recommend this fine….cabernet," he continued in an Italian accent-to the best of his abilities anyways-and was rewarded with Elizabeth's pleased laugh.
"Why, zen, if you say it is so vonderful, zen I must try some!" Elizabeth tried her hand at an accent and succeeded far better than Rodney had.
"Wow," Elizabeth sighed, standing on the balcony while he was cleaning up.
"'Wow' what?" Rodney joined her, bringing their refilled glasses of wine.
"Even after all this time, I still find it hard to believe we're really here! At the lost city of Atlantis! Who knew that we would find it in another galaxy?"
"Yeah, it's very surreal still."
"And with such a frightening adversary as the Wraith? I mean, creatures who suck your life out with their hands? How many people back home would think that we were either lying or senile?"
"Elizabeth," Rodney began, clearing his throat to get her full attention, "As much as I love listening to you talk, I want to break in with something completely off-topic; so far out there, in fact, that it has no bearing on this conversation whatsoever and-"
"Rodney," Elizabeth pronounced his name in such a manner that made him love those two syllables more than ever before.
"Well, this," he gestured between himself and the woman he had turned to so earnestly. "If we are really doing this….we are really doing this, right? Yeah, ok, well, I want you to know that I'm all in. All of me, all the way in."
Elizabeth once again found herself mesmerized by his passion, and his single-minded track. Did he really doubt they were doing it? She locked eyes with him; his pleading her to understand and say something, anything. She nodded slightly, eyes riveted, and once again felt his 'Rodney gaze' piercing her defenses.
"I am too," she said, once she could finally speak. She was a diplomat, a speaker, so why was she finding it so hard to say what she'd been dying to say for a long time? "I've wanted this, Rodney. Ever since that fateful day in Antarctica, I've felt something."
Rodney set his wine glass down, and then turned to face her fully. The moon cast a wonderful glow on both their faces; his earnest, hers full of pure bliss. He lent down over to her, their lips a few centimeters apart.
"Dr. Weir," the two looked around, then Elizabeth remembered bringing her radio; she had stuffed it into her pocket. She groaned softly, don't they ever listen? She had given specific instructions that only if Atlantis were sinking again-or anything that drastic-would she be contacted. "Dr. Weir," the floating voice said again, a little more urgently. She looked apologetically into Rodney's eyes; he knew she had responsibilities-after all, she was the commander of Atlantis.
"This is Weir," she sighed reluctantly into the radio.
"Sorry to bother you, ma'am, but it's Ford. He's awake and wants to see you."
XOXOXOXOXOXOXO
They walked slowly, hands clasped together. They were broadcasting, but Rodney had figured that between John and Kavanagh the city knew already. He had agreed to go with her to the infirmary on the condition that afterwards, they would go back to his quarters and have more wine and/or coffee.
"Ma'am," Aiden Ford sounded tired, "And Doc. McKay. Hey."
"Ford? What's happened, as far as you know?"
"Well, actually ma'am, I was hoping you could tell me. The last thing I remember is being taken by the Wraith for questioning, torture, one of those. Then, I woke up with the Doc. checking my stats and stuff."
"Oh?" was all Elizabeth said, in a slightly doubtful, slightly hopeful way.
"Well, for one thing, you almost shot me!" Rodney put in and was rewarded with a 'Don't go there' warning look from Elizabeth.
"I did?"
"As far as I can tell," she began, "While you were on the planet, you were taken over the Wraith somehow. You almost killed three people in the control room and I don't know how many were hurt altogether."
"What!" Ford looked shocked and not a little scared. "I did that?"
"Yes. I'm sorry to be the first to tell you, but I figured it'd be better to tell you myself than to let you find out…somehow."
"Thanks ma'am. When will I be let out of here and able to go back on duty?"
"Well, I might have to keep you here for a little while, Lieutenant." Elizabeth looked apologetic.
C'mon! I don't think I have it in me still!"
"We don't know that for sure! I'm sorry, Lieutenant, that's my call. I'm truly sorry. Carson?" she called to the doctor lurking around the corner.
"Ye'?" he came around the curtain.
"Can you tell me approximately how long till you can release him?"
"Well, he's healing faster than normal, but he's still got a few bruises to get over. Other than that, he's right as rain." Elizabeth felt somewhat reassured by the deep Scottish rumble until the words set in.
'Healing faster than normal?' she thought worriedly, 'that's not right.'
"Well, please tell me when he's all healed up. Thank you. Feel better, Ford. Once we make sure you're not a threat, I'll put you back on duty. Until that time, however, you'll have to sit tight in here. Goodbye you two." And trying so hard not to look back, Elizabeth strode out of the room, Rodney close beside.
XOXOXOXOXOXO
Rodney and Elizabeth sat with coffee in their hands, both lost in their own worlds of thought.
Elizabeth surreptiously studied the man sitting across from her over the rim of her mug. Rodney seemed to be thinking deeply about something; his brow was creased, his eyes shone with intelligence as his mind grappled with the problem it was encountering. Besides wondering what he could possibly be trying to figure out, her mind was completely devoid of thought.
"Elizabeth," she came out of her dreamy state, coming face to face with a very intense pair of eyes.
"Yes?" she tried to keep herself calm by taking a sip of her coffee. 'Although,' she thought ironically, 'coffee's supposed to wake you up, not the opposite.'
"Our situation is unique, although not unheard of. Even Colonel Carter and Gen. O'Neill managed to be in love against the regs. for almost 8 years,' Rodney chuckled to himself, wondering how the blond bombshell and her 'Arthur Miller' were doing.
"'Our situation?'" Elizabeth half-mocked.
"Yeah. This," he gestured with his almost empty coffee mug to the space between them.
"I'm head of the expedition, yes, I'm aware of that, but seriously Rodney, that's not an extenuating circumstance, no more than-"
She was cut off by his lips on hers, his right hand on her cheek. The feelings that rushed forth were even stronger than the first time. The first kiss had been slightly hesitant; now he knew what he was doing. Elizabeth pulled back slightly, albeit reluctantly. She was breathing heavily, not necessarily from the kiss but from the feelings the kiss had elicited; the feelings she had feared and tried to push down. She looked into his eyes that were a brighter oceanic blue than ever before. Hers begged the question: 'Are we really doing this?'
This was it, his last chance to back out, to bail on her. He couldn't; not that he would want to. He'd known enough women who had left him to know that that wasn't what he wanted to be like. He couldn't and wouldn't do that to her. She was different; she was special. Looking into her eyes sparked with love and hope, he made up his min d, once and for all.
"Yeah," he breathed, nodding, "Let's do it." She sighed contentedly, resting her forehead against his.
"Good."
"So," he began, swallowing any fear or anxiety left in him and smirking in his normal manner, "Where were we?"
Elizabeth hit him playfully on the arm.
A/N: Review please! Flames will be used to kill Kolya...mwahahaha! J/k