What Happened

"Intimacy, Knowledge and Nourishment. These are the three appetites that all beings have, and must satisfy." Their native guide, Garun, gestured to the three copper statues. All were feminine, and all conformed to the Hashtok womanly ideal of a plump woman, each of them holding the implement of their respective appetite. "In order to enter our temple and retrieve the power cell, you must appease one of the three appetites."

"Do we get to pick?" John gave Ronon and Teyla a nervous look. Of all the times for aliens to make him have sex with someone... This was what he got for not taking Rodney along.

"Chance decides." Garun opened a large chest and took out three smaller boxes. He presented them to Ronon. "You were first through the doorway. You must choose, and satisfy its nature. Perhaps we will have a grand meal, or share new ideas. Or perhaps we'll have some entertainment of a different sort."

Ronon couldn't personally think of anything bad in those choices and picked a box at random, opening the one on the left. "It's..." He smiled. "It's a whisk."

Phew. For once, just this once, it looked like no one was going to have to take one for the team. "I don't suppose you can cook?" Teyla couldn't, and John could microwave with the best of them, but cooking for a force of nature was a little beyond his abilities.

"I can cook." Ronon took the tool out of the box and tested its construction on the palm of his hand. "Good tools."

"I will show you to the ceremonial kitchen." Garun gestured towards a doorway. "Colonel Sheppard and Teyla Emmagen. You should contact your leaders and invite them for this meal. I have faith your companion will do great service to the idea of Nourishment."

"I'll give Elizabeth a call." Ronon looked... happy. The man liked to cook. How did John not know that? "Have fun, Ronon."

Ronon saluted with the whisk and followed Garun into the kitchen.

"That was most fortunate." Teyla considered the other two boxes. "Which would you have chosen?"

"Middle, I suppose." He hadn't really thought about it.

Teyla slid the lid off the box and took out a vial. "I do not believe this would facilitate knowledge." She sniffed it. "Sandalwood."

What Could Have Happened

"All of you cannot come into the antechamber. It is forbidden." Garun gave their guns a nervous glance.

"Religious law?" John had heard stranger things but their guide was a secular government official of a race who didn't seem to put much stock in gods, just the nature of the universe.

"Fire regulations." Garun spread his hands in a 'what can I do' gesture. "Someone will have to remain outside until the chosen goes to complete their task."

"I will remain outside." Teyla would more than appreciate the break from her teammates. Things had been out of balance since John's return from the Sanctuary. John's relations to all of them had become strained. While he knew in his mind that they hadn't abandoned him, Teyla was sure his heart didn't yet believe it.

"Make sure no one busts in here." John slung his pack over one shoulder. "Lead on."

Garun swung open the doors to their grand temple and lead them into the antechamber with pride. "Intimacy, Knowledge and Nourishment. These are the three appetites, that all beings have and must satisfy." He pointed to each of the three statues in turn. "In order to enter our temple and retrieve the power cell, you must appease one of the three appetites."

"Do we get to pick?" John gave Rodney a nervous look. It wouldn't be the first time they'd had to perform sex acts in public, but it would be the first time since he'd... since he'd what? Broken Rodney's heart? That was too dramatic for men like them. John still wasn't sure what he'd ended six months ago in Rodney's apartment, since they didn't talk about it. Ever.

"Chance decides." Garun opened a large chest and took out three smaller boxes. He presented them to John. "You were first through the doorway. You must choose, and satisfy nature. Perhaps we will have a grand meal, or share new ideas. Or perhaps we'll have some entertainment of a different sort."

John reached for the middle box without consulting either of his teammates. He opened it quickly, like tearing off a band-aid. There was a vial inside, filled with a clear liquid. "I don't suppose this is cooking oil?"

Garun shook his head, a huge grin on his face. "No, no it is not."

John twisted off the cap and took a whiff. He let his gaze meet Rodney's. "Sandalwood."

"Ah, then you've already chosen." Their guide threw one arm around each of them. "Come. You must make ready. Sunset is only an hour and a half away."

"Wait a second! Don't I get any say in this?" Rodney dug his heels into the clay floor. "I am not taking another one for the team!"

"I will." Rodney wasn't sure, but he thought Ronon was smiling. He was definitely looking at John with an appraising eye.

"Never mind." Rodney sighed. "Let's go." Sex with John was sex with John, even in front of an audience of aliens. Who knew when he'd get another chance like this? He also wasn't sure that he could watch Ronon take what Rodney still thought of as his place under John, the way the Satedan had so effortlessly taken Ford's place on the team.

Garun showed them into middle door of the three leading out of the room, the door that lead to the medical center and then he returned, still all smiles and clapped Ronon on the back. "This, my new friend, is a time of great celebration. No one has chosen the middle box in many years." He whispered conspirationally "Too embarrassing."

"It'll be good for them." It just wasn't right, two people wanting each other as much as his taskmaster and Rodney did, and not doing anything about it. On Sateda, a matchmaker who specialized in pairing the blind would have been called in. She would have sat them down months ago and explained in very simple words why celibacy was counter productive and given them pamphlets about the established protocols that same-sex couples had to follow so they fulfilled their genetic obligation to the survival of the species before changing their housing assignments.

"Your leaders should be here for this joyous event. Please extend the warm hospitality of the Hashtok to them." He bowed, deeply, and Ronon mimicked the gesture. "But please do not reveal which appetite is to be appeased. The anticipation is a large part of the ritual."

"Of course." Ronon bowed to their guide once more and then went back outside to where Teyla was waiting. "Sheppard and McKay have to perform in some sort of public ritual. They want us to bring in our leaders."

Teyla checked her watch. "The Daedalus will have arrived. Perhaps Doctor Weir can persuade Colonel Caldwell to join us."

They'd had to spend most of the hour and a half till sunset in the Hashtok's medical center, where they'd been poked, prodded and tested with a thoroughness that would have made Carson proud. There were only a few minutes to spare.

"Are there cameras?" John looked at the smooth gray walls and couldn't see any, which was odd, since aliens that were into ritual sex usually liked to watch.

"You will be observed, yes." Garun turned down the sheets on the large bed that was the sole feature of the room. "Please remember, we are giving you a prized artifact of a forgotten past."

"You can trust us to put on a good show." John threw an arm around Rodney, and the other man didn't push him away so John took that as a good sign.

"Excellent. When the gong is rung, you will appease Intimacy in whatever manner you see fit." Garun bowed, that grin still on his face and left them.

John let his arm drop from Rodney's shoulders and sat on the edge of the bed. "Nice sheets, at least."

"Maybe we can trade for them." Rodney sat beside him and stared at the wall. "Nice people, the Hashtok. If we asked, they'd probably give us a knife to cut the tension."

"What do you want me to say?" John followed Rodney's lead and picked a speck on the wall to stare at. "Do you want to hear how much it sucks to know that our salvation from the Wraith meant I had to give you up? Do you want to hear how many times I dreamed about you in the Sanctuary? Is that it, Rodney? If that's what you want to hear, I'll tell you."

"Don't." Rodney reached over blindly and took John's hand. "I get it. Genius, remember? Your choosing Atlantis over me, not a big surprise. We weren't... You didn't go away. You're still my friend, probably my best friend, if I was going to quantify it. It's fine."

John stroked his thumb over the top of Rodney's hand and forced himself to look away from the wall, forced himself to look at Rodney. "You should have let Ronon do this. It would have been easier on both of us."

"Not a chance." Rodney fell backwards, taking John with him so they were lying side by side, knees hung over the edge of the bed. "I can't remember how many times I fell asleep in your bed because I was too tired to go back to my room. Actually, I can, but the number's not important except that it's a bigger one than the number of times I fell asleep because you made me too tired to walk back to my room. We weren't just using each other for sex."

"I thought we weren't going to talk about this." John was an emotional cripple, and he knew it. The last person he'd trusted with his heart had ripped it into tiny pieces and some days, he was even grateful she had. He never would have gone into the Air Force if Natasha hadn't shocked him out of academic complacency.

"If we're going to have sex in front of god knows how many aliens, I just thought it would be a good idea to air some of the dirty laundry. Tell me I wasn't just a convenient body and I'll let it go."

In the distance, John heard the clang of a gong. "Time to put on a show." He sat up and stripped off his shirt. "For the record, you weren't all that convenient."

"For the record, you fell asleep in the middle of sex three times." Rodney stopped John from unbuttoning his pants. "Lay back, Colonel, and trust me. I promise not to blow up any solar systems."

John leaned back and pillowed his head on his arms. "We really need to talk after this." Rodney may not have been the best lover he'd ever had, but he was the only one John had ever been desperate to keep around following the inevitable implosion that ended all his relationships. John loved Atlantis, but he needed Rodney in a way he tried not to think about.

"Stop thinking." Rodney got the last button undone and pushed John's pants down. "The nice aliens are making us have sex, an excuse that falls within the SGC parameters for excusing homosexual acts. So let's get to the sex part already."

The gong banged again, and Elizabeth opened her eyes. They were done, apparently, and sleeping. The arena full of aliens were milling around like people did during intermission and Elizabeth steadied herself and tried to listen to Ambassador Garun.

"The enclosure in the center of the arena is made of a special one way glass. We can see and hear them, but they cannot see us."

"They didn't know we were watching?" Elizabeth was probably going to see that little display for weeks in her dreams, which was bad enough. Worse that John and Rodney hadn't know they were being watched. What she'd witness should have been private.

"They knew they were being observed, but I did not inform them about the arena or that you and your Colonel friend would be here. We did not wish to intimidate them." Garun noticed how red Doctor Weir's skin had become. "Are you ill?"

"Not in a way that your doctors can help." Elizabeth noticed Colonel Caldwell heading in their direction. He didn't look happy. "Stephen, this is Ambassador-" He walked right past them, not even sparing a glance in her direction. "This is going to be an interesting debriefing."

The Hashtok had let them sleep for an hour, then woken them up and handed the ZPM over to Rodney. "Is it weird that this is just slightly more thrilling than getting you naked?"

Rodney was carrying the ZPM cradled in his arms like it was a baby, and John wouldn't have been surprised if he'd started cooing at it. "This is Pegasus." John had given up quantifying the weirdness in this galaxy. "What do you think Atlantis will do with two ZPMs hooked up?"

"I have no idea. But it's going to be something to see." Rodney stroked the ZPM and got a far away look in his eyes. "I'm going to light her up. It's going to be beautiful, John. Our favorite girl is finally going to really wake up."

"If we get Radek to do the installation, we could watch from one of the jumpers." John opened the door that led out of the tunnel and into the antechamber. "I think... Colonel Caldwell." That warm feeling he'd been riding turned ice cold.

"I'll expect your resignation tomorrow morning." With that one sentence, Stephen Caldwell pulled the rug out from beneath John. "The Daedalus will be in Atlantis for three days, then we'll head back to Earth. You'll be with us, or you'll be brought up on charges."

He left them standing there and headed outside the temple. John was frozen in place, mouth open, and Rodney raced after Caldwell. "You can't do that. I know the SGC rules on this. Any sexual acts performed to save your life or in the pursuit of necessary technology do not fall under the code of military conduct."

"I could care less about that little display, although I'm sure your colleagues will enjoy the video the Hashtok so thoughtfully shot." Caldwell tossed a DVD at Rodney, who fumbled it but managed not to drop it. "Screwing your comrades in the line of duty to get a ZPM is covered under the SGC corollaries. Doing it off duty on top of fraternizing with someone under you in the chain of command isn't. The arena has excellent acoustics. We heard every word the two of you said to each other."

Rodney broke the DVD in half. "If you think this will get you Atlantis, you're wrong. Elizabeth will never allow it. She'll fight to keep John here."

"Doctor Weir used most of her favors up keeping the Colonel in this galaxy last year. She won't be able to do it again." Caldwell took another copy of the DVD from his jacket and threw it at Rodney. "He's coming with me in three days, Doctor McKay. He doesn't belong here. He never has."

When Caldwell left, Rodney threw both copies at the stone door and watched them break into small pieces. He felt a little bit better. Not much, but a little bit. He took a minute to stomp on the shards then went back to find John.

Exile

The room they'd given him on the Daedalus felt like a prison, or a tomb. John threw his duffel bag into the tiny closet and sat on the floor by the foot of the bed. This was it, this was the end. The reprieve Elizabeth had given him two years ago was up. No more flying, no more Air Force. Everything he'd been for the past ten years was gone with the bang of a gong.

He opened up his laptop, pulled up Media Player and hit play. Then he rested his head against the bed frame and listened to Johnny Cash sing about Folsum Prison Blues.

Exile + 18 Days

John waited until the crowds had died down before he let Hermiod beam him down to the Disembarkation Area. He had a brilliant, Rodney-esque plan to slink out of the mountain without talking to anyone, but based on recent events, John should have known he wasn't that lucky.

"Colonel Sheppard. I'd say welcome back, but you'd probably punch me."

"Doctor Jackson." John should have been expecting this. "I'd say that's about right." After two years in Atlantis, everything about Earth felt off. The air, the lights, the smell, it was all wrong. It suddenly struck John that he'd only ever really felt at home here in the air. He stared at Jackson, who'd managed not to give up his books and still became a soldier. "Can we talk?"

They ended up in John's hotel room, drinking good beer and trading stories. Daniel rolled the bottle between his fingers. "He gave you a book?"

"He did." John pulled the battered pamphlet from his jacket and thumbed through it, seeing his handwriting, black penned words of disbelief. "I'm not asking, but you could tell me anyway."

"Jack was too influential, too dangerous. If they'd done this to him, we would have lost the Asgard, the Jaffa and maybe even the Tok'ra. But that war is over and Thor's influence could keep Jack in power, but it couldn't keep him with me." Daniel took a long drag from his beer bottle, finishing the last swallow. He set it beside the other empties on the table and stood.

"Thank you for talking to me." At least now John knew his mistake. Now, at least he knew that when you had an affair with a member of your team, you really needed to find a super-powerful ally first.

"For what it's worth, I'm really sorry." Daniel shook John's hand and he really did seem sorry. "I'll have the concierge call me a cab. Neither of us should be driving." As he was leaving, he hesitated at the doorway. "John, you need to get away from here. You know too much and there are too many people here with the power to just make you disappear."

"I know." After Jackson left, John cranked up Mr. Cash and had another beer. He stared out the window into the night for a long time, then he slipped the blank bands off his wrists. He'd worn them for ten years, to remind himself Natasha had killed that man when she'd left him. "Not so dead after all." There was only one place left to go. The writing was still on the wall, no matter how much paint he'd put on it.

Exile + 20 Days

Troy looked the same as it had a decade ago, gritty and cold. The apartment building he'd lived in was still there, a little older, a little more run down, the beautiful stained glass windows replaced with plexi. John didn't go inside and he didn't go up the hill to RPI either. Instead, he took a walk up First Street and went looking for ghosts of his past. He found himself in the remains of Sage Park. Where there had once been a large open grass area there was now a student union. He sat down on a bench. "What am I even doing here?"

"I'm not sure, Mister Sheppard. What are you doing here?"

John turned and looked at where the voice had come from. On the next bench over sat an Asian man, reading the newspaper. "How did you know my name?"

"Dr. Kusanagi sent us a letter. My name is Cho." The man folded his newspaper and joined John on his bench. "I've done a little research on you. Ten years ago, you were one of the most promising aeronautical engineers of your generation. Two weeks from defense of your doctoral dissertation and with a job offers from several defense firms, not to mention NASA, you walked away. You drove to a recruiting office and enlisted. They sent you to Officer training and you flew supersonic planes instead of designing them."

"Who exactly are you, Cho?" John hadn't told anyone any of that. To his friends, Johnny had just disappeared one day. He'd never contacted any of them and he'd never gone to a reunion.

"I work for the Japanese Space Agency, Mister Sheppard, and I have come to make you an offer you shouldn't refuse."

Exile + 97 Days

"No, no, you're not listening to me! John Sheppard! John. The man is a pilot, there is no reason for him to be-"

(Please, shut up!) The man who'd driven Rodney in from the embassy stopped the car. When Rodney said nothing, the man sighed and got out of the car. He opened the passenger door and let Rodney out. "Engineering Building. His office is on the second floor."

"I'm telling you, the Embassy gave us the wrong address. He's not here. Hey, hey!" The man had gotten back into the car and was speeding away. "Wonderful. Just wonderful." Abandoned in a foreign city by a surly cab driver at... at a university. Well, at least there was one bright spot. Anyone teaching here named John Sheppard probably spoke English.

He walked up the stairs and found an office with a plate written in both English and kanji. He ran his fingers across it and imagined, just for a moment, that he'd slipped into an alternate reality where the man he'd known the past two years could actually be, 'Doctor John Sheppard, PhD.'

Rodney was about to knock when a voice began to speak. (What day is it? That's right, it's Monday. No, it's too late.) Even though he barely understood a word, the tone and voice were familiar. The tone was the one he berated his staff with and the voice... the voice was John's. He pushed open the door and there his objective was, talking on the phone. (Midnight, and not a minute later. Do you under-) When John saw him, he stopped in mid sentence and hung up on who ever he was talking to. They just stared at each other for a moment and then John spoke. "Lock the door."

"Your desk is really big." From his position sprawled across it, Rodney had to marvel that two grown men fit on top of it. "Sturdy construction, quality wood. And the frosted glass in the door is-"

"Shut up about the decor, Rodney." John sat up and slid off the edge of the desk to find his boxers. "I thought you were a really vivid fantasy, but only the real Rodney would babble about how wonderfully convenient it is to fuck in my office."

"Nice to see you too, John." Rodney sat up. "Toss me my pants, would you?" John flung Rodney's briefs over one shoulder and they hit him in the face. "Wonderful shot, and by the way, what are you doing here?"

"Teaching." John finally found his boxers and slid them on. "The real question is, what are you doing here? I thought the City would sink into the ocean if you took a vacation."

"I'm not on vacation. What do you mean, teaching?" Rodney caught the t-shirt flung at him and pulled it on over his head. "And why does that sign out there say you're a PhD?"

"I am a PhD and I'm teaching young engineers how to design non-military spacecraft. We're going to Mars." John found a pair of pants next and checked the size. His. He stood and stepped into them. "You didn't come all this way just to screw around on my desk, although it was a very nice bonus."

"I'm here for two reasons. One is to tell you Colonel Caldwell has been relieved of command." Rodney could see the moment that sunk in. John went rigid like a board. "He'd been compromised by the Goa'uld."

"Who's in charge back home?" John ran the waistband of Rodney's pants through his fingers.

"Lorne, until they can find someone willing to take the job. Actually, if is a better word. He'll probably get stuck with it. No one's exactly eager to take the job. Word is, the command position is cursed. I can't imagine why they'd think that. We've only gone through four military leaders in two years."

John half-heartedly tossed Rodney his pants then sat back down on the desk beside him. "They're going to make the same decision we made."

"Who?"

"Lorne and Parrish. They'll stop whatever it is they were doing," And John honestly didn't know, because he hadn't asked and Lorne hadn't told, "So Lorne can keep command." John rested his head on Rodney's shoulder. "I take it you're here until the Daedalus makes her next trip?"

"Actually, that's the second thing." Rodney rested his hand on top of John's head and said in what he hoped was a calm voice, "I quit the project."

"You what?" John sat up and grabbed Rodney by the shoulders. "Are you insane? Atlantis needs you!"

"No, Atlantis needs you!" They were shouting, and it felt good, it felt real, unlike the hour before which had been surreal and like a really good porno. "I need you."

"Don't get sentimental on me, Rodney." John shook him a couple times, just to get his message through. "How many times have you saved Atlantis?"

"Please don't shake the physicist. And if you have to know, three times. And how many times have you saved me, John?" Rodney pushed John away. "Three weeks ago, Radek was on a puddle jumper that crashed into the ocean. He'd asked me to take his place, but I was in a lousy mood so I said no. If I had gone, who would have rescued me? No one but you could have convinced him and you're in Japan, doing god knows what!"

"I told you, I'm teaching! Stop evading the issue. You have to go back. Do you honestly think Zelenka can run the City? He doesn't even have the ATA gene."

"I'm a physicist, not a soldier. Without you, that place was going to kill me, no matter how much I loved her, so I left. Let Zelenka keep Atlantis in one piece." Rodney folder his arms across his chest, and did his best impression of a five year old digging his heels into the dirt. "I'm not going back. Not without you."

"You're going to kill her!"

"I'd rather kill her than lose you." Rodney looked as angry as John had ever seen him. "Atlantis is a thing, John. She's a marvelous, wonderful thing and I love her, but I love you more. Atlantis can never love me back, but if I stick around long enough, maybe you can. "

For a long time, they just sat there, on John's desk, not talking and then, John spoke. "You can stay." Rodney was the only person in his life that had ever followed when he'd been sent away. "But next week, when you're on the phone with Daniel Jackson, begging to be let back into the program, I reserve the right to say I told you so."

"You reserve whatever you want, I'm not going anywhere." He put an arm around John's shoulder. "So..."

"So, don't worry about being bored." John threw his arm over Rodney's and they just sat there and stared out John's office window over looking Tokyo. The idea that Rodney would come follow him, all the way form Japan, leave the program and Atlantis, just to be with him... John couldn't wrap his mind around it. "I'm not happy you're here, but I'm glad you're with me."

"It's where I belong."

Exile + 383 Days (1.04 years)

"Rodney, it's 6 am."

"I know." Rodney stared at the schematic on his screen and knew that if he just looked at it long enough, it would make sense. It would all come together. He was one of the most brilliant physicists of his generation and he had the some of best minds in Japan working for him. They could build a ZPM, he knew it.

"You haven't been to bed. You're teaching class in three hours." John hit save, then closed the lid, ignoring Rodney's protests. "There's a naqueda reactor in your lab, Rodney. You're going to blow up something if you don't get some sleep."

"I haven't blown up a..." Rodney's eyes went wide and he snapped his fingers. "That's it! That's absolutely it!" He kissed John, for long enough that John had forgotten what he was trying to do, then sat back down and opened his laptop back up. "Well? What are you still doing here? Don't tell me you don't have things to do. The only reason you're ever up this early is to go running in the park."

"I..." John shook his head, trying to figure out what had just happened. If Rodney didn't want to come back to bed for a few hours, then John would go running. "Don't blow up anything on accident, okay?"

"Yes, fine. Purposeful explosions only." Rodney was completely engrossed again and John just laughed a little and went for his run.

Exile + 738 Days (2.02 years)

"The blue things on the walls are wiggling."

"I know, John." They were getting older and that fact became blatantly obvious when a little thing like a roller blading accident sent them to the emergency room.

"They're so pretty."

"I'm sure they are." Rodney turned to the doctor that had set John's leg. "What the hell did you give him? This man has to go before the Appropriations Committee in twelve hours! Do you people want to go to Mars or not?"

Exile + 1227 Days (3.36 years)

"Alright, everybody clear out. We're powering her up." John waited until the last of his doctoral engineering students had ducked behind the protective shield, then he fired the engines. There was that steady hum that he'd missed so much and John slid his hand across the controls. The small craft lifted up off the ground and through the intercom, he could hear cheering. "Ladies and gentlemen... We have liftoff."

Exile + 1742 Days (4.7 years)

"It's green."

"When we treated the diamond shell, it turned green, every time." Rodney picked up the diamond hull of the ZPM. "Either the charging process turns it orange, or the Alterrans made them that way for some aesthetic reasons."

"Those wacky Ancients." John stretched out an arm and pulled Rodney to him. "It's really going to happen. You're going to make me a ZPM, and then we're going to Mars." They kissed, the ZPM clutched between them, until John heard someone clear their throat. "I think they're ready."

Rodney looked back and saw one of his assistants carrying the lead case their naqueda was in. "What, you've never seen your boss make out with his boyfriend before? Come on, people, this is it! Do you want a safe, energy efficient power source and a space colony, or to do you want to stare at me all day?"

Exile + 1743 Days (4.7 years)

"It's not turning orange." John propped his chin on his hand and watched the interior of the shell glow green as the naqueda became naquidaria and then something else they hadn't named yet that would charge the ZPM.

"I know. I'm tempted to go at with a spray can when it's finished charging."

Exile + 2533 Days (6.94 years)

"I'm not sure I can do this." John watched his hands tremble. "Jesus Christ, Rodney, what were we thinking?"

"I don't know. Wasn't this your idea?"

"No, this was so your idea!" John balled his hands into fists to make them stop shaking. "It just... feels off. Like something's missing."

Rodney was pacing back and forth, wearing a rut in the carpet. "We could just not go. We're in Canada for three weeks. We could throw out our plans and just go to Niagara Falls. We could even visit Jeanie."

"Sounds good to-" There was a loud knock on the door. "Hold that thought, Rodney." John opened the door, stared at the people standing there, shut it and opened it again. "Rodney, come'er."

"What?" Rodney came to the door and looked at their visitors. He blinked, like he wasn't sure he believed what he was seeing. "Teyla, Ronon."

Their former teammates were standing in the doorway, wearing jeans and t-shirts, looking so Earth-human that John thought he was hallucinating. "What... How did the two of you get here?"

"We flew." Ronon pushed past them into the hotel room. "Your people are insane, Sheppard. They wouldn't give us travel papers."

"Doctor Wier went before the International Committee to gain us travel rights." Teyla slid a EU passport from her back pocket and showed them. "Are you alright?" John and Rodney were just staring at her.

John stepped aside to let her come in. "Not that we're not happy to see you both, but, what the hell are you doing here?"

"We wanted to see your world." Teyla had on her diplomatic smile.

"Weir told us to take a vacation or she would put our teams on standby and make us go farm with the Athosians." Ronon spread out across the couch in the living room area of their suite. "I hate farming."

"Must be some vacation, three weeks on the Daedalus both ways." John didn't exactly have fond memories of the last trip he'd made on her.

"We've missed you." If Teyla had been a little less tactful, that sentence would have ended with, 'you idiots,' but she restrained herself and sat down beside Ronon.

"Wait, back up. Teams, plural?" Rodney didn't like it when reality spun out of his control. "What exactly are the two of you doing out there?"

"They promoted us." Ronon said the word 'promoted' like it was distasteful. "They've got her peddling sweets and they put me as head of a team."

"I am not peddling sweets, I am leading trade negotiations. There is no chocolate in our galaxy." It sounded like they'd had this discussion often. "And do not deny you enjoy leading the strike team. I have seen you in the armory, talking to the equipment."

"Some of the ancestor's equipment is alive. If you don't interact with them, they get fussy." Ronon crossed his arms. He refused to argue about this any more, it had gotten old a long time ago. "Sheppard, you okay?"

"I'm..." John blinked a few times, then decided to go with it. "I'm fine. Glad to see you, is all."

"He's lying through his teeth. What are you two really doing here? You can't tell me Elizabeth gave you two months off just to come see us." Elizabeth had fought with him when he'd left, but it had finally sunk in for Rodney that if the City was still standing, then maybe he hadn't been that essential after all. Valuable, yes, but not essential.

"We come bearing a message from Elizabeth." Teyla suddenly turned serious. "Atlantis has been granted colonial status. In two years time, we will be an independent nation tied to Earth via membership in the European Union. Our military policies will be brought into alignment with theirs. Elizabeth asks..." Teyla hesitated, then corrected herself. "No. Elizabeth begs of you both, come home."

End of Part Four