A/N: Gah... RL got in the way. I'm so sorry! Don't hate me, what matters is that it's here now, right? I did finish this a couple of days ago, but I wasn't happy with it so I went through and fixed things here and there. Here you go, the second and final part!

Oh, and I promised Sparky didn't I? ;-)

Two of the animals broke through the trees, but were instantly subdued by gunfire. As soon as they hit the ground, more appeared.

"Get to the 'Gate!" Sheppard ordered and began firing just as Ronon began firing at more behind them.

"Running"

With Sheppard in the lead the group ran for the trees. Several of the creatures jumped out in front of them and John fired on them, but there were too many. He grabbed Elizabeth's arm and turned to the left, pulling her through the trees. "This way!" He yelled, hoping the others would follow.

He urged Elizabeth in front of him and she ran ahead as fast as she could. She had no idea where she was going, she simply ran in a straight line, trusting that John would be right behind her and would guide her.

Moments later she heard his gun fire. The creatures, whatever they were, were chasing after them. She had no idea how many were chasing them. She realized that the others weren't with them, and she had no idea where they were, or if they were safe, but she couldn't focus on anything but keeping her legs moving and controlling her breathing.

The growls that broke the night air only gave her fuel to run faster through the trees. All she could hear was the rhythmic pounding of her feet against the ground, and the blood thumping in her ears.

For a moment she couldn't hear any weapon fire and there was a moment of fear where she believed that John was no longer behind her, and she slowed to turn around, but John was instantly by her side, grasping her forearm, and pulling her forward again.

They ran through some bushes, unaware of them ripping at their skin "They're getting closer!" Yet John needn't have even spoken, as the growls behind them drew nearer.

It may have been only minutes later, but it felt like hours. Elizabeth's lungs were gasping for oxygen, her chest tightening in pain. She knew she was going to collapse at any moment.

John had managed to reload his P-90. "Keep going." He turned around and fired on their pursuers once again.

Elizabeth ran for another minute before she staggered to a stop and gasped for air. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't run again, not until she recovered from her last run.

She turned around as she fought to give her body the oxygen it greatly needed, and all she saw was trees and bushes. There was no sound except for her own erratic breathing.

Then she heard feet, or perhaps something else, breaking through the foliage towards her. She could only hope that it was John.

Elizabeth's breath hitched in her throat as John stumbled through the branches in front of her. Her eyes closed in a brief moment of relief. She didn't know what she would've done if it had been something other than him.

John came to a stop in front of her, his features etched with concern. "You ok?"

Elizabeth gave him a nod and he took a look over his shoulder. "I don't think there's any more chasing us, but I'd rather not stick around and find out." John walked past Elizabeth, motioning for her to follow him. He was breathing heavy too, but not as bad which annoyed Elizabeth. Perhaps she was more out of shape than she'd thought. She quickly fell into step beside him.

John reached for his radio. That he'd seen, only Ronon and Lorne had had their radios with them, he just hoped that they were ok. "This is Sheppard, does anyone copy?" He paused and listened for several agonizing seconds. When there was no reply, he came to a stop, and looked at Elizabeth. "Can anyone hear me?" He tried again.

He was again greeted with silence.

"Did you see where anyone went?" Elizabeth asked hopefully.

John shook his head. "No, at first I thought they were following us…" He trailed off. "I'm sure they're fine." He assured her.

After a few moments of silence, John spoke. "Well, the 'gate was east of camp, right?" John crouched down and drew an 'X' in the dirt with his finger. To the right of it he drew a small circle, symbolizing the stargate.

Elizabeth nodded, catching his train of thought. She crouched down next to him "So that means we ran north." Her breathing was finally returning to normal.

John nodded, drawing a line from the top of the X. "And the waterfall we were at earlier… yesterday is north of camp." He drew another X further above the other. "And if I remember correctly, the UAV pictures showed that the river leading from it goes south-east, by the gate." John grinned triumphantly, drawing a squiggly line from the second X by the circle. "So, if we find either the river or the waterfall, we'll find our way straight to the stargate." He drew two little stick figures between the two X's and then a dotted line for their planned path.

Elizabeth smiled. "I hope you weren't an art major."

He shrugged. "My teacher told me I had talent in kindergarten, didn't really pursue it further." He stood and used his boot to cover up his little map.

Her smile faded as she grew serious again. "Sounds like a plan." Elizabeth replied trying to hide her growing concern. She stood and they continued walking again in silence.

During the next few minutes the reality of what was happening began to sink in. Since her first step through the 'gate to Atlantis, Elizabeth had had her fair share of adventures, and she'd had her life threatened on many occasions. But in comparison to John, she'd barely been through anything. She always caught the end of the adventure, the return to Atlantis. In the end she heard all about their excitements and close-calls during debriefs.

Now, here she was, experiencing one of John's offworld adventures first hand. She was running through a foreign forest from some wolf-looking alien creatures in her pajamas with her second in command. The thought almost brought a smile to her face until she remembered that there were still five other members of the group unaccounted for.

She was reminded of the feeling whenever one of the teams was offworld and she was stuck on Atlantis, worrying for them when the only thing she could do was send another team out to search for them, in which case she just had more people to worry about.

Sensing her unease, John nudged her lightly with his elbow. "Don't worry, the others will have made it back to the 'gate and dialed for help, and since you're missing, they'll have sent the whole of Atlantis, who are all are searching for you now."

Elizabeth smiled. "I can just see Kavanaugh searching endlessly for me."

"Of course," John laughed. "Don't you know that he has a secret love for you?"

She shook her head and laughed. "I couldn't be so lucky."

At that moment she realized how thankful she was that she'd ended up with John. He always managed to lighten her mood and she couldn't think of anyone that she felt safer with.

After a moment a thought crossed her mind. "What happens if we're actually heading slightly north-west and we miss the waterfall all together?"

"Well, we're bound to run into the river that runs into the waterfall, right?"

"The UAV showed that the river flows from the north into the fall."

John shrugged and gave her a small grin. "I know where we're going; I have a good sense of direction. Trust me."

"I do." Elizabeth replied sincerely, and she did.

John's eyebrows raised and he turned his head to look down at her and, upon seeing her seriousness, he gave her a small smile.

It was a little while before they heard water crashing against rock in the silence of the night, and John looked at Elizabeth with an 'I told you so' grin.

A minute later they arrived at the waterfall, and Elizabeth's breath was taken away by how beautiful the scene was before her. The moon above them was almost full and its reflection rippled in the water. With the sound of the water crashing to the water below, and the plants that riddled the banks, it was truly picturesque.

When Elizabeth stopped walking, John turned to look back at her. She was looking at the scene in awe, her eyes twinkling in the moonlight. The corner of his mouth curved into a grin, and he stepped back to her. "Hey," he reached up to grip her arm lightly, and was shocked by how cold her arm was. "Geez, you're freezing! Why didn't you say something?"

She looked from the waterfall to him when she felt his warm hand on her arm. The cool night breeze had been blissful after their sprint, but in just her shirt, she'd quickly become cold.

Before she could reply, Sheppard was taking off his vest, and then his jacket.

"John, I'm fine really." But her protests were to no avail, as John handed his jacket to her. She reluctantly accepted, and pulled the piece of clothing on. She instantly felt herself warming up as she zipped it up.

Elizabeth looked at John and found him watching her closely. She suddenly realized how vulnerable she felt at that moment. The thought scared the hell out of her. She was relying on John to keep her safe and to get her back to the 'gate. She'd always been an independent woman, and hadn't relied on anybody for years. But she trusted him and that gave her some peace.

"Why don't we sit down and rest for a while." John suggested. He hadn't meant to stare, but he realized that even though this had become a usual occurrence for him in the past two years, it wasn't for Elizabeth, and she must be exhausted.

Elizabeth nodded, and followed him over to a large tree. Together they sat down and leaned against the large trunk. Elizabeth let out a small sigh, a wave of fatigue suddenly washing over her. Now that she'd sat down, she never wanted to get up again.

"You doing ok?" John asked.

"It's definitely the most interesting vacation I've ever taken."

John chuckled. "Guess that's my fault, huh?"

"It's alright. I'm still trying to decide which is worse, being chased through a forest by alien creatures or paperwork."

"Hmm… tough decision."

Elizabeth smiled, leaning her head back against the trees and closing her eyes.

"Tired?"

"Now that I've sat down, yes." She spoke without opening in her eyes.

"Try and get some rest, we can stay here a while."

"Are you sure?" She said through a yawn.

John chuckled, "Yeah, I'm sure."

She wasn't sure what made her do it; perhaps she was just more exhausted than she thought. There was no way she'd be able to fall asleep with everything that was going on. But she shifted over slightly and leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder.

John's eyes opened wide in a moment of surprise, as he looked down at the top of her head. He shifted her forward for a moment, and slipped his arm around her shoulders. Elizabeth settled back comfortably, and John leaned his head back against the tree, a small smile on his face.

Consciousness asserted itself on Elizabeth's brain when her pillow suddenly grew rigid. Before she was even fully awake, John was pulling her to her feet.

"What's-"

"They're back." He whispered.

Elizabeth rubbed her eyes. The others had found them? Her body began to relax with relief when a howl ripped through the night air.

She was definitely awake now.

"Come on!" John grabbed her hand and they began running alongside the river.

They ran as fast as their legs would carry them, and Elizabeth held tightly to John's hand, she wouldn't let him go. She could hear the growls chasing them, and when she turned to look back, she wished she hadn't. They were running a race they couldn't win.

John knew he only had limited ammunition left, and he couldn't fight them off by himself. He didn't look behind him, but he knew they were getting close. They couldn't keep following the river. On the bank there was no trees, they were out in the open. They'd have to take their chances in the forest. Even if it got them lost, it was better than dieing.

He veered to the right, pulling Elizabeth with him. She didn't question him, and he knew that she trusted him. Her life was in his hands, and he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to protect her.

The trees didn't stop the creatures, but it may have slowed them down a little. He tried to lose them by taking random turns. They gained a small lead, but they were both wearing down and wouldn't last much longer.

Elizabeth was surprised when John started slowing down to a jog. "What are you doing?"

"Elizabeth, I know you're not going to like this, but I need you to do something for me." He stopped and began reaching for his sidearm.

"What is it?" She was scared out of her mind, and John wasn't helping.

"I need you to take my gun." He held his 9mm out to her.

Her body froze in fear and she pulled her hand from his, stopping in her tracks.

Elizabeth looked at John's hand as he held it out towards her in the dark of the night. The cold, black metal was simply a dark shadow in his open hand.

"Take it!" He ordered. She couldn't tear her fearful eyes away from his hand.

"You know I can't!" She breathed.

"Please," his hazel eyes begged her.

The growls were growing closer, and John took a step towards her, placing his empty hand on her forearm, forcing her to look at him. "Elizabeth, you have to take the gun."

She could see a hint of fear in his eyes, and she bit down on her bottom lip. It went against everything she'd ever believed in; everything she'd fought for all of her life. She'd always managed to settle things peacefully, without any reliance on the use of guns.

"You're not going to be able to talk your way out of this one," He said, as if reading her thoughts. "You don't even have to shoot anything." His voice grew urgent as the growls seemed to surround them.

"Then why do I have to even take it!"

"In case I'm not there to protect you!" He yelled before sighing. "Look, I need to know, that if anything happens to me, you'll be ok."

Things had changed when she agreed to take on this mission, to lead an expedition to another galaxy. She constantly ordered those under command to use force on other planets and to defend the city of Atlantis itself. Would it be any different if she were the one holding the gun?

Elizabeth's eyes dropped to the handgun again. They're not human, she reminded herself.

Hesitantly, she reached out a shaky hand and took the foreign object. It felt heavy in her hand.

John put his hand on her cheek. "I want you to run ok, run as fast as you can. I'm going to try and stop them."

Tears stung her eyes as she placed her empty palm on his.

"I'll come after you, I promise, ok?"

Elizabeth nodded, but she didn't want to let go of his hand, didn't want to leave him.

"Go, Elizabeth." He leaned down and placed a quick kiss on her lips before turning and running back the direction they came.

She stared after him, frozen in time. The sound of his P-90 firing jerked her back to reality, and she turned, running through the forest as fast as her tired legs would allow. She had a sinking feeling that she'd never see him again and it tore at her insides.

After a few minutes she couldn't hear anymore sounds behind her. She'd never felt so alone and helpless in her life.

Her foot suddenly caught on a branch, and her body pitched forward as she fell to the ground, the gun falling from her hand. She rolled over onto her back, gasping for air. She knew she had to keep going, and she stood up, trying to calm her breathing.

To her right a twig snapped and it seemed to echo in the night. She turned her body to the right just as one of the creatures appeared through the trees. It was so close she could distinguish all of its features. It had beady yellow eyes that were trained on her every move. Unlike a wolf, its ears were set into the side of its head, and it had no tail.

Elizabeth spotted the gun lying on the ground in front of her, and she slowly knelt down. The creature growled, and took a step closer to her. Her hand closed around the gun, and she slowly stood again.

With a shaky hand, she held the gun out in front of her, pointing it at the animal. It wasn't dumb, it knew that it was being threatened, and it began to walk towards her on its four feet.

She took a couple of steps backwards, her index finger poised over the trigger.

It was done playing with her now as it gave a growl and ran at her. Elizabeth squeezed her eyes shut.

BANG!

Her eyes flew open and she saw the creature crumple to the ground. Her mind clouded with confusion.

"Dr. Weir!"

She looked up to see Ronon lowering his weapon and Major Lorne running past him towards her.

"Dr. Weir, are you ok?" Lorne asked in concern.

Elizabeth lowered her shaking hand and looked from Ronon to the dead creature to Lorne and nodded. "Yeah… thank you." She was alive.

"Here, let me take that." Lorne took the gun from Elizabeth's hand, surprised to see it there in the first place. The fact that she had Colonel Sheppard's gun wasn't a good sign, and he was almost afraid to ask his next question. "Where's Col-"

The echoes of a P-90 fired in the distance before Lorne could finish his question. Elizabeth looked briefly at him before running in the direction of the gunfire. Lorne and Ronon were quickly following her.

It wasn't long before they heard more gun fire and the growls of more creatures. With his greater speed, Ronon passed Elizabeth and Lorne. By now Elizabeth was certain she should have tried out for the cross country team in High School.

When they finally caught up to Ronon, he and John were fighting off a few creatures, several of them were already lying dead on the ground.

With the three men present, it wasn't long before Ronon was shooting the last of the creatures.

Relief washed over Elizabeth to see John alive, and when his eyes fell on her, she could see that he felt the same way. They held each others' gaze for a brief moment. He smiled and gave her a nod before tearing his eyes away to look at the guys.

"About time you guys showed up!" John said, his smile spreading to a grin.

"Well, if you had of just gone back to the 'gate like you told everybody to, we wouldn't have had to come at all." Lorne retorted.

John's face turned serious. "What exactly happened?"

"Are the others ok?" Elizabeth asked at the same time.

Lorne nodded. "We were all split up. Ronon ended up with Rodney, and Brown and Carraway were with me. My group got to the stargate and Ronon arrived a few minutes later. When you didn't arrive after a while we tried you on the radio. When we didn't hear anything we sent the other three through for reinforcements and came after you guys."

"They were supposed to radio us when the reinforcements came through and that was a while ago." Ronon said.

"Well, something must be up with the signal. I tried contacting you earlier too. I'm sure Rodney will be able to figure it out and explain it in great detail." John rolled his eyes.

Elizabeth suddenly noticed that John had blood dripping down his arm and he was holding it with his hand. "You're bleeding." She stepped forward to look at his arm

John looked down at his arm. "Yeah, those things have claws too. It's just a scratch."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows at his definition of 'scratch'. "Maybe we should get back to the 'gate so Carson can take a look at it."

"Preferably now, before any more of those things turn up." Lorne added.

John nodded and turned to Ronon, "Lead the way."

Upon returning to Atlantis, John and Elizabeth were instantly whisked away to the Infirmary.

With only a few cuts and bruises, Elizabeth had managed to make it out of the Infirmary within an hour. John on the other hand wasn't as lucky. He'd lost a little blood, and Dr. Beckett insisted that he stay the night.

Leaving the Infirmary to the sounds of John's protests, Elizabeth headed back to the tower to find Teyla. She found her sitting in her office and she knocked on the door.

Teyla looked up and stood instantly, "Dr. Weir, you do not have to knock on the door to your own office."

Elizabeth just smiled and walked in, taking a seat in front of the desk, and Teyla returned to her seat also.

"I am very sorry, but when we could not get in contact with any of you, I did not send the reinforcements through."

"Don't worry about it, Teyla." Elizabeth replied. "I would have done the same thing."

"Dr. McKay said that there was some sort of magnetic interference on parts of the planet that the UAV didn't pick up. He thinks that there may be some sort of device somewhere on the planet."

"Well, I guess it'll just have to stay like that, I'm ordering that planet locked out of the dialing system."

Teyla bowed her head. "I am grateful that you are ok, Dr. Weir, and Colonel Sheppard?"

"He's ok, Carson's keeping him overnight." Elizabeth smirked, remembering John's complaints when she'd left.

The two women smiled at each other in amusement.

By the time Elizabeth had showered it felt like it was really late, and she desired nothing more than to collapse onto her bed and sleep for the next 24 hours. However, she was surprised to find it was the middle of the day, and she still needed to speak with John.

Not wanting to talk to anyone else, she slipped into the Infirmary as quietly as she could, and snuck through the curtains around John's bed to find him sound asleep. She wanted to kick him.

Instead, she collapsed into the chair by his bed. Maybe some nice person would come by and carry her back to her room. She gave a small chuckle at the thought of Ronon carrying her to her quarters.

John, hearing her laugh, suddenly rolled over, causing Elizabeth to jump.

"What's so funny?"

"Sorry! I thought you were asleep."

"And that's funny how?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "Never mind."

"What are you doing here anyway? You should be getting some rest."

She shrugged. "I thought I should come and see you first."

John nodded. "I was waiting for you. I'm glad you're ok. I knew some of those things had gotten by me, and I thought…"

"I thought the same thing about you." Elizabeth replied.

"You didn't even have to use the gun." John smiled.

"No, almost though."

John pushed the covers down to his waist and sat up. Apparently he'd managed to avoid the hospital gown. "I'm so sorry, Elizabeth. I never should have made you take that gun. I know how much you despise weapons."

"I've been in charge of Atlantis for two years now, and I've had to use them to defend this city, and I send teams through the 'gate with them every week. I spent my whole life trying to end the need for guns, but now I understand that sometimes they're necessary. I admire your courage, but I never want to have to shoot one."

John reached out and took her hand. "I swear to you I'll never let anything like that happen to you again."

"You can't always be there to protect me."

"No, but I can make sure you never step through the 'gate again unless it's to Earth. But even then I'll step through first to make sure it's safe." He gave her his trademark grin which never failed to make her smile.

"That's a little extreme, don't you think?" Elizabeth smiled.

John shook his head seriously, "Not at all. You scared me to death 'Liz." He hadn't meant to use her nickname, even though he couldn't really call it her nickname since nobody ever called her that.

Elizabeth bowed her head, her cheeks turning pink. She admitted that she'd always been attracted to John, but she'd never really had the time to stop and think about there ever being anything more than that. Of course they'd always shared the random flirt here and there, but this was a lot more than that. She'd never felt so out of control and safe at the same time.

Not usually the one to be so open about his feelings, John realized how much he'd just said. He was quick to lead their conversation astray. "How about next time you decide to go on a vacation we'll just take a trip to the mainland."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Next time I decide to go on a vacation?" She didn't miss the 'we' in his last statement and smiled, "Sounds like a plan."

-The End-

A/N: So horrible? Good? Too Sparky? Not enough?It was my first adventure Atlantis story, so please let me know what you think. I should be getting another story up soon! Thank you all for reading!