Evan pauses the tape recorder and reaches out to grasp his cup of coffee. He takes a sip and makes a face - he got too involved in his work and now the coffee is cold. But he's just about done with the last few reports and then he's off for the evening. His fingers press the recorder button and Ronon's gruff voice fills the office again,
"Mission to planet:
We got here, met with some traders. Teyla traded for some cloth. We came back. End of mission report.
Mission to planet:
We got here, didn't see any people. McKay tripped on a root. There was some rocks. We came back. End of mission report."
Say what you will about Ronon's communication skills, but these are definitely succinct and to the point, Lorne thinks to himself as he transcribes them.
When the last report is logged, and he hits 'save', then 'print' on his computer. The printer jerks to life and sounds a bit like someone starting a sputtering old lawn mower before it begins to actually feed the paper through. Evan leans back in his chair, feeling accomplished, and waits for their behemoth printer to run off all 56 pages of reports so he can deliver them to Woolsey on his way to his quarters.
Lorne jerks awake to the sound of Woolsey in his ear, asking him to report to the gate room. He almost falls out of his chair and glances at the computer - it's 18:58 and the rumble of the printer must have lulled him to sleep for a full half hour.
He rights himself, reports to Woolsey that he's on his way, grabs his printed reports and half jogs to the gate room.
By the time he gets there 90 seconds later, Woolsey looks impatient. The major hands the reports to him, which soften his face a bit, but the nut oil meeting seems to have gone bad and Woolsey seems irritated.
"Major Lorne, don't forget about our guest. Please let Todd know I'm sorry I couldn't greet him, but it's time for my daily SGC check in. You two kids go watch a movie or something." With that he turns and strides off.
SHIT
Lorne completely forgot about his babysitting duties today, and has no idea how to keep Todd occupied. Right then, the stargate chevrons begin to light up and Chuck is announcing the activation and before he knows it, he's escorting a wraith down the halls of Atlantis.
Lorne has no idea what he can occupy Todd with for the next 5 hours. Woolsey's half hearted remark as he left propels the Major's feet in the direction of the converted cinema, but he veers off to a separate corridor when he considers that even if he -doesn't- mind watching a movie with a wraith next to him, others in Atlantis may mind quite a lot. In the end, they stop in front on a nondescript door. It slides open and he gestures Todd in, then follows behind him. He can see Todd visibly stiffen when he realizes they are in Lorne's private quarters.
"Please, feel free to take a seat, Todd." He gestures to the small but cozy looking couch with a lopsided smile. "I wasn't really prepared for guests but thought maybe we could watch a movie and I could tell you about some more human culture?"
Todd inclines his head and gracefully lowers onto the couch. The sign of acceptance relaxes Lorne a bit and he goes towards the tiny kitchenette in the back of his quarters.
"Would you like anything to drink?"
Lorne leans into the fridge and pulls out two cans of Anchor Steam, his guilty pleasure from home that he received in a package from his sister Emma a few months back. He hands one to Todd, who looks at it curiously.
"Here" he reaches forward from behind Todd "You lift up the tab to open it" and he shows the wraith his can and the process.
A quiet hiss escapes from the can, and it seems to please the wraith. He responds with his own hiss.
"Thank you, Major Lorne"
"No problem. I hope you don't consider us inhospitable for not having a better prepared plan for your arrival."
Todd bows his head. "Due to certain scheduling conflicts, this was the only available time for my arrival to this planet. I fully comprehend both the short nature of my notice and my imposition here. Though I was not expecting to impose so much upon your personal space, Major Lorne".
Of course, Evan thinks, Todd would much rather impose upon his CO. He sips his beer and watches the wraith mimic his actions. He seems to like it enough, judging from the flash in the yellow eyes.
"Not a problem." He flashes his dimpled smile, trying to force the atmosphere of the room into more relaxed territory. He feels anxious and he knows Todd can feel him feeling anxious. "Any kind of movie you want to watch? What of earth's culture interests you the most?"
Todd regards him with curiosity. "Well, as you know, Major Lorne, I'm somewhat of a scientist. I enjoy exploration and new discoveries. But though I have lived a long life, the last several decades seem to be a brand new chapter for me. I have been captured, tortured, and forced to change everything I regarded as the truth. Does that help in any way?"
Evan flips through his book of DVDs, mumbling that he's got just the thing, while hiding his eyes from Todd. Todd's story is one of betrayal and it breaks his heart and that's definitely not something he wants to dwell on, so he watches the DVD tray slide shut and sits on the opposite side of the couch from Todd.
They sit companionably on Lorne's couch, sipping beer like a couple of old buddies while a desert scene fades into view. Todd perks up. "Major Lorne, is this what the planet of Earth looks like, outside the confines of it's cells?"
"Well, some of it. This part here is the desert. That's a type of biome, this one being sub tropical. Deserts make up 33% of the planet and are extremely difficult places to live."
"Hmmm. The companions in this vehicle truly do not appear pleased to be there."
The soldiers in the humvee on the screen are pleased though. They are getting lively, talking to the world famous Tony Stark before all hell breaks loose. Explosions and 50 cal machine gun fire breaks out around them, as one of the soldiers is taken out by a IED. Lorne looks over to gauge how Todd is handling it. Really the first time he has taken a pause to truly examine the wraith since his arrival. Todd is leaning forward slightly, and his sensory pits flare. The lights from the movie play across the pale skin of his face. His hair is as unruly as ever (hey maybe he doesn't own a brush!) and he's wearing his standard issue black long coat, the collar of which is coming up to graze his chin.
"Major Lorne. I have many questions."
Evan can't help but laugh.
"Sorry sorry, go ahead, you can ask me anything."
"Why do they not simply stun the enemy with a larger scale weapon? Do humans often engage in behavior that is detrimental to the lives of other humans?" The sound of gunfire continues. Todd looks on. "Why do the uniformed men appear to sacrifice their lives for this Tony Stark, is he their High Commander?"
"Well, " Evan starts, running his hand through his hair "Those guy don't have any of the kinds of weapons you're used to seeing from us. I mean, even their M16s are nothing compared to our P90 standard issue. And yes, humans do in fact spend most of their lives making other humans miserable, one way or another. Most of human movies will feature some sort of 'bad guy' who hurts or kills others. In this case, it's a whole country of these bad guys. Tony is not the commander, but he's what we call a HVT, High Value Target. He has a lot of wealth and technology others don't have, so he's probably paid them to protect him.."
"Hmmmm…"
Well at least I got him interested, Evan thinks to himself. The movie goes on to do the overview of Stark industries. Todd barks a loud laugh when he sees the old WW2 planes.
"Major Lorne, what manner of spaceship is this?"
"Todd, please just call me Evan. Those are the air ships this planet had 70 years ago. They were not capable of space flight."
"Based of those aerodynamics, I am impressed they were capable of any flight." Todd Flashes a toothy grin. He seems pleased. Lorne isn't sure he's fully following the events of the movie, but it seems to combine the elements Todd likes - science, military, action - so he's glad he managed to snag a copy before they left Earth for good.
Todd is intrigued in Tony Stark's scientific method for picking up human females, but he's particularly invested in Tony's invention to keep himself alive. He whispers to himself, reminding Evan of McKay, a long string of contradicting statements. "There's no way that would work… but wait if he does this.. No that will demagnetize.. But what if he used a…" Honestly, it's beyond him, but the major finds himself smiling a bit at the reactions of the wraith. Was this Todd's first ever movie?
By the time the movie ends, Evan can feel his stomach grumble. It's almost dinner time. He's dissapointed that he didn't even have any snacks ready to feed his guest (or himself).
"Hungry?" he asks his companion. "Wanna go grab dinner?"
He turns his head and Todd's eyes are glowing much closer than expected.
"Major Lorne… I assure you, I am well fed. However, if you are offering..?"
Lorne freezes - he had fully forgotten just who he was hanging out with. And here they were having such a good time. The room is suddenly charged with energy, it's like he can feel Todd's hunger reaching for him. Can wraith hypnotize people? Cause that's what this reminds him of.
Todd grins his toothy grin, and Evan realizes he asked that out loud.
"No Major Lorne, we do not 'hypnotize'. A queen can compel, which is close, but not quite right. A High Commander like me can as well, but you would know if I was bending you to my will. Tell me, do you feel compelled… To do things you normally would not?"
The major smiled back anxiously. "I'm good, Todd. But I'm hungry, wanna keep me company in the cafeteria?"
"Of course. "
The mess was pretty empty as most people came to dinner at 22:00, but it worked out since less people stared at Evan and Todd while they chatted companionably. With time to kill and no other ideas, Lorne led Todd outside for a walk on the piers but he ended up stopping on one of the farther outcroppings.
"Is everything well, Major Lorne?"
"yeah, yeah it's fine Todd, and please call me Evan."
"Ok Evan."
"It's just.. it's so beautiful here. Atlantis has always inspired the artist in me. I hadn't painted for years, before we came here."
"I had not realized you were all artist, Evan. Perhaps it is the artist in you that causes you to see me as more than just a 'merchant of death'?"
The major turned to look at the wraith.
"Every living creature is beautiful."
"Am I beautiful to you, Evan Lorrrne?"
His last name came out as more of a purr out of the wraith's mouth and he broke out in goosebumps.
In that moment, with the light of the moon illuminating every wispy hair floating around Todd's face, Atlantis looming tall behind him, he thought it was the most beautiful moment in the world.
"Todd, would you.. Let me paint you?"
"What, right now? But I must meet Sheppard soon."
The mention of his CO made a wave of jealously rise within him, but Lorne quickly tamped it down. After all, Todd and John had some sort of special connection, like a neverending game of cat and mouse. Evan smiled almost too widely, dimples on display, and said, "Some other time then."
He hoped Todd would not see the disappointment.
The pair turned and started walking back to the gate room so Lorne child deliver his charge.
Todd didn't show any signs that he noticed, but he did perk up when the wormhole began to dial a few minutes before Sheppard's scheduled arrival.
"Major Lorne, thank you.." but the wraith was cut off by the sound of the wormhole connecting, somehow louder than ever before.