Date: 14th May 2007
Title: Repercussions
Author: Kazavid
Chapter: 5 / 9
Series: None
Rating: M
Pairing: John Sheppard / Other
Archiving: None
Warnings: Sexual Content
Spoilers: None
Feedback: Yes
Disclaimer: Stargate Atlantis and its characters do not belong to me.
Summary: While Beckett tries to assess Sheppard's injuries, Sheppard remembers some painful memories from his past.
Repercussions
Chapter 5
It was almost a week since Sheppard had been injured, and Doctor Beckett was reading the results from several tests he'd done.
"So what's the verdict, how much longer do I have to stay here for." Sheppard asked, watching Beckett reading the results.
"Well, there's no trace of infection, your blood count is back to normal, and your blood pressure is fine."
"So can I get out of here." Sheppard asked, eager to leave the infirmary.
"Not just yet, another day or two, then we'll see, but it will be another week or more before you can resume your normal duties." Beckett told him.
ooooo
"I've managed to access the programme." McKay announced to Weir. "Which is a feat in itself let me tell you. They had the programme spread through several different systems." he told her continuing to praise his own ability in accessing the data.
"So do you know how Colonel Sheppard came through the Stargate with the shield up."
"Yes. It's an ingenious little programme, the amount of calculations that it has to process, in such a short amount of time." he waffled, on and on.
"Rodney!"
"Ah, yes, well the programme is designed to detect the Ancient gene. So as soon as Atlantis is dialled the programme immediately begins running, and as soon as anyone enters the wormhole, the programme categorises them. I still can't believe that this programme has been running and we've never noticed it before."
"Rodney, stay focused please." Weir asked, as he began wandering off course.
"Right. Well its similar to a back door that a computer programmer leaves in his work, so that he can access it later, if he needs to. Only this programme is designed to let anyone who possesses the Ancient gene in their DNA, to emerge through the shield, unharmed, kind of like a fail safe. Once the gene is located, the composite of the shield becomes penetrable, which allows the traveller to pass through the shield, as did Colonel Sheppard. "
"Isn't that a security risk."
"Yes, but I'm not sure its as big a risk as it sounds."
"You don't think we should disable it."
"No, definitely not, we've had no problems before, and imagine if we'd found it earlier and disabled it, Sheppard wouldn't be here now. So I say we leave it alone, for the time being."
"Alright, we'll leave it be, for the time being." Weir said. "And Rodney..."
"Yes."
"Nice work."
McKay's chest puffed up with pride, he knew he was a genius, but it was nice to hear other people telling him as well.
ooooo
It was late afternoon. Sheppard was getting fed up with lying in bed with nothing to do. He saw Ronon and Teyla earlier but they had other things to do and hadn't been able to stay too long. And McKay, he was too busy searching the data base, besides Sheppard didn't think he could put up with McKay's incessant chatter.
He perked up every time someone came in to the infirmary. But that soon faded when he realised that he was looking for someone who was never going to walk through the door. The only way he would see her, was if he fell asleep. Which was something he wasn't in the mood to do, right now.
He was poking at the one remaining needle that was connecting him to the drip, when he heard someone. He glanced up at the sound of a voice, frowned when the voice stopped. He tried to sit up and see who it was, but whoever it was, was just out of sight.
He saw them take a step closer to Beckett, saw the back of the person, noticed, the long dark hair, heard, the feminine voice, and froze.
"Nicole!" he shouted, but he still couldn't believe it was her. He watched at the person swung around at the sound of his voice. His skin paled considerably, at the sight of her.
"John, you're awake." she said, moving towards him. "
You're here?" he asked, not actually believing what he was seeing.
"Yes, I'm here. Are you feeling alright, you look awfully pale." Nicole remarked at the paleness of his skin, "Doctor Beckett." she shouted, turning around she look at Beckett.
"What's the problem?" Beckett asked, coming to stand beside Nicole.
"Are you feeling alright Colonel Sheppard." Beckett asked, also noticing the paleness of his skin.
"I'm awake?" John asked, as Beckett took his pulse, then started shining a light in his eyes.
"Of course you're awake, why would you think otherwise?" Beckett asked him. "Everything seems fine, although your blood pressure seems to be up a bit." he remarked.
"You're really here?"
"Yes, I'm really here." Nicole told him again. She glanced at Doctor Beckett, wondering if something was wrong with him.
"Do you not remember seeing Nicole, Colonel Sheppard." Beckett asked him, also a bit concerned over his confusion.
John looked at Nicole then at Beckett, wondering if he should admit the truth, admit that he thought he'd been dreaming about Nicole, maybe he had a touch of concussion, that would explain it, besides what did he have to lose.
"I remember, but I thought I was dreaming." he admitted.
"Why did you think you were dreaming?"
"Well it's been three years since I last saw her, and the way I left, well lets just say, she didn't act, like I knew she would have."
"You mean she didn't slap your face." Beckett said, remembering what Colonel Sheppard had said, when he first saw Nicole.
Sheppard looked at Beckett, "You know about that?" he asked.
"Oh yes, you were very vocal in expressing your thoughts Colonel Sheppard." Beckett told him, and watched as Sheppard's face took on a pink tinge.
Nicole almost laughed at the absurdity of it, he'd really thought she was a dream, she knew he was acting a little forward, and kept saying that she wasn't there, but she'd put that down to the medication he'd been on. He looked at her, narrowed his eyes, and tried to remember everything he'd said, and done.
"I didn't say anything...did I?" he asked her, grimacing at the thought, of what he might have said. Remembering some of the things he'd been dreaming about.
"No, you didn't say anything...well, nothing too incriminating." She said teasingly, he scowled at her, and she couldn't stop herself from smiling.
"So when I caught you stroking me, that was real." he asked, her, not bothering to wait for an answer, "And when you kissed me..."
"Yes, it was all real. Is there a reason for all this recapping?" she asked him.
"Yes, I want to know why you're acting the way you are?"
"You're hurt, what would you have me do, attack you?"
"So if I hadn't been hurt you'd have treated me differently?" he asked, not quite believing her.
"Yes, I'd have treated you differently." she told him, not really knowing if that where true of not.
He wasn't so sure about that, he still felt, or maybe hoped, that she had feelings for him.
"About the way I left...I..." he tried to explain, but she cut him off.
"This isn't the time to do this, wait till you're out of here." she told him.
He wasn't sure waiting was the best solution, he was likely to get more sympathy from her while he was here, at least he hoped he would.
"Look I,...I tried to tell..." he began talking.
"Sorry, I have no intention of listening to this, not right now." Nicole told him, "I have to go." she said, when he kept trying to tell her, she didn't want to recall that particular time, not here with everyone looking on, and listening. She turned and walked towards the door.
"Nicole! You can't leave now." he shouted.
"Watch me." she replied to his comment, then walked out the door.
"I'm a sick man, I need a little sympathy here!" he shouted after her.
"You're not feeling to good, Colonel Sheppard." Doctor Beckett asked him, a hint of a smile on his lips. "Are you running a fever by any chance." he asked, reaching to take his pulse.
"I'm fine." Sheppard told him, pulling his wrist from Beckett's hand. "In fact, I feel so fine, I could probably do with a little walk, you know, just to stretch my legs." he said, sitting up, and moving his legs to the side of the bed.
"You try to leave that bed Colonel Sheppard, and I'll have you sedated for the remaining time that you're here." Beckett threatened him, deciding he'd rather be awake, Sheppard got back in the bed.
ooooo
FLASHBACK
SHEPPARD – McMURDO AIR FORCE BASE – ANTARCTICA
Sheppard remembered the first time he'd seen Nicole. He'd been sent to pick up the new arrival, N. Johnson, at the local airport. He'd arrived at the small airport with plenty of time to spare, so he'd started to talk to some of the guys based at the airport, and then he'd gotten in to a snowball fight with them. He'd scooped a pile of snow up in to his hands, shaped it, then he'd thrown it.
The snow ball had hit Nicole smack in the middle of her face, and she'd stood there totally shocked, unable to move, as the snow began to melt and drip down her face, trailing down her neck and back.
"Sorry about that." John said quickly, removing his sunglasses, he looked at her, then moved closer, and began brushing the snow from her face, and hair. He'd been totally mesmerised by the colour of her eyes, the emerald green, colour was so unusual, and he'd found it hard to look away from her.
"You're not hurt are you?" he'd finally asked her, when he'd been able to pull his gaze away from her eyes, and focus on her face. Her small nose was a little pink, from being covered in snow, as where her high cheekbones. He began brushing the snow away with his fingers, watched her close her eyes, as his fingers scraped the snow from her skin. His eyes lowered, and came to rest on her mouth, her lips where slightly parted, and looked redder, and fuller because of the cold. He found himself thinking about kissing her, then he realised he was staring, he looked up and saw that she was watching him. He'd smiled at her, unperturbed, by being caught staring at her.
"You're N. Johnson, right?" He asked, only just realising that this was the new arrival.
"Yes, and you are?" she asked him, her voice catching a little.
"Major Sheppard. Is this your first time in the Antarctica?"
"No, I've been here a few times before." she told him, she looked around, waited for him to show her to their transport, "So, Major, shouldn't we be going." she asked, when he didn't seem to be in any hurry to move.
"Yes, and the name's John." he told her, he grabbed hold of the small case that was on the floor beside her. "This way." he told her leading her around the corner of the building.
Nicole spotted the small helicopter, and faltered a bit, he wondered if she was nervous of helicopters, or of flying. John strapped her in, taking his time in making sure the seat belt was snugly fitted against her.
"You're not frightened are you?" he asked her, noticing how pale she'd suddenly gone.
"No, not frightened, just a little travel sickness." she admitted.
"I'll take it easy, then."
The flight to the Base was pretty smooth, John, had kept the jerky movements of the helicopter to a minimum, he'd asked her several times if she was alright, to which she'd replied that she was fine.
When they landed at the Base, John had been undoing the seatbelt around her waist.
"What's the N stand for?"
"Nicole."
"Well, Nicole, there's just one last mode of transport left, and that's the snow mobile. Feeling alright to go now, or do you want to rest for a while." he asked her.
"I feel fine, much better. That was the smoothest helicopter ride I've ever had."
"Why, thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the ride." He told her, his voice becoming hoarse, as his body suddenly decided to react to being so close to her.
"So I'm up for the last ride, right now." Nicole told him, unaware of what was happening to him.
"Fine, I'll just go let them know you've arrived." he said, leaving her alone for a few minutes, while he grabbed his long coat out of the office.
A few minutes later he came back, wearing a thicker, longer coat, and carrying another one.
"Here, put this on." he told her helping her to put one of his warmer coats on. "It gets really cold travelling on the snow mobile."
"Thanks."
He pulled one of the snow mobiles from the alcove and got on it.
"You'll have to sit behind, and hold on to me." he told her. He tensed slightly, as he felt her sitting behind him, then edging up closer, her inner thighs resting against his hips. When her hands grabbed his sides, he took hold of her hands and wrapped them around his waist, he almost groaned as her hands slipped lower on his body.
"Keep tight hold, we don't want you falling off, now, do we." he said, his voice thick with arousal.
The journey was only short, but each bump or dip that the snow mobile hit caused her thighs and her hands, to jostle against him, almost in a caressing fashion, he was surprised when they managed to get there in one piece.
"Thank you." she said, dismounting from the snow mobile.
The door to the single storey building opened, and Colin came out, greeting Nicole like a long lost friend.
"John, thanks for dropping her off." he said, coming over to them.
"Colin," John said in greeting, "It was my pleasure." he said, reluctant to take his eyes off Nicole.
"Will we see you later." Colin asked.
"Oh, yes, you'll see me later." John told him, you'll definitely see me later, he thought, as his eyes continued to look at Nicole.
"What about your coat?" Nicole asked.
"Keep hold of it, you'll need it." he told her.
END OF FLASHBACK
ooooo
Two days later
"Colonel, you're being released from the infirmary, but you still need to take things easy." Beckett told him.
"I know, no work for at least a week." Sheppard said to Beckett.
"And no work, means just that." Becket warned.
"I know," he said, "Can I go now?" he asked impatiently.
"Yes, you can go. And I wouldn't go upsetting that lovely lady friend of yours, if I were you, she might just change her mind and slap you." Beckett said, and smiled as Sheppard gave him a glaring look.
Sheppard left the infirmary.
TBC...
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo