Semper Fi

By Ann3

Writer's Note: Awww, romance - don't ya just love it ? And our favourite little hero making all sorts of exciting plans, and... hmmm, time to bring him down to Earth again, methinks... and you all know how evil I am, don't you...? ;o)

Chapter Five

Back To Life, Down To Earth

Everything felt right in her world again. Warmth surrounded her. Strong arms held her snugly close. As Laura drifted awake, the gently hypnotic heartbeat which had lulled her to sleep was still there this time.

Best of all, though, was the return of the biggest mother hen that the Pegasus galaxy had ever known

"Laura...? Are – Are ye warm enough, love...? Do ye need some more of this wee quilt...?"

If truth be told, she felt like a turkey on Thanksgiving morning, but... well, she couldn't complain. He was there, holding her close – fussing and fretting over her, as only her precious Carson ever could. So instead Laura smiled up at him, reassuring him in kind, as only she could, as she shook her head.

"No, baby, I'm like toast in here... if I were a bagel, I'd be just about ready to pop out..."

Right on subconscious cue, her stomach rumbled, causing Carson to wince too, as his did the same.

"I'm afraid we've missed breakfast, love... an' lunch too..." he said at last, checking his watch – thoughts of another lovers' faux pas prompting another flurry of tongue tied, awkward apologies. "An' I'm sorry I woke ye, love, or – or caused ye to worry where I was, when ye woke up, but..."

"You needed some quiet time..." Laura finished for him, reaching to gently stroke back his fringe. "Carson, you went through hell back there... it's okay, baby, I understand... I've been there too..."

As she'd expected, and quietly hoped, his eyes widened, before he sighed in rueful understanding. For all her time in the Marines, almost five years worth, it was so easy to forget how young she was.

Nerves that were never too far away from him suddenly caused Carson to swallow – hard. There was almost eight years' difference between them, too, and... God, he'd forgotten all about that. Laura had only just turned twenty nine, with her whole life ahead of her... not to mention her career.

There was no reason why she'd have to give that career up, of course. Not when he thought about it. It wasn't as if he was in the military too, where such inter-service relationships were banned, but – then again, she wasn't that naïvely young, or so innocent, not to know his body so intimately.

No, he dryly corrected himself, she knew his body so very intimately. She could make him feel like a teenager again, could make him yell and shake with pleasure, and – damn it, why did being in love, being so elatedly happy, have to be so bloody complicated...?

"Carson...? Hey, come out of those clouds, Kilt-Boy, I'm getting lonely down here..."

Coming to with a start, Carson then offered Laura a guiltily apologetic smile, softly kissing her hair.

"Sorry, love, I – I was miles away..." he said at last, finding it impossible to completely deceive her. "I keep forgettin' what you've seen, love, an' been through, no matter how young ye are, an'..."

"Hey, I'm tougher than I look..." Laura reminded him, grinning playfully up at him through her fringe. "On a good day, I can even kick the Colonel's butt... and make McKay run for miles..."

Having witnessed both momentous events, Carson was finding it impossible not to grin back at her – most, if not all, of his earlier doubts and misgivings melting away in chuckles of helpless laughter.

"Aye, lass, so I've seen..." he grinned, dryly reflecting that his next words weren't so far from the truth. "It's probably why I was so worried I'd woken ye, that you're all so tough, an' mean, an' scary..."

Revelling in his laughter, the shine it brought to those wonderful eyes, Laura felt her own grin widen. After such an emotional clearout, she knew he was ready now for some cautiously gentle teasing.

"It's okay, baby, you didn't wake me... but you did regress me back to my childhood..."

The reaction was all she had hoped for, as that adorable face scrunched back into a befuddled frown. His voice, too, when it finally stammered back into life, betrayed the same degree of utter confusion.

"I – I did...?"

"Mmmm..." Laura nodded, smiling up at him from where she'd been hibernating against his chest. "When I was five, I lost my favourite teddy bear, and... well, if you weren't so damn cuddly..."

That won her another huff of laughter, an equally welcome brush of his mouth across her forehead.

"So you're sayin' I need to get some weight off...?" Carson said at last, raising a quizzical eyebrow – whatever he intended to poutingly say next lost in the ominous creaks of ten thousand year old wood.

Seconds later, sprawled in a winded heap in the remains of his lounger, Carson gingerly opened his eyes. He'd taken the full force of the fall, and with Laura's weight on top of him too... well, breathing had suddenly become a wee bit of a challenge.

The only challenge Laura was facing was keeping her face straight - a battle finally lost as Carson glared up at her, making what precious little, manly stand of defence that he could against helpless howls of laughter

"Not a word, lass... not – a – bloody – word...!"