Note: First, thanks to all of you reading and reviewing. Second, sorry for the delay – I seem to have temporarily lost my mind (at least I hope it's temporary). I could have sworn I posted this chapter two days ago.

THE WHITE ROOM - Part 5

Rodney followed O'Neill through a maze of hallways to a conference room. He spotted the Asgard as soon as they entered the room, standing beside Purdie and another doctor as they talked.

O'Neill gestured to the trio beside the table. "Dr. McKay, you've met Dr. Purdie. This is Dr. Hinton, a neurologist that Dr. Purdie wanted to consult with, and Kel. He's an Asgard." O'Neill frowned and pursed his lips. "Uh, never mind, you knew that. Anyway, Kel here has done some research into the Ancient repositories and he thought he might be of some help with Sheppard."

Rodney nodded to the small grey alien, ignoring the human doctor next to him. "I'm anxious to see if you think there is a connection between what happened to Sheppard and what happened to General O'Neill. We haven't been able to find anything the Colonel came in contact with that could have caused a reaction like this. I think we need someone fresh to look at everything and generate some possibilities."

Kel gave a brief nod. "I will be happy to help Colonel Sheppard in any way that I can. I will need to see his test results of course and perhaps examine him myself. I have also brought a few devices that may help determine a course of action for the Colonel."

Rodney nodded. "Yes, of course. And I can answer any questions you may have about the last few days leading up to the Colonel's collapse."

"Yes, that would be helpful. For the moment, I need to speak with Dr. Purdie about his findings so far."

Rodney looked up at Purdie in dismay. "Oh, yes, Dr. Purdie. Exactly what have you found so far?"

Purdie crossed his arms and stared smugly at McKay. "I only did a few preliminary blood tests and a check of the Colonel's vitals. We were mostly interested in getting him settled as much as possible and observing his behavior. It'll take several days to finish all the tests we need."

Fear gripped Rodney's stomach, making a sour knot. Not fear for himself, but fear for Sheppard. "Carson already ran a whole slew of tests, just look at his results. That's why we brought them. Sheppard doesn't respond well to that kind of thing right now. You'll just scare him, freak him out."

Purdie smiled, revealing a mouth full of peg like, too-perfect teeth. "Well, that's why you're here, Dr. McKay, right? To help keep him calm, to help us handle him?"

Rodney snorted and narrowed his eyes at the man, the distrust in his motives and methods growing by the minute. "The reason I came was to help the Colonel. To make sure he's being treated well and taken care of, to make sure no one is hurting him, and to find out what happened so we can fix him. I'm not here for you, I'm here for him."

Purdie continued to smile. "Of course, Dr. McKay. But if you help us, you indirectly help him. After all, if you cannot help calm him, we'll have to put him in restraints or perhaps keep him drugged. Now, we wouldn't want that, now would we?"

Rodney clinched his hands into fists beside his leg, feeling the heat of anger creep up his neck. Just before he could respond to Purdie's patronizing tone, O'Neill stepped between him and the doctor.

"Okay, Dr. McKay, I think you and I should go now. I think I hear the mess hall calling our name." O'Neill took Rodney by the arm and steered him toward the door. "You know, the food has gotten a lot better since you were here last."

As they stepped out into the hall and put distance between them and Purdie, Rodney felt the tension slowly begin to dissipate. As he walked with the general, O'Neill lessened his grip on Rodney's arm. "The food is really better now?" asked the scientist.

They walked a few steps in silence before O'Neill shrugged his shoulders. "No, not really. It just seemed like the thing to say at the moment. I'm trying to keep you out of trouble here."

Rodney sighed. "I should have known. Well, I appreciate the thought . . . I guess."

"Still hungry? Because I am."

Rodney shrugged his shoulders noncommittally. "Yeah, Sheppard says I'm always hungry."

"If there's a way to fix him, we'll find it," O'Neill said quietly. "We've got the best."

Rodney chuckled, low and humorless. "I hate to be disagreeable, but we had the best in Atlantis. And now we're here."

They paused at the elevator and O'Neill hit the proper button. "That's not the way I remember it." When Rodney looked at him, he waved one hand through the air. "I mean that you don't like to be disagreeable, not the part about Atlantis. Although I might want to argue that point too. At least where Carter is concerned."

Rodney's eyes widened. "Is she here . . . Carter?"

O'Neill smiled. "Ha, I knew there had to be something about the SGC that you approved of. Actually, Carter isn't here right now. SG-1 is off on a mission helping the Jaffa. Why, do you think she could help with this?"

Rodney ran one hand through his hair as they entered the now open elevator. "I don't know, but at this point, I'll take any help we can get." He watched the elevator doors close.

oOo

Rodney's first night at the Cheyenne Mountain complex was a long, miserable one. He tossed and turned and paced until he was a nervous wreck. At 2am, he finally slipped out of his room and down the hall to Sheppard's room, peering through the observation window. His heart dropped when his eyes adjusted to the dark enough to make out the colonel crouched in the far corner of the room, clutching the blanket Rodney had given him earlier. He had taken up his usual position, knees drawn up to his chest and one hand on his head, periodically grabbing a mass of hair to tug on. Even from this distance, he could see the gentle rocking motion and he wondered if he'd resumed the incoherent mumbling. Rodney stood and watched his friend for over an hour, feeling more and more depressed the longer he watched. Tired and aching from standing so long, he finally made his way back to his room and dropped on the bed, falling into a dreamless sleep.

He woke a few hours later, still tired, but also wired about what the day would bring. After dressing, he made his way to the mess hall for some coffee and a pastry that he barely tasted before heading for Sheppard's room. Rodney could feel the knot in his stomach getting tighter and tighter as he got closer. It was all he could do to keep from turning and running the other way. At least in Atlantis he had been surrounded by other people who were just as traumatized by seeing the colonel either out of his mind or completely unresponsive. Here, no one but him really cared.

McKay's heart dropped when he stepped up to the window, followed immediately by a flush of anger. Sheppard was propped up in bed with several pillows, but his ankles and wrists were held tightly in restraints. Purdie stood to one side watching while his two helpers tried to feed Sheppard. Some sort of mushy cooked cereal was all over the colonel's face and scrub top and even smeared in his hair. He was grunting and yanking violently on the restraints as one aid tried to hold his head still while the other cursed as he tried to get cereal in Sheppard's mouth.

Rodney paused for a split second, just in time to see Sheppard break the man's hold and jerk away from the two aides, causing the one holding the bowl to spill most of what was left down the front of his shirt before dumping the rest in Sheppard's lap. His face turned red as he cursed loudly and stuck Sheppard on the side of the head, making his neck snap back with the force of the blow.

Rodney threw the door open with a crash. "What the hell are you doing to him? This is how you treat your patients? You hit them when they don't cooperate? Out! All of you out! You are never to touch him again, is that clear?"

Dr. Purdie suddenly straightened, trying to look shocked at the whole affair. "Oh, Dr. McKay, I'm sorry. Everything happened so fast that I didn't have time –"

"No! You don't talk!" Rodney stalked over to the man who had hit Sheppard. "You, get out of here. You're lucky we aren't on Atlantis or I'd have Ronon drop you off the nearest pier. Get out of here and don't come back. You're finished here." Pushing the man out of his way, Rodney began taking the restraints off Sheppard, who was lying stunned, his eyes darting back and forth under narrow slits as he panted shallowly.

"I want a towel and some clean scrubs and some water for him to drink. And then I want a doctor . . . a different doctor, to check him for head and neck injuries. And I'll need to talk to General O'Neill. I think maybe we should just go back to Atlantis. At least there I know Carson would never hit him or let anyone else hit him."

Purdie had come up behind Rodney after motioning for his two aides to leave. "Look, Dr. McKay, there's no need to overreact. It was all a mistake and I'm sure it will not happen again."

Rodney whirled around to face the doctor. "You better believe it won't happen again. Let me set you straight on something. Colonel Sheppard is my friend. And he has many friends in Atlantis, people who care for him and depend on him. We're a strange group. A lot of us have been together for over two years in a distant galaxy, pretty much fending for ourselves most of that time. We've developed a special relationship and we watch each other's back, even from long distances. You don't want to mess with him and you don't want to mess with me. It will come back to haunt you when you least expect it."

Purdie straightened and dropped all pretense of being nice. "Are you threatening me?"

"No, I'm not. I'm just telling you that I'm watching and you will not screw my friend. And there will be consequences if you try. So as long as you're working to help Sheppard and not hurt him in any way, fashion, or form, you're perfectly safe." Rodney continued to stare at Purdie, his gaze unwavering. "Now, I still need some towels and clean clothes for Sheppard. After he's changed and calmed down a little, maybe I'll try to feed him. At least I can do it without hitting him." Rodney turned around and went back to caring for Sheppard. He gently rubbed his hand up and down Sheppard's arm, whispering softly that it would be all right and he wouldn't let anything else happen to him.

oOo

It took Rodney two hours to get Sheppard cleaned up and changed. He refused to rush, taking his time and trying not to make sudden movements that would scare Sheppard. The colonel pulled away from him at each touch, but Rodney patiently waited until Sheppard would let him guide his movements. By the time he was finished, he could see the bruise coloring the side of the colonel's face.

Sheppard eventually ended up back in the corner. He'd crawled and scooted away from McKay until he was once again wedged in the far corner of the room. He was mumbling again, but he had finally quit pulling away from every touch. Exhausted, Rodney just sat in the floor watching for several minutes.

Suddenly Sheppard stilled, only to turn and put his hands on the walls, similar to the way he'd done in the Atlantis infirmary just before being brought to Earth. The pilot rubbed the wall a few times and grunted, turning back to crouch in the corner again. He resumed his typical rocking motion, but seemed to be repeating the same word over and over. Rodney leaned in and listened.

"Tacitus. Tacitus." John continued to repeat the word over and over, running one hand up in his hair as he squeezed his eyes shut and dropped his voice to whisper. Rodney pushed the colorful blanket up next to Sheppard's leg in case he decided he wanted it.

"McKay." Rodney jumped at the sound of his name and turned to see O'Neill standing in the doorway with Dr. Lam. Rodney nodded and got up, throwing the dirty scrubs on the bed with the towels as he walked out of the room.

"What's he saying?" asked Lam. "Can you tell?"

Rodney nodded. "It's Ancient. Right now he just keeps repeating the word for quiet. I think he misses Atlantis." O'Neill didn't look surprised, but Lam was obviously confused. "He can feel Atlantis when we're there, they kind of talk . . . or something. It's the gene."

Lam nodded like she understood, even though her expression indicated she really didn't. Rodney was just glad he didn't have to try and explain further, because he'd never completely understood himself.

"Has he shown any signs of nausea or dizziness?" she asked.

Rodney shook his head. "No, at least I don't think so. He's a little more agitated and afraid than he was, but nothing other than that."

Lam nodded. "When I examined him, I didn't see any sign of severe head or neck trauma. I wouldn't mind getting an x-ray, but it would probably upset the Colonel and I don't really think it's necessary. From what you said he never lost consciousness. I think we'll just keep an eye on him for the next twenty-four hours and I'd like to check in on him several times during that period."

Rodney nodded, looking relieved. "Thank you. I don't want that quack Purdie or his goons anywhere near him and I think I want charges filed against the one that hit him. Sheppard is sick. I seriously doubt he had any idea of what he was doing. Hitting him like that, actually, everything I saw them do was inexcusable. No one should be treated like that, no one. We're supposed to be here to get him help and all I've seen in the last day is abuse. I think we'd be better off going back to Atlantis."

O'Neill shook his head. "Look, I know you're upset and you have every right to be, but Sheppard isn't going back to Atlantis. Purdie's two aides have both been fired and he swears he didn't realize it was getting out of hand until it was already too late. I think we should give him another chance. He comes highly recommended. You, of course, are welcome to return to Atlantis any time you want, but I assumed you wanted to stay here for Sheppard."

Rodney frowned and snorted. "Like I'm leaving him here by himself to be beaten and battered by your Neanderthal medical personnel because he won't eat his cereal like a good colonel. No, I've seen your first class treatment of people who aren't SGC and I'll be staying as long as he does. I'm telling you on the record that there is something wrong with that Dr. Purdie and I reserve the right to say I told you so when he shows his true colors for all to see. In the mean time, if you're letting that clown back in with Sheppard, I want to be notified first so I can be in there and make sure the Colonel doesn't accidentally slip and hurt himself."

O'Neill sighed and rubbed the side of his head as if he had a massive headache. "All right, McKay, you'll be notified so you can keep an eye on things. I told Purdie to leave the Colonel alone the rest of the day to give him a chance to recover."

"Did you get him to eat anything yet?" asked Lam.

"No, I just got him cleaned up. I thought I'd wait a while and then try some soup. That's what Teyla had the most luck feeding him." Rodney looked at the floor, suddenly missing Teyla and Ronon terribly. It had been a long time since he'd been close enough to anyone to miss them and the feelings caught him off guard.

O'Neill grasped his shoulder firmly, drawing his eyes back up to meet those of the general. "Look, McKay, we've never been . . . close. Heck, I've never even liked you. But I understand what it's like to worry about a teammate, to wonder if there's any way to help them, to get them back. We'll do everything we can to help Sheppard, I promise you that. He's a good man."

McKay nodded, finding himself unable to respond. Yet another relatively new experience for the physicist.

"Besides," O'Neill said wryly. " Elizabeth let me know in no uncertain terms that she needed her second in command back ASAP. I'm not sure, but sometimes I think I should be afraid of her."

Rodney smiled a little and swallowed hard. "Yes, be afraid. Be very afraid."

TBC