Chapter 17

Chapter 17

A/N #1—If you notice any mistakes please let me know.
A/N #2—3-4 lines lifted from the Suspicion transcript again.
A/N #3— So anyway I am working on planning out the first date chapter—what do you think they should paint? I am thinking some anti-wraith graffiti … or maybe something structurally interesting—like some of Atlantis… anyone have any ideas? Also do you think date 1 should end with a kiss? I am honestly not interested in renting all the relevant episodes from Blockbuster where she surely must have went on dates with Oz to see exactly how Willow would have handled kisses… so if anyone has an idea please clue me in. Thanks. Fandom says Willow was practically sexually obsessed with Tara—and standard romance conventions call for the couple-falling-in-love must follow some weird—kiss—fall into bed together—angst—make up sex—live happily ever after. Anyway, I am just rambling—let me know what you think. Thanks!
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Aiden had headed to his room to unpack his laptop to set it up to charge. He had found himself very lucky. He'd quickly located his laptop and his stash of tempera pigments and brushes. It was a little embarrassing to think just how perfectly his grandmother had packed his luggage. Just before he had shipped out to Colorado Springs and of course Atlantis he had spent a week with his grandparents at their rowhouse in Baltimore, Maryland. He had walked around the city streets just letting his hometown seep into his bones again.

He had tried to reacquaint himself with all the street corners, the cafés, the museums and to catch up with his friends and their lives. It amazed him how so many of the people he had gone to high school with were now married and with at least one child or one on the way. He had taken a few quick trips down memory lane and headed to quite a few art museums in nearby Washington, DC and had of course visited those in Baltimore. The big difference between going to an art museum as a child and going as an adult was the simple fact that he could now afford to spend money in the gift shop. He picked up quite a few CD-ROMs of slideshows of works of the masters, DVD's and etc. He had put them all in one CD case and his grandmother had hidden them away amongst his clothing.

Now he needed to find 'the canvas' for his painting project with Willow and convince Jonathon to make some sort of dessert. The dessert making would be easy—he would just have to barter something off. With any luck, Jonathon wouldn't want anything that he would have trouble saying goodbye to. Pretty much every Atlantis personnel member had quickly become barterers. At the moment, Aiden had a set of cool throwing stars that looked as if they were straight out of a Bruce Lee movie. Dr. Heightmeyer had wanted his empty leather diary. He really would have given her the diary without bothering to trade but she had been insistent on the need to follow new 'protocol'. Hopefully Jonathon, the mess hall chef, would be interested in the stars. Aiden had no clue how the resident psychologist had gotten her hands on throwing stars anyway.

He left his room and took off for the lower levels of Atlantis. The sections of the city that had failed before the shield had completely collapsed had been drained. There was a good chance that he would find something of scrap materials he could use as a canvas. If all else failed he would just go to see Teyla. She would surely have some fabric or even some animal skin to spare. A deer pelt really wasn't what he had in mind but it would do.

Even though the area had been drained there was still a stench of saltwater and mildew. When he arrived at the lower levels, the first thing he noticed was just how spacious the area was. While the walls were slightly lower—giving the general site the sense of a hallway. The spaces were not so much constricted by walls. This lower level of Atlantis was constructed like an endless parking garage. The only real possibility for a 'canvas' would be if he were to remove a section of the wall. Aiden walked over to the nearest wall and moved his hands along looking for a groove. He was trying to see if the wall was covered with some sort of removable paneling.

He was in luck! A section of the first wall he came to practically fell into his hands. It was definitely wood and the size of a very large poster or presentation board. It was a dark cream color. Perfect. He made sure to check to make sure the paneling didn't have any wires or technology that he had disrupted or damaged. He didn't find anything. He was just holding a thin panel of wood. Good. Now he just needed to return his salvage to his quarters without having to answer too many questions.

There was definitely something not quite right about harvesting the city for art supplies—but the truth of the matter was—Atlantis hadn't been so good to him. It wasn't as if he resented the city or anything but so far he had almost been clubbed in the head by falling supplies when the city rose from the depths of the ocean, he had been slightly electrocuted by that half ascended monster, and he had gotten stuck in the Stargate—on the way to Atlantis. Okay. He knew he was lying to himself. There was no grudge. And there was no real way he could justify his harvesting. 'She' could surely spare a piece off wood.

With the 'canvas' in his hands he headed back to his quarters. He had one last quick task to perform before he could get back to his duties. Of course his duties were far less interesting than setting up a first date with Willow but still—they just had to be done. A duty was just that, a duty.

He rounded the corner to the mess hall and swiftly strode right in. the first people he came across were McKay and Zelenka. The pair was telling a story to other members of their science team. Aiden made his way to where they stood. As usual McKay was being overly rude and essentially speaking over the Czech scientist.

"I tell you, the roof just retracted." McKay made this statement in an overly giddy voice.

"The roof where? Why?" Aiden directed his question at McKay.

"Listen Lieutenant, you can't come in at the end of the story and expect us to back it up for you." McKay snorted. It was obvious to Aiden that McKay was still a little put out with him about calling him out on believing Willow was a witch.

It didn't matter to Aiden that McKay was a little irritated. The man had just told the story to a half dozen people. Aiden focused his attention on Radek Zelenka.

"What is he talking about?" Aiden gave Zelenka a curious look. Surely Zelenka would tell him what was going on. Aiden stepped off to the side and Zelenka followed. Zelenka's head was slightly lowered as if he was a little uncomfortable talking to him one on one. Had the foul look he had passed him during lunch affected him that much? That was another thing he had to fix before he left the room. He couldn't have the man feel cowed and uncomfortable around him. Of course Aiden felt guilty but there was also a practical aspect. If the man was uncomfortable or unsure around him then he might segue into disliking him. And frankly it would do him and his team absolutely no good to alienate of one of the smartest men in Atlantis.

"In the jumper bay, we discovered a switch that retracts the roof."

"Really? What's it for?"

"We think it allows for travel around the planet. Major Sheppard is taking a jumper out shortly."

"Okay. Thanks Zelenka! Did anyone call shot gun—you know passengers' seat-- yet?" Aiden gave Zelenka a goofy grin. This was a perfect opportunity to cruise about for a bit. This could easily count as reconnaissance—and that was a duty. Much more interesting than standing at attention with a bland look on your face as Athosian children asked if they could walk around.

Zelenka gave a slight smile. Ford's excitement was catching. It would be a little neat to ride around in a puddle jumper for a portion of the afternoon.

"Hey, listen earlier when I lifted my chin at you—it just means hello." Zelenka didn't look like he believed him.

"Well it is a tough man's hello. Try it." Aiden decided for three quarter's honesty. In truth that gesture meant so much more. Maybe, What's Up? This is mine. Don't touch my stuff. Yo.

Zelenka tried it. He lifted his chin upward. Was this Ford's way of apologizing for passing him that upward Neanderthal nod when he had dared smile at Willow when she and Ford had walked in for lunch? Still this was a far better apology than anything McKay had offered for far worse offenses.

Zelenka tried the upwards chin nod again—and then in two quick lifts. He didn't feel even close to being a tougher man but he definitely felt a notch more comfortable around Ford.

"Okay." Radek tapped Ford on the shoulder and then moved back to where the scientists stood discussing the possibilities to be found on the surface of the planet. He knew they were all—and he included himself in that they—slightly spineless. They were happy to spend their lives theorizing and hypothesizing. Ford instead immediately wanted to call shot gun and get in the puddle jumper and see everything for himself. Atlantis definitely needed all kinds of people.

Aiden felt pretty good about his conversation with Zelenka. Things were smoothed over and okay. Hopefully talking to the chef would be equally easy. Aiden walked towards the double doors in the back of the mess hall. He knocked and entered.

"Hey Chef! I got a proposition for you…" Aiden let his words trail off. Jonathon was standing beside a large table that was completely covered with military rations. Why was it even necessary to stamp every bag, every sheet, every shirt, every everything with the block lettered words 'Property of the U.S. Military'?

"What's up, man?"

"Ford, what is this? Twenty pounds of powdered egg? Fifty pounds of flaked mashed potatoes? Fifty pounds of self rising flour? Fifty pounds of white sugar? Where did your men 'find' these rations? I don't understand how they were 'misplaced' for weeks. We went through the Stargate in one go. We placed everything down on the floor. How can you misplace powdered egg?"

"Hmm." Aiden didn't want to say anything—but it seemed obvious that some of the Atlantis personnel or the military contingent had been hoarding the food.

"Well at least it showed up—right?" Aiden really hoped Chef wouldn't get too prima don'ish. Because then he would have to set up patrol rotations for the mess hall. Maybe that wasn't such a bad idea anyway. One of their definite goals on their off world missions was to set up trade relations with other cultures. Eventually they would find a civilization eager to trade—and rich in extra chickens—or eggs or maybe the chickens.

Chef Jonathon gave him a look. "You know there is something shady about all this."

"Maybe—but let's shift gears-- I have a food request—A cake! What do you say? You have most of the ingredients right here—flour, sugar, egg…" Aiden gave the chef a hopeful look. He wanted to plant the idea and see if it took hold. Jonathon was a creative dude. Surely he hated the fact that he was constrained by military rations in his cooking style.

"Why do you want a cake?" Jonathon found himself in an odd position. Why reward the Atlantis personnel for returning stolen goods? They could continue to eat jello until their skin turned green or red or orange or blue.

"Celebrate someone's recent arrival—"

"Oh…. So you have a date with Willow…"

"I didn't say that." Going on a date was far from being anyone's business.

"What are you, ashamed? She could do a lot better, you know—and you could do a lot worse—keep your secrets. You'll get your cake. Any other requests?" Jonathon gave Aiden a sardonic look.

"Uh. So I pick it up at 6:45, K?" Chef Jonathon nodded. "Uh…" Aiden couldn't believe how easy that had been. He might as well go for it all. "Yeah, you got a turkey sandwich out there?"

"Check the buffet line."

"Okay." Aiden left to just go do that. He'd reached the doors to leave when he heard Jonathon's voice.

"Hey Ford—you owe me."

Aiden grabbed a turkey sandwich and slipped it into a brown plastic M.R.E. bag. He was out the door on a mini-quest to locate the Major. He located him near the jumper bay. After a few heavy hints Sheppard of course allowed him to ride shotgun. They hurried to the puddle jumper and got set up to leave. Aiden had to admit to himself he loved this aspect of the job. It really was a pity he didn't have any flight experience. It would be great if he could operate a jumper. The first thing he wanted to figure out was if soaring in a jumper was even close to as pleasurable as getting to know Willow. She was on his mind again, unfortunately he made the wrong comment to the major.

"It is strange not pulling any G's."

This was definitely not the most sensible comment to make. Aiden's happy little thoughts about Willow and the simple joy of sitting back and enjoying riding in the jumper headed straight out the window. The major went into this long explanation as to just how 'without inertial dampening they'd be hit by so many G's their eyes would pop, their skin would pull away from our faces, their brains would squish up to the back of their skulls and their internal organs would be crushed into the chairs.' He found himself staring in horror at the Major.

And then the Major asked, "What about that sandwich?"

Aiden wasn't sure what worthwhile thing he'd learned from the Major's explanation. Now he knew Sheppard had probably thought of quite a few ways you could possibly die if air or space craft failed.

He handed Sheppard the sandwich and turned back to face the front window. "Is that land?"

The planet had land. Okay, maybe this wasn't a big shocker. But it was definitely a good thing. Aiden's mind immediately flashed to all the new possibilities for hiking dates with Willow, opportunities to run on the surface. Surely there was a beach—maybe he could finally learn to surf.

"All right. We are going to head back and report this to Dr. Weir." Sheppard made his statement and did a complete one eighty degree turn. He looked sideways at Aiden. He'd heard a tell tale gulp. It was fun to scare the stuffing out of the young lieutenant.

"How is it going with our visitor?"

"Willow? She's great." Aiden didn't know what else to say. He really didn't want anymore dating advice.

"And?" Sheppard really hoped he wouldn't have to scare the information out of Ford. Perhaps it would be better if he did. He could easily make another quick turn and…

"We've got a date this evening."

"Really. Good. Good. So what's the plan?" Sheppard was curious. What the heck did Ford have planned? The boy would definitely need some help. He imagined Ford had set up that he and Willow would maybe head to the armory and he would show her how to disassemble and reassemble a P-90 and probably how to shoot straight…

"Uh… I am still working out some details." Aiden didn't want to give Sheppard a clue. He was sure the Major would smirk or grimace or otherwise indicate that he had made shoddy date plans.

"Uh huh. Just don't take her to the armory. She doesn't seem like a girl to get 'hot' over big guns—and I bet she wouldn't appreciate the metaphor." Sheppard raised an eyebrow but kept his gaze on the HUD display. He found himself biting his lip to keep from smirking and pretending his head was being held in a vice to keep from looking over at Ford. He was sure Ford was blushing.

Aiden found himself blushing. He couldn't believe his CO had said such a thing. The sooner they got back to Atlantis the better. He wasn't so sure he wanted to be alone with this man for a while. He cleared his throat.

"Sir?"

"Yes."

"I forgot to mention it… Willow has the ancient gene."

"Really? Hmm… That's convenient. We should tell McKay." Ford was getting good at shifting the conversational dynamic and ignoring his barbs. Pretty soon he wouldn't be any fun anymore.

Sheppard had effortlessly landed the jumper and contacted Weir. Ford had found himself walking at the same speedy pace as the Major. They'd had a quick meeting with Bates, Weir, and McKay in the briefing room. McKay had asked them to define just how huge the land mass was.

"Fifteen million square miles. Well, give or take." Sheppard was quite pleased with his discovery—well really it was Ford's discovery- but he had been driving.

"Well, that would make it approximately the size of ... uh ... I have no idea, but it sounds huge." McKay made his statement and then went back to his thoughts. When Lieutenant Ford had walked in the first thing he had done was pull him to the side and tell him that Willow had the ancient gene. He was stuck in thinking about exactly how perhaps the gene had manifested itself in her. Was this the reason why she had 'power'? Between thinking about Willow and the ancient gene he didn't have enough mental space to devote to this land finding. It wasn't as if anyone wanted to go camping. And considering the fact that the planet had been deserted for ten thousand years there was a good chance that if there had ever been a settlement on the planet the people were long gone. And if those people had any domesticated animals like bunnies or dogs they would have morphed into some Pegasus Galaxy equivalent of monsters. Dr. Weir interrupted his thoughts with a question about how long it would take to get there.

"Twenty five minutes by Jumper, ground to ground. I saw some sweet breakers on the south tip. There may be surfing in our future!" Sheppard grinned. He was quite excited by the find.

"We should send a team to go get soil and water samples." McKay heard Bates make the comment. For once, the man illustrated common sense.

"He's right. If the land's arable it could solve a lot of our food production problems." McKay was pleased to be able to pass the Sergeant a compliment.

"Actually, I was thinking of something else." Bates looked around at everyone in the room. He was sure they wouldn't agree with him but he had to make the suggestion.

"Not surfing?" Sheppard looked disappointed. He was holding himself back from saying anything else. He was sure whatever Bates had to say he just wouldn't approve of.

"No, sir. We can't resume offworld missions as long as the Athosians remain in the city."

McKay couldn't believe Bates had made the comment. It just wasn't charitable to dump people on land and say 'Fend! Fend for yourselves!' The worse thing about the whole idea was the fact that his observations were supported by a grain of truth. They couldn't resume offworld missions until 'the spy' was found—but there really was no proof that it was an Athosian. McKay was very glad this wasn't his decision.

The meeting ended with McKay being given the go-ahead from Dr. Weir to assemble a team to gather soil and water samples the next morning. As everyone left to begin their new assignments Aiden found himself walking out with the Major.

"Major? You are going to find Teyla and tell her about the land, right?" Aiden knew the Major had been the one giving the dating advice but he felt that Sheppard was the one on far shakier ground. Betrayal? Abandonment? Etcetera. Etcetera. Major Sheppard was in Lifetime movie of the week territory. Of course he didn't know anything about said movies, as it was his grandmother that watched, not him. Nevertheless…

"That's where I am going." Sheppard didn't even turn around. He had yet another mission.

In Aiden's view the one good thing that came out of that meeting was the fact that McKay had the opportunity to insult Bates without fear of reprisal. He'd said something about him being incapable of imagining possibilities. Funny. Hopefully the Athosian people would feel inclined to take this as an opportunity to rebuild their society. It was late afternoon and he needed to check up on the marine patrols get a light, dinner and get ready for his date.

He wondered what Willow would wear… crap! Did she even have any date clothes? He was so clueless. Even yesterday, after she had arrived, they had stopped by the supply rooms and quickly gathered some necessities. He clearly remembered handing her towels and the Atlantis uniform. He hadn't even given her pajamas—no wonder last night… Aiden groaned at his own stupidity—how annoyed would she be as she tried to get dressed tonight. He honestly didn't think he would mind if she wore her jeans or the Atlantis uniform or really even nothing at all. Maybe he could find Teyla and get her to drop by and loan Willow something.

Sheppard was on a quest for Teyla. He'd first went to the Athosian wing of the base and had come across Halling. Halling did not seem at all welcoming. Sheppard had an idea if he hadn't saved the man's life a few times there would have been a good chance he would have been on the receiving end of a punch. Of course Halling was a religious man, maybe he would have received a much more sterner look instead. Sheppard decided to cut quickly to the point of his visit.

"Halling. We went out on the surface of the planet. We found land." Sheppard just dropped the info on Halling. Sometimes you didn't need all this breaking of the ice and ritualistic hello's and how are you doing.

"Really? Was there farmland or game?" Halling was happy to hear of the land. While Atlantis could become home—there were too many differences between the lifestyle he was accustomed to and his current existence. And of course there was suddenly also the simple fact that the Atlantis expedition members had begun treating Athosians like criminals.

"Um. Well, we didn't land on the ground exactly. But tomorrow morning we are going to send a team out to gather soil and water samples to see if it is a good spot to plant crops and such. Don't know if you're interested but your expertise would be welcome?"

Sheppard didn't say the full truth. He wanted to see if even this was amenable to Halling. He didn't really know how to say—'Actually, we are thinking about rounding all the Athosians up like cattle and dropping them off on the mainland.' Wasn't that what Bates wanted to do? Maybe if Halling saw the land he would request making a settlement there. He really needed to find Teyla and let her know. Maybe Halling could do that for him.

"This would be fine. I will be ready in the morning." Halling nodded in appreciation to the Major. Despite the unwelcome feelings he had gathered from Sergeant Bates he still felt confident that the major Atlantis expedition members had the best interests of the Athosians at heart.

"Could you tell Teyla about the land?" Sheppard made the request. He had thought he would walk through the Athosian wing and find her himself but it really didn't seem like a good idea. On the whole, the Athosians looked quite mutinous. The children had been cooped in their rooms all day. And the adults had only been let out to interview with Sergeant Bates. Sheppard already knew that Bates made him want to punch him in the face. God only knew how angry he had made the Athosians.

Halling nodded and watched as Sheppard turned to leave.

Aiden's luck had not held. He hadn't found Teyla. He'd swung by the infirmary, the cafeteria, Dr. Weir's office and even the Athosian wing. No Teyla. It was getting down to crunch time, whatever that meant. He decided he would just gather everything and set up a balcony for the date and not worry too much. Hopefully Willow wouldn't get back to her room and go to the closet and then scream, 'I have nothing to wear'. She was from California but she didn't seem at all like a ditz. Maybe she could do some spell and turn her jeans into a short skirt… while this was obviously wishful thinking, Aiden couldn't help but wonder. He went by the kitchen in the mess and picked up the cake and a small quantity of powdered egg yolk. Chef Jonathon had handed it all to him without a word. Instead he had used his hand to indicate the table. A large fifty pound bag of brown sugar and a forty five pound bag of chocolate chips had obviously recently been returned and placed on the table.

Aiden raised a brow and thanked Chef. He really hadn't a clue why the food kept showing up. What could you make with flour, brown sugar, and chocolate chips? Cookies? Perhaps someone was making a request. He told Chef. The only answer he received was a snort.

"Thanks again."

"Uh huh."

Aiden snagged a basket and gathered utensils, containers, plates and fabric napkins and left out the kitchen door. He gathered together some easily transportable food; a few sandwiches, two bowls of soup and fruit cocktail. He saw McKay and decided to be perverse.

"Oooh, is that cake?"

"It's lemon." McKay took a good three steps backwards as if Aiden were holding a ticking time bomb.

He was home free.

All he needed to do was find a good balcony and set everything up.

The first balcony he found wasn't that scenic. It didn't really seem like it would work for artistic inspiration. He went down to a slightly lower level and this balcony was perfect. It even had a small table and bench. The water was more visible and looked less like the inky river styx. The light from the hallway reached the balcony and this would set the perfect romantic mood. Aiden arranged the food on the table and went off to gather a blanket from the supply room and his laptop. Before leaving he looked over the balcony into the water and could clearly see a woman standing on the lower balcony. It was Teyla. She seemed completely lost in thought. He put his task of gathering supplies for the picnic in the back of his mind and went to speak to her.

"Teyla. Is everything okay?" Teyla felt quite lost. She hadn't even heard Lieutenant Ford enter the balcony. What a question he had asked.

"Things are not well." She wasn't really sure how much truth she could share with Ford but she was sure he already knew most of what bothered her.

"I know. I am sure Bates and Weir will figure out what or who—if there is a who-- is responsible for giving away our position. Then things will be fine." Aiden was trying to reassure her. Yes, there was a witch hunt- but there was also surely a witch. Well, other than Willow, of course.

"I hope you are right." Teyla really did hope this. "The truth is, Sergeant Bates is right—never before have I been attacked upon going to other worlds. My people believe it is the wrath of the Ancestors for occupying their city."

"No. No. I think it is far more likely there is an informant- a spy. Though even that makes little sense. I don't think this is really something we can solve. We must let the facts speak for themselves." Aiden didn't really like how his words came out. The facts were essentially just suppositions.

"Fair enough." Teyla could only agree. "What are you doing out on the balcony?"

"Um—yeah, I almost forgot—I have a date—uh a private romantic conference with Willow planned. We are having dinner on the balcony above here and um we are also going to paint. I was actually looking for you."

"Really?" Teyla was quite pleased. Ford had picked up on the signs and had set love in motion. He was much better at this than the Major.

'Yeah—I was wondering if there would be any way you could drop by Willow's room and well, maybe let her borrow clothes. Dates are a big deal for women. I just realized she really only has the Atlantis uniform and the jeans we found her in."

"I will do this. Is there anything you have in mind for her to wear?" Teyla couldn't help throw out the question. It was always amusing to see a man blush.

"Uh—anything you have?" Was this statement diplomatic enough? What was it with Teyla and Sheppard? It seemed at every turn they wanted to embarrass him. Like he would have the guts to ask her to find her only short leather skirts and belly baring tops!

"Okay—well I have to run off—I am picking her up at her room in forty five minutes---" Aiden impulsively gave Teyla a quick hug and ran off.
Teyla found herself alone on the balcony again. The difference was her heart felt as light as a feather.

Willow couldn't believe she had accepted a date from Aiden. What had she been thinking? She wasn't in Sunnydale. There was no her closet. There was no Buffy closet. Hell, she didn't have the mall. All she had were some funky jeans, her Red Sox jacket, a white tee shirt, lots of clean socks and towels, her chucks and the standard Atlantis uniform—mind you she had three variations on the Atlantis uniform. Black shirt, red shirt, and blue shirt. She would just have to put the uniform back on—maybe she could cut the sleeves off the black shirt and make a tank top or at least a sleeveless shirt.

Actually she could just wrap the 'Property of the U.S. Military' top sheet around her body and meet him at the door with a come-hither look—or maybe not.

She wrapped herself in the large white towel and sat down to think. She had twenty minutes until Aiden was set to pick her up. Surely something good could happen in twenty minutes… hmm. She heard a hesitant knock at the door. 'Coming'

Willow decided to play it safe and ask before swishing her hand in front of the panel and opening it completely.

"It is Teyla."

Willow quickly moved her hand in front of the panel and the door opened.

"Thank the goddess!" Surely Teyla could find something for her to borrow.

"Which goddess?" Teyla was slightly puzzled. This was not a phrase she had ever heard spoken by the expedition members.

"Oh it is just a saying! I am in the middle of a crisis. I have a date with a gorgeous, hot, good-looking, lovely man and I have no clothes." She moved her hand in front of the panel to close the door and stepped back to the bed as she spoke. She picked up item after item and tossed them back onto the bed. "I have no clothes! I don't even have worthwhile underwear! Help! Usually when I am out of clothes I just go to the mall and buy more or I go to my friend Buffy's closet and find something there but now I have nothing…" Willow had just started babbling and was full ready to continue with explicit examples from her past as to items she might logically wear on a first date when she noticed that Teyla had a large assortment of clothing in her arms.

"I heard you might need assistance." Teyla spoke the words and gave her a half smile.

Willow dropped the last item she held and ran across the room to Teyla. She gave her and the clothing a serious hug and grabbed the items from her arms. "Thank you! Thank you!"

"These items are yours to keep. The sister of Halling was your size—until she married and became with child. These are the typical clothing of an unmarried woman. She will never wear such things again."

"Flirty clothes? Perfect!"

"I will leave you to dress. I do not think you will need any help. The lacings are already organized properly."

"Thank you! Thank you!" Willow was grinning. Something good had happened—

"I almost forgot. Foot-ware." Teyla walked to the door and punched in the standard code to unlock the door. It slid open. She reached her arm into the hallway and picked up a small handmade leather bag.

"Here are a few sandals. These should suit the outfits."

Willow rushed forward to take the bag from Teyla's hands. She couldn't believe she now had a wardrobe. Okay- it was a little leather intensive but it would definitely work out. She really didn't have a clue what she would do about underwear—surely the supply closet would have such things. She would have to give it a more thorough perusal tomorrow. She probably wouldn't find any lacy underthings but hopefully whatever she found wouldn't have 'Property of the U.S. Military' stamped on the butt. She had seventeen minutes to get ready.