A.N. things haven't changed. I'm still female, still human (for the most part), still love writing, still dread finals, still a poor college kid, and still don't own stargate.

Trouble: chapter eleven

Sara smiled in her sleep, sinking deeper into the warm blankets. It had been so long since she had slept in a real bed. She had missed the comfort of fabric the most during her imprisonment. The nurses piled blanket after blanket on top of her, Sara never refusing them. The city was truly amazing though she had only seen a small portion. The nurses had told her that the city was sentient and she could almost believe them. When she had first arrived she had been shivering but the room had grown warmer though no one claimed to have changed the temperature. Ronon had come to visit her. He had said the same thing in not so many words before leaving to sit with John on the other side of the room, where the curtains were drawn. John had yet to stir, the curtain thin enough for her to see his shadow. This alarmed her but the gentle Doctor had assured her that nothing was wrong and John was on medications that would help heal him. She assumed they were much like the pills the nurses gave her but she had not seen him sit up to swallow anything. They had said he was fine and she didn't think these people would lie to her, they were John's race after all. She probably should have been worrying but she felt better than she had felt in years. The pain was gone and she could breath better than ever. So instead of worrying over the future she enjoyed the present and the soft bed she now found herself in.

Ronon sighed as he propped his feet on the edge of the bed, fingering the weapon on his belt. He had been polishing it and his knives but the doctor had threatened him. Though many people would not have expected for the large man to cower before anyone but he did before the Scotts man. The man was positively frightening when it came to his patients and his infirmary. The fact that the man had the ability to decide if Ronon was allowed through the 'gate as well as having a broad range of sharp objects at his disposal. With nothing else to distract himself with, Ronon found his gaze drawn to the peaceful rise and fall of the Colonel's chest. He looked as if he had come head to head with death and barely hung on by a thread. The man lay still, the muscles in his chest the only thing moving and at that very slightly. This caused Ronon's frown to deepen. Sheppard never held still. He was always moving, running each morning and fidgeting through every meeting. He had an office but he never used it, only storing necessary supplies there. The room had no windows and though Atlantis was a rather bright and clean city, humming with activity but John always preferred the balcony on the south pier. John had built a small table and chair to act as a 'desk' as soon as he had access to a wood supply. But now he lay in front of Ronon, never moving a muscle. The Satedan sighed once again, he, himself, was having a hard time just sitting there, wanting to do something, anything to help, but there was nothing he could do. But Sheppard needed him so there he sat, fidgeting in the small plastic chair. The man began to speak to the man in low tones, mainly having nothing else to do and he had also over heard the doc say something about noise waking the Colonel sooner.

"Hey, Sheppard." The man began in his low voice. "Ya know it's already been three days. The doc says you should have been up by now." Ronon shifted in his seat, never being a man of many words. "But you know you're safe on Atlantis. No one's gonna hurt you now." Ronon sighed, seeking something else to talk about. "Sara's here. She's been sleeping a lot. Think she likes having a bed for once. McKay's been around a lot. He sat with you last night. Lorne's been in an' out, too. Don't think he likes the command position, always mumbling 'bout paper work." Swallowing, Ronon looked down at his feet before continuing. "Teyla's here all the time, 'cept for when Lorne can chase her away. She feels guilty 'bout what happened. I think she-"

Ronon got no further as John's hand twitched. Anyone else would have thought they had imagined it but Ronon's runner-trained eyes caught the movement quickly.

"Sheppard? Hey, Sheppard. You still in there buddy?" Ronon grabbed hold of the colonel's hand with one of his own hands and placed his other on John's shoulder. "Doc!" Ronon cut his shout short when he felt the injured man's muscles tense at the raised voice. "Sheppard?"

Ronon quickly moved out of the way as both Doctors Beckett and Keller ran up.

"Colonel? Sheppard, lad?" Beckett spoke as Jennifer checked the man's pulse. "Can ya open yur eyes for us?"

The only response he received was a low moan. "Come on, lad. Yur safe now. No one's gonna hurt yur so it's safe ta open yur eyes now."

With a little more coaxing, from both Beckett and Keller, the group finally saw a small flash of green.

"There you are, Colonel. There's nothing to worry about now." Jennifer said in her soothing voice.

"Doc-" John groaned through still swollen lips. His throat was dry causing his voice to come out harsh sounding. He gratefully accepted the ice chip Jennifer slipped into his mouth, nodding his thanks.

"Lad, I need you to try an' wiggle yur toes, f'r me." Carson asked softly, having moved down to the end of the bed and pulled the blankets back to reveal the man's bare feet. The nurses would have normally given him socks but the Colonel had some particular habits, one of which was never sleeping in his socks. Off-world was one matter but in his own bed he never could. The material making him feel confined. Though John couldn't have really complained about the socks until this point, his stays in the infirmary had become regular enough that the nurses automatically stripped him of his socks with each stay.

A smile graced the Scott's face as the man's toes wriggled slowly. The swelling was still present but had decreased greatly and the Colonel should have his control over his legs back in another week. Jennifer gave Beckett a matching grin before turning back to the Colonel.

"Now, Colonel. You are healing extremely well," The woman stated. "but you are not about to be running around a time soon, do you understand?"

The man nodded, his eyes slipping closed as he did so. Sighing, Keller took the man's pulse once again. She knew her speech fell on deaf ears. The man would push himself to the limit, never happy with his progress until he was back to his normal self. The road would be long but the Colonel would not accept it. Sheppard had a hard task ahead of him.

Sheppard did not awaken again for two days, allowing for Sara, who was feeling the best she had ever felt, to a have the complete tour of Atlantis. Each room held a new adventure, a new surprise. She found the many balconies, opening up to the expansive ocean surrounding the city. While the walls were brightly painted and the rooms were well lit, Sara found the openness soothing. A light breeze pushed against her skin, sending a chill down her spine. She could hear the marine shift on her feet behind her. A soldier was always with her and though this still made her a little nervous she felt comfortable around the soldiers of the city. John after all was a soldier here, no only a soldier but he was in charge of all the other soldiers in the city so if he told them not to hurt her then they wouldn't. It had occurred to her that Sheppard had not woken up to tell his soldiers to leave her alone but they had yet to raise a hand to her, so she assumed she was safe. She had been standing on the very edge of the peer, holding gently onto the railing as the sea breeze whipped her hair behind her, when Doctor McKay quickly rounded the corner to enter the balcony.

"Sara...." The man huffed in between breaths. The man was a very eccentric character, shouting over everything, but he seemed to really care about John. "Sheppard's awake...has been for 'bout 20 minutes..Carson thinks he's strong enough to have visitors now."

Rodney led her through the corridors back to the infirmary where a crowd of people surrounded the bed which John occupied. She had learned the names of most of them. The two doctors, Beckett and Keller, the Satedan, Ronon, and the soldier who was in charge while John was healing. The only person she would have expected that wasn't there was the woman, Teyla. Rodney joined them as he entered the infirmary. Sara stopped in the door way, not wishing to intrude on the group. Peering around their shoulders, John was stirring slightly, though nothing below his waist seemed to be moving. His eyes were lightly glazed over but he seemed alert, smiling as Dr. Keller dabbed at the sweat on his brow.

"How's my city, Major?" She heard him ask as his managed to raise his hand, slightly, to shake Lorne's hand. Sara began to back out of the room but she stopped when a voice stopped her.

"Sara.." John's voice was raspy and choked. Turning around he was staring at her, the rest of the group having turned to look at her as well. "Come 'ere." He motioned weakly.

"Only a few minutes, lad." Carson told him, placing a hand gently on his shoulder before walking away to give him his space. Jennifer and Ronon also took the clue and headed towards the door, Ronon toeing Rodney behind him.

"See ya, guys." John said, waving them out. Sara silently sat down on the plastic chair next to his bed, looking down at her hands. The Colonel followed suit and began studying his own fingers with great interest. "So...how do you like the city?"

Sara sighed and smiled up at him. "It's amazing..and beautiful."

"Yes, she is." John's tone was that of a proud father. Though most people didn't give it much thought, having the strongest A.T.A. gene, Sheppard was able to connect with the city on a higher level than others could. The city was a sentient being, often discussing the issues the expedition faced on a daily basis and even helping with the occasional prank. Not the amateur prank of a junior high kid but the bigger events often involving the cooperation of multiple base personal and Atlantis' precisely timed lock down of certain corridors, baffling the scientists. The Colonel smiled to himself before breaking from his wanderings.

"Have they set you up in a nice room?" He asked, having been informed of the duration of time that he had been oblivious to the world.

She nodded, a large smile on her face. John's people had provided a wonderful room for her, near the infirmary, with a small balcony of her own. She had been surprised it was not claimed by a expidition member but Colonel Carter had told her that it was used a guest room for important people. Sara supposed she would need to leave the room when one such person arrived, she wouldn't be here very long anyways. The doctors had told her of the damage done to her body by the radiation, as she had known it would do. Sara had not been concerned for her prisoner's safety, simply that the research was done correctly and in a timely fashion. She knew she did not have much longer to live but she had come to terms with that years ago, never expecting to live this long and actually escape her prison before the end. She had always seen death as the only way out and she was over-joyed to have seen her freedom before death and not in it.

"I love the ocean..." Sara mumbled, softly. "It's so vast and open, not like the underground cells."

Sheppard's face turned solemn and he looked down at his hands before raising them again. "I..I, um..I wanna thank you for- for all your help. I wouldn't be alive if you hadn't been there."

Sara smiled, tears brimming in her eyes. "And I wish to thank you, John Sheppard. If you had not come I would still be there. I would have never had my freedom."

The Colonel nodded in understanding, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "I can't say I enjoyed it but I'm glad I could help." They sat in silence after this for a few minutes before Sara bid him good night as his eyelids sagged even then. Quietly, she left her seat and left to find a nurse, her chest constricting and making it difficult to breath again.

A.N.- So finals has officially started so it may be a little while before the next chapter. i'm sorry but the real world is impatient and wants to be first in line for my attention. please review!!!