A/N: Hey, ladies and gents! I just watched the episode 'Vegas' and I must say, it was all I dreamed it would be, haha. The ending was sad, but it fit. *sigh* oh, the plot bunnies I have now. I think it was my favourite episode to date.
A/N2: The reason for the lateness of the chapter is indeed a sad and incredibly frustrating one. Remember how I said I chopped the last chapter into two parts? Well, 'smart' me over here posted the first part whilst NOT saving the second half. So I had to start again. You can imagine my squeaks of dismay when I went to continue the next day and found it 'mysteriously' missing. Boohiss.
EDIT: A/N3: Just saw 'Enemy at the Gate'. Needless to say, a box of Kleenex was used quite frequently. I was a little disappointed that we didn't get to see John and Rodney's 'goodbye' when John was called to go to Earth, but hey, that leaves more to the imagination, haha. I feel a tag coming on.
STATUS: TBC
RATING: K+
SUMMARY: AU and SLASH McKayxSheppard A Halloween fic! Rodney and his niece Madison buy a new (but old and frankly falling down) house in a small town (cliché enough yet?), which the locals believe to be haunted. Which it most definitely is. Inspired by Rose Red.
SPOILERS: Since it's AU, nothing.
WARNINGS: A bit of swearing. Our boys have quite the potty mouth sometimes.
DISCLAIMER: Everything Stargate Atlantis related is property of MGM. I own nothing.
x x x
**Song for this chapter: Eyes on Fire by Blue Foundation**
x x x
"Uncle Mer? Do you think they have a library here?"
Rodney glanced over his shoulder as he stood at the sink, plate in one hand and a sponge in the other.
"I would assume so," he answered as his niece munched away on the food John Sheppard had whipped up only twenty or so minutes before. The scientist was still boggled by that.
Well, that and the 'date' later.
"They can't be that backward, can they?" he added before depositing the plate on the drip rack. "Why do you want to go to the library?"
Finishing up her food, Madison slid off the chair and headed over to her uncle.
"I've read all the books I brought with me. I need new ones," came her answer as she handed over the empty plate.
"What about my—"
"Your physics books are a bit…big, Uncle Mer."
Rodney resisted the urge to smile, instead opting to roll his eyes and take her plate.
"Never too early to start learning about physics…but I'll take you once I'm finished up here and throw on some clothes." He eyed Madison's Spongebob nightgown with an eyebrow raised teasingly. "You're not going like that, are you?"
A ghost of a grin appeared on Maddie's face.
"Maybe."
A giggle gave her away before she jogged out of the kitchen and down the hall, presumably to throw on something without a cartoon character on it.
But you never knew.
Once the girl was out of earshot, Rodney chuckled and shook his head. Things had been getting better between the two, slowly but surely. He wasn't the ideal parent, and probably never would be, but he would be damned if he didn't try his best. And lucky for him, Madison seemed to acknowledge his attempt and counter with one of her own.
Although it helped that Sheppard seemed to be a bridge between the two.
Finishing up the dishes, Rodney dried his hands and headed out of the kitchen with a rather proud smile on his face.
'Look at me, I'm being all domestic!'
Not that he would start reading Chicken Soup for the Soul or anything like that.
Once he reached his room, he had a quick shower and threw on some clothes. Oddly enough, he was looking forward to a relaxing library trip with Madison.
Running a hand through his hair, Rodney bounded over to the dresser for his keys, only to find them missing.
"What…Madison!" he called loudly. "Have you seen the house key?"
A negative was called back.
With a disgruntled sigh, he started rummaging around on the dresser top, shoving connector cords, books, and extra laptop batteries to the side. A clinking sound halted his actions.
"Great…"
Peering over the back of the bureau, Rodney was just able to make out the soft glint of the scuffed up golden coloured key. Another sigh later and he was on his hands and knees, cheek pressed up against the corner of the dresser as he stretched his arm as far as he could between the back and the wall, fingers splayed.
"Argh…come on," he groaned, voice muffled.
The ends of his fingers just barely brushed the cool metal, but eventually the scientist was forced to concede.
He sat back, one cheek red with a bit of a long indent as he rubbed his shoulder, highly disgruntled. With narrowed eyes, he glared at the key.
"Stupid thing…lodged behind a dresser…should have made a copy," he muttered, starting to lean forward again for a second round.
He froze when the key twitched.
Nothing happened for several more moments.
Just when he was about to lean in again, blue eyes locked on the piece of metal, the key promptly slid a good two inches across the hardwood to fall through a crack between the wall and the floor. He heard it hit the floor below, slide a few more inches, and then fall down a vent with a clink.
Rodney stared, mouth agape. A bit of a high pitched squawk escaped.
"Wha—don't ask. Just…don't ask," he said with wide eyes. "Maybe gravity's acting up. Maybe there's a magnet somewhere. Maybe the freakin' room tilted. Just don't ask."
So much for being a scientist. Logical what-now?
Using the corner of the dresser as leverage, Rodney heaved himself up off the ground and cracked his back with a groan.
"Great. Not only do I have to venture into the Basement of Doom for some stupid over-excited key, but my back is going to give out any day now."
Heading out into the hallway, he passed by Madison's room to tell her that he was going to the basement for something, so to wait an extra couple minutes. The girl gave her uncle a curious look before shrugging in a, 'good luck with that' kind of way.
Rodney pursed his lips, almost tempted to go without the key and leave the front door wide open. Anything was better then going into the basement.
x x x
"I hate this basement…"
Rodney scowled to himself as he stood in front of the old, rickety door at the bottom of the stairs. He jiggled back and forth on his feet, silently gathering up his courage. It was just a basement, after all. Granted, all basements were creepy and this one was definitely off the Scare Scale, but still. Just a basement. Even the contractors ventured down to store any pieces of furniture that were too big to go anywhere else. Not to mention their work benches and tools.
And if a construction worker could go in there, so could Rodney.
"Alright, McKay. Pull it together. Grab the key and get out."
Rodney nodded to himself before putting the hand on the knob and turning. He rolled his eyes when the heavy, glass knob came off in his hand before just pushing at the door. It swung open with a creak, stale air drifting out.
Tossing the knob to the side onto a pile of mulch bags, the scientist walked slowly into the dark basement. Since the windows were so high up and small, only pale beams of light streamed in, showing patches of concrete flooring.
Hastily, Rodney searched for a light switch. Finding one near the closest work bench, he flipped the toggle and let out a small sigh of relief. Light filled the room, four bare bulbs hanging from the ceiling.
"Alright," he announced to himself, baby blues gazing around. "Where did that key get to…"
He raised his gaze to the ceiling and easily found the exposed vent. At one time or another, a heater had been placed in the corner and attached to the vent, but it had long since been removed. A newer model now sat on the opposite side of the basement, humming quietly away.
Standing under the vent, Rodney cast his gaze to the ground and started his search. It didn't take long for him to spot the missing key sitting on the dusty cement. With a sigh, he squatted down to grab it.
Just as he was reaching out, something caught his eye. Inside a deep crack between the wall and cement was a crinkled piece of paper. With a raised eyebrow, Rodney gently tugged the paper out of the crack and unfolded it.
"Huh…"
The paper turned out to be an old crinkled black and white photo of three people; a man, a woman, and a child who looked no older then Madison. He turned the picture to read the back:
Edward and Prudence Stone, and their darling daughter Alice. October, 1927.
With knew interest, Rodney flipped the picture back to the front, eyes flickering over the small family. Prudence looked like any other well-off woman of the 1920s; proper yet humble, her dark hair pulled into a tidy bun, expression soft but her eyes as sharp as tacks. Alice was a precious blonde thing—not that Rodney would admit that to anyone—not smiling but obviously eager to run off and play. And Edward, Edward looked to be the ultimate gentleman. With his dark hair and equally dark eyes, he seemed just as proper as his wife. Yet there was a sparkle of something behind those eyes of his; something soft and playful. Something rather familiar…
"Uncle Mer? Are you ready to go yet?"
Rodney nearly jumped out of his skin when Maddie suddenly called down to him from the top of the stairs.
"Geez, Madison! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" he gasped, heaving himself to his feet and rubbing his chest.
Madison chuckled as she jiggled back and forth on her feet, eager to get going.
"Come on, Uncle Mer! Let's go already!"
"Alright, alright…go get your shoes on."
As his niece bounded off, Rodney looked back down at the picture. Three sets of eyes bore into his, silently speaking. After a moment, he folded the picture carefully and tucked it into his back pocket.
Just before he headed for the stairs, he grabbed the key.
x x x
"So, what area did you want to hit first?"
"The kids section!"
Rodney blanched as Madison grabbed his hand to tug him down the rows and rows of books. He was even sad to see the cheesy Fantasy section fly by. Anything was better then the kids section…
"Look! A table!"
"Great…"
Half an hour later, Rodney's head thunked down onto the plastic table top, earning him a scandalized look from the grey-haired and frightening librarian. Madison peered at him from over top her beat up copy of Dragonology—'Look, Uncle Mer! It comes with a hanging model!'—to send him an absent look.
He knew that expression all to well. It was a definite McKay 'I'm too busy doing something important, go away!' look.
Taking advantage of her distractedness, Rodney pushed back his mini pink plastic chair and said, "I'm going to grab a computer. You'll be okay here for a few minutes?"
Madison nodded, obviously not really listening, before she disappeared behind the large, hardcover book.
Freedom!
Even though he was tempted to book it over to he science section—not that he would find anything remotely of interest—Rodney headed for the nearest computer and sat down in the cushioned seat. He double clicked on the question mark icon and the search engine popped up.
Without pausing, he typed in 'Edward, Prudence Stone'. Nearly one hundred hits. The scientist scowled slightly, but clicked on the first link. At least it was an e-resource. For a few minutes, he scrolled through the many pages, the soft glow of the monitor flickering over his face. It seemed to be a biography, complete with photos of the manor and family, along with a complete genealogy chart and everything. As the minutes past, Rodney became lost in reading.
Almost an hour passed before he reached the last page, mind reeling yet satisfied with the information he had learned. Rodney sat back in the chair, shoulders slouched. It was a rather sad story, but certainly interesting…
He suddenly straightened up, nose inches from the monitor. What the…Fingers gripped the mouse as he read over the genealogy chart for a second time. There had to be some sort of mistake…
Ten minutes later, he and Madison were heading out of the library and into the cold, a printed out copy of the family tree clutched in the scientist's hand.
x x x
"You lied to me."
John Sheppard quickly leaned back against the booth when a hand suddenly slammed down onto the diner table top, a piece of paper under the sprawled fingers.
He looked up to find Rodney scowling down at him, not even noticing the brown haired kid sitting across from the detective.
Without speaking, John glanced down at the paper. He stared at it for a moment before saying mildly, "Rodney, this is Jinto. He's the kid I wanted Madison to meet."
Blinking confusedly, Rodney straightened up and looked over at the seven year old. Both this 'Jinto' and Madison looked thoroughly confused.
"Oh," came Rodney's reply, baby blues slightly wide. "Err…hi there. Madison, why don't you and him go do something?"
Madison nodded, holding out a hand.
"Quarters, Uncle Mer?"
"Sure, sure…"
Moments later, John and Rodney were alone in the booth, the sounds of the pinball machine dinging away behind them.
"So, how was your day?" John drawled as he slouched back, hand curved loosely around his cup of coffee.
Rodney scowled, giving the paper a noisy shake.
"It was pretty interesting." Shake, shake. "I found out a couple things." Shake, shake. "Like the fact that you lied to me!" A long and raucous shake completed his sentence.
With a roll of his eyes, John snatched the paper and flattened it down on the table.
"I didn't lie to you. I just…withheld information. Perfectly innocent."
"Innocent?" Rodney squawked. "For all I know, you're some creepy stalker wanting to get his manor back!"
"I don't want the manor! Look…" John sighed and took a sip of his lukewarm coffee. This was not how he intended dinner to go. "You're right. I didn't tell you that my great-grandfather was Edward Stone's brother. Why? Because people normally get freaked out by it, that's why." His dark eyes flickered over Rodney, lips tugging into a teasing smile. "Besides, I didn't think you would figure it out. Stupid of me."
"Incredibly."
John chuckled and looked back down at the paper, a semi-thoughtful look on his face.
"Why did you take your mother's maiden name?" Rodney asked. With a slight smirk, he added, "Then again, John Stone sounds a bit too dramatic…even if you are a cop."
"Detective," John corrected out of habit, smiling. "Long story short, I made some decisions that my father wasn't too happy with. He kicked me out when I was nineteen and I took my mother's last name."
"Out of spite?"
"Stone's too dramatic." John echoed with a grin. "Made me sound like a soap opera character."
Despite his hardest to keep scowling, Rodney shook his head to hide an amused smile.
"Idiot."
"Does that mean I'm forgiven?"
There was a pause, Rodney's face sliding into a hesitant but suspicious look.
"That depends. Are you only talking to me and being nice to Madison because of the house?"
His expression fell as John took on a small look of guilt and shame.
"Yes."
x x x
A/N: Finally, another chapter under my belt. For multiple reasons it was the hardest one to write so far. Whew! I'm trying to get all of the info out of the way to make room for the ghostly action (and some fluff in chapter seven!), so stick with me, folks. The boring chapters will soon be over with.
reviews!
Fitzroy: Now you know why Hottie Cop looks like Edward =D (like you didn't know already!) I know I say this every time we talk, but thanks for always reviewing, mah daahling!
ShaViva: haha, a way to a grumpy scientist's heart is through cooking breakfast (with lots of coffee!) And geeks totally rule! I bet that mug of yours is getting a lot of usage =D I know mine certainly is. Thanks for the review!
Spacemonkeygal: (I adore your penname, hehe!) Aw, can't you just picture John cooking for a sleepy Rodney? I wouldn't have been surprised if hearts started popping up to float in the air =) And I'm glad I wasn't the only squealer over cloaking mugs *g* Thanks for reviewing!
RodneyIsGodney: (your penname is Godney! Hehe!) I was hoping someone would catch the blue robe! =D He looked so cozy in it that I just had to bring it back. Thanks for the review!
Thanks to everyone! Apologies if I missed someone.
Keep reading, my lovelies!
*points to review button*