Chapter Six

Early the next morning Alex woke feeling refreshed. Having slept away the lethargy of the night before, she smiled brightly as she showered and changed clothes. Only then did she realize she had no idea what time it was. For all she knew, it could be in the middle of the night. Recalling the clock Carson had given her, she decided to see if it was possible to retrieve it. Feeling excited about the new day ahead, she poked her head outside her door to see her guards posted across the hall from her door.

"Do you know what time it is?" she asked.

"Close to oh six-thirty," one replied.

Frowning slightly Alex considered before asking, "Is that considered unusually early to be out and about?"

The two guards shared a glance before the other answered, "It depends. Some like to be up before the sun rises and some prefer to get up closer to mid-day."

"Good," Alex said, accepting this as a normal time to be moving about the city. "I would like to return to my prison cell. I left something behind I would like to retrieve."

The two young-faced guards shared a look again, this time frowning.

"We'd have to cut through…that one section," the one on the left said, obviously being deliberately vague.

The one on the right nodded considering this. "I can't think of any other way around. Major Lorne should be on duty. I'll see what he says."

Alex stood patiently waiting as the guard keyed on his radio.

His eyes stayed on her as he called, "This is Captain Song for Major Lorne." A few seconds of silence and then, "Yes, sir. She would like to retrieve something from her prison cell." He turned his attention to her, "What is it you're wanting, ma'am?"

"A clock given to me by Doctor Beckett. It is likely still sitting on the table unless my items have been removed."

"She says it's a clock, sitting on the table," he relayed to Lorne. He listened for a few more seconds, his eyes still on Alex. "Understood, sir. Captain Song out."

"Major Lorne says all of the items left in the cell were packed up and taken to a lab for inspection. He will find out which lab and have all the items boxed up and brought to your quarters."

"Thank you."

Considering what to do for a moment, Alex glanced down the corridor in both directions. The resounding silence was such a stark contrast from the busy corridors she had explored the day before. Deciding there was little else to do with her morning, she turned her feet toward the mess hall. She might as well get breakfast out of the way before it was too busy.

Alex felt her heart speed up just a little as she could hear the hum of early morning conversation coming from the mess hall long before she sighted the entrance. Steeling herself, she just hoped she didn't draw as much attention this morning. Her guards following close behind, she came around the corner to find the mess hall even busier than it had been the evening before. She headed toward the line of people meandering around the food tables. Already her mouth watered with anticipation at the smell of a table full of fruits.

Beside the many trays of fruits stood a small cluster of people having a conversation. Maneuvering around people and closer to the abundance of fruit trays, she ignored the change in the hum of activity as several people caught sight of her. The small cluster of people near the fruit table, however, were blocking her access. Not wanting to interrupt, she brought her eyes up to meet the dark brown ones of one of the women. The woman's eyes widened in shock as she recognized Alex. Ignoring her reaction, Alex nodded and smiled.

"Blain, move," she hissed to the man who had his back to Alex and talking to the others.

"What? Oh, I'm sor—"

His apology was choked off as he realized he was facing the former Wraith queen everyone had been talking about. Startled, he jumped back with a yelp knocking someone's tray out of their hand. In the crowded space this caused a domino effect of people that culminated in the near destruction of a table full of food as three people landed partially on it. Alex watched this with wide-eyed horror as the mess hall came to an absolutely standstill in dead silence. By this point every eye was focused on her. As she glanced around, she found some eyes filled with hostility and accusation, some with curiosity, but all of them held an edge of wariness as if expecting her to attack.

Feeling her face flaming, Alex set down her tray and turned to flee the mess hall with as much dignity as she could muster. Knowing that breaking into a run would likely cause her guards to just shoot her in the back, she kept her strides to a fast walk. Only when she was two corridors away and around a few corners did she finally stop. He heard the boots of her guards stop several feet behind. By this point her heart raced as her hands shook and her mind swirled with a mix of feelings she couldn't recall ever having felt before. She was scared, embarrassed, sad, hurt, and so many other things she didn't have a name for. Leaning against the wall absorbed in the tide of emotions that threatened to overwhelm her, she almost didn't notice the guards behind her attempting to stifle their laughter. Thinking their laughter aimed at her, she glared at them.

"And then Melinda took out three by herself," the other was whispering to Captain Song starting them both choking on laughter as they tried to regain their composure.

Recalling with agonizing detail the scene that had unfolded around her, Alex realized they were not laughing at her, but the situation. Still not accustomed to human humor, she wasn't sure if their laughter was appropriate to the situation or not. Before she could make any sense of this, however, she realized her cheeks were wet. Raising a hand to touch her cheeks, she confirmed that the salty smell and sniffles she began to feel were a result of liquid leaking from her eyes. Not sure what to make of this, she just sat there considering what it all meant and how her body seemed to react to things she couldn't understand.

"This is Captain Vasquez. Go ahead, sir."

Whatever he heard over the radio sobered him in seconds. "Yes, sir. We're in corridor F, Section A Nine. She's just standing there…crying." He listened for a second. "No, sir. Doctor Pontner was startled when he turned around. He fell taking someone else with him and it was a kind of chain reaction. Yes, sir. No, sir. No, sir. Understood, sir. Vasquez out."

Captain Song waited patiently until the conversation was ended. Then he caught Captain Vasquez's attention and whispered in a very serious expression, "Look out below."

This had both men almost incapable of staying upright as they fell to laughing hysterically. Seeing as they were either ignoring her or she was virtually forgotten, she watched them for a moment as she let her heart gradually slow down. Whatever hunger she may have felt earlier was long gone. She was surprised to realize that their laughter had somehow affected her, making her want to join in. Forcing this reaction back down, she let the feeling wash over her, instead. The feeling was quite enjoyable. Not sure what time it was, but hoping Carson would be available, she waited for their laughter to die down a bit before asking them to take her to the infirmary.

As usual, they followed behind giving verbal instructions. Lost in thought, replaying the scene over and over in her head, she almost didn't realize she was at the entrance to the infirmary. Entering the open double doors, she was confronted with a scene of barely controlled chaos. At least a dozen people were sitting on gurneys sporting a variety of minor wounds as the infirmary staff, including Carson, tended to them. Initially she had intended to come get her daily injection and hopefully ask Carson some questions. Seeing how busy it was, she instead turned to leave, thinking to come back later.

"There she is!" someone shouted. "She did this to me!"

Carson along with just about everyone else in the room turned their attention to Alex.

"Alex?" Carson asked.

"She did it," someone else spoke up, sporting a swollen wrist. "She's the one that attacked Doctor Pontner."

"Yeah," several others agreed in angry mutters.

"Major Lorne said it was an accident," Carson pointed out, nodded toward a man standing nearby with his arms crossed.

"She needs to be caged again," one guy started, getting off his gurney to stalk toward her. "Wraith shouldn't be walking the city."

Carson jumped in front of the man, "Just take it easy. Major Lorne will handle it."

"No! We all know she's your little Wraith pet," he argued, pushing his way around Carson as several others in the room grumbled angry agreement.

Somehow maneuvering himself in front of the man a second time, Carson gave him a gentle shove in the chest, his face red with barely contained fury. "You sit your arse down right now, Eckley, or you'll be the one in the prison. Do I make myself clear?"

Seeing the naked fury on the gentle doctor's face seemed to rattle something inside the man as he nodded and began backing toward his stretcher.

Turning to take in everyone with his glare, Carson asked, "Does anyone else here feel the need to assault my patient verbally or physically? If you do, I suggest you take it up with Major Lorne over there, or Colonel Sheppard and Doctor Weir. Take your pick, but this ends now."

Certain that no one was going to take him up on his offer, Carson turned toward a woman in green scrubs. "None of these are serious injuries. Get them patched up and out of my infirmary. I'll be in Room Three. When Colonel Sheppard arrives, send him in."

"Yes, Doctor."

"Come with me, Alex," Beckett said, taking her gently by the arm with a warm smile.

On the other side of the infirmary a set of blue eyes watched the scene unfold with open curiosity. Though he had been suspicious at first, he trusted the word of her guards. Seeing the open fear on the woman's face as it seemed she was about to be attacked hadn't been a cover. It was genuine. For a moment, she had almost looked like she was going to run. Filing this away for later, Major Lorne turned back to the mess that had been dropped into his lap.

Alex allowed herself to be led around the corner and into a larger room that branched out into several smaller rooms with curtains across their open doors. He led her to one of the rooms and motioned for her to have a seat on the lowered gurney. Captain Song and Captain Vasquez stationed themselves just outside.

Heaving a tired sigh, Carson sat in the chair nearby rubbing his face. "I'm sorry, Alex," he started.

"There's nothing to apologize for," she told him, somewhat confused. "Are you feeling well?"

"Me? I'm fine. I just got woken up a little earlier than I would have liked, and not nearly enough coffee for that kind of asinine behavior." Trying to make light of the situation, he grinned at her, "I'm a grumpy morning person without my coffee."

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, Alex. Major Lorne told me what happened. If anyone would be to blame, it's Doctor Pontner. From what I understand, his reaction was uncalled for."

"He turned around, and…I supposed I startled him," she said, again not bothering to include the fact that wherever she went, people stared and watched her.

"There ya go. It was an accident," he said a bit more cheerfully. "Now, I'm waiting on Colonel Sheppard, because Major Lorne woke him up to report this incident before all the facts had been gathered. So I expect he'll be here any moment. I expect you were coming for your injection?"

To this she nodded.

"Very good. Give me just a moment to grab a quick cup of coffee and I'll be right back," Carson told her, exiting through the blue, sheet-like curtain.

Left with little else to do, Alex just stared around at the equipment and supplies scattered throughout the room. Some of it was familiar to her, while others were a complete mystery she could only guess at. As promised, Carson didn't leave her alone for long. Having changed his previous lab coat that was dotted with a few drops of blood, he returned with two cups in his hand that steamed slightly.

"God bless the founders of Keurig. Here ya go, lass," he said brightly, handing over one cup of cream colored brown liquid. "It's called coffee. It's a warm, comforting drink that contains caffeine, a stimulant. Most humans drink it or something similar in the mornings to help us shake off sleep and improve our alertness."

Eyeing the liquid and sniffing it, Alex found she very much liked the aroma. It was warm and earthy and comforting. Taking a tentative sip of the hot liquid she let it roll around her tongue. First she was met with a delightfully woody and sweet taste that mellowed to a slightly bitter, but not unpleasant, aftertaste. Carson watched as her eyes lit up in delight at her first experience.

"Now, I know it tastes good, but you'll want to limit yourself to no more than two cups a day. It's not healthy to have too much of anything," he cautioned, sipping his own cup. "But, in the case of coffee, unless you've had a lot of it very recently, or your body is accustomed to stimulants, the side effects of too much caffeine can be rather unpleasant. Just so you know what to look for, they include tremors, shakiness, accelerated heartbeat, and dizziness."

"Thank you," she said, still smiling over the warm beverage.

"That cup has cream and sugar in it. Some prefer milk instead of cream, or calorie-free sweeteners, and a variety of flavorings. I won't tell you all of them, there's just too many. But we have a pretty steady supply of coffee around the city, so feel free to experiment."

"I will."

For a while the two of them just sat enjoying their coffee, Carson appearing much less tired than he had before. Meanwhile, Alex's mood seemed to lift. She marveled that just being in the doctor's presence made her somehow feel better. Something of these thoughts must have come through in her expression as she stared down into her coffee.

"Penny for your thoughts," Carson prompted softly.

Not understanding, Alex cocked her head slightly in question.

"It's a human expression. It means I'm curious what you're thinking, but don't want to be rude by asking directly," he explained.

Alex considered this for a moment, not sure where to start. "What is crying?" she found herself finally asking.

"Crying is a physical reaction to an emotional stimuli. Sometimes people cry when their happy, or angry, or sad, or hurt," he explained.

Alex nodded. "There was liquid coming out of my eyes."

Eyeing her a bit more closely, Carson said, "After the incident in the mess hall?"

She nodded.

"It's normal. I imagine you probably were a bit unhappy about what happened."

"I felt…a lot. I can't put it all into words, but it was a bit overwhelming."

"I hadn't thought to ask you this with all that was going on, but what about the emotional state of Wraith. Do you feel happy, sad, love, comfort?"

Considering this for a moment as she sipped her coffee, Alex shook her head. "No. Thinking back on it, I think most Wraith feel little beyond a territorial instinct, dominance, anger, lust, and a twisted sort of euphoria when feeding."

"Then you're likely in for many more such episodes," Carson warned. "Humans feel many things good and bad. Some feel them more strongly and frequently than others. You understand I'm a medical doctor and that I work with the body, right?" He waited for her nod to continue, "There are many other types of doctors. Some that have specialties. One type of doctor addresses issues of the mind and emotional state. We have one here in Atlantis. Her name is Doctor Kate Heightmeyer. I can introduce you, if you'd like?"

Alex considered this for a moment. "Perhaps later. For now, I'm still getting adjusted to my surroundings and this body. But I will keep her in mind. Thank you."

"Let me know if there's anything I can do. I'm sure you're going to have plenty more questions as time goes by."

To this, she nodded. Before she could say anything else, however, they heard the sound of Colonel Sheppard speaking with her two guards just as they were finishing their coffee. There was a brief exchange before he dismissed them knowing the new morning guards would be arriving shortly.

"You can come in, Colonel," Carson called.

"Hiya, Doc. Alex," Sheppard greeted poking his head around the curtain. Then he caught sight of the cup in her hand. "Doc, did you really just give her coffee?" he asked incredulously.

"Aye," Carson said, as if irritated at having his judgement question.

Turning back to Alex with a serious expression Sheppard said, "You'd think he'd know better. Caffeine is a highly addictive substance. You'll soon find yourself unable to function without it. And that's if you don't wind up building an alter to worship at."

At this Carson thumped Sheppard on the arm. "I do not!"

Barking a laugh, Sheppard pointed out, "You have over fifty flavors of coffee and a dozen flavors of creamer and every sweet thing you can think of to put in it. There's an entire room of the infirmary just for your coffee."

"It's not just mine, and it's called a break room," Carson argued.

"See what I mean?" Sheppard said. "He even has to justify it. That's a clear sign of addiction."

"You're just jealous that I was able to smuggle in a Keurig," the doctor shot back smugly.

Alex found herself unable to stop a smile of her own at their banter. Play time over, Sheppard crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway, eyeing her.

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine."

"Major Lorne told me what happened. You wanna give me your side?"

Frowning slightly, Alex recalled once again the events of the mess hall. Again leaving out the fact that the mood of the entire room changed whenever she entered. Sheppard and Carson listened in silence their expressions neutral. For a few moments after she fell to silence, Sheppard seemed to consider this before turning to Carson.

"They all seemed pretty hostile?" he asked the doctor.

"I wouldn't say hostile, but there was a definitely feeling of anger and accusation."

"Has anyone else threatened you or given you any trouble?" Sheppard asked Alex.

"No."

Sensing there was more to this, Carson reached out and touched her knee gently, "You can tell us, lass."

"I'm sorry," Alex apologized, realizing that Carson was thinking she didn't trust them. "It's not that I don't trust you. But I'm accustomed to isolation, I suppose. Being surrounded by hundreds or even thousands of hostiles is nothing new to me. I was a Wraith queen. They must always watch their back."

"See, Doc, hostile," John shot back with a lop-sided grin.

"I mistakenly hoped I would not be seen as a Wraith among humans," she told them, her disappointment clear. "But when I seem to draw a considerable amount of attention wherever I go."

"Don't worry, Alex," Sheppard said casually. "They'll get over it. You're just new, that's all. It's human nature to take a dislike to whatever is new or unfamiliar. They just don't know you, yet."

"He's right," Carson added. "Give them time."

Alex just nodded to this, still hearing the echo of "pet Wraith" in her mind. Catching sight of a lock of her stark white hair she said hesitantly. "I've seen many colors of hair amongst all of you. Do you think coloring my hair would help them see me differently?"

Knowing this conversation was ranging way out of his territory, Sheppard glanced to Carson. Carson didn't miss a beat in his reply.

"Perhaps, but that is your choice. It's unique, that's for certain. Personally, I think it suits you."

Alex nodded again, processing this. Hoping the moment was passed, Sheppard stepped in.

"Doctor Weir wanted to meet us in a little while. I can take you up there. I told your day shift guards to meet us there. If you're done with her, Doc, we can get out of your hair."

As if only just remembering, Carson reached into his lab coat pocket. "Just a moment, Colonel, and you can be on your way."

Fetching a band aid and an alcohol swab, Carson made quick work of the injection. Alex still marveled at his gentle and deft touch. It was virtually painless. With a smile Beckett sent them on their way and returned to his morning infirmary rounds. Feeling somewhat exposed without her guards, Alex engaged in small talk with Sheppard as they made their way to the command center. As they approached the walkway to Doctor Weir's office they could see McKay pacing and shouting as Weir sat calmly at her desk.

"…Carson's little pet—"

"Rodney!" Weir interjected seeing Alex and the Colonel approaching her door.

This he ignored completely. "It's true!" McKay continued. "Who knows what it's really going to do? If it really wanted to, it could wreak havoc just through the control panels in her room. It needs to be back in that prison cell, behind a force field, where it can't touch anything."

Alex stopped Sheppard's attempt to cut Rodney off with a restraining hand on his arm. Weir, eyes locked on Alex, her face white with anger and her lips thinned, seemed to take her cue from the former Wraith queen and let Rodney have his say.

"It shouldn't be left alone. You heard about what happened in the mess hall! It attacked a dozen people! It needs to be locked up. Or, better yet, send it to some barren planet…where…"

Rodney's words tapered off quickly as he realized he'd just paced back around to find himself face to face with Alex and Sheppard. Feeling the heat in her cheeks, Alex struggled to remain utterly calm.

"Oh, hi…Sheppard," Rodney said.

"McKay—"

Alex cut him off. "Please, Doctor McKay. Don't let me interrupt your conversation. I can wait my turn to speak with Doctor Weir."

"Oh, well, that," Rodney seemed to fumble. Glancing at Sheppard's furious expression he cocked his head back angrily, "Oh come on! It doesn't matter how you disguise it. It's a Wraith in human clothing!"

"Rodney…" Sheppard growled.

"No! I'm not going to sit here and just let it con you guys. I don't know what game it's playing, but you would do well to remember that a few months ago, it was sucking the life out of Sheppard on camera. Forget Wraith plots. This could be another one of Kolya's games!"

"That's true. You have no way of knowing what plots I weave," Alex replied, still showing utter calm. "I could be working for Kolya. But have you ever known a Wraith to work for humans rather than enslave and murder them?"

"There's always a first," he shot back. "You might have been working with him to buy your freedom."

"And that is why I wished to become human?"

"Maybe you just wanted to become human to serve Kolya better."

Instead of replying, Alex nodded as if having come to a decision. "I see there is no convincing you, so I'll not try. You're opinion means little, anyway. Those who actually matter will know where I stand. Are you quite finished?"

Weir dropped her head trying to hide a grin and Sheppard struggled to keep an angry glare as he crossed his arms. Meanwhile Doctor McKay began spluttering in near-speechless fury.

"'Those who actually matter'?! You have no idea. Without me this city—"

"Yes, Rodney. We're all quite impressed with your accomplishments," Weir cut him off. "But this is not the time nor the place. Come, sit down Alex."

Rodney stormed off to a nearby corner leaving the other seat for Sheppard, who flopped into it lazily; still occasionally glaring over his shoulder at McKay. Weir continued to glare at the astrophysicist until she was certain he would not start up his angry tirade again. Finally she turned her attention to Alex. Her expression softened somewhat.

"How are you settling in?" she asked.

"As well as can be expected."

"Doctor Beckett informed me of the incident in the mess hall earlier this morning."

Her cheeks coloring slightly again, Alex nodded. "It was an accident."

"So he said. You startled Doctor Pontner?"

"The way Captain Song tells it, Doctor Pontner pretty much jumped out of his skin. And somewhere in another galaxy there are Pomeranians jealous of his yelping skills," John piped up.

Doctor Weir's mouth twitched slightly as she repressed a grin. "How are you feeling about all of this?" she finally asked.

Alex considered this for a moment. "As I said, there is much for me to learn and adjust to. But it is…uncomfortable, at times."

"That's understandable. Did Carson mention a Doctor Heightmeyer?"

"Yes."

"Good. She can help you adjust. I've informed her of your situation. You need not make an appointment. Just let her know when you would like to speak with her."

"Thank you. I will."

"That's all well and good. Small talk over. Can we get to the real reason it's here? I've got lots of important stuff to be doing."

Again Weir's mouth twitched as if she wanted to smile, but didn't. "Very well, Rodney. Explain."

Grabbing one of the two laptops stacked on the corner of Weir's desk, Rodney started, "This is a laptop. It is a portable computer for humans," he stressed. "These are capable of storing a terabyte of data. There are two assigned to you. They will be switched out daily. I will send someone each evening for the one you're using and they will give you the other. Each day the data will be dumped and the disc wiped clean for the next day. They have no network access and no way to connect. All that hardware was removed, completely. Every program on here is written by me. I know my code. If there is a single line of code altered—"

"Doctor McKay, that's enough," Weir barked.

"Fine. Just know that I'm watching. Any questions? No? Good."

Not waiting for a reply or to acknowledge anyone else in the room, McKay stormed out of the office. The silence that followed was one of exasperated thanks that he was gone.

"Now then," Weir asked, glad to continue. "Each of the laptops has a program that translates Wraith to human English, the most common language of this galaxy. And it has the ability to translate from English to Wraith. I know you mentioned that you did not possess much engineering or other knowledge. But, what you do know, I expect you to give thoroughly. Leave out no details. Assume nothing. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. Would you like someone to help you get started?"

"No, thank you."

"Very well. This is a charger. The average battery life—portability life, I guess you could say—is ten to twelve hours. This you will plug in here," she instructed, "and the other end plugs in to an outlet with the same number of holes. Your guards today…" she glanced to Sheppard.

"Black and Cruz," he supplied.

"Black and Cruz can show you the outlets in your quarters when you get there. Any questions?"

"No. Thank you."

"Sheppard?"

"Nothing here," he added.

"In that case, have a good day, Alex."

"Thank you."

Taking the laptop and charger in hand, Alex followed Sheppard out of the office. At the end of the little walkway two more Marines waited their turn at guard duty. For a moment Sheppard eyed the two of them with his hands on his hips. Finally he motioned for them to follow away from the command center and into the adjacent corridor that would lead to Alex's quarters in the nearly abandoned living areas.

"Listen up. I'm sure you two have heard about the mess hall incident by now."

"Yes, sir," they said in unison.

"I don't know what you heard, but it was an accident. Pontner was startled and lost his footing. Understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"You're here to protect the city from Alex. The other half of your duty is to protect Alex from the city. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Now I want there to be no misunderstandings, and you will share these words with anyone else you know is in the rotation for guard duty. If anything happens to her at the hands of anyone else in this city, you will be held responsible and you will answer to me."

The one on the left that had been glancing to Alex and back to Sheppard asked, "Permission to speak freely, sir."

"Always, Captain."

"Sir, we're aware of what really happened in the mess hall and what took place in the infirmary. Word has spread through the city about Doctor Beckett's 'pet wraith'."

Sheppard's face looked like a thundercloud about to burst, but he kept his peace.

"Song and Vasquez filled us in. Would it not be best to keep her restricted to her quarters for the time being?"

"No it wouldn't, Captain. She's been imprisoned by the Genii for possibly centuries. She earned her freedom in helping Beckett with his research. And if I hear that suggested from any of you again, a distasteful guard duty will be the least of your concerns when I move you to clean-up crews in the lower levels of the city mucking out layers of sea slime. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir!" they both snapped.

"Good."

Sheppard glared at them both one last time before relaxing his expression and turning back toward Alex. For a moment he considered her before he grinned slightly, "Not the auspicious start you had hoped?"

Shaking her head, Alex felt her heart sinking.

"Tell ya what. I skipped breakfast with all the hubbub going on. You hungry?"

"Yes."

"It's a date, then," Sheppard quipped. "Let's drop off the hardware. I've got an idea."

Alex followed as they returned to her quarters where Sheppard showed her where and how to plug in the laptop. Leaving it behind, he guided them to the mess hall. Again conversation nearly ceased, though the low hum of whispers continued. Sheppard made a point of ignoring it openly but made a mental note of it, and Alex followed suit. There they grabbed a couple of trays of what remained of the breakfast foods, and he led them back out into the corridor and in a different direction. A few minutes later he poked his head out through a door leading to a balcony and smiled at seeing it empty.

"Picnic brunch," he announced, settling himself on the balcony floor with his legs stretched out and crossed in front of him.

Looking around in wonder, Alex sat on the opposite side of the balcony. Here in the sunlight her cat-like eyes became all that much more distinct as the pupil narrowed to a mere slit. Her pale skin and white hair with those blue eyes gave her an almost angelic appearance in his mind. There was no doubt she was a beauty in an innocent sort of way. The lack of makeup and artificial agents made her seem all the more innocent to him.

Alex was so absorbed in her view of the sparkling city sprawling below them and the sky dotted with fluffy clouds that she nearly forgot to eat. Sheppard grinned and let her be as they shared their meal in a surprisingly comfortable silence. Sadly this interlude was short-lived as Sheppard's radio went off all too soon.

"This is Colonel Sheppard. Go ahead." A few seconds later he replied. "I'm on my way. Sheppard out."

Heaving a sigh, he helped Alex to her feet. "Duty calls."

"Thank you for this," she said.

"Don't mention it. I'll take the trays since I'm headed that way. I'll catch you later."

The peaceful moment over, Alex glanced one more time over the balcony railing at the beauty before her. With a sigh of her own, she turned her feet toward her quarters and to the one thing of use she could still contribute.