"McKay?"

Rodney almost jumped at the unexpected voice in his ear. He walked away from the doctor and Carson before answering. "What?"

"We're going to the mess hall, but figured we'd check to see if they're done with Carson yet."

Rodney looked at his friend, who was sitting on the bed while the doctor helped him put his jacket back on. "Doc."

Both Carson and the Daedalus doctor looked at him.

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Sheppard wants to know if we're through here."

The doctor looked at Carson for a second, before nodding at Rodney.

"Sheppard? Carson's A-OK and ready to go."

The door behind Rodney silently opened, and John's voice suddenly said, "Good."

Rodney spun around, startled. "You do that to me on purpose!"

John looked contrite. "Aw, Rodney…" He paused. "Of course I do!" he said, his expression changing to a smile.

Rodney shook his head.

Carson smiled as he watched his friends. John and Rodney were the biggest pair of 'snarksters' he'd ever known.

Teyla smiled as she neared the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, I'm fine, love, just fine," Carson said, standing from the bed. He took a step towards them, before the doctor grabbed his arm and stuck something in his hand.

"For that headache," said the doctor.

Carson read the name on the three small packets that he now held. Approving, he nodded. "Thanks."

The doctor nodded back, and the Atlantis team left.

Carson noticed that his friends kept him in the middle of the group as they walked, as if to protect him.

"So what do you think this place has for good chow?" John suddenly asked.

"Humm," said Rodney. "Whatever they have, I'm sure it's better than that mystery gunk that the new cook makes on Atlantis. Have any of you tried it? Blech! I thought I was poisoned!"

Teyla laughed and shot Carson a bright smile, and the doctor smiled back. He knew what was going on; his friends were babbling about silly, everyday nonsense in order to make things feel normal for him.

To make him forget that he'd just been a prisoner of the wraith.

Carson didn't hear anything else that was said for the next minute. All he heard instead was Michael's voice…

Let's begin…

A touch to his sleeve brought Carson out of it, and he found Teyla with her hand around his arm. "Carson?" she said.

Blinking, he found that the others were standing a few feet in front of him. Considering that he'd been in the middle of the crowd a moment ago, it was obvious that he'd suddenly stopped walking.

"Oh," he said, giving Teyla a sheepish smile. "Sorry. I was…thinkin'."

She smiled back, but the concern in her expression was unmistakable.

Carson walked forward, pretending not to notice the worried looks on his friend's faces.

Entering the mess hall, they found it half-full of people. Apparently it was evening, which none of the Atlantis team had even realized.

Carson looked at all the food; there was quite a lot. It all looked delicious, but he found himself completely without an appetite.

Ronon started piling food onto his plate, taking seemingly a little of everything. John headed straight for a cheeseburger, but Rodney was more picky, taking his time in choosing what he wanted.

Teyla choose chicken and salad, nearly dropping it when Rodney backed into her, trying to look at all the food from the beginning again.

"What are you having, Carson?" John suddenly asked.

Carson blinked, realizing that they were nearly at the end of the line. "Oh." He knew they would worry if he said he wasn't hungry, so he picked up a bowl of chicken soup.

John frowned when he saw, and Carson realized that he hadn't eaten anything during the time that he was Michael's prisoner. Chicken soup seemed awfully meager, but Carson didn't really care.

Everyone took their trays to an empty table in the back of the room, and both Ronon and Rodney dug in almost before they were even seated.

Carson sat next to Rodney and looked around the room, still struck by the fact that he was no longer tied to a cot in a tent.

The other three men ate like they were starving, and Carson wondered how long they'd all gone without food while rescuing him. Looking at his soup, he found it unappetizing, and merely played with his spoon.

"You gonna eat?" Rodney suddenly said, mouth full. "Or are you waiting for someone to feed you?"

"I will enjoy feeding on you," said Michael, pacing around the cot, purposely taunting his captive. "You know what I wish to know. You will either give me the information that I require, or I will forcefully take it from you."

Carson trembled, though he tried to control it, not wanting the wraith to see his fear. "I can't help ya, lad."

Michael stared at him for a minute, before suddenly lunging forward, his hand aimed at Carson's chest.

The poor doctor couldn't prevent a cry of fear.

But Michael stopped, his hand a mere few inches above him.

Carson's eyes were clenched shut, his breathing erratic and heart pounding wildly. It took him a few seconds to realize that nothing had happened, and he wearily reopened his eyes.

Michael smiled at him, his hand hovering over the doctor's chest. "Tell me."

Carson swallowed, visibly shaking. "N-no," he said, hardly able to get the word out.

"You are braver than you look," Michael said. "Very well." He stood up straight, pulling his hand away.

Carson watched, not feeling very brave.

Without warning, Michael suddenly reached forward and placed both hands on either side of Carson's head. "Tell me!" he shrieked. The voice which had sounded so human a moment ago now sounded fully wraith; the voice of nightmares.

The unexpected sound nearly gave Carson a heart attack. "No!" he answered again, despite his terror.

Michael laughed and closed his eyes, squeezing his hands against Carson's skull.

The doctor tried to pull away, but his gasps of fear turned into gasps of pain when sudden agony ripped through his head.

Michael laughed when Carson cried out in shock.

"Stop!" Carson exclaimed, fighting to get free. It felt like someone was digging through his brain with an axe…

"Carson!"

"Ahh!" the doctor exclaimed, startling badly.

Rodney and Teyla, on either side of him, both had their hands on his arms. John and Ronon had both stood and come around the table.

"Are you all right?" asked John. Numerous times he'd heard the phrase 'the blood drained from their face', but he'd never seen it to the extent that had just suddenly happened to their friend. He was surprised that the doctor hadn't fallen off the chair in a dead faint.

Carson didn't answer; he just sat there, shaking and disoriented, blinking as he looked at his concerned friends.

Being in the military for so long, John knew what it was like to have flashbacks of traumatic events. "It's okay, Carson, you're safe. We're on our way home."

Carson blinked, the eyes in his sheet-white face gaining some comprehension. "H-home," he whispered, shakily raising a hand to rub one side of his throbbing head.

John nodded.

Carson sighed raggedly, looking up at John with full recognition again. He felt Rodney and Teyla's hold, and patted Teyla's hand. "Sorry."

"For what?" she asked.

Carson shrugged, trying to will away the shakes. "Makin' ya all worry. I'm all right."

"No you're not," said Ronon. "No one would be."

"Perhaps you should lie down?" Teyla suggested.

Carson nodded, suddenly exhausted. "Aye."

Everyone stood, forgetting the remains of their food as they left the table, though Ronon grabbed the last chicken leg off his plate.

John led the way down the hall and eventually stopped at a door, peeking inside when it opened. "We all get to bunk together. Won't that be fun?"

"Oh great," said Rodney, looking at the bunkbeds that filled the room. "We'll have to listen to Ronon snore all night!"

"I don't snore," Ronon said.

"Yes you do," Rodney told him.

"No I don't."

"Yes you do."

"No I don't."

"Yes you do!"

Ronon held his fist in the scientist's face. "No I don't."

Rodney had to cross his eyes to look at the fist. He glanced back up at Ronon and took a step back. "Snore? You? Never!"

Ronon went hrumph "Thought so. You're the one who snores."

"No I—" Rodney cut himself off at the sight of Ronon's fist again.

Carson walked over to the nearest bed and plopped down on it, without even removing his jacket. He flung an arm over his eyes, and simply lay there. A hand unexpectedly touched his arm.

"You did not eat," said Teyla's voice. "I will get you some food."

Carson tried to remove the arm from his eyes, but it felt like lead. "That's okay, lass, I really don' wanna eat. Thanks, though."

Teyla patted his arm. "I will bring something anyway and leave it on the bed-table, for when you wake."

Carson sighed inwardly. Apparently he wasn't going to survive the mother-henning that she'd probably learned from him. He peeked an eye out from under his arm, not wanting to appear rude. "Thanks."

She smiled and stood, heading for the door.

"Bring me a Big Mac!" Rodney called to her.

"You're still hungry?" said John.

Teyla frowned and turned. "A big what?"

Carson couldn't help but smile.

"Forget it. I'll come too," said the scientist.

Teyla and Rodney both left, leaving behind John and Ronon.

Carson kept the arm over his eyes, but he could feel the tension emanating out of the other two. He pretended to be asleep, though he knew they wanted to ask him questions.

Questions that he wasn't able to answer.

It wasn't just that he wasn't ready to talk; it was also because he couldn't make sense of everything. There were some things that he remembered all too vividly, but other memories were so distant that he wasn't sure if they'd really happened. So many things had flashed through his head while Michael probed his mind, that he didn't know if the wraith had learned of Atlantis' shield or merely seen him perform his first surgery.

One thing was for sure; Michael had definitely learned something; and the notion terrified him.

Sighing raggedly, Carson flung the arm off his eyes, and saw John startle from the movement. "Sorry, Colonel."

"S'ok," John said. He was sitting on the bunk to Carson's right, facing the doctor. "Carson?"

"Aye?"

John hesitated for a second. "I know that you're probably not ready yet, but you know that you can talk to any one of us, right?"

Carson turned his head to look at him.

"Me and Ronon have been through plenty of things like what you just went through. I was captured in Afghanistan, you know, and you know what the wraith did to Ronon." He shrugged with one shoulder. "Just wanted you to know that you're not alone."

"He's right, doc," said Ronon. "We're all a team."

Carson smiled at them. "Thanks, lads. I'll tell ya everythin', just…not now."

John nodded. "Keep in mind that there are some things we need to know sooner rather then later."

Carson sighed. He knew exactly what John referred to. "Aye. Tomorrow, please…just let me sleep tonight." If I can.

John nodded again. "Will do."

Just then, they heard a 'shhh!' outside the door, obviously coming from Teyla.

Carson quickly turned onto his left side, not wanting them to see him awake. He really didn't feel like talking anymore.

A few seconds later, Teyla and Rodney came back in, practically on tiptoes.

John held a finger to his lips, helping Carson with his ruse.

A tray was quietly placed on the nightstand, but to Carson's surprise, a slim hand suddenly reached over his body and took hold of his wrist. Carson was startled, but quickly closed his eyes and managed to remain still.

Teyla's hold was so gentle that he would not have felt it if he'd really been asleep. Carson realized that she was fixing a bandage that must've come loose. He hoped that she couldn't feel his pulse; his heart was pounding, and he knew it could give away the fact that he was still awake.

A moment later, Teyla removed her hand. "Sleep well," she whispered.

Carson smiled again. He had such wonderful friends…

TBC