Kathy did not wake up in a good mood the next morning. The first thought into her head was, Did John read my file? The panic on my face, he would have. Oh no, he probably did. He would, wouldn't he?
Her mind followed this unhappy trail despite her ill-tempered attempts to stop it, and out of an effort to force herself to focus on other things, she rolled out of bed and headed for the shower.
Yawning as she came back out and started pulling on her uniform-showers always made her feel sleepy as well as clean, for some reason-Kathy once again went back to her previous train of thought.
"Yeah, so he could have read my file," she said aloud. "He probably did. He definitely should. But that doesn't necessarily mean he has." She fastened her watch around her wrist, tugging it this way and that until it was located satisfactorily. "Besides," she continued, "next time I talk to him, I'll be able to see it for myself."
She paused. "Wait, next time? When did I decide there would be a next time? We've gone four years without seeing each other, we can go another four without hearing a word of each other again."
Kathy wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing.
She sighed and shook her head. "Well, face it, Kathy girl, you won't find out by standing in the bathroom worrying." She shook her soggy head and rummaged through her drawers in search of the hair dryer.
Later, as ready for the day as she could get, Kathy went out into the mess hall, and found herself standing in line behind John Sheppard.
She closed her eyes slowly. Okay, God, I think I got your point. Her eyeballs rolled in an exasperated and slightly irritated gesture towards the heavens, and she thought again, I think I got your point!
"Hey, John," she said, forcing her voice to be bright and cheery.
John turned and looked at her, and it was rather obvious that he hadn't had his coffee yet. "We meet again," he replied in a rough morning voice. "Have you been following me?"
"Actually, no," Kathy said, pointing behind John for him to see that the person ahead had moved forward. They shifted position. "It seems that while before we couldn't find each other, now we can't stay away from each other."
"Well, there's always offworld," John said. "From what I understand you don't go there." He was watching her casually, but Kathy could see the sharpness in his eyes. No, he hadn't read her file. But oh, he was a sharp one. He would be watching. And the slightest warning would send him deep into her paperwork.
"No, not really," Kathy replied, trying to squelch the impulse to shudder. "Not my thing."
"That's what Rodney said," John answered. "It still isn't his thing, but he still does it."
"I'm not an astrophysicist," Kathy said, allowing John to scoop some steaming eggs onto her plate, holding out her hand to say when. "I, sir, am an epidemiologist. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the difference."
"All I heard was 'ist', 'ist', and 'ist'," John said, placing a healthy portion of eggs onto his plate. "I think the rest was Latin."
Kathy laughed, and something inside of her finally released. "You didn't read my file," she said, deciding there wasn't any point in beating around the bush, and besides, she wasn't prone to do that anyway.
John looked surprised, and possibly impressed, as he reached for the bacon. There were two tongs, so they could serve themselves at the same time. "No."
"Thank you," Kathy replied with sincerity, placing two of the crispy strips next to her eggs. "It means a lot to me that you're willing to trust me, even after seeing my panic attack in Colonel Carter's office yesterday. Not every guy would do that."
"I still might," John said, a warning note in his voice, as though to say that a bit of flattery or gushing wouldn't stop him. Good, Kathy thought. She found it hard to respect guys like that anyway. John seemed to realize that he was about to place a ninth piece of bacon on his plate, so he stopped and put the tongs and the strip back in their place.
"I wouldn't be surprised," Kathy replied, grabbing an English muffin and slathering on the cream cheese. "You're a leader, it's your duty to make certain that your people are safe. That comes before opinions anytime. I'm just grateful that you decided to give me a chance."
"I thought that I could," John said, passing over the English muffins for a bagel and also laying the cream cheese on thick. "Don't make me think otherwise."
"I can only try," Kathy said honestly. "Since I barely know you, I don't know exactly what would make you think otherwise." Finally, the orange juice! Kathy grabbed a cup and poured it up to the lip.
"Well then, I guess that means you'll have to get to know me better," John said as he poured himself some orange juice too, and swooped down upon the coffee.
Kathy followed him. "That ought to be interesting," she said. "But, I was supposed to have coffee with Jennifer yesterday, and I promised I'd make up for it today since my original meeting for this morning has been moved to another time. So, catch up with you later."
"See ya," John said, and they split off to go to their separate tables.
Kathy walked up to where Jennifer was sitting, busily working on her tablet, and with a loud sigh, said, "Well, my morning's been an interesting one."
"Been up since three a.m., don't talk to me about mornings," Jennifer replied distractedly, still focused on the tablet.
Kathy set her tray down and gently nudged Jennifer's device aside. "Girl, save it for later. You are here, with breakfast and coffee, to relax, and have a little girl time. Pick up the tablet when work time comes around."
Jennifer sighed and reluctantly set the tablet away. "You know, technically I'm the one who gives you orders?"
"Yeah, well, you knew you wanted to stop anyway," Kathy chuckled. She smiled when she noticed the empty mug by Jennifer's hand. "I see you've already had your coffee."
"Three so far," Jennifer replied. "First one was horrible, though, so I didn't finish it. I think I might have accidentally gotten myself black."
Kathy chuckled. "Three in the morning, I wouldn't be surprised. Want a refill?"
"Actually, breakfast sounds appealing after three doses of caffeine," Jennifer said.
"Oh, don't I know that," Kathy said. She sighed theatrically. "College."
Simultaneously, both women said, "The pits."
"For anyone who values sleep, anyway," Kathy said. "Ah, me? Stuff's overrated."
Jennifer's eyebrows went up as she forked a piece of eggs. "Give it up, Kathy. You're not fooling anyone."
Kathy pouted. "A girl can dream, you know."
Jennifer smiled. She took a bite of her eggs and reached for her orange juice. The two friends nibbled and talked, starting out light but inevitably ending up on the serious end of things.
"So, how's Major Lorne's team?" Kathy asked. "I kinda zoned out for the rest of yesterday after I went to see Colonel Carter, so I never got the news. Was I right about the poison?"
"More right than you know," Jennifer replied, forehead creasing in worry. "They're alright for now, but they're pretty traumatized, and starting to look a bit feverish. The only reason I came in here at all is that I was practically begged to by the other doctors. I'll be alerted if anything happens."
"Poor Lorne," Kathy said. "Last week he tried to kill people in his sleep, and now he tried to kill people in a fit of poison-induced paranoia. Are they conscious?"
"Right now, yes. They don't remember anything."
Both seemed to realize that their trays were empty and neither had enough appetite for seconds, so together they got up and left. Kathy noticed that John watching her leave. The guy was so observant it scared her.
They exited the hall and headed for a transporter. "So, do we know exactly what is was that got introduced into their system?" Kathy asked.
Jennifer shook her head in the negative. "No," she said. "Our chemists and toxicologists are still trying to figure it out. They're thinking it could have been absorbed through their skin."
"Oh, those ones are just miserable to trace," Kathy said as they stepped into the transporter.
"It looks like it may be a chemical derived from a natural source, probably a plant," Jennifer said, stepping out as the doors opened and they exited into a new location. "We can't be sure, though. According to our experts, it couldn't exist in the environment of either the planet Lorne's team went to or the planet they came from."
"So a third planet's involved?" Kathy asked, dodging as someone bolted for the transport. "Great."
"Yeah, Colonel Sheppard's not too thrilled about it," Jennifer said. "Neither is Dr. McKay, for that matter. They say that searching for it is going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack, except there are three needles and twice as many haystacks."
She stopped a beat and frowned. "No, that doesn't make sense. I meant three needles and three haystacks."
"Same thing, right?" Kathy asked. "So this means that so far we have very little, if anything at all. I'm guessing this is why you've been up since three a.m."
"Bingo," Jennifer replied, unconsciously rubbing at her eyes. "I feel like crap and the results have been crappier. Dr. Parrish and Dr. Neal are going to start going for each other's necks soon."
"Jon Parrish and Isaac Neal?" Kathy grimaced. "Who put those two in a room together?"
"Dr. Parrish is a botanist; Dr. Neal a toxicologist," Jennifer explained. "This chemical, poison, whatever it is, belongs in both and neither of their arenas. They can't agree on anything, and each insists that it belongs solely under their supervision."
"Oy," Kathy sighed in sympathy for her friend. "Three a.m. is bad, but with those two together? Yikes. And didn't you say that some of the chemists were involved, too?"
"Yes, Dr. Pokorny's heading that team," Jennifer told her. "Thankfully, he hasn't been as much of a problem."
"Yeah, Jeff's pretty easygoing," Kathy said. "Good thing, with Jon and Neal working together."
"Oh, he's a saint."
"And cute besides," Kathy added. Jennifer couldn't help but giggle. "Gotta love Texans."
Kathy looked over at her friend, who had lost her grin and was looking thoroughly unhappy with the situation. "I could see if I can help out with anything," she offered. "I do have a Master's in toxicology, so I'll be able to understand some of what they talk about. At the very least I can calm Jon and Neal down."
"For that alone I will throw in there!" Jennifer exclaimed, her relief clear to see. "Thanks, Kathy. No, really. There is going to be homicide soon if those two don't get their feathers unruffled."
"I'm friends with them both, so they'll listen to me," Kathy said. "Which lab are they-"
"Dr. Keller!"
Kathy and Jennifer's heads swung up to see who was there. Dr. Neal was just exiting the infirmary, bearing an anxious expression. The moment he saw Jennifer he ran up to her and said, "Dr. Keller, there's been an accident. We need you to come see this."
His expression was filled with horror. Kathy's heart shook with fearful worry.
"A-alright," Jennifer stammered, clearly taken aback by Neal's intense manner, and the words there's been an accident. Those were the worst words any doctor could ever hear. "There are some test results in the infirmary for Major Lorne's team-"
"Now, Doctor!" Neal stressed, taking her arm. Jennifer nodded quickly and followed Neal without resistance. They spun around and took off down the same hallway Jennifer and Kathy had walked up just a moment before. Kathy watched them dash into the transport and disappear, holding her tablet like a book wrapped up in her arms.
She sighed, shaking her head. Here she was again, left out of the loop. She hated being left outside of things.
But wasn't that just what she had wanted?
…
Meanwhile, John had been hailed on his comlink, and a very agitated Dr. Pokorny told him to come to his, Dr. Parrish and Dr. Neal's lab immediately. John told him that he'd be there right away, and took off running.
The alarm in the scientist's voice made John worry. That wasn't the ooh, I found a new shiny voice or the I can't find my pocket protector voice, that was the holy crap something just went seriously wrong voice.
John hated the holy crap something just went seriously wrong voice. It always meant that something had just gone seriously wrong.
And after what had happened yesterday, John really wasn't too keen on finding out how things had just gotten worse.
He entered the nearest transport, selected the place closest to the lab, and sprinted out once the doors reopened. Less than a minute later he was skidding to a halt inside the overview of the lab, where he found Rodney, Dr. Keller, and Colonel Carter.
"What is it?" he asked, slightly breathless from his run.
Keller nodded down, and John looked through the massive overview windows.
"Holy-!"
The room was a massive fog. Something liquid was bubbling and frothing and spilling all over the place, and John couldn't figure out where on earth it was coming from.
"We were just running some tests," a mournful Dr. Parrish said weakly, teary-eyed as he held an icepack against his forehead, hiding whatever damage was underneath. Dr. Pokorny was crouched next to him, mutely staring at the malevolent fog beyond the window. "I stepped out of the room, and then-boom," Parrish finished. His eyes closed and he moaned. "Oh, this is awful."
"Who was in there?" John asked.
"Most of Dr. Neal's assistants, some of Dr. Pokorny's assistants, and all of mine," Parrish replied. "They're… they're all…"
"Oh hell." John turned his head back to the window. The fog grew thicker all the time, but now he thought he could see the faintest outlines of bodies.
"Whatever that stuff is, it's toxic," Dr. Parrish stammered. "Deadly toxic."
John looked at Colonel Carter with an alarmed expression. "This stuff is in Major Lorne's team."
Colonel Carter looked grim. "I know, Colonel. I've told the doctors to watch them even more carefully for any change. Lorne's not happy about it, but he's not going anywhere."
"Why aren't we venting this stuff?" Rodney asked, gesturing out at the fog.
"If we vent it we lose the only samples we have," Carter replied. "Then we have nothing to test with."
John's brow furrowed. "We still have Lorne and his men, though," he said.
"Their bodies have broken down and absorbed the poison," Dr. Keller told him. "What we extracted for the original tests was all we were going to get."
John sighed. "Of course it was."
"We have the digital data," Dr. Neal said, speaking for the first time. For such an intimidating scientist in the lab, his voice wasn't as deep as John would have expected it to be. "It's nowhere near enough, but it's all we have."
John looked over at Colonel Carter. The commanders, first and second, exchanged looks. Without uttering a sound, the two reached an agreement.
"Vent it," Carter said. "Now. I want as little damage to the computers as possible. Colonel, assign some men to take care of the bodies. Bring them to the infirmary, we'll need an autopsy ASAP."
"Yes, ma'am." John turned on his heel and walked away. A few minutes later he and a Marine detail had placed the bodies on gurneys covered with white sheets. The hardest part was walking through the infirmary, because that was where Major Lorne's team was.
It had been determined that whatever had caused them to act the way they did before wasn't contagious, so there wasn't any need for them to be in iso. Major Lorne's eyes grew wide at the sight of the bodies being transported through the infirmary, as did those of his men, and he stepped forward.
"Sir?" it was a question, but the Major already knew the answer. "What happened?"
"Something went wrong with one of the tests," John said tiredly, head sagging as though it could no longer keep itself up. "These people died because of it."
A look of horror and fear came into the Major's face. He looked at the passing gurneys, and John knew he was counting. John knew that he had been counting the whole time.
"Do you know what happened, sir?" Lorne asked.
"That's what we're trying to figure out, Major," John sighed. Days like this were exhausting. More dead, more people who had no idea how to protect themselves slain, more kids who wouldn't return home.
It was a heavy job, being a leader, being responsible for all these people, feeling the crush every time one of them was lost day after day after day.
Major Lorne looked back at John, and the colonel got the strangest feeling that the other man knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Yes, sir," was all the major said, giving his superior a slight nod. He turned around and went to his men, shoulders squared as he prepared to tell them the news.
No, being a leader was not an easy thing.
John turned and watched as the last gurney went past. Eleven, his mental count finished, and he sighed heavily and left the infirmary to tell Colonel Carter that the bodies had been delivered.
There were some days when he wished he hadn't run away from home.
…
Kathy noticed Jennifer the moment she walked into the infirmary. The woman's stature was slumped, heavy, and there was a grieved look to her eyes.
Making certain that her project was safe to leave, Kathy did just that and went over to her friend. She had come in with Drs. Parrish, Neal, and Pokorny, Jon holding an icepack to his forehead, Neal looking his usual grim self, and Jeff with visible tear tracks down his face.
Kathy looked over at them worriedly as she reached Jennifer. "Hey, Jon and Neal didn't-"
"No," Jennifer shook her head. "Dr. Parrish slipped and hit his head."
"Oh." Kathy stepped a little closer to Jennifer. "What happened? You look awful. Everyone who's been coming through here does, and I heard somebody say something about eleven dead…?"
Jennifer sighed, leaning against a counter behind her for support. "It was the poison, the one that was making Major Lorne and his men act so paranoid earlier. Dr. Neal had to… answer the call, Dr. Pokorny had remembered something he'd left in his own lab, so he and one of his assistants were down there, and Dr. Parrish had stepped out for a moment to see what was taking them, and…"
She shook her head, her face in her hands. "I don't even know," she confessed, her voice cracking. "You were there when Dr. Neal fetched me. When we came in there was just smoke everywhere and the chemical was bubbling and the section was shut down and we could only watch as the people…"
Oh God, no. She didn't see this. She didn't. Oh please, please tell me she didn't see this...
Kathy took one of Jennifer's hands and tried to squeeze some strength into it. "Jen?" she asked softly. "It…" She wanted to say it's okay, but it wasn't, was it? Kathy felt as scared as Jennifer did, and she hadn't even been there. But looking into her friend's eyes now Kathy knew that Jennifer needed something, anything to lean on right now.
"I'm here," Kathy said simply, and Jennifer nodded jerkily, her gratitude all in her eyes. "I'm ready to help with any work if you want me to," Kathy volunteered. "Tests, research, shoulder rubs…"
Jennifer didn't smile. "I told you that I'd throw you in there just to keep the air clear between Dr. Parrish and Dr. Neal. That offer's still open, if… if you still want it."
Kathy nodded, gripping Jennifer's hand tight. "Absolutely, Jen," she said, even while thinking I really, really don't want to do this. "Anything you need, I'm your woman."
"Thank you, Kathy," Jennifer said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Kathy nodded. "I'm going to check on the others," she said.
"Okay," Jennifer said. "I need to get to work, anyway."
Feeling reluctant and desperate to go all at once, Kathy turned and walked away. She went over to where a handful of doctors were taking care of Jon. Jeff and Neal apparently weren't injured at all, they were just there for him. As much as the scientists here could bicker, they never wanted to see each other suffer. Neal looked shaken as he stood broodingly over Jon. Shaken enough that Kathy could see it. She rubbed the back of his shoulder soothingly as she came up, and felt him relax some under the touch.
"You okay?" Kathy asked, addressing Neal in a quiet whisper.
"My assistants were just killed by a toxin that shouldn't even be capable of the action it just took," Neal said shortly. "I hate alien worlds, alien toxins, alien galaxies. They don't seem to understand what the borders are."
"That's what makes them alien, Neal. They're from beyond the borders."
"And that's why my people are dead," Neal said, his tone flat and angry. "I wish I could kill someone right now, but what is that going to accomplish?"
Kathy remained silent, soothingly rubbing Neal's shoulder. The scientist was strangely fit, considering his occupation, and the shoulder beneath her hand felt strong. But Kathy knew better. Isaac Neal had never been more vulnerable than he was right now.
Eventually she stepped away from Neal and took the few steps needed to reach Jon, who was sitting on the edge of a gurney as a doctor inspected the gash on the side of his forehead. Kathy recognized the doctor to be Tobias Cook, but she didn't acknowledge him for the moment.
Jon looked pretty beat up, but Kathy had seen worse. She expressed sympathy for his injury, and Tobias confirmed that he had a concussion as well, he had taken quite the fall.
"You're lucky you didn't break your nose," Kathy said, sitting down on the gurney facing Jon.
"My nose?" Jon mumbled, eyes distant. "What's that… compared to all those people?"
"You couldn't have known, Jon," Kathy said gently. "It's not your fault."
"Isn't it?" Jon demanded, focus snapping back and directing itself on her. Tobias pulled his chin the other way so he could see the gash more clearly. "Those people were put under me, Kathy! It was my first time being in charge of anything, and I got them killed. I got all of them killed." He moaned. "It should have been me…"
"Stop that talk," Kathy said harshly. "It should not have been you, it shouldn't have been anybody! It was an accident, Jon Nicholas Parrish, and there is nothing that can be done to change that. You can blame yourself all you want, but you're only making more of a burden for yourself, and a burden you're not meant to carry, what's more."
"Yeah, you're one to talk," Jon muttered resentfully. "Last I checked, I wasn't the one who gets panic attacks whenever offworld missions are mentioned."
Oh, that was a slap in the face.
"Dr. Parrish, I'm going to stitch this," Tobias interrupted at the appropriate time. "You'll probably want some morphine to deaden the pain."
"I don't give a darn," Jon snarled, and the military doctor just shook his head and calmly ordered another doctor to fetch him some morphine.
Kathy figured this was her cue to leave, since in a little while Jon wouldn't be coherent anymore. Besides, she hadn't talked with Jeff yet. Of course, Jeff Pokorny wasn't really one you had to ask questions of-you could see the answers right on his face.
"Can you manage?" Kathy asked Tobias.
The old gentleman smiled. "Kathy, I survived eight years at the SGC and another six in the Cold War," he reminded her. "There isn't much I can't handle."
Kathy nodded as she saw his point: she was outclassed. But he put it kindly, so she didn't mind. Whispering a last word of comfort to Neal as she passed him, Kathy went over to where Jeff was standing at the door. The man towered over everyone in the room, weeping silently. Kathy had always found it strange how he could cry so strongly without making a sound.
"You okay?" she asked softly as she came up.
Jeff tried blinking rapidly but resorted to wiping a sleeve across his face to clear his vision. He looked down at Kathy. "I knew those guys," he said brokenly, making no attempt to curb his flow of tears. "Every single one."
"That's more than I can say," Kathy admitted. "It hasn't really hit me yet. I'm still in shock. I just can't cry, not yet, anyway." Her expression was one of melancholy. "The tears will come, though. They always do."
Jeff nodded, sniffing as he again had to use his sleeve to bring his sight back into his possession. "I know what you mean," he said, voice choked.
Kathy rubbed her hand up and down his long arm comfortingly. "I'm really sorry, Jeff," she said sadly.
"It's not your fault," Jeff replied, looking down at her through his tears. "How could it ever be?"
"If you ever need any help, Jeff, just let me know," Kathy told him. "And I'm serious about that."
"You always are about your promises, Katy," Jeff replied. He shook his head. "Gosh, I mean Kathy. I still get you mixed up with my little sister."
Kathy found herself cracking a smile. "Well, getting mistaken for a Texan is always an honor."
"You got that right," Jeff nodded, still with tears pouring themselves from his eyes. He took a breath to steady himself. "We need to go. Colonel Carter's called a meeting, and you're to come, too."
Kathy blinked up at Jeff in confusion. "I am?" she asked. "Why?"
"I don't know," Jeff replied. "But she does."
"Okay." Now why would she want me? Kathy wondered. "Well, just a sec, I need to take care of my research." She moved quickly across the infirmary, closed everything up, and then went with Jeff out to the transport and off to the meeting with Colonel Carter and the rest of the leadership in the conference room.
Going to a meeting with the head of Atlantis twice in two days? That was more than she had done in the previous three years she had been here. Well, except for meetings regarding the project with the Hoffan drug, which Kathy was still working on. Progress was very slow lately. Work was just so much harder to do without Carson around.
She took a seat along with the rest of the group, next to Jennifer. Altogether, it was Colonel Carter, John, Ronon Dex, Teyla Emmagan, Dr. McKay, Neal, Jeff, Jennifer, and herself seated around the table. All eyes went to the woman sitting at the head.
"All of you know what happened in Dr. Neal, Dr. Parrish, and Dr. Pokorny's lab today," Colonel Carter began. "We have a total of eleven dead scientists, a great tragedy."
There were somber nods around the table. I won't argue with that, Kathy thought.
"Due to the fact that we had to vent all air from the lab, we now have no poison to run tests with," Colonel Carter continued. "We still don't know what it is or where it came from, so it seems that we are left with almost nothing to go on.
"However, we do have digital records of the poison's properties and of most of the tests run on it. Using simulations, we'll have to figure out what it is, what it comes from, where that comes from, how to get there, and, if it comes to that, who administered it."
"So we're working blind?" Kathy asked, just as John said, "You think someone did this to Lorne?" They stared at each other, and John gestured for her to go first, but she shook her head.
"Just a comment," she said. "Questions take priority."
"What makes you think that someone did this to Lorne?" John asked again.
"After their physical examinations, we found small puncture marks around Major Lorne and his men's veins," Jennifer said. "And we did manage to tell that the chemical had in fact entered directly into their bloodstream."
John looked furious. "And you didn't come forward with this before why, Dr. Keller?" he demanded.
"I-we thought it wasn't connected before," Jennifer stammered, intimidated as she always was by shows of aggression. "We thought it was us who had given them the shots."
"Yeah, easy John," Kathy said, giving him a sharp look. "Attack dogs don't go for their handlers' throats."
John didn't look like he appreciated the comparison, and started to make a reply.
"Colonel, Doctor," Colonel Carter called for both of their attention. "Attack dogs also don't go for each other's throats; not when they work for the same side. Right now we need to figure out what has been introduced into the bloodstreams of Major Lorne's team and get it out."
"Didn't Dr. Keller say that their bodies had already broken it down?" Teyla asked. "Doesn't this make Major Lorne's team safe?"
"With as little as we know about this chemical, we can't risk assuming that," Colonel Carter replied. "Now, Dr. Pokorny, Dr. Neal, I need you to get started on those digital files immediately. Dr. Parrish will join you when he is released from the infirmary, and in the meantime Dr. Sanders will assist you."
John looked puzzled about that, Kathy noted.
Jeff raised a tentative hand. "Colonel Carter, ma'am?" he asked. "I would prefer-actually, I think I can say that all of us would prefer working without assistants. Too many people have died today already, and I don't want any more joining them."
"Agreed, Dr. Pokorny, and that is why you-and your assistants-will be supplied with hazmat suits."
Jeff looked like he wanted to disagree, but Colonel Carter's counterpoint was solid. He let it rest.
"Dr. Keller," Colonel Carter went on, "Keep an eye on the state of Major Lorne's team. The nanosecond anything changes, I want to know. Colonel Sheppard, you are to stay on hand should Dr. Keller need any assistance in restraining Lorne's team again. Ronon, Teyla, I would appreciate it if you would help him. McKay, keep looking for those planets. Let's get to work, people."
Everyone jumped up and scrambled out. Kathy paused a moment and placed a hand on Jennifer's shoulder as she said, "You can do this."
Jennifer looked back at her doubtfully. "Thanks, Kathy," she replied hollowly. "But you're the only one here who thinks that."
Kathy was about to answer and try to bolster Jennifer's confidence, but Jeff called to her from the door and so Kathy had to run off with her words unsaid.
Hey guys, I'm back! *wave* Things are better now, the change still happened but it has been for the best.
Oh, and in case you were wondering-yes, Kathy is Christian. Well, Catholic, but close enough I suppose. Anyway, she is a firm God, Son, Holy Spirit believer.
And lol, Dr. Neal isn't leaving me alone. Neither is the mental image of Niall Matter. So now I suppose it is established, Dr. Neal is Niall Matter. (And Dr. Pokorny would be Jared Padalecki. That one I did do on purpose.)