Sheppard snapped awake with his feet still resting on the desk in his office. Apparently, he'd been more tired than he'd realised on settling down to monitor Elizabeth, or perhaps the serenity of watching her sleep had sent him off into slumbers. Unlike him, Elizabeth still slept soundly, her chest rising and falling with each gentle, sleepy breath. She looked so peaceful, all the cares and worries of the last few days missing from her face as they always were when she slept. He wished she could experience the same peace of mind while awake, but after that interview and his chat with the IOA this morning, he suspected her troubles, perhaps all their troubles, were far from over.

He checked his watch, finding he was already late for his scheduled breakfast with Rodney. Bouncing up from his seat, he set off at a jog for the mess hall, keen to keep his tardiness to a minimum to avoid uncomfortable questions.

As he pushed through the door, narrowly avoiding a flustered Dr Biro as she made her exit, he spotted Rodney, Ronon and Teyla already eating along with Dr Keller. He supposed he couldn't be annoyed that he'd lost his seat since he was late, so collected up some breakfast and made his way over to them, planning to hijack a chair from the neighbouring table and join them.

'Good morning, Colonel Sheppard,' he heard a soft voice call to him. He winced, knowing exactly who those dulcet tones belonged to.

Stopping, he turned to greet Dr Heightmeyer. 'Morning, Doctor. Are you well?' he asked pleasantly, hoping that was enough to get him past her.

Unfortunately, it wasn't. 'I'm well, but I do hate taking breakfast alone. Would you mind joining me?' she asked.

Sheppard tried not to make it too obvious he was scanning the rest of the room and mentally calculating just how many free chairs there were at partially occupied tables. Twenty-six, he quickly noted. So why did she need him to join her?

'Er, okay...' he drawled, with the sense he'd been strategically ambushed. 'But I have to eat and run.'

He set his try down and slid into the chair opposite her, picking up his knife and fork and hoping to dive into his meal before she could start talking.

'How're you feeling this morning, Colonel? I hope you don't mind my saying so, but you're looking a little tired.'

Refusing to put down the food he'd just scooped up, Sheppard pushed it into his mouth and chewed it up before responding. 'Well,' he mumbled, pushing what remained of his mouthful into his cheek, 'I've had a lot to deal with these past few days. There hasn't been much time to fit in a full night's sleep.'

'Yes, I can imagine. So it's not that you can't sleep?' she asked, her eyes wide and innocent as she probed deeper.

He looked at the woman he'd spent most of the past three years deftly avoiding, and wondered why she was suddenly so interested. Peering over to his team, he saw Teyla casting him an anxious look, snapping her eyes away when she realised he was looking at her. Teyla saw Kate Heightmeyer regularly, and had often told him how therapeutic she found unloading her troubles on the softly spoken psychologist.

'Well, I do have trouble sometimes...but I'm pretty sure that's down to the pressure of having so much to do.'

He waded into his meal, pushing in a few more mouthfuls while Heightmeyer nibbled on the corner of some toast as she watched him. He could feel her eyes on him, but acted as if he was oblivious.

'I suppose having Elizabeth back among us must have caused you some pretty mixed feelings,' she pushed.

He lifted his eyes from his plate, meeting her sky blue gaze. Someone had been priming her for this conversation. Again, he glanced over at his team's table, and again Teyla quickly looked away.

He shrugged. 'I'll admit I wasn't expecting to find her so easily, but I'm glad she's back.'

'I suppose the IOA are nervous about things...especially because of the potential risk of the Replicator cells spreading.'

'Well, Elizabeth's nanites are showing no signs of multiplying, so I'm sure, given time, they'll relax about things.'

'And you?'

He frowned. 'And me what?'

'Well, if you don't mind my saying so you do seem very tense. A lot of people are worried about you, Colonel. No one wants to see you buckle under the strain. You know my door is open to you any time.'

Actually, I do mind you saying that, and 'buckle under the strain'? Is that what people really think is happening to me? He ran his finger around his collar, then tried to turn the movement into a casual scratch of his neck. This didn't feel like therapy, it felt like a...a violation. Did people actually find this helpful? 'I'm sure you're pretty busy at the moment, what with us all nearly dying lost in space a few days ago. I expect that kind of thing might have traumatised one or two folks.'

'But not you?' she asked, batting her long lashes as she watched him.

How should he answer that? If he said no, it made him sound cold, unfeeling even. But if he said yes it was an admission of weakness. Atlantis was under his leadership; he couldn't afford to get traumatised in times of trouble.

'Well, I'm trained to deal with life and death situations. Sure I get scared, but I have coping mechanisms I can put in place to deal with that. Some of the people here, the civilians, they haven't had that kind of training. I figure they need you more than I do right now.'

She smiled and nodded, seemingly happy with his answer. He wondered if that meant he'd passed whatever test she'd set for him.

'You must find all the administration in your new role a chore. You're a man of action, after all,' Dr Heightmeyer said, changing the subject.

He smirked as he ate another mouthful of scrambled eggs, holding back his laughter so he didn't spray her with masticated food. 'I have a pile of reports in my office that bare testament to just how tedious I find that part of the job,' he confessed. 'I plan to make a start on them this evening unless some crisis or other stops me. Personally, I'm praying for a crisis.'

She gave a genuine laugh, and her face melted into a far less patronising smile. 'You'll excuse me if I say I hope you get a lot of reports read.'

'Yeah, I guess I can forgive you.'

As he continued to eat, he saw his team begin to leave. Ronon passed him first, clapping a heavy hand on his shoulder in greeting, then Rodney rushed past, barely looking his way as he chatted with Keller. Teyla brought up the rear of their group, and he felt her eyes on him, but didn't acknowledge her. He was too angry about this set-up she'd manufactured to wish her a good morning.

'So, how are you feeling about having Elizabeth back on a more personal level,' he heard Heightmeyer ask as he finished up the last mouthful of his meal and swigged back his coffee.

After swallowing it all down, he said, 'I'm happy, of course.'

'You and she are close friends, aren't you?'

He eyed her, squinting as he tried to work out just what she meant by that. He'd already had enough accusations from the IOA about the possible inappropriate nature of his relationship with Elizabeth, he wasn't about to listen to the same garbage from her. 'We're good friends, yes,' he said pointedly replacing the word close with one he felt was more appropriate.

'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause offence —'

'You didn't,' he replied brusquely, cutting her off.

Heightmeyer fell silent and ate a little more of her breakfast, but Sheppard could feel her analysing him still. As far as he was concerned, she could do it in her own time; he'd had more than enough of her crap.

'Well,' he said, making a big show of checking his watch, 'This place doesn't run itself. Thanks for the chat, but I should get going now.'

'That's all right, Colonel. I have to see my first client of the day in less than an hour and I need some time to reprise myself on all of this morning's cases first.'

They parted company, Sheppard still fuming that Teyla had thought him so incapable that she'd put him in such an uncomfortable position.

*****

After checking in at the control room again, Sheppard headed up to his office and fell into the chair behind the desk. Elizabeth's belongings were no longer dotted around the place, and it felt somehow soulless without them. He'd briefly considered moving his Johnny Cash poster in there for decoration, just so it felt a little less cold, but now Elizabeth was back, he didn't want to give her the impression he was moving in on what had always been, and to him would always be, her territory.

He eyed the pile of reports, slipping the first one from the top of the tower and laying it flat on the desktop in front of him. With a sigh, he flipped it open and began to read, yawning as the banality kicked in within seconds. This was going to be a long day if nothing more exciting cropped up soon. He checked the time and promised himself a coffee break and a snack if he did two hours of reading first, as if that was all the incentive he needed to wade in and decimate the heap.

Minutes later his attention was wandering, and his eyes drifted to the office door, which he had left open as Elizabeth always had. From there, he saw Teyla walking past and on toward the stairs.

Jumping up from his seat, he darted to the door and called after her. 'Teyla! You got a minute?'

She turned, looking mildly worried, then smiled and nodded. 'Of course.'

He stepped aside to let her pass him and enter the office, then closed the door behind them. The significance of that action wasn't lost on the Athosian, her face immediately falling. 'Is something wrong, John?'

He took a moment to gather his thoughts before slowly turning and rounding on her. 'I don't appreciate the stunt you pulled this morning, Teyla. Please make sure that doesn't happen again.'

Confusion scored her brow as she looked back at him. 'I...I do not know what you mean.'

'You set me up with Heightmeyer at breakfast. I do not need a shrink, understood? I'm not about to buckle under the pressure,' he made little quotation mark gestured with his fingers as he said the final four words, then planted his hands on his hips and glared at her.

Shrinking away a little under the intensity of his gaze, Teyla defended herself against the accusation. 'I had nothing to do with your encounter with Kate this morning,' she gasped, hand on her heart as if she thought that might make her protest more believable.

'Oh, come on, Teyla. You're always the one banging on about how good she is, and how beneficial you find your little chats. Well, that's all well and good for you, but I don't feel the need to unburden myself to her, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't discuss me with her behind my back.'

She fish-mouthed at him for a few seconds, trying to find the words to fight back. He'd never felt this angry with her before, but he'd never felt this betrayed by her either. She was supposed to be his friend; friends didn't do that kind of thing to one another.

To his surprise, Teyla now came right back at him, her dark eyes bright with anger. 'It is a good thing I did not react so harshly when you first suggested Kate talk to me. I would have missed out on so much help, and the chance of an empowering friendship.' Her eyes narrowed in anger, now. 'But you have never considered yourself as weak as I, have you? I am only a woman –'

'I didn't recommend you speak with her for that reason...you were...are...a valuable member of my team. I didn't want to lose you to stress!'

'Nor I you. But I would have thought you understood me better than this by now, John. I know how much you despise baring your soul. I would never place you in such an uncomfortable situation. Never.'

The final word was said with such vehemence and emotion that her voice cracked with the strain of it. Only then did it occur to him that he might have jumped to the wrong conclusion after all. 'But you were watching us,' he sputtered. 'Why were you so interested if it wasn't you?'

'I was worried. You have never sought advice from Kate before and I was concerned that you had a serious problem if you had gone to her for help,' she explained, clearly still angry with him.

Her argument made sense, perfect Teyla logic he realised, and he dropped his gaze to the floor to break the confrontation. 'I...I'm sorry, Teyla,' he apologised. 'I shouldn't have made assumptions.'

'No you should not have,' she said forcefully, and from the quavering pitch of her voice he could tell she was now fighting back tears.

He lifted his eyes again, seeing the moisture in hers. 'I really am sorry, Teyla,' he said softly, feeling a hitch of emotion clenching in his throat as he saw the sadness in her expression.

'Have I ever been anything other than loyal to you?' she shouted. 'Have I ever given you any cause to question my actions where our friendship is concerned?'

'No...no, never...'

'So why turn this aggression on me now? Why me and not Ronon or Rodney? They are your friends and were also there this morning.'

'Yeah...but Ronon and Rodney? Come on, they're not exactly big exponents of the therapy angle.'

'So, of course, it had to be me? Could it not have simply been that Kate is concerned after everything you have been through recently and offered her support freely?'

'I suppose that does sound reasonable,' he mused, chewing his bottom lip.

'Or perhaps Dr Keller spoke to her on your behalf. You have been to her for treatment, haven't you?'

She was still shouting, and as Sheppard looked out through the glass walls of the office, he could see a number of people looking their way, or working while trying not to look like they were listening in.

'Let's calm this down, shall we?' he said quietly, holding his hands up in mock surrender. 'I made a stupid mistake, and I am very, very sorry.'

'I am tired of always being there for everyone...of being taken for granted...of never having anyone consider my feelings in matters before decisions are made,' she continued to rant, tears now breaking free and running down her cheeks. 'Did you even once consider how I would have felt when you went on your mission to Asuras to steal the ZPM? Did you think about how afraid I was that none of you would return? I was actually relieved when I heard Elizabeth had been taken because it meant three of my four best friends had come home to me. Do you have any idea how terrible it is to feel relief at the death of someone you care about?'

'I...I didn't think about that...there wasn't time to do much thinking. I had to leave Atlantis in the hands of someone I trusted, and I couldn't think of anyone more trustworthy than you!'

'And yet here you are today accusing me of humiliating you...of thinking you cannot cope. How have you lost that trust in such a short passage of time?'

That silenced him. He had no answer to that. Why had he turned his annoyance on her? She was right; he should have known she would never do something like that behind his back. Teyla had always been his most loyal teammate. Annoyed at himself for causing her so much distress, he did something he never did; he reached out and took hold of her shoulders, gripping them to steady her. 'I'm so sorry, Teyla. I don't know what else I can say. You're right. I'm an idiot. I guess all this stuff with Elizabeth has got to me more than I realised.'

Calming, Teyla lowered her head toward him, and John recognised she wished to share the Athosian act of friendship with him. He touched his head to hers, feeling her shuddering breaths as she trembled against his brow.

When she lifted her head again to look at him, all the anger had drained from her, leaving only sadness where it had once been. He swallowed hard, and chewed his lip again, waiting for her to speak.

'I think, perhaps, we are all feeling the strain of the past week far more than any of us imagine. I just want you to understand that...that I would never do anything to hurt you, John. But I am tired of being taken for granted. I have feelings, too. I am not made of stone.'

'I know, really...I do,' he insisted. 'And I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you either.'

'Perhaps you should consider whether a less...negative view of Kate's abilities would help you rationalise things more clearly in this difficult time.'

'Yeah...maybe.'

Suddenly overcome, Teyla pulled him into a hug, pressing her face into his chest and sobbing until he felt her tears soak through to his skin. He reached around her, awkwardly seeking places to put his hands that couldn't be misconstrued as inappropriate contact, especially since the IOA had already accused him of being involved with Elizabeth. Teyla's preference for items of traditional Athosian clothing rather than the standard issue T-shirts other crew members wore left her skin more exposed than he was entirely comfortable with, and he tried not to think about how smooth it felt beneath his hands. Her hair smelled of apple-scented shampoo and she wore a perfume as light as air itself, reflecting her subtle femininity. For a while, he'd found it hard to work with her because of the instant and obvious attraction he'd felt. But, realising the battle with the Wraith was her priority and always had to be because she took the care of her people so seriously, he'd buried those feelings deep and learned to view her as a friend. He valued her friendship and hated the thought he had done anything that might jeopardise it.

Ronon appeared at the door now, looking puzzled to find them embracing. Sheppard saw him from the corner of his eye and took the opportunity to break the clinch, which had gone on for far longer than he was comfortable with already. 'Hey, buddy. Come on in.'

Ronon flicked his attention from one to the other of them, clearing his throat, then asking, 'Everything all right?'

Teyla wiped away tears on the back of her hands, nodding silently as she brought her tidal wave of emotion under control.

'Yeah, we're good,' Sheppard assured him, folding his arms across his chest. 'We had a little disagreement, but it's all sorted now.'

'What about?'

'It's not important now,' Teyla said, pushing stray strands of hair back from her face. 'I must get to the gym. I have a training session lined up and I am already late for it.'

As she headed for the door, Sheppard called after her, 'Teyla...we're okay now, right?'

'Of course,' she nodded, but he saw her face crumple again before she could fully turn away.

Ronon turned to face him with his normal, deadpan expression. 'What was that all about?'

'Just a misunderstanding,' Sheppard said, heading to the desk and sitting down to read the file he'd laid there.

'So I heard...all the way down the corridor.'

'So you know what it's about, then?' Sheppard grumbled, picking the file up, then throwing it back down again without reading a single word. He couldn't concentrate – not now.

'Not really. I heard raised voices, but these walls are pretty good at muffling the actual words.'

Sheppard tried not to look as relieved as he felt to hear that. He attempted to read the file again, then realised Ronon apparently wasn't planning to leave him alone to work.

'Was there something else?' he asked.

Ronon walked up to the desk, picked up the next file in the pile and flicked through it, dropping it back on top of the others. 'Are you really gonna read those?'

'Yeah...that's the plan,' the colonel sighed, his shoulders slumping as he looked at them. 'That is...unless you have a better idea.'

'You wanna spar?' the Satedan asked, barely masking his vicious smile as he peered up from under his heavy brows.

'D'you promise it won't involve me hopping on one leg?' Sheppard asked, squinting suspiciously at his warrior friend.

'Absolutely.'

'You're on!' Sheppard leapt out from behind his desk and was at the door before Ronon could even take a couple of steps. A good scrap with his friend was just what he needed to clear his head and help him forget the upset with Teyla. He couldn't believe they'd got into a screaming match. It wasn't like him, and it wasn't like her either. Did he take her for granted? He supposed he did. He did have a tendency to assume Teyla would always be there for him, and would support his decisions without question. But she clearly wasn't made of stone, just as she had told him. He would have to be more careful with how he treated her in the future. He didn't want to lose her support at a time when he needed it more than ever.