N/A: Thanks again to ladygris for her assistance with this chapter. She gave me so many great ideas that this one is closer to a collaboration.

Coffee alert! For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a warning that drinking or eating while reading this submission may cause spit-takes. It's issued to avoid having readers accidentally spit on their computers.

Enjoy and don't forget to review!

Thanks,

Sandy

Not a Hero

Chapter 17

Fighting the Good Fight

The room smelled of stale sweat and air freshener as if someone had tried to cover up the natural emissions of the human body when it was being pushed to its limits. Not that sweat was a pleasant smell, but it was an olfactory reminder that people cared enough to take care of themselves through regular exercise. Mixed in with that was the scents of the Commissary. More than one individual had wondered why the food prep area was so close to the gym.

One of those individuals entered, tossed his towel and water bottle in a corner and began his warm-up routine. A few minutes later he was joined by another. They ignored each other for the most part until the first heard his companion grunting in mild pain. He didn't say anything, just watched him out of the corner of his eye while listening to him grunt and groan as he stretched.

Evan ignored the noises coming from John as he turned away to pick up the twelve-pound weights, seated himself on the bench and began his bicep curls. A minute later an annoying thumping interrupted his concentration. John was at the hanging punching bag pummeling the thing with his bare knuckles as if he was beating up someone specific. Probably himself, to go by the look on his face. Every time he hit the bag it swung away then back at him reducing the impact and lessening its effectiveness as a workout tool.

Putting aside his animosity for the moment, Evan moved over to hold the bag still so John's workout would actually be beneficial instead of aggravating. John acknowledged him with a nod and picked up speed, grunting each time he hit the bag.

He kept it up longer than Evan thought he'd be able to until John, panting, stepped back to get a drink and wipe his face. Evan let his grip slacken, his attention taken from his task when Dora called out to him. He waved just as John shot out with a punch that pushed the bag into Evan hitting the shorter man in the chest and stomach earning him a grunt. In retaliation, he shoved it back getting John on the chin and upper chest.

Angered, John returned the favor. Ready for it, Evan caught the bag, his eyes narrowing dangerously. He stepped out from behind the bag walking backward to the middle of the sparring mat making a come-and-get-me gesture. John took him up on it, dropping into a fighting stance that was mirrored by his partner.

They circled each other around the heavily padded mat eyes locked looking for an opening. To get the ball rolling John threw a front jab aimed for Evan's jaw, but Evan deflected the punch, grabbed his wrist and pulled him into a knee to the stomach immediately going all out.

"Ooff!" was all John said as Evan kept hold of his arm and spun him around. But John turned into the spin and flipped Evan onto his back with a forearm strike as he kicked his feet out from under him.

Evan shot to his feet before John could continue to press his advantage and they began warily circling again. Without warning, Evan went on the offensive, using his superior speed and got a hold of John's arm spinning him around. John rolled around his strike and slammed Evan into the padded wall. With a growl, Evan pushed off moving fast. When he got close John made an attempt to make an upward thrust at Evan's nose. It was deflected, turning John to the side. With a snort of triumph, Evan punched John in the kidney. The power in that punch spoke of anger that was now beginning to show on his face.

Using the power behind that punch, John continued to spin coming around with a backhanded forearm strike to the side of Evan's head. As he kept into the turn, he followed it up with a punch to the stomach, his own anger behind it. Fortunately for Evan, unfortunately for John, Evan was in great shape, his abs absorbing most of the shock. When John tried to bring his right fist around, instead of deflecting the punch, Evan grabbed the arm, dropped to one knee and threw John to the mat.

~~O~~

On her tip-toes, Ana stretched trying to reach a box on the top shelf of the supply closet. There should have been a stepstool there but it was MIA. She slipped, knocking a bottle of something off a lower shelf sending it crashing to the floor. A moment later, Derek appeared in the doorway.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Could you get that for me?" Derek reached over Ana and snagged the box she'd been after. "Thanks."

"No problem." His voice was soft and his expression tender. "I've been trying to figure out how to get you alone all day and here you go and do it for me."

"Oh?" Before she could say more, he took her in his arms and kissed her.

~~O~~

The wind had been knocked out of John making him groan. When he opened his eyes, Evan had gotten to his feet and the look in his eyes put John on alert. Though Evan's expression didn't change, John could tell from the tension in his body what he had in mind. He was able to roll away and get to one knee in time to block an overhead strike with both hands crossed at the wrists.

Evan shot out his free hand to get John in the stomach, but John managed to grab the other man's wrist using it to help him stand again and twisting that arm behind Evan's back. Bending Evan forward restricted his movement but it also gave Evan a new target. He reached for John's leg, squeezing the calf that had cramped up on him a few days before. The muscle wasn't sore any longer but Evan's nails digging into him hurt and a moment later, the hand holding his arm behind his back let go.

Spinning to face John, Evan grabbed the front of his T-shirt, stepping around behind to get him in a headlock. In a surprise move, John used his palm to push up on the bent elbow of the arm holding onto the shirt, ducked down and under that same arm straightening it into a wristlock. Stepping back, he bent Evan at the waist pulling him face first onto the mat, his arm behind him and John on one knee facing his feet. Neither man had noticed that they'd drawn a crowd until they heard a familiar voice using a very unfamiliar tone.

"What the HELL is going on here?" Jennifer had returned.

Someone in the crowd said, "Uh-oh. She's using her doctor voice." Within seconds the hallway was clear again.

Both men looked to the side in time to see their audience disappear leaving the three of them alone. Evan was still on his stomach with John holding him in the wristlock that had to be just short of too painful.

"John…"

"Yeah?"

"Let…him…up." She emphasized each word.

"Oh. Yeah." John did as he was told coming immediately to his feet using willpower alone not to show that the room had started spinning. Beside him, Evan also stood, both men panting and covered in sweat. John had a split lip and a bruise on the edge of his jaw. Evan had the beginnings of a black eye, not much, just at the outside edge, and a small trickle of blood came from his nose. Both had bruised knuckles. They said nothing. Just let her look from one to the other waiting for an answer. "What were you fighting about?"

Together they said, "Nothing." Hands on her hips, Jennifer glared at them, John continuing alone. "We were just, uh…"

"…sparring," Evan finished.

"Sparring? The two of you were beating the crap out of each other."

The men glanced at each other then back to Jennifer with John again doing the talking. "We're guys. That's how we show affection…to other guys that is."

Rolling her eyes, she turned and strode quickly out of the gym with the men following her. "I'm going to the Infirmary to check on a patient. Both of you get showered and changed then we're going out to eat so we can work out how to catch you-know-who."

John lengthened his stride to come alongside her. "I told you we'd handle this. Why aren't you in Atlantis?"

"Because I'm helping."

"You shouldn't be here. What if…"

"No, John. He's been doing it to others and I am not gonna watch from the sidelines while the two of you do something I should have done a long time ago." Jennifer lifted her chin rebelliously, her back straightening, sparks coming from her brown eyes. "And there's nothing you can do to stop me. Besides, you need someone to be the bait." That said she kept going straight when they turned into the employee area. She was about to swipe her card when a shout from Evan had her running back the way she'd come.

~~O~~

Evan slowed down letting Sheppard get ahead of him preferring to make the remainder of the journey to his room alone. He didn't know what had come over him but as soon as the bag smacked him, he'd let all his rage and frustration with the role the other man had played in Lee's death come to the surface. He'd managed to get it under some sort of control though he still wanted to pound on Sheppard until it was gone. Not that it would have brought Lee back, but he would have felt as if he'd gotten a small amount of revenge.

Up ahead, Sheppard stopped with his door open just a crack, shook his head as if to clear it then fell to the floor. His water bottle, the cap off, rolled across the carpet leaving a wet trail.

"Jen!" Evan shouted. He ran to the side of his nemesis and was just rolling him onto his back when she returned to his side.

~~O~~

John opened his eyes and once again the light in the ceiling made a halo around Angel's head. The halo disappeared when he blinked as she and Lorne helped him sit up.

"John?"

"Wha' happ'n'?"

"You passed out." She and Evan helped him to his feet but when they steered him toward the Infirmary, he balked.

"Where you takin' me?"

"You passed out, John. We have to find out why." Her tone was reasonable yet firm.

"I'm fi…whoa!" Again a wave of dizziness came over him making him sway, Jennifer and Evan the only things keeping him on his feet. "On the other hand…"

Jennifer grinned at Evan behind John's back. "I knew you'd see it my way."

A Few Hours Later

Café dans le Désert

"You didn't finish your Ratatouille."

John glared at Jennifer who just grinned back. "That's because I don't like eggplant. Get me Filet Au Poivre, asparagus with Hollandaise and a bottle of Australian Shiraz. I promise to eat every bite."

Jennifer was already shaking her head before he'd finished speaking. "You passed out due to low blood sugar coupled with the fact that you're still not completely healed from the injuries you sustained at the hands of the Wraith. You need something good for you right now." She speared a piece of her Quiche Du Jour avec Salade and ate it.

Though he knew no help would come from that quarter, John looked at Lorne who just smiled calmly chewing a bite of Marinated Portabello Mushroom salad and Grilled Asparagus. Just to tweak his partner, he stuck his pinky in the air as he sipped daintily from his peach-raspberry iced tea.

"Forget it." John pushed the plate away. "What's for dessert?"

"Tarte aux Fruits Rouges. But you're not getting any until you've eaten everything on your plate."

John made a sound of disgust in the back of his throat, pulled the plate back in front of him and began eating. "You know, you'd make a terrific mom." He said it with just a touch of sarcasm meaning it to be an insult and a compliment at the same time but when Jennifer stopped with her fork in the air and her mouth open, he realized how it sounded. Oh, crap! "Uh, you know, because you give orders so well."

Her cheeks turned a bright pink. She dropped her eyes to her plate, laid her fork down and reached for her tea drinking the entire thing without stopping and slamming the glass to the table. She saw a hand out as if reaching for something only then realizing that she'd just finished off Evan's tea.

He gave her what she was coming to know as his patented half-amused, half-shocked expression that he used to express his wry sense of humor. "No problem, doc. I was done with it."

Resting her elbows on the table, her head in her hands, she said just two words. "Oh, crap."

When dessert came, they ate in silence until the server came around with coffee. John took one sip from his cup, placed it carefully back on the saucer and reached into his inside pocket producing a pad and a pen. "I've made a few notes on how to solve the problem of our mutual headache, David Magee."

Glad to be back on firm footing, Jennifer and Evan scooted around where they could see what John had written.

Jennifer covered her mouth with her hand to muffle her laughter.

Evan read and re-read what John had written. "The hell…"

"You like her, don't you?"

"Of course. But…"

John sat back, one hand clicking the pen over and over. "I do too, but she likes you more than me making you the obvious choice."

Rubbing the back of his head, Evan sighed heavily. "Okay. I'll do it but I'm tellin' you, she's gonna know something hinky's going on."

"So? This'll work because she flirts with anything with XY chromosomes except Magee, Woolsey and Sonny. Oh, and that weird guy in the motor pool."

"Alvin or Barney?"

"Ruddy."

"Ugh. Don't blame her there." Jennifer added with her nose wrinkled in disgust.

John nodded in agreement. "You flirt, she flirts and we get the means to remove Magee."

With a long suffering sigh, Evan agreed. "Fine. But don't blame me if it blows up in our faces."

The server came with the check just in time to hear Evan's last words looking startled as she stood between the men waiting to be told who to give the tab to. Evan pointed at John. "He's the brains. Give it to him."

"Hey, I still haven't gotten my first paycheck."

Both men looked at Jennifer as she reached across the table and snatched it from the woman's hand. "I'll take it. This is a business lunch after all."

~~O~~

Standing outside the office, Evan took a deep breath, passed a hand through his hair and lightly fingered the dark blue bruise next to his eye hoping it would at least garner him some sympathy. He also hoped his smile looked genuine as he knocked and received permission to enter.

"Afternoon, Sheila."

The admin smile brightly. "Good to see you again, Special Agent. What happened to your eye?"

He shrugged putting on a brave front. "Oh, it's nothing."

"Huh. Your 'nothing' cost me three bucks." The older woman said it with a smirk so he'd know she wasn't really upset.

"You bet on me to win? Thanks."

Sheila waved away the compliment. "So what can I do for you, Special Agent?"

Moving over to perch on the corner of her desk, one leg swinging, he smiled. "To start with, call me Evan."

She returned his smile. "Evan." Removing the wireless phone headset, she set it aside and leaned forward, her chin resting in her hand. Her dark hair was sprinkled here and there with strands of white. Not being a vain person, she never colored it. Though she was older than Evan by ten years, she wasn't above flirting with the younger man. "So what's up, handsome?"

Evan couldn't help blushing just a little. "Um…" he searched frantically for something to say that didn't sound cliché, trite…creepy. "Did you know the Irish and Gaelic meaning of Sheila is 'blind' but in Hindi it means 'gentle'."

Just to spook him, she winked one blue eye. "So which do you think I am?"

He stood, tucked his thumbs into the waistband of his pants and looked at her. "Well, shucks, ma'am. Ah think yer 'bout the perrtiest little filly Ah've seen in a dog's age." His goofy cowboy accent made her laugh. That laughter increased when he pushed an imaginary cowboy hat back on his head and pretended to spit.

Playing along, she batted her long dark lashes and dropped into an exaggerated southern accent. "Why thank you, kind suh."

They laughed together and when it died, Sheila sat back in her chair, her arms crossed. "Okay, now that that's out of way, what do you really want?"

"I told Sheppard you'd know something was up."

"Uh-huh. Out with it, Evan."

He spent the next few minutes detailing what was needed and what they intended to do with it. To his surprise, she couldn't give him the equipment fast enough.

Standing before him, her short-sleeved silk burgundy top tucked into the waistband of a dark gray pencil skirt that reached just to the top of her knees, and heels allowing her to look him in the eye, she smiled again. "You sure that's all you need? 'Cause I can get my hot little hands on all kinds of goodies, some of which would be incredibly painful when attached to certain areas of the male anatomy."

He nodded with satisfaction. "Absolutely." Setting the boxes on the corner of her desk, he impulsively put his hands on her upper arms and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek, jerking back when a male voice intruded.

"Hey! What're doing?"

Releasing Sheila and spinning around guiltily, Evan looked up…and up into the angry face of a man in dark blue scrubs. His meaty fists were clenched at his sides and he looked ready to fight.

"He was just being nice." Sheila stepped around Evan to stand next to the big man. "Sonny, this is Special Agent Evan Lorne. He's Sheppard's new partner. Evan, this is Sonny "Rowdy Nitro" Salgado. Please excuse my brother's rudeness. He used to be a professional wrestler and being an ass is part of the job description."

"Brother?"

Her smile faded just a little. "Hastings is my married name." At his expression, she explained. "My husband passed away."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Evan was relieved. He'd only flirted with her because she didn't have a ring on her left hand. Now he knew why.

She waved away his apology. "It was a while ago. We'd only been married three years when it happened."

"Still… Uh, I'm gonna get out of here. Thanks again." Closing the door, the agent chuckled when he heard the petite Sheila giving the muscle-bound Sonny a good talking to.

TBC

A/N: I know. Not my usual cliffhanger though I hope the next chapter will make up for it. The boys and Jen are doing a take-down that will have you cheering…hopefully.

~SL