His first impression may not have been the best, but he hadn't let her down yet. With a sigh Ella let go, allowing the surge to carry her into herself.

When she opened her eyes she was in a large white room. She could feel nothing, and there was nothing but endless horizon in front of her, but somehow she knew Daniel was behind her. She could her Jennifer screaming at her assisstants in the background, but not even that chaos could ruin the overwhelming peace of the moment.

"Daniel, where are we?" Her voice echoed through the large space, and she looked around even though she knew she wouldn't be able to see the sound.

"Well, I'm pretty sure we're in you're head."

Ella looked around again, chuckling softly. "Roomy."

Daniel nodded and took a step towards her. She instinctively took a step back and raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?"

"Just trust me."

As he took another step closer, Ella grew increasingly uncomfortable.

"Daniel?" she asked warily.

He simply pressed a finger gently to her mouth and stepped closer again, leaning inches in front of her face. Ella's breath caught and her eyes slipped closed as Daniel laid his forehead against hers. Curiousity took control when he didn't move any closer.

"Daniel, what are you doing?"

Daniel simply muttered a quiet shush and moved his hands to hers, intertwining her fingers in his. Then suddenly in a huge wave of memories, thoughts, and emotions, everything about Daniel washed over her. She almost pulled away when she realized the same thing was probably happening to him. He only used to be able to hear her current thoughts. Now he knew everything, but as she began to pay attention she realized he was as battle-scarred as she was, if not more. She had slipped into the comfort of their oneness when she realized she could feel her feet again. She could feel warmth. And eyes. She slowly pulled away to see a room full of people. Her team, the medical team, Sam, and a man in a white doctor's jacket she didn't recognize, they were all staring at she and Daniel. She felt a blush creep up her neck, but Ronon's torso now blocked her face as he wrapped her in a hug. She wrapped her arms around him and smiled, pulling away when she heard a voice with a thick accent. The man she hadn't recognized was addressing her.

"We thought we lost you both, Love. Boy, was that a spectacular burst of light."

Ella smiled, but it slipped away as her curiosity grew. "How long were we out, Doctor-"

He smiled and finished for her. "Beckett. Carson Beckett. Two days."

Ella's jaw slackened and she scanned the room briefly. "So that means Woolsey's gone?"

Ella saw multiple nods and frowned. Jennifer gave her a smile as she guided her and Daniel over to a bed while Carson ushered everyone out. Ronon waved goodbye before reluctantly leaving. As Carson and Jennifer began rushing around the two of them, hooking them to various machines, Ella smiled over at Daniel. He smiled back, and Ella realized that, like Ronon, silence could speak volumes with Daniel.

It had been a week since she and Daniel had been separated. She had been cleared for regular missions, been offworld a few times, and had been catching up on her time with her brother. She had even visited Todd, but she couldn't shake the feeling of emptiness inside her head. She had never felt alone in her brain.

She had been wandering the hall for twenty minutes now, trying to find Daniel. The gauntlet had fallen off when they had been sorted out, and he had been studying it thoroughly. She had only seen him once since they'd been cleared to leave the infirmary. She finally found the lab he was working in and knocked gently. The doors slid open and Daniel stood in front of her. She smiled up at him, and he returned it before motioning for her to enter. Ella slipped past him and made her way over to the window. She smiled at the view from one of Atlantis's tallest towers. Daniel came to join her.

"You know, back at the SGC I was always underground. No windows, no sunshine, just me and whatever artifact I was studying. This has been-well-extremely distracting."

Ella smiled and laughed for a moment, then fell silent. As she gazed thoughtfully out the window, Daniel studied her face.

"What's on your mind?"

Ella looked over at him and let out a distracted-sounding, "Hmm?"

"Well, you look distracted. I assume you didn't come here just to look out my window. What's up?"

Ella smiled as if she thought what she was about to say was crazy. "I miss having you in my head."

Daniel's eyebrows raised, and Ella's cheeks flushed pink as she hurried to rephrase her sentence.

"I, what I meant was it's empty in my head now. Well, emptier. As annoying as you were, it's not the same without you."

Daniel smiled at her and simply nodded in agreement. A silence began to settle of the room, and it stayed until Ella's eyes drifted to the gauntlet.

"Did you figure out what the gauntlet's full uses are?"

Ella smiled as she saw Daniel's eyes light up as he rushed around the table to the gauntlet. He picked it up and hoped up on a stool, dragging one in front of him and patting it. Ella smiled, amused by his giddiness, and slid up onto the stool as Daniel fell into lecture mode.

Ronon was headed to the mess hall with Sheppard by his side and McKay on the other side of him. They were arguing about something, but he wasn't paying the least bit of attention. Ella had seem distant ever since Doctor Jackson had been pulled out of her head. He didn't know why, but he didn't like it. He sighed, wishing Doctor Heightmeyer was still alive. She'd know what to do. He was pulled out of his pondering by Sheppard, who was calling his name.

"Ronon, did you hear a word of what I just said?"

Ronon shook his head, rustling his dreds with the motion. John sighed and stopped walking, which halted the two men with him. Rodney rolled his eyes and interrupted before John could say anything.

"Listen, can we not have therapy session in the middle of the hallway? I'm starving."

John sent a glare in Rodney's direction, then turned back to his gloomy-looking Satedan friend. "What's up, Buddy?"

"Ella's seemed a little distant lately," Ronon mumbled.

John nodded. "And?" He motioned for Ronon to keep going.

"I'm worried about her."

John seemed thoughtful for a moment, wrinkling his face ever so slightly and placing a hand on his chin. "Well, she did have a pretty traumatic fourteen years. Maybe she just needs a little time."

Ronon nodded, accepting John's answer until he heard Ella's voice accompanied by Doctor Jackson's laughter. He looked over at Sheppard and raised an eyebrow. John shrugged and headed once more towards the mess hall. Grudgingly, Ronon followed. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he didn't like it.

Jennifer sighed. Her hands were neatly tucked in her lap and her arm was lightly touching Carson's. Why had he asked? She knew he was probably aware of how she felt, but he also knew she needed to say it out loud. She thought Rodney would be able to make her happy. He had for a little while. But she wasn't quite satisfied. Carson had just been the one to make her acknowledge the fact. Then he had sat by her like the big brother he had come to be as she dealt with the realization. Finally, she mustered up a smile.

"Thank you, Carson."

Carson smiled back at her kindly. "Aye, lass, that's what I'm here for."