Author's Note: Well, folks, here it is. The final chapter. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me for all these words. A special thanks to theicemenace for all the hard work on beta-ing and brainstorming. There's a summary for the sequel to this story on my profile. Be sure to check it out! Enjoy! ~lg

oOo

Javan and Elizabeth married a month later. Ataliyan weddings lasted for a full week with three separate feasts. The signing of the marriage contract came on the first day of the week, attended by only close family and friends. The groom traditionally put out a spread, and the party lasted late into the night. This time, Javan opened his home to many of Elizabeth's friends, and the laughter rang out into the streets even after most people had retired. The second feast was one solely for women. The wedding shower, which came in the middle of the week, was meant to give the bride everything she might need for her marriage to her husband. Gifts typically consisted of household items or handmade lingerie. Elizabeth's wry sense of humor came out during this time, leaving Shani, Teyla, Lindsey, Olina, and the rest of her guests in stitches as she commented on each piece. The third and final feast, however, was the biggest. This was the actual wedding, after which the marriage would be legal. The bride and groom exchanged vows, and then, in his typically considerate way, Javan followed an Earth custom. He produced matching wedding rings for him and Elizabeth to wear, promising to "love, honor, and cherish" her until death. Elizabeth had cried at the obvious reminder of her homeworld, but she welcomed her husband's kiss.

Late that night, during the feast and dancing and drinking, John stepped outside of Elizabeth's home and walked to the Stargate. He stared at the stars as he thought. These last months had been a dark time for him. With Carson back and fully healed, Shani returning to her normal self, Ronon married, and Teyla no longer beating the crap out of any and all takers, he had been given the space he needed to think. Watching Elizabeth and Javan marry today had also put him in a pensive mood.

He'd been a first-class jerk. Smirking at the dark ring of the 'gate, John shook his head. "First-class jerk" didn't begin to cover the things he'd done. Calixte, while wrong about stabbing him, had been right to be angry. As had every other woman he'd been with since leaving Ataliya months ago. He owed Mara an apology as well, though he doubted it would be received. In the time since Carson and Shani's abduction, she had allowed only those two to see her. Sateda's alliance with the Tower was not in danger, but she preferred not to see the man she had falsely accused as her child's father. And John was grateful. He didn't think he could handle her drama on top of his own.

As it often did in times like this, John's mind turned to Teyla. Out of all of his dealings with women in these last few months, he did not regret kissing Teyla that day in the sparring ring. He had done so to prove a point to her, but it had backfired on him. He couldn't get her out of his head. She appeared in his thoughts during quiet moments, and he now grinned as he thought about that kiss. When she'd buried her hands in his hair, he had responded in kind. While they had allowed the passion to build between them for those few moments, it had been different. With Calixte and the other women off world, he had sought to fulfill his own needs. With Teyla, he wanted to please her.

John shook his head. He was a mess, and most everyone knew it. His life before Atlantis had taught him to never trust family, yet he had a family here that he trusted with everything. Save his heart. He pictured Gisli, now able to look back on their relationship and see the warning signs. While he had loved her, he realized he would never have been happy with her. She was shallow, focused only on what she wanted. John had no desire to live with a woman who could only see the benefit to herself. He wanted a woman who could look at others and have compassion—a woman like Teyla.

Turning from the Stargate, John headed back to the village and saw a figure headed his way. The moonlight was bright, and Teyla's auburn hair reflected in the rays. Tonight, she wore a beautiful Athosian gown of lavender fabric, the color highlighting her exotic features to perfection. Touches of Ataliyan and Kian fashion made the dress a delight to see, and her form filling it out cemented her in John's mind as his ideal woman. That revelation made him blink as he took a few moments to work through it. He knew he had a long ways to go before he could say he'd recovered from Gisli's betrayal, and Teyla had only begun the healing process. But he suddenly understood what this past month of noticing her had been about: he wanted to be the one to help her. Like McKay always accused him of doing, he wanted to be Teyla's hero.

"John?" During his epiphany, Teyla had reached his side and now stared up into his face.

"Ah. . .sorry." He waved a hand. "I was thinking."

"So I saw." She smirked at him. "You were missed at the party."

"Yeah, I needed some time." John fell into step with her as they walked back to the village. The entire planet was celebrating the marriage of their leader right now, and John had needed to step away. He trusted Lorne to stay away from the booze, McKay to fuss, Carson to tell stories, and Ronon to keep everyone safe.

"Would you care to share them?" Teyla's question confused him.

"What?"

"Your thoughts." She raised an eyebrow. "Elizabeth once told me that sharing my thoughts and feelings helps. She was right."

"She's always right," John said wryly. His grin fell away quickly. "Teyla, I appreciate the offer, but I just need to work through some things on my own. It's been a tough few months, and I need to figure out how to handle everything that happened."

She nodded. "I understand. But, John, there is something I must speak to you about."

He turned, not wanting to leave her in a lurch like he had last time. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Her face showed a slight smile. "But I wished to speak about our kiss."

In that moment, John Sheppard nearly bolted.

oOo

Evan watched Sheppard slip out of the party and let the man go his way. John had faced some difficult truths about his life in recent weeks, and he likely needed the time to absorb the changes. Evan's trust in the man had been shaken by events with Calixte and the reports of John's adventures off world, but the colonel had rebuilt that trust. Evan no longer worried about how badly things would go when Sheppard's team walked through the Stargate. Ronon had shared that Sheppard rarely went off without his team and often volunteered for the less desirable duties just so that Teyla and McKay could relax a bit.

Now, Evan turned his attention back to the party. Shani was beautiful tonight. Of course, she was gorgeous any other time of the week, but she fairly glowed as hostess of this party. Javan and Elizabeth sat apart from everyone, lost in one another's eyes and the recipients of multiple amused glances. Shani took her duties as hostess seriously, though, serving others and barely sitting still long enough to eat a bite. Evan knew that she'd be exhausted come morning and made plans to steal her away from the party for a short time. He would wait until John returned, first.

Shani's stepsons had also attended the wedding, all of them greeting Evan warmly and introducing their wives and children. Evan had already dealt with the idea of marrying into Shani's family, but he was having problems remembering names. He felt a bit too young to have children looking at him like a grandfather but knew it would be inevitable. While Shani was not these men's biological mother, she had taken that place and filled the role well. They held nothing but sincere affection and respect for her.

Sheppard finally returned, and Evan pushed out of his seat. He found Shani in the kitchen, mixing yet another batch of drinks. Slipping an arm around her waist, he grinned when she turned to him. "Let's take a walk."

She shook her head. "I need to. . . ."

Demir chose that moment to interrupt. "I will serve the guests," he said as he took the pitcher from Shani's hand.

Evan and Shani watched him go, both amused at how neatly he'd intervened and taken away her excuse. Evan laced their fingers together and drew her out of Javan's home for a slow walk through the streets. All of Ataliya celebrated, and the sound of laughter and feasting came from each house. The streets were littered with streamers and flower petals that the people had tossed into the air at the moment Javan and Elizabeth shared their first kiss as husband and wife. It reminded Evan of footage he'd seen of royal weddings back on Earth, and he wondered if his own wedding would be greeted with such celebrations.

Blinking at the path in front of him, he tried to banish that thought from his head. At least for the moment. He knew he wanted to marry Shani, to spend the remainder of his life with her. But neither of them were truly ready to make that choice. She was still healing emotionally from her ordeal at the hands of Ondre, and he refused to rush into something when both of them were enjoying the process of courtship. It wasn't without its difficulties, and he was reminded of them whenever he kissed her goodnight. But he loved the fun of just walking with her, holding her hand, sharing dreams and hopes for the future, and not having to worry about any kind of social pressures laid on them by either of their peoples.

Shani nudged his shoulder with hers. "Carson spoke with me today."

Evan's attention sharpened at her tone. "About. . .?"

"You and me." She smiled in the bright moonlight. "He apologized for how badly he reacted to you wanting to court me."

Evan stopped in the middle of the street and took her by her shoulders. "Shani, I have a younger sister. I understand where Carson was coming from. That said, I'm glad he backed off."

She stared up at him. "As am I."

The invitation was too perfect, and Evan bent to kiss her. She sighed as she leaned into him, both enjoying the freedom to touch one another while still aware of appearances while they were on her world. Evan pulled away as her hand curled into his shirt, aware that he would not be able to stop if he didn't put some distance between them. "Ah. . .there's something for you back at Elizabeth's old house."

Shani frowned at him. "There is?"

"Yep." Evan tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow and headed for the house. He was staying there with Sheppard, Teyla, and McKay during the wedding. Ronon and Olina had taken a room in the local inn, along with Lindsey and Kevin Marks. Just thinking about the big Satedan and his wife made Evan grin. Olina suited Ronon well, and Ronon always headed for home just after a mission briefing. Several women on Sateda said it was "cute," and he couldn't disagree.

With everyone at the feast, Elizabeth's old home was deserted. A lamp still burned, but Evan quickly lit others to brighten the main room. Then, leaving Shani in the center of the floor, he slipped into the room he shared with Sheppard and grabbed the painting he'd brought. He had thought long and hard, considering giving it to her as a proposal gift. But he had changed his mind. When he proposed to Shani—and he would do so soon—he planned to take her to that tropical beach, get on one knee, give her the ring, and do things the way he'd wanted to do them with Kerry. For now, he would settle for seeing her reaction to the painting.

Back in the main room, he held the painting in front of him, his natural modesty coming to the fore. "Ah. . .you know I paint. And, well, I thought you'd like to have this." Holding out the painting, he waited until she took it.

Shani's face lit up when he offered the painting to her, but shock covered her features after she unwrapped it. "Evan!" She lightly touched the colors on the canvas. "It is the sunset we chased!"

"Yep." He put an arm around her shoulders as she stared. "And that's what I saw when I found you in Carson's garden that night."

She studied her likeness, the yellow gown and dark hair a wonderful contrast against the brilliance of the sunset. Then, turning under his arm, she pulled his head down for another kiss. "Thank you," she whispered against his lips.

"You're welcome." Evan kissed her again, this time taking his time as he pulled her into his arms. The painting in her hand bumped the back of his knees, but he didn't care. Courting and then marrying this woman would be the best thing he'd ever done. As he pulled back and allowed Shani to cuddle into his chest, he smiled. For the first time in his life, he was grateful that something back on Earth hadn't gone as he intended.

oOo

On a world across the galaxy from Ataliya, a woman sat in the corner of a tavern and watched men come and go. She could have sauntered out among them and claimed one of them for the night, and she would likely do so before she left. But, for now, she wanted to be alone.

The rage and anger she'd felt over Ondre's death had gone cold, changing her and making her view the world differently. She had spent the last month moving from world to world, taking what work she could to feed herself. While she did so, she planned.

Sheppard would pay. As would the Satedans. Her relationship with Ondre had been fast and furious after Sheppard's betrayal, but she had loved him in her own way. Even now, she remembered Shani's curses and screams from the cage and smiled. It had given her great pleasure to see one of Sheppard's people in such a helpless position. But it would give her even greater pleasure to see Sheppard in that position.

Now, she pushed to her feet and walked out of the tavern. So, she wouldn't be taking another man to her bed tonight. It didn't matter anymore. The memory of what had been done to her burned deeply, and Calixte sneered at the stars. Sheppard would pay for what he had done, and she would exact her revenge in a way that could only hurt. She would take the very thing he cherished from him.

Her thoughts and plans whirling through her head, Calixte dropped into bed. Sheppard had left a heritage throughout the galaxy, one that would eventually come back to haunt him. And she intended to be there when it did.

oOo

That night, with Olina sleeping at his side, Ronon stared at the ceiling. He thought about everything that had happened since he joined Sheppard's people. Kiah, Sateda, Orsic, Ondre, Sheppard's escapades. . . .They had endured some incredibly difficult things to get to where they were, and the Pegasus galaxy likely wouldn't leave them alone. But they would endure. They always had. Their honor had been damaged slightly by Orsic's actions, and they still had not found Calixte. Her vendetta against Sheppard had not ended with the death of Ondre. Women scorned often became problems in the future. It was their habit. But even Calixte couldn't stop the heritage that Sateda had begun to rebuild. It would endure.

And so would the people who built it.

~The End~