"Secrets and Challenges"

Ch. 51

(Atlantis, Infirmary)

Stacey slept for days. When she did finally woke up, Elizabeth was standing beside the bed. John and Adam slept in a very uncomfortable position in one of the chairs. Elizabeth held a tray full of food. She put it on the bedside table.

"'Lizabeth?" Stacey said, groggily.

"Hey, glad to see you're finally awake," Dr. Weir said.

Stacey sat up from the bed. She was still pretty weak. But, she needed to get up and move around. Her muscles were sore from lying in the bed for 4 days straight. Stacey took a piece of food from the tray and looked at John and Adam.

Adam began to wriggle awake. The infant's wriggles woke John up. He held his son and finally noticed that Stacey was awake.

"Good afternoon, Sleepy Beauty," John said.

"Afternoon,"

Stacey extended out her arms, indicating to John to give Adam to her. He obeyed. John rubbed his sore neck.

"How long have you been here?" Stacey asked John.

"Since Carson told him what had happened, 3 days ago," Elizabeth answered for him.

"Ah, Stacey!" Carson came over to her bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Still pretty weak. Have you figured out what the disease was?" she asked.

"No, I'm afraid not," he sighed.

"That was an awfully strange disease, though," she said. "Probably that's why it's an alien disease." Stacey took a bite of food, sighing, she asked Carson, "how are Lorne and the others?"

"They're one hundred percent, thanks to you," he told her.

"Good," Stacey commented tiredly.

Suddenly Weir's radio came to life.

"Dr. Weir, this is the Daedalus requesting permission to land on the East Pier," a voice that Stacey couldn't recognize.

"You have it, Colonel," Weir told the voice.

"Was there something I missed?" Stacey asked.

"Prometheus' sister ship. Thanks to the Asgard's Hyperdrive engines, it's only a few days trip to and from earth, instead of weeks," Weir told her.

"I love those little, gray guys," Stacey smiled.

Weir grinned too.

"I hope there's more good news?" Stacey asked Weir.

She nodded.

"General O' Neill has given SG-1 permission to come to Atlantis to spend Christmas with us," Sheppard told her.

As if Stacey had endless amount of energy now, she jumped out of the Infirmary bed, gave Adam to Elizabeth and began to run as fast as she could.

Sheppard and Weir looked at one another.

"Does she realize that she's barefoot?" Weir asked him.

"Nope,"

Adam giggled in Weir's arms.

"Yes, your mother is very . . . Eccentric," John told the four month infant.

To be continued . . .