By the time Rodney had ushered Emma and Nathan onward towards their home in the heart of the city, Jian was pale and shocky; frankly Rodney was amazed that he was still on his feet. He could have been dragged through the mud by a rabid grizzly bear and not come out looking as worn and haggard .
Rodney cranked up the old hot water heater and reluctantly left Jian in the shower. With his wings partially outstretched he had barely fit into the thankfully oversized stall. The water had run down the wings in small rivulets, the softly furred skin gradually turning a deep cobalt blue. Rodney couldn't help but stare.
He would have given in to the urge to touch too if it weren't for Jian's raised eyebrows and the way his mouth twitched into a smirk as if he was laughing on the inside. Rodney felt the flush creep into his cheeks and he beat a hasty retreat. First things first. Jian was tired, hungry and hurt and needed clean dry clothes, food and a warm place to rest. Besides he had plenty of material just from this afternoon's encounter; enough to keep him engaged for the rest of the night, enough to fill an entire sketchbook.
He dug out a pair of sweats and a flannel shirt that Jack had worn when he was visiting. They were spotted with old paint and the years of repeated washings had left them a little threadbare in places but Rodney had just never had the heart to throw them out. He hesitated and then also left a pair of thick winter socks and a pair of his own boxers. On top of the pile he left a pair of scissors. He wasn't sure how Jian's shirt fitted around his wings but decided to leave him to figure that out on his own.
The fireplace had been retro-fitted with a gas insert the previous winter because Rodney simply could not trust himself with a live flame anymore. He turned the gas onto the highest setting and set about warming up a tin of soup, one of the thick kinds with lots and meat and vegetables. He was sure the processed food would be unfamiliar and strange but it would be hot and filling. First thing in the morning he would head back into town to get some real food.
Rodney took another deep breath and gathered the remainder of the grocery bags. Jian was already rooting through the ones he had previously brought inside. By the time Rodney had set down the final bag he had polished off a full tin of mixed nuts and gone through a carton of mango nectar and was currently sliding an entire roasted chicken onto the plate Rodney had slapped down in front of him with a sheepish grin.
"Sorry, really hungry," he mumbled through a mouthful of chicken "the healing spell takes a lot out of you."
Rodney frowned as he noted how well the broken wing had healed in just a single night. The broken joint was no longer exposed, the newly healed skin covering it a pale purple with a hint of the dark blue fur that was beginning to grow back. Though it was clear that he favoured his left side Rodney guessed that in another few days it would be fully healed.
By the time Rodney had arrived at the grocery store he had forgotten why he had gone. Fortunately he had brought a list annotated with detailed notes and he had just gone by that, buying everything on it without second guessing himself. On the return trip he couldn't help but notice that the closer he got to the cabin the clearer his mind became like a fog slowly dissipating under the morning sun.
"Here's the thing," Rodney said as he peeled back the top portion of a banana Jian had been fumbling with before handing it back to him, "I have this disease that's eating away at my brain. Oh, don't worry, it's not contagious," he huffed impatiently as Jian stopped eating and pushed carefully away from the kitchen table.
"I didn't think it was," Jian told him as he swallowed down the last bite of the sweet creamy flesh. "You want to know if I can heal you."
"Well, duh?"
Jian smiled ruefully. "I'm afraid I can't do that."
"But I'm better just being near you, I can feel it. I'm not as stupid."
Jian shook his head. "It's not me, it's the magic that lays within you, that lays within us all. "
Jian chuckled at the pained look on the Elder's expressive face. "I know it sounds archaic, but it's true. A healer may facilitate and support but the healing spell is centered in the individual himself, Elder McKay."
"Stop calling me that, I'm not your elder," Rodney snapped, "I'm not old, I'm…complicated. Oh, for heaven's sake just call me Rodney or if you're feeling obstinate McKay will do."
"Very well, Raw-de-ney," Jian repeated in a lilting drawl. "Rodney McKay," he said, clearly enunciating each letter as if he were testing the words.
"So, physician heal thyself, teach me then."
Jian shook his head. "The magic's not strong enough on this world, not for that kind of healing spell; the brain, the mind, it's a complicated weave that requires the participation of both healer and patient. Even between the both of us and what's seeping through the rift, it's just not enough and that's assuming I know what I'm doing, which I don't. I'm not a healer, Eld- Rodney," Jian corrected himself.
"It's no use then," Rodney muttered, his shoulders sagging and pulling in, making him look smaller, diminished by the weight of his hopelessness.
"I didn't say that," Jian snapped, his eyes whirling from brown to green and gold. "Come over here. Please," he added when Rodney hesitated, "just a simple exercise to judge your capabilities."
What Jian didn't tell Rodney was that even though the life force lay within every living creature not everyone was capable of drawing on its power. There was only one way to find out.
Rodney nodded and walked over to where Jian stood.
"Closer."
Rodney moved closer until he was well within the other's personal space.
"Now turn around."
Rodney turned and jumped a little when Jian placed his hands gently on his shoulders.
"Close your eyes."
Rodney complied and then swayed just a little bit, taken off balance, when Jian wrapped his wings securely around the both of them. The underside of the wings was just as soft and warm as the outer surface and Rodney could just make out a faint pulse that echoed the rhythm of Jian's heartbeat.
"Relax, I've got you. Can you feel it, Rodney? Can you feel the magic?"
Rodney snorted, "Yeah, I can feel the magic all right."
"It's just a word, McKay. Would you prefer collective primal life force energy?"
"No, no, magic is fine," Rodney decided because even though Jian hadn't moved, hadn't adjusted his embrace he could feel a pressure building against his skin, but from the inside out. Rodney stiffened as he felt a tingling warmth sweep suddenly through his whole body.
"Relax, McKay, the energy is there for you to use. Gather it up, make it your own. Don't think too much."
Okay, okay, he could do that. Breathing in deeply and evenly he concentrated on easing the tension in his body.
"Good, now think of where we are in the solar system."
It had been three days and Rodney still found it hard to believe. No, that wasn't quite right because if he was truthful and wasn't that one of his many faults, his inability to diassemble, he believed. He really did. He believed in the magical life force energy and in the wings. It was just hard to process it all. Another world existing concurrently with his own, each touching the other if only enough to generate myths and legends at least on his side.
In Terra the study of Earth was an established scientific discipline supported by every major and most of the minor realms. Uh, a whole new scientifc field to explore. That Rodney found that prospect exciting was a gross understatement.
It was late but he hadn't even tried to sleep instead choosing to work instead. He had filled one pad already and was well on the way to filling a second. As a model Rodney couldn't have found anyone better than Jian. He was a natural, having an easy awareness of his body that translated into interesting, uncontrived poses.
Rodney hadn't bothered with preliminary sketching instead choosing soft pastels to quickly complete each piece. He preferred working with oils on canvas but that would have just taken too long. Tonight he was using only charcoal, he was running out of the blues anyways.
Rodney held his breath as Jian stirred in his sleep shifting a leg a little but otherwise remaining as he was, sprawled peacefully on Rodney's spare bed. The moonlight shone through the large floor to ceiling windows painting a silvery swath across the room, highlighting the folds of the wings as they lay bunched up along his back. Rodney had been surprised at how flexible and sturdy they appeared to be, molding themselves to Jian's body, surrounding him in warmth and comfort, a built in security blanket. Rodney sighed, he could use a security blanket right about now.
Jian had accidentally fallen through a rift in the barrier that separated their two worlds and according to the calculations Jian had done in his head, he had less than a day left to catch the rift before it was gone again. Gone until the planets and stars were aligned exactly right, when it would reappear and move along the river basin until it reached the mountains and disappeared again. The cycle repeated itself every sixty-four years.
He shifted in his seat, and with head bent close he concentrated on adding the last details to his drawing. Tomorrow he would spray it with fixative before gathering up every scrap together with a note for Nathan.
Rodney stilled as Jian turned over onto his back, the wings moving with him. "Rodney, go to sleep," he murmered. "Now would be good," he added when Rodney didn't move.
"They'll be plenty of time to sleep when I'm dead, Sheppard."
Jian's eyes cracked open and he glared at the other man. "Don't make me come over there, McKay," he growled softly.
"Yes, yes fine, packing up now," Rodney grumbled. There was no way he would sleep tonight though.
Jian was leaving in the morning and Rodney was going with him. It was a chance of a lifetime. He was going not because of the wings or the wizards, oh pardon me, life force energy specialists, or the fairies, Jian's description left no doubt in Rodney's mind that they could be anything else, or the other incredulous things of which Jian had spoken. No, it was because his mind would be whole again or at least as close as he was ever going to get.
He hadn't noticed it at first until the trip into town to get supplies. When he was close to Jian the blanket of confusion lifted and he could think with a clarity that he had never known even before his illness. It was the magic. A magical force that was strong on the other side of the veil. There was no guarantee of a cure, he knew that, but he had to give it a shot. It was an easy decision to leave this life behind and one he knew he would not regret.
They had ridden McKay's pickup to within a couple of hours walk from the river's edge. If he was alone Jian would have flown over the tree tops, following the river until he reached the point where the rift broke through the Veil but he wasn't alone. Rodney had been uncharacteristically quiet as they had walked the rest of the way to the cliff edge overlooking the river basin.
"You have got to be kidding me," he exclaimed as they both looked down into the river gorge. "I thought you couldn't carry me."
"I can't lift your weight," he explained patiently once again. "We will descend in a controlled manner. To 'infinity and beyond'," Jian called out to the sky.
Rodney rubbed his hand down his face. "Arrgh, I never should have introduced you to the DVD."
"Come on, Rodney," Jian urged "Just put your arms around me and hold on tight."
"Wait, maybe there's another way down."
"We're out of time, Rodney, see," he told him, pointing to the glittering shimmer that had appeared below them.
"Okay, then let's do it," Rodney told him him firmly, as he wrapped his arms around Jian's chest and closed his eyes.
"Stop and get away from the ledge."
"Nathan?"
Jian was impressed. The youngling had approached them with the same stealth as his grandsire and now stood in a position where the weapon he carried - a rifle- could do Jian real damage.
"It's not what it looks like, Nathan," Rodney pleaded.
"You mean like you're about to jump or be pushed. Mom looked him up Grandpa, John Sheppard doesn't exist and Dr Duia has never heard of him. Whatever you think you're doing, it's a con."
"We don't have time for this Rodney."
"I know. Just shut up and let me think. Nathan, please I know what I'm doing. How did you find us anyways?"
Nathan moved so that he had a better line of sight. "Came to check up on you and found the note on where to find the truck."
Jian gave Rodney an incredulous look, "You left a note?" he squeaked.
"Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Didn't want the truck to just sit here. It's not good for it," Rodney admitted.
Jian sighed as the youngling adjusted his stance against the uneven ground. He was not familiar with the firearm Nathan was holding but he had trained on similar projectile weaponry and could see the ease with which the youngling handled it.
"Rodney I thought that the younglings of this world were not permitted to train in the art of warfare. It was barbaric, you said."
"Oh will you just focus on the issue here, I'm sorry okay? I'm sorry I implied that your culture engaged in primitive rites of passage. Come on, a little help here, he thinks we're nuts."
Jian grinned, unrepentant. Provoking Rodney had become a favoured activity.
"Just show him already, you know, the wings," Rodney gestured imperiously. "Nathan look, they're real," Rodney implored, willing Nathan to understand as Jian stretched out and flexed his wings.
"He's from another world and I'm going with him."
There was only one way, Jian thought as he launched himself off the edge. He pulled his wings in tight and swooped down into a shallow dive and then lifted up, narrowly missing the cliff face on the opposite side. A few twists and turns and then he held his position hovering high over the river.
His cry of warning was lost in the wind as the youngling, in a state of complete distraction, lost his footing and slipped over the edge. Nathan had managed to grab hold of a number of stunted bushes and saplings that grew along the gorge face and they had broken his fall. It wasn't enough. Jian scooped Rodney up as he attempted to navigate his way down the gorge and deposited him with a small jolt beside his grandson.
Between him and Rodney they probably could have helped the youngling begin the healing process. Given the strength of Rodney's life force Jian had no doubt of his grandson's abilities. He would not expect a healing per se, but enough positive energy could be drawn to mitigate the boy's injuries, well enough that he could be left to make his own way home. Given enough time, that is, time they did not have, he noted, as he watched the sparkling edge of the rift draw alongside them.
"Someone needs to stay with him, McKay."
"I know."
"I've got his back."
"What?"
"So long Rodney," Jian told him as he pushed the best friend he had on this Earth through the rift in the Veil, "see you in sixty-four years."
Jian landed lightly and pulled his wings in around his body. "It's here, Nathan. It's time."
The youngling, his hair now as white as the snow lilies of the Northern Heights turned to him, his clear, blue eyes alight with excitement as he looked downstream into the shimmering light of the rift. Beneath the spell of obscurity that hid his true nature Jian knew he remained unchanged. He wondered if Rodney had found what he was looking for, if he had learned to heal himself.
Nathan moved forward eagerly, the limp he had lived with for the last sixty-four years hardly noticeable.
"So long Rodney, that's all you had to say?" a voice echoed loudly through the Veil. "Well, you're not going to keep an old man waiting, are you?"
Jian laughed and shouted into the wind. "Not old McKay, just complicated." He was more than ready to go home.
They had traveled across the globe and had lived an adventure of a lifetime. It had been a journey of discovery that would be discussed around the cooking fires all over the realm. Jian smiled as he turned around for one last look before walking into the sparkling light with absolutely no regrets.
