A/N: It's almost time for Guide to return...but first, what sort of trouble can Jennifer get herself into while he's gone?
Jennifer awoke from a fitful sleep some hours later, her mind reeling at the knowledge Guide had passed to her and the understanding that her research was too weak to prove useful as of yet. It was a heavy blow. In spite of her generalized fear of Guide and the nature of his kind, she wanted to believe there was good in him. His tendency to so rapidly morph from her equal to one of such predacious instincts disturbed her though, and every time it happened the resolve she swore to herself she would retain crumbled away just a little bit more. Now, knowing her fellow Atlanteans were contained in the lower decks, albeit by her suggestion, that resolve threatened to fall away completely. She needed to see them, without Guide's figure looming beside her, and this was the perfect opportunity. Much of the Hive had left for the planet to feed, leaving Bonewhite in charge and a skeleton crew to tend to the ship in the meantime.
Quietly, the doctor padded out into the main living quarters and slipped on the strange Wraith footwear she had been given after her Atlantean shoes were eaten by one of the beasts. They were too large, for her body was slight in comparison even to a Wraith queen. She took care to choose a slightly more human-esque jacket from the cubby nearby, for it would not reflect well to John and the others were she to arrive in full Wraith dress.
Jennifer's voice activated the door to the upper corridors and she slipped out into the dim light, silent as a mouse and quickly glancing about for any possible Drones. Though Guide had by now permitted to roam the upper decks without an escort, anything mid-deck and lower was still forbidden. The commander had claimed it was for her safety, but Jennifer remained convinced the great ship itself would assist her, given its constant exchange of knowledge with Guide himself. Surely it understood what he felt fo her, and would protect that.
As she moved through the corridors, the floor spongey and damp so that it seeped through the soles of the Wraith boots, the blonde found her mind wandering to the moment when Guide had so willingly entrapped and kissed her. He had made no similar moves since that day, save for the instant just a few hours before when he had touched his head to hers, but she had seen Wraith act similarly with members of their own species. It did not mean he felt anything more than an affinity for her situation. Still, she couldn't deny how unsettled his mind had been in that particular moment. The commander was indeed worried, and even though she could not quite determine the origin, something in the deep recesses of mind knew that worry revolved around her.
By nature, Guide was a predator and Jennifer his prey, but yet, day after day, he skillfully fought against his base instincts so that he might treat her as one would a delicate rose. On occasion he slipped up, but the doctor felt now that she understood the reasons, and when he returned, she would forgive him. Had he so wished it, he might have vanished from the ship for two days to conduct further research, but instead he had seen fit to explain to his counterpart precisely where he was going, and how he justified his actions. Jennifer would never agree with it, but she was not without compassion for either the Wraith or the dying individuals upon which they would feed. Guide reasoned that their lives would end with dignity in a way they could never do without the Wraith, and Jennifer believed him. Even assisted by their own kind, the patients would never have the chance to live as they once had, if only for a short time, and it was this fact that gave Jennifer the confidence to say there was good in the Wraith after all.
She had entered the lower decks now, and here the Hive grew darker and the thrum of the engines more prominent. Mist coiled upward from the moist floor, obscuring her view and threatening to choke her within its humid clutches. The passages here were narrower, but they swelled outward to allow her more comfortable transit, narrowing again behind her. Guide had told her once that this was a safety feature of the Hive—a way to restrict the movement of any prisoners who might escape their cells. The Hive was pre-programmed to know who should be traveling and who should not; evidently, it felt Jennifer was a welcome guest.
Soon the three cells in which John and the others were held appeared before her, and Jennifer's pace quickened until she could grasp the bars. Her team quickly got to their feet and strode over to her, their faces tired but otherwise unharmed.
"How are you guys doing?" she asked, her eyes falling to each of them in turn.
John, the first to speak, shrugged as he did so.
"Aside from the fact that we're stuck in here and can't go anywhere, not too bad."
"Have you been threatened in any way?" the doctor inquired, her motherly nature appearing rather swiftly. "Were any of you injured in the firefight?"
John shook his head, and then looked to Rodney.
"Well, I think McKay's pride was a bit hurt when Todd wouldn't let us help with whatever it is you thought we could...but other than that, no, no injuries."
At this, Rodney perked up, switching over to Jennifer's own well-being.
"What about you, Jennifer? You've been here a lot longer than we have. Are you hurt?"
A reassuring smile flashed across her face and she reached out to squeeze Rodney's hand through the bars.
"I'm fine, Rodney," the blonde assured him, smiling again. "I have been treated quite well, actually. We've not made a lot of progress with the Hoffan drug, but we've begun pursuing other avenues to draw the Wraith away from humans. That's what you saw yesterday."
"That...thing...that was on the ground?" Rodney inquired, his eyes widened. "How is that going to help get the Wraith away from humans?"
"Alternative food source, if it works. We still have a few other options we need to find and catch, but for now, there's two in the labs we are working with." The doctor couldn't conceal the faint note of pride in her voice, especially when Rodney made a noise to indicate he had grudgingly approved. She opened her mouth to say more, but was halted unexpectedly when Bonewhite appeared beside her.
"The commander will be most displeased to learn that you have, yet again, disobeyed his orders, Doctor," Bonewhite said, his voice unnervingly cool and calm. His narrow green eyes looked at the other Atlanteans now. "Rest easy, humans. Your doctor is well cared for, and so long as you do not attempt to leave the confines of these living quarters, so shall you be."
"Are we guests or prisoners?" Teyla spoke from the back of the group, approaching the bars now. "We see that Jennifer is allowed to move about the Hive, but if we are to assist you with your studies, should we not be allowed to do the same?"
Bonewhite sneered.
"Your stay here shall be as pleasant or unpleasant as you like, but the determination of which sort you receive is entirely up to you. Be thankful your doctor has sway with the commander, or you might otherwise have been killed on sight."
Bonewhite gripped Jennifer by the shoulder and rotated her now, ushering her before him and leaving her fellow Atlanteans behind.
"Where are you taking me?" Jennifer demanded as she and Bonewhite entered a section of the ship to which she had never been. The Wraith remained stiff and silent until they reached a doorway, and as he pressed her through it with a hand at the small of her back, she realized he had brought her to his own quarters. His hand never leaving her, Bonewhite directed her to take a seat in a large high-backed chair, and then he himself took a seat in an identical chair which sat opposite. A low table sat between the two, and the subcommander folded his hands on his lap and leaned forward to speak to her.
"What is it that makes you think you have such license as to wander the ship unaccompanied?" he began, his voice hissing through his sharp teeth. "I realize Guide has granted you permission for the upper decks, but to travel to the belly of the Hive, to speak with your fellow humans...one might begin to think you are...up to something."
Jennifer momentarily clenched her jaw and stuck her chin out in defiance.
"I have been without human contact for months, Bonewhite. I thought my comrades lost to me forever. If you were subject to the same, would you not seek them out the moment you saw your chance to do so?"
"Every time you defy your commander, the Wraith on this ship garner additional reason to defy him themselves."
"Are you saying I've successfully assimilated?"
"Hardly. You have merely scratched the surface of what it means to be Wraith, and as I have told you before, you willnever be Wraith. Unless, of course, Guide seeks to transform you himself, and you and I have already established that is not the best choice." The Wraith Second raised a barely-detectable eyebrow and smirked.
"Guide has told me himself that he has no desire to turn me into something I am not," Jennifer snapped back, tense. "And, as I have had more positive contact with him than you, I am inclined to believe him."
"I can help you rebuild your life, Doctor Keller," Bonewhite whispered now, his lips curling slightly. "I can free your companions and return you to Earth."
Her eyes narrowed, but the woman's interest was piqued. Even so, she wasn't ready to fall into his scheme so easily.
"What makes you think I want to return to Earth?"
Bonewhite considered her for a moment, as though surprised.
"You would choose to live a life imprisoned by the very species responsible for the deaths of so many of your compatriots? Secluded with only occasional trips beyond these walls, interacting with so few individuals as myself and Guide?"
"And a similar life I chose when I joined the Atlantis expedition, Bonewhite. I don't understand why you believe I should have a problem with this lifestyle." The blonde's eyebrows now threatened to disappear into her hairline.
"What of your family back on Earth, Doctor?" Bonewhite continued, and he knew he had struck a nerve when he saw the woman's eyes falter briefly in their stare. "You expressed to me once that your sadness for those you thought were lost was great. How is it your parents must feel, believing their sole offspring to be dead? If you had the chance to return to your loved ones and explain away your falsified death, would you seize it? Wouldn't they like to see you again, Jennifer?"
"You want me to leave," Jennifer declared after she had regained her composure. "What I cannot understand is why." Bonewhite curled his lip and wrinkled his nose.
"I merely want what is best for this vessel, and your presence is anything but. You incite change. You instill values upon my commander that have no place among our kind. The very sight of you makes him behave irrationally and put his entire crew at risk where such risk it not necessary. Your intelligence, while admirable, is best put to use elsewhere. I thought for a time that we could benefit from your services, but now that the Atlanteans have returned, I sense your loyalties will shift to them over the safety of this ship. You have already proven as much by visiting them without our permission."
"Just because I wanted to have contact with another human being again does not mean my loyalties have shifted, Bonewhite," the human female snapped, standing up. "I understand your apprehension about my being on board, but if my word has gained any merit with you in the time I've been here, I assure you my intentions are only to help."
"Even the best of intentions can fall ill, my dear."
"Do you really think Guide will let me go back to Earth knowing what I know about this Hive and its goals? I'm a security risk Bonewhite, and you know it."
"Which is precisely why you need to convince him you are anything but a risk. Make him see you as you should be seen...an asset who is best utilized beyond the walls of this Hive." A strange glimmer of an emotion Jennifer couldn't place flickered in the alien's eyes.
"Not long ago you insisted I not engage with him."
"Alas, you have disobeyed me just as you have disobeyed him. You are in too deep, now, Doctor Keller. You must finish whatever it is you've started. Guide and yourself will work best when you are not distracted by one another. Perhaps, someday, there will come a time when your...liaison...can be had without consequence."
"That could be centuries."
"All the more reason for you to start now."
Jennifer approached him now, daring to place her palms on the arm rests either side of his seated figure and press her face close to his own. Her voice was dripping with venom as she hissed out her response in a noticeably Wraith-like gesture.
"You're despicable, Bonewhite."
Before she could pull back, the subcommander snatched her by the back of the neck, his claws digging unmercifully into the sensitive flesh, and held her still as he stood up himself.
"Careful, darling," he whispered, his eyes flashing. "There's more than one way for me to achieve the same goal. I am not so pliable as Guide. Do not agitate me." He shoved her like a rag doll to the floor now, stepping over her and calling to the door to open. "You will stay here until Guide returns." The doctor scrambled to her feet and rushed at the door, only to be met with the solid wall. She beat her fists upon it repeatedly, screaming after the Wraith Second to release her, but it was no use. After some time, she ceased to cry out, collapsing with her back against the soft wall. She suspected there was more trouble to be had upon Guide's return.