Prompt: Decorations (part 1)
Pairing: N/A / Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Elizabeth had noticed. She wasn't oblivious at how much the moral of the members of the Atlantis expedition had sunk in the last few weeks. As the month of December began, the moral had declined. People knew that Christmas was coming and, for so many, this was going to be another Christmas spent away from their families or their first. Elizabeth knew that she needed to do something to boost the moral, one way or the other. After talking to Sheppard about it, she came up with an idea. An idea she would put into practice in her next check in with Earth.
The day came for the check in and she put her plan into action. Requesting a private conversation with General O'Neill, she knew it wouldn't take much to convince him, the problem was convincing the IOA.
- "So, Weir, what do I owe the pleasure of a private conversation?"
- "I need a favor, General."
- "Is that so?"
- "As you know, the holidays are upon us and I've noticed a decline in the expedition's moral. I was thinking if it would be possible for the SGC to send some decorations through the portal, with the rest of the supplies, so we could decorate the common areas of the city. I believe it would be a good boost in the moral and, therefore, increase productivity. It doesn't need to be a lot, just enough to give that homey feeling."
- "I'll see what I can do. If I'm able to, I'll send them next week, on our next check in. The boxes will be labeled with your name, so they won't know what's inside."
- "Sir, I know it will be a though sell to the IOA, but whatever you can send will be greatly appreciated."
- "Don't worry about the IOA. I'll deal with them. Talk to you soon, Weir."
- "Thank you, sir. Weir out." – O'Neill cut the wormhole on his end, ending the communication, leaving Elizabeth with the thought that if anyone can pull that off, it will be him. Now, it was a waiting game.
A week had passed and soon it was time for another check in with Earth. Dialing the gate, Elizabeth was slightly anxious to know if O'Neill had been able to get what she needed. The wormhole was established and she saw his grinning face in one of the gate room screens'.
- "Greetings, Atlantis."
- "General O'Neill, it's good to see you."
- "Likewise, Elizabeth. We're ready to receive your data transmission." – Hearing that, Elizabeth gave the signal to start the transmission. – "While we wait for it to be complete, I have a team getting all the supplies you requested ready to send them through, once we're done, along with the team of Marines as Sheppard requested. Oh, and by the way, that thing you asked me for? I'm sending it as well, plus a few extras."
- "Thank you, General. I promise it will be put to good use." – Elizabeth was ecstatic. She knew O'Neill was gonna do his best to help her, she was just worried that the IOA had given him a hard time about it. – "Did you get any trouble in getting it?"
- "Nothing I can't handle." – O'Neill answered her with a chuckle.
- "Dr. Weir? The transmission is done." – Chuck, one of the gate room's technicians, let her know.
- "Thank you, Chuck. General, the transmission is complete. We'll end the wormhole on our end so you can dial."
- "Sounds good. Talk soon."
The communication was ended and so was the wormhole. It took just a few seconds for the gate to be dialed in from Earth. Elizabeth saw a team of Marines walking through, the extra team that Sheppard had asked for, bringing with them the supplies she had requested, as well as the decorations. After saying her goodbyes to O'Neill, she went to inspect the boxes, quickly identifying the ones that O'Neill had send under her name and that weren't a part of the original cargo manifest.
She requested that those boxes to be taken to her quarters, while the others were taken to their respective departments. Now, she needed to put a team together to help her decorate the city. She started by enlisting the heads of each department plus their second in charge, including McKay, who wasn't so thrilled as the rest of them. She also enlisted Ronon and Teyla, one for his height and strength, the other for her eye for aesthetic.
They all worked through the night, splitting up in teams of three, trying to cover as much ground as possible before the sunrise. It went as well as it could possibly go and she couldn't wait to see everyone's reaction once they woke up and saw how festive the city looked. O'Neill had managed to not only send decorations for the common areas, but for the main hallways as well as the labs and gate room and even a small fake tree for her office.
They finished a few hours before the sun rose, allowing them to catch a few hours of sleep before getting ready for another day in Atlantis. "Let's hope everyone likes it.", Elizabeth thought, before falling asleep.