In The Silence
Title: In The Silence
Author: LaughtersMelody
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Disclaimer: It’s not mine, but the owners of the franchise didn’t seem to appreciate Atlantis. Can I have it instead? *puppy-dog eyes*
Genre: Angst/Friendship
Pairing: None.
Type: One-Shot.
Spoilers: No real spoilers in this one. :)
Characters: Teyla Emmagan
Secondary Characters: John Sheppard
Summary: A mission gone horribly wrong leaves Sheppard overwhelmed with guilt. Teyla/Sheppard friendship. One-shot.
A/N: This was written for the January Comment Fic Exchange on sgahcchallenges. . :) The prompt was: “Angst, lots of angst. John is struggling with his feelings over something really bad that happened to him, or to her, or to both. Bonus points if it's Teyla POV reading him like only she is able to.”
God is amazing, and His mercy is incredible. :)
~*~*~*~*~*~
In The Silence
Silence often spoke louder than words.
Teyla had realized that long ago as the leader of her people. She could learn more from the spaces in between words, than from a lengthy, formal speech.
That skill had served her well her first year in Atlantis. She’d been among friends, but they were friends who had come from a world, a culture, that was incredibly different from her own. So, while she had listened to their words, she had listened even more carefully to what they did not say. As time had passed and the bonds between them had strengthened, she had relied on the silence less and less.
But now, all she heard was the silence.
John didn’t react as she joined him on the balcony. He was gripping the railing tightly, every line of his body stiff, his muscles coiled with tension. The bruises on his face looked almost black in the shadows. His gaze never left the horizon, but she knew his mind was still on the last planet they’d visited.
On a boy, probably no more than sixteen.
An angry boy, who’d lost his father, and tried to take revenge on the person he believed to be responsible.
John had been the one to see the pattern, to realize that each time the people of that world had gathered in large numbers, the Wraith had come. The boy’s father, the village leader, had been their spy…a traitor of the worst kind.
The village had sentenced him to death. The boy had blamed John.
Teyla had read John’s report, the terse military language sounding cold in contrast to the guilt she knew John felt.
The boy had waited until John was alone before he’d attacked. John had tried to subdue the boy without harming him, taking many blows in the process. But a weapon can be deadly even in the hands of one so young, and when the boy had lunged with a knife, John had reacted instinctively.
The village elders had declared John innocent of any crime, but Teyla knew that didn’t matter. Not to him.
He hadn’t spoken more than a few words to anyone for the last four days, and he’d been little more than a ghost in the city at night, prowling the corridors until dawn.
The knowledge of his pain left Teyla with a heavy weight in her chest. There were no words that would lessen the guilt he felt…anything she said would seem empty. All she had to offer was her presence.
Teyla watched John for a moment longer, then stepped closer, moving to stand at his side. She let her hand brush his on the railing. When his fingers brushed hers in return, she knew.
John understood the silence, too.
Fin
~*~*~*~*~
A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think!
Take care and God bless!
-Laughter
Author: LaughtersMelody
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Disclaimer: It’s not mine, but the owners of the franchise didn’t seem to appreciate Atlantis. Can I have it instead? *puppy-dog eyes*
Genre: Angst/Friendship
Pairing: None.
Type: One-Shot.
Spoilers: No real spoilers in this one. :)
Characters: Teyla Emmagan
Secondary Characters: John Sheppard
Summary: A mission gone horribly wrong leaves Sheppard overwhelmed with guilt. Teyla/Sheppard friendship. One-shot.
A/N: This was written for the January Comment Fic Exchange on sgahcchallenges. . :) The prompt was: “Angst, lots of angst. John is struggling with his feelings over something really bad that happened to him, or to her, or to both. Bonus points if it's Teyla POV reading him like only she is able to.”
God is amazing, and His mercy is incredible. :)
~*~*~*~*~*~
In The Silence
Silence often spoke louder than words.
Teyla had realized that long ago as the leader of her people. She could learn more from the spaces in between words, than from a lengthy, formal speech.
That skill had served her well her first year in Atlantis. She’d been among friends, but they were friends who had come from a world, a culture, that was incredibly different from her own. So, while she had listened to their words, she had listened even more carefully to what they did not say. As time had passed and the bonds between them had strengthened, she had relied on the silence less and less.
But now, all she heard was the silence.
John didn’t react as she joined him on the balcony. He was gripping the railing tightly, every line of his body stiff, his muscles coiled with tension. The bruises on his face looked almost black in the shadows. His gaze never left the horizon, but she knew his mind was still on the last planet they’d visited.
On a boy, probably no more than sixteen.
An angry boy, who’d lost his father, and tried to take revenge on the person he believed to be responsible.
John had been the one to see the pattern, to realize that each time the people of that world had gathered in large numbers, the Wraith had come. The boy’s father, the village leader, had been their spy…a traitor of the worst kind.
The village had sentenced him to death. The boy had blamed John.
Teyla had read John’s report, the terse military language sounding cold in contrast to the guilt she knew John felt.
The boy had waited until John was alone before he’d attacked. John had tried to subdue the boy without harming him, taking many blows in the process. But a weapon can be deadly even in the hands of one so young, and when the boy had lunged with a knife, John had reacted instinctively.
The village elders had declared John innocent of any crime, but Teyla knew that didn’t matter. Not to him.
He hadn’t spoken more than a few words to anyone for the last four days, and he’d been little more than a ghost in the city at night, prowling the corridors until dawn.
The knowledge of his pain left Teyla with a heavy weight in her chest. There were no words that would lessen the guilt he felt…anything she said would seem empty. All she had to offer was her presence.
Teyla watched John for a moment longer, then stepped closer, moving to stand at his side. She let her hand brush his on the railing. When his fingers brushed hers in return, she knew.
John understood the silence, too.
Fin
~*~*~*~*~
A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think!
Take care and God bless!
-Laughter