Fic: Polarity (PG-13)
Title: Polarity
Author: SGAtlantisLight
Characters: McKay, Sheppard, Weir, Beckett, Zelenka, Lorne, Parrish, Cadman, Brown, Kavanaugh
Relationships: McKay/Sheppard, Zelenka/Beckett
Rating: PG-13 for this part, but the series as a whole is NC-17
Warnings: A bit of a cliffhanger end, but not as bad as some of them I've pulled
Spoilers: Reference to season 1's Poisoning the Well
Summary: Part 32 of the Broken Series
Disclaimer: The characters, the setting, etc. are NOT mine, even if I wish they were.
The first thing John noticed on waking, before he even opened his eyes, was the weight of Rodney's gaze. He didn't know how he could tell, but he knew his husband was looking at him. He opened his eyes and turned to look at Rodney who was staring at him in wonder. He looked down at his body, but didn't see anything worthy of Rodney's wonderment-- same hairy chest, morning erection nestled in the same bed of curly hairs, lean and hairy legs that he always felt were just a bit too short for his torso, the odd scar here and there.
"Rodney?"
"Hm?"
"Is there some reason you’re looking at me like I sprouted a second head... actually, more like a second dick?"
"I just... well, I woke up and you were all curled up next to me and I thought, 'Oh, my God, we're married!'"
John looked at him in confusion. "Did you hit your head or something?"
"No, I just..." Rodney shook his head and smiled. "There's just a part of me that still expects to wake up and discover this is all a dream. I don't know. I guess I'm just... happy, which is weird, considering everything that's happened, but--"
John interrupted him by pulling him into a kiss. The kiss became more intense, Rodney's tongue tracing a path along John's lower lip, John sucking that tongue into his mouth and then biting down on it playfully, and Rodney was chuckling into John's mouth and John was laughing back. Before Rodney, he would never have considered laughter appropriate to the bedroom, but there was such joy here in Rodney's arms.
Rodney was rolling them over, straddling John, kisses falling on his face like warm spring rain when the headset on the bedside table squawked.
"Beckett to McKay."
Rodney chuckled. "Turnabout," he said, shaking his head, then reached for the headset and activated it as he slipped it on. "McKay here. What is it, Carson?"
John watched Rodney's face grow concerned as Carson talked.
"I'll be right down."
"What is it?" John asked as Rodney slipped out of the bed and began pulling on clothes.
"It's Kavanaugh. He's slipped into... some sort of coma-like state and Carson has no idea why."
"I thought he was recovering."
"He was. He had some motor control issues, but there was no reason to think his condition would deteriorate."
John looked disturbed. "You don't think some part of the Trojan nanites survived?"
"I don't know." Rodney sighed, then turned and gave John a quick kiss. "I'll see you later."
***
"Good morning, Colonel. Is Rodney not with you this morning?"
John looked up and smiled at Teyla. "No. He had to go see Carson about some stuff. Join me?"
"Thank you." She sat down and started in on the food on her tray.
"Hey, I'm shuttling some medical supplies out to the mainland this afternoon and picking up some food and other supplies. Do you want to come?"
"I thought Major Lorne was to be flying today."
"We gave him the day off for his, ah, honeymoon." John grinned.
She smiled. "I would enjoy the visit. Will Rodney be coming as well?"
"I'm afraid not. He's trying to keep the administrative paperwork to a minimum for when Elizabeth takes back over and get his teams started on investigating the Ancient wraith research. He probably spent three or four hours working last night after the party."
"It must be difficult for you both."
He shrugged. "We cope."
***
John entered the conference room, nodding to those already seated around the table. Elizabeth, still looking wan and tired, sat next to Rodney, who was still in the head seat. Lorne, Parrish, Sherman, and Coffman sat in the other seats around the table. John sprawled in the seat next to Rodney, across from Elizabeth. "So, what's up?"
"We were discussing whether it was worthwhile to continue trade negotiations with the Nathalians," Rodney said.
"You're kidding, right?" John asked.
"They've got significant mineralogical resources," Rodney said, "including naquadah, which, apparently, the Ancients mined on Nathalia. There's likely to be some Ancient technology in the bargain as well, if we can get them to show us the mines."
"They also have significant food crops available for trade," Parrish added.
"Has it escaped your notice that they were going to put you guys on trial for fraud and fornication unless you got married?" John asked.
"Which is why this is a discussion and not a foregone conclusion," Elizabeth said.
"To be honest," Parrish said, "it was largely a misunderstanding. I'm sure if we can get past that, trade could be invaluable."
"Now that they think you're married," John said.
"I'm not going back there," Lorne said. "Sorry, but I can't pretend to be married to the doc here just for some crops and metals."
"No, I don't think it would be appropriate to expect you to do so," Elizabeth agreed. "Nor would it be optimal to trade to have that sort of deception hanging over our heads. Which leaves us with John and Rodney."
"Now I see why I was invited to this discussion," John said, shaking his head. "And do you think after the debacle with Lorne and Parrish that they'd believe Rodney and I are married? Or would we end up having to shoot our way out?"
"It is a risk," Elizabeth admitted. "The question is whether it's a risk worth taking."
"Well," John said, leaning back, "we've got a few days until Carson clears me for off-world duty to look at the samples and readings that were brought back. Why don't we wait and see what we think when we know more?" His pulled muscle didn't bother him under normal circumstances, but off-world missions rarely turned out to be normal circumstances.
Rodney nodded. "That seems reasonable."
"Very well," Elizabeth said. "Did you need Major Lorne's team for anything more, Rodney?"
Rodney shook his head. "Go. Enjoy the rest of your day off."
John waited, noting that he hadn't been similarly dismissed. When the team had made their way out and shut the door, Elizabeth said, "Okay. I need to know exactly what went on while I was in the infirmary. Rodney's tried to keep me up-to-date, but Carson has an annoying habit of not wanting me too stressed out about things, so I'm a little hazy on a lot of it and I need you to help me see the big picture. And I need it before I take the reins back from Rodney."
"You're assuming command tomorrow, right?" John asked.
"Yes and no," Elizabeth answered. "I still haven't fully recovered as far as stamina goes and I can't handle the hours yet. I'm going to be leaning on Rodney for a while yet. I'm sorry to be hogging so much of your husband's time, and you two still so newly married."
"Hey, we both know you were instrumental in getting General O'Neill to approve the Protocols, so the fact that we're married at all owes a lot to you," John said.
"I just needed to see my people happy," Elizabeth admitted. "Now, on to what's been happening around here..."
***
"Elizabeth?" Rodney said gently, shaking her.
"Hm?" she said, blinking. "What?"
"You fell asleep."
"Oh. I'm sorry, Rodney," she said, rubbing her face tiredly. "Um. You were talking about how Carson was running tests of proteins in Radek's blood compared to the original Hoffan protein and the synthetic treatment. Can we start there?"
Rodney shook his head. "You're tired. Let's just call it quits for a while."
She looked about to protest, then stopped. "You're right. It's almost lunch time anyway."
"You want to join us?" John asked.
"I don't want to impose," she said.
"It's okay," Rodney said. "Carson and Radek were joining us anyway. Maybe Carson can fill you in on his research on Radek's blood samples."
John chuckled. "Poor Radek's beginning to look frightened every time Carson looks at him speculatively, which, considering they're lovers, must be interesting in the bedroom."
"Yes, that is a problem with having a doctor as a lover," Elizabeth joked. A glint of pain and sadness flickered across her eyes and was gone almost before they could register it.
"Come on then, let's go get some lunch," Rodney said, and there was a softness in his voice that made John want to hold him.
He stepped back and let Elizabeth go first, watching her back, straight and proud, and he wondered whether there would ever be anyone for her.
***
"Oh, I wanted to get something," Rodney said as the transporter arrived at the cafeteria's hallway. "You two go on ahead."
"Just don't get lost," John teased as the two stepped out and headed for the cafeteria.
Rodney smiled and stepped back, selecting his destination when the doors slid shut. A moment later he stepped out into the corridor along which some of the linguists had made offices. He started to turn in that direction when he paused, cocking his head. Yes, there were definitely the strains of music. He thought for a moment and realised this was the same level as the auditorium with the piano, though there was another transporter closer. Instead of taking it, he wandered the hallway, following the sound. Ah, yes, Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. It wasn't perfect and his hands twitched to play it correctly. The song ended as he rounded the corner and passed the transporter closer to the auditorium. There was a bit of applause, maybe two or three people.
"Oh, very nice!" someone said. Cadman, perhaps, he thought.
"What else do you know?" a man's voice asked.
Rodney quietly walked up to the open door and peered in, surprised to see Major Lorne sitting on the piano bench, dressed casually in jeans and grey sweatshirt.
"Okay, I think I can remember this, but it's been almost twenty years," Lorne said and began to play, tentatively at first, then picking up confidence as his fingers remembered. Beethoven's Fur Elise this time.
Rodney glanced around to see who Lorne's audience was. Over the weeks since the piano's arrival, various chairs and couches had been pulled into the room. On one of the couches, Cadman, Katie Brown, and Dr. Parrish sat. Rodney was surprised to note that Katie was curled into Parrish's embrace, one hand curled in his. He supposed it shouldn't be a great surprise. They were both botanists, after all, so worked rather closely together.
As the song progressed-- not half bad if Lorne had been honest about the passage of time-- Cadman sighed and snuggled closer to Parrish and Brown. Rodney almost gasped as her hand slid up Parrish's knee and over his and Katie's joined hands. The couple broke their hold and slipped Cadman's hand between theirs.
The song ended badly, Lorne missing the second-to-last chord. "Sorry," he said.
"You just need a bit of practice," Parrish said.
Lorne looked over and smiled, apparently not at all discomfited with the sight of his lover holding hands with Parrish and Brown. "What I need is some sheet music. Though I am surprised how much I remember. I wonder..."
His hands returned to the keys and he began playing.
"Oh, the theme to The Sting!" Cadman said.
"The Entertainer by Scott Joplin," Lorne corrected, continuing to play, rather well this time. "He was an amazing man, Joplin. One of my favourite composers."
Everyone fell silent, just listening to the piece. Rodney would have guessed that Joplin was one of Lorne's favourites just based on his playing. The others seemed to sense it, too, smiling as the military man threw his whole body into playing the song.
Feeling like an intruder, Rodney withdrew, heading back down the corridor the way he'd come to the final strains of the song, followed by the beginnings of The Maple Leaf Rag which, as a child, Rodney had been disappointed to discover wasn't a Canadian song.
***
John was playing with Deyn again when Rodney entered the cafeteria. Someone had apparently given the kid some Magnetix toys-- a collection of steel ball bearings about the diameter of Rodney's index finger and brightly-coloured rods with magnets in the ends which fit together via magnetic attraction-- and he and John were busy constructing a pyramid.
"Ah, there's your wayward husband," Carson said to John.
John looked up and smiled. "Hey, I thought I told you not to get lost."
Rodney noted the tray waiting for him next to his husband and slid into the seat, giving John a quick kiss. "Sorry. I had to go see who was playing the piano."
"Oh, yeah? Who was it?"
"Major Lorne."
"No kidding?"
"Nope. But that wasn't the strangest thing."
"Oh?"
"Mm. I'll have to tell you later. In private."
Elizabeth shook her head. "Okay, now you've got me curious."
Rodney grinned. "I'll tell you later, too. And you two," he added to Carson and Radek as Carson started to say something. "Where'd you get the toys?"
"Doctor Nguyen," Carson answered. "He uses them sometimes for molecular modeling, apparently."
"They're really cool," John said. "I think I'm going to order some for the next supply run."
Rodney shook his head. "Our apartment's going to start looking like a kid's room, if you start ordering toys."
"I'll order a toy box, too," John said, then leaned over and whispered in Rodney's ear, "though maybe I ought to order some other kinds of toys while I'm at it..."
Rodney felt sure his entire blood supply had suddenly concentrated into his face, which turned hot immediately, and his cock, which sprang to life at once.
John grinned at him. "I'll take that as a sign of approval," he said in a low voice.
Rodney nodded and tried very hard to ignore the sudden grins from his friends and the throbbing need in his groin and concentrated on eating instead.
"Oh, John, you're flying out to the mainland later today?" Carson asked.
John nodded. "Yeah. Did you want to add something to the medical supplies?"
"No, actually, I wanted to go with you and take Deyn out for a visit, get him used to the Athosians."
John nodded. "Oh, hey, speaking of Deyn and Athosians, doc, I had a weird conversation with Teyla last night at the party."
"Oh?" asked Carson.
"Yeah. She seemed a little uncomfortable of our young friend."
Carson raised his eyebrows. "Really? That seems a bit out of character."
"Yes, it does. Have you run any sort of tests on him?"
Carson shrugged. "Hearing tests. Scans of the speech centers of his brain and larynx. That's about all."
"Everything normal?"
Carson nodded. "Quite."
"Huh. Well, I suppose to be on the safe side, you might, you know, want to check him out a bit further."
"As if I didn't have enough to do already," Carson said. "All right. I'll see what I can do."
"How is Doctor Kavanaugh?" Elizabeth asked.
"Stable," Carson answered. "Other than that, we're completely mystified. My best guess is that it has something to do with us having taken him off the anticonvulsants, but we're not sure what."
"I really could have used him, too," Rodney admitted. "There's so much data to get through and he seemed anxious to help. Oh, yes, and on that note," Rodney said, pulling a device out of his lab coat pocket, "Miko brought this back with her from the research site. We haven't been able to activate it. The linguists have been checking for writing, but they've admitted there's nothing but pretty patterns. I thought maybe you could see if it would react to you, John."
John rolled his eyes. "He just wants me for my genes." He took the device that fit comfortably in his palm and concentrated. Nothing happened. He turned it over, switched hands, touched various surfaces. The lights on the device stayed dark.
"I think it's dead," Radek concluded.
John shrugged. "Seems so."
Deyn tapped his knee and held up the growing structure. He showed John where he was trying to attach one of the coloured rods, but the hanging rod and ball to which he was trying to attach it kept twitching away.
"Oh," John said. "It looks like a polarity problem. Let me see that." He set the Ancient device down and took the toy from Deyn. "I wonder if there's an ideal way to do this so the fields line up..."
Elizabeth turned back to Carson. "So, do you have any idea how to treat Doctor Kavanaugh?"
"Not really," Carson admitted. "I'm loathe to put him back on the anticonvulsant till we run some more tests."
None of them noticed Deyn's attention drift to the device or saw as he reached out and picked it up. He screamed, clutched his head, and collapsed to the floor, writhing in agony.
In the infirmary, Kavanaugh came to with a scream and leapt from the bed, tearing off monitor wires and his IV line as he went. He shoved Allison into a wall as she tried to stop him and was out the door, running like his very life depended on it.
Author: SGAtlantisLight
Characters: McKay, Sheppard, Weir, Beckett, Zelenka, Lorne, Parrish, Cadman, Brown, Kavanaugh
Relationships: McKay/Sheppard, Zelenka/Beckett
Rating: PG-13 for this part, but the series as a whole is NC-17
Warnings: A bit of a cliffhanger end, but not as bad as some of them I've pulled
Spoilers: Reference to season 1's Poisoning the Well
Summary: Part 32 of the Broken Series
Disclaimer: The characters, the setting, etc. are NOT mine, even if I wish they were.
The first thing John noticed on waking, before he even opened his eyes, was the weight of Rodney's gaze. He didn't know how he could tell, but he knew his husband was looking at him. He opened his eyes and turned to look at Rodney who was staring at him in wonder. He looked down at his body, but didn't see anything worthy of Rodney's wonderment-- same hairy chest, morning erection nestled in the same bed of curly hairs, lean and hairy legs that he always felt were just a bit too short for his torso, the odd scar here and there.
"Rodney?"
"Hm?"
"Is there some reason you’re looking at me like I sprouted a second head... actually, more like a second dick?"
"I just... well, I woke up and you were all curled up next to me and I thought, 'Oh, my God, we're married!'"
John looked at him in confusion. "Did you hit your head or something?"
"No, I just..." Rodney shook his head and smiled. "There's just a part of me that still expects to wake up and discover this is all a dream. I don't know. I guess I'm just... happy, which is weird, considering everything that's happened, but--"
John interrupted him by pulling him into a kiss. The kiss became more intense, Rodney's tongue tracing a path along John's lower lip, John sucking that tongue into his mouth and then biting down on it playfully, and Rodney was chuckling into John's mouth and John was laughing back. Before Rodney, he would never have considered laughter appropriate to the bedroom, but there was such joy here in Rodney's arms.
Rodney was rolling them over, straddling John, kisses falling on his face like warm spring rain when the headset on the bedside table squawked.
"Beckett to McKay."
Rodney chuckled. "Turnabout," he said, shaking his head, then reached for the headset and activated it as he slipped it on. "McKay here. What is it, Carson?"
John watched Rodney's face grow concerned as Carson talked.
"I'll be right down."
"What is it?" John asked as Rodney slipped out of the bed and began pulling on clothes.
"It's Kavanaugh. He's slipped into... some sort of coma-like state and Carson has no idea why."
"I thought he was recovering."
"He was. He had some motor control issues, but there was no reason to think his condition would deteriorate."
John looked disturbed. "You don't think some part of the Trojan nanites survived?"
"I don't know." Rodney sighed, then turned and gave John a quick kiss. "I'll see you later."
***
"Good morning, Colonel. Is Rodney not with you this morning?"
John looked up and smiled at Teyla. "No. He had to go see Carson about some stuff. Join me?"
"Thank you." She sat down and started in on the food on her tray.
"Hey, I'm shuttling some medical supplies out to the mainland this afternoon and picking up some food and other supplies. Do you want to come?"
"I thought Major Lorne was to be flying today."
"We gave him the day off for his, ah, honeymoon." John grinned.
She smiled. "I would enjoy the visit. Will Rodney be coming as well?"
"I'm afraid not. He's trying to keep the administrative paperwork to a minimum for when Elizabeth takes back over and get his teams started on investigating the Ancient wraith research. He probably spent three or four hours working last night after the party."
"It must be difficult for you both."
He shrugged. "We cope."
***
John entered the conference room, nodding to those already seated around the table. Elizabeth, still looking wan and tired, sat next to Rodney, who was still in the head seat. Lorne, Parrish, Sherman, and Coffman sat in the other seats around the table. John sprawled in the seat next to Rodney, across from Elizabeth. "So, what's up?"
"We were discussing whether it was worthwhile to continue trade negotiations with the Nathalians," Rodney said.
"You're kidding, right?" John asked.
"They've got significant mineralogical resources," Rodney said, "including naquadah, which, apparently, the Ancients mined on Nathalia. There's likely to be some Ancient technology in the bargain as well, if we can get them to show us the mines."
"They also have significant food crops available for trade," Parrish added.
"Has it escaped your notice that they were going to put you guys on trial for fraud and fornication unless you got married?" John asked.
"Which is why this is a discussion and not a foregone conclusion," Elizabeth said.
"To be honest," Parrish said, "it was largely a misunderstanding. I'm sure if we can get past that, trade could be invaluable."
"Now that they think you're married," John said.
"I'm not going back there," Lorne said. "Sorry, but I can't pretend to be married to the doc here just for some crops and metals."
"No, I don't think it would be appropriate to expect you to do so," Elizabeth agreed. "Nor would it be optimal to trade to have that sort of deception hanging over our heads. Which leaves us with John and Rodney."
"Now I see why I was invited to this discussion," John said, shaking his head. "And do you think after the debacle with Lorne and Parrish that they'd believe Rodney and I are married? Or would we end up having to shoot our way out?"
"It is a risk," Elizabeth admitted. "The question is whether it's a risk worth taking."
"Well," John said, leaning back, "we've got a few days until Carson clears me for off-world duty to look at the samples and readings that were brought back. Why don't we wait and see what we think when we know more?" His pulled muscle didn't bother him under normal circumstances, but off-world missions rarely turned out to be normal circumstances.
Rodney nodded. "That seems reasonable."
"Very well," Elizabeth said. "Did you need Major Lorne's team for anything more, Rodney?"
Rodney shook his head. "Go. Enjoy the rest of your day off."
John waited, noting that he hadn't been similarly dismissed. When the team had made their way out and shut the door, Elizabeth said, "Okay. I need to know exactly what went on while I was in the infirmary. Rodney's tried to keep me up-to-date, but Carson has an annoying habit of not wanting me too stressed out about things, so I'm a little hazy on a lot of it and I need you to help me see the big picture. And I need it before I take the reins back from Rodney."
"You're assuming command tomorrow, right?" John asked.
"Yes and no," Elizabeth answered. "I still haven't fully recovered as far as stamina goes and I can't handle the hours yet. I'm going to be leaning on Rodney for a while yet. I'm sorry to be hogging so much of your husband's time, and you two still so newly married."
"Hey, we both know you were instrumental in getting General O'Neill to approve the Protocols, so the fact that we're married at all owes a lot to you," John said.
"I just needed to see my people happy," Elizabeth admitted. "Now, on to what's been happening around here..."
***
"Elizabeth?" Rodney said gently, shaking her.
"Hm?" she said, blinking. "What?"
"You fell asleep."
"Oh. I'm sorry, Rodney," she said, rubbing her face tiredly. "Um. You were talking about how Carson was running tests of proteins in Radek's blood compared to the original Hoffan protein and the synthetic treatment. Can we start there?"
Rodney shook his head. "You're tired. Let's just call it quits for a while."
She looked about to protest, then stopped. "You're right. It's almost lunch time anyway."
"You want to join us?" John asked.
"I don't want to impose," she said.
"It's okay," Rodney said. "Carson and Radek were joining us anyway. Maybe Carson can fill you in on his research on Radek's blood samples."
John chuckled. "Poor Radek's beginning to look frightened every time Carson looks at him speculatively, which, considering they're lovers, must be interesting in the bedroom."
"Yes, that is a problem with having a doctor as a lover," Elizabeth joked. A glint of pain and sadness flickered across her eyes and was gone almost before they could register it.
"Come on then, let's go get some lunch," Rodney said, and there was a softness in his voice that made John want to hold him.
He stepped back and let Elizabeth go first, watching her back, straight and proud, and he wondered whether there would ever be anyone for her.
***
"Oh, I wanted to get something," Rodney said as the transporter arrived at the cafeteria's hallway. "You two go on ahead."
"Just don't get lost," John teased as the two stepped out and headed for the cafeteria.
Rodney smiled and stepped back, selecting his destination when the doors slid shut. A moment later he stepped out into the corridor along which some of the linguists had made offices. He started to turn in that direction when he paused, cocking his head. Yes, there were definitely the strains of music. He thought for a moment and realised this was the same level as the auditorium with the piano, though there was another transporter closer. Instead of taking it, he wandered the hallway, following the sound. Ah, yes, Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. It wasn't perfect and his hands twitched to play it correctly. The song ended as he rounded the corner and passed the transporter closer to the auditorium. There was a bit of applause, maybe two or three people.
"Oh, very nice!" someone said. Cadman, perhaps, he thought.
"What else do you know?" a man's voice asked.
Rodney quietly walked up to the open door and peered in, surprised to see Major Lorne sitting on the piano bench, dressed casually in jeans and grey sweatshirt.
"Okay, I think I can remember this, but it's been almost twenty years," Lorne said and began to play, tentatively at first, then picking up confidence as his fingers remembered. Beethoven's Fur Elise this time.
Rodney glanced around to see who Lorne's audience was. Over the weeks since the piano's arrival, various chairs and couches had been pulled into the room. On one of the couches, Cadman, Katie Brown, and Dr. Parrish sat. Rodney was surprised to note that Katie was curled into Parrish's embrace, one hand curled in his. He supposed it shouldn't be a great surprise. They were both botanists, after all, so worked rather closely together.
As the song progressed-- not half bad if Lorne had been honest about the passage of time-- Cadman sighed and snuggled closer to Parrish and Brown. Rodney almost gasped as her hand slid up Parrish's knee and over his and Katie's joined hands. The couple broke their hold and slipped Cadman's hand between theirs.
The song ended badly, Lorne missing the second-to-last chord. "Sorry," he said.
"You just need a bit of practice," Parrish said.
Lorne looked over and smiled, apparently not at all discomfited with the sight of his lover holding hands with Parrish and Brown. "What I need is some sheet music. Though I am surprised how much I remember. I wonder..."
His hands returned to the keys and he began playing.
"Oh, the theme to The Sting!" Cadman said.
"The Entertainer by Scott Joplin," Lorne corrected, continuing to play, rather well this time. "He was an amazing man, Joplin. One of my favourite composers."
Everyone fell silent, just listening to the piece. Rodney would have guessed that Joplin was one of Lorne's favourites just based on his playing. The others seemed to sense it, too, smiling as the military man threw his whole body into playing the song.
Feeling like an intruder, Rodney withdrew, heading back down the corridor the way he'd come to the final strains of the song, followed by the beginnings of The Maple Leaf Rag which, as a child, Rodney had been disappointed to discover wasn't a Canadian song.
***
John was playing with Deyn again when Rodney entered the cafeteria. Someone had apparently given the kid some Magnetix toys-- a collection of steel ball bearings about the diameter of Rodney's index finger and brightly-coloured rods with magnets in the ends which fit together via magnetic attraction-- and he and John were busy constructing a pyramid.
"Ah, there's your wayward husband," Carson said to John.
John looked up and smiled. "Hey, I thought I told you not to get lost."
Rodney noted the tray waiting for him next to his husband and slid into the seat, giving John a quick kiss. "Sorry. I had to go see who was playing the piano."
"Oh, yeah? Who was it?"
"Major Lorne."
"No kidding?"
"Nope. But that wasn't the strangest thing."
"Oh?"
"Mm. I'll have to tell you later. In private."
Elizabeth shook her head. "Okay, now you've got me curious."
Rodney grinned. "I'll tell you later, too. And you two," he added to Carson and Radek as Carson started to say something. "Where'd you get the toys?"
"Doctor Nguyen," Carson answered. "He uses them sometimes for molecular modeling, apparently."
"They're really cool," John said. "I think I'm going to order some for the next supply run."
Rodney shook his head. "Our apartment's going to start looking like a kid's room, if you start ordering toys."
"I'll order a toy box, too," John said, then leaned over and whispered in Rodney's ear, "though maybe I ought to order some other kinds of toys while I'm at it..."
Rodney felt sure his entire blood supply had suddenly concentrated into his face, which turned hot immediately, and his cock, which sprang to life at once.
John grinned at him. "I'll take that as a sign of approval," he said in a low voice.
Rodney nodded and tried very hard to ignore the sudden grins from his friends and the throbbing need in his groin and concentrated on eating instead.
"Oh, John, you're flying out to the mainland later today?" Carson asked.
John nodded. "Yeah. Did you want to add something to the medical supplies?"
"No, actually, I wanted to go with you and take Deyn out for a visit, get him used to the Athosians."
John nodded. "Oh, hey, speaking of Deyn and Athosians, doc, I had a weird conversation with Teyla last night at the party."
"Oh?" asked Carson.
"Yeah. She seemed a little uncomfortable of our young friend."
Carson raised his eyebrows. "Really? That seems a bit out of character."
"Yes, it does. Have you run any sort of tests on him?"
Carson shrugged. "Hearing tests. Scans of the speech centers of his brain and larynx. That's about all."
"Everything normal?"
Carson nodded. "Quite."
"Huh. Well, I suppose to be on the safe side, you might, you know, want to check him out a bit further."
"As if I didn't have enough to do already," Carson said. "All right. I'll see what I can do."
"How is Doctor Kavanaugh?" Elizabeth asked.
"Stable," Carson answered. "Other than that, we're completely mystified. My best guess is that it has something to do with us having taken him off the anticonvulsants, but we're not sure what."
"I really could have used him, too," Rodney admitted. "There's so much data to get through and he seemed anxious to help. Oh, yes, and on that note," Rodney said, pulling a device out of his lab coat pocket, "Miko brought this back with her from the research site. We haven't been able to activate it. The linguists have been checking for writing, but they've admitted there's nothing but pretty patterns. I thought maybe you could see if it would react to you, John."
John rolled his eyes. "He just wants me for my genes." He took the device that fit comfortably in his palm and concentrated. Nothing happened. He turned it over, switched hands, touched various surfaces. The lights on the device stayed dark.
"I think it's dead," Radek concluded.
John shrugged. "Seems so."
Deyn tapped his knee and held up the growing structure. He showed John where he was trying to attach one of the coloured rods, but the hanging rod and ball to which he was trying to attach it kept twitching away.
"Oh," John said. "It looks like a polarity problem. Let me see that." He set the Ancient device down and took the toy from Deyn. "I wonder if there's an ideal way to do this so the fields line up..."
Elizabeth turned back to Carson. "So, do you have any idea how to treat Doctor Kavanaugh?"
"Not really," Carson admitted. "I'm loathe to put him back on the anticonvulsant till we run some more tests."
None of them noticed Deyn's attention drift to the device or saw as he reached out and picked it up. He screamed, clutched his head, and collapsed to the floor, writhing in agony.
In the infirmary, Kavanaugh came to with a scream and leapt from the bed, tearing off monitor wires and his IV line as he went. He shoved Allison into a wall as she tried to stop him and was out the door, running like his very life depended on it.