Queen tag - All Who Follow
Title: All Who Follow
Author: padawan_aneiki
Rating/Pairing: G/None
Characters: John, Torren, Teyla
Summary: John has a mission and uses Torren to accomplish it.
All Who Follow
“Shh,” John Sheppard placed his forefinger conspiratorially over his lips and shushed. “Gotta be quiet, or you’ll blow our cover.” He slipped past the door, earned a smile from a passing technician, and kept on going.
Not that the squirming little bundle tucked into his right arm had any clue what he was saying. Torren John-he still couldn’t get over that one-Emmagan looked up at him with wide eyes and soft baby noises. Okay, maybe not too soft as the kid seemed to be a little...excited. And some of those noises almost sounded like ‘Uncle John.’ Okay, well, maybe not so much. “But it’s the thought that counts, right, buddy?” John grinned at the baby.
It was twilight, and the early evening stars could be seen from the windows. The nightshift was just taking over for the dayshift, and so not too many people were paying attention to the lieutenant colonel as he made his way through the Infirmary to the curtained off bed in the far corner-the idea being for the patient in question to get some rest.
However, John’s previous visit had shown him a Teyla who, while recovering well from her ‘undercover’ role at least physically, was anxious and restless. Perhaps even a little uncertain and that wasn’t normally in her nature. The Athosian was nothing if not practical; like Ronon, facing the Wraith all their lives had made that a necessity. What was done was done and normally that was the end of the matter; going on and dealing with the fallout was just who she was, both as a leader and as a member of his team.
Right now, John needed that of Teyla, needed her to see it, because rarely was there an end to any matter in the Pegasus Galaxy, let alone in his head. “Hey, there,” he greeted quietly as he slipped behind the curtain. “Feelin’ up to a little company? And I do mean, ‘little.’”
Dark eyes opened and Teyla instantly smiled at the sight of her son cradled in John’s arm. “How did you...”
“I can be sneaky when I want to be,” John asserted, giving her a little smile, and Teyla simply cocked her head at him. “Oh, okay, I asked Keller if it would be all right, and she said it was fine. I talked Kanaan into lettin’ me borrow Torren for a little while.”
“’Borrow’ him?” Teyla echoed with a slight lift of her eyebrows and John had the grace to look a little embarrassed before plunging ahead.
“Sure...I thought you’d appreciate a visit from your son, and, well...babies are a great way to get a date,” he deadpanned, with a casual shrug.
“You did not,” Teyla said knowingly and now it was John’s turn to raise an eyebrow.
“Actually, no,” he confirmed. “Although I could have if I’d wanted to; it took me almost twenty minutes to get down here with all the attention the little guy was getting from the general...female population.” John shifted now, preparing to hand the baby over to his mother. A small fist entangled itself in the collar of John’s shirt and it was a moment’s work to pry the tiny fingers free of the fabric before he could straighten up.
The pilot watched mother and son for a moment before clearing his throat slightly. “I could...just you know, give you two some time alone.” John motioned vaguely behind him. “Just holler when you’re ready for me to...”
“Why did you... I mean, Kanaan could just have easily gotten permission from Doctor Keller to...” Teyla started, but stopped when John lifted a hand, a crooked little smile appearing.
“I already told you; I was trolling for a date,” John replied lightly, before dropping the smile and hitching one hip on the bed to lean over and stroke his finger along Torren’s downy soft cheek. “And, with our buddy Todd solidifying his power base in the Wraith hierarchy, such as it is, I know you’ve been questioning the...wisdom of our approach.” John paused now and met Teyla’s gaze firmly. “Look, Teyla we’ve all got stuff we second-guess ourselves for around here...some of us, more than others but the fact is, in spite of everything, we’ve tipped the balance of power in this galaxy, maybe for the first time in ten-thousand years. Sure, we’ve made some mistakes but...if there’s the slightest chance this...plan goes through, and actually works...it was worth taking. I just thought...I’d let your son remind you why you did it.”
John cleared his throat now and stood back up, jamming his hands into the pockets of his BDU’s. “Uh...I didn’t mean to get on my soapbox...I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Without further explanation, he started to go.
“John,” Teyla’s voice stopped him cold, and he glanced back over his shoulder.
“Hmm?” Hazel eyes swept over her face and he was relieved to see the familiar warm smile on her face.
“Thank you,” she said quietly with a graceful nod. “For reminding me of the reasons why I chose to come to Atlantis to stay in the first place.” She reached out a hand toward him. “And of the...family for whom I would gladly give all to protect, for all who follow.” John awkwardly pulled a hand free of his pocket, and Teyla took it, squeezing lightly and tugging him closer. “Sit with us awhile,” the Athosian invited warmly. “Torren likes you.”
“Aw, well, if Torren wants me to stay, I can’t pass that up, then,” John looked behind him, his eyes finding a chair and he retrieved it, pulling it over to Teyla’s bedside and parking himself in it. “You know, it sounded to me on the way down here like he was trying to say ‘John.’”
“He is only a few months old!” Teyla laughed.
“You didn’t hear him! I swear, it sounded just like ‘John.’ C’mon, buddy, this is your chance to show off for Mom. Say it again...say ‘John...Johhhhhn...’”
The hope that endured in the laughter of a child filled their hearts and for a few precious minutes, the weight of the galaxy-and all those who would follow-was off.
Author: padawan_aneiki
Rating/Pairing: G/None
Characters: John, Torren, Teyla
Summary: John has a mission and uses Torren to accomplish it.
All Who Follow
“Shh,” John Sheppard placed his forefinger conspiratorially over his lips and shushed. “Gotta be quiet, or you’ll blow our cover.” He slipped past the door, earned a smile from a passing technician, and kept on going.
Not that the squirming little bundle tucked into his right arm had any clue what he was saying. Torren John-he still couldn’t get over that one-Emmagan looked up at him with wide eyes and soft baby noises. Okay, maybe not too soft as the kid seemed to be a little...excited. And some of those noises almost sounded like ‘Uncle John.’ Okay, well, maybe not so much. “But it’s the thought that counts, right, buddy?” John grinned at the baby.
It was twilight, and the early evening stars could be seen from the windows. The nightshift was just taking over for the dayshift, and so not too many people were paying attention to the lieutenant colonel as he made his way through the Infirmary to the curtained off bed in the far corner-the idea being for the patient in question to get some rest.
However, John’s previous visit had shown him a Teyla who, while recovering well from her ‘undercover’ role at least physically, was anxious and restless. Perhaps even a little uncertain and that wasn’t normally in her nature. The Athosian was nothing if not practical; like Ronon, facing the Wraith all their lives had made that a necessity. What was done was done and normally that was the end of the matter; going on and dealing with the fallout was just who she was, both as a leader and as a member of his team.
Right now, John needed that of Teyla, needed her to see it, because rarely was there an end to any matter in the Pegasus Galaxy, let alone in his head. “Hey, there,” he greeted quietly as he slipped behind the curtain. “Feelin’ up to a little company? And I do mean, ‘little.’”
Dark eyes opened and Teyla instantly smiled at the sight of her son cradled in John’s arm. “How did you...”
“I can be sneaky when I want to be,” John asserted, giving her a little smile, and Teyla simply cocked her head at him. “Oh, okay, I asked Keller if it would be all right, and she said it was fine. I talked Kanaan into lettin’ me borrow Torren for a little while.”
“’Borrow’ him?” Teyla echoed with a slight lift of her eyebrows and John had the grace to look a little embarrassed before plunging ahead.
“Sure...I thought you’d appreciate a visit from your son, and, well...babies are a great way to get a date,” he deadpanned, with a casual shrug.
“You did not,” Teyla said knowingly and now it was John’s turn to raise an eyebrow.
“Actually, no,” he confirmed. “Although I could have if I’d wanted to; it took me almost twenty minutes to get down here with all the attention the little guy was getting from the general...female population.” John shifted now, preparing to hand the baby over to his mother. A small fist entangled itself in the collar of John’s shirt and it was a moment’s work to pry the tiny fingers free of the fabric before he could straighten up.
The pilot watched mother and son for a moment before clearing his throat slightly. “I could...just you know, give you two some time alone.” John motioned vaguely behind him. “Just holler when you’re ready for me to...”
“Why did you... I mean, Kanaan could just have easily gotten permission from Doctor Keller to...” Teyla started, but stopped when John lifted a hand, a crooked little smile appearing.
“I already told you; I was trolling for a date,” John replied lightly, before dropping the smile and hitching one hip on the bed to lean over and stroke his finger along Torren’s downy soft cheek. “And, with our buddy Todd solidifying his power base in the Wraith hierarchy, such as it is, I know you’ve been questioning the...wisdom of our approach.” John paused now and met Teyla’s gaze firmly. “Look, Teyla we’ve all got stuff we second-guess ourselves for around here...some of us, more than others but the fact is, in spite of everything, we’ve tipped the balance of power in this galaxy, maybe for the first time in ten-thousand years. Sure, we’ve made some mistakes but...if there’s the slightest chance this...plan goes through, and actually works...it was worth taking. I just thought...I’d let your son remind you why you did it.”
John cleared his throat now and stood back up, jamming his hands into the pockets of his BDU’s. “Uh...I didn’t mean to get on my soapbox...I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Without further explanation, he started to go.
“John,” Teyla’s voice stopped him cold, and he glanced back over his shoulder.
“Hmm?” Hazel eyes swept over her face and he was relieved to see the familiar warm smile on her face.
“Thank you,” she said quietly with a graceful nod. “For reminding me of the reasons why I chose to come to Atlantis to stay in the first place.” She reached out a hand toward him. “And of the...family for whom I would gladly give all to protect, for all who follow.” John awkwardly pulled a hand free of his pocket, and Teyla took it, squeezing lightly and tugging him closer. “Sit with us awhile,” the Athosian invited warmly. “Torren likes you.”
“Aw, well, if Torren wants me to stay, I can’t pass that up, then,” John looked behind him, his eyes finding a chair and he retrieved it, pulling it over to Teyla’s bedside and parking himself in it. “You know, it sounded to me on the way down here like he was trying to say ‘John.’”
“He is only a few months old!” Teyla laughed.
“You didn’t hear him! I swear, it sounded just like ‘John.’ C’mon, buddy, this is your chance to show off for Mom. Say it again...say ‘John...Johhhhhn...’”
The hope that endured in the laughter of a child filled their hearts and for a few precious minutes, the weight of the galaxy-and all those who would follow-was off.