TEAM COOL: cry wolf, "Eddy"
Title: Eddy
Author: danceswithgary
Team: Cool
Prompt: cry wolf
Pairing(s): McKay/Sheppard
Rating: T
Warnings: None
Word count: ~3000
Summary: John looked at what he'd just typed and made a face as he backspaced through then a big-ass tornado out of nowhere chased us back to the gate.
Author’s Notes: I borrowed the wind creature from SGU, although it went through a makeover when it arrived on Atlantis. Thanks to my beta for the quick turnaround, any remaining mistakes are mine.
Once you've read the story, please take a moment to vote in the poll below. Ratings go from 1 (low) to 9 (high), so all you need to do is enter a single number in that range into each text entry box. You'll be able to see the prompt in the header above.
More details about the voting procedure can be found here.
eddy noun
1.
a : a current of water or air running contrary to the main current; especially : a circular current : whirlpool
b : something moving similarly
2.
a : a contrary or circular current (as of thought or policy)
Eddy
John looked at what he'd just typed and made a face as he backspaced through then a big-ass tornado out of nowhere chased us back to the gate. He always hated filling out AARs, and it was worse when he had to explain how the team came back hurt.
An unexpected meteorological event forced the team to abort the mission. Minor injuries were sustained due to windblown debris. Teyla Emmagen and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard are on light duty, their ability to return to full duty to be reassessed in three days.
Still dissatisfied with the wording, John frowned at the screen, happy for the interruption when Rodney unceremoniously stomped through the door. Saving his unfinished report, John closed his laptop and set it to one side, saying, "Hey, I wasn't expecting to see you until dinner."
"What an absolutely hellish day this has been." Toeing his dirt-caked shoes off, Rodney wobbled a bit when he sneezed. With a muttered curse, he kicked the shoes to the mat beside the door and hurried to the desk to swap his tablet for a tissue, blowing his nose loudly. "I need an antihistamine and a shower."
A little concerned by Rodney's bedraggled, dusty appearance, John got up from the bed, only wincing a little from the previous day's bruises. Retrieving his cane, he hobbled over, careful not to put too much pressure on his sprained ankle. "I can see why." After pressing a quick kiss to his favorite side of Rodney's mouth, John reached out and plucked a large piece of fuzz from Rodney's hair, who then scowled when John showed it to him.
"Great, another souvenir from the air vents." Glancing down his front, Rodney tugged another greyish fluff free with a disgusted huff, immediately followed by another explosive sneeze - fortunately captured by Rodney's handful of tissues. "There's a reason why I never wanted to find out where Atlantis' dustbunnies go to die."
John nudged the trash bucket out from under the desk, frowning in sympathy for Rodney's reddened nose and watering eyes.
After dumping the clump of tissue into the bucket, Rodney shoved it back and out of sight before dropping his radio on the desk with a disgusted, "Yuck. I hate having allergies."
"What were you doing in the vents?" John asked, wondering what he'd missed while stuck in bed with his air cast elevated.
"The control room kept calling about an intermittent howling noise. They swore it sounded like a wolf pack was behind the walls. I was busy checking out a problem in the botany department, so I sent Sullivan to take a look. Of course, he couldn't find anything." Rodney rolled his eyes as he started to unbutton his shirt. "Radek was in the middle of trying to figure out why one of the lab's vacuums suddenly exploded, so I went to the control room myself."
John held out his hand before Rodney could toss the shirt in the hamper. "Here, I'll take it out on the balcony and shake it out."
"Oh. Thanks." Rodney looked surprised and then pleased at John's thoughtfulness, and they stood there quietly for a moment, sharing smiles and enjoying another new aspect of the recent change to their domestic status. Rubbing his itchy nose, Rodney finally shrugged and handed the shirt over before starting on his grubby-kneed BDUs. Enjoying the unintentional strip show, John grinned when Rodney's 'lucky' boxers - black silk with giant four-leaved clovers - were revealed, but quickly changed to a concerned look when Rodney looked up from taking off his socks. "What?" Rodney asked, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"Find anything interesting?" John volleyed back as he accepted the BDUs, narrowly avoiding a series of short sneezes that Rodney tried to muffle in the t-shirt he was in the middle of tugging off.
Rodney shook his head. "Nothing. Everything is working exactly as expected and not a single howl while I was there." Hooking a thumb over his shoulder, he started backing toward the bathroom. "Normally I'd invite you to join me, but...." He waved toward his nose and promptly sneezed again.
"It's okay," John said with a smile. "You can make it up to me after you can breathe again."
Waiting until he heard the water come on, John turned and made his way to the balcony, cane in one hand, clothes in the other. He had to lean against the rail to shake out the worst of the dust, grateful that the wind was blowing away from him because he would have ended up sneezing alongside his beleaguered boyfriend. Draping the clothes over the rail, he paused to enjoy something he was usually too busy to enjoy - one of M35-117's - Atlantea's - vivid sunsets.
The feeling of being watched, a prickling between his shoulder blades, came on slowly. Swinging around as quickly as his ankle would allow, John was prepared to find Rodney attempting to sneak up on him.
The man-high mass of dust, leaves, flower petals, and various other bits of small debris swirling at the opposite end of the balcony was most definitely not Rodney.
Not wanting a repeat of the previous day's misadventures, John grabbed Rodney's clothes and headed for the balcony door, only to come up short when the small whirlwind moved as if to block him. John cautiously took a step to the left and the funnel of air shifted with him, just as it did when John reversed and tried sidling around it along the railing. Recalling how the storm on P47-309 had seemed to herd them toward the gate, John started to piece together what had been happening on Atlantis since then.
Changing tactics, John dropped the clothes to the balcony floor and held out his hand, speaking softly as he took a step forward, just as he would a skittish horse. "Hey, little fella. You lost?" The funnel shifted right then left, as if shifting from foot to foot, but it didn't leave its position in front of the door. John took another step, his voice still a soft drawl. "You're not very big, not really a storm at all. Think I'll call you Eddy. How's that sound?"
John shook his head at his own whimsy - speaking to something without a mouth and expecting a reply. To his surprise, the little storm bobbed in place twice as if answering, although it didn't move out of the way.
"What the fuck! John!"
Peering around the edges of the swirling cloud of debris, John saw Rodney standing just outside the bathroom door, holding a towel around his waist. "I'm okay," John said, trying to keep his voice calm and pitched low. "Just don't come any closer, Rodney."
"Huh, today is starting to make some sense now." Rodney shook his head slowly before he started sidestepping toward their shared bureau. "Talk to me, John. Is that what I think it is?"
"Probably. What are you doing?" John asked, worried that Rodney was going to try something despite John's warning.
Rodney's eyes never left the scene on the balcony as he fumbled open a drawer to drag out a faded pair of sweatpants. "I'm not playing naked Twister.
John chuckled, relieved that Rodney hadn't lost his sardonic sense of humor. "Darn, that's what I was going to suggest after dinner."
"Not strip poker?" Rodney quipped as he rapidly swapped the towel for sweatpants. "On a more serious note, have you called for help yet?"
Reaching up to tap his radio, John grimaced when he'd left it on the nightstand. "Uh, no?" He shrugged. "Anyway, I don't think I'm in any danger."
"Says the man who free-climbs up the sides of buildings and makes friends with Wraiths." Rodney left the towel on the floor as he cautiously made his way to the desk. "You do remember what happened yesterday?"
Since John's ankle was throbbing, he didn't think he was likely to forget for at least a couple of days. "I think we got between Mama and her cub. Eddy hasn't hurt anyone, has he?"
"Eddy? He? You and your compulsive need to both anthropomorphize and name things." Rodney sighed in exasperation as he opened a desk drawer to pull out a scanner. "And let me just emphasize the word yet. Your new friend hasn't hurt a human yet. You didn't have to listen to Parrish yowling about his mysteriously shredded hywafigenwhatevers." Picking up his radio, he weighed it in his hand for a moment, frowning. "I'm not sure what kind of help to request, to be honest. Ronon and your Marines would probably just try to shoot it."
John felt it necessary to at least attempt to defend the honor of the military. "And your scientists would try to vacuum it up and store it in a bottle to study."
"Actually, I think we already did, hence the explosion in Lab 6." Rodney finally placed the radio in his ear and bent his head to the scanner. "According to this, there's nothing there." He started tapping rapidly, his entire focus on the screen.
John tried to be patient but he finally had to ask, "Well? Have you figured out what Eddy is yet?"
"You'll have to forgive me. Even though I'm a genius, it's still going to take me a more than a few seconds to reprogram my scanner to identify a small, ridiculously localized, meteorological event so that I can understand why Atlantis didn't sound a quarantine alert. Oh wait, I already know. You don't quarantine weather." Looking back up at John, he asked, "Have you tried to go around it? I'd feel a lot better if you weren't standing on a balcony entirely too high above the ocean."
Rather than answer, John demonstrated.
"I see. In that case, let's try something." Rodney pointed to the left side of the balcony. "Go stand there and hang on to the railing. Tight." Waiting until John slowly made his way to a safer position, Rodney started walking toward the balcony door, angling left to right. Eddy stayed where he was for a few fraught seconds then shifted to the far right side of the balcony, well away from John's path to the door. "Bingo!" Rodney crowed, "Now, get in here!"
Ignoring the jolt of pain in his ankle, John sprinted and the door slid shut the instant John cleared the sill, leaving Eddy whirling on the other side of the glass. Although he knew he was likely anthropomorphizing again, John couldn't help feeling they were watching Eddy throw a temper tantrum when he swirled over the clothing on the balcony floor then leapt over the railing to fly out over the ocean. Eddy and Rodney's clothes traveled a few hundred yards before they sluiced into the ocean, leaving behind a whirlpool of the debris Eddy had collected.
Hobbling over to the nightstand, John grabbed his radio. Despite his conviction that Eddy was harmless, he had a duty to the personnel on Atlantis. "Control Room, this is Sheppard. I want all personnel inside and all windows and doors shut ASAP. Let me know when we're sealed."
"I'm not entirely sure that's going to work, John," Rodney grumbled, still poking at his scanner. "I can't detect any anomalies. In addition to no life signs down to the bacterial level, no heat signature, no magnetic resonance, no gravitational disturbance…." He threw up his hands in frustration. "If we can't detect it, we can't fight it!"
"What if we don't have to fight him?" John flinched a little at Rodney's glare and held up a placating hand. "I'm not saying we ignore Eddy or even keep him. I've never felt like he was dangerous, just that someone…." John corrected himself. "Some thing was behind me."
Rodney's eyes narrowed as he considered John's opinion. "Exactly how long have you had this feeling? And why didn't I know before this?"
"Since yesterday, after we left P47-309. To be honest, it started there." John bit his lip, feeling a little guilty that he hadn't told Rodney. "I wasn't really sure it was anything or just me being paranoid. That's why I asked Keller to scan all of us twice for hitchhikers." John barely repressed his instinctive shudder at the memory of the crystal entity that had stalked them through dreams. "I also asked to be informed if anyone else reported the same thing but, so far, it's just been me."
John knew from the look on Rodney's face that they'd be talking about John's failure at sharing later - after they solved the problem named Eddy. Rodney grabbed a tissue and blew his nose before grabbing his tablet and he began typing even as he sat down and inserted his radio. "Radek, I need you to check Atlantis' external sensors and see if they detect anything unusual within a kilometer's range. No, I don't have anything specific to look for, just anything… different." He tapped a few more times, muttering. "Of course, the Ancients never warned us that when they set up the research station on that planet that they were studying sentient weather patterns."
"Well, there was the caution not to use the jumpers," John pointed out as he crossed the room to fetch Rodney a t-shirt.
Rodney just shrugged, focused on the screen. "Hah! There it is!" He waved John over, grabbing the offered t-shirt to tug it carelessly over his head. "Even though Atlantis didn't pick it up, the security footage did. See?"
"Yeah." John puffed out a frustrated breath as he watched the small swirl of dust that followed him and Ronon through the wormhole. "Eddy wasn't exactly noticeable, was he?"
Rodney suddenly cocked his head the way he did while listening to the radio. "Radek? Right, nothing to report. Yes, I'll let you know as soon as I have some answers." He looked up at John with a frown. "So it's visible when he's carrying something, but other than that, no more detectable than... air."
"Colonel, all personnel have been recalled and the doors and windows sealed as per your orders. Mr. Woolsey is asking for an explanation."
John nodded as he acknowledged the report from the Control Room, glad that he was on a restricted channel. "Thank you, Chuck. Dr. McKay and I will be down there shortly to provide that explanation."
"Right. Explain." Rodney rolled his eyes. "I…." He stopped at the sound of water pattering against the balcony door.
John hobbled over, fascinated by the sight of the small waterspout hovering next to the glass. As he drew closer, the water flowed into features John saw every time he looked into a mirror. "Cool." He turned to Rodney, who'd gotten up and followed him. "We need to let Eddy in."
"Let the alien back in?" Rodney placed one hand against John's forehead and leaned in to look at his eyes. "Are you feeling okay? Should I call Jennifer?"
John scowled, equally irritated by the casual way Rodney referred to his ex-girlfriend and his own pettiness when he should be glad they were still friends. "I'm perfectly fine, Rodney." He pointed at Eddy. "Remember the noises in the control room? He doesn't want to hurt anyone. He wants to go home."
"Fine." Rodney snapped after a moment's consideration. "However, dripping through the halls, transporters, and air vents isn't going to work for me."
Appreciating Rodney's ability to grasp the essentials quickly, John suggested, "Then we seal the control room and open one of the outside doors after we dial the gate."
"That would work." Rodney nodded then snapped his fingers. "Rather than using quarantine protocols, I can configure the shield to envelop the control room, keeping it contained and out of the vents."
"Right, like Radek did with the gate…" John stopped himself when he saw the look of guilt pass over Rodney's face, the look he got every time someone mentioned the Attero device. He dipped his head to brush a kiss across Rodney's frowning lips. "It's a good idea. Let's do it." He turned back to the window and pointed up, repeating the gesture several times, ignoring Rodney's you're-being-ridiculous-again huff.
After a short stop to slip on socks and shoes, Rodney led the way to the control room, a few quick steps ahead then a pause to wait for John, repeat, all the while issuing instructions to Radek for the shield configuration. John, in his turn, reported the situation to Woolsey and ordered the control room cleared except for the minimum personnel. When they arrived, Rodney took over at the DHD, dialing the coordinates for the windy planet. After the wormhole stabilized, he turned to John. "All right. I guess you're up since it seems to like you."
With a wry grin, John nodded and made his way to the door closest to the wormhole. He opened it and stepped outside to call out, "Eddy! Eddy, come on! It’s time to go home!"
When there was no immediate response, John began to feel a little foolish thinking that he had actually been able to communicate with the little waterspout, but then there was a wet waft of air and patter of water on the floor next to John. Eddy passed by - thankfully without splashing John - and swirled toward the gate, pausing at the horizon. John stepped back inside and raised his hand, saying, "Goodbye, Eddy."
Eddy bobbed once, as if in reply, then he disappeared through the gate, which winked out of existence the moment he was through.
John grinned when he saw the soggy pile of clothes he'd left behind.
Rodney grumbled as he trudged down the stairs to retrieve them. "I can't believe you can even charm the weather. Kirk."
Their latest crisis over, John appreciated the view as Rodney bent over, hoping Woolsey wouldn't delay them too long in the debriefing because John was anticipating a quick removal of Rodney's worn-thin sweatpants with nothing underneath to get in the way.
**
Poll
Author: danceswithgary
Team: Cool
Prompt: cry wolf
Pairing(s): McKay/Sheppard
Rating: T
Warnings: None
Word count: ~3000
Summary: John looked at what he'd just typed and made a face as he backspaced through then a big-ass tornado out of nowhere chased us back to the gate.
Author’s Notes: I borrowed the wind creature from SGU, although it went through a makeover when it arrived on Atlantis. Thanks to my beta for the quick turnaround, any remaining mistakes are mine.
Once you've read the story, please take a moment to vote in the poll below. Ratings go from 1 (low) to 9 (high), so all you need to do is enter a single number in that range into each text entry box. You'll be able to see the prompt in the header above.
More details about the voting procedure can be found here.
eddy noun
1.
a : a current of water or air running contrary to the main current; especially : a circular current : whirlpool
b : something moving similarly
2.
a : a contrary or circular current (as of thought or policy)
Eddy
John looked at what he'd just typed and made a face as he backspaced through then a big-ass tornado out of nowhere chased us back to the gate. He always hated filling out AARs, and it was worse when he had to explain how the team came back hurt.
An unexpected meteorological event forced the team to abort the mission. Minor injuries were sustained due to windblown debris. Teyla Emmagen and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard are on light duty, their ability to return to full duty to be reassessed in three days.
Still dissatisfied with the wording, John frowned at the screen, happy for the interruption when Rodney unceremoniously stomped through the door. Saving his unfinished report, John closed his laptop and set it to one side, saying, "Hey, I wasn't expecting to see you until dinner."
"What an absolutely hellish day this has been." Toeing his dirt-caked shoes off, Rodney wobbled a bit when he sneezed. With a muttered curse, he kicked the shoes to the mat beside the door and hurried to the desk to swap his tablet for a tissue, blowing his nose loudly. "I need an antihistamine and a shower."
A little concerned by Rodney's bedraggled, dusty appearance, John got up from the bed, only wincing a little from the previous day's bruises. Retrieving his cane, he hobbled over, careful not to put too much pressure on his sprained ankle. "I can see why." After pressing a quick kiss to his favorite side of Rodney's mouth, John reached out and plucked a large piece of fuzz from Rodney's hair, who then scowled when John showed it to him.
"Great, another souvenir from the air vents." Glancing down his front, Rodney tugged another greyish fluff free with a disgusted huff, immediately followed by another explosive sneeze - fortunately captured by Rodney's handful of tissues. "There's a reason why I never wanted to find out where Atlantis' dustbunnies go to die."
John nudged the trash bucket out from under the desk, frowning in sympathy for Rodney's reddened nose and watering eyes.
After dumping the clump of tissue into the bucket, Rodney shoved it back and out of sight before dropping his radio on the desk with a disgusted, "Yuck. I hate having allergies."
"What were you doing in the vents?" John asked, wondering what he'd missed while stuck in bed with his air cast elevated.
"The control room kept calling about an intermittent howling noise. They swore it sounded like a wolf pack was behind the walls. I was busy checking out a problem in the botany department, so I sent Sullivan to take a look. Of course, he couldn't find anything." Rodney rolled his eyes as he started to unbutton his shirt. "Radek was in the middle of trying to figure out why one of the lab's vacuums suddenly exploded, so I went to the control room myself."
John held out his hand before Rodney could toss the shirt in the hamper. "Here, I'll take it out on the balcony and shake it out."
"Oh. Thanks." Rodney looked surprised and then pleased at John's thoughtfulness, and they stood there quietly for a moment, sharing smiles and enjoying another new aspect of the recent change to their domestic status. Rubbing his itchy nose, Rodney finally shrugged and handed the shirt over before starting on his grubby-kneed BDUs. Enjoying the unintentional strip show, John grinned when Rodney's 'lucky' boxers - black silk with giant four-leaved clovers - were revealed, but quickly changed to a concerned look when Rodney looked up from taking off his socks. "What?" Rodney asked, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"Find anything interesting?" John volleyed back as he accepted the BDUs, narrowly avoiding a series of short sneezes that Rodney tried to muffle in the t-shirt he was in the middle of tugging off.
Rodney shook his head. "Nothing. Everything is working exactly as expected and not a single howl while I was there." Hooking a thumb over his shoulder, he started backing toward the bathroom. "Normally I'd invite you to join me, but...." He waved toward his nose and promptly sneezed again.
"It's okay," John said with a smile. "You can make it up to me after you can breathe again."
Waiting until he heard the water come on, John turned and made his way to the balcony, cane in one hand, clothes in the other. He had to lean against the rail to shake out the worst of the dust, grateful that the wind was blowing away from him because he would have ended up sneezing alongside his beleaguered boyfriend. Draping the clothes over the rail, he paused to enjoy something he was usually too busy to enjoy - one of M35-117's - Atlantea's - vivid sunsets.
The feeling of being watched, a prickling between his shoulder blades, came on slowly. Swinging around as quickly as his ankle would allow, John was prepared to find Rodney attempting to sneak up on him.
The man-high mass of dust, leaves, flower petals, and various other bits of small debris swirling at the opposite end of the balcony was most definitely not Rodney.
Not wanting a repeat of the previous day's misadventures, John grabbed Rodney's clothes and headed for the balcony door, only to come up short when the small whirlwind moved as if to block him. John cautiously took a step to the left and the funnel of air shifted with him, just as it did when John reversed and tried sidling around it along the railing. Recalling how the storm on P47-309 had seemed to herd them toward the gate, John started to piece together what had been happening on Atlantis since then.
Changing tactics, John dropped the clothes to the balcony floor and held out his hand, speaking softly as he took a step forward, just as he would a skittish horse. "Hey, little fella. You lost?" The funnel shifted right then left, as if shifting from foot to foot, but it didn't leave its position in front of the door. John took another step, his voice still a soft drawl. "You're not very big, not really a storm at all. Think I'll call you Eddy. How's that sound?"
John shook his head at his own whimsy - speaking to something without a mouth and expecting a reply. To his surprise, the little storm bobbed in place twice as if answering, although it didn't move out of the way.
"What the fuck! John!"
Peering around the edges of the swirling cloud of debris, John saw Rodney standing just outside the bathroom door, holding a towel around his waist. "I'm okay," John said, trying to keep his voice calm and pitched low. "Just don't come any closer, Rodney."
"Huh, today is starting to make some sense now." Rodney shook his head slowly before he started sidestepping toward their shared bureau. "Talk to me, John. Is that what I think it is?"
"Probably. What are you doing?" John asked, worried that Rodney was going to try something despite John's warning.
Rodney's eyes never left the scene on the balcony as he fumbled open a drawer to drag out a faded pair of sweatpants. "I'm not playing naked Twister.
John chuckled, relieved that Rodney hadn't lost his sardonic sense of humor. "Darn, that's what I was going to suggest after dinner."
"Not strip poker?" Rodney quipped as he rapidly swapped the towel for sweatpants. "On a more serious note, have you called for help yet?"
Reaching up to tap his radio, John grimaced when he'd left it on the nightstand. "Uh, no?" He shrugged. "Anyway, I don't think I'm in any danger."
"Says the man who free-climbs up the sides of buildings and makes friends with Wraiths." Rodney left the towel on the floor as he cautiously made his way to the desk. "You do remember what happened yesterday?"
Since John's ankle was throbbing, he didn't think he was likely to forget for at least a couple of days. "I think we got between Mama and her cub. Eddy hasn't hurt anyone, has he?"
"Eddy? He? You and your compulsive need to both anthropomorphize and name things." Rodney sighed in exasperation as he opened a desk drawer to pull out a scanner. "And let me just emphasize the word yet. Your new friend hasn't hurt a human yet. You didn't have to listen to Parrish yowling about his mysteriously shredded hywafigenwhatevers." Picking up his radio, he weighed it in his hand for a moment, frowning. "I'm not sure what kind of help to request, to be honest. Ronon and your Marines would probably just try to shoot it."
John felt it necessary to at least attempt to defend the honor of the military. "And your scientists would try to vacuum it up and store it in a bottle to study."
"Actually, I think we already did, hence the explosion in Lab 6." Rodney finally placed the radio in his ear and bent his head to the scanner. "According to this, there's nothing there." He started tapping rapidly, his entire focus on the screen.
John tried to be patient but he finally had to ask, "Well? Have you figured out what Eddy is yet?"
"You'll have to forgive me. Even though I'm a genius, it's still going to take me a more than a few seconds to reprogram my scanner to identify a small, ridiculously localized, meteorological event so that I can understand why Atlantis didn't sound a quarantine alert. Oh wait, I already know. You don't quarantine weather." Looking back up at John, he asked, "Have you tried to go around it? I'd feel a lot better if you weren't standing on a balcony entirely too high above the ocean."
Rather than answer, John demonstrated.
"I see. In that case, let's try something." Rodney pointed to the left side of the balcony. "Go stand there and hang on to the railing. Tight." Waiting until John slowly made his way to a safer position, Rodney started walking toward the balcony door, angling left to right. Eddy stayed where he was for a few fraught seconds then shifted to the far right side of the balcony, well away from John's path to the door. "Bingo!" Rodney crowed, "Now, get in here!"
Ignoring the jolt of pain in his ankle, John sprinted and the door slid shut the instant John cleared the sill, leaving Eddy whirling on the other side of the glass. Although he knew he was likely anthropomorphizing again, John couldn't help feeling they were watching Eddy throw a temper tantrum when he swirled over the clothing on the balcony floor then leapt over the railing to fly out over the ocean. Eddy and Rodney's clothes traveled a few hundred yards before they sluiced into the ocean, leaving behind a whirlpool of the debris Eddy had collected.
Hobbling over to the nightstand, John grabbed his radio. Despite his conviction that Eddy was harmless, he had a duty to the personnel on Atlantis. "Control Room, this is Sheppard. I want all personnel inside and all windows and doors shut ASAP. Let me know when we're sealed."
"I'm not entirely sure that's going to work, John," Rodney grumbled, still poking at his scanner. "I can't detect any anomalies. In addition to no life signs down to the bacterial level, no heat signature, no magnetic resonance, no gravitational disturbance…." He threw up his hands in frustration. "If we can't detect it, we can't fight it!"
"What if we don't have to fight him?" John flinched a little at Rodney's glare and held up a placating hand. "I'm not saying we ignore Eddy or even keep him. I've never felt like he was dangerous, just that someone…." John corrected himself. "Some thing was behind me."
Rodney's eyes narrowed as he considered John's opinion. "Exactly how long have you had this feeling? And why didn't I know before this?"
"Since yesterday, after we left P47-309. To be honest, it started there." John bit his lip, feeling a little guilty that he hadn't told Rodney. "I wasn't really sure it was anything or just me being paranoid. That's why I asked Keller to scan all of us twice for hitchhikers." John barely repressed his instinctive shudder at the memory of the crystal entity that had stalked them through dreams. "I also asked to be informed if anyone else reported the same thing but, so far, it's just been me."
John knew from the look on Rodney's face that they'd be talking about John's failure at sharing later - after they solved the problem named Eddy. Rodney grabbed a tissue and blew his nose before grabbing his tablet and he began typing even as he sat down and inserted his radio. "Radek, I need you to check Atlantis' external sensors and see if they detect anything unusual within a kilometer's range. No, I don't have anything specific to look for, just anything… different." He tapped a few more times, muttering. "Of course, the Ancients never warned us that when they set up the research station on that planet that they were studying sentient weather patterns."
"Well, there was the caution not to use the jumpers," John pointed out as he crossed the room to fetch Rodney a t-shirt.
Rodney just shrugged, focused on the screen. "Hah! There it is!" He waved John over, grabbing the offered t-shirt to tug it carelessly over his head. "Even though Atlantis didn't pick it up, the security footage did. See?"
"Yeah." John puffed out a frustrated breath as he watched the small swirl of dust that followed him and Ronon through the wormhole. "Eddy wasn't exactly noticeable, was he?"
Rodney suddenly cocked his head the way he did while listening to the radio. "Radek? Right, nothing to report. Yes, I'll let you know as soon as I have some answers." He looked up at John with a frown. "So it's visible when he's carrying something, but other than that, no more detectable than... air."
"Colonel, all personnel have been recalled and the doors and windows sealed as per your orders. Mr. Woolsey is asking for an explanation."
John nodded as he acknowledged the report from the Control Room, glad that he was on a restricted channel. "Thank you, Chuck. Dr. McKay and I will be down there shortly to provide that explanation."
"Right. Explain." Rodney rolled his eyes. "I…." He stopped at the sound of water pattering against the balcony door.
John hobbled over, fascinated by the sight of the small waterspout hovering next to the glass. As he drew closer, the water flowed into features John saw every time he looked into a mirror. "Cool." He turned to Rodney, who'd gotten up and followed him. "We need to let Eddy in."
"Let the alien back in?" Rodney placed one hand against John's forehead and leaned in to look at his eyes. "Are you feeling okay? Should I call Jennifer?"
John scowled, equally irritated by the casual way Rodney referred to his ex-girlfriend and his own pettiness when he should be glad they were still friends. "I'm perfectly fine, Rodney." He pointed at Eddy. "Remember the noises in the control room? He doesn't want to hurt anyone. He wants to go home."
"Fine." Rodney snapped after a moment's consideration. "However, dripping through the halls, transporters, and air vents isn't going to work for me."
Appreciating Rodney's ability to grasp the essentials quickly, John suggested, "Then we seal the control room and open one of the outside doors after we dial the gate."
"That would work." Rodney nodded then snapped his fingers. "Rather than using quarantine protocols, I can configure the shield to envelop the control room, keeping it contained and out of the vents."
"Right, like Radek did with the gate…" John stopped himself when he saw the look of guilt pass over Rodney's face, the look he got every time someone mentioned the Attero device. He dipped his head to brush a kiss across Rodney's frowning lips. "It's a good idea. Let's do it." He turned back to the window and pointed up, repeating the gesture several times, ignoring Rodney's you're-being-ridiculous-again huff.
After a short stop to slip on socks and shoes, Rodney led the way to the control room, a few quick steps ahead then a pause to wait for John, repeat, all the while issuing instructions to Radek for the shield configuration. John, in his turn, reported the situation to Woolsey and ordered the control room cleared except for the minimum personnel. When they arrived, Rodney took over at the DHD, dialing the coordinates for the windy planet. After the wormhole stabilized, he turned to John. "All right. I guess you're up since it seems to like you."
With a wry grin, John nodded and made his way to the door closest to the wormhole. He opened it and stepped outside to call out, "Eddy! Eddy, come on! It’s time to go home!"
When there was no immediate response, John began to feel a little foolish thinking that he had actually been able to communicate with the little waterspout, but then there was a wet waft of air and patter of water on the floor next to John. Eddy passed by - thankfully without splashing John - and swirled toward the gate, pausing at the horizon. John stepped back inside and raised his hand, saying, "Goodbye, Eddy."
Eddy bobbed once, as if in reply, then he disappeared through the gate, which winked out of existence the moment he was through.
John grinned when he saw the soggy pile of clothes he'd left behind.
Rodney grumbled as he trudged down the stairs to retrieve them. "I can't believe you can even charm the weather. Kirk."
Their latest crisis over, John appreciated the view as Rodney bent over, hoping Woolsey wouldn't delay them too long in the debriefing because John was anticipating a quick removal of Rodney's worn-thin sweatpants with nothing underneath to get in the way.
**
Poll