Salve ad Domum by slybrarian (Scars Challenge)
Title: Salve ad domum (Scars Challenge)
Author: slybrarian
Pairing: Gen
Rating: PG
Summary: It's only when John returns to Atlantis that he realizes how deeply he missed it.
A/N: My first attempt at writing a fic by myself. This may eventually be part of a longer series, because now my head's full of evil plot rabbits. Many thanks to my partner in crime archae_ology for playing beta.
John was tired, and knew he should be asleep, but he couldn't bring himself to lie down. He knew that somewhere up in the tower, Elizabeth and O'Neill were probably deciding their collective fates, but that wasn't what was keeping up up. No, it was the sudden awareness of the constant background hum that surrounded him again. He'd barely even noticed it when they'd arrived, too concentrated on keeping his team safe and completing the mission to let himself be distracted, but the instant the Asurans had been turned to dust it had crashed down on him.
John found himself wandering into the chair room and stared down at the device, remembering the first time he'd sat down in it's Antarctic twin. That brought up more memories - the city waking up, the face of every person they'd lost, every happy moment, how he'd felt at home for the first time in years, the heartache of leaving. He'd never realized, not consciously, how large a wound their sudden withdraw had left on him. It hadn't even started to heal, like the older scars from Afghanistan and the Balkans before that had. Each little reminder - every time he touched some artifact in the labs, every time he saw Evan or Cadman or a dozen others, every time his new team had made him long for Rodney, Teyla, and Ronon - had kept the feelings fresh.
Barely even conscious of what he was doing, John sat down in the chair and let it slide back, the city slipping into his mind and he into hers.
//system recognizes Citizen John.Sheppard / superuser status granted / ave imperator
//primary systems 87.2% optimal / potentia alpha 99.6% beta 98.7% gamma 99.3 % / life support 100%, operating on external atmosphere & water supply / sensors active / shield on warm standby / primary weapons on standby, drone munitions 99.7% / list secondary system status y/n?
//one spacecraft in sensor range / identified as allied starship Daedalus / threat level negligible
//Current occupants: 3 Citizens / 3 Permanent Residents / 1 Transient Citizen / 1 Transient / list names y/n?
//welcome home, John / how can Atlantis be of assistance?
John didn't know how long he lay there in the chair, aimlessly accessing different systems, sifting through the databases, simply being connected before he was brought back to reality by someone saying, "Whatcha doin'?"
John opened his eyes and looked over to see General O'Neill leaning against the door frame, with the a hint of a frown on his otherwise impassive face. John flexed his fingers, and the chair rotated to face him before tilted up to the standby position. "Just decided to a run a few diagnostics, sir. Make sure everything was running fine."
"Ah." It was pretty clear from the way his expression twisted into a grimace for a moment that the general didn't believe him, but at this point John really didn't care at all. It wasn't like O'Neill could do anything to him that would be worse than what he'd already been going through. After a few silent moments, O'Neill continued, “Weir's convinced me that it'd be a good idea to reoccupy the city. So I suppose the question now is what to do with you.”
“I'd guessed as much.” John met the general's eyes defiantly, although his face remained pleasantly calm and subordinate. Below him, John felt something waken and stir.
//Intruder? / preparing internal defense systems for-
~No~
“Hmm.” O'Neill looked down at him and shook his head. “Landry's going to be really pissed.”
John lifted his chin and shrugged. “It's not Landry's decision, though, is it?”
It might have been his imagination, but John could have sworn he saw O'Neill's lips twitch upwards. “And I really hope you weren't planning on making colonel at the next review board.”
John couldn't help but grin. “I don't think that would surprise anyone, sir.”
O'Neill let out a little “hmph” and shook his head. “Fine. I'll admit to breaking the rules almost as badly once or twice, to save the planet. Hell, I'll even admit to admiring you for what you've done and to being grateful.” O'Neill gave an exasperated sigh before holding up a finger, his face deadly serious. “But you only get this kind of favor once, Sheppard. If it happens again, you're on your own.” With a little shake of his head, O'Neill turned and walked off, muttering under his breath.
Nothing wrong with those terms, John thought as the chair leaned back again. He never intended to make the mistake of leaving again.
Author: slybrarian
Pairing: Gen
Rating: PG
Summary: It's only when John returns to Atlantis that he realizes how deeply he missed it.
A/N: My first attempt at writing a fic by myself. This may eventually be part of a longer series, because now my head's full of evil plot rabbits. Many thanks to my partner in crime archae_ology for playing beta.
John was tired, and knew he should be asleep, but he couldn't bring himself to lie down. He knew that somewhere up in the tower, Elizabeth and O'Neill were probably deciding their collective fates, but that wasn't what was keeping up up. No, it was the sudden awareness of the constant background hum that surrounded him again. He'd barely even noticed it when they'd arrived, too concentrated on keeping his team safe and completing the mission to let himself be distracted, but the instant the Asurans had been turned to dust it had crashed down on him.
John found himself wandering into the chair room and stared down at the device, remembering the first time he'd sat down in it's Antarctic twin. That brought up more memories - the city waking up, the face of every person they'd lost, every happy moment, how he'd felt at home for the first time in years, the heartache of leaving. He'd never realized, not consciously, how large a wound their sudden withdraw had left on him. It hadn't even started to heal, like the older scars from Afghanistan and the Balkans before that had. Each little reminder - every time he touched some artifact in the labs, every time he saw Evan or Cadman or a dozen others, every time his new team had made him long for Rodney, Teyla, and Ronon - had kept the feelings fresh.
Barely even conscious of what he was doing, John sat down in the chair and let it slide back, the city slipping into his mind and he into hers.
//system recognizes Citizen John.Sheppard / superuser status granted / ave imperator
//primary systems 87.2% optimal / potentia alpha 99.6% beta 98.7% gamma 99.3 % / life support 100%, operating on external atmosphere & water supply / sensors active / shield on warm standby / primary weapons on standby, drone munitions 99.7% / list secondary system status y/n?
//one spacecraft in sensor range / identified as allied starship Daedalus / threat level negligible
//Current occupants: 3 Citizens / 3 Permanent Residents / 1 Transient Citizen / 1 Transient / list names y/n?
//welcome home, John / how can Atlantis be of assistance?
John didn't know how long he lay there in the chair, aimlessly accessing different systems, sifting through the databases, simply being connected before he was brought back to reality by someone saying, "Whatcha doin'?"
John opened his eyes and looked over to see General O'Neill leaning against the door frame, with the a hint of a frown on his otherwise impassive face. John flexed his fingers, and the chair rotated to face him before tilted up to the standby position. "Just decided to a run a few diagnostics, sir. Make sure everything was running fine."
"Ah." It was pretty clear from the way his expression twisted into a grimace for a moment that the general didn't believe him, but at this point John really didn't care at all. It wasn't like O'Neill could do anything to him that would be worse than what he'd already been going through. After a few silent moments, O'Neill continued, “Weir's convinced me that it'd be a good idea to reoccupy the city. So I suppose the question now is what to do with you.”
“I'd guessed as much.” John met the general's eyes defiantly, although his face remained pleasantly calm and subordinate. Below him, John felt something waken and stir.
//Intruder? / preparing internal defense systems for-
~No~
“Hmm.” O'Neill looked down at him and shook his head. “Landry's going to be really pissed.”
John lifted his chin and shrugged. “It's not Landry's decision, though, is it?”
It might have been his imagination, but John could have sworn he saw O'Neill's lips twitch upwards. “And I really hope you weren't planning on making colonel at the next review board.”
John couldn't help but grin. “I don't think that would surprise anyone, sir.”
O'Neill let out a little “hmph” and shook his head. “Fine. I'll admit to breaking the rules almost as badly once or twice, to save the planet. Hell, I'll even admit to admiring you for what you've done and to being grateful.” O'Neill gave an exasperated sigh before holding up a finger, his face deadly serious. “But you only get this kind of favor once, Sheppard. If it happens again, you're on your own.” With a little shake of his head, O'Neill turned and walked off, muttering under his breath.
Nothing wrong with those terms, John thought as the chair leaned back again. He never intended to make the mistake of leaving again.