sam_gamgee (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sam_gamgee) wrote2008-12-26 10:22 pm
sam_gamgee) wrote2008-12-26 10:22 pm
Entry tags:
SGA fic: Gaijin, part 37/40
Gaijin, Part 37/40
The complete header can be found in part 1.
Previous parts can be found here.
“This is stupid,” Rodney muttered as he threw a shirt into his duffel bag. “I don’t see why I have to go back to Earth just to sign some papers to prove that I’m alive. They can send them in the next databurst, I’ll sign them and then send them back.”
Evan came up behind Rodney and put his arms around Rodney’s waist and his head on Rodney’s shoulder. “They probably want to make sure that you’re really you and not a clone,” he commented. “Besides, they probably don’t believe you – the Rodney McKay they know would never cede his position as head of science.” He kissed Rodney’s neck. “And I want you there to see me get promoted.”
“All right,” Rodney replied, mollified. “But why is Chuck coming? He’s not senior staff.”
“Chuck is coming because he is the head Gate tech,” Chuck replied, coming in from the living room with a few items that he put in his bag.
“How did I not know that?” Rodney asked, confused. “And we’ve never had that position.”
“You never asked and it happened while you were gone.” Chuck shrugged. “And it never seemed like something necessary that needed to be said. Come on – it’ll be fun.” He dumped his stuff in his bag. “Okay, maybe not the IOA stuff, but afterwards we’re supposed to be getting some mandatory leave. We’ll be able to go where we can be ourselves and not have to worry about the consequences.”
“Oh, you mean we’ll get to come home?” Rodney asked dryly.
“What’s gotten into you?” Evan asked, gently squeezing his arms around Rodney.
Rodney sighed. “I don’t like knowing that they’ll want to question me about what we did with the Laprans. The IOA don’t know anything them or their situation.”
“It’ll be okay, Rodney,” Chuck told him as he joined them, kissing Rodney on the forehead and Evan on the tip of his nose.
“Are we ready, gentlemen?” Elizabeth’s voice came through the room’s PA system.
“Just about,” Chuck called as Rodney and Evan sighed and Evan pulled away. “We’ll be down in five minutes.”
“I’m counting on it,” Elizabeth replied and Rodney said, “Once more into the breach…” as he began zipping up his bag.
When they reached the Control room, John, Carson, and Elizabeth were already waiting with their own bags in front of the Gate along with Teyla and Radek.
“Have a good trip,” Teyla told them, before touching foreheads with Rodney, Chuck, and Evan.
“Try not to blow anything up while we’re gone,” Rodney told Radek as they shook hands.
“Very funny,” Radek replied dryly before sobering. “I’ll promise not to blow anything up if you promise to come back.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal,” Rodney replied.
“Dial the Gate,” Elizabeth called up. One of the techs quickly responded and a few seconds later the wormhole had stabilized. Rodney sighed as they headed out.
Richard Woolsey was waiting for them on the other side of the Gate. “Good morning and welcome back to Earth, everyone,” he said. “If you’ll come with me, we’ll be on our way.”
“To, um, where exactly?” Rodney asked as they stepped off the ramp.
“We’re going to Washington, D.C.,” Woolsey replied, an expression of ‘that should have been apparent’ on his face before leading them out of the Gate Room.
“Be nice,” John murmured as they headed down the hallway to the elevators. “It won’t pay to hurt him before we even get out of the Mountain.”
“Are you sure?” Rodney replied. “Not even a little bit?”
“Nope. And believe me, I’d help you if I could.”
“Good to know. I may take you up on it later.” Rodney tugged at the hem of his t-shirt. “Does this shirt look all right?”
“It’s fine. Why?” John gave him a confused look.
“Because it’s actually Evan’s. Mine were all a little too big.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. Not, you know, a lot – but enough you could tell. I didn’t want to give the IOA any more reasons to be suspicious. And before you ask, I belted the pants. But I did consider asking Chuck if I could borrow some of his. First chance we get, I’m going to buy some new clothes.”
“Will you actually wear them on Atlantis?”
“Probably not, but they’ll be good to have just in case.”
They arrived at the elevators and had to split the group up to fit in the elevator. Chuck, Evan, and Rodney waited for the second round.
“It feels weird,” Evan remarked on their way up. “I never really thought about it, but now that I can’t feel Atlantis it feels like there’s something missing – like a hum in the back of my mind or something.”
“I agree,” Rodney replied. “I never really thought about it when I was on Lapras the first time, but the second time I went back, I definitely felt the difference.”
“I kind of miss it,” Chuck added. “Not that I really thought about it before, but –.” He shrugged. “It feels weird without it.”
The group was quiet once they reached topside. As they headed to the plane that would take them to Washington, D.C., Rodney re-shouldered his duffel bag and tugged at the hem of his shirt self-consciously. He wished he was back in Atlantis. He wished he was allowed to wear his own clothing and not feel forced to borrow Evan’s or Chuck’s or buy new things. When they got back, he wanted to remember to ask Teyla and Ronon how much pressure they felt to conform to the Expedition’s standards and trappings.
During the flight prep and take-off, Woolsey quickly briefed them on what to expect once they reached D.C. before leaving them to amuse themselves for the rest of the flight.
Carson and John immediately fell asleep, halfway between decorously and curled together (if one knew how to look) – to Chuck, Evan, and Rodney’s shared amusement. Woolsey buried himself in a book. Producing a pack of cards from his bag, Evan enticed his lovers and Elizabeth into an intricate card game they had learned from one of their allies.
Rodney was glad for the diversion. It took his mind off of all the possible ways the situation they were going into could go terribly wrong. And not just for himself – but also for Evan and John. If he let it, his mind could go into all sorts of creative scenarios where, at the last minute, instead of being promoted, they would be stripped of their ranks and dishonorably discharged for being what they were.
When the game was finished, Evan asked him, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine,” Rodney replied, waving him off.
“Maybe you should get some sleep,” Evan suggested. “We’ve still got about two and a half hours before we land and who knows how long the rest of today’s going to be.”
Rodney nodded and saw that Chuck and Elizabeth were also settling in for a nap. Lowering his voice so only Evan could hear him, Rodney glanced around commented, “Is it just me, or does this suck?”
“It’s not just you,” Evan replied softly. “One day it won’t suck, though,” he promised as he unobtrusively brushed his hand over Rodney’s. “One day.”
Rodney wasn’t sure which he hated more – the three week one-way trip on the Daedalus or the difference in time between Earth and Atlantis. The latter invariably lead to them losing a day from Gate lag if they needed to travel anywhere other than the Mountain.
One of the few consolations was that the IOA had reserved rooms for them in one of the nicer hotels in D.C. It still baffled him, however, when Woolsey handed them their room keys. Elizabeth, naturally, had her own room. The other two rooms were split between the men – John and Evan in one; Carson, Rodney, and Chuck in the other. Rodney was sure that there was some convoluted reasoning behind all of it, but he almost felt like ranting that they weren’t in school anymore and should be allowed to pick their own roommates until he saw the evil grin on John and Evan’s faces when they discovered their rooms were connected.
“Well, that solves a lot of problems,” Carson had casually remarked. “Who’s up for something to eat?”
In the end, all six of them had spent the remainder of the day in each other’s company, only retiring to separate rooms when they had to sleep.
“We never mentioned what we’d do if all three of us were off-world,” Chuck commented as he got in bed and Evan playfully smacked him on the arm.
“I think we should just be glad we’re able to do this and not push our luck,” he replied. “Are you coming, Rodney?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Rodney replied as he finished brushing his teeth. “Though I’m not much in the mood for anything – debating or otherwise.”
“Don’t worry – tomorrow will be fine,” Evan told him as Rodney turned out the lights.
“You don’t have anything to worry about,” Rodney responded as he got in bed and easily molded himself against Evan.
“And neither do you,” Chuck told him, reaching over Evan to stroke Rodney’s arm. “They may give you shit, but there’s no reason for them to keep you here.”
The meeting with the IOA started off just as Rodney had expected. Way too early, not enough coffee, and boring quibbling over things that happened with the Wraith during his first stay on Lapras. He doodled on his notepad as the conversation wore on, wondering why the IOA hadn’t called them onto the carpet before now if they hadn’t liked the way the Atlanteans had dealt with the Wraith. He was intrigued, though, that Woolsey was playing devil’s advocate more for them than Rodney remembered, and he idly wondered what had caused that change. Rodney breathed a slight sigh of relief along with the rest of the Atlanteans when the IOA finally agreed that their decisions and actions had been an acceptable course of action.
“Have we been boring you, Dr. McKay?” Representative Coolidge asked him disdainfully as the conversation wound down.
“Not particularly,” Rodney replied as he set his pen down and looked up at the U.S. representative to the IOA. “It’s just that my areas of expertise include physics and engineering, not history. And considering how I was absent during the period you are so intent on dissecting to its nanoparticles, I simply don’t have any interest other than ‘Woo-hoo, the Wraith have been defeated once and for all’.” He waved his hands enthusiastically before letting them drop back to the armrests with a look of scorn.
Coolidge’s eyes narrowed slightly as he leaned forward and folded his hands on top of his portfolio. “Yes, we’d like to hear more about that.”
Rodney shrugged. “Due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control, I was stranded on another world for a little over three years. Through some very fortunate good luck, Col. Sheppard and his team found themselves back on the world with the ability to extract me, and here I am.”
Rep. Chapman cleared his throat. “And what about allegations that you had ‘gone native’?”
Rodney shrugged again. “Call it what you want, but the basic desire for survival is a strong one in all organisms and if you want to call my adapting to survive going native, I’m not going to deny it.” He wasn’t stupid enough to admit to them that he actually had gone native. He leaned forward and folded his hands in front of him. “Look. We can argue back and forth about this all you want and I can guarantee we’re not going to get anywhere. Yes, I was stranded. Yes, I adapted in order to survive. No, I’m not a threat to Atlantis or Earth. You all have all the psych evaluations and notes from Drs. Heightmeyer and Beckett, as well as Dr. Weir stating as much. And it also states – and I’ll reiterate it now for you morons – I don’t care about getting my old positions back, I just want some lab space on Atlantis and a reasonable amount of freedom to do what I want. Now give me the damn paperwork to sign so I can prove that I’m really me and I’m really still alive so we can get this over with.”
“As much as we would like to do that, Dr. McKay,” Woolsey interjected, “we are still concerned with the more recent events on Lapras and the future effects that they might cause.”
“If you’re worried that we’ve tampered too much, I really wouldn’t. To begin with, let me make sure it’s abundantly clear that I was the one who had been approached for help. I hadn’t been in contact with the Laprans after I had left. And, yes, we did introduce some radical thinking into the mix to allow the Laprans to deal with the Korsans, but I can assure you that there’s nothing to worry about there. The Laprans are deeply pacifistic, and I doubt these ‘recent events’ will do much in the way of changing that – aside from thinning the bubble they’re living in. And, for the time being, the Korsans’ survival is dependent on them playing nice. They won’t do anything irrational to mess that up. And we did it with a minimal amount of bloodshed, no lives lost, and less talking than you’d expect.”
“What are your feelings on this, Dr. Weir?” Woolsey asked her.
“I think Rodney handled himself admirably in that situation and should be commended for ending generations’ worth of abuses that the Korsans forced the Laprans to endure and doing it such a way that honored and respected the Laprans’ traditions and culture,” she replied easily.
“Please give us a few minutes to confer and I believe we’ll be finished,” Woolsey replied as he stood and the rest of the IOA followed suit.
Rodney sighed once they had disappeared into an adjoining room and shut the door. “I don’t see what’s so bad about this. I don’t think Daniel Jackson’s ever had this much trouble coming back from the dead and he’s ascended numerous times!”
“It’ll work out, Rodney,” Carson told him. “It always does.”
“Besides, what can they do to you?” John added with an amused smirk. “Send you back to Area 51?”
“Don’t you dare joke about that!” Rodney glared at him.
They sat in silence as they waited for the IOA to finish its deliberations and Rodney tried not to think about the suddenly very real possibility that the IOA would figure out a way to keep him Earth-bound.
When the IOA delegation came back, Woolsey placed a pile of papers next to Rodney along with a pen before saying, “We’ve concluded that it would be in everyone’s best interest if we didn’t beleaguer this point and that we simply took your word for it. Please read over these documents and then sign them in the marked spots and you’ll be all set.”
Rodney did as he was told and happily noted that the documents detailed that he hadn’t been dead – only MIA – that he was to be returned to active duty on Atlantis, that the current status quo would be maintained and that whatever restrictions or freedoms placed on Rodney would be done as Dr. Weir and the current CSO saw fit. Rodney signed all of the papers with a flourish before handing them back to Woolsey with a grin.
Woolsey nodded as he placed them in his briefcase as the rest of the IOA filed out of the conference room. “Now, I’ve been instructed to inform you all that the promotion ceremony is to be this evening at five-thirty with a small reception to follow so that some of the brass and the press can meet all of you. It’s going to be at the National Air and Space Museum. I believe they thought it would be picturesque and rather apropos.” He rolled his eyes slightly. “So I will see you all there.”
“Is it really only noon?” Chuck asked as they exited the building.
“The IOA is extremely proficient when they decide to be,” Elizabeth replied as she and John both put on a pair of sunglasses. She looked at the rest of their motley group. “I guess we should go back to the hotel and put on some more appropriate attire. I know a wonderful deli where we can get some sandwiches.”
“No, I think it has more to do with the fact that they only have one dress uniform and that they can’t get it dirty before the ceremony without good reason,” Carson replied with a sigh as he adjusted his tie in the bathroom mirror. “And, sadly, none of our activities would be considered good reason.”
Rodney lay back on the bed next to Chuck with a huff. “Just remember, gentlemen, that once this is all over this evening, we’ll be able to have our wicked ways with them.”
“With who?” John asked with a grin as he and came through the connecting door. “Anyone we know?”
Rodney raised his head enough to see John leaning against the inner doorway, wearing his dress blues and holding his hat in his hand. He heard Carson’s intake of breath and had to agree that John looked good. Before he could reply, Evan joined John at the door and mimicked his pose on the other side. Rodney licked his lips as he focused on Evan and wondered if he had enough time for a cold shower.
“Well we were thinking of picking up a couple of airmen, but you’ll do,” Chuck told them as he got off the bed. He patted John on the chest as John passed him for Carson, before zeroing in on Evan and pulling him into a passionate kiss. “You’ll definitely do.”
Rodney thumped his head back against the bed a few times as he realized there wasn’t enough cold water in the universe to deal with his arousal and that he was going to have to go through the ceremony with a hard-on. The universe was out to get him. He sighed and got up to join them.
“Okay?” Evan asked him softly as he straightened Rodney’s tie.
“Oh, just peachy,” Rodney replied before accepting a kiss first from Evan, then from Chuck. “Just wishing we had a little more time before we go.”
At that, there was a knock on the door. “It’s time to go, gentlemen,” Elizabeth called. “The car’s waiting downstairs.”
During the ceremony, Rodney laughed inwardly at the irony of John’s promotion. The last one had been forced by Elizabeth to ensure his position. This time, the Air Force was actually awarding it of its own will. He couldn’t help but beam proudly as he watched General O’Neill pin the symbols of their new ranks on his lover and one of his best friends, as well as award them with a couple more service awards.
Afterwards, Rodney mingled along with the rest of the Atlanteans and did his best to be his most charming and likeable. He shook hands and took pictures – both alone and with a myriad of people – and answered questions about what it was like to be working with aliens, and on alien technology, and all sorts of alien things and it was starting to wear his patience.
“Have you seen John?” Carson quietly asked him after they had a picture taken together. “I haven’t seen him for quite a while and I’m worried about him.”
Rodney scanned the crowd, but couldn’t see the Colonel, or even his spiky hair, among the groupings of people. “Not recently, no,” he replied just as quietly. “And I’m thinking it’s been longer than a trip to the bathroom if you’re asking me.” A little louder, he announced, “I think I think I’m going to get a breath of air.”
They both nodded and Rodney headed out of the reception room. He knew John couldn’t have gone far – he felt as much at odds as the rest of them did on Earth. He searched the exhibits in the museum and finally found John on the second floor, leaning against the railing and staring blankly at the spaceships.
“Carson’s worried about you,” Rodney told him quietly as he joined him.
“And you’re not?” John asked without looking at him.
“I’ve seen you in action more than he has.”
They were quiet for a while before John said, “You know, I never expected this. I joined the Air Force so I could fly and get away from home, but I never wanted this. Didn’t want a command, didn’t want the rank.” He shook his head. “Just wanted to fly.”
“Do you regret going to Atlantis?” Rodney asked after a beat.
“Best coin toss I ever made,” John replied with a grin. “It’s just overwhelming – that what happens here affects there.”
“Worried about Carson?”
“A little? Maybe? I know I shouldn’t be, but I do. What are you guys doing for your leave?” John asked, deflecting the conversation.
Rodney shrugged, letting John take control. “Visit Jeannie and her family, of course. I’m sure she’s going to kill me for not keeping in touch again aside from the phone call when we got Earth-side. But I deserve it – I didn’t know what to say.”
John colored slightly. “I’ve emailed with her a few times while you were gone and then after you got back to let her know what was going on. I think you’ll be okay.”
“No wonder she didn’t bite my head off over the phone. Thank you for that. And I think we’re going to visit Chuck and Evan’s families too. After that,” Rodney shrugged.
“Elizabeth’s got her whole time booked. And I know Carson and I won’t want to spend the whole time with his family. The five of us should go do something.”
Rodney nodded. “We’ll have to talk it over with them, though.” He glanced over to see Elizabeth coming towards them from the other side and sighed. “I think we’re needed back, though.”
The next morning they were officially on leave for a month. They were dropped off at Washington-Dulles Airport and Elizabeth disappeared almost immediately to get to her plane. The five men discussed options over breakfast and finally agreed to meet up for the last two weeks in San Francisco for some sun and fun.
After heading to the international flights, they split up – Carson and John for Scotland and Evan, Rodney, and Chuck for Canada.
“I’m surprised we never met before,” Rodney told Chuck when the plane landed in Toronto.
“We did live on opposite sides of the city and considering the whole genius thing you’ve got going on, I’m not completely surprised we didn’t.”
“So, we’re going to see Chuck’s family first, then go to the Millers’, correct?” Evan asked them.
“Yes,” Chuck replied. “That way, if we need to leave, we’ll be able to go to the Millers’ early.”
“I’m sure your family will be fine, Chuck,” Rodney told them as they headed to the baggage claim.
“I just want to hedge my bets a bit,” Chuck told them. “I’m sure they’ll be happy to meet you, but they are a bit…traditional.”
Rodney and Evan couldn’t help exchanging a ‘what have we gotten ourselves into?’ look later that evening as they ate dinner at the Campbells’ residence, surrounded by virtually the entire Campbell family – who Rodney assumed had to live nearby, given how quickly they had assembled. Everyone was clamoring for Chuck’s attention and wanted to know what it was like where he worked and what sorts of things he was working on and Chuck did his best to answer all of their questions with as much truth as he could, considering everything was still classified. Evan and Rodney, on the other hand, had barely been given more than a hello once they’d been sized up.
“I’m sorry,” Chuck told them later that evening as they took a walk around the neighborhood. “I’ve heard the stories about my cousin Steve bringing his lover home with him back when I was little, but I never suspected that this is why they never come any more. I always thought it was because they live out in Vancouver and that’s where his partner’s family’s from.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Evan told him. “You’re the prodigal son returned home after years away and the baby to boot. Of course they’re going to be fawning over you right away. Then the curiosity over why you brought us home with you will take over and we’ll go from there.”
“I hope you’re right,” Chuck replied with a sigh.
“What else is it?” Rodney asked as he bumped Chuck’s shoulder with his own.
“I’d always figured that my biological family would be a part of my life – regardless of where I was stationed. You know – I’d tell them what I could in emails and bring my partner when I was on leave. You both saw what it was like back there. But if they can’t accept the two of you, or even one of you, then I don’t know if I could pretend that it didn’t matter.”
“Maybe you should wait and see what happens tomorrow before you drive yourself insane with what-ifs,” Evan told him.
“How can you be so level-headed?” Chuck asked.
“Aside from it being ground into me by the military?” Evan asked with a raised eyebrow. “It’s not my family, for one thing. And for the other –”
“He knows he’s going to have a much harder time with me when we go see Jeannie, so he’s getting practice now,” Rodney interjected.
“Shhh, don’t give away my plan,” Evan told him in a mock whisper and they all laughed. “But, seriously,” he stopped Chuck and put his hands on his shoulders, “if things don’t pan out the way you want, we’ll see about leaving early for Jeannie’s. Worst come to worst then, we’ll get a hotel for a day or two. Okay?”
“Okay,” Chuck replied with a nod. Looking at Rodney, he repeated, “Okay.” Then he motioned Rodney closer and pulled both men into a hug. “Thanks, guys,” he whispered. “I don’t know what I do without you.”
“Neither do we,” Evan replied, ruffling Chuck’s hair. “Neither do we. Come on, let’s head back.”
The next two days didn’t get better. They didn’t get any worse, either, but Rodney and Evan were, for all intents and purposes, invisible in the Campbell household. Chuck did his best to have them be included in discussions and activities and twice had to remind his mother that they had two more guests for meals.
As they finished dinner on the second full day, Chuck told Evan and Rodney, “I’m saying the word. I don’t care what my family thinks, if they can’t be polite to you two, I don’t want to be here.” Looking at Rodney, he said, “Can you call Jeannie?”
“Sure,” Rodney replied with a nod. The three men went out on the porch as Rodney dialed Jeannie’s number. Rodney leaned against the railing as it rang and Chuck and Evan flanked him. “Hey, Jean,” he said when she answered.
*“Mer, if you’re calling to cancel, I’m going to kill you,”* she told him.
“No, no. Not at all,” he replied, making a face at his lovers and they smiled. “I was actually calling to see if we could come early. Some stuff’s come up with Chuck’s family and we have to cut our time here short.”
*“Oh. Well.”* There was a slight pause. *“Sure, that’s not a problem. Should we expect you tonight?”*
“Would that be too much of an imposition?” he asked with a grimace.
*“Not if you mind couches.”* There was some muffled conversation. *“Madison wants to know if Uncle John is coming.”*
“Not this time,” Rodney told her. “Tell her I’ve got some new uncles for her to meet. Anyway, we’ll be there in about an hour.”
*“Okay. We’ll see you then.”*
“Bye, sis.” Rodney hung up. “We’re a go.”
“And you totally made us bait for your eight-year-old niece, didn’t you?” Chuck asked with a grin as they headed back inside.
“Oh, yeah.”
They gathered their things and Chuck bade his family a quick goodbye – all of whom were surprised to see him go so soon. Chuck tried, one last time, to explain about his relationship with Evan and Rodney, but it didn’t appear to work any better than the first few times.
Once they were in the car, Chuck said, “I’ve heard about people being willfully blind, but this is ridiculous,” and pointedly looked out the passenger window.
“Maybe we should find your cousin Steve and make up our own little club,” Rodney told him lightly, trying to diffuse some of Chuck’s tension. “That way you could still have at least part of your family and say ‘screw you’ to the rest of them.”
Chuck nodded. “I’ll have to see what I can find, since I haven’t seen or talked to him in years. But that is a good idea. What about you, Evan? Why aren’t we going to visit your family?”
Evan shrugged. “We’ve only got so much time before we have to meet up with John and Carson. I doubt we’ll have enough time.”
“I know they’ll understand if we don’t spend all two weeks with them,” Rodney told him. “We should go.”
Evan shook his head. “Not right now. So, tell us about your niece, Rodney.”
Rodney rolled his eyes as he looked at Evan in the rearview mirror. “Nice deflection there. She’s an eight-year-old girl. That’s about all I know of her. Remember, the last time I saw her, I was in a bit of a hurry and she was four.”
They were quiet the rest of the way to the Millers’ house. When they parked in front of it, the door flew open to reveal a little girl.
“And there she is,” Chuck commented as they watched her waver between standing there, calling for Jeannie, and running out to meet them. “Cute kid. She looks nothing like you.”
“Well, I would hope not,” Rodney replied sarcastically as they got out and he popped the trunk.
A moment later, Rodney glanced at the door as he closed the trunk to see Jeannie standing at the door and Madison running out to meet them.
“Uncle Mer! Uncle Mer! Uncle Mer!” she called, throwing herself at him and hugging him around the waist.
“Hi, Madison,” he told her, carefully hugging her back. “You’ve grown a lot since the last time I saw you.”
“Way to go,” Chuck murmured and Rodney rolled his eyes in response.
“Because I was *four*,” she told him, as if that should be blatantly obvious.
“So you were,” he replied as she stepped back and eyed Chuck and Evan curiously.
“Where’s Uncle John?” she asked. “Is he coming?”
“Not this time. He had to go visit some other people. This is Uncle Chuck and Uncle Evan.” He pointed to each of them as he said their names.
“Hi,” Madison told them shyly and they replied in kind with amused smiles.
“Madison,” Jeannie called, “let’s let Uncle Mer and his friends come inside.”
After another moment of scrutiny, Madison asked, “Wanna see my room?”
“Sure, kiddo,” Chuck replied easily as they hefted their bags and followed her inside.
“Hey, Jeannie,” Rodney said awkwardly when they got to the house, not sure what kind of reception he was going to get.
“Hey, Mer,” Jeannie replied, her expression unreadable as she held the door open for them. “Madison, why don’t you go get your room ready? We’ll be up in a minute.” Madison nodded and dashed off.
As soon as he was inside, Rodney dropped his bag and pulled Jeannie into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” she told him as she held on just as tightly. She finally stepped back and sniffed before composing herself. “Colonel Sheppard explained everything to me, so at least I know that this time your disappearance wasn’t intentional. But I wish you had let me know yourself, Mer.”
“Elizabeth was pretty specific about how she wanted things handled when I got back,” Rodney told her truthfully. “Chuck and Evan can vouch for that. I thought someone had gotten in touch with you to let you know.”
“So are you going to introduce us, or let us fend for ourselves?” she asked him, clasping her hands in front of her.
“Sorry.” Rodney looked slightly embarrassed. “This is Chuck Campbell and Evan Lorne.” Rodney gestured to each of them. “They’re, um,” he blushed as he quickly added, “they’re my partners. And this is my sister, Jeannie,” he told them in a rush.
“It’s good to finally meet you, ma’am,” Evan told her, holding out his hand.
Jeannie laughed as she ignored his hand and pulled him into a quick hug and then did the same with Chuck. “I always figured it would take at least two people to keep up with Rodney. So, Chuck, what’s your area of scientific study?”
“What makes you think I’m a scientist?” he asked, surprised.
“Because Evan called me ‘ma’am’ the same as Colonel Sheppard. Plus, Rodney needs some kind of balance.”
“I’m not really a scientist – at least not if you use Rodney’s definition. My degree’s in computer technology and I’m one of the Gate technicians.”
“At least you had me pegged right,” Evan told her with a laugh and a slight inclination of his head. “And since I know you’re going to ask, I’m a Lieutenant Colonel.”
“I thought –” Jeannie looked at Rodney questioningly.
“John and Evan both got promoted a couple of days ago,” he told her. “John’s now a Colonel.”
“Congratulations,” she told him. “What am I doing? Come in, come in. I’ll show you where you can put your bags. Have you eaten?”
“Yeah, we had dinner at the Campbells’,” Rodney replied as they followed Jeannie upstairs.
She led them to the back bedroom. “I hope you don’t mind, but it’s not much. We usually use it as extra space,” she said as they set their bags down on the bed and she surveyed the clutter on the desk and dresser. “I’ll finish cleaning things up tomorrow, but the sheets are clean.”
“Where’s, um, Kaleb?” Rodney asked.
“Dinner with his brother. They should be home soon.”
“Mo-om!” Madison called impatiently. “I’m waiting!”
“At least we know where she gets that from,” Chuck said with a laugh.
“I don’t sound like that!” Rodney replied indignantly.
“Thank God you don’t,” Evan replied as Jeannie ushered them out of the room. “Was he a complete asshole as a teenager, Jeannie?”
“Of course,” Jeannie replied with a smile, “all big brothers are assholes.”
“If you keep this up, I’m not staying here,” Rodney told them as they arrived at Madison’s room. “I don’t have to take this kind of abuse.”
After they ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’-ed over Madison’s room, Jeannie sent her in for a bath and the guys followed Jeannie downstairs. She made coffee for them and, as it was brewing, leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest.
“This is just – wow,” she finally said, with a shake of her head as she gazed at the trio sitting at the kitchen table. “There’s so much I want to ask you, Mer, but I don’t know where to start.”
“The important bits are that I’m safely back in Atlantis and that I’m happy. We can go into details later – we’ve got almost two weeks.”
After a thoughtful moment, she nodded. “I guess you’re right.”
Their time spent at the Millers’ home was a complete 180 degree turn of what they had experienced at the Campbells’. From the time they woke up the next morning, all three of them were involved in the family’s life. They played with Madison and took her to ice skating practice and ballet lessons. Chuck and Kaleb bonded over hockey and Evan did his best to charm the socks off of Jeannie – much to Rodney’s mock disgust.
Rodney really did enjoy having the time to bond with Jeannie and her family. After everything that had happened on both Lapras and Atlantis, it felt like this was bringing everything together for him. He was also elated when she told him she had gone back to work and was planning on publishing “a small article in a two-bit journal and her name was really fourth on the list of four.”
“You seem happier,” Evan said as he and Chuck joined Rodney on the back porch on the morning of their last full day with the Millers and he handed Rodney a steaming mug of coffee, then put an arm around his waist.
“I think I am,” Rodney replied with a nod after taking a sip of coffee. “It feels like this was necessary.”
“I think your sister’s ready to adopt us,” Chuck told him. “Which – after the differences between our families, I don’t think I’d mind all that much. I think it’s important to know who your real family is.”
Rodney nodded. “We’ll have to take your cousin up on his invitation, the next time we’re Earth-side.” He leaned into Evan as he said, “What about you? We’ve still got time to change our plans. We can swing by for a day – or even a few hours – on our way to San Francisco.”
Evan sighed. “Fine. A few hours. And don’t say I didn’t warn you two.”
“Oh, believe me, we’ll find a way to make it up to you,” Rodney replied as he nuzzled Evan’s neck.
“Eeewww. Mom! Uncle Mer and Uncle Evan are kissing again,” Madison said from the door.
“We were not, half-pint,” Evan replied as he pulled away.
She made a face at them as she said, “Breakfast is ready,” and went back inside.
Continue in Part 38
The complete header can be found in part 1.
Previous parts can be found here.
“This is stupid,” Rodney muttered as he threw a shirt into his duffel bag. “I don’t see why I have to go back to Earth just to sign some papers to prove that I’m alive. They can send them in the next databurst, I’ll sign them and then send them back.”
Evan came up behind Rodney and put his arms around Rodney’s waist and his head on Rodney’s shoulder. “They probably want to make sure that you’re really you and not a clone,” he commented. “Besides, they probably don’t believe you – the Rodney McKay they know would never cede his position as head of science.” He kissed Rodney’s neck. “And I want you there to see me get promoted.”
“All right,” Rodney replied, mollified. “But why is Chuck coming? He’s not senior staff.”
“Chuck is coming because he is the head Gate tech,” Chuck replied, coming in from the living room with a few items that he put in his bag.
“How did I not know that?” Rodney asked, confused. “And we’ve never had that position.”
“You never asked and it happened while you were gone.” Chuck shrugged. “And it never seemed like something necessary that needed to be said. Come on – it’ll be fun.” He dumped his stuff in his bag. “Okay, maybe not the IOA stuff, but afterwards we’re supposed to be getting some mandatory leave. We’ll be able to go where we can be ourselves and not have to worry about the consequences.”
“Oh, you mean we’ll get to come home?” Rodney asked dryly.
“What’s gotten into you?” Evan asked, gently squeezing his arms around Rodney.
Rodney sighed. “I don’t like knowing that they’ll want to question me about what we did with the Laprans. The IOA don’t know anything them or their situation.”
“It’ll be okay, Rodney,” Chuck told him as he joined them, kissing Rodney on the forehead and Evan on the tip of his nose.
“Are we ready, gentlemen?” Elizabeth’s voice came through the room’s PA system.
“Just about,” Chuck called as Rodney and Evan sighed and Evan pulled away. “We’ll be down in five minutes.”
“I’m counting on it,” Elizabeth replied and Rodney said, “Once more into the breach…” as he began zipping up his bag.
When they reached the Control room, John, Carson, and Elizabeth were already waiting with their own bags in front of the Gate along with Teyla and Radek.
“Have a good trip,” Teyla told them, before touching foreheads with Rodney, Chuck, and Evan.
“Try not to blow anything up while we’re gone,” Rodney told Radek as they shook hands.
“Very funny,” Radek replied dryly before sobering. “I’ll promise not to blow anything up if you promise to come back.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal,” Rodney replied.
“Dial the Gate,” Elizabeth called up. One of the techs quickly responded and a few seconds later the wormhole had stabilized. Rodney sighed as they headed out.
Richard Woolsey was waiting for them on the other side of the Gate. “Good morning and welcome back to Earth, everyone,” he said. “If you’ll come with me, we’ll be on our way.”
“To, um, where exactly?” Rodney asked as they stepped off the ramp.
“We’re going to Washington, D.C.,” Woolsey replied, an expression of ‘that should have been apparent’ on his face before leading them out of the Gate Room.
“Be nice,” John murmured as they headed down the hallway to the elevators. “It won’t pay to hurt him before we even get out of the Mountain.”
“Are you sure?” Rodney replied. “Not even a little bit?”
“Nope. And believe me, I’d help you if I could.”
“Good to know. I may take you up on it later.” Rodney tugged at the hem of his t-shirt. “Does this shirt look all right?”
“It’s fine. Why?” John gave him a confused look.
“Because it’s actually Evan’s. Mine were all a little too big.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. Not, you know, a lot – but enough you could tell. I didn’t want to give the IOA any more reasons to be suspicious. And before you ask, I belted the pants. But I did consider asking Chuck if I could borrow some of his. First chance we get, I’m going to buy some new clothes.”
“Will you actually wear them on Atlantis?”
“Probably not, but they’ll be good to have just in case.”
They arrived at the elevators and had to split the group up to fit in the elevator. Chuck, Evan, and Rodney waited for the second round.
“It feels weird,” Evan remarked on their way up. “I never really thought about it, but now that I can’t feel Atlantis it feels like there’s something missing – like a hum in the back of my mind or something.”
“I agree,” Rodney replied. “I never really thought about it when I was on Lapras the first time, but the second time I went back, I definitely felt the difference.”
“I kind of miss it,” Chuck added. “Not that I really thought about it before, but –.” He shrugged. “It feels weird without it.”
The group was quiet once they reached topside. As they headed to the plane that would take them to Washington, D.C., Rodney re-shouldered his duffel bag and tugged at the hem of his shirt self-consciously. He wished he was back in Atlantis. He wished he was allowed to wear his own clothing and not feel forced to borrow Evan’s or Chuck’s or buy new things. When they got back, he wanted to remember to ask Teyla and Ronon how much pressure they felt to conform to the Expedition’s standards and trappings.
During the flight prep and take-off, Woolsey quickly briefed them on what to expect once they reached D.C. before leaving them to amuse themselves for the rest of the flight.
Carson and John immediately fell asleep, halfway between decorously and curled together (if one knew how to look) – to Chuck, Evan, and Rodney’s shared amusement. Woolsey buried himself in a book. Producing a pack of cards from his bag, Evan enticed his lovers and Elizabeth into an intricate card game they had learned from one of their allies.
Rodney was glad for the diversion. It took his mind off of all the possible ways the situation they were going into could go terribly wrong. And not just for himself – but also for Evan and John. If he let it, his mind could go into all sorts of creative scenarios where, at the last minute, instead of being promoted, they would be stripped of their ranks and dishonorably discharged for being what they were.
When the game was finished, Evan asked him, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine,” Rodney replied, waving him off.
“Maybe you should get some sleep,” Evan suggested. “We’ve still got about two and a half hours before we land and who knows how long the rest of today’s going to be.”
Rodney nodded and saw that Chuck and Elizabeth were also settling in for a nap. Lowering his voice so only Evan could hear him, Rodney glanced around commented, “Is it just me, or does this suck?”
“It’s not just you,” Evan replied softly. “One day it won’t suck, though,” he promised as he unobtrusively brushed his hand over Rodney’s. “One day.”
Rodney wasn’t sure which he hated more – the three week one-way trip on the Daedalus or the difference in time between Earth and Atlantis. The latter invariably lead to them losing a day from Gate lag if they needed to travel anywhere other than the Mountain.
One of the few consolations was that the IOA had reserved rooms for them in one of the nicer hotels in D.C. It still baffled him, however, when Woolsey handed them their room keys. Elizabeth, naturally, had her own room. The other two rooms were split between the men – John and Evan in one; Carson, Rodney, and Chuck in the other. Rodney was sure that there was some convoluted reasoning behind all of it, but he almost felt like ranting that they weren’t in school anymore and should be allowed to pick their own roommates until he saw the evil grin on John and Evan’s faces when they discovered their rooms were connected.
“Well, that solves a lot of problems,” Carson had casually remarked. “Who’s up for something to eat?”
In the end, all six of them had spent the remainder of the day in each other’s company, only retiring to separate rooms when they had to sleep.
“We never mentioned what we’d do if all three of us were off-world,” Chuck commented as he got in bed and Evan playfully smacked him on the arm.
“I think we should just be glad we’re able to do this and not push our luck,” he replied. “Are you coming, Rodney?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Rodney replied as he finished brushing his teeth. “Though I’m not much in the mood for anything – debating or otherwise.”
“Don’t worry – tomorrow will be fine,” Evan told him as Rodney turned out the lights.
“You don’t have anything to worry about,” Rodney responded as he got in bed and easily molded himself against Evan.
“And neither do you,” Chuck told him, reaching over Evan to stroke Rodney’s arm. “They may give you shit, but there’s no reason for them to keep you here.”
The meeting with the IOA started off just as Rodney had expected. Way too early, not enough coffee, and boring quibbling over things that happened with the Wraith during his first stay on Lapras. He doodled on his notepad as the conversation wore on, wondering why the IOA hadn’t called them onto the carpet before now if they hadn’t liked the way the Atlanteans had dealt with the Wraith. He was intrigued, though, that Woolsey was playing devil’s advocate more for them than Rodney remembered, and he idly wondered what had caused that change. Rodney breathed a slight sigh of relief along with the rest of the Atlanteans when the IOA finally agreed that their decisions and actions had been an acceptable course of action.
“Have we been boring you, Dr. McKay?” Representative Coolidge asked him disdainfully as the conversation wound down.
“Not particularly,” Rodney replied as he set his pen down and looked up at the U.S. representative to the IOA. “It’s just that my areas of expertise include physics and engineering, not history. And considering how I was absent during the period you are so intent on dissecting to its nanoparticles, I simply don’t have any interest other than ‘Woo-hoo, the Wraith have been defeated once and for all’.” He waved his hands enthusiastically before letting them drop back to the armrests with a look of scorn.
Coolidge’s eyes narrowed slightly as he leaned forward and folded his hands on top of his portfolio. “Yes, we’d like to hear more about that.”
Rodney shrugged. “Due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control, I was stranded on another world for a little over three years. Through some very fortunate good luck, Col. Sheppard and his team found themselves back on the world with the ability to extract me, and here I am.”
Rep. Chapman cleared his throat. “And what about allegations that you had ‘gone native’?”
Rodney shrugged again. “Call it what you want, but the basic desire for survival is a strong one in all organisms and if you want to call my adapting to survive going native, I’m not going to deny it.” He wasn’t stupid enough to admit to them that he actually had gone native. He leaned forward and folded his hands in front of him. “Look. We can argue back and forth about this all you want and I can guarantee we’re not going to get anywhere. Yes, I was stranded. Yes, I adapted in order to survive. No, I’m not a threat to Atlantis or Earth. You all have all the psych evaluations and notes from Drs. Heightmeyer and Beckett, as well as Dr. Weir stating as much. And it also states – and I’ll reiterate it now for you morons – I don’t care about getting my old positions back, I just want some lab space on Atlantis and a reasonable amount of freedom to do what I want. Now give me the damn paperwork to sign so I can prove that I’m really me and I’m really still alive so we can get this over with.”
“As much as we would like to do that, Dr. McKay,” Woolsey interjected, “we are still concerned with the more recent events on Lapras and the future effects that they might cause.”
“If you’re worried that we’ve tampered too much, I really wouldn’t. To begin with, let me make sure it’s abundantly clear that I was the one who had been approached for help. I hadn’t been in contact with the Laprans after I had left. And, yes, we did introduce some radical thinking into the mix to allow the Laprans to deal with the Korsans, but I can assure you that there’s nothing to worry about there. The Laprans are deeply pacifistic, and I doubt these ‘recent events’ will do much in the way of changing that – aside from thinning the bubble they’re living in. And, for the time being, the Korsans’ survival is dependent on them playing nice. They won’t do anything irrational to mess that up. And we did it with a minimal amount of bloodshed, no lives lost, and less talking than you’d expect.”
“What are your feelings on this, Dr. Weir?” Woolsey asked her.
“I think Rodney handled himself admirably in that situation and should be commended for ending generations’ worth of abuses that the Korsans forced the Laprans to endure and doing it such a way that honored and respected the Laprans’ traditions and culture,” she replied easily.
“Please give us a few minutes to confer and I believe we’ll be finished,” Woolsey replied as he stood and the rest of the IOA followed suit.
Rodney sighed once they had disappeared into an adjoining room and shut the door. “I don’t see what’s so bad about this. I don’t think Daniel Jackson’s ever had this much trouble coming back from the dead and he’s ascended numerous times!”
“It’ll work out, Rodney,” Carson told him. “It always does.”
“Besides, what can they do to you?” John added with an amused smirk. “Send you back to Area 51?”
“Don’t you dare joke about that!” Rodney glared at him.
They sat in silence as they waited for the IOA to finish its deliberations and Rodney tried not to think about the suddenly very real possibility that the IOA would figure out a way to keep him Earth-bound.
When the IOA delegation came back, Woolsey placed a pile of papers next to Rodney along with a pen before saying, “We’ve concluded that it would be in everyone’s best interest if we didn’t beleaguer this point and that we simply took your word for it. Please read over these documents and then sign them in the marked spots and you’ll be all set.”
Rodney did as he was told and happily noted that the documents detailed that he hadn’t been dead – only MIA – that he was to be returned to active duty on Atlantis, that the current status quo would be maintained and that whatever restrictions or freedoms placed on Rodney would be done as Dr. Weir and the current CSO saw fit. Rodney signed all of the papers with a flourish before handing them back to Woolsey with a grin.
Woolsey nodded as he placed them in his briefcase as the rest of the IOA filed out of the conference room. “Now, I’ve been instructed to inform you all that the promotion ceremony is to be this evening at five-thirty with a small reception to follow so that some of the brass and the press can meet all of you. It’s going to be at the National Air and Space Museum. I believe they thought it would be picturesque and rather apropos.” He rolled his eyes slightly. “So I will see you all there.”
“Is it really only noon?” Chuck asked as they exited the building.
“The IOA is extremely proficient when they decide to be,” Elizabeth replied as she and John both put on a pair of sunglasses. She looked at the rest of their motley group. “I guess we should go back to the hotel and put on some more appropriate attire. I know a wonderful deli where we can get some sandwiches.”
“No, I think it has more to do with the fact that they only have one dress uniform and that they can’t get it dirty before the ceremony without good reason,” Carson replied with a sigh as he adjusted his tie in the bathroom mirror. “And, sadly, none of our activities would be considered good reason.”
Rodney lay back on the bed next to Chuck with a huff. “Just remember, gentlemen, that once this is all over this evening, we’ll be able to have our wicked ways with them.”
“With who?” John asked with a grin as he and came through the connecting door. “Anyone we know?”
Rodney raised his head enough to see John leaning against the inner doorway, wearing his dress blues and holding his hat in his hand. He heard Carson’s intake of breath and had to agree that John looked good. Before he could reply, Evan joined John at the door and mimicked his pose on the other side. Rodney licked his lips as he focused on Evan and wondered if he had enough time for a cold shower.
“Well we were thinking of picking up a couple of airmen, but you’ll do,” Chuck told them as he got off the bed. He patted John on the chest as John passed him for Carson, before zeroing in on Evan and pulling him into a passionate kiss. “You’ll definitely do.”
Rodney thumped his head back against the bed a few times as he realized there wasn’t enough cold water in the universe to deal with his arousal and that he was going to have to go through the ceremony with a hard-on. The universe was out to get him. He sighed and got up to join them.
“Okay?” Evan asked him softly as he straightened Rodney’s tie.
“Oh, just peachy,” Rodney replied before accepting a kiss first from Evan, then from Chuck. “Just wishing we had a little more time before we go.”
At that, there was a knock on the door. “It’s time to go, gentlemen,” Elizabeth called. “The car’s waiting downstairs.”
During the ceremony, Rodney laughed inwardly at the irony of John’s promotion. The last one had been forced by Elizabeth to ensure his position. This time, the Air Force was actually awarding it of its own will. He couldn’t help but beam proudly as he watched General O’Neill pin the symbols of their new ranks on his lover and one of his best friends, as well as award them with a couple more service awards.
Afterwards, Rodney mingled along with the rest of the Atlanteans and did his best to be his most charming and likeable. He shook hands and took pictures – both alone and with a myriad of people – and answered questions about what it was like to be working with aliens, and on alien technology, and all sorts of alien things and it was starting to wear his patience.
“Have you seen John?” Carson quietly asked him after they had a picture taken together. “I haven’t seen him for quite a while and I’m worried about him.”
Rodney scanned the crowd, but couldn’t see the Colonel, or even his spiky hair, among the groupings of people. “Not recently, no,” he replied just as quietly. “And I’m thinking it’s been longer than a trip to the bathroom if you’re asking me.” A little louder, he announced, “I think I think I’m going to get a breath of air.”
They both nodded and Rodney headed out of the reception room. He knew John couldn’t have gone far – he felt as much at odds as the rest of them did on Earth. He searched the exhibits in the museum and finally found John on the second floor, leaning against the railing and staring blankly at the spaceships.
“Carson’s worried about you,” Rodney told him quietly as he joined him.
“And you’re not?” John asked without looking at him.
“I’ve seen you in action more than he has.”
They were quiet for a while before John said, “You know, I never expected this. I joined the Air Force so I could fly and get away from home, but I never wanted this. Didn’t want a command, didn’t want the rank.” He shook his head. “Just wanted to fly.”
“Do you regret going to Atlantis?” Rodney asked after a beat.
“Best coin toss I ever made,” John replied with a grin. “It’s just overwhelming – that what happens here affects there.”
“Worried about Carson?”
“A little? Maybe? I know I shouldn’t be, but I do. What are you guys doing for your leave?” John asked, deflecting the conversation.
Rodney shrugged, letting John take control. “Visit Jeannie and her family, of course. I’m sure she’s going to kill me for not keeping in touch again aside from the phone call when we got Earth-side. But I deserve it – I didn’t know what to say.”
John colored slightly. “I’ve emailed with her a few times while you were gone and then after you got back to let her know what was going on. I think you’ll be okay.”
“No wonder she didn’t bite my head off over the phone. Thank you for that. And I think we’re going to visit Chuck and Evan’s families too. After that,” Rodney shrugged.
“Elizabeth’s got her whole time booked. And I know Carson and I won’t want to spend the whole time with his family. The five of us should go do something.”
Rodney nodded. “We’ll have to talk it over with them, though.” He glanced over to see Elizabeth coming towards them from the other side and sighed. “I think we’re needed back, though.”
The next morning they were officially on leave for a month. They were dropped off at Washington-Dulles Airport and Elizabeth disappeared almost immediately to get to her plane. The five men discussed options over breakfast and finally agreed to meet up for the last two weeks in San Francisco for some sun and fun.
After heading to the international flights, they split up – Carson and John for Scotland and Evan, Rodney, and Chuck for Canada.
“I’m surprised we never met before,” Rodney told Chuck when the plane landed in Toronto.
“We did live on opposite sides of the city and considering the whole genius thing you’ve got going on, I’m not completely surprised we didn’t.”
“So, we’re going to see Chuck’s family first, then go to the Millers’, correct?” Evan asked them.
“Yes,” Chuck replied. “That way, if we need to leave, we’ll be able to go to the Millers’ early.”
“I’m sure your family will be fine, Chuck,” Rodney told them as they headed to the baggage claim.
“I just want to hedge my bets a bit,” Chuck told them. “I’m sure they’ll be happy to meet you, but they are a bit…traditional.”
Rodney and Evan couldn’t help exchanging a ‘what have we gotten ourselves into?’ look later that evening as they ate dinner at the Campbells’ residence, surrounded by virtually the entire Campbell family – who Rodney assumed had to live nearby, given how quickly they had assembled. Everyone was clamoring for Chuck’s attention and wanted to know what it was like where he worked and what sorts of things he was working on and Chuck did his best to answer all of their questions with as much truth as he could, considering everything was still classified. Evan and Rodney, on the other hand, had barely been given more than a hello once they’d been sized up.
“I’m sorry,” Chuck told them later that evening as they took a walk around the neighborhood. “I’ve heard the stories about my cousin Steve bringing his lover home with him back when I was little, but I never suspected that this is why they never come any more. I always thought it was because they live out in Vancouver and that’s where his partner’s family’s from.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Evan told him. “You’re the prodigal son returned home after years away and the baby to boot. Of course they’re going to be fawning over you right away. Then the curiosity over why you brought us home with you will take over and we’ll go from there.”
“I hope you’re right,” Chuck replied with a sigh.
“What else is it?” Rodney asked as he bumped Chuck’s shoulder with his own.
“I’d always figured that my biological family would be a part of my life – regardless of where I was stationed. You know – I’d tell them what I could in emails and bring my partner when I was on leave. You both saw what it was like back there. But if they can’t accept the two of you, or even one of you, then I don’t know if I could pretend that it didn’t matter.”
“Maybe you should wait and see what happens tomorrow before you drive yourself insane with what-ifs,” Evan told him.
“How can you be so level-headed?” Chuck asked.
“Aside from it being ground into me by the military?” Evan asked with a raised eyebrow. “It’s not my family, for one thing. And for the other –”
“He knows he’s going to have a much harder time with me when we go see Jeannie, so he’s getting practice now,” Rodney interjected.
“Shhh, don’t give away my plan,” Evan told him in a mock whisper and they all laughed. “But, seriously,” he stopped Chuck and put his hands on his shoulders, “if things don’t pan out the way you want, we’ll see about leaving early for Jeannie’s. Worst come to worst then, we’ll get a hotel for a day or two. Okay?”
“Okay,” Chuck replied with a nod. Looking at Rodney, he repeated, “Okay.” Then he motioned Rodney closer and pulled both men into a hug. “Thanks, guys,” he whispered. “I don’t know what I do without you.”
“Neither do we,” Evan replied, ruffling Chuck’s hair. “Neither do we. Come on, let’s head back.”
The next two days didn’t get better. They didn’t get any worse, either, but Rodney and Evan were, for all intents and purposes, invisible in the Campbell household. Chuck did his best to have them be included in discussions and activities and twice had to remind his mother that they had two more guests for meals.
As they finished dinner on the second full day, Chuck told Evan and Rodney, “I’m saying the word. I don’t care what my family thinks, if they can’t be polite to you two, I don’t want to be here.” Looking at Rodney, he said, “Can you call Jeannie?”
“Sure,” Rodney replied with a nod. The three men went out on the porch as Rodney dialed Jeannie’s number. Rodney leaned against the railing as it rang and Chuck and Evan flanked him. “Hey, Jean,” he said when she answered.
*“Mer, if you’re calling to cancel, I’m going to kill you,”* she told him.
“No, no. Not at all,” he replied, making a face at his lovers and they smiled. “I was actually calling to see if we could come early. Some stuff’s come up with Chuck’s family and we have to cut our time here short.”
*“Oh. Well.”* There was a slight pause. *“Sure, that’s not a problem. Should we expect you tonight?”*
“Would that be too much of an imposition?” he asked with a grimace.
*“Not if you mind couches.”* There was some muffled conversation. *“Madison wants to know if Uncle John is coming.”*
“Not this time,” Rodney told her. “Tell her I’ve got some new uncles for her to meet. Anyway, we’ll be there in about an hour.”
*“Okay. We’ll see you then.”*
“Bye, sis.” Rodney hung up. “We’re a go.”
“And you totally made us bait for your eight-year-old niece, didn’t you?” Chuck asked with a grin as they headed back inside.
“Oh, yeah.”
They gathered their things and Chuck bade his family a quick goodbye – all of whom were surprised to see him go so soon. Chuck tried, one last time, to explain about his relationship with Evan and Rodney, but it didn’t appear to work any better than the first few times.
Once they were in the car, Chuck said, “I’ve heard about people being willfully blind, but this is ridiculous,” and pointedly looked out the passenger window.
“Maybe we should find your cousin Steve and make up our own little club,” Rodney told him lightly, trying to diffuse some of Chuck’s tension. “That way you could still have at least part of your family and say ‘screw you’ to the rest of them.”
Chuck nodded. “I’ll have to see what I can find, since I haven’t seen or talked to him in years. But that is a good idea. What about you, Evan? Why aren’t we going to visit your family?”
Evan shrugged. “We’ve only got so much time before we have to meet up with John and Carson. I doubt we’ll have enough time.”
“I know they’ll understand if we don’t spend all two weeks with them,” Rodney told him. “We should go.”
Evan shook his head. “Not right now. So, tell us about your niece, Rodney.”
Rodney rolled his eyes as he looked at Evan in the rearview mirror. “Nice deflection there. She’s an eight-year-old girl. That’s about all I know of her. Remember, the last time I saw her, I was in a bit of a hurry and she was four.”
They were quiet the rest of the way to the Millers’ house. When they parked in front of it, the door flew open to reveal a little girl.
“And there she is,” Chuck commented as they watched her waver between standing there, calling for Jeannie, and running out to meet them. “Cute kid. She looks nothing like you.”
“Well, I would hope not,” Rodney replied sarcastically as they got out and he popped the trunk.
A moment later, Rodney glanced at the door as he closed the trunk to see Jeannie standing at the door and Madison running out to meet them.
“Uncle Mer! Uncle Mer! Uncle Mer!” she called, throwing herself at him and hugging him around the waist.
“Hi, Madison,” he told her, carefully hugging her back. “You’ve grown a lot since the last time I saw you.”
“Way to go,” Chuck murmured and Rodney rolled his eyes in response.
“Because I was *four*,” she told him, as if that should be blatantly obvious.
“So you were,” he replied as she stepped back and eyed Chuck and Evan curiously.
“Where’s Uncle John?” she asked. “Is he coming?”
“Not this time. He had to go visit some other people. This is Uncle Chuck and Uncle Evan.” He pointed to each of them as he said their names.
“Hi,” Madison told them shyly and they replied in kind with amused smiles.
“Madison,” Jeannie called, “let’s let Uncle Mer and his friends come inside.”
After another moment of scrutiny, Madison asked, “Wanna see my room?”
“Sure, kiddo,” Chuck replied easily as they hefted their bags and followed her inside.
“Hey, Jeannie,” Rodney said awkwardly when they got to the house, not sure what kind of reception he was going to get.
“Hey, Mer,” Jeannie replied, her expression unreadable as she held the door open for them. “Madison, why don’t you go get your room ready? We’ll be up in a minute.” Madison nodded and dashed off.
As soon as he was inside, Rodney dropped his bag and pulled Jeannie into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered.
“I’m just glad you’re okay,” she told him as she held on just as tightly. She finally stepped back and sniffed before composing herself. “Colonel Sheppard explained everything to me, so at least I know that this time your disappearance wasn’t intentional. But I wish you had let me know yourself, Mer.”
“Elizabeth was pretty specific about how she wanted things handled when I got back,” Rodney told her truthfully. “Chuck and Evan can vouch for that. I thought someone had gotten in touch with you to let you know.”
“So are you going to introduce us, or let us fend for ourselves?” she asked him, clasping her hands in front of her.
“Sorry.” Rodney looked slightly embarrassed. “This is Chuck Campbell and Evan Lorne.” Rodney gestured to each of them. “They’re, um,” he blushed as he quickly added, “they’re my partners. And this is my sister, Jeannie,” he told them in a rush.
“It’s good to finally meet you, ma’am,” Evan told her, holding out his hand.
Jeannie laughed as she ignored his hand and pulled him into a quick hug and then did the same with Chuck. “I always figured it would take at least two people to keep up with Rodney. So, Chuck, what’s your area of scientific study?”
“What makes you think I’m a scientist?” he asked, surprised.
“Because Evan called me ‘ma’am’ the same as Colonel Sheppard. Plus, Rodney needs some kind of balance.”
“I’m not really a scientist – at least not if you use Rodney’s definition. My degree’s in computer technology and I’m one of the Gate technicians.”
“At least you had me pegged right,” Evan told her with a laugh and a slight inclination of his head. “And since I know you’re going to ask, I’m a Lieutenant Colonel.”
“I thought –” Jeannie looked at Rodney questioningly.
“John and Evan both got promoted a couple of days ago,” he told her. “John’s now a Colonel.”
“Congratulations,” she told him. “What am I doing? Come in, come in. I’ll show you where you can put your bags. Have you eaten?”
“Yeah, we had dinner at the Campbells’,” Rodney replied as they followed Jeannie upstairs.
She led them to the back bedroom. “I hope you don’t mind, but it’s not much. We usually use it as extra space,” she said as they set their bags down on the bed and she surveyed the clutter on the desk and dresser. “I’ll finish cleaning things up tomorrow, but the sheets are clean.”
“Where’s, um, Kaleb?” Rodney asked.
“Dinner with his brother. They should be home soon.”
“Mo-om!” Madison called impatiently. “I’m waiting!”
“At least we know where she gets that from,” Chuck said with a laugh.
“I don’t sound like that!” Rodney replied indignantly.
“Thank God you don’t,” Evan replied as Jeannie ushered them out of the room. “Was he a complete asshole as a teenager, Jeannie?”
“Of course,” Jeannie replied with a smile, “all big brothers are assholes.”
“If you keep this up, I’m not staying here,” Rodney told them as they arrived at Madison’s room. “I don’t have to take this kind of abuse.”
After they ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’-ed over Madison’s room, Jeannie sent her in for a bath and the guys followed Jeannie downstairs. She made coffee for them and, as it was brewing, leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest.
“This is just – wow,” she finally said, with a shake of her head as she gazed at the trio sitting at the kitchen table. “There’s so much I want to ask you, Mer, but I don’t know where to start.”
“The important bits are that I’m safely back in Atlantis and that I’m happy. We can go into details later – we’ve got almost two weeks.”
After a thoughtful moment, she nodded. “I guess you’re right.”
Their time spent at the Millers’ home was a complete 180 degree turn of what they had experienced at the Campbells’. From the time they woke up the next morning, all three of them were involved in the family’s life. They played with Madison and took her to ice skating practice and ballet lessons. Chuck and Kaleb bonded over hockey and Evan did his best to charm the socks off of Jeannie – much to Rodney’s mock disgust.
Rodney really did enjoy having the time to bond with Jeannie and her family. After everything that had happened on both Lapras and Atlantis, it felt like this was bringing everything together for him. He was also elated when she told him she had gone back to work and was planning on publishing “a small article in a two-bit journal and her name was really fourth on the list of four.”
“You seem happier,” Evan said as he and Chuck joined Rodney on the back porch on the morning of their last full day with the Millers and he handed Rodney a steaming mug of coffee, then put an arm around his waist.
“I think I am,” Rodney replied with a nod after taking a sip of coffee. “It feels like this was necessary.”
“I think your sister’s ready to adopt us,” Chuck told him. “Which – after the differences between our families, I don’t think I’d mind all that much. I think it’s important to know who your real family is.”
Rodney nodded. “We’ll have to take your cousin up on his invitation, the next time we’re Earth-side.” He leaned into Evan as he said, “What about you? We’ve still got time to change our plans. We can swing by for a day – or even a few hours – on our way to San Francisco.”
Evan sighed. “Fine. A few hours. And don’t say I didn’t warn you two.”
“Oh, believe me, we’ll find a way to make it up to you,” Rodney replied as he nuzzled Evan’s neck.
“Eeewww. Mom! Uncle Mer and Uncle Evan are kissing again,” Madison said from the door.
“We were not, half-pint,” Evan replied as he pulled away.
She made a face at them as she said, “Breakfast is ready,” and went back inside.
Continue in Part 38