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Entry tags:
Fic: Finding Happiness
Title: Finding Happiness
Author: sglab
Rating: G
Summary: Rodney is there for John after losing Elizabeth in an accident
Spoilers: None
Pairings/Characters: Sheppard/McKay and Sheppard/Weir
Warning: Character death, slash
Disclaimer: Characters aren’t mine, just having fun with them.
A/N: Teyla/Ronon and Carson/Laura are miner pairs. The end of season 3 didn’t happen nor did season 4
Chapter 3
“You know you’re going to have to get out sooner or later,” Rodney was sitting in the back seat of the rental car. They were parked outside Elizabeth’s Mom’s house.
John let out a breath of air and opened the car door. He climbed out and went around to the front passenger seat getting Maddie out. “Are you going to be okay getting out yourself?”
“I can manage,” Rodney muttered hauling himself out of the car.
When they got to the door Rodney hung back a bit. Apparently Mrs. Weir had already been informed of the news because as soon as she saw John tears were in her eyes and she grabbed him around the shoulders pulling him close.
John wrapped one arm around his mother-in-law while the other hand held the baby carrier with Maddie.
When she let go of John she looked down at the baby and clasped her hands to her mouth. “She’s beautiful. “What is her name?”
“Madeleine Meredith Sheppard,” John said.
“Come in, come in,” she shooed them inside. “Rodney, it’s good to see you,” she said.
Rodney gave her a polite smile.
&
As the rest of the afternoon progressed Rodney was feeling more and more awkward. He spent most of his time trying not to put his foot in his mouth. He watched John do most of the talking and he could see it wasn’t any easier for his friend.
Mrs. Weir insisted on making them dinner. That at least gave Rodney an excuse for not speaking other than to compliment her on her cooking. She also insisted they stay at her house while they were visiting.
She then apologized for only having the one guest room and one bed for them. But they’d shared tents sleeping crammed together.
Rodney, as exhausted as he was, he could not find sleep. His leg was hurting. He tried not to move too much though. John still looked exhausted. John’s friends had always teased him that he was too skinny, but now he really was too skinny.
Rodney looked over at Maddie seeing she was sound asleep.
Finally he had to get up and take something for the pain. It had been a long day. Entering the kitchen he was surprised to see Mrs. Weir sitting at the counter.
“Oh, Mrs. Weir.”
“Is everything all right, Rodney?” She asked.
“I just got up to take something for the pain in my leg,” he said.
“What happened to your leg?” She asked.
Rodney was resting his crutches against the counter when she asked the question. “Um well it was an accident.”
“Was it the accident that caused Elizabeth’s death?”
Rodney didn’t look at Mrs. Weir as he answered. “Yes. I’m sorry.”
“It was an accident,” Mrs. Weir said gently resting a hand on his shoulder.
“Some days I wish it had been me,” Rodney said.
“Survivor’s guilt can be a terrible thing,” she said.
Rodney looked up at Mrs. Weir. He felt a moment of shame, but didn’t know why.
“We have to go on for John and for Maddie. And for Elizabeth,” she said and wrapped a warn hand around Rodney’s.
“Now, didn’t I tell you to call me Marisa?” Her question startled him as did her lighter tone.
A sudden memory of the day he first met Mrs. Weir came to him.
He had just arrived in town coming from Colorado. He’d had to take a flight, apparently the SGC wasn’t going afford him any of their resources and beam him at Mrs. Weir’s front door.
John and Elizabeth were already there getting ready for the wedding that Elizabeth’s mother insisted on in the back yard. They had already had one on Atlantis a month earlier.
Other than the happy couple, Rodney was the only one allowed to leave Atlantis at the time.
The door opened and a smiling Elizabeth greeted him. She pulled him in giving him a hug. So startled his hands flailed a bit before landing on her back.
“How was your flight?” She asked when she finally let go.
“Long. Irritating,” he continued on a long whine which only had Elizabeth laughing.
“Come on and meet my mother,” she had wrapped her arm behind his and tugged him through the house.
John was sitting in the living room couch looking a little shell shocked at everything around him. They continued on through Rodney only catching brief look of desperation from John.
“Mom, I’d like you to meet Rodney. He’s John’s Best Man.”
Mrs. Weir came out of the kitchen wearing an apron. It took Rodney a moment to see the family resemblance.
“It’s good to meet you, Rodney,” Mrs. Weir put out a hand.
“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Weir,” Rodney took her hand. It was a comforting grip she had.
“Marisa,” he looked at her confused. “Please call me Marisa. I’ve been trying to get John to call me that all week.”
“Well then it’s nice to meet you Marisa,” he corrected.
“He doesn’t say much,” Marisa said to her daughter.
“I think he’s trying not to put his foot in his mouth,” Elizabeth smiled. “Rodney, it’s okay, it takes a lot to offend my mother.”
Marisa shook her head, but smiled at Rodney. “Rodney, why don’t you go rescue John from the horrors of wedding plans and do something,” she hesitated for a moment like she was trying to find the right word. “Guyish.”
“Guyish?” Elizabeth looked at her mother.
“Okay,” Rodney decided to do as Marisa suggested and left the room to find John.
“You spent the whole week here looking like a deer in headlights,” Marisa startled Rodney out of his musings. “When you were here for John and Elizabeth’s wedding.”
He blinked at her a moment. “How’d you know…?”
“Just a guess,” she smiled. “How much longer are you going to be on Earth?”
“After we leave here we’re going to see John’s brother. So at least a week,” his last word was half spoken. “Wait, what did you just say?”
She gave him a half smile this time. “A General Jack O’Neill came here a week ago to tell me what happened to Elizabeth. He told me about Atlantis and the Pegasus galaxy. I never quite figured out why he’d tell me all of it.”
“Elizabeth!”
They were startled by John shouting. The baby woke up then crying.
They got to the room and Rodney went next to John while Marisa went to Maddie.
“John,” Rodney placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder.
John tossed a bit mumbling. His eyes came open and he looked at Rodney. “Rodney?”
“You were having a bad dream.”
John sank into his pillow taking Rodney’s hand with him. “Re-living a nightmare,” John said.
Rodney didn’t know what to say so just sat on the edge of the bed letting John hold his hand to his chest.
“Is Maddie okay?” John dropped Rodney hand and sat up.
“She’s doing fine,” Marisa said. “Why don’t you two get some sleep.”
Once back in bed neither man felt inclined to sleep. “She knows about Atlantis.”
“What?” John rolled over looking at Rodney in the dark. “General O’Neill told her about Elizabeth and everything else.”
“How’s she taking it?”
“She seems surprisingly calm hearing about Atlantis.”
“You still have that deer in headlights look around her,” John said.
“Oh shut up,” Rodney shoved a snickering John with his pillow.
&
They left Marisa’s house a couple days later. With a tearful goodbye from her they promising to visit again as soon as possible.
Author: sglab
Rating: G
Summary: Rodney is there for John after losing Elizabeth in an accident
Spoilers: None
Pairings/Characters: Sheppard/McKay and Sheppard/Weir
Warning: Character death, slash
Disclaimer: Characters aren’t mine, just having fun with them.
A/N: Teyla/Ronon and Carson/Laura are miner pairs. The end of season 3 didn’t happen nor did season 4
Chapter 3
“You know you’re going to have to get out sooner or later,” Rodney was sitting in the back seat of the rental car. They were parked outside Elizabeth’s Mom’s house.
John let out a breath of air and opened the car door. He climbed out and went around to the front passenger seat getting Maddie out. “Are you going to be okay getting out yourself?”
“I can manage,” Rodney muttered hauling himself out of the car.
When they got to the door Rodney hung back a bit. Apparently Mrs. Weir had already been informed of the news because as soon as she saw John tears were in her eyes and she grabbed him around the shoulders pulling him close.
John wrapped one arm around his mother-in-law while the other hand held the baby carrier with Maddie.
When she let go of John she looked down at the baby and clasped her hands to her mouth. “She’s beautiful. “What is her name?”
“Madeleine Meredith Sheppard,” John said.
“Come in, come in,” she shooed them inside. “Rodney, it’s good to see you,” she said.
Rodney gave her a polite smile.
&
As the rest of the afternoon progressed Rodney was feeling more and more awkward. He spent most of his time trying not to put his foot in his mouth. He watched John do most of the talking and he could see it wasn’t any easier for his friend.
Mrs. Weir insisted on making them dinner. That at least gave Rodney an excuse for not speaking other than to compliment her on her cooking. She also insisted they stay at her house while they were visiting.
She then apologized for only having the one guest room and one bed for them. But they’d shared tents sleeping crammed together.
Rodney, as exhausted as he was, he could not find sleep. His leg was hurting. He tried not to move too much though. John still looked exhausted. John’s friends had always teased him that he was too skinny, but now he really was too skinny.
Rodney looked over at Maddie seeing she was sound asleep.
Finally he had to get up and take something for the pain. It had been a long day. Entering the kitchen he was surprised to see Mrs. Weir sitting at the counter.
“Oh, Mrs. Weir.”
“Is everything all right, Rodney?” She asked.
“I just got up to take something for the pain in my leg,” he said.
“What happened to your leg?” She asked.
Rodney was resting his crutches against the counter when she asked the question. “Um well it was an accident.”
“Was it the accident that caused Elizabeth’s death?”
Rodney didn’t look at Mrs. Weir as he answered. “Yes. I’m sorry.”
“It was an accident,” Mrs. Weir said gently resting a hand on his shoulder.
“Some days I wish it had been me,” Rodney said.
“Survivor’s guilt can be a terrible thing,” she said.
Rodney looked up at Mrs. Weir. He felt a moment of shame, but didn’t know why.
“We have to go on for John and for Maddie. And for Elizabeth,” she said and wrapped a warn hand around Rodney’s.
“Now, didn’t I tell you to call me Marisa?” Her question startled him as did her lighter tone.
A sudden memory of the day he first met Mrs. Weir came to him.
He had just arrived in town coming from Colorado. He’d had to take a flight, apparently the SGC wasn’t going afford him any of their resources and beam him at Mrs. Weir’s front door.
John and Elizabeth were already there getting ready for the wedding that Elizabeth’s mother insisted on in the back yard. They had already had one on Atlantis a month earlier.
Other than the happy couple, Rodney was the only one allowed to leave Atlantis at the time.
The door opened and a smiling Elizabeth greeted him. She pulled him in giving him a hug. So startled his hands flailed a bit before landing on her back.
“How was your flight?” She asked when she finally let go.
“Long. Irritating,” he continued on a long whine which only had Elizabeth laughing.
“Come on and meet my mother,” she had wrapped her arm behind his and tugged him through the house.
John was sitting in the living room couch looking a little shell shocked at everything around him. They continued on through Rodney only catching brief look of desperation from John.
“Mom, I’d like you to meet Rodney. He’s John’s Best Man.”
Mrs. Weir came out of the kitchen wearing an apron. It took Rodney a moment to see the family resemblance.
“It’s good to meet you, Rodney,” Mrs. Weir put out a hand.
“It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Weir,” Rodney took her hand. It was a comforting grip she had.
“Marisa,” he looked at her confused. “Please call me Marisa. I’ve been trying to get John to call me that all week.”
“Well then it’s nice to meet you Marisa,” he corrected.
“He doesn’t say much,” Marisa said to her daughter.
“I think he’s trying not to put his foot in his mouth,” Elizabeth smiled. “Rodney, it’s okay, it takes a lot to offend my mother.”
Marisa shook her head, but smiled at Rodney. “Rodney, why don’t you go rescue John from the horrors of wedding plans and do something,” she hesitated for a moment like she was trying to find the right word. “Guyish.”
“Guyish?” Elizabeth looked at her mother.
“Okay,” Rodney decided to do as Marisa suggested and left the room to find John.
“You spent the whole week here looking like a deer in headlights,” Marisa startled Rodney out of his musings. “When you were here for John and Elizabeth’s wedding.”
He blinked at her a moment. “How’d you know…?”
“Just a guess,” she smiled. “How much longer are you going to be on Earth?”
“After we leave here we’re going to see John’s brother. So at least a week,” his last word was half spoken. “Wait, what did you just say?”
She gave him a half smile this time. “A General Jack O’Neill came here a week ago to tell me what happened to Elizabeth. He told me about Atlantis and the Pegasus galaxy. I never quite figured out why he’d tell me all of it.”
“Elizabeth!”
They were startled by John shouting. The baby woke up then crying.
They got to the room and Rodney went next to John while Marisa went to Maddie.
“John,” Rodney placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder.
John tossed a bit mumbling. His eyes came open and he looked at Rodney. “Rodney?”
“You were having a bad dream.”
John sank into his pillow taking Rodney’s hand with him. “Re-living a nightmare,” John said.
Rodney didn’t know what to say so just sat on the edge of the bed letting John hold his hand to his chest.
“Is Maddie okay?” John dropped Rodney hand and sat up.
“She’s doing fine,” Marisa said. “Why don’t you two get some sleep.”
Once back in bed neither man felt inclined to sleep. “She knows about Atlantis.”
“What?” John rolled over looking at Rodney in the dark. “General O’Neill told her about Elizabeth and everything else.”
“How’s she taking it?”
“She seems surprisingly calm hearing about Atlantis.”
“You still have that deer in headlights look around her,” John said.
“Oh shut up,” Rodney shoved a snickering John with his pillow.
&
They left Marisa’s house a couple days later. With a tearful goodbye from her they promising to visit again as soon as possible.