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thefroggTitle: Where We Live (7/?)
Author:thefrogg
Beta:blue_oceandeep
Rating: PG13-ish
Disclaimer: Everyone but Webber belongs to other people. Damnit.
Summary: Lorne's team has long been responsible for Todd's security. When they take Todd out to investigate an abandoned Wraith base, their changing attitudes towards the captive Wraith sparks a series of events no one in Atlantis is ready for.
Author:
thefroggBeta:
blue_oceandeepRating: PG13-ish
Disclaimer: Everyone but Webber belongs to other people. Damnit.
Summary: Lorne's team has long been responsible for Todd's security. When they take Todd out to investigate an abandoned Wraith base, their changing attitudes towards the captive Wraith sparks a series of events no one in Atlantis is ready for.
"Major? Was Colonel Sheppard in here when we came in?" Webber asked.
"Does it matter? He's scaring the hell out of Todd." Lorne forced himself to breathe, shove the foreign emotions and the sense he was being hunted aside. "Go get two pitchers of ice water. Parrish, Miller, you're with me."
"Hoo, boy," Parrish muttered, pushing his chair back under the table.
"We're not leaving a man behind." 'Not this time,' Lorne didn't say, forcing his hand away from his sidearm - shooting his CO might be momentarily satisfying, but ultimately, it would be very stupid.
"No, sir." Miller followed as Lorne threaded his way through the tables.
"Colonel," Lorne said as he came to a stop between the two, carefully keeping his voice neutral.
"I was just welcoming Todd to the mess, and hoping he enjoyed his dinner," Sheppard answered lightly. His smile didn't quite meet his eyes.
Somehow, Todd managed to still even more.
Lorne had to suppress a growl at Todd's fear; Sheppard had no idea what he was doing to the Wraith. "Todd, Miller, Parrish, go eat. I'll join you in a moment." Todd twitched. "Go."
Sheppard narrowed his eyes. "Is there a problem?"
"You mean besides Todd's discomfort with you? Or how unhappy he is that he hasn't been able to prove to you that he has value to us?" Lorne moved to stay between Sheppard and the retreating backs of his team members, breaking his line of sight.
"He's that upset."
"Yes," Lorne said softly. "I'm asking you as a friend, and a colleague, please leave him alone right now."
Considering, Sheppard was silent for a time, measuring the certainty in Lorne's stance, in his eyes. "You're sure you can handle him."
"I'm sure no one else has even a sliver of a chance to." Lorne raised his chin. "He's my responsibility. You and Colonel Carter put him in my care. Don't get in the way, you're doing more damage than you think."
"Damage. To a Wraith."
"Yes. Damage to a Wraith that was willing to follow you."
Sheppard frowned. "That wasn't--"
"He was willing to follow you, Colonel," Lorne said again, sad and determined. "He wanted to put you in my position, but you never gave him the chance."
"It wasn't part of the bargain."
"You didn't give him room to renegotiate." Lorne shrugged. "Todd's my responsibility now. That includes keeping him from getting hurt, and right now, that's all you can do to him."
Shifting his weight, Sheppard sighed, then nodded curtly. "Go eat with your men, Major."
Lorne nodded in acknowledgement. "Colonel." He didn't look back.
~~~
"Major?" David eased onto one of the barstools across the counter.
"Mmm."
"Is he okay?" The concern in David's voice was expected, if troubling.
"No." Lorne didn't take his eyes off the Wraith, curled up against the couch, cheek jammed into the side of the armchair next to it. Miller slept on the couch behind him, arm dangling over Todd's shoulder; Webber had simply passed out on the floor, exhausted from the mental and emotional toll Todd's return had taken. Lorne didn't think it'd be too long before he followed.
"Didn't think so, not after dinner," David muttered bitterly to himself.
Lorne suppressed a wince at the reminder; he'd returned to the table to find Todd wild-eyed and shaking, barely able to keep from shattering the plastic cup Miller had patiently refilled each time it was emptied. And that had been before Lorne had had to order him to actually eat the food he'd gone to the mess for in the first place.
"It's comforting, to be with him like this," David said almost to himself.
"Yes," Lorne answers absently, wondering if Todd had tagged the rest of his team. He berated himself a moment later; of course Todd had, they were his team. "We're Hive."
David leaned over the counter, hands pressed to his chest. "I'd wondered about that. I mean...I don't. He's, was..."
"Telepathic. Alone in his own mind?" Lorne tilted his head back, seeing David at the edge of his field of vision. "Does it bother you?"
"What, that he's telepathic, or that he's apparently judged us worthy of being his chosen Hive?"
Lorne shrugged, going back to watching Todd sleep.
"Always knew about the telepathy. Kind of proud of the Hive thing."
"Wouldn't advertise that, or even that we are."
"Insane here, not stupid." David laughed a little, punchy from the lateness of the hour, relief and happiness singing through him.
A small smile quirked Lorne's lips, unexpected and sweet. "Then I suppose we are all insane together." He pushed away from the counter and turned. "You staying? I don't want to wake them, but you don't have to--"
"Of course I'm staying. Someone has to keep you out of trouble."
Lorne rolled his eyes, heading for his room to fetch blankets for the five of them. No use in sleeping apart.
~~~
"...Lts. Miller and Webber, Dr. Parrish and I hid; Todd could not, and disappeared before we were able to leave. I can only assume that the Wraith took him with them..."
"What happened, Major? This doesn't make any sense," Colonel Carter asked her datapad in frustration. The words refused to resolve themselves into a more logical configuration, and the datapad dropped to the desk with a dull clatter.
"You lose Todd to the Wraith; you move into a family suite and get McKay to mess with the lock so even John can't get in...you were expecting him to come back, you were planning on it." The pen in her hand glided over her notepad, nib biting deeply into the surface as black ink underlined Todd's name, then again. "What did he do? How did he earn that?" Simple questions, answers that could be simple and at the same time so incredibly complex.
More words appeared, Carter's hand left to its own devices as her mind worked at the problem. Wraith, prisoner, Hive, Hivemind, telepathy...what Todd was. Then alone, isolation, Genii, Kolya, Sheppard, Teyla, Lorne, cloning...
Nausea welled; her free hand went to her stomach in a futile attempt to stave off the discomfort.
Lines should not have been drawn; Major Lorne was more than just Colonel Sheppard's XO, the best XO Sheppard had ever had, they were friends. Friends who'd rescued each other more than once, who trusted each other. But Major Lorne had called Todd a member of his team, or so Sheppard had said. A warning, and a challenge.
This wasn't team, this too-familiar obfuscation, planning, the drawing of lines. This was more. Deeper. And she had no idea if someone could be removed from a Hive once made a part of it.
"Does it matter? He's scaring the hell out of Todd." Lorne forced himself to breathe, shove the foreign emotions and the sense he was being hunted aside. "Go get two pitchers of ice water. Parrish, Miller, you're with me."
"Hoo, boy," Parrish muttered, pushing his chair back under the table.
"We're not leaving a man behind." 'Not this time,' Lorne didn't say, forcing his hand away from his sidearm - shooting his CO might be momentarily satisfying, but ultimately, it would be very stupid.
"No, sir." Miller followed as Lorne threaded his way through the tables.
"Colonel," Lorne said as he came to a stop between the two, carefully keeping his voice neutral.
"I was just welcoming Todd to the mess, and hoping he enjoyed his dinner," Sheppard answered lightly. His smile didn't quite meet his eyes.
Somehow, Todd managed to still even more.
Lorne had to suppress a growl at Todd's fear; Sheppard had no idea what he was doing to the Wraith. "Todd, Miller, Parrish, go eat. I'll join you in a moment." Todd twitched. "Go."
Sheppard narrowed his eyes. "Is there a problem?"
"You mean besides Todd's discomfort with you? Or how unhappy he is that he hasn't been able to prove to you that he has value to us?" Lorne moved to stay between Sheppard and the retreating backs of his team members, breaking his line of sight.
"He's that upset."
"Yes," Lorne said softly. "I'm asking you as a friend, and a colleague, please leave him alone right now."
Considering, Sheppard was silent for a time, measuring the certainty in Lorne's stance, in his eyes. "You're sure you can handle him."
"I'm sure no one else has even a sliver of a chance to." Lorne raised his chin. "He's my responsibility. You and Colonel Carter put him in my care. Don't get in the way, you're doing more damage than you think."
"Damage. To a Wraith."
"Yes. Damage to a Wraith that was willing to follow you."
Sheppard frowned. "That wasn't--"
"He was willing to follow you, Colonel," Lorne said again, sad and determined. "He wanted to put you in my position, but you never gave him the chance."
"It wasn't part of the bargain."
"You didn't give him room to renegotiate." Lorne shrugged. "Todd's my responsibility now. That includes keeping him from getting hurt, and right now, that's all you can do to him."
Shifting his weight, Sheppard sighed, then nodded curtly. "Go eat with your men, Major."
Lorne nodded in acknowledgement. "Colonel." He didn't look back.
~~~
"Major?" David eased onto one of the barstools across the counter.
"Mmm."
"Is he okay?" The concern in David's voice was expected, if troubling.
"No." Lorne didn't take his eyes off the Wraith, curled up against the couch, cheek jammed into the side of the armchair next to it. Miller slept on the couch behind him, arm dangling over Todd's shoulder; Webber had simply passed out on the floor, exhausted from the mental and emotional toll Todd's return had taken. Lorne didn't think it'd be too long before he followed.
"Didn't think so, not after dinner," David muttered bitterly to himself.
Lorne suppressed a wince at the reminder; he'd returned to the table to find Todd wild-eyed and shaking, barely able to keep from shattering the plastic cup Miller had patiently refilled each time it was emptied. And that had been before Lorne had had to order him to actually eat the food he'd gone to the mess for in the first place.
"It's comforting, to be with him like this," David said almost to himself.
"Yes," Lorne answers absently, wondering if Todd had tagged the rest of his team. He berated himself a moment later; of course Todd had, they were his team. "We're Hive."
David leaned over the counter, hands pressed to his chest. "I'd wondered about that. I mean...I don't. He's, was..."
"Telepathic. Alone in his own mind?" Lorne tilted his head back, seeing David at the edge of his field of vision. "Does it bother you?"
"What, that he's telepathic, or that he's apparently judged us worthy of being his chosen Hive?"
Lorne shrugged, going back to watching Todd sleep.
"Always knew about the telepathy. Kind of proud of the Hive thing."
"Wouldn't advertise that, or even that we are."
"Insane here, not stupid." David laughed a little, punchy from the lateness of the hour, relief and happiness singing through him.
A small smile quirked Lorne's lips, unexpected and sweet. "Then I suppose we are all insane together." He pushed away from the counter and turned. "You staying? I don't want to wake them, but you don't have to--"
"Of course I'm staying. Someone has to keep you out of trouble."
Lorne rolled his eyes, heading for his room to fetch blankets for the five of them. No use in sleeping apart.
~~~
"...Lts. Miller and Webber, Dr. Parrish and I hid; Todd could not, and disappeared before we were able to leave. I can only assume that the Wraith took him with them..."
"What happened, Major? This doesn't make any sense," Colonel Carter asked her datapad in frustration. The words refused to resolve themselves into a more logical configuration, and the datapad dropped to the desk with a dull clatter.
"You lose Todd to the Wraith; you move into a family suite and get McKay to mess with the lock so even John can't get in...you were expecting him to come back, you were planning on it." The pen in her hand glided over her notepad, nib biting deeply into the surface as black ink underlined Todd's name, then again. "What did he do? How did he earn that?" Simple questions, answers that could be simple and at the same time so incredibly complex.
More words appeared, Carter's hand left to its own devices as her mind worked at the problem. Wraith, prisoner, Hive, Hivemind, telepathy...what Todd was. Then alone, isolation, Genii, Kolya, Sheppard, Teyla, Lorne, cloning...
Nausea welled; her free hand went to her stomach in a futile attempt to stave off the discomfort.
Lines should not have been drawn; Major Lorne was more than just Colonel Sheppard's XO, the best XO Sheppard had ever had, they were friends. Friends who'd rescued each other more than once, who trusted each other. But Major Lorne had called Todd a member of his team, or so Sheppard had said. A warning, and a challenge.
This wasn't team, this too-familiar obfuscation, planning, the drawing of lines. This was more. Deeper. And she had no idea if someone could be removed from a Hive once made a part of it.
