2006 ~ Atlantis

“She’s absolutely brilliant,” Rodney praised, making everyone in the lab raise their eyebrows. He guided his daughter, Aubrey, along and found her a chair to sit in. “With you here, it’s double the McKay power.”

Aubrey just sat and watched him quietly. When was she supposed to mention that her father and his brilliance marveled and yet scared her? Her father knew how to blow up things and tended to boost his own ego. She was far from being in his shadow. Sure, things in his field came easily to her, but she tended to be quiet and introverted rather than announce things. At the moment she wished she could be whisked away by Rowan or Caitlin or anyone else. This was embarrassing let alone painful.

“Rodney, how’s it coming with the jumper?” John asked walking into the lab figuring the scientists would be hard at work trying to figure out the Puddle Jumper One NE.

Her eyes darted back and forth between her father and John Sheppard. “What jumper?” she questioned. “Hopefully not the NE…that’s just flat out stupid. You don’t think it’s just sitting there without any type of protection against stupid people, do you?” Aubrey rolled her eyes, “We’re smarter than that.” When she saw Sheppard and her father open their mouths, she added for good measure, “And I’m not helping you override it.” She wasn’t sure what to feel about them wanting to get into the NE, but she felt the need to leave. They didn’t even have a chance to argue. She was up and out the door before they could say anything or stop her.

One good thing about growing up on Atlantis was that she knew where all the hidden passages where and she probably knew more about the city than her father did. But then she wouldn’t tell him that… Making her way away from the lab, she retreated to one of the places she usually met up with Lily. But the moment the panel fell into the room and she noticed who was looking back at her, she realized just why Lily was so attracted to that room… Slightly embarrassed, she crawled out of the passage and replaced the panel. Standing up and straightening out her shirt, she tried to apologize, “Sorry to intrude…I…uh…well…” Aubrey sighed, “Usually when I’m having problems, so is Lily…and we meet up here… I didn’t take into account who might be here, now…”

Elizabeth smiled, “Its okay. Your secret is safe with me.” She sat at her desk watching the young girl. She was beautiful and obviously seemed more able to deal with things, but then maybe that was just because she was so quiet. “Lily’s in the medical bay,” Elizabeth said.

Aubrey nodded, “I know. I saw her earlier… She doesn’t like it in there.” She looked down and pulled her long blonde hair to one side and started to twist it and fidget with it. “Lily doesn’t like it here though at all…”

Frowning, Elizabeth nodded, “I noticed that.”

“Are you going to take care of us?” Aubrey asked looking up at the woman. She had heard a lot about her from what John had told her from the logs in the database. She seemed like a good enough woman…why not trust her? “In our future. The Wraith came. They destroyed Atlantis, Earth…galaxies… They tried to kill us, but the Ancients interfered. They didn’t save all the children…only a handful.” She wanted to illustrate what could happen…what would happen if they didn’t do anything.

“We don’t want that future to happen anymore than you,” Elizabeth tried to assure her.

“Prove it,” Aubrey said almost regretting how defiant she sounded the minute she blurted it out. Normally she wouldn’t say something bold, especially not in that tone or loud enough for anyone to hear it. But her normally shy and quiet nature had to be put aside when her friend’s life was at stake.

Tilting her head a bit as she leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest, Elizabeth studied the girl reliving the past couple of seconds trying to figure out if she had heard what she had thought she had. “Excuse me?” she questioned wondering if she had the girl completely wrong. She thought herself normally a good judge of people and their personalities.

Flustered by the fact that Doctor Weir had actually heard her, Aubrey looked down and tried to clear her head thinking about what she was going to say. “I said…prove it,” she repeated quietly. She started to twist her blonde locks again nervously as she stared down at the floor. She could feel Doctor Weir’s eyes on her, but she didn’t feel the need to look the woman directly.

“And how might I prove it?” she asked quizzically. Elizabeth had to admit she even wanted to know how she could prove that she didn’t want the future that had been described thus far in bits and pieces…not even in full sentences. Leaning forward in her desk, she watched Aubrey. “You know you don’t have to be scared of me…” Elizabeth added a bit more gentle and quiet.

Looking up suddenly, Aubrey blurted, “I’m not scared of you,” before quickly covering her mouth as her eyes widened. For some reason her brain was not behaving. “You have to convince her…” she tried to explain. “Convince Lily not to want to die…”

Elizabeth blinked, “Lily…/wants/ to die?” That was a bit of a shock to her, but then she hadn’t really had much time to talk to her new found daughter. But then Aubrey would know Lily better than she would. And she had no reason to lie.

“Not so much /wants/, but accepts it… She’s not fighting,” Aubrey told her. “We can’t do it without Lily… Eleven doesn’t work as well as twelve.” Aubrey didn’t feel like explaining and suddenly wished she could communicate what she wanted to explain more completely through telepathy…but she didn’t possess that ability. “We need everyone to save the future.”

“And how am I supposed to make Lily fight the virus?” Elizabeth asked wondering why Lily would even listen to her. Her own daughter didn’t seem to want anything to do with her. They had been like complete strangers in the infirmary… She had somehow pictured a smile and warm conversation, but it had been the complete opposite, but then Lily had said she had died when Lily was so young…

Aubrey stepped closer feeling the need to close the distance to make her point. Placing her hands on the desk, she leaned in a bit before speaking quietly, “Be a mother to her… That’s all she needs. A family… We’re all family to each other, but we all need parents…even if it’s an extended family.”

Be a mother? Elizabeth wasn’t even sure if she could do that. She had been an only child and she didn’t see how any of her experiences in life could help her in this situation. The closest she had come to being a mother was with Sedge. Did having a dog and caring for it count as being a mother? She wasn’t sure, but she knew that she wasn’t the only one who needed to want the relationship. How could she even start being a mother to Lily if she wouldn’t even talk to her?

“Talk to Carson,” Aubrey said before turning and leaving.

She had just been thinking how she could get closer to Lily when Aubrey had spoken. With wide eyes, she watched as Aubrey left wondering if the girl had telepathic abilities. Carson hadn’t reported anything like that, but it was possible he could have missed it. Elizabeth made a mental note to ask him later. “Be a mother,” she repeated lowly aloud to herself as she thought it over.

*~*~*

John had been trying to keep himself occupied with things to do all day. One of his missions for the day had been avoiding Elizabeth; he wasn’t exactly ready to discuss their ‘daughter’ and ‘future relationship’. Not that he didn’t want either…he was just confused. It was one thing to want something and it was another to have something thrown at you. A daughter was something that John hadn’t thought about having anytime soon, especially not one that was a teenager.

As he walked along the hallways of Atlantis just thinking, he suddenly found himself in the medical bay. He hadn’t meant to go there, but for some reason when his brain was supposed to be on auto pilot for his quarters he had ended up there instead. Walking in cautiously, he looked around seeing no one catching his appearance in the medical bay; he slipped further in towards where Lily was being treated. Peeking past the curtain, he was surprised to see that not only was Lily lying there unconscious, but Elizabeth was sitting by her side as well.

He wasn’t ready. But would he ever be? Suddenly being thrown into this future situation was something that took getting used to. Having a relationship with his commanding officer, even though she wasn’t military wasn’t exactly normal etiquette. Sighing quietly, he grabbed a chair and rolled it up along side Elizabeth and sat down with the back of the chair against his chest and his legs straddling the sides.

Elizabeth didn’t need to look to see who it was, she knew. She knew eventually he’d come out of hiding and talk to her. It was only a matter of time. “Avoiding me?” she asked sighing and setting her empty coffee cup on the medical tray nearby.

“Of course not.”

“Liar.”

John frowned, “Okay…maybe I was.” He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, “Maybe…I can see it happen,” he said a bit quietly avoiding eye contact. “I mean, it’s not like they were married and having a kid now…”

Elizabeth smiled and looked back over at Lily. “

“Am I really that scary to picture being married to, John?” she asked looking at him. “In the future anyway…”

He looked at her seriously, and spoke in the same manner, “Elizabeth, it’s not a scary picture at all. That wasn’t the reason behind my avoiding. I just…felt uncomfortable… I mean, it’s not exactly a relationship that’s really proper.”

“I don’t think the SGC expects us to have loveless lives forever,” Elizabeth replied. “You can’t choose who you love, John. And you can’t choose who loves you back… Some people are meant to be soul mates, and yet fate is cruel and puts road blocks in our way. Why is it so wrong?”

John’s eyebrows rose, “So, are you encouraging this?”

Elizabeth shrugged, “I say let fate just…happen. Things happen when they happen.” Of course, at times, she didn’t like how life ended up, but she knew that you had to be positive that life would turn around and good things would come later.

“You do realize that you’re never leaving Atlantis ever again…” John said casually.

That was a surprise, “John…”

“Carson explained why Lily is so sick… That you get attacked by a Wraith... You think I’m gonna allow that to happen?” he asked looking at her. John Sheppard was a protector and there was no way he was going to let Elizabeth be attacked by a Wraith that would end up killing her…

Shaking her head, Elizabeth looked at John, “That may or may not happen now.”

“I won’t allow it to happen.”

“John,” Elizabeth said with a sigh, “You can’t protect me forever.”

“I can try.”

Elizabeth just stared at him. She wasn’t sure whether to be angry or loved by it all. Or both. She could feel it like electricity between the two of them; she had felt the spark before…but had ignored it. But could she ignore it now? Was it right to? Leaning in, Elizabeth watched as John mimicked her slow movement. Her eyes were locked with John’s as they neared closer, just inches apart. But the movement they heard made them both pull back far quickly than the way they had gotten to their previous position. She avoided eye contact and then saw where the moment had come from. Lily was awake. “Honey, how are you feeling?”

Lily just stared; she wasn’t sure how to feel that she had just almost witnessed her parents kissing… When she saw the concerned look her mother was getting, she decided it was best to say something. “I feel better,” Lily said trying to give her a small smile.

*~*~*

TBC...