Elizabeth wiped a spot of mud from her face.
"Are we there yet?"
John laughed and turned to face her, his motion flicking more mud in her general direction. "You know, you've really been hanging out with McKay too much."
She scowled at him, and tried to lift one heavy boot, only to find it stuck fast in the thick sludge. Pausing for one second was not a good move on this particular path. She took a deep breath, braced herself, and tried again to lift her foot.
No luck.
And John had already started moving ahead.
Not wanting to ask for his help, she let out a frustrated sigh that she knew he was bound to hear. It had the desired effect, and John Sheppard stopped, turned around to face her and gave her a questioning look.
"We want to get there before dark, you know. Any time you feel like moving would be good," he threw the comment at her sarcastically.
"Stuck," she muttered.
"What?"
"I'm stuck!" she called back, frustratedly.
John laughed. "So I could just walk off, leave you here... have a nice peaceful stroll to the village, no hen-pecking, no complaining about the rain..."
"John!"
He grinned at her, "Okay, okay..."
He moved closer to assess her situation.
"One foot or two?"
"One," she said, trying to move the foot that had been free just moments before. She sighed "at least it was. Since you decided to laugh at my misfortune and make me wait, both are stuck now."
"Be nice," John smirked "or I'll leave you here, leader or no leader."
Elizabeth closed her eyes, annoyed with the situation and herself. How she'd managed to agree to a five mile trek to the village was beyond her. How she'd agreed to let the rest of John's team sit it out was beyond her.
Right now, all she wanted was to be back in Atlantis. Or in the village they were trying to find.
She looked down at her clothing and wondered how the Sholarans would feel about negotiating with mud people. She and John were not going to look even remotely their best when...
Elizabeth let out a gasp. "What are you doing?"
John Sheppard had wrapped his arms unexpectedly around her waist.
"Getting you out of the mud. Unless you'd like to stay here," he said sarcastically.
She frowned trying to figure out where to put her hands, and settling for resting them against his arms.
"It's not going to work like that," John insisted, "put your arms around my neck and hang on."
Elizabeth looked down as a splash of cold mud made its way up her leg, and noticed John was lifting first one foot and then the next,, making sure he wasn't going to be similarly trapped.
She cringed, feeling nervous about the familiarity of it, and placed her arms loosely around John's neck.
Elizabeth could almost hear him rolling his eyes when he inisisted "You need to hold on tighter than that, or you might fall."
She bit her lip and silently obeyed him, hanging on tight and hoping nobody would stumble into their path right now. The leader of Atlantis, clutching her military commander like her life depended on it.
"You okay there?" John whispered in her ear.
Elizabeth nodded against his neck, closing her eyes and willing this to be over. She could feel herself blushing, purely from being at such close proximity to him.
"I'm going to try to pull you out now."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Elizabeth didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The good thing, she decided, was that John had broken her fall. The bad thing was that her weight, added to his, had probably knocked the wind out of him.
"You okay?" she asked, lifting her head from its place on his shoulder.
"Yeah," he replied, "but I think we should get moving, or I'll end up stuck."
Elizabeth let out a soft laugh, mumbled something about it serving him right, and lifted herself into a standing position, reaching out a hand to help him up.
Once he was standing beside her, John looked down at their muddied clothing. "This isn't the best way to look when meeting with new allies, is it?"
Elizabeth shook her head, forlornly.
"I hope they have a shower," he muttered, "or some... shower-like contraption."
"No, a bath."
"I could go a bath," John agreed.
"With bubbles," Elizabeth said dreamily.
"Military issue soap would be good enough for me, but if you want to smell nice..."
Elizabeth laughed, nudging his shoulder as they walked, and noticing for the first time that he still held onto her hand.
"Are we there yet?"
John laughed and turned to face her, his motion flicking more mud in her general direction. "You know, you've really been hanging out with McKay too much."
She scowled at him, and tried to lift one heavy boot, only to find it stuck fast in the thick sludge. Pausing for one second was not a good move on this particular path. She took a deep breath, braced herself, and tried again to lift her foot.
No luck.
And John had already started moving ahead.
Not wanting to ask for his help, she let out a frustrated sigh that she knew he was bound to hear. It had the desired effect, and John Sheppard stopped, turned around to face her and gave her a questioning look.
"We want to get there before dark, you know. Any time you feel like moving would be good," he threw the comment at her sarcastically.
"Stuck," she muttered.
"What?"
"I'm stuck!" she called back, frustratedly.
John laughed. "So I could just walk off, leave you here... have a nice peaceful stroll to the village, no hen-pecking, no complaining about the rain..."
"John!"
He grinned at her, "Okay, okay..."
He moved closer to assess her situation.
"One foot or two?"
"One," she said, trying to move the foot that had been free just moments before. She sighed "at least it was. Since you decided to laugh at my misfortune and make me wait, both are stuck now."
"Be nice," John smirked "or I'll leave you here, leader or no leader."
Elizabeth closed her eyes, annoyed with the situation and herself. How she'd managed to agree to a five mile trek to the village was beyond her. How she'd agreed to let the rest of John's team sit it out was beyond her.
Right now, all she wanted was to be back in Atlantis. Or in the village they were trying to find.
She looked down at her clothing and wondered how the Sholarans would feel about negotiating with mud people. She and John were not going to look even remotely their best when...
Elizabeth let out a gasp. "What are you doing?"
John Sheppard had wrapped his arms unexpectedly around her waist.
"Getting you out of the mud. Unless you'd like to stay here," he said sarcastically.
She frowned trying to figure out where to put her hands, and settling for resting them against his arms.
"It's not going to work like that," John insisted, "put your arms around my neck and hang on."
Elizabeth looked down as a splash of cold mud made its way up her leg, and noticed John was lifting first one foot and then the next,, making sure he wasn't going to be similarly trapped.
She cringed, feeling nervous about the familiarity of it, and placed her arms loosely around John's neck.
Elizabeth could almost hear him rolling his eyes when he inisisted "You need to hold on tighter than that, or you might fall."
She bit her lip and silently obeyed him, hanging on tight and hoping nobody would stumble into their path right now. The leader of Atlantis, clutching her military commander like her life depended on it.
"You okay there?" John whispered in her ear.
Elizabeth nodded against his neck, closing her eyes and willing this to be over. She could feel herself blushing, purely from being at such close proximity to him.
"I'm going to try to pull you out now."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Elizabeth didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The good thing, she decided, was that John had broken her fall. The bad thing was that her weight, added to his, had probably knocked the wind out of him.
"You okay?" she asked, lifting her head from its place on his shoulder.
"Yeah," he replied, "but I think we should get moving, or I'll end up stuck."
Elizabeth let out a soft laugh, mumbled something about it serving him right, and lifted herself into a standing position, reaching out a hand to help him up.
Once he was standing beside her, John looked down at their muddied clothing. "This isn't the best way to look when meeting with new allies, is it?"
Elizabeth shook her head, forlornly.
"I hope they have a shower," he muttered, "or some... shower-like contraption."
"No, a bath."
"I could go a bath," John agreed.
"With bubbles," Elizabeth said dreamily.
"Military issue soap would be good enough for me, but if you want to smell nice..."
Elizabeth laughed, nudging his shoulder as they walked, and noticing for the first time that he still held onto her hand.