Assignment #26
May 4, 2008
3,500 words
Written for Allyndra in the Crossovers round @ maleslashminis; she wanted a crossover with Stargate: Atlantis, with a transporter, and Xander paired with any of Rodney McKay, John Sheppard, Evan Lorne or Ronon Dex. I admit have a thing for Lorne. So there you have it.
* * *
"Oh, crap." Xander groaned and kicked at the door. "Stupid Ancient technology."
"Yeah, you can say that again," Lorne said. He let himself slide down against the wall to the floor, clutching his P90.
"Why won't you help?" Xander asked, incredulous. Major Lorne was the guy with the gene, not him, and he should be trying to open up the transporter door, not sitting down on his very well shaped butt. Not that Xander had noticed or anything, he'd just heard a couple of biologists--
And now Xander had officially spent too much time near Dr. McKay, because his motto "blame everything on the soft sciences" was starting to rub off. And okay, he did think Lorne's ass was very attractive. "Come on, do that thing," he said, waving his hands at the door with a flourish.
"Thing?" Lorne arched an eyebrow--just as attractive as his butt--at him, and pulled the P90 off its strap before taking off his tackvest.
Xander gulped and quickly looked away. Then berated himself because, damn, the guy wasn't actually getting naked or anything, he had clothes under that vest. "That thing you do with the hand waving and wooosh, it opens."
"Doesn't work? Besides, McKay's gonna figure out how to fix this when they're all done with whatever came through the 'gate--"
"If they're still alive," Xander interrupted him. They'd been down on the south pier checking out a disturbance when the alarm had sounded. They'd run to the first transporter, and ended up... here. Which is to say nowhere.
Or somewhere. Xander had no idea.
"Don't worry, McKay and the Colonel have got more than one trick up their sleeves, and they defeated the enemy so many times, I'm starting to think they're immortal." Lorne laughed.
Xander didn't. He could fake it for the sake of appearances (it would have been very funny, if Xander wasn't here to track down an immortal being), but considering the circumstances, Lorne wouldn't find it odd if Xander didn't laugh. Dr. McKay and Colonel Sheppard weren't immortal, but someone else on the base was, and after three months, Xander still hadn't figured out who it was.
The Daedalus was going to be there in a month, and Xander's time here would be up by then. Curse the IOA and their time constraints. "If you haven't found anything, then there's nothing to find," they'd said, and while Xander was beginning to think they were right, he liked it here.
There were a couple of minutes of silence after Lorne stopped laughing. Xander hated silence, especially in tight spaces like this where the usual way his thoughts wandered was probably a very bad idea--no one wanted to sport a hard-on where there were no place to hide, and the guy you might (maybe and definitely not certainly) have a crush on might see it.
"What are you doing here?" Lorne asked, breaking the silence. When Xander looked at him, he was playing with a loose thread on his jacket.
Xander peered at him critically, hoping the "are you dumb?" look covered up the "I know what you're asking and I don't want to answer" look. "Did you hit your head?" he replied, pointing to his forehead. This wasn't the first time the question was raised, and it wasn't the first (or the last) time Xander dodged the question.
Lorne stared back at him, nonplussed, and raised an eyebrow.
"Cause you're the one who grabbed my elbow and told me we had to run to the 'gate room immediately, would be a bad thing if your short term memory was that messed up."
"Smartass," Lorne replied, a smile crinkling the corners of his mouth.
Yep, Xander thought, no one could resist the Xanman's charms.
"Seriously. Why are you on Atlantis?" Lorne tried again.
Okay, maybe Lorne could. "I thought we already had that conversation," Xander answered; his eyes didn't falter at all, even when his heart started pounding in his chest, and Xander thought oh God, I can't deal with this again. "You don't have high enough clearance to know."
"Bullshit."
Xander couldn't remember ever hearing Lorne swear. Not that "bullshit" was much of a swear, but it was close enough to startle him. Or maybe it was the heat; he was starting to sweat. Xander pulled off his jacket and rubbed his temples. The ventilation was probably down too, that was the only thing that made sense. "What do you want me to say?"
"No one on base knows anything about what you're doing here, not even Colonel Carter," Lorne said. "No one seems to have that level of clearance, and I'm starting to think it doesn't exist."
It didn't. Xander wouldn't tell him that though. "Think what you want."
"How come no one knows what it is you're really doing, yet they all like you."
"I'm a pretty likable guy." Xander gave him a smile and a shrug, and looked away at the design on the wall. Those Ancients sure knew how to decorate a place. Sure, every wall looked more or less the same, but it was pretty, all... design and stuff.
"I don't trust you."
There was something in Lorne's voice, something that sounded weary and wary at the same time, and coming from a guy who was always so upbeat, it wasn't a sound Xander liked. Not that there was anything he could do about it. Xander tried not to feel guilty; it wasn't his fault the IOA and the Watcher's Council didn't want anyone in the SGC to know what Xander was doing there. Explaining vampires and demons and the forces of darkness to people who face invasions from space aliens--space aliens, Xander still hadn't gotten over that part yet--not really anyone's idea of a good... idea. It was the standard "they've got enough to worry about" speech Xander had heard before.
It took him long enough to reply that Xander knew it sounded flat when he said: "You still like me anyway." The look Lorne gave him was suspicious, but there was a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth. Xander counted that as a win.
"That's why I don't trust you," Lorne countered. "Any guy I like even when I can't tell what his motives are? Bad news."
"Got burned once too many, didn't you?"
Lorne stared coldly at him, his eyes dark and unreadable now. "You could say that."
"Too many friends turned enemies, world ending; I know the drill." Xander spread his legs down, trying to fake calm and comfort, and leaned back against the wall. The lack of oxygen really was getting to him. It was getting even hotter in here, and fast. There was... Xander blinked and put a hand against his temple. There was something wonky going on with his head, and the room was starting to spin.
"I don't get you."
"I know." Xander wished Giles had sent someone with him here--sometimes, not always, because hey, it's kind of neat that he gets to have this, space aliens and all, to himself for a little while. It gets lonely when you're the guy with a secret mission, and a bad guy to find, and you can't tell anyone, but exciting nonetheless--but right now, he wished it was someone else sitting in this fucked up transporter and worrying about whether or not they'd still be alive once that damned McKay had finally fixed the door and gotten them out.
Breathing was definitely getting an issue.
This work, alone, was also hard as hell. Xander had been here for almost three months and he wasn't any closer to bagging the trouble maker. "Let me be honest here," he said, wiping the sweat off his brows before it could turn into drops down his face. More body generated heat, less oxygen... Xander's lungs were burning up and talking was rough on his throat. "I want to tell you," he admitted; his voice was raw, too raw. He cringed and let himself slide down onto his back. His breathing eased, but it didn't stop burning. "I really do. Truth is, I can't; red tape and all that. You have enough shit to deal with here, you don't need my own shit on top of it. I swear I'm not a spy of the IOA or the enemy; I'm just a guy doing his job."
"A guy with one eye, and a heck of an aim for someone who's never been in the military," Lorne said. Xander could hear the smile in his voice, and he turned around just in time to see it fade.
Okay, so the reason Xander was glad he got to choose the assignment first? Not just because of space aliens. There was also this. Lorne's smile was a sight to see, and Xander liked his dimples, enough that he wanted to touch them. A lot. He'd reach over now if he could get his hands to work.
But he can't.
"You okay?" Lorne sounded worried. Very worried. He didn't sound at all like he was having a bad case of not being able to breathe.
The air was so thick Xander started wishing he could take off his shirt without opening another can of worms. But there was no way he could explain the scars in any way that Lorne would find satisfying. "Sure. Just... tight space, no air. It's nothing."
Lorne seemed to accept that, and he scooted closer until Xander could feel him, his body heat, right next to his arm. "You want to tell me. Why you're here, I mean," Lorne said. "I want to hear it, I don't care whatever your shit is." He put his hand on Xander's arm.
"Trust me, Major, you don't want to know."
"I do." His hand moved down to Xander's wrist. Damn, Lorne's fingers were cold.
Xander sighed. It must have been the lack of oxygen, it had to be. He opened his mouth to spill the beans--a bad idea, he knew that, but he wanted at least one person to get it, just one, and Lorne was cool, very cool, so cool Xander was trying to scoot closer, because cool and cold were the same thing, right? Cold was nice.
Not that it was making any sense.
"You're burning up, Harris."
"Is your head spinning too?"
Lorne's hand moved from wrist to forehead, and he swore under his breath. "Shit, Harris. You got a fever. Come on, move."
Xander let Lorne steer him clear of the walls. He shuddered when his head hit the hard surface with a thunk. "Be careful," he muttered.
"What did you eat?" Lorne asked, not replying to Xander's admonition.
Xander couldn't remember. Everything was starting to blur together, and he knew he had something to eat, but he couldn't remember what it was. He closed his eye when the lights suddenly get brighter in the transporter, and that was good, right? That meant McKay was working on it and he'd get them out soon.
"The lights are still the same they were, Harris." Then Lorne was muttering something about safety protocols, and stupid quarantines, and could McKay get them out already?
The only thing Xander understood about all of it was... nothing. The ventilation system was off, the transporter was stuck, and Lorne was saying that everything was fine, and this had something to do with security and...
That was wrong, Lorne was wrong, because they were still stuck in there, and what the fuck were quarantine protocols anyway? Xander wasn't sick, there was just no more air to breathe.
And the tremors started. In his feet first, moving up his legs, like a million ants parading in his veins. Fuck.
Fuck.
Xander wanted to roll his eyes, bang his head on the wall, anything, because damn, he was a moron. He couldn't move more than a few inches at a time, and damn, it hurt. "Tackvest," he managed to say, thirsty, so thirsty; the words were sluggish, and sounded wrong even to him. "Front poc--pocket."
Xander wasn't sure Lorne got it at first, but he couldn't look (the light was too bright), and he couldn't hear (apart from the constant ringing in his ears). He wheezed as he tried to breathe, and it caught in his throat. He coughed hard, trying to get some air in, but the choking wouldn't stop.
There was a sudden, sharp pain in his thigh, and the pressure in his chest eased.
Xander kept his eye closed for a minute, holding his breath until the tremors stopped. He let it out, slowly, and risk a look at Lorne. "Wa--" Oh. Ow. He licked his dried chapped lips, and tried again. "Water?"
Lorne looked worried, more worried than Xander had ever seen him before, which considering he was on the Major's team, and saw some pretty worrying situations off world--well it was something.
"That wasn't an allergy reaction," Lorne stated, very "matter-of-fact", while he put his canteen up to Xander's lips.
"No," Xander said in the same, evened tone. "That was poison." Venom, actually. Hyrus demons--a humanoid species with snake-like features--secreted a venom that was virtually odourless, colourless, and... deadly.
Unless you happened to have the antidote on your person.
"Demons? What the hell are you talking about?"
He'd said that out loud? "You wanted to know why I'm here?" Xander asked, sighing tiredly. The Watcher's "chemist" (that's what Giles had called him, Xander liked to think of him as an "alchemist" it gave it a bit more flair) had warned him that the antidote would make him drowsy, "better sleepy than dead, that's my motto" Xander had said. "That's why."
"Demons?"
"Oh come on," Xander muttered. "Space aliens, ancient cultures millions of years old, technology that's activated by your thoughts, and you're having troubles believing that demons are real?" He scratched the skin of his wrist and sighed again.
"You're not making any sense, Xander," Lorne said. He grabbed Xander's hand by the wrist and held it up. "Stop doing that. You cold?"
"You care?" Xander was cold, and his back was damp from sweating, and his legs and arms felt like jelly when he tried to move them. And he had no idea why he'd asked that.
"Sure I do. You're on my team." Lorne placed his jacket over Xander's torso, and held up the canteen again.
"Thought you didn't trust me."
"I like you anyway, remember?"
Xander turned his head slightly, just enough that he could see the smile--still worried around the edges--on Lorne's face. "Yeah, you do."
"Major Lorne? Harris?"
Lorne tapped his headset with the tip of his finger. "Colonel?"
Xander was kind of surprised he was still wearing his.
"You okay in there? Finally got rid of the hostiles and McKay's working on getting you guys out, but it might take a while."
"Harris' gonna need some medical attention," Lorne said, peering at Xander. "He's stable for now, but he says he was poisoned."
Xander sighed heavily, and let his head bang on the floor. So much for wanting people not to ask questions.
"How?"
"Don't know, sir, but McKay better get us out fast."
"I'm working on it, Major," McKay's voice replied tersely.
"I know you are, McKay, just get a look at the quarantine protocols, okay? The malfunction might have picked up on Harris' condition and stuck us in here."
"Makes sense," McKay said. "I'm on it."
Then Sheppard: "We'll have Keller out here when you guys get out."
"So," Lorne said, when the radio went silent. "Demons? On Atlantis?"
"One," Xander replied, turning his head again and wincing. As satisfying as banging his head was, it still wasn't a good idea. "It's a snake-like humanoid thing. Looks like us on the outside, but the venom's a bitch."
"I can see that," Lorne replied. "It knows you're tracking it down?"
"Seems like it figured it out, yeah. Weren't sure it was a Hyrus at first, hard to tell with the very little intel we got, but hey, just got confirmation right there."
"How did that help?" Lorne sounded puzzled, interested. The kind of interested that meant he believed Xander, and... that was kinda cool.
"Oh," he answered, like it was nothing at all, "if it hadn't been Hyrus poison, I'd be dead by now."
"Very good point." Lorne's fingers were back on his wrist and Lorne smiled again. Xander just stared.
And stared. And not at Lorne's eyes. He really had an amazing smile.
"Think so?"
Oh. Fuck. Xander needed to learn to keep his mouth shut. A lot.
Or not.
Lorne was getting closer, until Xander couldn't keep his eye on Lorne's lips, and... Oh. That was nice. Very nice. And cool. Definitely in the top five of Xander's favourite things to happen on Atlantis. Kissing the hot Major? That went in the "reasons I love this assignment" column.
"So, how did that demon get on Atlantis anyway?" Lorne asked, barely even dazed, although Xander could see a faint blush on his cheeks when he pulled back.
It was a long story, but hey, McKay didn't seem in any hurry to get them, so Xander had plenty of time to tell it. And a willing audience.
* * *
Xander woke up in the infirmary with no recollection of falling asleep or getting out of the transporter. He could hear Dr. Keller somewhere on his left, his blind side, but it was Lorne he focused on as soon as his eye was open. Lorne, who was standing right there next to Xander's bed, and who breathed a sigh of relief as soon as their eyes met.
"Hey there, Xander, got a nice nap?" There was a tiny smile at the corners of Lorne's mouth; tiny, very tiny, and worried, but the dimples were there.
Xander stared at them hopefully--it worked before, maybe it'd work again. Lorne leaned forward and Xander could feel him bracing a hand on the bed next to the pillow, and--
Keller chose that moment to appear. The sigh Xander let out wasn't loud enough to be heard, but Lorne arched an eyebrow at him as if he knew exactly what Xander felt; and Xander decided to take that as a promise to make it up to him later. He'd definitely be asking for his dues as soon as they were alone together again. Which hopefully would be soon.
Xander wasn't released for another three hours--after an excruciating briefing with the two Colonels where he dodged more questions than he answered--and when he was, it was with orders of strict bed-rest for a day, a follow-up exam the next morning, and a diet of anti-poison pills, even though he knew he didn't need any of them; Keller wouldn't hear it.
He promised her he'd take them diligently, and started making plans for their gradual disappearance down the toilet as Lorne helped him into a jacket and a pair of military issue boots.
"Come on there, demon hunter," Lorne said when Keller walked away and they were alone again. "We got a demon to bag, and very little time to do it in."
"I got more than enough time," Xander replied, a bit dizzy from standing up. "The Daedalus' not coming back for another month, remember?"
"Yeah, but we should get to it so whoever it is doesn't damage the mission further right?" He helped Xander to his feet, and led them out of the infirmary. "You think it could be Kavanagh? He'd be such a perfect candidate for being a force of evil."
Xander tried very hard not to laugh, but didn't succeed. He was rewarded with a smile. "I thought that, but nope, he isn't. Whoever the bad guy is, he's still on Atlantis."
"What about McKay? Or Chuck! The gate guy, I always thought he was a little weird around the edges--"
Xander leaned against Lorne's side, let him take his weight and lead him out of the infirmary back to Xander's quarters. One month to find the demon and get rid of it; one month to see where this... thing was going with Lorne; one more month...
Maybe Giles would let him stay.
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