[LC] Outside by the 'Gate (for sevenvirtues)

[shepcrew]

After leaving the gorup and grabbing his share of the gear, John's by the DHD sorting through the packs and making sure he's got everything. He's distracted by random thoughts and trying to not think about things by going through the packs yet again.

Ronon's already come and gone, presumably headed back into the cafe to help out McKay.

He's here for someone to find him, if they so chose...

Comments

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

"I won't have to tell the tech anything. I have junk food stashed for just such an emergency bribing."

He nips at her fingers before they depart, and he blushes. He feels he needs to admit one more thing: "Sadly enough, a beautiful princess robbing me in the middle of the night would be the story least likely to raise eyebrows."

Because they'd be expecting it from him, really.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

"Mm-hmm." Which is something to note. She thinks of Saffron, of Mal. And then she remembers something else he said.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with your question earlier, the higher plane of existance, and all that?"

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

The blush deepens. Just a bit. "Er, sorta. It has a little more to do with something McKay said to me earlier. But, um...yeah. I suppose the two are kinda inexorably linked, now that I think about it..."

If he could facepalm, he would.

"I think this is a story that needs to be told from the beginning, and perhaps not while waiting for my team decides they want to show up and get on with our previous mission."

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

"You're cute when you blush," she says finally, because she can't keep from saying it any longer, and it makes her smile and blush to say it, too.

"All right." And maybe she would trade him that one for Saffron getting Mal stuck out in the middle of nowhere, naked.

And, because him saying that implies that they'll have at least some moment in the future where they have time for such stories. And because, even if it makes her blush, she has to say it, too. "It's a date, then."

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

Her first comment doesn't help the blushing. Her next two have him grinning like an idiot. "It's a date, then," he agrees.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

And now they're both grinning goofily at each other, blushing and shining happily, and it's obvious to anyone who'd look at them how much they feel for each other. Along with a few words we don't say yet.

He really is cute when he's blushing. He's handsome just about all the time. And this is so much better than the conversation earlier, so much happier.

And since it is, and there are really no words that express it quite as well, she leans up and kisses him softly, smiling, wordlessly showing him how happy she is.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

He smiles into the kiss, returning it happily. After what had happened earlier, he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to have the privilege of kissing her again.

And then, of course, he's drawing her closer and wrapping his arms around her.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

And she's more than happy to press closer, to wrap her arms tightly around him and hold him close, deepening the kiss a little. To let the world melt away and try to take him with her, into their own little pocket universe of quiet bliss and, um. Words we don't say.

It's strange, a little, how easily this happened. How easily and quickly they fell into each other's arms. Later it may make her wonder; right now it only underscores how perfect this is.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

And he is so very willing to follow her, sighing softly as she deepens the kiss. As far as he's concerned now, his Ancient and Quasi-Ancient lovers kissing-partners have nothing on Inara.

He hates that they're going to have to part, this time because he needs to go, instead of her.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

She wants to hold onto him as long as she can, and she knows it won't be long enough. Although she isn't sure what would be long enough, right now. Maybe no span of time would be enough.

So, making the best of the time they have, now. And now words are pressing against her lips and it makes her moan against his mouth and it makes her head spin with the implications of what she wants to say.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

And we wouldn't be surprised if those words are the same ones bouncing around his head, either. The ones that he's scared to say, because it's too soon. It has to be too soon.

So, he responds to her moan by truly deepening the kiss, easing the desperate need to say things he's not ready to say by letting them out in the same way they've done most of their communicating thus far...

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

By this time when they finally work their way around to saying it, there won't be any of that new discovery to it but rather a quiet and joyful affirmation of something they've really been saying to each other all along. Because it's all there, in the way she kisses him back, the way her mouth opens for him to deepen their kiss.

The way she fits herself into his arms and holds him tightly back, the way she reaches up and strokes her fingers through his mussy hair, soothing just enough of the heat back so they don't burn up with the passion of it.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

And her response to it eases even more of the pressure, takes away most of the margin of doubt. The rest won't be gone unless and until they find a way to see each other more often than whenever the multi-verse feels like.

He has to smile into the kiss a little when she runs her fingers through his hair. So far, she the only one who's been particularly fond of doing it, and it amuses him.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

There's something about his scruffiness that makes her want to make at least a token effort at smoothing it, which of course will never work. One more little gesture of affection. Cute, although she'd try not to admit to herself to being cute, at least at first.

She smiles softly back as she kisses him, delighted, relieved. Happy just to be here with him, and it still (and probably will for a while) surprises her how much he makes her feel warm and safe and loved. And, no. NO whispering it now. Just kissing.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

Kissing is good. Breathing is, too. So he breaks the kiss gently, resting his lips on hers, trying to catch his breath. And while this would be an opportune moment to say what he's just basically said, he lets it pass. Because he has faith that there will be other such moments.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

It's a new sensation, just needing to catch her breath from a kiss for reasons more than just physical. Her chest feels tight, her face feels flushed and yet her skin feels cool and. Wow.

No, no words. This is better without words for now, and the perhaps overload of emotion they would bring, that might be too much. This, right here, is good.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

He wants to say something like I thought I lost you, but he doesn't. Instead, he conveys a very similar meaning by holding her tighter, touching his forehead to hers the way he's wont to do. (We suspect Teyla's influence in that regard.) Then he's pressing a chaste kiss to her lips.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

Her fingers curl around the back of his neck, stroking briefly for a moment before her hand moves to cup his cheek as she returns the kiss, equally chaste. Not lost. The message here is, I've made my choice, and even knowing that she had a choice to make doesn't change that. She wants to be here, with John. She tells him so, with little touches and gestures and sighs as she snuggles into him.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

He accommodates the snuggling, sighing softly. Then he just holds her, trying not to think of when he's going to have to let go. Of all the times for his team to be late, he hopes this is one of them.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

She doesn't want him to go either, and the though slides through that he's going to probably have to soon, right after the thought that this was more comfortable when they had a bed. And after that... there was simply no way of knowing when they'd see each other again. And then she clings a little tighter, thinking of that. Not a happy thought, there.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

He can't believe he's going to do this. He knows he was just speculating earlier, and the fact that they might not get a chance to see each other for a while means that any 'Gate discovery of hers will be utterly useless until she sees him again and he can tell her how the damned thing works.

"Listen, I know this is probably premature, but it'll save time in the long run," he says, still hugging her close. One hand slides into his pocket to retrieve the GDO and he slips it into her hand. "Take this. That way you can visit right away if you find a 'Gate."

He pulls away from her and leads her to the DHD.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

Her eyes widen a little, but her fingers curl tight around the GDO and she follows him readily enough. If she found a Gate. That was a pretty big if, but then again...

If she found a Gate, she could see him whenever she wanted. That thought alone is enough to put a spring in her step as she follows.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

"This," he says, gesturing to the device, "is what we call a Dial Home Device. DHD for short. All you have to do is press the symbols in the right order and then press this middle thing." He points to each piece as he explains.

"Now, you need make sure you look around the area where you find the 'Gate to see if there's a picture or drawing that match symbols on the DHD. That should be the address for your 'Gate. I'm not sure. I'll ask McKay later. Anyway, the order in the picture is the order in which you push the symbols."

He's about to leave it at that, when, "Oh! Almost forgot. Seven symbols make up a complete address. I can only give you six, because number seven is the place of origin symbol. It's usually the only symbol that's different on each gate in the network." He pats himself down look for a pen and paper and he scribbles down the six symbols for Atlantis. "The seventh symbol should be on the same picture around the gate, and it represents whatever planet you're on. So you push in these six first, then that other seventh and then the middle."

Yes, he's rambling. He'll remember to tell her not to stand too close when she does it to avoid the blow-back in a moment.

[sevenvirtues.livejournal.com]

"That sounds... not too complicated," she says, smiling. Not bouncing, not yet. She won't bounce until she has a stargate back home. "So, six symbols for Atlantis, seventh should be somewhere around the gate, dial it up and this..." Holding up the GDO. "Will flag me as a friendly when I come through."

The rambling is cute, but it's the prospect of being able to just push a few buttons and step through a big circle thing and be able to see him whenever she wants, not whenever the nexus wants, that has her all aglow.

[shepcrew.livejournal.com]

"Precisely. And, well, it'll flag you as me until I get it changed. But that's okay! I'll get it changed as soon as I can. Oh, and don't stand too close to the 'Gate once you hit the middle button. The blow-back is...well, it's neat to look at, but deadly. Literally."

He points to the GDO. "All you gotta do for that is hit this sequence," he says, showing her. "Then give it a count of ten, and step through."