Fic: Phoning Colonel Sheppard
Jul. 12th, 2007 12:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quasar273Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Title: Phoning Colonel Sheppard
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard preslash
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~860
Spoilers: up to and including "Sunday"
Warnings: language
Summary: Reconciling with his father causes other worries for Sheppard. Epilogue to Paging Colonel Sheppard
Author's Notes: Okay, too many people asked for a sequel, and it was past my bedtime (prime low-judgment writing time) and this just came to me. It isn't a proper sequel, just a vignette or epilogue, with inspiration from my own last conversation with my father a week before his death.
Phoning Colonel Sheppard
"Hello?"
"Hi, Dad."
"John?"
"Yeah."
"I thought you were --"
"I was. I'm back on -- back in town, so I thought I should give you a call. I'm, uh, sorry I couldn't call before I left, but there was only a couple hours' warning, and that was taken up with, um, packing and planning our itinerary and all that."
"Yes, I got your email."
"I'm sorry about the plans for the holiday --"
"It's okay, John. I've been there myself -- well, not there, but in similar situations. And General O'Neill stopped by a couple weeks later and gave me the whole story."
"Oh, he did? I didn't know that."
"It was nice, since he could tell me more in person than by phone or email. He seems like a decent guy. Likes you a little better than your CO -- was it Landry?"
"Yeah, that's him."
"So how long are you, uh, in town? I take it you're in Colorado?"
"Yeah, but I'm only around for a couple of days."
"Really? Is that even worth it, for the travel time?"
"We took a faster route this time. We can afford it. This is for a funeral."
"Oh. It's not . . . is it your friend Dr. McKay?"
"No. No, but it's almost as bad. Carson, Dr. Carson Beckett? I think you met him that day at the mountain."
"Briefly, yes. Friendly fellow. Scottish?"
"Yeah, the funeral will be in Scotland. It was . . . just a stupid accident, a fluke. It's hard to believe, with all the a-- foreigners trying to kill us, that he could survive all that for three years and then . . . just a fucking accident."
"Three years is a long time to buck the odds, son. It catches up eventually."
"Yeah. Right. That's . . . sort of why I'm calling. You know, it could have been any one of us. Could have been me. And if, um, if I don't come back sometime --"
"John."
"No, I'm sorry, I have to say this. I need you to know that, um . . . well, I'm really glad we talked, last fall. I know we're never going to see eye to eye on some things . . ."
"No. We aren't."
"Right. But at least we talked. And you know what's going on with me, and all that. So, I'm just glad about that, and if, um, if I don't --"
"I know, John. I know."
"If we hadn't bumped into each other by accident, I really was planning to get in touch with you again."
"Of course."
"Soon as I made general, I was going to show up on your doorstep. In uniform."
"General? How long were you expecting me to wait for this?"
"Okay, maybe just full bird colonel."
"That, maybe in my lifetime. Look, John . . . I'm not much good at this talking thing either."
"I come by it honestly, huh?"
"But I've been on your side of it, saying goodbye and going away. And what you need to know is that I . . . look, I'm sorry, okay? I've messed up a lot of things in my life, but messing up with you is the one I regretted the most. I really was trying to do what I thought was best."
"Yeah, I figured that out, eventually. We sort of disagreed on --"
"Everything."
"On how to get there, but we're just trying to, um, to make it through somehow. I got that part, even if we do still disagree."
"All right. Good. I just don't want -- if you're out there and things get rough, I don't want you to doubt that you'll always have something to come back to. You got that?"
"Yeah, roger. Thanks, Dad."
"Has it been rough? Well, obviously, given why you're back . . ."
"It's . . . sort of alternately cool and terrifying. You know how it is, a different crisis every week, always on my toes."
"How is Dr. McKay?"
"He's, uh, pretty torn up about Carson. And he's had some close calls of his own. Just a couple weeks ago, actually. His heart even stopped. I thought that was it."
"But you got him back?"
"Yeah. Well, Carson got him back. I never really understood why people always seemed pissed at me whenever I woke up in the infirmary, you know? Until then. I wanted to strangle him."
"Heh. I can sympathize with that feeling."
"Okay, listen, my, uh, taxi's leaving in just a couple of minutes. I need to get off the phone. I just wanted you to know . . ."
"I know."
"Well, good."
"I'll talk to you later, John. Phone or email, whatever you can manage. Just get through this funeral, get drunk, and then get back to work."
"That's pretty much what I had planned."
"Say hello to Dr. McKay for me."
"Sure, I will."
"Give him a punch in the eye for old time's sake."
"A punch -- wait, that was you? Dad? Yes, Rodney, I'm on my way! Dad? Did you just hang up on me? Dad?"
Title: Phoning Colonel Sheppard
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard preslash
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~860
Spoilers: up to and including "Sunday"
Warnings: language
Summary: Reconciling with his father causes other worries for Sheppard. Epilogue to Paging Colonel Sheppard
Author's Notes: Okay, too many people asked for a sequel, and it was past my bedtime (prime low-judgment writing time) and this just came to me. It isn't a proper sequel, just a vignette or epilogue, with inspiration from my own last conversation with my father a week before his death.
Phoning Colonel Sheppard
"Hello?"
"Hi, Dad."
"John?"
"Yeah."
"I thought you were --"
"I was. I'm back on -- back in town, so I thought I should give you a call. I'm, uh, sorry I couldn't call before I left, but there was only a couple hours' warning, and that was taken up with, um, packing and planning our itinerary and all that."
"Yes, I got your email."
"I'm sorry about the plans for the holiday --"
"It's okay, John. I've been there myself -- well, not there, but in similar situations. And General O'Neill stopped by a couple weeks later and gave me the whole story."
"Oh, he did? I didn't know that."
"It was nice, since he could tell me more in person than by phone or email. He seems like a decent guy. Likes you a little better than your CO -- was it Landry?"
"Yeah, that's him."
"So how long are you, uh, in town? I take it you're in Colorado?"
"Yeah, but I'm only around for a couple of days."
"Really? Is that even worth it, for the travel time?"
"We took a faster route this time. We can afford it. This is for a funeral."
"Oh. It's not . . . is it your friend Dr. McKay?"
"No. No, but it's almost as bad. Carson, Dr. Carson Beckett? I think you met him that day at the mountain."
"Briefly, yes. Friendly fellow. Scottish?"
"Yeah, the funeral will be in Scotland. It was . . . just a stupid accident, a fluke. It's hard to believe, with all the a-- foreigners trying to kill us, that he could survive all that for three years and then . . . just a fucking accident."
"Three years is a long time to buck the odds, son. It catches up eventually."
"Yeah. Right. That's . . . sort of why I'm calling. You know, it could have been any one of us. Could have been me. And if, um, if I don't come back sometime --"
"John."
"No, I'm sorry, I have to say this. I need you to know that, um . . . well, I'm really glad we talked, last fall. I know we're never going to see eye to eye on some things . . ."
"No. We aren't."
"Right. But at least we talked. And you know what's going on with me, and all that. So, I'm just glad about that, and if, um, if I don't --"
"I know, John. I know."
"If we hadn't bumped into each other by accident, I really was planning to get in touch with you again."
"Of course."
"Soon as I made general, I was going to show up on your doorstep. In uniform."
"General? How long were you expecting me to wait for this?"
"Okay, maybe just full bird colonel."
"That, maybe in my lifetime. Look, John . . . I'm not much good at this talking thing either."
"I come by it honestly, huh?"
"But I've been on your side of it, saying goodbye and going away. And what you need to know is that I . . . look, I'm sorry, okay? I've messed up a lot of things in my life, but messing up with you is the one I regretted the most. I really was trying to do what I thought was best."
"Yeah, I figured that out, eventually. We sort of disagreed on --"
"Everything."
"On how to get there, but we're just trying to, um, to make it through somehow. I got that part, even if we do still disagree."
"All right. Good. I just don't want -- if you're out there and things get rough, I don't want you to doubt that you'll always have something to come back to. You got that?"
"Yeah, roger. Thanks, Dad."
"Has it been rough? Well, obviously, given why you're back . . ."
"It's . . . sort of alternately cool and terrifying. You know how it is, a different crisis every week, always on my toes."
"How is Dr. McKay?"
"He's, uh, pretty torn up about Carson. And he's had some close calls of his own. Just a couple weeks ago, actually. His heart even stopped. I thought that was it."
"But you got him back?"
"Yeah. Well, Carson got him back. I never really understood why people always seemed pissed at me whenever I woke up in the infirmary, you know? Until then. I wanted to strangle him."
"Heh. I can sympathize with that feeling."
"Okay, listen, my, uh, taxi's leaving in just a couple of minutes. I need to get off the phone. I just wanted you to know . . ."
"I know."
"Well, good."
"I'll talk to you later, John. Phone or email, whatever you can manage. Just get through this funeral, get drunk, and then get back to work."
"That's pretty much what I had planned."
"Say hello to Dr. McKay for me."
"Sure, I will."
"Give him a punch in the eye for old time's sake."
"A punch -- wait, that was you? Dad? Yes, Rodney, I'm on my way! Dad? Did you just hang up on me? Dad?"
