FIC: Exposed (3/4) [Stargate: Atlantis]
Apr. 26th, 2007 12:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
darktrent182Return to Part Two
* * * * *
"It's all right." Carson shook his head again. "Now, where was I?"
"You were thinking that one of the midwives had discovered your wings?" Radek prompted gently.
"Aye, that's right." Carson nodded. "So, after a bit more grilling from the head midwife, I'm allowed to go. There were a few kids running a temperature that I checked on -- it kept me up long after Colonel Sheppard and the others went to bed -- and then the priest of the camp pulls me out of the tent I'm in, and declares that I'm an ashinlu, a holy messenger from their god."
Radek frowned. "Co?"
Carson blinked at him for a moment before shrugging. "I thought it would've been cause for celebration, but the Harandans didn't look that happy with me at the moment. One of them grabs the back of my shirt, rips it off, rips off the bandages, and there they are, for all the world to see."
"They started talking about how I was ashamed of what I am, because I hid my wings from them, and..." He shook his head. "I tried to fight back, but I didn't want to hurt these people. I've done enough of that accidentally ever since we got to the Pegasus Galaxy. I didn't want to start doing it intentionally."
Radek nodded. He remembered a few nights when Rodney had shown up at his quarters, eyes red, breath smelling of bad Canadian beer.
"Well, that certainly didn't make them happy. I screamed bloody murder when they started dragging me away, hoping that the Colonel would hear me. And when they started talking about how I had to have the things that I hated so much removed from me, I really panicked."
Carson shifted uncomfortably where he sat, wincing a little as he picked up his beer again. He didn't drink from it, but just sort of held it in one hand as he stared at the nearly-finished chess game.
"They were going to cut off my wings, and then offer me as a ritual sacrifice to their god, in order to free my soul from its evil."
Radek took a swig of his own beer, not sure what to say.
"It was like a nightmare coming to pass," Carson murmured. "And I think what made it worse was when the Colonel and the others found us in the clearing. They'd already chained me to the camp's pillory--" At Radek's curious look, Carson grimaced. "Apparently, if someone does something truly bad, their idea of capital punishment is the Harandans chain them up to this sort of whipping post to let them starve, and when the Wraith come to cull the planet, they're the first one snatched up."
Radek grimaced. "It sounds... effective."
Carson nodded. "Oh, aye, they hadn't had any murders in decades."
"So..." Radek prodded tentatively. "When the others found you?"
Carson grimaced. "There I was, nearly shirtless, and then the others show up, full combat-mode and everything. Colonel Sheppard demands to know what the hell is going on, and after some back and forth with the priest, he shoots the lock off, and we start running."
Radek frowned curiously. "Rodney told me that he had to help carry you through the gate...."
"Aye, he and Colonel Sheppard did." Carson ducked his head, clearing his throat. "The natives had started ripping out feathers, and I could barely stand, let alone move. The pain was just that bad." He shuddered, hunching forward a little as he arched his shoulderblades. "I've gotten into a few tussles when I was a lad, but no one had ever yanked out the down feathers before."
"I'm sorry." Radek murmured.
Carson shook his head. "You've nothing to be sorry for. You didn't rip them out." He managed a teasing smile before it slipped away.
Radek licked his lips, took a sip of his beer. "Did you have your wings removed?"
Carson arched an eyebrow, smiling wryly. "You've read my file, Radek," he rebuked gently.
"Ano, I have," Radek nodded, not willing to lie when Carson already suspected. "But... if you have these wings, and you keep them hidden all of the time, why have them?"
Carson breathed in slowly, his expression thoughtful. "When they first started growing in... I was angry. I was angry at a lot of things, really, but this just made me different. A freak of nature." He shook his head slowly. "I'd never heard of anyone in the family having wings, and I just felt very alone."
"And now?" Radek asked.
"Now..." Carson's voice trailed off for a moment. "I have friends. I still have Mum back home."
"What happened with Lt. Cadman?" Radek frowned curiously.
Carson half-smiled. "A few nice dates, but nothing further. She was very sweet, but I wasn't kidding about having our first kiss through Rodney."
"And you not wanting to show her your wings had nothing to do ith it," Radek said flatly, looking skeptical.
"Oh, I'll admit that," Carson snorted, taking another sip of his beer and realizing it was empty, reached for another bottle. "It was just one more reason, really, not to get too close."
"Have you ever shown anyone before?" Radek asked, sipping the last of his beer and taking another bottle himself.
Carson chuckled dryly. "Aye. Mum saw them first one day when I came home from getting the tar kicked out of me by some lads at school. Of course, she started crying, hugging me and calling me her little angel." He smiled a little. "It was rather embarrassing."
"Ano, I can imagine," Radek smiled back. "So, you've never... with someone you were..." He paused, frowning. "Intimate?"
Carson nodded. "Aye, intimate."
Radek shot him a curious look, his eyebrows rose in a polite question as he pushed his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose.
Carson sighed heavily, opening his beer and taking a sip. "I was... seventeen, I think? And she was very pretty. We were dating for a while, and we had decided to go out for a drive somewhere. She ended up taking off my shirt, and fretting when she saw the bandages. I explained about them, and she didn't believe me at first."
"But you showed her."
Carson nodded. "She... she got very quiet, and I ended up taking her home, asking her not to tell anyone." He took a longer drink from his bottle. "She broke up with me a week later. Said that she couldn't handle it, and I couldn't blame her, really. I'd been bashing them against all sorts of things when they started growing in, and they're really not much to look at, now."
Radek watched him shift his back gingerly, wincing a little. After a long moment of watching Carson trying to get comfortable, he found himself speaking up. "Carson?"
"Hmm?" Carson's thick eyebrows lifted in a polite question.
"We've flirted in the past, since we were stationed in Antarctica, ano?" Radek asked, knowing what the answer would be, but wanting to hear it out loud.
"Aye," Carson nodded before he frowned, looking worried. "Oh, bugger. Radek, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to lead you on or anything--"
"You didn't." Radek shook his head, raising a hand to cut him off. "Now, if you did not have the wings, would the flirting have led somewhere?"
Carson sat back, looking genuinely surprised. "I... I don't know, to tell the truth. I've never really thought about it before."
"Obviously," Radek tempered the remark with a smile. "You still have a question to answer."
"I... well, I guess so," Carson shrugged, sounding a bit surprised at himself. "But it's a moot point now, isn't it?"
"How is it moot?" Radek asked curiously.
Carson blinked. "I'm sorry?"
"How," Radek began, sliding the chessboard to one side, out of the direct line of fire, "is the point moot?" He set aside his beer bottle, and soon, they were nearly nose to nose.
"What about Rodney?" Carson asked quickly, leaning back and jumping a little when he came into contact with a dresser.
"He is not here," Radek murmured.
"I thought you two were dating," Carson squeaked.
"There is a difference between dating and having sex," Radek remarked, feeling like this was rather obvious.
"I'm not looking for pity." One of Carson's hands planted itself on the middle of Radek's chest, the muscles tensing.
"And I am not giving it," Radek whispered. Undeterred by the hand on his chest, he leaned in closer, his breath brushing against Carson's lips.
Carson's eyes started to slip closed. "Radek..."
"Shhh." A light kiss to the tip of Carson's nose. "No more talking."
Carson growled, leaning up and forward, and Radek was being kissed, hard. Carson's left hand came up, cradling his cheek, and then sliding into his unkempt hair, fingers tangling in it. It was more like Carson was eating him alive, his tongue thrusting inside his mouth, his hands keeping Radek from moving in too closely or straying too far away. Radek reached up to grab the hand still planted on his chest, but then Carson's arm tensed, the other hand slipping away from his hair, and he was being pushed away firmly but gently.
Blue eyes looked up at him wistfully. "No."
Radek frowned. "You don't have to be alone."
"Maybe not, but..." Carson shook his head. "Not like this."
"Then how?" Radek asked without hesitation.
Carson blinked, looking surprised. "Persistent little bugger, aren't you?"
Radek snorted. "You have obviously not seen me in the labs."
Carson snorted, a smile tugging unwillingly at his lips. "True."
Radek nodded, pursing his lips as an idea came to him. It was a gamble, but he was willing to risk it. Especially if it worked as well as he was hoping. "It has been a long night, and I should get back to my quarters."
Carson nodded, the happily dazed look disappearing from his eyes. "All right. Are you going to be taking back your chessboard, or are you leaving it here again?"
"I will leave it here," Radek replied, standing up. Dusting off his pants, he offered Carson a hand up, which he accepted with a grateful look. When they were both standing, Radek said, "Before I go, I have two things to say."
"Oh?" Carson's eyebrows rose.
"One, Rodney and I both care about you, and we want you to be happy," Radek said simply, because it was the truth. "Also, we both wouldn't mind having wild sex with you that wakes everyone in Atlantis."
Carson blinked, and Radek hid a smile when he saw two spots of red appear on his cheeks. "And the second?"
Radek glanced at the chessboard, which was still sitting on the floor, and looked back at him. "It is your move."
Smiling and not waiting for an answer, Radek turned and headed for the door, tossing out a "Good night!" over his shoulder before leaving.
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Twelfth Day, 3 YOE. 23:06:18 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: This might interest you
The repairs to the broken conduit on Level 2, Section 5 have been completed. It was a matter of routine maintenance... meaning none had been done in 10,000 years. Consider the problem solved.
Also, I kissed Carson. I quite liked it, actually.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:03:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
There's a conduit on Level 4, Section 1 that needs attention.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:04:22 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
> Also, I kissed Carson. I quite liked it, actually.
Wait, what?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:08:33 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Well, it is not as if our arrangement has been an exclusive one. We played chess, we talked. We kissed. It was nice.
...and while I attend to that conduit, you can handle the loose coupling on the South Pier. I believe you will find it is about 1000 meters out?
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:08:57 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
The South Pier isn't even 1,000 metres long, you idiot.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:09:04 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Exactly.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:11:23 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
You are such an ass sometimes. I don't see how people keep thinking you're the innocent one.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:12:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Because I am also the cute one. Oh, and Carson might be joining us for dinner in the near future.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:15:18 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
... you're trying to get my hopes up as revenge, aren't you? He hasn't spoken to me since *you* started hacking his medical file, and *I* finished the job.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:19:35 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Because you finished the job. And, ne, this time I am not joking. We talked, dealt with some issues. At one point, I invited him to join us for dinner.
...and possibly sex.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:19:59 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
You did *not*.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:20:04 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
I did.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:21:19 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
.... how did you do it?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:24:30 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
He was lonely--understandable, given the issues he has faced. I was simply trying to reassure him he was not necessarily condemned to a life where no one would accept his condition... and one thing led to another.
Hence the kiss. And my offer.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:28:11 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Okay, wait, you tell him that it's possible for him to have sex with someone who won't freak out about the wings, and all you did was *kiss*? What do they *teach* you in the Soviet bloc?
Issues? What issues?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:33:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Believe me, how to have - or not have - sex with another male who possesses wings was not covered in the propaganda.
And I believe you would have to speak with Carson concerning those issues. It is his story to tell. Suffice to say, he has met some... opposition over the wings before.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:36:21 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
They were kind of creepy when I saw them the first time.
Also, why is it that I get yelled at and treated with an incredible amount of Scottish scorn, and you get kissed? It baffles me to no end.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:37:02 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
If I told you, then I would have no secrets left.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:39:16 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
I'm certain you'd find a way. So... dinner? Seriously?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:40:51 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Seriously. Come to my room tonight. We need a plan.
-Z
* * * * *
Part Four
* * * * *
"It's all right." Carson shook his head again. "Now, where was I?"
"You were thinking that one of the midwives had discovered your wings?" Radek prompted gently.
"Aye, that's right." Carson nodded. "So, after a bit more grilling from the head midwife, I'm allowed to go. There were a few kids running a temperature that I checked on -- it kept me up long after Colonel Sheppard and the others went to bed -- and then the priest of the camp pulls me out of the tent I'm in, and declares that I'm an ashinlu, a holy messenger from their god."
Radek frowned. "Co?"
Carson blinked at him for a moment before shrugging. "I thought it would've been cause for celebration, but the Harandans didn't look that happy with me at the moment. One of them grabs the back of my shirt, rips it off, rips off the bandages, and there they are, for all the world to see."
"They started talking about how I was ashamed of what I am, because I hid my wings from them, and..." He shook his head. "I tried to fight back, but I didn't want to hurt these people. I've done enough of that accidentally ever since we got to the Pegasus Galaxy. I didn't want to start doing it intentionally."
Radek nodded. He remembered a few nights when Rodney had shown up at his quarters, eyes red, breath smelling of bad Canadian beer.
"Well, that certainly didn't make them happy. I screamed bloody murder when they started dragging me away, hoping that the Colonel would hear me. And when they started talking about how I had to have the things that I hated so much removed from me, I really panicked."
Carson shifted uncomfortably where he sat, wincing a little as he picked up his beer again. He didn't drink from it, but just sort of held it in one hand as he stared at the nearly-finished chess game.
"They were going to cut off my wings, and then offer me as a ritual sacrifice to their god, in order to free my soul from its evil."
Radek took a swig of his own beer, not sure what to say.
"It was like a nightmare coming to pass," Carson murmured. "And I think what made it worse was when the Colonel and the others found us in the clearing. They'd already chained me to the camp's pillory--" At Radek's curious look, Carson grimaced. "Apparently, if someone does something truly bad, their idea of capital punishment is the Harandans chain them up to this sort of whipping post to let them starve, and when the Wraith come to cull the planet, they're the first one snatched up."
Radek grimaced. "It sounds... effective."
Carson nodded. "Oh, aye, they hadn't had any murders in decades."
"So..." Radek prodded tentatively. "When the others found you?"
Carson grimaced. "There I was, nearly shirtless, and then the others show up, full combat-mode and everything. Colonel Sheppard demands to know what the hell is going on, and after some back and forth with the priest, he shoots the lock off, and we start running."
Radek frowned curiously. "Rodney told me that he had to help carry you through the gate...."
"Aye, he and Colonel Sheppard did." Carson ducked his head, clearing his throat. "The natives had started ripping out feathers, and I could barely stand, let alone move. The pain was just that bad." He shuddered, hunching forward a little as he arched his shoulderblades. "I've gotten into a few tussles when I was a lad, but no one had ever yanked out the down feathers before."
"I'm sorry." Radek murmured.
Carson shook his head. "You've nothing to be sorry for. You didn't rip them out." He managed a teasing smile before it slipped away.
Radek licked his lips, took a sip of his beer. "Did you have your wings removed?"
Carson arched an eyebrow, smiling wryly. "You've read my file, Radek," he rebuked gently.
"Ano, I have," Radek nodded, not willing to lie when Carson already suspected. "But... if you have these wings, and you keep them hidden all of the time, why have them?"
Carson breathed in slowly, his expression thoughtful. "When they first started growing in... I was angry. I was angry at a lot of things, really, but this just made me different. A freak of nature." He shook his head slowly. "I'd never heard of anyone in the family having wings, and I just felt very alone."
"And now?" Radek asked.
"Now..." Carson's voice trailed off for a moment. "I have friends. I still have Mum back home."
"What happened with Lt. Cadman?" Radek frowned curiously.
Carson half-smiled. "A few nice dates, but nothing further. She was very sweet, but I wasn't kidding about having our first kiss through Rodney."
"And you not wanting to show her your wings had nothing to do ith it," Radek said flatly, looking skeptical.
"Oh, I'll admit that," Carson snorted, taking another sip of his beer and realizing it was empty, reached for another bottle. "It was just one more reason, really, not to get too close."
"Have you ever shown anyone before?" Radek asked, sipping the last of his beer and taking another bottle himself.
Carson chuckled dryly. "Aye. Mum saw them first one day when I came home from getting the tar kicked out of me by some lads at school. Of course, she started crying, hugging me and calling me her little angel." He smiled a little. "It was rather embarrassing."
"Ano, I can imagine," Radek smiled back. "So, you've never... with someone you were..." He paused, frowning. "Intimate?"
Carson nodded. "Aye, intimate."
Radek shot him a curious look, his eyebrows rose in a polite question as he pushed his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose.
Carson sighed heavily, opening his beer and taking a sip. "I was... seventeen, I think? And she was very pretty. We were dating for a while, and we had decided to go out for a drive somewhere. She ended up taking off my shirt, and fretting when she saw the bandages. I explained about them, and she didn't believe me at first."
"But you showed her."
Carson nodded. "She... she got very quiet, and I ended up taking her home, asking her not to tell anyone." He took a longer drink from his bottle. "She broke up with me a week later. Said that she couldn't handle it, and I couldn't blame her, really. I'd been bashing them against all sorts of things when they started growing in, and they're really not much to look at, now."
Radek watched him shift his back gingerly, wincing a little. After a long moment of watching Carson trying to get comfortable, he found himself speaking up. "Carson?"
"Hmm?" Carson's thick eyebrows lifted in a polite question.
"We've flirted in the past, since we were stationed in Antarctica, ano?" Radek asked, knowing what the answer would be, but wanting to hear it out loud.
"Aye," Carson nodded before he frowned, looking worried. "Oh, bugger. Radek, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to lead you on or anything--"
"You didn't." Radek shook his head, raising a hand to cut him off. "Now, if you did not have the wings, would the flirting have led somewhere?"
Carson sat back, looking genuinely surprised. "I... I don't know, to tell the truth. I've never really thought about it before."
"Obviously," Radek tempered the remark with a smile. "You still have a question to answer."
"I... well, I guess so," Carson shrugged, sounding a bit surprised at himself. "But it's a moot point now, isn't it?"
"How is it moot?" Radek asked curiously.
Carson blinked. "I'm sorry?"
"How," Radek began, sliding the chessboard to one side, out of the direct line of fire, "is the point moot?" He set aside his beer bottle, and soon, they were nearly nose to nose.
"What about Rodney?" Carson asked quickly, leaning back and jumping a little when he came into contact with a dresser.
"He is not here," Radek murmured.
"I thought you two were dating," Carson squeaked.
"There is a difference between dating and having sex," Radek remarked, feeling like this was rather obvious.
"I'm not looking for pity." One of Carson's hands planted itself on the middle of Radek's chest, the muscles tensing.
"And I am not giving it," Radek whispered. Undeterred by the hand on his chest, he leaned in closer, his breath brushing against Carson's lips.
Carson's eyes started to slip closed. "Radek..."
"Shhh." A light kiss to the tip of Carson's nose. "No more talking."
Carson growled, leaning up and forward, and Radek was being kissed, hard. Carson's left hand came up, cradling his cheek, and then sliding into his unkempt hair, fingers tangling in it. It was more like Carson was eating him alive, his tongue thrusting inside his mouth, his hands keeping Radek from moving in too closely or straying too far away. Radek reached up to grab the hand still planted on his chest, but then Carson's arm tensed, the other hand slipping away from his hair, and he was being pushed away firmly but gently.
Blue eyes looked up at him wistfully. "No."
Radek frowned. "You don't have to be alone."
"Maybe not, but..." Carson shook his head. "Not like this."
"Then how?" Radek asked without hesitation.
Carson blinked, looking surprised. "Persistent little bugger, aren't you?"
Radek snorted. "You have obviously not seen me in the labs."
Carson snorted, a smile tugging unwillingly at his lips. "True."
Radek nodded, pursing his lips as an idea came to him. It was a gamble, but he was willing to risk it. Especially if it worked as well as he was hoping. "It has been a long night, and I should get back to my quarters."
Carson nodded, the happily dazed look disappearing from his eyes. "All right. Are you going to be taking back your chessboard, or are you leaving it here again?"
"I will leave it here," Radek replied, standing up. Dusting off his pants, he offered Carson a hand up, which he accepted with a grateful look. When they were both standing, Radek said, "Before I go, I have two things to say."
"Oh?" Carson's eyebrows rose.
"One, Rodney and I both care about you, and we want you to be happy," Radek said simply, because it was the truth. "Also, we both wouldn't mind having wild sex with you that wakes everyone in Atlantis."
Carson blinked, and Radek hid a smile when he saw two spots of red appear on his cheeks. "And the second?"
Radek glanced at the chessboard, which was still sitting on the floor, and looked back at him. "It is your move."
Smiling and not waiting for an answer, Radek turned and headed for the door, tossing out a "Good night!" over his shoulder before leaving.
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Twelfth Day, 3 YOE. 23:06:18 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: This might interest you
The repairs to the broken conduit on Level 2, Section 5 have been completed. It was a matter of routine maintenance... meaning none had been done in 10,000 years. Consider the problem solved.
Also, I kissed Carson. I quite liked it, actually.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:03:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
There's a conduit on Level 4, Section 1 that needs attention.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:04:22 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
> Also, I kissed Carson. I quite liked it, actually.
Wait, what?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:08:33 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Well, it is not as if our arrangement has been an exclusive one. We played chess, we talked. We kissed. It was nice.
...and while I attend to that conduit, you can handle the loose coupling on the South Pier. I believe you will find it is about 1000 meters out?
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:08:57 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
The South Pier isn't even 1,000 metres long, you idiot.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:09:04 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Exactly.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:11:23 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
You are such an ass sometimes. I don't see how people keep thinking you're the innocent one.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:12:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Because I am also the cute one. Oh, and Carson might be joining us for dinner in the near future.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:15:18 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
... you're trying to get my hopes up as revenge, aren't you? He hasn't spoken to me since *you* started hacking his medical file, and *I* finished the job.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:19:35 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Because you finished the job. And, ne, this time I am not joking. We talked, dealt with some issues. At one point, I invited him to join us for dinner.
...and possibly sex.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:19:59 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
You did *not*.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:20:04 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
I did.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:21:19 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
.... how did you do it?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:24:30 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
He was lonely--understandable, given the issues he has faced. I was simply trying to reassure him he was not necessarily condemned to a life where no one would accept his condition... and one thing led to another.
Hence the kiss. And my offer.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:28:11 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Okay, wait, you tell him that it's possible for him to have sex with someone who won't freak out about the wings, and all you did was *kiss*? What do they *teach* you in the Soviet bloc?
Issues? What issues?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:33:47 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Believe me, how to have - or not have - sex with another male who possesses wings was not covered in the propaganda.
And I believe you would have to speak with Carson concerning those issues. It is his story to tell. Suffice to say, he has met some... opposition over the wings before.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:36:21 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
They were kind of creepy when I saw them the first time.
Also, why is it that I get yelled at and treated with an incredible amount of Scottish scorn, and you get kissed? It baffles me to no end.
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:37:02 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
If I told you, then I would have no secrets left.
-Z
* * * * *
From: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
To: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:39:16 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
I'm certain you'd find a way. So... dinner? Seriously?
-Rodney McKay
"I can kill you with my brain, and I'm not afraid to do it."
* * * * *
From: radek.zelenka@atlantis.net
To: rodney.mckay@atlantis.net
Time: Seventh Month, Thirteenth Day, 3 YOE. 00:40:51 Atlantean Standard.
Subject: Re: This might interest you
Seriously. Come to my room tonight. We need a plan.
-Z
* * * * *
Part Four
