New Fic: Dead of Winter

[chaps1870]

Title: Dead of Winter
Author: chaps1870
Pairing: Rodney/John
Rating: G
Word Count: 1000 words, exactly!
Summary: This is for the picfor1000 challenge. Here is the Picture.
Warning: Death of characters…sort of, kinda…Oh hell, just read it!

It was cold, the air so heavy with moisture it seemed to hang there in the white mist of winter.  Pulling the collar of his trench coat closer, Rodney’s footfalls left prints in the pristine layer of new snow that covered the park. It had snowed overnight and everything looked fresh, untouched and ready to start the day anew.

 

Rodney’s breath showed in the chill air, billowing in white puffs as he trudged across the park, aiming for a spot at the crest of the hill.  It was a long walk, but one he made whenever he visited Earth. He’d done it less and less of in the last years.  It was too hard and he wasn’t getting any younger. Something told him this would be his last chance and rather than feeling saddened by that fact, Rodney found it oddly comforting. 

 

He was ready, had been for eight years. His chest felt tight. Carson said they could treat it but truth be told, Rodney was too old to prolong the inevitable.  As much as he didn’t believe in religion or the hereafter, he couldn’t help but hope that perhaps even in his brilliance he had missed something and there was an afterlife. A last chance to be happy again.

 

Holding a hand to his chest, he climbed the first set of stairs, pausing on the first landing to catch his breath. He was tired, no longer the same man he’d been that first time he’d made this trek. Back then, he’d been invulnerable, full of himself. Now he was old, hair as silver as the snow around him, his body frail and worn.

 

Carson had fought hard to keep him in Atlantis this time, but Rodney insisted, a knowing look passing between them.  There were so few of the original expedition left and those that had somehow survived, stayed true to Atlantis, refusing to leave even after their usefulness was gone.  They’d watched friends come and go and they were bound together, had been from the first moment they’d stepped through the gate over forty years ago.

 

Rodney wouldn’t have traded it for the world.  In the final analysis of his life, he could honestly say he’d lived it to the fullest and done all he could do. His only regret was the last eight years that he’d lived alone…so very alone.

 

Then he’d return to this place and it all came rushing back, those idyllic breaks in the sometimes overwhelming moments of death, pain and disappointment. Looking up the final flight of stairs, Rodney’s legs felt heavy.  Spotting the empty planter, he reached out, plopping down heavily as he sucked in air.

 

He sat there, recalling the first time they’d been here. It had been summer then, the green grass and flower-lined walkways a sharp contrast to the heavy snow that now blanketed the landscape. They’d gone on picnic that day. That day they’d declared their commitment with scratch marks in the tree, beginning of a lifetime of happiness for the scientist.

 

The tightness in Rodney’s chest seemed to worsen, his limbs numb and heavy as he tried to rise.  His face clenched against the growing pain. He managed to get to his feet but the world spun wildly, sending him to the ground, unable to rise.  He watched behind a haze of cold and pain as his waning breath sent tiny swirls of snow upward.

 

*********

 

“Get up.”

 

“G’way,” slurred Rodney.

 

A frustrated voice broke through Rodney’s sleepiness. “I’ve been waiting for this for years. Besides you’ll freeze your ass off lying in the snow.”

 

Rodney warily opened his eyes, fearful he’d gone off the deep end once and for all. His breath hitched, hazel eyes and mop of dark hair hurting far more than he thought possible. Blinking to clear away the vision, the apparition remained, smiling goofily. It wasn’t real, couldn’t be. The face too young, the hair too dark, not streaked with the gray Rodney knew should be there.

 

If it wasn’t real, it was a damn good imitation and Rodney sat up, frowning. “I had really hoped to keep all my facilities until my death but it appears senility has set in.” He sneered at the apparition, “And wipe that damn smile off your face you’re creeping me out. The least you can do is make my dementia pleasant.”

 

A hand reached out, gently brushing away damp strands of hair. Rodney inhaled sharply, the warmth and tenderness the touch elicited had him leaning into it, savoring it. He sighed affectionately, “John.”

 

John answered softly, “Yeah, buddy, it’s me.”

 

Rodney’s eyes shot open, looking at John and then down at himself, his mouth agape as he turned his hands over, the translucent withered skin replaced by flesh that still had many years left in it. “Wha…”

 

A hand pulled him to his feet and Rodney smiled, years of aches and pains suddenly gone and he ran his hands over his frame, marveling at it all, “How?”

 

John pulled him close, muttering into his shoulder, his breath warming Rodney’s neck. “Does it matter?”

 

Rodney pulled John into a crushing embrace of his own and he laughed almost hysterically as he shook his head, “No, not at the moment.” He breathed deeply, his eyes closing at John’s scent. A scent he’d been denied for far too long. “I love you.”

 

“I know,” said John, smiling warmly.  They stood that way for several minutes before John pulled back, grinning from ear to ear.  “Come on. We have places to go and things to do.” He tugged on Rodney’s arm, pulling him up the last flight of stairs, leaving behind two sets of tracks.

 

Rodney followed, feigning indignity, “I see you haven’t lost your charm. You do realize this is totally unlikely and it is all going to fade into some nightmarish ending. Nothing this good ever lasts.”

 

John turned and smiled, leaning in for a kiss. He whispered huskily against Rodney’s lips. “This will last forever, Rodney.”

Comments

[forlornhope42.livejournal.com]

Ooooh - death fic, but I don't care, not at all. Because you gave them a happy ending after all - it's beautiful. Forever!

Thank you so much for this! So well done!
Hugs you much
Skein

[chaps1870.livejournal.com]

I can't do hard core deathfic. I'm a sap for a happy ending. :)

Thanks for reading,
Chaps