You Can Never Go Back (PG-13)
Mar. 3rd, 2007 10:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
skidmo_ficIt seems that strange men buying Molson in Safeway are a powerful energy source for my muse. Here is the result:
Title: You Can Never Go Back
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Bates/OFC, implied Bates/Teyla UST
Spoilers: Umm...the Siege? sort of, and Return Pt. 1
Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me...sadly
Feedback: yes, please.
Summary: What happened to Bates after Atlantis?
Warnings: Angst
Author’s Notes: Inspired by my musings on the unfairness of TPTB having left poor Bates in a coma without so much as a line of dialogue to let us know if he came out of it or not. Given a kick-start by the man who was buying Molson today in Safeway.
It had been a long journey home.
Not the trip on the Daedelus, he’d still been in a coma then, so it hadn’t seemed long at all to him. It was after that.
Sheppard had gone to his family to explain to them that he was still alive, just in pretty bad shape. He hadn’t sugar-coated it, which Bates was a little upset about, but he had been as honest as circumstances allowed, which Bates was grateful for. Sheppard had told them that Bates was in an Air Force hospital receiving the best medical help on the planet, and that though they couldn’t visit him, they would be informed the moment he regained consciousness.
He wanted to think it meant something, that this was Sheppard’s way of apologizing for all the times he’d sided with Teyla over Bates. But the officer who had informed him of Sheppard’s actions had told him that Sheppard had done the same for all the families of men and women who had died or disappeared in suspicious circumstances, and whose families had been given the run around by the Air Force when they attempted to find out more.
He hated Sheppard a little bit for that. For being such a good CO, even when he wasn’t sure he’d be reinstated as Atlantis’ military head. He’d desperately wanted a reason to think that Sheppard had shirked his responsibility, that Sumner, a marine, had been a better commander, and Sheppard had stolen that from him.
***
He woke up two months after arriving back on Earth. He opened his eyes and took in the beeping monitors, the IV needle in his hand, the tube down his throat, heard the machine at his bedside pushing air into his lungs. When the doctor arrived, it took him a moment to realize it wasn’t Beckett. It was a few minutes later that it dawned on him that this wasn’t the infirmary. It wasn’t even Atlantis.
The doctor had been friendly enough as he bustled around, quickly explaining that he was in the SGC as he checked Bates’ vitals before removing the tube and spoon feeding Bates a couple ice cubes so he could talk.
The first word out of his mouth was, “Atlantis?”
***
He’d stayed at the SGC for three more weeks, enduring test after test to ensure that the damage inflicted by the rogue Wraith had been repaired.
He had no visitors.
***
They told him that he’d performed his duty to his country with excellence and awarded him the Purple Heart, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Marine Corps Medal of Honor and enough other awards that Bates almost thought they were trying to buy him off. They’d given him three months leave and told him that if he chose to leave the Corps, he would be given the highest recommendations for any avenues he chose to pursue.
***
He went home for a while at first.
His mom had been overwhelmed when he knocked on the door, and he almost thought she was having a heart attack. His little brother had jumped into his arms and hadn’t let go until their mom told him he was suffocating his brother.
He’d used some of his back pay to buy two tickets for half-court seats behind the Lakers bench.
***
He spent a lot of time wandering around his old neighborhood. Not much had changed since he’d been gone, and it shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. The world should have changed so much. He had.
He’d been home for three weeks when he’d walked into the liquor store with a sudden craving for Molson. He’d never even tried it before Atlantis, but they’d mysteriously had a larger allotment of the Canadian brew than any other brand. Bates suspected McKay had thrown a hissy fit until someone gave in. It had taken a lot for Bates to admit to himself that he liked it better than the Coors he was used to.
When a man in the store had asked him if he was Canadian, Bates had just stared at him until he’d gotten uncomfortable and wandered off. Something inside him broke when he put the Molson back in the refrigerated unit and pulled out a six pack of Coors.
***
His original intention had been to spend his entire leave time at home with his family, but he soon found he couldn’t take the inactivity. He was itching to be doing something, anything. So he’d hopped a plane to London, telling himself it was ridiculous that he’d been to another galaxy but never seen Europe.
It wasn’t until he’d taken a train to Glasgow and then another flight to Prague that he realized what he was really doing. When he finally did, he spent the next three days looking up Zelenkas in the phone book. It was amazing what you could do with an entire year’s pay.
***
When he reported for duty at the SGC, they pretended to be honored to have him back. He was assigned to SG-18 and sent off for off-world training. Apparently the protocols were different in the Milky Way.
His team took to him right away. They were all marines, and his CO reminded him a lot of Sumner. He wondered if men like that were better off at the SGC.
He wondered if he was.
***
She reminded him of Teyla.
Looking back now, he realized that this was probably why he’d asked her out in the first place. Same honey colored skin, same wide friendly grin, same sun-lightened hair. People at work were always surprised to hear him talk about Teyla. It seemed that even with the span of two galaxies to cross, rumors traveled. He didn’t have a problem with Teyla, never had. He just had a problem with the fact that she could channel a Wraith consciousness, and no one else had thought it was an issue.
She’d been singing Norah Jones cover songs in a bar in Colorado Springs, and when her set was over, he’d bought her a drink.
***
For the first few weeks, he kept having to remind himself that she wasn’t Teyla.
After that it became obvious.
She wasn’t as strong as Teyla. She couldn’t defend herself. She wouldn’t yell at him when he was being unreasonable. Soon he stopped trying to get her to fight back. Nothing he’d tried had worked.
She wasn’t as understanding as Teyla either. She asked him about work every time they got together, and no matter how many times he told her that it wasn’t just that he didn’t want to talk about it but that he couldn’t, she still had that hurt look in her eyes when he didn’t tell her anything. He started making things up after the third month.
They were together for six months before he yelled Teyla’s name when they were making love.
***
He’d been earthside for a little more than a year when Sheppard walked into the locker room looking like twelve kinds of shit.
Bates watched as he threw his boots into his locker and ripped off his jacket, just barely managing to get his shirt off before giving in to the frustration and punching the wall. He sat on the bench cradling his hand for a few moments, then looked over at Bates.
“Sergeant.”
“Sir.”
They sat in silence for several minutes, Bates watching Sheppard, Sheppard staring at the floor.
“Tell me it gets easier.”
Sheppard raised his head and looked at Bates imploringly. Bates looked away.
“I’ll get you some ice for your hand, sir.”
fin
Title: You Can Never Go Back
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Bates/OFC, implied Bates/Teyla UST
Spoilers: Umm...the Siege? sort of, and Return Pt. 1
Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me...sadly
Feedback: yes, please.
Summary: What happened to Bates after Atlantis?
Warnings: Angst
Author’s Notes: Inspired by my musings on the unfairness of TPTB having left poor Bates in a coma without so much as a line of dialogue to let us know if he came out of it or not. Given a kick-start by the man who was buying Molson today in Safeway.
It had been a long journey home.
Not the trip on the Daedelus, he’d still been in a coma then, so it hadn’t seemed long at all to him. It was after that.
Sheppard had gone to his family to explain to them that he was still alive, just in pretty bad shape. He hadn’t sugar-coated it, which Bates was a little upset about, but he had been as honest as circumstances allowed, which Bates was grateful for. Sheppard had told them that Bates was in an Air Force hospital receiving the best medical help on the planet, and that though they couldn’t visit him, they would be informed the moment he regained consciousness.
He wanted to think it meant something, that this was Sheppard’s way of apologizing for all the times he’d sided with Teyla over Bates. But the officer who had informed him of Sheppard’s actions had told him that Sheppard had done the same for all the families of men and women who had died or disappeared in suspicious circumstances, and whose families had been given the run around by the Air Force when they attempted to find out more.
He hated Sheppard a little bit for that. For being such a good CO, even when he wasn’t sure he’d be reinstated as Atlantis’ military head. He’d desperately wanted a reason to think that Sheppard had shirked his responsibility, that Sumner, a marine, had been a better commander, and Sheppard had stolen that from him.
***
He woke up two months after arriving back on Earth. He opened his eyes and took in the beeping monitors, the IV needle in his hand, the tube down his throat, heard the machine at his bedside pushing air into his lungs. When the doctor arrived, it took him a moment to realize it wasn’t Beckett. It was a few minutes later that it dawned on him that this wasn’t the infirmary. It wasn’t even Atlantis.
The doctor had been friendly enough as he bustled around, quickly explaining that he was in the SGC as he checked Bates’ vitals before removing the tube and spoon feeding Bates a couple ice cubes so he could talk.
The first word out of his mouth was, “Atlantis?”
***
He’d stayed at the SGC for three more weeks, enduring test after test to ensure that the damage inflicted by the rogue Wraith had been repaired.
He had no visitors.
***
They told him that he’d performed his duty to his country with excellence and awarded him the Purple Heart, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Marine Corps Medal of Honor and enough other awards that Bates almost thought they were trying to buy him off. They’d given him three months leave and told him that if he chose to leave the Corps, he would be given the highest recommendations for any avenues he chose to pursue.
***
He went home for a while at first.
His mom had been overwhelmed when he knocked on the door, and he almost thought she was having a heart attack. His little brother had jumped into his arms and hadn’t let go until their mom told him he was suffocating his brother.
He’d used some of his back pay to buy two tickets for half-court seats behind the Lakers bench.
***
He spent a lot of time wandering around his old neighborhood. Not much had changed since he’d been gone, and it shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. The world should have changed so much. He had.
He’d been home for three weeks when he’d walked into the liquor store with a sudden craving for Molson. He’d never even tried it before Atlantis, but they’d mysteriously had a larger allotment of the Canadian brew than any other brand. Bates suspected McKay had thrown a hissy fit until someone gave in. It had taken a lot for Bates to admit to himself that he liked it better than the Coors he was used to.
When a man in the store had asked him if he was Canadian, Bates had just stared at him until he’d gotten uncomfortable and wandered off. Something inside him broke when he put the Molson back in the refrigerated unit and pulled out a six pack of Coors.
***
His original intention had been to spend his entire leave time at home with his family, but he soon found he couldn’t take the inactivity. He was itching to be doing something, anything. So he’d hopped a plane to London, telling himself it was ridiculous that he’d been to another galaxy but never seen Europe.
It wasn’t until he’d taken a train to Glasgow and then another flight to Prague that he realized what he was really doing. When he finally did, he spent the next three days looking up Zelenkas in the phone book. It was amazing what you could do with an entire year’s pay.
***
When he reported for duty at the SGC, they pretended to be honored to have him back. He was assigned to SG-18 and sent off for off-world training. Apparently the protocols were different in the Milky Way.
His team took to him right away. They were all marines, and his CO reminded him a lot of Sumner. He wondered if men like that were better off at the SGC.
He wondered if he was.
***
She reminded him of Teyla.
Looking back now, he realized that this was probably why he’d asked her out in the first place. Same honey colored skin, same wide friendly grin, same sun-lightened hair. People at work were always surprised to hear him talk about Teyla. It seemed that even with the span of two galaxies to cross, rumors traveled. He didn’t have a problem with Teyla, never had. He just had a problem with the fact that she could channel a Wraith consciousness, and no one else had thought it was an issue.
She’d been singing Norah Jones cover songs in a bar in Colorado Springs, and when her set was over, he’d bought her a drink.
***
For the first few weeks, he kept having to remind himself that she wasn’t Teyla.
After that it became obvious.
She wasn’t as strong as Teyla. She couldn’t defend herself. She wouldn’t yell at him when he was being unreasonable. Soon he stopped trying to get her to fight back. Nothing he’d tried had worked.
She wasn’t as understanding as Teyla either. She asked him about work every time they got together, and no matter how many times he told her that it wasn’t just that he didn’t want to talk about it but that he couldn’t, she still had that hurt look in her eyes when he didn’t tell her anything. He started making things up after the third month.
They were together for six months before he yelled Teyla’s name when they were making love.
***
He’d been earthside for a little more than a year when Sheppard walked into the locker room looking like twelve kinds of shit.
Bates watched as he threw his boots into his locker and ripped off his jacket, just barely managing to get his shirt off before giving in to the frustration and punching the wall. He sat on the bench cradling his hand for a few moments, then looked over at Bates.
“Sergeant.”
“Sir.”
They sat in silence for several minutes, Bates watching Sheppard, Sheppard staring at the floor.
“Tell me it gets easier.”
Sheppard raised his head and looked at Bates imploringly. Bates looked away.
“I’ll get you some ice for your hand, sir.”
fin
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 10:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 12:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 03:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 06:08 pm (UTC)I really felt for Bates here. (I'm still miffed that they kicked him out after s1.)
no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:32 pm (UTC)Yes, as much as I adore Lorne, I do really miss the dynamic Bates added to the mix.
no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 06:11 pm (UTC)He didn’t have a problem with Teyla, never had. He just had a problem with the fact that she could channel a Wraith consciousness, and no one else had thought it was an issue.
Because, hello, YES! I adore Teyla, but the fact is that he had every reason to be concerned. He didn't necessarily express it very well, but he was trying to do his job, and it wasn't fair of John to be so hard on him for it.
I've wondered why he never went back--was it that he didn't feel comfortable, or that the SGC didn't want him there? Sadly, I know that the real answer is that they probably couldn't get him back after the hiatus, but fic like this makes me feel better about that.
no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 07:40 pm (UTC)I think the best reasoning I could come up with for him not going back is that he was still in the coma, so he missed the first wave of personnel, and then he sort of got forgotten. And they didn't quite know what to do with him when he'd been essentially 2IC on Atlantis for a year, but he was still just a non-commissioned officer, so they shunted him off to a random SG team and hoped he wouldn't make a fuss.
Then again, I have a tendency to be a bit cynical :).
no subject
Date: 2007-03-04 09:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-05 01:28 am (UTC)I think it's a combination of pride and the fact that he's extremely duty-oriented, and if he's not ordered to go back, he won't question those orders.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-21 03:52 am (UTC)I've always been disappointed in the lack of any acknowledgment regarding Bates fate, and have this secret theory that he spent a year fighting his way back to "medically fit" and managed to swing a transfer back to Atlantis, but I know it's unrealistic. I miss him, though, and you've done a wonderful job of demonstrating just why I like him ^_^
no subject
Date: 2007-04-21 07:25 am (UTC)secret theory that he spent a year fighting his way back to "medically fit" and managed to swing a transfer back to Atlantis
*sigh* If only.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-22 03:06 am (UTC)(Waves her "Amnesty Atlantis" flag quietly in the background. Because characters who vanish deserve a voice.)
no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 08:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 09:37 pm (UTC)Thanks for reading!
no subject
Date: 2007-04-30 10:17 pm (UTC):D
no subject
Date: 2007-12-19 01:15 am (UTC)